Fresh off the Breakaway 11/20 - 11/27

[April42749]

The problem with being up top on this particular time was that it was raining, so the people on top got wet too! The best place to sit would be in the bottom level, middle seats as far to the rear as possible.

 

Although the ride sounds "ugh".....just imagine all the complaints if they didn't tender that day.

[luckyinpa]

We were also on this cruise. We had the 10:00 tender time and got in the line at 9:45. They shuffled everyone into the theater and then dismissed by rows with no regard to tender reservation. They did allow excursions to board first. We made it to the island at about 11:30 (with the 10:00 tender reservation and getting in line at 9:45). Very disappointing.

 

We also had two little kids with us and made the mistake of sitting on the bottom exposed side/front level on the tender return. We got literally drenched, basically head to toe. It was like being in the first row of the Shamu show at Sea World LOL. our 5yo DD was scared and crying, clinging to Daddy the whole time (and we to her!) But our 7yo DS kept punching his hand in the air gleefully screaming "BEST RIDE EVER!!!" every time we'd hit a wave. He made many people laugh but it was nerve-wracking for the less brave among us ;). When we got to Nassau he was really disappointed it wasn't a tender port. The rest of us were all pretty grateful ;).

 

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i shared your post with my friend and we are going with her kids to bahamas. she informed me if the water is warm we will be at the bottom front of the tender.

[lovedestiny]

We were also on this cruise. We had the 10:00 tender time and got in the line at 9:45. They shuffled everyone into the theater and then dismissed by rows with no regard to tender reservation. They did allow excursions to board first. We made it to the island at about 11:30 (with the 10:00 tender reservation and getting in line at 9:45). Very disappointing.

 

We also had two little kids with us and made the mistake of sitting on the bottom exposed side/front level on the tender return. We got literally drenched, basically head to toe. It was like being in the first row of the Shamu show at Sea World LOL. our 5yo DD was scared and crying, clinging to Daddy the whole time (and we to her!) But our 7yo DS kept punching his hand in the air gleefully screaming "BEST RIDE EVER!!!" every time we'd hit a wave. He made many people laugh but it was nerve-wracking for the less brave among us ;). When we got to Nassau he was really disappointed it wasn't a tender port. The rest of us were all pretty grateful ;).

 

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Lol @ your 7 y/o! But thanks for sharing your experience, sry to hear you got wet. Yikes. :eek:

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[ladybug02191]

We were also on this cruise. We had the 10:00 tender time and got in the line at 9:45. They shuffled everyone into the theater and then dismissed by rows with no regard to tender reservation. They did allow excursions to board first. We made it to the island at about 11:30 (with the 10:00 tender reservation and getting in line at 9:45). Very disappointing.

 

We also had two little kids with us and made the mistake of sitting on the bottom exposed side/front level on the tender return. We got literally drenched, basically head to toe. It was like being in the first row of the Shamu show at Sea World LOL. our 5yo DD was scared and crying, clinging to Daddy the whole time (and we to her!) But our 7yo DS kept punching his hand in the air gleefully screaming "BEST RIDE EVER!!!" every time we'd hit a wave. He made many people laugh but it was nerve-wracking for the less brave among us ;). When we got to Nassau he was really disappointed it wasn't a tender port. The rest of us were all pretty grateful ;).

 

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We were also on this cruise; enjoyed most aspects of it but the GSC day was the most disappointing. As you described, they weren't even checking what tender group people were in after a certain point. The last letter we heard them call was either H or I. It was disorganized and I got very vague answers when I asked why the delays were so long. "There were problems with the queuing" was a repeat answer. Then, later in the day, "The seas were rougher than we anticipated".

 

We had reservations for the 11:45 tender boat. We joined the line at 11:30, then sat in the Breakaway Theater until 1:15. No updates, no sense of when we might be called, just waiting and watching as they called up different sections of the theater...which means we got over to the island 2 hours after we first got in line. And we also experienced the, um, "refreshing" rain shower on the ride over. Lines were long for the return tender boats starting at 3 PM; we chose to leave around 3:30-4. So we spent more time waiting/traveling back & forth then we did on Great Stirrup Cay. The water was beautiful but chilly. The lunch buffet was decent. The Bacardi drinks were strong--I had one Pina Colada that seemed to be 3/4 rum. None of us got a sunburn since it was an overcast day with temperatures in low 70-mid 80s. I realize that we were lucky to go there since a lot of sailings cancel the tender boats due to rough seas, so I am trying to stay positive.

 

I am a first-time NCL cruiser. They seemed to deal with smaller groups well and many things were enjoyable (food, drinks, entertainment, service, meeting other passengers). I guess it's to be expected that the sheer number of passengers means that they can't handle the large groups very well (embarking, tendering, disembarking). Those were the frustrating times, since NCL pre-arranged people into groups, but didn't seem to enforce that anyone actually stay in the (non-premium) groups. That's about it for my review :)

[luckyinpa]

does anyone have historical experience to confirm the horrible tendering is a system problem rather than a 'we are open again and forget how to do this' problem?

 

i have to say the reviews are almost scaring me away in 2 weeks

 

id probably wait 1 hour in the theater then give up.

[WashyWashyHappyHappy95]

pro tip....just go to the island after lunch. by then the rush is over. how long can you really spend on that rock anyway, right? Assuming you don't want to do the molest-a-stingray excursion or something like that, use that day to sleep in and enjoy the near-empty boat while everyone scrambles for the tenders. Have a leisurely lunch in a near-empty Garden Cafe, then stroll onto a tender with no wait. Spend the afternoon/sunset on the island, and come back on the last tender available, which will be mostly empty.

[luckyinpa]

pro tip....just go to the island after lunch. by then the rush is over. how long can you really spend on that rock anyway, right? .

 

are you sure you arent posting under geezer or grumpman's handle :)

 

per the above post of 1:15pm, i dont think would be worth it to leave the ship at 2 to get there. plus i would want to partake of the yummy buffet

[bimmer328]

does anyone have historical experience to confirm the horrible tendering is a system problem rather than a 'we are open again and forget how to do this' problem?

 

I was on the BA last week and tendering process was unbelievably disorganized. The biggest issue IMO: there were only 3 tender boats to transport all the people back and forth. And given the rough waters, it was taking much longer for each tender trip. I was on the Gem back in 2013 and it was about a 30-40 minute wait to get off the ship (not the 1.5-2 hrs many people waited last week).

 

My advice is to get an early tender time. I had booked a kayak excursion (which ended being cancelled due to the rough waters) but that excursion ticket bypassed the line for us. They gathered everyone in the theater and people with excursions were seated in the front and were the 1st to get on. I was on the 1st tender over to GSC and the water was not too rough but as the day passed, it definitely got choppy.

[ladybug02191]

I was on the BA last week and tendering process was unbelievably disorganized. The biggest issue IMO: there were only 3 tender boats to transport all the people back and forth. And given the rough waters, it was taking much longer for each tender trip. I was on the Gem back in 2013 and it was about a 30-40 minute wait to get off the ship (not the 1.5-2 hrs many people waited last week).

 

My advice is to get an early tender time. I had booked a kayak excursion (which ended being cancelled due to the rough waters) but that excursion ticket bypassed the line for us. They gathered everyone in the theater and people with excursions were seated in the front and were the 1st to get on. I was on the 1st tender over to GSC and the water was not too rough but as the day passed, it definitely got choppy.

 

Out of curiosity, how do you go about getting an early tender time (non-Haven, non-Platinum Latitudes member, non-excursion booked)? Do you just do it immediately upon boarding or at least in the first day? I'm a newbie and I was coordinating the whole trip for my family group of 7, so reserving space on a tender boat was another thing on my long "To-Do" List. I got around to it during Box Office hours on Monday afternoon. I was told that 11:45 was the earliest time available. If we sail again, I'd appreciate an insider's tip! Thanks to many helpful members on this website, I knew to book Specialty Restaurants and Shows on-line as soon as we were 90 days out from sailing---that served us well. But I haven't seen any advice on how to snag an early tender time!

 

Thanks-

[bimmer328]

Out of curiosity, how do you go about getting an early tender time (non-Haven, non-Platinum Latitudes member, non-excursion booked)?

