Sailing12Away

The regular 2 bedroom cabins weren't changing. They were just changing the owner suites into 3br villas by removing the existing Haven library area. So that 2nd bedroom is still very tiny and better suited for folks <20 yrs old.

My sister used it on Prima in September for our Iceland trip as a way to stay in touch with my niece. She said on the ship it really wasn't worth it as the delay in receiving text messages was so long that we would bump into the kids randomly before the text came through saying where they were going. At the ports of call it worked for her to get in touch with us (we had Tmobile and free international stuff to begin with), but at sea it wasn't worth it she said - at least for the price she had to pay for 2 phones.

You don't call anyone, at 21 days you have to log into your account and complete the check-in process. You can pick an early time if you want, but you'll be sitting and waiting there until around 11am, so there's really no reason to rush to get through security just to sit and eat a cookie. I really get frustrated when I see folks constantly saying "just show up whenever" and that your assigned check in time doesn't matter if you're in the Haven. We were denied entrance into the terminal building on 2 different occasions at 2 different ports of call. So yes, it does matter. I will never understand why folks are in such a rush to get there at 9:30 and sit and wait for 2 hours. The cookies and lemon water are really not that great people.

Not happy about the new Thai place replacing Food Republic. Also not too happy about an entire restaurant dedicated just to vegetarian diners. That seems something better suited to a food truck in Indulge rather than an entire sit down place. I'm sure there's more veggie friendly folks than I think there are, but I seriously doubt it will be a place that appeals to >50% of the guests.

Look at the options and pricing for the different drink packages and pick the one that you think would be the best value for you. You can add the Starbucks package on if you think you'll be having at least 2 drinks per day, or just pay as you go with either a Starbucks gift card or on your cruise account if you don't need a 2x/day fix. https://www.ncl.com/sites/default/files/790164-BEV_Package_Flyer_UOBP_PPBP Update_V7_no_crops.pdf

Just curious.... how much OBC did they already offer you, and what exactly are you planning on spending that on if you were to get more? Not everything on the ship can be paid for with OBC as there are more than one kind. So before asking for more OBC, make sure you know which type it is you're getting and that whatever you're planning on spending it on is eligible for that. Otherwise you'll end up with 1K in non-refundable credit that can't be used on the thing you were thinking of using it on, so you lose that and still owe NCL a ton of money too at the end of it.

Double turf is too much food for me, and hubby enjoys the lobster. The one they give you is so small anyway he'll gladly take mine. I'm fine with the baked potato that comes with it, so that's why I would do the mac & cheese as the starter. The less revisions to the order the better it seems at not being labeled the PITA guest at each meal. Sadly it's not just cruise/ship dependent, it's time of day and day of the week on the same cruise dependent as well. Our last trip I asked what flavors of ice cream they had at lunch and was told 'vanilla, vanilla, or vanilla'. So I opted for vanilla and asked for some hot fudge to swirled on there so I could make it into chocolate. At dinner I asked again and when they saw I was disappointed to hear only vanilla, the waiter asked what I would want. When I said chocolate, he said 'no problem, I'll get you some'. So exact same trip and 2 completely different attitudes from the wait staff. It's those inconsistencies with NCL that drive me nutty and lessen the experience. Same, I tend to stick with simple ice cream or sorbet for dessert, or skip it all together and get my dessert in liquid form from the bar as a frozen cocktail. As for getting anything you want whenever you want... definitely a slippery slope on that. I've always heard that with advanced notice and planning the staff was more willing to be open to that - but in reality when we've tried it, not so much. Had a conversation with a F&B manager that was in the Haven areas a lot and she said it would be no problem for us to request indian food one night, but we could never get it to happen. Anytime we asked about it we were told to walk to the buffet as it is served there. So they implied if we requested it ahead of time they would just send someone to the buffet for us and make a plate of random indian stuff, rather than plan a special indian themed dish for us. Honestly I think the more we travel in the Haven the more we end up using the butler. Not a huge fan of eating in our cabin as the tables in there are good for snacks, not for full meals. But I think asking the butler ahead of time to bring something special to the room for an early dinner would be executed more willingly than trying to get it in the restaurant where others can see it as special treatment or something.

My guess is it's more of a Sixthman question. The general rule on NCL is that if you have the drink package, you can bring as many bottles of wine on board as you want with no fee. If you don't have the drink package there's a $15/bottle corkage fee. I have no idea if those same rules will apply on a charter - my guess is no, as it's not an NCL cruise. It's a charter cruise that just happens to be using an NCL ship.

