BirdTravels

In NYC you have a Platinum check in line. You have a Platinum waiting area And you will be, technically, boarded immediately after the Haven You get a free bag of laundry You get the Around the World wine tasting At this instant in time, they are still not allowing germy guests behind the scenes You get a private latitudes party (drinks and cheese) You get two free specialty dinners at any restaurant (one with a bottle of wine) - no $$$ limit, but a limit of one app, one entree, and one dessert.

What was the White Hot Party (which ended years ago) and was never the Neon Party is the Glow Party. We wear whatever we had on for dinner. And don't pack special for the theme nights (Glow, 80's, 70's, Caribbean).

Check-in is run by the local port agent, not NCL. They had been enforcing times right after restart to reduce the crowding in the terminal. In most ports we have sailed out of recently, they have not been checking recently. That's not to say that you don't get some "boy scout" on a power trip that will try and keep you out. But just go with your group.

If you are trying to book more than one at a restaurant, you need to call the reservations number to make that reservation.

Royal Caribbean allows you to bring water and soda onboard

We normally just do a beach day on St Thomas.

Shortly after noon.

Since they have started to sell the Vibe passes online, they usually sell out on line before embarkation day.

But the user5 did not see anything. Their story is all hearsay. And their is a ton of [inaccurate] assertions based on no fact. For example, "the NCL staff was concerned enough about the gangway that they were only letting a small number of people go down the gangway at a time" asserts that NCL used a known dangerous gangway. A more plausible assertion could be "because the gangway was steep, they were only letting a small number of people go down the gangway at a time". This is what mainstream media does by taking bits of piece of information out of context and seam it together into an report to fit their purposes (a.k.a. fake news).

Note Rule #7

At last 50% of the facts on Cruise Critic are incorrect.

Then, we should tell all of the passengers eating dinner at The Local, The Food Hall and The Buffet that they are cruising wrong? Guess what, the MDR doesn't cook your meals to order. To put out 1500+ covers a night, all they are doing is putting mass produced buffet food on a pretty plate. If you are under some illusion that they cook 1500+ covers to order, and that you should expect fine dining, you are mistaken. Yes, the MDR on the Prima is the most beautiful in the fleet,,, by far. Cagney's,,,, not so much And Le Bistro with the chandelier on the floor reminds me of a bad recreation of the opening scene of the Phantom of the Opera. And the laminate floor and obstructed view windows makes it feel like O'Sheehan's from the Breakaway... not a fine dining restaurant.

First, you have waited way too long to check in and all of the early times are "sold out". The port check in is run by the local agent, not RCCL. You may encounter a "boy scout" that wants to show how important they are and enforce the time to arrive at the terminal. The vast majority of time right now, no one checks. Next time, check in early and get the time you want. This time, just show up when you want and you should be o.k.

Unless you are booking a non-refundable deposit, you can cancel for a full refund without insurance.

This started with the Epic and carried through the entire Breakaway/Breakaway+ class of ship. It causes extreme inefficiencies since cars stop and no one gets on. This is fixed on the Prima-class ships with a single button for the high floor. The regular up/down buttons call the first car available.

Under no circumstances should you try to flush sanitary items. They just don't fit through the very small pipes used in the vacuum system and you will be charged for repair of the plumbing if you plug it up.

The Prima Splash Academy is currently accepting kids 3-12. And the Entourage 13-17. The terms and conditions and sample kid's program form October is attached. Prima Splash Academy.pdf General information on the Prima can be found on my live post. wrt to child seats, there would be nowhere to use them on most shore excursions. Don't bother.

A decent amount of the DSC goes to general crew enrichment. Entertainment, parties, etc. And remember, a chunk of the DCS goes to getting crew members up to their minimum contract value before they really are being "tipped". It's the same around my home town. While the minimum wage is $15/hour. If you are in a job that gets tips (waiter), an employer can pay you as little as $5/hour. And the first $10/hour (per hour) of your tips go to get you up to minimum wage. And that's a lot considering that a lot of folks leave lose change for tips in the corner cafe.

The daily service charge are tips.

Why? Morbid curiosity of someone else's suffering? Our thoughts and prayers are for the injured and their families.

Hmmmm, we're platinum cruisers on Cunard and don't remember being able to directly access our cabins,,, even in grill class. An NCL cabin steward has 16 rooms to clean and prepare for the next cruiser between 8 am and 1 pm.

Hmmmm, we're platinum cruisers on Cunard and don't remember being able to directly access our cabins,,, even in grill class.

We have been cruising for decades. And even our earliest memories of being on a cruise included a for-fee specialty restaurant (only one on the ship). We never went to it, so memories and specifics are vague. It did not present any value to us. And the MDR with a pureed soup and beef roast every night was fine with us.

The basis of a nickel and dime claim is unsubstantiated. You have the option of the MDR. You have the option of the buffet with the theme of the night and a wide variety of standard food. You have the option of The Local with the special of the night with a wide variety of standard food. You have the option of the Food Hall with a wide variety international food. We didn't spend a nickel or dime on our Prima cruise for dining. I could probably cruise for several months without repeating an complimentary entrée. The basis of a nickel and dime claim is that the only restaurant that exists in the world is McD (a.k.a. the MDR). When, in fact, there is an Arby's, KFC, Chick-fil-a, BKing, Wendy's, Panda Express, and Taco Bell.