Turn Down to be reduced to once a day 2023!

[DaCruiseBug]

9 minutes ago, AwesomO said:

They're not the leader in this, at least. RCL started it first 

 

Maybe so, but their daily service charges are 20% lower in non-suite cabins and 26% lower for suite cabins.

[cruiseny4life]

1 minute ago, DaCruiseBug said:

 

Maybe so, but their daily service charges are 20% lower in non-suite cabins and 26% lower for suite cabins.

Oh joy, you found this thread....welcome.🙄

[laudergayle]

2 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

☹️😭😢

Oh yes my Millennium Karen…from the self-proclaimed Scaren…I have to Google all the other sad face emojis.  Thanks…lol (lol is a Scaren for 😂).

 

 

[PNWMomma]

1 hour ago, AwesomO said:

this is going to be a little annoying for those of us using the extra beds- couch or Pullmans. means they'll either set it up or put it away, but not both. 

Exactly my thoughts. Was looking forward to the couch functionality during the day. So now using a couch and Pullman for my kids just got inconvenient if we have to try to put them away. 
 

Glad we have balcony room booked.  We had an inside cabin last time which was okay but tight with a 10 and 3 year old. That would have been a nightmare to not have the two pullmans put away during the day. 

[Cruising Lynne]

Silly me. I thought that since they just raised their DSC more than any of the other major lines, I thought that meant we would get to still have twice a day service if wanted. This is not good.

 

 

 

[Cruising Lynne]

3 hours ago, zqvol said:

It’s about time they did this. 

Any time you did not want twice a day service, you could let your steward know, or put on the do not disturb sign. I don't see why you would want it taken away from every one else.

[cruiseny4life]

Just now, Cruising Lynne said:

Silly me. I thought that since they just raised their DSC more than any of the other major lines, I thought that meant we would get to still have twice a day service if wanted. This is not good.

 

 

 

Exactly. Given that the DSC increased I thought NCL was going the opposite direction and I gave them some latitude with the price increase due to this. Frankie boy keeps touting his love of turning NCL into a luxury brand. I guess that's as truthful as not pricing to fill when ships need to be filled after final payment.

[Cruising Lynne]

49 minutes ago, AwesomO said:

not sure about a cruise, but hotel rooms tend to have a little more space to move around which helps. but besides the couch, the Pullmans especially seem more annoying. We didn't need it on our last cruise, but our family used it in their inside room and it was very tight in there while it was down. Sheets day for my kids' bunk bed is one of my least favorite chores, so not excited to deal with that on vacation. 

 

it's not a deal breaker, obviously, and other cruise lines are making similar changes. But I think it's fair to feel a little annoyed about it, particularly as all the little changes here and there keep adding up.

All these cut backs individually are not deal breakers, but they do add up. Pretty soon one of the small changes will be "the straw that breaks the camel's back" , and we will look into other vacation options.

 

I really feel for families with multiple people in a room. There is only room to hang up a couple of towels to dry and re-use. I think a quick refresh of the room to check if dry towels are needed and empty the trash is nice to have.

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, ulster-cruiser said:

<snip>

According to NCL the reduction in daily housekeeping service will have a positive impact on the company’s “commitment to environmental sustainability”, and aligns with current “standard practices in the cruise and hotel industries by conservation of water, energy and reducing the use of chemicals.”

“Over the last two-plus years., the collective hospitality industry has evolved tremendously. From airlines, hotels and cruise lines, a new travel environment has emerged with renewed preferences in all aspects of the guest's travel experience Environmental sustainability is on stage more than ever and will continue to play a crucial role in all business practices now and into the future,” the letter reads in parts.

 

Shocking if true! The future is bleak - what will they take next?

 

I just wish they (any "they" such as NCL in cases like this) wouldn't try to hide behind faux rationales.

At this point in our lives, we almost always get suites. (Some trip involve facilities that don't have that, or don't even have room service, and we still have a wonderful time. A part of this depends upon what the clients expect from the advertising, etc., no surprise.)

 

We sometimes tell our steward not to bother to tend to our suite a second time, or perhaps "could you just leave a bunch of extra bath linens" or such.

