Manateemike

4 hours ago, bouhunter said:

It was out there somewhere.  Might have been the EU "plan", I think it talked about separating people by age to attend events and such onboard.

Yes, it was the Eu plan 'recommendation" and that was part of the 49 page plan.

Just have to ask!

My Cruise coming up in November on AOS. Just now reached Diamond Tier and I know that I will have access to the Lounge with whatever amenities go along with it, like maybe 3 drinks loaded onto my card. I am also in a Grand Suite with access to the Concierge Lounge, with drinks from, I think, 5 to 7 or 8 in the Lounge. Does it make any sense to purchase a Premium Drink Package? Already did so, but then I'm thinking, I just might cancel the Package, buy drinks during the daytime, and save a bit! Thoughts?

Formal nite was on Monday? Wasn't that day one for you?

This is great, thank you! I would also like to add that on the Royal Replenish package you can not only order anything from the non-alcoholic cocktails section of the menu, but you can also order any of the frozen cocktails as virgin.

 

The virgin frozen mojitos were very good on Radiance last week :)

Nice, from DownUnder ! You don't always have to have booze to have a good time Mate! :p

That was your 15% charge for gratuities.

 

A few months back Royal lowered the prices (which used to include gratuties) and started adding the 15%.

Thanks', I got it!

Those crafty behind the scenes bean counters

are so good at their jobs, I guess. :rolleyes:

Great graphic! One comment - the Ultimate package does not include "All wines" by the glass. It only includes wine up to $12, same as the premium package. There is no difference in the alcohol included in the Premium vs. Ultimate packages (except for the Moet promotion, which I believe is over). Also, the alcoholic cocktails included are only up to $12, so I'd probably add that.

I booked the premium package today for my 7 day cruise and there was a $50 some dollar 'service charge" added onto the total, for?:confused:

Had a bad experience on AOS last year when I went to the Customer Service Desk to break down (4) $100.00 bills for tips etc. The person behind the counter was cool to me and said maybe or not, I will check. Only able to cash (2) 100's and that is that! Should I have waited and gone to the Casino or where?

Thought he was rude! Or ?:confused:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/contentWithHero.do?pagename=enhanced_program_for_suite_guests

 

No poolside suite seating on Brilliance.

Why is that?:confused:

I have purchased the "Ultimate Drink Package" for my upcoming Cruise leaving Dec.7! I don't know if this is an

issue, but I wonder if they somehow keep tract of the timeline between ordering any of the options that are offered and, could you be cut off if so? Like how many purchases within an hour? What with the card being in the system! May that be alcohol, juice, or the specialty items! And no, I'm not going to cheat! Just for me! I sometimes like to do back to back libations! confused:

When you order a drink at a bar, in the restaurant, or in any lounge, with any prepaid drink package, are you required to sign a paper tab or receipt, or not? Always seems to be confusion on some posts on this!:confused:

always in a GS or above and have always been sent tags in mail.

 

received tags 2 weeks ago for our upcoming October 4th sailing.

Just got off the phone with a Rep.@ Customer Service! Asked about the Grand Suite Luggage Tags being mailed for our Dec. 07 sailing and she verified that RCI still will

mail the tags before the cruise to my address! No need to print out anything per our conversation! Nothing has changed!:)

The Rccl site says this:"Casino Royale allows smoking and has a designated area for non-smoking"! Has anyone experienced this "area" on a cruise lately? How

large is this "area" and how can this not effect others in

the Casino room? Sounds 'kinda silly to me!

Who has been your favourite (or one of your favourite) headliner acts on a Royal cruise and why?

On two different cruises on Adventure of the Seas, we saw and loved: "The Drifters" & then two years later, "The Platters". Great stuff!!

Try again - RCI doesn't have butlers.

That was my point!!;)

Even for an upcharge; any place to get steak and eggs for breakfast?

Steak & Eggs? For Breakfast on your cruise!?

Ask your Butler! The rest of us will be doing

Hash & Eggs in the dining/plebe area! In line

with plate in hand waiting for ??

Enjoy! :)

what is this life you talk about?

 

is it real???

 

does it come with a haven suite and can i ask the butler for it?

