Pride of America service vs other ncl ships

[chengkp75]

I'm offended by the statements that the American crew or anyone else working on the ship were/are unmotivated or uninterested. Working on a cruise ship is voluntary and a consensual relationship between employer and employee.

 

Everyone I saw was working hard to serve food, make drinks, entertain, clear the buffet dishes and keep the ship clean as well as assist the guests.

 

I'm still wondering where these anti-american comments are coming from?

 

Many base their opinions on the ghastly service, incredible turn-over of crew, and constant short-handed crew from the early years in Hawaii. I know all about it, I worked the ships from 2004-2008, and was there when the first US crews were hired on the Aloha. And, at the time, the crew were unmotivated and uninterested. It was painful and embarrassing to sit through the recital of service complaints during the weekly supervisors meetings.

 

While the situation has improved a great bit, there is still a vast difference in the "type" of service provided by the US crews in comparison to the international crews. Many experienced cruisers do not feel that the US crew provide the sense of servility that the international crew have, or provide the "pampered" experience they feel should come with cruising. As I have said over the years, I feel that NCL made a horrible mistake in trying to make the US flag ships into copies of the international crewed ships. I think that with the proper research and marketing, training and incentives, that they could have made the ships into unique US vessels, providing the levels of service you find in top hotels, restaurants, and resorts in the US, and market it as such.

 

You could get US crew to match the "quality" of service that the international crew provide, but it would require such an increase in fares that no one would book any cruises. There is a reason that the POA is the only US flag cruise ship, and it all comes down to money. If the government required that all cruise ships homeporting in the US were US flag, the entire US cruise industry would evaporate in an instant, and the cruise industry as a whole would suffer a possibly fatal setback. It's just that expensive to operate a US flag ship.

[grand isle joe]

 

I'm still wondering where these anti-american comments are coming from?

 

....where are they coming from???? .......... I LIVED it...............it is not "anti-American", it's anti good service..........I wrote a review but it was SOOOOOO bad that C.C. refused to publish it......

[calliopecruiser]

I'm offended by the statements that the American crew or anyone else working on the ship were/are unmotivated or uninterested. Working on a cruise ship is voluntary and a consensual relationship between employer and employee.

 

Everyone I saw was working hard to serve food, make drinks, entertain, clear the buffet dishes and keep the ship clean as well as assist the guests.

 

I'm still wondering where these anti-american comments are coming from?

 

Voluntarily accepting a job doesn't make one motivated or interested, it just makes one employed. Being uninterested in one's job and doing the bare minimum to keep that job is still possible (and, in some industries, it's common).......If you think all employees are good employees who do their jobs well and like working there, you are mistaken.

[calliopecruiser]

I feel that NCL made a horrible mistake in trying to make the US flag ships into copies of the international crewed ships. I think that with the proper research and marketing, training and incentives, that they could have made the ships into unique US vessels, providing the levels of service you find in top hotels, restaurants, and resorts in the US, and market it as such.

 

I agree that this is not about any anti-American ideas, and that they could get an American crew that was trained to provide excellent service if they chose to.

 

Still, I'm curious as to your comment about trying to make their US-flagged ships to be "copies of international crewed ships" being a problem. What are they trying to copy that is making it so difficult for them? I'm not a frequent cruiser (5 in my life, two in the last 4 years), so maybe I'm missing something common you're referring to.

[Chirpy cruiser]

Hi everyone

 

Would you be able to tell me if I can buy Mac make up on serenade of the seas? Many thanks

[chengkp75]

I agree that this is not about any anti-American ideas, and that they could get an American crew that was trained to provide excellent service if they chose to.

 

Still, I'm curious as to your comment about trying to make their US-flagged ships to be "copies of international crewed ships" being a problem. What are they trying to copy that is making it so difficult for them? I'm not a frequent cruiser (5 in my life, two in the last 4 years), so maybe I'm missing something common you're referring to.

 

It ranges all through the ship's operation. They want the US crew to act like the international crew, when there is a cultural difference in regards to service. Even at the best examples of service in the US, the staff will not exhibit the deference towards the customer that the international crew does. US citizens are more egalitarian (even if they don't know what that means), and more likely to treat the customer as an equal. US citizens also expect to be treated with respect, as equals, by the customer, while the international crew have a more class divide between themselves and the customer.

 

Then there was the question of work tour length. Before the Sky was reflagged as the Aloha, there were US crew brought on for training, and they were paid international salary until they finished their 10 month contract, at which time they got a "bonus" to make up to a barely acceptable US wage. If they didn't complete the contract, no bonus. This did not work at all, and very few from this time ever came back. Then, after reflagging, the work tour for the hotel staff was set at 12 weeks on, with 4 weeks off. Most young people in the US have never been away from home for more than a week, and don't know how to handle the financial and social requirements of a life spent split between two places, one place where you are severely restricted in your actions. Add to that, having to share a tiny room with 3 strangers, when most of these young people, even had they gone to college, would have at most had one roommate in a place twice as large. Add the restrictions on behavior, time off, alcohol consumption, etc., and you have placed these young people in a very strange environment that they are not real pleased to exist in. The international crew in large part come from countries where there is a large history of "guest workers", where the worker goes to a foreign country for a couple of years before returning home having earned far better salary than would be available at home. The US is not used to having folks separated from family and friends for long periods, except in the military. Some of the senior ship's officers argued that making the work tours shorter would make them far more palatable to the crew, and the increased airfares would be offset by the higher retention rates, and subsequent savings on documentation (US hotel staff, regardless of position, cost the company about $8-10,000 just to get the required USCG training and documentation) from hiring less new crew.

