cruiseny4life

Good golly gravy! How much does seat selection cost and how many bags are y'all taking? Is this for more than two people? Cuz, that's a lot of loonies for two! Sorry that happened to you. We always select our seats as soon as NCL sends us the tickets, so I get why you'd be upset.

I think I've probably mentioned this before...but, I will again...I know dang well that my husband and I could easily spend $1,000 of onboard credit, per person. Even the non-refundable kind. Unless it was given to us on the last day. Give us the length of the cruise and yep, I'd be spending like there's no tomorrow! Massage every day and after three days, I'd be broke. 🙂

Get the e-gift card, download the Starbucks app (if you haven't already) and add the e-gift card to your app. Then scan the barcode from the e-gift card when you want to pay.

I'm going to add what I love in the city, at least restaurant wise as it hasn't been mentioned. 1. Sullivan St. Bakery, 47th St., (cuz, I mention this constantly) - it's within walking distance of the cruise port, like three'ish blocks. Breakfast here is wonderful! I'm sure everything else is, but I love their morning pastries. I did try the focaccia and it is great too. 2. Becco, 355 W. 46th between 9th and 10th - unlimited, homemade pasta that changes daily. Yesterday one of their three options was fettucine with short rib ragu (wishing I was in Manhattan yesterday). They do have a non-all you can eat menu too. Close to Times Square, but decidedly not Times Square and that's a damn good thing! 3. Ubani, 37A Bedford St. between 6th and 7th - Georgian restaurant. Georgia, the country! Loads of pizzalike breads. I recommend the Adjaruli Khachapuri as it's a cheese boat with a raw egg yolk. We make them at home all the time, but this place has a really good one! Also, khinkali which is kind of like a Chinese soup dumpling where you bite into it and suck out the broth. Absolutely phenomenal here! I've had the veal stew (chakapuli) and friends had the Cornish Hen with Georgian Spices. Everything is just delicious. When you're at Coney Island, pop over to Brighton Beach. Stop at Tashkent Supermarket (it's an Eastern European/Russian store). As you enter, on the left is a great little "sandwich" shop. They make gyros (with a hard G) and shawarma. I get the gyro. My husband gets the shawarma (he's from Russia). With chicken. Absolutely yummy lunch. And if you're not a big eater, you can split it. They slice the meat off a kebab, like a real kebab, not that steak um stuff. It's delightful. Refreshing. Filling. And so much more! Mmmmm!! While you're at it, if you like carbonated mineral water, grab some Bojormi (it is slightly salty). Ok...I'm done. For now! 🙂 Enjoy your stay in NY and I hope you let us know where you wound up (even if you don't go to any of my recommended places, haha).

Grizzled grinders. I like it haha!! But, I think I'd prefer categories one and two. If I ain't making money, gambling ain't fun. 🙂 I especially like those that have mounds of chips who haven't a clue what they're doing. I'll clear them from the table all night long (well, at least I certainly hope so). Truth is, I've never played poker on a cruise ship. Only in Vegas, Atlantic City, and our local indigenous casino (Turning Stone). And it's been quite some time since I did anything but a slot pull onboard. I don't like losing my money.

To your first point, it's based on the next cruise they book and the fare, only. If the fare is $1,028, then they'd receive 20% of that....so what, $205? If they book in the Haven, then perhaps they'd get $500 - $1,000 depending on the room selected and the fare, exclusive of taxes, fees, service charges, etc. As for Hawai'i (I'm glad to see someone else spells it properly), I would never travel on a cruise ship. It's just not the right kind of travel mode for me. Land-based vacation only. But, I suppose it's not all about me. In this case, yea I'd probably register my complaints onboard, and later, so I could explore what I can.

Those are some right colorful flags....hmm...someone's gotta come up with a few more so we could fly one flag per week of the year!

SSA isn't inclusive of all...let's just go with Friends of Cher and the Golden Girls! Or Friends of QAF.

NCL doesn't know how to properly communicate with customers. You're definitely correct about that! I'm sure it's a corporate demand, rather than the individual captains on each ship.

Food Republic....Tis old news now. I still say grosssssssssss to the vegan station. But! I don't have to eat it so YAY for those that like that kind of stuff.

I've been known to clear a few poker tables as I typically win...a lot. I've always wondered how the players on a cruise are. Are they just dumbies looking to have a good time? Or do they know how to play? If they are dumbies..well maybe I should join the table! Not sure what that says about me. 🤡

He was the washy-washy guy on our Joy cruise AND our drink server in Teppanyaki. Really great soul and excellent server - I was awash in drinks the entire night! Oh jeez! That smell would have taken me right back home to our barn. Ahhh, familiar smells bring back such fond memories.

