$7.95 Room Service Charge

[Clarea]

Apologies I misread-- half the menu (continental) is free. The "American" breakfast on the other half incurs a charge.

 

Basically bread, cereal, fruit is complimentary.

Good to hear. I think they even have one hot item (other than beverages) for free: oatmeal.:)

[richstowe]

Good to hear. I think they even have one hot item (other than beverages) for free: oatmeal.:)

But they serve it cold .:D

[livingonthebeach]

Not quite sure if this has been mentioned previously on this thread (can't go back 88 pages) but it certainly begs the following questions:

 

Has anyone thought about the strategy behind ending the price in .95? Why not round it off to $8 instead of $7.95? After the tip it's going to be in the $8-$10 range anyway. Could it be that some pricing decisions are based on the theory that because we read from left to right, the first digit of the price resonates with us the most? Are they convinced we are more likely to order room service for $7.95 than place an identical order for $8.00? Do they think that if it starts with a 7 we will consider it a better deal than if it starts with an 8? Or do they (suits at RCCI that is ) take us for complete idiots? :rolleyes: Do they think that having to decide whether we want food for $8.00 versus an $8.00 glass of Chardonnay, we opt for the latter and dump a few grand in the casino for good measure? Reminds me of some real estate ads for $999,999.99! :eek: .95 instead of .99 - how clever!!! ;p

[livingonthebeach]

Agree that a new charge for something previously not charged is unfortunate.

 

That said...one could make a case that if this new $7.95 fee makes or breaks things...perhaps the budget is too tight to book the cruise in the first place. Prices change over time in lots of ways...and seeing how may posts and reads are in this thread has turned this into the "Never-ending Story" web version.

I beg to differ. $7.95 is not going to break anyone's bank here. It's the principle that people have issue with. How can RCCI expect us to be "Loyal to Royal" when they pride themselves on building the best loyalty program on the high seas, and then every time you turn around they are taking more and more away and increasing prices?

 

Worse, they make it seem like it's an improvement in service when the reality is it's an improvement in their bottom line. Have you checked the latest RCCI quarterly profits? The room service charge might be the latest, but it's certainly not the first nor the last of changes that will continue to line their pockets and empty ours. :mad:

[bUU]

The point is that room service had been an included benefit forever. Adding an additional charge for it amounts to receiving less for the same price of the cruise.

That's normal in today's consumer marketplace: Rather than reflect the entirety of inflation in prices, increase prices by half of inflation and decrease what you offer to account for the other half. Consumers greatly prefer this because generally they're focused on getting the lowest base price.

 

The prototypical example of this is the "pound of coffee" which in many cases is now down to 11.5 oz.

 

We have continued to see cutbacks over the years. If we do not voice our objection they will and are looking for the next item they can charge more for.

If all folks do is voice objections then they will continue to charge more. Talk is cheap and they know this. They know that all that matters is what people actually spend their money on. And they watch the metrics very carefully and know when to slow down versus speed up the price increases, and know when to slow down versus speed up the additional fees, and know when to slow down versus speed up the cutbacks.

 

The way to stop cutbacks is for enough passengers to switch to cruise lines that don't have them.

[Milwaukee Eight]

The way to stop cutbacks is for enough passengers to switch to cruise lines that don't have them.

 

 

Just what cruise line would that be?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[John&LaLa]

Not quite sure if this has been mentioned previously on this thread (can't go back 88 pages) but it certainly begs the following questions:

 

Has anyone thought about the strategy behind ending the price in .95? Why not round it off to $8 instead of $7.95? After the tip it's going to be in the $8-$10 range anyway. Could it be that some pricing decisions are based on the theory that because we read from left to right, the first digit of the price resonates with us the most? Are they convinced we are more likely to order room service for $7.95 than place an identical order for $8.00? Do they think that if it starts with a 7 we will consider it a better deal than if it starts with an 8? Or do they (suits at RCCI that is ) take us for complete idiots? :rolleyes: Do they think that having to decide whether we want food for $8.00 versus an $8.00 glass of Chardonnay, we opt for the latter and dump a few grand in the casino for good measure? Reminds me of some real estate ads for $999,999.99! :eek: .95 instead of .99 - how clever!!! ;p

Is that why gasoline still has 9/10's added to the price?

 

The real estate example is different since those numbers are set up for searches.

 

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Forums mobile app

[Kmkub]

Has anyone thought about the strategy behind ending the price in .95?

The same reason every product on the market ends with .95. (For the reasons you stated; tricks the brain.) Gas is the worst, with every gallon costs $x + 9/10 of a penny.

[Canadian1]

I beg to differ. $7.95 is not going to break anyone's bank here. It's the principle that people have issue with. How can RCCI expect us to be "Loyal to Royal" when they pride themselves on building the best loyalty program on the high seas, and then every time you turn around they are taking more and more away and increasing prices?

