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Food Fight! Free vs. Upcharge — Is Dining on Cruise Ships getting More Expensive?

Saturday, December 3rd, 2011

Food Fight on Cruise Ship Dining On occasion, there is chatter on the cruise boards that indicates that a number of people seem to believe that they are being forced to pay for food on newer ships that have added a large number of “alternative” restaurants.

I believe that while it is true that the number of dining options has increased dramatically, this does not mean that the cruise lines have taken away the free dining choices. They have simply added more choices.

Let’s rewind several years to the late 90’s. Most cruise ships offered first and second seating dinner in one or two main restaurants. There was room service and a buffet (remember the midnight buffet?) and that was pretty much it.

Main Dining Room on Carnival Miracle (Photo Credit: Carnival.com)

Then cruise lines began to introduce alternative restaurants that delivered a higher level of cuisine in more intimate setting and assessed what become known as a “cover charge”. This trend continued to grow until Norwegian Cruise Lines introduced its first Freestyle ship in 2001. Freestyle was the first dining concept to offer a variety of restaurants in multiple locations. The concept of flexible dining times and multiple venues created a bit of a logistics challenge for NCL but over time they were able to work through the issues and guests seemed to embrace this new feature.

Le Bistro French Restaurant On Norwegian Pearl (Photo Credit: NCL.com)

This caused most of the contemporary cruise lines to re-think the traditional dining times and limited number of restaurants. Some like Carnival only offer a few alternative restaurants but added flexible dining times to their programs. On the other hand, the mega ships from Royal Caribbean – Oasis and Allure of the Seas have an astonishing 20 potential dining options (including room service) and 12 require a service charge.

While it might appear that charging for dining is on an upward trend, the reality is that there is little probability that cruising will swing to 100% paid restaurants.

Without the complimentary dining rooms it would be hard to accommodate several thousands of guests in alternative dining venues. The real question is whether the quality of cuisine in the free dining rooms has suffered at the expense of the paid restaurants. My very subjective opinion is that cruise lines investment in complimentary food served onboard has not been cut drastically but neither has it been increased.

Also, the fact that the dining rooms are 2 or 3 times larger than 10 years ago and this in and of itself creates additional challenges. Cruise lines, save for a very few 6 star operators, never promoted their dining as “gourmet”. You just can’t serve a gourmet meal to 2,000 people who arrive within 15 minutes of each other. Cruise line executives tell us that passenger ratings on their main dining rooms has not changed significantly since the introduction of more paid options.

I think that all cruisers should consider alternative dining just that – an alternative. Some people reserve the experience for a special occasion, others go a few times during the week, and some try to experience each alternative venue. But if you choose to simply dine in the main dining rooms each day and avoid specialty restaurant surcharges, this is perfectly fine with the line. The menus are designed for the length of the cruise and you should be able to find something to your liking on each menu.

One trend that has been noticeable is the opening of the buffet restaurants for casual dinner. It’s still as self-serve environment but there are variety of hot entrees, salads and desserts that make a nice alternative to main restaurant offerings.

What do you think about dining on cruises and how often do you visit the specialty restaurants? Let us know in the comments below.

Happy Dining,

Cruise Professor

Tags: cruise dining, cruise ship dining, cruise ship food, dining, food
Posted in Cruise 101, cruise industry, cruise travel, cruises | 3 Comments »

Win $50 Onboard Credit for your Next Cruise! December’s Cruise Trivia Contest is Tomorrow at 1pm ET

Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

The Cruise Professor Another month starts tomorrow, which means another chance for you to WIN $50 ONBOARD CREDIT for your next cruise! As you may recall, we launched our trivia contest last month, and member soozenw was the huge winner. Congrats to soozenw – we look forward to hearing what you spend your winnings on your Carnival Pride cruise

Quick refresher on our trivia contest – Each month (on the 1st), the CruiseProfessor will post a question at 1 PM (Eastern Time) that has to do with some piece of cruise history. The first member who answers the question by posting the answer on the Cruise Trivia forum will receive a $50 ship board credit on their next cruise compliments of Meet On Cruise.