But I'm trying to think about how much that second "turn down service" involves much water or chemicals. I suppose if things *need* to be cleaned up that way...?  And if there is some sort of unexpected "real mess", presumably there would be a steward available to help (even if for no other reason than to avoid more serious mess or even damage).  Obviously that could vary considerably. In our case, and probably many others, mostly it's re-making the bed, and straightening up things so it all just "looks nicer", and often fresh bath linens or re-folding the old ones. If we have a couple of grands with us, a bit more help from housekeeping might be more useful...! 😉 

 

More generally, there have been new customs about this in many places:  If one wants new bath linens, put them on the floor or in the tub; any left hanging are not replaced.   A few hotels will offer something like $5 off per night if one wishes to skip housekeeping the next day, but they need to know the evening before, so they can adjust staffing.  At least they are straightforward about trying to save on staff costs, rather than claiming the benefit is from using fewer chemicals when they straighten the bed linens in the evening.  (heh)

 

I do "get it" that the cruise industry has been really hard hit (as have many other areas of hospitality).  What's wrong with acknowledging that?  Or do they really think their passengers  believe it's the savings in bleach that's important?  😠

Did NCL anywhere suggest that this is "for our convenience", by any chance? 😀

 

Even in top 5 star hotels, that second service usually doesn't involve much like the main housekeeping service, unless there's a specific incident or need.

 

GC

[Travelling2Some]

Personally, I don't care.  I'm tidy by nature and don't request anything from the room steward beyond an egg crate on the bed and a printed daily program.  Not being stupid though, I do notice that we will be paying a bit more and getting a bit less.  Also, since I'm not stupid I do feel the NCL doubletalk nonsense is both hilarious and a bit insulting to the intelligence.  At least this one didn't have the words "out of an abundance of caution . . ."

Edited December 29, 2022 by Travelling2Some

[Shidah]

I can’t remember the last time I have had any service in a land hotel, it is a sign of the times.  Even staying 4/5 days for business, they don’t touch the rooms these days, and by the end I have garbage cans overflowing.  I take that back, Omni Hotel did, but rooms were over $600 a night.   Thankful they still do it once a day on ships.

[AKR2011]

I know that the hospitality industry is changing, but with the increase in daily service fee, this really upsets me. The service on NCL has always been my favorite part of cruising vs a land vacation. The twice a day service is really special, and I would always tip extra for towel animals too. Having the morning and evening services made me feel like I has given a little luxury and special treatment as a guest. It really is the little things that make a difference.  I still miss the pillow mints to be honest, but more importantly, I love coming back to a clean room after a port day and the daily on my bed with a towel animal at night. This is one cutback that really stings and may make me jump to a different line in a couple years 😭😭😭

[Ash72]

3 hours ago, AwesomO said:

this is going to be a little annoying for those of us using the extra beds- couch or Pullmans. means they'll either set it up or put it away, but not both. 

It is going to be really tight in the room with the couch out, will be interesting to maneuver around to get to the balcony.  

[Hannodcruise]

My thought is that they can  maybe repurpose some of the steward staff to better cover the bar, pool service, and other places that are under staffed now.

 

[Liljo22]

2 hours ago, AwesomO said:

They're not the leader in this, at least. RCL started it first 

Actually Carnival started this back in 2017. 
 

When they did it, they cut the number of stewards and increased the number of cabins per steward.  You were given the option of morning or evening service.  

Edited December 29, 2022 by Liljo22

[FlGoodShips]

1 hour ago, Shidah said:

I can’t remember the last time I have had any service in a land hotel, it is a sign of the times.  Even staying 4/5 days for business, they don’t touch the rooms these days, and by the end I have garbage cans overflowing.  I take that back, Omni Hotel did, but rooms were over $600 a night.   Thankful they still do it once a day on ships.

I agree on the hotel statement. The last couple of years, housekeeping is "by request" only.

  Definitely not a daily service anymore.

I'm fine with NCL's decision to once a day.

[Seas2mountains]

This change will have no impact on our choice to cruise with NCL. We tend to reuse our towels for 2-3 days and don’t accumulate much garbage. The sheets don’t need to be changed for a few days. 
 

inflation exists and prices for all products and services are increasing. Why are some acting so alarmed that the cruise industry is doing what restaurants and hotels are doing? Hotels are not always providing daily service. 
 

 

[New2cruise2022]

4 hours ago, laudergayle said:

I hope they will allow guests to select an am or pm housekeeping.  Personally I’d give up am service for a nightly turndown. I like coming back to a cabin with the lights on, bed turned down, fresh towels, a new Daily, and sometimes a surprise treat.

 

And, of course we would be on the first ship to adopt this policy.  Epic in February.  Since we booked this cruise, DSC went up $4 pp/pd, daily service reduced by 50%, complimentary daily breakfast went from free to $4.95+20%, and they eliminated the major off-broadway production of Priscilla.  I understand the need to regain a positive cash balance…but holy cow.  NCL is the new Fed.  Except NCL is contributing to consumer spending…or, perhaps, not for long.

