poohdreaming

Sorry for the misunderstanding: I know that I can have dinner 4 times.

My question: can I use my UDP in the same restaurant of should I visit 4 restaurants. For example can I visit Cagneys 4 times.

Yes, you can use all your 4 UDP at Cagney's however you like - it just you need to reserve ahead of time.

Cagney's is one of the popular restaurants. You do not want to run into the problem of not be able to have the time you want and for them to tell you that Cagney's is totally booked the rest of the cruise.

An example:

Day 1 - Cagney's at 5pm

Day 2 - Cagney's at 6 pm

Day 4 - Cagney's at 7 pm, and the final one is Day 6 at Cagney's at 5:30 pm.

The UDP/ specialty dining - it is only for dinner. If you like one restaurant, you can go to that same restaurant throughout your cruise. You would just need to reserve for which date and the time you would like to eat. Reserve before you get on broad as the time available to be booked are limited.

Well, welcome back.. some questions:

1.) Where did you cruised to?

2.) Did you enjoyed the cruise?

I'm not sure why you wanted to know who would be the hotel director in advance of your cruise...

Anyway, I just got back from my cruise, the current Hotel Director is Richard Janicki.

However do not know if it would still be Richard during your January cruise as they could go on a vacation or go on broad to another cruise ship.

Most main show times are at 7pm and then the next one is at 9pm which is the repetitive of the 7pm show.

For specialty dining - make sure to book/reserve for the time you want to dine before you get on broad.

Depending on the total days of your cruise - you would get either 3 UPD (7 days cruise) or 4 UPD (10+ days cruise)

Cagney's - Steakhouse

La Cucina - Italian food/pasta

Le Bistro - French restaurant

Moderno - Brazillian steakhouse

Teppanyaki - Japanese Hibachi - a chef grills food in front of you

I have just booked a cruise on the Escape and chose the specialty dining package. Am I able to order anything off the menu or since it is ala carte are there price limitations that I will have?

The SPD would cover those restaurants that went to ala carte pricing. You are limited to 1 entree and for app and desserts - people said they are unlimited.

The Op Choice:

1.) Call NCL to upgrade cabin to get the beverage perk

2. ) Pay drinks as a la carte price

3.) Look out for free drinks on the cruise - from the casino besides the one that they give out to only their players, at the art auction, etc.

4.) Drink own wine - there would be a cork fee.

Hey everyone, I am headed to the Bahamas on the sky 11/20 and it will be my first cruise. I will be cruising with my boyfriend and hes a vegetarian. I would love to hear from fellow vegetarians on tips or suggestions for eating both on the ship and the Bahamas. He is very nervous about not having enough V friendly options off the ship.

Before cruising, email NCL Access Desk to let them know and also search online to see what restaurants offer vegetarian food like this site: happycow.net/ north_america/bahamas/nassau/ and check on trip advisor

We have booked our cruise with unlimited beverage pkg and 4 specialty dining promotions - I am sure we have prepaid Gratuities - is that correct

Thanks

You paid the gratuities to the beverage package and the specialty dining. It was added on to your final cruise payment. However, for the DSC - if you did not paid that yet, then you could either prepay it or do it til the end of the cruise.

You are able to cancel because of not knowing your itinerary?

Yes, if that person purchased insurance that allows a cancellation for any reasons.

When you purchase for a insurance plan, there are different kinds out there.

Need to purchase one that include what s/he want.

No one can predict what will happen like all these hurricanes and another example is what if your job need you/tell you last minute that you cannot go. If you do, would lose your job...

My replies are in purple.

1) No more salmon lox at buffet.

Don't know how long this has been going on for, but last trip I went on, we went to buffet (normally do sit down) and they did not have it. I asked one of the head waitresses and she was nice enough to get some for me. She did bring out almost 1.5 lbs worth was insane. I felt bad not eating it all.

I do not eat salmon lox, therefore I have no issue with this. However, I do get it when you wanted certain food & they do not have it out. But since you asked & they provided it to you, then this was problem solved. You wasn't happy? NCL changed their menus over time and so are their chefs. Food on cruise lines are always ups and downs. I missed the chicken pot that was provided in O'sheehan's.

