vicocala

Thanks for sharing those data points. I'll keep an eye out to see what other changes come along...:rolleyes::eek:;)

Good morning,

If you have multiple sailings coming up is the website currently showing all your bookings? I have a B2B in June and only one of the cruises is showing on the website.

It is also showing a specialty dining package when they have already issued me refunds (finally) for cancelling it. :confused:

Thanks for your review. I'm looking forward to trying the Escape for the first time in December. I'm glad you enjoyed your vacation!

I have two premium balconies, one an aft and the other one of the large bump out balconies. I would need to be in the YC with full benefits to move. I would be extremely upset if they moved me otherwise.

I've seen it but it truncates your packages to only one line if you have purchased anything in advance, at least that is my experience.

It also has my birthday wrong by a day and no voyager club number. [sigh]

Those who can book Teppanyaki on-line, was it the Spirit?

I highly doubt it. It was not bookable for the nine months before my cruise. I did get to go since I was in a suite and got first dibs, but otherwise it would of been nearly impossible.

BTW, my local place is much better in my humble opinion. I wasn't impressed.

I've had two upsells one initiated by NCL and one by me and both times they were haven or suites from balconies, one a spa balcony to a Haven Spa Suite and one Penthouse Suite from a large balcony.

My next two bookings with NCL are in a Spa Balcony and a large mini-suite balcony at the bump out. If there are reasonable offers to upgrade without messing with my latitude points I would do it again.

Pinot Grigio is on our package not sure about with vouchers. Also a French Riesling and a couple of Woodbridge whites. Good selection of Woodbridge reds . With the package we have we have a choice of 3 sparkling, 2 roses, 8 white and 8 reds.

 

 

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Thank you for the response. Bon Voyage!

Usually the best deals are Jan-Apr but with your sailing being in the later part of hurricane season how the weather leading up to and forecast for your sailing date will be a determinant.

If you find a deal you can live with take it. I have two very good bookings I made this past month but they have some differences but I still think they will be better than the remainder of the year. But it is all a gamble as is anything promising future delivery.

Do they have a Pinot Grigio that is eligible for drink vouchers?

Exactly, these pre payers baffle me.

I do it so that I can book exactly what I want on my cruise without fear of it selling out, I get today's prices instead of tomorrows which often saves a lot and I can use other's money and get paid for it!

How?

First you have to have excellent credit to get the best deals obviously. I find a credit card that has no foreign fees, at least a year of interest free use and if I am fortunate a big bonus for purchases in the first three months in either points or rebates.

I then book my cruise of choice, pay for it (no rain off my back as the money is interest free for me), book any beverage, entertainment, excursion or dining plans so I have peak availability. I then book any possible other trip related purchases such as travel and hotels, prepay my Ship Hotel charges and come up with a grand total for that trip.

I then make monthly payments for the entire purchase at an amount equal to the total charges and the remaining months of the deal. So I get rewards and use of others money while getting first dibs on reservations and all I have to do is make a monthly payment. If the cruise is booked further out than the remaining months, you will have paid for the cruise before you sail.

This requires financial discipline but it is a great way for the avg person to make the system work for you.

I think the person you quoted has a very rational and realistic view of this particular situation and refuses to buy into all the bashing

I think they are a radical feminist and now all this is doing is hijacking the thread.

This is our first time in the Haven, so what is the suggested amount for your butler and concierge in terms of gratuities? thanks!

Some will claim a lot more but I have left the butler $50-60 and the concierge $20-40 but I have made little to no claim on their time other than delivery of snacks or DVD's. I pre-book my own reservations and excursions as well.

If more services are provided I would increase either of those depending on what time I take they could be helping others.

Thanks to all for the info! :D

Depending on prices, I will look into a spa Balcony or spa mini.

I think you will be happy with the decision. For my first NCL cruise I chose the Getaway and it was the largest ship I had sailed to date. I was very unsure how comfortable I would be with that many people and started planning how to avoid the crowds from day one.

I decided to book a spa balcony reasoning that only a couple hundred or so would be available, that could be my hideaway (next NCL ship name anyone? :p). As it turned out I upgraded into a Haven Spa Suite but the reasoning was sound and even though we had the Haven to get away to it was really nice to have the spa for a plan B. We used plan B a lot. :D

Edit: We booked a spa balcony for our Epic sailing next March.

