Is anything in life ever really free?

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, sverigecruiser said:

 

I said that not every line include all thoose things, not that MSC is the only line that does.

 

I don't think that the "free" beverage package NCL offer (which defenitely is NOT free!) include any of the things I mentioned but they may have a more expensive package which does. (I say think because the only knowledge I have about it is what I have seen on the NCL board.)

You like MSC and the product they offer and there is nothing wrong with that.  Just would not be my cup of tea.  As to NCL, I've never cruised with them myself but agree there are limits with their packages and would list them low on the list of choices as well as a result.  But there are a number of other lines that do offer a very comprehensive drink package.

 

Whatever works......

[soonernstlouis]

Getting back to something that is never free....those friendship bracelets, rings & whatnot that local peddlers “give” you when you stop by their stand.  Next thing you know you’ve spent $20 on garbage you wouldn’t normally

pay $1 for.  Same with taking your picture for free, petting/pictures with their animals for free.  Heck I even got yelled at by Carnival staff for trying to to take a picture of my wife next to the towel mascot.  You think I’m paying for that silly pic?

[Warm Breezes]

IMHO When it comes to cruising nothing is really free.  It is included in the price you pay or not.  My niece has never cruised before and she and her husband got asked to cruise with friends next year.  Yesterday she was asking me my opinion on the cruise their friends had selected since she thought the cost was kind of high.  I agreed with her and helped her do some comparison pricing between the ship they were looking at and 2 others in 2 other lines.  We looked at the same week since their friends were limited on when they could go, same Western itinerary leaving out of Florida for 7 nights, newer ships (with in the last couple of years which was comparable to the ship their friends had chosen) and inside rooms (they did not plan on spending a lot of time in their room being new to cruising). 

 

The cost of the cruise their friends picked on RCCL Harmony was $1965 and did not include drinks.  The cost of the cruise on NCL Escape was $2180 which included drinks and tips on their drinks, the cost of the cruise on CCL Mardi Gras was $1613 and did not include drinks.  I explained to her that she should go all the way through the process until just before booking to make sure she got the final cost and that she knew what that cost INCLUDED so she could make an apples to apples comparison.  I explained to her that from here on, personal preferences come into play.  You need to look at the ships on her short list and the cruise lines they are with to decide which one best fit their groups wants for their cruise and if the additional price was justified by what their group wanted out of their cruise.  I personally would have a hard time justifying RCCL Harmony over the other 2 choices, but that is based on my own personal preferences.  One thing I emphasized with her was to make sure she knew what was INCLUDED for the prices she was comparing.  Just saying something is free (like NCL advertises) could be missing the big picture.  I gave her some other pieces of advice such as using a TA like mine who always gets me a 10% OBC on my cruises (with the exception of my casino cruises) and if sailing a line like CCL to get the discounted gift cards to pay for the room and onboard expenses which could save another 10%.  My niece went home last night ready to do her own research.

Edited January 22, 2020 by Warm Breezes

[lenquixote66]

On 1/20/2020 at 2:11 PM, soonernstlouis said:

Getting back to something that is never free....those friendship bracelets, rings & whatnot that local peddlers “give” you when you stop by their stand.  Next thing you know you’ve spent $20 on garbage you wouldn’t normally

pay $1 for.  Same with taking your picture for free, petting/pictures with their animals for free.  Heck I even got yelled at by Carnival staff for trying to to take a picture of my wife next to the towel mascot.  You think I’m paying for that silly pic?

On a cruise last October we took a taxi to a market on a Caribbean island.A guy was carving vegetables to look like other things.He gave us one for free.I offered him a few dollars but he said no.Then he carved something else for us and told my wife to take it.When she did he asked for $5.

[ducklite]

On 1/18/2020 at 12:36 PM, RocketMan275 said:

My office once was required to send a person to a conference in Hawaii.  All expenses paid.  The office claimed it was a 'free trip' to Hawaii for the lucky person selected.  I declined to be considered because I knew I couldn't afford a 'free, all expenses paid' trip.  That 'free' trip cost my friend over $4000 since he had to take his wife, three sons, and they wanted to stay additional days.

I won a "free trip" last summer at work.  I opted to take the cash instead, because the trip would have cost me $1000.  Only airfare and hotel room was covered. The bit of cash they tossed in would have covered airport parking at home and a cab or Uber to and from the airport in the destination city, maybe a round of drinks.  All meals and entertainment would have been out of my pocket.

[RocketMan275]

1 hour ago, ducklite said:

I won a "free trip" last summer at work.  I opted to take the cash instead, because the trip would have cost me $1000.  Only airfare and hotel room was covered. The bit of cash they tossed in would have covered airport parking at home and a cab or Uber to and from the airport in the destination city, maybe a round of drinks.  All meals and entertainment would have been out of my pocket.

Things are most expensive when they're 'free'.

[Joebucks]

1 hour ago, ducklite said:

I won a "free trip" last summer at work.  I opted to take the cash instead, because the trip would have cost me $1000.  Only airfare and hotel room was covered. The bit of cash they tossed in would have covered airport parking at home and a cab or Uber to and from the airport in the destination city, maybe a round of drinks.  All meals and entertainment would have been out of my pocket.

 

While there are ways to get around this, these trips are often taxed too.