Thumbs down on NCL Kids' Club (Star 4/4/04)

[Kayla's Mom]

Just wanted to tell folks trying to decide between cruise lines about my experience earlier this month on the NCL STar. Although we had a truly wonderful cruise, I really REALLY didn't like the kids club. I recommend this cruise 100% to those without kids, but think twice if you have them. I put the following on another erson's post below as a reply but folks looking for info on the kids' club might not think to look there.

 

 

Let me start by saying that I really am not the kind of person who pushes her kid off to the club -- we just have one daughter age 8 and we prefer it if she is with us -- we have so much fun together. But a couple years ago we took our first cruise on RCCI to Alaska and she begged to go to kids' club and did on the 2nd day and, well, we never saw her again... she LOVED that club so much. The had a variety of opening hours and I even gave in once while we were in port and let her get back on the ship after lunch for a couple hours while we went to a glacier. The RCCI ship just seemed great for kids -- they tagged each one of them with a wristband for the entire cruise in case of emergencies, we got a different towel animal everynight, the kids club staff all knew her name, and life was good. She came home with a huge pile of stuff she had made in arts and crafts, plus they had a deal where every time one attended club, they got a ticket and at the end of the week the kids used the tickets to "buy" hats, t-shirts, etc. They has a kids talent show and a carneval the older kids and teens put on for the little ones. She made such good friends with other kids, she still has pen-pals. She has be begging to go on another cruise....

 

So when I read the brochure for NCL Star, I was really excited for all of us....especially her. I read somewhere about circus camp, etc.

 

Now, partially our experience was different because we had a last minute itinerary change that meant we only had one sea day, but that didn't make any difference to the biggest problem - the staff attitude.

 

I should say my daughter was in the 6-9 age group. To be honest, the bigger kids seemed to be having more fun -- they had two very nice and energetic counselors.

 

Basically, kids' club was open 7 pm - 10 pm only. On the sea day, they were open for a couple hours in the morning (they watched cartoons) and afternoon, too. To be fair, my daughter enjoyed the club for part of sea day, but still said it wasn't as fun as the RCCI one.

 

Here's exactly the rest of the program -

 

Boarding night - the staff hosted an orientation which consisted of them handing you a sheet to fill out and then sending parents and kids off to do a ship-wide treasure hunt. Fun. But when we raced around and got back, they had closed. NO excitement, no prizes - just a clever way to get us out of their hair.

 

Of the six remaining nights, two consisted of taking kids to the shows (which aren't really exciting enough for kids) and three nights they plunked them in front of videos. Two nights ina row, they showed THE SAME VIDEO! So that's five-six nights taken care of without having to learn a single kid's name or get off their behinds.

 

The final night, they did host a very nice pj party and have the kids color in t-shirts. But what a farce! The kids were supposed to go around getting their new "friends" to sign their shirts -- but they hadn't met anyone! It's not like you make friends when zombied out in front of a video! The staff all turned up and very flagrantly passed the tip envelope. Give me a break! (On RCCI, there wasn't even a way to tip the counselors unless you stuck money into their hands and then they protested!) They hadn't spoken to me or my kid all week but now they wanted a tip!

 

My daughter just hated the club and didn't want to go after the second movie night. She's a good kid and really easy to please and she wanted to like it so she kept going back to see if it got better...

 

They did have one dinner the kids could attend, but sign up was noon the previous day. We just weren't organized by the second day enough to know to sign up so she missed that, too.

 

A couple we met with no kids was telling us that they watched the counselors take the kids to one show. They said the two counselors at the back rolled their eyes and complianed about their job to some passengers.... again, give me a break - three hours work per day and nine counselors for not that many kids???

 

After we got home, my daughter told me about the "quiet game." It seems the counselors would play the "can everyone saty completely silent for a long time game" and if anyone made noise, they added five minutes onto the time everyone had to be silent. Kayla tells me it last 20 minutes. I am not kidding!

 

I noticed one formal night that four of the counselors were off in their sequinned dresses wandering around the ship...first time I saw them smile.

 

No towel animals, no kids life jacket in our cabin after three requests, no safety wristbands...hhmmmmm. I think NCL pays lip service to being a family ship. RCCI was the real deal.

