QuanK585

I would like to throw in my recommendation for a floor on the lowest deck! I know it's not as popular as the higher decks since they are closer to the action, but with the lowest deck I'm closer to the OCEAN! Assuming you get a balcony, I have seen things up close just by staring out my balcony. Seals, dolphins, jellyfish, you name it. I've also seen one of those derpy looking ocean sunfish, and they are WAY bigger up close. Perhaps the best reason to be down there is the elevators. You're guaranteed an empty elevator as no one needs to go down there unless their room is down there, meaning they will empty out. The elevators will get you to the deck in less than a minute, so no point staying up there anyways. From my personal experience, staying up near the lido is louder, busier and made me binge on things like alcohol and buffets. But that's just me...

I know this may not be the best post to say this in, but it is related and is something us all thermal users have experienced, but... PLEASE DO NOT HOG THE HEATED LOUNGERS WITH YOUR TOWELS! This is one of the most infuriating thing I have seen on a cruise. Every time I went to the spa I see a majority of the heated stone loungers claimed with towels but unused. It just takes up valuable relaxation time for everyone else, especially when there aren't that many of them. I know that everyone can use them, when they want them, if 50-80% aren't claimed by towels. YOU PEOPLE KNOW WHO YOU ARE!

I just got off the Encore a week ago and can say that there is no other big production shows on board other than Choir of Man. There is the Beatles cover band as mentioned already, but also a broadway singer named Anthony Nunnziata. He was good, but I don't think his show or the BEatles band counts as a production show. It sucks that they got rid of Kinky Boots and didn't find anything worthwhile to replace it with, and still charge the same for the cruise. I've never expected full broadway level shows on a cruise ship, but the fact that NCL did have them was a big plus in my book. I also understand them cutting back, they can't be cheap, BUT this is your biggest ship! I'd imagine they'd want to make a statement with this many people on board. At least replace it with something, anything. Even a generic one is fine.

I LOVED the one on the Encore. It has the massive therapy pool that are similar on the other breakaway/Plus ships, the one with a massaging waterfall spout right in the middle of it. The encore also had a cold snow room which I loved going into as I moved between it and the sauna. There isnt one on the getaway though. The thermal spas on the the viva and prima looked much smaller to me, at least in video. I haven't had the opportunity to see them in person. The pool area seemed really narrow and claustrophobic. Can anyone share what they think of the newer spas? I also heard they are remodeling the JOY to finally include a thermal spa in it after retrofitting it from the asian market. Anyone heard anything about that as well?

Of the three mainstream cruiselines (NCL, Royal and Carnival) NCL is on average, the priciest and more upscale of the three. While i agree with most cruisers in that they are more similar than different, and different ships/itineries in the same cruiseline can differ drastically, there are some major differences in how all three market themselves. NCL charges more for their rooms but have an emphasis on making their passengers spend A LOT while on board. This is backed up by data that shows an average NCL passenger spends about 50% more on board than on Carnival, which focuses on cheap fares to bring on as much passengers as possible to compensate. Both these plans work in their own way, as Carnival is the largest of the 3, but NCL being the most profitable. I've never sailed on Royal, but they have always stayed somewhere in the middle of the pack for most metrics. Theirs ships, however, are the largest by far... This strategy therefore attracts different crowds. Carnival cruises tend to be younger and rowdier as the cheaper fares attracts families and people on a budget (college kids), while NCLs higher prices are restrictive for some. On a personal note, I love NCL! Its my first choice of cruises. I proposed to my wife in Bermuda while cruising on the Dawn! Great memories. I think the extra cost does translate to better food, better service, and a cleaner and quieter ship. I will say that I am dismayed that NCL is getting rid of their Broadway shows and not replacing them with anything! ANYTHING at all would be nice... This and the fact that they started charging for things like mini golf on their larger ships is disappointing.

I am trying to book a 7 day cruise to the Bahamas with NCL on president's day week in 2024 but have ran into some issues that I hope someone can help me figure out. I am not familiar with NCL's itinerary for the Bahamas, but similar cruise lines usually leave out of ports as far up as boston and travel to Nassua, Freeport, and usually a private island. As of 3/8/23, I am looking on their website for Bahama cruises, and their options are very limited, to say the least. There were only 3 sailings! I can barely find a cruise to there at all, let alone for president's day week! Is this typical for NCL? Does NCL not invest in this area, or are they filling them up as they go along and more sailing options will pop up later? I assume its the latter because March and April are not even an option for the Bahamas in 2024 at the moment. I find it hard to believe that NONE of their ships would travel to the Bahamas on busy spring break season. How long do you think it will take until they give us better options? I'm planning on using my FCCs for this cruise so that means I'd have to book it by August of this year.

Hello everyone, original poster here. Thank you for all the replies. It seems to me that Norwegian is on the stingier side among the big cruise lines, and th chances of it going down or getting a deal are slim to none. That being said, we have decided to bite the bullet and get it anyways. On August 20th, if anybody sees a couple in the NCL getaway's thermal pool grumbling to each other, it'll be us talking about how we spent $600 for this...

My wife and I are going on our first cruise with Norwegian in over 5 years. We've been debating whether to get the thermal suite weekly pass this time and have been looking at the prices occasionally. It was posted as $199 per person a week ago, and has now jumped to $299 per person on a 7 day cruise on Norwegian getaway! My question is: does the price for the NCL thermal pass fluctuate from time to time? We've booked on carnival thermal suites several times and they never seem to change in price. In fact, we've often getten BOGO 1/2 off deals with carnival excursions or appointment that we use on the thermal suites. Do you think that $199 was some intro deal and that the price is only going up from there? Ive read the price is usually about $250 on the larger ships. Any chance it'll come down? Does Norwegian ever give out any spa deals or promotions to help save some money? As it stands, $300 per person is way too expensive for a spa pass IMO...