rtkenmore

16 minutes ago, QueenOfZoom said:

 

It really is nice! Unless I was on a cooler weather cruise I wouldn't get the pass on the smaller ships again. 

For sure, the smaller ships are a bit of a let down compared to the Epic & BA/BA+ ships...  I've only ever done Star (our very first NCL), Pearl and Dawn as far as smaller ships.  We did the pass on Dawn both trips but didn't on Star (had no knowledge of what the thermal suite was to be honest) and didn't on Pearl because it was just a quick 3-day trip.  I still found it worth on the Dawn especially for sea days though.

Just now, QueenOfZoom said:

 

It's being offered for $139 on our Gem sailing June 28. I had it on the Epic TA which was 13 days, think it was around $249 for that cruise. 

 

Epic:

Epic, to me at least, is the BEST thermal suite in the entire fleet if you ask me.  That outdoor space with the loungers and day beads is fantastic to just sit and relax.  I've fallen asleep on those day beds more than a few times.  I don't think any other thermal suite has an outdoor space like that and it's really a shame they don't.

35 minutes ago, kenns said:

how much are the spa passes currently going for? And, what exactly does it get you - just access and usage of the thermal suite/sauna/salt room, etc.? Does it include any actual spa passes?

I think I saw someone on another thread say $199 for 7 day prior to sailing and $219 on board.  That was for the larger Breakaway Plus class ships.  I want to say my last time on Dawn it was around $139 for 7 days (but it's a much smaller thermal suite than BA+).

1 minute ago, rkelly21 said:

Of course not. That, like any other business, is considered in it's overhead costs. When you tip a waiter in the restaurant do you expect the janitor to get a cut? I tip for personal service.

The behind the scenes crew participate in the pool from Daily Service Charges... So when you opt out of the DSC, you are opting out of thousands of crew members who share in that pool of money beyond just the waiters and bartenders that you actually meet in person.

That's what people like you (and anyone who opts out of DSC) don't understand.  The DSC doesn't go ONLY to waiters and bartenders...  

3 minutes ago, MrMike45 said:

Well I stand corrected if they are to be smaller/too small to add a Go Kart track.  Based off the pictures I have seen online, they look significantly bigger, especially the top deck/open area 

Breakaway Class are 145k gross tons.

Breakaway Plus Class are 164k to 169k gross tons.

Project Leonardo will be 140k gross tons.

Your vision doesn't deceive you Mike...  Part of the positives of Project Mille/Leocardo Class ships is that the diesel engines are moved further forward to the center of gravity instead of aft like the Breakaway/Breakaway+ ships.  The stack is also forward more as well with the combination that there will be no top deck pool (large weights move the center of gravity up) and the spa complex will be moved lower on this class as well from most reports...

Combine all that, and you get the ability to add an extra passenger deck of cabins (about 10% more), about 10% more open deck space and about 10% more efficient overall.  Another thing to note, the superstructure above the hull is going to be more narrow than Breakaway/Breakaway+ ships according to some reports which tells me there will be less inside staterooms and potentially no Studio Cabin complex.  Guess we'll have to wait and see.

MSC Seaside & MSC Seaview will give you some rough concept of what to expect.  These two ships are also based on Project Mille from Fincantieri although they are larger than what NCL has on order for Leonardo (153k gross tons vs. 140k gross tons).

2 hours ago, KAYKAY121 said:

Booked on the Encore Dec 8th. I can't wait to see this ship. I don't care about the GO Cart Track or Laser Tag. I just hope the Manhattan room still has entertainment. I will let you know about the outdoor space. I can totally see where adding these two amenities would help those traveling with family keep the whole family entertained. My concern is the line. We didn't even do the water slides on the Escape due to the lines. We had vibe passes in our hands and gave them to another guest. We didn't need a private area to enjoy our cruise. We found a less crowded bar and we sat upstairs on pool days. It was hot but we had good drink service so we had an amazing vacation. If you can't find something on these ships that makes you enjoy vacation, the cruise line is not the problem.

 

We’ll be sailing with you! We were on November 24th but rebooked for the 8th to take advantage of lower fare and free airfare offer from Atlanta. 

2 minutes ago, First_Time_Cruiser85 said:

Mr Mike, show me the proof all NCL ships after Encore will have go kart tracks!

Mr. "I've never even taken one cruise yet" is back...  How nice.

