carribeanpirate18

Read online that our cruise had quite a few people get COVID.  One large group reported that 18 people were sick and in our group of 8, 2 people are sick, including my wife.  She mostly feels like she has a head cold, but did test positive.  Strangely enough, I am fine and the other person's husband is fine.  I think its something that you have to deal with in today's world.

3 hours ago, Sand and Seas said:

Thanks for sharing with us!   I'm jealous you can drive to Port Canaveral.  We were on the cruise prior to yours and really enjoyed staying at Cocoa Beach for two days prior and eating at Gators at the Port.  Such a great area to cruise from!

 

We loved Million Dollar Quartet and were lucky enough to find out about Broadway Unplugged.  It was only once during our cruise and performed by the very talented MDQ cast.   For anyone sailing on Getaway in the near future, watch for this special performance in the Illusionarium Theatre.

Gators is a great place to watch the ships sail away!  

13 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

@carribeanpirate18

great review and perspective.  Thank you for writing it.

I haven’t been on the Getaway but the Bliss and the Encore have the same set up with lots going on in the atrium and then the Local one deck up.  I don’t love this design either although I do really love both ships for other reasons.

 

Do you think you will cruise NCL again?

I would consider NCL again, there was plenty that we liked.  I thought the dining selections were good and the food was terrific

1 hour ago, graphicguy said:

Thanks for your review.  Enjoyed it.

 

I think for many years now NCL (as well as many other cruise lines) have been treating the main pools more like wading pools vs legitimate "swimming" pools.  Carnival may be the exception.  But, even with them, their bigger pools are almost always way too crowded, too.

 

Personally, given my son is now grown, I don't even go to the main pools any more.  I will go to Spice H20 (adult area with some water features) or get a thermal Spa pass.  Some like getting VIBE passes.  I tried the VIBE once.  It had hot tubs and comfy and plentiful seating.   But personally didn't find much value there since NCL hiked the price.  I think I got a pass for $79/pp/week.  I think it's now $200+/pp/week.  Some love it.  For me, $200/pp/week for a Thermal Spa pass offers a lot more......hot tub, jetted swimming pool, saunas, steam room, salt room, showers, locker rooms, etc.

 

I prefer the Breakaway Plus ships, but Breakaway/Getaway ships are fun in their own right as you can find some really good deals on them.

We debated the Vibe passes and decided against it due to the cost.  In hindsight, we would have used them 2-3 days and would have felt better about purchasing.  Spice h2O was passable.

1 hour ago, DCGuy64 said:

Thanks for the review! Sounds like you had a good time. We aren't pool people (at least not the outside kind; the Thermal Spa is another matter, LOL.) Moderno's is one of my favorite things about NCL, but then again, I'm a huge fan of Brazilian steakhouses, and I've found Moderno to be as good as the ones I've visited on land. Sorry others didn't like it, I found the meat to be superb. My wife loves the salad bar since she doesn't eat meat. I really appreciated your review, @carribeanpirate18. Thank you for taking the time to write it.

We love Brazilian steakhouses as well, but the selection was minimal.  There were 3 steak selections, lamb and chicken.  I expected more but then realized its probably difficult to have 5-7 steak selections on a ship.  Good, but didnt meet my expectations

1 hour ago, Suntanz said:

I was on the Getaway the week before you. I agree with a lot of what you said. I did enjoy Moderno though. The wait staff was great and as you said the salad bar was excellent. I also enjoyed the meats. 

The pool situation is poor. I was shocked with it, but I don't use the pool much anyway. Its a lot of people just sitting in the pool holding a drink.

The pool deck has minimal chairs in the sun, you need to go up a deck and there is ample chairs to sit in the sun.

 

I actually enjoyed the buffet. Like you said, its a buffet. 

I thought the comedians were great on our sailing, plus the magician/comedian.

 

I had sailed the Joy one year prior & you can see food/service is not as good, but I still enjoyed the Getaway. I was on vacation, so not much bothered me.

