Wow. Pride of Hawaii Taken Out of Hawaii Service - to be moved to Europe!

[daveco58]

Okay, but I am one of those dedicated servers in a high-end hotel ( I tend bar), and I have a cousin who worked on a cruise ship for many years. I would bet dollars to donuts you have not done either.

We have no more in common, work wise than I do with my sister who is a bookkeeper.

I dont work hard, I dont spend more than 30 hrs/wk at work. When I leave work, I leave work. I live in a house, with my very own bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, and yard. I can use the pool and jacuzzi here any time I want, because they are mine. I can take a week off and go anywhere I want. I can leave with two weeks notice, and no one is mad.

I keep all the tips I make - except what I choose to tip back. And in this whole hotel, I am one of about 12 people who is legally able to work in this country. How many of the Maids, Cooks, Gardeners, Bellhops and Maintenance people here do you think could go to work for NCLA? The problem of hiring Americans on a cruise ship is they are doing work Americans dont much do, in America. If these hotels had to hire only citizens or green card holders, the way NCLA does - they would be bleeding red ink too. And if NCLA could hire from the same pool as these high end hotels, they would be more profitable.

 

And before you ask, yes it is Union. Do you think the Union cares any more than the owner, if someone is legal. As long as they get their cut?

[shoreguy]

Im there is more in common than you think, both are very simliar

 

Except at a hotel you go home to your place with your family at night not to a quad cabin with your fellow crew members.

[shoreguy]

shoreguy I know you have alot of insight on the matter. what do u think the chances would be of a high end ship working in hawaii. something like a crystal or regent. I think thats the route NCL might face with the America. get good people on board pay them a very good wage, and charge alot for the cruise. maybe refit the ship cut the number of cabins.

 

I really have no insight but my gut tells me that Crystal like fares are needed to make this work. I am certain there are many great American workers onboard. The difference the jobs are a career for an international crew member and short term adventure for them. For the right wage it could be seen as a career for American crew members.

 

My hat is still off to NCL - the one cruiseline that has had the courage to try new things over the years. Not everything turns out as planned put we can not say it was for a lack trying.

[seahorse]

The ship is going to be reflagged (Bahamas)..........renamed and refitted and all American Crew will be able to stay on if they chose.

 

I wonder if they will chose:rolleyes:

[CruisinMatt]

Anyone have and ideas or speculation as to why they choice Pride of Hawaii to be pulled "temporarily" vs the other ships that are in Hawaii? I thought POH was built specifically for Hawaii cruising... :confused:

[Cruise_More_Often]

Seatrade Insider news is reporting that an NCL company spokeswoman said the U.S. crew would be offered positions with Pride of America or Pride of Aloha or on another ship in the NCL fleet, and that it was expected that all crew who wanted to remain with NCL would have a place somewhere in the fleet. If you want to read the whole story, go to http://www.cruise-community.com/ and click on Seatrade Insider on the left side. You might have to register, and I can't remember if it is a free registration (I thnk so).

[honestguy]

Okay, but I am one of those dedicated servers in a high-end hotel ( I tend bar), and I have a cousin who worked on a cruise ship for many years. I would bet dollars to donuts you have not done either.

We have no more in common, work wise than I do with my sister who is a bookkeeper.

I dont work hard, I dont spend more than 30 hrs/wk at work. When I leave work, I leave work. I live in a house, with my very own bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, and yard. I can use the pool and jacuzzi here any time I want, because they are mine. I can take a week off and go anywhere I want. I can leave with two weeks notice, and no one is mad.

I keep all the tips I make - except what I choose to tip back. And in this whole hotel, I am one of about 12 people who is legally able to work in this country. How many of the Maids, Cooks, Gardeners, Bellhops and Maintenance people here do you think could go to work for NCLA? The problem of hiring Americans on a cruise ship is they are doing work Americans dont much do, in America. If these hotels had to hire only citizens or green card holders, the way NCLA does - they would be bleeding red ink too. And if NCLA could hire from the same pool as these high end hotels, they would be more profitable.

 

 

Well Dave you assume too much, for I have worked for NCLA, and I'm employed now as a server. They are the same very much so, other than what shoreguy stated about the sleeping accomadations. I'd bet all my money(it isn't much) that if you took a poll of former and current NCLA employees that concerns about their living conditions would be low on the list. No the number one complaint is with management, on and off the ship. Other than living on the ship, and everything that goes along with that, the concept is the same taking care of the guest. Something that isn't getting done on the NCLA ships.

