Freestyle Cruising slogan changed to Feestyle Cruising

[glittergal1]

I didn't miss the point, I'm the poster who said: The majority who say they are going to walk, won't. Where are they going to go, because most of the cruise lines are the same.

 

One thing you have to realize is that most of the changes are for items that you "choose" to use, you are not forced to. You don't have to eat in the specialty restaurants, thus not incurring the 18 percent gratuity. You don't have to order anything from the room service menu, sans, the coffee and Danish, and you won't incurred any costs from that. You don't have to purchase a drink, thus you won't incur the 18 percent gratuity. And if you are so inclined, you can reduce or remove the DSC and you don't even have to pay that.

 

My point was that every cruise line is the same, they all have changes that their "loyal" customers don't like, they all increase their fees, the all do things that everyone isn't in agreement with....in other words, all cruise lines do things that everyone doesn't like.

 

Seems like you have your mind made up not to cruise with NCL after this cruise and I hope you find a cruise line that fits your needs.

 

You are correct I am not forced to use some services I can choose to use them ,but the fact is I booked NCL with a mind to choose to use the services at a cost that was published and I was prepared for , I do not like it when a company changes what I originally thought I was booking . This seems to be the complaint from many people , If you are aware of the changes at the time of booking and still choose to book then that is ok . The changes were made after my booking , that is my issue .

[newmexicoNita]

Some of you need to study human nature a little more diligently.

 

When people feel they are or were mistreated by a company, they will look elsewhere regardless of the price.

 

Most will not complain to the company, they will simply disappear.

 

Time will tell if NCL's recent actions have caused some of their customers to do this.

 

Oh,there will be some who will bail, but my guess; the %age will be so low it won't inpact the overall company one bit.Again, let's face it, the increases are not going to make or break any of us, nor will it mean we have to cut back somewhere else. The only real problem with all this might be the communication. Yes, it could be improved upon.

[multi007]

Yup - my same experience as well. Unless it hits they're bottom line, they wont stop it.

 

Thank you for your suggestion. Actually, that is the first thing I did. It took some trouble to get through to the Corporate Offices, but I talked with "someone in the executive office." She was not sympathetic at all. Her first reply was that the conditions are always subject to change (stated in the "fine print," that nobody reads, of course -- and in this case, were mis-stated in the information I was provided orally and online). She also would not let me talk with anyone else in her office (like her superior), was clearly a "gatekeeper," and for someone supposed to deal with customer relations, she was the opposite of what consumers expect.

She would also not confirm that this is a test market on two ships (which a reservations supervisor had just told me).

So unless there is strong negative feedback, these charges will continue, and be expanded to other NCL ships.

Whether this happens or is retracted is up to us.

[shealea]

All of the recent changes on NCL HAS caused me to look elsewhere. I was a HUGE ncl cheerleader ....... not so much now. I'm not saying I won't choose them, but I am looking elsewhere and am most definitely going to use another line on my next cruise.

 

I know it will seem silly to some (I HAVE been know to be silly! ha!) ....... but I do not like the thought of having to pay for room service. We are what you would call cheap/thrifty, and we felt SPECIAL (ha!) when we could pick up that phone and have someone bring us food! Right to our room ...... and we could lay on the bed and have our munchies!!! ha!

 

Silly, maybe. But, it's something I really get a kick out of. We ordered in the a.m. for breakfast. And we ordered late at night for a big snack/treat!!!

 

It's just something that I really love to do!!! ha!!!! Some folks think it's special getting all gussied up fancy and getting waited on in a specialty restaurant. ME ....... I like calling for room service and flopping down on the bed and eating it.

 

I doubt we will want to pay that much per day for it if it does go fleetwide. But, who knows, maybe all ships will implement this charge??!!

 

But, yes. I AM going to go with a different line on our next cruise!!

[SteveH2508]

Oh,there will be some who will bail, but my guess; the %age will be so low it won't inpact the overall company one bit.Again, let's face it, the increases are not going to make or break any of us, nor will it mean we have to cut back somewhere else. The only real problem with all this might be the communication. Yes, it could be improved upon.

 

The %age who bail may be quite low - and NCL can measure that quite accurately.

