Key Aspects:
- Norwegian Cruise Line is now charging a $5 fee for second entrees in their main dining room restaurants.
- The newly implemented fee is printed on the bottom of daily menus but has been introduced quietly.
- This fee can be an attempt to discourage food waste as well as speed up dining service, but some guests see it as nickel-and-diming.
Norwegian Cruise Line has quietly added a new fee to their dining menu that may surprise guests. While it’s expected that specialty restaurants have an extra charge, the cruise line is now charging $5 for any second, third, or more entrees in their complimentary main dining rooms.
The charge is printed on dining room menus, in small print at the bottom, where it might not be noticed at first.
“One entree per guest. Additional entrees will incur a $5 charge,” the menu reads.
Norwegian Cruise Line is not the first major cruise line to implement a fee on main dining room entrees, but they may be the first to add the charge to a second entree.
Carnival Cruise Line, for example, does have the same $5 fee for extra dinner entrees, but it only applies to the third, fourth, or higher entree and a guest’s first two selections remain free. Carnival implemented this fee in late 2022.
Other cruise lines often have fees for premium items, such as entrees one would normally find in the onboard steakhouse or seafood restaurant. Those selections can be ordered in the dining room, but with a significant surcharge.
The $5 fee is a minimal one and can help discourage excessive food waste.
Some speculation is that this fee may also help cut down on “influencers” or “content creators” who create vlogs of their sailings, showcasing every item on each menu even when they don’t actually eat it all.
Instead, they order it, take a bite or two for a video, evaluate it, and move on to the next dish.
This can lead to a tremendous amount of waste as well as dramatically slow dinner service for the next guests. As Norwegian Cruise Line offers freestyle dining without set dining times, a clogged table can have a knock-on effect for many other guests’ dining plans.
Other guests are less understanding of the fee, noting that sometimes small portion sizes can make ordering multiple entrees more attractive. Multiple entrees also permit guests to enjoy different tastes as menus rotate.
This new fee follows just shortly after Norwegian Cruise Line implemented a $10 per person fee for no-shows or late cancellations for specialty dining.
In that case, guests were generally pleased with the fee, noting that it could help more cruisers be able to take advantage of specialty dining opportunities.
Guests React to New Fee
With a charge now for even a second entree in the free main dining room venues, such fees can feel like nickel-and-diming tactics that don’t sit well with guests.
“I thought that was one of the appeals of the MDR, you can order everything in the menu if you wanted and not get charged,” one guest noted. “If you get an entree that you don’t like and you order a different one, you’ll be charged?”
The answer to that question is not immediately apparent, and may be handled on a case-by-case basis onboard. For example, if a guest orders their first entree, eats it all, then claims they didn’t like it and wants to order a second, they would likely be charged the fee.
Read Also: The Different Norwegian Cruise Line Ship Classes
If, however, the first entree may have been incorrectly prepared, such as a rare steak when the order was for medium-well, one would hope no charge for a replacement entree would be added if the guest simply returned the first order.
Some guests also note that they don’t care for appetizers or desserts, but instead make up their meal with multiple entrees. This can feel like a penalty for those dining preferences.
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There is no apparent limit on the appetizers or desserts guests may order, nor is there any restriction on going to the Garden Cafe all-you-can-eat buffet onboard.
Guests could even visit the buffet before or after their dinner, if they are so inclined. I’ll admit, I’ve sometimes snuck an extra dessert this way!
