Ask4Jay

Have never been on the Getaway - yet. However in October we'll be on the TA, our 13th total, tenth with NCL. DW and I are eagerly awaiting our cruise on a new ship (for us). We have no preconceived ideas how she compares to the other NCL ships we've cruised on, and who really cares. We'll make it a good cruise, maybe even a great one.

As son of a son ... mentioned, the passengers on a TA are indeed a different (agreeable) kind of breed.

Our PPs stay in the safe. I have photos of the first page of each PP with me on my iPhone. I do carry my driver's license.

I booked our 2-week TA for Oct 17, including insurance, almost a year ago. The original quote was somewhere between $200 and $250 for basic coverage. That was considerably lower than what we had previously paid via other insurance carriers. The difference? It did not include med-evac coverage. We are both in our 80s in good condition. However, we are just not that sure-footed anymore. So I quickly asked NCL to add med-evac coverage. Peace of mind is a wonderful thing.

After having been through security and check in, I take a pic of the first PP page with my iPhone and lock the PPs into the safe. Keep some small bills and Driver's Licence on me when we leave the ship in port, and of course the room key. During our dozen or so TAs never had to show PP.

I'm sure you guys all have good reasons for wanting to know that info in advance.

But - is there any room for spontaneity, for going with the flow? DW and I are booked on the Getaway TA Oct 15. We have not been on the ship, but we do know our cabin # and that it is an aft cabin. Let the adventure begin, no preconceived ideas, no expectations to be disappointed about.

I find the cruise I want on another (better) web site and call NCL to see if one of our desired aft cabins is available - and if so, book it then and there, using Cruise Next.

I got what I wanted and I never look back.

On the Epic it's the Garden Café for us. If it is indeed too crowded, we go all the way forward and down one deck to La Cucina, which serves as an over flow area.

If you have a lockable suitcase under your bed, you may want to use it. We do for bulkier stuff like an iPad. A. It's not obvious, B. Someone would have to cut the suitcase open to get at the contents, and who would do that? And the theft could easily be traced.

The short answer for us:

We've saved and lived below our means while we were working, period. Now, in our retirement, we loosen those purse strings a bit.

@ Robin

I admire your ambition. After 33 years in the airline biz with lots of internat'l flights, I still have no magic formula - except this: keep the first day open. No schedule, no plans.

But since this advice is kinda late for you, I'd suggest that you do take that bus tour and just use it to nod off and catch up on your sleep. You'll be surprised how easy that is going to be.

Whatever you do, make sure your face doesn't fall in your soup :)

Happy Cruising to you and the other half of 'we'.

@gizfish -

Why do you think you can just accuse us, the readers of your post, to not control our children?

Our children are in their mid-50s and their children are in college.

Have you had any complaints about any of them?

Of course not.

So if you want to vent about people, please use "why don't THEY", not YOU.

Thank you.

Hey, PorkChopKid -

we are a few (like 12) yrs "nearer", going to celebrate our 60th Anniversary on the Getaway WB TA in October - if we last that long. :)

Small ship or large?

Let me lay it out for you all, including OP. We cruise in an aft-facing balcony cabin, mostly transatlantic, E/B or W/B. Our favorite ships are the old R-ships with a capacity of about 730 pax. Unfortunately Oceania and Azamara, who operate them, have priced themselves out of our price range. So, next up would be the Sun, then the Jewel class and finally, the Bign 's.

In our 12 TAs we have been to a total of 3 or 4 shows, period. It's just not our thing. So we cruise to be on the high seas. The rougher the weather the more we enjoy the cruise. We stand on our balcony in absolute awe of nature's power. Yeah, I know, it takes all kinds. Since we do TAs, we have very little choice in NCL ships. We take any size and we enjoy each, but the connection to the ocean is less intimate in the big ones. And food on board is incidental. We always find meals to our liking, from so so to great.

Be sure to check out the Wok Station in the Garden Café. No Sushi but great selection of Thai, Korean, Chinese and other Asian dishes. Our favorite lunch place on the Jade TA last fall.

Neither one. We cruise in AFT cabins. You can see both sides and, on Transatlantics, you are out of the constant wind.

@morningstar4

Cannot post them, send me an email to the fractured address post4opa. . .

@morningstar4

No, not at the same time. After his first night below tithe ceiling we decided to try the sofa. The upper bunk is the more obstructing one. I'll gladly send you two pics, post 4 opa at gmail.

My wife and I did 3 cruises on the Epic, 2 Transatlantics and 1 Caribbean. Nice ship, great crew. Did not feel crowded.

@morningstar4

It was long enough for him. The last of the three sections slides in or out to fit the occupant. Since he was 12 years old, he had no problem and we were able to squeeze by his feet without disturbing him.

We always cruise in an aft-facing cabin. When we traveled with our grandson (12 yo), he wanted to sleep in the pull-down bunk. Worked out ok but severely limited our access to the balcony. So we switched him to the sofa-bed. If you don't pull it out to full length, it leaves enough room to slip by to get to the balcony door - while you crouch down under the pull-down. It's doable - but not enjoyable.

DW and I LOVE the Wok Station in the Buffet. They have a good selection of Asian dishes, including Indian, Thai, Korea, etc. And very efficient and friendly service:

Self service. :)

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We have done 17 cruises, ALL of them in an aft cabin. We have had soot on some cruises, usually only under these conditions: when the balcony is partly uncovered AND the ship swings at anchor, instead of being docked. At anchor you are always downwind, at the dock there is a good chance that the exhaust is blown across the ship. Under way, the exhaust does not have time to settle, the ship is too fast. When we did have soot, DW wiped it off with a damp cloth.

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@BirdTravels

There are always those damn outliers to mess up the averages like DW and me at 82 and 83. We'll be on the Getaway 14-day TransAtlantic. No night life for us. We each bring our iPad mini with a bunch of rented movies and enjoy them in our cabin - with a glass of sherry. I'm sure there will be a few wild nights when we stay up beyond 9 pm. :)

Happy cruising to all.

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I seem to remember that any alcohol package you buy (duty free?) on board will not be available you until shortly before you leave the ship. Wrong?

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We have done a dozen crossings in various ships. The highlight was on an R ship (700 pax) in a storm with 60 mph wind and 28 ft seas. We were in an aft-facing cabin on Deck 6, got out on the balcony and enjoyed the awesome display of wind and sea. Unfortunately most of our crossings were disappointingly smooth. I know, it takes all kinds.

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I would suggest that you have the smaller / shorter one sleep on the sofa. Our sofa pulled out in 3 section. When fully extended, it leaves almost no room to get to the balcony door. For our grandson we pulled the frame out only partially. No problem.

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