Hi all,

I just wanted to report back from my first cruise with NCL. For the most part, I loved it, but there were a few issues I wanted to share. First, we never met our steward until the last day. He didn't introduce himself to us at all. Second, since we had 4 in our room, we had a bed and a fold-out couch. After the first night, the steward never remade the bed back into a couch. I'm not sure why. Third, we were at port for only 8 hours at the longest. When we arrived, we would be the last cruise ship to dock (or tender in), and the first to leave. Last, the tender ticket system didn't work at all, since people who didn't have a ticket would just cut in line in front of us, and the crew never did anything about it. However, I must say that the entertainment was the best I have ever seen, and this was my sixth cruise! I liked the freestyle flexibility, and the choices for restaurants. The food was fabulous, and I loved all of the destinations, including Great Stirrup Cay.

Has anyone else had similar issues with NCL?

MamaofEnS

Am leaving on April 13th, for panama cruise, and what caught my eye on your posting was you mentioned a tender ticket, not sure what that is, do you have to have a ticket to tender to shore? Have only been on the RCCL and when we tendered in it was just first come first serve type deal, do you know if all NCL cruiselines use the tender ticket?
Thanks
Wendy

Hi Wendy,

I was unfamiliar with the tender ticket, but I guess it has become standard practice on some cruiselines. Here is how it worked. If you haven't booked a shore excursion through the cruiseline, you will need to report to a certain area (like a lounge). When the lounge opens, they will pass out numbered tendered tickets to guests in line. We were in line prior to when the lounge opened, and got number 310. All guests need to be with you in line, so my two young children stood in line with me and my husband. After receiving your ticket, you are then directed to wait for your number to be called over the loudspeaker. Depending on how large the tenders are, they call for up to 200 people per tender. (They may call for numbers 100-170, for example.) When your number is called, you report to the gangway, where you stand in a long line. The lines usually went up two flights of stairs. You turn in your ticket just prior to boarding the tender (or sometimes the ticket is never collected, and our tickets were never checked to see if our number had been called). It may take only a few minutes between announcements of new tender ticket numbers, but it could take a lot longer. This is only for the first few hours after arriving at a port, then they have open tendering. I hope this answers your questions.

MamaofEnS

I was on the NCL Sun in November 07 and Carnival Spirit in February 08 and the Steward did not formally introduce himself to us on either cruise line. The NCL Steward did eventually stop by to see if everything was ok. The Carnival Steward didn't stop by at all. When we needed something both ships Stewards were great. I don't know why they didn't make the bed into a couch so I'd suggest that if that ever happens again and you want it done that way just call and let them know your preferences. We asked for a bar of soap in a hallway and they must have raced to get it to us because we barely got back and a few bars of soap beat us to the room.

While we didn't have a problem with tender tickets it is a pain standing in line. I think they do bring those with suites or frequent cruisers in front of the crowd. They pay for that little extra in room costs. On Carnival it is Platinum, Silver and Gold card holders as well I think. On both cruises we kind of took our time getting off to let the crowds get off first. That way we casually made our way to shore.

The food was indeed fabulous and in fact fabulous enough for us to come back from the Carnival Cruise and rebook NCL for next February. We missed Stirrup Cay because of bad weather and now you made me want to see it.

mamao wondering the dates you were on the cruise??

I was on the cruise from March 22nd to 29th.

MamaofEnS

Welcome back MamofEnS, glad to hear overall you had a good cruise. You really should have let the purser's desk know you wanted the bed made back into the couch, they would have made sure it was the way you wanted it. With the tender tickets, I don't think what level you are matters. We've had people cut in front of us even when we had excursions booked and we are silver card holders. Guess it's supposed to be Platinum Anyway, if you let them know they'll do their best to correct a problem. If they don't at least try, then make sure you note that on the comment card or write a letter when you get home. They want you to come back, and they want you to enjoy your cruise. Best wishes and can't wait to see what you select next!

I should have contacted the purser to make the change, I suppose. I had just planned on telling my steward when I saw him, but like I said before, I didn't see him until the last day, so I just let it slide. Is that there usual policy to keep it in bed mode?

MamaofEnS

quote:

Is that there usual policy to keep it in bed mode?

It depends upon the steward, the type of sofabed (some fold out and take up a lot of floor space, others don't), and possibly the size of the cabin.

If I don't meet my room steward on the first day, I find him or her...then I give them a crisp $20 bill and then I see them all the time...this is on top of the regular tip they get...works wonders...and about the bed...you do really need to tell someone of your wishes...I've been on 14 cruises with NCL and have never really had a problem with the room stewards...but you did like the freestyle dining and that's one reason I stay mainly with NCL...
Happy cruising your next time out...

Bob E

I just wanted to suggest a possible reason why your cabin steward avoided your room, ie the Do Not Disturb sign was up.

On NCL's newest ships, it's the round spinner whatyoumightcallit on the door. Pranksters love to spin them as they walk the passageways.

So, double check that is set right everytime you leave your cabin.

The formal meet and greet by the cabin steward is not normal anymore. The $10 per day auto service charge most cruise lines use today doesn't require it like when the steward had to bow and cursey to you to get a tip. Another change, imho, for the better.

There was a do not disturb sign that we left in the room. There was also a "please make up my room" sign that we did put out when we left for breakfast.

I agree that the steward should not have to have a formal meet and greet, but I still would have liked an informal introduction.

We were also advised during the muster drill to ask our cabin steward for children's life jackets. Since we never saw our steward, we didn't follow through with that advice.

We did make one request, though. We asked for an extra matress pad for the foldout bed. Instead of asking the steward, we called down to reception, and then waited for someone to come up. I have no idea who eventually brought it up, because he never identified which department he was from. While we were waiting for him to come, my husband spoke to a crew member in the hallway about it. She said that we had to request the mattress pad from reception, and not from our steward, which was what we had done. That seemed a little bizarre to me. Perhaps that is why the couch wasn't remade, because of the extra work involved with removing the mattress pad?

MamaofEnS

quote:

On NCL's newest ships, it's the round spinner whatyoumightcallit on the door. Pranksters love to spin them as they walk the passageways.

So, double check that is set right everytime you leave your cabin.

If they are so easily changed by jokesters, is there even a need to double-check that it's in the right position? Or is there a way for the occupant of the cabin to lock it in place? For some reason, I always thought these signs were controlled from inside the cabin. Then again, we've never had a cabin with one of these indicators.

On the Sun, there was a clever "pocket" inside the cabin labeled key cards. In this pocket were 2 "keys", one which said Do not disturb, and the other said Please make up my room. You place the keys into the door just like your regular key cards to communicate with the crew. I really appreciated the pocket, because my children learned quickly where to put and find their key cards, and they were never misplaced.

MamaofEnS

Next time, simply leave a nice note with your request and I bet it will be taken care of. If they aren't close by or easily accessible, the note will not bother them at all.

Good idea! I should have done that.