Anyone else annoyed with Ncl decrease in amenities?

[SailBreakaway]

I want to add some relevance to this thread, and back out of the butter and weeds a bit.

 

As someone who works (sine 1997) in the airline and corporate jet industry, I'll make this brief comparison, to demonstrate that our entire world is heading in this direction, as time goes by, and it's not showing any signs of reversal..

 

In the 80s, we traveled on 727s, L10-11s, 747 Classics, DC-9s, the BAC 1-11, and 1st generation 737s.

Since then the seat pitch has decreased significantly. We now really pack folks in.   In 1980 a 737-200 had 20 rows of 6, 120 passengers. Now the same size newer generation (NG) 737 seats 146+, for the same fuselage length.

 

We had full hot meals on most flights domestic and international,, as many bags checked as you could pull, carry-ons, headphones for music, towels, blankets, pillows, extra drinks, snacks, and on and on.  It was an experience.  Generic First class seats on international flights now significantly exceeds  what a ticket with white glove service on the Concorde would have cost back in the day (taking into account inflation).Today, we've truly evolved.  

 

The cruise lines are not doing anything any other industry isn't.  To be frank, I'm surprised that the industry hasn't followed as quickly as the airline industry has.

 

NCL reports record profits every quarter now for over a year.  They're doing well, and that trend will continue as they and their competitors maximize revenue and profits, until, the bookings begin to decrease.  Today we're booking further out and paying more for less, at record rates.  

 

I'm not sure what to say.  I hate it, I really do, but the world is marching on, to what end? I'm not sure.  That's a much bigger discussion for a really rainy long day!

 

Until then, enjoy yourselves, that's why we're here.  

[sparks1093]

9 hours ago, SailBreakaway said:

I want to add some relevance to this thread, and back out of the butter and weeds a bit.

 

As someone who works (sine 1997) in the airline and corporate jet industry, I'll make this brief comparison, to demonstrate that our entire world is heading in this direction, as time goes by, and it's not showing any signs of reversal..

 

In the 80s, we traveled on 727s, L10-11s, 747 Classics, DC-9s, the BAC 1-11, and 1st generation 737s.

Since then the seat pitch has decreased significantly. We now really pack folks in.   In 1980 a 737-200 had 20 rows of 6, 120 passengers. Now the same size newer generation (NG) 737 seats 146+, for the same fuselage length.

 

We had full hot meals on most flights domestic and international,, as many bags checked as you could pull, carry-ons, headphones for music, towels, blankets, pillows, extra drinks, snacks, and on and on.  It was an experience.  Generic First class seats on international flights now significantly exceeds  what a ticket with white glove service on the Concorde would have cost back in the day (taking into account inflation).Today, we've truly evolved.  

 

The cruise lines are not doing anything any other industry isn't.  To be frank, I'm surprised that the industry hasn't followed as quickly as the airline industry has.

 

NCL reports record profits every quarter now for over a year.  They're doing well, and that trend will continue as they and their competitors maximize revenue and profits, until, the bookings begin to decrease.  Today we're booking further out and paying more for less, at record rates.  

 

I'm not sure what to say.  I hate it, I really do, but the world is marching on, to what end? I'm not sure.  That's a much bigger discussion for a really rainy long day!

 

Until then, enjoy yourselves, that's why we're here.  

So if you had to fly on airline X for $2000 or airline Y for $1000 which do you choose since they both have cut back what is offered? That's the quandary many face when it comes to NCL. NCL is a little better than the competition in some areas but it's not worth twice the amount the competition charges (yes, yes, I know, there are still good deals to be had if you can book under certain circumstances). Del Rio's stated objective when he took over was to make NCL a more upscale line on par with Celebrity so it would be a stepping stone to lines like Oceania. Upscale lines, and upscale establishments in general, don't make customers ask for things, they anticipate the customer's needs. Bar drinks have the appropriate garnish, ample condiments are on the table, etc. Yes, these are all little things but that's what separates the upscale from the non-upscale- they pay attention to the little things. I paid $1880 for our recently completed cruise on Royal and there were service lapses but at the end of the cruise we still felt like we'd received a good value for our money. Had I paid the $3600 that NCL wanted for a similar cruise the service lapses would have chaffed a bit more. Maybe it's just me, but if I'm paying more for a product I expect more from the product.

[graphicguy]

I don’t think I’ve ever paid (significantly) more for an NCL cruise than any other cruise.  Yes, the Haven costs more, but so did my Yacht Club sailings.  Different experience, though.

 

Generally speaking, I like sailing in balcony cabins or above.  I have been known to sail in available solo cabins (both NCL and RCCL has them).  Price paid reflects that.

