Gemina

We also made our reservations at the kiosk in February on Wonder. I sent my teens up to deck 8 to check things out and I believe at least Chops was doing reservations as well. I was second in line at the kiosk so decided to just do it there. It was relatively quick. One note - all reservations for Izumi (not just Hibachi) had to be made there. It would have been easy but the first person in line when I arrived was making all of her reservations there. By the time she finished there had to have been at least 25 people behind me. 

We did this exact thing on our cruise on Wonder in February. My husband dropped me and our three teenage boys off and then went and returned our rental car. The boys and I checked in and boarded without him with no issues whatsoever (we also had two cabins and my husband was the primary name on one). He managed to get on a shuttle almost immediately after dropping the car and ended up boarding about 20 minutes after we did. 

We were on the Wonder in February and had an amazing time. It’s a fantastic ship! We did specialty dining so unfortunately I can’t help with MTD.

On Roatan we did the Jolly Roger Catamaran and Snorkel. All 5 of us had a great time. On Costa Maya we did the Donut Boats and it was a blast. Nice boat ride and barbecue with drinks and then open bar and beach until it was time to head back to the boat. Really friendly staff. Both excursions were thru the ship. 

They had two people taking reservations at a kiosk right where you stepped onto the ship on deck 5. This is where I did mine as there was only one person in front of me when I got in line. I had my teens check out the restaurants on deck 8 and they were also taking reservations (as usual). My husband boarded about 15 minutes after us as he was dropping our rental car but if he had been with me I would have sent him to deck 8 to see which one of us made it to the front of our line first. 
 

One note - you could only make Izumi reservations at Izumi (for both sushi and hibachi). When I got over there I was third in line but the first person was making all of her reservations there so it was very slow. My the time I got to the front to book there were at least 20 impatient people behind me in line. 

We were on Wonder in February and able to get on board early. Our arrival time was 11:00 but we were on board and finished making dining reservations by about 10:30. It was the quickest I’ve ever been on board!

I don’t remember specifically looking but my recollection is that Solarium Bistro was open embarkation day, at least for dinner.  

We were on the Wonder a couple of weeks ago and it was super fast. We had an arrival time of 11:00 but arrived at Port just before 10:00. We were on the ship by about 10:20 - definitely the earliest I’ve ever been onboard!

10 hours ago, vinotinto said:

Hi all! Just booked the Escape Haven for March and wondering if anyone has pics of the wine list available at the Haven bar/restaurant by the glass and also by the bottle for the Premium Plus package. We are trying to decide between keeping the free at sea premium package or upgrading and we mostly drink wine. Last time, it made more sense to pay the difference than to commit to $60 extra per day. I’m wondering how much the list and prices has changed since we went in 2022 (I posted pics earlier in this thread).
 

Has anyone returned recently from the Escape, and can comment on how the availability of wines has been recently? We encountered issues with availability of certain wines last time we sailed in 2022.

 

thank you!

We will be in the Haven on the Escape this Saturday and I’ll try to post a wine list for you if you don’t get an answer sooner. It’s our first Haven and NCL experience and I am very excited!

Looking forward to hearing all about the Icon! 
 

Quick question - has anyone sailing on the first few cruisers been able to make advance dining reservations with the UDP? We’re on Wonder next month and being able to do so would eliminate the last bit of stress for me when boarding. 

Thank you so much for the review! It makes me so excited for our 2 weeks on the World Europa in October. 

We’re also a family of five (three boys 16, 15 and 13). Our favourite configuration is an ocean view balcony for my husband and I and a boardwalk balcony for the boys. We did this on Symphony last week and will do the same on Wonder next month. We’ve done connecting rooms as well but like to have a choice of views. 
 

We loved the Symphony and I imagine we will enjoy the Wonder as well. So much to do and I absolutely love the Central Park area. My husband and I were on Ovation in September and we didn’t love the layout of the ship as much. As far as intinerary goes, I love the Caribbean for the weather but I’m not fussed on whether we do and Eastern or a Western - but we do love having a stop at Coco Cay!

I will add that we’ve also done a couple of Disney cruises (2 years ago and 6 years ago) and we just booked one room for the 5 of us on both. The split bathroom makes it doable, although cozy. Now that the boys are all teenagers I would always opt for the extra room. 

We’re on Wonder next month so I appreciate the review! Looking forward to seeing how it compares to our Sympnony cruises last year. 

Well if you decide to keep the tour you will see us on it! We are also booked for the Feb 11th sailing. 

We are booked for this excursion for our Feb cruise on the Wonder. If your cruise is after mine I will report back and let you know. My husband thought it looked like something everyone would enjoy - especially our three teenaged boys. 

Thanks so much for the replies! 

Just slightly off topic - does anyone know what the B2B procedure is on a Med cruise? We’re two week on the World Europa next October and I’m curious as to how it will work vs North American cruises. 

Following along! Safe travels!

Following along!

On 12/22/2023 at 12:53 PM, Nikodemos said:

We were on the World Europa in June out of Barcelona.  Since we were in YC, we didn't have to wait embarking or disembarking, and we were escorted on and off the ship by the butlers.    I highly recommend staying in Barcelona a few days before to enjoy the city.  Not being time bound on a visit to the Sagrada Familia is really nice.  We spent evenings on Las Ramblas and on one night attended a Flamenco dancing dinner and show there which was wonderful.

We will be in YC as well. Glad to hear we likely won’t deal with waits. Sounds like you had a lovely time!

1 hour ago, Tierun said:

Where are you embarking? I found Barcelona to be easiest choice coming from North America.

We are embarking from Barcelona so I’m glad to hear that! We will likely spend a few days before and after in order to take advantage of direct flights. I’ve heard it’s a great city to visit. 

This is great info! We are sailing WE for the first time (and first MSC and European cruise) in October and I have been feeling a little bit at a loss for planning. Lots of time still to figure things out but I’ve definitely already got my eye on flights. 

Looking forward to following along! We are on the Escape in February. It will be our first time on NCL.

We will be in the Yacht Club on World Europa next October so I’m very much looking forward to your review. It will be our first non-Caribbean cruise and I’m interested to see how it differs from what we’re used to (we have the Escape Haven booked in Feb but other than that we’ve only sailed with Royal and Disney). 

I was able to book for 10 of us on Symphony last February without an issue. We had the 3 night package. Our reservations were linked but they just asked for all of the rooms numbers and names if I recall correctly. We were on the second leg of a B2B so obviously I was one of the first on the ship but getting a table for 10 together at our preferred time and place was no problem. I just made sure it was the first thing I did once back on board. 
 

just be prepared to be flexible and I’m sure you will get what you need. 

We are also on Ovation on the 29th and I appreciate the review. We’ve done the UDP the last few times we’ve sailed but my husband wanted to do the MDR for the week this time. He prefers the chaotic energy in the MDR so we’re giving it a go. 

Thanks for the review! We were on Symphony this past February and will be on Wonder this coming February. We really enjoyed Symphony so I’m hoping our experience on Wonder will be the same.