kismetique

My family are outaged that we will be separated and that he's in First Class.... While I am secretly ecstatic about it!!!🤗 I can't wait to bend down and kiss him while he's already sitting in First Class as I walk past to economy! I think it will be very amusing! I'm planning to ask to buy an upgrade to premium economy if it's available, but I already have really nice seats reserved in economy, if not.

Nope, not a bit. I don't care one whit what someone else thinks about me. I care about what I think about myself and how my actions affect others. It's about MY principles and morals, not about what they think. There's a difference. I gladly accept my perks that I worked hard to pay for. But when my perks interfere with others enjoyment and experience (pushing them aside on a narrow gang plank to get by and cut the line), that's where I draw the line. I'll either go to the back of the line next time, or, as I plan to do on my up coming cruise, get there early enough so I'm one of the first on the ship, negating that issue all together. It's a personal decision. There's simply no reason to encroach on others as a way to advertise for NCL... "See what you get to do when you buy the Haven?" 1. I don't see it as a perk, it was annoying as hell. 2. Why would others want be as uncomfortable as I looked? Was it really a perk? I had absolutely no problem getting on a tender ahead of others, because I was taken through a priority line that didn't push others aside, although they saw us getting on before them, I wasn't inconveniencing them at all.

Oh, I wasn't offended, just curious why anyone wouldn't enjoy that. I say that, but my son would prefer to go to the buffet of all places! So, yes, I get what you're saying. As we've gotten older, we like to sleep late and have breakfast service. I don't mind the buffet, but I just think it sorta all starts tasting the same after awhile. I really enjoy finding a server in the main dining room that I like and asking for their table each evening. On our last cruise, we were a party of 8 and our preferred server would hold a table of 8 open for us because she knew we tipped so well. When she would see us arrive, she would order our drinks and have them on the way by the time we were seated. That's the way dining used to be and we really miss that aspect of cruising.

Why why why? We close the door between the living area and the bedroom/bathroom area. He cannot see us and as heavy as that door is between the two areas, we would KNOW in a second if he tried to open it. It's the greatest! No early phone call to say he is there and no ringing of the doorbell. Just sudden smells of breakfast and coffee and then he's gone and we get up and saunter into a hot breakfast! It's the absolute pinnacle of being pampered! You really should try it!!! It sure beats throwing my robe on and letting him in and standing there looking oddly at him while he sets the table then serves the breakfast!!!

See, I think this is great! Some of us have gotten past their idiosyncrasies and others, like me, haven't. I absolutely agree with you 100% and wished I were more like you!

While you are absolutely 100% correct, I grew up pretty poor. It was an odd situation, we somehow lived in an upper level neighborhood, but we barely fit in. All my friends I went to school with in my neighborhood were very well off and I was always the kid with the second hand bike, handmade clothes, and always jealous of everyone else. I just don't want others to feel that way - I just had enough of it growing up and I will go out of my way to prevent even the appearance that I have it better than others. We have rental houses all on the same block and I myself live in one of them, although I do not have to. I don't want my tenants to think I'm better than they are - or that they support me living in a better house. It's crazy, but sometimes your childhood can really affect those types of issues your entire life. It's a personal flaw and while you're correct - we paid a lot of money for that cabin and that perk, courtesy of my tenants 🙂 - if I can't enjoy it guilt free - is it really a perk? We all know why NCL parades us past the other guests - and I just don't like it - not even a little bit.

Well - that's a funny story as well. And no - people sitting in their seats already having a drink is hardly the same as families bunched up together wrangling their carry on items on this little gang plank and me having to negotiate around them while I cut the line. Economy people merely walking by in the same space that is used to get to a luxury seat will be me this next trip!!! My husband will be sitting in First Class as I trip by him on my way to Economy! He has blood clots in his legs to the point of having had double pulmonary embolisms, so I gladly give him the airline points for the First Class ticket and since we are retired and spend 24 hours a day together - I'm quite looking forward to few ALONE hours! 🙂

