teacherman

I have followed the "rules" for the last year.  I have worn my mask every time I am in a store, church, taking care of my grandchildren, riding in a car with anyone who does not live in my house, flying 3 hours on an airplane, etc.   No big deal.  BUT the last month, I have returned to work where I am meeting with clients sitting across from me at a desk.  We are separated by a plastic shield and both are wearing masks.  However, we are talking to each other.  After 6 hours of this, with only a few minutes break each hour, I cannot wait to take that mask off.  The thought of having to wear a mask during a 4 to 5 hour air flight (including airport time), or longer if going overseas is NOT appealing at all.  And the thought of maybe having to wear a mask at times while on the ship is a deal breaker,  The big problem is that when it is time to make a final payment, we will all be speculating as to what the conditions will be on our sail date.  Or buy "CFAR" insurance, which can be quite costly.

When this pandemic began, we were told it would probably last for 12 to 18 months.  It has now been 12 months of "suggested" restrictions that most people tried to follow and some people refused to follow.  But if you stop and think how much things have improved in just the last 3 months, then who really knows how much things will change in the next 6 months?  I do not believe that cruise lines want to try and enforce a mask mandate on their ships.  They can't even enforce chair saving rules.  And even though many people are saying they will wear a mask if it means they can cruise again, I doubt they want to cruise again if it means it is a less enjoyable experience that it used to be.  And is maybe going to cost much more than it did just 12 months ago.

We have booked out first NCL cruise because it is doing an itinerary that we want.  I booked through my regular travel company, the big box store C-----.  NCL gave me "free" drinks package, "free" dining package, and other "free" perks (which I think everyone else also received).  Anyway, I accepted the price of the stateroom and as soon as I hit the button for booking, a box popped up and told me the cost of the cruise had just increased approximately $500.  Question - is this the charge for the gratuities on the drinks and dining packages?   Also, I read some people do not like being "nickel and dimed" on an NCL cruise.  Question - what other types of charges will I automatically incur on the cruise, besides the daily gratuity?  Question - If so many people have a drinks package, is it "difficult" to get a drink?  With people pre-paying so many gratuities, do bartenders and wait staff have little motivation to do their job?   Just wondering what I should expect, since it is my first NCL cruise.  Any information is welcome.

Yes

Look into booking your own air and hotel.  Easy to do.  Compare price to what NCL is offering, but also consider the type of fare (confined to a middle seat on a long flight vs select the seat you want).  Look at TripAdviser for hotel recommendations.  What is it you want to don for 2 days pre-cruise?

Most people would agree that wearing 2 masks is better than wearing 1 mask.  So, if you wear 1 and I wear 1, then that is 2 masks.  Simple.  (Just like having a seatbelt and an air bag).  Two layers of protection.  Socially distance and now we have three layers of protection.  Get vaccinated, and we have 4 layers of protection.  That is probably enough layers.  But if someone does not want to participate in one of the layers, then we lose a layer somewhere.

This all "officially" began last March.  The government brought out some scientists who were VERY respected in world-wide scientific communities and had spent MANY years tracking and trying to eliminate viral outbreaks both in our country and other countries.  These people told us 2 things that stick in my mind.  The first was that this outbreak would probably last approximately 12 to 18 months.  We are currently at 12 months.  They also said ( and people didn't believe this) that IF WE DID EVERYTHING CORRECTLY, we would still probably have about 200,000 people die from complications of this outbreak.  Today, we are at over 500,000, so I guess we have NOT DONE EVERYTHING CORRECTLY.  And we are still debating whether wearing a mask can help.  Hard to believe.

To me, it depends on what you want to get out of your cruise.  All ships have dining rooms and buffets (food is very subjective).  All ships have "entertainment" (some love the pool games but others prefer the singers/dancers).  Some love meeting new people, but others seek a quiet spot to read a book. Some want a 7 day party break from work, while others want to see new ports.  A person's enjoyment will depend upon if they received what they were expecting.  I always advise that the first time on a ship, you should begin at the top deck and do a quick walk through of each deck from top to bottom(except for decks with all cabins).  See which areas look like your type of area.  Then you have a better chance of getting what you are looking for.  

