KG1924

Same boat, we booked as a GTY and just got our assignment this past Sunday and we sail Saturday-the tags still hadn't updated as of yesterday so I just printed and wrote it out. One less thing to think about before flying out tomorrow 😊

I agree that the prices are generally insane. It truly was a perfect day for us though. We were the only over water cabana in our section in the Beach Club, so we had incredible service and our server and the lifeguards were explaining all about the tides and the sea life that comes in a specific times. We saw a bunch of sharks and a ton of huge stingrays (we actually swam along with them a bit...they kept their distance!) It was amazing weather and what felt like a once in a lifetime experience. I think the pricing works best for a group of course, which we had 7 people.

Keep in mind, we really don't spend much once we're on cruises. We have our drink package and I think the only thing we purchase on board is a ship ornament (this was our 3rd time on Adventure so we didn't even get that this time) So this, even at such a low price was a splurge for us. I think the fact that it was our first real trip since the start of Covid made us go for it and we know our days of traveling with my parents is starting to wind down. It's nice to live a little every once in awhile 🙂

You can catch some great deals, but overwater cabanas seem to stay around $1800 USD. We were VERY lucky to snag one for $799 USD last September. But that was with the Adventure being the only ship and we were around 30% capacity so not the typical amount of people. I would say just keep watching the pricing, ours dropped about a week before sailing so you never know!

PS-the overwater cabana was amazing. Not sure if it's $1800 amazing, but we LOVED it

We generally budget around $4000 for our cruises

Breakdown:

-$2000-2500 total for cabin is usually our goal for a standard balcony-often lower end or below 2k as we try to stick to off seasons

-Air fare is usually "free" since we use SW points when possible

-$200 hotel for the night before 

-$1k for drink package for 2 

-~$400 max for total bill at end of cruise (regular tips, ship ornament, extra tips to bar staff, maybe $50 in the casino)

-$500 cash for extras on the islands (cabs, island ornaments, excursions-usually on our own) and for cash tips

We rarely do the specialty restaurants as we aren't foodies in the slightest and the spa isn't of interest to us either. But obviously either of those items could add quite a bit of $. Also, we don't have kids so that saves us as well. 

Also, excursions in the Caribbean will generally be much less then say Europe or Alaska (I would imagine...haven't been to either!)

*Drink package is a game changer for us-we both drink very well on vacation 🙂 and I love that bottled water and nicer coffee is covered as well as my beloved Diet Coke. Those can add up individually. It makes it truly all inclusive for us.

We got married while on the Oasis so I obviously love that ship 🙂 However, we've been on Adventure 3x's and it was our very first cruise back when she was new! She's a great ship and we LOVED our last trip on her (although we were under 30% capacity and we got our Royal Up bid for an Owners suite...things that will most likely never happen again lol) That being said, I think the Oasis would be better for the kids with the endless options. Also, I feel 5 days is too short sometimes, especially since we have to fly to the port. I think 8 days are my personal sweet spot. Good luck with your decision-I'm sure it'll be an amazing time on either ship!

14 hours ago, metuken said:

Mom can call the cabin they are in.  The ill passenger can also phone you from their cabin.   NCL handled the non passing of information correctly.  It was not prison by any means.  Upset mom for sure.  I find this over ripe and over exposed.  Sorry mom.

I don't understand why you keep harping on this? I'm 38, married and often travel as a group, my mother included. You better believe that my mom would be trying to help anyway she can. If you're quarantined and NCL isn't relaying any information then what did you expect the 21 year old to do?

OP-I'll just add on to most everyone else's replies to thank you for posting what happened. We will be flying to LA for our Bliss cruise in March (hoping things calm down a bit by then) and I'm very happy to have this info to be better prepared. Unfortunately, my mom will not be with me to help lol, but my travel agent will be part of our group so I have no doubt that he will jump in if needed like your TA did.

24 minutes ago, NightOne said:

 

The ENTIRE world had covid issues this week. Stop being so clueless. LOL

wow....

I think the big difference here is that one could spend $$$ to not only deal with Covid but also not get the full experience of a cruise or possibly end up quarantined. Or one could choose to stay home for "free" and deal with Covid while in the comfort of their own home. I don't find what was said to be clueless in any way, shape or form.  

