Many ?s - Just booked on Sky for solo on 1/10/20 first time on NCL

[JellybeansMom]

I just booked last night for my first solo cruise and my first cruise on NCL.  Price was right and mama needed to get away for a few days!  Have previously cruised Disney, Carnival and RC. 

 

Where can I find copies of dailies for this itinerary?  5 day/Grand Bahama, Nassau and GSC. Not having any luck using search function.

 

Not familiar with freestyle dining and honestly, I didn’t do much research before booking because it was so spur-of-the-moment, which is very unlike me. Do I just walk up to the dining room at any time?  Is seated dining avail for lunch as well?  Or just dinner?  Resort casual for all dinners?  Do people ever dress up?

 

Please tell me there is a help yourself soft serve ice cream machine on board? (My weakness when cruising)

 

Only entertainment listed is two shows. Do they ever have comedians or anything?

 

I chose the excursion credit for my “free” item. It says I will be charged full amt and then receive the $50 credit onboard. So is that $50 I can use towards drinks, stuff from shops on ship, etc?

 

Clamshell rental was not an option for me at GSC. Could it be because they are sold out already?  Or because I’m solo?

 

How’s the WiFi?  Nothing I’ve read says it works in staterooms. 

 

Are laundry facilities available?  What about an iron?  Or does that stuff have to be sent away?

 

Anything else I should know as first time NCL cruiser?

 

Thx!!!

 

 

 

[lepidoptera]

We are cruise twins, I’m doing a solo 5 day sky cruise at the end of January because I need a vacation and it was cheap. Haven’t sailed her yet but I’ve sailed Norwegian before so I’ll answer what I can. 

 

For dinner you go to either of the main rooms when ever you want and you will either be seated or given a buzzer to come back if their are no tables. Both dining rooms will serve the same thing, only difference is one is fancier. One of the dining rooms will be open for breakfast, and lunch on boarding day/sea days if you have them. The Sky has one other free sit down restaurant the Local, which is open 24 hrs and serves kinds pub/bar food and breakfast. There are also some specialty dining restaurants for a fee. Resort casual will get you into any dining room, people will be even less dressed up in the more casual dining room. NCL generally doesn’t have a lot of people going all out dressing up, and I’m guessing even fewer on a shorter cruise. 

 

There are usually always comedians on board, live music by the pool/auditorium, and on the days the shows aren’t playing there will be some sort of show in the theatre-I’ve seen variety shows, comedians, aerialists, singers and ventriloquist as the evening’s entertainment.

 

Not sure about the self serve, I’m lactose intolerant. They do have a crepe station set up in the buffet for dinners that is my personal fave. Wifi does work in rooms. Ive found it is generally okay for casual browsing and email , but sometimes too slow so I log off and try again later. No laundry rooms. Pretty sure stewards will still let you have a iron for a few minutes, but haven’t asked in a few years.

 

NCL generally has a meet up for solo travelers in the early evening where you can meet others traveling alone. The solo coordinator may or may not organize a group dining each night, but it is generally early and they don’t always do it on the smaller ships.

 

You'll be able to rent a clamshell on board they don’t put them online from what I’ve seen when Ive sailed there before. Your food and beverage package will work on the island. If you do get a clamshell it counts as an excursion so you get priority tender tickets.

[smplybcause]

I'm not surprised you can't find dailies - the Sun is a small older ship and has been doing a lot of random itineraries. She was doing Cuba runs, so when that stopped they cancelled all sailings and then redid them with what was available. 

 

No laundry facilities. I can't recall if I've heard some people say they could ask for an iron - I just don't buy clothes that need to be ironed anymore. 

 

The $50 credit can be used for pretty much anything but the DSCs. Though it is designed to be used to offset the cost of the shore excursion. As you said drinks I would advise you to sit down and rethink choosing the shore excursion over the drink package -- if you drink at least 2 drinks a day choosing it as a perk will be cheaper. 

 

BTW The Sun doesn't have the Local like the Sky does - there's no 24/7 eating place on the Sun. They do have a late night place, but uh don't expect good food from it. 

[All-ready2cruise]

8 minutes ago, smplybcause said:

I'm not surprised you can't find dailies - the Sun is a small older ship and has been doing a lot of random itineraries. She was doing Cuba runs, so when that stopped they cancelled all sailings and then redid them with what was available. 

 

No laundry facilities. I can't recall if I've heard some people say they could ask for an iron - I just don't buy clothes that need to be ironed anymore. 

 

The $50 credit can be used for pretty much anything but the DSCs. Though it is designed to be used to offset the cost of the shore excursion. As you said drinks I would advise you to sit down and rethink choosing the shore excursion over the drink package -- if you drink at least 2 drinks a day choosing it as a perk will be cheaper. 

 

BTW The Sun doesn't have the Local like the Sky does - there's no 24/7 eating place on the Sun. They do have a late night place, but uh don't expect good food from it. 

