schmoopie17

This is a similar situation where NCL Customer "Service" assured us prior to our January Prima cruise that our reservation satisfied all of the requirements for the six free cartons of water. In fact, the rep "Guaranteed" (her word) that the water would be waiting for us in our cabin. Guess what...no water at boarding...or ever. After standing in line for 25 minutes at the onboard "service" desk, once we got to the front of the line we were flatly told "NO", we would not be getting the water. I elevated it to a Supervisor, who also flatly told us that we didn't qualify for free bottled water. (Well, no kidding...we were promised the CARTONS, not the bottles). In any case, we got no water...in any container...and they acted like WE were the ones lying. Yes, it's only water...but it's the principle and the fact they they didn't hold up their end of the bargain and made us out to feel like the bad guys.

I'm wondering the same thing. Logic would say that if the bus can pick you up at the Athinios location, that it should take you back there. However, it would be nice to get a definitive answer. Otherwise, it kind of defeats the purpose of taking a ship's excursion if you still have to go through the cable car hassle on the way back. Although, posts seem to indicate that you get dropped at the cable car area. Which is unfortunate.

You might get more responses if you choose a more specific title, other then "Norwegian".

We were on the Escape for our TA last November. In 16 days, we only saw a couple of people (total) at Pinchos. Most days, it was completely empty. With nobody there, it's easy to miss. Unless things have changed dramatically, it shouldn't be hard to get a seat. Of course, that may have been due to having four port stops in Spain...where you could get all the authentic tapas you could want.

Not really. We were considering booking a cruise on Carnival but we saw their cancellation policy which says each cancelled reservation will be subject to a $50 fee, with the balance being applied as a credit on a future cruise. NCL's policy is you can cancel with no fee/penalty up until final payment.

You would think they would keep a credit card on file for returning customers/Latitudes members, but apparently they don't. Every time we book a new reservation, our PCC asks for the credit card info.

UPDATE: We ended up choosing the Epic. After valuable input from folks on CC, as well perusing many You Tube videos of both ships, we decided Epic was a better fit. The Legend looks a bit (not sure how to put this) too "glitzy". Especially the atrium. Not really our style. At the same time, the bathrooms look like something out of the 60s. Yes, we know about the Epic's funky bathroom set-up, but as a retired married couple traveling alone, it's not an issue. We actually prefer a bigger ship, as well. Plus, I get a 10 percent Veteran's discount on NCL and we had a $250 NCL certificate that we used for our deposit. However, it was a tough choice and may consider a Carnival ship in the future. Thanks again for the thoughtful responses.

That may be one of the funniest things I've ever read on this board...

You said, "We didn't care for their soft serve ice cream at all." Probably because it's not ice cream, but tasteless ice milk. 🤮

There is currently a huge discussion on CC (approaching 1,000 responses) regarding the issue of alcohol in the British Isles, as well as a couple of other places in Eurooe. That wine could come in handy (depending how things go in the future).

From the above sign, not only did NCL not know about local regulations (or chose to ignore them), but they are very bad at grammar. ("This include"...) That's the last straw. I'm never sailing NCL again!!

I never blamed the bartenders. I blamed the people who pushed their way to the bar past people who have been waiting, due to the understaffed bars.

Waking up (almost) every morning in a new country. Can't do that at an all-inclusive. Except on a TA, where you wake up five days in a row to the same water view. It's like, "Hey, didn't we see that wave yesterday...and the day before?"

The Local bar is a fiasco. The location (in a main hallway/thoroughfare) is completely crazy, given the fact that people walking by push their way up to the bar, past people who have already been waiting a long time (due to understaffed/overworked bartenders). The Local/O'Sheahan's on the other ships have a much better bar situation.

Our cruise isn't until September, 2024, so I knew the Legend was scheduled prior to that (didn't know the exact dates). Thanks for clarifying.

There probably aren't many who have sailed both ships, but thought I'd give it a shot over here on the Carnival board. We are torn between two European cruises next year with similar itineraries and have narrowed the choice down to two...the Legend or the Epic. I know both ships are older and somewhat quirky, so it's a tough choice. We typically cruise on NCL but would "jump ship", if need be. We like NCL's Freestyle experience, the beverage package and the speciatly restaurants and we're thinking Carnival's offerings may be similar. I do know that the Legend is a smaller ship and due for a refurb later this year, so that might play into the equation. Plus, the cost is much lower, even when adding in the Cheers package. Decisions, decisions... Thoughts on the two ships and experiences are appreciated.

Cruise "experts" (whoever they are) generally say the forward cabins are the worst for people prone to seasickness. The theory is that the front portion of the ship has the most drastic upward and downward movement. But don't quote me on that...I've never been seasick, except on a small fishing boat (where I think I was sitting in the front...)

After wading through 700 posts on this subject, I really need a drink. 🥃 Good thing I'm not on an NCL ship in the UK...

@mking8288 Thanks for the promised recap of the Epic. I had been wary of our Epic Greek Isles cruise next year, but your mostly positive summation has gone a long way to assuage most of those concerns. FYI...the red light/voicemail issue isn't limited to the Epic. We were recently on the Prima and had the same issue...plus many others. Even ships that still have that new ship smell aren't immune.

Sorry to hear of your job loss. On the bright side, you could always become a full-time travel writer. As I said earlier, you have a gift and you'd be a smashing success. Think about it...

Since you're relatively new to CC, there is a phrase that is used here often...YMMV. (AKA...Your Mileage Might Vary). It is apparent that YM did V. Sorry about your experience...the Bliss remains our all-time favorite NCL ship.

So now everyone has to bring their own wine if they want to cruise NCL. What's next? Bring your own sheets and pillows? Bring your own pool chairs so you can hog them without guilt? Bring your own Ziplocs? (Oh wait, bad example...people already do that).

Let me jump on the bandwagon to point out your error regarding only hard liquor. Plus, if people weren't informed about the banning of drink sales/serving until after they boarded, how were they to know ahead of time to bring 6 bottles of wine on board? If I have the drink package, I'm not dragging numerous bottles onboard.

This has nothing to do with salmon, but a breakfast stop at the Local is worth it if you can get Frankie as your waiter. Priceless...

@ChiefMateJRK I think the increased price is to pay the gondolier for his skills with the pole and his singing. The lower price is if you pole the gondola and sing yourself.