I did not mention the comedians, but they were great and so was Howl at the Moon dueling pianos in Headliners

2 minutes ago, IrieBajan54 said:

Yeah, Moderno is awful except for the salad bar. The meats are tough and they got rid of lamb chops.

actually, our sailing had lamb.  It was the first time I tried it.

13 minutes ago, FLAHAM said:

I have found the buffet a mixed bag.  The pizza is poor.  The burgers are marginally adequate.  On the other hand, the rotisserie snout-to-tail carved pork (special one night) was excellent.  The Indian dishes were pretty good.  Not a fan of the meats in Moderno, but the salad bar was the best on board.

 

A group of 10 will have problems finding seats in the Atrium.  However, one or two can almost always squeeze in.

Agree on the group, but it was hard to find somewhere for 2 to sit most nights.  The layout is not conducive to that much activity in a small space, there is too much going on.  On the level above the atrium, there is the Irish Pub and the entrance to the casino.  Most nights it was shoulder to shoulder just walking through. Its a poor design IMO.  I am assuming its the layout of the Breakaway class and not fleet wide issue

Just completed the May 26-Jun 3 sailing on Norwegian Getaway and overall, I thought NCL was very good.  Some good and bad below

Good 

• Food was excellent.  Many people complained about the buffet, but its a buffet.  If you are expecting anything more than diner grade food, you have the wrong expectations.  Complementary dining was good too.  We did 2 nights in the Tropicana room and 2 nights at the Noodle Bar.  Both were good, but Tropicana room made you feel like you were in a 1920's dining club.  We did Cagney's, Moderno and Teppanaki.  I'd pass on Moderno again, wasnt what I expected.  
• Shows were good.  Burn the Floor isnt my thing, but it was good.  Million Dollar Quartet was fantastic.  The pop up shows were good too, especially on the last sea day where it rained most of the day.
• Cabins were extremely quiet.  I couldnt hear noise from other rooms or the hallway.  And the cruise had plenty of kids running around
• Embarktion was quick.  We checked in around 10 and were on the ship by 11.  It felt like we had a full day of vacation on the ship.  Debarktion was a bit chaotic, but most seem to be that way.  No one cares about customer service when people are leaving.  
• Not NCL related, but since we live near Port Canaveral, we got to drive to the ship, which was a bonus.  This is our first cruise since moving to FL from NJ and was a great perk.  We did self debark and were off the ship and home by 10am.

Not so Good

• The sail away party wasnt much of a party.  The cruise director didnt even bother to show up.  It lasted about 20 min and wrapped up.
• There is one (1!) pool for 4000 people and there was room for less than 30 sun loungers that could actually be in the sun.  Also, for some reason, NCL decided to put 2 smoking areas directly adjacent to the pool, one on each side.  Good luck finding somewhere near the pool where you didnt smell smoke.  we decided to sit in the H2O area where there is a small plunge pool but only 30 people or so could be in there at one time.  Most people found a place in the pool and never left.  With two sea days and one port arrival at 1:30 in the afternoon, it was very disappointing not to be able to find a place to cool off after sitting in the sun.  

Overall, it was a fun trip, because our group of 10 made it fun.  I will sail on NCL again, but not on the Breakaway class.  The pool situation turned me off and most of the time the ship felt crowded.  Most of the activities were confined to the small atrium area with a few hundred or a thousand people trying to cram into a small area to watch a show, get a drink at the Atrium bar or Starbucks.  With the guest services and shore excursion areas adjacent to the atrium, it was always packed with people.  The entertainment staff were dull at best.  The food was excellent and the best when compared to other lines I've sailed.  

New to NCL, we ahve specialty dinner reservatons made, do we need to make reservations for non Specialty dining nights?  Are walk ups available?

