rtkenmore

7 minutes ago, Nextcruise42 said:

 We will be stopping in Port Canaveral for a day and are planning to book ncl transfer to Epcot. Has anyone purchased tickets in advance or is it best to purchase at park? 

I believe they are slightly cheaper if you purchase in advance online rather than at the gate.

I would be shocked if NCL just flat out took another ships name (or potential name) like Seascape or Pride (Carnival).

I always wondered why they didn't do more -away ships...  Breakaway, Getaway, Sailaway, Castaway, Hideaway...

I know the next class is Leonardo but I kind of hope they aren't named after painters...  That seems like an odd choice if they are.  Norwegian Leonardo, Norwegian Michelangelo...  Would just be weird.

I'd love to see NCL start their own trend like RCCL ____ of the Seas or MSC's Sea____...

I’ve never done a wheelchair in a spa but have stayed in spa multiple times...  it might be a tight fit if you need the chair to get around the cabin itself and remember the bathroom isn’t going to be the same accessible type as a truly accessible cabin likely would be. 

2 hours ago, kenns said:

I think someone else above may have mentioned this, but it looks like the Encore will have 8 hot tubs whereas Bliss has 10. This is due to loosing 2 of them with no Spice H20. I know the lack of/change of Spice is being discussed but I personally just noticed this additional change. 

 

As the ship is due to launch in about a year (Nov/Dec 2019) - when should we expect to hear about dining and complete deck plans?

Yeah, I noticed that a while back when it was revealed that Spice H2O was no longer aft...  2 fewer hot tubs over all it seams and then in addition to that, you have two in the forward Have space and one in vibe.  So it really cuts down on publicly available hot tubs without having to pay more for Haven or Vibe.

I'm dying to see the deck plans and see what else may be changing and all too.

You're 2 day refund was likely credited to your onboard account as a refundable onboard credit...  You chose not to show up for the cruise and therefore you did not get your refund like everyone else who did show up.

Very similar ships.. One big difference that a lot of people need to be aware of if you enjoy the Thermal Suite on a ship...  Joy does NOT have one.  Bliss does.

4 hours ago, AKR2011 said:

I'm really loving this itinerary on the Encore November 29th:

Sun	New York, New York (EMBARK)
Mon	At Sea
Tue	At Sea
Wed	Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Thu	At Sea
Fri	Willemstad, Curacao
Sat	Oranjestad, Aruba
Sun	Santa Marta, Colombia
Mon	Cartagena, Colombia
Tue	Panama Canal/Gatun Lake, Panama
	Colon, Panama
Wed	Puerto Limon, Costa Rica
Thu	At Sea
Fri	At Sea
Sat	Miami, Florida (DISEMBARK)

 

But no Free at Sea? No deals at all? I think I will hold off for now. I'll keep this one in mind for sure, though.

If you go through booking process, Free at Sea is there.  They just aren't color coded and tagged on the main search results pages yet.

8 minutes ago, DaCruiseBug said:

 

Mine correction: Your meal was NOT free. Food is included in your cruise fare, you then selected a more expensive fare in order to get the dining package plus you pay a 20% service charge on top of that. Far from free.

I'm not going to argue semantics with you...

When the server brings my check and the check says $0.00...  My meal was free as far as I'm concerned.

On top of that, you have no idea whether I normally book a sail-away rate and then buy the SDP separately or book a rate that includes the package as a choice...

Later...

3 hours ago, JC5240 said:

Don't forget Spa cabins come with access to the Thermal Spa (valued at $200-$250 pp for the week), so that's probably why it jumps over the aft balcony (JMO).

 

 

 

This is exactly why a B9 is a higher level than a B1.  The Spa Suite access...

1 hour ago, Bkchero said:

 

I did not watch the video and have not read how long the ride actually is, but let's assume the ride time averages 5 minutes for entry, safety check, zip around the track and exit.  So the car can run an average of 12 times in an hour, times two people is 24 people, times 4 cars running at once is 96 people an hour.  if it runs for an average of 10 hours a day that's 960 riders a day, and I think 10 hours a day might be low.  The ship holds 5,200 passengers, if 60% of them want to ride that's a little over 3,000 so in theory everybody should be able to go once in a little over 3 days.  My bigger issue is how they will set up times for riding, will they just have a line like an amusement park or will they give you a ticket to come at a certain time and tell the passengers you will ride within an hour or so of your arrival time, something like that.

