Zeno

Just trying to get a feel of the price on upsells. In case I get the call. :D

 

 

What is your best upsell ( not the upgrades )

 

1) cruiseline/ship

2) sail date

3) days before sail date when contacted

4) price per person

5) from what category to the new category

6) did you take it

7) was it worth it

1. NCL Sun

2. Dec 2005

3. I contacted them through my TA about 3-4 weeks before sailing

4. I can't remember exact price - just the upsell cost

5. Original category - Inside GTY - the cabin they assigned me to was a superior INSIDE but I did not like the location - so I asked my TA to ask them if they would do an upsell and what they could offer. They offered a Superior OUTSIDE (on the promenade deck with a 50% obstructed view ) for $50 per person more.

6. Yes

7. I loved it - we really did not notice the obstruction - it was one of the best decisions we made re: a cruise

Would I do it again - not sure. I found that I did not like the uncertainty associated with a GTY. If I had a cabin I was satisfied with and I was offered a really good upsell to another "better" cabin whose location I liked I might do it again. I thought $50 was very reasonable to move from an inside to an outside.

Goodness, no apology is necessary. I do that all the time. I'm getting better about packing lighter. Do you pack all of your stuff for one week in those cases and packs?

Yes we manage pretty well. I got into the habit of packing lightly years ago when I was back-packing through Europe.

Not to split hairs, but my words were "The only way you should carry your own luggage is if you decide to do Express Debarkation."

 

I was only offering my opinion of what the OP should do, not what NCL allows. I would never voluntarily carry all of my things off the ship doing regular debarkation. I'm guessing you do that so you won't have to look through the rows of luggage waiting off the ship. :)

Sorry I missed the "should". Our regular suitcases are about the size of many people'es carry-ons and our packs are day-packs. I definitely would not recommend what we do to anyone with some of the GIANT suitcases I have seen,

The only way you should carry your own luggage is if you decide to do Express Debarkation. It's an option offered if you can carry all of your things yourself, and they're the first people off the ship. Do that one if you need to be off early. Otherwise, put your luggage out the night before (there will be a cutoff time) then when your color is called the next morning you take your carryon with you, debark, and find your luggage waiting for you off the ship, then it's on through Customs. Have a good time. :)

Actually this is not true. We always carry off our own luggage and we don't do Express Debarkation. If you are willing to lug it yourself and it is not so big that it causes a problem - they don't care if you carry it off yourself. We have back-packs and fairly small rolling suitcases.

Glad to hear that you enjoyed Lamanai. Our only regret when we took the tour was the lack of time at Lamanai (through the cruiseline in our case - so at least we did not need to worry about getting back on time).

what about the airport beach, what time does that all happen. what is grand case and snase marcel if i may ask. thanks

Re: airport beach - I THINK most of the big planes arrive in the afternoon

Re: Grand Case - it's a small town well known on the island for its restaurants

Re: Anse Marcel - a very scenic beach area

Hello,

 

My wife and I will be renting a car from Budget at the pier. Our main destination is Orient Beach. We'd like to also visit Marigot for shopping, and possibly some sight-seeing in Grande Case. And then back to for some shopping in Philisburg before dropping off the rental. Between these destinations we'd like to do some freelance sightseeing, so to speak.

 

Question: How easy is it to get around the island? Are reports that there's only one main road that takes you on the island--and all you need to do is stay on it to see most everything you'd want to see--true?

 

I appreciate feedback from anyone who's familiar with getting around the island on your own. Thanks in advance!

 

-Steven

The following is strictly my opinion:

It is pretty easy to get around the island because it is not big and there really is one main road (lots of "little" roads though). HOWEVER traffic can be quite heavy at 'rush' hour - morning about 8-10 and evening about 4-6 and it is pretty hectic around Phillipsburg when a lot of cruiseships are docked. If some hectic traffic does not bother you - driving around should be no problem.

Things to see:

1. Orient beach and other beaches

2. If you want an "exciting" and scenic drive, go to Anse Marcel - the views on the road over the hill are spectacular and the beach is lovely. This could be a "detour" on your way from Orient beach to Grand Case or Marigot.

3. Grand Case is not especially scenic but there is shopping and good food. I think Petit Plage is nice.

4. Marigot has some good shopping.

5. Philipsburg has very good shopping but on a "cruiseship" day driving a car in that area is murder.

Check out the following map:

http://www.caribbean-on-line.com/sm/smmap.shtml

Hopefully others will chime in with their "favorites".

1. Itinerary

2. Cruiseline

3. Ship

1st trip to Beilize: We took the Lamanai and New River excursion through the ship (NCL Sun). It was quite good. I would recommend it highly.

2nd trip: we took a snorkeling excursion through the ship (NCL Sun again). It was very disappointing. The boat was over-crowded and I had some safety issues. I would NOT recommend a snorkeling excursion through the ship

Amatique Bay Resort Beach Day:

This was a shore excursion we took through NCL.

I would rate this about a 7 out of 10.

This was the first time this excursion was run – so there were some glitches but overall they were correctable and for us did not ruin the day.

Transportation to the Resort:

Needs some improvements. Boats took people from the ship’s dock to the resort. (This was contrary to information I was given – which was that buses would be used.) The boats were a problem IF you are elderly or have mobility difficulties. Only one boat was easy to board. In my opinion, they should reserve this boat and board all those who are elderly or have some mobility problems on it first... This would only take a little extra organization. I injured my knee boarding one of the boats. (I don’t blame NCL since I could have waited for the ‘easy to board’ boat to return and I chose not to.) Be assured on the way back, I made very sure I got on the ‘easy to board’ boat and I had no problems.

