Any Tips/Advice for a First Time NCL Cruiser

[Sauer-kraut]

3 minutes ago, Bajan Keith said:

 

Is it the single serve type coffee maker ?

No, it's a little drip type with a filter, like you find in hotel rooms.

[JamieLogical]

3 minutes ago, Bajan Keith said:

 

 

My wife will be very happy to hear that the room has its own coffeee maker...she must have her coffee on mornings.

Is it the single serve type coffee maker ?

 

 

Yes, similar to the ones you see in most hotels theses days. They use little single-serve filter packets. We always get the free room service coffee delivered in the morning as well, so we can skip making it ourselves for morning coffee, but then make our own in the afternoons and evenings (we drink a lot of coffee) if we aren't out and about to get some from the buffet. Advantage of getting coffee from the buffet is you can stop at the bar there and have them put some Bailey's in it!

[cruisingbajan]

13 minutes ago, Sauer-kraut said:

No, it's a little drip type with a filter, like you find in hotel rooms.

 

Cool

[Cm84]

Pay no attention to reviews. It's mega laid back and amazing. No formal dining or dress up. Just enjoy.

 

And again, ignore negative reviews.

[cruisingbajan]

15 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

 

Yes, similar to the ones you see in most hotels theses days. They use little single-serve filter packets. We always get the free room service coffee delivered in the morning as well, so we can skip making it ourselves for morning coffee, but then make our own in the afternoons and evenings (we drink a lot of coffee) if we aren't out and about to get some from the buffet. Advantage of getting coffee from the buffet is you can stop at the bar there and have them put some Bailey's in it!

 

At this rate my  wife is going to want us to cruise NCL all the time going forward ..😄 She is also a huge Bailey's fan and I can see her definitley dong the "Bailey's Spike" 😀

[JamieLogical]

It's one of these:

 

And uses packets like these:

 

[cruisingbajan]

Just now, Cm84 said:

Pay no attention to reviews. It's mega laid back and amazing. No formal dining or dress up. Just enjoy.

 

And again, ignore negative reviews.

 

Our main reason for booking is we figured it would be a nice laid back vibe and thats what we want!👍

[JamieLogical]

1 minute ago, Bajan Keith said:

 

At this rate my  wife is going to want us to cruise NCL all the time going forward ..😄 She is also a huge Bailey's fan and I can see her definitley dong the "Bailey's Spike" 😀

 

Make sure she stops by O'Sheehan's and orders an "Irish Coffee" once in a while too. That's just black coffee, whiskey, and a huge amount of whipped cream. I love to stir the whipped cream in and drink it while it's still really hot.

[cruisingbajan]

6 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Make sure she stops by O'Sheehan's and orders an "Irish Coffee" once in a while too. That's just black coffee, whiskey, and a huge amount of whipped cream. I love to stir the whipped cream in and drink it while it's still really hot.

 

Sounds really good. I hardly ever drink coffee but I would definitley try that!!

[Cm84]

Ideal. You will love it.

 

The cruisers who love the traditional way of cruising tend to not be massive fans. Each to their own but I will be on getaway in 3 weeks and have been on Breakaway. Breakaway so far has been my favourite ship and in general ncl cruises are just incredible. 

[Von & John]

2 hours ago, Lupush said:

Bring your own toilet paper.  The toilet paper that NCL uses is like wiping your hind end with sandpaper.

 

Similar topic - when we travel, we always bring a box of Kleenex...

My delicate nose does not like other tissues...

& the A/C onboard makes my nose itch...

Even if we do all carry-on - I find a way to pack my Kleenex (insert your favorite tissue) discard the box if necessary & pack in a ziplock...

[Von & John]

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Not to derail the topic entirely, but on our first NCL sailing, a man coming out of one of the public restrooms said to my SO, "they've got that John Wayne toilet paper... don't take sh** from no one" and ever since then, we use the phrase "John Wayne toilet paper" all the time! 😋

 

Wow  --  LOVE IT!!!!

My first LAUGH Out Loud of the Morning!!!

Many years ago, we called the TP @ ISU "Macho Wipe"...

You had to be Macho to use it 🙂

Edited June 13, 2019 by Von & John

[cruisingbajan]

11 minutes ago, Cm84 said:

Ideal. You will love it.

 

The cruisers who love the traditional way of cruising tend to not be massive fans. Each to their own but I will be on getaway in 3 weeks and have been on Breakaway. Breakaway so far has been my favourite ship and in general ncl cruises are just incredible. 

 

I am sure we will. We like the idea of dining whenever we want and being as casual as possible.

 

That way we are able to do stuff and eat at our leisure without having to get to any dining room at any particular time.

Edited June 13, 2019 by Bajan Keith
spelling

[Von & John]

32 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Make sure she stops by O'Sheehan's and orders an "Irish Coffee" once in a while too. That's just black coffee, whiskey, and a huge amount of whipped cream. I love to stir the whipped cream in and drink it while it's still really hot.

 

Jamie - you're hitting my buttons this morning...

Irish Coffee

Butterscotch Schnapps

Kahlua

Godiva Chocolate

Sambuca (on the side)

Brandy

Chambord

Aquavit

Frangelico

I could go on & on...

Edited June 13, 2019 by Von & John

[JamieLogical]

7 minutes ago, Von & John said:

 

Jamie - you're hitting my buttons this morning...

Irish Coffee

Bailey's

Kahlua

Godiva Chocolate

Frangelico

I could go on & on...

 

i know! This whole thread is making me wish I didn't have to wait until December for my next NCL cruise!

