We cruised on RC in July and found all the costs to be plainly stated prior to leaving. Only additional charges were for liquor and cokes. HOWEVER, as we plan for winter cruise we're finding that Norwegian charges for meals in restaurant as well as ice cream and other which RC did not. Is that true with other lines as well? It might certainly affect our plans. Thanks.

Yes

And Norwegain cruise Lines has also implemented a non refundable Gratuity Charge.

So you cannot go to the Pusors desk and ask that this charge be removed and that you will tip those that YOU want.!!!!!!

If you do not like the service , then you have to see management BUT the gratuity remains!!

Just another example of the Cruise Lines seeking alternative and new methods to nickle and diming their passengers.

My Cruise Travel Agent in our City , told me that it is like the Cruise Lines are having daily Board Meetings to discovery new ways of obtaining money from their passengers.

But you should talk to your Travel Agent...she would know or should know.

Percy

The cruise industry has been "overbuilt" for years and when one cruise line institutes a "charge" of any sort that sticks, the others will follow along. It's a fact of life so plan on it.

According to reports on this board, Radisson does not do what you describe-- but I've not cruised yet, so I truly don't know. (And Radisson is so much more expensive than the lines mentioned.)

dhagan143-guessed you missed Portofino and Chops on RC. Frankly, I found service far better on NCL than RC

You pay for all those one way or other. Silversea is all inclusive. They even give you cigarettes free. But the upfront cost of the cruise is much much higher, of course. So as Seabourn. Radisson is slightly cheaper, but their fare doesn't include drinks. Princess and other mass market lines seem cheaper, but they'll nickle and dime you to death once you are on board, to make up for the initial cruise cost. For myself I like Silversea because I don't like signing chit every second, but it's personal preference. Cruise lines have to make money, either upfront or sneak up in the back end. You pay one way or other.

Does this mean that NCL charges EXTRA for a sit down and be served meal and if so then how much?

We sailed the Norwegian Sun Nov. 2003. There was a charge for the specialty restaurants but NO charge for the 2 main dining rooms...Four Seasons and Seven Seas. Also no charge for the Pacific Heights which is the Cooking Light Restaurant or the Garden Cafe Buffet/Restaurant/Great Outdoor Restaurant.
We did not eat in any of the specialty restaurants....The dining rooms were just fine and did not feel we were missing out on anything.

NCL does not charge for meals in restaurants, but has surcharge for specialty restaurants - depending on ship. for example, Majesty has $15pp charge for their "bistro" (menu posted daily - did not do it for us, so we did not eat there). They also have a specialty Italian restaurant for which there is no surcharge.

With no assigned seating time, you could, if you wished, eat several times/night if you wish.

Not sure what you mean about ice cream charge - there were several times when there was ice cream available on deck during day for which there was no charge. During dinner in the restaurants it is included - no fee.

Found all charges, including mandatory tips, to be well explained and clearly stated ahead of time.

To us, any all-inclusive or almost-all-inclusive type vacation, whether a cruise or land destination, depends on what we want to do. A tropical beach all-inclusive would not be a financially good choice for us because we are not interested in a lot of water sports, etc. Our teenage son loved the food aspect of a cruise since he could have a "snack" at 5 PM at the dinner buffet and have dinner with us at 7:30.

Try cruisejunckie.com. Ross A. Klien has also written a book, Cruise Ship Blues: the underside of the cruise ship industry pub. 2002, about cruise industry. The title is on his web site. Book is well researched, only 2 years old, so he updates via website. Another, (same author) is Death by Chocolate: what you must know before taking a cruise also . Both include a lot of the same material, so I'd try for either one. Really explains the mergers, the flags of convenience, and especially the ways ships' owners have increased revenue ABOARD ship, which is why some venues on ship charge for ice cream and others don't. He call that chapter "getting blood from a turnip." I guess we're the turnips!

Princess charges for ice cream, unless it's on the menu in the dining room. If you have a couple of kids, it can add up.

I can't imagine a cruiseline charging for ice cream...now I've heard everything! And the passengers find this acceptable??

We were on Celebrity last November, and ice cream was free.

We were on Millennium shortly after they commissioned and their specialty restaurant was around $8-12 a person. As I remember, they only provided 2 courses (app & Main, + dessert & cheese). We squaked, and they fixed us a caeser salad. All prepared at the table. It was really nice. Now I understand it's around $24 per person. That's almost $50 extra per day. I think it's outrageous!!

Princess doesn't have an ice cream bar that most other cruise lines do. You can get ice cream free in the dining rooms during lunch and dinner. Or you go to the ice cream store by the pool, and they sell you Haagen-Dazs ice cream. I was on Princess a few years back. Though I'm not an ice cream eater, I was so disgusted by the nickle and dimming, I haven't gone back to Princess since.

Or (on Princess), you can get the FREE ice cream in the afternoon.

I am going on my 1st cruise in March. I have read that iced tea, lemonaide, coffee and water (non bottled) are free. Have you experienced cruisers found these beverages to be disagreeable?

What do you mean disagreeable? (as it will make you sick?) I've never had any "disagreeable" beverage on a cruise. (I hope having a little hangover doesn't count!)

Also, when you say "free", it depends on what cruiseline you're on?? Some charge for most beverages including sodas, some include all beverages in the fare (even liquor). Maybe you could be more specific.

Royal Caribbean is the cruise line. They said there was a charge for soda and alcohol, but that the drinks I listed were free.

And yes, by disagreeable I meant sick.

I've never gotten sick from drinking any beverage or from eating any food on any cruise ship I've cruised on. I think that is pretty rare.

It all depends on the ship. I've been back for about 2 weeks from RC's Mariner of the Seas and cruised their Majesty of the Seas a few years ago. On the Mariner we had to pay for sodas $1.50 but iced tea was free, lemonade was free and only available upstairs. Mariner did charge a $20 cover for 2 specialty dining rooms. There was also a cover for Johnny Rockets and a fee for the Ben & Jerry's but they did have free self serve frozen yogurt.