Free-Stlye Cruising - What's Your Opinion

[SolsticeCruzer]

No formal wear to tug around in another suitcase. What a wonderful trip we had in CLE airport to CO to fly to Newark & then into Super Shuttle to the terminal. We each had a suitcase, poor husband was not tugging 2 of them around.

 

One late afternoon (5PM) we returned from a long walk around Bermuda. I was in a flowery top & wheat colored shorts that looked like a skort. Salsa's hostess walked over to tell us we could come in & sit & order, so we did. So dinner in shorts was OK. Tables for 2 are all over the place, so we can enjoy our time togther. We did invite friends to join us one night and no problem. To eat with the best waiter in the Venitian dining room was a joy, so we did for7 lunches & 4 evenings and ate at Salsa twice (the lobster tacos are to die for). Then we got a BOGO deal from the Rewards deposit deal at Baboo for some great Asian treats.

 

With the free coffee from the coffeemaker in our mini & free laundry since I always carry my small bottle of Tide & 4 dryer sheets. Just some many great tiems that other cruiselines charge for. Feel very special with NCL.

 

What other good freebies were you able to get on this cruise? :eek:

[cheshiremackat]

and someone, not you spoke to a head waiter who let it slip: I would call that a true rumor: remember when we were kids and played the game gossip, this falls into the same catagory. I certainly would not claim this will not happen or be the trend of the future, but I would not be inclined to repeat or believe it at this stage. If there is any truth to it, my guess is no one on the staff would even know about it at this stage. I can remember hearing that our company was going to be sold and it was fact, we heard it more than once (this was when I was in management with a major hotel chain) it never happened but there were those who could give us all the details.

 

also I will add, not all the ships have added sur charges to all the restaurants as reported from those returning from various cruises. Many have, some have not. ..

 

 

I agree, probably just a rumour (I think the thread was about something to do with a Brazilian steakhouse... ringing any bells?, I had no luck with the search)

 

Anyway, we are well off-topic now. Back to the issue, Free(dom)style terrific for flexibility, not so good on the wallet. :D

 

edit: found the thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=771962

[mbisson]

Now c'mon on... there is no linkage between "free" and "freestyle", the terms are not connected in meaning whatsoever? That is blatantly incorrect. There is a root word here, FREE. I will gladly leave the dictionary work to you.

 

In my opinion, NCL choose "freestyle" EXACTLY to convey the idea of FREEdom, FREEspirited, and yes just plain old "FREE". .

 

You're so right! How dare they even charge to get on the ship, after all FREE is the root word of 'freestyle'. And how can it be freestyle cruising if I have to pay anything. So you're right, there should be no charges whatsoever. That's quite an argument! ;)

[crazy4dis]

i personally HATED freestyle but that is only my opinion i have sailed disney 5times so i understand the bond that you usually get with your waitstaff. i always sail with a grip so table mates are never a issue we did a weekend cruise out of NY and maybe because it was was just a weekend cruise the staff seemed inconvienced if you even asked directions.

the good side:rolleyes: the ship was beautiful and clean we had a mini suite (although noone ever came to clean our room the whole weekend) the staff at guest service really worked hard to get us into cagneys which my dinner was awesome the ones who paid 30.00 for lobster it was way overdone 2 out of 11 returned thier our little helper waiter made out she work so hard everyone tipped her in cash

the bad:mad: the food in regular dining was HORRIBLE it a beautiful place and it had hambergers and hotdogs for lunch :( if i wanted that i would have hung up on the deck had to fight for ressies in a paying resterant there were a few smaller things i was booked on the gem foe nov 08 i cancelled and booked disney i should have given them another chance maybe they just dont care about weekend cruises the girls are headed to bermuda on royal i may try NCL for hawaii next year

thx for listing to my 2cents:o

[cheshiremackat]

You're so right! How dare they even charge to get on the ship, after all FREE is the root word of 'freestyle'. And how can it be freestyle cruising if I have to pay anything. So you're right, there should be no charges whatsoever. That's quite an argument! ;)

 

Nice try at the 'reductio ad absurdum', but really... this isn't a case of the 'excluded middle'. :rolleyes:

 

For the benefit of *your* argument then, kindly explain what NCL means by "free to do whatever"... I guess I **can** just walk on the ship without paying then, huh? NCL says so; right on their webpage, right? RIGHT?

 

Now, lets get real, shall we? There have been *many* posts on these boards about freestyle being "fee-style"... and I have seen you post replies in countless threads, so I know you are aware of these complaints ;) . All I am trying to point out is that the marketing and positioning of "free-style" is misleading to a good deal of people.