You left off the many reports of beverages — including wines and premium spirits being unavailable on many sailings. 

[uneamie]

I can't imagine how many resources like cleaning supplies etc they use just by turning your bed down and maybe leaving a towel animal. Yes, some rooms require a little extra like pulling out sofabeds but how many of those are there really? Their excuses for this is mighty lame. I personally do not need turndown service, I can turn my own bed down,  but I do like my ice bucket filled twice a day and fresh towels.....this brings to mind the many tmes I could not find a room steward anywhere near our cabin to get me ice.  

[ChiefMateJRK]

4 hours ago, laudergayle said:

Yes, but it was more dramatic to say 50%. I’m taking lessons from you 🤣
BTW, you’re being extra generous on this thread.  Your New Years resolution?

I haven't a clue what you are talking about.  Drama?  You must be confusing me with somebody else.  I'm the most laid-back poster on this sub-forum.  I thoroughly enjoy each and every cruise and I don't b$&ch about anything, unlike many others.  Do you have a link to the contrary?  Yeah, I didn't think so....

[Yesimapirate]

I guess I missed the press release where NCL hired Bob Chapek.

[vacation44]

Not happy with this change as we enjoy both morning and afternoon service. 

 

I am not 100% sure offhand,  but aren't the DSC the same for the club balcony suites as the non-Haven suites and Haven suites?  If I am correct,  the club balcony suites still should be entitled to twice a day in my opinion. 

[AwesomO]

41 minutes ago, Seas2mountains said:

This change will have no impact on our choice to cruise with NCL. We tend to reuse our towels for 2-3 days and don’t accumulate much garbage. The sheets don’t need to be changed for a few days. 
 

inflation exists and prices for all products and services are increasing. Why are some acting so alarmed that the cruise industry is doing what restaurants and hotels are doing? Hotels are not always providing daily service. 
 

 

hotel rooms are larger than a cruise ship. When we travel as a family, we do our very best to keep things tidy and not make extra work for housekeeping. We have definitely noticed the decrease in housekeeping in a hotel. We don't need sheets every day, or new towels every day, but it's very helpful to have them come in and clear out the trash (that we make sure to gather up and fit as much as we can into the small trash cans) and work their magic with all the little odds and ends that a busy parent can't get to as we hurry out the door for our next planned activity. A cabin on a cruise ship is much smaller and keeping it even tidier than a hotel room is absolutely key. Again, I don't expect stewards to clean up after us like we're animals who forget how to pick up a towel or throw trash into a can just because we are on vacarion, but a little bit of tidying and helping us prepare sleeping arrangements (and tidy them up afterwards) goes a long way, much more so than in a hotel room where I might have two full beds, a couch, a table, and a large dresser and closet to spread out our "mess." Part of the appeal to a vacation in a hotel or on a cruise is not having to "clean up" for a week. It's the closest thing a mom (and dad) gets to a break!

 

I am not a frequent cruiser. We will be going on only our 2nd cruise, that we booked almost 2 years ago during COVID lock down burnout. To us, this vacation is a big deal as we don't get to do these things often. We're usually a camping kind of family because thats the kind of vacation we can afford (no complaints!). It's just kind of a let down that so many things keep changing. If I could go back and do it over, I'd probably pick a land based resort. But we're past final payment now. We're still excited, and we're going to be happy to be on vacation otherwise. I still dont have to cook or do laundry. But it's just lost a little bit of luster since we first booked (and not just because of this).

 

[BrianLo]

For what its worth I sailed on Quantum when they went once daily service (but before they announced it). I know... totally different cruise line. 

 

There were still towel animals. I also don't mind the once daily service, but the cabin steward had way more cabins and the timeliness to reaching rooms left a lot to be desired. 

 

versus I did a 5 day repositioning Bliss in a studio that was severely under capacity this past spring and I actually never even met my cabin steward. They were that stealthy and clearly had a low room count.

[roxette]

I am sure they will cut the number of cabin stewards a lot. Maybe change their working days, 9-8 or something. And clean maybe 60-70% more rooms per person. On turnaround days people with other duties will help.

 

On my last cruise I declined the turndown service more than half of the days. But that was my choice.

 

With all the changes, in particular the P+ package, and the prices they charge these days I will stick to All Inclusive resorts in the near future. Excellence or Secrets. 

 

I have one cruise on the Epic booked and one on MSC yacht club (a steal!) The next few months. But then I think there will be a few year until the next one. Which is a shame. Since I love cruising.