If NCL did away with freestyle...

[Droopy_Sails]

If NCL got rid of freestyle, then the long waits and poor service will likely be gone as well. I vote to get ride of freestyle. It does not work. The concept on Princess works better and somehow they are able to get the service to a somewhat acceptable level. Why NCL cannot bring up their level of service is beyond me.

 

We've never experienced freestyle "not working"--we've never waited more than a minute or two to be seated, nor have we ever experienced poor service. On the contrary, we've found NCL crews to be absolutely stellar. You'll hear the same thing from many, many others here.

 

Why would you ask to get rid of an entire concept that so many others say is working well for them? Why not just use another line? I can't imagine coming onto a Celebrity, Royal Caribbean or Holland America board and "voting" to eliminate the traditional dining enjoyed by others. It's not for me and I choose not to book these lines, but why would I be so presumptuous as to claim it should be eliminated because I don't like it?

[Retired not Expired]

I vote to get ride of freestyle. It does not work. .

 

Only for some people, Brad, only for some people. And for those of us it does work for, we are very grateful there are other options for those where it does not.

[7SeasLover]

I know not everyone feels this way, 7Seas, but we find the combination of a set time, set table, set dining companions and specific dress codes for various nights to be too regimented. Mostly, though, we find the idea of eating in the same dining room almost every night to be dreary. We love the variety of specialty restaurants on NCL; it's a big reason why we sail with them.

 

Oh, I absolutely agree. I do not like to HAVE to sit with the same people. More than that though, I do not like eating late if I don't get early seating. I don't like the early breakfast though. I most certainly prefer freestyle offered by NCL.

 

I just don't recall an issue about dress though. Maybe it's because I always dress for dinner. Mostly I'm just too wrapped up in having a nice dinner with my husband to notice who's wearing what. And, I prefer a table for 2.

[House_Atreides]

Well they're not going to drop Freestyle for sure; it's a hit with the die hard NCL fans; if it's not broke, don't fix it...

 

Yes, I would sail NCL without Freestyle....I wouldn't be as happy, however DH and I love the line itself. Not impressed with RCL or Carnival for sure. Celebrity was too snooty for our "style" so that would be out too.

 

Have not tried Princess yet...........

[ce2000]

If NCL got rid of freestyle, then the long waits and poor service will likely be gone as well. I vote to get ride of freestyle. It does not work. The concept on Princess works better and somehow they are able to get the service to a somewhat acceptable level. Why NCL cannot bring up their level of service is beyond me.

I vote that NCL keeps freestyle, I'm sure they will because it works for so many people. I believe that freestyle didn't work for you, it didn't work for us either. We usually travel with other family members and make up a group of 10 or 12 people, we are usually seated at two nearby tables in the dinning room. We were on the NCL Jewel in Dec. 05 and with a group this large it is hard to book reservations for the specialty restaurants as soon as we board ship. We were able to make reservations in Gagney's Steakhouse one evening, I had the fillet and it was very good. I was very dissappointed with the quality of lunch and dinner served in the main dinning rooms, breakfast however was very good. I believe that more cruise lines will follow Princess' lead by offering traditional or personal choice dinning. I was on the Caribbean Princess in August and found the quality of food in the main dinning rooms to be much more to my liking than what NCL offered.

[lindajeff]

Just got off the Pride of Hawaii. Second time cruiser. First (and last) time on a "freestyle" cruise. I don't see how having to make ALL of your dinner reservations within the firrt two hours you are on board for the ENTIRE cruise is "freestyle". We had very little idea of what we would be doing every day or what type of cuisine we would "feel like" that far in advance. Also with so many dining venues, the quality of the food (at least in the main dining room and buffet) was mediocre, at best. We chose not to pay extra for the likehood that the food in the "specialty" restaurants would be any better.

 

IMHO, the only way that "freestyle" dining can work would be if they took no dining reservations ever. At least that way you could see which restaurants are busy at the time you are ready to eat each night and then make an informed decision. Then all they would have to do is hire all new chefs and cooks.

[mbisson]

IMHO, the only way that "freestyle" dining can work would be if they took no dining reservations ever..

 

Interesting. It's worked quite well on all my freestyle cruises.

 

-Monte

[lhall85917]

Just got off the Pride of Hawaii. Second time cruiser. First (and last) time on a "freestyle" cruise. I don't see how having to make ALL of your dinner reservations within the firrt two hours you are on board for the ENTIRE cruise is "freestyle". We had very little idea of what we would be doing every day or what type of cuisine we would "feel like" that far in advance. Also with so many dining venues, the quality of the food (at least in the main dining room and buffet) was mediocre, at best. We chose not to pay extra for the likehood that the food in the "specialty" restaurants would be any better.

 

IMHO, the only way that "freestyle" dining can work would be if they took no dining reservations ever. At least that way you could see which restaurants are busy at the time you are ready to eat each night and then make an informed decision. Then all they would have to do is hire all new chefs and cooks.

 

We have never made dinner reservations, nor had longer than a 5 minute wait. It probably depends on the ship and what time you like to eat. Obviously, if you like to eat at the same time as most others on the ship there will be more of a wait than if you go early or late. The one time we ate a pay restaurant, it was the best meal we've ever had! We were quite surprised!

