JoMoe

Do you get cruise day credits for additional rooms that you book?  We had four rooms on my last cruise but I only got credit for my room.  I could not find anything on this on the HAL Mariner Society website.

Does anyone know if the BW Balcony cabins on the Royal Princess have a small couch or just a chair?

Which balcony cabins on Royal Princess do have the small couches? 

I think BA category does, but I am trying to determine where the category is where you get a couch or do not.

Thanks,

Joe

3 hours ago, mattpro said:

Well for all you RCL lovers who don't like smoke - hang in there.

 

The word is smoking will not be allowed in the casino in 2020.

 

In 2021 the only place you'll be able to smoke on Voyager & Freedom class ships will be on deck 12 on a small portion of the deck on the port side.

 

Those of us that smoke are literally a dying breed and RCL is heading for a totally non-smoking ship in the next few years.

Mattpro,

Why do you think smoking will not be allowed in the RC casino's in 2020?  Is it just wishful thinking, guessing, speculating, or do you have some reliable reason to say that?

Thanks,

Joe

I am sure it is because Royal Caribbean doesn't want to lose any casino revenue.  When they have a large indoor smoking area on their ships (the casino) lots of smokers go there just to smoke, so maybe they will also gamble.  They don't want someone who is spending lots of money gambling to get up and leave to have a smoke.

But RC fails to appreciate that some people like me would take more cruises with them, would not be looking at other lines like Princess and Holland (that have better smoking policies), and be looking at other venues.  I am currently trying to decide if I want to out up with the smoke and take another RC cruise, go on a Princess or Holland, or maybe a vacation at a resort.

Thanks, 

Joie

1 hour ago, erdoran said:

Comments on the FB page are that crew doesn’t see the increases.  What was interesting was scrolling through the page, MSC is making DSC mandatory effective 3/31, and they also stated that they DISCOURAGE additional tipping!  That’s interesting!

I would prefer that over the way it is now.  They should charge everyone and disclose it up front.  It is just an additional fee disguised as a gratuity.

On 3/14/2019 at 10:10 AM, littlelulu01 said:

4 years ago the dsc was $12/day for those in suites and not in suites.  Suite dsc has increased 50% in four years compared to inflation which was a little over 5% during the same time period. If only passenger  income and the ship employees income had increased by 50% in the same period!

 

Service fees on purchasing dinners and drinks and spa went up from 15% to 20% during that period as well as adding the $7.95 room service fee.  

 

I hope ncl is taking care of their employees with all these increases. When passengers are charged such high tip rates in dsc specialty dining and beverage fees, they’re likely not tipping the extra cash they otherwise would. My fear is the ship staff resentment from decreased cash tips. 

Littlelulu01, 

Do you think that the cruise line employees who are supposed to get these "gratuities" got a 50% raise when the DSC went up 50%?  It is just a way to charge you more while making you think it is for the employees. 

If everyone on a cruise did not tip, would the employees not be paid?  Of course they would.  When someone removes the tips, do the employees still get paid the same amount?  Yes.  Are the tips reduced when you don't eat a meal or forgo housekeeping for a day?  No, but why not if you are not receiving those services?  You don't have to leave a tip at a restaurant if you don't eat there?  These questions I have asked are to illustrate how "gratuities" are not what most believe they are and not what the cruise lines want you to believe.

Thanks, 

Joe

HBE4,

Great idea, I agree.

Since only adults will be in this smoking saloon, they could have slot machines in there.  That way smokers could gamble and smoke.

Royal Caribbean - are you listening?

Five Holland America ships have non smoking casinos and all casino have non smoking night.

Here is what it says on the Holland America site:

• Onboard Zuiderdam, Oosterdam, Westerdam, Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam the casinos are non-smoking. Onboard all other Holland America Line ships, smoking is allowed in the casinos except for non-smoking days.

I stand corrected.

In the RC FAQ section in response to is smoking allowed in the casino it says:

Yes. During operating hours, the casino will allow smoking, with certain areas designated as non-smoking.

