Disappointed with Bermuda 2026 Itineraries

[bluesea777]

Remember Bermuda has only 2 berths for med-large ships at the dockyard - there's one in Hamilton but it's for the smaller sized ships.

 

NCL is not the only cruise line that takes dibs to the berth(s) and day(s) .... NCL already has 2 ships visiting weekly, occupying one berth on Sunday to Friday - that's 6 days of the week. RCCL also has 6 ships visiting weekly, 4 days of the week. Celebrity one ship 3 days of the week.

 

Other lines do send ships to Bermuda but they can do only on the days that the berth is available to them.

 

BTW, in 2026 when Jewel homeports in Philly, she does Thurs-Thurs and will come here for two days Sat-Sun, just one overnight. Breakaway from Boston doing Sun-Sun, here in Bermuda Thurs-Fri one overnight. 

 

This leaves the Aqua which homeports in New York and will do Sat-Sat, and comes to Bermuda Mon-Wed 2 overnights.

 

That means in 2026 NCL will have dibs to one berth for every day of the week 🙃.

 

This year 2024 we have 2 NCL ships weekly, but in 2026 we'll have 3 NCL ships here weekly.

 

 

Edited July 17 by bluesea777

[fair-winds39]

33 minutes ago, Blockschip said:

This has been in the works for about a year or so now. The funding already in place for this project.

Yay, being able to sail from Philly to Bermuda is great for us, suburban Philly folks. Not fans of sailing from the Big Apple. 

[bluesea777]

Just now, fair-winds39 said:

Yay, being able to sail from Philly to Bermuda is great for us, suburban Philly folks. Not fans of sailing from the Big Apple. 

 

And less expensive hotel-wise.

 

[Laszlo]

6 minutes ago, fair-winds39 said:

Yay, being able to sail from Philly to Bermuda is great for us, suburban Philly folks. Not fans of sailing from the Big Apple. 

Yayyyy we get to pass all of the refineries Lol

 

https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/norwegian-cruise-line-homeport-philadelphia/3914870/#:~:text=The Port of Philadelphia announced,2026%2C welcoming Norwegian Cruise Line.&text=Norwegian will dock it's Norwegian,offering cruises to various places.

[cruiseny4life]

5 minutes ago, Laszlo said:

Yayyyy we get to pass all of the refineries Lol

 

https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/norwegian-cruise-line-homeport-philadelphia/3914870/#:~:text=The Port of Philadelphia announced,2026%2C welcoming Norwegian Cruise Line.&text=Norwegian will dock it's Norwegian,offering cruises to various places.

This is one of the reasons I'm so excited about cruising down the Mississippi! I love just watching infrastructure. 

[bluesea777]

11 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

This is one of the reasons I'm so excited about cruising down the Mississippi! I love just watching infrastructure. 

 

mmmm ... I think you mean Delaware River.

 

Mississippi = New Orleans 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

2 minutes ago, bluesea777 said:

 

mmmm ... I think you mean Delaware River.

 

Mississippi = New Orleans 

 

 

I'm referring to New Orleans - it's my next cruise. Comparing it to oil refineries leaving from Philly. I can't wait!!

[Laszlo]

32 minutes ago, bluesea777 said:

 

And less expensive hotel-wise.

 

Don't count on that.... I'm sure the rates at the center city hotels will double the summer of 2026. And don't even think about staying at a hotel near the airport, the are pretty nasty Lol

 

On the bright side... first day lunch will be Philly Cheese Steaks with your choice of a Philly Soft Pretzel, Philly Water Ice, Taskykakes or Goldbergs Peanut Chews for dessert 

Edited July 17 by Laszlo

[www3traveler]

Should be a very interesting 2026 Summer in Philadelphia:

    (1)  250th Anniversary of the Signing of the Declaration of Independence

 

    (2)  Major League Baseball Game All Star Game and all the events that go with it.

 

Hotel rooms will probably be at premium prices.  

[Retired-N-Happy]

2 hours ago, bluesea777 said:

 

And less expensive hotel-wise.

The pre cruise hotel would be cheaper in Philly versus NYC, but you get an extra day in Bermuda out of NYC and you get the newest ship in the fleet, the Aqua versus a 20 year old ship with the Jewel.

[Retired-N-Happy]

1 hour ago, www3traveler said:

Should be a very interesting 2026 Summer in Philadelphia:

    (1)  250th Anniversary of the Signing of the Declaration of Independence

 

    (2)  Major League Baseball Game All Star Game and all the events that go with it.

 

Hotel rooms will probably be at premium prices.  

