swafly5909

1 minute ago, schmoopie17 said:

Just be careful if the price of your cruise goes down and you contact the TA to get the reduced price.

 

This just happened to us...called for the reduced price and they ended up removing the prepaid gratuities...WITHOUT TELLING US.

 

Why they wouldn't tell us until after the fact is beyond me. Had we known, we would have forfeited the $120 price reduction to keep the $400 in prepaid gratuities. 

 

We spent several days going back and forth with the TA to try to get the gratuities added back, since it was their error for not informing us beforehand. Needless to say, that is the last time we use that TA.

 

Ugh, thanks for the heads up. 
 

It wasn’t clear to me when we booked WHO was offering the prepaid incentive - if it was the cruise line or the TA. Sounds like it’s most commonly the TA. 
 

Our cruise did go down in price some, but the cruise line changed policies and doesn’t give you the lower rate - they gave us future credit for the difference instead. Bummer, but I def see how that’s a better deal for them. Maybe we’ll get a chance to use it…? 

7 minutes ago, FLAHAM said:

In addition, you can also stiff land-based waiters, hotel maids, etc.

This is exactly the reason for my original question - to make sure that our “free prepaid” does NOT mean “unpaid” tips. I was checking if and who was covering that expense on our behalf in efforts to be sure no one was getting stiffed. 

3 hours ago, ready2cruzagain said:

Our TA is paying our gratuities for us on our NCL cruises, 21 days at $40 a day is a big chunk and why we booked with them.  We have booked with them in the past due to incentives but this on is the best so far. 

 

It sounds like you booked through the same online TA. We were told that they pay the gratuities for us to NCL. You can tip extra if you want but it is not required and no one is getting cheated if that is what you are worried about.

Yes, thank you. This is what I was concerned about. I understand what gratuities are and that we ultimately get to decide the % or whether to tip extra.
 

I just wanted to make sure that NCL or the TA is actually paying the original service charge amount - I don’t want our “free prepaid” to mean “unpaid” crew member tips.

Especially knowing many of those prepaid tips go to crew members behind the scenes who we will likely not see - not just our cabin steward or table servers we could also tip in person. 

One of our incentives on our cruise this fall was "free prepaid services charges" for two people in our cabin. It sounds like that's gratuities. So...how does that work?? Does this incentive end up meaning no tips for the crew members? Or does NCL pay their tips? Or does it simply mean the gratuities are not automatically added to our bill and we get to make the decision about what to tip - making this incentive not really a discount? I want to make sure we're not swindling anyone of hard-earned tips. 

16 hours ago, Muckyduckway said:

If anyone from the recent sailings of the Jade took the bus shuttle from the ship to the port gate in Heraklion -

• where exactly did it drop you off?
• did it run to a timetable, or just a queue up and hope for the best schedule?
• when returning to the ship, did it pick-up at the same location as drop-off?

Please enjoy this drawing of what I recall.  The shuttle ride was not long, and did not take us into Heraklion.  It basically moves you from the ship to another part of the port, and from there you can walk into town.  Doable, but definitely a walk.  We didn’t see any schedule, but it seemed the shuttles just ran continuously, so the wait should only be a few minutes.  We caught the shuttle at the same place they dropped us off - one was waiting when we walked back.  
 

*Ship is in green (Jade, naturally).  Shuttle route in purple; red x marks the drop off/pickup.  

58 minutes ago, Nola26 said:

@swafly5909 Thanks for sharing your experience. We're booked on the August 29th cruise and your information really helps me understand what to expect.

The Ben & David YouTube video made it appear that they left the ship and explored Athens after testing and embarkation, but we'll just have to wait and see what options we have.

 

I am glad you found your luggage. Can you confirm your flight routes? We are Newark to Copenhagen to Athens, still trying to understand testing for Copenhagen, seems we need one to change planes there, but not one to enter Greece.

Yes, Ben & David left the ship to explore Athens but theirs was a 4-night test cruise with NCL higher ups and social media promoters the week before our cruise.  Theirs was not a normal open-to-the-public cruise.  It also appeared they only sailed to Rhodes and back.  As a regular paying passenger on a regular non-test cruise, we were told by NCL that we could not leave the ship in Athens after checking in.

We were originally scheduled to make a connection in Munich but got rerouted thru London instead.  We had to present proof of vaccination for both, but did not have to test.  For the UK we also had to fill out PLFs like for Greece - except Greece was one PLF per household and the UK was a PLF for each passenger.  I'm not familiar with the requirements for Denmark.   