2) No more lobster tails at regular dining.

I know this has been gone for a while? But I purchased the dinning package last time, and paid even more money for the lobster at Ocean Blue, and was not impressed. The lobster tail for "free" at the regular dinning in the past was better than that one. Everything else at Ocean blue was great, and the service was excellent!

Sorry, I do not eat lobsters so I have no problem with this.

3) Alcohol package prices / drink prices

Recently the price going up has bothered me. It does mean you have to tip more now since base went up. Plus, what if you didn't want it and paid for drinks. Regular drink prices on NCL are INSANE. Carnival and Princess still have reasonable prices without package. Not sure about RCCL, haven't been on them in a while. Also, it was nice when the gratuity on the alcohol package was included. It still is on Princess. Have used the "free" package on Princess last year, and also will use it next year. Plus theirs, includes all coffee and bottled water!! To comment further, they now have a surcharge for "super premium", that was included when they first started the package. Also, certain wines now (the more expensive) or only available on the drink package in the more expensive dining locations. What's going to be next? How far will they go?!?

Yes, the price increased by $10 and soft drinks are now included in the package. However, no premium coffee and bottle water.

On my first cruise with NCL, I picked the beverage perk. Even though I love their frozen drinks, I was not much of a drinker. For those that are a drinker, they probably will still choose the beverage perk. Without the beverage perk, it depends on how much drinks one would get. Some people would use their OBC to pay for these few drinks.

There are water, juices and other drink provided free on board.

4) Quality of service

Personally I think the service quality has gone down.

I only been to one cruise, so I cannot comment if the service quality has gone down.

Drinks - I remember back in the day, when you go on the ship, they would be in your FACE trying to get you to buy a drink. I feel like now with the alcohol package, it can be harder to get a drink, during peak times. I did find it was hit or mess, if you were laying out by the pool, someone would come by and get you a drink. That was really nice, when that would happen. Honestly, I didn't really care too much, considering the bar is about 20 feet away, and I am not that lazy. I won't say this is with everyone, there are so many great bartenders still on the ships and I know they work hard.

I have no issue with this as I like to visit the same bar myself and the bartender recognized me. Asked if I would like the same drink. I did not have a hard time or had to wait too long during any time (peak or off peak).

Dining - The last few times we had long waits while sitting down for dinner. By this, I mean we were already sitting down, waiting for the wait staff to come by to get a drink, or place our food order. It wasn't all the time, but the last 2 cruises, I thought it was longer than normal. I didn't complain or say anything. I am wondering about similar experiences?

I do not have this issue as I had dining with a group of solo travelers and the reservation was done under the solo traveler host. :)

Nickel and Diming - Doesn't other cruise lines do the same? I had no issue as NCL did not nickel and dime me. Didn't use their room service as there was no need to.

The beverage package as well as the specialty dining package are the top choice over shore excursion credits and the wifi. You would still paid the whole gratuity for the beverage package as well as the specialty dining package. If you do not use it, then you would lose it. If you mean using OBC to pay for the gratuity, I do not know if you can because this would already be paid for when you paid for your cruise. The gratuity for the beverage package was added to the final cost. Switching to another promotion- you would need to call up NCL or your TA.

Specialty dining - use it at any of those restaurants by telling them you are using SDP. One entree and unlimited app as well as desserts. Do not need to worry about those a la prices.

Shore excursions - it is $50 credit per each port. It is taken off only after the shore excursion and you do not get a credit if NCL decided to skip a port. You can use OBC for your shore excursions.

Private Insurance is mostly less expensive than NCL Insurance. One of the insurance agent said to me that NCL know mostly about cruising but not specially toward insurance. Compare different plans and see which one to buy. There are other sites like Insured My Trip, etc.

"How do I book my Dining, Entertainment and Spa activities prior to sailing?