[beachchick]

To each his own, but I don't have a problem whatsoever saying, "could I have coffee please". I don't need my waiter to know my preferences and will trade that perk for the choice to eat whatever time I want. Early if I'm starved at 5:30 pm, or 9:30 pm if I had a late lunch. Nothing worse for me then coming back on board after a long shore excursion and having just a little time to shower, change and rush to a dining room at a set time.

 

I have no interest in forming a relationship with my server, so Freestyle suits me to a T! I have had servers who I've had great conversations with, however. I like knowing they're friendly because they want to, not because there's a tip for them at the end of the cruise. Asking for cream and sugar takes about a second, so it's never been much of a problem for me to ask for it. I've never had a dish in the dining room that wasn't at least good. I love getting a table for two and have never had a wait nor been handed a pagers. I really hate the though of someone telling me where, when and with whom to eat.

 

I also don't care to have a personal relationship with my waiter...in fact, sometimes it's a little bit awkward. If you order iced tea the first night and the waiter keeps bringing it to you every night thereafter, it's awkward to say, "I don't want iced tea tonight...bring me a soda".

 

I love the Freestyle dining, but have a question for you all. We were on NCL Star in April, and as i said before, the Tex Mex and the Italian had no cover charge. I read on another board just now that in May NCL started charging for ALL the specialty restaurants....true? It's not too much of a problem for me, just curious. Anyone know?

 

Count us in on the "don't care if we have a relationship with our wait staff" crowd. What we expect is courteous, efficient (as possible) service and food served at the right temperatures and in the right order.

 

I know some people feel the need to have "their" waiter be "their" personal attendent (if you will). That's fine and there are many cruise lines that offer that. We too don't understand why it's so hard to simply ask for what we want at any given time. And we're with Suzila that it can be awkward if we don't want what he or she has pre-served that night.

 

Suzila: Yes, they've started charging for the Asian and the Tex-Mex restaurants on some of the ships. Word is that they'll add the other ships over time. What will remain included will be the dining rooms, the buffets, the outdoor grills, and the diners (Blue Lagoon, et al). I think it kind of stinks, but OTOH, food costs are going sky high along with fuel prices. The alternative would be to raise cruise prices for everyone. This way those who want to dine at the specialty restaurants are the only ones who will pay for the increased costs of ingredients. (My DH and I ate solely in the specialty restaurants last cruise, so you can see that this consession is a big one for me because it means that our choices will cost us more next time. That's okay though. My DH doesn't drink alcohol, and we'd be ticked if they raised cruise rates overall in order to include alcohol. I guess we just consider the specialty restaurants an option we can use or not; just like the casino, spa, etc.)

 

musclehead: My DH and I have cruised with RCI (our fave so far), Princess, Norwegian Coastal Voyages/Hurtigruten (on the old Midnatsol), the now defunct US Lines, and NCL.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed the Freestyle options. We don't plan our days around eating, so having options for places and times worked well for us. We had excellent to mediocre service with good being typical. We didn't have a problem with the concept that Freestyle is not a free-for-all. And I do think NCL could do a better job of explaining it. Resort casual attire is requested for the dining rooms and restaurants in the evening. Some people seem to think because it's not appropriate to wear their swimsuit to dinner in Le Bistro that they're being "duped" about Freestyle clothing. Some people don't seem to comprehend that "dine where you want, when you want" by nature must have limitations. None of the specialty restaurants or dining rooms can accomodate the entire pax contigent at one time, but that would be the only way that everyone could be guaranteed to dine where they want at the exact second they want to. Obviously it's logistically impossible do that. Freestyle dining means choices and more relaxed atmosphere. There are those who are quite put out by the concept that they have to make some plans and reservations if they have specific dining places and times in mind. They also sometimes don't consider that if they want to dine at the most popular times, they may have to be flexible.

 

Overall, we had a wonderful time on NCL, but we've also never had a truly "bad" cruise--Not even the one where I broke my ankle and we had to go home on day 4! Some have been better than others with RCI's Mariner being a top pick.