On 8/3/2021 at 10:40 PM, RumRunner2021 said:

Has anybody here been actually turned away from any NCL restaurant because they were wearing a nice pair of shorts?  In the last three or four years?  Just curious.

We were on the Jade last week.  One night I did see a lady dressed nicely but in shorts - pretty pink, ironed board shorts with a nice top and shoes.  She looked clean and freshly put together.  The crew member in front of Grand Pacific was letting her know (very kindly) that shorts could not be worn after 6, but that Alizar’s and the buffet were open and available.  
 

And then we were seated, my husband wearing long pants (but perhaps not a collared shirt, I can’t recall - but I know he wore non-collared in GP at least once on the 1st night) and me in a nice top but Capri leggings.  I would not say we looked at all dressier than the other lady, but we weren’t wearing shorts.  It seemed silly to me in that case, but I guess you have to draw a non-subjective line somewhere?  
 

Rob-Bob said he saw folks in shorts last week.  So maybe the enforcement just depended on who was at the door each night?  So, MAYBE you’d be allowed with shorts - but it wouldn’t hurt to come prepared with pants?  
 

I know we were NOT fancy looking the first night!  We’d arrived at port at 7pm after a long, haphazard day (or two days) of air travel.  We had long pants on, but we were not dressed for fancy dining.  I felt slightly embarrassed walking in with people looking nicer - but more than that I was hungry and tired and glad to be on the ship at all.  I just wished we had a sign on us so everyone would know our luggage was lost and we’d have looked nicer under better circumstances.  Lol

4 hours ago, Muckyduckway said:

Thank you @swafly5909 for a such a detailed and enthusiastic review. Enjoyed reading it and got some helpful pointers.

What time did you get to the tender ticket pick-up in order to get #2?

They started handing them out the morning we got to Corfu.  We were there from 7am-3pm.  We met our driver at 8, and picked the tickets up on the way to our room from breakfast…so…maybe 7:15?  We didn’t know to go as soon as they made the announcement, but we were also passing by very soon after.  We were maybe there half an hour after they announced?  
 

It didn’t take long at all to get on the tender in our group.  We got to Santorini at noon and we were off the boat, up the cable car, and waiting at McD’s by 12:45.  We did make sure to have all our gear for the day packed and ready to go and we were waiting in the lobby area on deck 7 when they called our number.  (We met midship on deck 7 to show our ticket and were then directed down to deck 4 to get on the tender.) 

Santorini was another highlight day.  We just couldn’t believe we were actually THERE!  It’s so much bigger and taller than pictures can show.  Such a unique place.  

Friday in Corfu was fantastic.  Maybe my favorite day of the cruise…except that being on Santorini was also pretty unbelievable.  But our time on the water in Corfu felt like a dream.

Thursday we took an NCL “3D” excursion to Olympia.  We booked this excursion while onboard; it was not one they offered online before the cruise began.  We bused to Olympia with a guide sharing facts about the area.  Once we arrived, we were each given “whisper” ear pieces to hear our guide and iPads with a program that showed animations of what the ancient site looked like in its heyday.  It was a much bigger area than what it looked like in the few pics I’d seen online prior.  The iPads were helpful in visualizing what the ruins had once been.  

12 minutes ago, favoritevacation said:

Thank you so very much swfly5909!!! I am so happy to hear from you! I live in Florida where the Delta variant is causing the highest number of Covid cases the state has ever seen. How was the long day in the airport and flying wearing a mask? Were most people wearing their masks properly? How did covid testing go on and off the ship? We are so afraid of being positive after the cruise and needing to quarantine and not being allowed to fly home. How was it on the ship? Everyone compliant wearing masks or were you able to spend unmasked time outdoors? Is there a restaurant with outdoor seating? That would be nice! What about on excursions? Now that Greece is on the do not travel unless necessary list, did you feel unsafe because of their covid outbreak? Of course we  are vaccinated, 100% are on NCL….but just trying to decide if it is safe or not. Would love your input and thank you. We are set to sail September 5th.

Traveling from Oklahoma to Athens and back were long days.  We’ve flown to Florida, California, and Arizona during the pandemic, visited Magic Kingdom and Universal Orlando - plus school and church - so we’ve gotten used to masks.  Int’l flight days were maybe the longest consecutive time we’ve spent in masks, though - plus running thru airports trying to catch planes after delays.  So we definitely were deliberate in choosing our mot comfy masks.  Seemed to me that most people were compliant.  

