HAVE IT YOUR WAY ON NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE
Freestyle Cruising: The Only Way To Go With Kids
By Paula Hughes Court
The cranky toddler at the end of the mile-long buffet line showed signs of a
meltdown. By the time his frazzled mother filled their plates and sat down, it
was too late to ward off his tearful collapse. He was hungry, exhausted and
unable to understand why he had to wait until 6:15 to eat when he’d been
starving since five. I couldn’t decide who deserved the most sympathy-the
toddler, his parents or the family’s assigned seating partners-a gray-haired,
retired CPA and his wife celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.
You say this doesn’t sound like your idea of a relaxing vacation? Mine either.
Pre-assigned dinner times, strict dress codes and limited cuisine options
have kept many families away from cruise vacations. Luckily, help has
arrived. It’s called “freestyle cruising”, a new concept recently introduced by
Norwegian Cruise Lines. The idea has shaken up the cruise tradition and
sent other cruise lines scrambling to keep up.
FREESTYLE DINING ON NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINES
Freestyle is all about choices and the concept works like this. For meals,
instead of two main dining rooms with an assigned seating time, you can
now choose from a selection of 10 restaurants open from 5:30 to midnight.
You can eat at a different restaurant every night and still not visit them all.
Choose gourmet French one night, Spanish Tapas the next. If a midnight
craving hits you, drop by the Blue Lagoon, a 24-hour eatery offering everything
from hamburgers and fries to fast-wok dishes. Eat whenever you like,
wherever you like and the best part-with whomever you choose. No more
dining with strangers or trying to pacify a starving child for an hour while you
wait for your 6:15 (or worse-9 pm!) assigned seating.
The choices aren’t limited to dining. Personal attire is now left up to each
passenger’s discretion. No more mandatory formal dinners. If your children
belong to the rare group that likes to dress up, then feel free to bring your best
cocktail dress and attend the one optional formal dinner offered in the main
dining room. But if your kids hate the thought of starchy shirts or dresses,
then relax. Proper attire for dinner is resort casual, meaning shirts with
collars and khakis for men and slacks or dresses for women. Just think. No
more arguing and pleading with your teenage son over ties.
The other great thing about freestyle dining is the whole family doesn’t have
to eat together. You can take your children to an early dinner, drop them off
afterwards at the Kid’s Crew program then enjoy a relaxing dinner at one of
the ship’s upscale restaurants. You can even eat twice if you like and work
those calories off later at the 24-hour fitness center. Of course, room service
is available round-the-clock.
PREPAID TIPS ON NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE
Another change introduced to smooth the way for passengers is the
introduction of pre-paid tips. A charge of $10 per day, per person for guests
13 and older ($5 for children 3-12) is automatically added to your account. No
more scrambling around for cash the last night to divvy up among room
stewards and restaurant servers. And if you wish to tip less or more, simply
contact the Front Desk to make any appropriate adjustments.
The choices don’t end when the cruise is over. Traditional disembarkation
meant waking up before the sun, rushing to clear out of your room by eight
am then waiting in crowded public areas with your carry-on for hours. Now
you can sleep late, enjoy a leisurely breakfast, sit by the pool and still have
time to shower and change before checking out by 10 am.
Freestyle cruising is the future and the only way to go with kids. The one
question left to ask is: Why did it take them so long to figure this out?
Contact Norwegian Cruise Line at 800-327-7030, or visit www.ncl.com
For more information about cruising, visit our non-commercial sister site:
www.cruise-information.com
Freestyle Cruising: The Only Way To Go With Kids
By Paula Hughes Court
The cranky toddler at the end of the mile-long buffet line showed signs of a
meltdown. By the time his frazzled mother filled their plates and sat down, it
was too late to ward off his tearful collapse. He was hungry, exhausted and
unable to understand why he had to wait until 6:15 to eat when he’d been
starving since five. I couldn’t decide who deserved the most sympathy-the
toddler, his parents or the family’s assigned seating partners-a gray-haired,
retired CPA and his wife celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.
You say this doesn’t sound like your idea of a relaxing vacation? Mine either.
Pre-assigned dinner times, strict dress codes and limited cuisine options
have kept many families away from cruise vacations. Luckily, help has
arrived. It’s called “freestyle cruising”, a new concept recently introduced by
Norwegian Cruise Lines. The idea has shaken up the cruise tradition and
sent other cruise lines scrambling to keep up.
FREESTYLE DINING ON NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINES
Freestyle is all about choices and the concept works like this. For meals,
instead of two main dining rooms with an assigned seating time, you can
now choose from a selection of 10 restaurants open from 5:30 to midnight.
You can eat at a different restaurant every night and still not visit them all.
Choose gourmet French one night, Spanish Tapas the next. If a midnight
craving hits you, drop by the Blue Lagoon, a 24-hour eatery offering everything
from hamburgers and fries to fast-wok dishes. Eat whenever you like,
wherever you like and the best part-with whomever you choose. No more
dining with strangers or trying to pacify a starving child for an hour while you
wait for your 6:15 (or worse-9 pm!) assigned seating.
The choices aren’t limited to dining. Personal attire is now left up to each
passenger’s discretion. No more mandatory formal dinners. If your children
belong to the rare group that likes to dress up, then feel free to bring your best
cocktail dress and attend the one optional formal dinner offered in the main
dining room. But if your kids hate the thought of starchy shirts or dresses,
then relax. Proper attire for dinner is resort casual, meaning shirts with
collars and khakis for men and slacks or dresses for women. Just think. No
more arguing and pleading with your teenage son over ties.
The other great thing about freestyle dining is the whole family doesn’t have
to eat together. You can take your children to an early dinner, drop them off
afterwards at the Kid’s Crew program then enjoy a relaxing dinner at one of
the ship’s upscale restaurants. You can even eat twice if you like and work
those calories off later at the 24-hour fitness center. Of course, room service
is available round-the-clock.
PREPAID TIPS ON NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE
Another change introduced to smooth the way for passengers is the
introduction of pre-paid tips. A charge of $10 per day, per person for guests
13 and older ($5 for children 3-12) is automatically added to your account. No
more scrambling around for cash the last night to divvy up among room
stewards and restaurant servers. And if you wish to tip less or more, simply
contact the Front Desk to make any appropriate adjustments.
The choices don’t end when the cruise is over. Traditional disembarkation
meant waking up before the sun, rushing to clear out of your room by eight
am then waiting in crowded public areas with your carry-on for hours. Now
you can sleep late, enjoy a leisurely breakfast, sit by the pool and still have
time to shower and change before checking out by 10 am.
Freestyle cruising is the future and the only way to go with kids. The one
question left to ask is: Why did it take them so long to figure this out?
Contact Norwegian Cruise Line at 800-327-7030, or visit www.ncl.com
For more information about cruising, visit our non-commercial sister site:
www.cruise-information.com
FAMILY TRAVEL FUN.COM
FREESTYLE CRUISING ON NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE
FREESTYLE CRUISING ON NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE
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