My Thoughts - Back from Star Cruise to Mexico

[westcoastman]

Well developed quite a lot of opinions about many things after the trip and trying to figure out a constructive way to express them all.

 

1) After spending the $450 on the UBP which included the 18% tip I felt annoyed by those on this board that give additional tip just because. I felt that a buck-eighty tip per drink is enough. But I couldn't help but wonder if the bartenders were expecting $3 or $4 tip per drink.

 

2) No fee for room service, which is not something I use anyway, but there sure are a lot of people that do. Why someone would want to sit in their stuffy cabin and munch on chicken strips and fries everyday is beyond me but to each is own.

 

3) The specialty dining for others on the ship was a complete disaster (don't use this either because if you do the math $140 a week is hard to make work). Every reservation was filled from 5-10pm every night and I could hear other passengers vocalizing their anger up front many times. I had no problem sitting in their two free main restaurants and was happy with the quality while the service at Versailles was always slow. Disappointed that the menu at Ginza does not seem to change.

 

4) There were 1000 kids on board but it didn't seem like too many. They had 200 Dolphins (10-12) with capacity for 40 in the ship's plain "Board Room" but I don't think they ever reached their limit. However, the main kid's room did and they would close down entry each night when they reached I think only 50 which seems way too low so im probably wrong. The ship and staff did their best with what they had to work with however I am disappointed in the Dolphin facilities. While they had a great energetic program for "Dolphins" from 7-10:30 each night it did not compare to the room that the teens get and have access to most of the day. I think many cruise lines have "tween" clubs. But it would have been worse if there were only a few kids on board and the Dolphins had to be combined with the younger children.

 

I have more thoughts I will save for later...

Edited April 16, 2015 by westcoastman

[NEW 2 CRUISIN]

 

3) The specialty dining for others on the ship was a complete disaster (don't use this either because if you do the math $140 a week is hard to make work). Every reservation was filled from 5-10pm every night and I could hear other passengers vocalizing their anger up front many times.

 

 

Now THIS is what I was afraid would happen...

 

We are quite happy with paying to dine in a "specialty" restaurant when we want to, as well as buying a few drinks.

We do not have any promotion, as we booked very early and opted not to re-book. Therefore we plan on buying drinks and dinners as we always do!

 

With so many people wining and dining with the free promotion, I expect the specialty dining rooms and every bar space to be much louder and much more crowded than usual.

 

We have our (paying out of pocket) reservations in, so we'll hope for the best! Just wont be the same peace and quiet....

 

Wonder if the next move is to have separate lines for "Paying" and "Promotional" Customers! HAHA! :eek:

 

Looking forward to reading more about your trip, as we are on the STAR in June!

Edited April 16, 2015 by NEW 2 CRUISIN

[westcoastman]

One guy in particular was angry because he said he "spent" $7000 in the casino and deserved a dining reservation.

 

Tip #1 out of San Pedro the iConcierge was available when they were about to board port side so I quickly got on and made several reservations I could not get online before I even boarded.

 

We booked the cruise last minute and got nothing except $25 obc. Only inside cabins available so no booking perks and ship was at capacity so no more than 2 people per cabin no matter how many beds so family of four needed two rooms without the benefit of extra pax free or 50% off. It was frustrating to think the deals others probably got.

Edited April 16, 2015 by westcoastman

[triptolemus]

I felt annoyed by those on this board that give additional tip just because..

 

It was frustrating to think the deals others probably got.

 

Small piece of advice? Stop worrying about what others are getting and doing with their money. Perhaps you'll have a better go of things...

[marelind]

We were on the same cruise and can echo the frustration and disappointment with the specialty dining reservations. In the 10 previous cruises on Norwegian we have never had a problem getting a reservation for a specialty restaurant once we were on board, often the day of the evening we wanted the reservation. We might have to shift 15-30 minutes from what our ideal time might be, but that's no big deal. Granted, we sail in suites and the concierge used to have a table or two up his sleeves, but usually there were empty tables around us anyway. Definitely not so this last cruise. Embarkation day by 1 pm the only reservations available were after 9 pm. or not at all. It really showed me the impact the UDP is having on the specialty dining.