 

There are tons of reasons for this, but I stand by my claim that it deals with pay. Maybe NCL can't afford what it costs to run a successful American product, and thats fine I can live with that. I can't live with people saying well americans are lazy blah blah blah. I would be a fool to work for NCLA for what theypay, so instead of attracting people like Dave for bartenders they attract people from applebee's and chili's. Dave would you work 70 hours a week at 7.75 an hour 11.63 for overtime plus maybe 300 in tips in a good week, for a grand total of 958.90? Probably not becuase your making that or more at 30 hours a week, and even if your not your working 40 hours less a week.

 

Now I know people will say hold on you have room and board. Yeah you do but most people still have mortage payments and car payments those don't go away. so thats not as much as a benefit as one would think.

[seahorse]

Anyone have and ideas or speculation as to why they choice Pride of Hawaii to be pulled "temporarily" vs the other ships that are in Hawaii? I thought POH was built specifically for Hawaii cruising... :confused:

 

I believe that they want a newer Jewel Class ship in Europe........and beyond:D

[mrtractor]

....why the Pride of Hawai'i. Seems like it would be the one ship designed and decorated to stay in Hawai'i. The Pride of America's theme could be more easily adapted to East Coast cruises to the Caribbean and Bahamas. It could even be based out of Puerto Rico for Southern Caribbean cruises.

 

While we're on the subject, what about Southern Caribbean and Panama Canal itineraries? Why doesn't NCL have a 7 day itinerary out of Puerto Rico to include Aruba? And what about transcanal cruises? Is the Pride of America too bid to get through the Panama Canal?

 

I wanted a Southern Carib itinerary to include Aruba and had to look elsewhere. Even though we are one cruise away from Platinum Latitudes, we booked with Princess. And unless I book a repo, a full transit of the Panama Canal looks like it's out of the question right now on NCL.

 

Whew! Gotta go lay down for a while after that rant!

 

MrTractor<--------loves Freestyle and NCL, but is getting tired of the same itineraries in the Caribbean.........

[CruisinMatt]

Seahorse- that makes sense!

 

Also, in regards the the comments about NCL's advertising that pokes fun at the traditional cruise experience, are those ads being based off of the NCLA brand? I thought they were for NCL. People are quick to point out that they are separate companies, but I think the average person might lump them together.

[mikedw]

....why the Pride of Hawai'i. Seems like it would be the one ship designed and decorated to stay in Hawai'i. The Pride of America's theme could be more easily adapted to East Coast cruises to the Caribbean and Bahamas. It could even be based out of Puerto Rico for Southern Caribbean cruises.

 

While we're on the subject, what about Southern Caribbean and Panama Canal itineraries? Why doesn't NCL have a 7 day itinerary out of Puerto Rico to include Aruba? And what about transcanal cruises? Is the Pride of America too bid to get through the Panama Canal?

 

I wanted a Southern Carib itinerary to include Aruba and had to look elsewhere. Even though we are one cruise away from Platinum Latitudes, we booked with Princess. And unless I book a repo, a full transit of the Panama Canal looks like it's out of the question right now on NCL.

 

Whew! Gotta go lay down for a while after that rant!

 

MrTractor<--------loves Freestyle and NCL, but is getting tired of the same itineraries in the Caribbean.........

 

My guess is that the reason they didn't move the Pride of America is because the design is a one of a kind, originally designed by American Classic Voyages for there United States Lines that went bankrupt after 9/11. At least the Pride of Hawaii is the same layout as the other Jewel Class Ships and easier for them to change around and the intl. crews will have more familiarity with it. Another reason also could be political, changing the Pride of America to Norwegian Pride or something like that would not go over good with the politicians and union leaders.

[ohioNCLcruiser]

NCLA just said that no NCLA worker will be fired and can be moved to any ship in the international fleet.

[Globaliser]

NCLA just said that no NCLA worker will be fired and can be moved to any ship in the international fleet.

On NCLA T&C?

[seahorse]

Seahorse- that makes sense!

 

Also, in regards the the comments about NCL's advertising that pokes fun at the traditional cruise experience, are those ads being based off of the NCLA brand? I thought they were for NCL. People are quick to point out that they are separate companies, but I think the average person might lump them together.

