schmoopie17

We like waking up in a new place almost every day. Whether or not we do an excursion or just walk around the port, it's nice being someplace different.

They require all adults sharing a cabin to be on the drink package, for obvious reasons. Having said that, perhaps a doctor's note could persuade NCL to bend the rule in your case? Maybe...maybe not. Might be worth a try.

Not sure what's up with all the duplicate posts on CC lately. Just had to edit a duplicate again. Oh well...

The price of gas and food have increased dramatically in the last couple of years. That does it!! I'm never driving or eating again!!!

So...if an NCL itinerary says "Puerto Plata", can I assume that it's actually Taino Bay? I've seen itineraries for other cruise lines that specifically say Taino Bay, so it's confusing.

Look at the bright side. If you're by the morgue, at least your neighbors won't be partying at night.

You'll be able to crawl back to your cabin from the District. Oh wait, I was confusing you with me...

Click on any of the decks with cabins (8, 9, 10, etc.) and then click on any cabin with a red and white arrow to see a YouTube video of that cabin. https://www.cruisedeckplans.com/DP/deckplans/Norwegian-Epic

I just re-read your opening sentences. If your cruise is December-January, why would it matter if your driver's license expires in February? Maybe I'm missing something...wouldn't be the first time. Also, even on the rare instance where an official in a foreign country wanted to match your id to your cruise card, (never happened to us, but I suppose there is a chance), it's highly unlikely that an expired license would invalidate your identity...even if said official even noticed the expiration date.

I've been on CC for almost 20 years...Platinum on NCL...and this is the first I've heard of Sixthman. Guess I've been out of the loop all this time...

No need to even bring a driver's license on a cruise. One less thing to worry about replacing in case of a lost wallet. A passport suffices.

Waiting for someone named Lola to reply...

No offense meant at all. Note the smiley face. I've told you a number of times that I love your dad, since he reminds me so much of myself. Your last live report mentioned "grumpiness"...I was just trying to inject a little humor. Looks like I failed. Sorry about that. My apologies.

I'll miss your dad's pithy responses. No, I did not misspell pissy...or maybe I did. 😁

Reading the title of this thread, I thought they threw you in the brig.

You'll probably survive but wish you were dead. Oh wait, that would be me...

I thought I did...

They're great for bar and restaurant owners. Not only are they prone to spilling (especially with a stem...I am notorious for knocking over stemmed glasses), but a martini glass only holds a couple of ounces. So they get to charge outrageous prices for a tiny drink in a fancy glass. I cringe every time Mrs. Schmoopie orders a Cosmo, knowing that she'll need another after just a couple of sips.

Never been on the Epic (came close once, but then came to our senses 😀). Did a Panama Canal crossing from Miami to L.A.on the Bliss and it is our favorite ship. The Observation Lounge is huge, comfortable and inside. They occasionally have food and they have a good bar. The Bliss also has the District (beer place with over 20 beers on tap, if you're into that sort of thing...we are).

We are also on the Escape in September, 2024, except we're round-trip from Rome. It could be the same trip, since the Barcelona and Rome round-trips overlap on our cruise. In any event, being beer snobs, the District is our go-to on the Escape. We're also amateur wine snobs (I don't know what's good but I know what I like), so any bar pouring wine works, as well. And when we're not in the District, we usually end up in Tobacco Road...very cool vibe and great for people watching. We haven't given any thought to buying extra specialty meals, since this will be our first cruise as Platinum with the additional free dining vouchers. But I would think that buying the additional package would be a better deal. However, I've been wrong before...

Pretty soon the table cleaners/plate removers in the buffet will clear your table and then pull out one of those little tablets asking how much you'd like to tip. The world has gone mad...

We have (twice) gotten FCC for a price drop after 120 days. But each time we were told it was a one-time offer per cruise...meaning if the price dropped further, nothing else could be offered.

The TA was able to tap directly into NCL's system to pull up our Latitudes accounts to verify my Veteran status (for the 10% discount and to verify our total Latitudes level and points). I actually made a "hold" reservation with the TA, which our PCC was able to view when he went in to cancel our original reservation. After making the reservation with the TA, the cruise showed up instantly on our future cruise page in our NCL account, just like our other two pending cruises. So, to make a long story short (I know, too late for that...) you earn Latitudes points regardless of the source of the reservation.

Just a few days ago we booked directly with our PCC for a December cruise. The next day while randomly browsing, I found a TA (a very large one) that offers $375 Visa card rebates...plus prepaid gratuities...on the very same cruise. I put a reservation on hold with the TA so I could talk with our PCC. Obviously he said he could not match that deal (he was able to pull up our "hold" reservation to verify that we were comparing apples to apples and he said he understood why we would make the switch.) I felt bad because he has been very good to us, but $375 plus $380 in gratuities was too good to pass up.

Our one cruise on Royal was several years ago on the Adventure of the Seas. We booked an inside cabin that actually had a large window overlooking the promenade area in the middle of the ship. It was cool because you didn't feel as confined/claustrophobic as in a "regular" inside. On the other hand, it wasn't cool because cabins directly across had a direct view inside our cabin. (And we had a view inside theirs).