NCL food overhaul

[hscruiser]

I'm a first time Norwegian cruiser. We'll be on Getaway next month, which is clearly very reservations-based for entertainment and dining. I love the system so far. (By the way, Oasis-class ships are exactly like this, save for main dining.)

 

To me, Freestyle means customization. We're able to customize every night on the ship: what restaurant, what time, which shows, what time, etc. I realize that Freestyle initially meant "do as you wish" once actually onboard, but I don't see how that could be feasible on the latest generation of Norwegian ships.

[kapoho2]

I was not saying that we could not get into the main dining rooms. They were probably always an option, especially since we tend to dine quite late. Being Platinum Latitudes members, we get two free dinners at certain specialty restaurants. We were never able to get into Le Bistro, so we ended up using only one of our dining certificates at La Cucina. What we found was that on the first day of the cruise, every specialty dining option was filled up for all time slots. You can make these reservations from your cabin on the TV and we saw no open slots at Le Bistro. Everything seemed to be filled up with reservations made before boarding the ship. We walked up to Le Bistro one evening on the off chance that they would be able to seat us, but they were booked solid for the entire evening.

 

Entertainment options were restricted in a similar manner. When scrolling through the options on the TV, all of our choices were booked solid. Finally, we went to the Box Office when it was open and talked to them. They told us to just show up at the venue and that there would not be a problem getting seated. Not sure if this was true as we only tried this at the shows in the main theater and for several shows at the comedy club. (And, why then do they require advance reservations if you can just show up??) I understand that the Illusionarium would definitely need firm reservations and the box office was able to help us out with reservations for one of these magic shows.

 

I just found all of this frustrating and not conducive to a relaxed vacation. Too much planning and running around trying to line everything up in advance.

Edited July 21, 2014 by kapoho2

[AweighToSea]

If because many pax will now book MDR reservations and that means long wait for freestyle cruisers who don't want to book everything in advance then that is not good for me.

 

Hopefully we will be able to get into a restaurant within a reasonable amount of time and not be shut out by those who reserve three months in advance

 

It was the old freestyle model that drew me to NCL. Will have to wait & see for myself how this works out in real life.

[biker@sea]

I was very happy with the new MDR menu's on the Dawn last week .

 

The food has steeped up.

[AweighToSea]

Entertainment options were restricted in a similar manner. When scrolling through the options on the TV, all of our choices were booked solid. Finally, we went to the Box Office when it was open and talked to them. They told us to just show up at the venue and that there would not be a problem getting seated. Not sure if this was true as we only tried this at the shows in the main theater and for several shows at the comedy club. I understand tha

Good to know we can still just arrive as a 'walk-up' and get a seat. I had not considered booking entertainment until reading posts that the venues were full. Seeing those I tried now and oddly no entertainment is available on my upcoming Pearl cruise though restaurants can be reserved.

 

Anyway, reading this I will not be concerned. Don't want to book something just to have a reservation and then not keep it or cancel. that would just take a spot from someone else trying to book in advance. I'd rather just 'freestyle' it and go to a show if what is offered that night appeals at the time.

 

Glad you added this info.

[CasinoCruzGirl]

I don't understand. Being a newbie to NCL, and booked for my first NCL cruise next May on the Getaway, I'm was looking forward to "freestyle cruising". Your narrative indicates you were unable to secure entertainment AND dining reservations because they were all booked up.

 

The entertainment reservations I can relate to, having sailed on the Oasis of the Seas and having to book all major shows in advance. But are you implying all complimentary dining in the main dining rooms is now reservation only?

 

Everything else I've read on these boards seems to indicate booking a dining reservation is only an option. Are you saying NCL has done away completely with freestyle dining in the MDR's? Were you turned away at the Maitre'd stand and told they were all booked up? Please elaborately or explain.

 

Harvey

 

 

I seriously don't think so. I think you will be fine showing up for dinner In a MDR whenever you want if there are 2,3 or 4 of you. A larger party may be a problem.

[Daghis]

I'm sure this is merely an interesting choice of wording, but I was caught by this:

O'Sheehan's Neighborhood Bar & Grill onboard Getaway, Breakaway, Epic and Jewel will be introducing exclusive specialty dish nights for another free, alternative dinner venue. Offerings will include prime rib, all-you-can-eat baby back ribs, and chicken and waffles.

Since O'Sheehan's has no extra charge, isn't everything there essentially "all-you-can-eat" already?

