jamadeliz

Thought I already posted this but we had a bid accepted today on Epic for Feb. 19.  We went from inside to aft balcony.  Bid was in the fair range.  

Anyone on Epic had an upgrade accepted recently?  

Hi all,

We are going on RCL for the first time since 2008.  We are Diamond but have been cruising on NCL because of a not so great experience on Adventure almost 15 years ago.  I honestly don't remember much about the Diamond Lounge. Can someone who has been on Brilliance fill me in on where it is, when we can go there and how it works? I think I remember breakfast being served there and it used to have an open bar at night.  Thanks for your help!

On 8/17/2022 at 3:24 PM, Beezo said:

Thanks for sharing your experience! 

 

What would you say the capacity was on this sailing?

I would guess 60% or so.  It was a great cruise because we had no sea days,  so the ship never really felt crowded.  Pool areas a bit crowded at the end of the day.  We did not have any trouble finding seats at breakfast or lunch in the buffet area.  

On 8/11/2022 at 4:26 AM, TRUEBLUE66 said:

Hi,

      We are on the Jade in October and also staying for a couple of days beforehand in the same area as your hotel. Did you have to book an appointment with the pharmacy and how long did the results take?

Thanks. 

We did not have to book an appointment but there is a website that you need to use first.  If you go to a pharmacy they will walk you through it.  Ask at the front desk of your hotel which pharmacy they recommend.  Results were within 15 minutes and they printed out the results for us.  I used my phone to register and added my husband to the account.

21 hours ago, thera said:

We're staying at a hotel in the same area, can you tell me what pharmacy you used?  I've also heard that if you register for a Eurofins account during the check in process, NCL will test you at the port for free since it's a Greece requirement.  Just wanting to know options if case things change between now and Sept.  Thanks!

The pharmacy we used was at 45 Siggrou Street.  Very close to our hotel. 

20 hours ago, casofilia said:

@jamadeliz

 

Glad to hear you enjoyed the cruise, we have been on the Jade previously and enjoyed it.   We are on again in November.

 

Was an MDP open for lunch on embarkation day?   On other sea days?

 

Who was the GM? The CD?  Any others you came across.

 

Thanks

 

Mike

Hi Mike,

No main dining room open for lunch any days because we were in port every day.  We ate at O'Sheehans several days.  Cruise director was Danny.  No idea who the General Manager was.  

I thought I would post some positive NCL comments.  Reading a lot of comments from people before my cruise, stressed me out.  For us, airfare, COVID, and the trip was great.  We used NCL's air promotion for flights to Athens.  No problems at all.  We had a stopover in Rome on the way there (no delays).  We arrived in Athens around 11:30 two days before our cruise.  Took an Uber to our hotel - Cocomat BC Athens which is an incredible hotel with a rooftop pool that overlooks the Acropolis.    We got COVID tested at a pharmacy nearby for 7 euros each.   We arrived at the port around 11:30 and were onboard by 12:15.  Very orderly process.  The Jade itself was wonderful.  This was our second trip on her.  I thought the staff in Alizar were the best I have had.  The crew in general were fantastic.   Our cabin steward, in our upgraded balcony cabin, was fantastic.  We were in room 9588.  We appear that this point to be COVID free.  Our flight home yesterday was nonstop to Boston.  My only complaint would be that we were at the airport very early for flight.  We disembarked at around 7:45 and had a 2:15 flight.  We took the NCL bus to the airport.  Great trip.  No issues at all.  Very glad we went on this cruise and very happy we booked airfare with NCL. 

Just got the email that we were upgraded from an inside to a balcony on the Jade for this Sunday.  We were at the high end of fair for our bid.  

I know this has been asked before but can't find the answer.  Anyone know what this means?  I can no longer change my bids.  

28 minutes ago, lisa928 said:

Once the bidding has started do the level-up amounts ever change?  Meaning if $290 is the lowest GOOD price for a Club Balcony Suite would that change as time goes on?

