JandC_Cruising

No...they all look like regular walk in showers that run along the full side wall of the bathroom.

We were on the Getaway this past summer July into August) from Lisbon to Southampton. It was an AMAZING deal when we booked. We had a great cruise, but did miss (Le Verdon - Bordeaux) and Zeebrugee (Belgium) due to bad seas and an inability to get into port. We had zero issues with the time in the ports we did visit (Vigo, La Coruna, Bilbao, Rotterdam, Le Havre). All those ports had full days with plenty of options of things to do. You cannot predict the weather and need to go with the flow. We had some rain and some hot days. We made the most of the extra two sea days. in fact one of them ended up being a beautiful day on the sea. It was simply too rough to go into Zeebrugge that morning. We really enjoyed the Getaway as it was our first time on her. It has a nice thermal spa and Vibe. We had great meals, enjoyed the shows, and all in all had a very fun time. If the price is right for you, book it!

Agree on all fronts... We changed to Club Balconies a couple of cruises ago because of the bathrooms. (Getaway, Escape, Encore) but honestly the pricing gap on our Iceland/Norway cruise between a balcony and Club balcony is currently over $1000 pp!!!!! That's crazy talk!

We have not been on the Prima yet. We are booked next summer ('25) and chose to book the standard balcony even though we usually do Club Balcony. Based on the videos we've seen, i doesn't seem to show any nicer bathroom on the Prima. Both bathrooms have the same layout it seems. However, the room itself is definitely larger. In the videos below you can see an extra end table on the side of the sofa. Club Balcony: Standard Balcony: The other perks still exist, but as Platinum, we get most of those perks already.

I’ll preface by saying we get the Vibe on every cruise, regardless of itinerary. But you are right that the sea days at that time are unpredictable. (Maybe fine, could be severe) We use the Vibe every day, even when in port , for some amount of time. The Getaway has two nice hot tubs and is great for afternoon relaxation after a day ashore. that said, I would also recommend the thermal spa if you are looking for a relaxing, quiet escape from the crowds. As long as the seas aren’t really rough, the therapy pool will remain open and it is a good place to chill if it is cold outside. Enjoy whatever you decide!

The only time we ever had them before getting to our cabin was back when you could only get passes on departure day by running to Headliners🏃‍♀️🏃🏃‍♂️🏃🏃‍♀️🏃🏃‍♂️💨💨💨💨 In any case, nobody should fret if they don’t have the wristband. The key card is coded and the staff will know the guests pretty quickly. One time I had to cut-off the wristband on the first day at sea because I wanted to do the drop slide. No worries…by then they already knew my name and drink preferences 😜

Yes. Your keycard will be programmed so it will open the magic door! We always go first thing. You will not have a wristband yet, but that is ok. When you gain access to your cabin later in the day the wristbands will be there with a Vibe welcome letter that will have the hours of operation for your cruise. Once the bartenders recognize you (within a day) you won’t need the wristbands. Enjoy! We’ve been on the Joy twice and have another cruise on her next March. Anxious to hear about the new thermal spa..

We're on the Escape in December (12/20-27) as well and did the same...booked Vibe and Spa about a month ago to ensure we had our passes. Escape is the smallest Vibe (only Starboard side) so you definitely want to snag that pass as soon as you can if you want it. As far as ranking Vibes: 1. Joy, since it has both port and starboard AND hot tubs on both sides. 2. Escape, although it only is one side, the smaller crowd makes it even more of a "special club" feel. 3. Getaway, while it only has the hot tubs (2) on the Starboard side, they have a canopy cover over them which is great for those of us that burn in too much sun 4. Encore, like @vacation44 said, they don't have cushioned loungers but rather loungers with strapped on head pillows which are not as comfortable. It is huge though with the full upper deck (which does have daybeds) but no shade. And, even though its our least favorite, its better than no vibe in our opinion. We will be on the Prima in 2025 and the passes are already available for purchase. We haven't pulled the trigger yet since its an Iceland/Norway cruise, but we're pretty sure we will buy since it is also such a great place for views and the Prima Vibe looks great from all the photos and videos we've seen

Seriously?!?! ok. So you’ve never travelled “With”’ if “ With” means in your actual travel group. but rest assured, MANY on the ship at the same time as you consume 10 alcoholic beverages per day. Bloody Mary(s) at breakfast, Pima coladas at morning pool, beer at lunch, pina coladas afternoon pool, pre dinner cocktail, 2-3 glasses of wine at dinner, evening nightcap(s)……go to bed , rinse, repeat….

No pool, but the Vibe on the Joy has two hot tubs One on Port and one on Starboard.