Under the RC smoking policy it still states that:

Onboard all interior public spaces are smoke free.

It would be nice if all public spaces were actually smoke free.

M, 

That is not what the RC policy is.  Go to there website and look at the policy.  It states that all indoor areas are smoke free - which is not true because of smoking in the casino.  It also states that only active players are allowed to smoke and only when the casino is open.  Neither of those rules are enforced and even known by the various crew member I spoke to.

Sorry, one more point.

Princess has smoke free nights in the casino on formal nights and they only allow smoking for active players on a few designated slots.  This is a lot better than RC.  My experience has been that there is a lot less smoke emanating from the casinos on Princess than on RC. 

On 8/20/2018 at 6:47 PM, BNBR said:

 

No, not at all. It's a pretty good distance with plenty of separation. Barely smell smoke in the casino, definitely not in the MDR.

BNBR, 

Just a follow up response.  Looking at a deck layout it shows that the casino doors are right next to the stairs and elevators.  I have never detected and ventilation of the smoke from the casino, unless you consider the stairway leading to the promenade.  The could add ventilation but do not.  It would have to be pretty powerful to overcome all the large opening onto other areas of the ship from the casino.  They could make half of the casino smoking, enclose it and ventilate it, but they do not.  RC must make a lot of money off smokers who gamble.

On 3/4/2019 at 7:32 AM, Whitapers said:

Hello!
For a casino, this is not profitable, if you take an example from statistics, casinos that put a ban on smoking in the hall, on average, lose 22% per month in income ... then I think it’s not worth explaining.
I myself am a smoker, and in principle, cigarette smoke does not bother me. BUT, it's one thing when you sit alone in a room in front of the monitor, calmly play online casino https://casino-now.co.uk - and smoke like I do. Another moment when you sit in a real casino at the table and smoke , and there are a lot of people like "smokers" in the hall. Plus, there are people who do not play but smoke, there are even more of them than the players themselves. If the ventilation in the room is poorly thought out, then discomfort is felt immediately.

coolcruiserr, 

On my recent Royal Caribbean cruise I complained twice about non players smoking in the casino and was told it was OK.  The daily cruise planner stated that the casino allowed smoking.  It did not say it was only for active players or that smoking was not allowed when the casino was closed.  RC denied it was there policy and said anyone can smoke in the casino at anytime.

I just got off the Oasis a month ago and Royal Caribbean still does not go by there own rules.  Smoking is allowed in the casino by anyone at anytime, even when in port and when it is closed.

The smoke does not stay in the casino but enters the common areas nearby such as the elevators, stairs and entrance to the MDR.

I tried to walk through the casino at 10AM, two hours after docking at a port, and people were in there smoking.

It is frustrating when you go to the MDR for breakfast and dinner and have to put up with smoke from the time you get into the elevator areas and even in the beginning of the MDR.  I am glad I did not have a table near the entrance to the MDR or I would have had to breath in smoke during my meal.

I am not apposed to people smoking and having places for them to smoke.  But I do not think it is fair for me to be forced to breathe in the smoke when I am not in those areas that it is allowed.  Doe the smoke stay in the casino when it has large opening into common areas.  Of course not.  They could close the doors to the casino or ventilate it to the outsidet, but they do not.  Royal Caribbean dos not go by there own policy of all common areas being smoke free. 

Sorry BNBR, but I just got of the Oasis of the Seas and the the smoke from the casino regularly was very noticeable when entering the dining room for breakfast and for dinner.  It even was in the entrance to the MDR and you could smell again before you even left the MDR.  I asked people in our group who do not complain about hte smoke and they said it was very noticeable.

The casino is wide open and near the elevators at the rear of the ship, which is where you go into the MDR.  The smoke does not stay in the casino. 

