It's All About the Upsell - Where does DCL try to "Getcha"?

[Sytrace]

I have never been "pushed" to purchase anything on DCL in 16 cruises.

The most annoying thing is on embarkation day around the ship. It drives us crazy that 37 different times we are asked if we want to purchase a case of water or beer mugs or wine package. Its not being pushy, but over and over gets old really fast. Of course nothing you can do, thats these poor crew members job, they probably hate doing it as much as I hate hearing it.

On the Magic in January, we had 5 different CM's ask us if we wanted to buy the bottled water package and 4 ask us if we wanted to buy a wine package. In a 10 minute time frame.
It was our 16th Disney cruise and usually we just have to politely say no to the first CM who asks and the word gets out. This was definitely a different focus than the normal on Dream and Fantasy. lol
However, as you mention, part of their job is to ask so it was okay.

In the Spa, we took a tour (it was my husbands first cruise on the Magic and I had not been in eons) Anyway, those folks were up selling from the minute we stepped in the door to the time we left. We usually buy the Length of cruise Rainforest pass, but that area is so SMALL on the Magic that we figured that we would need to wait in line for access to the loungers, steam rooms etc. We have done a couple of the spa services before where they have attempted the up sell...but we just say no and that is it.
All in all the atmosphere on this past cruise seemed to be more up sell based in those two categories but we just stayed nice and polite and it was okay.

 

[cyclenut]

I find DCL only slightly better than other lines. The things to watch out for:

1) Bingo. They really push the bingo. Announced all the time. Prominent place in the Navigator.
2) Spa Services. Always trying to talk you into getting spa treatments. When I stay in a nice resort hotel, there is a spa, but they don't come on a loudspeaker several times a day trying to talk me into visiting.
3) Spa Products. If you do get to the spa for a massage or something, they will try and coerce you into buying spa products. I've not noticed this in the fitness center, but definitely the spa.
4) Photographer. It's hard to get around them if you don't want your picture taken. Then the photo packages are all designed around selling you more (not less).
5) Shopping. Shopping. More shopping. On board. On shore. Everywhere you go. Pandora bracelets, gold by the inch, special sale going on now at xxx store on board.

That's really about it. Yes, they do want you to buy drinks and such, but that's pretty normal for any type of resort or vacation spot (or even just going out to dinner at a nice place). I didn't feel pushed to go see the DVC demo or to book a future cruise (although there were several announcements made about them).

Those five i mentioned though. Every cruise line. Every ship. ALL. THE. TIME.

 

[ahain]

I'm surprised that so many posters have never been approached about water/beer on embarkation day. I wonder what I have to do to get that treatment? Maybe avoid Cabanas? On each of our 3 DCL cruises since 2013, we've been approached at least 4-6 times about the drink packages. Mostly (maybe exclusively?) at Cabanas. It's not a huge deal, but it does get annoying.......

I would say that we've been approached on half to 2/3 of our cruises. Sometimes 2-3 times per cruise - always on embarkation morning as we were sitting down for the buffet - but it was no big deal to quickly say "no thank you" and the seller moved on.

 

[MUN]

I understand that the "upsell" is a common and necessary evil of the cruise industry... So I'm wondering where these things happen with DCL? For example, on my very first cruise we were pressured into a free "information session" for our ports of call

Really, how did DCL "pressure" you to attend the session?

 

[MUN]

They also ply you with alcohol - the aforementioned mimosas. Sure, maybe it's just to promote a convivial atmosphere. However, alcohol is cheap, and if two or three mimosas makes a passenger even a little more likely to open their checkbook? I'd be amazed if that did not factor into DVC's planning and forecasting at all.

No free booze during the DVC presentation on the Wonder NYE cruise. I was shocked.

 

[Pens Fan]

I'm surprised that so many posters have never been approached about water/beer on embarkation day. I wonder what I have to do to get that treatment? Maybe avoid Cabanas? On each of our 3 DCL cruises since 2013, we've been approached at least 4-6 times about the drink packages. Mostly (maybe exclusively?) at Cabanas. It's not a huge deal, but it does get annoying.

It does seem to be a Cabanas thing on embarkation day. Our first couple of cruises, we ate there after boarding the ship and it was pretty much a constant stream of CM's trying to sell water and wine packages. But all of our other cruises we have gone to the MDR for lunch on embarkation day, and I don't remember anyone coming by selling anything. I also remember getting hit up a few times at the sail away deck party, but we haven't done those in a long time, preferring to stay on our balcony. No one bothers us there!