No deck plans or anything have been released yet on Leonardo class ships but it would be a safe bet if they've put a race track on the last 3 new builds...  And area already researching whether they can add a race track to Escape during it's dry dock in 2020, that they would definitely consider race tracks on the Leonardo class.  Obviously, NCL thinks there is money to be made with the race tracks which is why they are doing them in the first place.

11 hours ago, rkelly21 said:

It is customary in the U.S. to tip the waiter and bartender if they do their job right. The bartender normally kicks back a portion of his tips to the waiter/waitress  if drinks were ordered through them.  The bartender generally tips the bar helper if there is one a small amount also.The rest of the employees are considered in the cost of overhead and priced into the cost of the meal. It's that simple. General rule is 20% for good service however I always tip more if service is excellent. Unfortunately some restaurants, hotels and cruise lines use these tips to offset their labor costs which has nothing to do with serving the customer.

So you think what you tip the waiters and bartenders is also going to go to the maintenance e staff, the laundry facility staff, the crew that keeps the ship clean constantly and everyone else behind the scenes that you're never going to lay an eye on because they work behind the scenes?

2 minutes ago, trumpetfish55 said:

I just got off the Escape and although we normally are in the Haven we were in a balcony this cruise. Given the overnights in Bermuda and an unusable Haven Courtyard when we sailed last June, I decided to try a balcony room instead. In summary, we enjoyed ourselves much more than we thought we would. We arrived at the port at almost 1 and were on the ship very quickly. Our rooms were also ready quickly. The room was an ok size and the balcony is not much smaller than the Haven. We didn’t have reservations but were able to go standby to restaurants and were seated without much wait. I found we explored more of the ship and enjoyed the Waterfront for some quiet time out of the sun. While we enjoy the Haven, I was pleasantly surprised how much we enjoyed ourselves not being in the Haven and at a fraction of the price. 

Us common folk know how to enjoy a cruise too!

31 minutes ago, kngknight said:

Hi all. We booked a cruise for March 2020. We upgraded to a mini-suite with balcony and it said we would get all 5 free offers. Yet, I don't see them on my summary. Do I have to wait until we make our last payment or do they not show up?

 

Thanks, we are new to NCL.  

One very important question as the others have said...  Did you "upgrade" or did you cancel/rebook the mini-suite a new reservation.  If you upgraded, you don't normally get the current promotion perks...  If you rebooked it as a new reservation, then yes, you should get whatever the current promotion/perks were at the time.

I would call ASAP to confirm accuracy of your reservation.

12 minutes ago, tee3240 said:

Hello,

I am considering a last minute cruise to Bermuda on the Gem. I have been checking the prices the last few weeks and they are always the same. As the cruise gets closer, will the price drop at all? There still appears to be many empty cabins. Thanks in advance for your help!

As it gets closer, will there be any cabins left is the better question..

2 minutes ago, mjkacmom said:

We’ve never been to Nassau when there has been less than 4 ships, a couple of times it was full! We make sure to get right off of the ship and into a waiting taxi (family of 7 so we fill it), and we are on Paradise Island in 15 minutes (we’ve done Atlantis twice and RIU once). We are in a pool by 9.

Last time we did Atlantis, I think we were there by 9:30 so...  Whatever.  I'd prefer the scenic views of the water ferry over being crammed in a taxi any day.  You do you...

22 minutes ago, schildiams said:

I will be sailing on the 29th and want to purchase 4 on board to apply to two upcoming cruises (the promo for double up ends the 30th.) Will I be able to get this accomplished before the double up promo ends? I already have them booked but well outside cancel period so can cancel and book on board if necessary.

You may be able to purchase AND have them applied while on board but I wouldn't count on it unless you're willing to cancel/rebook your existing reservation and letting the Cruise Next people treat it like a new one.

Typically the Cruise Next Certs don't show up in your Latitudes account until a few days/week after the end of your existing cruise.

On 6/12/2019 at 6:31 AM, Daan386 said:

Why no roll call for 8 Sept. 2020.

 

Never been on one of the largest ships in any cruises line.  At each of the different stop is only one gangplank used to disembark and embark the 4000 quest?

Any others tips for first timers on large ships would be appreciated

We've sailed Epic twice and Escape...  Every port where a gang way was used, they utilized both gangways from morning to afternoon.  They only closed up one about 30 minutes before all aboard because at that point there are so few people left to worry about they don't need the capacity for two.

22 minutes ago, mjkacmom said:

I’ve heard many times on CC that a taxi gets you closer, plus you don’t have to wait for a ferry to fill up.