On the ship, we could take masks off outdoors and once we sat down at tables in the restaurants and lounges.  There are outdoor snack bars and bars around the pool deck, and the very back of the ship has The Great Outdoors, an outdoor eating area attached to the buffet.  We sat out there often and enjoyed it the fresh air and views.  
 

NCL had a mask and bottle of sanitizer for each passenger in their cabin.  They weren’t the most breathable masks we own, but it was nice to have another one to add to our supply.  People complained online a LOT before our cruise, but it seemed most people complied.  The crew was active in reminding people to follow mask and hand-washing procedures.  
 

Testing was easy.  The swab was not very invasive at all, much gentler than other tests I’ve experienced.  The onboard test before disembarkation happened Friday evening and Saturday morning.  We were assigned at time and location.  It took five minutes.  We did not have to sit and wait like embarkation; we were free to go after being swabbed.  They emailed results to us AND left printed copies in our room for us to use at the airport going home.  
 

EVERYONE had to be tested at the end of the cruise, regardless of if, when or where you were flying afterward.  NCL was very clear that you would not be allowed off the ship in Santorini OR Athens if you did not show up for your test.  And at the end of the testing window, they called no-shows out by name over the PA.  You couldn’t skip it.  

I think the Greece travel recommendations changed while we were there or shortly after, but we felt safe.  As safe or safer than at home in the states where we see people not complying with mask mandates and we go to stores where anyone can enter without proof of test or vaccine.  Granted, we take the pandemic seriously and try to be cautious, but we are definitely NOT the most cautious people we know.  We’ve traveled and met with family and friends several times in the past year.  But we did feel safe on our trip knowing people had to show proof of tests or vaccine or both.  Nothing is 100% but that’s more safeguards than we experience around town at home.  

Monday evening NCL offered the $19.95 laundry promotion - whatever clothes you can fit into the pillowcase-size paper bag.  Laundry had to be in the bag, ready to go by 11am or noon on Tuesday.  I was surprised this promotion happened so early in the cruise, but we definitely took them up on it!  

We booked our own excursion in Rhodes thru ShoreExcursions.com.  It was an all-day snorkel tour on a sailboat.  Our driver picked us up by the port gate and drove us to a dock just inside the city walls.  It was us, another couple, and a mom with her three college-age sons - all from the Jade.  We went to three bays on the southeast side of Rhodes - Tragnou, Anthony Quinn, and Kalithea.  We got out to swim and snorkel at each spot, and at the last one our guides provided a yummy lunch of sandwiches/fruit/finger foods/pastries.  Drinks were also provided.

Our driver took us back to port after.  At each port, we had to be back on the ship 30 minutes prior to leaving.

Our suitcases were waiting for us when we got back to our room.  (Hooray!  After swimming in the salty sea, I NEEDED that conditioner!)  Our laundry bag was also still there - I’d forgotten to sign the itemized list.  Oops.  But our steward left a note that he’d collect it at turndown - which meant we could add our items from that day.  Laundry was promised to be back by noon (I think) on Thursday - but ours was back by midday Wednesday.  
 

We are simple folk (aka thrifty), ha, so we passed on the food and drink promotions and didn’t do any specialty dining.  We felt like we had plenty of options between the main dining room and the buffet.  We’ve got three young kids at home, so a week of not cooking and no fast food was treat enough for us.  
 

We enjoyed the Grand Pacific.  We never had to wait for a table.  The food was good.  Not outstanding, but good food.  Meals there were never rushed - so if you like to take your time while dining, you’ll be set.  If you’re famished and just want to grab a bite and get on to another activity, it may feel a bit slow.  🙂  But everyone was so kind and seemed genuinely happy to have us onboard.  
 

You don’t have to be “fancy” with NCL’s freestyle cruise.  But after 6pm, there are a few caveats in the main dining room - long pants and closed-toe shoes for men, no shorts or flip flops for women.  I do not believe Alizar’s dining room has the same restrictions.  (They didn’t have as many windows, so we never got around to eating there.  Being able to eat with a gorgeous view is a big reason why I enjoy cruises.)  

Our “technical stop” in Turkey was that night after Rhodes.  At dinner time we sailed through a gorgeous area - lush mountains all around us - it looked like a cruise brochure.  We had no idea Turkey was so beautiful!  All we did was sail into a bay area near Marmaris, and a boat came out to meet us.  We never got near land, no one disembarked.  And they never collected our passports, despite sending a letter that they would.  The “technical stop” was kind of a non-event for us, except that we had the bonus gorgeous views.  

1 hour ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

swafly5909, I’m so glad your cruise was good! Did you ever get your luggage? 

