Room service and to go food

[SteveH2508]

Steve, if you think NCL ticked folks off now, just try limiting or stopping what people can bring on board as far as soda and water, because then they would have to spend more money to purchase it onboard the ships. I suggested stopping it and got lambasted.

 

 

Ticking folk off seems to be very low on NCL's radar at the moment. I was just entering into the spirit of things:D. I do not have a dog in this fight (thankfully).

[Travelcat2]

Why do they need to raise the cost at all? are they not making a profit? or does the top ex's need bigger bonuses????? No don' t charge me for RS so Apollo, Del Rio and company can make bigger saleries.

 

If they are going to raise cost, then replace with something to enhance the customer experience. That has NOT been done....

 

NCL raises costs for the same reason that other companies (including grocery stores) raise costs. Prices of just about everything goes up so increases are necessary just to break even.

 

I will keep checking these boards for a few months while the enhancements and improved customer experiences are put into place. It takes time and $$$ but I believe that NCL will be a better cruise line when it is all said and done. Yes - I know that NCL customers do not want their cruise line to change. I suspect that passengers of all of the cruise lines that have changed dramatically in the past 10 years did not want their cruise line or onboard experience to change either.

 

As a side note: I don't know why Apollo/NCHL purchased Regent and Oceania -- especially since Regent is in the process of building a new, very expensive, ship (touted to be the most luxurious ship at sea). This obviously set NCHL back a whole lot of money. I assume that the Board of Directors of Apollo and/or NCHL made the decisions. Perhaps they deserve some of the blame!?

[sjbdtz]

So many complain that the "no take-out" coincided with the $7.95 fee.

 

 

I have a couple of questions:

 

 

- If take-out had a $7.95 charge, would you still do take-out?

 

 

In other words, is the issue that you can't get food to go, or that there's a RS charge?

 

 

I don't tend to do this, but am curious what the concern REALLY is.

 

 

Stephen

 

 

.

[42CruiseCrazy]

So many complain that the "no take-out" coincided with the $7.95 fee.

 

 

 

 

 

I have a couple of questions:

 

 

 

 

 

- If take-out had a $7.95 charge, would you still do take-out?

 

 

 

 

 

In other words, is the issue that you can't get food to go, or that there's a RS charge?

 

 

 

 

 

I don't tend to do this, but am curious what the concern REALLY is.

 

 

 

 

 

Stephen

 

 

 

 

 

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My impression is that most of the angry posters are people who take food from the buffet back to their rooms. Certainly some people do room service and are angry about the charge but the majority seem to be angry about the "no takeout" rule.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[42CruiseCrazy]

BTW. I don't think anyone would want to pay $7.95 to schlep food from the buffet to their rooms themselves

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[swedish weave]

I see and disbelieve the comments that NCL needs to raise prices.

 

If that is true, can someone explain why they give away as booking bonuses the specialty restaurants, UDP, UBP, DSC, shore excursions, and OBC ?????

 

Just a few years ago, Andy Stuart said on a well aired documentary that the above items were critical to the profitability of a cruise. Now, they can give them away !!!!

 

Sorry --- I don't believe the BS they are putting out and the comments on this board attempting to bolster the claims.

Edited May 22, 2015 by swedish weave

[swedish weave]

I have to disagree. There is a key difference between changing something that has beene explicitly purchased and paid for (such as the UBP/UDP) and changing a shipboard policy, of which there are many that can be changed at any time (such as not allowing food out of dining rooms/restaurants). The room service fee is an interesting debate and much more of a gray area - was it explicitly bargained for as part of the fare, or is it a shipboard policy? But to lump all policies and pre-cruise purchases together based on date of fare purchase - which is a moving target and varies widely among passengers on any given sailing - is far more flawed in its logic than what NLH Arizona suggested.

 

Are you trying to imply that my cruise WASN'T EXPLICITLY PURCHASED AND PAID FOR ??

 

I know what the terms and conditions were at the time I purchased the cruise, and NCL has changed those terms and conditions without notice or reduction in my cost..

 

Your logic it what is flawed, not mine.

[dna529]

I see and disbelieve the comments that NCL needs to raise prices.

 

If that is true, can someone explain why they give away as booking bonuses the specialty restaurants, UDP, UBP, DSC, and OBC ?????

 

Just a few years ago, Andy Stuart said on a well aired documentary that the above items were critical to the profitability of a cruise. Now, they can give them away !!!!