 

Worse, they make it seem like it's an improvement in service when the reality is it's an improvement in their bottom line. Have you checked the latest RCCI quarterly profits? The room service charge might be the latest, but it's certainly not the first nor the last of changes that will continue to line their pockets and empty ours. :mad:

[emoji106]

[Canadian1]

The same reason every product on the market ends with .95. (For the reasons you stated; tricks the brain.) Gas is the worst, with every gallon costs $x + 9/10 of a penny.

There is psychological behind this. Because what we see $7.99 or in this case $7.95, at a quick glance it would appear to be cheaper than $8.00.

[Canadian1]

One other beef with charging for room service is that normally we order it if we're not feeling 100%

 

So now we're being penalized for ordering something.

 

Much better to go to the buffet green in the gills. I'm sure other diners would be happy with that; even if just a bit of seasickness, but, they don't know that.

[Monochrome]

When I booked our upcoming RC consecutive cruises a few months ago, they included "complimentary" room service. Now they do not. We are, in fact, not receiving what we agreed to pay for. Although room service is not an issue for us (we rarely use it), my concern is what other arbitrary changes they will make. Yes, I could cancel on principle, but our flights are booked and it was the itinerary that we wanted.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[bUU]

Just what cruise line would that be?

Precisely the point. (There are such cruise lines, but -- shocker! -- they cost more.)

 

 

 

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

[Clarea]

When I booked our upcoming RC consecutive cruises a few months ago, they included "complimentary" room service. Now they do not. We are, in fact, not receiving what we agreed to pay for. Although room service is not an issue for us (we rarely use it), my concern is what other arbitrary changes they will make. Yes, I could cancel on principle, but our flights are booked and it was the itinerary that we wanted.

They could change the itinerary too! All in the cruise contract we agree to.

[Milwaukee Eight]

Look, most land based Hotels have a built in up charge on items ordered for Room Service. Welcome to the real world.

 

And Bob Knows....

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[John&LaLa]

I wonder how all those non US consumer protection laws are working out in regards to this. 😉

 

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Forums mobile app

[caribill]

Look, most land based Hotels have a built in up charge on items ordered for Room Service. Welcome to the real world.

 

And Bob Knows....

 

And land based hotels do not have free entertainment each night, free lectures, free buffets, etc.

 

Comparing what a cruise includes to what a hotel includes is comparing apples to oranges.

[nelblu]

Also, don't forget those excessive daily resorts fees.

[bUU]

I wonder how all those non US consumer protection laws are working out in regards to this. 😉

If we ask the question enough times, eventually it'll be beyond the point in time after which they wouldn't apply regardless.

[DPrincess81]

I'm unable to read 89 pages of this discussion, but thought this would be a safe place to lament my woes about the charge. We are trying to create an "all inclusive" package for ourselves that we are paying over the course of these months so that our charges after our October sailing (Oasis) are minimal. I'm bummed because I considered room service an absolute delight and luxury (even if the food is just so-so) that we could partake in on a whim. Sometimes it's just the feeling of luxury it provided because we are not ones to order room service in a hotel where the charges rack up to closer to $50. (By comparison, $7.95 isn't the end of the world, obviously.)

 

I'm not sure if in the previous 89 pages this was mentioned, but I find it more shocking that they went from $0 to $7.95. That is a relatively steep jump especially when you add gratuity and round it up to $10. Maybe loyal cruisers wouldn't have been as upset if they had done a $3.00 charge for a couple of years. I also wonder if it affected the room service hosts -- I'm assuming they're not getting as much business as they used to, so fewer tips, which is a bummer for them.

 

Okay, that was my two cents!

[Clarea]

I'm unable to read 89 pages of this discussion, but thought this would be a safe place to lament my woes about the charge. We are trying to create an "all inclusive" package for ourselves that we are paying over the course of these months so that our charges after our October sailing (Oasis) are minimal ...

You can still make your "all inclusive" package. Just buy yourself some on board credit in the amount of what you would expect to spend on room service.

[bUU]

It's easy to restore the all-inclusive nature of no-extra-charge room service: Put a reasonable amount of money into your on-board account before embarkation ... we would probably deposit $80. Effectively, you're determining how much that "included" service is worth to you, and paying only that amount. Many folks find that preferable to the prospect of being a relatively light users of an included service and therefore subsidizing the excess of others.

[DPrincess81]

You can still make your "all inclusive" package. Just buy yourself some on board credit in the amount of what you would expect to spend on room service.

 

That's an excellent idea! Thank you. :*

[Milwaukee Eight]

You can still make your "all inclusive" package. Just buy yourself some on board credit in the amount of what you would expect to spend on room service.

 

 

Or get a GS or higher and a drink package

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[richstowe]

That's an excellent idea! Thank you. :*

Or cruise HAL or another brand that doesn't charge for room service . :p