 

beachchick

[newmexicoNita]

i personally HATED freestyle but that is only my opinion i have sailed disney 5times so i understand the bond that you usually get with your waitstaff. i always sail with a grip so table mates are never a issue we did a weekend cruise out of NY and maybe because it was was just a weekend cruise the staff seemed inconvienced if you even asked directions.

the good side:rolleyes: the ship was beautiful and clean we had a mini suite (although noone ever came to clean our room the whole weekend) the staff at guest service really worked hard to get us into cagneys which my dinner was awesome the ones who paid 30.00 for lobster it was way overdone 2 out of 11 returned thier our little helper waiter made out she work so hard everyone tipped her in cash

the bad:mad: the food in regular dining was HORRIBLE it a beautiful place and it had hambergers and hotdogs for lunch :( if i wanted that i would have hung up on the deck had to fight for ressies in a paying resterant there were a few smaller things i was booked on the gem foe nov 08 i cancelled and booked disney i should have given them another chance maybe they just dont care about weekend cruises the girls are headed to bermuda on royal i may try NCL for hawaii next year

thx for listing to my 2cents:o

Comparing those 36 hour or so cruises with a 7 day or longer cruise is worse than comparing apples and oranges. This is not saying you will love freestyle or that NCL is for you, but 2 day cruises are really just party time for everyone. I don't know which you were on, but I do a couple of them have been nightmares. It does sound like you are willing to give NCL another shot...Good luck and btw, I know Disney puts out a great product. I have only had a couple of people complain but I also know the difference in price.

 

Nita

[newmexicoNita]

Nice try at the 'reductio ad absurdum', but really... this isn't a case of the 'excluded middle'. :rolleyes:

 

For the benefit of *your* argument then, kindly explain what NCL means by "free to do whatever"... I guess I **can** just walk on the ship without paying then, huh? NCL says so; right on their webpage, right? RIGHT?

 

Now, lets get real, shall we? There have been *many* posts on these boards about freestyle being "fee-style"... and I have seen you post replies in countless threads, so I know you are aware of these complaints ;) . All I am trying to point out is that the marketing and positioning of "free-style" is misleading to a good deal of people.

Anyone who thinks Freestyle has anything to actually do with "free" knows little about advertising. It a word used to explain the concept and has never meant to indicate everything is free. As for free, being fee on NCL, most of what they charge for is absolutely no different than any other line. The difference is the number of restaurants. Anyone who does any research prior to booking and that means reading brochures, talking to a travel agent, talking to NCL etc should understand what is meant by "freestyle"

 

As for the rumor about no more free dining rooms on F-3, yes, I read the thread and it started with, is it true, F-3 will not have any dining except the buffet. Again, rumors should be spread very carefully as that is all they are.

 

NIta

[halos]

This is hysterical! Love your attitude! :D

 

Seriously, the entire crew (especially the social hosts) on our Spirit sailing last November, were the absolute BEST as far as how friendly, helpful and happily doing their best to make sure we had a good time.

[halos]

 

Now c'mon on... there is no linkage between "free" and "freestyle", the terms are not connected in meaning whatsoever? That is blatantly incorrect. There is a root word here, FREE. I will gladly leave the dictionary work to you.

 

.

 

LOL...I TOTALLY disagree.

You'd have to be pretty slow to think that Freestyle meant free in terms of money.

The word FREE does not solely mean devoid of cost.

 

Respectfully,

Halos..posting from THE LAND OF THE FREE.

(which lately is VERY far from the truth) ;)

[Sea Hound]

You'd have to be pretty slow to think that Freestyle meant free in terms of money.

The word FREE does not solely mean devoid of cost.

 

Respectfully,

Halos..posting from THE LAND OF THE FREE.

(which lately is VERY far from the truth) ;)

 

 

Shucks! I thought this was going to turn into me getting a refund!:p Guess not, huh?

 

Respectfully,

Sea Hound:D <-- is posting from the Land of the Slow

[cheshiremackat]

Anyone who thinks Freestyle has anything to actually do with "free" knows little about advertising

...

Anyone who does any research prior to booking and that means reading brochures, talking to a travel agent, talking to NCL etc should understand what is meant by "freestyle"

 

NIta

 

I think you have just made my point for me. If a new cruiser is required to 'research' freestyle by reading brochures, speaking to agents and calling NCL to understand what "freestyle" really means, well, I don't think the message is as clear as it should be.

 

Consider NCLs competitors;

 

Sandals - "love is all you need"...promising that everything is included (which it is).

Carnival - "The fun ships"... promising fun, again easy to deliver.

RCI- "Get out there"... promising travel, pretty easy it's a ship.

 

Now NCL- "Freestyle" ... means what? FREEDOM? FREESPIRITED? cost-FREE? What?

 

Now feel free to argue away at how obvious Freestyle is, and you immediately knew what freestyle meant when it was announced many moons ago, and I will go back to watching new threads appear every week or so with new cruisers who were misled/misinformed/misunderstood what freestyle meant; never to return to NCL again.