I loved the two hour dinners in the dining room. It is definitely a throwback to the time when cruises were a relaxing experience and dinner was expected to be a social time to relax and enjoy the company of one's dinner companions.

 

When my daughter was young, we always sat down to dinner as a family no matter what the hectic schedule was for the day. I planned menus and cooked food on the weekends so that we could have good food for dinner during the week.

 

It is so sad that on many mass market American cruise lines, the family dinner time has deteriorated to feed the kids fast so we can dump them in the children's program (or let the children's program feed them) or give the kids video games and movies to entertain them at the table.

 

I love the fact that on MSC I saw families with the children dressed according to the dress code and the children were an integral part of the dining experience without the use of electronic equipment.

 

This is the way it was for the daughter when she cruised with us as a child (started at 18 months) and she always loved dressing in a pretty dress and going to dinner in the dining room (and don't try to give her the crappy kid's menu; she wanted the good food from the adult menu).

 

And while food is subjective, I found food on NCL and Carnival to be poor at the best times; actually inedible at other times. MSC food was superior in every way and as a American who was bought up eating a wide range of different foods, found nothing different or strange in any of the offerings.

 

I agree that MSC is not for everyone; especially those who follow the Four Gs (grease, gravy, grits, glucose) of certain regional cooking areas in the USA. Carnival, NCL, and to some extent, RCCL, will better suit their limited culinary experience.

I usually like your posts but that last paragraph was really wrong and uncalled for.

i choose to pay for the extras on NCL.....but adding the gratuity to the drink and dining packages is certainly nickel diming since we all pay a flat rate gratuity per day, and no ones seen a raise.

We don't know who has gotten raises and who hasn't other than the reported income of FDR.

I have booked five cruises since last June because I don't feel nickled and dimed anymore! With the introduction of the beverage package and the specialty restaurant package coupled with usually prepaying my DSC and excursions I don't have to worry if I want a soda or a mixed drink, I can go to Cagney's if I want and have no worries at the end of the cruise.

As a matter of fact on my last cruise I didn't even use the remainder of my non-refundable credit!

I do stand corrected, it wasn't 5% but was around a hundred dollars. Maybe it will get me out of the doghouse for booking the March cruise. :D

I stand corrected, I suppose but when I did a faux booking I could get one or the other. :o:confused:

I guess I should call my TA.

I don't think the AARP is combinable to any great degree with the current promotions so that is a shrug for me. It may hurt once the other promotions go away though.

If the news about GSC is true that will make a lot of people angry to miss the stop, however as I am booked in December and March it could be a good thing depending on what they do. I hope they don't overbuild it which is likely to happen. HAL has ruined the natural beauty of HMC with their huge cabanas and pirate bar.

I found the service to be the best ever, of any cruise line last month. I had no problems getting bar service.

I'm sorry it wasn't to your liking. I actually loved it when I was on it last month. I enjoyed all of the art and I felt like the service was the best I have had on any cruise ship.

I thought it might be because of being in a suite, but I asked some others and they agreed the service was great. I keep my expectations low and when a cruise like the one I had comes along it really makes me happy. :D

We enjoyed it so much I booked two more cruises this month for the Escape and the Epic! Two more NCL ships we haven't sailed yet.

I hope you find a ship more to your liking next time and thank you for your review.

I know the excursion I want, I just want to be able to book it so we have a spot. JVD is a popular excursion. I could go on my own but would prefer the ship's excursion when I leave the island my ship is at. To many things could delay your return.

Along the same vein, if I may ask, is how far in advance of sailing are Tortola excursions usually listed? For my March 11, 2017 Epic cruise, St. Thomas and Nassau are already listed but no Tortola. :confused:

Thanks in advance!

"Socialist Jingoism"

That said, this reporter probably took a haven suite just so they could get a tax write off for this story. :rolleyes:

Thanks. If that is indeed a promotion and not a legitimate level my B2B may be their only chance at keeping me as a customer. I would be very bummed out to find I am at classic at that point. Along with the B1G1F on balconies, it was a deciding factor on trying them out.