 

What they cannot measure is:

 

1. Those who were thinking of booking and were then put off by reading of their communication FUBARs.

 

2.The additional/increased charges - the whole 'customer is a cash cow' mentality which is becoming more obvious and is putting off potential customers.

 

3. More importantly, those of us who would have recommended friends, colleagues etc. in the past to NCL and who now will not recommend NCL due to unexpected extra costs being implemented after booking.

 

The amounts, in themselves, are not big costs; the principles being invoked; the trends; the methods of implementation, all add up to a diminished experience and and a bad feeling of how you are going to be treated.

 

It feels like it has moved from "welcome back - you are 'part of the family'" to "welcome back - open your wallet".

 

For a few dollars extra, they may have undone a lot of PR work from the last few years (IMHO).

[newmexicoNita]

The %age who bail may be quite low - and NCL can measure that quite accurately.

 

What they cannot measure is:

 

1. Those who were thinking of booking and were then put off by reading of their communication FUBARs.

 

2.The additional/increased charges - the whole 'customer is a cash cow' mentality which is becoming more obvious and is putting off potential customers.

 

3. More importantly, those of us who would have recommended friends, colleagues etc. in the past to NCL and who now will not recommend NCL due to unexpected extra costs being implemented after booking.

 

The amounts, in themselves, are not big costs; the principles being invoked; the trends; the methods of implementation, all add up to a diminished experience and and a bad feeling of how you are going to be treated.

 

It feels like it has moved from "welcome back - you are 'part of the family'" to "welcome back - open your wallet".

 

For a few dollars extra, they may have undone a lot of PR work from the last few years (IMHO).

 

Each of us has his/her own ideas aboout all this and yes, the room service issue is a serious one for many. But it hasn't been put into place for certain yet. We too enjoy ordering a cont breakfast in our cabin on port days if we have an early tour. And no, I don't want to pay, even $4.00 but we also stay at enough hotels to know this is standard anymore. I can pretty well assure you, other cruise lines will follow NCL if the charge goes through or they will get their money somewhere else. For those of us who have been cruising for 20 or more years, we realize cruising is still a bargain compare to then.

 

I have to ask you one thing, are you more upset about a few extra bucks you have to put out or the way NCL has done this? Yes, the communications has not been great, but the additional charges are really very little.

[SteveH2508]

Each of us has his/her own ideas aboout all this and yes, the room service issue is a serious one for many. But it hasn't been put into place for certain yet. We too enjoy ordering a cont breakfast in our cabin on port days if we have an early tour. And no, I don't want to pay, even $4.00 but we also stay at enough hotels to know this is standard anymore. I can pretty well assure you, other cruise lines will follow NCL if the charge goes through or they will get their money somewhere else. For those of us who have been cruising for 20 or more years, we realize cruising is still a bargain compare to then.

 

I have to ask you one thing, are you more upset about a few extra bucks you have to put out or the way NCL has done this? Yes, the communications has not been great, but the additional charges are really very little.

 

0.95 cents per day on OBSC - no problem (I don't do suites).

 

15% to 18% on booze gratuities - no real problem except they upped the price of drinks at the same time.

 

18% on speciality restaurants - a bit much but then we only use our Platinum Latitudes Le Bistro perks anyway - otherwise it is MDR/buffet/Sushi for us.

 

The room service farrago - they made a right royal f**k up of implementing/testing that. Unfortunately this seems to be the way things are going at present.

 

Reading the runes does not make me feel comfortable that I can trust NCL to deliver the product that I sign up for. I am not happy that I will get what is advertised as included in my cruise fare.

 

Room Service changes are not, in themselves a major thing, but I worry about what else is in the pipeline that might fundamentally affect my vacation experience.

 

It is my loss of trust in NCL and the change in NCL's attitude to their customers that bothers me - the dollar amounts are trivial.

[SteveH2508]

"the communications has (sic) not been great" is an understatement.

 

This would provide a Business Studies course with loads of material on 'how not to implement change' - it was an unmitigated disaster from start to finish (and it hasn't finished yet). It was an Epic fail - they need to Getaway/Breakaway/Escape from this way of doing business!;)

Edited April 23, 2015 by SteveH2508

[swedish weave]

In some recent correspondence with NCL, it was mentioned that the Latiitudes program was being studied. In light of recent events, that statement ran a chill up my back.