Absolutely! I agree. If you didn't want to be embarrassed, then by all means, decline the opportunity and join the end of the line. We used to cruise a lot, then we purchased a vacation home and stopped cruising and just went there every year for vacation. We sold that house and now we've started cruising again. So - there was a gap of like 10 years where we didn't cruise, so all this was new to me. We had been in suites before, but back then NCL gave perks based on your Tier level and not so much the cabin. I booked the suite ONLY because we needed the living area to gather as a group of 8 - only 3 of us stayed in the suite and the rest had other nearby cabins. Here is how oblivious we were - we stood in the regular passenger check-in with our party. The agent couldn't locate our key cards and asked if we were in the Haven. I said - goodness no - don't think so...those are very expensive cabins! After 10 min, she finally went to the concierge and had him look - sure enough, there were our key cards. We weren't in the Haven obviously since it was an older ship - the Jewel. But they lump them all together I'm guessing - I didn't know! They gathered us up and said - follow her. We obeyed. I had no idea what the hell was going on. Suddenly, we are having to excuse ourselves left and right for passing this string of passengers longer than the ship to get on. 5 Sec at our muster drill station then they wanted to escort us to Cagney's for lunch. I finally caught on and said - Whoa! No. I have 5 others in my party that don't get that perk and I'm not going to exclude them - that much I DID know! However - I also DID know enough to sweeten the pot to my Butler and Concierge to get them included in many of the perks - not Cagney's - as I know very well that was not going to fly and besides - my family prefers to eat at the buffet?!?!? Lord know, why! I dearly missed eating at the special restaurant! Opting out of dining, drink, and airfare packages is a conscious effort. You are literally unchecking a box, or not checking a box. But if you aren't aware of certain perks, you can be lead blindly into a very embarrassing situation as we were. We loved that bathroom and separate living area so much, my husband and I booked it again for our next cruise just for the 2 of us. Knowing now what I didn't know then, we are arriving 2 days before the cruise leaves with our privately purchased plane tickets and declined drink package and will arrive VERY EARLY to the port to embark PRIOR to having to be embarrassed! The bathroom in that 2 bedroom suite is to die for! The Dawn hasn't been upgraded yet, so rather than having this HUMONGOUS shower, we will still have a bathtub, but the bathroom is still glorious! We love having breakfast in our room, so the separate living area allows the butler to set it up while we stay in bed - we just tell him to come on in the cabin and set it up. The noise will wake us and when he's done, we get up and go eat. It's wonderful!

Agree 100%!

While I agree completely... (We are a couple booked in a 2 bedroom suite JUST for the bathroom and separate bedroom from the living area)...I think it's tacky for NCL to parade us past a mile of passengers waiting in the freezing cold to get on the ship. I LOVE the perk of priority embarkation, but maybe they could use an alternative entrance. I don't hide my card, but then I didn't even realize I had a different card until the end of the cruise! 🤣 It had been years since we last sailed. I don't mind singing the praises of the perks, but I'm not one to lord them over on ppl, and I'm not saying you do... Just that I've encountered some that even went so far as to tell me, "you don't look like you can afford anything but an inside, don't lie to me that you're in a suite, so step aside and let me go first!" I kid you not!

Yup.. You're correct. It was the app that was buggy. I logged in online and was allowed to choose which passenger!! Thanks!

There is a difference. This webpage gives the differences. https://www.ncl.com/onboard-packages/internet-packages I was on an NCL cruise in April this year and was able to buy Unlimited Internet for just 1 passenger in our cabin. It was fine for what I needed. Slow at times when you'd expect many ppl were on the service, otherwise, adequate speeds. I suspect your daughter will need the Premium Unlimited Internet package, but that's just a guess. My question is, I'm on another NCL cruise in November and when I went to buy the unlimited internet package, I no longer have the option to choose just 1 passenger. The $329 was added for both of us. My husband doesn't need or want internet... He loves to unhook. However, we have rent houses and must be able to communicate with our tenants in cases of emergencies. I do NOT want to pay $660 for Internet access! Anyone know when and why this changed from being able to choose just 1 passenger?

