mking8288

Call NCL or your T/A and ask directly, without sharing your details - it's not easy for us to make uninformed guessed.

Hmmm, even with this revised itinerary - let me take a wild guess, NCL has no stated intentions and isn't refunding port taxes/charges/fees for skipping DR and BVI and/or issuing OBC as passengers are being affected by these "unforeseen circumstances" #cough #cough

Welcome back. Summary is well written, short & concise and on points. Thank you for sharing as I'm sure there are many CC'ers here looking for the newest update, as the Joy is the one and only NCL ship sailing from NY this summer. Later in August/early September, the Getaway & Breakway will join up and cruise out of NY ... but, that MCT mess. Since you're traveling with a toddler and not just in the "SP" family suite, that's supposed to entitle you to priority embarkation or at least pier check-in, none was given. I know we booked 2 family suite just for the extra space & comfort, not expecting to be "pampered" but we've concluded, not paying for the extra suite space as it's really not worth it. Services at The Local was slow, very slow and pretty of crew members running around like headless chicken lost on a farm, just couldn't figure out what they're busy with ... and I've spoken to one of the asst. manager on duty, twice on the same day. Part of the new "normal", I'm sure someone will say.

@lx200gps - Unless things changed recently as in this past Sunday, security lines (that's "checkpoint #2) at MCT does not open until 9:30 am at the earliest and by then, there are hundreds standing there already, waiting to get thru ("checkpoint #1" being the initial passport, eDocs & quick visual about having proof of vaccination & testing results - in one massive long line ... and, as numerous others reconfirmed again, nobody gets any kind of priority or preference except for Haven & accessible passengers, and, possibly families traveling with very young children in strollers) Both of these are major bottlenecks, extended wait & very little (if any) social distancing and most don't wear even a cloth mask - and, personally, ventilations or HVAC system inside the huge terminal building complex isn't the best to draw in fresh air. Once you get past #1 and #2, checkpoint #3 is the Bermuda documentation check and that's equally bad & under-staffed - but then, the worst is almost over as they put a colored stickers on your passport(s). The unfortunate ones missing Bermuda TA get directed to another line to deal with their incomplete documentations or whatever. Lastly, you hope & just want the shortest line to get check-in and the room or guest key cards handed over to you ... and, there is also the quick health questionnaire by the pier agent. Haven, Platinum (they obviously are clueless about Sapphire or Diamond tiers) and Casino At Seas - if asked & the agent is well informed, direct you to the appropriate line(s) for, hopefully, a shorter wait & quicker processing (that's your checkpoint #4) When it's your turn to embark, be patient with the security staff as they frequently need to adjust their facial recognition app to scan & tell you to proceed ahead to the gangway. Between #4 and security, you are easily looking at anywhere from 30 or 45 minutes, to as much as 2 hours or more. By then, early boarding that started as early as 10:45 or 11 am should be finished and group/zone numbers with the lower #'s are on their way up the "Z" gangway(s) already. It might not make sense to exit & leave the terminal, just to step outside for fresh air - or, is it to not deal with the thousands gathered inside ?? You might be better off just wait and personally, I strongly recommend, put on & wear a quality KN95 or KF94 masks & do your best to maintain social distancing away from "strangers" in your area. Good luck, happy & healthy cruising. Our local CC friends are also boarding the Joy this Sunday too - Bon Voyage. .. If there is going to be a Meet & Greet on the sailing, it might be worthwhile if several of you ask to speak to Guest Services and/or the GM about the mess again, inside MCT. It is utterly unacceptable and reiterate to them that we on CC about very annoyed about their incompetence and corporate is looking foolish & negatively here in NYC - knowing, of course, they will kick the tin cans & past the bucks again.

When we recently scheduled CVS for Antigen Rapid drive-thu testing (NYC) at our nearby store's mobile/pharmacy counter window, we realized Quest Lab is their testing partner that processed & generated the digital report for us. It has been accepted for others using the negative results for air travel & cruises. They also billed our health insurance plan, closed to $100 per person per test. Although at no out-of-pocket costs, copays or deductibles to us. We only used them once as our backup in getting timely results within 24 to 36 hours. It was essentially a proctored test and you swab, sealed & drop the labeled plastic bag into the collection box.

