No more All Hands on Deck :(

[niccikatie]

More nickel and diming. Seriously. This is dumb. They still fill their ships, though. It most likely won't be us. (And before any one makes some crazy comment that a cheese platter shouldn't keep us from sailing, it's the principle and this is just one.more.thing.)

 

[islandsnoopy]

I wonder what else is changing.... Anyone try ordering a Mickey Bar from room service yet?

Ordered Mickey Bars on 1 Jan on the Fantasy!

 

[C6PT7]

They also took away the fruit bowl and looks like you have to pay for fruit...those items that are now for a fee on the menu were all the amenities offered in the pre-cruise gift orders.
Perhaps the gifts were not selling b/c of the free fruit bowl and AHOD cheese platter hmmmm.....

I'm all for the cruise line making a reasonable profit on things, but $21 for a fruit platter, and $38 for a cheese platter is not only outrageous, it is so ridiculously priced I doubt they will sell many.
Remember the buying power disney has. That fruit platter most likely costs them around $1-1.50. The larger cheese platter around $2-3 maybe $4.
Those prices are so beyond reason, it's no wonder they didn't sell many to begin with!

 

[C6PT7]

I think it's been talked about so much that everyone is now trying this. We ordered a bowl of soup for my daughter at 5pm from room service since we had Palo reservations and wanted to make sure she had something to eat in case she didn't like dinner in the Club. It took over an hour to get our bowl of soup. Maybe they are having to plate up and deliver hundreds of these All Hands on Deck orders because they're so talked about that it's negatively impacting their ability to offer decent room service. If cheeses and crackers are available from other locations on the ship (the cafes as previous posters mentioned?) it makes sense to me they would discontinue offering it through room service and make people go get it themselves rather than bog down the entire room service program.

If thats right, it sounds like they do not have enough staff to serve what they offered so they just cut back what was offered.
But Club Disney Chandler has said they have added a couple of extra dishes, so unless they are not tasty, they will still have the same problem?
Greek Salad, Baked Mac and Cheese and a grilled cheddar cheese sandwich sound a lot cheaper to me than nice cheeses?
Also someone on CC said the chilli is gone?

 

[Saamh]

If thats right, it sounds like they do not have enough staff to serve what they offered so they just cut back what was offered.
But Club Disney Chandler has said they have added a couple of extra dishes, so unless they are not tasty, they will still have the same problem?
Greek Salad, Baked Mac and Cheese and a grilled cheddar cheese sandwich sound a lot cheaper to me than nice cheeses?
Also someone on CC said the chilli is gone?

It seems it has become "the thing to do" kind of like the character signatures at Guest Services (I know, that wasn't a published offering) that became very trendy and talked about all over everywhere on the internet. So people who wouldn't normally order room service are now having to order room service to try this All Hands on Deck plate so they too can have this perfect special moment that everyone talks about. At this time they're not cutting room service and I don't think it's a cost thing (really, how much could a cheese plate cost anyway) but rather the huge amounts of time spent plating and delivering hundreds of cheese plates.

 

[tinkerone]

It seems it has become "the thing to do" kind of like the character signatures at Guest Services (I know, that wasn't a published offering) that became very trendy and talked about all over everywhere on the internet. So people who wouldn't normally order room service are now having to order room service to try this All Hands on Deck plate so they too can have this perfect special moment that everyone talks about. At this time they're not cutting room service and I don't think it's a cost thing (really, how much could a cheese plate cost anyway) but rather the huge amounts of time spent plating and delivering hundreds of cheese plates.

not sure I agree with this. I think it is more 'if its so popular maybe we can make a buck, lets charge'. I really doubt it has to do with it being time consuming to plate or deliver. they are, and we have all seen it one way or another, trying to figure out how to increase the bottom line. they are charging for more and cutting back on what they don't make a profit on.
I could be wrong, its just my thought.

 

[cmash95]

just a note, my daughter works for the food service in our local county schools and they are having trouble getting fresh fruits especially grapes and certain apples because they have gone up so much in price. apparently because of the water restrictions in Ca there is a shortage of eating grapes right now. also I read that the biggest waste onboard the boats was these chese plates because people would order them and then only eat certain parts of it and throw the rest of it away and what was thrown away the most was fruit. I dont like the fact the the fruit bowls now cost except i bet for concierge. and also there are plenty of snacks and cheese in the concierge lounge. oh and one more thing, NCL, Carnival, Rccl, and holand america oh and i bet celebrity as well don't allow any booze brought onboard at all so disney is following along what the cruise standard is. and Rccl is adding paid items to their roomservice as well as charging for overnight delivery. I know NCL was considering this but i think they rethought the upcharges.