[DreamingBig1]

NCL if your listening... maybe its time to figure out a software logistics upgrade as far as moving reservations around and bartenders to make it work better? Clearly the software specs are in need for some updating.

 

 

Pick up one of the geniuses from Disney. They have people logistics down to a science.

 

I'm on the Star in 7.5 months. You have that much time to get it right for my arrival ;)

Edited April 16, 2015 by DreamingBig1

[swedish weave]

The specialty restaurant congestion does not come as a surprise. I could see it coming when the promotion started.

 

When the Star was in drydock, the size of Cagneys was reduced by about half in order for the Moderno to be moved up to the location where the Cagney's extension was. Moderno now holds 40 people.

 

I wonder how long it will be before some who have the UDP will be demanding cash refunds if they are unable to get into the restaurant of their choice. I am sure that will be happening in the near future.

[DreamingBig1]

I am not a fan of Brazilian steak houses. Cagneys is the one place we are interested in when on the Star.

[gtaylor]

Recently off the Star Mexican Rivera cruise, and the Concierge told us that there is a problem with guests pre-booking specialty restaurants online and filling so many of the slots.

 

gary

[rvsullivan]

The specialty restaurant congestion does not come as a surprise. I could see it coming when the promotion started.

 

When the Star was in drydock, the size of Cagneys was reduced by about half in order for the Moderno to be moved up to the location where the Cagney's extension was. Moderno now holds 40 people.

 

I wonder how long it will be before some who have the UDP will be demanding cash refunds if they are unable to get into the restaurant of their choice. I am sure that will be happening in the near future.

 

Probably a long time! The guarantee is that you will get a reservation at some time if requested at least 24 hours in advance. So, if they get you in at any time for the next night, it will meet the requirement. The only ones that will miss out are the ones that don't make a reservation. Might have to take a 9 or 10 pm time slot, but they will get you in.

So far this is the only complaint and the promotion has been going for a while. Only one ship also.

Edited April 17, 2015 by rvsullivan

[Philob]

Recently off the Star Mexican Rivera cruise, and the Concierge told us that there is a problem with guests pre-booking specialty restaurants online and filling so many of the slots.

 

gary

 

I was one of those who pre-booked online. If I didn't I wouldn't have gotten in.

The excursion rep also told me that only about a third of the time slots are reserved for pre-booking and the rest saved for on board.

 

I boarded around noon and headed immediately from gangway to the reservations desk (to request a change) and it was about 10 deep already.

[karoo]

Probably a long time! The guarantee is that you will get a reservation at some time if requested at least 24 hours in advance. So, if they get you in at any time for the next night, it will meet the requirement. The only ones that will miss out are the ones that don't make a reservation. Might have to take a 9 or 10 pm time slot, but they will get you in.

So far this is the only complaint and the promotion has been going for a while. Only one ship also.

 

 

On my recent sailing on the Star. They were fully booked two days in. Even the 9-10 time slots. I inquired day 3 and was unable to get a booking in Le Bistro or Moderno. They did manage to fit us into la Cucina at 9.30 the second last night. We were told everything was pretty much booked out early the first day. My advice would be to not book or choose the UDP as it is just too hard to get suitable bookings. We spoke with several passengers who were unable to secure bookings. Booking online takes away the whole concept of Freestyle Dining.

[david_sobe]

Specialty dining on NCL was wonderful not just because of the food but the atmosphere. It was a place to escape the mass chaos of the buffet or MDR. But now with everyone having the UDP, the specialty restaurants have turned into the MDR. Extremely crowded, difficult to get reservations and yes the service does suffer some.

Not a huge deal breaker but its sad to see such a good thing decline.

[mking8288]

We sailed the Breakaway last month in the middle of all these changes and things did feel a little different, the bars were very busy and interesting enough, the MDR were busier at lunch - ship was full but - just different compared to almost exactly a year ago, same ship & same itinerary.

