Changes to Room Service and Dr. Seuss Breakfast Returning

[pe4all]

1 hour ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

COVID also gave them an excuse to go from optional once a day stateroom service to mandatory stateroom once a day stateroom service.

When they did that we began taking the a.m. service. (they vacuum, give clean towels, leave towel animal on bed, etc) On every cruise since then our steward has always come back into our cabin at night (while we are at dinner) to turn down the bed and pick up used towels and leave any flyers/invites.   Don't know if they do that for everyone, but to me that is 2x a day service.  Or maybe they just like us...😜

[hapytobehr]

7 minutes ago, pe4all said:

When they did that we began taking the a.m. service. (they vacuum, give clean towels, leave towel animal on bed, etc) On every cruise since then our steward has always come back into our cabin at night (while we are at dinner) to turn down the bed and pick up used towels and leave any flyers/invites.   Don't know if they do that for everyone, but to me that is 2x a day service.  Or maybe they just like us...😜

Once a day stateroom service started way before COVID.

[ShakyBeef]

1 minute ago, hapytobehr said:

Once a day stateroom service started way before COVID.

 

Yes, but twice-a-day, upon request, was still an option then.

[Lee Cruiser]

19 minutes ago, pe4all said:

When they did that we began taking the a.m. service. (they vacuum, give clean towels, leave towel animal on bed, etc) On every cruise since then our steward has always come back into our cabin at night (while we are at dinner) to turn down the bed and pick up used towels and leave any flyers/invites.   Don't know if they do that for everyone, but to me that is 2x a day service.  Or maybe they just like us...😜

Must be you, because we haven't even had an option to choose both on our three cruises since the restart.  They have asked, morning or evening?

[ray98]

Once a day service but the gratuity actually increased.

 

[DallasGuy75219]

1 hour ago, hapytobehr said:

Once a day stateroom service started way before COVID.

They were trying to push once a day, but twice a day was still officially available, even if the stewards didn't want to admit it. After restart, once a day became the standard, although it sounds like some of the stewards are still doing twice day, possibly by request.

[DallasGuy75219]

1 hour ago, Lee Cruiser said:

Must be you, because we haven't even had an option to choose both on our three cruises since the restart.  They have asked, morning or evening?

Yes.  Pre-COVID they gave you a form to fill out, so the steward couldn't stop you from checking AM and PM.  Post-restart the steward asks you AM or PM, so easier to insist on one or the other. 

[funinthesun1964]

2 hours ago, Lee Cruiser said:

Must be you, because we haven't even had an option to choose both on our three cruises since the restart.  They have asked, morning or evening?

We haven't had the option to choose both since way before Covid.  IIRC, it was 2017?

[cruisingguy007]

7 hours ago, Island Dog said:

Very true. The difference is Carnival (and Princess by my experience) keeps cutting things and keeping prices level yet other lines, like NCL, are keeping the experience consistent and raising prices.

 

Ultimately I'll opt for the latter.

 

What? Instant mashed potatoes not good enough? 😁

https://www.tradewindsnews.com/cruise-and-ferry/norwegian-s-del-rio-if-you-want-instant-mashed-potatoes-you-got-to-go-elsewhere-/2-1-1275172

 

Me, I like low prices but there is a limit, equal value for more or less value for more doesn't work for me but once you start comparing total "all in" costs, the nickle and diming may not be that big of a savings compared to alternatives that have more value perks bundled in (tips, drinks, excursion, dining ect).   

[thethirdhalf]

I think the thing that bugged me the most about today's announcement wasn't that Dr. Suess was coming back (we knew it was coming back at some point) or the wi-fi increase they slide into the end of the email, but advising of the room service changes without giving us a menu but a 'you'll see it when you see it'.

 

I'll admit I'm very likely to be expecting too much but if a change like this is going to be made let us see the menu with the anticipated prices. Even just seeing the new menu (sans prices) would have been a heads up so we could attempt to anticipate what the prices would be.

 

Based on the received email I think the only menu items are going to be the current paid option, nothing more, nothing less.

[mz-s]

25 minutes ago, thethirdhalf said:

I think the thing that bugged me the most about today's announcement wasn't that Dr. Suess was coming back (we knew it was coming back at some point) or the wi-fi increase they slide into the end of the email, but advising of the room service changes without giving us a menu but a 'you'll see it when you see it'.

 

I'll admit I'm very likely to be expecting too much but if a change like this is going to be made let us see the menu with the anticipated prices. Even just seeing the new menu (sans prices) would have been a heads up so we could attempt to anticipate what the prices would be.

 

Based on the received email I think the only menu items are going to be the current paid option, nothing more, nothing less.

 

Yeah I would not expect an expanded menu at all. Expanded prices probably, but no additional options.

[megbowlstrike]

Here's the part that hacks me off though.  I booked a cruise with my sister and nephew a few years ago for spring 2020.  Of course that was the COVID year, so it is rescheduled for this Oct on the Vista.  When we booked it, they were still doing free all day room service (we booked before they even started charging for the late night stuff).  Just look at the change from when we booked (and paid for a certain product) and now...it goes from all day free room service to free room service with item charges after 10pm to item charges for everything except for continental breakfast. 

 

My nephew loved ordering tuna sandwiches and cookies and sitting on the balcony late at night (he's a night owl so after midnight).  It's just sad the changes that have happened in the few years since the cruise was booked!  Not to mention, when we booked and paid for it, the service offerings were not slashed as much as they are now.  So we are basically getting less for our money.