18 hours ago, Ashland said:

What an amazing price you got.....I wish the waterpark pass came with those cabana's.

I agree!!! We got so lucky with this entire trip....hotel in Nassau dropped by $150 the week before, $340 OBC due to price drop for our cabin, Royal up accepted for the minimum for a Grand Suite and then the cabana was just the cherry on top!! Once in a life time trip for so many reasons but amazing memories. We kept saying that we better enjoy this because it's not "normal" lol

** I just realized that when I originally posted in this thread we had only upgraded to the beach cabana. Right before the trip, the over water cabanas dropped to $800 so we jumped on it!!**

Just wanted to report back.....the over water cabana was amazing!!! We were very spoiled and very well taken care of by the cabana attendant. Was it necessary? Absolutely not. Was the entire place empty enough that made it even more unnecessary? Yes....astoundingly yes.

That being said, since we had 2 days there (spent the first day in the Oasis pool/bar and floating tiki bar) and my father having mobility issues, it was a great way to spend a gorgeous day. We were in Cabana 10 and we happened to be the only occupied cabana in that particular section so it felt like a true luxurious oasis. It's on the end, and we were right next to a sand bar where we saw and "swam with" (they don't get within more than a few feet of swimmers/snorkelers)  at least a dozen lemon sharks and even more stingrays. The attendant (Brenny-he's  literally the best) and the life guards were pointing them out and filling us in on when they come in, what they're looking for, etc.

For our group of 7, $800 was MORE than worth it to us. In fact, we all considered if we'd be willing to splurge and pay the full $1800 that was originally being offered and we all said most likely that we would, especially once back at full capacity. It truly was one of the very best days I've had on any vacation. 

While others may not think the Beach club is worth it (I will let you know after I try it out my self next week) We had originally booked the club only for $107/person. My sister and her husband decided to join us later but the price had gone up to $170ish. Then the regular cabanas dropped to $600. We don't need it, but we have 7 of us, so even at $107/person that we originally paid we are still money ahead by buying the cabana since it includes the entrance fee. In those cases it makes sense to get the cabana (in my cheap head lol) 

4 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

enjoy the upgrade!  They had a small suite lounge on the Adventure- but no suite dining room or deck.  Still a nice suite cabin!  With some perks. We had breakfast in specialty restaurant daily which was nice.

yeah, the suite perks aren't amazing on the Adventure. And my mother-in-law will be with us in a standard balcony so we most likely won't take advantage of most suite perks anyway. Just excited to live the lux life for a week 🙂 

My sister and her husband were also in a balcony and bid just over the minimum for the Owners Suite (in their case $415/person-minimum was $400) and they got it. I really think these lower capacity sailings are the best odds to get the upgrades. This sailing is also one of the least expensive we've been on (aside from flights to the Bahamas!) And we all tested negative today so we will be sailing away in our over the top suites in 72 hours!!!!

4 minutes ago, jdg623 said:

Congratulations! You will love your suite. We won an upgrade from JS to OS on the Adventure last month and were so spoiled - between the suite and the low number of pax on the ship, it was magical. Please give our best to Jenny, the suite concierge, she took such good care of us! She is a true gem. Jennifer and Wei in the lounge were also wonderful. Have a fabulous cruise!!

Thank you so much!! We're so excited, we've only ever done balcony cabins so this will be a treat. I will def say hello! Now we just have to pass our Covid tests in about 20 mins and then I will be truly excited!

We sail this Saturday on the Adventure....had a balcony on mid hump and just got the email that our bid was accepted for a Grand Suite 😁 we bid the minimum which was $300/person and we got it! We also bid on a jr. suite for $150/person but we decided to cancel that last minute since we really liked our original balcony location.

This will probably be the cheapest way to get into a Grand Suite ever!! 

