buffetking

If you're willing and able to pay more, you should get more. Like everything else, a cruise vacation has evolved. Cruise lines view most activities as profit centers now, with few activities included with the cruise fare. Witness the arrival of RCL's "Dynamic Dining."

MDR eliminated in favor of many speciality restaurants. They will be free at first, but I'm sure RCL will begin to charge for the popular ones. In the future, food will no longer be included in cruise fare. Other cruise lines will follow. My point? Cruise lines have to remain competitive and profitable. Create value added products, like a luxury cabin, exclusive dining and clubs, etc, and hope people are willing to pay extra for the experience.

Problem will be when folks do pay more and get a vacation and services not in line their expectations. Like a previous poster pointed out...there is only so many staff on the ship. On past cruises, I recognize staff serving breakfast and lunch, serving me dinner in the specialty restaurant later that night. Not to say they cannot do a good job, but they get stretched pretty thin. No matter what cabin you choose, we all get the same basic cruise, and a modern beautiful ship.

I've traveled all over the world, met many good people in distant lands, who could only dream of ever going on a vacation. By lottery of birth, they are stuck with lives of toil amounting to little. We get to live the dream.

1989 I sailed on the RCCL Nordic Prince to the Caribbean. Fantastic cruise. All the old traditions were still in place.....Dining room decorated each night with a different theme,

Midnight buffets, Masquerade night, horse racing with auction, actual cruise staff, Host & Hostess..... to name a few.....mostly all gone now.

Loved that first cruise, been on many others, but none have ever matched it.

My latest ship will be the MS Volendam cruising New Zealand and Australia. I leave this Thursday........all packed up and ready to roll !!!!

Cheers,

Da fAt mAn

My first cruise was aboard NCL's Song of Norway. A first cruise on a historical ship for the cruise industry.

Actually, Song of Norway was a Royal Caribbean ship. I sailed to Europe on her in 1990.

It later became the Sun Cruises "Sundream" In 2008 was renamed the Clipper Pacific.

Cheers,