JeffElizabeth

We recently had cruises in both the British Isles and Hawaii with Princess and Holland America respectively and they were unable to add excursions because they couldn't find enough guides and drivers at ports. So this isn't only a Viking problem.  Book early. 

3 minutes ago, Sthrngary said:

What I am about to say comes from my experience I just had.  I will make this comment but might suggest the moderator moves this stream to the NCL CruiseCritic blog.  

 

I was just on the NCL Breakaway last week.  It was completely full.  They needed more staff at ever bar and restaurant.  I personally do the Pre-Paid Gratuities on my cruises.  I did it on NCL and have done it on my reservation for Oceania.  Based on the service I receive, I tip more during and at the end of the week.  My money, my choice and my pleasure.  

 

What I notice from this last cruise was NCL really cutting back not only on staff; the quality of the food was off in certain places.  The inventory of spirits and wines seem to be lacking especially the better brands.  The cost from everything went up and I do mean everything.  

 

All that being said.  Every cruise brand lost lost of money during the pandemic.  At first, with the ships 50% or less filled was the best cruises of my life on every level.  When that was reported and more folks started to cruise again, slowly things started to take a slight decline.  This is not based on a factual article just my personal experience and time I have spent on four cruise in the last 14 months. I think the cruise brands are attempting to make up some of the losses and these are just some of the approaches they are using.

 

Again, I do not work for NCL or any other brand.  This is just my opinion best on my most recent experience.  You know what they say about opinions. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

We were quite disappointed by the food serving size and choices on both Princess in September and Holland in October.  We had great service and food on Oceania in March and April.  Hopefully they kept up their standards through next year. 

26 minutes ago, ToxM said:

 

We had the Sunday Brunch on our Sirena TA. 

 

Christmas Day this year is a Sunday and we have a sea day on Riviera, I hope there is the brunch. 

Wow! That sounds awesome! I hope we get it on our next Oceania cruise. 

On 12/6/2022 at 4:36 AM, janecambridge said:

We were told that $7 per person from the top suites gratuities goes to the butler.

Had 2 butlers on OceaniaPenthouse one was brilliant, OC not so much.Extra tips accordingly.

Never had gratuities paid for us.Pay it ourselves and although we Brits have reputation of not tipping (another members opinion), we actually do.Very happy with the service all over the ships.

Good for you! I was in London in September and everyone looked shocked at my tips. (Maybe because I dress like a slob?) Or had the exchange rate wrong? 

We loved our butler Francis. He was fun and always available.  

On 12/7/2022 at 6:40 AM, Benita said:

All the cabins with the deeper balcony are concierge on Vista and B3 on the Marina/ Riviera. That would make it worth it to me. 

We loved the extra room, but didn't really use the butler enough. Even the butler asked us to use his services more often.

We had a bow room on the Marina, one below owner's level and loved all the space. Didn't have issues with seasickness even in a very windy March that had us canceling port stops in the Atlantic.  What we did not like was we had to blackout at night on the deck so we didn't disturb the navigation deck above us, and it was too windy while underway. 

I don't think we would book that room again. 

Barcelona is one of our favorite cities. We added five days to the last Atlantic cruise we took that ended there.  Might be a great place to start an Atlantic cruise too! 

I love the Hawaiian cruise, get to start with sea days to relax, port days in the middle to see the sights and then sea days to relax on the way back. The weather isn't as hot as the Caribbean or Canal cruises. Or as busy as the Alaskan cruises.  

17 hours ago, liketraveling said:

We just got off the Zuiderdam and they delivered the tiles to the our room.

 

We got our tiles delivered to our room aboard the Nieuw Statendam in October on the Hawaiian cruise.

On 11/30/2022 at 12:15 PM, LHT28 said:

I would  give them all a try  then decide  what works for you

Everyone has their favourite 😉

 

 

 

 

Exactly! Jacques is wasted on us. We prefer the others.  

Actually got the Wall Street Journal.  Worked until we got into the Mediterranean because of the time change. 

On 12/1/2022 at 8:08 AM, davencl said:

Generally I don't care but my comment applies to not only CD but bartender, butler, concierge etc.   You get that one special engaging person and it's a delight to be in their company.   

Before our last Oceania Cruise, I never cared about cruise directors,  but Peter was awesome on our trip from Miami to Trieste. Really made the cruise because high winds canceled more than a few planned port stops. 

Our Butler on Riviera was awesome! In fact, he told us we weren't asking for enough from him. True, the ship was only 3/4 to 1/2 full on our cruise from Miami to Venice, er, Trieste. 

Especially loved getting my morning paper.  Made other guests extremely jealous.  

