KeithJenner

It would be odd for it to affect NCL a week before it happened.

I’m not sure what this “2 for 1” deposit promotion that you refer to is If it is the ability to purchase two cruisenext vouchers for the price of 1 then it is a standard promotion which has been in place consistently for over 10 years now, and would certainly have applied when you bought your vouchers last year.

Yes, they changed things a while ago so MDR reservations can no longer be made online in advance. I’ve not followed closely (there have been a few discussions on the subject) but think that, as mentioned above, you may be able to make bookings for larger groups by phoning. There have been some conflicting reports, so it may be that some people have still been able to make bookings occasionally. These seem to be the exception.

You used to be able to use any OBC for cruisenext certificates until they changed it a few years ago. Now the rules used to be stated online (but I can’t currently find them) and are that you can use refundable OBC for them (you can use that for almost everything) but the only non refundable OBC that can be applied is the credit for the cruise next purchase. As often with NCL the rules can be applied fairly variably, but this does seem to be quite consistent these days.

It was. Happened about a couple of weeks after we walked down (the only time we ever did) and were commenting at the time that someone could easily get killed.

No.

The port for Naples is close to the city. Whilst the city itself is fairly spread out there is a metro stop nearby. We used that to get to the main station, for example.

This is one port that absolutely needs to cap numbers. The current situation results in a poor experience for cruisers and large crowds, especially in Fira, which impact on the non cruisers there. We have only occasionally gone ashore there lately and have decided that we will just view Santorini as a sea day from now on. There seems to be an assumption that Santorini is a must visit destination on Greek Island cruises, but as more reports of the experience filter through I hope that others will join us in thinking that not going there would be a positive, not a negative. Even better would be for the authorities to force the issue by limiting numbers, and 8000 still sounds too high to me.

That is correct.

Unfortunately, there is often a disconnect between what the website says and how it is interpreted onboard.

I’ve not been given a freestyle daily at check in on the last few cruises, but it is available on the app once you are onboard and join the WiFi. Regardless, the location of the restaurant reservations is usually fairly clearly indicated on embarkation afternoon. I’ve never had any trouble locating it.

When they refer to the “stand alone” package I believe they mean just upgrading the package to premium plus rather than getting free at sea plus which also gives the dining/internet/shore excursions. In answer to the OPs question as to why anyone would just upgrade the beverage package alone, we are considering doing just that. 8 day cruise with 4 speciality meals already included, very unlikely to do any shore excursions, the additional cost for free at sea plus over premium plus alone is very borderline. I suspect that we will do it, but there is a temptation to forego those extra two meals and the upgraded internet for the saving.

Your keycard will state P+ whether you took free at sea plus or just upgraded the drinks package, so anyone serving you wouldn’t know which way you did it.

I have seen some reference to Viva Vino but it doesn’t seem to be widely advertised. Whether that means that it is only on some ships, or whether they have been slowly phasing it out is anyone’s guess.

To start with you will most likely have cool and possibly wet weather. If you are lucky then it may be sunny but still cool. The sea can be fairly rough heading south, especially in the Bay of Biscay. By the end of the cruise it is likely to be a bit warmer but you will likely still need to have layers of outside, especially in the evening. Be prepared for most things.

All of the speciality restaurants are included in free at sea. Any up charges are stated on the menus.

There are no restrictions on the dishes you can order, but there may be an upcharge for some of them. Any upcharges will be stated on the menu. Basically you get an appetiser, entree and dessert. The rules regarding sides, and whether you may be able to order an appetiser and a soup, for example, are not applied consistently. Your server will let you know their interpretation of the rules.

This. There should be no problem getting what reservations you want. We can book at 125 days and I always book them at some point during that day, but never first thing. It is very rare to see any time unavailable for any restaurant.

I believe there is an access specifically for people with mobility issues.

To be clear. Restaurant reservations open at some point between 120-130 days out, depending on status or room type (except for shorter cruises). That isn’t that they are open for just 10 days. That is when they open. Once opened they stay open until fully booked.

Well, that is less than 120 days so, as long as they haven’t sold out, you would be able to do that.

Meals aren’t available to be booked once final payment day arrives. The time they can be booked is a set number of days out dependant on your status and room type and is between 120 to 130 days out.

We were on the Viva a few months ago and it is probably now my favourite NCL ship.

Absolutely. I only didn’t mention that as they seemed happy with what they have, but if the reservations are available then they can change.

Sounds like you are happy with your selections, but for future reference you would very likely have been able to get a selection of times for Teppanyaki once onboard. They keep a number of spaces available (the actual proportion is widely speculated on, but not known) for onboard booking. We have often made a few bookings once onboard and have always been able to get the times we want, despite those times baking unavailable for pre booking for some time.