IrieBajan54

I saw a pretty large door sign on the Joy a couple of weeks ago. It said something like: "Danger, we have the drink package!" I passed it everyday as it was conspicuous while going up and down the stairs. I don't think you'll have a problem.

Norwegian Joy - November 25 to December 6, 2023

Miami to Panama City

11 Days - Panama Canal including Curacao and Aruba - 

No Single Supplement on IX, OX, BX  and MC guarantees

Inside $509

OV $569

Balcony $709

Club Balcony Suite $949

Taxes/Port $536

Fantastic deal if you got 14 days to spare right after Thanksgiving!

Norwegian Jade --- 14 days --- Tampa, FL roundtrip

November 26 to December 10, 2023

Zero Single Supplement

Sail Away Inside Guarantee $869 + $276 p/t.

10 ports of call: Key West, Great Stirrup Cay, Puerto Plata, St. Thomas, Antigua, Barbados, Grenada, Curacao, Aruba and Grand Cayman.

Just now, DrSea said:

Food is subjective

 

With that being said, I can't do pasta or pizza on a cruise, no matter how good it is

Agree on the bolded.

We all like different things. I don't eat at the Local/O'Sheehan's and some think that's where the best food is served.

22 minutes ago, DrSea said:

Food has gotten much better since the restart imo on NCL since the restart. I would agree that the food on NCL prior to the pandemic was very average at best. 

 

One caveat is that the epic and other NCL ships in the fleet may be trying fixed menus. If it sticks, I will promptly abandon ship

 

I would give MSC a try when it sails out of LA at a cheap price. So it will be many many years before I try them

IMO, it's the complete opposite. Food quality and availability (dining room & buffet) were much better before the pandemic.

Helps especially if you are from the general area with simple transportation. I met a solo cruiser on the Gem in 2019. She was from Baltimore and use bus transportation. Something like Peter Pan to/from to NYC. She would check with the CruiseNext desk as late as two days or the morning before disembarkation. If the next cruise was around $399/$499 base price, she would book it to do B2B. She had done it several times over the years. These were usually in the fall and winter so the cruises were 10 to 14 days long. Cabin category was not important and she wasn't interested in the so-called Free at Sea. All she had to do was to change her return bus ticket.

33 minutes ago, fstuff1 said:

thx

 

Do you know if the casino is open during charter cruises?

All depends on if it's a clothing optional charter. 🤣

48 minutes ago, laura85 said:

Recently got off our first NCL cruise aboard the Encore, overall a great trip. I knew to expect 1x day cleaning. We had 4 in a cabin, with a Pullman bed. I figured we’d reuse towels for a few days, then ask for a new set. I asked the steward for the new set on day 4. We didn’t get new ones until day 6 and had to pick up our old off the floor to use because the steward never showed up to swap them out like she said she would. The Pullman bed was left down for the entire first 6 days (we tried and COULD NOT put it away ourselves) so the closet was super hard to use with the bed in the way. And yes, we had asked the steward to put it up during the day. Finally on day 6 she put it up… and never put it back down. So on the last night my daughter had to sleep with us, because no one would come to our room to put the bed down. None of this ruined the trip, but the cabin was much less pleasant/usable with the Pullman down all week. 

That was bad service on your cabin steward's part. 

7 hours ago, Big_Rich said:

Hi all, we have just got off Viva from the Lisbon to Rome cruise I can confirm all was good. 

 

Can't put everything into perspective at the ship was only 75% full so the busy parts of the ships were just not busy really. Plenty of beds, space in restaurants and comedy club. 

Have sailed many different classes of NCL and this this was my favourite so far. 

No its not perfect but its never going to be trying to suit 3500 guests. Blimey me and my wife cant agree on our best and worst bits so everyones going to have a different opinion. 

Overall loved it, and looking to change my booking on Escape next year to Viva now 

Surprising NCL can't fill the ship! Especially being new. Read that RCI ships are packed to the gills and some even overbooked, having to entice some cruisers to move to other dates.

Norwegian Joy - Canada & New England - 7 day cruise

Quebec City to New York City - October 4 to 11.

Solo Sail Away Guarantee rates:

Inside $449

Oceanview $579

Balcony $649

Club Balcony Suite $799

Plus port/taxes $230

1 hour ago, OD2 said:

Looking for solo cruise winter 2023-24

Anyone know of one that sails from northeast coast, like New York? Or Halifax? 

Carnival Venezia, Italian style cruising out of Manhattan Cruise Terminal

MSC Meraviglia out of Brooklyn, NY

Norwegian Getaway out of Manhattan Cruise Terminal

Royal Caribbean Vision of the Seas (very old ship) out of Baltimore

Royal Caribbean Anthem of the Seas out of Bayonne, NJ

2 hours ago, luv2kroooz said:

No worries. The thread was deleted in the name of copyright infringement.

 

NCLH said it is focusing on what they call longer, more immersive itineraries while the other two are focused on US based shorter sailings, ie 4-7 day Bahamas, Caribbean from Florida. As a result of the longer, more immersive itineraries, NCLH  has cautioned that their occupancy rates will not be as high as originally forecast . Stock is off 15% or so since the announcement.

Haven't seen those yet for NCL. Maybe 2026!

6 hours ago, v3cruiser said:

I guess im behind the times and not always following the boards here but I guess NCL no longer offers sea day brunches anymore? There were none offered on our last cruise. 

Don't know what you are talking about but what I have noticed is that since the pandemic, there haven't been any poolside BBQ lunches on sea days. 

Live and learn! Not much value bidding Inside to Oceanview (low decks). Bidding Inside to Balcony would be a real upgrade.

