sjbdtz

Look into my eyes, look into the eyes.  Not around the eyes, don't look around the eyes,  look into my eyes *snap* you're under.   You need spa passes.  4, 3,  2,  1    you're back in the room.

https://littlebritain.fandom.com/wiki/Kenny_Craig

Stephen

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19 minutes ago, Jachred said:

I work in a call center..  here is my entire employment contract..

http://www.iamdl142.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/SWA-IAM-142_Final-TA-with-LOUs-14-and-15_10-21-16.pdf

 

 

Ahh, so you work for Southwest airlines in a call center?    Union shops are different than most employers - which have confidentiality clauses in their compensation agreements.   That's because people negotiate their own salaries, and some may be more proficient at this than others.

Violating the terms of the employment agreement (along with its confidentiality clause) is a fireable offense, regardless of whether the terms were positive or negative.

But I see now your perspective, because typically everybody in the union can see the entire pay scale, regardless of where they fall on it. 

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10 minutes ago, Jachred said:

Yes I have checked those other positions and many more that get my tips to see how much they are getting and optimize their commision/tip so I do take that into consideration.   Like some restaurant servers have to tip out other positions and if they did a really good job i over tip...  another place I go the valet and establishment split 50% of the tips and I still have to pay a fee to park that is not shared.. I avoid the valet and when I do need to use it i dont tip...

 

The mechanic situation would be different because that would be commission on sales that his skill as a salesman earned him and agree it's mostly non of my buisness. But I do shop labor rates and part prices and see the cost vs doing it somewhere else or myself.  I do reward those that do a great job with repeat buisness.  

 

I do want to know if a position is commission based so I can evaluate the Information being provided..  

 

I do think that draw idea sounds like the most correct as it's the only fair way if they are a 100% tip position. 

 

I agree they have the choice to leave, but I view them if it's TRUE also taking advantage of me in the situation as well.

 

I have asked dealers at other casinos if their tips are pooled or not..  I tip smaller on pooled tips because that extra money makes a bigger difference in my bankroll than the toke box

 

In my job I've had many customers asked how I bonus what commission I get and I have never taken offence and shared that Information freely.

 

Larry

 

What line of work are you in?   How much do you make?

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21 hours ago, Jachred said:

OP: Thank you for the post.. 

 

To those that say where my money goes is none of my business..  YOU ARE WRONG!

 

He(and as I will be doing when I go on) have EVERY RIGHT to know if our money is going to the people we intend on it going to!

Asking about TIPPING and COMPENSATION are TWO Different things. He did not ask how much do you get paid, how much do you make hourly, how much do you normally get per contract.... he asked... how much of this money I am giving you do you get to keep!!  How is that not relevant information?  If I am paying someone for doing work for me... and then the bank says... I am taking 1/2 as fees but if you tell anyone you can't bank here anymore... and I only can pay using that bank..... How is it not my business??  Same thing.. 

 

THE ONLY ONE THAT BENEFITS FROM TIPPING/GRATS NOT BEING TRANSPARENT IS NCL... PERIOD.... STOP BEING NASTY PEOPLE AND PROTECTING NCL AND KEEPING THESE STAFF MEMBERS UNDERPAID, UNDER-APPRECIATED AND ABUSED.

 

Also since you think this info is false.. if someone does get fired... then.... it must be true?  So even in your post you make no sense... 

 

On a cruise ship, I want quality people, who work hard, to get paid well, and treat me well.. Currently we use the tipping system for that.. but if it keeps getting abused... Were going to have crap workers, crap food, crap cruises, and slave ships... we have to stand up for the vacation experience we want.. and the way to get that is to treat the crew well.... 

 

Larry

#endrant

Just curious, do you check-in with every car valet, hotel maid, room service attendant, etc. to find out how much of their tips they get to keep? 

I assume you want every right to know that your car mechanic is being paid for their work  (aka "money is going to the people we intend on it going to",  because you want "quality people, who work hard, to get paid well"), but do you ask them what part of the commissionable parts they sell / upsell, they get to keep?  

As others have pointed out:  they are not there by indentured servitude.  If this is happening, it is either accepted practice, or not so egregious that the dealers aren't complict.