Onboard activities can be booked online at ncl.com/myncl; by calling 866-625-1167 (for Shore Excursions) and 800-327-7030 for Spa (Norwegian Epic only), Dining and Entertainment, or by contacting your travel professional."

Call up the number and tell them that you would like to reserve for 2 people at Cagney's.

It shouldn't happened. Try the Continental Breakfast Room Service again by filling out the form or calling it in.

O'Sheehan's did have them. If there are none in the current menu, then maybe try looking for them in the buffet.

"So many cuisines to choose from! Make dinner on every night of your cruise a delicious adventure at one of our Specialty Restaurants. Kids 12 and under eat free from the complimentary kids' menu at all specialty restaurants. Excludes dinner and a show dining events."

Another option if possible is to order more appetizer and desserts to share.

Do not know which cruise ship you would be on, but there are some menus out there. If you didnt go through those menus yet, take a chance to do so you could get an idea of what to have. Most people like Le bistro as well as Cagney's.

If you live in the US, you can also call NCL to book those dining reservations for you especially for the Teppanyaki restaurant as you cannot prebook it yourself through myncl. :)

Just upgrade to an H6 so we have all free at sea perks, but this cruise is also show as a "distinctive voyages" which say we automatically get certain thing. My first question is that I don't see them listed anywhere on my summary. The second question is that it says it is combinable with free at sea perks. Does that mean instead of 50 excursion I get 100 and also double the wifi time. My ta was no help.

In case it matters we are on the BA Dec 3rd.

 

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If you click on explore and plan, you would see these things listed.

I asked before about the double of shore excursions, said it was not stackable.

T&C: "$50 USD Per Port Shore Excursion Credit:

$50 USD per port shore excursion credit is per stateroom.

Credit has no monetary value and is nonrefundable.

In the event a port of call or excursion is missed, for any reason, no refund or credit will be issued.

Shore excursion credit is applicable for each port, including debarkation port, and is not transferable to other ports. Use the credit or lose it.

Does not include embarkation ports. Overnight stays count as one port, except Bermuda sailings which can receive up to 3 individual days of shore excursion credit.

Shore excursion credit can only be redeemed by calling 1-866-625-1167 or booking onboard."

I have booked my excursions not online but calling the shore excursion line at (866)625-1167. We have the shore excursion credit and are platinum which saves 10%. Nothing was charged at the time. They sent us an email after each booking. You might call them.

Me too, I also called the shore excursion line and they were able to book it for me. Later on that night, I received an email saying what I booked and the total cost. I did not have to pay anything. So to the OP - it is best to call the shore excursion line to see if they have any bookings available & to reserve. If doing it by yourself, then you would have to pay it with a credit card.

At check-in, you would provide them the credit card you wanted to use. Do not use a debit credit card.

The night before the last day of the cruise, they would printed out the report of all the charge on your acct. If you are cruising on a new ship, this information can also be accessed through the TV. I do not know about older cruise ships if this can work. Make sure to review everything and if something is not correct, you would go to the guest services desk to correct the issue. If everything is correct, those charges would be put on your credit card. You also have the option to pay in cash if you wanted to (all or part of it).

As casofilia mentioned - there are no charge to the actual credit card until at the end of the cruise and after you review those charges to make sure everything is correct. If not correct, you would need to go to the guest services desk to have them fix it.

Any kind of creme brûlée I can get my grubby little paws on ;p:D

 

Pistachio creme brûlée

Chocolate Ganache layered creme brûlée

Honey creme brûlée

Matcha Green Tea creme brûlée

Ginger creme brûlée

Aziki creme brûlée

Oh wow, you must love creme brûlée very very much. Which ones is your favorite from this list? Is the matcha green tea from the Japanese restaurant? :p

It also seems like most people like the cream mushroom soup at Le Bistro. Is it really that tasty? What kinds of entree is good at Le Bistro for someone who cannot have seafood (food allergies)? Thanks.

From http://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/gem/whats-on-board/Entertainment:

Blazing Boots, Get Down Tonight, Pure Variety, Swing! The Musical, The Second City