littlelulu01

Do the Jade handicap obstructed view rooms have a sofa bed for the third or is it a pull down bed or do they have both since the room holds 4? I was told the room has sofa bed but want to confirm.

No sofa. It has a pull down bed and the fourth person would sleep in a row with the two other twin beds. Here's a link for my Jade review last year with pictures. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2212965

I've noticed that on the few trips that I'm tracking, that in the past day since the free service charge has been added, quite a bit of cabins have been sold....whereas before, there was lots of availability and slow sales.

 

Smart (finally) on NCL's part.

 

What are your thoughts on them keeping this perk for a bit? As I write this, their site says "Limited Time"?

 

I admit that I'm taking a chance by waiting to book and that's ok. I'm betting (wisely, I hope!) that with lots of availability on the trips that I'm tracking, prices will drop....and free service charge stays.

 

In your experience, have you seen them add a perk and then take it away after a very short time?

 

Thanks,

 

Barbara

I've not seen them on offer for long. Last time offered was August, 2015. In the beginning of 2015 they were offered on sailings that weren't selling so good like on some Europe for last weekend of month. If you see a price you like, I would book now and you can always cancel prior to final pmt if something better comes along. The other thing is that if you see inventory starting to dwindle they will most likely be raising the prices. I'm sure they have a quota of target sales and once reached dsc offer will be gone. Dsc is an expensive perk for them to offer. It's simply cutting the amount they receive/pay crew. $50 shore excursion credit probably makes them quite a bit considering they're typically twice the price compared to booking independently. Current perks are about as good as they get especially for suites which get all perks.

With this perk offer I was able to get a suite price I was comfortable with, perks I will use in addition to ksf. I'm pretty happy with NCL right now.

Last Aug they offered free DSC. It's a rarely offered perk so I had my eye on it as well as the price of a cruise I was interested in. I was finally able to book a suite today at a price that I found reasonable. Price hadn't gone up with new perk. Took advantage of KSF as well. I know there's a lot of talk about the water/soda, increases in fees.. on NCL but the last couple cruises I've booked were actually really great deals and had more perks than previous years. I'm very happy with NCL right now. Granted most suites are now out of the range we are willing to pay and I would not chance trying for an upsell, but I was able to find one that suited our dates and desired destination at a price I found reasonable.

I didn't know about the deal this summer but that would make sense. Daughter was in Italy and a few other countries from June 13- end of July and Tmobile data worked great. No need for a data pass even in small towns and the country. A few garbled wifi calls but for the most part didn't use .20/min many times. Last year study abroad she sometimes had very slow internet and I purchased her a few data passes so she could have high speed. Our month visit and two week cruise last year we had data and phone that was fine. Sometimes a little slow but typically just needed to change provider choice when it got too slow. Greece was faster speeds than Italy. In comparison, daughter now in Alaska and has something ridiculous like Tmobile 100mg data allowance for the month and so basically only has internet when she can use a hotspot.

We don't leave till next month. If data speeds are similar to last year will do fine. Husband has Verizon and debating on 100/100/100 or $10/day. It's more important for him to be connected for work. We are on the NCL Jade and if I'm reading correctly on other threads, Verizon works on the ship. $10/day is much less than $24.99 ship Internet. Hopefully he won't need both. Having to be connected for work is expensive but only way for him to be gone so long.

Tmobile was a godsend last year for daughter study abroad, especially how they were in a different country every weekend.

Anyone have firsthand experience of TMobile data speeds in Italy?

 

They guarantee 2G, but I'm wondering if Tmobile customers have seen 3G or 4G speeds while using their mobile in Italy.

 

We've been long-time TMobile customers and with free international texting and data, I'd rather not have to look for an alternative to cellular data.

 

Thanks!

It works great. Sometimes Internet calling has a lag. Wait for the other person to finish and then speak. When you land in a country a welcome message pops up when you get off the plane. When out at sea or somewhere and your signal is too weak you can search for carriers and pick the one with the stronger signal. For example Cosmos Greece was usually strong and two or three bars of service on sea days. Vodophone seemed to be main choice in Italy. If one is slow then just search for a different carrier and pick that one. Make sure your phone is unlocked prior to leaving. We had 3 or 4g most everywhere in Europe. Internet a little slow at times but much faster than ships internet. If somewhere where the Internet calls are too garbled then we would just make a regular call at .20/min or text for free.