On my very first cruise back in 2003 (I think?) on the Adventure of the Seas out of San Juan-I was 20 and my now husband was 21. We were with my entire family but in our own cabin. He was able to sign a form stating that I could drink beer and wine and that he was "responsible" for monitoring my drinking (not sure of exact wording) Now, I think that exception has been gone for many years, but I still laugh at the thought of a 21 year old overseeing and 20 year old's actions. 😆

As it's been answered, any ship out of US or US territories will follow the 21 and older only rule. If your 18-20 year old wants to purchase drinks on a cruise ship, you will have to sail from another country or sounds like NCL still has an option

On 8/27/2021 at 4:27 PM, DJLDRUMS said:

Extremely unlikely that would happen, a Jr. suite a possibility. RCI Reservations said that the only way to be able to remain on deck 6 was to dish up $600.00+ and go to a different category, that wasn't happening . On the same subject I know of two others that didn't get notified from their TA OR RCI only to find out that their cabin was no longer available when they checked in.

Yeah, that would not be ok with me. We aren't generally too picky on location with the smaller ships, but Oasis class is a lot of LOOONNNGGG hallways if you aren't close to stairs/elevator. I hope they at least offer OBC of some kind.

54 minutes ago, DJLDRUMS said:

Well, if you call PICK your own room and pay more for it for a Cat 2D mid ship on deck 6 then to being assigned to a Cat 2D forward on deck 12 nothing worth to complain about with no recourse, then you need to think that one out.

I agree with you. My point was that you didn't know what cabin you were getting moved to when you first opened the thread. If they put you in an Owners Suite, would this even be a discussion? 

51 minutes ago, PelicanBill said:

Not the same thing.  Protocols and procedures are fine.

This is failing to deliver what you paid for - which is extra money to choose your cabin. If you fail to set it up with the cabins spaced out, then you must offer me

- reduction in fare to putting me in a cabin I did not choose when I paid extra to choose

- offer to move me to a different cruise where I get to choose again

 

 

Nobody knows what cabin they're being moved to....so it may be an upgrade?? I agree with a pp...be patient and see if there is even something worth complaining about before getting so upset about it.

4 hours ago, Goodtime Cruizin said:

Remember when most were all happy & giddy about non vaxed passengers being treated differently than vaxed passengers? Ahh... those were the days a few weeks ago. Karma... she's one tuff cruiser!

 

Enjoy your cruises everyone! 

I don't really see how this is Karma....we purposefully booked this cruise w/ the thought that we wouldn't have to follow the very strict protocols and have cruising feel closer to "normal". That being said, we also booked knowing that things could change rapidly (as they have). My optimistic self foolishly thought it would improve by our September sailing.....that's on me to not be thinking realistically.  As of right now, we are still planning on going and will just hope that it's still going to be a great trip despite all the extra protocols. 

On 7/23/2021 at 10:56 PM, Jimbo said:

whatever ......... find me a picture like this one with a passenger standing like that on front of the ship?

Freedom of the Seas....but you get the idea. that is the very front portion of the bow....we did not go the "Titanic" route for the pic, but would this work? Any ship that I've been on that allows access to the front bow (I feel like Oasis class does not??) allows people to be all the way to the front.

We were on the Adventure 2 years ago out of New York-I would say the internet is good enough for checking email, social media, etc. but I agree w/ the PP-streaming was hit or miss and personally more frustrating than it's worth. So unless they've improved it, I wouldn't count on seamless streaming.

We're on the Adventure in September so I can't wait to see how they handle Coco Cay with the overnight! 

1 hour ago, ownedbypets said:

We go out to eat every weekend. Every restaurant has been filled to their limit for the past few months with some have long wait times. A mask is only needed when walking through the restaurant. Our daughter is a nurse, in Chicago, working with Covid patients and has been told to stay in a bubble. Her and her co workers have taken every advantage to dine out since things have reopened but now have started scrambling to get reservations before the city closes down on Friday.

Yeah, things are not going well up here. We're in the southwest suburbs and they put the restrictions in my county yesterday (although there are a lot of restaurants/bars nearby that are ignoring our governors rules and staying open...I can't blame them, I just don't go) A huge thank you to your daughter-not an easy job even when there isn't a pandemic going on. What's her take on the recent surges? Is her hospital filling up? I don't know what to believe anymore as far as the news goes and while both my mom and my sister are nurses out here, thankfully neither are working directly with Covid cases so they only know the very basic counts of their particular hospitals.