Tour Operator Personnel:

In spite of the transportation difficulty, I rate them pretty highly. They were attentive and friendly (especially Christina) and seemed to be trying to make things enjoyable. I cut them a lot of slack because this was the first tour and I think they were doing a little learning as they went along.

Minor errors:

They should have let us know that we needed our ticket stubs, before we all marched off to the buffet area for lunch. Some people got to the front of the line – only to be sent back for their stubs (luckily we thought to bring ours). The buffet line-up could also have been better organized.

Resort Facilities:

The beach was not very nice – murky water but the pool was great. The washrooms were clean. The resort staff were friendly. There were plenty of loungers and chairs.

Drinks were extra and expensive.

The grounds are attractive. There are iguanas and turtles to view.

I think this would be a great place to go with small children (as long as you supervise them). There were water slides and a rather neat pirate ship (in the children’s pool area.

There is also a shopping area and if you were prepared to bargain with the vendors, you could get some good deals. I got a small woven rug for $13. (The starting price was $35).

The Buffet:

The chicken was somewhat undercooked – we did not eat ours. But I found all other items edible. My friend said her steak was very good. Mine was OK. The desserts were actually tastier than they looked. Except for the chicken we had no complaints.

Overall:

Except for injuring my knee, we had a good (not a great day). I would have liked a nicer beach area but the pool was pleasant.

Who I would recommend this for:

Families with small children

People who just want to relax for a day

Note: It may be worth contacting the resort to see if you can arrange a day there for a cheaper price than the NCL excursion.

My opinion after this brief and limited glimpse of Guatemala - I would love to see more of this country. We had enticing glimpses of heavily forested hills that must surely lead to lovely countryside. The port itself is very industrial but the flickering light farewell to the ship put on by the buses and taxis was a nice touch.

Pieinthesky:

We have booked the Amatique Bay Resort excursion (the beach day) for our Jan 28 trip and I will report back about it on this board. They had some restrictions posted for it but I contacted NCL who checked with the vendor who said that there really was no need for restrictions. I was concerned because of knee problems.

Some great pictures of Grand Turk beaches here:

http://www.reefnews.com/reefnews/oceangeo/grndturk/grndturk.html

Another site with pictures and info:

http://www.tcimall.tc/grandturk/index.htm

I have been to the Turks & Caicos several times. It is actually a group of islands south of the Bahamas. You will probably be docking at Grand Turk or possibly Providenciales (know as Provo).

Grand Turk is the mostly likely port but unfortunately I don't know a lot about it - we always stayed on Provo (the most developed island for tourists).

Grand Turk is the capital but it is VERY quiet and undeveloped. The beaches in the T&C are amongst the best in the Caribbean (although technically the T & C are actually not in the Caribbean - they are a little north). Other than fantastic beaches and great diving and snorkeling and (depending on the time of year) - whale watching - there is not a lot to do. We love the T&C for the fantastic beaches and clear beautiful water. On Grand Turk there is a small museum which has received praise.

Try to find out if you are stopping at Grand Turk or Provo - if it is Provo I can give you a little more info.

The descriptions are posted, but the order form on the website is not up-to-date, Guatemala tours are not on it. We have been trying all week, cleared the cookies, deleted files. Finally gave up and sent a snail mail. We got our docs today, but there was no shore excursion booklet. We are sailing on Feb. 11 out of Miami.

That's odd - I had no problem booking a Guatemala excursion online and received my confirmation via email within 24 hours.

ladybugmc:

You may want to check with NCL about that weight restriction. I did because they had one for the resort beach day - which really made no sense. The rep I talked to got her supervisor to check with the vendor and apparently the ONLY fitness concern is for an OPTIONAL grounds tour that involves some walking on uneven surfaces. I suspect some of these restrictions are actually listed for the wrong tours. For example the weight and fitness restriction makes more sense for the kayak tour than for a beach day.

I don't understand why it costs $59 each to go to this resort. It is only 15 minutes away and they are just giving you a lunch. Also, why is there a 200lb weight limit? I think if you just hire a cab and go there, it would be a lot cheaper.

Bear in mind that the resort is private property and may not allow you access unless you have booked an excursion with a cruiseline. I would check with the resort before just turning up.

If you do find out that they allow others to enter at a cheaper rate - please let us know.

Sorry but I can only help a little bit. I believe there is a car rental place on the dock. Generally car rental prices in St. Martin are quite reasonable. Most roads are in good condition but traffic can be heavy at times especially during the "rush hours" (AM - about 8AM-9:30)(PM - about 3:30PM-5:30PM).

Traffic is especially hectic around Philipsburg when there are a lot of cruiseships in.

One piece of advice - if you rent a car NEVER leave anything valuable in the car (even in a locked trunk). Violent crime is rare in St Martin but car breakins are a problem. When we rented we did not even bother locking the car - we fugured it would clue in any potential thieves that we had left NOTHING of value in the car. We had absolutely no problems.

Sissy f:

$20 pp included return ferry ride to VG and return taxi from VG dock to the Baths

Fantastic video and travelogue - I loved it !

Both ferry services are a short walk from the cruiseship dock (5-10 minutes depending on your walking speed). As you face the shore, turn to your left and you can see the ferry terminals - they are beside each other. There should be someone in the tourist info booth at the dock who can direct you. We went with Smith's Ferry (they had a package that included your return ferry ride and taxi on Virgin Gorda for about $20). One of their reps was standing near the cruiseship dock and we just bought our ticket from him. You can also buy tickets at the terminal. IF you do this be sure to save the portion of your ticket that indicates you are entitled to a free taxi on V.G. - the taxi driver (actually a jitney bus) will need to see it both going to the Baths and returning.

Tef43: Thx so much for useful info.

 Until NCL SKY