No way! Ask him for a "Heaven Suite" with a crying towel for you'se and watch his/her face! Too funny! Ya

'gotta have some fun on board! Go for it "BuffetPants"

Pls?? OMGosh! Really?:confused::D:eek:

Aww! Did you get your feelings hurt?

Stay tuned, 'cause that happens in life!

Too funny! Great post!

In a similar question and asking for opinions- how much does one tip the bar tenders and staff?

On the ship or in the Concierge Lounge or?

Over and above the added tip on your added

receipt 15% or ? No expected tip in the Lounge.

Up to you, but cash is nice for them as you shake

hands to the server as you leave, if you so desire!

Bet you'll get a nice smile though! Buck or two! :p

I'm not opposed to tipping the concierge, but they are part of the salaried guest services team. I won't tip them for merely being in the room or greeting me pleasantly; that is the most basic aspect of their job. If I ask them a question or have them handle something trivial, I also may not tip them. If they show extra attention or handle a complex issue, or do something unexpected above and beyond their normal job role I would certainly tip them.

 

Service staff in the lounges I tip with cash with every drink I order.

I agree 100% ! On my cruise, and having the Concierge as part of my Suite experience, I tip based on my one on one with them on the cruise! Sometimes I do not use their service and sometimes they will call my room to see if they can be of any help on the cruise and invite me to meet them in the lounge, and sometimes not!

Tips, I give $20-$40 for 7 days, based on how we connect and use the service! Always works for me!

I do hope you will include your Cozumel experience in this wonderful review! Mentioned before that I too was on this cruise and your pictures and written review is very well done. I'll be looking forward to the future review of this cruise. Please don't give up!:)

I guess today I'll put in my two cents on the food. Let me first start by saying that I am far from a foodie. I seem to take the stance that any meal I don't have to cook is a good enough meal for me. However, my husband is a bit more picky so I'll give you his thoughts too. Throughout the week we ate at La Cucina, Cagneys, Blue Lagoon, Venetian, Aqua, Teppanyaki, Moderno and the buffet.

 

Lets start with the buffet. The Dawn has a different set up than the other NCL ships I have sailed on. I've always sailed on ships where the buffet had multiple different island/stations set up for the buffet. The Dawn has one long "bar", but a couple of them. They all have the same items more or less. I felt like it took much longer to get through with this type of set up. As for the food quality, I felt it was comparable to the other NCL buffets that I have eaten at, but my husband disagreed. He felt like the food quality and selection was much worse on the Dawn. The buffet did host the Chocolate Buffet which started at 9P. I can't remember which night exactly, but it was towards the middle of the week. The set up was beautiful, but the food quality was just OK. They did have a chocolate fountain with fruit, marshmallows, bananas and a few other things to dip in it. There really wasn't anything that wowed me.

 

We didn't eat at Cagneys for dinner, but as a suite perk were able to eat at Cagneys for breakfast and lunch. Lunches were again OK, but nothing I would consider outstanding. Breakfast on the other hand was fantastic! Cagneys will set up a self-serve bar with pastries, cold cereal, fruit, and a few other items. I do remember the self-serve bar having smoked trout and smoked salmon for breakfast too. They also have a regular breakfast menu to pick from, which was the same every day. I'll post a pic of the breakfast menu below. The waffles are absolutely to die for, and I'm not even a big waffle fan!

 

My hubby and I usually always eat at Cagneys for dinner at least once, but since we were having Cagneys for breakfast and dinner we decided to try Moderno for the first time. This was our first experience at a Brazillian steakhouse and we were both extremely glad that we tried it. For those not familiar with how this works, everyone is given a little card that is green on one side and red on the other. If your card is flipped to green staff will keep bringing you different meats and carving you a portion right at the table. When you need a break or are finished, just flip the card to red. There is also a salad bar to start with, and they bring 4 different sides to the table for sharing; garlic mashed potatoes, rice, baked beans, and fried bananas (my favorite). From the best of my memory we were served a couple of different types of sausage, bacon wrapped chicken breast, lamb, filet, pork, and a couple of different kinds of steak. Everything was fantastic. Not even one complaint from the picky hubby. If you take nothing else away from my review, please remember to give Moderno a try if you have not already.

