lunyma

51 minutes ago, pe4all said:

Lunyma -

  So sorry to hear of the loss of your fur babies.  My Pixie (cat) is 14 years old - still thinks she is a kitten - but I see her slowing down a bit.  I will be heart-broken when...

In answer to your brunch drink question - my June Magic cruise we went to Seaday brunch (I was not impressed - very slow service and food was meh) and we used my dh's and dd's brunch drink there.  I was not in the mood for my drink, and later went to the atrium bar (right outside the dining room) and they very nicely and easily honored my drink.  Just make sure you are not charged for it on your sail and sign card.  The 2 cruises before that was a January and February "covid" cruise - low capacity, and I guess they just let us redeem the drink at a bar.  The ships were at 40% and 60% capacity and we did not go to brunch (or even eat in a dining room) as we were very covid conscious.  If you are contemplating going to Seaday Brunch I would suggest just use your drink there - it may stop some problems if you do not go to brunch and try to redeem it at a bar now that ships are back to full capacity/less staff.  Enjoy your upcoming cruise

I probably wouldn’t even bother with the brunch. I like to spend my daytime hours out in the sun and there’s plenty of good food to be found by the pool. Blue Iguana has an awesome breakfast burrito & ya can’t go wrong with a Guy’s burger & fries   I actually like Carnival’s pizzas as well so I certainly won’t starve. Honestly….  If it’s nice out, I probably wouldn’t even remember to try & cash in on that drink & from what I can tell, I think my sailing’s gonna be full.  😎🛳🍹

On 8/30/2022 at 4:47 AM, pe4all said:

Platinum gift picked up at Pixels.  Pin was left in my cabin on last 2 cruises.  Chocolate delight now has to be ordered from room service- they will ask when you want it.  Free waters picked up at any bar or dining room.  Laundry still the same - bags in drawer in room.  $25 slot tourney credit at casino cage.  Free brunch drink in dining room, though I have gotten it at a bar last 2 cruises.

@pe4all… I apologize for my delay in replying but the last week has been quite disturbing for me as I lost 2 beloved pets that were part of our family since they were just babies. First, out 18 year old cat Jasmine, just over a  week ago, and then, just this past Tuesday, we had to send our 17 year old maltipoo Nelli over the Rainbow bridge to join her two pup besties that she grew up with, but they were a bit older than her and left us peacefully in the last few years. This is the first time in over 30 years where we only have one furbaby living with us. He’s a 1 1/2 year old terrier mix that I rescued from a no kill shelter in Arkansas, in February. I live in IL. Sorry for  sharing this with y’all, especially those who thought the need to share their dislike of koozies or anything else I asked about 🙄. 
I do want to thank you for the information though, as I haven’t had much time to look up the answers to my questions, which I’m sure I could have done if my situation was different. Anyway…. This was a last minute booking and I was only slightly aware of post Covid lockdown changes. I love all the perks, and since I haven’t cruised in so long, I will accept them all graciously along with my Player’s Club perks which are certainly more valuable in dollars but equal in gesture. My only other question now is how did you get the free brunch drink at a bar?  Was there not a brunch on your sailing?  I wouldn’t go if there was one anyway but I’ll rarely, if ever, turn down a free drink!  So if anyone cares to celebrate my birthday with me on Freedom boarding day, Saturday October 1st, I will graciously accept a drink from you and say Cheers to a much needed cruise. Just look for the short (not so) little old lady with the buzz cut and (probably) purple hair.

On 7/26/2022 at 8:51 AM, pe4all said:

Koozies on our last 3.  Didn't even pick them up on the Magic.

I haven’t cruised in a while. Where do I have to go to pick up my platinum gift, pin (?), and anything else I’m entitled to?  Will my chocolate goodies still be brought to my cabin? Do I get anything else?  Sailing 5 day on Freedom, October 1st. My birthday!!! TIA! 🛳😊⚓️🛟

I can’t even remember how to add cruises to my signature!  I feel so outta the loop 🫤

2 hours ago, cliffd64 said:

Safes are the ones with the number pad...  you set it when you get there 🙂

Thanks Cliff!