 

Sorry --- I don't believe the BS they are putting out and the comments on this board attempting to bolster the claims.

 

I don't believe it either. Maybe they are rethinking all those giveaways and trying to recoup money. The price of my November cruise went up $1k (family suite) in the past 3 months.

 

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Forums mobile app

[CavalierX]

NCL raises costs for the same reason that other companies (including grocery stores) raise costs. Prices of just about everything goes up so increases are necessary just to break even.

 

Is NCL just barely breaking even? I hadn't heard they were so far in the hole that they had to try to gouge $7.95 for a waiter to walk a tray down a hallway as opposed to walking it over to a table in the dining room.

 

I will keep checking these boards for a few months while the enhancements and improved customer experiences are put into place. It takes time and $$$ but I believe that NCL will be a better cruise line when it is all said and done. Yes - I know that NCL customers do not want their cruise line to change. I suspect that passengers of all of the cruise lines that have changed dramatically in the past 10 years did not want their cruise line or onboard experience to change either.

 

I'm still looking for the anything that might reasonably be considered an "enhancement" or "improved customer experience." You really sound like you're cutting and pasting corporate PR. I'm not even joking anymore.

 

As a side note: I don't know why Apollo/NCHL purchased Regent and Oceania -- especially since Regent is in the process of building a new, very expensive, ship (touted to be the most luxurious ship at sea). This obviously set NCHL back a whole lot of money. I assume that the Board of Directors of Apollo and/or NCHL made the decisions. Perhaps they deserve some of the blame!?

 

Anything to deflect criticism from Frank DelRio. Anything at all. Next you'll be blaming global warming for the room service charge.

Edited May 22, 2015 by CavalierX

[Sandman799]

So many complain that the "no take-out" coincided with the $7.95 fee.

 

I have a couple of questions:

 

- If take-out had a $7.95 charge, would you still do take-out?

 

In other words, is the issue that you can't get food to go, or that there's a RS charge?

 

I don't tend to do this, but am curious what the concern REALLY is.

 

Stephen

.

 

To answer your questions, No, I would not pay $7.95 for take-out. I have issues with both the $7.95 service charge as well as the fact that I can't get food to go. When I booked this cruise, both were available, and free of charge. I paid extra for a balcony cabin with the express purpose of enjoying breakfast and coffee there in the morning, and perhaps a late-night snack or dessert at night. We've always considered room service to be a luxury at hotels, and we were looking forward to having that available free of charge on the cruise. I'm not sure a cooked breakfast would still be hot by the time we got it, but if it was that would have been preferable to a cold continental breakfast. Most are reporting they aren't being prevented from taking food from the buffet, so that's what I'll do for breakfast. It's still not the same as having it delivered, but delivery is not worth $7.95 to me. As to take-out, I was looking forward to getting take-out from O'Sheehans late at night. I'd much rather get a beer and to-go order of wings or a burger at midnight to take back to my cabin than have to sit there and eat it. At that time of night, my wife probably wouldn't want anything, but I might, and I'm not about to ask her to sit and wait for me to eat it in the restaurant, nor am I going to sit there and eat by myself when I could be doing so on my balcony. I expect to get take-out on board the same as I do at home, for those times I want something to eat, but would rather not eat at the restaurant. I don't get why it's so hard for NCL to understand that customers would like the same option while on board. In addition, we plan to eat at some of the specialty restaurants. When we go out to eat at home, we're normally too full after appetizers and main course to eat dessert, so we'll have it packaged to go, then enjoy it later once our dinner has digested a little. I would have liked to do the same on the cruise. I have heard some say you can still get dessert to go, but it has to be delivered by room service, and when they do that, they don't charge for it. So, we're hoping the take-out restrictions at least are limited to full meals, and won't affect ability to have desserts sent to our room. Still doesn't allow me to have those wings-to-go though. In short, I'm bothered by both the RS charge and new take-out restrictions, as are I believe are the majority of those posting on here.

[sparks1093]

So many complain that the "no take-out" coincided with the $7.95 fee.

 

 

I have a couple of questions:

 

 

- If take-out had a $7.95 charge, would you still do take-out?

 

 

In other words, is the issue that you can't get food to go, or that there's a RS charge?

 

 

I don't tend to do this, but am curious what the concern REALLY is.

 

 

Stephen

 

 

.