 

We tried La Cucina for the first time on this trip. The food quality was excellent, and the service was probably the best we experienced on the ship all week. I had the shrimp risotto and it was cooked perfectly. My hubby and daughter got the prime rib and both said it was very good. My youngest, God love her, asked for a little bowl of spaghetti and they brought her exactly that. There was no kids menu for La Cucina and I think that the names of some of the dishes scared her lol. At one point she was cold. The waiter saw this and brought her a clean white linen table cloth and put it around her shoulders. Little things like that really make vacations wonderful.

 

The last specialty dining we went to was Teppanyaki, located in the back of Bamboo. We tried this on the Pride of America and fell in love. This experience on the Dawn was just as good, if not better. There is only seating for 18, so reserve early if you want to eat there. You are given miso soup, salad with ginger dressing, some type of bean that you eat out of the pod, fried rice, veggies, and the entrée of your choice. I got the shrimp and scallops, which were probably the best scallops I've ever had. There were a couple of chickens and filets ordered by our group. Everyone could not stop saying how good everything was. Dessert was a choice between fruit with a couple of different dips, or green cake with mint ice cream. I enjoyed the green cake and ice cream, but my husband didn't care for the cake. Just a side note about Teppanyaki...at the beginning of the meal the smoke detector directly above us started to go off. The wait staff explained that the exhaust hood was broken. Within a couple of minutes a ship officer arrived. He had to call the Captain for permission to have the smoke detector disconnected. Within a couple of minutes it was turned off. All the staff involved were extremely apologetic. Everyone seemed undisturbed by it except one older gentleman sitting across from me. He immediately became angry and complained, even after it was disconnected. We would refer to this guys as "the grump" for the remainder of the meal. Everyone at the table was given a complimentary glass of champagne (for kids a glass of soda) as an apology. Even though I didn't think it was necessary, it definitely was a good example of good NCL customer service in my opinion.

 

The Blue Lagoon was a good option for a meal in a hurry. Service was usually quick, but the menu was very limited and the food quality was OK. My kids thought they had the best chicken strips they've ever eaten. Other menu items include a grilled chicken sandwich, macaroni salad, tomato soup, and a few other "comfort" foods. Blue Lagoon is the 24 hr dining option on the Dawn.

 

The main dining rooms were the Venetian and Aqua. Everyone in my group seemed to agree that the food quality in Aqua was better, but the service was much faster and friendlier in the Venetian. Venetian is your more traditional cruise dining room atmosphere, where as Aqua is a bit more contemporary.

 

A few side notes on food...bbq style food was offered poolside daily and was a descent option if you were poolside for the day and didn't feel like dressing for lunch. There was hand dipped ice cream offered poolside also, which I was thrilled about (not a fan of soft serve). My husband raved about the strawberry cheesecake that was offered throughout the week as a dessert option so don't miss that! Also, please keep in mind that food is extremely subjective. What we loved, someone else might hate and vice versa. Slower service could have been due to the times we chose to dine, or it could just be that the service is normally slow.

 

I'll post a few pics related to food and dining, but due to the aforementioned camera issues, I unfortunately do not have a whole lot of food porn that everyone seems to love :(

We were in Teppanyaki along with you and your family when the overhead smoke alarm went off. Recognized you from pic's you have posted on this review! I believe you and oldest daughter were in black dress. I saw the older guy and yes, he was a Pain in the -ss. :mad:

But it worked out anyway.:D

We were on the Meet and Greet with a tour of my Mini-Suite after, but my friend Judi was not feeling good and we couldn't go! I feel bad about that 'cause I wanted to do the Cabin Crawl which I signed up for. However, it was all good in the end. Love the review! And pic's, Thank you!:p

We will be traveling on the Breakaway this December and I cannot sleep without a box fan to cover the sound of my dh's snoring. Has anyone ever requested a fan before?:confused:

If you have a Balcony, put his Butt out there!

My wife did that more than once to me!

Ah, the sound of the sea!! We loved it! :)

Excellent service includes being greeted timely at the door, offering a location and being flexible if you don't find it suitable, approaching the table and waiting for a lull in the conversation to start speaking, coming to ask during each part of the meal if the offering is to your liking, pacing the meal according to your rhythm, filling your water glass/wine glass prior to it being empty, serving all people at the table at the same time and being friendly and approachable but know when to leave you alone as well. Another thing that I like is for the waiter to wait until we ask for the check before bringing it. That kind of service is worthy of a tip on top of the DSC to me.