If you are looking at the unlimited plan it's same cost per day regardless of pre purchase or purchase on board. Last year on the b2b Jade med they would let you purchase per segment. So if you can get by without internet while going to many ports you could try and just purchase unlimited for the ta segment. If looking for set mins there's a latitude extra min bonus if purchase on ship.

I went ahead and pre purchased unlimited for our upcoming sailing. Husband needs for work. NCL announced in May that by July all ships would have upgraded much faster internet. Doesn't look like that's happened. I assume when (or if at this point) internet upgrade happens, the prices will increase and I didn't feel like paying more than $358 for two weeks Internet.

Some report Jade internet is a total waste and not very functional. Others report its slow but manageable depending on how many other users.

Hi Keith. Do you notice any difference with the internet speeds? Will be sailing the Jade soon and hoping the upgrade plans weren't scrapped. Have read reports of excruciating slow and others who report slow but manageable. Paid $358 for our sailing because husband needs for work. Thanks. Sounds like you are having a great vacation so far and glad to hear food and service are above par. Kim

My bad. That was a September 2017 price. $899 for 2016. :o

 

Point is, NCL is not getting a 2x or 3x premium.

If you were watching the Jade, they were getting that much more. Availability for the season is limited now and almost over so hard to compare but if you take a look, NCL is getting higher prices. Epic ran pretty steady. Jade went very high, Star and Spirit were mixed but overall prices were never dumped like last year and 2014. For comparison the Celebrity and HAL and RCI and even new builds from Carnival and HAL sailings that included Turkish ports saw some pretty heavy discounts this year and some major dumping with the perks thrown in just to get them sold. NCL didn't have to do that. There's always a chance Ncl did dump but just not to the public?

Point is, NCL is getting more this year than last year for Europe and 2x or 3x premium on many sailings compared to many Europe competitor sailings. There's always anomalies but im talking overall. Must have been the Brexit vote last week of the quarter that blew up the quarter earnings?

Unequivocally false statement.

 

7 night RT Barcelona Aug/Sept low price quote (via Expedia):

RCI Harmony OTS. $1,879

Costa Diadema $747

Disney Magic $1,205

NCL Epic $679

HAL Eurodam $799

MSC Fantasia $748

 

It's gotta be the water.:p

I've been following prices all year and I can tell you the prices are holding strong. I just did an Expedia search and there is no $679 price for this year on the epic.

On board spending may be way down but overall, the sailings are selling quite high compared to last year. A couple of spirit sailings were reduced pretty low but the Jade has been selling out at inside prices higher than any of the competition most sailings.

The quarter runs from April 1-June 30. Breexit vote on 6/23. Must have been an exceptionally bad week to account for the quarter loss. Europe sailings are selling out and selling quite high without those deep discounts I've seen in years past. NCL was one of the first lines to drop Turkey so while other lines who kept Turkey dropped prices to rock bottom, NCL was able to sell at prices more than double and triple the others.

I think it was March or April that 7 night cruise went from 4 to 3 dinners. Call your ta and have them email you an amenity invoice. It should be listed there. I think UBP cost/fee went up at the same time to $14.22 pp pd for UBP fees. You can also see what the SDP fee is and figure out #of days according to fee for SDP.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the cost of the UBP to go up next. Last time they raised the UPP to $79/day and raised the drink price inclusion from $11 to $15. When they raise the UBP price then they collect more for the 18%.

I hold out hope that if they raise the UBP price they will finally start including things like coffee, water bottles and canned soda like the other lines do, especially if they raise the price.

For someone who doesn't drink, or drinks very little and gets the package included for a suite it is quite a shock to find out they have an, "Ultimate Beverage Package" that is far from inclusive and very well may cover little to no beverages they want to consume. Simply absurd to let someone have a alcoholic coffee drink that costs $15 but make them pay for the one without the alcohol. Or a $15 bottle of beer but have to pay for the can of soda.