1 hour ago, cruisenurse2 said:

Hello 

I have a question . Alanstarr. How did you get the balcony so cheap its listed right now for 1 travelor at $1649. I am going solo and I am in solo cabin. Do you or anyone else know how I can get a balcony . I was offered to bid on a balcony cabin . But the offer was here and gone. I have called my agent trying to get in on bigger cabin. I have paid in full. Does anyone know how to get them to move me up , this late in the game ?

 

Thank you 

Jeanine 

Normally, the offer to bid is always available until maybe the day before sailing. At your NCL account, if you click on the booking, you should see "Messages" and one of them should be for "bidding." You can use that to place a bid. Since they are an excess of cabins available, you may get lucky.

Secondly depending on how much you paid for the studio cabin, you may be able to upgrade directly. So for example, if your base fare for the studio cabin was $1300 and the current base fare for a balcony is $1649, then you could pay the difference and get the balcony immediately.

9 hours ago, alanstarr said:

NCL just removed the single supplement for certain cabins on the 13-night TA on Oct 22 on the Getaway from Southampton. $1330 all-in, including drink package, for picture window OV. 

👍

For the same ship, the solo supplement is zero for all three cruises in October:

NCL Getaway

** 11 Days October 1 to 12 - Europe: including France, Germany & Belgium (roundtrip from Southampton)

Sail Away Solo Inside Guarantee $699 plus $267 port/taxes 

**10 Days October 12 to 22 - Europe: including France, Germany & Belgium (roundtrip from Southampton)

Sail Away Solo Inside Guarantee $629 plus $255 port/taxes

**13 Days October 22 to November 4

Transatlantic: Southampton to New York City

Sail Away Solo Inside Guarantee $649 plus $197 port/taxes

I guess Laser Tag and Galaxy Pavilion generated limited revenue. That doesn't work! So the valuable real estate will be put to better $$$$ use. I have no problem with that since both areas are of no importance to me. I utilized the OL on my 10 Canada New England last September so shrinking it is a disappointment. Oh well, things happen!

1 hour ago, RB9643 said:

 

I guess if you call the Sun a newer ship.  😄  But honestly, the only thing I associate with shuffleboard is my late-uncle's basement.

 

 

I've been on the Sun and shuffleboard is a definite activity. I guess you prefer more energetic activities! 🙂

55 minutes ago, RB9643 said:

 

Seriously?  Or are you just playing around...  On 10 cruises, the thought of playing shuffleboard has never crossed my mind, nor have I ever seen it played (not that I was looking for it, obviously). I guess we just have very different mindsets when it comes to cruising.

 

 

I guessing you've only been on the newer ships. On the Jewel Class (my favs), people play shuffleboard all the time on the promenade deck. Those of us walking the deck casually or for exercise sometimes have to dodge the sliding pucks/shuckles.

3 hours ago, Skjhoward said:

I want to send a big thank you to everyone who responded so quickly.

I just spoke with another Guest Services Representative who has assured me that the initial date that I contacted NCL via chat (which was on July 3, 2023) is the date that NCL opened the refund request. She confirmed the case number, reservation number, latitude number, and sailing date with me, and stated no other information was required at this point in time.  

She further stated that the request is under review and in process, and instructed me to check my emails and even my spam folders in case NCL needed further information. 

Finally, the Guest Services Representative instructed me to contact NCL  again if I had not received a response by August 3, 2023. 

One final question for those of you with past experience in receiving refunds from NCL. Does NCL normally take the full 30 days to respond and/or to refund the funds?

 

Thank you again everyone!

 

 

 

What I recall is this:

I was on the next to last Gem cruise before the COVID shutdown. I had bought 2 CN and as the days went by with all the dire COVID news, I got concerned that the line might go belly up. So around day #22, I decided cancellation was prudent. I did not spend long on the phone and was satisfied that my request was accepted. I don't think it took a full 30 days for the credit to show up on my cc online account.

Port: Any of the Southern Caribbean islands

Ship: Gem (although the other 3 Jewel Class ships are acceptable)

Cabin: As a solo, I'll take whatever is assigned on Sail Away Guarantee

Size, Great Outdoors and wrap around promenade deck!

Fares are definitely higher than pre-covid for solos. The way I cope is to cruise when schools are in session. I book last minute and long cruises only which provides me with a lower per day rate. I haven't done a 7-day cruise since 2014. Plus, I always book sail-away since type of cabin and location is not important to me, My last cruise in April was 15 days and the next in the fall is hopefully 12 days pending price reduction.

37 minutes ago, RB9643 said:

If you can afford to spend $1000's on a cruise, you can afford $10 for room service and all the food you want.

 

I rarely get out of the room before 10 am, and rarely eat breakfast. But if I really need food, I can get it.

 

 

Wow! Just ridiculous! I have no interest in giving NCL extra money, if I can help it. I never eat breakfast or any of my other meals in the cabin.

I exercise first everyday (port & sea days), then have breakfast. I am an early riser so I'm normally finished with breakfast by 8:15 a.m.

NCL used to pretty much have an exclusive out of Manhattan Cruise Terminal during fall/winter months to the Caribbean. Carnival Italian Style with cruises longer than 7 days (Journey Cruises) on Carnival Venezia has tripped up NCL. MSC out of Brooklyn provides additional competition during the same period. Good for customers bad for NCL.

Norwegian Sky - Sail date September 11

Canada-New England (Quebec City to Baltimore)

10 nights - no single supplement

Solo inside Sail Away Guarantee $599 + port/taxes $291