Template - 

Home Departure City - Chicago O’Hare 

Arrival/Destination City - Miami 

Airline(s) used - United

Number of Connections - non stop

Outbound Flight departure/arrival time -7:51 am CT/ 12:02 pm ET

Return Flight departure/arrival time-

Delta for return

Leaves Miami 4:13 pm ET

Arrives Detroit 7:15 pm ET

Leaves Detroit 8:10pm ET

Arrives Chicago O’Hare 8:34 pm CT

I haven’t had a chance (or remembered) to call and see if I can get an earlier flight home, and preferably non-stop. I’m leaving this Friday so I’m sure there would be a charge, but how much?  Will try to call tomorrow. It never hurts to ask!

I booked and paid in full for my cruise 45 days out. My flight arrangements popped up 2 or 3 days later. I should have called immediately but dummy me didn’t. Cest La Vie! ✈️🌞

17 hours ago, newmexicoNita said:

Yes they do, not a huge selection but certainly do carry t shirts, mugs and sweat shirts for starters. Also toward the end of the cruise they have a huge T shirt sales, usually in one of the restaurants, with great prices. The sweat shirt selection isn't that great and we have found them expensive, but we still each have an NCL sweat shirt. 

I still have a pullover hoodie from the Pearl’s first US sailing. It’s almost “neon” green and it’s embroidered in navel y:

                     Norwegian Pearl

                                  NCL

                          (Image of ship)

                        Inaugurated 2006

I’d bring it along on my cruise this Friday but it’s a really heavy sweatshirt that has withstood the test of time and still looks great. Sometimes spending a little more for quality really does pay off!

Thanks again Becca!  I think I have one last question...

Are the cabin safes opened with a number you put in or do you slide a card with a magnetic strip?

Does the Great Escape have a fresh egg station where they make made to order omelettes or sunny side up?

and...

Do outside cabins have refrigerators?

Just 3 more days!!!

7 hours ago, Becca11 said:

Lunyma, someone was punching holes in the ID cards for passengers because we saw many people with their ID cards on lanyards, attached with the clip through a punched hole.  Not sure who was doing it/where they had it done, though.

 

Don't know if the casino was providing lanyards/clips or punching holes.  We only walked through the casino a few times, didn't spend any time there, didn't know to ask about lanyards or ID clips or holders there.

 

Husband found a lanyard with a decorative holder in the photography section of the ship but the ID holder was HUGE and decorative, so we passed.

 

We heard others inquiring as well, and no one seemed to know how/where to acquire lanyards once on board the ship.  

 

I ordered ID holders on lanyards from Amazon Prime for a few bucks for two, and they were delivered in two days.  At this late date maybe your best bet is a run to Walmart or Office Depot or Staples or the like.  There are a bunch of CVS stores in Key West; one of them *might* carry lanyards, I dunno.  We stopped in one CVS store to get me some hair scrunchies to tie down my mane. 🙂

Thanks. I was at Dollar Tree yesterday and they had lanyards but that’s not what I wanted. I actually have lanyards at home but they say Carnival 😁. Most casinos will give you a springy cord like thing with a clip on one end so you can keep you don’t forget to take your card out of a slot machine when you walk away. I don’t know what they’re called 🤔.  Anyway... I’m sure I have a few around the house so I’ll just bring ‘em with me if I can find them. 

We have no plans to take food on or off the ship. We’re really not big coffee drinkers either. I make a pot in the morning and usually just have a cup. Hubby might have a few throughout the day. Every once in a while I do stop at Starbucks for a Frappuccino or a latte, but it’s not a necessity. I bought those little creamer cups for DH so I’m sure he’ll be happy 😊. 

We’re definitely not getting off the ship in Nassau, and probably not GSC either. Key west is still up in the air. We’ve been to both ports and although we’ve never been to GSC, it’s a lot of walking in sand which our old bodies don’t like. As I said when I started this post (I think?) this cruise is to relax and recharge and nothing more...

Oh!  Will the casino punch a hole in our cards and provide one of those stretchy thinks to clip on your clothes?

And yet another question...

