NCL "nickel and dimes" - Why?

[iheartbda]

[quote name='billie5']I don't think so. I said I have taken "a" Celebrity cruise, not "Celebrity cruises." Actually, I assumed people would figure it was a far-from-typical cruise, even if they had never heard of Xpedition. I guess I should have realized they would just assume I was wrong -- I mean, I am married.:)[/quote]
Ummmmm, there's no way people could have figured out, simply by saying "a" Celebrity cruise rather than "Celebrity cruises", that it was not a typical cruise. Never assume anything around here.

[quote]The open bar and free excursions (each morning and each afternoon with always a choice of more energetic/less energetic versions) was great. Wish I could afford Crystal or Seaborne cruises.

Bill[/quote]
Yes, I'm sure they were but they weren't free....you paid for it by vitual fact that it cost 4 times more than an NCL cruise. Pay me now or pay me later.;)


[quote name='njhorseman']I'm Captain's Club Elite on Celebrity and NCL Latitudes Platinum, so I think I have a little bit of experience on both lines.

You said "Celebrity", which to anyone means the run-of-the-mill Celebrity cruise. No one would mind read that and assume it meant Celebrity Xpedition, which is operated differently than any other Celebrity cruise, and for all intents and purposes is a separate one ship cruise line.[/quote]
What he said.:)

[billie5]

Hmm. I suppose you guys are mostly right. I think I expected a couple of people to say "really?" and then someone would write "He must have gone on Xpedition." Then I went to sleep. When I tuned in again, more than a couple of people responded, but not "someone."

Hey, if this tempts anyone to go to the Galapagos, my good deed for the year will have been done. Personally, my next cruise is with NCL.

Horesman, I wasn't asking for mind-reading. I merely reported that on a Celebrity cruise I took, everything was provided. Then I wrote that it also cost 4 x as much, which was the point I wanted to make (and which was also Iheart's point).

Bill

[halos]

[quote name='billie5']
Hey, if this tempts anyone to go to the Galapagos, my good deed for the year will have been done. Personally, my next cruise is with NCL.


Bill[/quote]

It is my absolute DREAM cruise.
Did you absolutely love it?? I bet is was freaking awesome :)

[Philip217]

[quote name='billie5']I don't think so. I said I have taken "a" Celebrity cruise, not "Celebrity cruises." Actually, I assumed people would figure it was a far-from-typical cruise, even if they had never heard of Xpedition. I guess I should have realized they would just assume I was wrong -- I mean, I am married.:)

The open bar and free excursions (each morning and each afternoon with always a choice of more energetic/less energetic versions) was great. Wish I could afford Crystal or Seaborne cruises.

Bill[/QUOTE]

Could Billie5 be Bill Clinton ??

It depends on what the meaning of the word "the" is...........................................

[luddite]

[quote name='Philip217']Could Billie5 be Bill Clinton ??

It depends on what the meaning of the word "the" is...........................................[/quote]

Hey now! We have no direct eveidence that Billie5 is a habitual liar. Take it easy!

[piercer_99]

The big mean bartender even made me pay for my bride's rum and cokes.

:eek:

Really though, I enjoyed every minute on the Dawn. I only paid for the things I wanted, and well the things my bride wanted from the gift shop.

Be careful though, diamonds seem to shrink when you get onboard. A 1ct stone looks so tiny when they roll out the 3ct stones next to it.

Then of course they will guilt you into paying for those extras, like jewels and perfumes and shirts......:cool:

[billie5]

No, alas, not that Bill. But my wife did go to college with Hillary! Anyway, wasn't that about "is"?

I did find the Galapagos cruise as fantastic as I had hoped. I don't recall exactly what it cost, but it is more than worth 4 ordinary cruises.

We did go on one other cruise that was equally fantastic. Actually, it was more like a cruise tour. First a cruise on the MV Sepic Spirit, a shallow draft vessel which can never leave the Sepic River (in Papua New Guinea), followed by a tour of the Highlands. It is restricted to just 18 passengers, but a very different, and unforgettable, experience from more typical cruises.

Bill the Virginian

[CaliforniaTraveler]

NCL food is pretty bad, and it is all the same whether you get it at the Garden Cafe, one of the two main restaurants or one of the speciality restaurants. We ate at the Italian place and I could not eat the steak I ordered. All of the meat on that ship tastes funny to me. Also, NCL ships are inferior to Celebrity and RC, so it is gutsy of them to ask for more for that food. The only thing that changes is the decor. I post this candidly so that others will not be as disappointed as I was. I will never go on NCL again. The only redeeming feature is their entertainment, which rates an "A".