 

For the 3 (and soon #4 - the Escape - joining) mega-ships, 29 different dining options (Room Service, now being considered as one - with a convenience/delivery charge) is great on these floating fortresses, but for the 'smaller' Dawn/Jewel class ships or even the POA - I do sense that these UDP can really dilute the speciality dining experience - with fewer dining venue & smaller seating capacity, getting a confirmed reservation can be a challenge ... unless it is capacity-controlled and no-shows are better managed.

 

We had dinner twice in LeBistro, which took about 90 minutes and is relatively good from a time management's standpoint - and, we witnessed first hand lots of unfilled and vacant tables, and, we saw little to no walk-ups, and even if they accepted walk-ins, I wondered if they have the spare staff to quickly reassign from (and where ...)

 

The free mobile App, iConcierge, was useful as I was looking at availability and it seemed that by Day 2, everything at more desirable times were booked up solid - except for a few 5:30's and the rest being 9:00 to 9:45's - even the regular MDR's are closed by (generally) 9:30 PM.

 

Perhaps, NCL is going to convert & modify the smaller MDR on the smaller ships to become speciality restaurant with a choice of menus - and re-designate one of the smaller specialty into the alternative MDR ... or, worst - leave us with just 1 MDR and 1 buffet along with O'Sheehans.

 

With many more sailing in the busy summer season, this will be very interesting to watch as it continue to unfold ... Food quality & opinions are highly subjective, but I too believed that the gaps between MDR and specialty dining are narrowing - and fewer choices being offered as what we dislike the most. Those are not innovations for which NCL used to be proud of - it's time to comparison shop & seriously look at other mass lines to see what they are competitively offering.

[newmexicoNita]

Well developed quite a lot of opinions about many things after the trip and trying to figure out a constructive way to express them all.

 

1) After spending the $450 on the UBP which included the 18% tip I felt annoyed by those on this board that give additional tip just because. I felt that a buck-eighty tip per drink is enough. But I couldn't help but wonder if the bartenders were expecting $3 or $4 tip per drink.

 

2) No fee for room service, which is not something I use anyway, but there sure are a lot of people that do. Why someone would want to sit in their stuffy cabin and munch on chicken strips and fries everyday is beyond me but to each is own.

 

3) The specialty dining for others on the ship was a complete disaster (don't use this either because if you do the math $140 a week is hard to make work). Every reservation was filled from 5-10pm every night and I could hear other passengers vocalizing their anger up front many times. I had no problem sitting in their two free main restaurants and was happy with the quality while the service at Versailles was always slow. Disappointed that the menu at Ginza does not seem to change.

 

4) There were 1000 kids on board but it didn't seem like too many. They had 200 Dolphins (10-12) with capacity for 40 in the ship's plain "Board Room" but I don't think they ever reached their limit. However, the main kid's room did and they would close down entry each night when they reached I think only 50 which seems way too low so im probably wrong. The ship and staff did their best with what they had to work with however I am disappointed in the Dolphin facilities. While they had a great energetic program for "Dolphins" from 7-10:30 each night it did not compare to the room that the teens get and have access to most of the day. I think many cruise lines have "tween" clubs. But it would have been worse if there were only a few kids on board and the Dolphins had to be combined with the younger children.

 

I have more thoughts I will save for later...

 

To answer your questions based solely on our experience; 1-no I see no reason of tip the bar tender or wait person above the 18%.

 

2-agree about room service. Other than maybe a cup of coffee in the morning; if you want to stay in your tiny cabin and eat, you should be willing to pay for the pleasure? Based on trays outside the cabin doors on the cruise we just finished there were not that many using room serviec anyway and there seemed to ba a lot of wasted food.

 

3-we did not find the specialy dining rooms that full. They were fuller than other times, but certainly not filled to capacity. We used them about 6:30pm. Remember, the ship might have been a little more crowded with families as it probably was spring break in California. We found more kids on the ship than we expected on our cruise cause it was spring break in much of Europe and there were families spending 10 days on the ship, followed by another vacation. They get 2 to 3 weeks off in mid April.

