Coming soon! Live from my Norwegian Sky Canada/New England cruise 10/9/2024 to 10/19/2024 Quebec to Baltimore.

[Denise T]

Yes, I know, it’s 72 days until my cruise. But I am so excited that I wanted to share my adventures preparing for our (my sister and I) cruise to Canada/New England on board the Norwegian Sky October 9 through the 19, 2024. I will switch this to a live review once I board. So, get ready and come along as I share my experiences with you!

 

A little about me. I have sailed with Norwegian before on the Pearl to Canada/New England 2 years ago. That was my first ever cruise. I loved it! I loved the Pearl which will always have a special place in my heart. The Pearl is a great ship, I am not one for the big ships. I love smaller ships and the Pearl did not disappoint. It was small and easy to maneuver. We had a balcony cabin. We will always book a balcony as my sister tends to be claustrophobic, but we like to be outside. The service was great, and we enjoyed the cruise so much. The itinerary took us from Boston, Charlottetown, Sydney, Halifax, Bar Harbor, Portland, and back to Boston. I remember the excitement on cruise day as my sister and I were going to breakfast at the hotel and saw the Pearl in port. Sail away was later than planned but sailing away in the evening with all of the lights was amazing. We opted to tour all of the ports on our own. We are not big guided tour people. We knew when we disembarked, we would be back.

 

This cruise is on the Sky. Yes, it is smaller and older. So, I am looking forward to experiencing an even smaller ship. I am not a big fan of huge ships. This time around we have an aft balcony so this will be a first for us. Yes, it is on deck 10 underneath the Great Outdoors so I do expect that we will have some noise. But sitting on the balcony watching the wake is going to be fantastic. Our trip starts in Quebec. I have never been there. I researched and watched YouTube videos of Quebec and it looks beautiful. We are coming in two days early. Our hotel is the Auberge St. Pierre, a cute little hotel. It is located a few blocks from the port. We will spend one day walking around and seeing the sites. Our goal for this trip will be to try different restaurants within each port so we are doing lots of research and making plans. I love getting to know the ports before I get there. We will visit Saguenay, Halifax, Sydney, Charlottetown, Bar Harbor, Portland, Boston, and disembark in Baltimore. We will spend the night in Baltimore before flying home. We were a little worried about the bridge collapse and the closure of the port but that is no longer a concern. Sometimes you have to be ready to pivot because you never know what might happen.

 

We are all set. Hotels are reserved, flights booked, and we have our car service set up to get us to and from the airport. Just need to wait and pack. We do have two excursions planned, a duck boat tour in Halifax and the Hop on-hop off in Boston. We may book others, who knows. The plan is to post live each day of the cruise and take lots of pictures. We are not picky cruisers. We both work so hard and hardly take time off, so any time that we don’t have to cook or clean and can have a drink whenever we want, we know we will have a good time. Will there be disappointments, maybe. I don’t much care for the flying but once on the ship, we intend to have a great time.

 

So, until I get on that ship, share your experiences on the Sky or this itinerary. What questions might you want answered while I am on the cruise?

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

I'm loving your enthusiasm!!!! 72 days....I'm at 187 (I think) days ahead and want to start that live, but I know some here will just shake their head and laugh at me. So, I'll just watch your thread and enjoy seeing your cruise in a couple months through your eyes. We're not on Sky, but a cruise is fun! Whether it's on Sky or Getaway or Pr1ma. 

 

I'm sure we'll talk more, but for now, happy planning!!

[Denise T]

16 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

I'm loving your enthusiasm!!!! 72 days....I'm at 187 (I think) days ahead and want to start that live, but I know some here will just shake their head and laugh at me. So, I'll just watch your thread and enjoy seeing your cruise in a couple months through your eyes. We're not on Sky, but a cruise is fun! Whether it's on Sky or Getaway or Pr1ma. 

 

I'm sure we'll talk more, but for now, happy planning!!

 

I say, go ahead and post. Celebrate the upcoming cruise! If they shake their head and laugh, that's on them. Where are you sailing to? 

[Denise T]

I am not an extremely experienced cruiser, which is okay. This will be my third cruise. I have another scheduled for next year and hope to schedule many more. Each cruise, you learn something new, especially when it comes to things like packing. 

Packing can be a challenge, and I tend to overpack. I have huge envy for those who can go on a 10-day cruise with just a carry on. I hope to get there someday. 

