umaine89

@dmwnc1959 Thanks for breakfast recommendation. Had breakfast at O’Sheehan’s View Very good and good service.

So it turns out we were parked next to Harmony of the Seas today. It’s hard to explain but I am a Royal Caribbean fanboy and am 3 nights away from Diamond. Look at my signature, I have been on a bunch of RCL ships. So I felt some nostalgia for RCL. It’s an Oasis class, and while I haven’t been on Harmony, I’ve been on Oasis of the Seas. That said I am really enjoying NCL and this ship.

@dmwnc1959 by request. I found this posted by the pool.

My daughter is making fun of me that I can’t flip an image Anyway, here is the pic where I took the conference call.

I am not getting off the ship today. I’ve been to Cozumel a bunch of times and all I can eat and drink are free on the ship. best part of NCL, you can order more than one drink at once.

Ok the rest of day 2. Walked 3 miles on jogging track. Very nice but kind of short. Obligatory selfie. Found a spot on aft of boat that was empty. You would think they could find a way to monetize this real estate. Enjoyed a wine while conducting a business call in Garden Cafe. There’s a picture but it’s upside down and I don’t feel like flipping it. Imagine a wine glass and a Caribbean Sea view through a window. Then found a nice walking path on deck 6 (I think. Right outside guest services). It goes all the way around the ship and is in the shade. Walked another mile. Excellent walk. Figured out that Starbucks was free with the upgraded drinks plan (unlike RCL) and listened to the piano guy. I have no idea if this video will work. View from deck 6 walking path. Spent afternoon on top deck listening to some good music. Dinner at La Cusina. Italian. 815 was not busy. Excellent food. I will be back this week. I can’t say enough good things about the food and the service. I make a mean cheesecake and this was to die for.

Yes and yes. It took me a while when I first saw the ashtray to figure out what it was.

@SenatorsFan I like this cruise bathroom more than many I’ve been in. I don’t think I’d like the double frosted doors that you had.

I couldn’t agree more. 👍

Today is sea day and I get breakfast in Windjammer, I mean Garden Cafe. Normal crowds getting food. However, you could find a seat. It was crowded in some spots but if you turn a corner, no problem. I sat out in the sun, where there were more open tables and had a lovely breakfast looking at the wake.

Last night was pretty quiet for me. Casino where the Texas Hold’em poker game got going. and I stopped by Spinnakers to see the late night club in action.

One thing I really like is O’Sheehan’s is open 24 hours. You can get more than a slice of pizza at weird hours. It’s has sports bar-like food.

You’re right. Menu definitely said shrimp scampi. I definitely got shrimp Alfredo.

So the smallest Royal Caribbean ship that I’ve been on is Voyager of the Seas, 4,269 capacity. Norwegian Jade has 2,402 capacity. It doesn’t feel that much smaller. However, it is easier to get around the RCL ships. Go to the Royal Promenade and go from one end of the ship to the other. Here it feels like I have to zip zag up and down floors or from one side of the ship to the other to get places. I had high expectations for tonight’s dinner. Bruschetta and Gumbo as an appetizer. Shrimp scampi as main course. Apple pie ala mode (not pictured) as dessert. Gumbo was good, I didn’t finish scampi or bruschetta or apple pie. It was all “ok”. Not great not bad but ok. I remember RCL food being better but last time I had UDP and only ate at specialty restaurants so maybe my memory is fading.

It was cool to see the ship name on the digital signs coming in. I’m in an interior room. It’s only me and I won’t spend much time there.

Day 1 by request. @Hmmcminn

I am using my camera to record times. Yes we were out early. Here’s a picture of a “Miami Vice” as we were underway at 508p.

Yeah I rented a car and am parking it at the port for 5 days. It’s pretty close to price of private shuttle. And I came in a day early wanted to go to dinner last night and hit Walgreens for sunscreen and Dunkin on the way to the port today. Then my flight is out late on Monday so I am going somewhere after I get off. Feels like I am getting close. That said, don’t rent from Fox. The offsite location and upsell isn’t worth whatever I might have saved. View from parking garage. Toyota Corolla is fine for its purpose though. Hit the garage at 1210. Made it through security quickly but wasn’t excited by the line to check in. There was a split in line and one side was regular and one side was Latitude premium or something. Talked to the people behind me and we decided they weren’t going to kick us out if we went left instead of right. So that’s what I did. 1247 walking on. 37 minutes from parking to on the boat is good time.

Cruise starts tomorrow which means starting the journey to Orlando. First stop PHL and the Admirals Club. The salad bar is nice and the AA credit card was giving free guacamole from 3-5p. That’s Orlando off the right side of the plane. Plane landed 15 minutes early. And no good deed goes unpunished (especially when dealing with American Airlines), so our gate was not ready and we ended up sitting on the runway for over 30 minutes which made us late arriving… That's the terminal way over there. When we got in, I got a rental car from Fox which I wouldn’t recommend to anyone and will make my way to the port tomorrow. Tonight I’m at a Doubletree.

I stopped by Walgreen's to get some sunscreen and I saw this right inside the door. The last time I was on a big boat, I was still dealing with COVID tests like these. I am glad that I don’t have to deal with that now. I can’t believe that they are $24 each though.

Flight out is at 515p. I figure hit the airport at 3p. I can go to the Admirals (AA) club so hanging out at the airport isn’t the worst thing. Kennedy Space Port/Center opens at 9a so I’m thinking that might be the ticket. I booked the flight through Expedia and somehow a rental car for a week is ~$35 + taxes/fees on top of what the plane ticket was through AA direct. That said, I usually rent Hertz and walk right to the car and drive out and same when returning. This is Fox car rental so the process may be more time intensive.

@dmwnc1959 I got scared I missed my cruise! The boat is leaving without me 😂. I’ll flying down Tuesday night, renting a car and staying in Orlando and will be on it on Wednesday. Big question, lots of time when I return and I’ll still have the rental car. Tour Cape Canaveral or go to water park for the day?

I have never cruised on Norwegian before, so I am looking forward to trying something new and comparing to RCL and Carnival. I booked this cruise 6 days before it departed as kind of an “emergency” stress relief. Feel free to follow along. My last live review was in 2021 on a half empty boat, if you’re interested in reading about the golden age of cruising, haha. I have been on two RCL cruises and an Avalon cruise down the Danube in the last couple of years but I want to document my impressions of NCL so I am picking up the virtual pen again. Most important part of the cruise to me is how to Pina Coladas compare. I understand that there is no Kracken on NCL but Gosling will do.