jemz1949

Can you give more of your thoughts about the scenic drive excursion? Would you recommend it to others? Did you compare your experience to others' outings on the ship and what did they have to say?

 

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We've done the NCL scenic drive excursion twice and the non NCL Chilkoot drive/train once. The scenic drive excursion is beautiful and the tour guides are usually extremely knowledgeable and entertaining. We were lucky in that we had Pete as a guide both times on the NCL tour and he was great. Being honest, the drive up in the morning can be extremely foggy and although enjoyable, it's a long day in a van.

On the Chilkoot drive/train excursion, the train is not only a change of pace but you also see so much more being off road. As for the lunch...so so. We DID NOT enjoy the area that has the dog sled rides however.

If you go enter your MyNCL website account, you can explore not only what entertainment suggesting reservations is on each night and at what time. The same is true for specialty dining restaurants. Entertainment that accepts reservations are Cirque Dreams, Burn The Floor and Priscilla. Cirque is also a dinner show and is very popular. My favorite specialty restaurants are LeBistro and Cagneys. Although not my cup of tea, Moderno offers loads of meats and usually a decent salad bar. As suggested above, you should make reservations thru the website asap or as soon as you get on board.

Here are the Sept 2018 show times for the Epic that I can see....could change or could be others

Burn The Floor Monday 930p Friday 7p & 915p

Priscilla Tuesday 7p 10p Thursday 7p 10p

Cirque Sunday 830p Monday 630p 930p Tuesday 830p Thursday 930p Friday 630p Saturday 830p

On the first western Med sailing this year, I did not find the AC in the public rooms too cold, but I tend to run warm. On the other hand, I did not see many people, even women in sleeveless dresses, putting on sweaters inside. (I had brought a cotton sweater just in case, and I think this is prudent if you have any concern at all.) I did wear a jacket one morning in the outdoor café.

 

There is a thermostat for the temperature in your cabin.

Thanks for the tips regarding a sweater/jacket. Would you please post copies of your dailies? Thank you.

Don't know about the Jade but on the Pearl, definitely not.

Does anyone have any experience buying Colosseum entry tickets thru CoopCulture? I ask as I purchased entry tickets thru their website on 3 May with the tickets to be emailed to me. Other than the charge being made to my cc, I've now received anything from them.

We just got off Epic and booked our own excursions at every port. Even Cannes, which we were most concerned about because it is the only tender port, there was no problem. Our excursion there started at 9am and we were there to meet the driver 20 - 30 minutes early.

I'm interested in hearing which tour/tour company you used in Cannes. ALSO, would you please post your Dailies from your cruise? Many including myself would love to see them.

Still hoping for 2018 Epic Dailies from the Med....Assume that they will be somewhat different than those from March in the Caribbean.

What is Fishlips?

I believe that dining is now 120 days out; 130 for suites and above.

Are suites 120 days out as well?

I now book all of our excursions independently using CC or TA reviews to help me decide. Other than the cost savings, not being part of the typical cattle car herd is a great benefit. Juneau - whale watching with a side trip to Mendenhall. Skagway - Yukon Bus and Rail. Victoria - have yet to find anything that excites me there.

We were on the Pearl in mid July. The concierge was Naomi. Our Haven butler was Jennifer. Both of these ladies are EXCELLENT. We are back on the Pearl next July and hope that they are both still there.

Epic arrival in Barcelona is scheduled for 5am on Sunday July 22 2018. I've done searches for flights from BCN to Venice on Sunday as far in the future as I can and have only found the one mentioned on RyanAir at 1115a. Vueling flight does fly into Marco Polo but it leaves at 710a which is not doable.

Bocadude85: are you seeing other flights?

Family is on NCL Epic out of Barcelona next summer disembarking on Sunday. We are considering the NCL Star cruise out of Venice which sails at 5pm that same day. Basically there is only one flight option being on RyanAir that is scheduled to arrive at Venice Treviso airport at 115pm. I'm told that I should expect approximately 90 minutes from deplane til arriving at the port from Treviso. (NCL does not offer transfers from the Treviso airport to the port.) NCL posts that all guests need to be onboard by 3pm. Does anyone have any experience with boarding near of after the 3pm deadline? Or am I crazy to even try this?

Any recent info regarding walk off disembarkment back in Barcelona? How early were the first walk offs?

Just off the Pearl in July.....Jennifer is the best!!!

I was on the Pearl last week. On two different occasions, I asked Guest Services about being able to use non refundable OBC in either the casino or for concierge/butler gratuities. Both times the answer was no.

You might want to do a CC search for Posh. From what I have read in CC postings, the number of passes is extremely limited.... sometimes less than 10 per cruise. I suspect that the number of passes being made available might be determined based on the number of people in the Haven that week.

If you are a member, try Costco.

Is the Posh area adults only?

A few weeks ago, I asked NCL who the concierge is on the Pearl. They told me Virginia. Hopefully someone who has recently sailed the Pearl can confirm.

Do you recall who the concierge was on the Pearl? Were you in The Haven and if so, who was courtyard attendant?

Sounds like great fun. Does the Pearl have Howl At The Moon?

Will NCL allow you to cancel and then refund prepaids such as water, UDP for third person, etc so that you can use OBCs for same while on board?

Thank you for taking the time to post all of this information.