If I had only known... What do you wish someone had told you prior to your 1st NCL cr

[hamrag]

It wasn't NCL, but equally applies...I wish someone had told me:

 

There will be a relatively high proportion of whingers on board who, amongst other things will say something like "With Princess/Celebrity/RCI/Carnival/HAL you get....."

The best solution is to recognise such, and politely avoid or challenge irrational comparisons if necessary!

 

Don't listen to the cruiseline tour mantra...."to guarantee you will get back to the ship on time....."

We very quickly learned the benefit of DIY touring: no meeting in theatre; smaller/no groups so no need to wait on the selfish group on every trip who believe their time is more important than yours; focus the tour precisely on what you want to do, avoiding trips to aunt/uncle jean/john restaurant or store!

There are some tours that are absolutely worth taking with the cruiseline, and we pick and choose those carefully.

 

We have sailed 38 cruises, with 13 different cruiselines, and to date 10 of those cruises were NCL.

[txagfan]

Enjoy your cruise, no lack of wet blankets on here.

 

 

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[tjt87]

Book all the entertainment you may want to see as soon as is possible, some 90-100 days out some at the touch screen or Box Office on board.

You can always cancel or "no show" if you want but it saves you having to take the chance of waiting in the standby line or missing out. I got caught out on my first mega ship and missed a comedian I was really wanting to see

[Two Wheels Only]

(Doesn't apply to me but could help others)

 

 

If you have a problem while on-board, deal with it THEN. Don't hold it in for fear of complaining too much then return to CC and complain.

 

No matter how big (toilet won't flush or toilet floods, for ex.) or small the problem ("...I didn't get a towel animal on most nights...:loudcry:), don't wait until you are home to complain about it.

[biker@sea]

Save your all your ship Key cards. :D

 

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[Fred Quimby]

take out at O'sheehans!

[morningstar4]

Only been on one NCL cruise, so take this with a grain of salt.

 

1. Bars -The pool bartenders are there for volume. This isn't a "CON", it just makes sense given the amount of people flowing in and out of the pool area. Go to the other bars(O'Sheehans, Sunset if you smoke/want to be outside) if you want drinks made "your way" and better service. In addition, most bar patrons have the UBP with the paid gratuity(18% * 79 * CruiseDays). If you want to stick out, find an outgoing bartender and tip them 5/10 bucks early on. We did this and got rewarded with no wait times every time we wanted a drink. Stellar service continued, so we kept the tips flowing at a lesser rate.

 

Hell, you could probably tip less than that given that I didn't see anyone else tipping with cash.

 

2. Specialty Restaurants - Cagneys was your classic steak house, choose Le Bistro if you want something special. The veal medallions/mushroom soup were extraordinary.

 

3. Pool Area = small. We want on the GetAway and it was the smallest pool out of any ships we've been on. It offers the waterslides for kids and H20 for adults(small waterfalls). All in all, not a big issue for us, but go early morning(7AM) for a swim without the masses.

 

4. Buy bottled water up front. (Goes with Step 1 if you're indulging in the UBP)

 

5. We found the MDR on the GetAway to be loud. The band/entertainment was down, but it seemed to interfere with the ability for us to communicate with our waiter. Either that or they strategically placed him there. :)

 

We preferred the quieter dining rooms which served the same food. The wait staff seemed more attentive as well.

 

6. I'm not a huge fan of magic, but the illusionarium show was pretty solid. I was disappointed in the food, but hit it up if you have kids and want to fill a void in the trip.

 

I found the ship layout to be subpar compares to the wide open spaces of RCCL. Just my opinion of the design. One of the main things(and I smoke) was the fact that the casino was right in the middle of one of the main atriums. This caused the smoke to waft downwards and infiltrate other hallways. Also, the smokers lounge right outside the pool seemed strange to me.

 

Great tips... I booked Le Bistro twice! :)

[morningstar4]

Book all the entertainment you may want to see as soon as is possible, some 90-100 days out some at the touch screen or Box Office on board.

You can always cancel or "no show" if you want but it saves you having to take the chance of waiting in the standby line or missing out. I got caught out on my first mega ship and missed a comedian I was really wanting to see

 

Is it possible to do this on the small ships? I don't see that option for the Gem.

