itseaya

Ahh, glad I found this review from you!  Love your reviews.  We will be on the Encore in December for the transatlantic from Southampton to Miami.  We already got the spa pass, lol.  I know it's not the same itinerary but we have not been on the Encore yet.  Just got off the Prima in February.

On 3/3/2024 at 12:51 PM, justsayinisall said:

Thank you!! Thermal pass it is 🙂

Ha, glad you asked this question, we sail in Dec 2024 also, East to West, just bought the thermal pass also 

On 3/6/2024 at 6:56 AM, hoops71 said:

I have use NCL air many times and have had great success for the most part.  The only exception was out of Seattle after an Alaskan cruise.  Our flight left at 11:59pm, the absolute deadline!

I will say that we live near a major hub Dallas/Fort Worth which I think helps, but we have saved a lot of money on airfare through NCL.  I have found international flights to be quite the bargain through the NCL promotion with decent to excellent flight times.  We have done London roundtrip, Rome/Lisbon on the Viva, and about to take off for Tokyo/Seoul on the Jewel in two days.  Each of those trips we saved over a thousand on airfare and about half with direct flights.(never more than one stop)  

On domestic flights I am more careful.  First because it is not as big a price benefit.  Second, if its on the West coast is is easier for NCL to put you on a red eye to save money.  If the cruise is out of eastern port and the price savings are significant I might consider it.  That being said you are always locking in price now and forecasting for later.  

How were the international flights?  We will be flying out of Dallas/Ft Worth in December to London, we have a 2 day deviation.  We got the BOGO only because we priced the international flights on their own and it was so much more.

It's a transatlantic so we will be coming back to Miami.  We just got off the Prima a few weeks ago but it was out of Galveston so we drove.  

We put our luggage out the night before when we sailed last week!  It was so easy to disembark and find our luggage.  Galveston is a great port

We just got off last week, 11154 mid ship next to elevators.  No noise at all

Just did the Mexican Riviera on the Bliss the end of October and had fun.  We are on the West Coast so it was just an easier port to get to.  Our next cruise is the Caribbean because personally I like it better than the Mexican Riviera.   We got off the ship in all of the Ports and felt safe, for me though, I just love the Caribbean water.  

2 hours ago, hallux said:

Lots of us from the 10/27 cruise in here...

Yep, we are also on the 27th :)

Home Departure City - Portland, Oregon

Arrival/Destination City - Los Angeles

Airline(s) used - Alaska Air

Number of Connections - Straight Flight

Outbound Flight departure/arrival time -  7:15 a.m/9:40 a.m.

Return Flight departure/arrival time:  8:20 p.m./10:50 p.m.

PLEASE ALSO ADD:

How many days out when you were ticketed- 30 days

I had a large balcony room and the balcony held two loungers, two chairs and a table.  It was pretty large.  I have a mini suite this time

3 hours ago, snow1 said:

Our placeholders have been there and  have not changed since we booked the cruise last November.  We are at 57 days out and nothing !!   i called Premium Air this morning   I got a really nice guy, who told me that they used to give out the flight info at 60 days......now it's 30-40 days out!!!!  Needless to say, I wasn't happy when I hung up!! 

I will keep checking my EDocs throughout the day.....every day !

We are 39 days out and still nothing

On 7/4/2019 at 4:49 PM, crusincouple8 said:

NCL Bliss, October 20th-27th to Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta leaving from San Pedro, CA.

 

We are doing the same cruise, but we will be getting on when you guys are getting off.  Did the Eastern Caribbean on the Bliss in February

Great review so far!  Sailed on the Bliss 2/16-2/23.  Going again in October.  I wasn't a fan of the ports for my February sailing but looking forward to my October sailing to the Mexican Riviera.  I loved the ship though (other than the whole pool thing).  Even though I have been on the Bliss I always love following the reviews.  Maybe get more tips and tricks.  Followed Doug and Sid and got great tips.  If you didn't go to Jim Badger last time, make sure you go to the Brewhouse, he is fun

8 minutes ago, LROBERT said:

may I ask what the banging was from? 

