Like them or not (I do) N.C.L. is getting almost everything right ,what do you think.

[cruisemom42]

28 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

I still maintain that if this "tradition" was popular and/or enjoyable, somebody would capitalize on it in a land based restaurant. Just find one.

 

• Hibachi grill restaurants
• Lunch counters
• City restaurants with limited seating
• Farm-to-table restaurants and others that promote family-style dining (I can think of two near me, one of whom is run by an executive chef that won Top Chef
• Even fancy-schmancy restaurants like Momofuku (NY) and The Publican (Chicago, pictured below) 

 

It also is pretty common in Europe. One of my favorite eateries in Florence offers a variety of tables, some of them shared. 

[trivimp]

25 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

• Hibachi grill restaurants
• Lunch counters
• City restaurants with limited seating
• Farm-to-table restaurants and others that promote family-style dining (I can think of two near me, one of whom is run by an executive chef that won Top Chef
• Even fancy-schmancy restaurants like Momofuku (NY) and The Publican (Chicago, pictured below) 

 

It also is pretty common in Europe. One of my favorite eateries in Florence offers a variety of tables, some of them shared. 

• Blues roadhouses & BBQ joints (as an example I submit one of my faves, BB's Lawnside in Kansas City)

[cruiseny4life]

@cruisemom42your photo and post are going to get me popping the Xanax tonight! I hate those communal tables at chic bakeries/ coffee shops. 

I do enjoy sitting at a diner counter if alone as no one bothers you there, at least in my experience. 

We did go to teppanyaki on our cruise. Thankfully no one talked to anyone outside of their party. 

More power to those of you that enjoy talking to strangers!

Yes, label me a bad, bad person with no social skills... unless I have to (like for work).

[complawyer]

i will talk to people at a sushi bar if they ask me what i'm having, also if what theyre having looks interesting, i'll ask them.

at the teppanyaki, it depends on the others sitting there. if they seem like a lively group, we'll join in.

 

on the jade this april, we sat with 6 people t hat seemed to be traveling together and we were completely ignored. they were all asian ( not trying to be racist here) but we are not, so i guess that explained the situation.

 

i dont believe social skills has anything to do with it. obviously freestyle dining is a sucess, and one of the things that people enjoy about ncl. 

 

and if  you're on  7, 10 or longer day cruise and find yourself sitting with 6 or 8 other people that you dont know, it could end up being tortuous for the duration.

 

and yes, i know y ou can ask to be reseated somewhere else, but doesnt that defeat the purposeof sitting with strangers.  

 

sorry guys, i'll stick to a table with my wife and traveling companions ONLY!

[Uff da]

28 minutes ago, complawyer said:

i will talk to people at a sushi bar if they ask me what i'm having, also if what theyre having looks interesting, i'll ask them.

at the teppanyaki, it depends on the others sitting there. if they seem like a lively group, we'll join in.

 

on the jade this april, we sat with 6 people t hat seemed to be traveling together and we were completely ignored. they were all asian ( not trying to be racist here) but we are not, so i guess that explained the situation.

 

i dont believe social skills has anything to do with it. obviously freestyle dining is a sucess, and one of the things that people enjoy about ncl. 

 

and if  you're on  7, 10 or longer day cruise and find yourself sitting with 6 or 8 other people that you dont know, it could end up being tortuous for the duration.

 

and yes, i know y ou can ask to be reseated somewhere else, but doesnt that defeat the purposeof sitting with strangers.  

 

sorry guys, i'll stick to a table with my wife and traveling companions ONLY!

I had a horrible experience on Carnival at a shared table and it ruined community dining for me forever. I LOVE not having to share a table with strangers. Some people are not good companions. When it's good, it's good, when it's not, it's really not. 😉

[cruisemom42]

9 hours ago, complawyer said:

i dont believe social skills has anything to do with it. obviously freestyle dining is a sucess, and one of the things that people enjoy about ncl. 

 

and if  you're on  7, 10 or longer day cruise and find yourself sitting with 6 or 8 other people that you dont know, it could end up being tortuous for the duration.

 

I still don't think you get what I'm asking for.

 

All mass market lines now have freestyle dining, if you're not aware of it. But they actually offer more CHOICE because "if" you should want fixed dining you can get it. If you want freestyle you can get it also. If you want to dine solely with your own group, you can do it. If you would like to share with others on any given night (not for the duration), you can. 

 

Much more "choice" than the vaunted freestyle of NCL....

 

I do not want fixed seating with the same group for the duration. I want what other lines offer -- the chance to share a table with others who have freestyle or anytime dining, have just been seated in the dining room, and have indicated that they would be happy to sit at a shared table. I don't want to impose myself on anyone who wants to sit alone, but if there are others willing to share, why couldn't the person seating groups at the door manage this?

