kdzkatz

We got off the Pearl last Sunday (April 29, 2018) and Yahira Suazo is the concierge until sometime in June.

We were upgraded from an SF aft penthouse to an H5 one bedroom in the Haven on the Pearl for our 21 Panama Canal cruise we just completed. We bid on all the Haven categories. We maxed out the needle in this category at $800 pp. It was much less than any of our other bids which were all in the fair to strong range. The people that were in the H5 originally were upgraded to the H2 Deluxe Owners Suite. I'm not sure what their bid was but we were happy with our upgrade.

What's wrong with deck 8 ? What ship?

 

 

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NCL Dawn - Bliss Ultra Lounge located Deck 7 aft. It is directly under aft penthouses on Deck 8.

I tried calling guest relations, but they only deal with post cruise complaints. I asked to speak to a live person in reservations, she transferred me, got terminal hold again.

I think it is just a cruise thing and not exclusive to any one cruise line. I doubt anyone could offer you credible information one way or the other in reservations or any department. When I called earlier this week to ask why the website was still showing Guatemala they weren't aware there was an itinerary change until they dug deeper.

I think Cruise Critic is a better source of accurate info than the cruise lines which should not be.

NCL still has not notified my TA of the itinerary change so they can't notify me. If I wasn't on CC and didn't go on to My NCL I would have no idea what is going on.

Thank goodness I'm a research hound and there are so many helpful people on here! :D

I paid $350 for an upcoming trip on the Jade. A smaller ship and therefor a smaller price. Less demand.

Was that the price showing on your My NCL when looking at excursions or was that a price advertised onboard? Currently showing $499 on My NCL for the Pearl which will be there in about 3 weeks.

How do I get a hold of NCL? Permanent hold when I call. I am upset about this cancellation, and it looks like they may cancel Cabo and Acapulco as well? Anyone know about this? This is our first and probably last NCL cruise. I have spent hours trying to reach NCL. Spent over 40 minutes on hold this morning. At 16 minutes a Debby came on, I told her I couldn't book anything for Cabo, Acapulco or Guatamala, and she disappeared, said give me a minute. I hung up at 38 minutes never being anwered . I am really angry right now, as I would have booked a river cruise or something with those 3 weeks travel time.

I went to My NCL on their website where you can view your cruise details. Acapulco and Cabo are still there along with excursion options for each port. When they cancelled Guatemala they also changed the day we will be in both Acapulco and Cabo to one day earlier than originally scheduled. On a positive note we do have more time in port in Cabo. :)

I know this doesn't address the dining portion of your question but it does address the social portion. If you have not done so yet, I suggest attending the M&G on your next cruise no matter what cruise line it is. That is a wonderful place to meet fellow passengers.

I find it interesting that we have not received any information about our bids being accepted or rejected for our April 8th cruise but when I go to my home screen where the bidding link has always been, it is gone.

It does appear our cruise is sold out but there is always the possibility of cancellations. What if I decided I wanted to change or cancel my bid(s)? I would think they would have to give you the option of modifying or cancelling them until they are either accepted or rejected.

I did look at my check in section and it still shows the room we booked.

Hopefully someone on here can enlighten me. :confused::)

Edit: I think I will give them a call and see if they have any information for me. If I find out anything interesting I will share on here.

You’re one of the very few who have positive things to say about Bruno.

I'm not sure why you even made the comment that I am one of the very few who have positive things to say about Bruno? Is that supposed to diminish my opinion? I think it paints you in a light of being very judgmental of others.

How is the weather up in the ivory tower?

Can we please get back on topic of the great time the OP had on their cruise? I asked a simple question earlier in this thread and her answer made others start posting negative comments of one of the crew. Why?

You’re one of the very few who have positive things to say about Bruno.

Maybe because I have realistic expectations? All I know is he was a very good concierge for us and my parents. I can't speak for others experiences.

Opinions of members of the crew are as subjective as food, music, ect.

I checked the NCL website and they are still showing, what is now, the old itinerary. I called customer service to point this out. I really feel like it is becoming false advertising at this point since they know what the current itinerary is and have not changed it.

