epic and the hidden charges and lack of space

[sdmike]

If people want an "all inclusive" vacation, don't cruise. All of the mass market lines have additional charges above the fare, most of which can be avoided if desired. Any idiot doing one iota of research knows this.

 

So great food and service, yet stiffed the staff on the DSC. Disgusting.

[david_sobe]

Its not the first post from someone in England and not the last when it comes to auto gratuity or tips in general. It really is a foreign concept for Euros and others.

 

No biggie. Nothing to get bent out of shape over.

(hoping this is not a thread to go on forever)

 

Silver lining is that the OP seemed to love many aspects of the Epic.....just not the tipping :(

[Froggitt]

Unfortunately Brit Stiffing, mainly due to unfamiliarity with "the system", will continue until the DCS is made mandatory or included in the cost of the cruise.

[sdmike]

Its not the first post from someone in England and not the last when it comes to auto gratuity or tips in general. It really is a foreign concept for Euros and others.

 

No biggie. Nothing to get bent out of shape over.

(hoping this is not a thread to go on forever)

 

Silver lining is that the OP seemed to love many aspects of the Epic.....just not the tipping :(

 

When I travel to England, Europe, South America, etc., I make sure I'm aware of tipping and other social norms. If I DIDN'T do the research in advance I certainly wouldn't remove a charge, mainly because I'd have no basis for doing so. The OP not only didn't do their homework, but they removed the charge, THEN took it a step further in their post suggesting that others should take the charge off too. Yeah, I get that it's nothing to get upset over, but it rubs me the wrong way.

[SissasMomE]

Its not the first post from someone in England and not the last when it comes to auto gratuity or tips in general. It really is a foreign concept for Euros and others.

 

No biggie. Nothing to get bent out of shape over.

(hoping this is not a thread to go on forever)

 

Silver lining is that the OP seemed to love many aspects of the Epic.....just not the tipping :(

 

I agree with you, David. My parents had friends from England, and when they first came over to vist, my dad would wait until his friend left the table and then add extra money to the tip. The friend wasn't a bad person, he just didn't know any better. When he caught on to what my father was doing, he asked him about it, and my father explained that the base wage was low, and the main salary came from tips. It's the opposite in England - or it was at that time anyway (this was many years ago). They are paid a much higher salary over there, and tipping is not common. Anyway, point being - this was a highly educated, very nice, man who just didn't know the American custom. I still think NCL's classification as a "daily service charge" is a problem. I can understand why some would not want to pay a "service charge" after paying their fare for the cruise - especially if they don't understand that is the tipping pool for the employees.

Edited January 5, 2014 by SissasMomE

[Love my butler]

So, service was good, food was excellent, and you liked your stateroom... and then you removed your service charges? Nice. :confused:

 

And then he tipped in cash. His money, his choice.

[Juliayn]

SO we are not allowed of ship to see the destinations,that is a big part of the cruise

 

Hardly. Just curious if the pool area was slammed every single day per your original post.

[triptolemus]

The OP not only didn't do their homework, but they removed the charge, THEN took it a step further in their post suggesting that others should take the charge off too.

 

Whether before the trip on on the ship, the OP did enough homework to know to remove the DSC which tells me the OP knew exactly what it was when they went to the desk to remove it.

 

The whole "British social norms" and "confusion" stuff is nonsense. They knew exactly what they were doing.

[Love my butler]

They didn't let you off of the ship? Unless you mean GSC, which tendering depends on the weather. I guess you could have jumped and swam....

 

I really hope this is a troll.

 

The OP is responding to the suggestion he use the water slides etc during a port day and not get off and enjoy the port of call.

 

I really hope you are just confused and not a troll.

Edited January 5, 2014 by Love my butler

[Rollingstone43]

Its not the first post from someone in England and not the last when it comes to auto gratuity or tips in general. It really is a foreign concept for Euros and others.

 

No biggie. Nothing to get bent out of shape over.

(hoping this is not a thread to go on forever)

 

Silver lining is that the OP seemed to love many aspects of the Epic.....just not the tipping :(

 

Can I just add that not all Brits are tight when it comes to tipping!!

 

But while I'm on the subject, the reason my wife and I choose NCL is because there are so few Brits!!!!