Now there's a potential explanation which nobody has ventured yet which is that MAYBE the dealers are on a similar plan to bartenders & servers with their tips.  That is, they're granted an advance against tips and that the advance is recovered by no more than 60% of the tips.  In other words  I will pay you $1000 / month.    If your total share of tips is more than $1,675/mth (so that 60% = $1000) then you get to keep 100% of the overage.   Otherwise you get the $1000 draw, plus 40% of the tips.

If that was the whole story, it would be more consistent with their practices elsewhere, and somewhat more excusable.  Dealers earn tips based on being personable, and since they all share tips - it's less about single-hand luck.     

This could explain why all dealers participate in the clap-clap when tokes are dropped.

Stephen

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21 hours ago, Jachred said:

 

 

1 hour ago, Takoyaki said:

Ive read this whole thread,

and I can tell you it seems overwhelmingly apparent that either you or I have a comprehension issue with at least one statement.

 

He did not say "6 hosts and 20+dealers" corroborated his story, that was in direct reference to NHL Arizona's post saying he could get someone in trouble for this thread. He was implying that with that number of staff on a long sailing there would be no true way for NCL to know which dealer said this. They can only narrow it down to 20 dealers and 6 hosts but cannot definitively tell which one had this conversation. in fact in that same post he again says 4 people told him this.

 

cdnsteelman please correct me if that is wrong

 

 

So that's 4 out of 20+.    Including the one who sat for a long time, assigned to the Hold'em Table.   That is NOT very difficult to solve.

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2 hours ago, pumpkinbread said:

Thank you all for your answers! I totally did understand NCL ‘s cruise policy!

Their agent told me because of the large amount of difference that they would make an adjustment. For next time I will not book early and book closer to sailing time!

By the way, our TA was wonderful!

NCL offered either or 500 per person to spend on board or 625 $ for a new cruise. Enjoy!

Barbara

 

Then you did well.   $500 PP of OBC is pretty good.  Congrats.

Stephen

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So this started as  "because we were waiting at the Hold'em table, a dealer told me in a frank conversation" moving on to "corroborated by a Casino Host & 3 other dealers",  to  "six casino hosts and 20+ dealers". 

Granted, I'm skimming (not 60%) but the reading-fast type....and find the fish is growing larger with each recounting.

I too would absolutely believe that the tips at the Hold'em table might be raked,  but would be surprised to learn definitively that the same happens at all tables.

What about the hand-pay attendants, who often get a little something kicked-back.  Do they have the best job in the world, or do they have to cough up 60% too?

Stephen

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23 hours ago, pumpkinbread said:

Right up to sailing no, this is a 5,000 drop for us. Why should you do a final payment 2 months in advance?

If this is their policy , I would cancel and then put again a 50$ deposit!

That wouldn't be the best move either....you'd lose your entire deposit, plus final payment is DUE on final payment day (2+ months before sailing).    They have to buy food, fuel, port charges, etc. before sailing - why wouldn't it be with the customers' money instead of having to borrow?    So the costs become non-refundable around the 90 day mark (depending on cabin category)....and any unsold cabins will sometimes drop in price.

As others have said:  if the price had gone up, you wouldn't be waiting in line to offer the difference to NCL...you'd be laughing about what a bargain you got, buying early.   In this case, the bargain was to be had by waiting until the last minute.

That's not always the case.  Sometimes the cruise is sold out.  Sometimes the cabin you want is gone, and the only thing left is right under the buffet AND above the night club  (that's a joke) so that you'd get no sleep. 

You buy early, which lets you get the best deal on hotels, airfare, booking vacation time, choice of cabin, etc.    The downside is that someone else might get a better deal than you on the fare, but then has to pay last-minute airfare, hotels, etc.

Stephen

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I'm sure it had nothing at all to do with the overall slowing of the Chinese economy https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/08/business/china-exports-fall-february/index.html which has been going on for a while now. 

We did the Escape TA, but then on Bliss did the post-TA Panama Canal.  Looking forward to another TA on Encore.    Yes, many of the now large group will be on-board.    Should be a real party.

We're doing side-trip to Minsk, Warsaw, and Krakow before going to Southampton, so may be exhausted by the time the trip begins.   :/

For now, we have an Atlantis cruise (our very first one) on Celebrity Edge, next week.

Stephen (and Daniel)

Just off of the "Bliss" Panama Canal as well. First let me say that I am not a "PRUDE". However, there are several

"F-Bombs" throughout the show (several were not even related to the plot in my humble opinion, just put there gratuitously). Not sure a 10 year old should be there, however I am not the parent. As for the show itself (other than the cussing) it was very well put together (about 1 3/4 hours long) and the singing and choreography was very good as well.

