$7.95 Room Service Charge

[Suzieanna]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4457292/Father-three-wins-legal-fight-against-British-Airways.html

 

Interesting story about the rights to get what you paid for

[bUU]

That sort of thing is one of the reasons why some cruise lines refuse to sell cruises where the sale would be domiciled on foreign soil.

[Suzieanna]

bUU, do you think it's okay for a company to sell a product... and then change the product?

 

At what stage do you think this practice would become unacceptable?

 

What if you bought and paid for a red car, and when it was delivered it was green. Just because their T&C says they can do what they want to us does not mean we should just accept it

[bUU]

bUU, do you think it's okay for a company to sell a product... and then change the product?

Suzieanna, do you think it's okay for a customer to agree to terms and then complain about the terms just agreed to?

 

At what stage do you think this practice would become unacceptable?

When someone breaks a promise they actually made.

 

What if you bought and paid for a red car, and when it was delivered it was green.

If the color of the car mattered so much to me, why did I buy a car with the specifications of the car including the color "subject to change"?

 

Just because their T&C says they can do what they want to us does not mean we should just accept it

Actually, that's exactly what Terms and Conditions mean: A responsible consumer accepts them or doesn't make the purchase.

 

Read the Terms and Conditions of everything you purchase very carefully, and if there is anything that is essential to your satisfaction that is unilateral subject to change, do not make the purchase. What I suspect is the reality for most people, though, is that they recognize that doing business in the mass market involves a certain amount of flexibility on the part of the consumer in return for remarkably lower prices than what would be charged if everything was custom and individual. There are literally hundreds of identifiable aspects of a cruise vacation, the soap in the shower, cream for the coffee in the MDR, pretty adornments on the wall on Deck 5, etc. For practically every mass market purchase, including every cruise I've ever been on and every vacation destination I've ever been to, the percentage of those aspects that are precisely as one would expect is remarkably large. That's why consumers accept "subject to change". The actual number of aspects that change is always quite small as compared to the hundreds upon hundreds of aspects that haven't changed.

Edited May 2, 2017 by bUU

[ONECRUISER]

bUU, do you think it's okay for a company to sell a product... and then change the product?

 

At what stage do you think this practice would become unacceptable?

 

What if you bought and paid for a red car, and when it was delivered it was green. Just because their T&C says they can do what they want to us does not mean we should just accept it

This type thing goes on all the time. Rented a car, reserved, showed up and wasn't in stock, had pay same price for different car... Ordered a car built from factory, the cash back is offered but if sale ends by time I got car from factory didn't get cash back. Then as I mentioned before when Voyager came out Johnny Rockets was free, week I sailed they added a cover charge. Right or wrong all I'm saying this is nothing new...

[Suzieanna]

I guess I am just not used to such sneaky practices then.

[bUU]

I guess I am just not used to such sneaky practices then.

Hmmm... Do you really live on an island that has only 88,000 people? If so, I suspect that's a good part of it. I think more than 88,000 people live in my zip (postal) code, and I drive through three zip codes just to get to my church. I suspect the more your hometown reflects the "mass" in "mass market" the more you'll experience these very typical aspects of doing business in the mass market.

[LMaxwell]

Tap dancing adds a new dimension to the performance.

[the mistral wind]

I picked 18 months because that's how early we can book a cruise. We should know the perks when we first put our deposit down. By the time we've waited till 90 days before, we've already paid our travel insurance, plane tickets, pre-cruise hotels (for those with advanced pay). So, it's really too late to cancel. Too many times, I've booked with certain perks that I expect, only to see them disappear when I board. Charging for room service is no different from the airlines making us pay to check luggage and meals on the plane. Once those perks were included in the price of a plane ticket. In fact, once I flew with my parents in the 1970s, and they gave us a $25 discount for "No Frills Flight." By no frills, we still got free luggage, but we brought our own lunch.

 

 

First they removed the perks such as the commemorative gift, dining room flowers, turn down chocolates. Then they downgraded the food, and added specialty dining (better food that used to be in the MDR). Now they have another money grab, room service.

 

 

I did two cruises about five months apart. The first before specialty dining, and the food was wonderful. Then five months later, I saw a notable drop in food quality with the addition of those specialty restaurants.