2 hours ago, idiebabe said:

We were Onboard  the NA when the Captain made the announcement the Crew would no longer be required to wear Masks.  It lasted two days when they were told to wear them again.  This was in October for the PC Transit and they wore them all the way to Port Everglades.  The Flu was going around on that Cruise and towards the end we could hear so many coughing around the Ship. 

 

This is Flu and Cold Season and it's on land so it's going to be on the Ships, too.

Interesting.  Our cruise to Hawaii on the Nieuw Amsterdam in October had the crew fully masked. Captain's decision? 

11 hours ago, rodndonna said:

Are these 'envelopes' special?

 

On our last cruise, we decided to book a specialty dining so would not be going to our fixed MDR on the final night, but wanted to tip our MDR waiters. We went to guest services and asked about an envelope to leave them a tip (as I had heard from here  on CC that could be done).

 

We were handed a plain envelop and just put the bills in it and wrote  for MDR waiters, their names and our dining timeslot. Would that have worked? Honestly, it seemed a little dubious, and I though we probably should have went to the MDR to hand it to them instead.

 

 

I tip our MDR people before our final dinner in a specialty restaurant.  

4 hours ago, IPB4IGO said:

We were in one on the Nieuw Amsterdam this year. It was great for viewing glaciers on the Alaska cruise, and it would be terrific for sunbathing on a warmer cruise. There were a couple of days of vibration, especially at night, and the side portion of the balcony was quite windy while underway.

 

On negative side, the cabin itself was noticeably smaller than other Neptune Suites and it was a lon-n-n-g way from the Neptune Lounge, which we almost never use anyway.

We were just in a Neptune Suite on the Nieuw Amsterdam on our cruise to Hawaii and didn't like the room. Not a spacious as the Neptune's on the older, smaller ships. Didn't even have a curtain to separate the sitting room from the beds. 

7 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

You can cruise safely.  I’ve done it twice.  I’m on my third and hope to make it through the third.  I wear a mask all the time except when eating or drinking.  I don’t do shows, but I rarely did before.  I spend a ton of time outside.  I have a woman that’s in the cabanas that is barking (coughing) a lot. People just think Covid is over but it’s not.  That’s the problem.

We were on three cruises this year of 28, 20, and 18 days and neither of us got ill. And we were tested numerous times.  But none of our ships were full, 60%, 80%, and 80%. 

We didn't wear masks except when we were forced to. 50 somethings with diabetes and an autoimmune disorder.  

8 hours ago, Hlitner said:

That is the Vidanta Elegant which is owned/operated by the Vidanta Group who owns hotels/resorts in Mexico.  The last we heard that ship is moored in Mazatlan.  If and when it actually operates it will use PV as one of its ports and would likely get priority at Muelle #1 where they can utilize the new terminal building.

 

Hank

We stayed at one of the Vidante resorts in PV in January.  Nice place, they were pumping tons of money into the resort.  Land and cruise combo tour? 

15,000! Wow. And I thought Alaskan ports got busy. We love PV and would still be willing to tender. No wonder Carnival built that nice port facility there. 

I like the option of the collared shirt and slacks but we are going on the 35 day Viking cruise in July of 2023 so I will be bringing a tux for that many "gala" nights. I do get compliments and I think others appreciate that some of us still dress up. 

On 10/27/2022 at 10:38 AM, Mary229 said:

I have had lobster on my longer cruises this year.  Crab legs are not available but that seems to be a true supply chain issue.  We have seen lobster and shrimp in the Lido on the same nights.  DH stops in the lido for his cigarette and always reports back. 

Agree. King Crab costs back in Denver are $75 a meal. Told that the Crab from Russia isn't being imported any longer. 

5 hours ago, visagrunt said:

It seems to me that there continues to be a disconnect between Seattle and Directors and Managers on board.  Seattle appears to be laser focused on revenue--hence the infuriating "Indulge" component on menus.  Thankfully, on board they continue to be focused on the guest experience.

The value proposition for Neptunes is diminishing.  It's very difficult to justify the price point in view of experiences available at similar prices on other lines.

However, the movement into more inclusive fares (while leaving open the option of dispensing with Have it All™) does suggest to me a line that is looking at responding to different passenger demand.

We have to agree. The Neptune Suite doesn't even have a heavy drape to break up the sitting area from the bedroom.  Nor a desk for the sitting area. 

On 10/27/2022 at 7:57 AM, Hlitner said:

We have primarily chosen HAL cruises because of the fantastic itineraries and reasonable prices (when compared to some of the better lines we favor).   The only time we booked HAL because of the ship was with the old Prinsendam (we had exactly 200 days on that vessel) which was a personal favorite.  In the interests of full disclosure, we have yet to sail on any of the Pinnacle Class.

 

Hank

We still miss the Prinsendam. We were so fortunate to sail on it through the Kiel Canal and on its final voyage. 

For us? Itinerary and smaller ships.