I really do think we're in for a very long winter. Like a PP mentioned-those in warmer states can do way more outdoors then we can. I was only 38 degrees this morning while I was walking our dogs...it's only October!

I would be fine with a "required" stop in Nassau. In 11 cruises we've been there often. In May 2019 we had our best stop there yet-we walked through town and stopped in the rum distillery there (the name escapes me...) and it was beautiful and the people were so friendly! Then we stopped at a brewery near the pier and then on to what appeared to be a newer little bar/restaurant on the pier itself that extended out past Senior Frogs. We went into the day expecting a nice but pretty basic day but we were all pleasantly surprised. My 19 year old nephew wanted a pair of sunglasses so we helped him barter in the straw market (which I despise going into, but after the rum and beers it was actually fun to help him out lol!

We've yet to just stay on the ship in all these years. The closest we came was in Falmouth right after they started sailing there. We walked just outside the gates and instantly a woman started touching my hair (I'm assuming to get braids??) My husband grabbed my hand and said it's way too chaotic out there so we strolled through the gated port area for a bit and then headed back on. I'm fine with the locals trying to get your business and I'm sure she meant nothing by it....but touching anyone is a big no no in my book! I felt much more comfortable strolling around Nassau without a plan then Falmouth. It's been years since we've been there so hopefully it isn't like that anymore.

On 8/4/2020 at 8:01 AM, OnTheJourney said:

 

Your plan sounds great! A few years ago we drove the entire Blue Ridge Parkway during the fall. Both Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mts. National Parks are great. I can see where Gatlinburg would not have exactly been the hub of social distancing. Many years ago we did a few beach vacations that stayed at different areas in NC - Nags Head, Ocracoke, Cape Hatteras, etc. We had to come home early due to an approaching hurricane (which turned out not to be the threat it was forecasted). Had to evacuate Ocracoke sooner than we expected. Must admit to never having rented a house anywhere. We do mostly hotels. 

 

Car traveling is still our favorite mode. Funny how you mention a slower pace. When I plan car travels, we pretty well shoot the works as far as trying to cram in as much sightseeing as we can. I book all hotels ahead of time and so I guess you could say we're sort of "locked" into an itinerary (much like a booked land tour) but I've hardly ever been disappointed or felt the need to alter plans along the way. It hasn't been unusual for us to do trips of 2-3k miles. Lately, we've gotten into more fly/drive - saves time getting across country if we plan to visit areas in the west. We have 3 weeks booked to visit Nat. Parks in the west in October - but I don't think we want to go through with it - not sure I'm ready to fly let alone do the extensive sightseeing I have planned - as well as the 4-5 different hotels I have booked. Trip ends in San Antonio - was hoping to do the Riverwalk, etc. - probably not the best idea either. I'll probably re-book it all for next October. 

 

Safe travels...

We both said while we were in TN that we would LOVE to come back in the fall. It has to be absolutely gorgeous! It felt so good to just be outside in the fresh air (although 90+ temps and humidity made it a little steamy lol!) We would hike and talk and take it all in. Sounds odd, but it felt good to feel "normal" for a minute, meaning we weren't wearing masks since it was just us two hiking, we weren't watching the news, and we almost forgot what was really going on in the world. It was a great mental break.

I think that if we keep doing the car travel, we will start doing/seeing more along the way. The way things are going, I guess I'm hesitant to plan a bunch just to have the plans go awry due to covid restrictions (not complaining about them...I'm happy to go along with any safety measures) So for NC we're driving straight through with my Mother in Law tagging along and my husband and I will switch driving every gas fill up and get out to stretch our legs a bit. Getting there is never as bad as you know you've got vacation ahead. As we get closer, we may opt to stop overnight on the way home and hopefully squeeze in some sight seeing on the way. I like the flexibility of it all.

I'm envious of your travel plans and I hope you get to go! 2020 for me has just become a year of waking up and saying "Who knows what today will bring" 😄

ETA: Gatlinburg is a beautiful town by the way. I don't want to deter people from visiting. It was just too crowded for us on that particular evening. My sister and her family went there the next evening to go to Anikeesta (not sure I'm spelling that correctly) and said it was about a 1/3 of the crowds that were there the night before.