BirdTravels

People are excited to be on vacation. They are excited to be on a cruise ship. There is no reason for someone to push their way past someone taking a photo (even with a somewhat polite excuse me). To the best of my knowledge (and we only cruise 6 or 7 times a year), the ship won't be leaving dock with people in the gangway.

Welcome to NCL! Similar to RCCL. As soon as you embark, they direct you to your muster station. You scan your key card and you're on your way. If you have questions, the staff at the muster station will be there to demonstrate life vests and answer questions. NCL will send you a reminder a day to re-watch the safety video on the week before your cruise. They force you to watch it as part of the online check-in. If you are interested, there are a few photos from our recent Breakaway cruise on the live post link below

There is a coffee stand in the Windjammer. Your cruise card is marked with your beverage package and you can use it to get soda at any bar. Café Promenade Prices

I have the greatest sympathy for the OP and his wife. But, every week, there are dozens of people with "sad stories" on why they missed their cruise. These matters are covered by travel insurance. And the OP's wife would have had to be evaluated and found unfit to sail by a doctor to make a claim.

As long it fits through a standard airport scanner, you're o.k. That being said, your fellow passengers would greatly prefer that you check your luggage with the porters. The terminal, gangway, and ship is very crowded and busy on embarkation day.

Great News! Since the restart a year ago, they considered a clamshell a "rental" and not a "shore excursion" and did not allow you to use the ShoreEx credit. Happy that they are back to the "old normal"

Haven dining room seating is first come first serve. The dining room is actually too small and, weather permitting, sometimes overflow into the pool area. That being said, if you want to eat in the restaurant, the wait should be minimal. On our recent cruise on the Breakaway, we made friends with the restaurant manager and he went out of his way to clear tables and seat us.

To use the crew elevator, you will have to meet in the Haven lounge and wait to be escorted off via the crew elevator. The forward facing rooms are great... lots of extra space for less money than being up in the Haven enclave. Same is true for being escorted to shows.

Can you provide a web link to the source of your commentary?

So, on embarkation day, where would we go for entertainment and dinner reservations? Is the box office the place or the comedy club (like BA/BA+ ships)? And where is the box office located?

To me, who sails a half dozen times a year or more, I always consider the "app wile waiting to embark" an urban legend. It assumes that you can connect to the ship's wifi through the hull. Then it assumes that they have already turned the ship over from the prior cruise so that you can actually register and log in. In August, our boarding was delayed and we were sitting next to the window at the PortMiami terminal so I tried, and didn't see even the weakest of wifi signal.

We put in a minimum bid (poorest of poor) and got.... ... a 2 story loft to Alaska on the Quantum this year.

Most people catch covid during air travel. And not from the cruise.

Unfortunately the contemporary cruiser does not want traditional dining. Like the dinosaurs, it will soon be extinct. The contemporary cruiser will sustain the cruise line for the decades to come. Us more “seasoned” cruises will continue regardless of what changes. May not be happy, but will continue to cruise.

I think that the production crew was filming multiple shows with different casts at the same time. Set up one silly game in a port and use it multiple times.

Beautiful!

It's basically Love Island (which got moved off prime time TV to streaming this season) on a cruise ship.

I don't want you to be disappointed. Clam dishes are not a big pot of unlimited clams. It is a handful of clams thrown on top of pasta (clam linguini). Shrimp dishes are a frozen bag of over breaded small shrimp tossed in the deep frier. Or some shrimp in the Indian curry. Or some seafood in a pan of paella. They will have fish on the "carvers" station (but there is normally a fish dish every night). The vast majority of the buffet will be the normal dinner buffet.

How about a bathtub on the Epic (looking out at the port of Southampton).

1:45 is not a late flight. Send your bags to the baggage hall the night before. Leave your stateroom with handcarry by 8:00. Have a nice breakfast. Disembark last call. Pickup your bags in the baggage hall. Head to the airport. Or, book a disembarkation shore excursion tour that ends at the airport.

Regardless of how "technical" the requirements are, if you show up without the required documentation, you will be denied boarding.

https://www.ncl.com/why-cruise-norwegian/casino-cruise/players-club TABLE GAMES: Points are based on average bet, session play or hands played and game type. REEL & VIDEO SLOTS: For every $5 coin-in, receive 1 point. VIDEO POKER: For every $10 coin-in, receive 1 point. Redeem your points for slot and table game play, toward charges off your final bill or save them for your next cruise.* Points can also be transferred from ship to ship. Earned points stay on your account for 18 months if not redeemed. *Points earned on qualifying slot machines and table games.

End of July is high season,,, because it is a better time to cruise Alaska. The salmon will be running. The bears will be out eating. We sail Alaska every year. This year, we sailed at the end of May over Memorial Day into June. While it was nice because there was still snow in the mountains, we missed seeing more wildlife.

Good Luck!