 

I assure you, it happens on other lines, and in 50 years of cruising (I started as a kid) I've only once had an unpleasant experience.

 

[dolittle]

I am afraid the mods. will move this to the ''shared table forum .

[Cruising Lynne]

2 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I still don't think you get what I'm asking for.

 

All mass market lines now have freestyle dining, if you're not aware of it. But they actually offer more CHOICE because "if" you should want fixed dining you can get it. If you want freestyle you can get it also. If you want to dine solely with your own group, you can do it. If you would like to share with others on any given night (not for the duration), you can. 

 

Much more "choice" than the vaunted freestyle of NCL....

 

I do not want fixed seating with the same group for the duration. I want what other lines offer -- the chance to share a table with others who have freestyle or anytime dining, have just been seated in the dining room, and have indicated that they would be happy to sit at a shared table. I don't want to impose myself on anyone who wants to sit alone, but if there are others willing to share, why couldn't the person seating groups at the door manage this?

 

I assure you, it happens on other lines, and in 50 years of cruising (I started as a kid) I've only once had an unpleasant experience.

 

I have seen people seated at a shared table on NCL. I have also seen people request a shared table, but after a while, with no one else showing up that wanted to share, they were seated alone. If it is really important to you, don't cruise on NCL. I book NCL cruises because I don't want to feel pressured to sit with anyone else. This does not make me a snob or anti-social. I still try to be friendly and chat with people here and there on my cruise. We do not eat as much as we used to and like to just eat and move along. Occasionally, we will book other cruise lines and share a table, but it is not my favorite way to dine. I like how NCL does it, and I think they are getting it right.

 

 

[jsn55]

5 minutes ago, Cruising Lynne said:

I have seen people seated at a shared table on NCL. I have also seen people request a shared table, but after a while, with no one else showing up that wanted to share, they were seated alone. If it is really important to you, don't cruise on NCL. I book NCL cruises because I don't want to feel pressured to sit with anyone else. This does not make me a snob or anti-social. I still try to be friendly and chat with people here and there on my cruise. We do not eat as much as we used to and like to just eat and move along. Occasionally, we will book other cruise lines and share a table, but it is not my favorite way to dine. I like how NCL does it, and I think they are getting it right.

 

 

You're the first person to point out that you 'don't eat as much as we used to'.  We stopped having 'dinner' years ago.  Once you turn 40, it's harder to work off the calories involved in a big evening meal.  On a cruise, we're usually found in the buffet early in the evening where we eat a very light meal.   Our main meal is usually lunch. 

[ChiefMateJRK]

On 5/9/2022 at 12:01 PM, cruisemom42 said:

And the very active (one could say aggressive) dislike of dining with others is extremely offputting for this solo traveler.

Really?

 

When I meet new people in a casual setting, I usually get along well with about 80% of them.  It's the other 20% that concern me.  So, at the end of the day the question is, "do I feel lucky?"

[Sailing12Away]

That's the beauty of these forums, no? To be able to connect with people on your sailing ahead of time to build some rapport and make new friends? For folks who are interested in sharing dinners together, they can certainly arrange to sit together as often as they like. 

 

I dunno, call me crazy but I think it's somewhat worse if the first night of the cruise I'm paired up with people I can't stand and then they see me never dine with them again. Rather than not having that expectation at all.

 

Kinda like passing someone a note in grade school that says 'do you want to eat lunch with me? check this box for yes, or that box for no'. No rejection or guilt that way.

[steveknj]

18 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

I didn't suggest it was popular. Obviously more and more people want to dine with just their party, which is why cruise lines are moving toward 'my time' dining. You wondered why cruises offer the option of dining with others and my response is that some people like that tradition, which was set forth on cruise ships. Since dining with others was never the standard at Disney (that I'm aware of);  no tradition was established.

 

Seems very simple to me. Some people want a 'traditional cruise' experience where they dine with others so the cruise lines are keeping this as an option. However the cruise lines have heard what other people want and are offering more choices. 

 

It's really pretty simple.  if you enjoy those types of traditions, NCL is probably not for you.  There are plenty of others who still maintain that tradition.  NCL has made it clear over the last bunch of years that they have moved away for that sort of thing as it's just not as popular as it used to be.

[coffeebean]

On 5/9/2022 at 3:01 PM, cruisemom42 said:

NCL doesn't work for me. The ship-within-a-ship concept is the opposite of what I look for onboard a cruise ship. And the very active (one could say aggressive) dislike of dining with others is extremely offputting for this solo traveler.

What do you mean by "ship within a ship concept"?

[coffeebean]

On 5/9/2022 at 4:21 PM, oteixeira said:

I just want to point out that the 3 main lines all do ship within a ship, the beauty is you don't HAVE to like it to sail any of the lines, it is a very small portion of the sailing capacity.