 

[tinkerone]

just a note, my daughter works for the food service in our local county schools and they are having trouble getting fresh fruits especially grapes and certain apples because they have gone up so much in price. apparently because of the water restrictions in Ca there is a shortage of eating grapes right now. also I read that the biggest waste onboard the boats was these chese plates because people would order them and then only eat certain parts of it and throw the rest of it away and what was thrown away the most was fruit. I dont like the fact the the fruit bowls now cost except i bet for concierge. and also there are plenty of snacks and cheese in the concierge lounge. oh and one more thing, NCL, Carnival, Rccl, and holand america oh and i bet celebrity as well don't allow any booze brought onboard at all so disney is following along what the cruise standard is. and Rccl is adding paid items to their roomservice as well as charging for overnight delivery. I know NCL was considering this but i think they rethought the upcharges.

don't know about them all but RCL does allow you to bring wine on board.

Guests wishing to bring personal wine and champagne onboard may do so only on boarding day, limited to two (2) 750 ml bottles per stateroom.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

just a note, my daughter works for the food service in our local county schools and they are having trouble getting fresh fruits especially grapes and certain apples because they have gone up so much in price. apparently because of the water restrictions in Ca there is a shortage of eating grapes right now. also I read that the biggest waste onboard the boats was these chese plates because people would order them and then only eat certain parts of it and throw the rest of it away and what was thrown away the most was fruit. I dont like the fact the the fruit bowls now cost except i bet for concierge. and also there are plenty of snacks and cheese in the concierge lounge. oh and one more thing, NCL, Carnival, Rccl, and holand america oh and i bet celebrity as well don't allow any booze brought onboard at all so disney is following along what the cruise standard is. and Rccl is adding paid items to their roomservice as well as charging for overnight delivery. I know NCL was considering this but i think they rethought the upcharges.

If the cost of fruit is the issue, then remove the fruit. But I don't think that's the reason. There were just a handful of grapes on the platter. I think some executive was looking over things and noticed that they weren't selling any of their high priced fruit and cheese plates offered through the in-room amenities and gifts, but that lots of people were ordering the free AHOD platters. In a bean counter's mind, they think "Why give this away for free when we can charge for it? Think of all the money we can make when people start paying $38 for a plate of food that cost us $5."

You are wrong about the other cruise lines not allowing alcohol at all. Most, if not all, the ones you listed allow limited amounts of wine to be brought on board, generally 2 bottles per stateroom on embarkation day. Granted, DCL still has the most generous policy even after the change, allowing 2 bottles per adult on embarkation and at each port stop. Plus they allow the option of 6 beers in place of the two bottles of wine. I can't remember if any of the other cruise lines allow beer but I didn't think so.

DCL stated they were conforming to industry standards when they changed the alcohol policy. In the past, they strived to exceed the industry standard, but apparently that is a thing of the past.

 

[C6PT7]

just a note, my daughter works for the food service in our local county schools and they are having trouble getting fresh fruits especially grapes and certain apples because they have gone up so much in price. apparently because of the water restrictions in Ca there is a shortage of eating grapes right now. also I read that the biggest waste onboard the boats was these chese plates because people would order them and then only eat certain parts of it and throw the rest of it away and what was thrown away the most was fruit. I dont like the fact the the fruit bowls now cost except i bet for concierge. and also there are plenty of snacks and cheese in the concierge lounge. oh and one more thing, NCL, Carnival, Rccl, and holand america oh and i bet celebrity as well don't allow any booze brought onboard at all so disney is following along what the cruise standard is. and Rccl is adding paid items to their roomservice as well as charging for overnight delivery. I know NCL was considering this but i think they rethought the upcharges.

Not sure where you get your information from, but you might want to check how accurate it is!

HAL
"Each guest 21^ years and older may bring one bottle of wine or champagne (no larger than 750ml) onboard in carry-on luggage at the beginning of the voyage. This bottle will not be subject to a corkage fee if consumed in the stateroom.
Additional wine or champagne bottles (no larger than 750ml) in carry-on luggage are welcome, but will incur a US$18.00 (subject to change) corkage fee each, irrespective of where they are intended to be consumed. "

Carnival
"At the beginning of the cruise during embarkation day only, guests (21 years of age and older) may bring one 750 ml bottle of sealed/unopened wine or champagne per person in their carry-on luggage."