Opinions on luggage will almost be as varied as opinions on food. We've always had the soft sided cases. As for taking too much stuff if you use the expanding feature - that's foolish. Bags come in different sizes. I would rather take a medium sized bag that I expand out 1 extra inch wide, than to bring a much taller bag which will be more trouble to manage in general. When picking a bag - think of how you'll actually use it. If your journey will literally have you rolling it from the taxi to the check-in desk at the airport and that's it, wheels, features, soft/hard doesn't matter all that much. But if you'll be taking the bag from an airport to a crowded train station, through the narrow cobblestone streets of Europe, or up/down stairs - you need a bag that will be easy for you to maneuver. A bag with 4 wheels is more 'pushed' either in front of you or next to you, where a bag with just 2 wheels is more 'pulled'. I always thought the 4 wheels was better, until I looked at how I dragged my bag most of the time - behind me being pulled. So for our next cases we're focusing more on those little features and touches that would make travel more easy for us. Things like a built in organizers, garment holders to prevent wrinkles on stuff you won't want to roll in a packing cube, the handle outside of the case completely so the inside can be flat instead of packing between the lumps of the hand railings... stuff like that.

As for the original question - it's because they can. People still keep booking Haven cabins despite the non-changing menu, so they haven't yet found a need to change it up. Many people love the menu and feel it's fancy and exclusive enough for them. I don't like it at all really and usually consider eating there a one and done. If we do go more than once I tend to eat off the kids menu. None of the appetizers on the dinner menu are things I would eat, so I tend to get the onion soup or a kids mac & cheese. I don't eat seafood, so the only thing I tend to get for entree is the surf & turf and give the lobster to hubby. The prime rib has always been way too fatty for me. I'm too much of a picky eater, so most of the menu items are lost on me. With Celebrity, it was nice to be handed both the MDR and Luminae menus when you sat down and have tons of options. It let hubby get the foo-foo stuff he likes, and me get a simple pasta dish that I like, while getting the up scale service and attention in the special suite restaurant. If NCL finds a way to offer MDR options along with the set Haven menu, it will be a game changer for them. Even if they put a disclaimer that ordering from that menu would delay meal service a bit to set proper expectations, there's small things they can do to set themselves apart further.

The only specialty place open for lunch is Food Republic, and only on sea days, and not on Prima. So double think your plan to use credits for lunch time, unless you consider 5pm lunch.

Yesterday was freezing here with crazy winds, but today is gorgeous. Happy sailing for those hopping on board today.

Love this! I wonder if I could ask for a quick photo to see all the options for the week for the rotating snacks. Makes a difference knowing you can only get that apricot cherry thingy 2x whereas the basic chocolate donut will be there daily. Or even just to know that they have a nutella croissant at all - I don't care which day you bring it to me, just get it in my belly! Looks like you had a great trip overall. I'll keep scouring for affordable ways to try out this infamous Star class. The trip I priced out yesterday on Icon was starting at 15K/pp just to get into Star class which is still too rich for my blood.

We didn't like our Prima experience at all. Had such high hopes for it that we booked one of the infamous hot tub owner suites the day after bookings opened up. That trip cost us more than our upcoming Galapagos trip on Flora. So either we didn't pay enough attention to what NCL was trying to do, or misunderstood - but we thought we would be getting a slightly fancier looking ship, slightly bigger in size, but with less passengers. That's not what we felt at all (outside of the fancy and new factor, it was pretty, despite being non-functional). And yet Prima was one of the most crowded feeling ships I've ever been on... Itinerary and weather play a huge part in the crowded feeling on a ship when it's got a ton of outdoor space that isn't useable on cold or rainy trips. They can't claim more space per passenger on a ship with no outdoor heaters or coverings over outdoor dining options and then send the ship up north in the cold weather months.

I was on Epic last month, and the charge was in effect. I don't eat the stuff, so can't say for certain, but it seems like one per person per meal is the limit. So if your DH wants one each dinner, that should be fine.

My only caution to this is that the last 2 times I've utilized the pre-cruise concierge to 'assist' with getting or changing dining reservations for me they have royally screwed them up each and every time. In September we had a large group of 8 some nights and I needed their help in changing my reservation for 6 people at 7pm to a group of 8 people. They told me 'no problem', but once on board I found out they changed every single of my reservations to all be at Cagneys for 8 people. Not what I asked for... so the on board concierge had to scramble to get everything back to where it was supposed to be. The most recent trip in March same thing. Smaller group of people, but had to shuffle our reservation for 4 to a different day based on the show times. Was told 'no problem', and again once on board they completely cancelled the reservation and booked it for another restaurant completely on the same night as something else. So don't rely on the pre-cruise concierge for a lot of help. Better to make *some* type of reservation, then when on board ask the in person concierge on the ship to help shuffle. If you have an existing reservation they can trade that in for something else. But if there's nothing left at all because you waited too long, they can't force a table to be there for you that doesn't exist. It obviously will depend on which restaurant you're trying to go to as some are more popular than others, but just use that pre-cruise desk with some caution and triple check things when you get on board. I'm giving up on them personally. Burn me once, ok, but now it was twice in a row so I'm done.