This will give you a sense of the show. The cursing is a by-product of young people in Joisey... it's the vernacular. If your son has ever heard the f-word before, I'm sure he'll be able to cope.

Stephen

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We are booked on the Bliss for this November. It will be myself, DH and our DS(14). This will be our sons 15th cruise so he knows what he likes and doesn’t like. While my DH and I are looking forward to the Bliss because she looks amazing, our son just doesn’t feel the same. He is very very active. He is mostly upset that there is no basketball court and that the go karts look slow and won’t be that much fun. Now after hearing it will cost $9.95 per ride I’m hoping that he won’t go on them too often.

 

Is anyone else in the same situation or have the same concerns?

 

I can’t wait to start hearing from people who are cruising this summer with teens and their experiences.

 

 

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I spent 15 days on Bliss through the Panama Canal. I have a few comments:

1. The go karts are lots of fun. I have sporty cars at home & like a tight curve - and the go karts provide that. They're really low to the ground, and feel quite speedy.

2. Not sure if the prices went up already, but they charged us $7 for 8 laps.

3. There won't be as much free time for basketball, etc. as you might have in the Carribbean, especially if you've done several cruises there before....it will be cold outside, and there will be lots to see.

4. There's a bowling alley (2) behind the big screen on deck 7.

5. The laser tag is a bit of a workout - every time you're hit, you have to quickly walk back to 'base' to recharge & go back out again. We had a real blast (pun intended) with this, and it was a workout too.

6. There's an arcade including traditional games and some virtual reality stuff.

7. The Teen Club should keep him occupied some of the time.

8. The slides are fun. As you said, he'll get some exercise walking up the stairs over & again.

If he sets out annoyed that there's not 1 or 2 things, he'll have a bad time. Encourage him to explore the new things, and he'll find he doesn't have enough time to miss the basketball.

Plus, if he NEEDS to get rid of energy, there is always the jogging track....no minimum age there.

Stephen

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I think it is possible the 4" figure is something that was lost in translation, given without context or possibly someone just misspoke. Four inches is a little too small of a figure for clearance between a ship and a bridge. Usually those numbers are in feet or perhaps meter/s on the other side of the pond:D. While I have not been able to find out the precise height of the ship above the waterline (air draft), it is in the neighborhood of 190', perhaps those 4" came in on the wrong side of the upper limit. The reason 190' is significant is that is the upper limit for air draft for unrestricted passage under the Bridge of Americas. Ships with an air draft in excess of 190' up to 205' are permitted to pass under the BoA on a case by case basis.

 

The BoA has a clearance of 201' at MHWS (mean high water springs), the height of the tide at Balboa at MWHS is approximately +17.5'. This is when there is the 201' clearance between the bridge and the water. The tides at Balboa are considerable with the MLWS (mean low water springs) running close to -2, giving an average tidal swing of over 19'. Those of course are the mean swings of the tide while the maximum difference between low and high tide is close to 21'.

 

The second high tide on May 14 occurred just before 3PM and was 16.1' which was the approximate time the Bliss arrived at the Cocoli Locks. Sunset that day was 6:30PM and low tide was at 9:26PM with a 0.0' tide. Just curious, do you recall what time you went under the BoA?

I must have been sleeping when I wrote that. FEET. FEET. FEET. BoA clears 201, and our height was 198 FEET.

Oy vey.

Thanks for catching that.

We were DUE to pass around 6:30, but it was probably 7:45 or so, when we passed the bridge. My bridge tour (6 people) was the next day, and Captain was expounding on why we'll remain the largest cruise ship, for a while....because nobody else is larger, but less tall.

Stephen

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F bomb, s...t, SOB, and some suggestive/crude language. It was more than a few times, and I thought unnecessary.

You wouldn't have had the color of the characters without it. They're from Jersey (Joisey!) !!

Stephen

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so what did the mgmt say they were going to do?

 

what didnt you like about Ensenada and Cabo San Lucas? (the other 2 ports in my Mexican riviera cruise on bliss in oct)

Our ports were Cartagena, Puerto Caldera, PV and Mazatlan.

Maybe you can comment for the guy above on the ports. We thought they were not great.

 

We enjoyed Antigua Guatamala, Puerto Vallrta and Mazatlan but you do NOT need to do a Panama crossing to see those. Colombia and Costa Rica were docked in horrible locations.

