Escape New England-Canada Sept 10-17, 2023 updating Semi Live rev 3.0

[mking8288]

Photos from Deck 6 AFT 

 

 

 

[MsTabbyKats]

18 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

In the MDR and master suite, usually - she does come into the Study to find the night 🦉 online, 😆

 

Good chance that we are going on MSC in 2024 with NCL's slim choices out of NY, one of the nieces can book a 2 BR YC Suite plus another balcony, so we'll sneak onboard with them ... to help look after their newest baby, the grand-nephew.  Besides, we'll be Diamonds after our next cruise and if they still do status match ... 

Most likely they'll match you to gold...

The only Diamond benefit is a meal....no extra discounts.

MSC doesn't allow non YC passengers into the YC....even to look around.

If you can...go for YC interior.  It's the best value at sea...in my opinion anyway.

[schmoopie17]

12 hours ago, mking8288 said:

 Day 7's FSD has us listed as being at anchorage.
 

At first I was wondering, "How the heck did you get to Alaska?"

 

[JIMESOPUS]

Is this the new NCL standard? $100 OBC per cabin and 10% discount FCC. Weather is always an issue, and safety should be the top concern of every cruise line. But every cruise is different and the impact on the passengers is different. Wonder what the PAX on the Pearl thinks of their compensation.

https://www.cruisehive.com/norwegian-cruise-line-changes-itinerary-on-embarkation-day/110810?fbclid=IwAR2tddNfl5GHt32klyxkqNZPzyX_wxJ1C5Fzv7SviTQ5GQvPRXpOZilapT0

 

Edited September 16, 2023 by JIMESOPUS

[mking8288]

@JIMESOPUS First, wish you a great, safe & pleasant cruise later this week ... be looking for your live report ?? over the other forum.

 

As for the compensation under these adverse conditions, I dunno ... $100 OBC for steerage ($50 p/p for 1st 2 pax - what about solo cruisers ??) might be acceptable.  I should note that we received $30 refundable OBC x 2 for port fees/charges/etc. (asked Guest Services about sometime else & got the itemized credit answered) and 10% FCC for the first 2 pax in the booking.  But and it is a big "however" what about those booked in Haven and/or paying a premium for full suites, with 3, 4 and 5 pax, maybe 6 in those 2 bedroom DOS ... then, I can see a "problem"

 

BTW, thanks for that YT video - yeah, love using Windy App, you can "pin" it and look ahead at specific coordinates in the ocean with detail forecast.  Very useful.  

[Steelers0854]

Day 7 Sea Day 3

 

It’s like groundhogs day but in a good way. We slept in, got up, hit the track/gym and then to the buffet for breakfast. DW grabbed her usual bacon and oatmeal, I’m holding out for lunch. We hung out and read, and eventually grabbed coffees. Side note: you have a bar in the buffet, why not do specialty coffees there in the morning. Instead you gotta track down to deck 6 then all the way back up to 16. Seems like an over sight.

 

Lunch started off looking promising. Mexican day, DW’s favorite. Which quickly turned sour. They bring in from the outside all the beef taco meat, chicken fajita, bbq pulled pork etc. They said none of it could be considered safe. If they bring all this stuff in from the outside surely they have ingredient labels on them!? Why the hell can’t you go check those or bring them out for us to look at?  We asked and got blank stares back and the party line “we can’t guarantee the safety” response. If you can’t trust food labels DW would literally never eat so it’s a BS excuse. So DW got another burger patty, some of the taco fixings and had lunch. So disappointing. Laziness, unwillingness, and apparently nothing actually made on board. It’s very frustrating. Princess, Celebrity, even Carnival does a better job (Guys burgers, blue iguana and several buffet items per day). Sorry for the rant, but it’s frustrating to eat the same thing 7 days in a row with no variety and no desire to do anything about it.

 

I grabbed the bbq pulled pork and put it atop a burger with some fries and it was good. Checked the box for the burger craving I had.

 

[JIMESOPUS]

37 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

@JIMESOPUS First, wish you a great, safe & pleasant cruise later this week ... be looking for your live report ?? over the other forum.

 

As for the compensation under these adverse conditions, I dunno ... $100 OBC for steerage ($50 p/p for 1st 2 pax - what about solo cruisers ??) might be acceptable.  I should note that we received $30 refundable OBC x 2 for port fees/charges/etc. (asked Guest Services about sometime else & got the itemized credit answered) and 10% FCC for the first 2 pax in the booking.  But and it is a big "however" what about those booked in Haven and/or paying a premium for full suites, with 3, 4 and 5 pax, maybe 6 in those 2 bedroom DOS ... then, I can see a "problem"

 

BTW, thanks for that YT video - yeah, love using Windy App, you can "pin" it and look ahead at specific coordinates in the ocean with detail forecast.  Very useful.  