We have done both several times.   Rome is ROME, and hard to match in terms of history.  But Barcelona is also very nice with a lot to do and see.  Barcelona is easy to get to the ship.  Rome is easy IF you take a private transfer.  You can even arrange it with a company like Rome Cabs, share the cost with other people on your Roll Call, and do some site seeing and maybe stop for lunch on the way to the ship.  We have done this twice and it is a very enjoyable way to begin the cruise.

In Barcelona, we went to a great Falmenco show, took part in an amazing cooking class, went on a day trip to Montserrat, etc.  We like to see the local area of the departure port.

Either way, I would advise arriving a few days early to enjoy the city and get over jet lag.  I always feel that the "cruise" begins when I leave my home.  Have a great trip.

IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING, that this vaccine MAY not keep you from picking up the virus.   IT PROBABLY will keep you from getting seriously ill, but you COULD still have the virus and spread it to others.  This is a NEWER VIRUS and NEWER VACCINES, so no one is sure.  A lot of people don't seem to understand that wearing a mask helps to protect OTHER people, not just ourselves.  At one time, celebrities endorsed tobacco products.  But now, they don't.  Simply because we have newer information showing it may be harmful to your health.  As newer information is discovered, new recommendations are made.

We were on a S America cruise when this first started.  First thing I heard of it was when we were at the Buenos Aires airport checking in to come home.  They asked if we had been to China in the previous month.   I said "No.   I have been here"  All of us laughed.   When I heard about the disease, first thing I asked was "Can asymptomatic people spread it?"  At first,no one seemed to know.   By the time they realized it,  many people were sick and dying that maybe could have been saved IF we had known that.  With a new disease, things change as new information arises.   Their job is to keep us safe, so that is what they are telling us, things that will help to keep us safe.

To me, it is like - will I get hurt if I don't wear my seat belt.   NO, not unless you get in a wreck.  But it is a little late to put it on after the wreck occurs.  Some people question the science and some people just don't like to have the government interfering in their lives.   You know, like maybe telling you to winterize your electric facilities.  Silly thing to do, unless it suddenly gets really cold.😇😇

Good deal.  Hope it all goes well and I look forward to your report.

I am 73 years old.  When I was in elementary school, polio was a big deal disease.  People SAW what it was doing, especially to children.  And then they invented the polio vaccine.  And one day, we all lined up in the school hall and were vaccinated against polio.  I do not remember anyone not getting vaccinated.  I do not remember anyone saying the vaccine would be worse than the disease.

Of course, this was before Watergate and Viet Nam and social media and election conspiracies and many other things that have made us question everything we are told.  I never got polio and I do not want to get Covid.  So if MY common sense tells me that social distancing and mask wearing and getting a vaccine might help prevent it, then I am getting it.  And IF my not getting Covid somehow helps prevent YOU from getting it, then just say "thank you" for helping.

I don't know.  Where are they hanging out now?  I do know that many airplanes also carry cargo, especially on international flights.  I am thinking that some of the price increases may be due to possible limitations on how many passengers can go  (50%).  And some increases to make up for lost revenue.  But I have never been on a cruise that was only half full.  Like I say, the big thing, to me, would be losing my paid airfare.

Is that $2,800 USD TOTAL for all of you?  Or is it that price for each of you in an oceanview balcony for 3 nights?

Just wondering....  None of us know for sure what is going to happen when cruising resumes.  It appears that cruise companies are raising prices over what they were a year ago when it ended.  Some of this is expected, as much income has been lost.  But, what I am wondering is whether or not there is an income point when a cruise gets cancelled.  What if a ship gets to the point that there are not enough paid customers to make it economically feasible to sail?  Is it possible that we could make our final payments, and weeks later we are notified that the ship is not cruising?

