Can't bring soda on board anymore

[Starflyr3]

This is a joke right!!??

 

 

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No, but at least they are the huge Aquafina bottles

[NHL Philly Fan]

This absolutely infuriates me for several reasons.

 

The no bottled water thing is even worse than the no soda thing.

 

I like to have bottled water in the room for two purposes. First, it's great to have around the room or for walking around the ship. Second, and more importantly, I bring it on my self-planned shore excursions. I typically buy a case of water, bring it onboard, and take a few bottles out at each shore excursion. Now I can't do this anymore, unless I buy the ripoff bottled water from NCL (which is obviously the point of this).

 

The soda thing also sucks. I enjoy having soda in the room so I can fill a glass with ice, pour myself some soda, and sit on the balcony and relax. Now I can't do that anymore. If I want soda, I need to go all the way to wherever they sell it, and bring it back to the room. Awful.

 

I'm cruising in 5 months. I'm hoping there is a major backlash to this (similar to what was experienced with the "no bringing food back to your room" thing), and NCL changes its policy.

 

If not, I might decide to take my business elsewhere in 2017 and beyond. Enough is enough.

 

BTW, I wonder if one could claim a "medical reason" and get an exception made for the bottled water, or if you're only allowed to take gallons of purified water onboard for that reason. Probably the latter.

 

Also, LOL @ not being able to take open drinks you bought at the port back on board. Terrible.

 

 

Buy ONE bottle of water on the ship and refill it. They alsos did not say you cannot bring an empty container on board and fill it with the FREE water a much as you please! :)

[Casino Comp Chick]

This is a joke right!!??

 

 

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No joke, and they have the nerve to say these prices are 30%-55% off (Off what I ask as I can buy the 24 pack for $3.99). Also this price does NOT include the 18% charge:

 

ships except Pride of America

Item # Description Price Savings

WBP6 6-pack (1-liter bottles) $22.95 USD 30%

WBP12 12-pack (1-liter bottles) $39.95 USD 39%

WBP18 18-pack (1-liter bottles) $49.95 USD 50%

WBP24 24-pack (1-liter bottles) $59.95 USD 55%

Note: 18% gratuities & service charge will be applied at time of purchase

 

 

As a side note........I bet this thread has a post count of about 500 by the end of the weekend.

Edited July 1, 2016 by Casino Comp Chick

[sparks1093]

Carnival did the same thing last year with stopping the carrying on of water, etc. However, they at least lowered the price of bottled water to $3.99 for a 12 pack! Not even in the same ballpark as NCL's bottled water price. It is actually very convenient ordering the water before we sail and having it waiting in the cabin, instead of shlepping it onboard! Maybe NCL will lower their crazy price of $39.95 for a 12 pack of water.

 

To CCL's credit they only banned the carrying on of bottled water and soda, passengers can still bring cans on. I know that's not much consolation for bottled water fans but as you mention a 12 pack of water is only $3.99 (which is actually competitive with my local grocery store).

[NHL Philly Fan]

The funny thing about this "I hate brand X" soft drink thing is that in most blind taste tests, most people do not correctly identify the brand of any of the drinks offered. :D

[sparks1093]

I wonder if NCL is going to warn anyone with an upcoming sailing about the change in policy?

[Turtles06]

When I saw this thread, I was expecting NCL to have couched this new rule as a security measure, and I wonder whether security concerns may in fact have played a role. But since NCL hasn't explained it that way, it does come across as very passenger-unfriendly and another money grab. NCL is a business, and I'd like them to make money and stay in business, but this is pretty unfriendly.

[Casino Comp Chick]

The funny thing about this "I hate brand X" soft drink thing is that in most blind taste tests, most people do not correctly identify the brand of any of the drinks offered. :D

 

I did that test and yes I knew which was which in all colas but not in ginger ales those all tasted the same.

[pe4all]

To CCL's credit they only banned the carrying on of bottled water and soda, passengers can still bring cans on. I know that's not much consolation for bottled water fans but as you mention a 12 pack of water is only $3.99 (which is actually competitive with my local grocery store).

True - and on CCL you can still bring a 12-pack of soda cans on per person. (though they have my caffeine-free diet coke onboard, so I don't have to do that) And their 8 pack of 1 liter bottles is $20 - compared to a 6 pack of 1 liter bottles for $23.95 on NCL. But we don't like carrying one liter bottles around with us- when we go on excursions, or on the ship- the smaller bottles of water work best for us. Guess we will be filling a bottle with tap water. (which I personally don't mind, but dh hates!)