We were relegated to the cargo ports, because Bliss is too big for the cruise terminal port. We had a bridge tour, and Captain Staffan was telling us that we were originally slated for Puntarenas, but they couldn't accommodate our size.

In Cartagena our private tour had us through the gift shop & on board our bus within a 5 minute walk from the ship, and we were in Old Town 5 minutes later. Not sure where you were trying to go, 90-120 mins away?

In Mazatlan we could see everything FROM the ship - it was a 1 minute tram ride to the terminal, then about 5 minutes to downtown.

In PV we took a bus to downtown - about 10-15 mins. If we had wanted to walk over to the Walmart or Sams Club, it was across the road.

In Puerto Caldera, we had a mini-van tour with multiple stops - the first of which was 10 mins away to see the white-faced capucin monkeys.

I'm baffled by your comments on the ports - the ship doesn't get to decide which berth the Port allocates, and as mentioned above we had the added problem of being the largest cruise ship passing several of these ports.

The APP was clearly indicated to be a new app for Bliss, and if you followed anything in the Everything Bliss, or the live reports from the TA you'd have known in advance that the software on Bliss wasn't going live until Seattle.

"They charge for EVERYthing.... why don't they charge for the pools & [multiple] water-slides"? You must have a different definition of everything, than I do. They don't charge for the pools, waterslides (multiple), the loungers, mini-golf, trivia, games, etc.

They DO charge for the unique features on the ship (laser tag $5 and go karts $7), which I felt was a fair price for both.

I didn't eat at any of the MDR, between the specialty restaurants and the Haven Restaurant (OMG delicious), we ran out of nights to try the MDR.

Stephen

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Just off the Panama Canal cruise also. Agree totally with your assessment. When I step back and think about it, this is an incredible ship...for 3,000 passengers, NOT 4,000. Our take: Pros - beautiful decor, great specialty dining, incredible shows, very attentive staff. Cons - Unbelievably crowed elevators and not enough public space (constantly putting up metal folding chairs in every venue because they are too small for the scale of the ship -- I can do trivia at my local senior center on a metal folding chair, I don't want to pay thousands to do it on a cruise), Food in MDR's Taste and Savor was served cold (recommend Manhattan room for better service and hot food), almost impossible to find seating in the Garden Cafe, always had to go down to the Observation lounge...but then food was cold by the time I got there....

 

One other point - the only "included" activities on the Lido deck are the Pools and Water slides. If you are bringing children, the go karts and laser tag cost extra $$$$. There is no basket ball, ropes course or miniature golf.

 

It's an amazing ship and I hope they get the kinks worked out, but bottom line, I think they have pushed the capacity too far for the space available. The best way I can put it is they took space for 3,000 passengers and shaved a third off every space and upped the capacity to 4,000.

1. The ship has 93 fewer cabins than the Escape, to both enlarge multiple venues, but also to create the Observation Lounge(s) (there's a separate Haven one).

2. Laser Tag was SUPER fun. But it's a workout. We had a lot of friends on the trip, and 20 of us did the lasertag at the same time / 2 teams of 10, with couples split 1 on each team. :halo:

3. Race Track was very fast, and the tight curves make it really fun.

4. Observation lounge requests stockinged feet, rather than shoes or bare feet. Not really THAT unexpected or out of bounds.

5. I liked the buffet layout - multiple repetitions of stations (desserts in 6 different places, for example). I also liked the high-top tables in the middle of the buffet.

6. The ship feels a LOT more spacious than Escape, which was really welcome.

Also, FDR's upscale influence can really be felt. Higher-grade fabrics, finishings, tiles, etc. NCL is definitely driving up-market quickly. I suspect Encore & Project Leonardo will reflect this even to another level.

Stephen

P.S. The mini-golf was being constructed during the PC cruise. It's only 5 holes, but is on deck 17 behind the race track. On the port side, go past the racetrack on 16, and up the stairs to the mini-golf.

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So let me start by saying I overall really like this ship and was glad to be on the first Panama Canal Crossing in the new section. However, it did take longer amount of time and due to media activities going through the locks to Pacific, the ship did NOT arrive at the Bridge during the day. So we had to settle for long distance photos. I am glad I did another cruise in 2011 as a shore excursion during the day.

 

Let me now list PROS and CONS of the ship as I see it having done a lot of cruises on several lines.