 

It is not my loss, it is NCL's.

[halos]

Shucks! I thought this was going to turn into me getting a refund!:p Guess not, huh?

 

Respectfully,

Sea Hound:D <-- is posting from the Land of the Slow

 

 

LOL!!! smartazz. :p

[98Charlie]

Seriously, the entire crew (especially the social hosts) on our Spirit sailing last November, were the absolute BEST as far as how friendly, helpful and happily doing their best to make sure we had a good time.

 

Couldn't agree with you more about the Spirit.

 

We sailed the Spirit out of NOLA last Nov. It was our first time on Spirit and our 8th cruise on NCL ships. The entire crew from maintenance up to officers was the best we have had on any NCL ship and, I will truthfully add here, on any ship of any other cruise line we've sailed. (And we've sailed multiple cruises on X, Carnival, RCL and Princess as well as NCL.)

 

Loved the Spirit so much that we immediately came home and booked the Spirit for another cruise this November.

 

Have to say that the crew of that ship really knows how to put the ``Spirt'' into ``Freestyle.'':D

 

Dianne

[SailAways]

I think you have just made my point for me. If a new cruiser is required to 'research' freestyle by reading brochures, speaking to agents and calling NCL to understand what "freestyle" really means, well, I don't think the message is as clear as it should be.

 

Consider NCLs competitors;

 

Sandals - "love is all you need"...promising that everything is included (which it is).

Carnival - "The fun ships"... promising fun, again easy to deliver.

RCI- "Get out there"... promising travel, pretty easy it's a ship.

 

Now NCL- "Freestyle" ... means what? FREEDOM? FREESPIRITED? cost-FREE? What?

 

Now feel free to argue away at how obvious Freestyle is, and you immediately knew what freestyle meant when it was announced many moons ago, and I will go back to watching new threads appear every week or so with new cruisers who were misled/misinformed/misunderstood what freestyle meant; never to return to NCL again.

 

It is not my loss, it is NCL's.

 

No argument - But I for one, did understand pretty quickly what "Freestyle" means.

I've never been so naive as to believe that any description such as "Freestyle" - be it NCL, Carnival, Hal GMC, ATT, etc., would be referring to the cost of anything.

It simply indicates a different marketing concept - one which we truly love.

Not being ones who want to be "taken care of" by special perks, we deliberately searched out cruise lines which would allow a more laid back existence for us as we vacationed.

Those who prefer to receive extra attention gravitate elsewhere, or to the suites on NCL ships.

From what is posted on these boards, the care and attention given to suite passengers is great.

But, it is not for us.

Freestyle, or similar will always be our choice.

[newmexicoNita]

I think you have just made my point for me. If a new cruiser is required to 'research' freestyle by reading brochures, speaking to agents and calling NCL to understand what "freestyle" really means, well, I don't think the message is as clear as it should be.

 

Consider NCLs competitors;

 

Sandals - "love is all you need"...promising that everything is included (which it is).

Carnival - "The fun ships"... promising fun, again easy to deliver.

RCI- "Get out there"... promising travel, pretty easy it's a ship.

 

Now NCL- "Freestyle" ... means what? FREEDOM? FREESPIRITED? cost-FREE? What?

 

Now feel free to argue away at how obvious Freestyle is, and you immediately knew what freestyle meant when it was announced many moons ago, and I will go back to watching new threads appear every week or so with new cruisers who were misled/misinformed/misunderstood what freestyle meant; never to return to NCL again.

 

It is not my loss, it is NCL's.

I was around when 'freestyle" was annouced about 8 years ago and never was it meant to indicate anything would be free...It was marketed as you are free to make choices: more relaxed dress code, dine when you want, stay in your cabin until your color tags are called, eat at either the buffet or dining room on debarkation day, etc, never was the marketing intended to indicate "free": when I refrerred to research, this should be done whenever anyone is about to venture into something that is going to cost them dearly and for what they know little about. this goes for any type of travel, investments, buying something new, etc. next thing you know someone is going to bring up "freestyle" is a swim stroke which means to use the pool you must choose the correct stroke...

(compliments of my DH)

 

Nita

[CruisnGram]

Exactly Rita. In fact, if you look up "freestyle" the only definition you can come up with pertains to sports. Swimming and wrestling to be exact. And in that defitiniton, it talks about the athletes ability to make a "choice". You cannot find a definiton of freestyle ANYWHERE that refers to freestyle having anything to do with money, or implies that the word is association with costs.