Edited July 1, 2016 by pe4all

[Rhea98]

But since NCL hasn't explained it that way,

Except for the policy change showing up (recently? very recently?), has NCL explained/mentioned this at all? I can't find any references online-- which doesn't they're not there. Only 5 days ago, a question on the NCL site indicated the old policy (http://answers.ncl.com/answers/4066/category/EPIC/norwegian-epic-questions-answers/questions.htm?expandquestion=2833113).

 

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[sparks1093]

When I saw this thread, I was expecting NCL to have couched this new rule as a security measure, and I wonder whether security concerns may in fact have played a role. But since NCL hasn't explained it that way, it does come across as very passenger-unfriendly and another money grab. NCL is a business, and I'd like them to make money and stay in business, but this is pretty unfriendly.

 

Sure, they could try to "sell" it that way but when the rest of the industry doesn't have the same rule? It would sound very hollow and most passengers would see through it. (When CCL rolled out their no bottle rule they made it clear that the purpose was to reduce alcohol smuggling.)

[NCteacherlovescruising]

No joke, and they have the nerve to say these prices are 30%-55% off (Off what I ask as I can buy the 24 pack for $3.99). Also this price does NOT include the 18% charge:

 

ships except Pride of America

Item #DescriptionPriceSavings

WBP66-pack (1-liter bottles)$22.95 USD30%

WBP1212-pack (1-liter bottles)$39.95 USD39%

WBP1818-pack (1-liter bottles)$49.95 USD50%

WBP2424-pack (1-liter bottles)$59.95 USD55%

Note: 18% gratuities & service charge will be applied at time of purchase

 

 

As a side note........I bet this thread has a post count of about 500 by the end of the weekend.

 

 

Wow! How much does a bottle of water cost on the ship? I'm seriously thinking about picking up a case to bring. I can just put a luggage tag on it and drop it off with the porter, same as my Diet Cokes, right?

[NCteacherlovescruising]

The funny thing about this "I hate brand X" soft drink thing is that in most blind taste tests, most people do not correctly identify the brand of any of the drinks offered. :D

 

 

I would definitely know a Diet Coke in a blind tasting because that's all I drink besides water. (Nonalcoholic) Diet Pepsi taste nothing like it. [emoji13]

[Frick_&_Frack]

Maybe they'll offer Coke products :D (because, seriously, I just can't drink Pepsi...ick). No matter how much rum (or other "enhancer" ;) ) gets poured in Pepsi, I just can't drink it.

 

Not once I have e-mailed about any single change. Maybe I should have, but I just accepted that they can do as they wish as a business; however, seriously, no soda? sigh smh

[sparks1093]

Wow! How much does a bottle of water cost on the ship? I'm seriously thinking about picking up a case to bring. I can just put a luggage tag on it and drop it off with the porter, same as my Diet Cokes, right?

 

Under the new policy you can't bring either onboard.

[Sizzlechest]

Added to the list.

 

 

• Nickelodeon gone
  
• Geoffrey Zakarian gone
  
• Cake Boss gone
  
• 18% gratuity on specialty dining
  
• DSC raised twice
  
• drink prices raised
  
• 18% gratuity on drinks
  
• 18% gratuity on food/coffee purchases ( Java Cafe/Carlo's/gelato etc)
  
• Asian Noodle restaurant complimentary but reduced menu
  
• Hippo Slide at GSC gone
  
• Fireworks gone
  
• UDP is now SDP
  
• UBP used to be for everyone in room, but now it's just first two passengers
  
• Room service $7.95 except for a much smaller limited "continental breakfast"
  
• Blue Man Group gone
  
• Now pay taxes on "free" UBP/SDP
  
• No more kids pricing in specialty restaurants
  
• Port times shortened on a number of itineraries "for your convenience"
  
• No more free Cirque or Illusionarium on first night with dining package
  
• Margaritaville on Escape is now a la carte. Used to be included.
  
• Cancellation policy got much worse.
  
• SDP price increased.
  
• Fewer days for SDP on promos.
  
• Available wines have gotten worse. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=49635954&postcount=64
  
• Certain menu items (like Seafood Extravaganza at Ocean Blue) not covered by SDP upcharge.
  
• Bayamo upcharge for SDP increased.
  
• Dining packages no longer have fixed $10 price for second entree at Cagney's and Le Bistro. Now charged full a la carte price for entree.
  
• Uptown/Flamingo Grill being replace with Margaritaville. Free dining place replace for fee-based one with similar food.
  