 

But, $2,200-$2,500 is what I expect and do usually pay for a balcony cabin, regardless of cruise line (current pricing).  The nice thing about NCL, I can get the good drink, dinner, internet goodies thrown in from NCL at that price.

 

Haven and Yacht Club....I expect to pay around $4K-$4,600 for either.  In fairness, the first Yacht Club fare I paid was $3,800.  Those fares are long gone, though.    I can still get a Haven Suite in that $4k-$4,600 price range, though.

[DZcreature]

     I have a few comments about issues brought up in this thread.

Just off the Gem yesterday. We had a great time. We had a midship balcony room. One of the reasons I book a balcony room is that we enjoy the coffee maker. It was in our room upon arrival and the tray with the coffee maker was stocked with coffee packets, creamer etc.

     The first day our room steward very nicely explained that he would give us an ice bucket set up and provide us with ice in the morning and evening if we wanted it. We said yes that would be great. We never had to ask for ice again and he kept the bucket full all week.

     He said that towel animals were not automatically made anymore, but that he would have no problem making them for us. We never said yes please make them, but we said we enjoyed them in the past. He ended up making them all week. Most were made with the small towels and wash cloths so not too much more laundry. They were very cute.

      In regards to the soft serve ice cream, I was glad they had a server making cones in the Garden Café. It kept the ice cream area cleaner, and you knew no one had touched your cone trying to get one out of the dispenser. My husband also said he saw people coming from The Great Outdoors with full cones. I also was very pleased that in The Garden Café they had beverage servers coming around with trays of juice at breakfast, and trays of lemonade, iced tea, and flavored waters at lunch time. It was great to have the drinks brought around so that you did not have to worry about juggling your plate of food and your beverage. I also saw servers helping some elderly and handicapped people by carrying their plates of food for them. 

     We cruised on Gem out of New York last May and felt that the service in the dining rooms was much better this year. We had excellent interactions with the dining staff in the MDR, Le Bistro, Moderno, Orchid Garden, and O'Sheehan's which were the places we dined in addition to The Great Outdoors and The Garden Café. My husband did have to ask for extra butter once, which was provided right away. Another time the server noticed our butter dish was low and refilled it automatically.

      I feel that things are evolving on NCL, and that some areas have actually improved with the changes. I do not like that with five "free" offers the fares have gone up quite a bit. I would prefer to keep the fares a little lower, and go back to just picking two offers.

Also, one night in Spinnaker we were awarded best dance couple, and they awarded us a free drink. We had the free beverage package so we would have preferred a key chain, lanyard, or other souvenir item.

      All in all the friendly, relaxed atmosphere, great food options, and fun entertainment did make us decide to purchase a cruise next voucher! 🙂

 

     

[Barb Nahoumi]

On 5/19/2019 at 6:25 AM, Greenpea2 said:

I don't know about the coffeemaker part, but all you had to do was request towel animals (they are happy to make them upon request) and an ice bucket. 

I requested an ice bucket for my deck 5 O.V., and was told that they were discontinued a few months ago.  

[DZcreature]

25 minutes ago, Barb Nahoumi said:

I requested an ice bucket for my deck 5 O.V., and was told that they were discontinued a few months ago.  

Wow, that is awful. When was your cruise? Maybe they added them back, upon request, because too many people were upset? I hope an ice bucket is not something that only comes with balcony or higher room categories 😒.

[Greenpea2]

31 minutes ago, Barb Nahoumi said:

I requested an ice bucket for my deck 5 O.V., and was told that they were discontinued a few months ago.  

It sounds like you had a lazy steward. That’s not what others are reporting. That’s crazy that you asked and he or she didn’t just find you one for your cruise. I’m sure he or she could have found one for you. 😞

[FLAHAM]

35 minutes ago, Barb Nahoumi said:

I requested an ice bucket for my deck 5 O.V., and was told that they were discontinued a few months ago.  

 

Had daily ice bucket service in my studio on the Escape two months ago.

[Newleno]

7 hours ago, graphicguy said:

 

But, $2,200-$2,500 is what I expect and do usually pay for a balcony cabin, regardless of cruise line (current pricing).  The nice thing about NCL, I can get the good drink, dinner, internet goodies thrown in from NCL at that price.

 

For how long a cruise, just curious, thanks

[newmexicoNita]

1 hour ago, Barb Nahoumi said:

I requested an ice bucket for my deck 5 O.V., and was told that they were discontinued a few months ago.  

We sailed on the Dawn in March and had no problems with the ice bucket.WE were ocean as well. In fact our cabin would knock on our door every afternoon to ask if we needed ice. We were deck 4 or 5 as well; whatever the gang was on: can't remember

[phissy]

7 hours ago, graphicguy said:

I don’t think I’ve ever paid (significantly) more for an NCL cruise than any other cruise.  Yes, the Haven costs more, but so did my Yacht Club sailings.  Different experience, though.