 

Im in 8122 for our next trip and you have me worried lol 

My husband thinks it is because our room was right next to the doors that the staff use and they are not insulated, plus when we were pulling into ports there was quite a bit of mechanical noises.  I finally started using earplugs and no longer was woken up by this

I just wanted to give our quick review of the Bliss (2/16/19-2/23/19)

About us

We are two very laid back people from the Pacific NW,  we booked 8110 (extra large balcony)

Pros:

The food was pretty good!  We had the three specialty dining as part as our free offers

Cagneys:  By far our favorite, I had the filet mignon and it was absolutely wonderful!  My husband had the porterhouse and was happy with it also (but after tasting mine, he said next time he would choose that).  If I did not have the specialty dining package I would pay out of pocket for it.  They also have specials if you just want to go eat there.  The staff were very attentive and happy

Teppanyaki:  We did this twice, both times we had the best food!  The entertainment is great also, (the second time we went they seemed to be rushing, but still entertaining)

Our friends did the Italian restaurant and were not impressed

Next time, we will probably try Los Lobos or the BBQ place

I cannot say enough about how friendly and wonderful the staff were!  

The Sugarcane Mojito bar (the Pineapple Coconut Mojito was my favorite)

The District Brewhouse (this was pretty dangerous because it was pretty close to our room).  Make sure you go to the show there at 9 p.m. (unless you get offended easily, he does call people out), get there early if you want an actual seat.  Jim Badger was very entertaining.

Did I already say the staff?  

Jersey Boys!  That show was great, we will definitely be seeing that again in October

I probably cannot list all of the pros but there were plenty.  Oh for the pool, the tube slide was fun, slow and leisurely, not scary at all.  I did not do the drop slide, I only saw a few people that did not make it all the way through, mostly because they separated their legs.

Cons:  Wait for it, YES, the POOL issues.  We literally were down there by 6 a.m. on sea days and could not find any loungers by the pool.  You could go to the top and lay on the loungers they put by the jogging track.  They do NOT enforce the 30 minute rule no matter how much you complain.  The pool is the same size as the Norwegian Star but have twice as many people on it.  The only day we got by the pool was when we docked in St. Thomas and did not have any excursions planned.

That is probably my only con

Now for the Meh's

The Local:  We ate there a couple times and it was just so/so.  The staff were still friendly.  They are NOT opened 24/7 like posted though, lol.  

The buffet:  The food is good, but it just gets old.  We actually started just going to Taste, Savor and The Manhattan room and that was a much better choice for us 

Our Room:  We were in 8110 (all the way forward on a lower deck), the banging woke us up every morning and we really did not get to enjoy our extra large balcony because it was so darn windy for 4 of the days (this might just be because of where we were going).  Our next cruise we just chose a regular balcony on deck 10.  Ear plugs do wonders though 🙂

Havana:  We are not show snobs but I wouldn't go to this again

We did not do the go carts because we forgot to book them the minute we were on the ship.  

The slot machines in the casino were very tight, but we did see a couple people win jackpots.  We did play let it ride at the card tables and that was fine

I know there are so many reviews about the Bliss but just wanted to add one more.  

Oh, biggest tip, book your specialty restaurants and shows early, do not wait until you get onto the ship. 

On 2/22/2019 at 12:48 PM, LisaLisa87 said:

 

Hmm... We're currently booked in an M6 mini suite in this area for Alaska next year (room 8730). Now I'm wondering whether we should book another category of mini suite. I just hate that the balconies are so small at 42 sq ft. There are 3 of us, and I'd like for all of us to comfortably fit on the balcony at the same time.

As far as how windy it was, it might be different with different itineraries, as far as the noise in the early mornings, I am sure that will not change.  I wore earplugs and that definitely helped.  We are sailing again on the Bliss in October but to the Mexican Riviera instead.  

On 2/21/2019 at 5:44 PM, JHeatherT said:

Hi all!

We're back from the Bliss cabin 8110. I gotta say, I didn't love it. 

While the balcony is twice as big as the others, the space is pretty much useless unless you are wanting to have a party on it and fit a lot of people. The width of the balcony is the same as the room... but all the space comes from the depth of it. So you end up with a long narrow corridor of a balcony with an extremely limited view from the room. Instead of being able to see the ocean, you end up seeing the divider walls. And even though it is the very first cabin, there is still a big divider there blocking your view, with an empty space on the other side. It was also extremely windy being in the very front.

