bonvoyagie

I also believe that NCL leaves the final decision on what to do in these cases to the captain.

We were on the Dawn in one of these suites and they are fantastic. There are three rooms - a master bedroom with bath, a secondary bedroom with bath, and a living/dining room with a couch a couple of chairs and a table with chairs. The two bedrooms can be shut off from the living room by doors. These are also suites so you get butler and concierge service as well as breakfast in Modernaro and lunch in Cagney's. While the soaking tub in the master bath was nice, they have replaced it with a huge shower with multiple heads. While it is a bit more expensive than a balcony and an inside, having everybody together is priceless.

We did a Panama Canal cruise in early 2020 and as Platinum they gave us a free bag of laundry each week (3). The rest of the benefits were one per cruise.

my wife got one of these before our AK cruise, our TA said that NCL is just covering their bases when it comes to having the proper documents, they really don't want to deny you boarding because of it.

With the current state of the drought and global climate change, cruise lines should be reconsidering the canal as a tourist attraction and use it more as a means to get between the oceans for repositioning efforts only.

good review, we did this same tour in late June this year. We did the helicopter tour with glacier landing at Denali as well as the wildlife boat tour in Homer. Both were ordered through the tour company - we had a blast. Sorry to hear about your illness we both caught colds on the cruise ship. We originally planned to do the northbound cruise an do a DIY land tour afterwards but after watching the NCL video on ISP we decided on the southbound and do the cruisetour - so glad we did. I agree that we needed the more relaxed time in Homer to decompress.

I usually book around 2 years out as that is usually when the fares are cheaper. I also watch prices as it gets closer to the cruise and rebook if necessary. I have only had this happen on one cruise. I lost a few perks but saved over 500.00 - on that same cruise they dropped the price again after final payment and I got the difference in FCC to use on my next cruise - that was almost 2000.00.

We were in an Aft penthouse on deck 10 and had the same amenities as usual. Breakfast in Modernaro and lunch in Cagney's, butler and concierge, snacks every day. On this cruise we were invited to the Haven Sundeck to see both Hubbard and Dawes Glaciers. This was a first time for us and it is up to the concierge to allow this. We were allowed to bring guests so we grabbed a couple that we met on our land tour, who happened to be just down the hall from us and went for the Hubbard Glacier (our small boat tour was cancelled). While it was nice, Hubbard was socked in with clouds and ice so we could not get very close. It was still fun to see the Haven. I believe that there are possibly some of the aft penthouses on decks 8 and 9 that do not get butler service - read the description on the website - i am not sure but I believe that only deck 8 lacks butler service.

The fish carpet is a thing of the past. On the Jewel the hallway carpet no longer has the rebellious fish design. We asked about it and was told that when the carpet wore out the fish design was no longer available. The new design does have a unique pattern that now points to the rear of the ship.

Near the end of the cruise i got a call from the purser that i had a balance and to come to the front desk to get it. Two cancelled excursions (weather and not enough interest) generated over $900.00 in credits - the excursions were pre purchased so they had to cash me out - not back on the card.

The train is more expensive and is sold as an excursion. The bus is the standard mode of transportation. Both will have instructions given to you on the last night. The bus ride is around 2.5 hrs while the train is closer to 4

We started crusing with NCL in 2002 and Freestyle was in full swing. We were on the Sky and it was touted as the first ship built for Frreestyle dining and it was completed in 1999.

First time I saw this was on our recent Jewel cruise. We had the usual daily specials, the always on the menu and the extra charge items from Cagney's.

Larger TAs can block out large sections of cabins in all categories, they receive a good discount on them that they can pass along to customers by offering OBC or PrePaid DSC. They have a limited amount of time to sell them - in the meantime they are removed from inventory. As for the website NCL recently changed the booking portion of the site to make the port fees and taxes less visible - they are there but only approximates and they are in very fine print. I deal with an outside TA - not a PCC so I can't speak to the process they have for looking at inventory. My TA says he has a special log in that allows hiim to see inventory and they also have a different booking engine. I usually book using the website and then transfer the booking to him.

I also saw the add - it really makes you think that NCL is making the offer. Yes I have seen this as an offical NCL offer several years ago. Large TAs often block off a large group of cabins in all catagories so they can get a huge discount from NCL. This allows them to offer additional perks as well as fare discounts. They also have their own Terms and Conditions that can often mean things like a non-refundable deposit as well as other restrictions. As always buyer beware. As for the Daily Service Charge it can be either prepaid or pay as you go on your shipboard account. While you can reduce this amount, you probably should have a very good reason for it. But this would only apply to the pay as you go option. I usually pre pay them because it does two things, it simplifies my onboard account and it freezes the amount at todays rate (it seems that they raise the amount every year).

with the rockslide situation in Skagway you must take a shuttle bus from the end of the pier to a meeting spot onshore, this is where all the excursions are meeting. It is also where the tenders land if you are docked at the forward spot. The ship docks quite early and leaves quite late as Skagway is a very busy port with lots of ships as well as things to do.

Only once have we encountered a lack of clearance problem and that was it Santa Maria Columbia where somehow the local officals were not on duty to clear us. It took over an hour before we were cleared. In this day and age it is easy tor the ship to send the information to the customs in every port days ahead of the arrival

we did a Boston to Quebec and back in 2016. Going to Canada was no problem the ship was fully cleared in Halifax and there was nothing in Quebec. Now when we cruised this year from Seward to Vancouver they simply collected the papers we filled out and let us off the ship. Now getting back to the USA was a different story. On the New England cruise we had to go through Immigration at Bar Harbor - being in a suite they did all of us as a single group - very painless - just show our passport and they put a green dot on our keycard. At Vancouver we had to go through customs at the airport which was hit and miss but we got through just fine others were questioned more.

On our last AK cruise we had a medical emergency in the middle of the night and had to turn around and go back to Prince Rupert. Under normal circumstances it would have taken several hours to make this detour. The captain turned on the afterburners and sped back at near full speed for the ship - about 24 kn. So the total amount of time from the emergency call to when we got back underway was 6hrs. From there on to Vancouver BC we were running tull tilt whenever possible and arrived only 3 hrs late.

you will also have access to the Horizon Lounge in the front of the ship above the main observation lounge. It is reserved for Haven guests only.

I usually book online then transfer to my TA . I also tend to book way in advance so my TA becomes my Q&A person with the cruise line. I have also been using him for over 20 years now so we are also good friends, I respect his opinions and he respects mine.

i saw an itinerary posted on facebook that called for an extra day in Hilo and cruising the Na Pali Coast prior to docking in Kuai.

2016 was the last major upgrade where everything was refreshed over a 4 week time period. I suspect that the 2021 drydock was just a quick minor refresh.

love Alaska for the sheer beauty of the landscape and wildlife. We also found the Canada and New England cruise to be quite scenic especially the St Lawerence Seaway. The Panama Canal is also a great cruise. We will be going to Antartica in Jan of 2025 - hoping it is as great as it sounds.

yes i know what the web saya- i also know that they cancelled several AK cruises at the last minute to do this charter, so whats to saay they won't do it again either to extend the charter or complete the sale. just speculating here as the spirit is the oldest in the current fleet.