PATRLR

I didn't use the term "all junk mail". My point was regardless if its NCL or anyone else, it is unregulated and therefore no certain way to stop it. You may get someone to flag your account as don't end, you may change your address, but, neither is a certain way to stop the junk mail from coming.

What you are asking for is a way to stop junk mail. In this case the junk mail is from NCL but I don't think it matters. I don't think stopping junk mail is possible. Seriously. It's not like e-mail where there are regulations that companies are supposed to follow - I don't think there are such regulations with regular mail.

I've got the two OBCs on my account as shown. Top one is from the shareholder perk, bottom one is from my TA. Notice the top one says "non-refundable" as I expect the shareholder OBC to be. Notice the bottom one does not say refundable or non-refundable, nor does it say it when I click through the link. Anyone know if that is going to be refundable or not?

That what we did, morning with Alaska Humpback Adventures small boat whale watch (highly recommend) and afternoon on the Tracy Arms excursion. Made for a busy day, but it was probably one of the best days on a cruise we ever had.

"Daily Service Charge". More commonly thought of as the gratuities paid to the cabin steward and dining room servers. Instead of the old days of handing your stewards and servers an envelope with cash at the end of your cruise, NCL now charges your on board account a "Daily Service Charge" which they claim is then split with all the people on board that contribute to your experience on board.

What is the advantage of buying OBC to then pay the DSC vs just prepyaing the DSC using your charge card or letting the DSC accrue against your on board account and paying that with your charge card? For Casino funding, I understand there is a 3% charge somewhere in the process that buying OBC ahead of time avoids. I don't see what the advantage is for DSC.

This must be a preemptive "It's not NCL's fault, it's your fault" post. No one to this point has laid blame anywhere (not even mentioned blame), but, just in case anyone wants to try to blame our beloved NCL, this post will nip that right in the bud.

OMG! Having done the Cape Town flight a few times, I couldn't imagine doing it in the back of the plane, let alone not being able to pick my seat ahead of time to be sure I got the best of the worst.

Presumably you got the "Free at Sea" package which includes 2 Specialty Dining meals per person (maybe just the first two people in the cabin). STRONGLY encourage you to make reservations as soon as you can. NCL opens up about 30% of the reservations at the 120 day mark. You've likely missed most of those reservations, but, take a look anyways. The rest will open up onboard. You'll want to make those reservations very first thing when you get onboard, especially if you want prime time reservations at the most popular restaurants.

But I thought recent reports were that the straws they were no making available (on request?) were more useful than previous straws they were using.

I do not have information about this past summer. But I've been on that excursion and it is unquestionably the best excursion I've ever been on.

You are probably correct. A more likely scenario is that the adult doesn't feel comfortable talking about "whatever" because there is a child present. The adult shouldn't have to worry about children being present, regardless of how well behaved.

You might want to pay attention to that definition you posted. I stated how I feel. Feelings aren't treatments. Not even close. When you make statements like the posting above, you come across as someone who lacks basic understanding of the English language. For the record, I love kids, I raised one, not that I give a care what you or anyone else thinks about me. My statement and point was for the sake of this conversation.

That is your opinion of the "spirit". I'd argue if that was indeed the spirit, then the rules would also include something about it being a quiet area. To the best of my knowledge it doesn't. I'd argue the spirit is to create a kid free space. "Why" doesn't matter. The impact of kid free to me is different than someone else. Doesn't matter what that impact is. Maybe I just don't like kids for no specific reason. Who are you to decide whether their presence is good reason to keep them out of that area or not.

As said above, only 30% or so are available in advance. When you get on board, immediately make your reservations - do not delay because prime times will sell out.

Are you sure you are in the right forums? This is Cruise Critic and that's not how people behave here.

that's what friends are for, aren't they?

A live person doing music by the pool - that's encouraging to see. Last few cruises I've been on (multiple lines) it's only been DJs which I often find to be more annoying than entertaining. So a human playing is a good sign though that poor fellow looks cold. I really do miss the days of the steel drums playing by the pools - way back when that was standard poolside entertainment (at least on warm weather cruises).

@Handle63 don't be confused by statements like the above. NCL and many of the major travel agencies will frequently refer to the Daily Service Charge (DSC) as gratuities by way of referring to paying the DSC in advance as "pre-paid gratuities" or in some cases offering to include as a perk "free pre-paid gratuities". "pre-paid gratuites" and/or "free pre-paid gratuities" is referring to the DSC. As stated by others in this thread, the DSC covers the gratuities for your room steward, the wait staff in the complimentary dining rooms, and some ambiguous group of behind the scenes support staff. Your Specialty Dining server's gratuities are covered by the 20% you pay for the FAS program, or, if paying ala carte the 20% added to your bill. Same for bar servers and drinks. The old routine of handing out envelopes on the last night of the cruise are long gone. If you feel someone has gone above and beyond, you are welcome to tip them something extra. But it is by no means expected as in days gone by. I do find that an additional dollar or two gratuity to bar servers goes a long way to making sure I get good service. Note that if you are staying in the Haven, some of the people you interact with there do expect gratuities. They don't let me through the gates of steerage so I am not familiar with those details. Let us know if you are in a Haven room.

Not to hijack the thread but what the heck - I'd heard that about chicken wings and wondered why that is. Prices going up I get, everything is going up. It's the availability I wonder about. To the best of my knowledge chickens still come with exactly two wings so why the shortage? Are people eating more wings? Are there fewer chickens being raised?

Exactly, so it's already a crap shoot for you. I'd take the upgrade. Just make sure you are getting all the same perks (free drinks, free specialty dining, OBC if any, etc) that you are getting with your current room - ask the agent to be sure.

Count me on the side of welcoming this news. I never cared for the wings and on my coming Encore cruise we wouldn't have even bothered ordering them. Now I'll look forward to trying the new style. Someone said they were smaller - I can't imagine how that is possible. Is there any meat on them at all?

NCL entered into a contract with the Belize government to construct the island. They could have, if they wanted, included in the contract that the food and drinks would be either supplied by or paid for by NCL. They chose not to. That is how they were being cheap. What none of us knows is just how cheap. Likely the Belize government very strongly wanted their local or chosen vendors to have an opportunity for the concessions. In which case it would have been prohibitively expensive for NCL to buy their way past the government's requirement. Everyone and everything has a price. I'll give NCL the benefit of the doubt in this case and say their "cheapness" was likely understandable.

I'd take that upgrade in a heartbeat. But we don't really care about our room location, we've done "guarantee" rates many times and never regretted it. I suppose if you are a sensitive sleeper and noise above or around you will be a problem then the guarantee rate isn't for you. But do you really know your inside is in a good location for noise? Did you look carefully? But with a crowded room, that balcony and large glass will help make it feel less crowded and at times will be welcome additional space.

No kids, presumably older couples - I'd lean to the Pearl. If they happen to be younger couples, then you might look closer to the amenities on each and see if either is more appealing. Are these couples all first time cruisers? If not, their cruising history and preferences is definitely relevant here. For folks that live in Mass or Eastern New England, that Boston port is very convenient to access.