[LrgPizza]

The specialty restaurant congestion does not come as a surprise. I could see it coming when the promotion started.

Which was when? I had free UDP on my May 2014 cruise. When you said you saw this coming when "the promotion" started, which promotion do you mean? At what point did you see this coming? Over a year ago?

[swedish weave]

Which was when? I had free UDP on my May 2014 cruise. When you said you saw this coming when "the promotion" started, which promotion do you mean? At what point did you see this coming? Over a year ago?

 

When the Getaway made the first sailing out of Miami, we were unable to use our Lattitudes free meals at Le Bistro. Many of our friends who were transferred to the Getaway knew of the problem on that ship, and hinted that other promotions were coming and would create problems fleetwide. We have made three other cruises on NCL since and saw the difficulty of getting reservations increasing on each sailing. On our last NCL cruise that ended about two weeks ago, we were able to book Le Bistro the first day, but couldn't use our second Lattitudes cert there because all bookings were taken.

 

If you asked this question sincerely, please accept my response. If you are just trying to start an argument, I will not respond to that type of nonsense.

Edited April 17, 2015 by swedish weave

[swedish weave]

Probably a long time! The guarantee is that you will get a reservation at some time if requested at least 24 hours in advance. So, if they get you in at any time for the next night, it will meet the requirement. The only ones that will miss out are the ones that don't make a reservation. Might have to take a 9 or 10 pm time slot, but they will get you in.

So far this is the only complaint and the promotion has been going for a while. Only one ship also.

 

I hope your extreme optimism proves to be true. Our experiences have not been that rosy.

[cliffd64]

When the Getaway made the first sailing out of Miami, we were unable to use our Lattitudes free meals at Le Bistro. Many of our friends who were transferred to the Getaway knew of the problem on that ship, and hinted that other promotions were coming and would create problems fleetwide. We have made three other cruises on NCL since and saw the difficulty of getting reservations increasing on each sailing. On our last NCL cruise that ended about two weeks ago, we were able to book Le Bistro the first day, but couldn't use our second Lattitudes cert there because all bookings were taken.

 

If you asked this question sincerely, please accept my response. If you are just trying to start an argument, I will not respond to that type of nonsense.

 

Had that problem with Le Bistro on the Getaway... it was resolved by one call to the concierge and we had our reservation for the day and time we desired in Le Bistro... The concierge seems to make things happen when the reservation desk won't. Being platinum, you have access to the concierge as I am sure you are aware. They seem to be really conservative on reservations in the specialty restaurants.

[swedish weave]

Had that problem with Le Bistro on the Getaway... it was resolved by one call to the concierge and we had our reservation for the day and time we desired in Le Bistro... The concierge seems to make things happen when the reservation desk won't. Being platinum, you have access to the concierge as I am sure you are aware. They seem to be really conservative on reservations in the specialty restaurants.

 

My information came from the restaurant manager whom I have known for a few years.

[cadien]

On this particular Star cruise, being both platinum and in a suite didn't make miracles happen. The concierge did what he could and watched for cancellations but things were just full.

 

On the other hand, like a few have said, the speciality tables weren't actually all full when we did eat. At least not later in the evening.

[DreamingBig1]

We sailed the Breakaway last month in the middle of all these changes and things did feel a little different, the bars were very busy and interesting enough, the MDR were busier at lunch - ship was full but - just different compared to almost exactly a year ago, same ship & same itinerary.

 

For the 3 (and soon #4 - the Escape - joining) mega-ships, 29 different dining options (Room Service, now being considered as one - with a convenience/delivery charge) is great on these floating fortresses, but for the 'smaller' Dawn/Jewel class ships or even the POA - I do sense that these UDP can really dilute the speciality dining experience - with fewer dining venue & smaller seating capacity, getting a confirmed reservation can be a challenge ... unless it is capacity-controlled and no-shows are better managed.

