lupaglupa

I hope you will ignore the snarky replies. The US State Department does have Baja California on a "reconsider travel" recommendation. They say

"Travelers should remain on main highways and avoid remote locations. Of particular concern is the high number of homicides in the non-tourist areas of Tijuana. Most homicides appeared to be targeted; however, criminal organization assassinations and territorial disputes can result in bystanders being injured or killed. U.S. citizens and LPRs have been victims of kidnapping."

We will be in Ensanada on a cruise this fall and are also watching the warnings a we decide what to do. Better safe than sorry. 

On 2/8/2023 at 7:37 AM, cruisecrazyJ said:

We are also cruising in April on NCL and prepaid for our parking using the parkwhiz.com site last month.  Our parking pass is already printed out and ready to put on the dashboard, so I am hoping we are all set.  I did try to do a mock booking recently because another cruiser was having an issue with trying to prepay for parking and the site would not allow me to.  I believe the parking lot at the pier is already sold out and I am not sure about the status of the other parking options near the pier.

Thank you. I hope you all set too! We have been to multiple websites and gotten different info from all of them and the only way to contact the cruiseport for information is with a postal address (which - really? - in this day and age they have no electronic communications?!?). My husband is threatening to cancel the cruise he is so frustrated with this. 

3 hours ago, cementhands said:

We parked at cruise port and walked off with luggage easy peasy and on the masspike in a short time. Make sure you park under a roof area! As 4 cars up and onward covered with dropping from seagulls! Yuck!

When did you do this? We had a similar experience to yours but now when we look online the cruiseport is telling us that option is no longer available.

We are cruising in April from Boston and I can't seem to find any current info on pre-booking our parking. The website for cruise parking bounces back and forth between a few sites none of which seem to have the same info. I was able to find a back door way to get to the site where it seems I can pre-book my parking but I didn't do it through the cruise site so I'm wary to trust that. I contacted the company that the cruise port says has the parking but they have not responded! 

After recently pre-booking parking and then being charged again on exit, a multi hundred dollar mistake that took several months to clear up, I'm wary of just charging ahead without clear information. I really don't want to go through that again.

Parking in Boston used to be so easy..... Does anyone have any advice/info on the new system? 

We've cruised NCL out of both NYC and Boston and much - much! - prefer Boston. Parking is easier, embarkation is easier, it's just much more pleasant. I haven't been on Prima but have been on the Gem which is the sister ship to the Pearl. We found it a wonderful size, not too big but with enough activities to keep us well entertained. We got to Bermuda on Sunday on our last cruise and found lots to do. Everything in the Kings Wharf area was open and we enjoyed touring the National museum and the shops. I would think the activities on the Pearl would be perfect for a six-year-old. The Prima does have some extras but as others have pointed out they are more geared towards older kids. 

As it happens, we will be on the Pearl to Bermuda for April vacation ourselves, with three teenagers who expect to find plenty to do 😉

We went out of Boston a few years back (pre-pandemic) and found the parking convenient and easy. I've been trying to book for an upcoming April cruise but am getting all sorts of wonky info - the address they say the lot is at is not the same as the lot on the map, the price they quote is different each time I input data, etc. The website has information for the 2022 cruise season but nothing for this year and my email to them for clarification has gone unanswered. Does anybody have good information on where the parking is and how much it costs? 

Thank you!

We're sailing in April from Boston and Bermuda and haven't been able to find anything definitive on the NCL website. Does anyone know if the ferry from the dockyard to St. George is going to be running?

I am a vegetarian and also eat fish (so technically a pescatarian I guess). I never have a problem finding things on the regular menu. On our last cruise (this past February) there were two vegetarian entrees on the MDR menu each night and usually two appetizers. I was able easily to alter things to suit myself when I wanted meat removed. I also had an appealing appetizer turned into an entrée one night. The staff are wonderful and more than happy to work with you. 

We brough a similar item on the Nieuw Amsterdam and had no problem - also no need as, unlike on older, smaller HAL ships we've sailed on, our cabin had lots of USB ports. 

We were there in February. We showed up about 45 minutes early and they sent us straight through. It was lovely getting on the ship so early!

22 hours ago, WCB said:

It was busier with the extra customers, but they still closed down by 1:10pm, and loaded up the left over cans and bottles.  If we understood the bartender correctly, these were our staff, and once they cleaned up, another crew would appear from the Rotterdam.  Whether or not this happened, we will never know, as we do not know anyone on that ship that would know.

When we were on NA recently we found the bar staff on the promenade deck the evening after leaving Half Moon Cay. They had bins of liquor and beverages lined up for counting. It seems they take all the drinks over, serve them on the island, and bring what's left back. Then they inventory it. So if there are two ships there they must have to have different hours for them. Seems an odd system to me!

I assume you are doing the Boston to Montreal cruise. We have done this route both ways and highly recommend it. I hope you can figure out the covid issues as it is a lovely cruise. 

We were on the Nieuw Amsterdam 2/19 - 2/26. We had twice daily room service without our asking for it. As others above had said - service was wonderful. The crew seems really happy to be back at work.

