hallux

I sailed Anthem before sailing on any NCL ship. That ship has some great venues (TWO70, the 2-deck concert/club space, the Solarium WAS nice). That ship was chosen by the only family member that has kids and the rest of us were invited along, at our own expense. I'd consider that ship again, but I prefer NCL's handling/treatment of solo cruisers if I'm going to sail on my own.

I renewed my passport last year, the only stamp in it was from 2015 when I went to Mexico City for work. One cruise in 2014, one in 2018 and two in 2019 and none got me stamps in the book.

Additionally - did you take the BOGO or was it the Premium Air service?

I've experienced it two ways - Ordered tender tickets during embarkation, using the touchscreen in the elevator lobby (on the Bliss). Tender port was the final port on the cruise - Cabo San Lucas Tender tickets didn't become available until a couple days prior to the port, the port was the last one on the cruise. I didn't even order one and just went ashore when 'open to all' was called, I was still on shore by lunch. This was on the Escape, port was GSC.

This is the same on the other two BA+ ships with Studio cabins (there are 4 total BA+ ships but the Joy does not have Studio cabins/lounge).

Typical for a ship like the Joy will be Taste and/or Savor (depends on need for space), The Local, buffet and maybe light snacking in the Observation Lounge.

No space reallocation is definitive. The first post says the drydock is in January/February so the chances are excellent that any changes will be complete by the time you sail.

Some of what you ask is covered in the T&C's of the promo - https://www.ncl.com/about/terms-and-conditions/promotions For Domestic flights, Norwegian Cruise Line will book guests' airfare with a maximum of one connection when possible; air schedules permitting. For International flights, Norwegian Cruise Line will book guests' airfare with a maximum of two connections when possible; air schedules permitting. If flying from the West Coast to the East Coast of the U.S., we reserve an overnight flight allowing you plenty of time to get to your destination city. For cruises concluding on the East Coast of the US, you may be reserved on a flight that departs up to 10:30 p.m. depending on available inventory and to offer the best schedule. For cruises concluding on the West Coast of the U.S. with guests returning home to a city located on the East Coast or central U.S., you may be reserved on a flight that departs up to 11:59 p.m. depending on available inventory. Guests embarking or disembarking in PortMiami may be reserved on flights arriving or departing at Miami International Airport (MIA) or Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). Ground transportation is available at the same cost for both airports. Guests embarking or disembarking in Manhattan Cruise Terminal (New York City) may be reserved on flights arriving or departing at LaGuardia Airport (LGA), Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) or John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). Ground transportation is available at the same cost for the three airports. Guests embarking or disembarking in Quebec City may be reserved on flights arriving or departing from Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (YUL) to ensure the most convenient schedule.

It has been this way on the BA+ ships I've sailed. The Studio Lounge was part of the Studio "complex" and was behind a card-access door that could only be opened by room keys held by those in a Studio cabin. That's actually a bit of a perk of the cabins, being isolated from kids running down the hall screaming.

This may depend on the ship but I think it was on par with the rest of the ship. Remember - the ship is made up of a bunch of steel walls, WiFi doesn't like those. They wire the ship with access points all over, I'm sure there is at least one within the lounge (I think I count two in my picture of the Escape lounge). The bigger concern at that point is how many clients are connecting as most industrial AP's have a maximum number of concurrent clients.

Here's a panorama of the lounge on the Escape, it's the same size as on the Bliss. The Bliss feels a little smaller due to the wood paneling, the white of the Escape makes it feel bigger. I have a video of climbing the stairs (behind me in this picture) and panning the lounge on the Bliss, I'd have to go find it. As for busy? This was taken at 9 AM on a port day (that's my backpack on the chair at the left of the picture, I'm ready to go ashore). On our busiest solo meet day we had over 30 people in the room.

An issue for some, sure. I'm 1/1 getting there and I don't mind tendering, it's actually kind of fun and it blows non-cruiser's minds when you tell them you get off that big ship in the middle of the ocean and use a smaller boat to get to the beach.

That depends on what you want from the private island. Want a waterpark with paid-for attractions that also has a beach? RCL gets the edge. Want a beach escape that has a couple attractions? NCL gets it. I was on GSC this Spring, it's a beautiful island with LOTS of beach space, a good-size food pavilion and a couple zip-lines.

Someone on my cruise in March let some family into the Studio area, including a couple KIDS. A couple people were ready to complain after the second instance.

Yup, a 24/7 venue for those with access.

The person you're quoting is currently on board for their trip. The default is that the DSC is deferred, the passenger needs to select to pre-pay it either during booking or at some point after booking.

I haven't sailed from either, but I've driven to Brooklyn to take my parents to a one-way cruise. It might have been my GPS or the direction were were approaching from, but it wasn't the most direct route into the place. That was 4 or 5 years ago, maybe things are different now?

Not posted yet - https://nycruise.com/manhattan-terminal/schedule-mct/ However, what IS distinctly missing from the BCT scheduled for 2023 is any ship in the NCL fleet. That could be different for 2024 if NCL deploys additional ships to NY and they need to overflow to BCT. It's also a question of how big of a ship BCT can handle, though if the Meraviglia docks there the Joy should be able to.

You can certainly try, but that portion of the fare you've paid would likely be subject to the cancellation fee schedule, which you would then need to factor into the cost of the flights you're booking on your own.

In my case, my post was suggesting that if the OP is going to make a claim that the weather caused closure of outside spaces and reduction of available public-access space making the OL being closed to all but the private function an issue for enjoyment of the scenery that they went on the cruise for, be sure to document it for shoreside people the OP might bring their complaint to. @cruiseny4life I meant exactly what I typed, no sardonic humor intended, thanks @ChiefMateJRK

Make sure to get photos and other evidence of the outdoor spaces being closed or unusable, to show someone who is not on board that it was really a detriment to those not part of that group that the large public space was closed. Also a photo of the sign outside the OL...

This is what I do. I'm on Android, I save all my confirmations to Google Drive in a folder, then set that folder to be available offline and (because I can since I'm on Android) I pin that folder to my homescreen for quick access.

Absolutely NOT a surge protector!!! A power strip without would work (but will bear scrutiny from security), but even better if all you need to charge are devices that plug in to USB is a multi-port USB charger.

Some people aren't happy if they're not complaining.

To be fully transparent - it's alcoholic beverages and soft drinks under $15. Bottled water and specialty coffee (which are technically under $15) are NOT included.