 

I was able to reserve a 10:00 tender time through the IConcierge app early Monday morning or you could do it via the TV as well. I checked the app on Tuesday and I think 10:20 was the earliest listed. Not sure why the Box Office told you 11:45. Try the app or TV next time.

[lovedestiny]

I was on the BA last week and tendering process was unbelievably disorganized. The biggest issue IMO: there were only 3 tender boats to transport all the people back and forth. And given the rough waters, it was taking much longer for each tender trip. I was on the Gem back in 2013 and it was about a 30-40 minute wait to get off the ship (not the 1.5-2 hrs many people waited last week).

 

My advice is to get an early tender time. I had booked a kayak excursion (which ended being cancelled due to the rough waters) but that excursion ticket bypassed the line for us. They gathered everyone in the theater and people with excursions were seated in the front and were the 1st to get on. I was on the 1st tender over to GSC and the water was not too rough but as the day passed, it definitely got choppy.

 

Thanks for sharing your experience, glad to see I wasn't the only one who thought the tender process was crazy, lol.

[lovedestiny]

Out of curiosity, how do you go about getting an early tender time (non-Haven, non-Platinum Latitudes member, non-excursion booked)? Do you just do it immediately upon boarding or at least in the first day? I'm a newbie and I was coordinating the whole trip for my family group of 7, so reserving space on a tender boat was another thing on my long "To-Do" List. I got around to it during Box Office hours on Monday afternoon. I was told that 11:45 was the earliest time available. If we sail again, I'd appreciate an insider's tip! Thanks to many helpful members on this website, I knew to book Specialty Restaurants and Shows on-line as soon as we were 90 days out from sailing---that served us well. But I haven't seen any advice on how to snag an early tender time!

 

Thanks-

 

If you're booking tendering for a group of 7, you can try the screens near the elevator. You just press tendering and scan the keycard/pick the group (time) you want to go in and select the names, I think that would be the fastest way. I was in my brother/Sis-in-law's room and I booked them a tender time on the tv and I literally walked down the hall to my room and the tender time I chose them was gone and I couldn't book it. But then the next day it seemed like the time opened up again. Idk it was just a weird process. (for me)

[lovedestiny]

We were also on this cruise; enjoyed most aspects of it but the GSC day was the most disappointing. As you described, they weren't even checking what tender group people were in after a certain point. The last letter we heard them call was either H or I. It was disorganized and I got very vague answers when I asked why the delays were so long. "There were problems with the queuing" was a repeat answer. Then, later in the day, "The seas were rougher than we anticipated".

 

We had reservations for the 11:45 tender boat. We joined the line at 11:30, then sat in the Breakaway Theater until 1:15. No updates, no sense of when we might be called, just waiting and watching as they called up different sections of the theater...which means we got over to the island 2 hours after we first got in line. And we also experienced the, um, "refreshing" rain shower on the ride over. Lines were long for the return tender boats starting at 3 PM; we chose to leave around 3:30-4. So we spent more time waiting/traveling back & forth then we did on Great Stirrup Cay. The water was beautiful but chilly. The lunch buffet was decent. The Bacardi drinks were strong--I had one Pina Colada that seemed to be 3/4 rum. None of us got a sunburn since it was an overcast day with temperatures in low 70-mid 80s. I realize that we were lucky to go there since a lot of sailings cancel the tender boats due to rough seas, so I am trying to stay positive.

 

I am a first-time NCL cruiser. They seemed to deal with smaller groups well and many things were enjoyable (food, drinks, entertainment, service, meeting other passengers). I guess it's to be expected that the sheer number of passengers means that they can't handle the large groups very well (embarking, tendering, disembarking). Those were the frustrating times, since NCL pre-arranged people into groups, but didn't seem to enforce that anyone actually stay in the (non-premium) groups. That's about it for my review :)

 

Thank you for adding to the conversation! Hope you enjoyed your first cruise :)

[hokies111]

does anyone have historical experience to confirm the horrible tendering is a system problem rather than a 'we are open again and forget how to do this' problem?

 

i have to say the reviews are almost scaring me away in 2 weeks

 

id probably wait 1 hour in the theater then give up.

