We are relatively new at cruising. This was our second, the first 7 day cruise. Maybe if we did it more, we would be less surprised by some of the things that happen. I want to stop where we agreed to stop. I want service desk staff to address excursion process questions, even if you didn't buy your excursion from them. I would like to pay the price for a cruise and not be charged for a bottle of water or to eat at a restaurant on board. I tip when I get good service. We always tipped our wait staff and bar tenders. Is that rare? Why do we have a daily tip charged to our account? Again, maybe if we cruised more we would know these answers(?).
Embarkation
3 out of 5
We got through the lines quickly. We were in the first round of boarding. Being a cruise novice...knowing that we would not get our luggage until 8:00, we would have dressed differently so we could experience more of the boat during our wait.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
We enjoyed the included dining rooms. Rarely did we have to wait more than a 10 minutes for a table. We choose the ultimate beverage package as an enticement to cruise. That was well worth it and would choose that again if offered (vs on board credit or free wifi). We did not choose the specialty restaurants as they struck us as just another way Norwegian nickels and dimes folks.
The Manhattan Room
5 out of 5
We enjoyed the food choice, quality and taste. The staff were extremely helpful. With rare exceptions, the wait staff was timely and efficient, delightful most of the time. The dinner music was fantastic. We had a chance to dance... just don't get to do that often enough.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We spent much of our deck time in the adults only area and loved it. Water slides were pretty fun...like being a kid again.
Spice H20
4 out of 5
A great place to feel like you are getting away from most of the crowds. More wait staff wouldn't hurt anybody, just sayin'.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
We scheduled early into these venues and it was necessary. Later in the trip we wanted to expand our choices and everything was booked solid.
Epic Theatre
5 out of 5
We got to see Pricilla- Queen of .... They did a fantastic performance. Extremely enjoyable.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Our steward was friendly but not about to change how he did his job to accommodate us.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
Absolutely the strangest stateroom bathroom design I have ever seen. You better be traveling with a very close friend as all your secrets will be known by the end of the cruise.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
We were definitely out of sinc with our steward. We would leave early in the morning, coming back late afternoon for a nap/whatever. Most of the time our room wasn't touched or was just getting started. We were on the end of his route and he wasn't about to change his route for us. Two time we didn't have our room cleaned and one other time it wasn't turned down. Now I feel a bit privileged complaining about my room not being turned down however, that is a cruise custom and we always enjoyed the towel animals when it was done.
Ship tip
Pay extra and book excursions through the ship. We booked through an online booking company for a bit less but when they didn't show up at one of our ports, we were out of luck. We got reimbursed but were left waiting on the dock with no one to check with. The cruise line was available and could have helped us.
I didn't know that ships could just choose not to stop at a port they picked and we bought. We got $17 back and completely didn't stop in the Bahamas. This is their private is;land and they can't pull into it's port(?).
This where our tour didn't show up. ShoreFox Tours...Stay away! They offered us 2 numbers if there was a problem. Neither of them were attended. We left multiple messages and non have been returned to date. They refunded our credit card without a word. I online chatted with a rep who apologized, said she didn't know anything about it and offered a $20 coupon for our next excursion. Fat chance.
Not blaming, just a curiosity in why it is in place (personally i am fine with the way it is but know that there are places where tipping isnt done/the norm and so i assume it might be a bit different for those folks)
I wouldnât just blame it on other countries that donât tip. I think itâs just people everywhere who didnât tip appropriately. Tipping is supposed to incentivize good service. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnât. đ
Do yall ever think that the tipping thing got started bc there arw countries where tipping isnt normal and so they want to make sure the crew get a living wage? (If though i heard its actually not a living wage but more than many would get at home"
You can have the standard gratuity removed from your bill through guest services, however, it is important to note that the daily standard gratuity covers your room steward, dining staff (in the dining room and the buffet), and other behind the scenes people who contribute to making your cruise amazing! If you just pay the standard gratuity, youâll be fine and will cover everyone. If you remove it, youâll likely be âstiffingâ people you donât personally see but work hard to provide a great experience. The bar staff are covered by the automatic gratuities added to the beverage card or individual bar orders. Any extra tips are at your discretion depending on whether you think individuals went âabove and beyondâ to make your trip great. You might find you get quicker and more frequent bar service if you tip an extra dollar or two. And as others have mentioned, the baggage carriers at the port are not included in your daily gratuities since they donât work for the cruise line so youâd want to take care of them separately. But donât stress over the tipping. If you pay the standard, youâre covered. Anything extra you choose to tip should depend on the service you receive (or want to receive). đ¸
It is true that with experience, some of these things become routine. But as far as itinerary changes, thatâs covered in your cruise contract, so hopefully you read that before your cruise. The cruise line reserves the right to make itinerary changes for any reasons, but primarily for weather related reasons. Not sure the onboard excursions desk can address âexcursion processâ questions if you didnât book an excursion through them. Iâm not sure they can be responsible for knowing how all private companies operate. As far as charges for bottled water and restaurants on board, this is standard for all cruise lines and the cruise lines are pretty clear that specialty restaurants are an upcharge. The free dining is the buffet and main dining room as well as smaller venues. And if you didnât want to pay for water, itâs available at the buffet. For future cruises, you can bring your own travel bottle and fill it up at the buffet for free. And the bars would give you a free glass of water, just not bottled. And gratuities are also clearly explained in your cruise documentation and have been covered extensively on this site. So, yes, experience as well as a little pre-cruise research will certainly help when planning your next cruise. Happy cruising! đ¸
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