If you have quite a bit of time in PV and want a unique beach experience, I HIGHLY recommend Quixmito. If you look it up online the directions to get there say to take a bus half way then a Panga the rest of the way. This adds about 45 min travel time to the beach. So, if your party has no accessibility issues, go to the port in the middle of town, and just walk to the pier area. It's very rudimentary but there will be a guy, or maybe several, selling panga's to the area beaches. We paid $200 for all day, meaning the driver waited on the boat just off the beach for us and was there when we were ready to leave. Quxmito is a beach not accessible by vehicle - the only way is to walk or 4 wheeler through the jungle or by panga. We had the beach to ourselves and we got off right at Charly Bar so no walking through town. Omar at Charly Bar is amazing and will take excellent care of you. He even served beers right out in the ocean to our group. The food was AMAZING and fresh - simply the best and it's served to you right on the beach to your lounge chair under an umbrella. We were there in April and the water was cool but not too cold to play in. When it was time to head back, we signaled the panga driver and he brought the boat to the shore, we hopped on, and 45 min back to PV. Taxi back to the port. Perfect private beach day!

So sorry to hear that! I don't understand why more attractions don't pay attention to the cruise schedules and adjust their days of operation to it.

What's the fun of sitting down?😁 Standing shoulder to shoulder with the locals was the best part. I wouldn't eat their toastadas here, I would get 1 of their fresh cocktails here and get tacos at Fenix. I didn't care for the tostada, it was hard to eat. The seafood was fresh and good, but I prefer tacos.

Thank you so much for this info. I keep going back and forth about the time constraints. I would love to see these cities, so I'll contact him and see if he's available and can work with our port schedule. Appreciate it!

Did you do this tour as a private tour with him and how long was this tour? We only have 6 hours there in our upcoming cruise and have been to Ephesus already as well. Thanks!

Get a taxi and go to La Guerrerense Carreta for tacos. It's a street vendor, very famous but you'll stand shoulder to shoulder with the locals to eat. Get a shrimp or octopus cocktail here... Very good! Then go to Coastal Brewery for their artisanal beers. They are very friendly and have a great in door area to sit in the breeze look out at the ocean and drink all kinds of beer. Then taxi to Tacos Fenix. They have fried fish and shrimp tacos with amazing garnish. You order and eat and order and eat and then pay. Crazy! Lots of locals here as well. Then back to the ship. Great day!

Consider the Observitorio 1873 in Mazatlan. You can book your tickets online or get them in the terminal to the right just as you walk inside. They had a very nice van waiting to take us up the hill to the old fort that has been turned into a museum of sorts. They have a bird sanctuary where you can go in and interact with them. They get comfortable with you and land on your head and shoulders. They have a lizard sanctuary, a guava garden and an open air restaurant overlooking all of Mazatlan. The food was amazing and we sat in the shade with a cool breeze and enjoyed lunch. When we were finished (this port was a short stay) the van was waiting to take us back. Our group was least excited about this port excursion, but turns out everyone really enjoyed it.

Recently back from Cabo and PV. In Cabo we walked past most of the vendors on the pier and on into town where we found a group of guys selling boat tours and asked to be taken to The Sand Bar via boat. It was pricey, but they assured us they would return in the afternoon for the return trip. They did so. I had made my reservations online at The Sand Bar and they had a table and chairs on the beach under umbrellas set up for us. We ate and drank and drank and drank more and the beach was right there in front of us. The food and drinks were good. The service was slow was friendly. There was quite a few sellers that you had to shoo away. In PV I hired a guide to take us to Quimixto Beach. I wouldn't hire one again now that I've done it. Take a taxi to the pier in mid town (15 min). All the directions to Quimixto online tell you to take a bus to a town half way and then water taxi on to Quimixto, but it adds 45 min to travel time. Just go to the pier and ask around for a water taxi ALL DAY to Quimixto ($200 for 8 of us). Make sure the tank of gas is full and away you go. 45 min and you're delivered right to the beach, tell them not to take you to the pier, just drop you off at Charly Bar. Omar runs Charly Bar and will take excellent care of you, even taking beers to you out in the surf. The food was amazing (delivered right to your lounger) and our chairs and umbrellas were RIGHT ON the beach. Absolutely no sellers to bother you and we had the beach to ourselves all day. It's really a nice kept secret. Our water taxi waited on us right there off the beach until we were ready to go back. We waved him back in, boarded and away we went. The only warning would be, the pier in mid town PV. You need to be able to get on and off the pangas in rough water as the pier isn't anything more than a very very steep concrete slab. Lots of small boys hang around to help you, for the tips. Pretty sure it's why you're advised to take the bus half way, but really there is no need. And saves time to take a water taxi or panga straight there. If you go, this will be your very favorite beach day!!! Have fun!