We would get a choice of refund or FCC, but the problem comes when you have purchased your own costly airfare to the cruise.  Unless you have purchased expensive "cancel for any reason" insurance, that money is not being refunded.   I have been in a situation where we were canceled for maintenance problems and offered a replacement cruise at the same week.  That resulted in some grief of flying to the original departure city and driving rental cars to the new city.  All of this had to be re-arranged within about a month.  And last spring, many of us were affected by cancellations, and some did lose out on airfare refunds, although they may have received air credits for future flights.

Just wondering if cruise companies may get to the point of saying "not enough paid passengers, so we are cancelling".  Do any of you have knowledge of this?

Not much going on right now, so thought I would ask this question.  We want to fly business class from DTW to CPT for a cruise next winter.  Hopefully, cruises will be happening by then.  The air fare is very expensive, but if we first fly to IAD, JFK, BOS, EWR, the day prior and stay overnight at an airport hotel, we can save thousands of dollars on the airfare..  I realize this first flight will be a separate ticket and has some risks attached to it.  We could even drive.  The issue is what would we do IF the required Covid testing is still in place.  Currently, the test is required to be actually administered 72 hours before the flight to CPT.  So, when would we test?  Before we leave home? How would we get the results if we were on our way to our departure airport in the other city?  Some of the flights could have long lay overs.  Just something to think about.  Hopefully, the Covid testing will no longer be required by then.  Just wondering what ideas you might have on this topic.  

We book all of our cruises through our big box store - C-----     We get the same price as on the cruise line site, and also extra perks, including a big store shopping card worth different amounts based on the cost of the cruise.  Good service and easy to talk to a PERSON when you need to.  

I thank each of you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.  We have booked a mid ship balcony  on deck 10 for a 12 night cruise out of Cape Town, S. Africa for January, 2022.  We hope it actually happens.

I am looking at deck plans for the Jade.  Specifically, on deck 10, it says that a Balcony stateroom  (not Family or Sail Away) ranges from 200-289 Sq Ft and the balcony itself ranges from 38 - 61 sq ft.  These seem like large differences in size.  Do any of you know where the larger ones are located?  I do see on pictures that some of the balconies for the suites on deck 11 seem to overhang the balconies on deck 10.  Does this have anything to do with the desirability of being on deck 10?  Any information/advice is welcome.  This is for a cruise next January (2022), which I hope will actually happen.

Our first Azamara cruise was supposed to be this month out of Capetown.  We are hoping to do it next January, or just do a land trip through South Africa.  But maybe a light at the end of the tunnel - our CDC said yesterday that once you have had a second vaccine shot, and then waited 2 weeks, it would be safe to associate with other people who had also had the second shot.  So, maybe by November things can start back up.

We fly out of Detroit, where DELTA is the big dog.   It mystifies me that business class rt from DTW to Capetown on Delta and KLM is a LOT of money.   But, I can fly to Toronto for about $150 and then fly Toronto rt to Capetown on Delta and KLM for less than half the cost.  Same thing for flights from Boston, JFK, or DULLES. 

I have found some occasions where I can fly from DTW to Boston.   And then DELTA will fly me back to Detroit to connect with my flights to Capetown for a lot less than if I just flew from Detroit.  The whole thing is maddening.

The only IFFY thing is that it would be separate tickets, so if something goes wrong with the first flight then I am in big difficulties.  And who knows when we can go to Canada again.

GREAT review.  We were to cruise out of Cape Town but Covid has ended those plans.  Now, we think we may just spend 2 in weeks in S Africa when this all ends.

I have flown on them 2 times, and both times I had major delays and crew difficulties.  I would rather pay more and have a better chance of actually "enjoying" my flight.

We had a family cruise scheduled for last April.  It was canceled and, fortunately, I was able to get back all money that had been spent for both cruise and air.  We also had a cruise booked for Azamara in S. Africa for next month.  When everything fell apart last April, I decided to cancel on  my own and lost the deposit (their policy).  We had planned to rebook that cruise for Feb, 2022, BUT Azamara has now been sold and who knows what may happen by then.    I am currently just looking at spending the money on a long, leisurely S. Africa trip for next February, IF things are okay by then.   That is something I can book with a S Africa travel/tour company.