pacruiser13

We used the free airfare promotion for our cruise leaving 8/11 from Miami.  We had a few airport options and chose to fly into Miami the day before.  I did my research and flights for our family of 4 were in the neighborhood of $1200-1600 round trip.  I was able to get the "free" airfare for around $600 with a $100 onboard credit.  There were fees and I had to pay the reduced fare for our two kids, but it was a great deal for me.  However, don't expect your flight info at 75 days out like they say.  We got ours around 30 days which was stressful.  You don't get to choose your times at all.  Our flight down to Miami leaves at 6am on Saturday and our ship doesn't leave until Sunday.  We chose to fly in the day before but did not have to pay a deviation fee because we booked through a travel agent who is a partner with NCL.  I actually did pay the fee and then they refunded it.  If you book directly with NCL you do not have to pay the fee either.  We did not add on the hotel because there are a few airport hotels who do free transportation from the airport and then to the port.  If you do the research it can be worth it.  We are on a direct flight both ways from Newark Airport.

We did the bonvoyage since it was the kids' first cruise and they loved it. It was fun seeing all the decorations and having the cake while we were unpacking.

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We went to O'Sheehan's as soon as we got on the ship and there was no wait. The food was fine and the service was fast. We had boarding delays on embarkation day though and didn't start boarding until around 12:30 or 1. We got there at 10 and the line to check in was not bad. By around 11 the line was crazy long. At a certain point though, everyone is waiting whether in line to check in or in the lobby to embark. I like the idea of seeing Intrepid and may steal that next time.

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Just beware, we had a midship balcony on deck 12 on BA and were right above the outdoor bars. It was very loud at night. Most nights if we shut the doors it wasn't too bad. There were no quiet nights on the balcony though and on nights when there were football games on we could hear the noise even with the doors closed. The smoking section was also right below us.

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They did also have some family activites like button making, balloon animal tutorials, pizza making and stuff that was for parents to do with their kids. My kids enjoyed those as well as the activities on their own with the kids club and my youngest is almost 9. We went on BA in September.

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I was on BA recently and posted the SA daily schedule for our sailing. It was for the seals which are 6-9 I think. It's under 9/11-9/18 review-family cruise. I think they also did port day breakfast and lunch if I recall but we didn't do that either. Our daughter loved it at night but wanted to hang out with us during the day. Our teenager on the other hand we never saw. She loved Entourage. We just got our pictures printed and you can barely tell she was with us.

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I don't I'm sorry. My daughter had a softball tournament, so we had to get off quickly. I know they like to start boarding by 11:30-12 so I would imagine they want everyone off by 10 or so.

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So I must have left Day 7 at home, but here are Days 1-6. Sorry for the highlighting and markings. We like to mark them up so we know what we plan to do and there were not extra copies available onboard. I only included the day's scheduled because I was limited on time.

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This is subject to change and if there aren't a lot of teens on board, they don't necessarily go by the schedule. They always had fun though. My teenager can't wait to go back.

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Sorry, it timed out and didn't post the attachment the first time. This is my first time with attachments.

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Here is Splash Academy Seals Page 2

Here is side one of the Splash Academy Seals schedule (ages 6-9). This is the only age group that I have.

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I think it just depends. We were on BA last week and walked back on from port twice with drinks. The first time it was a fountain soda and the second time a large bottle of water we bought in port. No one said anything to us although there were signs that said no liquids. (I didn't see the sign at first or I would've thrown them away since I don't like to act like an exception to the rules.)

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We were on BA last week and happened to be in the Manhattan Room on Saturday night (the last night of the cruise). They performed there that night probably around 9pm. If you don't want to wait in line, you could always hang out until you see someone at a table near the floor ready to leave, then pounce on their table and insist that the staff sit you there despite the long line of people waiting out front. Honestly that was the only time I saw the BA staff lose their stuff and I don't blame them. I have no idea where the woman came from, but it looked like she asked the people (who were getting up to dance) if they were leaving and then stacked their dishes on one side of the table and sat down. It was totally inappropriate and we couldn't even believe it was happening. I think they should've told her no, but she wasn't moving from the table.

I plan on posting the dailies and SA and Entourage stuff tomorrow. I apologize that it's taking so long. Unfortunately, the vacation here is over and we literally were home 15 minutes before taking off for a softball tournament. We've been going ever since. I am going to scan in the stuff tomorrow at work and try to post it then.

Our family took this cruise, my husband and I and our two daughters (8 and 14). We had the UBP and our kids sailed free. (We also bought the soda package for the kids, which was well worth it.) I don't want to bore everyone with a play-by-play of our trip, so I'll give you the basics and tips that I discovered during our week. I also have copies of the dailies as well as the Splash Academy and Entourage (teen club) schedules that I can post if anyone wants to see them.

We live only about an hour from the Manhattan terminal, so we drove in on embarkation day. We saved about $90 by parking in a Park Right garage on 43rd St. and walking the 5-6 blocks to the terminal wheeling our bags behind us. (They do shuttle you to the terminal, but we chose not to wait for the shuttle.) We arrived at the terminal around 10:30 and there were no long lines for check-in. There were delays in boarding so I definitely recommend bringing a sweater or sweatshirt because it was freezing in the cruise terminal.

We were on board by 12:45 (we had group #8) and ate lunch at O'Sheehan's. We then checked out our room which was a family balcony on the 12th deck. We went to muster and then went to deck 16 to watch as we left the city. Keep in mind we left on 9/11, so there was heightened security, including NYPD officers onboard with M16s and NYPD boat escorts. I am not sure if that happens all the time, but it was very surreal. They also did a nice tribute to the victims of 9/11 when we passed by the Freedom Tower.

As far as our room was concerned, I chose a mid-deck room because our kids are prone to motion sickness. However, we had to walk forever to get to our room from the elevator. Also, the bars on the starboard side do allow smoking out on the deck and they happened to be right below our room. The smoke smell wasn't terrible, but we did smell it and it did get loud (especially during football games). It was a little annoying not to be able to sit on the balcony and enjoy some peace and quiet, but it didn't ruin my trip by any means. I just wish I had thought about this ahead of time and avoided it.

Our kids did attend Splash Academy and Entourage and they both loved it. I can't say enough good things about the counselors. I definitely recommend going to both clubs to check them out during open house on embarkation day. Our kids also did the bungee jump, rock climbing wall, ropes course and the plank. They loved them all and hubby and I wish we had a chance to do the ropes course, but will next time. We didn't have issues with anything closing and we had some windy days. Also mini golf was fun and the oversized chess set was really cool. We did hang out at the kiddie pool and adult pool for a bit on sea days. Yes there were chair hogs out in full force but again, I just shrugged it off and was always able to snag a chair eventually.

In Bermuda we bought the 2-day transportation pass because we had an excursion booked for the third day. On on our first day we took the ferry to St. George's. (Just note that the ferry can be a rough ride. Both kids got sick from that ride unfortunately, so take Bonine or Dramamine beforehand if you are prone. It is a good 40-45 minute ride.) We walked around St. George's and went to the dukking of the wench which was awesome. My hubby even got to help and it was a great memory. We then went to the caves (via bus) and saw both crystal and fantasy caves. This was a really interesting thing to see (and fulfilled some of the educational requirements we had for taking the girls out of school). However, it was a workout. (There were 80+ stairs to get down into each cave, so keep that in mind. The stairs were steep at times, narrow and wet.) From there we took the bus to Hamilton and the ferry back to the dockyard.

On our second Bermuda day we went to Elbow Beach and Horseshoe Bay Beach. (You can bring NCL beach towels off ship with you, so there's no need to pack your own.) We took the ferry from dockyard to Hamilton and then the bus to Elbow Beach and Horseshoe. Elbow Beach has no facilities that I saw, so bring water if you want it and buy snacks. We only stayed a little bit there and then went to Horseshoe Bay where we ate lunch, but as expected it was pricey. We spent $60 for the 4 of us, but it was the only meal we ate off-ship. After a long day, we splurged for a minibus back. That was $28 ($7 x 4) well spent.

On our third Bermuda day we took the Day at the Beach excursion to Snorkel Park Beach. It is in walking distance from the ship and I know the reviews aren't great, people say the excursion is a waste, etc. However, after doing the math I thought it would be worth it and it was. We got in before the park opened to the public and got first choice of chair/umbrella locations. We got a total of 4 loungers and 2 umbrellas, snorkel equipment for all, sand toys and my daughter and I went kayaking and we didn't pay any extra. My hubby saw some cool fish snorkeling and there were tons of silver fish right on the beach near your feet. Just bring some bread or cereal (they like fruit loops) from the buffet for the fish. After we were done at the beach we did some shopping in the dockyard and then went back to the ship.

As far as food, we ate a lot at the buffet and were surprised that we had some of our best food there. It was easy with the kids and (as I read) service in the dining rooms was slow. We ate at Taste, Savor and the Manhattan Room each once. The food was okay, but they didn't have a lot of non-seafood choices that changed daily. (I have a shellfish allergy and don't really like fish.) We also splurged and ate at Tepenyaki one night for our anniversary. I waited until we got on board to book that and I'm glad I did. I booked it for the 4 of us, but my kids don't eat hibachi, so they ordered from the kids menu and we didn't have to pay for them. If I had booked ahead of time, I would've had to pay for them and then try to get a refund.

We saw Burn the Floor (with kids) and Rock of Ages (no kids) and both were fabulous. It was the first performance for the cast of ROA and I thought they did an excellent job. Yep, it was racy, but as an avid Howard Stern fan, it was nothing I couldn't handle. We loved Howl at the Moon and went to the Second City show, but improv really isn't our thing. They are talented though.

Disembarkation was a breeze. We watched the ship go under the Verrazano Bridge and then dock from our balcony. We took turns heading up to the buffet to grab coffee (the coffee in the room was limited and not very good). When it was announced that passengers who decided to self-assist could disembark, it was a madhouse at the elevators (as expected). We grabbed an elevator going up (we were on 12, so only had 3 floors to go) and then just rode it all the way back down. We were off the ship and through customs by 8:30 and home in our driveway by 10:00.

All in all, we had a great trip. The weather was fabulous and the ship is great. We would definitely sail on BA again in the future.

On BA this past week my father in law didn't go to muster and never made it up. He also said he didn't go last time he sailed on BA. I don't agree with what he did or know why he didn't go, but nothing was said or done by NCL.

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Yep, true story! We booked BA last June and leave in a few days. We did not pay the 18% on our UBP. However, we didn't get the free soda package for our kids. I purchased that separately, but am going to check with NCL because someone else also told me that should have been included when we got the UBP. If not, I'm okay with paying for it since it's a nominal fee. And the price of our cabin (family balcony) has not changed at all except that now when you book they tack on the $200 gratuity on the UBP. Enjoy your cruise!

Good luck to you! I think if it was me, I would rent a car and start driving. I would just be nervous because the airlines can be so unreliable and if it's a 12-hour drive, your time to make that decision is limited. I really hope everything works out for you.

I have been doing that for our Breakaway trip on 9/11 that I book last year! I agree, we do need a support group!

Have you seen a price decrease on the 9/11 BA? I am on the same one and booked over a year in advance. I have seen the price stay the same, except now I would have to pay the 18% on the UBP that I didn't pay when I booked, so the price increases by $200. Have you tried any upsells? I was considering it just to see what they offer.

Thanks everyone! I just purchased a power strip (with no surge) that has a few additional outlets as well as USB ports. I think we should be covered. Heaven forbid my kids cannot use their electronics!

We are sailing on the BA next week. This is the first cruise where we are taking our kids (ages 8 and 14) and we have so many electronics (i.e. phones, ipads, kindles, etc.). This is our first NCL cruise and I've read there are few outlets in the cabins (we're in a family balcony). Are power strips or extension cords allowed on NCL? Any other advice on what we need to pack to travel with kids? Thanks!

You actually can purchase the soda package for only one person once you are on the ship even though it says online that you have to purchase it for everyone in the cabin. I spoke with NCL and confirmed that with them once before.

The irony of the soda package is that when you purchase it online, the picture shows cans of soda and it only covers fountain soda. Pretty funny.

Yes, it looks like they recently changed the terms and conditions so it no longer says that canned soda is not included. That's good news!

We have looked into the "Day at the Beach" excursion through NCL to Snorkel Park Beach and after doing the math, it seems to be worth the money if you all use all of the included amenities. It is $59 per adult and you get the admission ($5), chair and shared umbrella ($20), full snorkel gear ($20) and an hour kayak or paddle board (up to $30). For kids, it's $39 and I don't know whether they are allowed to snorkel or paddle board, but it does include the snorkel gear and access to beach toys. However, if you aren't going to use all the amenities, it would be cheaper just to walk over and pay the admission. From what I've read, it doesn't compare to the other beaches as far as beauty is concerned, but it is convenient for last day on the island or if you don't want to travel far from the ship.