I got a preview of tomorrow’s question and it’s going to be a CHALLENGE . Think you know your cruise trivia – or know how to work the search engines? Then the CruiseProfessor and I will see you on the Cruise Trivia Forums tomorrow (Dec 1st) at 1pm ET! First correct answer WINS!

Happy Sailing.

P.S. Remember, you need to be a member to post in the forums. If you are not already a member, you might want to sign up here ASAP (it’s free)!

Posted in cruises | No Comments »

Two Florida Cruise Ports Set Passenger Records

Monday, November 28th, 2011

Three Ships Fill the Port of Tampa November 22, 2011 as the port set a new one-day passenger record

November has been a busy month as the winter cruise season ramps up, and two Florida cruise ports set single-day passenger records in recent weeks.

On November 22, three ships called on the Port of Tampa – the Carnival Legend, Norwegian Star and the Holland America’s Ryndam, bringing a total of 12,623 through the port.

Tampa expects a record cruise passenger year, with about 940,000 passengers, thanks in part to the Norwegian Star, which began home porting in Tampa in October. Carnival home ports two ships in Tampa.

And on November 26, Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale hosted 53,500 cruise passengers on eight ships, besting the port’s old record of 53.365 passengers set in March 2010.

Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas and Navigator of the Seas; the Carnival Miracle; Princes Cruises’ Grand Princess and Crown Princess; the Holland America Eurodam and MSC Poesia were in port on Saturday.

Despite the large number of ships and passengers in port, few delays were reported. Holland America Line passenger Tony Zumpano told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “I noticed a lot of people and thought there would be more delays than this but it’s moving very smoothly,” Zumpano said. “I’m very impressed, actually.”

Eight ships are also expected at Port Everglades on March 17, 2012, with preliminary estimates showing that the one-day passenger record may be broken again.

Meet on Cruise Members: Have you ever sailed from the Port of Tampa or Port Everglades? Tell us about your experience in the comment section below!

For even more Travel News & Views, check out Simon’s Blog at SimonTravels.net or follow Simon on Twitter @SimonTravels.

Tags: Carnival Cruises, cruise news, Holland America Line, msc cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Port Everglades, Port of Tampa, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean Inernational
Posted in Cruise News, cruises | No Comments »

Video: Big, Bigger, Biggest – How the Largest Cruise Ships in the World Were Built

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011

How did cruise ships get so big? What were some of the early designs and why is bigger better? Or is bigger, better? This fantastic video by National Geographic profiles Royal Caribbean‘s Independence of the Seas and how it came to be the largest ship in the world.

Well, it WAS the largest ship in the world in 2008 (before Allure and Oasis of the Seas were around)!

The video also takes a look at how ship design has evolved throughout- from wooden hulls to steel, from wind-powered, to steam-powered…and now, oil/gas-powered.

If you’re ship-nerds like us, we know you’ll enjoy this video

Tags: independence of the seas, national geographic, royal caribbean, Ship design, ship history, video
Posted in cruise industry, cruise travel, cruises, Ship review | 2 Comments »

Too Many Sites Make Sore Eyes – Why You Should Use a Cruise Travel Agent

Friday, November 18th, 2011

Launch of new travel website Another “cutting edge” travel website was recently announced. It leads to the question of “how many websites does a person need to visit to get information about travel offers?”

Since we focus on the cruise business, let’s take a look at this particular segment to see if we can shed some light on the question.

The first thing to understand when you let your fingers do the shopping online is that virtually all cruise travel sites develop their prices from the same “feed”. For the digitally challenged, this just means that the cruise lines send rates via their central computer. This means for all practical purposes, all cruise travel sites offer up the same basic rates.

One great myth is that the cruise lines who sell directly to the public (mostly the mass market lines) have special, direct rates lower than a local cruise agent. Wrong, my fellow cruisers!

In fact, an independent cruise agent can often find you rates lower than the cruise line. More on how to take advantage on some insider tips in a moment. But first we have to get this off our chest. WHAT ARE YOU THINKING WHEN YOU ONLY SHOP DIRECTLY WITH A CRUISE LINE????

