dltvermont

Well, Im late to the party here but great review as usual!

We were in Tortola in March. We went to Cane Garden Bay for the day. I could not BELIEVE those narrow STEEP roads! Our taxi (van) actually was spinning wheels going around a hairpin corner and up a steep incline at the same time.

We also went to St Thomas and our usual go to is Coki. We were actually seated right near the dive centers stand and watched Trisket working with a very obvious brand new diver. He was struggling even just putting in his face with the regulator on etc but just like you said, Trisket was so calm, patient and good with him. It took awhile but eventually he made it underwater! I am a snorkeler, not diver but did have a stingray swim right by my feet in about 2' of water there!

15 minutes ago, LongIsland-Cruiser said:

This is an asinine question as the pay system on a land based vacation is not set up in the same way as a cruise, so you are basically comparing apples to oranges and asking why the orange isn't red.

 

You withhold fees if they haven't done a good job.  The fact that you are already trying to withhold fees before you even get on a ship shows that no matter how hard they work, they are not going to get a gratuity from you.  

My point is, when you "tip" anywhere else for a job well done, you are not giving tips to the back of the house, and rarely does the front of the house share with them.

To your point, as mentioned by another post, they should just absorb the service charges into the fares and be done with it instead of making people who dont believe in tipping everyone feel less because they remove them.

I believe that there are no service charges on european cruises because "tipping" isnt a thing over there? I think I read that? So are their workers just out of luck or are they paid more?

5 minutes ago, Menocchio said:

I wish they'd just raise the fares the same amount per night, drop the separate charge, explain that tips are not expected, and then continue to pay the crew more proportional to how full the ship is.

 

Because that's what this really is. It's not a tip, it's a part of their basic compensation that's (for marketing purposes) charged separately to the passengers. They waive it sometimes for other marketing purposes or to appease angry passengers (and I presume the ability to do that is part of the reason why they keep it separate), but it's not really optional the way a tip is supposed to be. 

BINGO, you nailed it!

Im going to preface this by saying I do NOT remove my service charges (they are not tips), and I usually give extra to steward and servers etc.

For those of you who always say they all make our cruise amazing and never to remove them, Id really like to know, if you go on a huge land vacation, stay in an expensive hotel and eat at expensive restaurants and go to expensive venues for entertainment, WHO exactly do you hand tips to? 

Late to the game here as we just booked the Escape for April 2025. Great review and presentation! Thanks for all of the information that will help planning our time aboard!

Thanks all for the reponses.I am a "planner" so Im always trying to stay a step ahead on things so there are no, or at least few, surprises come sail time.

1 hour ago, IAcruising said:

 

How do you know all three drinks were the same price? Did you see them on a menu?

 

Daiquiris and Pina Coladas are pre made in a slushy machine. They are the basic drinks. Even if 50 cents difference that wouldnt account for that range of taxes. 

We are booked on the Escape in April 2025 so quite a wait. I was wondering when it would be safe to start researching things on board, entertainment, excursions etc. I dont want to start now and have everything change before the cruise!

Thanks all for the answers. Just looking at the invoice again, and it looks like all the ones I wasnt aware of, we were in port, San Juan, and there are 3 charges at the same bar, 2.53, 1.12 and 2.27. All we drank were daiquiris, pina coladas and SOTB. If it was a tax then Id think it would be the same for each drink? Nothing premium was ever asked for, unless they used something else without being asked.We had many more of the same types of drink throughout the cruise that never got anything tacked on so Id guess its something to do with being in San Juan.

Like I said, the total bill at the end was negligible, I was just asked more for my own info.

Thanks Again!

Hello all,

We are just off the Viva a couple weeks back which was our first cruise on NCL since they added the premium upgrade. We kept the "free" one. Does anyone know if they advise you when you are getting a premium drink that isnt included on the "free" package and will be charged? When we got our statement, there were a few little extra charges at the bars where we got drinks. I drank the same two drinks as did my wife. The charges werent the same so it wasnt tax or anything like that. It wasnt enough money that we bothered to ask the guest services for explanation for. Just curious what the charges may have been for.

Carnival has their PVPs and we have a good one. Does NCL have the same type of person that you all use exclusively when booking who is very helpful, knowledgeable and available when needed? When booking NCL Ive always just called the number and gotten whoever but would love a single person I could call who knew all the ins outs and specials etc.

My wife and I have loved going to Coki Beach on past trips to St Thomas. The last time was before Covid. We had planned to go again in March but I am hearing that it has gone WAY downhill with conditions, drug dealing and fighting amongst vendors etc. One source said a vendor was even berating a patron for not tipping enough on their food bill.

Wondering if people who have been here recently have noticed the same and if this is the new norm for that beach?

Late to the party here but GREAT review! Love all the pics and details. Recognized that Glo Best Western in FLL. We stayed there in March '23 pre and post cruise and I think that same elevator was still having issues!!

6 minutes ago, Butterbean1000 said:

Interesting,  but what is it saying? Please translate. 

That is the setup sheet for the claw machine. It shows how to set it up so that there is less power to the claw etc so that it cannot pick up things unless the settings are set to allow it.

I have never found any NCL PVP to be as nice, responsive and helpful as the one I use with Carnival. I usually just book with whoever picks up and then do the rest (payments etc) myself.

Was this cruise around March 11 by chance? We actually boarded the CCL Spirit that day in Miami and the Joy was right there with us. Your mention of the time change made me wonder as we had time change on our cruise as well.

Loving the review!

Glad to see you back!

Looking forward to your review!

Thanks all for the replies and information.

It sounds like it will be a different experience for sure. Will just have to do more planning ahead instead of spur of the moment.

We are sailing on the Viva next March. Our largest NCL ship to date is the Jade. Ive heard things are different on the bigger and newer ships that you need reservations for everything etc. We are used to just showing up at shows we decide we want to see etc. Can people give some differences between the larger and smaller ships so that we are prepared when we sail?

Thanks all!

On 3/2/2023 at 4:37 PM, evandbob said:

I have worn solid dark colored shorts with pockets but without zippers on regular MDR nights with a polo shirt -  and chinos on elegant nights with a polo or button down shirt.

 

Never had a comment or even a 2nd glance from staffers.  Very relaxed today.

The way it should be. If one chooses to dress to the nines that is their choice. It shouldnt bother anyone what someone else is wearing to dinner.

Another great review sir! It also helps that we will be headed out on the Spirit to HMC, GT, Aruba and Bonaire in 11 days! This just help with the excitement.

So sad to see your post on Jack's. We have been trying to get there since Covid cancellations and now the new owners appear to have ruined it. Maybe it wont be on our list in a couple weeks. Was really looking forward to it.

On 2/3/2023 at 3:09 PM, Jamman54 said:

Patti has reached Jack’s Shack…..

 

 

 

The place has really been upgraded since the last time we were here. Jack and Janet have retired back to Canada, but the new owners appear to be doing a great job…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

Most of the new "reviews" Ive seen have been negative, mainly from people who have been there previously so have something to compare it to. March will be our first time there so hopefully it is still good!

OK, Finally caught up. I was looking forward to another Jamman review and this one is even better as it is with the Spirit. We will be on her March 11th!

We will be on the Spirit in early March. Looking forward to your reviews! Will you be doing a separate post for this S2S or adding it to this one?

Never mind! Should have read further you've already answered the question!