 

PRO:

1) wonderful shows including the comedy and individual entertainers. I really like Havana and Jersey Boys(even with some cussing). Havana costumes are wonderful. We had a few individual entertainers that left the ship in LA so unsure of what the Seattle market will get. But those are 7 days and they need to fit in the two big shows.

2) The food was really good in MDR as well as Cagney's and the LOCAL. I did not do O Sheehan's on Escape as I thought it was a hamburger and hot dog joint. But my goodness the menu is great and different from buffet and MDR. One can get a really good made to order burger. Fish and chips are good too. and desserts were great.

3) Friendly staff everywhere

4) Studio rooms have really much better mattresses than on the Escape. Like so much better. Trust me. zzzzzzz was good.

5) The Waterfront; Best place to walk and or relax and take photos. It goes around 70% of the ship and is wonderful. Do not overlook this area for taking great photos or chatting with folks. places to sit during day where at night would be a restaurant.

 

CONS:

1) The studio lounge was always very chilly. There were no real tables and chairs like on the NCL Escape but rather tables that could be considered like foot rests. Also same old stuff every day. They would have Croissants but no butter or jelly. I had to beg for honey for tea. The coffee is espresso machine which was not hot enough at times. They had OJ and water. Never any other juices and the tea selection was not as varied as the buffet. Except for 5 pm gathering of solos, most of the time was empty. They did have cookies and cake that were good.

2) the Buffet. Very strange on this ship how they really pushed for folks to join the buffet for evening by holding signs on the meal of evening. It felt like they were over selling and wanted folks to know that the buffet was good alternative to MDR and specialty. Well that is fine for one night, but really do the MDR and other restaurants. Trust me. Give yourself a break from the Washy folks and self service.

 

The buffet appeared to be smaller than Escape because it did not extend to the Glass in front. Instead one could look down on the Observation lounge and they too could hear us. This was a sticking point during Canal crossing as well as coming into ports. The buffet was stressful all the time to me.

But best to take food out to both sides near the pool area. Lots of nice seats out there and no cold air conditioning. They do have heaters as well in ceiling for you Alaska folks. So take your food outside or down to Observation lounge.

 

3) Studio room- I was amazed that I was not given a hanger with clips (for like pants or skirts). I was told not their policy and the room steward would have to ask special permission from boss. I mean really dude. oh well. Also odd that the two fancy square pillows would appear in the day but be taken away at night. So if one wanted to sit up and read, they had only the thin sleeping pillows. Now this seemed to be not all passengers but some of us. again very odd.

 

Also very odd on this ship many of the Studio rooms were not serviced before noon or 1 pm and then again not until around 9 pm. So the studio stewards have to do their also assigned Balcony rooms and then the studios. And it seemed like carts where in aisles all the time. Feel sorry for those having end rooms near the doors where the stewards congregated a lot. But the stewards were friendly in spite of their heavy load of assigned rooms.

 

4) The Thermal SPA; Wow kind of disappointed the most on this one.... and so were quite a few others. First there was very little eucalyptus smell from Steam room or anywhere in the SPA. 2nd- the door to get into the SPA was very hard to open. 3rd -if you want any sweetener for your hot tea, bring you OWN. I was told it is not policy to offer anything for the tea. oh well.

 

Also the Thermal SPA pool as well as Saunas were inconsistent in temperature.

The view out the back as great and the SPA was kept clean and for the most part one could get a set.

 

5) Observation lounge; Yes I know this is a big selling point and I did for the most part like it with a few exceptions. 1st) some parts were too chilly and other parts fine 2) While it is supposed to be a quiet zone and given that fact that food is served, in 3 areas you will hear rattling of glasses and silver wear and folks chattering more. They do watch to make sure you remove shoes, but I found it odd they don't control folks sleeping and messing the pillows. I was scolded for having my Birkenstock shoes on but I had them faced out and bottoms not touching. Then again others did have shoes on so luck of the draw. Eventually I used a clothe napkin to rest my toes.

 

*** Advice to those of you for Alaska or Panama Canal in fall. This lounge is big but it will get very competitive in the front and be prepared for the chair hogs. I would say visit the lounge for some photos, but DO MOVE AROUND to other parts of the ship. This lounge can not handle 4000 folks trying for a front photo. Use the Waterfront or H2O zone as well and or your own balcony. Back of ship is really the best.