[MrLee]

[quote name='CaliforniaTraveler']NCL food is pretty bad, and it is all the same whether you get it at the Garden Cafe, one of the two main restaurants or one of the speciality restaurants. We ate at the Italian place and I could not eat the steak I ordered. All of the meat on that ship tastes funny to me. Also, NCL ships are inferior to Celebrity and RC, so it is gutsy of them to ask for more for that food. The only thing that changes is the decor. I post this candidly so that others will not be as disappointed as I was. I will never go on NCL again. The only redeeming feature is their entertainment, which rates an "A".[/quote]

You, of course, are entitled to your opinion. I never thought it was 5 star but I wouldn't say it was bad either. Actually, they had the best tortellini I've ever had. Food is very subjective and we all have our own taste.

[CruisnGram]

[quote name='browe']


NCL has more surcharge restaurants.

[COLOR=DarkRed]Which is an ADVANTAGE to many, so what's wrong with giving people much more choice? That's a bad thing?[/COLOR]

Some seem odd to me to charge for, e.g. Tex Mex.

[COLOR=DarkRed]Why is it odd to charge for TexMex and not odd to charge for steak? Or Italian?
[/COLOR]

You also have to pay to go bowling.

[COLOR=DarkRed]And what other cruise line offers bowling for free?[/COLOR]

Those are the only 2 that come to mind.[/quote]

NCL offers for the baseline cruise what the rest of the cruise lines offer. If you want to pay more for optional things, you do. If you don't, you don't. It's all about choice..no one twists anyone's arm to buy the extras.

CG

[CruisnGram]

[quote name='CaliforniaTraveler']NCL food is pretty bad, and it is all the same whether you get it at the Garden Cafe, one of the two main restaurants or one of the speciality restaurants. We ate at the Italian place and I could not eat the steak I ordered. All of the meat on that ship tastes funny to me. Also, NCL ships are inferior to Celebrity and RC, so it is gutsy of them to ask for more for that food. The only thing that changes is the decor. I post this candidly so that others will not be as disappointed as I was. I will never go on NCL again. The only redeeming feature is their entertainment, which rates an "A".[/quote]

I would pretty much disagree with all of the above except the entertainment rating.

I find NCL's food in the main dining rooms to be excellent. In fact, my opinion, which I know differs from many other people, is that the specialty restaurants are pretty much a waste of money. On our last cruise, on the Pearl in January, we did 3 specialty restaurants: Cagneys, LeBistro & Italian. We've always loved LeBistro and weren't disappointed, but the Italian was merely okay and we were very disappointed in Cagney's. Had heard so much about them and were excited to try them. The steaks were average at best and Cagney's fries? Some frozen fries like you get at McDonalds with some cheese sprinkled on them. My dad got lamb chops that were so tough and so fatty that he didn't eat them and this is a man who eats pretty much anything. We decided after this cruise that we won't bother spending our money on specialty restaurants any more as its just not necessary.

As far as NCL ships being inferior, again I completely disagree. Yes, they are different in that they don't have the huge atriums with shops etc, but they are wonderful ships that we enjoy sailing. And the hull art? Love it! Hate those boring white ships! :-)

To each his own for sure.

CG

[luddite]

[quote name='CaliforniaTraveler']NCL food is pretty bad, and it is all the same whether you get it at the Garden Cafe, one of the two main restaurants or one of the speciality restaurants. We ate at the Italian place and I could not eat the steak I ordered. All of the meat on that ship tastes funny to me. Also, NCL ships are inferior to Celebrity and RC, so it is gutsy of them to ask for more for that food. The only thing that changes is the decor. I post this candidly so that others will not be as disappointed as I was. I will never go on NCL again. The only redeeming feature is their entertainment, which rates an "A".[/quote]

A couple of points. We need to know how the steak was cooked, in order to know if your opinion is relevant.
I'm still trying to understand why you went to a surcharge Italian restaurant and ordered a steak. There IS a steakhouse restaurant on-board.
You say 'ugh, fud bad!'. OK. Expound and let us in on why you didn't like it. If you don't relate what you normally eat, and I'm guessing welldone steak and a bake,compared to what you had, we cannot really be expected to believe you.

[mbisson]

[quote name='MrLee']You, of course, are entitled to your opinion. I never thought it was 5 star but I wouldn't say it was bad either. Actually, they had the best tortellini I've ever had. Food is very subjective and we all have our own taste.[/QUOTE]

My favorite line was "NCL ships are inferior to Celebrity and RC"...in fact I like it so much I'm still trying to figure out what it means

[iheartbda]

[quote name='CaliforniaTraveler']NCL food is pretty bad, and it is all the same whether you get it at the Garden Cafe, one of the two main restaurants or one of the speciality restaurants. We ate at the Italian place and I could not eat the steak I ordered. All of the meat on that ship tastes funny to me. Also, NCL ships are inferior to Celebrity and RC, so it is gutsy of them to ask for more for that food. The only thing that changes is the decor. I post this candidly so that others will not be as disappointed as I was. I will never go on NCL again. The only redeeming feature is their entertainment, which rates an "A".[/quote]

I think we may be on to something here. If ALL the meat tasted funny to him/her, maybe there is a problem with their taste buds which would explain thinking that all the food is pretty bad. Never heard anyone ever say the meat tasted funny....overcooked, undercooked, maybe but never funny.