NCL's announcement in May, see it above, didn't say anything about needing to wait for dry dock for any of the 23 ships in the fleet. Then again it did say it would be available on ALL 23 ships in the fleet in July, which doesn't seem to have happened. I know NCL describes it as, "Lightening fast wifi," and that Speednet mimicked the internet that guests experience at home and office. I know that may be a stretch but it seems odd NCL would announce, and have on their own website that this was going to be installed in June and available in July. I could see perhaps some issues delaying a little but you would think it would be almost there? Either that or just plain old scrapped?

NCL announced in May the upgrade to all ships in June, available on all ships in July, 2016. Was this plan simply scrapped or just running late? Anyone experience this new Speednet on any ship yet? Sounds like Breakaway has better internet than the other ships in the fleet but that was the case before this upgrade announcement. We are sailing on the Jade soon and hoping they didn't scrap their plans. Here's what they have on their website:

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings to Deliver High Speed WiFi Across the Company's Three Brands

Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ guests to benefit from quadrupled bandwidth and ground breaking technology from EMC that significantly enhances shipboard WiFi experience

Miami - May 05, 2016

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (or "the Company") (NASDAQ: NCLH) announced today it will quadruple the current bandwidth across its Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises fleets in the coming months to meet the rising internet expectations of cruise guests. The quadrupling of bandwidth is part of a long term strategic agreement with EMC to significantly enhance the internet experience onboard all 23 ships in the Company's fleet.

To support the new WiFi network, multi-million dollar bandwidth and performance-boosting technology upgrades will be installed fleet-wide before the end of June, including new state of the art satellite dishes, and EMC's patented SpeedNet program. The SpeedNet program delivers popular websites at speeds that mimic high-speed fiber optic networks, similar to those available in homes and offices. The WiFi experience is further enhanced by the recent deployment of high speed shoreside connectivity in key ports of call.

"With the addition of new hardware, combined with the significant increase in satellite bandwidth, shoreside connectivity and EMC's SpeedNet, we have moved beyond the decade old problem of slow data speeds from satellite to deliver a much more efficient and faster internet experience for our guests," said Ross Henderson, vice president, onboard revenue, at Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings. "Our guests can consume content, post to social media, and stay in touch with family and friends on the ships' network just as they are used to on land," Henderson continued.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings selected EMC based on its priority software, maritime experience, and unparalleled network coverage to provide the highest quality of experience and satisfaction to cruise guests.

"This is testament to our giant leaps forward in the cruise sector, thanks to our patented, purpose-built and differentiated products, and our unmatched worldwide support," said Brent Horwitz, president of cruise and ferry services, EMC.

Guests on all Norwegian, Oceania and Regent ships can expect to experience the new, lightning-fast WiFi powered by SpeedNet by July 2016.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises guests enjoy complimentary WiFi, as part of the line's most inclusive luxury cruise experience. Oceania Cruise guests sailing under the current OLife Choice promotion and Norwegian Cruise Line guests who selected free WiFi as part of the company's Free at Sea promotion will also enjoy the new internet experience on their cruise. For those purchasing a plan, per minute packages as well as unlimited access packages are available for pre-book or onboard

Availability on the Jewel (for Aug/13th) went from 20+ non-interior cabins available to sold-out in a couple of days.

Wow, that got sold out fast :-(

They sell out this close to sail date. Inventory can change by the minute and if you want to sail to and from sea and have set dates I would guess that now would have to be the time to purchase if you are ok with the prices. Wa resident rate can change at any min as well. The Pearl, if you are lucky is probably the last ship with two rooms for three.

I was shocked - I had read that it was really crowded and then others said it wasn't so bad. I generally think people are more likely to complain than to say something positive, so we really didn't worry about the crowds and figured they weren't as bad as everyone said. They were much worse than we expected. I was also very disappointed about missing Kusadusi (I understand, but really wanted to see Ephesus -that was why we originally started with the Adriatic Cruise)

 

The second week we got off the ship as early as possible and it wasn't so bad. We had a tour booked that was supposed to return to the Cable Cars at 8:30 PM (with last tender at 9) and cancelled it after returning to the ship the first day - there was still another large ship in port when we were there until 10 PM.