 

Generally speaking, I like sailing in balcony cabins or above.  I have been known to sail in available solo cabins (both NCL and RCCL has them).  Price paid reflects that.

 

But, $2,200-$2,500 is what I expect and do usually pay for a balcony cabin, regardless of cruise line (current pricing).  The nice thing about NCL, I can get the good drink, dinner, internet goodies thrown in from NCL at that price.

 

Haven and Yacht Club....I expect to pay around $4K-$4,600 for either.  In fairness, the first Yacht Club fare I paid was $3,800.  Those fares are long gone, though.    I can still get a Haven Suite in that $4k-$4,600 price range, though.

I would assume that these are per person.  

We just sailed Yacht Club and paid about $5, 000 for 2 people for 7 days.

Just booked NCL  and Balcony was $2,250 per person 7 days.

Haven prices also look like pp.

We sailed NCL last fall , noticed that DSC has increased AGAIN. I guess this will keep happening, every year. (I remember the year they increased it 3 times)

MSC DSC is $12.50/pp/day including YC

NCL DSC. is $15.00/pp/day or $18.00/pp/day for Suites and Haven - Currently

Edited May 25, 2019 by phissy

[mugtech]

Those of us who refrain from alcohol realize that we are helping to subsidize the "free" drink package.  I have compared RCCL and NCL similar itineraries with similar ships and found that RCI comes out hundreds of dollars cheaper.  In addition I can book RCCL 2 years ahead of time, knowing the prices will probably increase later.  NCL is the opposite, hard to book 2 years out, know the prices will fall later.  Just saw a 15 day trans Pacific cruise from Japan to Seattle on the Ovation, a Quantum class ship, in May of 2021 selling insides for less than $800 pp including fees and taxes.  And the balconies are only a few hundred dollars more expensive, plus loyalty status gives about a $300 discount per cabin on balcony and above.   Nothing like that ever available on NCL.

[sparks1093]

12 hours ago, newmexicoNita said:

We sailed on the Dawn in March and had no problems with the ice bucket.WE were ocean as well. In fact our cabin would knock on our door every afternoon to ask if we needed ice. We were deck 4 or 5 as well; whatever the gang was on: can't remember

LOL, I'm sure that makes Barb feel so much better. Yes, it could have been a matter of a lazy steward but that doesn't excuse the lapse.

[newmexicoNita]

12 hours ago, phissy said:

I would assume that these are per person.  

We just sailed Yacht Club and paid about $5, 000 for 2 people for 7 days.

Just booked NCL  and Balcony was $2,250 per person 7 days.

Haven prices also look like pp.

We sailed NCL last fall , noticed that DSC has increased AGAIN. I guess this will keep happening, every year. (I remember the year they increased it 3 times)

MSC DSC is $12.50/pp/day including YC

NCL DSC. is $15.00/pp/day or $18.00/pp/day for Suites and Haven - Currently

Don't know what ship you were checking or what sail date but we have never paid $2,250 for a balcony cabin. We just finalized our next cruise: total cost including all taxes, port charges and travel insurance: $3,360 for 2. 

[deliver42]

They have to be Sail Away prices for the balcony, with no perks. Pot luck where you wind up, since it's only a guaranteed cabin.

[newmexicoNita]

14 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

They have to be Sail Away prices for the balcony, with no perks. Pot luck where you wind up, since it's only a guaranteed cabin.

are you referring to my post? If you are, no it was not a sail away and yes, it come with perks: UDP for 3 nights, UBP, and $50 off tours and yes, we did choose our cabin. We are on deck 12, mid ship, near elevator as we had requested. You are right about "free at sea" for those rates you do have no choices except inside, outside or balcony. 

[ollienbertsmum]

On 5/21/2019 at 1:54 AM, CILCIANRQTS said:

Sum total of towel animal impact:

 

”Aw, isn’t that cute!

What do you want to do for breakfast tomorrow?”

 

Unless it is your first cruise perhaps.  With young children we would look forward to coming back to the room to see what sort of animal we had.  Every animal was duly photographed.  I really should delete those photos.  

 

Now I just think ‘I need a shower’ and use the towel.  

 

Maybe they should sell them as part of a package.  For $11.99 a day your steward will leave an enchanting towel animal in  your room.  

[graphicguy]

16 hours ago, phissy said:

I would assume that these are per person.  

We just sailed Yacht Club and paid about $5, 000 for 2 people for 7 days.

Just booked NCL  and Balcony was $2,250 per person 7 days.

Haven prices also look like pp.

We sailed NCL last fall , noticed that DSC has increased AGAIN. I guess this will keep happening, every year. (I remember the year they increased it 3 times)

MSC DSC is $12.50/pp/day including YC

NCL DSC. is $15.00/pp/day or $18.00/pp/day for Suites and Haven - Currently

Nope...not per person.  Those prices are per cabin.

