Probably my last unlimited dining package purchase.

[Clarea]

44 minutes ago, mickeygirl78 said:

Did they still let you order multiple appetizers and desserts? Was it just the main entree limited?

 

Correct.

[Tree_skier]

deleted

Edited August 16, 2019 by Tree_skier
irrelevant.

[reaton]

We were on a b2b on Allure starting the 21st of July. We had the package for both weeks. My husband, who often orders a 12 ounce filet, ordered 2 6 ounce filets in Chops (for research purposes I’m assured). There was absolutely no problem or issue. We dined in Izumi hibachi 3 times. Once at the beginning of each week and near the end of the last week when 150 was not as awesome as we had anticipated. On the last visit, the waiter said there would be a $10 upcharge for ordering a combo (you we’re allowed to create your own combo and filet and filet was a common answer at the table). We assumed he was talking to the couple to our right as they had the 3 night plan and we had not been upcharged on either of the other 2 nights including 1 on that sailing. When we got the bill we were surprised at the charge ($20). When we asked the hostess, who was amazing and consistently went above and beyond, she brought it to the restaurant managers attention who removed the charge from the bill.

 

In all, I would say this speaks to the great inconsistency in implementing the Unlimited dining package (as it switched over from the ultimate package).   

[cruisinfromtampa]

I had no problem ordering multiple entrees on Harmony in June with my UDP, in 150CP, Jamie's, and Wonderland.

Edited August 16, 2019 by cruisinfromtampa

[travelplus]

If Royal advertises unlimited entrees then they cannot charge you $10. Its called Bait and Switch. I would have ordered more than one entree under the assumption that its part of the package or specialty dining package and then contest it later.  I have never been charged for more than one entree at Chops let alone in the MDR.

 

This is  a specialty dining restaurant were talking about. If Royal advertised their UDP or Specialty Dining Package with an asterisk that only one entree is included and subsequent entrees are $10 then fine I would factor it into the pricing.  Appetizers and desserts are always unlimited so it makes me think that entrees would be too.

 

Does anyone have a photo of the menu stating this new policy?  As far as I could see I did not see this $10 extra charge. Now is this a decision on a per ship basis?  If the server was trying to charge you for something that should not have been charged then they should be reprimanded and a talk with the Maitre D' and Hotel director would be in order.

 

So a party of 3 wants a second entree that is $30 extra revenue on top of the gratuities!  Now if we are not made aware of it in advance then how can they sneak in this fee?  At a landbased All You Can Eat buffet they cannot randomly charge you more! 

 

I want to hear your opinion but in  my humble opinion something doe not sound right. If they called it the Ultimate Dining Package and now ts new name is the Unlimited Dining Package then I would not expect to pay more except for drinks if i do not have a drinks package. So Royal does not charge $3 to add soda to your Bourbon its part of the drinks package and I would question this $3 charge if ti was added. 

 

 

[John&LaLa]

13 hours ago, LMaxwell said:

 

That's why it is an upcharge and labeled as "unlimited".  

 

Didn't we all know Royal would dumb down the menus and add all kinds of gotchas and "house rules" after they took people's money?  

 

Honestly, you are just digging a deeper hole and your backhanded attempts to make me appear as if I had a lobotomy would work better if you had a full grasp of our language and actual business logic. 

 

Use this next time

 

[jetta8300]

I didn't read through the whole thread's responses.  But when I was reading on RCI's website about the UDP, It sounded to me like you could get Unlimited entrees....AS LONG AS they were at different restaurants.  Like you could go to Chops and Order an entree, and then later go to Jamie's and order and entree.  Almost like... who would have time to do this?  As a deterrant to do it at all.

 

Because of the way it was worded on the website, I remember being confused.  I honestly though can't see how Royal could allow someone to sit down and order 3 filets for one person, every single night.  That wouldn't make sense to me either.  You'd be getting like 21 fillets plus sides, apps, and dessert for $200.  Having said that, I did think you would be allowed to order multiple apps.  I can't imagine someone leaving hungry if you were allowed to order multiple apps and sides.