Yes, Next Monday we will be " kicking " the tires on MSC .. self self-promoting, lol. Not sure about going live but will comment as we go. The original cruise was for steerage but we won YC inside cabin bid on a minimal amount. They assigned us a YC1 cabin instead. Not happy with NCL's current offerings in the NYC market, heading south to Tampa this January for the Jade. Winter of 2025 has only one ship in NYC right now, and will not sail on the Prima in cold weather again.

Tunnel to Towers run is this Sunday, NYC traffic will be a nightmare, safe travels home

Jim

 

[mendi]

Quick question, embarking tomorrow on Escape and wonder if iron and ironing board was available from housekeeping for an hour or so in room. Was in 2019 when we sailed the Escape so just curious today.  Thanks and have a safe travel's home for those disembarking tomorrow.

[kittymamma]

Our first time on NCL coming up February. One of you had a picture of the coffee maker with creamers and I am wondering what the creamers are??? Coffee Mate or Half and Half? Is Half and Half available at most places on the ship? Thx .

[mking8288]

49 minutes ago, mendi said:

Quick question, embarking tomorrow on Escape and wonder if iron and ironing board was available from housekeeping for an hour or so in room.

Just dial your steward's extension and ask for one, turnaround day are always busy but s/he will get to it.

45 minutes ago, kittymamma said:

Our first time on NCL coming up February ... picture of the coffee maker with creamers and I am wondering what the creamers are??? Coffee Mate or Half and Half? 

Buffet has & use mainly milk, you can probably ask for it. MDR, Specialty Restaurants and O'Sheehan's, also Room Service usually provide the Coffee Mate liquid creamer, no refrigeration needed - like the plentiful ones kept restocked by our steward 👍👌👍👌👍

 

 

[mking8288]

MDR was open for lunch - a somewhat different menu, and Republic was open today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Come to think of these, they are from the dinner menu and not the usual lunch options.  Bay scallops were very good 👏

 

[mking8288]

Signed up for Wine Tasting, they are on Deck 8 midship, opposite Duty-free ... by the mid atrium with the spiral staircase.  On the Breakaway & Getaway - where the Ice Bar would be situated 

 

The main lobby or atrium, next to Guest Services ... NCL really should re-design this space properly configuration & with fire & life safety and egress in mind ...just not "Kosher" and would most definitely failed the good old EOC section of a Joint Commission inspection in my old days (have no idea on what SOLAS codes for maritime vessels are in this...) Just my 2 cents in observations, FWIW 🧐

 

 

 

Edited September 16, 2023 by mking8288

[kittymamma]

MKing8288, thanks for the prompt reply. I didn't word my question properly, fully, so I will try again. What I really wanted to know is if the little creamers are available in Half and Half or do they serve only the Coffee Mate? I am addicted to Half and Half and wondering if I need to pack some of the shelf stable Half and Half in my carry-on. As a  newbie to NCL, I have a zillion questions so thanks for helping.

Enjoying your trip report and love how you are a "go with the flow" person....makes life easier .

[Ellis1138]

1 minute ago, kittymamma said:

MKing8288, thanks for the prompt reply. I didn't word my question properly, fully, so I will try again. What I really wanted to know is if the little creamers are available in Half and Half or do they serve only the Coffee Mate? I am addicted to Half and Half and wondering if I need to pack some of the shelf stable Half and Half in my carry-on. As a  newbie to NCL, I have a zillion questions so thanks for helping.

Enjoying your trip report and love how you are a "go with the flow" person....makes life easier .

 

There was a thread about the Coffee-Mate-Gate on NCL. Apparently, they only give the Coffee Mate and there was no half and half or cream served, even in Le Bistro. Milk from the buffet is not the same. I went and packed Land O Lakes dairy half and halfs. I know the Starbucks would have it, but they might hide it from people who didn't buy their coffees. One might also be able to hunt some real cream down at a bar. I can't imagine them making a White Russian with Coffee Mate.

[kittymamma]

Thx. I will pack my own.

[PhillyTravelBug]

On 9/15/2023 at 5:08 PM, mking8288 said:

 

 

Schuylkill is the name of the tug boat keeping the Escape at anchorage, port side. 

Schuylkill is the name of the river that runs through Philly. Very cool!

