It's Truly Embarrassing

[DCT61]

Please, PLEASE...don't tell her about the lifeboats.

[david_sobe]

The customer definitely does not get what it once did on NCL.

[Jimmy Geegitz]

I just got married a year ago and I've been telling my wife how great cruising is and made a reservation back then for the Breakaway for late October. She has never taken a cruise and is a little nervous about it. So over the last several months I would tell her about all the great things she would experience to build up her excitement. First that there would be fireworks one night (very romantic) GONE. Then how great the burgers will be at the up town grill GONE. Then I told her about the Cirque dinner show, which I tried to book last week at 90 days out GONE. Today I find out they stopped serving lobster in Teppanyaki which I booked GONE.

I will now stop mentioning anything till October. We will still have a great cruise but I'm really tired of things disappearing from our cruise. As you can see our next cruise will be with Carnival.

 

Dan

 

This is why Carnival is the largest cruise line in the world. NCL one of the smallest. NCL ...NCL and Dime line.The new MSC ships are coming and going to put a dent in NCL. Not to mention Carnivals new Vista and Horizon. The only thing I think NCL has that is better is entertainment. Carnival has really poor shows. BUT NCL charges for some of their shows. On Carnival they are free. MSC has plenty of free venues and the new ships are looking really sweet.

Edited August 3, 2016 by Jimmy Geegitz

[mianmike]

There's been quite a few changes over the last few years:

 

 

• Nickelodeon gone
  
• Geoffrey Zakarian gone
  
• Cake Boss gone
  
• 18% gratuity on specialty dining
  
• DSC raised twice
  
• drink prices raised
  
• 18% gratuity on drinks
  
• 18% gratuity on food/coffee purchases ( Java Cafe/Carlo's/gelato etc)
  
• Asian Noodle restaurant complimentary but reduced menu
  
• Hippo Slide at GSC gone
  
• Fireworks gone
  
• UDP is now SDP
  
• UBP used to be for everyone in room, but now it's just first two passengers
  
• Room service $7.95 except for a much smaller limited "continental breakfast"
  
• Blue Man Group gone
  
• Now pay taxes on "free" UBP/SDP
  
• No more kids pricing in specialty restaurants
  
• Port times shortened on a number of itineraries "for your convenience"
  
• No more free Cirque or Illusionarium on first night with dining package
  
• Margaritaville on Escape is now a la carte. Used to be included.
  
• Cancellation policy got much worse.
  
• SDP price increased.
  
• Fewer days for SDP on promos.
  
• Available wines have gotten worse. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=49635954&postcount=64
  
• Certain menu items (like Seafood Extravaganza at Ocean Blue) not covered by SDP upcharge.
  
• Bayamo upcharge for SDP increased.
  
• Dining packages no longer have fixed $10 price for second entree at Cagney's and Le Bistro. Now charged full a la carte price for entree.
  
• Uptown/Flamingo Grill being replace with Margaritaville. Free dining place replace for fee-based one with similar food.
  
• AARP discount gone.
  
• Haven breakfast and lunch menu items scaled back. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2356561
  
• Water, soda and juices can not be brought on board either as carry-on or checked luggage https://www.ncl.com/faq/liquor-beverage-policy
  
• No more lobster on Haven dining menu http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2385832
  

 

And what's amazing is all those things were done for your convenience and/or to better serve you!

[emcelh]

This is why Carnival is the largest cruise line in the world. NCL one of the smallest. NCL ...NCL and Dime line.The new MSC ships are coming and going to put a dent in NCL. Not to mention Carnivals new Vista and Horizon. The only thing I think NCL has that is better is entertainment. Carnival has really poor shows. BUT NCL charges for some of their shows. On Carnival they are free. MSC has plenty of free venues and the new ships are looking really sweet.

 

No one would pay for the shows on any of the Carnival ships I've experienced. To be fair in your comparison, the only NCL shows with a charge are the dinner shows. I'm not aware that Carnival has any dinner shows.

[Jimmy Geegitz]

No one would pay for the shows on any of the Carnival ships I've experienced. To be fair in your comparison, the only NCL shows with a charge are the dinner shows. I'm not aware that Carnival has any dinner shows.

 

Carnival doesn't have any dinner shows. I agree I wouldn't pay for any of Carnival shows. They are mostly pretty lame. NCL has dinner shows because they throw in the dinner to get you to pay for the show. It's a sneaky way of getting you to pay for dinner and a show.