Order whatever you'd like. Or your husband, I suppose. If he wants five potatoes, a slab of prime rib, a filet mignon, and another slab of prime rib, he can have it. He should throw a lobster tail on the plate too! Well, at least that's how it's supposed to work. Given today's NCL, who knows if it still is working that way.

And here's the actual ad, not just the music video:

There's an entire thread on the ad!

Thanks for taking us along on your day trip to Alicante - scratches, doubling back, and all! It was exciting to see the place through your eyes and experience. Much appreciated!

I'm not sure if I'm a grump or pollyanna about Joy's "enhanced" Observation Lounge. I'm thinking it's going to take personal experience for me to know. I definitely know there are fewer seating options and the lounge always seemed fairly full to me, though not as full as Pr1ma's! Different cruises though: Western Caribbean vs. Transatlantic. I get why you've taken Joy out of your rotation!

Excursions: I haven't actually done this excursion so ya know, I'm ignoring the whole "first-hand recommendation" thing. Multiple posters on here have stated The Baths on Tortola are amazing. It sounds like you probably have a fairly active family since you're still young'ish. Check out the National Park website here: https://www.bvinpt.org/the-baths For others, you can search on the Ports of Call forum which you'll find here (specific link is to the Caribbean forum): https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/456-caribbean/ My husband and I are decidedly in the camp of we will not ever dress up when on vacation. This includes pants and collared shirts (though I do throw a Hawaiian-type shirt in my bag and it has a collar). This means we do not go to Le Bistro or Ocean Blue (collared shirt/pants required). So, I might not be the best to answer this one, but I have been on plenty of cruises where I've seen folks dressed in tuxes, ball gowns, and everything in between. You should feel comfortable wearing fancy clothes if you really want to. Just don't judge those of us enjoying our vacation on a line with a casual dress code (we don't cruise any other lines partly due to the dress code - seriously). Try the app to look through your options. I find the UX more intuitive and it's easy to scroll through the options. You'll want to make reservations for dining (if you want to - we do, but change them so often that we shouldn't), check out entertainment at 21 days before your cruise (may or may not be able to book), look at thermal suite/Vibe options, and shore excursions. And, of course, get that buyer's remorse off your face. You're going. Unless you're silly and cancel within the cancellation period. Go! Have a wonderful time celebrating your daughter's achievement of getting herself through high school.

Many of us prefer not to talk on the phone. It's an outdated mode of communication.

Unless you're within a couple days of sailing, you can cancel your Vibe passes.

OH MY GOSH!!!! @Sugar Magnolia, should I get "Haven Maven" zipper pulls? Thank you @GALSews! Totally going to look for this purely for the entertainment value!

Try out a few other places. Try to keep an open mind. You're on vacation. Do your best to enjoy it. I hope you are able to! If the food issues, staff issues, and cleanliness issues are as you claim and don't get better, then I give you my full permission to go to Guest Services and ask to have your onboard service charge (that's the newest fancy term for gratuities) removed. I've never done it, however many here (and elsewhere) have stated it is an easy process. That's why NCL allows you the discretion to determine whether you pay it, or not. I'm here rooting for you to have a better cruise from this point forward! Please come back and let us know how it went.

Haha! My husband and I are too then. We did do laundry on our Transatlantic, but that was more a result of three days in Europe ahead of the cruise and then five days on the cruise before doing laundry. On our other seven to ten day cruises, we've never had a need to do laundry. But hey, we re-wear clothes all the time. I only pack one pair of shorts as a bathing suit. Eeeek, disgusting I am!

Sub Insta Reels for Tik Tok and you just described me! Oh, and my addiction to Cruise Critic. I must post lives! I did try the 150 minutes on one cruise and it just didn't work that well. I'm glad your kids found work arounds to still be on their phones. I truly don't understand older generations and the whole "screen time" is bad. Did TV screen time kill you? I suppose if given a choice, I'd choose the cruise and fuddy duddy parents who just don't understand the need for internet and staying in touch with friends (you know, relationships).

Unlike others, I have seen younger folk using the spa. I've even seen a very young looking guy with his dad (I swear the guy must have been 15 or 16), but maybe just a young looking 18...anyway, he seemed to enjoy hanging out in the different spa spaces. On other cruises, I've seen families with college-aged children in the spa. It is supposed to be a quiet space (good luck getting the older chatter boxes to shut the F up though). On a separate cruise there was a young couple (19 - 22'ish) who were...well, the guy was throwing his girl around in the pool and the make out seshes were...well what you'd expect from that age. No one seemed to mind. I was just glad they were enjoying themselves. I've seen older couples do the same, too...so it ain't a young person's pursuit only. Anyway...if your kids enjoy saunas, hot tubs, thalassotherapy pools, steam rooms, cold rooms, and loungers, then they'll enjoy NCL's thermal suite! I'm sure they would enjoy a respite after a long excursion. Good luck getting the passes!