January 17, 2015 - Breakaway

[JohnM65]

January 17, 2015 my wife and I sailed on NCL’s Getaway. We were celebrating our daughter’s 50th birthday. Deborah also kicked cancer’s butt so we had a lot to celebrate. While we were plotting and planning my wife and I decided to book the Haven. Sometime after Deborah had booked her cabins NCL announced a special price for the Haven’s two bedroom suite. So they moved to the Haven on deck 16. Now before I go any further I take full responsibility for our cabin selection, deck 13 forward. At the time I did not realize the Getaway only had 2 elevator banks, one mid ship and one aft. I had mistaken the crew elevator for a passenger elevator, my bad. It normally would not be an issue but I have a minor mobility issue although I did get a lot of exercise between our suite and the Haven.

I did not realize that our daughter knew so many of the staff including the senior officers. Both daughters have cruised extensively on NCL and have the opportunity to meet many of NCL’s crew and officers.

We did like the coffee maker in our suite as we did not need to prep ourselves or the room before room service brought coffee.

My first complaint is the balcony was more the size of bathroom in an RV :(. I cannot believe it was so small especially for a suite. This kept us from entertaining our family on balcony; there was no way five could sit in our balcony. Three would be crowded. Also, I was surprised that we did not receive complementary Wi-Fi minutes. NCL was a little cheap for someone staying in the Haven.

Next, Deborah wanted to celebrate her birthday dinner at the Teppanyaki restaurant this was a great choice since we all enjoy Teppanyaki. We were seated at a table with another couple. The chef began his routine flipping spatulas and putting on a nice show. Then the mischance happened! The spatula slipped out of the chef’s hand and slid across the grill and hit a water glass in front of our grandson, breaking the glass and sending pieces towards him. Fortunately the glass bounced off Brandon and me.:eek: We did get a little wet but no cuts. The Maître’D moved us to another table. As dinner was progressing the 12+ of the hotel staff including the manager came to sing Happy Birthday to Deborah. That was great! I was really impressed with the staff for taking the time for our daughter.:D It made her day.

Now during the time we were in the restaurant after the mishap, neither the Maître’D nor any of the restaurant staff apologized for the incident. In addition, although the food tray was behind and to the left of the chef and the probability of glass flying back that far was slim, I would have expected the food tray to be replaced. That action would have improved my appreciation of NCL’s commitment to providing the preeminent food security. The least they could have done was to offer Deborah a bottle of wine or an after dinner drink for the table. No class!:rolleyes:

Prior to the January 20 celebration the staff of the Haven gave a happy birthday salute to Deborah at breakfast and at dinner on the nineteen. Now that was a show class which was always exhibited by the staff in the Haven.

We were very pleased with the Havens concierge:D he provided great seats for both the Magicians Show and the Wine Tasting. Although a musical wine tasting was a little over the top, it was interesting. The tables at the wine tasting would have been more comfortable if they seated 4 per table rather than 5! We were not the only attendees that moved one of the chairs from the table.

The lunch provided was non-descript and not worth what we paid for the tasting.

Let’s not forget our butler she was very attentive very prompt when we called. I n addition she was patient in showing me how to operate the coffee machine after I pushed too many buttons.:o

I would have sent this evaluation directly to NCL about our issues but the last time I pointed out deficiencies, coincidently about the Teppanyaki restaurant they responded with a $100 room credit if I sailed within a year. It seems that the Teppanyaki has not improved much in 5 years.

Both our daughters and grandson are platinum cruisers with NCL. I am somewhat disappointed that NCL does provide free laundry service for our grandson. It is understandable that he does not get a bottle of champagne. But I cannot understand why my daughter must pay for his laundry, although she packs as much of his clothes with hers as she can. Another pet peeve is NCL will not restrict Brandon’s key card when in the arcade. He has been known to spend a little too much on the games; then the restrictions go into effect! This is another example of NCL’s nickel and dime-ing of their guests.

Sorry this was so long but I tried to give the good and the bad!

John M.

[Laszlo]

Nice review, Congrats on your daughter kicking cancer! Don't sweat the laundry, it might be nice but its not NCL's responsibility to parent your grandson

Edited March 4, 2015 by Laszlo

[mking8288]

Thanks for your review - I'm a little confused, is this for the Breakaway as listed in the Title, or the Getaway (body of your review) ??

It seems fair, for me, to say that - the balcony sizes of these newer mega-ship are "smaller" than the typical cruise ships, and even before ship's inaugural sailing - there's plenty of information put out as preview - not "defending" NCL in any ways on this & I have no doubt that even some of the suite/Haven balconies are small.