Edited August 17, 2019 by jetta8300

[jetta8300]

So here is directly from my cruise planner:

 

"Savor the savings with the Unlimited Dining Package! For one low price, you can enjoy multiple entrees and visit multiple specialty restaurants every night of your sailing. And as an added perk, this unlimited package also applies to lunch at specialty restaurants on sea days. Plus, enjoy a discount of 40% off bottles of wine under $100 and 20% off bottles above $100 while dining in specialty restaurants.

 

 

A courtesy reservation will be made for the first night of your cruise based on your preferred dining time. You will receive your courtesy reservation confirmation in your stateroom on the first day of your cruise. All additional reservations or changes to your courtesy reservation must be made once onboard at any specialty restaurant.

 

 

For restaurants with a la carte pricing, you’ll receive a $35 food credit.*"

 

So... for one thing it is not unlimited if they're going to give you a $35 food credit for a la carte pricing, and then cut you off.  And for another thing, It confuses me above where it states "multiple entrees and visit multiple specialty restaurants every night of your sailing".  I questioned whether that was saying in order to get multiple entrees, you have to visit multiple restaurants.

[Coralc]

It is an "and" not an "or" .  IMO it means you can have multiple entrees anywhere you wish. 

[Tricia28]

In sitting at Vintages last night and talking to our bartenders, we asked about the onboard price of $82 plus gratuity per day for the Deluxe Drink Package. They were even surprised by it and it looks like it went up sharply with this cruise. With the menu changes in Jamie's, increased drink package price and $10 extra entree charge I think a lot of new policies were instituted this week on Harmony. Looks like the Royal is definitely instituting policies to increase revenue pretty quickly. I can't confirm what's happening on other ships.

[ONECRUISER]

1 hour ago, Tricia28 said:

In sitting at Vintages last night and talking to our bartenders, we asked about the onboard price of $82 plus gratuity per day for the Deluxe Drink Package. They were even surprised by it and it looks like it went up sharply with this cruise. With the menu changes in Jamie's, increased drink package price and $10 extra entree charge I think a lot of new policies were instituted this week on Harmony. Looks like the Royal is definitely instituting policies to increase revenue pretty quickly. I can't confirm what's happening on other ships.

There os a running thread stating $82 for onboard price. Guess that way can raise preboarding price show how much "saving" buying it then

[Ourusualbeach]

1 minute ago, ONECRUISER said:

There os a running thread stating $82 for onboard price. Guess that way can raise preboarding price show how much "saving" buying it then

They have to make up for all the packages they sold at $18.

[ONECRUISER]

Just now, Ourusualbeach said:

They have to make up for all the packages they sold at $18.

Ha! True...

[marci22]

10 hours ago, jetta8300 said:

For restaurants with a la carte pricing, you’ll receive a $35 food credit.*"

 

So... for one thing it is not unlimited if they're going to give you a $35 food credit for a la carte pricing, and then cut you off.  And for another thing, It confuses me above where it states "multiple entrees and visit multiple specialty restaurants every night of your sailing".  I questioned whether that was saying in order to get multiple entrees, you have to visit multiple restaurants.

I agree that the $35 food credit max conflicts with the idea that someone could get multiple entrees at once, but their description is poorly worded, at best. When people actually did start ordering multiple entrees so they had to make a decision.

[mayleeman]

In my first day of law school, my very entertaining Contracts professor posed almost this exact question to start off a lively discussion. He asked if his rather large ravenous son went to an "all you can eat" buffet for lunch, how long could he stay there continuing to eat? Did the restaurant have a contract with him to allow him to stay through dinner? Did it matter if the restaurant had posted separate hours for lunch and dinner? Separate prices? Etc.

 

We had fun as we conjectured all types of variations, probably the most fun that year except for the Criminal Law discussion we had about whether you can get charrged for attempted muder by shooting someone falling out of a building who had died of a heart attack causing the fall.

 

BTW, like most law school discussions, we couldn't arrive at an easy answer. A "reasonable length of time" seemed to be the consensus for how long the son could stay. How long depended on a variety of circumstances, but another consensus seemed to be that you cannot interpret it in a way no restaurant owner could reasonably anticipate--i.e., they did not offer to let a single person stay for, say, 12 hours.