 

 

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[Single Cruiser]

Its not the first post from someone in England and not the last when it comes to auto gratuity or tips in general. It really is a foreign concept for Euros and others.

 

No biggie. Nothing to get bent out of shape over.

(hoping this is not a thread to go on forever)

 

Silver lining is that the OP seemed to love many aspects of the Epic.....just not the tipping :(

 

The problem is that on the UK cruise lines the grats are included in the price and so never exposed as extras. If the cruise price had been higher and included the DSC then it wouldn't have been an issue.

 

That's why I always include my DSC in my cruise as prepayment. Royal Caribbean did a clever thing when Indy was moved to UK as they changed drinks prices from $x + grats to the all-inclusive price. I wish NCL UK would just include DSC in cruise price..

 

As for deck space etc.. Again. If you look on the upper decks there are always loungers, just ppl feel they have to be by the pool! :rolleyes:

[Love my butler]

What the OP did not realize is that NCL is a bare-bones cruiseline. You generally pay a low price for the cruise and if you want a full week of fun you must pay the nickel and diming fees. Some people are happy with bare-bones, but many are not. If you book knowing you will be nickel and dimed and accept the extra fees as part of a 'complete cruise experience' you will be much happier.

[Single Cruiser]

Can I just add that not all Brits are tight when it comes to tipping!!

 

But while I'm on the subject, the reason my wife and I choose NCL is because there are so few Brits!!!!

 

 

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Yep. Couldn't agree more.. :D

[sdmike]

But while I'm on the subject, the reason my wife and I choose NCL is because there are so few Brits!!!!

 

 

lol. I was thinking "wow, how insulting", then I saw that you ARE a Brit.

[Rollingstone43]

lol. I was thinking "wow, how insulting", then I saw that you ARE a Brit.

 

Not only that sdmike, my wife worships your posts !!!!!

 

 

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[KweezyCruiser]

[quote name='Love my butler']And then he tipped in cash. His money, his choice.[/QUOTE]

Actually, it's not clear that he did. All he says us, "It is best if you wish to hand out your hard earned money, you give to the people you want." Consistent with his anti-tipping views, I suspect a lot of hard-working people did not get tipped.

[Ilovesailing]

[quote name='Holidaymanbristol']Returned last Sunday back to the UK after spending a week onboard Epic after five days in Miami.
Excellent and professional getting on, and of the ship,including the stop overs.
Food excellent choice and good variety.plenty of places to eat,cagneys was fantastic and worth the few dollars extra.
The staterooms were a good size and had excellent showers and toilets.beds very comfortable and a.c good.tv single was good as well.
A little tip red carpet is even numbers,blue carpet is odd numbers when returning to your room.


The poor item I felt onboard this ship,are the water facilitys on board were far to small for 4000 plus people.my two teenagers and us did not go anywhere near the water slides,hot tubs or small watering holes,it was just to busy and crowded.far too many people on board.

You have to pay for everything you want to do on the ship via your card,i prefer it where everything is part of the package.You could spend a small fortune on additional costs.

Gratatuity charges added to my bill were the best part of 250 dollars for four people ,go to reception and get them removed on the last day of your cruise.
It is best if you wish to hand out your hard earned money, you give to the people you want.
Smoking on the casino floor is a big no no,the sooner they
stop it the better for all concerned.i am amazed NCL allow this to happen.

Charging for the use of items on board is a big no no for me,let's have a clear price to use the facilities on board,

No where enough deck chairs and space for people to sunbathe,towels left on beds for hours without people useing them.

People may think the price is good ,but NCL hidden charges for everything makes it a very expensive cruise.

My honest opinion is the ship is filled with too many people and not capable of giving excellent service to all.
[/list]
sive cruise ship.[/quote]

While I agree with some of what you ie pool area, but that's about it.

As for removing the daily service charge is total B.S! But then the Brit's are known not to tip so I'm not surprised But I'm glad you got comfort from taking the food of employee's mouth. I could be a lot more descriptive here but I'd probably get booted.

By the way congrats on your 8th post since joining 10/02013 and they've all been done today. You had plenty of time to come and ask questions and do research on your own therefore you have noone to blame but yourself.
May I suggest you look into camping as there are alot of beautiful parks in your country and mostly free at least from tipping.