I would infer that the overwhelming majority of people would be driving to the port instead of having to fly in.  

Why would you fly in to sail on the Jewel when you could fly to Boston to sail on the Breakaway or fly into Newark or NY to sail on the Aqua.

The main attraction of sailing out of Philly would be those that could drive to the port and not have to fly.

We live in South Jersey and this could possibly be in our sights, but cruising on an under 100 K ton cruise ship that's 20 years old may eliminate the positive of being able to drive to the cruise.

Edited July 17 by Retired-N-Happy

[www3traveler]

45 minutes ago, Retired-N-Happy said:

I would infer that the overwhelming majority of people would be driving to the port instead of having to fly in.  

Why would you fly in to sail on the Jewel when you could fly to Boston to sail on the Breakaway or fly into Newark or NY to sail on the Aqua.

The main attraction of sailing out of Philly would be those that could drive to the port and not have to fly.

We live in South Jersey and this could possibly be in our sights, but cruising on an under 100 K ton cruise ship that's 20 years old may eliminate the positive of being able to drive to the cruise.

For me, I would have to fly into Philly from the Pacific Northwest.  Much to far to drive.  I would choose to sail on The Jewel over either The Breakaway or The Aqua.  Love The Jewel.  There may be a number of people who much prefer the smaller "Jewel" class ships over the newer "Mega" ships.

Edited July 17 by www3traveler
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[Retired-N-Happy]

1 hour ago, www3traveler said:

For me, I would have to fly into Philly from the Pacific Northwest.  Much to far to drive.  I would choose to sail on The Jewel over either The Breakaway or The Aqua.  Love The Jewel.  There may be a number of people who much prefer the smaller "Jewel" class ships over the newer "Mega" ships.

That's where we're different.  I have not sailed on a ship under 100 K tons in about 20 years.  On NCL it's been 3 times on Escape, 3 times on Prima, and once on Bliss and Encore.  We have future sailings lined up on the Escape and the Aqua for next year.  

The 11 day sailing to Quebec could appeal to us because of some of the ports, certainly not the ship.

[Eno]

For me has to have two overnights in Bermuda that is the reason for the cruise. Planned to drive and wanted to stay in Boston. Philly would also work but again just an overnight in Bermuda.  Don’t want to drive into NYC. 

[luckyinpa]

happy to see something closer than NYC for me but dang those prices. i just started sailing MSC and am finding YC pricing so much better than haven with more included.

[LadyBerard]

12 hours ago, Laszlo said:

The Boston schedule is lousy. Philly Lol...... I'm 45 minutes from the cruise terminal but 29 hours in Bermuda is a hard pass

I wholeheartedly agree!  We too are 45 min. from the cruise terminal.  I was anxiously awaiting for the 2026 schedule, but now I'll have to reconsider booking the Jewel for 2025.

[LadyBerard]

3 hours ago, www3traveler said:

For me, I would have to fly into Philly from the Pacific Northwest.  Much to far to drive.  I would choose to sail on The Jewel over either The Breakaway or The Aqua.  Love The Jewel.  There may be a number of people who much prefer the smaller "Jewel" class ships over the newer "Mega" ships.

We also do not want to cruise on the mega ships.

[Cruising Lynne]

While I do not like less time in Bermuda, I do like the Breakaway. It would be a nice change for people in the Boston area to not always have a Jewel Class ship to take to Bermuda. When Breakaway came out back in 2013 we drove to NYC from Massachusetts for one of it's first cruises in the U.S. just to experience the new ship and shows. Rock of Ages at the time was the main show, and I really enjoyed it.

 

The next change I would like to see for cruises out of Boston is some different itineraries. Perhaps some longer ones that go to the Bahamas and the Caribbean. Maybe some day on one of the new Prima class ships. 

[Illbcruzn4life]

I’m also a hard pass. I’m 30 minutes from the Navy yard. Those prices are crazy for that terrible itinerary from Philly. I’ll drive to NY and take MSC for 1/3 the price for their terrible itinerary or fly to Florida and cruise from there. Over $4700 for 2 in the cheapest balcony they have and the drink package. 🤯 

[Retired-N-Happy]

24 minutes ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

I’m also a hard pass. I’m 30 minutes from the Navy yard. Those prices are crazy for that terrible itinerary from Philly. I’ll drive to NY and take MSC for 1/3 the price for their terrible itinerary or fly to Florida and cruise from there. Over $4700 for 2 in the cheapest balcony they have and the drink package. 🤯 

We'll be on the Aqua in September of 2025 to Bermuda, so we're contemplating the 11 day itinerary from PHL to Quebec for August of 2026.  Not real thrilled about cruising on the small Jewel though.  It's been about 40 cruises and 13 years since the last time we cruised on a sub 100 K ton size ship.

