Mandalay5

@Ladyshopper23 that was exactly the info I was looking for-thank you! Since the bulk of this sailing is in Brazil, that would be add up quickly for sure.

I understand that Brazil charges a 25% VAT tax on purchases at ports or in ‘their’ waters. Can anyone tell me from experience how this works with FAS? Tax on drink value like at US port or on the “over $15” amount? Tax on the value of a free meal? Shore excursions? Any info appreciated!

We were in 12922 last December. No strange noises, but having the bedroom door was awkward-you had to enter the bedroom and close the door to get past the bed. Other than that, the cabin is wonderful.

@ReubenR thanks for the tip! There’s never enough plugs for me, so I’ll definitely need adapters.

Thanks!! We’ve always gone to the restaurant or MDR since (even in the Haven) there’s not a lot of table space in the cabin. Looking forward to dinner on the deck for sure!

@Sailing12Away DS is getting the middle room, quite the upgrade from his usual sofa bed or 2nd bedroom assignment. Random questions-is there an outdoor shower to cool off when hot tubbing? Is there an option for MDR meal delivery or just room service menu/specialty restaurant meals for dinner? Thanks for info-it’s our first time in a non-haven suite.

These pictures are great!! Now the real question for @us2you and @Sailing12Away which of the big bedrooms do I want to make sure I claim???

@us2you thank you!!!

@us2you we are a GV on the Star in December-do you by chance have any interior pics from your trip? I can’t find anything post-remodel online. Please and thank you!!

Yes, please! Next cruise isn’t until December and I need every vicarious fix I can get.

We booked a Star DOS for the same price as the spa balcony from our cancelled Epic cruise in December. I’d love to have the Haven dinner menu and pool, but I’m thrilled with the lower cost. The ‘real’ Haven is getting a little out of reach lately, especially for a port intensive cruise where we’re too tired to do much more than strap on the buffet feed bag at night.

I totally agree with you-it will be interesting to see what changes with the update

Wonder if maybe the Haven will lose their observation lounge to add more Haven rooms? To me, that makes more sense than removing the regular observation lounge.

The vendor only cared that he had a ticket

On our last cruise, DH wanted to do an NCL fishing excursion and I wanted to stay on board. Since I was the 1st person on the res. I booked myself for the discount and he used the ticket.

14178 on the Joy has been one of my favorite NCL cabins. Loved the extra space on the balcony. It was a bit different to be outside the Haven courtyard but not a deal breaker- we got used to going back and forth in our robes 😉

We recently sailed on Bliss out of Miami. We got to the port fairly early and there were plenty of general check In stations open…it took about 10 mins to check in. Boarding was late because of guests from the previous cruise not disembarking, but Platinum boarded right after special needs. We made reservations for the shows at the kiosks by the elavator and were having lunch at the Local in a hot minute…no lines, no problem. Ship docked at Punta Lagosta in Cozumel.

Interestingly, we used our all of vouchers at Palomar last week for a family dinner and they offered us a bottle of wine. No one in our party drinks wine, so it may have been a limited selection.

Thanks for bringing her back safely, Bird! We’re ready to board in the morning.

Thank you, Bird! We’re boarding Prima on the 11th, and I’ll look forward to your review to pull me through the next week!

We are doing “side by side” sailings next month, and it’s our first trip as platinum (both DH and myself leveled up). First up is 5 days Prima Haven, followed by 7 days Bliss club balcony suite. I’m wondering if we can save a couple of the platinum vouchers from the Prima trip to use the following week on the Bliss? Are they coded so you have to use or lose on the trip they’re issued?

Oh yeah…any time you’re sinking it’ll put a damper on your day for sure.

Worst cruise vacations ever: Titanic Lusitania Costa Concordia Carnival Triumph ‘poo cruise’ Diamond Princess ‘covid cruise’ Route change to avoid hurricane at the height of hurricane season, no. Although the folks that went to Canada when they were expecting Bermuda take the top spot in that argument.

I personally like being up a little higher for an aft balcony (deck 12 is next deepest) as I think it’s a better view, and less noise but that’s just my preference. When the ship is underway, the wake will drown out noise. If the weather is nice, the bigger the balcony the better imo for sunning, but you should have enough coverage from above to stay protected in bad weather in any event.

Your original cabin (8730) is a large balcony club suite. Those have a larger bathroom, huge balcony with loungers and include a free bag of laundry. They’re close to the restaurants and bars on deck 8 waterfront. My favorite if I’m not in the haven. Aft facing balconies on deck 9 are the deepest, have loungers, and are over the walkway on deck 8. Haven suites in the Joy are spread around the ship, so that’s a consideration if you don’t care to journey far to the haven complex. We were on deck 14 in a haven room last year and didn’t mind the trek. The extra cost for the haven can only be judged by you—the complex is lovely, the service top notch and the food is fabulous. The covered pool deck (imo) would be a definite plus on your itinerary due to the possibility of cold weather.