Edited July 21, 2014 by Daghis

[Amo57]

If because many pax will now book MDR reservations and that means long wait for freestyle cruisers who don't want to book everything in advance then that is not good for me.

 

Hopefully we will be able to get into a restaurant within a reasonable amount of time and not be shut out by those who reserve three months in advance

 

It was the old freestyle model that drew me to NCL. Will have to wait & see for myself how this works out in real life.

 

When I spoke to my PCC about his opinion on whether or not the specialty restaurants should be reserved in advance he recommended making reservations the first day on the ship. He also said that for people calling in advance they (Norwegian) are only going to be booking 25% of the restaurant space to leave room for the "freestyle" people. Also, i just realized something I said earlier was incorrect. I did book my shows but not my specialty restaurants. Online i can only make reservations for 8 on my own (I have 9 people). Even though we have the UDP, if i make reservations now I would have to pay for everyone now and then on board apply for a credit. I didn't like the sound of that so i decided to take my chances and wait to make reservations the day i board.

[KeithJenner]

The part about reservations in the MDR is not a new announcement. That was announced a few weeks ago, and has even been discussed here previously.

 

 

I don't think any of it is new. I think the menus they are talking about are the ones which they have been rolling out recently.

 

 

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[LrgPizza]

I don't think any of it is new. I think the menus they are talking about are the ones which they have been rolling out recently.

 

 

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Yeah, I mentioned that earlier, as well. I was wondering about that.

[Va. Plumber]

As I read this, there is nothing to say that you must reserve dining in advance. They are just making it possible for all the anal retentive types who feel they must plan every minute of there cruise months in advance. There is nothing to say you can't just walk up and get a table.

 

This should be a boon to all the traditional dining form cruisers who don't care for the freedom that freestyle affords.

 

Next thing you know they will be renting tuxedos aboard ship.

Edited July 21, 2014 by Va. Plumber

[Windy56]

We will be on the Getaway in February. We are new to Norwegian. Could you tell me if lunch is available in the dining rooms each day? I have noticed that this is an area where other cruise lines have really cut back, offering sit down lunches only on sea days and often it is a brunch menu that doesn't change. This leads me to my second question. If the have dining room lunch menus every day, do they change? Thanks!

[KeithJenner]

I am very, very disappointed in this new concept of being able to make reservations 90 days in advance. This totally defeats the concept of Freestyle Cruising. We were on the Getaway in May where this new concept was being tested. Basically, we lost all of our Freestyle rights.....having not made reservations for anything in advance, we were unable to secure entertainment or dining reservations once onboard. Everything was booked up. We actually ate dinner in the buffet several evenings after not being able to secure any other reservations that interested us. We do not like to have to plan out our week on the cruiseship months in advance. We loved the spontaneity of Freestyle.

 

 

 

While on that cruise in May, I often wondered how many of those advance reservations were actually kept and how many were just forgotten about. Freestyle was the reason we kept coming back to NCL. Now we are looking elsewhere as the Freestyle atmosphere is a thing of the past.

 

 

I honestly don't think your experience on the Getaway was anything to do with these new developments.

 

Would I be right in suspecting that this was your first time on one of the three big ships (Epic, Breakaway or Getaway). Entertainment in the main theatre has always needed booking in advance on those ships if you want to be guaranteed entry. Nothing has changed there.

 

With regard to the speciality restaurants, I wonder whether you were on one of the sailings where they were giving away the dining package with some bookings. Nothing in these changes affects bookings for the speciality restaurants, and allowing bookings 90 days out rather than 45 will have had a minimal effect on their availability. I have wondered what the impact of the free UDP offer will be though, and I wonder whether your experience is an example of that.

 

From what I can see of this new announcement, I can't see it having much impact on things generally. The new menus are a step up in my opinion, but I really don't think anything else will change much.

 

 

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[tel2]

Even though we have the UDP, if i make reservations now I would have to pay for everyone now and then on board apply for a credit. I didn't like the sound of that so i decided to take my chances and wait to make reservations the day i board.

 

Did you try? Something is not right here. I prepurchased the UDP for my next two upcoming cruises (gem and breakaway). I am within the booking window for both. I have booked almost all of my dinner reservations and did not have to pay for any of them. While it showed a price when it gave me the list of restaurants, when I put them into my "cart" the price was zero.

 

Terry

[Amo57]

They are just making it possible for all the anal retentive types who feel they must plan every minute of there cruise months in advance.

 

Next thing you know they will be renting tuxedos aboard ship.