Hi, Bonnie ... thanks and really not a happy update about the Joy's ongoing embarkation disaster outcome in NYC, despite the pledge to address & improve it for the better, that was nearly a month ago when I had the discussion with the onboard Guest Services manager as he was a delegated by the General Manager who just took over. We had a fairly good experience back in March with the Getaway and it was quick & with minimal fuzz - feeling really bad about all this for folks sailing soon, the summer sailings are going to be worst as occupancy level are destined to be higher. Just leave me speechless on what else we can say ... those onboard, perhaps, as a CC group, ask for a meeting with Guest Services & if necessary, go straight to the GM and raise hell as they really need to kick it up to corporate leadership in Miami. Anyway, I see that you folks are sailing out of Norfolk now & ready to head out to sea for Bermuda, quick look at Windy App, "Alex" has quickly moved away & further east from Bermuda, sea state & waves should begin to ease up further & tomorrow should be a great sea day for everyone onboard. Enjoy Bermuda & hi to Stacey from CT - if you run into her - for Sharon The P and me. Enjoy dinner & don't miss both big production shows in the Joy Theater. Regards - Henry / mking8288

Here she is, riding out the storm, was heading southeast away from Bermuda ... a little white caps, looked like 15' to maybe 20' sea states/wave height. Hold on to railings while going about. Should improve later today & get back into Bermuda tomorrow ... and stories to tell.

Now, you got our attention ... going to follow along. Yeah, we're offered a 50% off deal to bid up to Haven from our SP suite last month too, most of them smaller than the 2 bedrooms we booked. Hey, I recognize that TA luggage tag & got one on my backpack 🎒 too

The Pearl should be okay tomorrow after leaving Dockyard & sail south full speed towards Bahamas & Caribbean waters, far from the storm ... Monday morning seemed to be the worst for Islanders on Bermuda. By Tuesday, things should begin to calm down. The Joy should be fine dodging into Norfolk tomorrow as scheduled and maybe go east toward Bermuda at a slower pace until Tuesday, based on charts on Windy App.

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Hmmm. GG, are you sure about that ... WFS instead of WFM 😁 Me think, only if they aren't going terminate "unlimited" WiFi already upcharged and "paid" for and what about that DSC of $16 p/p for the typical stateroom, since those isolated aren't likely staying in Haven or suite, etc. - quite possibly, from what I'm reading, relocated to lower deck on the ship with blocks of cabins set aside. Sadly, with the latest BA.1 and BA.2 subvariants circulating (which, apparently subsiding in N.E. United States ... home testing not being tracked or reported, however) - it's nearly a given that it is evading detection, despite its highly contagious nature and with some remaining asymptomatic, not necessary confirmed with a positive test result - this invisible virus is getting onboard, undetected; circulating somehow onboard the ship, and traveling and hitching more rides as folks disembark and carry on with their travel journey. A little more about BA.4 and BA.5 - which CDC has recently designated and closely monitoring, even more contagious & easily transmitted ... early clinical & lab data suggesting that acute hospital stays aren't worsening (and, that's the good part) but isolation alone or testing alone aren't going to stop it from "migrating" to the next ship. Keep in mind that crew members and rotating production casts appeared to be just as vulnerable - and, I have (some) faith that the cruiseline as trying as hard as they can be, to detect/isolate/immunize/quarantine their crew to contain the viruses. Hence, I would mask up & bring extras, get extra boosted as practical & feasible, and avoid huge gatherings where social distancing isn't practical or required - and, that takes the fun, joy & relaxation out of cruising. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/new-omicron-subvariants-are-spreading-should-we-worry#Where-are-the-variants? Each of us are going to need to update our personal risk-analysis when it comes to cruising, raise our insurance protection and have serious contingency planning in place.

NCL's ferry is free, runs on the days when one of NCLH ship in the fleet is at Dockyard, directly across from Heritage's Wharf (and, yes - a longer walk if it's at King's Wharf) Ferry is free and available to NCL passengers - you need to show your Guest Key Card to board, schedule is published, subject to change without advance notice, based on "your" ship's schedule in Bermuda - conditions permitting. If sea state and wave height are above safety requirements, the ferry will be run or be operating ... as it can be a very choppy 45 minutes ride to/from SG in wide open but shallow waters. Just to be clear, do NOT confuse the NCL ferry on a limited schedule, exclusively for NCL passengers when the ship is docked there (Pearl, Joy, etc.) seasonally. The public ferry service to Hamilton is not free and operated by Bermuda on a published, regular summer/winter schedule. P.S. Yes - there is priority boarding for accessible ship passengers for "assisted" safe boarding the NCL "tender" ferry services.