 

That':Ds why i fly Southwest no baggage fees unless excessive baggage

[Suzieanna]

Hmmm... Do you really live on an island that has only 88,000 people? If so, I suspect that's a good part of it. I think more than 88,000 people live in my zip (postal) code, and I drive through three zip codes just to get to my church. I suspect the more your hometown reflects the "mass" in "mass market" the more you'll experience these very typical aspects of doing business in the mass market.

 

 

I do indeed. :).. and I LOVE IT. Yes, there are local authority housing estates in the UK (next to us) that are bigger than my Island. we are about 15 miles wide and 33 long.

 

But, we have the oldest Government of anywhere in the world,

we were the first place in the world to give women the vote,

we can trace our Viking heritage further back than Norway can (which even I find odd!)

our entire Island is UNESCO rated

 

and of course we have the world famous TT Races!

 

 

Oh, one last thing, our tiny island is a world leader in the space, tech and finance industry.

 

But I do think you have nailed it on the head. Where I live, there is a small town mentality. If a business doesn't give you what you expect they just wouldn't last.

 

anyhow, great debating with you! its how we learn to see other peoples point of view. we can disagree but still respect others view. Dead horse haters, stop reading already!!!

[Ocean Boy]

 

Read the Terms and Conditions of everything you purchase very carefully, and if there is anything that is essential to your satisfaction that is unilateral subject to change, do not make the purchase. What I suspect is the reality for most people, though, is that they recognize that doing business in the mass market involves a certain amount of flexibility on the part of the consumer in return for remarkably lower prices than what would be charged if everything was custom and individual. There are literally hundreds of identifiable aspects of a cruise vacation, the soap in the shower, cream for the coffee in the MDR, pretty adornments on the wall on Deck 5, etc. For practically every mass market purchase, including every cruise I've ever been on and every vacation destination I've ever been to, the percentage of those aspects that are precisely as one would expect is remarkably large. That's why consumers accept "subject to change". The actual number of aspects that change is always quite small as compared to the hundreds upon hundreds of aspects that haven't changed.

Though I certainly cannot argue with your statement I would just say that before we took our first cruise I read the contract and my first thought was... why would anyone ever agree to these terms? One of the clauses back then stated that the cruise line made no warranty as to the sea worthiness of its ships.:eek: And still there are things in the contract that, if they did happen, would lead to a less than satisfactory experience. I just have to hope for the best that those things won't happen and have to accept the small risk that they will. The only other option, of course, would be to stop cruising.

[Chrome Diva]

My husband has always wanted to go to Isle of Man. Please find us and you can tell my hubby just how exciting it is. Susie Anna.

 

 

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[Suzieanna]

I think "exciting" might be stretching it a bit! But we have loads and loads of history, a couple of lovely beaches and lots of things that you don't actually see anywhere else any more eg water wheels and trams pulled by horses... We are also relatively crime free. We do have cruise ships that come here, although they tend to be those ones like Windstar.

[swoopy2110]

I think "exciting" might be stretching it a bit! But we have loads and loads of history, a couple of lovely beaches and lots of things that you don't actually see anywhere else any more eg water wheels and trams pulled by horses... We are also relatively crime free. We do have cruise ships that come here, although they tend to be those ones like Windstar.

 

Seconded!

 

Le Soleal is in the bay today. Tendering looked a bit ropey when I drove past earlier

 

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:739021/mmsi:578000200/imo:9641675/vessel:LE_SOLEAL

 

:D

[Milwaukee Eight]

I thought this thread was about the new room service charges. ???

 

 

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[bUU]

Though I certainly cannot argue with your statement I would just say that before we took our first cruise I read the contract and my first thought was... why would anyone ever agree to these terms?

Have you ever read the terms and condition for productivity software? The cruise contract is tame by comparison.

 

I just have to hope for the best that those things won't happen and have to accept the small risk that they will. The only other option, of course, would be to stop cruising.

Precisely. And so the thread really boils down to whether a $7.95 room service charge is something one can accept. It's the kind of thing which can serve as a benchmark about whether the terms of the cruise contract is something you can accept. (It's actually pretty small change compared to others that are covered by the terms and conditions, such as skipped ports.)

[JKrise]

Time for someone to say it...