Op seems to be sailing on the Sky.  Much of what you say is still pertinent except that the Sky has the Local (new brand name for O'Sheehans) so should have a limited 24/7 service.  

[smplybcause]

13 minutes ago, All-ready2cruise said:

Op seems to be sailing on the Sky.  Much of what you say is still pertinent except that the Sky has the Local (new brand name for O'Sheehans) so should have a limited 24/7 service.  

 

Crud. My brain is apparently still on holiday! Hopefully the Local is better on Sky then what Sun has. 

[BirdTravels]

8 hours ago, JellybeansMom said:

Where can I find copies of dailies for this itinerary?  5 day/Grand Bahama, Nassau and GSC. Not having any luck using search function.

 

Not familiar with freestyle dining and honestly, I didn’t do much research before booking because it was so spur-of-the-moment, which is very unlike me. Do I just walk up to the dining room at any time?  Is seated dining avail for lunch as well?  Or just dinner?  Resort casual for all dinners?  Do people ever dress up?

 

Please tell me there is a help yourself soft serve ice cream machine on board? (My weakness when cruising)

 

Only entertainment listed is two shows. Do they ever have comedians or anything?

 

I chose the excursion credit for my “free” item. It says I will be charged full amt and then receive the $50 credit onboard. So is that $50 I can use towards drinks, stuff from shops on ship, etc?

 

Clamshell rental was not an option for me at GSC. Could it be because they are sold out already?  Or because I’m solo?

 

How’s the WiFi?  Nothing I’ve read says it works in staterooms. 

 

Are laundry facilities available?  What about an iron?  Or does that stuff have to be sent away?

 

Anything else I should know as first time NCL cruiser?

Freestyle dining is like MyTime dining on RCL. Show up when you want, as often as you want. You will be seated at a private table. 
 

Shorts are allowed in all dining rooms for all meals except Le Bistro and the Seven Seas main dining room. On short cruises, shorts are often allowed in all restaurants all the time. A few will dress up, but not many on short cruises. Hawaiian wear is seen a lot. 
 

For shore excursions, follow the promotion instructions below. You will book your excursions in advance and get billed onboard. You use the $50 to pay for the excursions onboard. 

Shore excursion credit can be redeemed by calling 1-866-625-1167 

Clam shells can only be booked onboard. If that is your only activity on GSC, then it will be free with your credit. if there are more than one ship at the island, the clams shells will sell out before you get to the island, so book quickly On embarkation day. 

No Self serve laundry Facilities. 
 

Between The Sports Bar and buffet, you can usually get food 24/7. 

[All-ready2cruise]

@smplybcause LOL, no worries. Most of what you say is correct.  I've only done the Local on the Joy but have sailed Sun several times and agree, that ship could use a Local. The food in the local is very much like O'Sheehans.  Adequate but nothing special. 

 

Op, the smaller ships are usually very easy to get around so that's a positive, also, on embarkation day you'll be able to go the main dining room for lunch, it's open from around 12:30 > 2pm. The great outdoors, deck 12, is very nice to sit and relax as well. 

Here's the Sky deck plans, hope you have a great cruise OP. 

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/sky/deck-plans

Edited January 2, 2020 by All-ready2cruise

[eirelavb83]

Just came off the Sky on the 20th of December. On the first day they had a $4.95 special to send off clothing for pressing. You an request an iron, but there are not a lot of them so be prepared to wait for one. 

 

There is an FB group for the NCL Sky that has lots of dailies and menus posted. 

 

There is scooped ice cream stand in the buffet. 

 

I wasnt solo, but we joined the solo meetup every night and met some amazing people to have dinner and do activities with. I highly recommend doing that. 

 

As stated above, if you plan to drink at least 2 drinks a day, the drink package is the best value. The clam shell is only $30. Keep in mind that GSC is a tender port. We didnt get to go due to bad weather. It is about a 50/50 chance youll actually get to go. 

 

Dinner is just walk up and very casual. You can do the buffet for lunch, one of the main dining rooms (limited hours) or La Cucina has pizza and wraps as an option. 

 

They just have two main production shows. Showdown and Rock You Tonight. I didnt like showdown, but Rock You was pretty good.  They had Alex Ortiz as the comedian on the 2nd and last night. He does an adult show and a family show. I heard the family show wasnt great, but the adult was hilarious. Very adult, so not for kids or the easily offended. You dont need reservations for any of the shows, but its open seating so get there in advance to get a good spot. 

 

I had a great time on the Sky and I hope you do as well. 

 

 

[cruisin from vegas]

I have done several solos, 3 on NCL.  I always choose the excursion credit as it makes sense for a solo and I don’t drink.    Call the excursion line and book your excursions over the phone, they will not collect payment.  The first night on board you will be charged in full for all booked excursions.  If you have a latitudes discount, double check this discount was used.  As you take each excursion you will be credited back $50 each day within a few hours of returning.  I always use a “cash” account and never use all I have deposited, so whatever is left I cash out on last night.  If you use a credit card, I think your final charges are just less what you are credited back.