 

On my first NCL cruise two years ago, I overpacked. I took clothes that I never wore. On my Alaska trip last year with HAL, I learned about packing for layering which was very helpful. I also packed a little less. This time around it will be a 10-day cruise and with coming in early and leaving a day late, we are looking at being away for 13 days. Longest time for a vacation that I ever took. I know, I know. I am a workaholic. I am learning to be less so. 

 

Since the cruise is in October, looking ahead at the weather, it looks to be highs around 60 and lows in the 40s. I know that two years ago, I had packed shorts and am glad I did because we had very warm and sunny days. I will definitely bring a pair this time. I will bring one pair of dressy pants for eating in specialty restaurants and a couple of dressy tops. I will be packing items that I can mix and match and reuse so that I do not overpack. I may take advantage of the laundry service. I am a mere Bronze in loyalty status, so it is not free. Who know. 

 

I will have more info on what I am packing a little closer to the cruise. I am a planner. My sister refers to me as her "travel agent" as I am the one making all of the arrangements. I love my sister, but if I leave things to her, it will never get done. If it does get done, it will be at the last minute and my anxiety will have been to the roof. 

 

[ckmedsec]

Looking forward to your review.  We sailed the Sky last Christmas.  Had a great time and really liked the ship. Enjoy planning and your cruise.

[Denise T]

67 days to go. 

Our first port on this trip will be our embarkation port, Quebec. We are flying in two days early. We fly from Philadelphia to Toronto and then to Quebec. We are staying at a cute little hotel, Auberge St. Pierre. We will be in Quebec on 10/7 around 6 pm. we will be spending one whole day walking around before our cruise begins on the 9th. I have been watching YouTube videos highlighting Quebec and I am exciting to see it in person.

 

One thing I know is that this is my vacation. I do not expect perfection (no one is perfect). Ports might get cancelled or the times in port might change. Flights might be delayed. Food might not be 100% perfect. I don't anticipate starving. I plan to have fun and enjoy myself. I don't get away very often. So regardless of what happens, nothing will stop me from having a great time. Even those conspiracy theories that suggest the powers that be of NCL (all cruise lines really) are sitting in their offices scheming about how they will cheat their customers will not deter me from enjoying my vacation. Nah. Not happening. 

 

 

 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

On 7/31/2024 at 9:05 AM, Denise T said:

 

I say, go ahead and post. Celebrate the upcoming cruise! If they shake their head and laugh, that's on them. Where are you sailing to? 

We're heading to the Western Caribbean. Unless those NCL powers that be change our itinerary (again), we'll be going to Costa Maya, Cozumel, Roatan, and Harvest Caye. Going to get some lovely beach time in! Not so sure you'll be doing the same in October along the northeast coast. 🙂 

[Denise T]

19 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

We're heading to the Western Caribbean. Unless those NCL powers that be change our itinerary (again), we'll be going to Costa Maya, Cozumel, Roatan, and Harvest Caye. Going to get some lovely beach time in! Not so sure you'll be doing the same in October along the northeast coast. 🙂 

 

I am not a beachy person. Hoping you have a wonderful time.

[Denise T]

64 days to go. Just got the hotel confirmation from Auberge St, Pierre in Quebec. I have always stayed at those mass market hotels so a little boutique hotel will be fun. Breakfast is included; however, it is not a full breakfast. Someone had complained about that in a review. That is fine with me because we are scouting out places to go if we decide we want a full breakfast. It is quite fun looking at the restaurant menus and getting hungry. Working on learning a little French as well. My sister did note that based on the fact that we were forced to learn Latin in grade school and we both speak some Spanish, we are able to figure out French. Google translate will come in handy if needed. 

So far, nothing has changed except for our flight to Canada which is leaving 5 minutes later. No biggie. I expect that any more with flights. I travel a lot for work and the only time I changed a flight was when they only gave me a 45-minute layover at Atlanta airport. Was not having any of that. 

Be back with more. 

[Denise T]

Saguenay. This is a new port for me. I am in the process of watching videos on Saguenay. It looks like a very pretty area. I see that there is some type of show that is put on which looks fun. There seems to be a hop on hop off as well. I need to do some exploration as we plan our visit. Our go to option would be to walk around the port area and see what is there. Any suggestions would be appreciated. 