 

[FigmentSpark]

Right! I'm going to design a table stand, and maybe a button that says, "Thanks, we bought the water package already"

 

[ironz]

We've done 3 DCL cruises (2 of 4 nights in the Bahamas and 1 of 7 nights in Alaska). I recall seeing the person at a table in the Promenade Lounge area with info on the wine packages, but don't recall being offered anything, or if so, we just said 'no thank you' and kept walking. Never felt like any of that was pushy. Had the wine package offered to us (well, an info card on it) at our first day lunch on one cruise, and just barely perused the info and left it on the table. I think once in 3 cruises our regular assistant server offered the info.

I have, on 2 cruises, had a bottle of wine in my room, and have a drink before or after dinner, but don't order any in the MDR, nor mixed drinks, so I think we tend to leave our servers with the impression we don't drink, and they don't bother us about upselling drinks (never felt any pressure at all).

We haven't used the spa services because I think they are overpriced. If we do choose that on a longer cruise, I'd just have to tell them upfront that I won't buy product. I had to do the same with a former hairdresser, who eventually lost my business because of the constant increase in rates and push for buying products.

Bingo--- that's a slight weakness for me... "Oh, I can get twice as many cards (electronic) for only $20 more?" sigh.. but it did pay off on our last cruise. And I don't go to all the Bingo sessions. I have too much else to do, as well as relaxation time!

 

[hanscarlet]

We're going on our 7th cruise and using the spa for the first time.... I have heard bad things about the upsell in there, is there a way we can request they not do that? Thanks

 

[Impromark]

Really, how did DCL "pressure" you to attend the session?

This wasn't on DCL, but on Princess. In that case, something about it being our first cruise must have stuck out because the guest services, people in the lobby, and the people on the PA were really, REALLY saying that it was a can't-miss thing with critical information about the ports of call we'd be stopping in at, and that we'd get a free gift for just going! That should've been enough warning for us, but when we came in we were immediately pushed down to the front of the room, which wasn't nearly as full as we thought a can't-miss event would be. Then the presentation started, and was pretty obviously structured so there wouldn't be a logical point for us to sneak out IN FRONT OF EVERYONE. Then of course the content wasn't nearly as much about the places we'd be stopping, but about the wonderful "exclusive" shopping places we'd be driven to, the "rare" tanzanite we'd get for "free", and so on. It ended up being a real bait and switch.

We're wiser now, but that experience really got us to put our guard up, spoiling the first days of the cruise.

Mark

 

[Ralph&Pam]

Two cruises on DCL and felt no upsell pressure. Was not approached at the pool to purchase drinks. Sat in cove cafe with a book and was not approached to purchase coffee. Of course photographers took our picture but not one tried to sell me anything regarding the photos.

This reflects our experience as well. On both the Wonder and Magic, when sitting in Cove Cafe, I’ve been approached at most one time with an offer to order a beverage. Having declined, the server simply placed an upside down napkin on the adjacent table. I took this as a reminder that I had already been approached. When I’ve gone into Cove with coffee or hot chocolate from the self-serve station, I’ve not even been approached by the server. We generally let the photographer take our picture at dinner one night, and have probably later purchased the picture once out of more than a dozen cruises. We usually just decline the offer if we don’t want a picture taken.

 

[Cirlonde]

Question about the photographers...is it simpler/less confrontational to just agree to have your picture taken but then never go by and view the photos? Or do we need turn down the offer of having our picture taken? I'm thinking specifically during dinner.

We don't plan on buying any photos and while I'd prefer not to be bothered at all...I want to do whatever is going to make them go away as quickly and painlessly as possible. I hate being in a socially awkward situation.

 

[Reese'smom]

I've only been on two DCL cruises, but I have never been pressured to buy anything. My kids beg for the special cups and we usually give in once, but I've never felt obligated.

 

[Geomom]

Question about the photographers...is it simpler/less confrontational to just agree to have your picture taken but then never go by and view the photos? Or do we need turn down the offer of having our picture taken? I'm thinking specifically during dinner.

We don't plan on buying any photos and while I'd prefer not to be bothered at all...I want to do whatever is going to make them go away as quickly and painlessly as possible. I hate being in a socially awkward situation.

