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Norwegian Cruise Lines sued over barring family from ship's theme restaurants

by Jeffrey White (RSS feed) on May 1st 2008 at 6:00PM

Norwegian Cruise Lines is being sued by a California family for not properly disclosing in its vacation fine print that it is nearly impossible to get dinner reservations at the themed restaurants on board the company's Norwegian Star, since the reservations usually go to passengers who have paid for more expensive cabins.

Eva Gularte is suing NCL on behalf of herself, her sister and her mother, who had not, it appears, booked into a top flight package on the Norwegian Star. The lawsuit was filed in Fort Lauderdale, where NCL is headquartered, on Monday, according to the Miami Herald.

Gularte wants full refunds for her and her family, plus "incidental costs." Her lawyer is even trying to get class action status for the lawsuit, so other passengers shut out of the Star's dining rooms can have their day in court.

No word yet on whether the Gularte family was allowed to eat at all while on board.

Question: Is it right to give better perks, like priority seating at restaurants, to cruise passengers who pay more money?

Next time, skip the cruise and stay in one of these weird hotels:

Filed under: Consumer Activism

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Reader Comments (Page 5 of 5)

Blackbeard May 4th 2008 1:18PM

Avast there ye Swabbies!!! Sign on to one of my cruises, you'll have all of the comfort a body will need: there's plenty of room in the galley to sit and enjoy the chum that'll later be put out before the plank balancing act. And we don't take any chances on lawsuits by having anyone in any special rooms, better than anyone else. Everyone gets to stay in the row-room and gets to take turns sleeping or rowing. Now, I will admit that some who sleep in the powder room do have a bit more privacy but they have to be of sound body so they can get the balls to the cannons fast. Other than that we enjoy sailing the seas at our whim and don't cater to no land lubbers, so sign on today for the cruise of your life. Arrrrgh!!!

Rosemary Gannon May 4th 2008 11:42PM

The complaint belongs on SNOOPS, URBAN LEGENDS !
We've traveled via cruise and train many times and one thing we did have to do was make reservations for dining...What tree house did these people leave to take the trip? Sound like first time travelers who didn't take time to read what they signed on for.
Agree with writer who said suing would result in higher prices for other travelers..Sad...Roisin

KYLE May 4th 2008 1:25PM

I AHVE BEEN ON 2 NCL CRUSIES AND ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS BOOK THE DAY BEFORE IN THE MORNING AND THERE IS NO PROBLEM. THIS LADY IS A LITTLE CRAZY AND I GUESS DIDN'T FEEL LIKE GETTING ON THE PHONE TILL THE LAST SECOND TO DO DO. AND I ALSO STAYED IN AN INSIDE ROON ON LEVEL 4 ON THE GEM AND I DID GET A FREE UPGRADE TO LEVEL 8 AND HAVE HAD OVERALL A GOOD EXPERIANCE WITH NCL
KYLE NY

Don May 4th 2008 1:28PM

We had a nice cruise on the Norwegian Ship. They furnish bacteria dispensers throughout the ship to help combat the flue and other bugs. We have never been sick on Norwegian cruises. Also we just finished our last two cruises on Carnival. We caught some bugs on these Carnival ships both times and were all sick as H--- We asked for an anti biotic and all they gave us a low grade aspirin. I missed work for almost four weeks when I got home and my kids were sick for approximately the same time. Last time on Carnival for all of us. They "Did Not" have any dispensers to combat the disease brought on-board by the customers and their attitude was to care less for out health and safety.

tootsie May 4th 2008 1:28PM

Have never been on a cruise...not my thing. However, if you make your reservations early enough in the day, there should be no trouble. Don't take hours to make up your mind...and expect to get a seat at the last moment. There is something strange in this story and I smell someone out for money.......

Anika May 4th 2008 1:34PM

Looking for a free vacation lady?

Dee May 4th 2008 8:09PM

To answer the question posed at the end of the article:

No I don't think it's wrong to allow people to essentially pay for more preferential treatment. However, if a service is promised in advertising, then it ought to be delivered.

Imagine if, say, a theme park offered a double-price ticket with access to a VIP queue, and there were so many people in the VIP line that no one else could get on the ride... if her story is true the cruise company certainly was involved in false advertising.

david bayliss May 4th 2008 1:48PM

ncl is a low price line/ we have gone on 25 cruise trips
5 with ncl . we have had no problem with the up scale you have to book ahead and pay for / you book and then give your cabin # and they will book anyone until
there is no more time or seating for anyone as they need all the extra money they can get/ ncl is not the best line but for the price a way to go//

Andy Man May 4th 2008 1:45PM

That's to bad the people are suing, I like NCL cruises if the people wanted seats in the dining room table its a good idea to just make reservations in advance for as many days as you are on the cruise that way no waiting and your guaranteed a seat.
www.broadway.tv, www.oztralia.tv

Alann May 4th 2008 1:48PM

I've never been on a cruise nor wanted to go on one, so I don't know what sort of contractual arrangement there is when you book one. It seems to me that the materials received prior to the cruise should state very clearly what is and is not included. If there are restrictions in the dining establishments aboard ship, they should be very specifically outlined. One thing I've noticed, though, is that we complain that children don't read, yet many adults don't seem to either!