[NLH Arizona]

Each of us has his/her own ideas aboout all this and yes, the room service issue is a serious one for many. But it hasn't been put into place for certain yet. We too enjoy ordering a cont breakfast in our cabin on port days if we have an early tour. And no, I don't want to pay, even $4.00 but we also stay at enough hotels to know this is standard anymore. I can pretty well assure you, other cruise lines will follow NCL if the charge goes through or they will get their money somewhere else. For those of us who have been cruising for 20 or more years, we realize cruising is still a bargain compare to then.

 

I have to ask you one thing, are you more upset about a few extra bucks you have to put out or the way NCL has done this? Yes, the communications has not been great, but the additional charges are really very little.

Cruising today, is way less expensive than it was when I first started cruising, more years back than I want to remember. And things on the three lines I cruise on have changed over the years. Some of the changers were for the better and some were not, but with all the changes, you either live with them or you don't.

 

For some, the recent changes are an issue, but for others it is not. Time will tell if NCL has made the right decisions. I for one, would prefer a lower cruise fare and then be able to choose if I want to pay for the extras.

 

I cruise in suites and eat dinner exclusively in specialty restaurants, so the new charges will affect me monetarily, but when I look at the overall cost of my cruises, I'm still better off than going on a land vacation, plus I get to see the world and I'm not stuck in one place.

[multi007]

so what cruise lines would you recommend that does NOT nickle and dime you??

[cliffd64]

In some recent correspondence with NCL, it was mentioned that the Latiitudes program was being studied. In light of recent events, that statement ran a chill up my back.

 

The latitudes program, as it is, is flawed. No one can say it's the ideal program.

 

It almost has to change, as now, its very simple to progress up the levels to the highest level quickly. If everyone can get to the highest level quickly, your program will be really top heavy.

 

I have no idea as to what would be the best approach, I only know that right now, Norwegian has one of the better set of perks associated with loyalty among the major lines.

 

Will it work out in our favor when it is changed? Maybe... Perhaps the focus is to concentrate on attracting new customers as well as getting the existing ones to return. Once again, no need to worry about something that hasn't happened.

[NLH Arizona]

The latitudes program, as it is, is flawed. No one can say it's the ideal program.

 

It almost has to change, as now, its very simple to progress up the levels to the highest level quickly. If everyone can get to the highest level quickly, your program will be really top heavy.

 

I have no idea as to what would be the best approach, I only know that right now, Norwegian has one of the better set of perks associated with loyalty among the major lines.

 

Will it work out in our favor when it is changed? Maybe... Perhaps the focus is to concentrate on attracting new customers as well as getting the existing ones to return. Once again, no need to worry about something that hasn't happened.

Careful what one would wish for. On Celebrity those in the top tier complained about how easy it was to get to the Elite tier (top tier) and the Elite cocktail parties were too crowded. Celebrity changed how points were given and many of those that were Elite then started to complain (threated to leave the line, claiming Celebrity's changes were illegal and unethical, along with other names and charges) that they would never get to the top tier (Zenith), because it was to difficult to get there now and that the other tier (Elite+) added didn't have good perks.

[Seafan22]

Frankly, I wouldn't mind the new fee-minded strategies if the apprach were to unbundle some of the charges that exists and charge for things individually. This way I don't have to pay for some things I don't want. The problem is they are starting with the bundled cost and now charging for things that use to come with the package. That is what is so offensive.

[multi007]

my only complaint was that this was a new charge added on AFTER I already booked and paid in full.

 

Frankly, I wouldn't mind the new fee-minded strategies if the apprach were to unbundle some of the charges that exists and charge for things individually. This way I don't have to pay for some things I don't want. The problem is they are starting with the bundled cost and now charging for things that use to come with the package. That is what is so offensive.

[georgigirl]

Bad move, NCL! I read where another cruise ship added a $3 something service charge to their room service and quickly rescinded after multiple complaints. $7.95 is very steep for a plain cup of coffee and a small glass of juice! Not happy.

[watchdiva]

Um, georgigirl this thread is almost 6 months old. Continental breakfast is free of charge if ordered between certain hours. Maybe do a search and see what is current news as of today...