I would just let them take pics and never view the photos--that would be easiest. We've only done one cruise so far (Wonder to Alaska in 2016). The photographers came by our table only on formal night, quickly took pics and moved on to the next table. We never went to look at any pics that were taken of us--much safer for our wallets! When we met characters, the character handler was happy to take pics with our own camera--so we did get some pics with all of us that way. (We used the one with Formal Mickey as our Christmas card picture that year!)

 

[Jess_S]

I agree with those who said the getcha is the cruise price. Compared to other lines, I don't really feel like there is upsell pressure on DCL. That's not to say that there aren't upcharges, but I didn't feel pressure on most of those (either in the form of a hard sell or in the form of the included equivalent being lackluster enough that I paid more just to avoid it). Seeing people mention the spa did remind me that they talked my husband into buying some really expensive lotion after his massage, which annoyed me. But I have no idea if that's because they did a hard sell since DH is pretty susceptible to being upsold on things without the need for any hard sell.

Reading everyone's posts, it does seem that maybe we dodged a bullet by eating in the MDR for embarkation. No one ever tried to sell us a water or wine package and my husband had to flag someone down for our sailaway drinks.

Anyway, at the risk of beating this idea into the ground because I mention it so much here, I actually spent less on my DCL cruise than I did on my last NCL cruise because of the amount I spent on NCL buying extras. Those included higher drink prices for alcohol, cost to attend certain shows, cost for on-board activities and cost for specialty restaurants -- which I went to because the vegetarian options on NCL range in quality from "meh" to "I'm pretty sure I'm being intentionally punished for not eating meat."

 

[kiford]

We've been approached about the wine package on embarkation day at lunch, but usually only when we eat at the MDR, not in Cabanas.

We've been occasionally asked if we wanted cases of water either at lunch on embarkation day or when we pass a little table that they have somewhere. We just smile and say no and they move onto the next person.

There are waiters that walk around, especially on embarkation day, with pre-made drinks of the day in special cups (for which you pay extra). A polite no or shake of the head moves them on. I find the servers to be quite good - if you make eye contact or nod or make a gesture, they'll come over quickly but will move on equally quickly as they wander around during the day asking if you want something.

They do promote specific places to shop if you go to the shopping talks but they aren't pushy, they're just giving information.

We've been to the DVC talk and even spent some time with one of the sales people. We went through their spiel, asked some questions, said that we wanted to look it over and do some calculations of our own and would let them know if we wanted to pursue it. We decided not to pursue and they never chased us down and the whole thing was actually fairly low-key. No hard sell.

We often do spa packages and do get the upsell but it's never pushy. If we say no, they are fine with it and don't raise it again. I have purchased some products from them but not because we were pressured. We just really liked the product. Sometimes on embarkation day if we go to the spa to just check it out we get the pitch for the rainforest room but it's not too overly aggressive and they don't seem to have much problem selling them out.

Photographers are everywhere and will often come to the dining table. We usually just wave them on and they're fine with that. Even if you have a picture taken, the photographers themselves don't do any selling. You have to go to the photography place to get them yourself. We rarely even have our picture taken prior to boarding. We just kind of nod to the photographer and keep boarding. They'll usually just nod back or smile or say have a nice trip or something. Once when we boarded and had indicated to the photographer that we didn't want our picture taken. He had no one waiting and saw DH's pile of camera equipment he was carrying and mentioned it. They proceeded to spend 10 or so minutes comparing equipment and talking about whatever it is that people who know cameras talk about; he never pushed us to have a picture taken since we'd already said no. Even when we were at Aulani and they did come to show you pictures taken at the character breakfasts/dinners, if you said no, they just said thank you and moved on.

 

[RedSox68]

The first time my husband did a spa massage -- the upsell for products was so aggressive that he tensed right back up. After that, he tells them at the beginning not to even bother as he is not going to buy anything extra

 

[squirk]

“Pushy” really can be in the eye of the beholder:

 

[griffindesign]

We were on a royal Caribbean week long cruise this past summer and we hated going into the public areas in the center of the ship. We were constantly having to dodge people trying to sell us something: specialty dining, drink packages, spa packages, items from their shops- jewelry deals & 2 for 1 specials. It was terrible and we were so thankful we only had 1 sea day. We have never had that experience on a Disney ship.

 

[tlprice]

Gotta say there can be an upside to the pictures whether you buy them or not. On our last cruise, my daughter had fun goofing around with one of the photographers and would make sure she got her picture taken by him every time she saw him. On the last night of our cruise, we were given a special invitation by him to attend a special meet and greet. It was AMAZING!