 

Your boat trip sounds awesome, I hope you find another couple to share it with.

Thank you for the info. Yes very hard to judge but from sounds of it it seems pretty consistent that 2 pm arrival not that many complaints and 8 am arrival complaints about crowds. The 8 am arrival was the addition so I think that tipped scales. Sorry about Kusadasi.

Our roll call is pretty small so doubt we will find someone to share. Perhaps we will get lucky and find someone while waiting for tender. I thought about price though and think with those kind of crowds, and the great alternative experience, it's one of those times the cost is worth it.

Yeah too much money and we'll have our 3 year old son with us. The flowers are kinda a thank you for being the awesome wife and great mother she is all year.

Flowers are a wonderful thank you. Have a great cruise. Our captain last sailing ended each intercom announcement with, "remember, a happy wife means a happy life."

You might also look into the romance pkg. I ordered the deluxe romance pkg. $269 for non alcoholic or alcoholic version and includes; dozen roses in stateroom upon embarkation, chocolate strawberries, breakfast delivered day of choice (from what I can tell it's an upgraded breakfast more like what's avail to suites but not sure) canapés one eve & tea service delivered one day, non alcoholic or alcoholic wine delivered to stateroom, dinner for two in le bistro, professional 8x10 photo and two 25 min couples massages including grats. Figure if you were going to order roses, everything else is only $210. I think the only diff between deluxe romance and anniversary pkg is romance pkg also includes tea service but both same price.

Thank you for the helpful post! I'm arriving at Marco Polo Airport (VCE) at 10:45AM. So hopefully I can make it to the cruise terminal by 1 the latest and have a few hours to explore and eat! Grr i wish i planned better

Sure. A couple suggestions to hopefully make your bday go smooth: if you can afford it, sometimes I think it's better to spend some $ on what others may think frivolous. So a land taxi from airport to ship costs more than a bus to P Roma and then people mover but just much easier to take land taxi up to ship, hand porter your luggage and be done with it. Also a private water taxi is quite a bit more from ship to st marks square and back. Figure about 70-80 euro each way vs 8 euro pp each way on the Aulanguna or much less on people mover... But if it makes your day easier, especially after a long haul flight and your bday, it may be worth it. A couple hundred on transportation to get a nice lunch in Venice on the water on bday? That's a good use when the alternative is jet lag, planes, haul luggage, perhaps get lost and wasting precious time. I'm the type who would have travel melt down if I tried to fit budget transport with jet lag. Your also a bigger target if tired. My iPhone was stolen in Venice because I was stupid and tired.

The other suggestion: only take a carry on. I didn't last year and our bags were lost for a full week, luckily returned night prior to boarding ship. I met others who had to wear NCL tshirts every day while the ship laundered their one outfit. Much easier just to take one carry on. You can send laundry out on ship and its not that expensive. If you purchase too much you can always pick up more luggage while there. With only carry on you aren't wasting time waiting to claim at airport or worse, filling out lost luggage forms and needing to wear a British airways or NCL clothing for a week. Have a wonderful trip. I think you'll love the Jade.

Depends on how and when you arrive to Venice. If you are arriving to Venice day of via train or airport and looking for most time it would make sense to take a land taxi to ship and drop off bags. Train arrival you would get off at Mestre, 35-40 euro to ship and about 20 mins. They took our bags directly from taxi. If by Vce airport land taxi direct to ship and same process. We arrived on the 10:20 am train and were on board ship before 11am. We didn't try to venture into Venice embarkation day but there is a water taxi or Aluinga sp? Right there that goes to st marks direct, about 20 mins slow ride 8 euro rt. Someone on cc recently on the jade did this and had enough time for a quick trip to St marks, and then return to the ship. you could take a water taxi from ship to st marks after drop off bags. much faster, but much higher cost.