 

Just have to shop a little bit.  I still find NCL is as competitive as any other cruise line.....all in.

 

If you only look at one piece of the pricing pie, you’ll find different discrepancies.  I look only at the total cost when I shop.  So, it doesn’t matter to me if a service charge is different, as long as it doesn’t affect my total out of pocket for the cruise.

 

A quick look, here’s a Haven cabin for $4,800 on one of my favorite NCL ships...leaving next month.....

 

https://www.ncl.com/cruises/7-day-western-caribbean-from-miami-BREAKAWAY7MIARTBBPICMACZMMIA?sailmonths=4294941886&numberOfGuests=4294953449&state=OH&itineraryCode=BREAKAWAY7MIARTBBPICMACZMMIA

Edited May 26, 2019 by graphicguy

[phissy]

5 hours ago, newmexicoNita said:

Don't know what ship you were checking or what sail date but we have never paid $2,250 for a balcony cabin. We just finalized our next cruise: total cost including all taxes, port charges and travel insurance: $3,360 for 2. 

The cost is for cruise this August . Bliss to Alaska and Balconies are about 2,499 pp and up .about  $5,800 with taxes and fees.   

I have noticed that as of January 2020, NCL is modifying or adding categories to each group.   balcony and mini suites will have more sub groups.  (some seem to be blocked) 

It looks like they are trying to add additional cost for small differences in cabins.

Just like airlines are now adding Saver and Economy Plus to Main cabin fares.

Sail Away cabins for the Bliss next year are all listed as Sold Out.  It seems they are blocking them.

Edited May 26, 2019 by phissy

[dexddd]

18 minutes ago, phissy said:

The cost is for cruise this August . Bliss to Alaska and Balconies are about 2,499 pp and up .about  $5,800 with taxes and fees.   

I have noticed that as of January 2020, NCL is modifying or adding categories to each group.   balcony and mini suites will have more sub groups.  (some seem to be blocked) 

It looks like they are trying to add additional cost for small differences in cabins.

Just like airlines are now adding Saver and Economy Plus to Main cabin fares.

Sail Away cabins for the Bliss next year are all listed as Sold Out.  It seems they are blocking them.

Yep, that came out a few months ago with new categories.  They are doing differences between OS on Dawn and Jewel class deck 9 & 10, DOS decks 17 &18 that have both on the newer ships and some others mentioned in the couple of threads at the time.

[Barb Nahoumi]

3 hours ago, ollienbertsmum said:

 

Unless it is your first cruise perhaps.  With young children we would look forward to coming back to the room to see what sort of animal we had.  Every animal was duly photographed.  I really should delete those photos.  

 

Now I just think ‘I need a shower’ and use the towel.  

 

Maybe they should sell them as part of a package.  For $11.99 a day your steward will leave an enchanting towel animal in  your room.  

Nah, we pay for too much stuff already.

 

[Barb Nahoumi]

19 hours ago, newmexicoNita said:

We sailed on the Dawn in March and had no problems with the ice bucket.WE were ocean as well. In fact our cabin would knock on our door every afternoon to ask if we needed ice. We were deck 4 or 5 as well; whatever the gang was on: can't remember

The steward suggested that I keep my wine in the mini-fridge.  I had him empty the contents, and we did keep our wine in the fridge.  

[Barb Nahoumi]

20 hours ago, DZcreature said:

Wow, that is awful. When was your cruise? Maybe they added them back, upon request, because too many people were upset? I hope an ice bucket is not something that only comes with balcony or higher room categories 😒.

Our cruise was last week on the Gem, from Boston to Bermuda.  I never heard anything about a discontinuance of ice buckets previous to this cruise, only towel animals.

[cruiserssandr]

4 minutes ago, Barb Nahoumi said:

Our cruise was last week on the Gem, from Boston to Bermuda.  I never heard anything about a discontinuance of ice buckets previous to this cruise, only towel animals.

We just got off the Gem on Friday.  We had an inside cabin.  No ice bucket the first day but figured our room steward was so busy. None the next day.  Next time I saw him I asked him if we could have some ice and he said sure.  He even made us a beautiful towel flower for our anniversary.  He was awesome.  His name was Izzy and he was from Brazil

[newmexicoNita]

1 hour ago, Barb Nahoumi said:

The steward suggested that I keep my wine in the mini-fridge.  I had him empty the contents, and we did keep our wine in the fridge.  

That is crazy!! I can even understand not having ice chests but if you request one, I would think your cabin steward could find one: Shame on him. A bottle of wine fits much better in an ice bucket than the tiny mini fridges. I hope you didn't tip him extra..