[Retired not Expired]

Just got off the Pride of Hawaii. Second time cruiser. First (and last) time on a "freestyle" cruise. I don't see how having to make ALL of your dinner reservations within the firrt two hours you are on board for the ENTIRE cruise is "freestyle". We had very little idea of what we would be doing every day or what type of cuisine we would "feel like" that far in advance. Also with so many dining venues, the quality of the food (at least in the main dining room and buffet) was mediocre, at best. We chose not to pay extra for the likehood that the food in the "specialty" restaurants would be any better.

 

IMHO, the only way that "freestyle" dining can work would be if they took no dining reservations ever. At least that way you could see which restaurants are busy at the time you are ready to eat each night and then make an informed decision. Then all they would have to do is hire all new chefs and cooks.

 

First, you sailed NCLA, not NCL. Second, I've sailed both NCLA and NCL and have never made a reservation except for a group and I've never waited more than 5 minutes except once and that was when we were all watching some beautiful scenery and all went at once to dine and my wait that time was about ten minutes.

 

One of the problems with NCLA is the itinerary. It is so great we have a lot of people who cannot function without traditional dining taking this cruise and then trying to make freestyle something it is not. If people would stop listening to these doomsayers and go with the flow, it will work just fine.

 

Once a year I travel with a group of 40 friends from the Branson area. When we go on NCL, two nights out of seven we reserve a time at the dining room. We start to gather outside 30 minutes or more prior to our time to visit. Many who come up believe there is a long wait until we tell them to go on in. So how many of those who say there are many people waiting has just seen a group forming. There are groups on most sailing.

 

I have an NCL sailing in Dec and a NCLA sailing in Jan coming up. I'll let the system work for me without the stress some caused themselves. When I do traditional dining, I let it do how it was intended. Same with freestyle. I adapt to each and both work for me.

 

I look on freestyle people as people who has been out of kindergarten long enough to realize that you really don't have to function as a bunch of ducks in a row. It is possible to go your own way without playing follow the leader.

[newmexicoNita]

If NCL got rid of freestyle, then the long waits and poor service will likely be gone as well. I vote to get ride of freestyle. It does not work. The concept on Princess works better and somehow they are able to get the service to a somewhat acceptable level. Why NCL cannot bring up their level of service is beyond me.

And when did you cruise NCL and have a long wait? How many were in your party, what time were you trying to dine? We have dined with 2 up to 6, from 6pm to 7pm, on six freestyle cruises and never waited more than a minute or 2. When there was 24 of us, we did wait about 15 minutes. NMnita

[monicajay]

Freestyle Rocks!

 

Having started cruising with traditional then switched to freestyle I felt liberated. I hated the constant planning the whole day around dinner.

I would never go back. I will consider Princess in the future but would return to land based vacations if no cruise line was offering this option.

 

I have only done one NCL cruise and we did not have any difficulty being seated or making reservations. The longest wait was 5 minutes ( very acceptable in the restaurant business) and once was offered a specialty seating at 7h30 when I asked for 7h00. No biggie. Gave us time for an extra cocktail:D

 

Without freestyle I would most likely go back to Club Med. ( they now have all drinks included ) I think the total that I would spend on a week for my family works out to about the same. ( When you add up everything)

[alwayssingin]

We might be more likely to shop around, but definitely would not abandon NCL.

[Wormy53]

We are Princess cruisers usually. The deals and itineraries keep bringing us back. That said, I always keep an eye turned to NCL. I don't think I could ever go back to traditional times. I will always choose personal choice or freestyle. (I do like the NCL credit card idea - may have to look into that!!) On our last cruise we decided to try traditional again - asked for a table for 2 which had always been granted. We ended up sitting with another couple at a 4top. Although nice people, there were some evenings when we would have preferred to dine alone. (Not bad enough to change, though!) We will now only go with PC!!

[hotspur]

I've cruised on Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity and don't recall having to snap to their regimentation. I only remember eating at a set time and at a specific table.

Also known as "snapping to their regimentation."

[hotspur]

If NCL got rid of freestyle, then the long waits and poor service will likely be gone as well. I vote to get ride of freestyle. It does not work. The concept on Princess works better and somehow they are able to get the service to a somewhat acceptable level. Why NCL cannot bring up their level of service is beyond me.

Firstly, one always has to wonder why someone who hates NCL so continues to come here. To annoy the rest of us?

 

Secondly, I've never waited more than ten minutes for a table on NCL and the service on our Majesty cruise this past week in all dining rooms was absolutely fine--comparable to and with none of the annoying bowing, scraping, and fawning we found on Celebrity and HAL.

[tomluvsaida]

Is there any line that markets to single cruisers? As in those travelling alone? I've never seen single cabins advertised. Or a rate that's in the ballpark of half what two people would pay. Most lines charge between 150%-200% for someone travelling alone.

 

There may be those lines that try to appeal to single men travelling together who are trying to meet single women on board. It seems like nightlife aboard some lines would appeal to these individuals. It also seems like the freestyle dining concept would also appeal if you were trying to have a dinner date or romantic meal with someone you met onboard.