First of all, that cruise line employee is paid to get your booking as fast as possible and move on to the next sale. And, heaven forbid, maybe instead of cruise line ABC you really belong on cruise line XYZ, what is the chance that the cruise line agent will say “Oh you really belong on cruise line XYZ and not us”. This is about as likely to happen as a Toyota sales person sending you next door to check out new Nissans.

Your local cruise agent invests time in YOU and wants repeat business.

Now onto those hot tips. Your local cruise agent not only views the pricing feeds from the cruise lines, but may also have access to what is known as group rates. There are often unadvertised specials available from time to time that include special benefits such as upgrades, onboard credits, spa treatments, complimentary alternate dining. Your agent can also check for regional promotions, senior and public safety discounts, past passenger specials and lots more.

Get the picture? Maybe instead of surfing a dozen web sites and seeing the same information over and over put a local cruise agent to work for you. They don’t charge for their basic services and often find these hidden lower rates. Let them be your personal cruise detective.

Tags: agent, cruise travel agent, travel agent, travel website, use an agent
Posted in Cruise 101, cruise industry, cruise travel, cruises, How to | 4 Comments »

Who Wants a Free T-Shirt?!

Friday, November 18th, 2011

Ah, the free t-shirt… whether fired out of an air cannon by a silly mascot at a ball game or inefficiently tossed by a pseudo cheerleader; everyone loves a free t-shirt.

Well we here at MeetOnCruise have not been able to locate one of those air cannon thingys to hurl a t-shirt at you, possibly inciting a small riot, and Faraz refuses to wear the mascot costume I put together for him (personally, I think he looks great as a cartoon cruise liner).

Since we can’t think of a comically violent way to distribute these shirts (available in Men’s and Lady’s T’s and also Lady’s Tank Tops), we have come up with some fun contests to reward you, our fine, outstanding members instead. So, be on the lookout for a contest near you to win your very own MeetOnCruise.com t-shirt, as pictured (lovely lady in shirt is not included… she’s mine.)

In the meantime, I’d like to take a very unscientific poll: Who Wants a Free T-Shirt?!

Tags: contest, cruise, free, free t-shirt, promotional, win
Posted in cruises, meetoncruise | 5 Comments »

Montreal: New Port Guide

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011

One of Canada’s most charming, popular and historic cities, Montreal is a wonderful blend of the new and old world. Montreal’s historic district, known as Vieux Montreal or Old Montreal, is home to 17th century architecture, cobblestone roads, and a distinctly European feel. Despite its size, with an almost 4 million inhabitants in the Metropolitan area, Canada’s second largest city still ranks highly in surveys of the World’s Most Livable Cities (although not as high as Vancouver.) Its great food and rich culture make this a great port to stay a few days in.

Montreal’s Old Port is home to the Iberville Passenger Terminal (Alexandra Pier), which sits on the banks of the St. Lawrence River and brings in such luxury lines as Regent Seven Seas, Crystal, Seabourn and Oceania. Although most itineraries from Montreal are limited to Canada & North East US cruises, there are a few World and Panama Canal cruises that also depart from Montreal. Bon voyage, mon ami!

Posted in cruises | No Comments »

Location, Location, Location. How to Use a Deck Plan To Choose The Best Cruise Ship Cabin

Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

Cruise Ship Deck Plans Location, location, location; Important in business, real estate and even on cruise ships. How can you make sure that you pick the best location in your chosen stateroom category? A good answer for this question is to view the ship’s deck plans in the cruise line brochure or on the web. While the plans are often not exactly to scale and cabin size is not always in proportion to the drawings there are a few things that are very helpful.

First, locate your cabin on the plan and then look up, down, left, right, and forward of your cabin. What’s there? And knowing what to look for can help you avoid a less-than-ideal stateroom.

Ok, so here’s the short list:

Look for elevators and staircase exits near your stateroom. (Some people love to be close to everything so this might be a positive feature but with activity comes noise)

Look up. Oops! A basketball court, jogging track or day pantry might result in the wakeup call you did not ask for.

Look Down. Is the bandstand for one of the show lounges right below your room? Even with good sound proofing there is a chance for ambient noise.

Look across the hall. Is there a room service pantry shown or other service area. A potentially busy area to avoid.