This year We arrive day prior, plan on having hotel, near St marks, hold bags after we check out, and arrival at ship no later than 4 pm which is what our travel docs say for latest arrival time.

Good to know that HAL has a special for $799. I haven't received any e-mails so far....how long after sign-up does one start receiving the prom e-mails, in general.

Idk. But if you price out 3 to a room Hal shows sold out for insides, so it probably doesn't work for three. Taxes and port fees are more on Hal so regardless they will cost you more. calling a ta at this point is your best bet. They will be able to check directly with the lines for availability. When you signed up for Hal did they give you a mariner number? If so give that to ta, along with your latitudes number and have them check for WA resident rates, ksf, and also ask if there are any group reservations. Sometimes ta blocks a group of rooms. I know c big box does but I often have to ask them to check. It's usually some extra obc, a dinner... Nothing really big. If it's ta obc ask if it can be used toward dsc bc your dsc for 6 is a chunk extra on top of fare. Good luck and have fun on the cruise.

I an able to see this price now. thanks!

Our group needs at least 2 cabins (total of 6 people)...I assume with GT, we can't be sure of getting two cabins nearby?

I would assume no GT on location but would call a ta and find out. You may be able to pay a little more for cabin location choice if avail. Btw. I got an email from HAL. Your dates are unadvertised special for $799 but they may not have any insides left. Also got a stop and drop email from princess and no Alaska deals for your dates. I would guess the Pearl is the least expensive way to go at this point for sea rt. This close to sail things can change by the hour. Looks like everyone has very limited availability. According to yesterday lowest price all in but not including dsc was $6018 for two insides no perks, 6 persons. $300 extra per room for perks(including grats on UBP).

Thanks a lot! Just checked this -- i am not able to replicate the $775 price; GT rooms are not showing on NCL.com now. I'm getting $860 (triple occupancy) for an assigned room. Will try later.

Strange. I checked those prices on NCL just prior to posting that. Perhaps call? I think big box c is still open too. Put in 3 and wa resident. The August 14 Pearl sailing was the only one with wa resident rate. $775 GT no perks and a few $ more for inside GT but with perk of UBP. It came in at $300 more with extra couple dollars for fare and then the grats on pkg.

I saw inside GT tonight for the Pearl 8/14/16, wa resident rate of $775 based on 3 in the room (which is what I think you have?). Total was $3010 with no perks or $300 more if you want the UBP perk for 1st two. That's all in cost with taxes and port fees and UBP grats. Does not include dsc.

If you book with a ta you'll get some extra obc. I used a site where you enter date, ship, cabin category and then the site has ta's contact you with quotes. Last cruise I got a quote for considerably less than anyone else with extra obc. Google for this bc you can't mention other sites. Big box warehouse ta will give you a c..... Gift card now and they no longer discount price but better than nothing.

Thanks for the detailed response. My perception was that HAL tends to have older passengers...thanks for helping reset it. I will look into HAL also.

Sure. You might also want to sign up for princess emails. Haven't sailed with them but they send emails for stop drop and roll? Last min and some good inside prices. The emails for private sales with HAL and princess are typically about $100 or more pp less than any advertised price.

Also perhaps check out one way cruise and flight home or to ANC. Delta is competing with Alaska Airlines now for business so both have some good flight deals. I regularly fly daughter to and from Anc. If similar price I would choose Alaska air just bc flights seem to depart on time where Delta seems to be late more often than not.

Regarding HAL, they seem to have many of the same types of activities offered on board. You won't see the dj dance party music by the pools and bars but they did offer good live music, more like something i would enjoy on land, like a guy with a guitar who could sing Beatles to Jack Johnson. Hal tries to seat you with others in mde but we prefer a table alone and they obliged.

Of course a balcony is great but inside staterooms really aren't that bad. No mega ships sail to Alaska so plenty of good deck spaces. If you are looking for best price I'd check out all the lines-even carnival. For Alaska in August all the lines are going to have about the same passenger mix. There's also pleanty of hiking that can be done for free in ports. You can spend a fortune on excursions or get out and hike for free, with trails often right off ship so no need for even taxi.