Another drawback: privacy. Half of the balcony is covered by the balconies above, but by the time you walk out to the end where you are able to see out, the entire side of the ship is looking down on you in your pajamas. And 8112 beside us was at a slight angle that made it so we saw our neighbors WAY more than we wanted. I've never really seen that on a ship before. Oh, and when they clean the balconies above, the water pours down all over this one.

The cabins themselves are all pretty much what you see in the pictures. Ours was slightly reversed; the sofa was first in the room and the bed was in front of the balcony door. I THOUGHT that was going to be a good thing since I love to see out from the bed, but as I mentioned, the extra depth of the balcony greatly diminished the view.

As far as noise, it was noisy. Not from the stage below, but from the actual workings of the ship. Each day that we docked at 7 or 8am, we were wide awake by 4:30 or 5 am by the vibrations and noises on that front wall that goes to the crew area. I'm not sure what was going on, but it was LOUD. Like, turning, thumping, squealing, anchor dropping, chains & vibration noise loud. 😞

On the plus side, there was good storage space in the room and the balcony door was a sliding door instead of a pull open door, so it was easy to keep open for fresh air. 

So here are a couple pics, one shows what a limited view there is from the bed. While any Caribbean Cruise is a great cruise, I personally wouldn't recommend this particular room if balcony privacy & view are important to you.

 

Hi! We are booked in 8110 for the Feb 9th sailing. I was here looking for info myself. I'll get back to you in a few weeks! 

I am going to have to agree with you on all points.  We are in it now.  

9 minutes ago, sid_9169 said:

Well apparently it was still hurting, and she asked if anyone else would be willing to urinate on her foot, so I stepped up to the task and did what I had to do. We went around the side of the building, and she held her foot out, and I held my, well you know what out, and I made water on her foot, and all was well...

 

I am dying!  Hilarious.  And great, now I will be doing some more reading to find why this place is so special to you

I absolutely love the shirt!  Have a great day!

Love all of the pictures, thank you!  We will be on the Bliss in one week :).  

9 minutes ago, sid_9169 said:

According to my time stamp on my pre muster post, the whole debacle took nearly an hour. In fact, when the drill let out they were still embarking passengers. I made my way back to Vibe, and Edgar whipped me up a Patron silver fresh lime margarita with Cointreau... Included! Someone mentioned that NCL may have rethought some of the increased beverage prices due to the hooha.

 

Well that would be nice :)  Still enjoying your review!  My coworker just got back from that cruise and told me that New Orleans was not the best port to go out of.  Have a blast!  

9 minutes ago, sid_9169 said:

Wow, I really do feel like an old fart... It's 9:15, I'm back at the hotel with my feet up, and pretty much about to get ready for bed... I've had a long day today, with a LOT of walking. I calculated my food and beverage costs today, and I'm close to $200... The worst thing is that I'm not even drunk... Full, yes. Drunk, no...

 

I have another big day tomorrow, embarking on my first cruise of more than 8 days... First time cruising out of New Orleans on the mighty Mississippi River...

 

Thanks to all of you who have followed along and commented. Thanks to the "lurkers" too... We're all going to have a blast together these next ten days... Well, it'll mostly be me having a blast, but you'll all be along for the ride vicariously...

I am ready for the fun that you will be having!  I loved your review of the Bliss (felt bad when you got sick and did not drink anymore)......

6 minutes ago, sid_9169 said:

Yes, yes please!  I want to be on the beach!  I am excited to follow this review for sure because it will get me through until I land in Miami next Friday, lol

Glad to see you are back!  I now get to follow along.  I leave on the 16th on the Bliss and enjoyed that review!  Sorry about the job 

38 minutes ago, NancyL2 said:

Following to see the ship. We will be on the Bliss this October.

We will be on the Bliss in 2 weeks and also the end of October 🙂

15 hours ago, JHeatherT said:

Hi! We are booked in 8110 for the Feb 9th sailing. I was here looking for info myself. I'll get back to you in a few weeks! 

We will be in that room a week after you, lol!