[Denise T]

55 days out. Getting closer. Today I was checking who will be in port with the Sky. Mostly much smaller ships with the exception of Portland in which the Breakaway will be there. Plan for Portland would be walking the harbor and stopping to eat at our favorite place, The Porthole Restaurant for a Lobster Roll. I love walking along the harbors. Even with crowds, it can be rather peaceful. 

 

We successfully made three specialty dining reservations. Cagney's on embarkation day. Then La Cucina. We have eaten at these restaurants on the Pearl two years ago. We are trying Le Bistro for the first time. I am not a huge fan of French cuisine but looking at the sample menu, there seems to be options. We will also be eating in the MDRs, the Buffet (on the Pearl we loved having breakfast in the Great Outdoors), and the Local. I have heard, watching YouTube videos of the Sky people saying the Local was 24/7 like O'Sheehan's was on the Pearl, but others have said it is not. If you have been on the Sky recently, maybe someone can confirm. I know La Cucina serves Pizza for lunch, and I will be there. Many of our lunches will probably be in the ports that we visit. I would love to do dinner in the ports, but the itinerary has us leaving many of the ports around 4 or 5 pm. 

 

Anyway, I will keep you all up to date on the countdown. Getting closer. This will be the longest vacation I have ever taken (such the workaholic). Can't tell you how excited I am. 

[cruiseny4life]

The Local and O'Sheehan's are pretty much the same. They're 24 hour'ish! Neither are actually, truly 24 hour establishments. The place does close down for cleaning for a couple hours, sometime in the 2 AM - 5 PM timeframe. At that time, you should be able to order room service, but that's the only food you'll be getting. I suppose NCL counts on the drunks paying for a room service pizza. 

[DBrown8939]

As of my last cruise on the Sky (Feb 2023), The Local was not 24 hour-ish as it is on other Norwegian ships.  It served food only during dinner hours and had bar service starting earlier in the afternoon.  At breakfast and lunch it could be used as overflow seating for the buffet, especially when the weather wasn't suitable to eat in the Great Outdoors area.

 

I doubt that this has changed in the past 18 months.  If you check NCL's web site in the "What's On Board" section, there's a difference in The Local menus between the Sky and (for example) the Bliss.  No breakfast items on the Sky!

 

I'll be looking forward to the report in October.

[Denise T]

Here I am again. Now at 49 days out. Getting closer! I believe I should be able to check in on September 18th. Everything is in place. I have been looking at videos and travel guides for the ports I will be visiting. This will be a great trip. My sister and I are determined not to let anything mess with our cruise. Things might go wrong. My mantra will be "Oh well". The last thing that I will be doing is getting vaccinated for the flu and COVID two weeks before we go at my doctor's recommendation. I am ready!

[Denise T]

41 days out. This is the toughest time for any cruise, the waiting. I have everything set up and I keep checking to make sure everything is good to go. I have a car service taking my sister and I to the airport. We are flying out of Philadelphia. The only issue is that although we are flying with United, our planes are Air Canada and the pilots for Air Canada voted to strike. So, there's that. The hotel in Quebec has been confirmed. We are within walking distance from the port. We have booked specialty dining at Cagney's (embarkation day), La Cucina, and Le Bistro. Never ate at Le Bistro. We have a few excursions booked. Boarding is all set for the pets. Not much else to do but wait. 

[cruiseny4life]

Lots of time for the strikes to settle. I hope they do! Ahhh the waiting game....I know it too well. But, the anticipation makes the actual travel day that much better! 

[Denise T]

36 days out. All set and ready to go. Starting to think about what to wear and pack. There are things that I am putting together so that I can just toss them in the luggage. I was a little worried about the pending Air Canada pilot strike as both legs of my flights with United are on Air Canada. After some research, the leg from Philadelphia to Toronto will not be impacted as that plane is operated by a division on a separate union contract. I may need to figure out how to get from Toronto to Quebec City. There are options. This would be the last hurdle, and I hope that the union can get a deal. I also keep checking the temperature which look good. I should be able to check in to the cruise in a few weeks. 

[cruiseny4life]

Oh my! There's so much time. I think you'll be all set!!!

 

Also, for some reason I didn't grasp the reality that you're going to Quebec City. That place has been on my list for so long. I can't wait until I finally make it there. 

 

Do you have anything planned before embarkation?