Hi everyone, new to Norwegian and first time cruising as a Florida resident.  We will be driving to PC and planning to arrive around 9am or earlier.  I believe check in will begin around that time, what time does boarding begin?  Also, how does the process work...will we board based on when we arrived at the port or some other way?  Thanks everyone, we are excited!

10 minutes ago, BostonGal35 said:

if you are willing to get to port early (930-10) you can get on the ship fairly quickly and save yourself the money.  youll need to check in right on day 20 in order to secure this time.  the early slots go fast.

Thanks good to know.  We live about 40 min from the port and plan on being there by 9am. 

First time on NCL and Getaway in May.  Considering the priority boarding, just so we can be on the ship as early as possible.  Also, I know of one tender port and this will give us priority tender access.  Does anyone know if Dominica is a tender port?  Also, anyone purchased this?  Interested in opinions

Just off Liberty on Sunday (8-9 to 8/16 sailing). Writing my review now. In summary, the ship is great and the itinerary is fantastic. The southern caribbean is our favorite and we are looking to do Aruba and Curacao next.

I can confirm this. Sailed on Liberty last week and was charged $.17 for every soda in PR and St. Thomas, no charge after that.

Just off Liberty on Sunday with the Southern Caribbean itinerary. the next stops are St. Kitts and St. Maarten, so I wonder if they will still be planned or moved. We were wondering what the seas are like with the storm approaching.

Is there any word how long this will last? We are booked in August, so I hope everything is fixed by then.

If its a concern, do the math. For two people, the package is roughly $100/day. If you think your son in law will spend more than $100/day in drinks, then by the package for both. If not, pay as you go.

I think the threadstarter was asking for "tips as in advice" about YTD, not whether you still had to pay tips

Thanks for clearing that up....yes, I was looking for advise, but maybe that is a good question as well. Do you tip nightly with MTD? I'm assuming you do not have the same waiter every night.

Just booked S. Caribbean for August and chose MTD for the first time. Any tips on MTD? What are the busiest times to be seated. We normally choose the 6pm seating, but figured we may want the few extra minutes and eat around 6:30 or so.

For something that costs CCL nothing, a price increase is nothing more than an additional price grab.

 

All while reports continue to come in that they exceed the amount sold, as well as merging these passengers with those that actually earned it.

Simple supply and demand. If the market will pay it, the company will charge it. However, loyalty should still mean something.

I've never cruised Norwegian before, but heard good things about it. Looking to cruise on the Getaway in the fall, either Sep or Oct. I know nothing about this ship or the whole Freestyle Dining thing. It looks like many of the restaurants are pay restaurants. How can I tell which charge and which are included? It seems confusing.

I was looking at balcony rooms as well and wondered if the spa balcony room was really worth the additional cost.

Chef Mickey's in Walt Disney World. They do it all the time while putting on a show. I can sing the song that goes along with it too.......

Boy, after reading all the snippy culture war back-and-forths on this thread, the tales of line cutters and elevator brutes, then tales of lounge-chair hogs, has me wondering why I ever signed up for my first cruise! What awful people! Will I regret spending 11 nights with them? I'm terribly depressed because it's too late to cancel. :)

 

Thank you to those who gave useful tips. They were very helpful.

Believe me, I felt the same way after reading this board before my cruise in 2009. Are there "chair hogs"? Yes, there are. Do you need to get to the pool at a reasonable hour (10am) on an at sea day? Yes, you do if you want to sit next to the pool. Are there lines for elevators and rude people? Yes, but no more than at your average mall or amusement park.

My suggestion......Relax you are on vacation. If people want to be hogs, brutes or cutters, let them and enjoy your time.

Aside from the $10 no names, they sell brand name watches starting at the lower end, like Fossil, and up to the upper middle end, like Tag. Other brands I've seen sold on board are Citizen, Bulova, and Tissot. No Rolex's, though. Although, I'm almost certain I have seen Omega.

I am sure that I have seen Omega as well. I bought a Tag on the last cruise and saved almost $1000 over the stores here at home.