Yes!  It was waiting in our room for us when we got back from our excursion on Tuesday in Rhodes.  We also discovered a $200 onboard credit on our account that NCL gave us to help cover us.  That was a very happy surprise!  Our travel agent told us to save our receipts and turn them in to the airline.  We didn’t need to buy much, but we did get sunscreen and a few articles of clothing.  Luckily my husband had all his toiletries in his carryon, and an extra pair of pants.  I had my essential toiletries, an extra change of clothes, and my swimsuit.  What I missed most was my conditioner - the ship has “conditioning shampoo” which is just not a real thing, lol.

I'm new to Cruise Critic, so I didn't know live threads were a thing.  Dunno that we would have taken that much time out during the cruise  - and with such limited and unreliable internet - but I'm happy to share now about our experience on the Jade last week.

It was our first cruise with NCL, and first cruise NOT out of Florida.  And third cruise ever.  So, we're not the most experienced...but we LOVED it.  The ship was great, felt clean, felt safe.  The crew was fantastic, so kind.  The ports were amazing.  Yes, there were extra Covid precautions, but they were minor things, things we've grown used to over the past 16 months, and totally worth the unbelievable experiences we had.  

While our cruise was wonderful, our travel was CHAOS.  We had flights thru NCL - the BOGO deal saved us a significant amount.  We were able to choose seats and the routes were fine.  The trouble was that all our layovers were only an hour and twenty minutes.  So when our first plane couldn't land due to weather, it set off a chain reaction of missed connections.  We ended up getting to ATH at 6pm Sunday - and our luggage was nowhere to be found.  AND we could not get in touch with a single airline employee to help us.  So after a panicked hour of uncertainty in baggage claim, we got a taxi to book it to the port, sans luggage.

Check-in at the port was simple.  We showed our QR code from TrustOne/Eurofins and got our covid test swab (super non-invasive and easy, not at all the up-the-brain tests we'd experienced other places).  Sat and waited 20 minutes for our number to pop up on a monitor - and we passed!  So we got wristbands and proceeded to get our room keys and board.  (There were cups of cold water available in the testing tent.). After boarding, you have to check-in at your muster station at some point that day, at your leisure.  It took all of 90 seconds.  

Masks are worn indoors until you're seated at a table.  Social distancing signs show which sides of stairs to go up/down, which seats are closed, not too many people in an elevator, etc.  Much like everywhere else you've gone the past 16 months.  Really wasn't a big deal.  Everyone MUST wash hands at the sinks inside the buffet entrances.  Rather than serve yourself, crew members place food on your plates and pour drinks for you.  Frankly, I'd enjoy if that were a forever change - made the buffet feel much cleaner overall!  

Menus were available in the main dining rooms and also online.  Freestyle dailies were available on the app, and printed copies were available at Guest Services - but they were not distributed in cabins. 

Aside from wearing masks indoors and on buses, our excursions seemed the same as ever.  We did the Scenic Agios Nikolaos tour thru NCL on Monday morning in Crete.  We enjoyed the drive thru the island, the information from our guide, and the villages we stopped at briefly.  We were back on the ship by 2pm.  We ate lunch and headed into Heraklion to see some sights and shop for a few necessities we'd packed in our checked luggage.  (They found one of our bags in Chicago and one in Athens.  The airlines and NCL arranged to have it sent to Rhodes where an NCL rep would collect and deliver it for us.)

My kids want to go swim....so I'll add more about our other port excursions later.  Feel free to ask questions if you have any.  🙂

We were on the first full sailing last week.  They said they'd collect our passports; they did not.  Our "technical stop" was sailing thru Turkish waters and pausing for a boat to come meet us.  We never actually stopped on land; no passengers disembarked.  The area was actually gorgeous and we enjoyed the bonus views very much.  Had it not been for the letter pre-cruise, we would have have no idea anything was even happening.  

My husband and I were on the first full sailing last week.  It was our first cruise with NCL.  

• Health protocols, procedures and testing pre-cruise, during flights (US perspective will be helpful) and airport arrivals/transfers and at ship

We felt very safe onboard.  We had to show vaccination cards at the airport and at embarkation.  We filled out the PLF for Greece before leaving home, and filled out another for the UK at the airport when we missed our connection and got rerouted thru London.  We also registered online with Eurofins/TrustOne for the Covid testing at embarkation and onboard.  It was very easy - show your QR code at the port, get swabbed (very non-invasive) and wait 20-30 min for your results.  Your number is posted on a TV monitor and if you're negative, you get a wristband and proceed to boarding.  (Wristbands can be removed once onboard.).  End-of-cruise testing was done Friday evening/Saturday morning before Santorini.  You are assigned a time, and must be tested to be able to disembark at Santorini and Athens.  Very easy, again.  Took five minutes.  Scan QR code, swabbed, and then they email you your results.  A printed copy was also delivered to our room for us to show at the airport going home.  