[LrgPizza]

I understand where you're coming from. We talked our friends into cruising with us this past May, and then several things changed. For instance, we'd told them all about how awesome the Margaritaville at Sea was, only to have it become a pay restaurant after our first Escape trip. I remembered they responded with, "that sucks", and before the breath was over, we'd moved on to talking about other unrelated things. I hope your new wife is as low maintenance as my friends.

 

There is absolutely no reason you guys won't have a great time if you want to. No need for you to be embarrassed or whatever about things that you didn't do.

[GUT2407]

Things are changing on all lines, some think for the better others think for the worse.

 

Many things that have disappeared I miss other's I was glad to see the back of.

[kathybelcher2433]

I think every person that cruises finds the things they appeal to them the most. My husband and I don't even agree 100 percent on those things. That's okay- there a lot to choose from on a cruise. Finding out what's important can be an individual thing. I guess being married for 28 years means we just try to find a few things we both enjoy together, even if that's simply dinner!

 

So maybe it's not fireworks, burgers and lobster but it's slides, ports of call and shrimp. Just sayin'.

 

Ps. I bet you can book that Cirque dinner show when you board.

[labatsman]

Things are changing on all lines, some think for the better others think for the worse.

 

Many things that have disappeared I miss other's I was glad to see the back of.

 

Agree with this ^^^^^

 

Where can you go for a reasonable price for your room, meals, beverages included, tips most times, great entertainment ,Many varied daily activities get to see the world, We have never had a bad cruise, some we prefer more than others

[Jana60]

I just got married a year ago and I've been telling my wife how great cruising is and made a reservation back then for the Breakaway for late October. She has never taken a cruise and is a little nervous about it. So over the last several months I would tell her about all the great things she would experience to build up her excitement. First that there would be fireworks one night (very romantic) GONE. Then how great the burgers will be at the up town grill GONE. Then I told her about the Cirque dinner show, which I tried to book last week at 90 days out GONE. Today I find out they stopped serving lobster in Teppanyaki which I booked GONE.

I will now stop mentioning anything till October. We will still have a great cruise but I'm really tired of things disappearing from our cruise. As you can see our next cruise will be with Carnival.

 

Dan

 

I know it's disappointing 4 things you were looking forward to to disappear but just so you know all of these things disappeared a long time ago from the carnival. I did a back to back to back cruise on Carnival (which was My 23rd Carnival cruise) in February of this year. I paid more for my inner room then I do on NCL for a balcony and they had no Lobster, canned music in the main showroom, limited Live instrumental music, Poor service ( I ordered from room service 5 different times and received only one of the orders), and there was excessive smoke which made it impossible for me to breathe in many of the public areas including the lobby! Since those cruises I have sailed twice on Norwegian and had a blast both times. So maybe a cruise on Carnival is just what you need to be able to appreciate Norwegian.

Edited August 4, 2016 by Jana60

[Jana60]

And what's amazing is all those things were done for your convenience and/or to better serve you!

 

When did they quit serving Lobster in the Haven? I ate the whole Maine Lobster in the Haven on Norwegian Escape 3 times during our cruise from July 9th through July 16th. That was less than 3 weeks ago!

Edited August 4, 2016 by Jana60

[sfaaa]

This is why Carnival is the largest cruise line in the world. NCL one of the smallest. NCL ...NCL and Dime line.The new MSC ships are coming and going to put a dent in NCL. Not to mention Carnivals new Vista and Horizon. The only thing I think NCL has that is better is entertainment. Carnival has really poor shows. BUT NCL charges for some of their shows. On Carnival they are free. MSC has plenty of free venues and the new ships are looking really sweet.

 

MSC has potential but lacks itinerary choice unless you want to repeat the same Caribbean ports over and over again. MSC as is still has a long way to go before it posts any threat to NCL or Carnival. That said, more competition is always a good thing to us cruisers.

[Demonyte]

I agree totally, look forward not back.

 

 

I completely disagree. "Back" is what they expected to get when booked, "forward" is what they'll get. I too would be disappointed because of the number of changes since booking.

 

So far for our upcoming Celebrity cruise there is only one negative change since we booked - the change from Molecular Bar to World Class Bar, and even that is not even close to comparable to all the beverage related changes alone on NCL.

[CP Tech]

As a chef, I never had understood the allure of the lobster on the ships. It is warm water lobster (spiny ) and really has zero flavor,

 

THANK YOU!!! I've been saying this for a very long time and have gotten attacked by what I call the "Crustacean Commandos".