 

Those ads are for the NCL brand. They do make a point to first time cruisers and cruisers that are tired of Traditional Cruising. They can be adapted to NCLA in that it is a port intensive cruise and Freestyle makes sense.

 

When clients come in or call about the ads a good TA can explain them. It gets a foot in the door for NCL;) BTW, I love the ads.

[ohioNCLcruiser]

On NCLA T&C?

 

sorry meant to say can be moved to the aloha or america, as well as the other ships with the ncl fleet.

[aldewitt]

Mr. Tractor:

 

NCL hasn't figured out yet how to fluidly integrate their NCLA ships with their other ships. I agree completely about the Southern Caribbean routes. They could learn a lot from RCCL on that.

[aldewitt]

I don't agree. All you have to do is see all the deployments of ships from the West Coast R/T Hawaii for 2007 and 2008. They are 10-15 day cruises and extremely attractive and popular. In fact' date=' it's hard for some cruise lines to get into some Hawaiian ports because NCLA and Princess has them *sewn up*. The prices for these West Coast R/T cruises have gone waaaay up for 2008 ... [/font']

 

***

 

BTW: I LOVE NCL's new advertising campaign ... but, you're right, I've never thought about it from a non-cruiser stand point.

 

We're huge fans of NCL ... and hope they do well. Things they are pioneering seem to be taken up by other cruise lines in one form or another ...

 

~d

 

You've made my point. NCL has saturated the market in Hawaii for around the island cruising, and they've been able to sew up ports to the detriment of other cruise lines. If those cruises go "way up" that means NCL can charge more and compete better. This is good for NCL, and bad for the other cruise lines. So, when NCL blames the loss of the POH on a saturated market, that isn't correct. The main point is, they are not competing in a way that makes sense for the Hawaii market. There are lots of people here in this part of the world who'd fly over there and spend a week in a hotel (booking on Orbitz) and not realize that for the same money they could have spent the week on a cruise ship and seen all the islands.

 

I'm not so much a fan of freestyle, because I see it as a means of forcing guests into the high-end restaurants by dumbing-down the quality of the food in the main dining rooms. But, like you, I want NCL and NCL-A to succeed because (1) its a good company; and (2) I like cruising with an American crew.

 

I think we're mostly saying the same thing. I just hope I can get one more good year cruising Hawaii for $800 a person in a balcony cabin. :)

[MAHICK]

Aldewitt,

 

Praise tell. Please tell me your secret. My wife and I want to sail next May or June. How can we get a Balcony for that price?

 

Thanks,

 

Mark

[aldewitt]

Those ads are for the NCL brand. They do make a point to first time cruisers and cruisers that are tired of Traditional Cruising. They can be adapted to NCLA in that it is a port intensive cruise and Freestyle makes sense.

 

When clients come in or call about the ads a good TA can explain them. It gets a foot in the door for NCL;) BTW, I love the ads.

 

 

Now, see, we have exactly the opposite take on those ads. Most Americans have the attention span of a... what was I saying... oh, the attention span of a gnat. When you see those TV ads, unless you've been on a cruise ship and taken a cruise under the time constraints, you don't "get it." Moreover, you're apt to conclude that all cruising is a time-intensive, schedule-oriented activity, and you're likely to think, "the heck with that. I wanna go lay on a beach somewhere."

 

I think the ads are cute to people like you and I because we've been cruising. We're taking 3 people who've never been on a boat before in June. When they saw that, they immediately asked if our cruise was going to be regimented like that. Living out here in the heart of beef country, they didn't like the idea much.

 

I am not much of a fan of Freestyle, but I understand what its designed to do, and I like the de-formalization of cruising. Most people my age don't want to get dressed in a suit for dinner. I have to wear a suit to court all the time; I hate wearing one on vacation. So when I do the PO Aloha, I love not having to get formal for formal night.

 

Another problem, as I see it, is that cruises used to be sold and marketed directly to TAs, and now so much of it is through the internet. This is bad because in smaller towns like mine, fewer and fewer people have the ability to really sell cruises.