 

Oh, and although the kids' pool should have been a hit, on port days the crew are allowed to have guests on and the two days we tried to use the pool in the afternoon, it was overrun with loud pushy crew members' kids. They had also taken over the two ping pong tables.

 

I LOVED this cruise and had a really good time. Like I said, I loved the food and the itinerary and the beautiful ship and especially the captain....I think the shore excursion situation was a complete MESS -- we just cancelled everything and rented cars in each port and had a ball.

 

But the biggest disappointment was the kids club, just because Kayla was looking so forward to it. We won't take her on another NCL cruise, I'm very sorry to say. I'm already shopping for my next RCCI or Princess cruise..... any recommendations?

 

Legend of the Seas 8/02

NCL Star to Hawaii 04/04

[lritch426]

I feel so bad that your daughter did not get much out of the cruise with the kids club! I was debating bring my 2 girls on the cruise but i'm glad I'm leaving them home with grandma and grandpa! Actually, I was feeling a bit guilty but now, reading that the NCL Kids clubs aren't that great, I think they'll have more fun and do more with my in-laws! LOL

 

[Host CMLA]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by lritch426:

Actually, I was feeling a bit guilty but now, reading that the NCL Kids clubs aren't that great, I think they'll have more fun and do more with my in-laws! LOL<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>You should seek out other reviews. Many people have written about how their kids couldn't get enough of the kid's club and never wanted to leave. Gather as much information as you can and then you'll have a better idea about what the kid's crews is like on many ships.

 

It's unfortunate when people have bad experiences with the kid's crew. Maybe it's an off week for the staff or maybe the staff just isn't good at all and they need to be replaced. Either way, listen to many people's opinions and then decide what's best for you.

 

Cecilia

 

I can be contacted at *****@aol.com

 

My Wedding!

 

[newmexicoNita]

As usual I agree with Cecelia. From our experience with our grandkids (a few years ago) the program is awesome. This holds true when talking to other parents and kids who are cruising. Some people experience one thing, others another. If you want to relax and let the kids stay with grandma, great, but don't let a couple of bad reviews influence you too much. NMNita

 

ps Nina will be back from her cruise tomorrow and I am sure we will hear plenty from her.

 

Commodore 1984, Costa 1985, RCL 1987, Chandris 1989, NCL 1989, Commodore, 1991, NCL 1997, Carnival 1997, Carnival 1998,NCL 1998, NCL 1999, RCL 2000, RCL 2000, NCL 2002,NCL 2003, Celebrity 2003, NCL 2004

[momofteens]

We cruised on the Sky APril 11 and my 15 year old son said that the teen club on NCL did not compare to his experience on the Princess ships. The staff in general was very negative around the teens and had them shooting basketballs on their own for organized activity time. We've booked a cruise on Royal Carribean this August. Can't wait.

[Kayla's Mom]

Momofteens-- thanks -- have a wonderful cruise!

 

Legend of the Seas 8/02

NCL Star to Hawaii 04/04

[Kayla's Mom]

Nina,

 

Thanks. I had read about the problems you encountered and had hoped so hard that it would all work out beautifully once you cruised, but I am sorry to hear the club failed your family, too. But you sound like us -- it was SUCH a great cruise otherwise.

 

I have to say, one more time, that I am the most easy-going, slow to criticise person around. We had a SUPERB cruise and I really didn't want to post anything negative here because a) I did genuinely love the cruise; and b)I knew anything bad that I wrote would get attacked on this site. I only posted this review of the kids club to save future cruisers disappointment. My comments are fact -- not opinion -- the kids crew on the Star was the bare minimum with no energy or creativity. My daughter got parked in front of Spy Kids twice, too and I absoluetly resent on HER vacation, her being forced to sit silently as if being pushished by counselors whose only job is to PLAY with kids three hours per day. She's gorgous kid, very quiet anyway, and would have been happy coloring a picture. Come on, NCL, you can do better.....

 

Legend of the Seas 8/02

NCL Star to Hawaii 04/04

[Tomct]

Just a quick note to say we just returned from the Dawn, our 3rd cruise, all with NCL, but our first experience with kids, our 5 & 7 yr. old grand kids. I will post more at a later time, after getting more details from the kids and their mom, but generally speaking, it was a great success. The 5 yr. old was a little reluctant at first to be separated from her brother, but as we expected, she was fine by herself, and loved the staff and friends.

