travelhound

I ended up getting offsite parking at the Dania Casino. It can be reserved, ie, guaranteed. I figured we'd do the port and if that was a problem, we'd go to the park n ride, but that is already full, as are other off site locations. They have a shuttle to and from the fenced in parking. Just seemed like one less thing to worry about. Daleed, we are also leaving on the 22nd. Have fun!

I would like to know that too. Christmas will be our 41st cruise but the first as a local Floridian driving to the port. We've always come in a taxi or uber from a hotel or the airport.

Haha. That's why I never really believe anything from chats or even calling NCL..

I'm glad to know you enjoyed Los Lobos. Maybe that's enough to just leave our reservations as is.

I did a quick chat on the NCL website and they said I would have to wait until boarding to make Moderno and not be charged. They also said only 25% of reservations are available prior to boarding. I just made Los Lobos and La Cucina for now. Maybe we'll keep it that way. We been to Moderno many times and Lobos is new for us.

NCL leads the way 👍

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It will not be much longer before all the cruise lines will be forced to reduce these ridiculous protocols 🙂

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We have been to many well organized Cruise Critic meetups on ships in the past. Unfortunately I think the demographics have changed significantly and many people don't want to socialize in that way anymore.

Yup, no moderation on FB.

Its absolutely relevant to NCL. Competition will force all cruise lines to accept the reality of daily life and will be forced to stop the testing.

It's absolutely related to NCL, because it's a crack in the dam. It will not be long before most other lines will have to follow 🙂

Good News! https://www.azamara.com/discover/what-they-say/azamara-cruise-news/azamara-announces-removal-its-embarkation-covid-19

This is sad. I'm sorry you won't be in Skagway. We were just there on Discovery less than two weeks ago and took the train. You could see how anything could happen with that hill without warning. It would be devastating if it happened because the Princess ship is right under it. I think Sitka is a better alternative than Icy Point Strait, but that doesn't make up for the disappointment. I'm sure the city did not make this decision lightly. There is still so much to enjoy and Discovery is beautiful...so have a great cruise!

I think it was supposed to be "queue" - meaning a line.

We just got off Discovery last week. It's a beautiful ship. The pps are correct about arrival times meaning nothing. We had 12-12:30 and arrived then. We took an Uber from our hotel and they had to drop us off way out in the parking lot. It's a bit of a hike or they have little shuttles. If I had to do it again, I'd take a taxi because they can go right up to the line. Be prepared for a long line before you even get to a lounge. We were on RCCL in March out of Miami and basically couldn't get our documents out fast enough for how quickly the line moved. This was not the case in Seattle. Many long lines and when you think you're there, there is another line. But all in all, it wasn't hours of waiting. I think we were on about 1. You do need the ArriveCan and they will hound you for it if you don't do it before boarding. Frankly, I'm surprised they let anyone on without filling it out, but they were asking for some people to still fill it out while we were onboard. We didn't get off in Victoria, but we still needed to submit it. It was a great cruise and I'm sure you'll have a fantastic week. Happy sailing.

SeaShark - Clearly you've never had a child in the current kids' clubs. They don't think of them as daycare. It's a time to meet up with friends and do "kid" activities, some silly and some educational. Princess partners with Discovery and some of their programming is about the ports we were visiting. In Alaska, as a family, we ate every meal together - including dressing for dining room dinner each night - went on excursions in every port, played trivia and participated in other onboard silliness, played at the pool, and spent four days in Seattle together 24/7. I'd hardly say we didn't spend our vacation together. But, those times our daughter spent with her newfound friends, her peers, were special to her and added to the overall experience of the trip. They also talked about what they saw at the glacier or whale watching in their own language and at their own maturity level, which cements the experience in their minds. I find your judgmental comments to be based on an incorrect, preconceived notion of what the kids' club is to younger sailors.

For the people that think it's a place to dump the kid, you must not have ever had a child in the club. Maybe some people use it that way, but for my daughter, who is an only child, it's what makes cruising extra special for her. We were just on Discovery Princess to Alaska and she met 16 new "friends" (she counted them) that she interacted with on excursions, at the pool, and has even played games with this week online. So it's not just disappointed parents. If I had to tell my kid there was no kids club after she was looking forward to it, that would be paramount to telling other people there are no bartenders for the week. So don't be too quick to judge. I wouldn't have stormed the kids' club or anything, but it would have felt a little bait and switch. And if it is because the staff is sick, NCL should be upfront about it. That's easier to understand than "unforeseen circumstances". That seems to be the excuse for everything now. Just be upfront. You don't have the staff. We've been on plenty of vacations where our daughter is with us 24/7 and we know that's what it's going to be before we leave and we're all fine with it. Cruising it just one where she expects she can get away from us once in a while.

This is very disappointing and I'm wondering if this restriction is fleet wide. We were on RCCL in March and Princess last week and our 11 year old could spent as much time as she wanted in the club without signing up. I was surprised when I read they weren't open during spring break. They need to figure this out. It's our daughter's favorite thing about cruising. We have NCL booked for next March and hope I don't regret it. I'm so sorry you had such a frustrating and unsatisfying experience.

We were on the July 10th sailing. They had production shows on the formal nights and those are the only ones we attended. However, the performers in those shows were the most talented I've seen on any of our 35 cruises. Even the dancers were mic'd for singing and contributed to the shows. The first one is called Spotlight Bar and I liked that the best, but the other one, Rock Opera, was also very good. That's where you really see the depth of talent. The other nights were a Vegas style singing show and magic. There is also quite a bit of daytime programming, much more than a Caribbean or European cruise. Our cruise was fantastic and Discovery is beautiful. The crew was awesome, even with a pretty full ship, about 3500. The only downside of our port selection was Dawes Glacier. Got down Endicott Arm but too much ice to get to the glacier. Our previous Alaska cruise went to Glacier Bay and I can see why that is the preferred route. Have fun!

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Sounds like we may have to consider sailing on Virgin👍