 

Disembarkation in NY (which they do every week) was equally a disorganized mess . I think their logistics are designed to go ok if there are no issues , but they do not have plans to react to delays well or communicate to the guests .

 

I get down to the disembarkation floor at 915am , and it is madness - there are two lines in two directions immediately in front of the elevator . There are no staff , so after talking to other people in line we learn it's the same line that u turns at the end of the ship.

 

We get in line and from further out watch as more people get out of the elevators going through the same process . Some of them try to just merge into the line right off the elevator . At the U turn point we see another Line has sprouted in the opposite direction feeding into the main line , further slowing things down .

 

There was not a single crew in sight , and several people were cutting others . I saw a family take advantage of a gap, and just switch directions into the main line before they hit the actual u turn (cutting hundreds )

 

No crew , no ropes , and no organization until we reached the casino 45 minutes later .

 

All together it took us 2 hours to get off the ship. The bottleneck seemed to be port authority . But , had they done disembarkation groups (which I know they never do ) and/or actually had people organize lines. It would have been infinitely more pleasant .

 

The two tenders hold 4-500 hundred , meaning 5 round trips should do it for the ship, I suspect they had issues but just didn't communicate ( and again calling boarding groups would be so much better ). Interested to hear how it goes next week .

[luckyinpa]

hokies do you feel if you did self assist that you would have avoided all this. i would consider doing that to avoid that disaster in 2 weeks

[hokies111]

hokies do you feel if you did self assist that you would have avoided all this. i would consider doing that to avoid that disaster in 2 weeks

 

We actually did self assist (it seems most do actually). Self assist or not everyone waits in the same lines. The only difference is that non self assist picks up their bags from a pile right before customs .

 

You will probably be fine , embarkation was easy and the reviews would be worse if everyone had this experience every week. I just wish Norwegian handled delays better .

[lovedestiny]

Disembarkation in NY (which they do every week) was equally a disorganized mess . I think their logistics are designed to go ok if there are no issues , but they do not have plans to react to delays well or communicate to the guests .

 

I get down to the disembarkation floor at 915am , and it is madness - there are two lines in two directions immediately in front of the elevator . There are no staff , so after talking to other people in line we learn it's the same line that u turns at the end of the ship.

 

We get in line and from further out watch as more people get out of the elevators going through the same process . Some of them try to just merge into the line right off the elevator . At the U turn point we see another Line has sprouted in the opposite direction feeding into the main line , further slowing things down .

 

There was not a single crew in sight , and several people were cutting others . I saw a family take advantage of a gap, and just switch directions into the main line before they hit the actual u turn (cutting hundreds )

 

No crew , no ropes , and no organization until we reached the casino 45 minutes later .

 

All together it took us 2 hours to get off the ship. The bottleneck seemed to be port authority . But , had they done disembarkation groups (which I know they never do ) and/or actually had people organize lines. It would have been infinitely more pleasant .

 

The two tenders hold 4-500 hundred , meaning 5 round trips should do it for the ship, I suspect they had issues but just didn't communicate ( and again calling boarding groups would be so much better ). Interested to hear how it goes next week .

 

Thank you for sharing that experience, it was definitely disorganized.

 

I heard people talking about the lines and how bad they were and how they wrapped around the ship. They know there are 3,000+ of us trying to get off of the boat but there were only a few "customs" agents. When someone who was near us in the line asked about it the rep goes into this long rant about the customs people need breaks to rest their eyes and all this other nonsense. They had 15 stations open and only about 5-6 were being used when we got off. I also saw a man get practically tackled for going under a rope to take his luggage vs. going around and going in the proper way. A bit of a sucky way to end a nice trip, but hey what can you do.

[bimmer328]

We went to disembark via self assist around 8am. The line on the forward end of the ship was longer than the aft line. So we stayed aft and were off the ship within 10 mins (don't know if people were not aware there were two exit lines). We had about a 15 minute wait in the terminal at customs. So overall, we were out of the port within a half hr. Sounds like if you can get down early, you may be able to avoid the long wait...

 

hokies- sorry to hear about your disembarkation issues and long wait.