Fast Ferry schedule is here - http://www.marineandports.bm/ It's a 20 to 30 minutes ride, depending on which ferry is being operated. Ferry terminal is right on Front Street near Queen Street in downtown, the commercial & shopping corridor (Google for a street view) - everything of interest there to a first time visitor is within 3 to 5 blocks ... a little up the hill, walking shoes recommended & bring a bottle of water & sunshade. Look here, pix for a virtual ferry ride from Dockyard into Hamilton - post #222 - https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2850872-semi-live-norwegian-joy-to-bermuda-norfolk-va-may-8-2022/?do=findComment&comment=63201104

We had a Meet & Greet 4 or 5 years ago, several CC'ers contributed theirs as door prizes - almost couldn't get rid of them. Someone took them and said he's going to have a bubble bath in the tub as they're staying in a mini-suite, LOL. Remember this ... trade or barter for 2 "cartons" of water anytime then, if the steward wasn't able to exchange it for something else. Old days 👴

@Sailing12Away Platinum received or were given $25 OBC only, attributed to not being offered the abbreviated 1 hour Behind The Scene tour only. Sapphire/Diamond tiers were issued/given $50 OBC BTS tour, Dine w Officers & Wine ... all 3 not offered currently. On both the Getaway & Joy recently, letters were distributed to the staterooms and NR OBC given only to folks that stopped by or visited the CruiseNext Desk by asking or presenting the letter in person ... not automatically given, for your convenience. In all fairness, you weren't cheated. As for now he tried to mislead, that's a different matter.

One solution that we came up with - reuse those "Just Water" refillable cartons (16.9 oz) after rinsing them clean ourselves, fill it up in the buffet station with a clean cup each time, and take them along when going ashore. Nowadays, we get 4 of them waiting on embarkation day. We then return to the ship and empty them out before reaching security - put them thru x-ray or have ship security hand/visually inspect them - problem solved. One less item to fit/pack in the carry-on/checked luggage embarking on a cruise ... environmental friendly and NCL getd to keep them when we disembark, recycle or whatever. With CAS drink cards, our friends usually can get premium sparking water in a bottle from the casino beverage folks ... tip them as always, of course.

Thanks for sharing the thoughts, always learn something new & different each time on CC, where I'm hanging out these days. Small pool area on a crowded ship - BA, GA & Escape's adult pool(s) are big compared to the the Joy, now - hush and don't tell the herd about Spice H2O (only on some) in the back of the ship. NCL's infamous & pricey satellite WiFi, foolish to get tricked into streaming unlimited WiFi - IMHO. Tendering, especially from/returning to a mega ship, regardless of what cruiselines, is always going to be a pain, no "ifs" and "buts" - gangway passage is "one at a time, often holding on to the rails" for safety reasons, even if sea state is calm and not windy - worst when it's near/at (sooner or later, back to above capacity ... holidays & school breaks ??) Crew/employee staffing and retention isn't just a problem for maritime and aviation, also true for good told office and frontline service personnel - expect the unexpected. Going to bookmark & read this, thanks again.

Perhaps, that's how likely some were exposed and positivity #'s on an upward curve - the quasi-official numbers from this Memorial holiday weekend aren't in yet, masked by many self-testing at home, apparently, under the public health/CDC radars. We surely did not catch anything in NYC, our hometown - both the PCR and Antigen Rapid test results done 2 days prior to our Bermuda cruise were negative and up until day 5 to day 6, after we arrived into the islands (the Joy skipped Norfolk, VA) - everyone in our group was fine ... (or, at least, asymptomatic for 4 out of 6 that eventually tested from negative to positive, like domino effects). 6 of us staying in 2 "suites" - all but 2 in the 2nd. suite were exposed eventually, probably from being close contacts. Well, all 4 of us recovered fine and at the end of 2 weeks of self-isolation, our Antigen Rapid tests are now all negative ... Haha, we can bravely with boosted immunity - book a new cruise, last minute for this weekend and sail again - and get a new Bermuda TA (ignore the questions - since the test results will be negative) and complete online check-in. Seriously, just kidding on that last sentence - point being that, there are all sorts of loopholes in the current screening process. Going to take a brief pause, road trip to Ontario, Canada later next month - ArriveCan is much easier to deal with.

@PATRLR We're there in 2017 & 2018 - yes, those good old pre-Covid days, it was permitted. Times are changing 🙄🙄🙄 It went up to $45 on our "Getaway" at GSC and not covered by the $50 shorex credits

Spotted something on NCL for your short list ... good, tomorrow is June 1st. - see if there are any good promo or insider's deal. As for hotel, assume that you want something in the Times Square area - a short hop over to Pier 88, a # of Joy cruisers on our Roll Call stay near Hell's Kitchen and just roll down W. 48th Street, don't have details of the property(s) & whether they recommend it or not (sorry). Have you check out TripAdvisor's with recent reviews & ratings, that's always good to see what's going on ... Getaway is doing 10 days in September out of NY (added to the system earlier this month) - Bermuda & Nassau, GSC and PC, plus a stop at Norfolk ... gut feeling, they need to drop prices to make it attractive, lots of ships competing for the same demographics.