• Onboard experiences - especially things that are different and perhaps if you think the change is +/-

They had social distancing markers onboard.  Some chairs/tables marked off, elevator signs said 4 people or less (at busy times, people often asked if anyone minded before hopping on - we never saw any issues with it), staircases had sides designated as up or down.  Masks were worn indoors until you were seated at a table.  Everyone MUST wash hands at the hand-washing stations upon entering the buffet area, and foods and drinks were served to you by crew members at each station.  Personally, we were very pleased with that.  Makes a buffet feel much cleaner overall, no weirdos touching all the food.  🙂

• Excursions - NCL or other and what steps/processes were in place

We did some excursions through NCL and some on our own.  Masks indoors and on buses were the biggest difference.  On buses was a pain, (as they've been for the last 16 months) because it was hot...but it was worth it to be able to travel and see and do the things we did.  We had our vaccine cards with us at all times, but I think we only had to show it once at Olympia.  

• Touring in Athens - nothing available through NCL, were you able to tour on arrival day post check-in?

I've been told you cannot leave the ship after embarkation.  We had planned to take a private car thru town to stop and see a couple sights...but we were on delayed planes the entire journey and when we arrived at ATH, we discovered our luggage had not.  So we ended up rushing to the port (sans luggage) at 7pm after spending a panicked hour of uncertainty in the airport not being able to reach any airline reps.  (Our luggage was found - in two different countries - and flown to Rhodes where an NCL rep collected it and delivered it to our room while we were out snorkeling.  So it turned out okay - but pack your carry-ons wisely!!)

Overall, we LOVED the cruise.  It was a dream.  Totally worth all the extra covid and travel delay hassles.   

On 7/30/2021 at 8:58 AM, Nola26 said:

Going to add this for the pre travel or boarding information. Letter received from NCL today:

 

8/29 Sailing will make a technical stop in Turkey, not sure when, where, why or if we can leave ship during the stop. This may require Visas, check your letter to understand what is needed.

 

Confirmed that Greece requires passports to be collected at embarkation.

 

I completed the online Passenger Locator Form for Greece, required to enter the country. Confirmation comes via email and includes a QR code, that will be scanned upon arrival in Greece.

 

Greece requires vaccine status information. We have to test due to changing planes in Denmark, but Greece isn't requiring test results, just proof of vaccine OR negative test results OR proof of recovery from COVID-19.

 

Looking forward to hearing what other learn or experience.

 

The area of Turkey we sailed through last week was GORGEOUS.  My husband and I LOVED hanging out in The Great Outdoors enjoying the views! 

NCL said before the cruise they might collect our passports, but no one said a word about it onboard.  Our passports were with us or in our room safe the whole time.  

My husband and I were on the Jade's first full sailing last week, and we didn't hear of any outbreaks after leaving Athens.  

There's a FB group for the July 25 cruise, and the crew member who plays at the piano bar is a member.  He said he is onboard and wrapping up his 7-day quarantine.  So it sounds hopeful! 

I appreciate all your ideas and suggestions! 

While we enjoy seeing interesting sites around the world, neither of us are big history buffs, so I'm thinking perhaps we can add a couple quick photo stops along our route from plane to ship.  I found an article with several suggested lookout points near the acropolis.  It's not the same as visiting up close, of course, but perhaps we could still get a great view of it without the extra time and complications of tickets and lines.  

We are booked on NCL Jade next month out of Athens - our first time in Greece, and our first cruise not departing from U.S. soil.  Using NCL’s BOGO airfare, we are scheduled to land in Athens at 2:30pm.  Our ship departs at 11pm.  I realize this isn’t a ton of time.  (We were already stretching my mom’s limits asking for a week of babysitting our three kids, so we didn’t even attempt to add a day pre/post cruise.)  

Is it totally unrealistic to squeeze in a quick visit to the acropolis between the airport and embarkation?  We’d have all our luggage as well - unless some way to arrange a luggage transfer from airport to ship exists?

Lots of factors to consider - time restraints, unfamiliar surroundings, jet lag, luggage, heat.  But if it’s at all possible, we would hate to miss the opportunity.