That's funny, because never in a million years (or rather 20+ years when I'm of that age) would I consider sailing on HAL. So I don't see that as more a direct competitor to Celebrity vs NCL. I lump them all together honestly, RCC, Carnival, NCL, Princess, MSC. Maybe Celebrity is slightly more upscale, but I don't think it's on par with NCL's 'upscale' line of Oceania - so that's why to me it's more of a half step up from NCL and not a full leap. Celebrity still has regular gen pop and a paid for 'enhanced' experience in their Retreat, whereas entry level rooms on Oceania are already getting the same full suite like perks as their more expensive cabins. That's what differentiates it for me. Mass market appeal to guests of all types, rather than going after a special niche of clientele (whether by age or bank account size). We haven't been on MSC yet, but yes, I've also heard the mini bar is free in their YC. Not sure if it's a one time restock or endless, but it's a nice simple touch that NCL should have adopted by now, even as just a one time restock during the cruise.

They're silly then. If they want to keep me as a guest (and the 98 other guests like me sailing on Flora) they will need to get one. Yes, higher returns on their money when they cram 5000+ people on one ship, but when you're charging those 100 people $20K+ it shrinks the gap a bit, no? Too lazy to do math on estimated numbers, but there's no way Celebrity is running their small expedition vessels with <100 people every single week year round and NOT making money on them despite the low passenger counts. I guess my point is that a perfect cruise line (to me) would be one that has separate types of ships to cater to the different preferences of their guests. Rather than trying to keep turning these new ships into a one size fits all approach that doesn't leave anyone wowed and just leaves 5000 people with an ok experience. Have a mega ship with go karts, water slides, laser tag, roller coasters, etc for those kids (big and small) that like that stuff. Have a smaller ship with a more adult/spa like focus for folks that just want to escape home and relax all day. Have a ship with the broadway caliber shows for folks that can't easily see that entertainment at home. Have the small expedition ships for folks willing to splurge a big hunk of money on their once in a lifetime bucket list trips. I feel like this is going back down the realm of that thread with unlimited imagination for designing the next wave of ships, so I'll stop there. But if NCL just keeps going bigger, they'll be going without me.

Agree. Didn't learn until after our first time doing it that there are different options for many of these activities. Not all, but some. So if you know you have a schedule conflict, kindly ask them if there are other time/day slots available that would work better.

Celebrity doesn't give you the mini bar for free for their Retreat guests and doesn't even give their entry Retreat rooms a proper butler any longer. So NCL isn't doing anything 'worse' than some of their big competitors. What NCL really needs to do is give "free" gratuities to all guests, and just roll that extra ~$200 charge into the cost of the trip. No one would notice, and no one could complain and have it removed so they 'tip as they go to those who serve them', and staff would be paid appropriately without relying on guests to pay their wages. With Celebrity removing that perk, it's the right time for NCL to bring it on.

Any type of refillable water bottle. We tend to not take our best ones because we have a bad habit of leaving them behind for some reason. So will bring the cheapo ones hubby gets for free at work, or ones that are a bit rattier and we wouldn't mind leaving behind in the trash when done with it. Depending on the trip though we bring the good one if we know we'll be out for long hours on excursions as it will stay cold all day. The nice one we have is a Hydro Cell - $20 on Amazon, so not even that nice in the grand scheme of overpriced fancy water bottles these days. Keeps cold stuff cold for hours without sweating and comes in lots of pretty colors.

Not even close to the same though. Smallest Oceania ship is still 350 cabins, so 700+ passengers. Flora is 100 guests total. NCL mothership doesn't have anything close to that type of intimate experience.

We're headed to a bucket list trip on her this coming October to the Galapagos. NCL doesn't have anything close to that, so that's what I keep hoping and waiting for. Not these monster ships with 5000+ people getting off and flooding a port of call.

Our very first trip on Epic was like this, and we had no idea until we got on board and talked to other guests. It was very confusing the whole time, and being a Rome embarkation guest we always felt like 2nd class. Everything was geared towards the Barcelona folks, and if I remember correctly even the dailies were for the Barcelona guys. So on our official day 1, the daily said day 4. Embarkation on the 'lesser' port was a breeze, but getting off in Barcelona for our excursion was a bit chaotic. Coming back onto the ship it took us a while to find a way to skip the line since we already had a key card, and it was crazy. Friends we had made left midway through. On the Barcelona day you couldn't use an elevator because everyone was traveling with their suitcases and carryons hogging them. We didn't have any status at the time since it was our first cruise, but I would imagine if you're not getting on board with the bulk of people booking activities can be harder. It was impossible to get any room upgrades because of the split too. MSC does it all the time with their med itineraries, so much so that it's put me off completely from booking one. We're just not a fan of the mixed trip thing.

Haven't been on the Dawn, but we were in a 3br villa on the Star which is a sister ship. Since we sailed Prima in September to Iceland, my vote 100% is for the Dawn. Prima is not a good ship for cold weather trips. We had a huge H4 owner's suite and could only sit out on the balcony 2 days on the 10 day trip. So that was a waste. Once you left your cabin, everything felt very squished on Prima as there's a lot of outdoor space - but if the weather isn't cooperating all those folks are now indoors. So my vote is for the Dawn, and to put in a bid for the 3br villa. We found out the night before we flew to Spain for our trip on the Star that we had won even though the room was listed as sold out for months. So you never know!