Royal Caribbean does not in force their own rules about smoking n the casino.  I was going to walk through the casino two hours after we docked when it was closed and people were in there smoking.  I tried twice to get RC to do something about it.  The first time they thought I wanted to smoke in the casino even though I was not gambling.  They said it is fine, I can smoke in there anytime I want.  I addressed it again and they checked with security who said anyone can smoke in the casino anytime they want.  I told them this was not RC policy and they just kept saying sorry, but did nothing about it.

How can all areas of the ship be smoke free, as per RC policy, if the indoor smoking area (the casino) is wide open to other primary areas of the ship.  There is even a staircase leading from the casino onto the promenade.

RC would be my favorite cruise line if they would make it so those who do not smoke are not forced to by there open air indoor smoking area.

If you get upgraded on this program do you gt the new room perks?  If you went form a non-suite to a suite, would you get the extra rewards points, coastal kitchen on ships that have it, and priority boarding?

I got an offer that showed I could bid on a Jr Suite, but RC website and my TA says none are available.  Did they save some for this offer?  Is it just a way to gt me to bid on the full suites that have some availability?

Thanks,

Joe

The casino is near the entrance to the MDR and the doors are wide open, so it would be easy for the smoke to leave the casino and cross the MDR entrance/lobby. I have not been on an Oasis class ship yet.

Does the smoke from the casino enter the main dining room, or the entrance to the main dining room, on Oasis class ships?

It might be more accurate to say that gambling is allowed in the smoking lounge.;)

Clarea,

That is a great way of saying it and accurately represent the situation in the "casino". It is really the indoor smoking area that allows gambling. I have seen people smoking in the casino when the ship is in port and the casino closed. I have known smokers to go to the casino just to smoke.

The problem I have isn't that I want to deny someone the right to smoke, it is that the smoke does not stay in the casino. Walk past or above the doors to any casino on an RC ship and you are forced to breathe smoke. Someones right to smoke should not infringe on my right not to smoke.

Why do the vent the casino smoke onto the promenade, stairways, and surrounding areas? Why not properly ventilate them? They must make a lot of money on smokers who gamble, because that is who they cater to.

Thanks,

Joe

Bad news for smokers on Diamond. We just got off her no smoking inside not even in cigar lounge

Jeep1,

There was no smoking allowed in the Churchill Lounge or the casino?

Thanks,

Jo

We've sailed on RC a few times and thoroughly enjoyed the experience except for the heavy smoke in the casinos. We're trying Celebrity this March solely because the casino (and most of the ship) is smoke free. Someone recently on FOS told me he'd been told RC is considering going smoke free in its casinos. Has anyone else heard this?

Cltncruisers - What is FOS? Can you ask where the person heard that RC was going smoke free in the casino? I am trying to track that down, to confirm that it is true.

Thanks, Jo

...Only when a sufficient number of people stop paying and the crew revolts will P&O change. ...

 

I’m more familiar with others cruise line boards where this question has been debated ad infinitum. The conclusion I have read is that the charged tip per person is pooled. Distribution is made on the basis of employee position and level, each receiving a percentage of the pool. Canceling tips creates a smaller pool for distribution. But there is an established minimum amount the hiring agency (*) will set and provide should such cancellations create a shortage. The amount of separate tips these agency employees personally receive must be consider part of the pool in an amount calculated on the shortage. Any amount over and above that can be retained. I understand that the list of passengers who had cancel here comes into play. Individuals that withholds personal tips can be dropped by the agency.

(*) Staff aboard the ships are not hired by the cruise line. The line uses an agency to supply sufficiently trained and approved staff who remain the employees of the agency.

I asked a waiter a month ago on a cruise this question. If a person has the tips removed, does that mean you get less pay. He said no, they get the same even if someone removes the tips. The service personnel have a contract with the cruise line, or some agency that the cruise line pays. They are employees with a contract. They have benefits like paid vacation. They do not just work on the ship for months and just get whatever people give in tips. They are not just getting tips, like they would at a restaurant in North America. In a shore side restaurant you are not charged for tips if you don't eat, like you are on a cruise ship. I think the most important person in the restaurant is the cook. Does he get part of the tips? Why not?