 

Hey that's not fair. I don't want to plan but a large party makes it hard not to. :D

 

And i think (don't hold me to it) the last Carnival ship I was on had a tuxedo rental shop.

[Amo57]

Did you try? Something is not right here. I prepurchased the UDP for my next two upcoming cruises (gem and breakaway). I am within the booking window for both. I have booked almost all of my dinner reservations and did not have to pay for any of them. While it showed a price when it gave me the list of restaurants, when I put them into my "cart" the price was zero.

 

Terry

 

Yes i did. I agree, it makes no sense. If i book online it does come up as no charge but reservations only go up to 8 people and I am 9. I was going to make 2 separate reservations (1 for 4 and 1 for 5) under 2 different names but i was informed that there is still no guarantee that we would all be able to sit together.

[lessonsinliving]

I sailed on the Gem last September and really enjoyed the Chocoholic buffet. I was disappointed to hear that the Breakaway doesn't do that, as I will be sailing on that ship this coming September. This article makes it seem like they might be doing away with that altogether? Interesting.

[Hikini]

I sailed on the Gem last September and really enjoyed the Chocoholic buffet. I was disappointed to hear that the Breakaway doesn't do that, as I will be sailing on that ship this coming September. This article makes it seem like they might be doing away with that altogether? Interesting.

 

After about our 3rd cruise we stopped going to the chocoholic buffet, but whenever there are new people to cruising I always told them not to miss it, due to the spectacle of it.

 

It has always saddened and disgusted me how many folks we would see with huge piled up plates (little tiny plates, way overloaded) hauling their chocolate stuff away from the area, only to leave them in other areas of the ship. There was a LOT of waste.

 

But I am excited about some of the things they mentioned that seem (to me) to be replacing the chocoholic buffet - like the warm chocolate volcano and the chocolate Nutella pot de creme. Yum! Bring 'em on!

[Hikini]

I'm also loving the idea of prime rib and/or all you can eat baby back ribs in O'Sheehan's!

[KeithJenner]

I'm also loving the idea of prime rib and/or all you can eat baby back ribs in O'Sheehan's!

 

This is the main thing that makes me say this is old news. They were doing Prime Rib on the Getaway back in January, and both were on the Epic back in May.

Edited July 21, 2014 by KeithJenner

[Hikini]

This is the main thing that makes me say this is old news. They were doing Prime Rib on the Getaway back in January, and both were on the Epic back in May.

 

The article is dated with today's date, and it says fleet wide. So while it might be old news for those who have sailed on the Epic, it looks like it's new news for the others.

 

Prime Rib has been available in the MDR's but not in O'Sheehan's, formerly Blue Lagoon.

 

New news or old news, it still makes me happy.

[Demonyte]

It says starting this month so I'd say theres a good chance.

 

Nope. It's said in the article that Jade is one of the four ships in the fleet (Spirit, Jade, Sky and PoA) that will get these later.

[skyfire53]

I could be wrong, but the way I read it, there were limited times you could make dinner reservations in the MDR and the rest of the time slots were for free style...did anyone else see the times Im talking about?

[Demonyte]

This is the main thing that makes me say this is old news. They were doing Prime Rib on the Getaway back in January, and both were on the Epic back in May.

 

Exactly. All O'Sheehan's "new" menu items were available already in April on Getaway.

[dalgirl]

I am very, very disappointed in this new concept of being able to make reservations 90 days in advance. This totally defeats the concept of Freestyle Cruising. We were on the Getaway in May where this new concept was being tested. Basically, we lost all of our Freestyle rights.....having not made reservations for anything in advance, we were unable to secure entertainment or dining reservations once onboard. Everything was booked up. We actually ate dinner in the buffet several evenings after not being able to secure any other reservations that interested us. We do not like to have to plan out our week on the cruiseship months in advance. We loved the spontaneity of Freestyle.

 

While on that cruise in May, I often wondered how many of those advance reservations were actually kept and how many were just forgotten about. Freestyle was the reason we kept coming back to NCL. Now we are looking elsewhere as the Freestyle atmosphere is a thing of the past.

 

They do not book everything in advance online - but when you board you should have some kind of idea when you want to see a show, etc. especially on one of the large ships. they have a box office on the new ships where you can go and make your reservation. As for restaurants, the only place you may not eat exactly when you want is a specialty restaurant and even those sometimes can add someone in at the last minute of another reservation is not kept.

 

Freestyle is still alive and well, but just walking up somewhere with 4,000 passengers without any planning and expecting to go right in - well that means eating at 5pm and waiting to see if tickets are released at popular shows.