Do they have flavored coffee creamers at the buffet?  My husband is lost without his French Vanilla. I bought a box of the little cups that don’t need refrigeration but don’t wanna bring ‘em if I don’t need to. 

I honestly don’t feel like I’ll be cruising in 4 days. Other than a driving trip to Toronto for one of my boys’ weddings a couple years ago, it’s been about 5 1/2 years since my last real vacation, which of course, was a cruise. I’ve had some health issues that have kept me home all this time, along with other “stuff”, and I can’t say I’m not just a little nervous about this trip, but I desperately need it!  We used to cruise 2-3 times a year and although a lot of them were short cruises, this will be my 30th!!! Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond my control, it may be my last as well so I’m hoping it all goes well. Chicago is gonna get hit with storms and a cold front on Friday, so we’re getting outta here at a good time. I just hope the storms hold off till after we take off. Wish me luck!!!

I have a feeling that we may just end up spending the day at the airport. There’s a lot of earlier flights though so I think there’s a good chance we may be able to hop on one of those. If not? If they let us check our luggage in early, we might head over to Bayside or see if my FLL buddy will pick us up and hang out... somewhere.  Or...  Maybe we’ll go get a couple tattoos?  We’ve both gotten a couple in that area before 😎

6 minutes ago, Becca11 said:

Well, if you gotta spend an afternoon in Miami, you gotta visit the Ball and Chain in Little Havana for delicious food, awesome mojitos and amazing live music!  Check the Events calendar to see who is playing on the afternoon that you'll be there.  You can also take a look at the menu.  I can tell you for a fact that the jerk roasted chicken wings are to die for, as are the quesadillas, and the tacos, and the chilled jumbo shrimp.  🙂 🙂

https://ballandchainmiami.com/

Thanks for the recommendation Becca. My husband and I are pretty familiar with the Miami area. We’ve been there many times and both of us have family that lived there in the past. I also have a few friends who live in and around ft lauderdale. I’d rather get an earlier flight home though as I don’t want to rent a car and/or deal with our luggage all day. 

It took me a long time to get my DH to like any kind of sushi, so we don’t have it often. On our last cruise however (Carnival Breeze), we ate at the sushi bar twice for snacks and once for dinner  It was that good. Besides rolls, they had a few other appetizer type items like you’d see in most Japanese restaurants or sushi bars and it was all delicious and extremely reasonably priced. We ordered a little at a time, just in case, and they didn’t seem to mind. A lot of people didn’t find it till later in the cruise too, so we got excellent service 😉

2 hours ago, Becca11 said:

Oh, addendum- The Pinnacle Lounge and Sushi Bar was one of our favorite venues.  Very good sushi if you like sushi, and we thought the ala carte price was reasonable.  The rolls were generous as well.

 

If you don't like sushi, it's an attractive and elegant place to hang out for a cocktail.  

We do like sushi and we plan on having a light dinner there one night. I hope they have hot Sake!

2 hours ago, Becca11 said:

We were just on the Sky sailing on 9/23 through 9/28.  It's a smaller ship but recently renovated.  On our sailing it was spotless, almost smelled of fresh paint and new carpet!  The crew was super chill and very friendly and happy.  We had a great time, and  you will too.  🙂 🙂

 

1. Paper straws, yes.

2. You can take food from any of the venues to your room.  The server will even box it up for you.  We had to take dessert back to our room from Cagney's, couldn't finish it.  NOTE THIS:  you cannot bring food or drink from "outside" (port of call, embarkation) onto the ship.  They are strict about it, or they were with us on the Sky.  So if you eat a meal in port, don't count on bringing anything back onto the ship with you.  You also cannot take food from the ship off of the ship.  Ergo we ate our chocolate cake from Cagney's for breakfast on disembarkation day.  🙂 🙂  (Maybe the first time in my life I've legit had chocolate cake for breakfast.)

3. The Local- don't have a picture of the menu, but they for sure have wings, which seemed quite popular.  Didn't order them but would next time.  They have fish and chips, a very good cheeseburger, and reubens as well.  The spinach and artichoke dip is good.

4. We were in an aft balcony room for a 5 night cruise and we had neither robes nor bubbly in the room- but we didn't miss either.