Edited September 9, 2022 by megbowlstrike

[mz-s]

4 minutes ago, megbowlstrike said:

Here's the part that hacks me off though.  I booked a cruise with my sister and nephew a few years ago for spring 2020.  Of course that was the COVID year, so it is rescheduled for this Oct on the Vista.  When we booked it, they were still doing free all day room service (we booked before they even started charging for the late night stuff).  Just look at the change from when we booked (and paid for a certain product) and now...it goes from all day free room service to free room service with item charges after 10pm to item charges for everything except for continental breakfast. 

 

My nephew loved ordering tuna sandwiches and cookies and sitting on the balcony late at night (he's a night owl so after midnight).  It's just sad the changes that have happened in the few years since the cruise was booked!  Not to mention, when we booked and paid for it, the service offerings were not slashed as much as they are now.  So we are basically getting less for our money.

 

Yes, Carnival's product is SEVERELY diluted since you booked your cruise. It's just the truth of the matter. I hope you got a good deal on your cruise because Carnival's current product is absolutely not worth what cruises were selling for in 2019 or early 2020.

[cmichael1221]

39 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

Lots of other cruise lines to choose from if you don't like the Carnival product.

The complaining to complain about the room service blows my mind...  They're legit getting rid of a handful of sandwiches, a couple salads and some sweets.  God forbid a company adapt and change to keep up with the times.  Carnival wouldn't be in business right now if things were exactly the same as they were 20+ years ago.  If $5 to get some chicken tenders delivered is too cost prohibitive for someone, they probably shouldn't be travelling in the first place...

[DallasGuy75219]

42 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

If only that were true. When do you leave?

When the cheerleaders succumb to the KoolAid they've been drinking

[silvercrikhix]

Just got to add that todays new cuts seem to have tipped the scales for a few. 
It’s like this for us, Carnival was a moderate like a fairly decent hotel chain. 
Carnival seems hell bent on being a Motel 6 or Super 8.  And not a nice shiny new 6 or 8, at that. 

[StephPS79]

Honestly though, people.  What are you doing in your cabins that you need it serviced twice a day??  Most days we just need some fresh towels, but it’s nice to have the bed made, so we just let the steward do their thing.  But to be honest, on the lines that do twice a day, I tell the steward we prefer just once.  Twice is just too much!  

[BlerkOne]

Social Security checks will likely go up by 10%, +/-. I would hate for the price of my cruises to increase like that. Ala carte is the way to go. I’m tired of subsidizing others.

[DallasGuy75219]

5 minutes ago, silvercrikhix said:

Just got to add that todays new cuts seem to have tipped the scales for a few. 
It’s like this for us, Carnival was a moderate like a fairly decent hotel chain. 
Carnival seems hell bent on being a Motel 6 or Super 8.  And not a nice shiny new 6 or 8, at that. 

Exactly. At one point I would have called them Hampton Inn or Holiday Inn Express.  They're becoming that old hotel, way past its prime, that only cares about cutting costs vs. investing anything in the customer experience and can only meet the standards to rebrand as a Motel 6.

[BlerkOne]

4 minutes ago, StephPS79 said:

Honestly though, people.  What are you doing in your cabins that you need it serviced twice a day??  Most days we just need some fresh towels, but it’s nice to have the bed made, so we just let the steward do their thing.  But to be honest, on the lines that do twice a day, I tell the steward we prefer just once.  Twice is just too much!  

Just off Princess and the steward tried to service our cabin twice daily - that was one time too many. We told him him in once was enough.

[Colorado Beach Bum]

Inflation is causing higher prices everywhere across all industries. I’m shocked everyone is surprised that a business has to make decisions to adapt to the current environment.  It’s happening everywhere, not just on cruises. Nice to see many are deciding to try different cruise lines as that is what a free market system should promote.  And those businesses that can drive the profits will be the ones that survive.  We may not like some changes but when the system works as it should we as consumers actually benefit with better products and services. 

[mz-s]

10 hours ago, StephPS79 said:

Honestly though, people.  What are you doing in your cabins that you need it serviced twice a day??  Most days we just need some fresh towels, but it’s nice to have the bed made, so we just let the steward do their thing.  But to be honest, on the lines that do twice a day, I tell the steward we prefer just once.  Twice is just too much!  

 

It may be hard to remember now, but there was a time when Carnival did special things like twice daily room cleaning, white glove captain's receptions that all were invited to, bacon available on the buffet every morning, etc. These were not things that people necessarily expected on vacation or were used to. But they made you feel special and made you want to book another cruise. The most special thing on a Carnival cruise today is you can sometimes get a whole baked potato instead of a half of one.

 

10 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

Social Security checks will likely go up by 10%, +/-. I would hate for the price of my cruises to increase like that. Ala carte is the way to go. I’m tired of subsidizing others.

 

Kathie Lee used to sing about all that was included in a Carnival cruise ticket price. Would be a very short song these days. Carnival is desiring to become the Frontier airlines of cruising apparently.

[Bollycats]

So are we assuming the free salads and sandwiches are now gone? Or we might have to pay a little for them?

[pe4all]

17 hours ago, Lee Cruiser said:

Must be you, because we haven't even had an option to choose both on our three cruises since the restart.  They have asked, morning or evening?

Haven't had option for both either since before covid.  But the steward always asks which we prefer. (morning)   As stated, the steward always comes in the evening to "touch up" the cabin - even though we don't ask for it.  Why we don't know.

[mz-s]

41 minutes ago, Bollycats said:

So are we assuming the free salads and sandwiches are now gone? Or we might have to pay a little for them?

 

They haven't released the new menu yet. But there will be no more free room service other than the "continental" breakfast, that is certain.