[mking8288]

22 hours ago, MeriToT said:

Every time I sail, I look for options along these lines; I'm sailing this exact ship and itinerary in a month, so would love to know how you made this work. 🙂

Stay tuned, I will provide a more details post-cruise about this.  In general, I find NCL ships with the "older" Sole (a hospitality brand) TV to be easiest as they use HDMI 1 as default input, where as these newer LGTV and Samsung TV are dedicated for hospitality or hotel operations use and data is routed via good old ethernet wiring (Cat 5+ and if they were smart enough to future proof miles of wiring for the next 2 decades, go with at least Cat 6E during construction).  Input source for these are "locked" & switching to HDMI render it useless, as it's basically a display monitor that apparently run its own customized Linux OS ... I keep forgetting to bring my universal USB stick with OS to boot it up for fun, LOL.  

 

 

My tech toolkit and gadgets that I usually bring along ... it's a pain, haha at 9 to 10 lbs plus the laptop.  The basics that one would need - a Windows laptop or notebook PC (11.6" Sony Viao in my case, optimized for travel) with HDMI output and/or most newer Chromebook with HDMI output, and a 10' HDMI cable (6' might be too short).  Wireless/bluetooth mouse and NC wireless earbuds.  A short power strip (non-surge suppressed) or power cube (triple taps - by GE) that's space saving, and at least 1 if not 2 220V outlet adapter ... and, a # of USB 3.0 braided extension cables to pair with a # of USB-A and USB-C data/power cables - rated for fast charging, plus Lightning-certified cables.  Anker multi-port Dongle that's tested to work with Chromebook and has HDMI output, and also an USB-C to HDMI 4K converter.  Anker 10,000 mAH battery bank with dual output for quick boost & charging.  

 

Essentially, get into the TV/monitor's Setting, Input Source - override if needed & possible, change the source & connect the alternate HDMI source/cable to "cast" to the mounted TV onboard.   GA and BA, Escape (pre-Covid) was a peace of cake, quick-easy-simple ... now, not so much.  TV Remote in the room does not have the button/option to make changes ... more specifics on it, post-cruise.

 

Samsung Galaxy S22+ has its own Live TV App, which can cast or stream to a bigger display ... it's a feature that isn't available on the Pixel 7 Pro, thus carrying both or hijacking DW's S22+ to use. iPhone SE 2022 is a dual e/Sim enabled global phone with data plans, emergency use and to pair with AirTags.  DW spend time on her iPad so we carry the "Mini" Air as it is lighter & easier.  We sometimes bring the Amazon Fire HD 10 since with mSD storage, we can bring a lot of offline contents ... and runs Google Store Apps plus Fire Apps by Amazon. 

 

If I haven't lost your attention yet - the importance of having a good VPN plus a backup VPN plan on the road, on the ships - sometimes, to make apps work or function, have to turn them off or disable it.  

 

Heading to dinner shortly, all packed up & ready to disembark in the morning ... will come back to catch up on news and weather since most pax are wondering about the news blackout onboard ... TV channels temporary unavailable.  Frustrating - especially docked at a port but, seen it happened some 15 years ago on NCL en-route to Mexico from Los Angeles port ... CNN was available free & shown in all staterooms, negative news not good for public relations & marketing the product; and, the rest is history.  

 

Edited September 16, 2023 by mking8288

[mking8288]

44 minutes ago, kittymamma said:

... Enjoying your trip report and love how you are a "go with the flow" person....makes life easier .

Welcome to NCL ... and thanks, glad to be of some help.

 

BTW - just wanted to mention that in addition to the $100 REFUNDABLE OBC that each stateroom received for this modified cruise itinerary.  $30 x 2 or $60 REFUNDABLE OBC were issued also, they are for port fees, taxes & charges - skipped 2 ports. They are in our Onboard Account. 

 

Had to chase down our $100 non-refundable NCLH shareholders OBC, they were missing and case number generated onboard to Miami HQ, confirmed & credited today, just in time for disembarkation.  Not bad - NCL came thru again, not always easy & I undersand other's frustrations, often aired on CC.