They have not changed for me and I am 7 days out right now.  

4 hours ago, Babr said:

May have changed. Check this out.

 

https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/greece-announces-new-rules-for-tourists-infected-with-covid/

Thank you this is good news. 

32 minutes ago, CptBoatface said:

You will never be heard from again 😂

LOL.  

Hi all,

We are heading out on the Jade a week from Sunday.  Curious what happens if we test positive before the cruise?  How do we quarantine?  Where do we quarantine.  I have yet to get COVID and am fully vaccinated and have received 2 boosters.  Just starting to have some anxiety about testing positive before the cruise.

We did Norway on our own with our children.  The Norwegian people were so kind and loved Americans.  Bergen is beautiful as are the Fjords.  Looks like you have an excuse for another cruise.

I will use their air but also deviate a day or two so that I have more of a guarantee of getting to the ship on time.  For the two of us to fly to Greece from Boston it is 1100 using NCL.  For the two of us to fly to San Juan - 600.  Those are very cheap fares.  I will let you know how my flights to Greece go.  We are stopping in Rome on the way and non-stop from Athens on the way home.  We used them to fly to San Juan right before COVID.  Five of us in two rooms and we were all on the same flights from Boston and home from San Juan.  I think that was just luck.  

We are on this cruise too.  I had a difficult time with the COVID  testing part and had to check off a box on a second screen in order to complete.  

1 hour ago, maddog59 said:

Bid from Solo Studio to BA Balcony accepted for 7/16/22 Getaway cruise yesterday. Bid = $185 (lower fair range) X 2 = $370 to move to a balcony.   Hope this helps!

Thank you for sharing this information.  We are sailing on Jade on July 31 and hoping to be upgraded to either balcony or club balcony.  Hope you have a fantastic vacation!

8 hours ago, Zippeedee said:

We did a family cruise in 2006. The people flying from Boston to NYC were fogged in all morning and just barely made it to the ship, which was delayed in leaving NYC. You just never know about the weather and flight delays.

We are from Boston too.  I think I would have driven lol.  

We received our flights at 55 days out for a European cruise.  

1 hour ago, Trimone said:

At checkin at Athens I just showed them a text of the results of an British NHS test administered by myself, could have been anyone tested? Pink armband and yellow spot…

 

What is an NHS test?  

4 minutes ago, coopster said:

so let me ask you this you are deviating 2 days before your cruise when do they have you arriving at your final location 2 days early. just wondering we have one coming up and are waiting on flights still.

 

We leave on Thursday late afternoon and arrive in our final destination Friday morning 2 days before our cruise.  

We are booked out of Boston and flying to Athens via Rome.  We are on ITA.  We have about a 2 hour layover in Rome.  Our flight home is nonstop on Delta.  We paid for seats on ITA and were able to book seats for free on Delta.  We deviated 2 days before the cruise.  We don't leave until the end of the month.  So far, we have been happy with the flights.  

We are Diamond on RCCL and have been for quite some time.  That being said, we have not been on RCCL since 2008.  It was a very bad experience.  Bad enough that we did not cruise again until trying NCL in 2013.  I like the vibe on NCL.  I like being able to eat when I want.  I find the pricing to be better on NCL and I like their itineraries.  We will be gold on NCL after our next cruise, don't get nearly as many perks as on RCCL and still have chosen NCL.  Our experience in 2008 was that we  all caught the norovirus and watched the suite attendant reuse our towel animals even though he knew we were sick.  Found that a bit disgusting.  If we found an itinerary on RCCL that we like, we will try RCCL again but for now, we have four cruises booked on NCL.

3 hours ago, Crazy planning mom said:

Sounds good to me.  I have flown Alitalia back in 2015.  When do you leave and how far out did you get your flight information?  Thanks.

Hi we are leaving on July 28.  Our cruise leaves on July 31. We got our airfare at 55 days out.  When are you leaving?