Maxsboubie
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Posts posted by Maxsboubie
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Very well said. Try Viking, you’ll love it [emoji6]
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Wife and I are in our mid 50s and have been cruising for over 30 years. Most of our cruises have been on NCL (fondly remember the Norway!) and we've cruised most of the other lines. IMHO NCL has unfortunately gone downhill over the past 5 years or so. We just returned from our 2nd cruise on the Epic (we've been on the other NCL ships, Jewel class are our favorites). The staffing levels are down and most of the staff clearly are not the cheerful enthusiastic folks we saw in past years. They are now tasked with more work than ever. They also don't have the same incentives they had to promote up that they had in the past. I spoke with 2 different crew members who related that NCL now hires people into positions from outside more often. That takes away the incentive to move up from busing tables to waiting tables in the MDR to waiting tables in the specialty restaurants to becoming a maitre d'. We've also noticed that while the cost of specialty dining has gone up, the quality and quantity has gone down. On this last cruise, Our steaks were not cooked as ordered in two different specialty restaurants. On one occasion, after I sent both of them back and one came back even more well done that the previous (I ordered medium). I asked to speak with the maitre d'. I was told he was in a meeting and was not available. Rather than send it back a 2nd time, I ate the steak. Aside from the specialty restaurants, there were often lines at the bars due to the fact that most only had one or two bartenders working. They were working very hard, but just had trouble keeping up. I know this sounds like a lot of whining, but with over 30 cruises, we miss the exceptional service that we had come to expect from NCL. I spoke with several other couples and the general consensus was that NCL service is declining while they continue to find ways to charge for everything they can think of. I'm gonna miss NCL but I've had enough.
I totally agree with you. We are top level with NCL and Princess. Last year when we went with NCL, I was very disappointed with the changes and said that would be our last NCL cruise. Princess still treats you better. We were very disappointed in the decrease of perks that we had before. When I posted my feelings, I was bombarded with negative comments to me for criticizing NCL. I just dropped out of the conversation. We are done with NCL. We have started taking Viking cruises and find them outstanding in all aspects.
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Yup. With 3 Princess cruises under your belt, I am sure that you get all of their perks.
Spell check changed the word top to to. We are Elite on Princess with over 30 cruises! And their perks now far outweigh NCL perks for top level .
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Good grief, ok, then enjoy Princess, where you'll get no perk specialty restaurant dinners. :)
That’s ok. NCL changed those perks, too! ONE APPETIZER
ONE MEAL
ONE DESSERT. salad and soup are extra if you want both.
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This is really really crappy. You now need 30 days to get to silver, or 5, 7 day cruises.
I was going to be silver after I complete a cruise coming up at the end of March. Now not so much.
Don't think I'll be cruising NCL anymore.
We are done with NCL. We earned top level perks and we found out the changes once we were onboard. We are also to level with Princess. They haven’t taken away any perks. NCL wouldn’t bend or give us what we earned!! Perks seem to be per cabin, so, hubby and I lose perks since they are one per cabin.
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We were on the cruise when the changes went into affect. WE GOT NO NOTICE. Another change, previously, you could order whatever you want at Bistro. Now, one app, one meal , one dessert! We like salad and soup before....everything is ala carte. So, you pay for anything extra. NCL shouldn't depend on sites like this to notify people about major changes. If a B2B is booked as two separate cruises, you get double benefits.
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We just got off a two week cruise and were shocked when we read the notice on our bed. We booked this cruise a year ago and understood what we were entitled to with our platinum level. Many things were changed or taken away. No more "dinner for two with wine at the Bistro" for each person. Now it's per cabin. We are both platinum level and lost our 4 bottles and 4 dinners at Bistro (2week cruise B2B). Also, we could always exchange the champagne for wine--- no more! The changes went into affect the week before our cruise. I'm DONE with NCL. You can keep your reward system. There were a lot of other changes. None good!!!
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Weather could be better. Weather reports says:
Monday 11th: showers
Tuesday 12th: a bit clowdy
Wednesday 13th: rainy
Thursday 14th: sunny
70-75 degrees (F) dropping to 60-65 degrees during nights.
Everything is of course relative but lets say that the area near the railway station is rather high on the list of places in Helsinki that might become a bit "messy" during nights. The Kaisaniemi park north to the hotel earlier also had a bit of bad reputation, but things seems to have improved there. Both places are safe during daytime.