We took our son on his first cruise (the Maasdam) at age 10. We never told him there was a separate kids menu in the dining room. He ordered off the regular menu and tried a lot of interesting foods. This past cruise we went to Tamarind - he was in heaven. But we eat a wide variety of food at home and never make him a separate meal. He likes burgers and fries as much as any teen and eats an amazing number of frozen burritos. But when given a menu that doesn't include kids menu type foods, he always finds something and nearly always enjoys it. 

We just got back for a 7 day in the Caribbean on Nieuw Amsterdam. Most people dressed up on formal night. I saw few tuxedos or really formal long gowns. Most men had a suit or sport coat. Most women had dressy outfits of skirts or pants with dressy blouses - lots more jewelry than on regular nights. It really did seem like the big change for women was adding sequins!

I didn't think the larger balcony would be a big change but it really was nice - the lounge chairs are really comfortable and we liked having the bigger table for snacks and binoculars etc. But it was the bigger bathroom that was the best. Two sinks and a whirlpool tub. So nice at night. 

Our teenager is a terrible slob and having the vanity for his luggage and other items was a plus. We moved the (heavy!) coffee table into the space under the desk which freed up floor space. So instead of crawling over his clothes as we have done in veranda/balcony rooms before, we had clear floor space to walk in. 

Now of course, everyone wants to have a suite again next time 🙄

We got off NA last Saturday. You will have a wonderful cruise!

Our planned stop at Key West was cancelled about 5 days before departure. I expect you will have the same experience. No one is stopping there now unless the passenger numbers are very low. We went to Nassau instead, which was a big disappointment for us as we've been there multiple times and dislike it. But I respect that Key West doesn't want large ships anymore. 

We did the proctored Binax tests before our cruise. It was very easy, we didn't have to go out anywhere, and we had results in about 15 minutes. 

We had the package (regular not elite) for our cruise last week. We routinely put two drinks on one card - the servers just swipe twice, once for each drink. Once a server charged us for our two drinks instead of swiping twice. When I went to guest services to fix it it had already been removed. The guy at the desk says they review these to catch mistakes. At the Tamarind Bar my husband ordered a saki that cost more than the $11 limit. The bartender walked back to our table after taking the order to let us know it was not on the package  - he wanted to make sure we knew. 

Now if only they had little swipe boxes so no one would have to take your card and return it! That would make life easier for the staff. 

8 hours ago, crystalspin said:

Hello! We are on this ship (yes, the NA not the NS) next October. I booked a Spa Inside. What category room are you in?

 

@Sunchaser46

No Dutch Cafe on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Boo hoo.

 

 

 

We booked a verandah and took a sweet upgrade to a signature suite, which we loved. The extra space made having our teenager in the room with us much easier. 

On 2/26/2022 at 2:19 PM, jpnr said:

Are they still selling coffee cards and wine bottle packages?

thanks

I didn't see anything about coffee cards. I did see info on wine packages. We had the beverage package so we didn't investigate other options. 

13 hours ago, sassy~one said:

Hi there, Hope  you are enjoying your cruise.  I sailed the Rotterdam in January. From what I understand the NS is pretty much the same.

 

I'm wondering about the spa package. Hot beds and pool.  Did you try the spa? Was it worth the cost?  Thanks so much.

I've never tried the spa. It looks nice but I'm not much of a spa goer -  on ship or off

9 hours ago, LewiLewi said:

We will be on the NS end of March. As of now:

Is there testing on the pier prior to boarding/or is antigen test 2 days before enough?

Is there any mandatory testing of passengers during Caribbean cruise?

Is there any mandatory testing of passengers before returning to FT. L?

Do any of the Caribbean ports test passengers before they get off the ship?

Are dining areas crowded; ie buffet and MDR?

Lots of questions.....

Thanks.

I replied last night but it seems to have gotten lost so I apologize for the delay. 

Our antigen test was enough and we were not tested at the pier. We have not been tested at any ports and I'd be surprised if we were. If anything the rules seem to be relaxing. When we got to Amber Cove yesterday there were signs requiring masks everywhere but our excursion guides told us the mask mandate for DR had just been lifted. 

As to crowds, we've seen none except at the raffle for free diamond earrings! The caption told us we have 900 some passengers and 700 some crew so we are spoiled at every turn.

13 hours ago, wdw1972 said:

Thank you.  We were on the Rotterdam for 11 nights in December so I think we've seen them all, which takes the pressure off trying to get to the theater every night.  We had Cantare on that cruise - do you know who the guest entertainment is on NA right now?

 

Sue/WDW1972

The two comics are Ken Boyd and Cisco Duran. One we liked,  the other not so much. We haven't been to the Mainstage dance shows as they didn’t appeal to us. The piano quartet at Lincoln Center Stage is very good.

20 hours ago, Navybikermom said:

I’ll be on the NA in March and wondered about why they changed my cabin without notice. Is Deck 4 used for quarantine?

The doors are closed so it does seem that's the quarantine area. We seen no signs and heard no chatter about anyone being sick.