New to Freestyle Cruising....

[Crusin' Momma]

In December I will be taking my 1st ever Freestyle cruise. I've been on 3 cruises with Carnival and I know some of the basic differences between the two but I need answers!:eek:

 

Is there a Captain's Cocktail party on Freestyle cruises??? I know there isn't really a "formal night" so do they still do the party??

 

I know about the "open seating" so you don't get the same waiter every night but are the waitstaff still as outgoing and fun as on the more scheduled cruises?

 

What are the other differences besides "open seating" at dinner and no formal night?

[luvtravelbug]

IMHO, the freestyle dining experience is lacking. I will be taking my third NCL cruise in November, but I cruise for ports, not for food. I just got off the Jade a few weeks ago, and after 12 days I dreaded getting hungry because I did not want to deal with dining. Our experience with the dining on Carnival was exceptional and it really puts NCL to shame. But I will say that it is nice to not have to be relegated to the buffet on formal nights if you don't want to dress up.There is nothing personal in the dining experience (NCL) because you always have someone different, and it sucks when you get stuck with a server who could care less, and unfortunately it happens more than it should. I don't mean to be a Debbie Downer and I'm sure that many more will have positive things to share, but to each his own. I hope your cruise is great, even if you turn out to not enjoy freestyle. I plan on enjoying my next NCL cruise despite my dislike for the dining. Safe travels.

[peg013]

The Captain's party is only for Silver Latitude Cruisers and up. (Latitudes is NCL's loyalty program) There are no formal nights, but there are "dress up or not" nights. Actually you can get as dressed up as you like any night or dress in smart casual.

 

I have never had an NCL server that was not friendly and outgoing.

 

You have at least 2 main dining rooms, a buffet, deck side barbeques and a comfort food restaurant that is included in the price of your cruise. There are also many other restaurants (depending on which ship you are on) that have an additional fee. You can eat free all week or choose to try some of the "pay" restaurants.

 

Bowling on the Gem has a fee. Most activities other than bar crawls and drink tastings are free.

[Sauer-kraut]

Join your roll call and sign up for the Meet & Greet, you will meet senior staff there and its almost like meeting the Captain. Who knows, he might even attend. M&G are done well on NCL if there is enough response they will provide light refreshments and will answer questions you might have.

 

 

Dining is FINE! I love not having an assigned meal time, enjoy meeting others by stating I'd be happy to share a table with others, or if not with just my travelling companion(s). It all depends on what we feel like doing. There is no silly singing and dancing baked alaska presentation on NCL. I did get to know some great servers during my 12 day crossing, they were fun and we did ask on another night where he'd be serving so we could request him again. If they aren't busy at the time you can ask about where they are from and how long they've been on board.

 

I personally find freestyle very relaxing, no need to hurry and rush to make a dinner seating after all day at a port. It is a laid back style of service, but really lacks nothing and is comparible to CCL. But a cruise is what YOU make of it, so onus is on you to enjoy yourself. :D

[uppitycats]

I found the dining experience just fine on NCL. I appreciate that I don't have to have a set time for dinner, or eat with strangers every day. The staff was always polite, helpful, and willing to be as engaged as you want them to be -- that is, they're quite willing to engage in conversation if you want to..or be quiet and discreet and laid back, if that is your preference.

 

I found the food quality good in the main dining room, and outstanding in some of the specialty restaurants, particularly in Le Bistro.

 

As for "formal night" -- there is no such thing on NCL. There is a "dress up or not" night (or more, depending on the length of your cruise) but many people don't get all dressed up. "Resort casual" is the dress code, and many folks adhere to it..with some at either end (way dressy, or way casual). You can pretty much choose to dress as you please; if you like the formal wear, then you can dress formally. There will be photographers available to take pictures, however you choose to dress.

[trish1c]

Is there a Captain's Cocktail party on Freestyle cruises???

Not exactly. On "formal" night the Captain is around for photos but there's no cocktail party. He comes to the Latitudes party.

 

I know there isn't really a "formal night" so do they still do the party??

There is a dress up or not night. Many people don't dress up. DH was one of about 5 guys in tux on our last cruises. I suspect he'll be the only one this time. They still have lobster etc.

 

I know about the "open seating" so you don't get the same waiter every night but are the waitstaff still as outgoing and fun as on the more scheduled cruises?

The waitstaff is a bit more reserved like on land but if you enage them they are terriffic. You can also ask for the same server if you like. We do. I've had the same servers on multiple cruises. There is no baked alaska parade & they don't sing / put on a floor show. (thank heavens!)

 

What are the other differences besides "open seating" at dinner and no formal night?

You can request a table to share if you'd like to meet new people.

[newmexicoNita]

In December I will be taking my 1st ever Freestyle cruise. I've been on 3 cruises with Carnival and I know some of the basic differences between the two but I need answers!:eek:

 

Is there a Captain's Cocktail party on Freestyle cruises??? I know there isn't really a "formal night" so do they still do the party??

 

I know about the "open seating" so you don't get the same waiter every night but are the waitstaff still as outgoing and fun as on the more scheduled cruises?

 

What are the other differences besides "open seating" at dinner and no formal night?

 

What pleases one person may not be the answer for someone else. No, there are no more Captains cocktail parties, but we have noticed they are being scaled down on most lines we have cruised in the past 5 years. Are the wait staff as friendly and is dinner as much fun? That depends on what you are hoping for. Do you mean will there be singing and dancing dinner? No, this might disappoint you. For us, it is a relief and for the servers it is a plus.

 

Overall with the exception of the dining experience you are not going to see much difference in the two lines. Carnival has larger cabins, NCL, we think, has a better crew and we love all the eating options. The other difference is the dress code: NCL is very relaxed, but in recent years this has been the trend on all lines.

 

Nita

[Crusin' Momma]

I'm not really concerned with the "show" the waitstaff put on on other cruises. What we did like was that we really got to know our waitstaff and developed a relationship with them (such as it was considering we were there for a week). We chose Freestyle because there is a fairly large diverse group of us going (Myself, husband and kids, My Inlaws, My Father and stepmother, My sister and her hubby, my aunt and cousin, and possibly some family friends - The more the merrier!) so we want to be a little more flexible on our dinner seating. Most likely we will sit together on most nights but we want the luxury of going at a different time so we don't have to be rushed at ports or if we eat a late lunch.

 

On the last cruise we went on there were a large group of us so the waiters we had spent a lot of time talking to us and laughing with us. We are mostly very outgoing and laid back so we were making music with crystal glasses, telling jokes and talking about what we had done on the ship. On one night the waiter came over to our table when we were talking about the towel animals and he started making "napkin creations." We had a lot of fun and he showed us how to make some of them. It makes me happy that if we like a particular waiter we can request them.

 

On another cruise my hubby and I made friends with the restaurant manager where we ate. She was a younger woman from Bulgaria and was super nice and willing to talk to us about her experiences on the ship and what it was like basically living on the sea. She and her boyfriend both worked on ships and they were saving money to get married. She came by every night to talk to us and since the couple who we were sitting with didn't show until halfway through the cruise she often sat with us while we waited on our food.

 

It's disappointing that there is no cocktail party for the first time guests. Carnival has two - one for everyone and one for past guests. But I guess I can live without it this time. As far as formal nights, I like getting dressed up and seeing my handsome hubby in a suit, so I might just have to find a Cocktail style dress (semi formal) to wear so I won't feel "Overdressed."

 

My cruise isn't for awhile and I am actually the one who started the roll call for my cruise and there are a total of 3-4 other people who have posted there. So how do we set up a meet and greet through NCL? I want to wait until it gets closer to time and we get more people on our roll call to make sure everyone wants one, but I have no idea where to start. The time I cruised was the first time I was a part of cruise critic and we were lucky to have one of the CC moderators on our cruise with us so he handled it all... I am just wondering if I have to end up doing it how to go about getting it set up...

