Aldeya

Pretty much all of my cruises thus far have been to the same ports of call and on the same ship (or class of ship).

 

I still have a good time every time.

 

You're in port for so little time, to us the ship is the vacation. The ports of call are just a plus. If I wanted to really visit these places, I'd fly there and stay longer than 5 hours.

This is exactly how we feel for the Carribean cruises. We consider every cruise as our Health spa getaway: Literally. We are on a ship to relax, we always buy a spa pass to enjoy a thalassotherapy pool (if there is one on the ship), or heated lounges, etc.

To us the ship is a destination. If we want to visit a place we take a land-based vacation so we can fully enjoy it.

Small local paper, no details yet.

http://spacecoastdaily.com/2018/01/six-people-sent-to-hospital-after-carnival-cruise-ship-docks-at-port-canaveral/

I have friends on board. They say no announcements were made, no explanation so far. :(

Anyone knows what is the reason for Gem to be still at the pier? They were supposed to leave at 6 pm

Just came back from Gem. As for the last 2 cruises we tried to drink it, no can do :) Just bad, left the bottle in the cabin again. I know it's a free perk but it would be nice to have a choice of this or a bottle of a house wine or something.

Thank you garycarla (btw enjoying you blog :), thetaro and goldmom. Especially for all the details you provided, helps to plan ahead.

Much appreciated.

Slam Allen in Fat Cats on Epic. Incredible performer.

We are going on Gem in a week and have an elderly relative traveling with us.

Can you tell me which dining room was open for lunch at embarkation? I'd like to know in advance to avoid an unnecessary walking for a person with limited mobility.

Thanks a lot.

I I also wouldn't fault those Platinum members who would like to USE this perk because concierge help is clearly stated on the list of Platinum Latitude level benefits.

 

NCL should either remove this from the Platinum perks OR inform concierge staff that they are obligated to help Platinum members with their requests, busy or not. As of now it IS part of their responsibilities which they do not fulfill. Offering this perk is misleading on NCL part.

I agree 100%. Either remove this "perk" from Platinum Benefits list OR enforce it. The way it is right now is very shady and just makes people who obviously cruise with NCL a lot (hence Platinum level) quite angry. I know I am.

I've been getting my email responses back from the access department the same day.

I used this e-mail accessdesk@ncl.com

I wonder if this is the correct address because I still didn't hear from them.

To those who dealt with the special needs department before.. How long it takes to get a response to an e-mail?

I sent an e-mail 4 days ago, still waiting for a response. I know I can call but prefer an e-mail.

Wishing you an absolutely wonderful time.

 

A world cruise is an amazing experience.

 

Enjoy each day.

 

Smell the roses meaning take it a minute at a time.

 

Keith

Keith,

Will you and Anne Marie be doing 2018 WC? Your blog is one of my all-time favorites and I would love to follow your adventures again :)

This guy can't be that famous, most of this thread, including me, have never heard of him!

My point exactly.

Unless I missed it

As noted proper footwear must be worn - you are climbing steep stairways on lower decks and some of

these are metal grating like peeling a potato.

 

 

 

- !

I was going to sign up for the tour first thing after boarding Gem in December but after reading this I know we'have to skip this. My husband will not be able to claim the stairs because of his recent leg injury.

I read quite a few reviews of the tour but somehow no one mentioned this. Thank you.

Pathetic. They could honor a Vet. Instead they choose a DJ.

Why would Carnival sail from NY just for few summer months? NCL and RCL sail year-round.

I'm sure the demand is there. The ships almost always sail full.

We are looking at Palms Court Gardens for our December Gem cruise. Did you buy a day pass in advance or when arrived at the place? Is it easy to get a taxi back to the ship? Any details would be appreciated.[/quote

 

Day pass booked but no payment in advance.

 

When we dock in town we easily walk there and back ( we are seniors) but last time we unexpectedly docked at commercial port.

 

Palm Gardens called for taxi for us and it arrived within 10-15 mins. Another group had asked for their taxi to return but it had not shown up so they shared our taxi van back.

 

Thank you so much! Just made a reservation,

We also enjoy Palm Court Gardens which you can reach by taxi, or by walking along the coast road to the outskirts of town 10-15 minutes. It has become our “go-to” place in St Kitts for a relaxing few hours. Highly recommend pre-reserving loungers as it can fill up with ship crew around lunch time.

Do you reserve chairs when buying a day pass online?

Like you, we've taken the cat sail to Nevis several times, the train thing, etc. so wanted to do something different.

Palms Court Gardens worked out well. No beach access but all of the other bells & whistles.

http://www.palmscourtgardens.com

We are looking at Palms Court Gardens for our December Gem cruise. Did you buy a day pass in advance or when arrived at the place? Is it easy to get a taxi back to the ship? Any details would be appreciated.

We started with inside, then got a deal with the balcony and never looked back. It was a balcony every cruise. Last September we took a quick unplanned last minute cruise on Breakaway and got an inside cabin. My husband absolutely hated it..

Now we are taking a Holiday cruise on Gem. The prices are astronomical but we really wanted a holiday cruise. We are cruising from NY so 2 days out and 2 days back are too cold to be on a balcony. Plus Gem has great outdoor decks with a lot of places to sit and relax in a good weather.

My husband didn't want to hear about booking inside but a balcony was out of reach for us. So for the first time we went with unobstructed OV. I hope we will not regret it.

The idea of spending time in the specialty restaurant trying to figure out what we can and can't have is not appealing to us at all.

We are new Platinum and I think it would be embarrassing to us, to a waiter and would spoil the evening for sure. We might just order what we want and pay the difference.

Cruising could become a way of life and very addictive. Heading out on cruise # 35 in a few days.

I second that! Oh and your friends, family, coworkers, etc will get sick of you talking about cruises. They will ask not "where are you going on your vacation?" but "Sooo when are you going on your next cruise?" :D Ask me how I know!

For me, not worth the time and energy.

For some things I'll stand my ground and argue, but being able to use the concierge as a Platinum member is not one of them. The perk doesn't include anything except help with reservations. To me, not worth arguing.

I agree it's not worth the time and aggravation. But I also wouldn't fault those Platinum members who would like to USE this perk because concierge help is clearly stated on the list of Platinum Latitude level benefits.

NCL should either remove this from the Platinum perks OR inform concierge staff that they are obligated to help Platinum members with their requests, busy or not. As of now it IS part of their responsibilities which they do not fulfill. Offering this perk is misleading on NCL part.

We prefer to book all our dining including MDR online before boarding. We didn't plan to dine in any specialty restaurants on our upcoming Gem Holiday cruise.

It will be our first cruise as Platinum and I didn't realize we would have two specialty dinners as one of this Latitudes level perks. Anyway when I tried to cancel two MDR bookings and book two specialty restaurants the system doesn't let me do it online.

It looks like I have to call to make changes. I'd prefer to do it onboard hoping for better time slots (only late time slots are left anyway) but now I'm not sure if it's a good idea to wait. Any suggestions?

Just received the revised 12/23 itinerary this evening - same as reported earlier - glad to be going a little further south than originally planned...

Still no email. Same cruise. Strange...