lissvarna

Going with 2 friends and my 6 year old daughter on the Sapphire Princess from Santiago Monday. Packing is a mess; how is the weather before reaching the Antarctic area this time of year? just wondering how many days of warm weather and how many days of cold weather to prepare for.  thanks!

I was told by 2 Princess reps I spoke with that a self-administered test was fine (going to Antartica, cruise leaves Santiago Monday)

Can anyone who is also fully vaccinated (have my proof uploaded) confirm that a self administered test was acceptable?

OK, thanks! I'm fine with an inflated price if we're only paying it the last 4 days.  

I have searched this many times but I may not be searching the right key words because I can't find an answer.  We're booked on an 11 day cruise on Anthem of the Seas, the last 3 days being sea days. There are 5 consecutive port days, and I can't see getting our $ worth of drinks on these days, but would like to have the beverage package for the last 3 Sea days (and maybe a couple days prior to that). 11 days of unlimited beverage is just too much. Can I buy it onboard halfway through the cruise?

Didnt know how to title this correctly -- planning our cruise for next winter and I'm overwhelmed by options. I've been to the Bahamas (not a big fan) and a few other ports, looking this time at Southern or Eastern Caribbean, most likely. We're not people who love the private Islands, shopping, or ports that are great for sitting on the beach. I love warm weather and exploring, but not beaches and especially not private islands - I want culture, cities that are interesting to walk around in, pretty geography, great food, history, etc.  Can anyone share their favorite ports that match this description?  My favorite port I've been to on a cruise is Ochos Rios, because Dunns Rivers Falls was such fun, we ate great Jamaican food, interacted with locals, and the mountains were beautiful.  I liked Cozumel a lot too - very touristy, but still had some culture and personality.

Thanks!

Has anyone not gotten their bid accepted and just never heard either way? It's super close to 48hrs til our sailing and they all still say "pending"

Today is 48 hrs before our cruise and still no word. I imagine we'll find out at the last possible minute (4pm today) we bid on minisuite, 2bdrm, penthouse and haven 2 bdrm. Low bids except the minisuite bid. Our friends bid on a balcony from an OV. I don't have high hopes at this point.

I thought you were talking about a snack at first! Couldn't imagine why you would care to wait in line to get it back. :')

Me too 😂

Sailing 9/3 and still no news on our upgrade offers. Hate waiting so long!

Leaving 9/3, haven't heard anything yet

What are the closest car rental agencies near the port in Seattle? Are there shuttles to take you to ones further out? (traveling with a baby) thanks!

If anyone's wondering - I think anyone can bid on this system. I paid outright for a balcony, emailed the upgrade dpt and asked for a chance to bid on higher categories... less than a day later I got a new upgrade email.

Now it's letting me bid on all of these amazing rooms... it's too tempting!! I know people often win balcony and mini suite upgrades with low bids - but what about more expensive rooms? Not sure if I've seen many people win them for low bids

Sorry, this would be on the Pearl

i haven't gotten any responses yet on the family board, thought I'd try here-- mini suite will cost us, today, about $1000 more than a balcony. If it were just my partner and I, a balcony room would be fine. But we're traveling with our 1 year old and I'm wondering if the mini suite will make it easier for her to sleep, be more convenient for all our stuff etc. if so, it may be worth the $1000. But I don't want to spend that if the advantages of the minisuite are minimal, as I've read. Thoughts? (This is on an Alaskan cruise, btw).

Does anyone think there's a significant difference between a balcony room and mini suite on NCL? (Pearl, specifically). I'm worried about our baby sleeping well -- she generally will not sleep if she sees us right there. We can go out on the balcony, but as we're going to Alaska in sep., I know it may get super cold out there. So my question is - is it worth splurging on a mini suite? (An actual suite isn't an option-- not willing to spend that outrageous amount of money) It seems the only real difference in a mini suite vs balcony is a heavy curtain separating the "rooms". I don't want to waste our money on it if it'll make no difference getting her to sleep, but if it will help, it's worth the $. Anyone have experience with this?

its an absolutely good, relevant question and some of you are being quite rude

How do you get these?

leaving in just over 3 weeks -- no word. it seems to me the longer it takes to hear back about your offer, the less likely you are to have it accepted. Does that sound factual?

My bid is on the high end of "good" -- but honestly, if it wasn't for the bidding system I'd just call and pay regular price for a balcony; traveling with an infant and recently realized we'll have nowhere to go while she naps if we don't have one! I know, I know, I should just pay full price for a balcony room, but obviously it's hard to stomach that when I (might) be able to get a deal using UA. Right now, lots of balconies appear to be left on our sailing. Just wondering if I should increase my bid.

Has anyone in a low category stateroom had their bid accepted & had an opportunity to upgrade again to a higher category?

Thank you for your wonderful review. Something like 35 days for us. Reading your post makes me more and more excited!

Cruising to Alaska 9/3 from Seattle. I'm the kind of girl who's generally the last person on the plane to avoid standing in line. Is there a method to get on and off the ship most easily? I've cruised a few times on Carnival, but it was several years ago and I can't remember how it went, honestly.

We'll be on the same cruise! :) 3 couples plus our 1 year old daughter.

I'm also interested in entertainment - any feedback on the on board comedy?

we can't seem to figure out whether or not to rent a car seat with our car rental (and return it when we return the car, or course), or to bring our own (cross country trip to Seattle) so that we have it on the boat.

Is there any situation in which we'd need it for excursions? we're doing a whale watch/mendenhall glacier tour (3.5 hours, let's hope our 1 year old can keep it together), and the train in Skagway. Probably no excursion in Ketchikan. We don't get to Victoria until late, so most likely one of us will stay on ship with baby-- is there anything in victoria that could involve a taxi ride, just in case?

I'm worried if we don't have it, it could potentially cause an issue, yet I'm not sure in which scenario we'd need it on the ship. THoights?

If your bid is accepted before the cut off time, you would probably be able to re-bid for categories that are above your new one using the banner/email link. It seems like inside to balcony acceptances happen more often before the 48 hour cut off. But there is still a chance you won't know before the 48 hour cut off when it is too late to re-bid.

If it's after the 48 hour window, could I call upsell and see if I can get another upgrade that way? Or do all room bookings have to be final by that point?

I'm kicking myself, because I originally booked an ocean view room but then downgraded to inside because I didn't think $3500 for an ocean view was worth it & I planned to try to get an upgrade right before the cruise-- but this is before I knew about the new upgrade advantage program. I wish I'd just kept it, then I could've bid on a mini suite. (Traveling with a 1 year old and I'm realizing a balcony is imperative, she will not nap if we're right in the room with her, and mini suite even better!) ... guess we could always sit outside the door during naps.... :confused: Really hoping September Alaska cruises aren't overly popular this year.

I put a bid in to upgrade from an inside room to a balcony. If my bid is accepted, is it worth calling NCL to see if we can get upgraded further to a mini suite or suite? My hunch is our bid will be accepted, partially because it looks as if there are lots of open balconies and mini suites for our sailing (it's a little under a month and a half away). I wish I could place a bid on a category higher than balcony.