RCL - "The Suite Neighborhood"
Carnival - "Havana"
NCL - "The Haven"

and if you want to throw in a few others:

Celebrity - "The Retreat"

MSC - "The Yacht Club"

So, you really can't ding NCL for it unless you are dinging almost every option you have to sail in the US.

Oh, now I understand the "ship within a ship concept". Seems all the mainstream cruise lines have this concept.

[The Shrike]

29 minutes ago, coffeebean said:

Oh, now I understand the "ship within a ship concept". Seems all the mainstream cruise lines have this concept.

And I don't understand their gripes about them.  If they don't want to be in the Haven (or other cruise lines' equivalent area) then simply don't book a suite there.

[hallux]

2 hours ago, Sailing12Away said:

That's the beauty of these forums, no? To be able to connect with people on your sailing ahead of time to build some rapport and make new friends?

I did EXACTLY that on my first NCL cruise.  We ended up arranging an embarkation lunch for the solos on the roll call, we had a great time!

[geleisen]

10 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I still don't think you get what I'm asking for.

 

All mass market lines now have freestyle dining, if you're not aware of it. But they actually offer more CHOICE because "if" you should want fixed dining you can get it. If you want freestyle you can get it also. If you want to dine solely with your own group, you can do it. If you would like to share with others on any given night (not for the duration), you can. 

 

Much more "choice" than the vaunted freestyle of NCL....

 

I do not want fixed seating with the same group for the duration. I want what other lines offer -- the chance to share a table with others who have freestyle or anytime dining, have just been seated in the dining room, and have indicated that they would be happy to sit at a shared table. I don't want to impose myself on anyone who wants to sit alone, but if there are others willing to share, why couldn't the person seating groups at the door manage this?

 

I assure you, it happens on other lines, and in 50 years of cruising (I started as a kid) I've only once had an unpleasant experience.

 

I have seen last minute Royal Caribbean deals, but when I check up on them, the anytime dining option is always sold out, so I have to choose the set meals. So it seems this 'choice' is quite limited. Maybe the other lines offer unlimited anytime dining, but at least some of them do not, and if you are not booking 1+ year in advance, you won't get it. So I think it is quite absurd to compare this to NCL's freestyle concept where 100% of the passengers can take advantage of the freestyle dining or ask to be seated with others if they like. I have taken a couple of solo cruises, and always felt that it was possible to hang out and have meals with the other solo diners onboard, and actually have made several long term friends on NCL with that. And when I am solo, I appreciate meeting other solo travellers. But when I am on holiday with a friend or a partner, I want to spend my time with my friend or partner, not random strangers whom I may or may not hit it off with. And perhaps NCL could do more to highlight the option of asking to be seated with other people. But honestly, I tend to think that most people aren't that interested most of the time because we are on holiday with the people we intend to spend our time with, if we want to meet new people, we can do so of our own free will rather than being forced to eat with them. (And if some days we are running late to our dinner, we don't feel guilt for forcing a large group of people to sit hungry waiting to order their meals) I realise that many cruisers like that traditional eating with others thing, but I am definitely amongst those who find it to be a reason to avoid cruising, as I don't want to be forced to eat at the same time with the same people at the same table every single day of my holiday. That just doesn't scream fun to me.

[UKstages]

during busy times, one of the main reasons "dining with others" is offered as an option is that it makes it easier for the maître d' and the restaurant staff to manage dining load. why seat one where you can seat two? why seat two at a larger table that could seat four or six? those larger "community" tables are only good if you have  a reservation for a large party to fill them... if you don't, the house can create its own large party.

 

sure, some people like it and ask for it... but it's really all about what's in it for the house... how can they conveniently and efficiently maximize the space? as far as efficiency goes, other than socialization, that's the main advantage for the diner. they might be able to be seated more quickly than if they requested a table alone. again, that's when it's busy. if the ship is operating at 40% or 50% or whatever during this transitional period, then it's pretty much all about the socialization. there is no practical need for community tables.

[complawyer]

sorry, im not cruising for "socialization". 

 

in 18 ncl cruises, ive never even been asked if i would like to share a table. most i ever had to wait in a mdr to be seated was about 15 minutes. if you go to the reservations desk once you get on board, you can make dinner reservations at almost any specialty restaurant without any problems

[jbcallender]

I will be having my first NCL cruise in November after two cancellations of the same cruise..  I have cruised on Royal Caribbean, and Holland America.  My impression so far is that NCL doesn't give anything for "free", in fact I am feeling a little nickel and dimed to be honest.

[UKstages]

9 minutes ago, complawyer said:

sorry, im not cruising for "socialization". 