NCL
"Guests may bring bottles of wine and champagne on board. When bottles are brought on board and served or consumed in any restaurant, public room area or in their stateroom, a corkage fee will be charged according to bottle sizes noted below. 750 ml Bottle: $15.00 1,500 ml Magnum: $30.00 Wine or champagne"

RCL as above in Tinkerones post.

Celebrity
"If you wish to bring personal wine onboard with you on the day you board your cruise, you may do so, limited to two (2) 750ml bottles per stateroom. When enjoyed in any shipboard restaurant, bar or dining venue, each bottle shall be subject to a corkage fee of $25."

 

[tidefan]

Looks like the chicken wings are gone too and the steak sandwich is different...

 

[WalkersMom]

We sailed the Wonder 12/4 and All Hands was no where on the menu. We did not have the updated menu as someone posted the picture from Cruise Critic. The steak sandwich was horrible each time we ordered. Bummer.

 

[CesD]

My kids loved those wings. Not really buffalo wings but still good. They modified the steak sandwich. Also took out the salmon with orzo, salad with tuna, ham and cheese sandwich.

 

[Ravenne]

It has just been posted over on cruise critic here

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=48664404&postcount=1

By the looks of that menu, the plate of bbq chicken wings are gone too. Or is that on some secret menu still? Aside from Mickey Bars, what else is on the secret menu?

 

[Jessicandice]

I have yet to go on my 1st Disney cruise & all these changes since our booking are really ridiculous!
My first cruise (honeymoon) was on Cunard and we took A CASE of champagne plus a bottle of Dom Perignon,
no problem. (it was 28 days) All but the Dom were consumed on our balcony. But that was 1991 when people were not
so damn greedy. If you have fun, you'll come back. How 'bout that philosophy, Disney execs? You are shooting yourself in the foot with all these changes and it's going to hurt your brand in the long haul. Thank God they can't easily yank out the AquaDuck!

 

[insureman]

I have yet to go on my 1st Disney cruise & all these changes since our booking are really ridiculous!
My first cruise (honeymoon) was on Cunard and we took A CASE of champagne plus a bottle of Dom Perignon,
no problem. (it was 28 days) All but the Dom were consumed on our balcony. But that was 1991 when people were not
so damn greedy. If you have fun, you'll come back. How 'bout that philosophy, Disney execs? You are shooting yourself in the foot with all these changes and it's going to hurt your brand in the long haul. Thank God they can't easily yank out the AquaDuck!

And this is why I started the thread below.
http://www.disboards.com/threads/disappointed-with-the-direction-dcl-is-heading.3459144/

 

[Hundredacre]

If only disney had kept the damn company private

 

[Jessicandice]

And this is why I started the thread below.
http://www.disboards.com/threads/disappointed-with-the-direction-dcl-is-heading.3459144/

...and a great thread it is! One of my favs!

 

[DCLDVC1]

It seems it has become "the thing to do" kind of like the character signatures at Guest Services (I know, that wasn't a published offering) that became very trendy and talked about all over everywhere on the internet. So people who wouldn't normally order room service are now having to order room service to try this All Hands on Deck plate so they too can have this perfect special moment that everyone talks about. At this time they're not cutting room service and I don't think it's a cost thing (really, how much could a cheese plate cost anyway) but rather the huge amounts of time spent plating and delivering hundreds of cheese plates.

I agree. I've read multiple threads on a few different DCL forums and was surprised by how many people order the AHOD every day and sometimes more than once per day. If people would stop abusing these services they might not be taken away.

 

[jcemom]

I agree. I've read multiple threads on a few different DCL forums and was surprised by how many people order the AHOD every day and sometimes more than once per day. If people would stop abusing these services they might not be taken away.

Ordering room service multiple times is abusing it? I didn't see a limit printed anywhere, like only one room service order per day, or three per stateroom. That's news to me. Is there a limit as to how much ice cream we are allowed to consume? How many times we are allowed to go into the pool? How many times we can ride the Aquaduck? How many showers we're allowed to take? I don't want to abuse any of the other services or amenities and have them taken away too.