[Laszlo]

This is just not for 2026. The local news is talking about 27,28 and how they are expecting 45-50 cruises a year out of the new terminal 

[Engineroom Snipe]

I normally cruise and post about Royal Caribbean but I am intrigued about the Jewel coming to Philadelphia and decided to get some information and read past cruisers' critiques about the itinerary.

 

The size and the age of the ship does not put me off but barely 24 hours in Bermuda is a negative considering the only other stop is Charleston, SC.

 

The cheapest price so far I can find for an interior is about $2,300 for two plus $280 gratuities not including parking (and or airfare/hotel).

 

I do not need the drink or dining package (they are reasonably priced but the base room price is high).

 

Royal's Vision of the Seas out of Baltimore is one of their smallest ships so comparing it is not true Apples to Apples but it is going for about $1,600 plus $288 gratuities for an 8 DAY cruise not including parking, airfare, or hotel. Buying a drink package will normally go for at least $80 (including 18% gratuities) per person per day which adds a whopping $1,120 to the tab IF YOU GET IT AHEAD of time on a special pre-cruise sale. Unlimited specialty dining will be at least $300 per person if you get a good pre-cruise sale. Internet will set you back about $19 per device per day if you buy a package.

 

Getting the Norwegian would be cheaper at a total of $3,000 for two people to include drinks, specialty dining, internet, and excursion discounts. The hook is you need to normally add the drink and dining packages to most of your meals because the base price without them is a bit high.

 

I thank everyone here for their comments. I will keep my eye on prices and might try something new just to give other cruise lines a try.

[LisaDee]

I’m excited about the option to sail from Philadelphia.  I would actually have to travel through Baltimore to get to Philly but the ships in Baltimore are just too old for us.  I haven’t sailed the Jewel yet but I heard that the recent refurbishment was pretty extensive.  We are considering booking the 11-night Canada itinerary, just waiting for it to get loaded into my preferred travel booking site.

[Retired-N-Happy]

6 hours ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

I normally cruise and post about Royal Caribbean but I am intrigued about the Jewel coming to Philadelphia and decided to get some information and read past cruisers' critiques about the itinerary.

 

The size and the age of the ship does not put me off but barely 24 hours in Bermuda is a negative considering the only other stop is Charleston, SC.

 

The cheapest price so far I can find for an interior is about $2,300 for two plus $280 gratuities not including parking (and or airfare/hotel).

 

I do not need the drink or dining package (they are reasonably priced but the base room price is high).

 

Royal's Vision of the Seas out of Baltimore is one of their smallest ships so comparing it is not true Apples to Apples but it is going for about $1,600 plus $288 gratuities for an 8 DAY cruise not including parking, airfare, or hotel. Buying a drink package will normally go for at least $80 (including 18% gratuities) per person per day which adds a whopping $1,120 to the tab IF YOU GET IT AHEAD of time on a special pre-cruise sale. Unlimited specialty dining will be at least $300 per person if you get a good pre-cruise sale. Internet will set you back about $19 per device per day if you buy a package.

 

Getting the Norwegian would be cheaper at a total of $3,000 for two people to include drinks, specialty dining, internet, and excursion discounts. The hook is you need to normally add the drink and dining packages to most of your meals because the base price without them is a bit high.

 

I thank everyone here for their comments. I will keep my eye on prices and might try something new just to give other cruise lines a try.

You can go to Bermuda any year and have better opportunities since the time in Bermuda from the Philly embarkation is not the best.  With this being said, the Philly to Quebec 11 day itinerary is what is intriguing to us.  But I need to do more research on the 2022 refurbishment of the Jewel.  We usually cruise on substantially larger ships as our last under 100 K ton ship was 40 cruises and 13 years ago in 2011 on the Carnival Spirit doing the Mexican Riviera.  But have never been to Quebec so that is the pull for us to choose this cruise.

[luckyinpa]

14 hours ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

I’m also a hard pass. I’m 30 minutes from the Navy yard. Those prices are crazy for that terrible itinerary from Philly. I’ll drive to NY and take MSC for 1/3 the price for their terrible itinerary or fly to Florida and cruise from there. Over $4700 for 2 in the cheapest balcony they have and the drink package. 🤯 

 5700 sept 29 to bermuda in YC...the extra 1000 is well worth it.. free booze.wifi..butler..great pool buffet. join us! makes the boring NY itineraries soo much better. just did it in May and we are sold!