I would doubt they would run it for 10 hours a day...  I guess we'll see.  I don't see it having a capacity of 96/hour.  That would be 48 circuits every 60 minutes or one circuit every 75 seconds.  This isn't going to be a high speed coaster as it's self propelled from within the car itself (not gravity or LIM propelled).

It's intriguing but if I had to choose between this and race cars, I'd take race cars every day.

6 minutes ago, TheDougOut said:

 

First off, I agree that there’s likely more-to-come with the new sundeck area.

 

Personally, my gripe isn’t about a change in sun deck space.  I simply think it’s stupid that the 3 big activity lineups (Galaxy, Go-Karts, Laser Tag) take zero advantage of the fact that they’re sitting atop a cruise ship.  In fact, it’s the opposite - as they all go out of their way to obstruct it. 

 

All 3 activities can and are done better on land, and the designs appear to do nothing to leverage the uniqueness of them sitting atop a ship.  When you add in the fact that SO MUCH of the deck space is being set aside for these voids of experience, then yeah, it’s a little disappointing.  

I would agree with you on laser tag and galaxy pavilion but the race track..  It's on the top deck and hangs out over the each of the ship on both sides...  It will provide an exhilarating view while doing the track and that's one thing I can't wait to do TBH.  Laser tag isn't something I've really ever gotten into but I'll check out the Galaxy Pavilion and see what it's all about probably.

24 minutes ago, kskelley40 said:

I have looked at that same painting on our last 3 cruises.  Just don't have much wall space now so I am getting really picky.

I love the Four Seasons by Najar.  I've got one of the first ones he did I think around 2011/12.  There have been several variations of that type painting/print now over the years.  I actually turn it upside down depending on the season so that whatever the current season is... Is on the top of the work.  LOL.

23 minutes ago, kskelley40 said:

I like the talks too...as long as the speaker is engaging.  Have learned a lot on the ships about the art world.

It can be fascinating.  We always check out the first auction if we think about it and see if we are going to engage further or not.

I would enjoy them more if they weren't right in the middle of the day, usually 1pm - 4pm.  Maybe some night ones on longer cruises.

We are leaving for a 14-day one in January so will be interesting to see what they offer.

1-4 is almost always the time they do them and typically always on sea days.  It's something to fill time at sea for people...  Occasionally you'll see "art talks" in the evenings or earlier in the mornings sometimes but the actual auctions are almost exclusively 1-4ish on every cruise we've been on.

I'm curious about our upcoming cruise in January that is 10 days...  With only 2 sea days...  I wonder if there will only be two auctions or if they will break the mold and have auctions on port days as well.

Looking back at the deck plans, if you wanted to get technical, they've actually added more square footage to the overall ship on Encore compared to Bliss.  On Bliss, Deck 17 Aft is Spice H2O with nothing above it but blue sky.  On Encore, Deck 17 Aft becomes the Galaxy Pavilion and is enclosed with a roof so that the Laser Tag can now be placed on Deck 18 Aft which does not exist on Bliss.  Deck 19 (the entire plan) is virtually unchanged except Encore gains the Observation Area while Bliss has Mini Golf in that space essentially.  And finally, Deck 20 Mid (approximately) is where we don't know what is to come on Encore but was Laser Tag on Bliss.

So while so many people are complaining about losing sun deck space on Encore, in the grand scheme, you really aren't...  You're gaining Deck 20 space replacing Laser Tag and Encore gains an entirely new portion of Deck 18 that didn't exist on Bliss.  That, in a way, is a win because there is more room for people to spread out into overall.

I think there is still some surprise to come with the new Deck 20 Sun Deck.

14 minutes ago, TheDougOut said:

 

There are creative (innovative?) solutions to every problem.  I’m not saying an aerial coaster is the answer, I’m just pointing out what it does and doesn’t do when compared to sacrificing 1/3 of a top deck for entertainment that dismisses the uniqueness of being on a ship.