• AARP discount gone.
  
• Haven breakfast and lunch menu items scaled back. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2356561
  
• Water, soda and juices can not be brought on board either as carry-on or checked luggage https://www.ncl.com/faq/liquor-beverage-policy
  

[hawkeyetlse]

I would have been unhappy as a Carnival customer last year when they explained the rationale for the change. They basically said that a lot of their customers were smugglers, so they were going to punish all their customers. Which is not nice, but at least it's honest, and I think a lot of people prefer that to NCL's explanation, which is… you don't get an explanation. But since they give away unlimited alcohol to anyone who wants it (over 21), and they have not lowered the price of bottled water or added it to the UBP, it's pretty clear that smuggling is not the issue, they simply want more money from the cheapos who carry on their soda/water (or as pokerpro5 said, they want that type of customer to stop cruising NCL).

[pisenor]

We are going on our first NCL cruise this Sunday.

 

Under the new policy you can't bring either onboard.

 

Actually I think in this case she can as she is leaving this Sunday July 3rd. After the July 1st policy change but before the July 15th implementation. Looks to me NCteacherlovescruising will be fine for this trip accornding to the info provided in the NCL link above.

[spedrson]

So we sail on July 11, 2016. Looks like we may have "just" missed the cut off since it says for sailings July 15th and beyond? Am I reading that right?

[Sizzlechest]

So we sail on July 11, 2016. Looks like we may have "just" missed the cut off since it says for sailings July 15th and beyond? Am I reading that right?

 

It better be, because I'm leaving for a cruise today and I'm bringing soda and water with me. I'll be damned if they tell me it's staying in the naughty room for the duration of the cruise.

[richstowe]

Until my upcoming Epic cruise I hadn't chosen to cruised NCL because of the nickle and diming . Perhaps I wasn't alone as my upcoming cruise was way cheaper then the competition . Prior to booking I knew my "free" drink package would cost me roughly $200 for the week . I didn't realize it did not include bottled water or canned drinks until after booking .(How could an Ultimate Beverage Package not include this ? :rolleyes: ) Now this . No biggie but just adding it to the nickle and diming perception . Oh well .

Waiting to see how the same few will spin this.

 

1. If you don't like it, sail a different line.

 

2. Love all the changes FDR is doing to make this a higher class fleet.

 

 

Personally, this stinks and how much more can they squeeze peaple.??

Perfect . Nothing more to say .

 

I'd imagine they'd spin this by saying "as part of security measures and inline with airport security procedures" - in ports like Barcelona they have a shop after security that sells bottled water!

 

 

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Thank you for this . I will be sailing on the 17th out of Barcelona . Nice to know . Edited July 1, 2016 by richstowe

[NittanyCruise]

The funny thing about this "I hate brand X" soft drink thing is that in most blind taste tests, most people do not correctly identify the brand of any of the drinks offered. :D

 

The difference between Pepsi and Coke is so large it's not funny. If you can't tell a difference your taste buds are fubar.

[Frick_&_Frack]

The difference between Pepsi and Coke is so large it's not funny. If you can't tell a difference your taste buds are fubar.

 

I can tell every single time. :D

 

Guess it's time to figure out something else to drink while cruising (and, don't mention fruity cocktails as I'm allergic to most fruit which totally blows :mad: and is why I stick to the Rum/Coke as my go-to).

 

Silly that this actually annoyed me. smh I must be getting old :p

[Ssutera]

We are leaving July 3rd as well and are planning to bring bottled water and soda on board to keep in the room. I think it is ridiculous that you cannot bring these sealed items on the ship for personal consumption. With all of the up charges it is definitely going to turn many people away not only the undesirables.

 

We chose to be up graded to Haven, purchase the UBP and SDP and do not have a problem with paying for that, but when it comes to charging unreasonable prices for water I find this to be a deal breaker that will affect my decision to cruise in the future. I enjoy bottled water and do not want to have to leave my room in order to drink water. While I can carry a refillable bottle, I shouldn't have to worry every night if I filled it for the evening when I retire to my room or if I have enough to last me.

 

This was a stupid move on NCL's part. Your top tier likes having their own things and doesn't like paying over the top prices just because we can!!!! We're not idiots, we can find the services and better pricing for what we want elsewhere!

[sparks1093]

Actually I think in this case she can as she is leaving this Sunday July 3rd. After the July 1st policy change but before the July 15th implementation. Looks to me NCteacherlovescruising will be fine for this trip accornding to the info provided in the NCL link above.

 

Missed that, thanks for the clarification.