[tjt87]

Is it possible to do this on the small ships? I don't see that option for the Gem.

 

Don't think so just the 4 big ones, sorry

[$hip$hape]

You can order as many appetizers and entrees as you want in the main dining rooms.

You can't always eat as much as you want.

[philip_eunice1]

That it would be my one and only cruise with my mum before she died

 

 

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[morningstar4]

That it would be my one and only cruise with my mum before she died

 

 

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I'm glad you had the opportunity to take that cruise with your mom. I'm sure you have wonderful memories to hold close to your heart.... I'm so sorry for your loss.

[cruisinsuze]

That it would be my one and only cruise with my mum before she died

 

 

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so sorry - i hope you both thoroughly enjoyed yourselves!

 

 

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[drvalo]

Go to the main dining room that is open for embarkation lunch. They try to get you to go to the buffet which is a mad house. Go to the main dining, relax, and when you are done the cabin will be ready.

 

Participate in the Cruise Director staff organized activities like trivia, goofy golf, shuffle board, etc. You meet a lot of people that way.

 

You can take the Freestyle Daily apart. The activities page has a perforated edge. Separating it make is easily fold and fit in your lanyard or pocket so you don't miss something you wanted to attend or see. Also bring a highlighter.

 

7 days is really not long enough to cruise... :)

[OUgal]

If you can't tell if you're walking toward the front or back of the ship, just look down at the carpet and look at the direction the fish are swimming.

 

Keep watch for the single red fish swimming upstream -- that's the rebellious fish, which also is the name of a great adult beverage on NCL!

 

 

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[Specially_K]

Great tips! We set sail on our first NCL cruise on Sunday. #WooHoo

[lennydebbie]

Afraid is not the word. It just seems that at some ports you can go on your own and not have to book through the cruise line based on some of the reviews I've read. I've honestly only been on one cruise. At one port we rented a scooter and just cruised around on our own but wish we had researched ahead of time as to what to see. We still had a great time though. Went on a guided tour at another port and absolutely loved it. Had NO plan at another port and ended up not enjoying it much because we didn't do our research. So my point is to be sure to do your research so you know what all your options are.

 

 

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[Chrisp2017]

Enjoy your cruise, no lack of wet blankets on here.

 

 

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Love it lol Very true!!

[LrgPizza]

What ship?

There are people talking about the Great Outdoors, Spinnaker Lounge and Spice H2O. No ship has all of these, so the value of these tips depends on your ship.

[kleibo]

Great tips - we are going on our first NCL cruise in May after 10 Carnival Cruises. Will be interesting to see the differences.

 

One thing I did notice was the internet plan - over $200 each for the week. Wow. You can get the social package which includes FB messenger on Carnival for $5 per day per person. (Social ($5 USD per day) – Access the most popular websites and applications. Includes: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat, Pinterest, Linkedin, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. Does not include access to other websites or apps.)

 

So how do people "text" or "message" each other onboard?

[texastennis]

Question.... just how casual is NCL both around the ship in general and in the MDRs?

 

Extremely casual. Everyday wear -- athletic casual, capris, sundresses, sandals. I've noticed that women tend to be more concerned about their attire. Guys seem to have difficulty remembering to not wear baseball caps in the dining rooms sometimes.

[ColeThornton]

Great tips - we are going on our first NCL cruise in May after 10 Carnival Cruises. Will be interesting to see the differences.

 

One thing I did notice was the internet plan - over $200 each for the week. Wow. You can get the social package which includes FB messenger on Carnival for $5 per day per person. (Social ($5 USD per day) – Access the most popular websites and applications. Includes: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat, Pinterest, Linkedin, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. Does not include access to other websites or apps.)

 

So how do people "text" or "message" each other onboard?

 

https://www.ncl.com/apps

[kleibo]

https://www.ncl.com/apps Awesome - thanks.

[quaker77]

They tell that there is a nominal fee for texting and calling with the app .

 

Someone knows more about this

 

Thanks

[yukongold]

How wonderfully liberating Freestyle cruising. We have spent decades rushing around with set dining times, group tables where you truly learn to dislike your dining companions after a week. NCL has got it right!

 

I agree about the Freestyle - it gives you a lot more leeway and no more watching the clock or wondering if you are going to get back from shore on time.