 

The bottom line is the cruise lines do not disclose how the people are paid. So no one really knows. They imply that they only get what you give them in tips. But I have found this is not true and does not seem logical. If everyone a waiter served for an entire cruise had the tips removed, he would get paid nothing? I don't think so. They want to guilt you into giving generously, when you are really giving the money to the cruise line, who actually pays the wages of all those who work on the ship.

For what it's worth, I've read here that RC is going to no-smoking casinos in 2019.

Clarea - where did you hear that RC is going smoke free in the casinos in 2019? Can you send the reference?

Thanks, Jo

They call them gratuities, but they are really just a charge not disclosed when you make the original purchase. They are not tips and the cruise lines misrepresent them by calling them gratuities. The people who the cruise line says get the tips, are contract employees of the cruise line, with a guaranteed wage, benefits, and are not dependent on the tips for their salary.

It is not fair to the employees or the customers. The hard working employees , that the cruise line implies are dependent on the tips, should be paid a fair wage and not have to hope for a tip. As are all the other employees of the cruise line. The customers should not have to be guilted or tricked into paying a service fee that is disguised as a gratuity. It rewards those who remove the gratuities - they get a free ride, at the expense of those who pay them.

Here are some illustration (questions) to show the unfairness and ridiculousness of gratuities.

When you go to customer service to have your tips removed, do you tip the customer service person?

When a medical person on the ship saves your life, do you give them a tip?

When the security personnel protect you from harm, do you give them a tip?

When the Captain gets you to your destination safely and timely, do you slide a $20 bill under the door in the bridge?

Isn't he entire ship there to serve you, not just those who "work for gratuities"?

Why are most of the employees of the cruise line paid a fair wage in a respectable way, but some have to grovel for tips?

How is it a gratuity if it is added before the event takes place, is not easily optional, is not dependent on if you receive the services (skip a meal, don't get any housekeeping one day), and is shared by some that are managers ( maitra d)?

Cruise lines should stop the misrepresentation of gratuities, charge all the customers for the services (no free loaders who opt out) and pay all the employees in a respectable a fair way.

Just got off an RC cruise and I can confirm that the casino is used as on indoor smoking lounge. After muster, while the ship was still in port and the casino closed, I walked through the casino and saw a number of people smoking. On my way back to my cabin I overheard some people saying. Lets' go down to the casino and have a cigarette (it was still closed).

The smoke from the casinos naturally goes out from either side of the large openings in the casino and enters surrounding areas including the promenade. We went to look at our pictures, which is next to the casino. We left without buying because I was irritated at having to breathe in a heavy dose of cigarette smoke from the casino next door. I was on the 11th floor near the beautiful open elevator area, and the smoke was coming right up from the casino.

RC's policy is that "our ships are designated as non-smoking", and "On board all interior public spaces are smoke free". In practice much of the indoor areas have various amounts of cigarette smoke in them that comes form the casino. They also say that only active players can smoke, but is it ever enforced? There is a bar in the casino, that is right by the stairs that lead up to the promenade. It is not possible for those at the bar that are smoking to be active players. So they make it sound like no indoor areas on the ship have smoke, except certain areas in the casino. But the smoke doesn't know it should stay in the smoking areas of the casino. It naturally travel to lots of other areas.

If they could just ventilate the casino instead of letting all the smoke pour out into the open areas on either side and the stairs leading from the casino, and into the promenade. I have no problem with people smoking, it is there business, but when their smoke enters my lungs, it is my business. They must make a lot of money on the smokers who gamble, because that is who they cater to.

RC- properly ventilate the casinos or make them non-smoking. Or at least drop the pretense of "all interior places are smoke free".

Still only on the coasts. Princess has their 2019 spring schedule in place. The only US ports of departure are southern FL or the west coast, nothing in the middle of the US. I was hoping they would go out of NOLA, Galveston, Mobile, but it looks like they are not. Hopefully next year because I would prefer Princess, but am going on an RC for now.