cookmg40

1 minute ago, kwokpot said:

The bed position for two separate beds is the same as the beds in the couch position,or Day position. 

Thank you!

On 4/25/2024 at 2:21 PM, Rogueperson said:

Oooh.

 

Night configuration.

 

 

Day configuration 

 

 

 

Hi!  Great Live!  Thanks for all the information.  I'll be sailing on Virgin for the first time in July.  Is the "Day" configuration the same as it would be for two single beds?  I haven't seen any photos for sleeping with the beds separated.  Thank you!

Marilyn

11 hours ago, Windsailer said:

So I just boarded the Jade. Paid for and had the 72 hour before test. They never asked to see it. Pretty irriated by that. 

That’s frustrating. Did they test you before boarding?  Did they ask for a 24-hour test?  That’s what they say is required by Greece. 

On 5/12/2022 at 9:38 AM, purplecow15 said:

I just used the chat option on NCL site. Now all I can do is shake my head. I asked if I could get antigen test at Walgreens up to 72 hours before. She first sent me link to sail safe page. I told her it was unclear as it says verified 3rd party. I asked her if Walgreens was acceptable. She answered 3rd party means anyone but NCL.  Well that clears things up!🙄

Thanks.  I had a chat with NCL and it gave us all a laugh.  They cannot explain their own rules.  The rep kept telling me to go to the Greece embassy website and I told him that the website says no test is required. 

My sail date is May 29.  Our current plan is to get tested in Athens the day before boarding, which would fulfill the 72 hour and the 24 hour requirement.  If they need a second test, we can take the Eurofins test at the port, which we had to register for.  Please report what your situation was at the port.  Hopefully for the May 15 and May 22 sailings, the information gets a little clearer, as Israel will not be on the itinerary.

Any information from your experience will be greatly appreciated!

Thank you.

4 hours ago, ISLABONITA said:

The 2 store fronts are a family business,  Dakroutis Brothers this is their flyer https://transfer-to-oia.gr/images/flyer_tto.pdf they are on the old port of Fira.  Don't believe the video.. https://transfer-to-oia.gr/

 

Thanks again. That is the company I was looking at. I think we will make the decision to use the ferry or cable car once we are on the pier. We are in port with only one other ship that day, so hoping the line for the cable car is not too long. 

22 hours ago, ISLABONITA said:

I need to convey information about the "speedboat" ferry that is in 2 store fronts when you get to Santorini pier... Don't take them... at 30 Euros they falsely advertise the following on a brochure no less.  I did this on April 23rd. 

Speedboat.. not true a slow ferry that waiting 45 minutes for the boat to fill and then took off from the pier to let the " pirate" ship dock then went back to the pier for 4 more people.  Meanwhile we saw plenty of people go up the cable car while we waited $6Euros. Another 25 min later we arrive at a drop off area.

Then the so called bus transfer from the port of Oia was a big steep climb for over 10 minutes, so better be in good health and condition since this is not mentioned on their brochure.

The bus takes off for about 10 minutes and drops you off and you have to figure things out for yourself since the driver doesn't speak English, luckily I saw an organized ship tour group and followed them to where she was leading them and info as to where to find the iconic blue dome church. 

After that you have 1-3 hours where you meet back to drop off point and take the 20 min drive to Fira ( Thira) and dropped off somewhere and you need to figure out for yourself where to go to find the cable car that will take you back to the pier.

This was the worst arrangement I have ever seen and not worth it.. Don't buy it from the storefronts on the pier or anywhere online advertising this 3 points of transportation.. boat, bus to Oia then bus to Thira. Good luck.

Thank you.  Do you recall which company you used?  I believe there are 2. 
 

Thanks Keith for so many details of your trip!  I am sailing on the Jade on May 29, with a slightly different itinerary.  I believe some protocols will be different and some may change (as they seemingly change daily).

Do you have a list of the Officer's names?  Mainly, the captain, F&B director, Hotel director, Casino host?  If it has been listed before, please direct me to where and I will look for it. 

Thanks again!

Marilyn

On 4/14/2022 at 2:22 AM, KeithJenner said:

Regarding testing in Athens, we are staying at the Electra Athens hotel and their sister hotel (Electra Metropolis) offers covid tests for 10 Euro, so we are doing that.

 

The only issue is that they only do then in the morning and we were considering going to the Acropolis first thing. I was a bit half hearted about that anyway, as I don’t really want to be rushing around, especially on the first day, so we will probably just go and see what the queue is like at the Acropolis later in the day instead.

 

I’ll report back on Saturday on how the testing goes.

Hi Keith,

I’m interested in any tips/comments you may have about the Athens Electra as my group is staying there before and after our cruise in May. Also good to know about the testing at the sister hotel. 
 

thank you.

Marilyn

Thank you for this information. My Jade cruise isn’t until May, 2022 but this is helpful.

I know it was asked, but is the ship sailing at full capacity?

Marilyn

Thank you!

True story

 

Me: I might have figured out what purse I want for Alaska, this woman Sue has it. And it looks really good and I’m going to see if she likes it.

 

Friend who doesn’t frequent message boards of any kind : Sue who?

 

Me: Um, well shes engaged to Doug...

 

Friend : how do you know Doug?

 

Me: I don’t know him, but ...

 

Friend: so you know Sue

 

Me: Not at all. But see Doug has this really great thread going on the CC Message board about the ship I’m going on to Alaska and posted pictures of Sue with this bag that looks really good so...If she likes it.