 

We had dinner twice in LeBistro, which took about 90 minutes and is relatively good from a time management's standpoint - and, we witnessed first hand lots of unfilled and vacant tables, and, we saw little to no walk-ups, and even if they accepted walk-ins, I wondered if they have the spare staff to quickly reassign from (and where ...)

 

The free mobile App, iConcierge, was useful as I was looking at availability and it seemed that by Day 2, everything at more desirable times were booked up solid - except for a few 5:30's and the rest being 9:00 to 9:45's - even the regular MDR's are closed by (generally) 9:30 PM.

 

Perhaps, NCL is going to convert & modify the smaller MDR on the smaller ships to become speciality restaurant with a choice of menus - and re-designate one of the smaller specialty into the alternative MDR ... or, worst - leave us with just 1 MDR and 1 buffet along with O'Sheehans.

 

With many more sailing in the busy summer season, this will be very interesting to watch as it continue to unfold ... Food quality & opinions are highly subjective, but I too believed that the gaps between MDR and specialty dining are narrowing - and fewer choices being offered as what we dislike the most. Those are not innovations for which NCL used to be proud of - it's time to comparison shop & seriously look at other mass lines to see what they are competitively offering.

 

Oh my, imagine the fallout if NCL replaced the complimentary restaurants with a specialty restaurant?

 

I can live with a less convenient room service experience, but to take away from actual dining. I don't know.

 

Unless the pricing structure of the cruise made it basically all inclusive, and the price is competitive to its competitors.

[mking8288]

Oh my, imagine the fallout if NCL replaced the complimentary restaurants with a specialty restaurant?

I can live with a less convenient room service experience, but to take away from actual dining. I don't know.

Unless the pricing structure of the cruise made it basically all inclusive, and the price is competitive to its competitors.

Well, I'm putting on my "problem-solving" hard hat for NCL as opposed to "critics" tin foil hat to address some of the issues - and, regardless, staffing has to be the mix as most of the recent comments about speciality dining is about decent to good food, not excellent food - I considered the same LeBistro dinner we had this year, same as last year on the BA - going from good/VG to simply above average (and, that's mostly for decor & service, a bit slower still).

NCL doesn't need to shut down the smaller Aqua MDR, just rename that the new "fusion" specialty dining as it has more seating - offering LeBistro, La Cucina & even add Ocean Blue, etc. with a choice of menus to pick from. Then, just rename La Cuina next door as the "new" Aqua MDR - with less seating than now. The Fusion places will have plenty of seating to fit lots of UDP pax & resolve complaints of not being able to get reservations ... isn't that a Win-Win deal.

Think outside the "box" and do a test run with the ship for several sailings - who knows, right ?? :D

[DreamingBig1]

Well, I'm putting on my "problem-solving" hard hat for NCL as opposed to "critics" tin foil hat to address some of the issues - and, regardless, staffing has to be the mix as most of the recent comments about speciality dining is about decent to good food, not excellent food - I considered the same LeBistro dinner we had this year, same as last year on the BA - going from good/VG to simply above average (and, that's mostly for decor & service, a bit slower still).

NCL doesn't need to shut down the smaller Aqua MDR, just rename that the new "fusion" specialty dining as it has more seating - offering LeBistro, La Cucina & even add Ocean Blue, etc. with a choice of menus to pick from. Then, just rename La Cuina next door as the "new" Aqua MDR - with less seating than now. The Fusion places will have plenty of seating to fit lots of UDP pax & resolve complaints of not being able to get reservations ... isn't that a Win-Win deal.

Think outside the "box" and do a test run with the ship for several sailings - who knows, right ?? :D

Actually makes sense.

[Shayneele]

We hopefully will be sailing in October. I for one hope that all the booking up of the specialty dining helps the MDR seating times. I only went on NCL one time but we really had to wait seems like everyday to eat in the MDR even. I am not a big fan of anytime dining. Maybe the free dinners in other restaurants will free up the MDR some. LOL. I am always looking for the positive.