Personally, our expectations are a little different & we've only sailed as high as the "regular" balcony categories - and would not dare to "entertain" more than 2 people standing out there for any period of time. That, I am sorry - that's just us with the "micro" (yes) balcony.

Suffice to say, your expectations on this recent sailing were somewhat met, and partially not to your satisfactions. Did you (daughters ??) find time in your busy schedule during the week to speak anyone of the ship, perhaps the assistant manager or assistant director in charge of the specific areas on your concerns - because, I would not ... not if there is a chance broken glass particles might be embedded in the uncooked food, it's not a just health issue and a safety issue as well. Food is subjective but we attended the Teppanyaki "show" & ate the meal as well, once as someone else's guest only - and never since ... Try LeBistro instead, or the Cagney's steak.

WiFi as in satellite internet is really, really truly slow w. high latency - IMO - and the only time I needed access and use it, it was free - paid out of our available OBC, so I considered that a "comp" for the sailing, nothing out of pocket as extras. Took almost 10 minutes to do a simple OLCI for our airline flight home - don't think you missed much in not getting any comp'd WiFi minutes. But, we are sailing the BA again in a little over 2 weeks so I do appreciate your insight, the good, the bad and the so-so. ;)

[JohnM65]

Nice review, Congrats on your daughter kicking cancer! Don't sweat the laundry, it might be nice but its not NCL's responsibility to parent your grandson

 

I do not understand your comment about 'Parent your grandson'. Is not an issue of parenting. Brandon is a Platinum Cruiser, his mother pays for his half of the cabin rate. I don't understand why because of his age he cannot have his laundry done as his mother does. She gets one free laundry a week, I think. Why does NCL discriminate against him? He a paying customer. He packs most of his bags (mother does check) and he gathers his clothes for cleaning and he must pay for his laundry. Another nickel and dime issue for NCL!:(

[hpecorari]

I do not understand your comment about 'Parent your grandson'. Is not an issue of parenting. (

 

I took that is it's not NCL's responsibility to make sure your grandson does not spend too much money through his room card. You don't mention how old your grandson is so I don't know if he was in the arcade by himself or not....

however, if he was given an amount per day that was okay with his mother to spend then he shouldn't have spent more than that. If he was to young to be in the arcade by himself than his mother was there with him and should have watch how much he spent.

 

That's how I took that comment...in which, btw, I agree.

 

In regard to your grandson re Latitudes, please see below:

 

http://www.ncl.com/latitudes-rewards/frequently-asked-questions#16

 

What are the requirements for enrolling into Latitudes Rewards?

To enroll in Latitudes Rewards, you must be over 18 years of age, have sailed with Norwegian Cruise Line or have a future cruise booked.

 

I don't understand how he can be Platinum unless he's over 18 and has sailed enough to reach Platinum. That might be why he couldn't get laundry.

 

Harriet

[Laszlo]

I do not understand your comment about 'Parent your grandson'. Is not an issue of parenting. Brandon is a Platinum Cruiser, his mother pays for his half of the cabin rate. I don't understand why because of his age he cannot have his laundry done as his mother does. She gets one free laundry a week, I think. Why does NCL discriminate against him? He a paying customer. He packs most of his bags (mother does check) and he gathers his clothes for cleaning and he must pay for his laundry. Another nickel and dime issue for NCL!:(

 

Its a shame your not seeing the big picture......

 

You said and I'll quote......Another pet peeve is NCL will not restrict Brandon’s key card when in the arcade

 

Why on earth should it be NCL's responsiblity to restrict someones key card in the arcade? You never said how old Brandon is 5? 10? 15? doesn't matter. Its the parents or grandparents responsibility to limit what the kid spends. If you tell him he is limited to 5 bucks a day and he spends 10 that not NCL's fault. Your kid is not listening to the rules, if any were in place. How much laundry can one have on a 7 day cruise? Don't like the nickel and dime, move on to another line

Edited March 5, 2015 by Laszlo

[JohnM65]

I will try to cover most of the responses in this thread. I attributed my comments specifically to the individuals who wrote them. Since there were three of you I decided in the interest brevity to omit the author(s) posts, I think you can figure it out.

A big OOPS when I was typing I looked at the first ‘…way’ I saw and entered Breakaway instead of Getaway in the thread title.