 

6) Bow of the ship is not the best place for photos in my opinion. Because of the GPS and radar stuff, they hold you back about 10 feet or so. If you are over 5 feet 5 inches you can do okay on the sides. But then again folks were pulling up chairs and standing on them. Got rather pushy at times. So do go and get a few horizon shots but then go to the Waterfront as well as Deck 7 for better shots.

 

7) Atrium at times: So while I like this venue, when they have trivia or other games or music, it fills up fast. Even the seats on deck 7 looking down from LOCAL area. While they do put up additional folding chairs, it is still not enough. I saw many folks shaking their heads in disgust mumbling about next time getting there 1/2 hour early. And this is the issue with this ship. One must get everywhere early and select your spot.

 

8) Theater: Very pretty, very comfortable, but gets filled up very very fast most of the time. It appears that for some shows like Jersey Boys and Havana which showed 4 times. ---- not everyone on ship would get to see the show. So good luck in Alaska on the 7 day cruises. Amazed at folks wandering around during show and bothering to find a seat. Then again a lot of folks kept 1 seat between them and others. That I saw a lot of.

 

Overall I am glad I did this ship, but like a lot of folks, they felt crowded and rushed a lot!!!!! The elevators were making no sense at times and were always filled.

I would say they could get rid of Margaritaville and put in something better that would get used more

And don't worry if you can't get into the Comedy club ( also small), they will try to put a show in the big theater at least once. Well they did on the 15 day. Hoping for the best for you Alaska folks.

I did not do the laser or the Race Track. But the Race track is fun to watch and it gets rather fast and competitive too.

 

So hopefully some of my words will help others. I wanted to share some things that myself was well as others commented on during the cruise.

It's a really good thing we didn't arrive at the bridge earlier. We sat at the last lock in the canal waiting for the tide to go out.

When we had a bridge tour the next day, Captain Staffan confirmed that we only had 4" (inches!!!) of clearance, even after waiting for the waters to subside.

That is why we'll remain the largest CRUISE ship to transit the new canal, for the foreseeable future. It's not the width of the canal, it's the height of the Bridge of the Americas.

Stephen

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Up early before the alarm goes off this morning, Mike is still sleeping. I thought I’d tell you about us:

We are Joyce and Mike from So. California in the OC (Orange County), between San Diego and Los Angeles. We are in our early sixties, we cruise about once a year, since about 2004. We made it to platinum level a couple of cruises ago. We enjoyed being in the Haven so much on our Christmas cruise on the Escape last year that we bumped ourselves up to the Haven again for this cruise. We celebrate our 40th anniversary this year in September and this is our only vacation this year so we decided to spurge. It’s true what they say: “Once you go Haven, it’s tough going back”.

We book through Casinos at Sea through NCL, (so you’ll find us in the casino). We booked, I think, in Jan of 2017. We have been watching the build of our beloved Bliss in Germany. It was an education in ship building. I can’t believe that today is the day to step foot on our baby, our Mega ship, our home for the next 15 days!

We have had a fantastic roll call for our Panama Canal Cruise on the Bliss. We have 300 plus shipmates who will be attending the meet and greet!

Anyway I’ll try to keep everyone posted and up to date on our fantastic voyage.

Here is a picture of us from an excursion in Ketchikan, Alaska a couple of years ago:

 

 

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We watched a guy juggle a soccer ball on top of one of the lock gates. He was good.

 

And the sun was setting:

 

 

 

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Hi there!

Well, we WERE neighbours (we were in the other spa suite (15864). Hadn't put 2 + 2 together, but we were also on the same Costa Rica bus. :)

Great review/photos, was fun to re-live through you. Too bad I didn't do CC during the cruise, or I'd have said hello earlier.

Looks like you had fun (as did we!). During Panama Canal you look to be just above our friend's cabin where there were about 30 of us having a viewing party. Apologies for the singing, if you were. :)

The soccer player is on their national team, so it's a good thing he was pretty good!

Stephen

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Again I am missing something here.. I am 34 years old, it took me all year to save up $2000 p/p to go on the YC cabin trip in August on Seaside. You cant be serious you expect me to play through $3000 ($2.50 per point x 1200 points) are you kidding me? That is what my entire vacation is worth, no one would expect you to play $3000 just for 30% off I am sorry there is a mistake here.