 

 

But are they sacrificing?  We already know the former area on Bliss where laser tag was located will be sundeck on Encore.  We don't know any details about what will also be located on that area (a water feature, hot tub, bar area, etc.)

And people complaining about the wait on race cars...  Can you imagine the wait on the roller coaster?  Only 2 seat cars running and I would guess a max of maybe 4-6 cars on the tracks?...  I'd be interested in knowing the number of guests per hour the could actually be cycled through such a low capacity ride.

3 hours ago, Mikiejag said:

The problem was i needed 5 upgrade categories to go from BB to B1 and a Sixth upgrade to make It to B9.

 

to many points to get something that is only about 250-300 pp more to just upgrade.

If you're not inside the cancelation period, could you not go ahead and rebook at a slightly higher category that would put you within 4 of B1 or B9?

Breakfast - the sticky buns/cinnamon rolls...  LOVE those things.

Lunch - the hot dogs ironically enough...  I normally don't eat hot dogs but on a cruise, I'll eat one every day for lunch.

Dinner - No real stand out favorite.  We normally end up at the buffet only 1 or maybe 2 times for dinner because we prefer the main dining rooms and speciality restaurants for dinner.

Late night - ICE CREAM!

25 minutes ago, amisup said:

Does anyone know how the airfare promo works ?

we are looking to do a NCL Alaska northbound cruise out of Vancouver to Seward in Jul 2019 but would like to spend some time in Vancouver and Alaska before and after the tour. If we select the airfare promo, does NCL pick the dates ? Are you at liberty to ask for alternative ? 

From most comments/posts, there is no option to fly in early or stay later and use the free airfare.  You may can get one day out of it by booking a hotel pre or post cruise through NCL, but most people report no option to stay an extended time and use the airfare option.

6 minutes ago, crash3x said:

I just made my booking for the Bliss and I have 3 packages   Beverage, Specialty Dining and Internet.   Is the starbucks included with drink package and do we receive the reusable cup with the drink package or do I have to bring my own?   Dining package , I was told I get 3 dinners but the website says 5 and I am to be charged gratuities for  what would be the cost of specialty dining.  How much would that be?  What are the best of the restaurant  choices.     How do you keep track of minutes of internet use. If you don't log out does the clock keep ticking?  Silly question I know but I have always had unlimited internet on Celebrity.

No reusable cup with UBP.  The reusable cup is part of the soda package typically.

Depends on cruise length as to how many dinners you get.  They recently changed that up a bit but I think it's 6-7 day is 3 dinners, 8-9 day is 4 dinners and 10 or more is 5 dinners.  I could be off on the number of days a bit...

You paid the gratuities when you booked for both packages.  I'll be honest though, on the dinners, we always leave something more when we dine.  I just feel like it's the right thing to do and since the meal was free, what does it hurt to leave another $10 or $15 bucks for the actual server that took care of us.

We love Cagney's (steakhouse), Teppanyaki (hibachi), La Cucina (Italian) and Los Lobos (Mexican but only on select ships).   The newer ships have more speciality choices usually as well.

I've never used internet so can't provide much there but I do know that you need to be sure to LOGOFF when you're done otherwise your device will stay connected and use your time up.

17 minutes ago, TheDougOut said:

I love what Carnival came up with for their top-deck entertainment option.  The Mardi Gras unveil of “Bolt” makes it clear where NCL got it wrong.

 

Bolt is raised above the decks, so apparently very little prime space is sacrificed.  But more importantly, the entertainment is made more-special because it sits atop a ship (much like the away-class Ropes Courses).  It EXTENDS the at-sea experience, rather than obstruct it.

 

Such a smarter solution.  It makes me wonder if NCL’s days of innovation are wearing thin.  

 

https://m.facebook.com/6067784583/posts/10156551422134584/

That's exactly what I want to hear while I'm trying to lay out by the pool and relax...  A rollercoaster car zoom by every few seconds.  😕

No thanks...

4 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

We like going because we find them fun and there is no obligation to buy anything.  Over the years we have collected some fun pieces from multiple different artists - some unique some not.  My favorite is still our first - the 4 seasons tree by Najar.  We are on the Sun right now and their first auction was really disorganized, so we left and probably won’t go to any on this ship.  If you have an hour or two with nothing else going on, it could be fun to attend.