 

For us, Kid's Krew was a side bar, a place to let the kids enjoy the facilities and themselves when we were either using the pool/hot tubs, some quiet dining, a show, or other activity. It was not a regualar activity, only when their mom thought it was in their best interests. They got a good mix of kid's time and time with the family, and it seemed to work out great for all. They loved their first cruising experience, and want to go again. We've talked of Bermuda next summer, but the 5 yr. old wants to go back to the Dawn.

 

More later, not sure where I will post it, but I'm sure you'll find it. Thanks Nina for setting us off in the right direction about the age grouping.

 

Tom/Connecticut

 

 

[ninafromct]

Tom,

 

Did you just get back last night? How was the service? I really love the idea of cruising without flights, the San Juan airport was a nightmare. Was a sit-down restaurant open for lunch everyday on the Dawn?

 

I have to say that my kids had a ball even though they had to rely on their own devices to meet other kids and have fun (ages 11 and 14). Once they met some other friends, they were fine, it just would have been nice to have a great kids club to facilitate developing those friendships.

 

The service on the Sky was appalling but I have to believe it was due to the training of the staff. It's just unfortunate that NCL chose to do that training at the expense of the passengers paying a non-discounted fare.

 

BTW, the vast majority of the cruisers were from CT and Mass. Met a lot of really nice people on the cruise and the kids are ready to sail again. They loved the cruise, just not for the kids club.

 

No tagline, on the grounds that it may incriminate me.

[ninafromct]

Tom,

 

Did you just get back last night? How was the service? I really love the idea of cruising without flights, the San Juan airport was a nightmare. Was a sit-down restaurant open for lunch everyday on the Dawn?

 

I have to say that my kids had a ball even though they had to rely on their own devices to meet other kids and havs/e fun (ages 11 and 14). Once they met some other friends, they were fine, it just would have been nice to have a great kids club to facilitate developing those friendships.

 

The service on the Sky was appalling but I have to believe it was due to the training of the staff. It's just unfortunate that NCL chose to do that training at the expense of the passengers paying a non-discounted fare.

 

BTW, the vast majority of the cruisers were from CT and Mass. Met a lot of really nice people on the cruise and the kids are ready to sail again. They loved the cruise, just not for the kids club.

 

No tagline, on the grounds that it may incriminate me.

[Tomct]

Nina: We can't say enough about our service, fantastic all around. As for a sit down restaurant, the Venetian is always open for lunch. We planned to go there on embarkation day as we did last year, but it was closed, I think a wedding, but Aqua was open instead. Our cruise also was mainly Massachusetts and Connecticut, as I guess the NY/NJ schools have already had their school vacations. It was tough for us Yankee fans. Our early June cruise on the Dawn last year was mostly New Yorkers.

 

Since this was the first cruise for our small family goup, the service and amenities far exceeded their expectations. My adult daughter was impressed how they (Ronee) removed the shell from our three small lobster tails in Le Bistro (Surf/Turf). My other daughter liked that our waiter cut the 7 yr. old's steak in Venetian. Felix in LaTrattoria informed us we would not get our entree until his baby doll (5 yr. old granddaugher) received her kid's chicken meal delivered. The kids meals seem to come from a common location on the ship, but you can ask for them right away or with the adult's entree.

 

Of course not everyone on board is up to 5 star performances, so we did have a couple that were not up to the ship's standards. Ours happened to be in Impressions. Overall, we passed out more, and larger cash tips on this cruise than our two others combined. Le Bistro and Cagney's had the best, follwed closely by Venetian.

 

Nina, do you have another cruise planned?

 

Tom/Connecticut

 

 

[ninafromct]

Tom,

I think you confirmed my suspicions that our cruise experience was a result of the retraining. I would have passed out if they removed our lobster tails, it was a major accomplishment just to get cream for the coffee or a glass of water in the dining room. No, I'm not exaggerating, I'm truly not a tough critic, I would have been happy to get a drink within the first half hour of being seated but it was not to be on our cruise.

 

Tables of passengers actually got up and walked out of the dining room on a regular basis. They just couldn't take the "service" anymore I suppose.

 

No cruise planned, dh and I are going to Italy in 3 weeks and I have to get going on that planning, but my mom takes us on a cruise every year so I'm already scouting for next years cruise. I have to say that cruising out of NY is VERY appealing, we did it once on the Nordic Empress to Bermuda and it was outstanding.

 

I think if I could be assured that our experience was a fluke and an exception I might consider the Dawn, if only to avoid flying.

 

PS, we are big Yankee fans!

 

No tagline, on the grounds that it may incriminate me.

[Denise58]

I already posted when I came back (4/4/04 trip on the Dawn)but had to add to this post. My son loved the kids program, they didn't just sit and watch movies. They had planned activities (he was in the 6-9 yr olds). Olympics, water ballon tosses, tee shirt making (and he had 5 friends sign the back of his shirt), they went to one show and had one movie night. We had 2 seas days but during the port days they were also open for partial time activities. I guess it just depends on the ship.

 

Monarch of the Seas 6/94

Majesty of the Seas 6/96

Galaxy 8/02

Norwegian Dawn 4/04

[eric-n-beth]

We were on the Sun March 21st, and our girls (5 & 7) loved the kids crew. They had planned activities the entire cruise. The only time they watched a movie was during late night babysitting. I think it must depend week to week. Our kids begged to go to kids crew every day.

 

Eric and Beth

 

Seaward (Norwegian Sea) - Southern Caribbean - 1995

Norway - Eastern Caribbean - 2001

Sea Princess - Mexican Riviera - 2002

Norwegian Sun - Western Caribbean - 2004

 

Hoping our next cruise is in:

 

 

 

[momofteens]

After reading these posts I think all the SKY passengers should get a refund. I wonder if NCL realizes that many first time NCL cruisers will never take a chance on this cruise line again.

[ninafromct]

momofteens,

 

I realize that you sailed the Sky the week before we did. Was your experience with service similar to ours, or like the service experienced by those lucky enough to sail with the "old" crew?

 

I'm still working on my review which should be finished in a few days. I loved the ship, the itinerary, the entertainment and the freestyle concept, the only thing (and unfortunately it's a major thing) that was lacking was service, and it lacked big time. I'll ignore the posters who couldn't possibly understand the type of service we experienced and relay my experience for those who can appreciate it. Despite the horrible service and attitude of some of the staff, we had a great time. It's a fantastic itinerary and I hope NCL gets their act together with a new ship to sail it next year. It would be a shame not to.

 

No tagline, on the grounds that it may incriminate me.

[Mr.C]

Nina, I think you've hit the nail right on the head with the training problem. Our trips to the Kid's club on the Sky in February were all very positive. My 4 and 8 year old spent very little time in front of the TV and more time making crafts. I will add however that this was the last week for this particular foreign staff.

 

We were in fact starting to feel the effects of the staff change over throughout the ship. There seemed to be a lot of tension between that old staff and the new. Hopefully they'll be able to straighten this out before they get to Hawaii.

 

NCL Sky 02/04

Carnival Sensation 03/03

[momofteens]

Hi guys, Our cruise left San Juan on April 11, Easter week. It was with the "new", mostly American staff. Even though we had a good vacation despite the lack of service, we did not pay a discounted rate or get any kind of compensation for putting up with half hour waits for a table every night, deciding between missing a show or walking out in the middle of our 2 and a half hour dinner, or trying to calm our tearful waitress. ( You had to feel sorry for these kids, they seemed to be doing the best they could). I want to remind everyone that Princess cruise line has traditional and FREESTYLE dining. YOU CHOOSE. I am tryin RCL this summer. No one should have to smile and bear it when it comes to cruising. There are too many other options. Farewell NCL

[Kayla's Mom]

I know you will enjoy your RCCI cruise. I am also looking at Princess and would be interested in hearing more about the kids club on that line.

 

Legend of the Seas 8/02

NCL Star to Hawaii 04/04

[ninafromct]

Momofteens,

 

One of our waitresses started crying too, right after the second table in a row got up and left because they were sick of waiting. Did she have reddish hair? I felt bad for her too, but come on NCL, don't put these kids and worse still, your customers through this nonsense! Keep the experienced staff on until the new ones can handle things. I didn't pay to endure the waits and then feel like I can't ask for something lest someone start crying and make me feel bad. I didn't pay to wait constantly. I didn't pay to clean my own tables. I didn't pay to clean my own room at night. I didn't pay to fetch my own ice. I didn't pay to search for food at a disorganized mess of a buffet. I didn't pay to resort to room service all the time because restaurants were literally closed for lunch.