 

I just mentioned that I have a budget of $100 per day on slots which to me is huge, and for anyone is huge in todays economy. So cruise ships understand this so based on that the tier should be somewhere around 500 points based on 2.50/1 or if it is 1/1 it should be 1000 points - max $1000 playthrough for 30% if it is $3000 not a single person in the casino is going to reach that because the cruise them selves cost so much just to get on board.

I'm pretty sure this is tongue-in-cheek.

"For anyone, $100 per day is huge in today's economy". You know, the economy where the stock market is on a tear, unemployment in the US is at 3.8%, wages are increasing, etc.

MarinerBoy knows full-well doctors, lawyers, executives, successful salespeople, business owners, etc. all make sufficient incomes to afford this.

Heck I'm happy if I lose less than $1k / day. :loudcry:

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NCL advises all guests to bring their own luggage tags to the Port of Seattle and not get stuck waiting for a union worker to tag it.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That's going to be a royal pain. Here I have a cruise from Miami to Los Angeles, and I have to bring luggage tags to Seattle???

They could have told me LAST week, when I was already there! :halo::evilsmile::evilsmile:

So the inaugural sailing is now? Why did I think it was May 15?

 

 

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Halfway through the May 10 - 25th sailing?

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As stated previously our next Cruise is on NCL Bliss, we have booked from U.K. with all service charges included.

However I have just been on website and they are now asking 20% service charge for any additional restaurants etc.

That is ridiculous!

We will be sticking to the Inclusive restaurants in that ship!

 

 

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I'm not sure why you'll punish yourselves, because you don't like the level of service charge. Those restaurants are some of the best dining on the ship (and, frankly... can match higher levels found on land).

The ship will sell that seat to somebody else - and you get to save $4, and miss out on a wonderful experience.

I'm not sure I follow your logic.

MY next trip (in 2 weeks or so) is also on NCL Bliss. Having sailed on Escape, and eaten at every specialty restaurant, I can't even imagine having missed out on them.

Also, these are USD....so the $4 service charge, is basically 2.5GBP.

Stephen

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What does this mean? Right is right and wrong is wrong. If you want to tip in, say, Japan, where that is not the custom, it's not the "right" thing. Does that mean you shouldn't do it? No, it doesn't, do what you want. I couldn't care less how other people spend their money, but to say that it's the "right" thing to do because no one says no is....not true.

In Japan, where saving 'face' is the most important thing in the world, tipping is a way of suggesting to the receiver that you think they're unable to care for themselves without your help, and that you're in a better position than they are.

So "does that mean you shouldn't do it?" Yes, absolutely it means you should NOT do it. It's considered offensive and insulting.

And Japan isn't the only place with this perspective on tipping.

Stephen

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A financial fiaso as in the steerage passengers (aka non-haven) with experience won't go back on the ship. I can sail on the Breakaway from NY, or for that matter any of the mega-ships for 30% less than I can the Gem but I won't, and judging by the last minute deals, the Gem is always sold out while the Breakaway has empty rooms.

 

You are correct the dawn doesn't have a haven but the did remove its spinnaker lounge to make way for ultra-suites. This was the pre-cursor to the Haven concept: Making a 2-class ship.

So the Haven takes up 30% of the space, but all 4000 passengers are outside of it???

They don't make their money on the 'steerage' (as you called them) passengers. Maybe they recoup costs, but it's the $10,000 / week rooms where the profit lies.

There's a NEED for a 2-class ship, as evidenced by the Haven sailing full most of the time. If they didn't have the Haven, I'd be looking for a different line. (Not including my test of MSC later this year - I'm just curious about it).

Stephen

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For those of you who are wondering about the DSC onboard refund. We have already received the credit onboard. Yes, we are still onboard, and can hardly wait to get off in LA. The people who are adamant about not taking off the DSC should crunch the numbers before saying how poorly the staff are paid. If everyone pays only the DSC and nothing extra, a full ship will give NCL 420,000 usd to disperse amongst the apx 900 crew, which by the way, includes all crew on board, from Captain, down. If you take Officers, Spa staff, contractors, entertainment staff etc off the list, then you are down to apx 700 belowdeck staff to disperse the $420,000Usd. A nice tip for a 15 day cruise. The crew also have a wage. So please, no more. It is the ONLY way to show our displeasure with the way the cruise is going, that will make NCL take notice.

a) 1100+ crew.

b) even using your numbers, it's about $3 / hr. WOWee!

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