 

The original plan was to hire mostly Hawaiian staff to save on airfares, give a Hawaiian theme, and promote support locally for the ships. This did not work for a lot of reasons, but the work tour length was a major drawback, since the crew were never far from home, but couldn't get home. If you take out the airfare issue, there is no reason that the hotel staff could not rotate on a 3 week on, 1 week off schedule, allowing the crew more frequent time home to deal with the family emergencies that crop up in every life.

[zqvol]

Service must be really bad on POA, if it is worse than on other mass market line ships. I personally have not seen any great service on any mass market ship and that is in over 20 cruises. The service we receive is the minimum that we expect and we have never had anyone do anything extra. I typically get better service in mid level land based hotels than I do on any mass market cruise ship.

[calliopecruiser]

Thanks for your explanation, chengkp. I always found the attitude of service on mass market ships (deference almost to the point of obsequiousness) to be a turn-off; I've found the excellent service on my current line of choice (Crystal) to be excellent without that attitude.

 

US citizens are more egalitarian (even if they don't know what that means)

LOL!!

[chengkp75]

Service must be really bad on POA, if it is worse than on other mass market line ships. I personally have not seen any great service on any mass market ship and that is in over 20 cruises. The service we receive is the minimum that we expect and we have never had anyone do anything extra. I typically get better service in mid level land based hotels than I do on any mass market cruise ship.

 

I haven't had personal experience with the POA for the last 5 years, but I still have friends who work there. As I say, a lot of complaints are based on the early years, when the crew took their disenchantment with the working conditions to the guests, and were constantly griping when asked by the guests "how are you, today"? The ship was sailing constantly short-handed, and that has gotten better over the years, but it is going to be a chronic problem. International hotel crew are not credentialed mariners, but the USCG requires that anyone assigned a safety duty (for instance directing passengers at stairwells) must be a fully credentialed mariner. This requires a lot of shore-based safety training, and a full FBI background check. Because of this, there is no ready pool of replacement crew when someone quits, and it takes a couple months to get a qualified replacement to the ship.

[Mom2B&Z]

I'm on Pride of America right now. There is nothing wrong with the service by the American crew members. What type of service exactly are you complaining about? I had an excellent massage. Waiters are friendly and bring food as its prepared. Drinks are delivered promptly. Room is cleaned daily.

 

 

 

What type of service do you feel is lacking?

 

 

This.

We sailed POA in March, 2015 and found the service much better than described on CC. Our waitstaff in the MDR were wonderful, easily as good as we had in the Haven on Breakaway. They told us they had been working on POA for over 5 years and enjoyed the lifestyle.

This being said our cabin steward was not one of the better ones we've had, but we've also had worse on Caribbean cruises.

The ship itself isn't anything to write home about, but you know that going into the trip. The ports easily make up for what is lacking on the ship, and the convenience of travelling overnight to each destination was a big selling point.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[chengkp75]

This.

We sailed POA in March' date=' 2015 and found the service much better than described on CC. Our waitstaff in the MDR were wonderful, easily as good as we had in the Haven on Breakaway. They told us they had been working on POA for over 5 years and enjoyed the lifestyle.

This being said our cabin steward was not one of the better ones we've had, but we've also had worse on Caribbean cruises.

The ship itself isn't anything to write home about, but you know that going into the trip. The ports easily make up for what is lacking on the ship, and the convenience of travelling overnight to each destination was a big selling point.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk[/quote']

 

This is another area where I feel NCL has failed the Hawaii operations. They have not seriously marketed the islands as the destination, not the ship, and to market the ship as a movable hotel. This places the POA in a semi-unique position in the industry, because for the most part, the ships are marketed as a large part, if not the major part (Caribbean market) of the vacation experience.

 

Glad that some have experienced good service on POA, and are happy with the POA experience.

[grand isle joe]

.......yes if you treat the POA as a Motel 6 than you will not be disappointed. And the food like a college cafeteria than BINGO.....you are "cruising on the POA".....A real source of pride of NCL I'm sure.....;)

[chengkp75]

.......yes if you treat the POA as a Motel 6 than you will not be disappointed. And the food like a college cafeteria than BINGO.....you are "cruising on the POA".....A real source of pride of NCL I'm sure.....;)

 

And yet you find that a major topic on CC is bragging about scoring a cruise for Motel 6/Denny's/Applebee's prices and expecting service equivalent to the Ritz Carlton. Demanding service and amenities on a scale of the Vanderbilts travelling first class on the majestic liners, while paying a price that wouldn't have gotten a steerage berth.

 

I have always acknowledged that there have been and continue to be problems with service on POA, but I think things have changed since you were on her, and obviously many people think the service is worth the price or the ships wouldn't sail full, and with very little price drops.

[tip]

...I have always acknowledged that there have been and continue to be problems with service on POA, but I think things have changed since you were on her, and obviously many people think the service is worth the price or the ships wouldn't sail full, and with very little price drops.

 

Very well-said!

[Cruzaholic41]

Voluntarily accepting a job doesn't make one motivated or interested, it just makes one employed. Being uninterested in one's job and doing the bare minimum to keep that job is still possible (and, in some industries, it's common).......If you think all employees are good employees who do their jobs well and like working there, you are mistaken.

 

What happens is this. People think it would be so cool to work on a cruise ship. They get on board and for the first week, they're excited. Then reality slaps them in the face when it finally sinks in that they get very little time off, the living conditions are worse than a college dorm, the excitement of travel wears off after week 1 of the forever repeating itinerary, and irate and self entitlement passengers who they are stuck with all week hold them by the short hairs.

 

On other cruises, the majority of the staff are working on board to provide a better life for their families back home. That is their motivation and getting fired would be a travesty to them. Compare them to people who only thought it would be cool to work on a cruise ship, and it is obvious how POA service is so much worse than typical mainstream cruising.