 

Here, "multiple entrees" would absolutely mean being entitled to more than one because there is no other definition of "multiple." But it probably doesn't mean anyone could reasonable expect to eat, say, five. Within the extremes there is probably room for discretion. 

 

But the claim that the original offer can be unilaterally reneged on ad hoc by any given restaurant seems far-fetched.

[Musicczar]

I really don't care about the multiple entrees.  One is enough. I wonder how many people arguing this point order multiple entrees when they go to a restaurant on land?

Edited August 17, 2019 by Musicczar

[Cruisegirl6]

Honestly, I can't see how anybody can eat a couple of appetizers and more than one entree!  

[Glide_Path]

1 hour ago, Cruisegirl6 said:

Honestly, I can't see how anybody can eat a couple of appetizers and more than one entree!  

What if you had a mediocre entree, and the others in your party had ordered an amazing entree.  When you wanted to order that 2nd entree... that would $10 additional?  Not fair, given their advertising language.

[Cruisegirl6]

That has happened to me a number of times through the years and what I do is remember it for another time!  I just don't shove another entree in my mouth because it looked better than what I had.  There is only so much food that I can eat and I don't want to be overweight either.  There is always tomorrow to try something different.

[coffeebean]

On 8/16/2019 at 1:13 PM, Host Clarea said:

 

I agree, but each ship (Hotel Director, F&B Manager, etc.) has numbers to meet, so therefore they have a huge incentive to minimize their expenses, and one way is to interpret any ambiguous (and RC is a master at creating ambiguous terms) to their advantage.  They are totally driven by short-term gains, and losing long-term customers is a very low priority.

The terminology that has been posted on this thread is very straight forward. The words "Unlimited entrees" is very easy to understand and does not need interpretation. RCCL does not have a leg to stand on if they try to interpret these words in any other way than what is written in black and white.

[coffeebean]

On 8/16/2019 at 1:26 PM, JoeFan said:

I have a chat session from RCI on Facebook messenger telling me multiple entrees and Izumi Hibachi are included, despite what they say on board.

This has to be migraine inducing. One says black and the other says white and never the twain shall meet. Just ridiculous.

[coffeebean]

7 hours ago, Musicczar said:

I really don't care about the multiple entrees.  One is enough. I wonder how many people arguing this point order multiple entrees when they go to a restaurant on land?

Which brings me to the post upthread who said she and her friend had to share an entree so the men would have enough to eat. I'm still scratching my head on that one because there is no question that unlimited appys, sides and deserts are most definitely allowed. That is plenty of food to fill a Rugby player's belly.

[Ourusualbeach]

Just go ahead and order what you want based on the advertising that they are doing.  If the restaurant charges you mention it to them.  If they refuse make one stop at guest services, if they refuse just call the post cruise customer care line and they will fix what the ship has screwed up just like they did for the fake stateroom water charges and the phone pool towel charges.  Not worth spending any more than 5 minutes dealing with it on board.  

[coffeebean]

2 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Just go ahead and order what you want based on the advertising that they are doing.  If the restaurant charges you mention it to them.  If they refuse make one stop at guest services, if they refuse just call the post cruise customer care line and they will fix what the ship has screwed up just like they did for the fake stateroom water charges and the phone pool towel charges.  Not worth spending any more than 5 minutes dealing with it on board.  

I don't think I'd wait to speak to the post cruise customer care line. I just don't think one hand knows what the other is doing.

 

My next step would be to contact the food and beverage manager. He/she should be able to rectify the situation. Of course, have the UDP statement from the RCCL website handy.

[Ourusualbeach]

2 minutes ago, coffeebean said:

I don't think I'd wait to speak to the post cruise customer care line. I just don't think one hand knows what the other is doing.

 

My next step would be to contact the food and beverage manager. He/she should be able to rectify the situation. Of course, have the UDP statement from the RCCL website handy.

I’ve personally had great response from post cruise customer care in dealing with issues on the ship.  Given that it’s the F&B manager/HD that implemented the change you are fighting a losing battle on board.  I’ve seen them totally ignore a written directive from Miami.  

 

The ship is a world unto itself.