If I wan't on CC I still would not know about this itinerary change as my TA has not notified me. I feel bad for those that have private excursions booked in Puerto Quetzal, Acapulco and Cabo (Acapulco and Cabo are now a day earlier) that booked through a 3rd party and are not notified. I know that is a shame on their TA but I also feel a big shame on NCL.

This is not a difficult thing to change on their website. The email went out on Thursday (4 days ago) and who knows how long NCL has known about this conflict of scheduling.

I would think that since it is a maintenance issue it would have been known far in advance just like our itinerary. For them to wait until just over 3 weeks away to notify current passengers doesn't seem right.

Had their confusing explanation deemed it an unforeseen maintenance job that cannot be delayed then maybe I could understand. In how it was worded it seems like it was something probably on their calendar for quite some time.

Thoughts?

P.S. The whole itinerary change will not affect my DW or me. We are still going to have more fun than we should be allowed to have on this cruise! :D:cool::D:cool:

I agree! Did not have a good experience at all with him in the Epic last year!!! Please stay off the Pearl!

 

 

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We had Bruno on our last cruise and he took great care of my parents who were in 9002 and we had the connecting OS 9004 thanks to the good 'ol days upsell via phone call. He went above and beyond for them more than once. We did not ask too much from him but he delivered every time. We would be happy to see him on our upcoming cruise. :):)

Since I booked through a 3rd party I have not received notification yet but others in our roll call have posted the reason for the canceling of Guatemala they received in their email from NCL. Here is the explanation being given:

"In order to accommodate bunkering operation and maintenance on the Marine Evacuation system we've had to adjust Norwegian Pearls' planned itinerary."

Changes do happen. Have a great cruise!

We are going to have an amazing time! We are so excited! We booked this in January 2017 so it almost doesn't feel real that we are only 3 weeks away! So much to do before we leave! :eek:

The terms do mention that an extra entree will incur a charge...

 

Charges will apply for additional main course orders. - T&C

Doh! I stand corrected. Thank your pointing that out. I can't believe I missed that. It's the very last sentence in the T&C section so it's not like it was buried in all the verbiage.

Several people on our NCL Pearl April 8th 21 day cruise have received emails that our itinerary has been changed again.

The first change was going to Costa Maya instead of Roatan.

Now we get to miss Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala in exchange for a sea day :(

They have also changed our port days in Acapulco and Cabo to be one day earlier than originally scheduled. It's only 3 weeks before embarkation so I hope those with private excursions aren't left without something to do if those excursions are booked up for our new day in port.

It almost amazes me they don't change the itinerary on their website at the same time they send out the email or even before they send out emails. It is still showing what is now the old itinerary. Is it me or does it comes across they don't really care about accurately informing their customers and potential customers?

We will not let these changes diminish our cruise experience at all. :D:D

Personally, if a port were to be changed or cancelled, I thought Acapulco would have been the port as the US State Department has issued a level 4 warning, the highest level, “Do Not travel” for the state of Guerrero which includes Acapulco.

Do changes like this happen very often this close to embarkation? I know while at sea sometimes ports are missed due to weather or other unforeseen reasons.

I believe the only entree restrictions are in Cagneys and Le Be Bistro. This is the only mention in either the FAQ's or T&CS' for the SDP of any additional charges (not including the clearly mentioned uncharges for Ocean Blue, Sushi, ect):

ARE ANY MENU ITEMS EXCLUDED FROM SPECIALTY DINING PACKAGES?

No, all items listed on the menus are included in the package. Additional entrée charges also apply for dining at Cagney’s Steakhouse and Le Bistro.

There is no mention of limits or being charged for any additional apps, entrees or desserts in any other restaurants.

You sure wouldn't think it would be so difficult to get all the waitstaff on the same page and know the rules of the SDP.

I certainly wouldn't take the comment about this being an odd thread as anything more than an observation. It's a bit different than many threads but I think it's great as you are just so excited for your cruise you want to share it with others. You are giving it your flair and there is nothing wrong with that.

I like to call it the "anticipatory value portion of the cruise". If you are excited in the time before the cruise I think that is getting value out of the cruise before you are even onboard.

Enjoy the anticipation! The dream is almost as fun as the reality that awaits.