I don't know about a specific line that is for singles but there is a whole section on CC for singles.

[tomluvsaida]

If NCL got rid of freestyle, then the long waits and poor service will likely be gone as well. I vote to get ride of freestyle. It does not work. The concept on Princess works better and somehow they are able to get the service to a somewhat acceptable level. Why NCL cannot bring up their level of service is beyond me.

I think you might find some coments on the comparison between NCL and DCL enlightening. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=417515 The comment I found most interesting is that DCL has only one specialty restaurant and was completely booked one hour after taking reservations! :eek: :D Oh ya, in case you hadn't heard it is recomended by many on this board that you really should make reservations for the specialty restaurants on NCL. On POH which we're going on has a choice of 10 restaurants!:)

[lindajeff]

PoH may have 10 restaurants, but by Wednesday morning (9/13/06), there were NO MORE reservations available for the duration of the less-than-100%- sold-out cruise in ANY of the speciality restaurants. Also, with the exception of "lobster night", most of the food served in the buffet was the same as that on the menu in the dining room. Also, the "differences" between NCL and NCLA would seem me to have very little impact on people's dining habits. IMHO, PoH's dining issues were more related to the menus and food preparation than they were with the servers. Having said all of that, I will admit that we never attempted to just "show up" at one of the speciality restaurants without a reservation, because one night we walked by Jasmine and noticed that (a) it was much less than 1/2 full and (b) it was described as having no tables available.

[newmexicoNita]

just read on HAL board, starting Jan they are going with the personal dining option, just like Princess. I have been saying for about 4 years some form of flexible dining is coming to all ships. The dress code option will not be changed. NMnita

[S.S.Oceanlover]

just read on HAL board, starting Jan they are going with the personal dining option, just like Princess. I have been saying for about 4 years some form of flexible dining is coming to all ships. The dress code option will not be changed. NMnita

 

Oh boy the fur will be flying when they read that! They don't kindly to any change on the HAL board. Having done one HAL cruise I would definitely do another if the right itinerary came along. Great crew on their ships.

 

Bill

[tomluvsaida]

PoH may have 10 restaurants, but by Wednesday morning (9/13/06), there were NO MORE reservations available for the duration of the less-than-100%- sold-out cruise in ANY of the speciality restaurants. Also, with the exception of "lobster night", most of the food served in the buffet was the same as that on the menu in the dining room. Also, the "differences" between NCL and NCLA would seem me to have very little impact on people's dining habits. IMHO, PoH's dining issues were more related to the menus and food preparation than they were with the servers. Having said all of that, I will admit that we never attempted to just "show up" at one of the speciality restaurants without a reservation, because one night we walked by Jasmine and noticed that (a) it was much less than 1/2 full and (b) it was described as having no tables available.

This backs up what I read on many posts. Both the positive comments as well as the negative ones stress the need to make reservations the first thing when boarding. I feel sorry for non CC readers that just don't know this. The only people I have no sympathy for are the ones that do know this and refuse to make reservations then come on this board and complain!

[newmexicoNita]

Oh boy the fur will be flying when they read that! They don't kindly to any change on the HAL board. Having done one HAL cruise I would definitely do another if the right itinerary came along. Great crew on their ships.

 

Bill

Bill run on over and read it: already the loyalist are screaming!!!! I hate to say it, but I think it's kinda funny. As I have mentioned several times before, we are sailing HAL in NOvember as it was the only itinerary that fit into our plans. I am excited, we will have a great time and I have heard how good the service is, but the people may be a problem for me. That's why I think it is so funny.....NMNita

[Droopy_Sails]

Are they doing it like Princess does--you still have the option of traditional seating, but you also can choose anytime dining? If so, I have no idea what the HAL traditionalists would be complaining about, unless it's other people having choices.

 

It is pretty funny, isn't it? I agree with Nita; this change will come to most lines (I doubt all lines) in time. But I also think it's good for us because NCL is going to have to work harder on its lousy land-based customer service to keep us. Once we have freestyle/anytime dining available to us on a lot of other lines, NCL won't have this market wrapped up so tightly.

[LynnH]

We only book with NCL because they offer freestyle cruising. There's no need to even test the other lines; we don't want to be told when and where to eat and we don't want to have to get dressed up for the fashion shows...errr, I mean dinner.

 

Vacations should be relaxing.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Bill run on over and read it: already the loyalist are screaming!!!! I hate to say it, but I think it's kinda funny. As I have mentioned several times before, we are sailing HAL in NOvember as it was the only itinerary that fit into our plans. I am excited, we will have a great time and I have heard how good the service is, but the people may be a problem for me. That's why I think it is so funny.....NMNita

 

I went over and read all 4 pages when I read this last night. It's a test on 1 ship and they're all doom and gloom.

 

Some are complaining that they have a set table and time for all their cruises this is going to ruin it.

 

When I sailed on HAL I mentioned that I wasn't going to go out and buy a sportscoat for 1 nights dinner (semi formal night) but I would have a tux on for the other 2 nights it was like I committed a crime against humanity!:D

 

Bill