My very first purchase was one of Najar’s four seasons. It hangs in my dining room still. 

On 12/11/2018 at 2:59 PM, Mikiejag said:

Just got off the phone with them. The b9 comes in *after* b1.  They do upgrade to both b1 and b9.  But I would need 5 to get to b1 and 6 to make b9.

 

probably NCL math...

That's good to know but I sure thought I had read somewhere that B1 & B9 were excluded categories.  May have to reconsider the card then.

1 hour ago, kskelley40 said:

We have bought several pieces on cruises.  When we were newbies, we bought too much on one cruise.  My husband doesn't handle champagne well and went a little over board. 

 

We did end up with a Peter Max original at a really good price for our anniversary present.  I did look it up before we bought it and we just liked it so we got it.  And it was not 20K.  The most interesting part of getting the Peter Max turned out to be that about 6 months after the cruise we were invited to a local winery who had Peter Max, Linda Kniff (sp?) and the new artist Autumn there for the weekend.  If you had bought a Peter Max in the past, which we had, you were invited to the event, all expenses paid.  We got to meet each artist, hear their biographies, and view their latest work.  I also got my photo taken with Peter Max - again husband had too much champagne and didn't make it to the photo session.  So now, my photo with him is framed beside our original Peter Max.  Which is pretty cool to me.

 

We have some Guyton's which I love.  They are the metal etchings.  They are hanging above my home office desk.

 

Admittedly we have bought pieces we shouldn't have...thinking Thomas Kincaids, but they are pretty and work with our decor.

Now, we might go to an auction but lately it has been just for entertainment purposes - especially if the weather is bad outside.

If I really see something I like that is different and unique then I will inquire about it.  But, I never bid at the auction.  I will go back to the cabin, look it up, check out website etc...if I still want it then I will go to the gallery and talk with them.

 

After 17 cruises we have learned to take the art auctions for what they are: sales seminars.  We too have seen many, many people get caught up in the "action", we did in the beginning and now just enjoy the show.  But honestly, until we started cruising, my walls were bear.  Now they have pretty pictures that I really enjoy hanging on them, not worth much, but we enjoy them.

 

Happy cruising

 

You went to Chateau Elan!  I got invited to a similar weekend with August, Duaiv and a brand new artist Matt Beyrer.  At this point, I've collected two Peter Max, a Ilyayev and a bronze sculpture from Nano Lopez.  I've got some others as well.  I think if you know what you're getting and you understand what you're bidding on (whether it's a print, one of a kind, artist signed or signature in plate, etc.), then enjoy and bid on artwork you love.  Don't bid jut to bid...  Buy what you love and will actually enjoy hanging in your home.

2 hours ago, Mikiejag said:

Thats the exact ship I am sailing on in February.  That explains a lot.  My biggest issue with the Credit card points is that not too many people must use them or they save them up for free cruises or the double meta upgrade at 60k points.

 

Basically the BB is lower than a B(number), and a BB would be higher than a BC.  I tried looking for a B9, but it starts at a B6.

 

Counting 4 up, BA. B6, B4, B3, then end up at B2?

 

I was hoping to end up with an Aft Facing or something, Otherwise, it is just a waste for 30k points to make it to a larger balcony.  Assuming there are even open rooms as I level up.

 

Thanks,

 

 

 

B9, M9 and H9 are all Spa Access rooms.  They normally show up under the "Spa" tab or "Haven" tab.  I seem to recall seeing somewhere in terms & conditions that the upgrade using points does NOT include upgrading to a spa room (B9).  I thought I remembered seeing some posts on these boards about B1 (After Balconies) not being included as well.  I tried to see if I could find something on ncl.com but can't find what I had seen before.

I thought about getting the card for this reason and using it to regularly upgrade to a spa balcony but once I saw that those were not included, I didn't feel it worth getting the card at that point.

Isn't there a rule about upgrading within Meta that you can't go beyond a certain point?  I thought I remembered seeing somewhere that certain types of balconies were not eligible for upgrade with the 2 category or 4 category upgrade options.

I was thinking B9 was excluded from the upgrade options because that is a Spa Balcony?

Because a B9 is more desirable cabin than a B6 and usually a much more expensive cabin than a B6.