Another question, do you think it is worth it to take the ferry to Tallin? Is is nice there?
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Some 0.75 miles.
It looks like an easy walk. How is the weather? We will be there next week
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Is that a safe area to walk around at night?
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Radisson Blu Plaza is located at Mikonkatu 23 which is about 100 meters east from the central railway station. (Google Maps: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Radisson+Blu+Plaza+Hotelli,+Helsinki/@60.1702209,24.9398609,15.08z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x46920bcd8f99e901:0x76b423a9869d5e44!8m2!3d60.172473!4d24.945556)
Senate Square, Market Square, and the Esplanade are within easy walking distance and tram stops are about a block away from the hotel.
Do you know how far the Raddison Blu Plaza is from the Raddisin Blue Royal? We want to walk around where the Royal is . Thank you.
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Radisson Blu Plaza is located at Mikonkatu 23 which is about 100 meters east from the central railway station. (Google Maps: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Radisson+Blu+Plaza+Hotelli,+Helsinki/@60.1702209,24.9398609,15.08z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x46920bcd8f99e901:0x76b423a9869d5e44!8m2!3d60.172473!4d24.945556)
Senate Square, Market Square, and the Esplanade are within easy walking distance and tram stops are about a block away from the hotel.
The map looked good. Now, I'm glad we can walk to so many great places. Any recommendations on where to eat in that area?
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In this post I try to answer the most frequently asked questions from couple of previous cruise seasons with up to date information. Helsinki did not have a yearly advice thread before, but I think that the old Helsinki thread even though full of great info is simply too long to read and sort through for relevant and up to date info.
I invite everyone to ask answer new or more specific questions here.
Where does my ship dock?
Port of Helsinki website has a list of expected cruise ships with berth information. Note that the list is divided by harbor area so there are two separate lists on the page: http://www.portofhelsinki.fi/passengers/expected_cruise_ships
They also have a map of the berths:
http://www.portofhelsinki.fi/passengers/international_cruise (however some of the connection info on that page is outdated)
What is there to see?
That really depends on your interest. See old trip reports, a guide book, Tripadvisor, the official tourist site: http://www.visithelsinki.fi/en etc. Unlike some other cities on a Baltic Sea cruise, Helsinki does not have a single must see attraction. Some most often mentioned by cruise visitors are: The Market Square area (including the Senate Square, the Esplanade, The Lutheran Cathedral and The Orthodox Cathedral), The Church in the Rock, and Suomenlinna sea fortress.
The downtown core is very compact and it is pretty easy to just go there and stroll around to what interests you. The Church in the Rock is slightly outside the core area and getting to Suomenlinna fortress requires taking a ferry from Market Square.
Money and credit cards?
The currency in Finland is the Euro with the slight oddity of 1 and 2 cent denominations not being used. Thus cash payments are always rounded to the closest 0.05 Euros. ATMs in Finland dispense only 20 and 50 Euro banknotes.
Credit cards are extremely widely accepted and used. It is perfectly normal for a Finn to pay for a 2 € cup of coffee with a card. The only significant place where you cannot use a card to pay is in public transport: bus and tram drivers accept cash only (and no bills greater than 20 €). Visa and MasterCard are the “standard” cards accepted virtually everywhere. American Express and Diners are accepted pretty widely, but not everywhere, so you should have either a Visa, MasterCard, or cash available or ask beforehand.
Language?
Finland has two official languages Finnish and Swedish. In Helsinki region all street signs etc. are in both Finnish and Swedish. Unlike Finnish, Swedish is a relative of English so looking at the second line of signs might give you a better clue of what a sign says. However pretty much everyone understands and speaks English on an adequate level for helping with directions etc.
Tour or DIY?
First and foremost this depends on your personal preference on how you like to see a city. Helsinki does not have spread out must see attractions unlike St. Petersburg or Berlin so you really do not need a tour for logistics. Public transportation is excellent and HoHos are available. Most tours offered by cruise lines or the St. Petersburg tour agencies tend to omit the Suomenlinna sea fortress, which is a UNESCO world heritage site.
How do I get to downtown? / How do I get around?
Depends on where you dock and how you like to move. I will first list the alternatives and then specifics for each berth.