 

in 18 ncl cruises, ive never even been asked if i would like to share a table. most i ever had to wait in a mdr to be seated was about 15 minutes. if you go to the reservations desk once you get on board, you can make dinner reservations at almost any specialty restaurant without any problems

 

no need to be sorry. i'm on record as being against socialization in these restaurants, as well.

 

in a multipage thread, it's difficult to remember who your allies are. i think people just read the most recent comment and pounce on somebody who agrees with them. i see a lot of that around these here parts.

 

post #68 merely stated that if the restaurant is not busy, there is no practical reason shared tables would benefit the house... no practical reason that they should be offered... other than socialization.

 

i wasn't advocating shared tables; i'm not on team social. i simply offered an explanation.

[cruisemom42]

42 minutes ago, UKstages said:

i think people just read the most recent comment and pounce on somebody

 

How true this is. People seem to willfully misunderstand things in an effort to offer their own pithy comments.

 

As I've already stated several times, I responded initially on this topic when it was NOT posted on the NCL forum; I am not currently an NCL cruiser and am not looking to be one because several aspects of NCL just don't work for me. Since the thread was moved here, it is what it is, but my original intention was merely to answer the ACTUAL question posed by the OP which was "do I think NCL is getting almost everything right?"  

 

Not trying to proselytize for my POV or change anyone's mind. I'm a seasoned traveler and cruiser for a long time and know what works for me. It's available on other lines. I enjoy talking with others wherever I travel and enjoy hearing others' travel stories or even meeting locals when I travel on land. 

 

What I've suggested would cost NCL nothing to implement and would take nothing away from those who want to dine alone, and yet I keep getting vociferously challenged. That alone would seem to provide pretty conclusive support for my original statement about "the very active (one could say aggressive) dislike of dining with others" on this line.

 

I don't intend to defend my comments further here, but just wanted to pose one last thought. Why should solos only be seated with other solos in some strange continuation of "the kids' table"?  If you were to substitute any ethnic group, gendered group, etc. for "solos table" it would be considered borderline discriminatory. I've been single, married, divorced, a parent, a student, a worker -- Is what I have to say not of interest to anyone other than another solo?  The whole idea of it is sort of bizarro-world to me....  Wouldn't true "Freestyle" cruising be freestyle for everyone?  Not just a different code set in stone?

 

 

Edited May 12, 2022 by cruisemom42

[Wvshimmy]

Interesting comments in this thread 

Been cruising since the Big Red Boat and the one thing we esoecially disliked was the shared tables. 

We always chose the later option,  but invariably ended up Honey Boo Boos family or worse. 

Got so bad on a particular RCL cruise my dad stopped going to the MDR. 

 I sometimes cruise solo now and definitely don't want shared tables. 

Quite social,  but choose who I dine with or spend time with onboard if we "click".

I've had great conversations with Crew and nearby diners even if I choose to dine alone. 

Definitely averse to large tables of strangers for dinner; not my thing. 

 Only alone if you choose to be ; nice choice 

 

 

[deliver42]

We last sailed on the Escape several years ago, and enjoyed  ourselves, but their price point now leaves a lt to be desired. We're booked on the Bliss for Alaska in 2024, but the deposit is refundable, and if the price doesn't go down, we'll look at the other lines. We don't care for the Joy, as it's missing some anemnities, and won't sail the Encore with no FREE deck space.

[insidecabin]

Had a longer post, got lost,  was probably too long anyway.

 

NCL does not get nearly everything right.

 

Still our best fit but they have messed a lot of thing about over the years.

 

The current one is the pricing is all over the place and many trips are just way too high.

 

This has resulted in price drops and promotions to nudge bookings for us in the UK the latest was effectively free flights, on the one I have booked knocked about £100 off adding the flights.

 

This year they took so long to get the prices right we had  booked 2 princess(they have nailed it from the UK) before the NCL one we slipped in between them.

 

We are specialty restaurant people, we used to be able to get by on the Latitudes and free at sea dinners maybe a light topup PAYG for the odd sea day lunch

 

They changed the free at sea dinner count(down) in Jan and then doubled the price here in the UK changed the value point quite a bit.

With the changes to free at sea the increase in the dining package costs it has got harder to get the balance right  i have an offer of discount on the 2 meal package but on our next 9n cruise that would give us 5 which might just work but will add £60pp to the cost.  

 

Add onto that the messing around with the menus of both MDR and the specials they have gone backwards in some areas,  the new ships have some good additional venues which helps.

 

Ship layouts love the old great outdoors and the newer ships 678 waterfront but a lot of top deck has been  taken over by poor(for us) options.

 

We are booked up for the first 1/2 of 2022 will be looking for options Sept on and it will be interesting to what will tick the boxes.

Dawn and Star look ok for now there was a deal on Celebrity but missed it.

 

Princess will up their package by 30%, £10 end of this month  its getting hard to keep up.