$7.95 for room service is ridiculous...especially in light of there are NO proteins on the complementary menu just junk carb loaded food.

 

Moreover, lets not forget about those who have mobility issues, the handicapped, elderly or parents with a child just having a bad day (infants, toddles, autistic)...and need to stay in there room for any range of issues. It may be perceived as an attempt by RCL to exploit these groups using their misfortune to cash in?

Guess no one at corporate was bold enough to speak up and said "Hey...This may not be a good idea..How about adjusting to one free room service per day...beyond that a $$ charge."

 

DW and I called RCL last Saturday and voiced our opinion about making this change AFTER we had made our final payment. After some discussions back and forth about agreement and what it means to make a deal (I grew up in the Midwest...when you make a deal and shake on it (final payment), that is your bond), you do not attempt to change the deal after payment. To the credit of RCL (Hats off !!), they applied an OBC slightly north of the expenses we would be charged should we choose to have room service once each day. Again, hats off to RCL for making good on a temporarily broken deal.

Edited May 3, 2017 by JKrise

[yj_eugene]

And so the thread really boils down to whether a $7.95 room service charge is something one can accept.

 

Based on our recent experience on the Brilliance, no way. Delivery took an hour (we were told 30-45 minutes), one item was forgotten, another was made incorrectly. When room service was free, we forgave the lateness and most mistakes (including another forgotten item from the free continental breakfast menu on a different day). Having to pay a $7.95 service charge now, there's no room for such tardiness, sloppy errors, and careless attitude anymore. We probably won't be using room service again, which is likely just fine with Royal. Make customers pay for crappy service, customers get fed up and stop using crappy service, service then goes away entirely because they claim nobody's using it, is probably their goal anyway.

[miked998]

Based on our recent experience on the Brilliance, no way. Delivery took an hour (we were told 30-45 minutes), one item was forgotten, another was made incorrectly. When room service was free, we forgave the lateness and most mistakes (including another forgotten item from the free continental breakfast menu on a different day). Having to pay a $7.95 service charge now, there's no room for such tardiness, sloppy errors, and careless attitude anymore. We probably won't be using room service again, which is likely just fine with Royal. Make customers pay for crappy service, customers get fed up and stop using crappy service, service then goes away entirely because they claim nobody's using it, is probably their goal anyway.

 

I like the upgraded menu versus what it was the last time we cruised about a year ago. The cheese steak, chicken wings, and chicken fingers were all very good. I ordered it twice on our recent Harmony cruise both times around 1AM. Both times we were told 45 minutes... the first time took 45 minutes, the second time took just over 2 hours. I don't mind paying $7.95 to eat late at night after partying all night but the 2 hour delivery is unacceptable. They must have had a lot of people ordering food after returning to their rooms after the bars start to die down.

[bUU]

Based on our recent experience on the Brilliance, no way.

I'm sorry I wasn't clear. I meant that it boils down to whether folks can accept cruising on the cruise line given that they may make a change such as adding a $7.95 room service charge.

[Ocean Boy]

I like the upgraded menu versus what it was the last time we cruised about a year ago. The cheese steak, chicken wings, and chicken fingers were all very good. I ordered it twice on our recent Harmony cruise both times around 1AM. Both times we were told 45 minutes... the first time took 45 minutes, the second time took just over 2 hours. I don't mind paying $7.95 to eat late at night after partying all night but the 2 hour delivery is unacceptable. They must have had a lot of people ordering food after returning to their rooms after the bars start to die down.

Maybe that means there is a need for a food venue to be open at that time of night that has decent food to eat.

[nelblu]

That':Ds why i fly Southwest no baggage fees unless excessive baggage

 

True, but you do not get the opportunity to select your seats upon booking, unless you pay more.

[bUU]

Maybe that means there is a need for a food venue to be open at that time of night that has decent food to eat.

Isn't that what Cafe Promenade is for?

 

This message may have been entered using voice recognition. Please excuse any typos.

[bouhunter]

True, but you do not get the opportunity to select your seats upon booking, unless you pay more.

 

Paying extra gets you on the plane sooner, but there is no way for anyone to select seats on SW.

[Clarea]

Isn't that what Cafe Promenade is for?

True on the newer ships, but a problem on Vision and Radiance class ships.