[Von & John]

Just now, JamieLogical said:

 

i know! This whole thread is making me wish I didn't have to wait until December for my next NCL cruise!

 

Right there w/ you...

Currently our next cruise is in March - hoping to pick up a cruise in October...

 

[JamieLogical]

8 minutes ago, Von & John said:

 

Right there w/ you...

Currently our next cruise is in March - hoping to pick up a cruise in October...

 

 

If you are looking to cruise in October, you can get a Haven room on the Joy for only $1399 per person on a 5-day sailing from Vancouver to LA. I just discovered that and plan to plead my case to my SO tonight, because I am thinking a 5-day in October and a 7-day in maybe January or February might be better than waiting until our 12-day on the Bliss in December and then not sailing on the Encore until late April....

[danak13]

On 6/11/2019 at 7:47 PM, MJSailors said:

Have you read the recent post here  by danak13 asking about people’s reaction to sailing on the Breakaway?

Many pros and cons about the ship written by past passengers.

Give it a look 😉

 

This is the first post someone ever mentioned me in! I must be a veteran now 😋

[TenForward]

On 6/13/2019 at 2:27 PM, JamieLogical said:

 

Make sure she stops by O'Sheehan's and orders an "Irish Coffee" once in a while too. That's just black coffee, whiskey, and a huge amount of whipped cream. I love to stir the whipped cream in and drink it while it's still really hot.

 

On 6/13/2019 at 2:36 PM, Bajan Keith said:

 

Sounds really good. I hardly ever drink coffee but I would definitley try that!!

 

If I remember right, specialty coffee drinks aren't covered under the drinks package... to avoid paying, I've heard some people order the coffee with whipped cream but request a shot of whiskey (or Bailey's) separate on the side, then add it themselves.  

[JamieLogical]

4 hours ago, TenForward said:

 

 

If I remember right, specialty coffee drinks aren't covered under the drinks package... to avoid paying, I've heard some people order the coffee with whipped cream but request a shot of whiskey (or Bailey's) separate on the side, then add it themselves.  

 

Lavazza and Starbucks are not included. But Irish Coffee from O'sheehan's and The Local definitely are.

[cruisingbajan]

Hi Everyone...hope someone ses this and responds as I did not want to start a new thread just to ask this question..so here goes...

 

Can anyone tell me if you have to book Specialty Dining prior to boarding or can you do it when you get on the ship?

 

Do you have to book the shows as well or do you just walk in?

 

Thanks again

Edited June 21, 2019 by Bajan Keith

[TenForward]

14 minutes ago, Bajan Keith said:

Hi Everyone...hope someone ses this and responds as I did not want to start a new thread just to ask this question..so here goes...

 

Can anyone tell me if you have to book Specialty Dining prior to boarding or can you do it when you get on the ship?

 

Do you have to book the shows as well or do you just walk in?

 

Thanks again

 

I think it depends on the size of your party.  When just DH and I cruised we had no problem getting a dining table for the two of us just by asking the hostess for a table.   We did book 1 or 2 shows ahead of time for any we really wanted to see.   When we went with a group (6 of us), we also just showed up without a reservation for dinner.  1 or 2 times we had to wait a little but we just sat at the bar with a drink for maybe 30 minutes at most.    Shows would be more problematic so if there are any you'd really like to see you should make reservations ahead of time.  That said, our group of 6 waited stand-by for Rock of Ages and we all got in.  If you don't have a reservation just make sure you arrive early to theater -- I think we got there 20 minutes early.  Just a few people behind us were not able to get in.  

 

If you're unable to make reservations online you can make them once your're on board via the kiosks by the elevators.  

 

 

 

[cruisingbajan]

2 minutes ago, TenForward said:

 

I think it depends on the size of your party.  When just DH and I cruised we had no problem getting a dining table for the two of us just by asking the hostess for a table.   We did book 1 or 2 shows ahead of time for any we really wanted to see.   When we went with a group (6 of us), we also just showed up without a reservation for dinner.  1 or 2 times we had to wait a little but we just sat at the bar with a drink for maybe 30 minutes at most.    Shows would be more problematic so if there are any you'd really like to see you should make reservations ahead of time.  That said, our group of 6 waited stand-by for Rock of Ages and we all got in.  If you don't have a reservation just make sure you arrive early to theater -- I think we got there 20 minutes early.  Just a few people behind us were not able to get in.  

 

If you're unable to make reservations online you can make them once your're on board via the kiosks by the elevators.  

 

 

 

 

Thanks Ten...this is great info..

 

It will just be DW and I this trip and we want it to be as laid back as possible. We will mostly be playing it by ear.

 

We really want to do Teppenyaki for sure. Would you recommend reservations for this ahead of time?

[TenForward]

 

1 hour ago, Bajan Keith said:

We really want to do Teppenyaki for sure. Would you recommend reservations for this ahead of time?

 

Yes, I would.  I think the flow of that place (hibachi tables) makes it harder to wait for an opening.   We made reservations for that one as it was our anniversary and we really wanted to be sure to eat there.  It was fabulous! 

[JamieLogical]

On the Breakaway and Breakaway Plus class ships, it's usually a good idea to make dining reservations ahead of time. You can book them through My NCL 120 days prior to sailing. But don't fret if you don't get the restaurants/times you want through the web site. Only 25-30% of tables are available for online booking. There will be many more available to book on embarkation day. But I would definitely advise taking care of it early on embarkation day if you can't do it online beforehand.

 

As for theater shows, you will be able to make reservations for those online ahead of time as well. And, again, if you can't get the times you want online, then try once on board. Comedy shows can't be booked ahead, so you will need to do that once on board.