December 24th is going to be a 4 ship day in Nassau AND Christmas Eve...  I would go with the expectation that traffic will be heavy trying to get to Paradise Island that day.  We've never waited more than 10-15 minutes on the ferry to actually depart from the waterfront and often there are lines to the point they are just loading up and going almost immediately...  Especially first thing in the morning.  I think the general rule is they depart no more than every 30 minutes anyway.

I'm booked on Encore in December and it shows it to be A La Carte like La Cucina...

On 6/13/2019 at 12:04 PM, Greenpea2 said:

Wow. This is harsh. I only read one post where they said they pretty much stay in the Haven. And even if they did, so what? They paid for the Haven experience. Your  assumptions that Haven guests  are rich and snobby is judge mental and offensive. Reverse snobbery!

A lot of people that post on CC and stay in the Haven come off as rich and snobby...  Even on Facebook groups for NCL, Haven guess often come off as entitled thinking they are better than the rest of the cruise line passengers and owed something...

On 6/13/2019 at 10:23 AM, cruiseguy56 said:

We sailed the Breakaway out of Miami on the May 19, 2019 sailing. We saw NO ONE drinking in the thermal suite on any of our several visits each day. The ONLY problem we had with alcohol was while sitting in the atrium while they were doing one of their "game shows". Had someone walk past and he knocked two glasses of wine off a table and it went all over my jeans. Being a non-drinker, I wasn't thrilled with this, but I understand accidents happen. That aside, he could have at least had the decency to apologize to me and the people whose drinks he had just knocked over.

 As for the specialty restaurants, I had an amazing meal in Cagney's (no I did NOT order a steak). My wife's steak was equivalent to one you'd get from Golden Corral buffet, which isn't saying much for NCL's steakhouse specialty. While I had good seafood in Ocean Blue, the DW's lobster (supposedly grilled) came out a soggy mess soaking in water. I've NEVER seen a soaking wet "GRILLED" lobster, so despite the "chef's" personal assurance that it was only grilled, I suspect NCL steamed or boiled it first, then laid it on the grill for a few seconds.

Other annoyances:  We were somewhat shocked to find our balcony door curtains, majorly torn near the top in three places since the ship had undergone renovation not too long ago.

 The cabin door card reader didn't like our cards, even after we got new cards done, it would still take 3-4 tries before the reader would read one most of the time. Even a housekeeping officer walking by had trouble getting the cards to read, lol.

As for the thermal suite, was dissapointed that the hydrotherapy pool is no longer saltwater and minerals. It's no a lukewarm chlorinated pool with jets. While the jets are nice, the missing saltwater and mineral combo that has helped alleviate aches and pains on HAL was, pardon the pun, sorely missed. Although I realized before the cruise that the thermal tile lounges were in the same room as the hydropool on NCL, unlike HAL. I failed to think through the logic that there would be no peaceful quietness while laying on the heated lounges. That one is my mistake, although if you've ever experienced the difference between HAL and NCL in that regard, you may also find it to be poor planning on NCL's part as the total experience is SO much less satisfying and relaxing.  

 To be fair, I will say we had absolutely wonderful excursions and very decent food in Savor. I was also happy to find dal or masala or some form of Indian food on the buffet each day. I'm not Indian, but really love their food! 

While there's no such thing as a bad cruise to me, I'm already booked on HAL for my next one. NCL was interesting and I did like the freestyle overall, but our preferences just fall more in line with HAL.

 

Washy Washy!!

When were the thermal spa pools saltwater?  Been sailing with NCL since 2011 and not once found a salt water pool.

On 6/12/2019 at 12:23 PM, ocdb8r said:

I wasn't clear probably because I'm not entirely clear how I feel.  All I know is that the atmosphere on this cruise was a real bummer for me.  I've done both Princess and Celebrity and found them to be a bit too much subdued.  I like that the NCL entertainment is a bit more up to date and occasionally edgy and generally in the past there seemed to be certain venues that were clearly for hard partying (pool deck, Bliss, Spice) and others where it was a more collegial atmosphere (Atrium, Syd Normans, Maltings).  This cruise just felt like every single venue was packed with people looking to get plastered as quickly as possible.  We couldn't even escape in the Thermal Suite (where I find serving alcohol totally unacceptable as the whole point of this venue is to have a mellow place to relax and rejuvenate).