[CTCruiseGuy]

I just sailed on the Gem and couldn't disagree more with the statement that the food was bad. I had a filet in Le Bistro which was excellent. And while the Garden Cafe does serve the same menus as in the main dining room, there were many additional offerings not available like made to order Spinach or Ceasar Salads, Chinese foods, carving stations, etc..All in all we were vary happy with the food on the Gem.

[luddite]

[quote name='iheartbda']I think we may be on to something here. If ALL the meat tasted funny to him/her, maybe there is a problem with their taste buds which would explain thinking that all the food is pretty bad. Never heard anyone ever say the meat tasted funny....overcooked, undercooked, maybe but never funny.[/quote]

I never made that connection, but you make good points.
I'm also thinking that if the meat was 'funny', welllll, it should be on the stage.

[piercer_99]

Interesting..........

Prior to sailing on the Dawn, I had read far to many reviews about the poor quality of the food.

Now, if there is one thing I do well, and I do many, eating is perhaps one of my favorite things in life.

I have eaten at some very expensive Zagat rated 5 star dumps. Where in my opinion the food was pithy.

As I recall, there were a couple of things I tried onboard that I did not care for. However there was far more food that I pleasantly enjoyed.

Now don't get me wrong, you may only ever eat at the Tavern on the Green, or Butter or Chris and Pitts, but really now, to out and out say the food is no good. Do everyone a favor and stay elsewhere. But be honest. Some 2500 other folks were probably on that cruise and perhaps, maybe some of them loved the food as much as you loathed it.

Now then, if someone would just send me one of those tasty room service BLT's from NCL I would have a really good night. :D

[DMH15]

piercer-

And tavern on the green, (very nice have dined there) went out of business last year.

Hey guys, let's all agree: FOOD IS SUBJECTIVE!

My lamb in Il Adagio on the Sun was fall-off-the-bone tender and tasty. You like Las Ramblas? Didn't impress me much. Pacific heights? Only so-so. Love Le Bistro, chilled soup, pretzel rolls... In other words, if you don't care for something, I'll bet there's someone a few tables down telling everyone it's the best thing they've eaten on their cruise!

[sometimes sailor]

To the OP - I believe the Nickel and Dime have hit most lines. I know NCL charges for the welcome aboard drink - others may or may not. I did just learn that my daily visit to the steam room will cost me on this (my first) NCL cruise. That is one pleasure I have always enjoyed and never paid for on another line.

As in life - every turn has it's obstacles and opportunities.. . . . . . it is all what you make of the options YOU DECIDE to encounter.




:D

[billie5]

Hmm. Tender and tasty I get. But pithy?

A pithy remark, I am sure, but for food I've never heard it before. Perhaps meaty I suppose, in a different sense, although one better hope the food did not taste like pith.:)

Bill

[piercer_99]

[quote name='billie5']Hmm. Tender and tasty I get. But pithy?

A pithy remark, I am sure, but for food I've never heard it before. Perhaps meaty I suppose, in a different sense, although one better hope the food did not taste like pith.:)

Bill[/quote]

oh but I wish it had not tasted like pith :rolleyes:

A highly esteemed seafood restaurant in North Dallas, shelled out (no pun intended) a lot of money for a meal that was just not happening. Of course I should have been hesitant at all the shell in the lobster bisque, a precursor of things to come. As it was, no one in our party of 8 that night had a good experience and we won't go back.

Fortunately, when on a ship, there are many restaurants to choose from.

[piercer_99]

[quote name='sometimes sailor'] I know NCL charges for the welcome aboard drink -[/quote]

really? not the mimosa's as you board? unless they have started doing that, of course in that case I would be wrong.:confused:

As far as free drinks oh well, I do not drink alcohol so, I can usually find something free to drink wherever I go. :eek:

[debshomespun]

I don't think there is any more to pay for on a NCL cruise than on a RC cruise, HAL cruise or any other mass market cruise line.

As for the food, it is way to subjective to really even discuss it. Everyone has their likes and dislikes. Some food on NCL is the best I have had, and some was not as good as the others. Did I starve, or have a problem finding something good to eat? Not at all. I also don't do the specialty restaurants. We eat almost always in the MDR, and occassionally in the buffet. Food has always filled me full, and then some! :eek:

[mbisson]

[quote name='piercer_99']really? not the mimosa's as you board? unless they have started doing that, of course in that case I would be wrong.:confused:
[/QUOTE]

No longer free mimosa or champagne as you board. That ended just recently

[piercer_99]

well that will get them to the bar(s) faster. :o

Well anyway, I am rather sure the next NCL cruise we do will be Epic. :cool: