Cruise lines are offering extra choices for extra cost

[TWELVEOHONE]

I would love to somehow see them be able to assign deck chairs to each cabin. Each person in a cabin should be assigned/guranteed a deck chair.

 

When you book your cabin, you would also pick your chair location. Some locations would have zero extra cost and some would have an additional fee (based upon perceived value of location).

 

This would eliminate the chair hogs and towel game. It would make my cruise experience better and more relaxing.

 

Home Cruise Lines use to charge $3.00 per week (It may have been per day) and you had your own chair. A crew member would carry the chair(s) to anyplace you wanted to sit, but it had your name on it

 

Chair hogs are on their way out. Oasis and Allure have "Pool chair cops" If someone leaves their chair empty for 30 minutes they will remove the towel and all other personal items letting someone else use the chair. I was on the Allure and from what I can tell the passengesr loved it.

 

Someone told me they are looking at doing this on all their ships.

[PeterPan]

Chair hogs are on their way out. Oasis and Allure have "Pool chair cops" If someone leaves their chair empty for 30 minutes they will remove the towel and all other personal items letting someone else use the chair. I was on the Allure and from what I can tell the passengesr loved it.

 

Someone told me they are looking at doing this on all their ships.

 

This has been happening for several years (across the fleet) but is not consistant. One week the chair patrol is out in force, the next the chair hogs are out in force. It would be nice to see them do this EVERY day on EVERY cruise!:D

[dadatsea]

If you did not cruise 20 years ago, the nickel and dime concept will elude you.

 

Breakfast, lunch and dinner in the MDR. Two seatings for dinner and it was an experience, you were catered to. The doors were closed about 20 minutes into dinner and if you were late, too bad.

 

No yard sale tables outside the ship stores.

 

Midnight buffet with a time for pictures and then time for eating, and all the food was excellent. You did not have to go to an upscale venue. The MDR was upscale. Cherries jubilee was lit at the table. Dinner was an adventure every night. If you starred at your food for more than 10 seconds, your waiter would want to know if there was a problem.

 

My wife refused dessert one night and 5 minutes later the head waiter, waiter and a chef were standing by the table asking, "Can we make something for you?"

Great post..a newbie would not understand what you are refering to but many of us remember :) Yes it was more expensive for basic cost of a cruise but so much more was expected from the cruise line and those who cruised i.e. MDR puncuality,dress code, and general cruise manners of fellow cruisers..However there is so much more to do on all the bigger ships that I fear the slower pace of past cruising is gone for better or worse. RCI has promoted the Get Out There theme that everyone is urged to GO GO GO. And thus everyone seems to always be in a hurry to get all they can out of the cruise and with the Oasis class I think RCI has kept ahead of the cruisers in that department:rolleyes: I think I will stay with the Radiance class ships;)

[shirlmac]

If you did not cruise 20 years ago, the nickel and dime concept will elude you.

 

Breakfast, lunch and dinner in the MDR. Two seatings for dinner and it was an experience, you were catered to. The doors were closed about 20 minutes into dinner and if you were late, too bad.

 

No yard sale tables outside the ship stores.

 

Midnight buffet with a time for pictures and then time for eating, and all the food was excellent. You did not have to go to an upscale venue. The MDR was upscale. Cherries jubilee was lit at the table. Dinner was an adventure every night. If you starred at your food for more than 10 seconds, your waiter would want to know if there was a problem.

 

My wife refused dessert one night and 5 minutes later the head waiter, waiter and a chef were standing by the table asking, "Can we make something for you?"

 

You are so right, my take on this is we remember service. The folks today want it all cheap and quick to he*ll with service. Just give it to me now and I mean right now. Also, a lot of people eat their main meal of the day from fast food or frozen quick grab and go so they really do no know the quality of real food so the food being served in Windjammer or MDR is just fine and some in fact rave about it. It is too bad that some of us do remember because it does put a damper on what is being offered now!

[dadatsea]

You are so right, my take on this is we remember service. The folks today want it all cheap and quick to he*ll with service. Just give it to me now and I mean right now. Also, a lot of people eat their main meal of the day from fast food or frozen quick grab and go so they really do no know the quality of real food so the food being served in Windjammer or MDR is just fine and some in fact rave about it. It is too bad that some of us do remember because it does put a damper on what is being offered now!

Right ON .. Both you and dagored remember...if only we could get the newbies to see what we saw..Patti,Bob, & Boyton Beth know what we are talking about..:)

[sherilyn70]

You are so right, my take on this is we remember service. The folks today want it all cheap and quick to he*ll with service. Just give it to me now and I mean right now. Also, a lot of people eat their main meal of the day from fast food or frozen quick grab and go so they really do no know the quality of real food so the food being served in Windjammer or MDR is just fine and some in fact rave about it. It is too bad that some of us do remember because it does put a damper on what is being offered now!

 

 

So I don't get it... if quality of service is important and you're willing to pay the old prices then why aren't you on the higher end lines like Azamara and Crystal? If you use them you will get the experience and quality you seem to want from the newer lower standard cruising price point. From what I have seen they cost about the equivelant of what your old cruise would have run you.

[coffeebean]

I don't get the point of specialty restaurants when there's perfectly good food in the MDR, which you have already paid for.

You just may have a good idea if you would dine in a specialty restaurant. We find the atmosphere, the impeccable attentive service and the superior food quality and choices to be all the incentive we need to pay for the specialty restaurant experience

[Aquahound]

You just may have a good idea if you would dine in a specialty restaurant. We find the atmosphere, the impeccable attentive service and the superior food quality and choices to be all the incentive we need to pay for the specialty restaurant experience

 

I agree 100%. It's not just about the food. You get away from the busy MDR and all the waiters running around, constant noise, and people traffic. The service is more personal, the lights are dimmed, and the noise level is considerably less. Sorry naysayers. Hate me if you must. But it's people like me who cause them to keep building them. :o

 

Besides, I really don't understand the complaint when all the free stuff that was there is still there. If you don't want to pay, don't go. But don't say they shouldn't have them.

[shirlmac]

So I don't get it... if quality of service is important and you're willing to pay the old prices then why aren't you on the higher end lines like Azamara and Crystal? If you use them you will get the experience and quality you seem to want from the newer lower standard cruising price point. From what I have seen they cost about the equivelant of what your old cruise would have run you.

 

I think you are proving my point here, if you have never experienced "service" then you might not know what we are talking about.

 

First off the prices were in comparison at the time they were charged in dollars used in the 80's & 90's so price is not the issue. Second, most often "service" does not cost extra it is the willingness to go a little above and beyond. You use to see signs that read "the customer matters" or "the customer comes first" and the businesses meant it. They really did vaule your business and they showed their appreciation by treating you like you mattered. It was not something you bought it was given. To put it in perspective that was one of the things that kept you doing business with one Company over another.

 

To this day I continue to give my business to Companies that have treated me well in the past. I have to say that this is now less frequent as a lot of businesses have done away with service. I also notice that the customers are more angry and outspoken towards the people providing them with so called service. I don't know if anyone has looked up the word "service" but what is going on today does not meet the definition.

 

So all we are saying is, there is a lost art out there looking to be revived ...

[dagored]

I think you are proving my point here, if you have never experienced "service" then you might not know what we are talking about.

 

First off the prices were in comparison at the time they were charged in dollars used in the 80's & 90's so price is not the issue. Second, most often "service" does not cost extra it is the willingness to go a little above and beyond. You use to see signs that read "the customer matters" or "the customer comes first" and the businesses meant it. They really did vaule your business and they showed their appreciation by treating you like you mattered. It was not something you bought it was given. To put it in perspective that was one of the things that kept you doing business with one Company over another.

 

To this day I continue to give my business to Companies that have treated me well in the past. I have to say that this is now less frequent as a lot of businesses have done away with service. I also notice that the customers are more angry and outspoken towards the people providing them with so called service. I don't know if anyone has looked up the word "service" but what is going on today does not meet the definition.

 

So all we are saying is, there is a lost art out there looking to be revived ...

 

Nailed it. I could not have said it any better.

[sherilyn70]

I think you are proving my point here, if you have never experienced "service" then you might not know what we are talking about.

 

No, I am not proving your point. The cruise costs about the same as it did 20 years ago despite inflation. This means something had to go in the proccess. $999 in 1991 is about the equivelant of $1700 now. So where did that extra $700 go to? It went to lowering staff ratios, lowering food costs, lowering the cost of entertainment, etc. Now take that extra money and go on a higher priced cruise and it all comes back. You can't expect the same luxuries you got in 91 when the price hasn't gone up. Your lost art exists... just not on mainstream lines, but then cruises weren't exactly mainstream 20 years ago. Now everyone and their brother goes on cruises and in the past it was more of a luxury vacation. Have you looked at Crystal or any of the other higher tiered lines? I'm seriously considering Azamara for the next cruise, smaller ships, higher staff to guest ratio, generous table wine pourings with much more gourmet meals, free extras and no gratuities. It sounds like what you're really looking for.

[Aquahound]

No, I am not proving your point. The cruise costs about the same as it did 20 years ago despite inflation. This means something had to go in the proccess. $999 in 1991 is about the equivelant of $1700 now. So where did that extra $700 go to? It went to lowering staff ratios, lowering food costs, lowering the cost of entertainment, etc.

 

It's not that simple Sherilyn.

 

Comparing costs 20 years ago to today is a lot more complicated than that and the cause is not just because of food and service cutbacks. One factor is cruise ships cost a lot less to run today, especially the larger ones. They are a lot more fuel efficient, some have alternative energy sources, and they have a lot more people on board. The larger the ships get, the less costly they are to operate.

 

There are so many factors involved, no one on these boards can really fully explain why the costs are the same and you would be fooling yourself to think it's just for the reasons you mentioned.

[sherilyn70]

There are so many factors involved, no one on these boards can really fully explain why the costs are the same and you would be fooling yourself to think it's just for the reasons you mentioned.

 

 

So what you're saying, is that the lines that do still charge the same equivalent now and offer that service quality and food quality you lament is about is just a coincidence. :) I highly doubt that. While the ship may be more efficient there are many other additional charges now to consider, such as higher fuel costs, satellite communications, and technology.

[Aquahound]

nevermind.

[sherilyn70]

nevermind.

 

You're right... never mind. Just because you may have been cruising longer doesn't make you an expert in economics. It's just business common sense to realize costs actually do go up so a cruise couldn't be the same price as it was 20 years ago if it there weren't cuts. The materials to build it cost more, the people to work on it cost more, the supplies to run it (and keep it up to stricter health codes and insurance standards) cost more, and the list goes on. More energy or fuel efficient really doesn't mean less expensive in the long run... and this applies to cars and household items too that people think are going to save them money. They may be more environmentally friendly but they aren't cheaper in the long term.

[shirlmac]

nevermind.

 

I'm afraid they just do not understand. Kindness, caring all that it simply goes over the heads of some. It does not cost one dine for the waiter to ask how you enjoyed your meal? Or for the people at the front desk to treat you with respect when you have a question, often they do not even look up to see who is talking to them. The answers to many questions are canned the interaction has gone away. We are failing to communicate with one another. But the real problem is that failure to communicate is the least of it, people are treating other people with such disrespect and contempt. I have watched the exchange between people in public and have been amazed. Is this who we are becoming? This new attitude has begun to freighten me a bit.

 

It all starts at the top of a Company, they set the tone as to how their business will operate. They train their staff as to how to interact. If they feel it is no longer necessary then that attitude will prevail from top management down to the lowest level employee. They will receive, like, kind and quality in return as people do not like to be talked down to or ignored so they escalate and then it becomes what we are experiencing today.

 

On our Freedom cruise August we had a room stewart that was more than aloof. He never asked us one question. I had to leave a note in order to get ice. In the past we always were more than pleased with the people who helped clean up after us. The guy who worked down the hall a few cabins was a delight he talked and talked to us out in the hall. Not that I expect everyone to be a gifted conversationalist, however, it would have been nice if we knew the guys name who took care of our cabin. And yes we did tip him. I'm going to chock it up to he had a bad week. But we are seeing this attitude from some of the employees more and more frequently.

[sherilyn70]

I'm afraid they just do not understand. Kindness, caring all that it simply goes over the heads of some. It does not cost one dine for the waiter to ask how you enjoyed your meal? Or for the people at the front desk to treat you with respect when you have a question, often they do not even look up to see who is talking to them.

 

Actually that is not true. It does cost them many dimes for that waiter to have time to talk to you and develop an actual connection. It does cost them extra to have a front desk that is not understaffed and can help people in a comfortable and relaxed state instead of focusing on getting through the numbers. Good customer service requires proper staffing, which means spending more money on a larger staff and also paying them well enough to keep the best talent around. It also means proper training and incentives. Something most companies simply aren't willing to do right now in this economy. As someone that works in and IT service desk where offshoring is a common practice (minimum wage is $2.56/hour in India) I can tell you very well about the economic trade offs of cheap versus quality service first hand. Which would you hire if you owned a business and wanted to make a profit, the $3/hour person or the $20/hour person? Customer service is absolutely not free nor cheap.