Or go to this website on your computer: https://upgrade.plusgrade.com/offer/NCL/

Let me preface this by saying that by the time everyone replies, you are likely to get most every restaurant listed! Knowing which ship you are on would help as not all ships have the same specialty restaurants: Our favorites however on every ship we've been on have been Le Bistro and Ocean Blue (bayamo on escape). We've never had a bad meal at either of these on any ship we've been on. (perhaps lucky/perhaps we are just fools/perhaps we just love french food and seafood😉) We have had success "sharing" one meal at the Wasabi Sushi on the Getaway, Pinchos Tapas on Escape, and Food Republic on most any of the the ships. That said, there are varied reports of "sharing" a specialty meal at those (pick four plates) establishments lately. Those are by far our favorites. We have stopped going to Cagney's as we have had four "meh" meals there in a row.

two things.... 1. Impressive bar tab assuming this is one seating! LOL 2. I'm guessing that those charges are not gratuities, but rather taxes if this is day 1 and you were still not out our the local waters. Enjoy your cruise and all the high end booze!

When you upgrade to the Free at Sea Plus program, the price they show includes the gratuity for the extra two meals and the upgraded drink package. We have upgraded to Free at Sea Plus on our past three cruises and have it planned for our next one as well. For our next cruise it is $343 pp for the 7-day cruise. That is it. We do not have additional gratuity on top of that price.

Agree Bird! This has always baffled us. We tend to book all our excursions pre-cruise online and the discount is always there. But every time we've had to re-book (due to cancelled excursions) or add another one, If we do that on on the touchscreens, cabin TV, or phone app, we have to make the trip down to the desk to get them to discount later. We've learned to not use their electronic means and just make the walk down to the Shoreex desk and get it done properly.

at only 2 drinks at a time, that would be one way to keep busy during that extra sea day!

We could go overboard (no pun intended) on saying how not buying something punishes others. My point is that the DSC is specifically for services that will absolutely be provided (steward cleaning the cabin, sheets and towels being washed, decks being cleaned, etc.) since one is already on the cruise ship and requiring those specific services. My intent would be to "withhold" purchases that otherwise provide bottom line revenue to NCL. This is completely different since my decision is to not spend MORE of my money on that cruise.

I understand the disappointment as the itinerary is a "bucket list" item for most everyone on the ship, but there are risks in any itinerary. I will not bother quoting the "T&C" on this as I'm sure you know they can make changes to itineraries for countless reasons without any compensation to the passengers. I certainly hope they provide some OBC and FCC credit for the change. We received OBC and 10% FCC for missed ports in Europe this past summer, so I would be shocked if something doesn't get credited to all guest once on board. Like others have already stated, I don't believe removing the DSC, which compensates the staff who will be servicing you throughout your cruise, is the proper approach. If it were me and I got no OBC or other credit I would modify what I typically do on the NCL ships: - I would not buy any Cruise Next Certificates (and i always buy those) and I would tell the GM exactly why I am not buying them this time. - I would avoid extra expenses on-board (less at casino, nothing at jewelry store, no spa treatments, for example) and again explain to the GM why. In short, I would do everything in my power (short of penalizing those who continue to do the daily service) to make my on-board account close to zero! In all honestly, for my typical cruises, that would deprive NCL of a larger dollar amount than cancelling the DSC. That said, there is ZERO correlation to what is happening today and what is posted online for the '24-'25 Itineraries. I don't understand why you would think they would change those just because this February, they are not able to cruise to those destinations. I hope you still are able to enjoy the cruise and see amazing sights none the less!

@tmal2 We've been dropped off at street level by an Uber in the past. There are porters for incoming passengers down at that level. You can give them your bags if you are checking those. There are elevators going up to the check-in level from the street level.

Yes. You can bring 1.5L bottles.

You can bring as many bottles as you wish. If you have a drinks package, the corkage fee is waived. if you do not have a drinks package, then you pay a corkage fee regardless of where you drink the wine (or even if you do not drink the wine).

In the past, buying online prior to the cruise was 10% discount off of the price offered once on board. In all our cruises, we've never seen the Thermal Spa "sold out" prior to departure. We always get the spa pass and that first day, you will see spa employees giving tours of the thermal spa and trying to entice passengers to buy the pass for the week. Once on board simply go to the spa and see if they are selling passes.

Because only the OP has the "View" package...all of us are just stealing views without paying our fair share!

If the system shows that you are "both checked in", then you are all set. This is usually shown by green check marks next to everything. It typically takes about 24hrs for the Edocs to be available. If you did this today, check back tomorrow and you'll be able to download those.

This happens to us EVERY time we make a reservation. Their system has multiple accounts for your husband and it is grabbing the "first timer" account. Every time I make a reservation online, my wife has two different entries on my account when adding a "past guest"...Neither of these are her correct account, but it is impossible to tell that, since their system doesn't allow you to add a guest by simply entering their Latitudes number (which would be more logical). You need to contact NCL (via phone or online chat) and ask them to merge the accounts and that will fix your reservation.