 

My overriding concern is the direction Del Rio wants to take NCL. Of all of the changes the one that affects me the most is the prohibition of taking food back to my cabin. I would not pay for that.

[Aquahound]

I will keep checking these boards for a few months while the enhancements and improved customer experiences are put into place.

 

Enhancements and improved customer experience? Really? Earlier in this thread a couple posters called it an "upgraded" experience, and someone else kept quoting the "cleaner ship" nonsense. I'm really curious about this line of thinking. How in the world are any of these new changes "enhancements," "improved experiences," or "upgrades?" An enhancement or an improved customer experience would be adding new options or making free a previous for-charge item, not the other way around.

 

Seriously...help me to understand how a $7.95 room service charge is an enhancement? Help me to understand how, since NCL's breakfast room service menu sucks, it's an enhancement for me to no longer be able to run up to the buffet and bring a plate of hot breakfast back to my room for DW and I to enjoy on our balcony? Now, I have no option whatsoever to enjoy a hot breakfast on my balcony. Enhancement? Upgraded experience? How? :confused:

[CavalierX]

- If take-out had a $7.95 charge, would you still do take-out?

 

I'm trying to understand how that could possibly work out. If they're going to charge me to take food for which I've already paid extra with me, they'd better put it in a solid gold box and tie it up with a pretty red bow. :D

 

In other words, is the issue that you can't get food to go, or that there's a RS charge?

 

I don't tend to do this, but am curious what the concern REALLY is.

.

 

Both, plus the fact that it was all cloaked in transparent lies that a three-year-old could see through. Some people like to take food to their cabins, for whatever reasons seem good to them. Some people like getting food delivered without being gouged. Some people just don't like being told that if they like to eat in their cabins occasionally, they're just lazy slobs who throw food around as though they're re-enacting a scene from Animal House. Some don't like being nickle-and-dimed to death when they're just trying to relax. Others just don't like being told that they're not "allowed" to do something they've always done before. There are as many reasons to be upset about this new RS charge/food prohibition as there are people who cruise. There's no one answer.

[Jezo]

Okay so I don't mean to ruin the fun fighting party everyone is having but I have an actual question about this new policy..

 

Back when we would be on the boat the take out menu at O'Sheehan's was a pretty regular part of our late night routine. With this new policy does this resturant now no longer make anything to go? Chicken Finger and fries back in the room at 1 AM was a normal thing.

 

So..... no more?

 

Second, so they let you take food out of the buffet and into the room? So what keeps someone from then leaving the pool and walking back to the room? Do they ask where you are going after you leave the buffet?

[NLH Arizona]

Okay so I don't mean to ruin the fun fighting party everyone is having but I have an actual question about this new policy..

 

Back when we would be on the boat the take out menu at O'Sheehan's was a pretty regular part of our late night routine. With this new policy does this resturant now no longer make anything to go? Chicken Finger and fries back in the room at 1 AM was a normal thing.

 

So..... no more?

 

Second, so they let you take food out of the buffet and into the room? So what keeps someone from then leaving the pool and walking back to the room? Do they ask where you are going after you leave the buffet?

 

From all reports O'Sheehan will not do a to go order.

 

As far as your second question, all reports back from cruisers (sans two),since the policy, have said that they and/or others have taken food from the buffet to either the pool deck or back to their cabins. No one has said anyone has asked them where they are going.

[Jezo]

From all reports O'Sheehan will not do a to go order.

 

Oy.

 

So they had to toss out all the plate covers that they had?

 

So anyway, simple solution. Just like people pack nightlights, outlet extenders, shoe racks for the back of doors, now lunch boxes will be a standard part of a Cruise Critic person's luggage.

 

So now I have to order my chicken wings and fries at the bar, have it accidentally fall into my lunchbox, and go back to my room. Easy enough.

 

I am being facetious, but really, this is what is going to happen.

[LMaxwell]

So many complain that the "no take-out" coincided with the $7.95 fee.

 

 

I have a couple of questions:

 

 

- If take-out had a $7.95 charge, would you still do take-out?

 

 

In other words, is the issue that you can't get food to go, or that there's a RS charge?

 

 

I don't tend to do this, but am curious what the concern REALLY is.

 

 

Stephen

 

 

.

When I booked room service was free and there was no policy limiting take out. I hate bait and switch

[punkincc]

Okay so I don't mean to ruin the fun fighting party everyone is having but I have an actual question about this new policy..