[luckyinpa]

We went to disembark via self assist around 8am. The line on the forward end of the ship was longer than the aft line. So we stayed aft and were off the ship within 10 mins (don't know if people were not aware there were two exit lines). We had about a 15 minute wait in the terminal at customs. So overall, we were out of the port within a half hr. Sounds like if you can get down early, you may be able to avoid the long wait...

 

hokies- sorry to hear about your disembarkation issues and long wait.

 

i've always left the ship forward. do you still go to 7 aft down those elevators and as i recall there's only one gangway so you must meet up with the 'forward' exiting people at some point? when you get off the elevators i'm assuming its obvious where the line is? i'm a detailed oriented person and i'm trying to nail down the disembark as we do need to get home as soon as possible after the cruise. i've also read of people snaking up the steps but if you get out at an elevator. surely you dont go up steps to get in line?

 

i was in haven so truly didnt pay attention to anything when getting off the 1st time i sailed. just followed our group. but this time i'm aft so if theres a better chance self assisting and going aft i'm game. thanks for the info.

[bimmer328]

i've always left the ship forward. do you still go to 7 aft down those elevators and as i recall there's only one gangway so you must meet up with the 'forward' exiting people at some point? when you get off the elevators i'm assuming its obvious where the line is? i'm a detailed oriented person and i'm trying to nail down the disembark as we do need to get home as soon as possible after the cruise. i've also read of people snaking up the steps but if you get out at an elevator. surely you dont go up steps to get in line?

 

i was in haven so truly didnt pay attention to anything when getting off the 1st time i sailed. just followed our group. but this time i'm aft so if theres a better chance self assisting and going aft i'm game. thanks for the info.

 

Yes, the aft exit is right around the corner from the elevators on deck 7. They roped off the area in front of both sides of the elevators and you had to walk around the ropes to get in line. I think the stairways were roped off so you had to come off the elevators. We exited the ship on deck 7, went down the ramp to the terminal and that is where the aft line meets up with the forward line (which was definitely much longer).

[luckyinpa]

Yes, the aft exit is right around the corner from the elevators on deck 7. They roped off the area in front of both sides of the elevators and you had to walk around the ropes to get in line. I think the stairways were roped off so you had to come off the elevators. We exited the ship on deck 7, went down the ramp to the terminal and that is where the aft line meets up with the forward line (which was definitely much longer).

 

ok gotcha. this info would be good to be added to the NY thread i found a while ago about parking etc

 

thanks for it! now i know where you mean that you meet up. i recently saw a review with people standing outside that LOoooooooong terminal to get to the far end and the escalators. but if you beat some forward people off the ship, that line wont be 'as bad' :)

[luvtheships]

hokies do you feel if you did self assist that you would have avoided all this. i would consider doing that to avoid that disaster in 2 weeks

 

 

You avoid this issue in 2 ways....

 

1. You get off as early as possible...skip breakfast...pack light and grab all your stuff and go by 7:30 and of course you do self assist

 

2. You pack light do self assist but you sleep until 8 and then get ready to go but you get breakfast first and leave your stuff in your cabin and tell the steward you will be back in 20 minutes. You then grab your stuff but wait until you absolutely must leave the cabin. You move leisurely and perhaps go back up to the pool deck to enjoy

 

 

Point is either get out of dodge ASAP or stay in dodge until the bitter end

 

Forget about timed debark

 

 

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Edited December 2, 2016 by luvtheships

[ladybug02191]

Thank you for adding to the conversation! Hope you enjoyed your first cruise :)

 

Thank you! I'd say that we did enjoy it, overall....the positives far outweighed the negatives. Everyone in my group of 7 found different things to enjoy; we paired up or grouped off in different combos to eat/drink/play/relax/walk the Waterfront. I especially liked all the live music at night. And the big group meals were nice, too. Service was excellent when they weren't trying to move around thousands of people.

 

Hope that you had a great cruise, too.

[Hothams]

So I've never self assisted as we've always flown to port but upcoming cruise we are able to drive- so is it possible to have them take your luggage off, go to breakfast and carry your own carry ons off after breakfast? And potentially avoid the long lines?

 

 

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