[readytogo2]

Actually that is not true. It does cost them many dimes for that waiter to have time to talk to you and develop an actual connection. It does cost them extra to have a front desk that is not understaffed and can help people in a comfortable and relaxed state instead of focusing on getting through the numbers. Good customer service requires proper staffing, which means spending more money on a larger staff and also paying them well enough to keep the best talent around. It also means proper training and incentives. Something most companies simply aren't willing to do right now in this economy. As someone that works in and IT service desk where offshoring is a common practice (minimum wage is $2.56/hour in India) I can tell you very well about the economic trade offs of cheap versus quality service first hand. Which would you hire if you owned a business and wanted to make a profit, the $3/hour person or the $20/hour person? Customer service is absolutely not free nor cheap.

Sherilyn, please do not take this the wrong way, but how can you say what Shirlmac said is wrong? I am also not saying what you said is wrong as I have no education in economics. But I do know that I have worked in a customer service position for quite a long time...I have had some coworkers that were not caring, rude and discourteous to customers..being polite does not cost anything, I have always showed courtesy to everyone through the years, no matter what salary I made.

[lovevacadays]

I'm sure the extra options at extra cost are definitely ways the cruise lines have decided to increase revenue flow. But I see it no different than all the extra options I have with my cable TV provider, etc. Any business is about increased revenue and change. I will agree the food on cruises isn't what it was when I first cruised Royal back in 1989. However, I actually like that they've added all these extra things that we can participate in (or not). I like going to a different restaurant on board and having a different experience. I don't mind paying for it as I consider it an add on feature that didn't exist when cruises only had one or two main dining rooms and you didn't have other options. Some cruises I really limit my extra expenses and some cruises I go all out and do whatever I want. Really depends on my revenue flow at the time!:D:D:D

[sherilyn70]

Sherilyn, please do not take this the wrong way, but how can you say what Shirlmac said is wrong? I am also not saying what you said is wrong as I have no education in economics. But I do know that I have worked in a customer service position for quite a long time...I have had some coworkers that were not caring, rude and discourteous to customers..being polite does not cost anything, I have always showed courtesy to everyone through the years, no matter what salary I made.

 

Some people naturally are polite and kind... and companies are lucky to have people like you and I around for that reason. But the reality is when you pay little, overwork your employees and hire people that can't understand logic and problem solving then it boils down to associates feeling overworked, unappreciated and generally in a bad mood most of the time. If they aren't happy then they won't give good customer service. If they feel overworked and tired then their just looking for that next chance to rest. If you've ever managed a customer service or help desk then you'd see these patterns all of the time. I can tell you that when my associates feel they can't take the time to properly solve problems (due to management saying do more with less people) then they eventually give up on doing things the right way because it's just to stressful. Thankfully my companies high up execs are just staring to realize this after 2 years of putting everyone through torture and are starting to finally fix things (ie more headcount and more jobs back in the US).

[shirlmac]

Actually that is not true. It does cost them many dimes for that waiter to have time to talk to you and develop an actual connection. It does cost them extra to have a front desk that is not understaffed and can help people in a comfortable and relaxed state instead of focusing on getting through the numbers. Good customer service requires proper staffing, which means spending more money on a larger staff and also paying them well enough to keep the best talent around. It also means proper training and incentives. Something most companies simply aren't willing to do right now in this economy. As someone that works in and IT service desk where offshoring is a common practice (minimum wage is $2.56/hour in India) I can tell you very well about the economic trade offs of cheap versus quality service first hand. Which would you hire if you owned a business and wanted to make a profit, the $3/hour person or the $20/hour person? Customer service is absolutely not free nor cheap.

 

You seem to boil every thing down the dollars? Having worked in the business world for over 35 years I can tell you that you are leaving out a few very vital issues. If you truly want your business to grow and to make money you treat people well and they will keep coming back if you treat them like they represent only money to YOU then you will lose it all. You speak of talented people, just what does that mean to you? talented people help your business grow and they help you retain your customers.

 

If every thing has only the dollar amount in your mind no one will ever be able to convey to you the importance of people to people.

 

I wish you well and I truly hope your concept works. I came up through the ranks and have seen how your method might cause some loss of revenue.