Hello to both (and, all others) We are nearly normal, stray cough every now & then, far less frequent than last week (gosh, can't believe it's been 15 days since ...) No longer feeling tired by mid/late afternoon as I usually go all day & transition to being a night owl, maybe an occasional power (cat) nap - same for DW. The coughing began to fade and feeling great over the past few days - of course, the nurse nephew forwarded an article about long Covid for me to read ... LOL. Roche test last Wed still had a faint line for both, DW had a routine visit with her PCP on Friday & she said, stop testing as we are no longer considered contagious to others after 5 to 7, 10 days max ... Anyway, both our test results this morning are negative, not even a faint line ... what a way to use up some of the stockpiled, soon to expire home testing kits 😁 (gotta to keep our sense of humor in all these) Our boosted immunity "should" now give us a little extra shield for the next 2 to 3 months, according to "expert" medical-scientific researches - plan is time ourselves to get the "next" booster by late summer/fall. Meanwhile, we are planning an early summer road trip up to Ontario, Canada & stopping at Niagara Falls on the way back ... Will be dealing with the ArriveCAN mobile app next month, far easier & simple compare to Bermuda's TA. Going to deal with our Fall cruise after we get back - BTW, we've decided to NOT book the Joy "SP" Family Inside Suites again, going to miss all that extra room or space but - to us - not worth paying extras for. We'll still get priority embark/disembark, dining reservation with our Latitudes tier status. It seemed that NCL has basically stripped almost all the remaining "perks" for the suites. We are better off in a balcony or club/mini and oceanview/inside nearby - and 2 bathrooms.

@kjquilts - Thanks for sharing and please get some rest, lots of fluids and vitamins C ... get in touch with your PCP using tele-med if necessary ... For some (most) of us, symptoms remained mild with our baseline vax/booster protection and things ease up by day 3, 4 or 5 - gradually, slowly and feeling not as tired. Funny thing is that, we ran thru several boxes of home testing kits quickly over the past 2 weeks ... thankfully, USPS just delivered 8 more free tests that we ordered. We finally left our house for a Sunday brunch, after sheltering in place for nearly 2 weeks. Maybe, cruiselines will be asking us to all sign 😷 a waiver/disclaimer that we cruise with known risks as implied consent, holding them harmless.

Pre-Covid, clamshell & other similar rentals were all covered by shorex credit ($50 per stateroom associated with guest #1) #cough #cough - not anymore. Clam shells (vented one are best for air flow) are no longer offset by the $50 shorex credit, signed for & charged to onboard account this April on the Getaway (thankfully, we had a bit of NR OBC to use against) Pick a location & the shore crew will set it up for you, same for the umbrella (although you will need to move & adjust to stay in the shade with the sun overhead) Clamshell fits 2 with better UV/direct shades and along with high SPF+ suntan lotion are a must ... bring large bottle of chilled/iced water for hydration.

We had CNC that we purchased in Jan 2019 & was set to expire Jan 2023 ... they're extended, I recall, this January (2022) automatically - didn't have to do anything, call or request - by 2 years, reset the new expiration/sail by date to Jan 2025 instead - right around the winter Covid-19 surge and cancellations, etc. NCL didn't email or otherwise notify us either but we saw that once signed into MyNCL account. It might've set in motion a fresh round of email & calling/voice messaging from just about PCC to get to boost their sales target. Not a glitch and it is for real ... but, we've already applied or used it on a new booking, it's "gone" - which the CruiseNext team onboard were cheerfully eager & waiting to help us buy more ... citing long lines on the prior sailing 🤣 🤣 🤣 The line was, in fact, much longer & moved a lot slower at Guest Services. Enjoy the 2 year extension given.

What the CEO of NCLH was quoted as saying recently in terms of the predictive occupancy level - https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/27460-norwegian-won-t-sacrifice-cruise-pricing-for-full-ships-65-expected-in-q2.html Would be reasonable and appropriate for the detailed numbers to be held competitively for trade and operational reasons, including pricing and marketing, IMHO. There is also the challenges from recruiting the workforce that is trained, competent and compliant with labor & health/safety requirements and certifications as required. It's not just the POA is running into head wind in fully staffing the US-flagged ship and restricting in what's available & offered ... Carnival & Royal Caribbean running into similar challenges. Our 2 most recent cruises (Getaway & Joy) were below 50% - cruises that sailed during holidays and school breaks were much higher.