 

Utterly unprofessional and a really, really rotten thing to do to the customers. We are the ones who lost in this venture.

 

No tagline, on the grounds that it may incriminate me.

[mbisson]

Gee, first time I've heard you say any of this happened (and that's out of what, your last 50 or so posts?).

 

-Monte

 

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ninafromct:

Momofteens,

 

One of our waitresses started crying too, right after the second table in a row got up and left because they were sick of waiting. Did she have reddish hair? I felt bad for her too, but come on NCL, don't put these kids and worse still, your customers through this nonsense! Keep the experienced staff on until the new ones can handle things. I didn't pay to endure the waits and then feel like I can't ask for something lest someone start crying and make me feel bad. I didn't pay to wait constantly. I didn't pay to clean my own tables. I didn't pay to clean my own room at night. I didn't pay to fetch my own ice. I didn't pay to search for food at a disorganized mess of a buffet. I didn't pay to resort to room service all the time because restaurants were literally closed for lunch.

 

Utterly unprofessional and a really, really rotten thing to do to the customers. We are the ones who lost in this venture.

 

No tagline, on the grounds that it may incriminate me.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[OB10913]

Just be aware that we had waits of about 1/2 hour also and it had nothing to do with the staff...such is the case with freestyle...and yes, we waited for tables on Pincess as well so it is not only NCL. As far as the service you experienced, that is really too bad. We had good service on the sky in Feb...but there were only about 300 new staff aboard then. Hope things will get better...but if the wait for a table upsets you, Princess is not the answer.

[ninafromct]

Monte,

 

Were you talking to me?

 

I know, I haven't gone into detail yet, I just got back late Sunday night and I'm still writing the review, which I can only do at home at night in Word, and honestly in between laundry, baseball practice and grocery shopping, I haven't had much time. Hopefully I'll get to it tonight.

 

No tagline, on the grounds that it may incriminate me.

[SeattleChris]

Wow. Thanks for the heads up. I'll have two kids for Kids Crew this summer, and I hope it ends up being a better experience. They've been on the Sky and the Norway, with varying but mostly positive experiences with the kids crew. It really boils down to the actual staff members more than facilities and the cruise line-- and that's what really concerns me here since that seems to be the root of the problems that you had.

 

Can you remember the names of the kids crew staff when you sailed? (just post their first names). Since we'll be sailing in the summer, to Alaska, and I'm hoping that they won't be the same ones. If they are I'd like to know that right away at orientation.

 

One last thing I was wondering about was the schedule-- you say that it was only a 7-10 thing except for one day? On my two previous NCL cruises it was considerably more than that, and a kids crew program I saw on the web for the Star's Hawaii itinerary last October showed morning and/or afternoon activities Monday through Friday. Was this not true for your sailing?

 

In any case thanks for the review, and I encourage others to post their experience from the Star Kids Crew also so we all know whether this was just an off week or a chronic problem.

[MOMofONE]

Chris - I will be on Pride of Aloha in June and have an 11 year old looking forward to the Kid's Crew.

I've been taking notes on this, with info from other NCL cruisers who have posted.

It appears the hours fluctuate from sailing to sailing but the main variable is the Days at Sea for your itinerary.

What I've jotted down for NON-PAYING club is:

Port Days: 7-10 PM

possible early Am hours

possible extended hrs. if formal nite

At Sea Days: 9am-12, 2-5pm, 7-10pm

possible other/family activities

possible hrs for formal

 

Of course, my notes suit my style: minimal expectations to avoid dissapointment. My daughter will be happy with this and thrilled with anything above & beyond.

We have 4 days at sea so she is psyched!

Also I understand there is "babysitting" in the kid's club (little or no guided activity) available on port days (maybe 9am-3pm?)and from 10PM - 1 AM every night, but I don't plan to utilize so did not note the fees.

 

I agree with your assessment that the individuals are the primary reason for fluctuation in service. However, if the counselors aren't doing their job, I would hope parents would bring it to the attention of whatever staff could correct the problem. If NCL is providing the room, supplies, and activity schedule, there is no excuse for parking kids in front of a video!

I am an optimist by nature so am looking forward to sending off my daughter for a great time with her fellow cruise tweens!