[kaysha2004]

I'm on this cruise and following that thread.  I booked my flight one day after the intention to strike was published, but I didn't see that news and I used nonrefundable award miles.  I'm flying from Oregon to Quebec on Air Canada.  I had a lengthy conversation with their customer service about the possibility of a strike.  Although anything can happen, she said that should the strike continue into October, they will be rebooking passengers on their partner airlines.  An airline strike is really bad for any economy and any airline, so I'm hopeful that it will be resolved by then.  

 

I've been to Europe a number of times, and strikes (they call them labor disputes) happen all the time--rails, trains, taxis, airlines, airport workers...it's an everyday thing over there.

[Denise T]

On 9/3/2024 at 12:52 PM, cruiseny4life said:

Oh my! There's so much time. I think you'll be all set!!!

 

Also, for some reason I didn't grasp the reality that you're going to Quebec City. That place has been on my list for so long. I can't wait until I finally make it there. 

 

Do you have anything planned before embarkation?

Flying in two days early. My sister and I plan to spend the time just walking around and sightseeing. It is such a nice walkable city from what I have seen watching some YouTube videos. 

[Denise T]

12 hours ago, kaysha2004 said:

I'm on this cruise and following that thread.  I booked my flight one day after the intention to strike was published, but I didn't see that news and I used nonrefundable award miles.  I'm flying from Oregon to Quebec on Air Canada.  I had a lengthy conversation with their customer service about the possibility of a strike.  Although anything can happen, she said that should the strike continue into October, they will be rebooking passengers on their partner airlines.  An airline strike is really bad for any economy and any airline, so I'm hopeful that it will be resolved by then.  

 

I've been to Europe a number of times, and strikes (they call them labor disputes) happen all the time--rails, trains, taxis, airlines, airport workers...it's an everyday thing over there.

I am hoping it will be resolved by October. I can get to Toronto, no problem, that Air Canada flight is not affected. 

[laudergayle]

Following along.  I’m curious about your thoughts on the Sky vs. the Pearl.  We sail her next year and it will be the smallest ship we’ve ever sailed.  Enjoy your break from working.  YOLO. (That’s probably outdated now…but so am I.)

[Denise T]

25 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

Following along.  I’m curious about your thoughts on the Sky vs. the Pearl.  We sail her next year and it will be the smallest ship we’ve ever sailed.  Enjoy your break from working.  YOLO. (That’s probably outdated now…but so am I.)

I loved the Pearl. She was our very first cruise and her size was just right for my sister and me. I expect the Sky will be a tad smaller which means everything else will be a bit smaller. We have an aft facing balcony this time compared to a regular balcony on the Pear. I will let you know what I think once on board. I expect that there will be differences. 

[cruiseny4life]

55 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

YOLO. (That’s probably outdated now…but so am I.)

You'd be surprised!! I really did hear a teen use YOLO just a couple weeks ago. I was stunned that it is still around, unless it means something different now.

 

The classics, such as yourself, are never outdated! 

[Denise T]

30 days out! Doing my happy dance. Planning my packing now. I will start packing in a few weeks, but my sister and I are planning what we are bringing. This being a 10-day cruise and with travel more like 14 days, I have no doubt that we will take advantage of laundry service for the first time. I anticipate that space will be tighter than on the Pearl even with an aft facing balcony. This is where the packing cubes will come in handy. I also have brought several types of adapters for the outlets as we want to make use of all the outlets what with charging of cameras, laptops (yes, I have work to do while on the cruise), and phones. 

 

I have been laughing at some of the posts on this board (NCL) as a whole. It seems that having differing opinions about one's experiences is frowned upon by some. It is almost if you say something bad about NCL (or any other cruise line for that matter) or a specific ship, you are somehow in the wrong. And, oh no, if a YouTube vlogger says something that goes against your views, watch out, they are "drama queens". Here is the deal. I am sharing my experiences, and they will be different than your own. Oh well. I love cruising. I have sailed with both NCL and HAL. I know which ships appeal to me and which do not. I am not interested in sailing large ships crowded with people and with slides and all kinds of other things. I am not a foodie, and I know that I will not starve. Sitting in a bar listening to music is fun to me and I do not need huge production shows. If you like those things, wonderful. The great thing about cruising is that there is a cruise line and a cruise ship for everyone. 

 

I will let you all know how check in goes next week. I understand that there is a new NCL app. Not sure if I should download it yet as I thought that I read it was being rolled out for certain sailings.