 

Yeah, go with the flow, humor & patience.  Dine With Officers didn't happen on this cruise, signed up for it - oh well, since our favorite HD and his assistant, and probably some of the ones we knew from before aren't around, it's okay - next time 🙂

[Sugar Magnolia]

1 hour ago, mking8288 said:

Stay tuned, I will provide a more details post-cruise about this.  In general, I find NCL ships with the "older" Sole (a hospitality brand) TV to be easiest as they use HDMI 1 as default input, where as these newer LGTV and Samsung TV are dedicated for hospitality or hotel operations use and data is routed via good old ethernet wiring (Cat 5+ and if they were smart enough to future proof miles of wiring for the next 2 decades, go with at least Cat 6E during construction).  Input source for these are "locked" & switching to HDMI render it useless, as it's basically a display monitor that apparently run its own customized Linux OS ... I keep forgetting to bring my universal USB stick with OS to boot it up for fun, LOL.  

 

 

My tech toolkit and gadgets that I usually bring along ... it's a pain, haha at 9 to 10 lbs plus the laptop.  The basics that one would need - a Windows laptop or notebook PC (11.6" Sony Viao in my case, optimized for travel) with HDMI output and/or most newer Chromebook with HDMI output, and a 10' HDMI cable (6' might be too short).  Wireless/bluetooth mouse and NC wireless earbuds.  A short power strip (non-surge suppressed) or power cube (triple taps - by GE) that's space saving, and at least 1 if not 2 220V outlet adapter ... and, a # of USB 3.0 braided extension cables to pair with a # of USB-A and USB-C data/power cables - rated for fast charging, plus Lightning-certified cables.  Anker multi-port Dongle that's tested to work with Chromebook and has HDMI output, and also an USB-C to HDMI 4K converter.  Anker 10,000 mAH battery bank with dual output for quick boost & charging.  

 

Essentially, get into the TV/monitor's Setting, Input Source - override if needed & possible, change the source & connect the alternate HDMI source/cable to "cast" to the mounted TV onboard.   GA and BA, Escape (pre-Covid) was a peace of cake, quick-easy-simple ... now, not so much.  TV Remote in the room does not have the button/option to make changes ... more specifics on it, post-cruise.

 

Samsung Galaxy S22+ has its own Live TV App, which can cast or stream to a bigger display ... it's a feature that isn't available on the Pixel 7 Pro, thus carrying both or hijacking DW's S22+ to use. iPhone SE 2022 is a dual e/Sim enabled global phone with data plans, emergency use and to pair with AirTags.  DW spend time on her iPad so we carry the "Mini" Air as it is lighter & easier.  We sometimes bring the Amazon Fire HD 10 since with mSD storage, we can bring a lot of offline contents ... and runs Google Store Apps plus Fire Apps by Amazon. 

 

If I haven't lost your attention yet - the importance of having a good VPN plus a backup VPN plan on the road, on the ships - sometimes, to make apps work or function, have to turn them off or disable it.  

 

Heading to dinner shortly, all packed up & ready to disembark in the morning ... will come back to catch up on news and weather since most pax are wondering about the news blackout onboard ... TV channels temporary unavailable.  Frustrating - especially docked at a port but, seen it happened some 15 years ago on NCL en-route to Mexico from Los Angeles port ... CNN was available free & shown in all staterooms, negative news not good for public relations & marketing the product; and, the rest is history.  

 

But can you launch a missile with all that equipment?

 

[MeriToT]

1 hour ago, mking8288 said:

Stay tuned, I will provide a more details post-cruise about this.  In general, I find NCL ships with the "older" Sole (a hospitality brand) TV to be easiest as they use HDMI 1 as default input, where as these newer LGTV and Samsung TV are dedicated for hospitality or hotel operations use and data is routed via good old ethernet wiring (Cat 5+ and if they were smart enough to future proof miles of wiring for the next 2 decades, go with at least Cat 6E during construction).  Input source for these are "locked" & switching to HDMI render it useless, as it's basically a display monitor that apparently run its own customized Linux OS ... I keep forgetting to bring my universal USB stick with OS to boot it up for fun, LOL.  

 

 

My tech toolkit and gadgets that I usually bring along ... it's a pain, haha at 9 to 10 lbs plus the laptop.  The basics that one would need - a Windows laptop or notebook PC (11.6" Sony Viao in my case, optimized for travel) with HDMI output and/or most newer Chromebook with HDMI output, and a 10' HDMI cable (6' might be too short).  Wireless/bluetooth mouse and NC wireless earbuds.  A short power strip (non-surge suppressed) or power cube (triple taps - by GE) that's space saving, and at least 1 if not 2 220V outlet adapter ... and, a # of USB 3.0 braided extension cables to pair with a # of USB-A and USB-C data/power cables - rated for fast charging, plus Lightning-certified cables.  Anker multi-port Dongle that's tested to work with Chromebook and has HDMI output, and also an USB-C to HDMI 4K converter.  Anker 10,000 mAH battery bank with dual output for quick boost & charging.  