 

Friend : so you are going to ask this person you don’t know a question for his fiancée who you also don’t know about this purse and you think he will ask her and she’ll tell him and he’ll tell you?

 

Me: Umm maybe.

 

Friend: Why would these people you don’t know want to answer a question from some random person? Why would you bother them on vacation? You know this makes you seem crazy, right?

 

Me: yeah.

YES, this! I am silently reading this amazing review (as I’ve read all the others) but just had to chime in here. My family and friends think I am crazy when I feel like I know the members of the CC community and feel like I’ve been on many vacations with them. As someone else commented, some people just don’t get it!

A huge thank you to Doug and Sue for another masterpiece!

I’ll be in this cabin in May. Based on photos of nearby cabins and going by the “every other” rule, it should be by the balcony. Which is my preference . When are you sailing?

I would say it depends what time of year you are going. I love the size of the aft balconies and they block a lot of wind but on a cold weather cruise, nothing beats having access to the spa (at least for me).

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So each H4 cost you $2000 plus the cost of the two balconies? An average balcony should have cost at least $1700pp, even a guarantee is usually around $1400pp so that would be like $7600 to $8800 for the H4. The H4 prices are now crazy high though, like $10K, in 2015 we paid $6050 for an H4 for four people from Rome (two got promos). I assume you didn't get all four promos, but at least were all able to keep the original two promos. I guess if you got two extra beverage packages.... How did you decide who got the small bedroom?

Each balcony was 2500 for 2 people. So each H4 was 7000 for 4 people. For us, it was more important to get 4 beverage packages so it worked out. We switched bedrooms halfway through cruise. On such a port intensive cruise, we didn't care where we slept. But the benefits of the Haven were great to have for that type of cruise and for our group of 8.

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You make the second person I've heard of that was allowed to do this, I have seen many reports of it being denied. I tried the same in March 2016 and was flatly refused by upsell. I upsold one cabin and had to keep the other which made a mess with some of us officially in the suite and others not. Was the initial contact made by you or them? Did four people (two from each balcony) have to pay the $500 into one H4? Perhaps they were desperate and willing to break their "rule", or they figured they could easily resell your old cabins. Unfortunately even this slim chance will be disappearing with the expansion of the Uprgade Advantage program.

I contacted them. And, yes, all 4 per room paid $500 each to upgrade. They originally wanted $750 per person. We definitely felt it was worth it.

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Are you saying you upsold through the upsell phone number two balconies into one H4, as that is extremely uncommon? Was it two balconies into two H4's, or was it four balconies into two H4's?

It was 4 balconies into 2 H4s. On Epic from Rome in August. It cost us $500 per person. This was done through the Upsell number.

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When upgrading through PCC/sales and paying current retail price it is at NCL's discretion to let you do it. Upsell and Upgrade Advantage seems pretty strictly one cabin for another.

We did not pay current retail price for the H4. It was two weeks before sailing and many H4s were unsold. We negotiated. My sister did the same thing - 2 balconies to an H4, on the same sailing.

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You can't upgrade two reservations into one without incurring a cancellation.

Before this new bidding system, I was able to upgrade from 2 balcony cabins (2 adults in each room) on the Epic in August, 2016, to an H4 for the 4 of us. Since we each had the beverage package already, we were able to keep that for the 4 of us.

We did not incur a cancellation on one of the rooms.

The Gem only has a few southern Caribbean itineraries from San Juan and then comes back to her home port - New York.

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Also still available on the Epic last week.

Thank you John for posting. My family is boarding the Epic next Wednesday and staying in the Haven. Really looking forward to this!

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Try booking your friend in your haven suite and also keep their cabin booking.

 

 

 

I know I've read this discussion before and people will be adamant that it can't be done, but I met some people on the Escape Transatlantic. And they have done something like this for a number of NCL cruises. It can be done. It's just a matter of finding someone at NCL to get it done

I have heard of this being done. I believe there was a review where this was explained. I will look for it.

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Thanks for posting. I have OBC from BOA and just upgraded my room for my 8/31 cruise. I plan to call on Monday to confirm the transfer of this OBC. My purchased OBC and other amenities are showing in my record. I hope I can get this solved before I leave. My reservation number remained the same also.

 

 

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When I checked today, my BOA OBC was moved with my reservation. The deal with my upsell was all my current amenities moved to the new room and I did not get the newly offered amenities nor the Haven amenities. I don't know if that's the reason I didn't have an issue. But I received a new amenity invoice and everything is there. I also called twice and the two agents I spoke to confirmed the correct amenities.

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Thanks for posting. I have OBC from BOA and just upgraded my room for my 8/31 cruise. I plan to call on Monday to confirm the transfer of this OBC. My purchased OBC and other amenities are showing in my record. I hope I can get this solved before I leave. My reservation number remained the same also.

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I vote for Como. My favorite place in all of Italy! Take a boat ride around the lake and explore the cities. Bellagio is amazing!

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Yes, a gratuity added to every bar bill is standard practice in the cruise industry. I've cruised on 5 different cruise lines and all have the same procedure. I've read where cruise lines would increase drink prices in the UK to include the service charge in the price of the drink. So if a $10 drink is priced at $12 without a separate service charge, are you okay to pay that? But not okay to pay $10 plus $1.80 in s/c?

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