Look Right and Left. If you are at the end of a hallway, make sure that the disco or other high energy lounge is not adjacent. Avoid hallways that lead to these lounges unless you are a night owl. Late night revelers sometimes carry on with the partying outside your door.

The good news is that modern cruise ships have been designed with passenger comfort in mind and the architects strive to develop a deck plan that confines public rooms and lounges to areas far from the staterooms. A little advance review of the deck plans and the advice of a good cruise specialist can help deliver an extra measure of peace and quiet in your stateroom.

And please don’t slam your door in the morning when you get up for early risers’ coffee. Those partiers next door might still be sleeping. Then again payback . . . . .

Posted in cruises | 3 Comments »

Vancouver: New Port Guide

Sunday, November 6th, 2011

With almost two-thirds of a million residents, Vancouver is the third largest city in Canada. It is also home to the largest port in western Canada, with two bustling cruise terminals: Ballentyne Cruise Terminal and Canada Place Cruise Terminal. Roundly considered one of the world’s most livable cities, Vancouver is truly one of the most naturally cosmopolitan cities you will ever visit. Influenced by Asian, Irish, Portuguese, Greek, Indian and more recently Latin American immigrants, Vancouver is defined by this magnificent cultural quilt.

Vancouver’s undeniable natural beauty make it a very desirable tourist destination, but it is also one of the most prominent embarkation ports for Alaska cruises for all major cruise lines. Only 3 hours away from Seattle and with a major airport serving international flights, Vancouver is a wonderful place to begin and end your cruise vacation. As one of the only cruise ports that you can snow ski in the morning and golf in the afternoon, Vancouver can offer very diverse experiences. So whether you hop-on a tour bus or take the SkyTrain to all parts of the city, you won’t run out of things to do.

Tags: Alaska, Carnival, carnival cruise line, Celebrity cruises, Disney Cruise Line, Holland America, NCL, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, vancouver
Posted in Alaska, cruises, Port Guide | No Comments »

New Feature: On Deck – A Live Hangout Room to Chat with other Cruisers

Sunday, November 6th, 2011

We started Meet On Cruise to make it easier for people who cruise to meet other cruisers. So far, that has meant joining roll calls and talking to others on your cruise. Or communicating on the forums.

Well, today we’re excited to launch what may turn out to be one of the most popular features on MeetOnCruise – On Deck. On Deck is a live chat hangout room.

Come by On Deck to chat real-time with other people who love to cruise. Just like on deck of your cruise, On Deck is simply another way to hangout and talk cruises with your fellow MeetOnCruise members. The biggest difference is it’s real-time. You can see who is online on MeetOnCruise right now and chat with them.

Feel free to share with your friends and family (note, they must be a member to participate in the chat). Of course, it goes without saying that all comments should be clean and family-friendly!

We’re excited to see launch the new On Deck page. Just like being out On Deck during a cruise is relaxing and a great place to just shoot the breeze, we hope that MeetOnCruise – On Deck becomes such a place for you – online.

We look forward to chatting with you On Deck.

Tags: chat, cruise chat, hangout, New feature, on deck, Social Media
Posted in cruises, meetoncruise, New feature, Technology | No Comments »

Watts Up With These Strange Plugs? Guide to Electrical Plugs For Your Next International Cruise

Friday, October 28th, 2011

Quite a few first time visitors to Europe are surprised when they try to use their home hair dryers and hand held appliances in Europe and other international destinations. Most modern cruise ships offer both U.S. style 110/120 volt power plus 220/240 European power so this is not a problem. But if your international cruise involves staying a few days in Europe or other international destinations, it is a good idea to insure you have the right appliances and plugs.

Here are a few tips to help you avoid frying your personal appliances:

1. Know before you go: Check the electrical current for the countries you will be visiting at http://www.voltagevalet.com/elec_guide.html

2. Dual voltage: If your hair dryer, flat irons etc. are not DUAL VOLTAGE they will NOT work on 220/240 current. Most dual voltage appliances have a button to move the current from lower to higher voltage. Make sure you do this BEFORE you plug it in. Otherwise it’s Snap, Crackle and Pop and I don’t mean cereal.