 

Essentially, get into the TV/monitor's Setting, Input Source - override if needed & possible, change the source & connect the alternate HDMI source/cable to "cast" to the mounted TV onboard.   GA and BA, Escape (pre-Covid) was a peace of cake, quick-easy-simple ... now, not so much.  TV Remote in the room does not have the button/option to make changes ... more specifics on it, post-cruise.

 

Samsung Galaxy S22+ has its own Live TV App, which can cast or stream to a bigger display ... it's a feature that isn't available on the Pixel 7 Pro, thus carrying both or hijacking DW's S22+ to use. iPhone SE 2022 is a dual e/Sim enabled global phone with data plans, emergency use and to pair with AirTags.  DW spend time on her iPad so we carry the "Mini" Air as it is lighter & easier.  We sometimes bring the Amazon Fire HD 10 since with mSD storage, we can bring a lot of offline contents ... and runs Google Store Apps plus Fire Apps by Amazon. 

 

If I haven't lost your attention yet - the importance of having a good VPN plus a backup VPN plan on the road, on the ships - sometimes, to make apps work or function, have to turn them off or disable it.  

 

Heading to dinner shortly, all packed up & ready to disembark in the morning ... will come back to catch up on news and weather since most pax are wondering about the news blackout onboard ... TV channels temporary unavailable.  Frustrating - especially docked at a port but, seen it happened some 15 years ago on NCL en-route to Mexico from Los Angeles port ... CNN was available free & shown in all staterooms, negative news not good for public relations & marketing the product; and, the rest is history.  

 

If I could like this one thousand-plus times, I would. 😄 Thank you so so so much for this information, and taking the time out of your last day on board to share. The hubby and I will look to mirror this tech stack as best we can when we sail out next month. Just know that there are nerds out there like me who very much appreciate this level of detail, kudos and cheers to you for going the extra mile!

[Steelers0854]

Choir of Man. Amazing. Incredible. Don’t miss this show. In fact see it twice. One of the best shows I’ve ever seen. Period!

 

[mking8288]

Internet & related 

 

 

iCafe - internet update ... the one and only time where there isn't a line, in fact, nobody standing there and/or talking to the iCafe manager this evening - perfect time to chat briefly.  STARLINK is rolling out slower than planned originally and it will not come live on the Escape until 2024, no specific dates available to him yet ... for the immediate future, end users (and crew onboard) will remain with and use EMC, existing satellite ISP with WiFi inTERnet access.  Servers & equipments running now (i.e. NEC routers) are perfectly capable & fully meet/exceed 802.11.ac standards (WIFi 6) and IPv6 as well as iPv4 specs, etc. 

 

Speedtest results (best achieved during this cruise with 4,850 pax onboard) - which pretty much mirrored what I was able to get during the Epic's TA this April and Getaway's Caribbean cruise - Jan 2023, a bit better than the Joy - Sept 2022.

 

The other important alert: NCL apparently does NOT pro-rate the discount anymore with the FAS upgrade, price offered is same pre-cruise or onboard, taking into account the value of the free minutes.  The difference is that you can use any OBC, non-refundable ones, when you do the upgrade onboard the ship but NOT pre-cruise as your credit card will be charged.  In other words, if you wait (like we used to) to upgrade after midnight on Day 2 or Day 3, to upgrade - the price is the same as Day 1, no further discount or cost savings.  This is for the Escape - YMMV if you sail or cruise on a different or another NCL ship. 

 

Plan your use accordingly ... 

Edited September 17, 2023 by mking8288

[Ellis1138]

I want to thank all of you on this past week's sailing for all the info and updates. It's been a great help. I'll be heading to NYC tomorrow to get on this upcoming week. I don't think anyone from my sailing has started a semi-live thread, yet.

[mking8288]

2 hours ago, Sugar Magnolia said:

But can you launch a missile with all that equipment?

Nope, and I am for peace ... war is not the answer, history has proven that for ages.

 

Now, if I can crack into their system successfully, maybe fix some of their IT issues notably on weekends, maybe we'll all be better off.  But, having an edge in staying in touch is important to me ... surprises, I don't like, not if I can help do something about it.  

 

Going to eardrop on marine radio traffic later as the ship begin to move again & sail past Lady Liberty, up the Hudson River & turn to her berth at Pier 88. 

[mking8288]

Tonight's MDR dinner - said goodbye to the dining team, might or might not see some of them at morning breakfast, our 25 years tradition sailing on NCL before disembark. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 17, 2023 by mking8288