 

Just my two cents... probably overvalued. :D

[seahorse]

Now, see, we have exactly the opposite take on those ads. Most Americans have the attention span of a... what was I saying... oh, the attention span of a gnat. When you see those TV ads, unless you've been on a cruise ship and taken a cruise under the time constraints, you don't "get it." Moreover, you're apt to conclude that all cruising is a time-intensive, schedule-oriented activity, and you're likely to think, "the heck with that. I wanna go lay on a beach somewhere."

 

I think the ads are cute to people like you and I because we've been cruising. We're taking 3 people who've never been on a boat before in June. When they saw that, they immediately asked if our cruise was going to be regimented like that. Living out here in the heart of beef country, they didn't like the idea much.

 

 

 

Just my two cents... probably overvalued. :D

 

One of the biggest objections first timers have is the regimentation of cruising, so those ads give them a heads up. They are short for the gnats:D and get their attention.

 

The first time cruise market is very large and the life blood of the industry. Those ads sets NCL apart and hopefully gets the first timers calling.

[Cuizer2]

One of the biggest objections first timers have is the regimentation of cruising, so those ads give them a heads up. They are short for the gnats:D and get their attention.

 

The first time cruise market is very large and the life blood of the industry. Those ads sets NCL apart and hopefully gets the first timers calling.

 

I would think a lot of first timers would like to try out something shorter and closer to home. Carnival is the king of the three, four and five day cruises. NCL's shortest cruise south of Seattle, east of Hawaii and west of the Mississippi River is eight days (except a repo cruise, which ends up costing more for airfare). Carnival has two ships (Paradise and Elation) that do three, four and five day cruises out of Los Angeles and San Diego. Carnival also has two ships doing the seven and eight day cruises out of Los Angeles and San Diego (Pride and Spirit). The oldest of these ships is from 1998, which is only three years older than the Star. The Spirit and Pride are as new as the Star.

 

If NCL is after the first time cruiser, they sure are not looking very hard on the west coast.

[seahorse]

I would think a lot of first timers would like to try out something shorter and closer to home. Carnival is the king of the three, four and five day cruises. NCL's shortest cruise south of Seattle, east of Hawaii and west of the Mississippi River is eight days (except a repo cruise, which ends up costing more for airfare). Carnival has two ships (Paradise and Elation) that do three, four and five day cruises out of Los Angeles and San Diego. Carnival also has two ships doing the seven and eight day cruises out of Los Angeles and San Diego (Pride and Spirit). The oldest of these ships is from 1998, which is only three years older than the Star. The Spirit and Pride are as new as the Star.

 

If NCL is after the first time cruiser, they sure are not looking very hard on the west coast.

 

NCL is the king of the East Coast with not having to fly;) Carnival deploys their older ships for short cruises, as does RCI.

 

Unfortunately NCL does not have as many ships as Carnival, nor does it have the $$$$ that Carnival has (Seahorse wishes she bought stock in Carnival when she first came in the business:D ).

[mbisson]

To interject along that line of thought....

I wish NCL had followed through on their original plan that 1 of the Hawaii ships would do 3 and 4 day cruises. I know that we would be much more likely to do a week in Oahu followed by a short cruise rather than a week on a ship there.

 

jmo

-Monte

[arby70]

I had planned on an NCLA cruise in the fall of 2008. I'll just have to see how high the prices go up, because with the cost of excursions it gets pretty spendy. I wanted to spend about 3 to 4 days on Oahu first and then take one of their 10 or 11 day island cruises. I will only go there once so we'll have to see how high it all comes to. If it's too high, we'll take a multi-island land tour most likely.

 

Wish I could do it this year while the prices are so good, but I am taking 2 vacations this year and have myself commited to them. Won't have the vacation time or the money to go to Hawaii this year.

[shoreguy]

I had planned on an NCLA cruise in the fall of 2008. I'll just have to see how high the prices go up, because with the cost of excursions it gets pretty spendy. I wanted to spend about 3 to 4 days on Oahu first and then take one of their 10 or 11 day island cruises. I will only go there once so we'll have to see how high it all comes to. If it's too high, we'll take a multi-island land tour most likely.

 

Wish I could do it this year while the prices are so good, but I am taking 2 vacations this year and have myself commited to them. Won't have the vacation time or the money to go to Hawaii this year.

 

I rest my case :rolleyes:

 

Trust me the fares will have to double before a short multi island land vacation is a better value. Keep in mind you loose a day every time you change islands by air.