My grandson is eleven and has about twenty cruises under his belt. He is a Platinum Cruiser according to latitudes and he has 172 points. Under current rules his points will be credited to him when he becomes eighteen. His card is the same color and contains the same information as his mother’s with the exception of his name. They clip the corner of his card to indicate he is under 21. I am sure there is additional information encoded on the magnetic strip. His latitude enrollment originated about six+ years ago and it is possible the rules have changed; he is grandfathered under the current rules.

My daughter has about fifty cruises to her credit, and sails exclusively with NCL. In addition she and my grandson have made Transatlantic, European, Caribbean and Alaskan cruises. Obviously many of them exceeded seven days. The comment about ‘How much laundry can one have on a 7 day cruise?’ is totally superfluous to the issue and is totally inane.

I realize what NCL’s rules state but I do not agree with their policy. He is a full paying passenger and with the exception of alcohol he should be accorded the same privileges as other paying passengers. Do they not charge him for the specialty restaurants?

The comment(s) about parenting are insightful I am glad both of you were raised perfectly and your children as well. Well as for myself, my daughter and grandson were not as fortunate as you.

Notice the term children, is it possible he was so engrossed in his games or may have been subject to peer pressure i.e. trying to beat another child. Yes, he made a mistake and over stepped his bounds but remember he is eleven. And after his mother took him to task I think it will be some time before he attempts this again. Because of your perfect up bringing you may not have experienced the child’s ability to test the limits! I wonder how much NCL makes on this by not putting a daily limit on a child’s card. Ok I won’t say ‘nickel and dime-ing’! I am sure other cruise lines find some way to do the same thing.

Also, your comment about not contacting the manager or assistant manager of the Teppanyaki restaurant, well the woman that was directing the efforts of the wait staff is the manager or the Maître’d of the dining room and if she was not competent to correct the situation I wonder how competent her manager is.

The comment about ‘Took almost 10 minutes to do a simple OLCI for our airline flight home…’ is interesting. Yes, I understand the limitations satellite communications as purchased by the cruise lines. Would it have been possible to connect to the airline via a ‘free Wi-Fi’ in port? Another suggestion; I find using the Internet early morning or late evening to be much less tedious. I would rather spend my OBC on a nice bottle of wine, specialty restaurants, maybe even the casino but that is a matter of choice.

I always like it when someone ends a discussion with ‘move on to another line’ or something like that. In my mind it means the person cannot articulate his opinion clearly and succinctly!

NCL is not the only cruise line I have taken to task, first I commend the staff that has done a good job; second I address those issues which I feel are not following good customer service practices. What I have stated above is what I believe to be not good customer practices.

I am happy that you all enjoy NCL and defend them...Enjoy cruising.

[JohnM65]

I received the e-mail response (below) from NCL on an issue we encountered with service, see post #1. I was surprised to receive an e-mail as their communication vehicle. This seems to me to show a little less concerned for the issue I raised. All in all they did respond.

In the past I have written to Royal and Princess on issues and commendations. Royal and Princess have responded either with telephone call or letter addressing my query/issue.

Right now NCL leaves a little to be desired in customer relations department.

 

 

Mr. John Messano

 

US

Re: Norwegian Getaway Voyage of 1/17/2015

 

Dear Mr. Messano:

 

Thank you for taking the time to write to us about your recent cruise onboard the Norwegian Getaway. We appreciate that you chose Norwegian Cruise Line for your vacation at sea.

 

Your letter to Andy Stuart has been forwarded to us for response as the Guest Relations department was established to represent senior managements' views on customer-related matters.

 

We regret to learn of the incident that occurred with you and your family while onboard. We sympathize with your discomfort and understand how this can have a negative impact on an otherwise enjoyable cruise vacation. In a service-orientated industry such as ours, feedback from our guests is vital to our continued success and provides us with important insight in approving our services to you. The safety of our guests and crew is our top priority and we wish to assure you and your family that any onboard incident is taken very seriously. Therefore, we appreciate that you have taken the time to inform us of your experience.

 

Thank you for this opportunity to respond. We do hope that despite this situation you found your overall cruise enjoyable and will consider Norwegian Cruise Line in your future vacation plans.

 

When your plans to sail again with Norwegian Cruise Line are firm, please contact our Guest Relations department at 1 (866) 625-1164, so we may arrange special "Welcome Aboard" amenities for your enjoyment. We value your patronage and hope to have the pleasure of welcoming you and your family back onboard a Norwegian Cruise Line voyage in the very near future.

 

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Frank Lazo de la Vega

Coordinator

Guest Relations

 

Case: 00314796