[Demonyte]

When did they quit serving Lobster in the Haven? I ate the whole Maine Lobster in the Haven on Norwegian Escape 3 times during our cruise from July 9th through July 16th. That was less than 3 weeks ago!

 

 

See this thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2385832

[CP Tech]

There's been quite a few changes over the last few years:

 

 

• Nickelodeon gone
  
• Geoffrey Zakarian gone
  
• Cake Boss gone
  
• Blue Man Group gone
  

 

Those 4 examples were the simple result of contracts expiring and not being renewed.

 

I know for a fact, due to my job and connections, that one of them was NOT NCL's choice but the other party involved opted to not renew. I'm sure several others were too.

 

Contracts have time limits and companies decide what they want to do after said date passes.

[Demonyte]

Those 4 examples were the simple result of contracts expiring and not being renewed.

 

I know for a fact, due to my job and connections, that one of them was NOT NCL's choice but the other party involved opted to not renew. I'm sure several others were too.

 

Contracts have time limits and companies decide what they want to do after said date passes.

 

 

However it is NCL's cost cutting choice not to replace (most of) them in any comparable way.

[mianmike]

Those 4 examples were the simple result of contracts expiring and not being renewed.

 

I know for a fact, due to my job and connections, that one of them was NOT NCL's choice but the other party involved opted to not renew. I'm sure several others were too.

 

Contracts have time limits and companies decide what they want to do after said date passes.

 

I wonder what is it about NCL vs the other cruise lines that makes companies not want further business collaboration with NCL. Any inside info?

[Two Wheels Only]

I think that the Universal Studios characters (whatever falls under that umbrella) should start their own cruise line.

 

A Harry Potter "Hogwarts" ship

A Marvel Comics ship

Dora, Spongebob, Minions, Shrek...they could have an entire fleet based on their characters.

[IsanTom]

So sorry!

[FreestyleNovice]

I completely disagree. "Back" is what they expected to get when booked, "forward" is what they'll get. I too would be disappointed because of the number of changes since booking.

 

So far for our upcoming Celebrity cruise there is only one negative change since we booked - the change from Molecular Bar to World Class Bar, and even that is not even close to comparable to all the beverage related changes alone on NCL.

 

Don't forget Bistro on 5 to Sushi on 5. :D

 

We're in the same boat, Molecular Bar sounded fun!

[deliver42]

Twowheelsonly, Royal has Universal characters on most of their ships.

[ready2cruzagain]

I just got married a year ago and I've been telling my wife how great cruising is and made a reservation back then for the Breakaway for late October. She has never taken a cruise and is a little nervous about it. So over the last several months I would tell her about all the great things she would experience to build up her excitement. First that there would be fireworks one night (very romantic) GONE. Then how great the burgers will be at the up town grill GONE. Then I told her about the Cirque dinner show, which I tried to book last week at 90 days out GONE. Today I find out they stopped serving lobster in Teppanyaki which I booked GONE.

I will now stop mentioning anything till October. We will still have a great cruise but I'm really tired of things disappearing from our cruise. As you can see our next cruise will be with Carnival.

 

Dan

I see you haven't sailed on Carnival since 2012 and if you think Carnival hasn't had cutbacks then you are in for a huge surprise.

 

We have been on 18 Carnival cruises but we will now be trying Norwegian because of the cutbacks on Carnival.

 

Carnival's entertainment is none existent. Our last cruise in Feb. there were no live bands. There were a couple of really bad duos and a couple of guitar players, that is it. There were only 2 production shows on an 11 night cruise. There was no fly on entertainment. It was a total joke.

 

If you want Carnivals Beverage Package then you will pay $50 pp per day plus 15% gratuity, NCL only charges an 18% gratuity if you choose it as a promo.

 

You mentioned lobster, Carnival no longer serves lobster on cruises 5 nights or less.

 

There are many more things that Carnival has cutback on since you last cruised them, this is just a few. It just shows that NCL isn't the only one that is cutting back.

[Frick_&_Frack]

 

If you want Carnivals Beverage Package then you will pay $50 pp per day plus 15% gratuity, NCL only charges an 18% gratuity if you choose it as a promo.

 

 

 

NCL charges 18% on all beverages purchased (including any plans) - Promo or not (unless you are in the Haven and get it as a promo). ;)