Shellbelle28

I am 12 days until sailing on the Jewel. The ship appears to be sold out because ithe sailing doesn't come up if you search for cruises on the website, but I've now received emails two days in a row for Upgrade Advantage offers. We're already in a Haven suite, so our offers are for the Garden Villa and Owners Suites. Are they just messing with my head and they aren't really available and NCL's just covering their bets on cancelations?

Try doing what they ask (I think the second guest is on a tab at the top of the check in section) and just decline all the options. It's not that you have to get insurance, you just have to check the box that you don't want it for all passengers.

Have you joined the roll call?

Like this!

❤️❤️❤️❤️Thank you for sharing this!

That's a goal I can crush!

I organized a pub crawl on the Bliss a while back. I chose 5 bars, we met at 1:30 pm on a sea day at the first location. I made it a "Poker walk." If you've never done one of those, the organizer has a deck of cards, each participant antes up an agreed-upon amount of money, and at each bar stop, participants draw a card from the deck. When you get to the last bar, the person with the best hand gets the cash! I also had prizes for the worst hand and the most intoxicated. I think the prizes were cocktail-themed decks of cards and some other beverage-themed items. We had name tags but not really anything to make the group stand out.

For us, we've been on Alaska cruises multiple times, so are trying the end of season for the different experience so won't be upset by limited excursions. We'll just wander the towns.

Are you able to call and make the payment over the phone? I've had days when I couldn't get a charge to go through on a website no matter what I tried. Or, try a different device or browser. Sometimes it's that.

I don't think anything will ever overtake our 2020 Australia/New Zealand cruise aboard the Norwegian Pearl. The ship was in perfect condition, the crew were outstanding and the food never disappointed. But time marches on...

Good to hear!

At times it's hard not to become overly influenced by a single person's experiences shared on Cruise Critic.

We loved the crew and the food on the Sun two years ago. We were in an aft Penthouse and a good portion of the aft of the ship had an odor of sewer, including inside of our stateroom at times, but that was the only negative we experienced.

I've had some disappointing experiences around football broadcasts on board ship. If the game is only a "local" package broadcast and not featured nationally, it may or may not be available. We boarded in Seattle for one cruise and could actually hear the crowd in the stadium at a Seahawks game, but nope, NOT on the shipboard TVs. Even the onboard staff can't tune games in for you if they are willing to try if it's not part of whatever satellite package NCL uses. Best insurance is to have a mobile app and buy the wifi if you can't miss it or start following the "other" football ⚽🥅.

My last NCL cruise was in 2022 on the Sun (or any cruise for that matter, we've been loyal to NCL since our first cruise). The ship was a little tired, but the food (even on the buffet!) and service were top-notch. I have the Jewel booked for 10/10/2024 (a 9-day end-of-season Alaska in 14008, a Haven 2-Bedroom Family Villa with Balcony), and after reading @YVRteacher 's recent trip report on the Jewel, I am absolutely terrified that we'll have a sub-par experience. I don't think we have entitled attitudes, just an expectation of the competent service we've received in the past. Lately, we've always booked Haven so we'd have Concierge and Butler services and the nice breakfast/lunch venue. We really enjoy Cagney's, so we eat quite a few of our meals there. I'm getting the impression that those extras aren't as good as they once were. My husband has some health issues that limit his ability to roll with the frustrations, so I'm extra nervous. Nobody can change the way things are with the ship and NCL, I'm just expressing my anxiety. I've heard that Rumi, the GM returns to the Jewel on our sailing, so maybe I'm worrying for naught, but ugh....

Photos of the landslide from the City of Ketchikan's Facebook page.

I will probably need ten packets per cup of coffee. I like a little coffee with my cream.

My heart goes out to you. ❤️❤️ I know how it is to be with someone whose behavior is out of their control or understanding. My DH had a stroke that caused damage to the part of his brain that manages emotion and sometimes it is so hard to deal with.

Oh lordy, I'm going to have to start drinking my coffee black. Or with Bailey's!

I dislike those plastic cups SO MUCH!! On our last cruise on the Jewel (2020, Australia/NZ), I was whining about it at dinner in Cagneys, saying how much I didn't like not having a pitcher of real half-and-half in the fridge in our suite. A few minutes later, our waiter came by the table with what looked like a wine bottle wrapped in a cloth napkin. But it was a quart of half-and-half! He said, "Don't tell anyone where you got this!!" I was happy with my morning coffee for the rest of the trip.

There is a 2024 thread, it might have the info you want.

Gosh I'm starting to feel bad for you and your dad (and a teeny bit worried for myself, we're on the Jewel for one of her last Alaska trips in October).

This face after just one is testimony to its efficacy!

That nasty surprise needed a Bushwhacker. Mudslide wouldn't be soothing enough.

And I might add, most of them genuinely CARE! On one longer cruise on the Jewel, my husband and I had been consistently dining for lunch in Moderno. One day, we were tired and went to our suite, put the DND notice up, and spent a couple of hours snoozing. When we left the cabin later, we discovered a note on the door from the concierge asking if we were ok and if we needed anything. When we saw him later he again expressed that he'd been worried something was wrong. So he didn't "do" anything for us in that instance, but it was definitely elevated service! And I tipped accordingly at the end of the cruise. (The concierge was Carlos Ragasa, not sure where he is now or even still with NCL.)