 

I do feel that this discussion has run it course and frankly my dear I'm really no longer interested as you are stead fast in your views and nothing or no one will change your almighty dollar concept....As I said good luck to you

[trentmister]

Wow, are these RCL ships that you've been experiencing this poor service on? I realize I am not as experienced as some of you, but I think I've cruised enough to comment. We have never experienced this - our waiters and assistant waiters in the MDR have always given us excellent service. Calling us by our names from the first night; discovering our likes and dislikes and serving us accordingly; taking the time to tell us about their families, their home countries, their experience with the company ... and they have always made sure everything was to our satisfaction. The food and experience in the MDR has always been enjoyable. We do enjoy going to the specialty restaurants a time or two during our cruise, just as at home or on land vacations we enjoy going to extra special restaurants at times. We love having the choice ... no one is forcing us. Perhaps it depends on the attitude of the persons being served that could affect the service? I don't know, just saying that we've always been pleased. Our first cruise was in 1986 ... I'm not ready to give up the incredible experiences available today to go back to "the good ole days."

[sherilyn70]

You seem to boil every thing down the dollars? Having worked in the business world for over 35 years I can tell you that you are leaving out a few very vital issues. If you truly want your business to grow and to make money you treat people well and they will keep coming back if you treat them like they represent only money to YOU then you will lose it all. You speak of talented people, just what does that mean to you? talented people help your business grow and they help you retain your customers.

 

If every thing has only the dollar amount in your mind no one will ever be able to convey to you the importance of people to people.

 

Are you retired? I'm getting the feeling that you aren't working in today's market. This is the mentality of CFOs and CIOs right now. They will cut customer service to make a higher profit margin. Why do you think everyone moved their help desks to India and Cost Rica? Are you really that out of touch with the current business worlds trending?

 

Talent costs money, so big companies try to only retain maybe one or two of them and then hire fillers for the rest of the work in order to keep the costs down. Talented people while they do help business grow are highly undervalued in this current economic state and they are the ones that are unemployed right now if they weren't willing to make minimum wage.

 

I was horrified last weekend as I drove through McDonald's drive through and saw a sign up stating "now hiring mangement, $10/hr". yes, their managers apparently make that little. This is today's business model.

[readytogo2]

Wow, are these RCL ships that you've been experiencing this poor service on? I realize I am not as experienced as some of you, but I think I've cruised enough to comment. We have never experienced this - our waiters and assistant waiters in the MDR have always given us excellent service. Calling us by our names from the first night; discovering our likes and dislikes and serving us accordingly; taking the time to tell us about their families, their home countries, their experience with the company ... and they have always made sure everything was to our satisfaction. The food and experience in the MDR has always been enjoyable. We do enjoy going to the specialty restaurants a time or two during our cruise, just as at home or on land vacations we enjoy going to extra special restaurants at times. We love having the choice ... no one is forcing us. Perhaps it depends on the attitude of the persons being served that could affect the service? I don't know, just saying that we've always been pleased. Our first cruise was in 1986 ... I'm not ready to give up the incredible experiences available today to go back to "the good ole days."

 

My upcoming cruise will only be my 2nd with RCI, most others have been on Princess and I have to say that all my waiters(all except one:mad:) have been very good, or should I say as good as they could be with their workload. But I have noticed in the Specialty restaurants they give more attention to the customer. I always enjoyed my experiences when I dined there but my feeling is because they have these special eateries, the result is more of a shortened staff in the MDR. I don't claim to be an expert by any means, it's just my own observation and opinion.:)

I gotta add this... I just said to my wife today, As much as I love to cruise, I think the more we cruise, the less special it seems, as we get used to the food and service, maybe too used to it:o And as much as others have cruised so many more times as we have, I think we got spoiled by cruising as often as we have.:)

[sherilyn70]

I gotta add this... I just said to my wife today, As much as I love to cruise, I think the more we cruise, the less special it seems, as we get used to the food and service, maybe too used to it:o And as much as others have cruised so many more times as we have, I think we got spoiled by cruising as often as we have.:)

 

I think that is very true. We have a favorite restaurant here, the service started out so exceptional and amazing that there was nowhere to go but down a little bit. So unfortunately as the sparkle wore off the customer service from the staff seemed to go down each time we were there. I think part of it is the newness factor and awe wore off and also that we just happened to get lucky and have exceptional servers and managers giving us attention the first 5 times we went. That manager is no longer around when we're there and we've noticed a decline in our overall feeling each time we eat there now, but continue to go back because the food is still amazing and worth the price.