[johnql]

So how do we set up a meet and greet through NCL?

See Sticky, link below:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1300907

[debnjoe1438]

Go and enjoy the cruise. Don't worry so much about the "differences". The cruise will be what you make it. I've been on NCL, Holland and RCCL. The only difference I've noticed with "freestyle", is more flexability with dinning and dress.

 

I would sail any of the three again. :D

[crusinmama22]

Try it you will like it ! I did and my daughter never thought that I would.

 

You see I too like dress up and Cocktail parties for past guest and the Captains.

 

I found I did not miss it on my cruise -- I had a great time. we all dressed as we wished -- except my husband -- he wore what I put out for him not that he can't pick things out -- he just knows I am happier that way-- and since I packed I know what he has. Sometimes I give him a choice in shirts if I can't decide.

 

My favorite I guess is Royal.

 

However Carnival does have the largest cabins. We love the Spirit Class ships on Carnival.

 

We pick our cruises by ports and size of ship as we prefer the 2000-2500 size not the mega but not the too small as we love all the options.

 

We sail the Star Feb 19 2012

[gizzer]

Because of the large size of your party, you will want to look into making some kind of reservation for dinner. DH and I sailed on the Dawn a couple weeks ago and chose to sit alone most of the time, and so we never had to wait for a seat at any dining room or restaurant, regardless of what time we went to dinner, because the Dawn has lots of tables for two. I assume that this is also true on NCL's other ships. However, it seemed to us that the people who had to wait for tables were the larger groups. Basically, you have to wait for a bunch of tables for two that were close together to open up so that they could push them together for larger groups.

 

At least that's how it seemed to me.

 

We enjoyed freestyle cruising because we could go eat whenever we want - we didn't have to rush to be at a specific dinner seating. I couldn't care less about having the same server all the time, though, so if this is important to you then you may be less impressed by freestyle cruising.

 

I never had a bad meal on the Dawn, regardless of which dining room/restaurant we went to.

[Crusin' Momma]

Because of the large size of your party, you will want to look into making some kind of reservation for dinner. DH and I sailed on the Dawn a couple weeks ago and chose to sit alone most of the time, and so we never had to wait for a seat at any dining room or restaurant, regardless of what time we went to dinner, because the Dawn has lots of tables for two. I assume that this is also true on NCL's other ships. However, it seemed to us that the people who had to wait for tables were the larger groups. Basically, you have to wait for a bunch of tables for two that were close together to open up so that they could push them together for larger groups.

 

At least that's how it seemed to me.

 

We enjoyed freestyle cruising because we could go eat whenever we want - we didn't have to rush to be at a specific dinner seating. I couldn't care less about having the same server all the time, though, so if this is important to you then you may be less impressed by freestyle cruising.

 

I never had a bad meal on the Dawn, regardless of which dining room/restaurant we went to.

 

 

Thanks I'll remember that!

[Crusin' Momma]

See Sticky, link below:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1300907

 

 

Thanks for the link! I have it bookmarked so I'll have it when it gets close to time!

[trish1c]

For a large group -- over 6 -- letting them know you are coming / making a reservation is recommended because there could be a wait as they need tables to open up. I don't remember which cruise -- it might have been the Dawn -- there was a huge family of about 50 people that sat together in an alcove in the big MDR in the back of the ship many nights in a section that was obviously reserved for them. NCL will work with you but you have to tell them what you want. On other cruises when we were a large group 10+ of CC friends we often had to wait, but tables for 2/4 are easy to come by. If there is a wait they will give you a pager & you can wander around until your table is ready.

If you like dressing up, dress up. You will garner a lot of attention as you walk through the ship. To DH it's not a cruise if he doesn't get to wear a tux at least once.