[SissasMomE]

[quote name='Rollingstone43']Can I just add that not all Brits are tight when it comes to tipping!!

But while I'm on the subject, the reason my wife and I choose NCL is because there are so few Brits!!!!


Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app[/QUOTE]

Awww - I like Brits!

[SeaShark]

[quote name='Love my butler'][B]What the OP did not realize is that NCL is a bare-bones cruiseline.[/B] You generally pay a low price for the cruise and if you want a full week of fun you must pay the nickel and diming fees. Some people are happy with bare-bones, but many are not. If you book knowing you will be nickel and dimed and accept the extra fees as part of a 'complete cruise experience' you will be much happier.[/QUOTE]

What an interesting statement to make. I hadn't realized that NCL was considered to be "bare-bones".

What specifically is it that NCL charges* people for that all of the other "non bare-bones" cruise lines include with their fare?


[SIZE="1"]*I'm using the term charges here instead of "nickel and diming" because, much like "hallowed", I'm not sure that you know what "nickel and diming" means. And...just as an FYI, I'm not saying that NCL doesn't nickel and dime, they actually DO. There is ONE charge that NCL has that falls under the definition of nickel and diming. :p[/SIZE]

[mjkacmom]

[quote name='Love my butler']The OP is responding to the suggestion he use the water slides etc during a port day and not get off and enjoy the port of call.

I really hope you are just confused and not a troll.[/QUOTE]

Well, unless the OP was a dolt, he should have known that the week between Christmas and New Years is one of the, if not the, busiest travel week of the year (and not just in the US). Unless you love crowds, children, and high prices, it's best to avoid that week, or just suck it up.

An internet troll is someone who comes on a board just to poke the bear - usually the post is pretty negative and a hot button one, and the poster has very few posts under his or her name. With over 1000, I don't fit the definition of troll. If not for your thread count, you do...

NCL is not all inclusive - most cruises aren't. Most charge for specialty restaurants, alcohol, specialty coffee, photos, excursions, etc. If the OP wanted an all inclusive experience, there are (way) more expensive cruises out there, as well as all inclusive (more expensive) land vacations.

Cruising the mass market lines is one of the least expensive ways to travel (even for my family of 7). We've done all inclusive, but prefer to cruise, because we can vacation more. You want all inclusive - pay for it.

[david_sobe]

When I was in Colombia and Germany, I would leave money tipping the bartender or waiter. The money was given back to me by the German bartender who told me, "This is not the USA and this is too much money to leave."

So while we may find it strange for someone to get bent out of shape tipping, just remember it can be equally strange to leave money at the table. The auto-gratuity freaks them out even more ;)

[Single Cruiser]

Whilst not wanting to defend the OP I am not happy with this tarring all Brits not tipping by Americans.

If you grew up in a society where you don't tip for everything like in the states, for many including those who have cruised on UK cruise ships a US visit or a US cruise line is quite often the first time tipping comes into question.

In the UK those on minimum wage do not get taxed on expected tips nor rely on tips to meet a living wage, they are seen as a bonus for outstanding service. If I go to a restaurant in the UK and just get standard service I'm not going to tip, simple..

It is not clear that the DSC is used to make up the crews basic living wage and so can quite easily be seen as why tip for std service. Why should I pay 15% to a bar person where I've gone to the bar and he's handed me a bottle from a fridge and taken the cap off.. Where is the "extra above norm" in that..

I do tip as I realise the wage and crew situation. However for many Brits I can see why they wouldn't Edited January 5, 2014 by Single Cruiser

[triptolemus]

The LMB Vortex strikes again...get out while you can!

[meltingmoments]

[quote name='Rollingstone43']Can I just add that not all Brits are tight when it comes to tipping!!

But while I'm on the subject, the reason my wife and I choose NCL is because there are so few Brits!!!!


Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app[/QUOTE]

[FONT="Comic Sans MS"][SIZE="3"][COLOR="Purple"]EXACTLY what he said! [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]


[URL=http://www.smileyvault.com/][IMG]http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/signs/smiley-vault-signs-016.gif[/IMG][/URL] Edited January 5, 2014 by meltingmoments
I'm rubbish at adding images!! :(

[L3GWG]

The OP makes me embarrassed to be British


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