Wow! Your response is Spot On IMO! You must have been a training person in a restaurant environment! How cool! I'll look for that on my cruise in a week 'cause I did buy the UDP on NCL Dawn, and can I hold you to it!? Nice! Thanks';) I'll be on my own, Solo, so that will be different as far as serving people at the the table at the same time! But I'm not looking for my "leaving alone" time too much!

Tip versus service charge

 

Beginning January 1, 2014, the IRS is requiring employers to classify automatic gratuities as service charges. Service charges distributed to employees are treated as regular wages, subject to normal payroll tax withholding rules. This is a change that will mean added costs and paperwork for restaurants, upfront withholding of federal taxes, and delayed time in receiving the take home pay for waiters and waitresses.

The IRS defines a tip as having the following characteristics:

 

 

 

 

 

The IRS defines a tip as having the following characteristics:

1. The payment must be made free from compulsion (the customer is not required to pay a tip but voluntarily does so);
   
2. The customer must have the unrestricted right to determine the amount (the restaurant cannot automatically calculate the gratuity);
   
3. The payment should not be the subject of negotiations or dictated by employer policy (the restaurant does not negotiate with the customer for a gratuity amount); and
   
4. Generally, the customer has the right to determine who receives the payment (as opposed to the employer.)
   

If the above criteria are not met, the amount is considered a service charge and treated for all tax purposes as regular wages. For example, if a restaurant automatically applies an 18 percent gratuity on checks for parties of six or more, the automatic gratuity is considered a service charge instead of a tip. If the customer decides to give an additional tip amount (in excess of the automatic 18 percent), that extra amount is considered a tip if the other criteria were also met. As a result, some restaurants may consider adding suggested tip amounts regardless of the party size, allowing customers to choose to tip more or less, in order to ensure that the amount will not be classified as a service charge.

 

If the automatic gratuity is considered to be a service charge rather than a tip, under federal law, service charges belong to the restaurant and become a part of the restaurant’s gross receipts and may be retained or distributed as management sees fit. Service charges distributed to employees are treated as wages and can be used to assist employers in meeting their requirement to pay employees minimum wage. Unfortunately, since automatic gratuity is a service charge and not considered a tip, employers cannot use those amounts when calculating the Credit for Employer Social Security and Medicare Taxes Paid on Certain Employee Tips, otherwise known as the tip credit, even if management chooses to distribute the amount to the employees.

__________________

 

 

TIPS, TIPS, they are still plain and simple TIPS!

 

This is still relavant.

 

If you purchase the UDP, you still paid the DSC too. So the waiters will get their due money, if you want to leave extra you may too.

 

By the way, I saw a travel agency ad advertising they will pre pay your gratuities on a Getaway cruise. Now that is misleading to a prospective cruiser. They can only prepay the DSC not any gratuities or tips. Ignorant travel agency!

Hey, Someone needs to take a cold shower and sip some wine! In the scheme of things, who cares?? Relax!!

Opinion aside; the wait staff in specialty restaurants is compensated for services as part of the money you have already paid. Once you start trying to dissect it or put meanings towards certain words you end up with a big fight on this forum, so let's just leave it at that.

 

Opinion included; if you feel a server has truly gone above and beyond to provide exceptional service, of course you have the opportunity to leave additional gratuity to whatever level you feel is warranted.

 

Is UDP worth it? Well...food is included in your cruise fare already. For a 7 day cruise the UDP charge works out to around or a little below $20pp. Are you going to spend that much in specialty dining? If you are going to do specialty dining 0 - 4 times per cruise, probably not worth getting the package and just pay as you go. If you already have predetermined you will eat in specialty 6 or 7 nights and / or the cost exceeds the price of the package, it may be worth purchasing.

 

One thing I have a question; can UDP be purchased onboard so as to pay for it using Onboard Credits?

Please, On all these messages, can someone clarify for me what is " Above and beyond service", as to the service we should expect in a UDP we paid for? What are some looking for other than good service and a smile! :confused: