mcmomny

It will be chilly in Glacier Bay, dress in layers. We had a balcony cabin so viewed the Bay from our cabin, we did go up onto the top deck a few times also Plus be prepared for rain in some ports. Yes binoculars are a huge plus! Make your reservations for dinner before you get on board Figure out your excursions and book before you leave as they might be sold out once you get there!

Yes, I was also told two billing cycles before I would see my refund but I got my refund in under two weeks! For NCL people, I just cancelled one with them and was told 7 to 10 days and I got the refund in 3 days!

I also had the same experience when I canceled Egypt for this summer. Quick and easy!

Traffic is bad due to congestion but it is very easy to drive in Hawaii, we rented a car and saw the sights we wanted to see before our cruise. I have not used them but Robert's Tours were mentioned many times when I was doing my research. Sometimes NCL offers a pre or post excursion option, did you look into that? Congrats on 50 states! We have 4 left!

Yes, we were so tired each day that after dinner and a cocktail or too we went to bed! I don't remember doing any shows or using the pool! Good plan coming in early, we woke up at 2 am the first day due to jet lag! Yes we are ready for Monday, not sure about the crazy traffic they are predicting!

Our favorite of all cruises so far! We did not do any NCL excursions, but the few excursions we did do we booked on our own. Go to your roll call and there might be people looking to share excursions which makes the cost less and it's a neat way to meet new people! Road to Hana we were in a small van of 8 people and a great driver/guide which included lunch. Valley Isle Excursions. We booked our own luau with Smith's Family Garden Luau in Wailua in Kauai and they came and picked us up at the cruise port and returned us to the cruise port. The rest of the cruise we just rented a car in each port and did our own thing and had an amazing time! Saw tons of beaches. ate local food for lunch, saw both National Parks, tons of whale watching and beautiful scenery all along the way. Each island was easy to drive and never worried about getting back to the port in time. If at all possible try to go in a few days before the cruise, we did 3 days before and we still struggled with the time difference after the cruise started! Now about The POA, it is basically a floating Hotel. Not much going on on board and it is an American flagged ship so the crew is mostly American kids doing 3 month stints and hate being there. Many people have complained about the ship and the crew but we had a great time, enjoyed many of the crew and felt it was one of the best ways for us to see as much of Hawaii as we could in one visit. PS, are you ready for Monday and the Eclipse!

Yes, I understand. We just like to tip for special service we receive. For example the bartender on The Jade last year remembered our names and drinks on the second night so we tipped him every evening. It's just something we like to do!

The floor is layers of rugs, that thousands of people have walked on barefoot. So yes it wasn't nice, I too brought wet wipes to wipe our feet before putting our socks back on. Think about pre check at TSA, thousands of people have to take their shoes off and walk thru the check out line then put their shoes back on! Pretty much the same thing! We were given a bag to carry our shoes and socks, we did not have any place to sit to take off or put our shoes on so we knew this and wore slip on shoes. We went in July and it was blistering hot, I wore a cotton dress that covered my shoulders and my knees. I brought a very lightweight scarf to cover my head, yes women must cover their heads. I did not see sun hats as an option. My husband wore khaki pants and a short sleeve button down shirt

Even thou we get the pre paid gratuities we still tip our room steward, our bartenders and waitresses.

Same for us, just booked a Sept cruise and got the pre paid gratuities, on board credit, all the free at sea perks, my double airline miles, Latitude points and was able to apply 3 cruise next certificates to the sailing! Have used the same company several times with no problems!

Thanks for your review and I love #6! As we live by this theory also!

So I looked at my notes from our trip in August and the excursions we took are still listed on NCL website if you search the excursions tab, so maybe they just aren't linked to your cruise date just yet? Maybe call NCL and see if they can book them for you? We did these five excursions "Magnificent Ephesus" "Classical Istanbul" "Exploring Rhodes Religious Past" "Scenic View of Mykonos" "Charming Oia and Winery" Hope this helps! On a side note, make sure to be on the top deck of the ship as you cruise the Bosphorus Strait and under the Bosphorus Bridge! Super cool! Once at around 1 am and again when leaving Istanbul before dinner!

Same for me, 63 and no knees showing!

I know that our tours were posted much closer to the cruise as at the time we were sailing Greece was having those terrible fires and extreme heat problems. Classical Istanbul we booked as soon as we saw it available as it has always been one of my husbands bucket list to see Hagia Sophia. I have noticed that NCL since Covid doesn't seem to have a lot of excursions posted all at once, they seem to trickle in. So you have to look often and book fast before they fill up. In 2023 we wanted a certain excursion to St John so we could hike the National Park but it was sold and and a few days before we sailed they posted another one so we were able to go! There are no excursions at all for our booked Africa cruise in January which makes us wonder if this could become a problem as we really would prefer to use NCL excursions but if they don't have anything we want than it might be too late for us to find private excursions. I do find it difficult sometimes to book a cruise when you have no ideas about what kind of excursions they will offer!

We did "Classical Istanbul", yes pricey but very worth it. This was our most expensive NCL excursion on this trip. Bus to get to a few different locations but than a walking guided tour in the heart of the city, about 2 miles of walking on and off. Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Grand Bazaar plus our guide also pointed out many other things along the way, either on the bus or walking. FYI, women must cover their heads in the Mosque and no bare knees for men or woman. Tour included an excellent Turkish lunch! Matter of fact all of the tours we did with NCL included a snack break of local food and wines or lunch if it was an all day tour. Again we were there in the summer which is the height of tourism for Europe and it was packed! And hot! But worth it! If you are starting in Athens try to go a few days early as Athens was amazing, crowded but amazing!