3. Lots of plug types: In most 220/240 countries there are a variety of plugs and pins that fit the sockets. It is best to carry a variety of these if you are staying (on land) in various countries. For example, a plug for the U.K. is much different than Western Europe plugs and they are not interchangeable.

Types of Electrical Plugs

4. Hotels: Most 3 to 5 star hotels in Europe have hair dryers built into the bathroom or in a drawer in the room. Sorry ladies, but flat irons are generally unavailable at the hotels.

5. Laptops: For mobile devices and laptops the transformers that come with the unit is generally dual voltage and this is usually printed right on the transformer itself. (But remember if it is has a U.S. style plug on the end it will do you no good if you don’t have the right international plug.) I would also recommend that you back up your entire hard drive if you are taking your laptop overseas, just in case.

6. Outlets: If you are taking a lot of devices that need power or charging on the ship, it is a very good idea to take along a small power strip or 3 way plug. Why? Because, while most cruise ships offer 110/120 power, the cabins generally don’t have a lot of outlets. So, bringing a power strip can avoid having to switch out devices constantly. And don’t ask me why, but sometimes the outlet in the cabin is located in the strangest place. Remember, the same caveat goes for the ships. Don’t plug your regular appliances into the 220/240 outlets even if you have the right plug. You may just plunge all of Deck 9 into darkness. (I did this many years ago on a cruise ship called the “Navarino” in the Greek Islands. This ship eventually became the “Regent Sea” for Regency Cruises.)

With a little advance planning can insure you have an electrifying time on your cruise or land vacations even if you avoid shocking results!

Happy Sailing,
The Cruise Professor

Tags: cruise ship electric current, cruise ships, cruise tips, electric current, electrical plugs, Europe cruises, tips
Posted in Cruise 101, cruise travel, cruises, Mediterranean, travel | No Comments »

Win $50 Onboard Credit with Cruise Trivia Contest

Thursday, October 27th, 2011

The Cruise Professor Only a few more days until our first monthly “Cruise Trivia” contest launches on November 1st. Each month, I will post a question at 1 PM (Eastern Time) that has to do with some piece of cruise history. The first member who answers the question by posting the answer on our brand new Cruise Trivia forum will receive a $50 ship board credit on their next cruise compliments of Meet On Cruise.

Also on this forum, we would like to hear from folks who have travelled on some of the classic cruise ships and want to share their experience. Or maybe you can try to stump the Professor with some cruise trivia questions of your own. It promises to be a lively place to share our collective knowledge of everything cruise ships! See you on Tuesday!

Happy Sailing,
The Cruise Professor

P.S. Remember, you need to be a member to post in the forums. If you are not already a member, you might want to sign up here ASAP (it’s free)!

Tags: Cruise Contest, cruise ships, cruise trivia, cruises
Posted in cruise travel, cruises, New feature | 1 Comment »

Falmouth, Jamaica: Building on History

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

Falmouth, Jamaica is the newest port in the Caribbean. Built by the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line for a reported $170 million dollars, it is located on the north side of Jamaica, centered between the tourist towns of Montego Bay and Ocho Rios. Long a hub for the shipments of sugar, molasses, rum and coffee from the island, Falmouth has a few interesting historical notes attached to it. As with many of the Caribbean islands, Jamaica was integral in the slave trade, but it was in Falmouth that the abolition of slavery started to take root in the early 1800′s. Although still under construction, the Port of Falmouth has much to offer in the way of history, shopping and fantastic nearby attractions. Read Port Guide →

Tags: Allure of the Seas, cruise, falmouth, jamaica, oasis of the seas, port guide, royal caribbean
Posted in Caribbean, cruises, Theme Cruise, travel | 2 Comments »

NEW: Video Tours of Ships and Staterooms for Carnival Cruise Ships

Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

Did you know that balcony stateroom 7380 on the Carnival Magic has a gorgeous view of the whirlpool on the Lanai Deck and is above the Red Frog Pub? Well, it does, check out the video! To help you research the perfect ship and cabin we’re happy to announce that NEW this week on MeetOncruise, we’ve added Ship and Stateroom tour videos to each Carnival ship. Simply click on the link for each ship and you’ll see a variety of stateroom and ship tour videos.