5. You're gonna love The Great Outdoors, the aft deck dining area behind the Garden Buffet.  It has its own buffet and full bar.  The buffet is not as extensive as the indoor buffet at the Garden Buffet but the food is laid out nicely and the selection was more than adequate for us.

6. ROOM SERVICE WAS GREAT.  I made a classic "sea day" blunder and didn't pace myself, ergo between day drinking and sunshine and running about all day on the ship, I was in bed asleep by 8pm that night, no dinner.  I awoke at 4:30am, slammed the light on over our bed (my husband was THRILLED) and announced that I was STARVING (my husband was THRILLED.)  Cue room service breakfast, which was delivered in about 30 minutes, hot off the grill and really good.  It was worth every penny of that $7.95 service charge!

7. I awoke at about 4:30am again, on the last morning of the cruise, for no particular reason, and stepped out onto our balcony around 5am.  I could see the lights of Miami on the horizon. I got up, got dressed, and headed for the stern deck behind The Great Outdoors for our entry into the Port of Miami, in the dark.  All of the city and port lights were on, and it was beautiful.  It was a magical way to start the last day.  If you happen to be up, it's worth the early breakfast.  🙂 

 

Have LARGE, LARGE fun!

 

Sounds like you had a great time!!! Thanks for your input 😎

Thanks guys... No balcony this trip. Just a midship outside. Never hurts to ask once onboard though! 😎

17 hours ago, jdvmd said:

There are wings!

Awesome! Thank you 😊 

Another question...

Are there robes in the cabin and if not, can I request them from my cabin steward?

Thank you, Cliff, Cole, and Pinkie 😎

I’m all for the environment but I really don’t like paper straws, so I’ll bring my own. 

Bummer that we don’t get the bottle of bubbly in the cabin so I guess I’ll just have to get it by the glass. Just a PIA if I’m in the room and want a drink. We got the free at sea drink pkg so it’s really no biggie... Just an inconvenience. 

Happy to hear that we can take food out from the Local. I know that they have fish & chips and reubens. Does anyone have a copy of the menu they could share? Do they have wings?

Gonna try to remember to call NCL about getting an earlier flight home. I’m guessing that since it’s 8 days out from my cruise, there’ll be a charge. Probably not worth it. When I booked the cruise, my son worked for United so I wasn’t concerned about any cost involved if I wanted to change flights (only booked through NCL cuz they had the free air promo).  A couple days after I booked he told me that he had quit and had a new job. Crap!

We can obviously check at the airport as well. 

We’re doing the Sky 4 night cruise next week and I have a few questions based on some things I’ve read.  

1.  Are they really serving drinks with no straws or have they replaced them with paper straws?

2.  What are the correct hours for the Local bar and grill, and will they let you take food out of there to eat poolside or in your room?

3.  Although we’re only Bronze latitude members, we were told, and I read, that we would receive a bottle of sparkling wine in our cabin at embarkation, but some people have said that it’s only on cruises of 5 days or more. What’s the right answer?

4.  Has anyone had any luck changing times for rerun flights home if booked by NCL?  They scheduled us for a flight from MIA leaving after 4 pm. I can think of things to do on our own for the day but don’t know what to do with our luggage. Does NCL have airline and baggage check in at the port like some other cruise lines?

5.  I also read in a couple places that NCL transportation from port to airport leaves the port between 8:45 and 9:00am. Can anyone confirm that?

I know I have more questions, but I can’t think of them right now. I’ll be back!!

TIA!✈️⚓️🛳🌞😎

If you book for the first night you usually get a free bottle of wine.

As I mentioned in my review, the dinner was a gift, so I only knew what I had heard about the wine on the first night. What I did not know, was that you only had a choice between Merlot and Chardonnay.

Thanks for sharing your review. Sounds like you had a very enjoyable and relaxing trip!

You're very welcome. It WAS a most relaxing trip. Just what we needed :).

Nice review!

 

 

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Thank you. We really didn't do a lot on this cruise, but that was our plan all along. We still enjoyed the ship very much :).

My review is now posted at http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=252311 :)

My review of the Breeze 3/9, 6 day sailing, has been posted at

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=252311