Agreed! We've had our fair share of inside cabins and probably why I found this so embarrassing. If we hadn't been sailing as a group and needed the living area to gather in, I certainly wouldn't have booked that suite and likely we would have been in inside cabins as well. Why pay that much more for somewhere to basically sleep? I'm sure there are ppl who get a kick out of feeling superior, but coming from humble beginnings, this was nothing more than a convenience to us, not a status thing. NCL should offer an up charge for the connecting room to get the perks, I would have paid it in a heartbeat, only so we all could have enjoyed Cagney's for breakfast and lunch, and I wouldn't have had to bribe the conceige! 🤣🤣

I won't do it again. If I don't get to the port early enough to get on without having to pass everyone in line, I'll decline being paraded through and stand in line with everyone else. It was AWFUL!!!

Yes, you're correct. It worked out ok, I slipped the Butler and Concierge money with a note on the front end and we all got priority tender, all got priority seating at shows and I could have had the meal served by the Butler to us all in our cabin, but our Butler was not very good, so we passed. When I ordered room service , I was only brought what the Butler decided was enough for just our cabin. My husband is a huge breakfast eater, but not other meals so I would order him 2 omelets, but he would only get 1. Needless to say the Butler didn't get much in his second envelope!!!😁

I guess, but when I booked the cabins I had no idea about Haven. They weren't in the Haven proper, because there really is not a Haven on the Jewel It was on deck 11 and was a 2 bedroom family suite with balcony and the connecting room was a mini suite, so no perks.

Oh, I know what you mean! We didn't book the Haven and after not cruising for a decade, I didn't know anything about it! We booked a 2 bedroom suite with connecting room for our son and his wife. I paid for both rooms, but found out his room didn't qualify for perks because of the category, only our cabin got Haven perks??? I wasn't happy. I couldn't go to Cagney's because I wasn't going to tell 3 ppl in my party of 7, you can't go with us! I guess NCL counts on this and it's a way to cut down on ppl in Cagney's. I had no idea my keycard told on me, or I'd have been like you and would have turned it upside down. We arrived at the port late because of the flight and were paraded past 100s of ppl with me apologizing profusely the whole way. It was a lifesaver due to our age, but so very very embarrassing. You can't tell me that there isn't a separate entrance they could take us to for this perk, rather than shoving this down everyone else's throat. Simply disgusting. While getting off we had 2 of the people you described trying to push past everyone trying to get off. I told her to wait in line like everyone else. I asked her where is your concierge.. She pushed past me exclaiming "ppl like me caused her to have a bad cruise". My daughter held up our pink,/purple room card and she just huffed away. Pretentious ppl just irk me so much. My conceige didn't say anything to us about priority disembarkation, but I didn't care, we can stand in line like everyone else. We had a great time reminiscing about the cruise while inching towards the pier. We're sailing again in November and have booked the same suite on the Dawn, but we are sailing alone this time. I love that room! A separate bedroom from the living area and a HUGE bathroom. I hate that the 2nd bedroom will go unused, but I simply love that cabin!! It truly feels like a hotel room instead of a tiny cabin. I looked at the newer ships and I can't get this cabin (that's located out of the Haven) for a good price and it's the Haven or tiny cabins on the newer ships. May be time to look for another go to cruise line. Disappointing after having so many perks from our years of cruising with them. Thanks for your honest review!