 

I still maintain that even the slogan, "free to do whatever", is very clear. You can DO whatever you want. In no way does it imply that no cost is involved.

[halos]

Exactly Rita. In fact, if you look up "freestyle" the only definition you can come up with pertains to sports. Swimming and wrestling to be exact. And in that defitiniton, it talks about the athletes ability to make a "choice". You cannot find a definiton of freestyle ANYWHERE that refers to freestyle having anything to do with money, or implies that the word is association with costs.

 

I still maintain that even the slogan, "free to do whatever", is very clear. You can DO whatever you want. In no way does it imply that no cost is involved.

 

You chose a perfect analogy.

Freestyle swimming: The person can dive in the pool and get to the opposite end using any stroke what-so-ever without being penalized (as long as their feet don't touch the bottom ;) )

They are free to swim...whatever :p

 

Never in my life did I know anyone who thought freestyle meant all-inclusive.

[mbisson]

There have been *many* posts on these boards about freestyle being "fee-style"... and I have seen you post replies in countless threads, so I know you are aware of these complaints ;) . .

 

Yes there have been many "fee style" posts...and every one of them is wrong :D

[98Charlie]

``Freedom'': quality or state of being free.

 

``Free'': being at liberty

 

``Liberty'': the condition of being free from restrictions or control. The right & power to act, behave, or express oneself in a manner of one's own chosing.''

 

``Style'': a distinctive manner of expression; a distinctive mode of living.

 

 

So I'm thinking that the word ``freestyle'' is actually an adjective expressing a feeling that you are at liberty to cruise in the manner you so chose.

 

If you chose to dine whenever you want, there are no restrictions. If you chose to use the main dining rooms or buffet during the hours those venues are open, then so be it. If you chose to spend some extra dollars to dine in one of the cruise lines pay extra -to-dine restaurants, then so be it.

 

If you chose to opt for a more limited selection on the cruise line's room service then so be it.

 

The cruise line offers you several styles of free dining. If you chose to dine at the various ``pay'' restaurants, you are free to do that if that is your style of cruising.

 

That being said: DH & I love NCL's freestyle concept even though we regularly cruise other lines that have set seating and fewer ``pay'' restaurants.

 

We have only dined in an NCL ``pay extra'' restaurant twice in the 9 NCL cruises we've taken so far but appreciate those venues being there for those that wish that extra dining experience.

 

DH & I enjoy knowing that if we wish to take part of those extra-pay venues we can but we have the freedom not to eat there if we wish. We also like the liberty we can take when we wish to eat later in the main dining room and don't have to feel guilty about leaving assigned tablemates at and assigned table wondering why we didn't show up for dinner on some nights.

 

And that's my 10 cents for the day.:D

 

Dianne

[halos]

http://www.flixxy.com/canine-freestyle-dancing-dog.htm

[mbisson]

http://www.flixxy.com/canine-freestyle-dancing-dog.htm

 

WOW! And the dog is talented also ;)

[platformb]

Nothing free anymore anywhere even the free stuff they advertsie on TV requires the paying of a "modest" shipping and handling charge.

 

Free style could however be taken to mean no style or any style you wish so it can still be confusing to the novice cruiser.

[weltek]

As stated here, I think the only complaint people really have about "freestyle" is not having the same waitstaff each night. You can request the same server if you recall his/her name, but it's not guaranteed. Sometimes the staff shift, so he/she might not always be working that dining room, that shift. I really get that some people don't like this, but for me, it's a non-issue.

 

The pluses of "freestyle" dining are far more important to me...eating whenever I want and never having to sit with others.

 

In fact, I want to ask:

If you've cruised in the last year with NCL, do they even ask anymore if you would like/mind being seated with others? They just asked us "How many?" We said "two" and were never asked about sitting with others. Fine with us, but for those that want to sit with others, it seems the option might almost be gone.

[Cruise-A-Hoy]

But, you must still consider the time limitations on when to dine without having to wait. It still takes two hours to dine at the main restaurants. For example, if the restaurant opens at 6 pm, the earliest diners will not finish until 8 pm. Don't show up 90 minutes after the restaurant opens and expect many empty tables.

Show up two hours after the restaurant opens and more and more tables will become available.

 

Then its not freestyle anymore but two dining times 6 and 8.

 

This is the major problem I found with FreeStyle dining if you arrive at the wrong time you have to wait and it could be long. This of course negates the whole concept of anytime dining. I was with another couple who hated to wait a hour or more so we landed up paying at the specialty dining

 

Its like everything else some love it other hate it.

 

 

i