We will be bringing the Pearl to you in just a little over 3 weeks. We are going to take our time though taking 21 days to get her from New Orleans to Seattle. Sorry we will be going so slow but we thought we would extend your anticipatory value a bit longer. ;p

Thanks for this, yep, I checked out Karen's video/flickr links and those 'bay' windows sealed it for me. While the balcony is a little smaller, it only needs to accommodate my Mum and I (and two glasses of wine) so I think we're good. Also... my bed will be a little bigger (sofa) I believe.

 

Thanks all... among all the whining on CC, it's help/advice and first hand experience like this that really makes it a hugely valuable forum.

Your bed will be MUCH bigger! You can seat 3 people comfortably on the sofa where the love seat I would say about 1.5 people maybe. The love seat could be considered a large chair IMO. Plus, in your room there are a couple chairs to sit on (not counting the dining chairs) and it isn't at all crowded.

We have had rooms on both deck 9 and deck 10. Deck 9 is wonderful for Alaska because you have an extra large (100 sq ft) balcony where you can put chairs and loungers. It’s the only way to see Alaska. The two center rooms on deck 10 have a little extra space since they follows the contour of the bridge bump out above. Big bay window. But it makes your balcony very small. (Have to climb over each other). I would gladly sail on deck 9 to Alaska again.

Balcony very small???!! Have to climb over each other?? Wow! VERY bad misinformation. I just happened to have measured our balcony when in room 10000 so you be the judge if this sounds "very small":

14 feet 9 inches across

14.5 feet deep at the deepest and 7.5 feet deep at the narrowest.

The narrowest area goes for 5 feet then begins to get wider at a nice pace until you get to where the door is.

Yes deck 9 balconies are larger but the floorpan of 10000 and 10500 are superior in many peoples opinions, myself included. You should be very happy with 10500.

Thanks all and especially Karen for the detailed insights... 10500 booked on Jewel for Alaska!

 

Bucket list trip for my Mum... I reckon this should put a smile on her face!

 

:cool:

Congratulations on getting one of the very coveted bump out forward PH's!

You will have 3 windows to look out if you don't want to stand outside vs 1 of the other forward PH's. There is also a great ledge to set your binoculars, camera or whatever on at the base of the windows. My wife would stand on the window ledge often to look out the windows as they are only about a foot or so off the ground.

I hope you have a great time! :)

If you can get room 10000 or 10500 they are THE BEST forward penthouses. We stayed in 10000 on the Jewel in 2015. It has a bump out so you get more interior living space including a full size sofa. You lose some of the balcony but it is so large to begin with it is well worth the swap.

The wind depends on the weather. We had incredible weather on our 2015 Alaska cruise while in room 10000 and it was so peaceful in the front of the ship even on sea days. It's like a small neighborhood up there as the side walls of the balconies are not as tall or private as the ones on the sides of the ship. We met some great people on this cruise that we are friends with on FB thanks to being out on the balcony and having a chance to chat.

So, short story long, if you can get 10000 or 10500 do so. Otherwise not too big of difference. We had the deck 9 owners suite and my parents had the connecting forward penthouse (9002) on the Jewel in 2016 so we were able to compare both decks. BTW in 2016 the weather wasn't nearly as nice and the balconies did get used much less. The bridge overhang in rooms 10000 and 10500 do provide a bit of additional cover from rain/sun.

That's our experience and hope this info helps. :D

I'm wondering if they still have the old menus for breakfast and lunch in Moderno. Do you recall if they offered Shrimp Cocktail at lunch? If so, it is the old menu. No big deal either way as we enjoyed the old menu and if it's the new menu we get some new items to try. We are just curious. Thanks. :D

Our Concierge was Yahirs Suazo. She was very nice but we really didn't use her services on this cruise.

Thank you. We read that Bruno will be boarding the Pearl but not sure when. We were very happy with how well Bruno treated my parents on the Jewel in 2016 (they were also in room 9002). We did not need him much ourselves but felt he was available for us. We have not met Yahirs before. It seems it will be one of the two for us.

Thank you for your review as well! I am certainly following. :D

Who was your concierge?