Public transportation
Public transportation in Helsinki is very good. Route planner and ticket information are available on the transit authority HSL website: https://www.hsl.fi/en and their route planner http://www.reittiopas.fi/en/ Also Google Maps transit directions are available in Helsinki. Current timetables are in effect until June 19th.
Day ticket for Helsinki costs 8 € for travelers 17 years or older and 4 € for 7-16 year-olds. Children under 7 travel for free. You can buy day tickets from ticket machines (coins or chipped credit card), sales points such as kiosks and grocery stores (all payment options), or tram and bus drivers (cash only, no banknotes greater than 20€)
Walking
The downtown core is perfectly walkable and compact. Especially if you arrive in the South Harbor you could get by just walking. For further away West Harbor berths you need to be into walking to do only it.
HoHo
Two HoHo companies operate in Helsinki. Both stop by ships berthed in the West Harbor. Routes are similar and pricing for the coming season is still unclear, but adult pricing has been in the 25-30 € range and children for roughly half price. The interval of buses depends on demand, but is typically around 30 minutes.
Strömma operates green buses under the Open Top Tours brand. http://www.stromma.fi/en/helsinki/sightseeing/sightseeing-by-bus/hop-on-hop-off/
City Tour operates red buses under the Red Buses brand. http://www.citytour.fi/articles/461/
Ship’s shuttle
Port of Helsinki does not offer shuttle service so shuttles are arranged by cruise lines or their port agents. Shuttles have been almost always available and depending on cruise line practice free or priced around 10 €. Typical drop off point is at the Western end of the Esplanade about 500 meters from Market Square at the other end of the Esplanade.
Taxi
Taxis in Helsinki are reliable but expensive. There will likely be some waiting by your ship. All taxis accept at least Visa and MasterCard in addition to cash. Pricing depends on distance traveled (or time taken in slow traffic) and amount of passengers. Starting price is 5.90 € during daytime Mon-Sat and 9 € at night and on Sundays. A trip from your ship to any destination in downtown should end up costing about 15 €. Pricing can be viewed in more detail here: http://www.taksihelsinki.fi/en/taxi-fares
Berth by berth:
LMA
Walking distance to Market Square: 3.5 km
Public transport: Tram 9 from West Terminal about 400 meters from the berth. There is a green line on the ground from the berth to the tram stop. See in Journey planner
HoHo: stops by the ship
Ship’s shuttle: Almost always offered
LHB and LHC
Walking distance to market square: 3 km (LHC about a ship’s length more)
Public transport: Bus 14 runs on the other side of Hernesaari peninsula about 300 meters from the ships. See in Journey planner
HoHo: stops by the ships
Ship’s shuttle: Almost always offered
EPL and EM3
Walking distance to Market Square: EPL 400m, EM3 600m
Public transport: Trams 1A and 2 run by the berth.
HoHo: Closest stop at Market Square
Ship’s Shuttle: Highly unlikely
EKL
Walking distance to Market Square: 400 m
Public transport: Trams 4 and 4T about 200 meters inland from berth
HoHo: Closest stop likely at Market Square
Ship’s Shuttle: Highly unlikely
ERA
Walking distance to Market Square: 1.5 km
Public transport: Tram 4T about 200 m and tram 4 about 400m See in Journey planner
HoHo: Strömma (Green buses) runs to ERA when ship’s in port
Ship’s Shuttle: Likely offered
Do you know where the Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel is located and how I can get to attractions from there? We will be in Helsinki for three days before our cruise. Thank you
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If people arriving at LMA next week still happen to read the forum: Tram 9 will be diverted from West Terminal due to track works from noon May 9th to 4pm May 12th. https://www.hsl.fi/en/traffic-bulletins/2016/tram-9-west-terminal-replaced-bus-9x-9-12-may-8371 During the diversion it will run to the terminus of tram 8 that is almost as close to LMA but in the opposite direction compared to the normal terminus.
Thank you for all your great information. We will be in Helsinki for three days. Are the hotel's all in one area? We are waiting to hear which hotel the pre cruise package includes.
NCL Quietly Changes Latitudes Level Qualifications
in Norwegian Cruise Line
Posted
And, Princess doesn’t take away what you’ve already earned. Hubby and I are both Platinum Plus in NCL. All bennies were per person. Now, they are per cabin. And, you are limited on what you can order in the speciality restaurants.
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