 

As to the Haven, not upset at it so to speak.  We tried it when it first came out on the Epic and enjoyed it but didn't find sufficient value for the up-charge.  I guess I'm a bit frustrated that the middle ground has been eliminated for a completely bifurcated experience and that NCL has begun to rely so heavily on these drink and dining package promotions to fill the ships, rather than innovating like they did with the whole freestyle cruising concept and other products that hooked me on them years ago.

8 cruises with NCL and booked the thermal suite every single time...  I've never seen a waiter taking drink orders in the thermal suite...  😕

On 6/14/2019 at 11:39 AM, Peachypooh said:

Here is my story that I posted on another thread.

 

It was a blistering hot day (not Atlantis's fault) and the complex is massive. They opened the box office

20 min late(their fault ). We stood in line for 45 min. so thank goodness I had water with us.

The complex is massive with poor signage. Little things like

"the lazy river has multiple access points so pay attention to where you got on so you can reunite

with family" was not told to us so we ended up wasting almost an hour trying to find each other.

Texting didn't work even though we had signed up for a plan. Lunch was overpriced. A wrap and

bottle of water was $20 each. But for me the worst was the employees either because they were

new or in a bad mood consistently pointed in the opposite direction of where we asked to go. Which

way is the children's play area? They pointed in the exact opposite way. So when family tried to find

us they were directed to a sand dune. Now writing this I see it was  a bit of an exaggeration but if you have

ever been hot to the point of fainting and alarmed because you couldn't find your family in a big

park and pay $800 for the priviledge you can see why I was upset. PS I had tried to download

a map before we left home and it was not detailed at all and sure enough it was the same useless

map handed out.

They have printed maps you could pick up at every entry point to the park...  And the Atlantis App for phones with detailed maps of where everything is located.

As for the food, what would you expect at a resort of that nature?  It's just like any amusement park, Disney or Universal..  Overpriced food...  😕

I wouldn't even bother with the taxis... There are water taxis available from the waterfront downtown that drop off directly under the bridge at Atlantis and then you have a short walk to the Marina Village and ultimately the front door of Atlantis right where the ticket/box office window is located.  You can also book your tickets in advance direct through Atlantis' website as well.  

On 6/13/2019 at 11:30 AM, NCLGirl2013 said:

Can a first time cruiser use a CruiseNext voucher that was transferred from someone else? For example, I have cruised multiple times and have CruiseNext vouchers. My mom and I are both booked for Dec for the Encore in separate balcony rooms with separate bookings. She and her husband have never cruised NCL before but when I log into their account I think I see a latitudes number ( it says Guest Number though?) and they are showing as First Timers.

 

vs

 

My best friend is going on the same cruise but booked an inside cabin. She has a latitudes number from the early 2000's that does not have nay "credit" on it (she didn't call in the 12 month time frame to get cruises added to her latitudes account but they still show her info as a past passenger?) 

 

Could either my best friend or my mom use a transferred Cruise Next voucher? 

They should be able to use them.  That's part of the whole reason they are transferable so is you can buy them and give them to friends and family to use potentially even to take their first cruise...

On 6/13/2019 at 10:32 AM, Sup_Devil said:

Does anyone know how long it will take to be credited back the cruisenext certificates after canceling a cruise?? I canceled recently and was looking at making another reservation but they aren't showing up online in the booking section. 

When NCL cancelled my Getaway cruise in November of 2020, it took 3 days I think for the cert to show back up in my account I think.. No more than 5 days in my case.

On 8/6/2018 at 9:37 PM, FLAHAM said:

On my last two cruises, the CruiseNext desk offered me (and I accepted) four certificates for $500, dispensing with the refund credit. They also offered me eight certificates for $1,000.

It's the same difference.  I'd be willing to bet you're on board account still showed all four certs at full price and then an OBC of the $500.  It's the same...

On 6/8/2019 at 6:27 AM, JOHNHOWARTH2 said:

I have just booked on the Epic next month and booked through NCL UK. They asked me did I want to pre-pay the Daily Service Charge or sort it out on board. NCL however did say that the charge was discretionary and that you could go to guest services on the first day, complete a form and then there would be no charge on your account at the end. I believe that the idea is if you prefer to tip individuals yourself. This is not an attempt to not pay the hard working staff, but all I am trying to establish is if this practice actually works and if anybody has successfully had the discretionary DSC waived from their account. Any help would be appreciated

And how are you going to tip all the cooks, laundry staff, bar backs, etc. behind the scenes that you may never actually meet in person but who still make your vacation fantastic and memorable?