 

Back when we would be on the boat the take out menu at O'Sheehan's was a pretty regular part of our late night routine. With this new policy does this resturant now no longer make anything to go? Chicken Finger and fries back in the room at 1 AM was a normal thing.

 

So..... no more?

 

Second, so they let you take food out of the buffet and into the room? So what keeps someone from then leaving the pool and walking back to the room? Do they ask where you are going after you leave the buffet?

 

 

The policy is rather vague as is normal for NCL. The only documentation is a statement from the COO and the VP of the PR dept. It states that no food is to be carried out of any NCL restaurant, including the buffet. They seem to be enforcing the rule at OSheehans and specialty restaurants. It does not matter whether the order is "To Go" or "I would like to finish this plate of wings in my cabin". You cannot even take your dessert that you have paid a cover charge for at Cagneys.

 

Upon being pressed, they offered a "clarification" that buffet plates could go out on the pool deck and that the buffet ban was for "full plates" (Did they intend to weigh them?) and if you needed a snack, you could take a box of cereal or a piece of fruit:)!!. Of course the buffet rule is pretty much unenforceable, which makes them seem pretty silly for even making this rule.

[Travelcat2]

Is NCL just barely breaking even? I hadn't heard they were so far in the hole that they had to try to gouge $7.95 for a waiter to walk a tray down a hallway as opposed to walking it over to a table in the dining room.

 

I have no idea if NCL is "barely breaking even". My point was that costs go up (food, salaries, etc.)

 

I'm still looking for the anything that might reasonably be considered an "enhancement" or "improved customer experience." You really sound like you're cutting and pasting corporate PR. I'm not even joking anymore.

 

I honestly have no idea what "corporate PR" is saying.

 

Anything to deflect criticism from Frank DelRio. Anything at all. Next you'll be blaming global warming for the room service charge.

 

While I am a supporter of Frank Del Rio, I am not trying deflect criticism from him. If (and that is a big IF) NCL is having financial challenges, it is likely because of the purchase of Oceania and Regent. My point was that Frank Del Rio had nothing to do with the purchase of these cruise lines (other than the fact that he grew two successful cruise lines that were so tempting to Apollo and NCHL that they felt they had to purchase them.

 

My responses to your points are in red above. In term of the room service charge, given how little NCL passengers pay for a cruise, this fee does not sound unreasonable.

 

swedish weave: We posted at the same time. I have absolutely no idea why Genting wants to sell the remainder of NCL stock. However, since they are part of the company that purchased Crystal, I assume they are trying to avoid a conflict of interest since Crystal is a competitor of Regent. "Seahawk 1 and Seahawk 2"??????? What in the world is that?

Edited May 23, 2015 by Travelcat2

[swedish weave]

NCL raises costs for the same reason that other companies (including grocery stores) raise costs. Prices of just about everything goes up so increases are necessary just to break even.

 

I will keep checking these boards for a few months while the enhancements and improved customer experiences are put into place. It takes time and $$$ but I believe that NCL will be a better cruise line when it is all said and done. Yes - I know that NCL customers do not want their cruise line to change. I suspect that passengers of all of the cruise lines that have changed dramatically in the past 10 years did not want their cruise line or onboard experience to change either.

 

As a side note: I don't know why Apollo/NCHL purchased Regent and Oceania -- especially since Regent is in the process of building a new, very expensive, ship (touted to be the most luxurious ship at sea). This obviously set NCHL back a whole lot of money. I assume that the Board of Directors of Apollo and/or NCHL made the decisions. Perhaps they deserve some of the blame!?

 

Here is something else you can add to your list of questions.

 

Why is Genting asking for authority to sell the remainder of their NCLH stock ( Approx 50.2 million shares) ?

 

Why did NCLH form two separate companies ( Seahawk 1 and Seahawk 2 ) to finance Breakaway 3 and 4 respectively. The ships will cost approx 801 million Euros each.

 

Here is the link http://biz.yahoo.com/e/140714/nclh8-k.html

 

Could the "sale" of Prestige have been engineered by Apollo and/or Genting due to the massive debt (over 2.5 billion) that Prestige accrued during the leadership of Del Rio ?

 

Remember the shakeup on the board of directors of NCLH resulted in two Genting representatives relinquishing their positions on that board.

Edited May 23, 2015 by swedish weave

[MicheleRos]

My impression is that most of the angry posters are people who take food from the buffet back to their rooms. Certainly some people do room service and are angry about the charge but the majority seem to be angry about the "no takeout" rule.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I have never taken a doggy bag or a plate to my cabin from either a main dining room a specialty restaurant or the buffet however what NCL did is what makes me and a lot of posters upset with them. We booked our cruises and they changed what was included and without notice. I normally just get coffee as room service may be a couple of times I've got a sandwich which wasn't all that great so that's something I won't miss I will still get the coffee because that doesn't have the $7.95 charge attached to it. I have said from the very beginning the way and NCL went about this was all wrong

[karinad]

Maybe we'll have to add PAPER PLATES, ETC. to our "what to pack" list!:D

[sparks1093]

My responses to your points are in red above. In term of the room service charge, given how little NCL passengers pay for a cruise, this fee does not sound unreasonable.

 

swedish weave: We posted at the same time. I have absolutely no idea why Genting wants to sell the remainder of NCL stock. However, since they are part of the company that purchased Crystal, I assume they are trying to avoid a conflict of interest since Crystal is a competitor of Regent. "Seahawk 1 and Seahawk 2"??????? What in the world is that?

 

Yes, prices go up and we all understand that. Really, we get it. But from what was published Del Rio raised the prices not because the cost had raised but because he could. Soda is no longer $2.10 but is now $2.25, not because it cost NCL 15 cents more but because people are going to buy a soda from NCL because there is no one else to buy them from, they are a captive audience.

[swedish weave]

My responses to your points are in red above. In term of the room service charge, given how little NCL passengers pay for a cruise, this fee does not sound unreasonable.

 

swedish weave: We posted at the same time. I have absolutely no idea why Genting wants to sell the remainder of NCL stock. However, since they are part of the company that purchased Crystal, I assume they are trying to avoid a conflict of interest since Crystal is a competitor of Regent. "Seahawk 1 and Seahawk 2"??????? What in the world is that?

 

Seahawk1 and Seahawk2 are companies formed by NCLH to finance the last two new ships that are on order. The details are in the link I provided and are also spelled out in the SEC filing. Both of these can be found by using google.

 

I have my ideas why Genting wants out of NCLH and also why they purchased Crystal Cruises, but I will not post them because I have no verification that my ideas are correct.

 

I spent the major portion of my adult life in a large transportation company and gained a little insight on how some of these things develop.

Edited May 23, 2015 by swedish weave

[Cancruizer]

To answer your questions, No, I would not pay $7.95 for take-out. I have issues with both the $7.95 service charge as well as the fact that I can't get food to go. When I booked this cruise, both were available, and free of charge. I paid extra for a balcony cabin with the express purpose of enjoying breakfast and coffee there in the morning, and perhaps a late-night snack or dessert at night. We've always considered room service to be a luxury at hotels, and we were looking forward to having that available free of charge on the cruise. I'm not sure a cooked breakfast would still be hot by the time we got it, but if it was that would have been preferable to a cold continental breakfast. Most are reporting they aren't being prevented from taking food from the buffet, so that's what I'll do for breakfast. It's still not the same as having it delivered, but delivery is not worth $7.95 to me. As to take-out, I was looking forward to getting take-out from O'Sheehans late at night. I'd much rather get a beer and to-go order of wings or a burger at midnight to take back to my cabin than have to sit there and eat it. At that time of night, my wife probably wouldn't want anything, but I might, and I'm not about to ask her to sit and wait for me to eat it in the restaurant, nor am I going to sit there and eat by myself when I could be doing so on my balcony. I expect to get take-out on board the same as I do at home, for those times I want something to eat, but would rather not eat at the restaurant. I don't get why it's so hard for NCL to understand that customers would like the same option while on board. In addition, we plan to eat at some of the specialty restaurants. When we go out to eat at home, we're normally too full after appetizers and main course to eat dessert, so we'll have it packaged to go, then enjoy it later once our dinner has digested a little. I would have liked to do the same on the cruise. I have heard some say you can still get dessert to go, but it has to be delivered by room service, and when they do that, they don't charge for it. So, we're hoping the take-out restrictions at least are limited to full meals, and won't affect ability to have desserts sent to our room. Still doesn't allow me to have those wings-to-go though. [ In short, I'm bothered by both the RS charge and new take-out restrictions, as are I believe are the majority of those posting on here.[/[/color]QUOTE]

 

Here, here!

Edited May 23, 2015 by Cancruizer
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