hernando52

We enjoyed just walking around Taino Bay, where you dock in Puerto Plata.  There are pools, a lazy river, restaurants, bars and nice shopping.  We have also done an excursion to Ocean World which is a large entertainment complex and enjoyed it a lot.

Our flight to Europe was booked regular economy (1 stop) with one checked bag included.  When I chose seats I paid more for the extra leg room.  I won a bid with the airline on the 2nd part of the trip over and got us into business class....we were fortunate because the airfare was very cheap for the two of us.

Yesterday I could get to NCL.COM, but the cruise I was looking up wasn't showing up anywhere.  A few hours later, everything was fine......Clean out your cookies on your computer, and then if that doesn't work....just wait....NCL.COM has been glitchy.

We have had good luck on the 11th deck, starboard, toward the stern under the library and card room.  Never noisy in that location.

We have bought wine near the port if we have flown in or from home when we drive.  Our under airline seat wheeled carryon works great.  The 4 bottles are inside neoprene sleeves & under our cruise documentation folder and prescription medicine.  We have FAS, so we drink the wine we like in our stateroom. 

We saw Six two times on the Breakaway.  The first time was in 2019 and it was amazing.  We really enjoyed it and couldn't wait to see it again at the end of 2023.  The second time was nowhere near as good as the first time.  The orchestra was too loud and most of the Queens had very screechy voices.  A lot of people walked out of the theater.  That said, we'd still rather see a musical than a game show.

We would just like a couple of quiet cocktail lounges where two couples could get together at the end of the day and before dinner to have a drink or two, talk, listen and not have to yell.   No music necessary although acoustic is always nice....no games in the same room!  

We really do like aft balconies but found the balcony can get pretty dirty overnight from the ship's funnels.  The amazing view is great though!

And fresh flowers are not allowed on board along with guns and knives........

It is a gamble, but the two of us were able to travel last month R/T Florida to Rome for less than $900.  Flights were 1 stop each way and we had 2 day deviations on each end of the trip.  We had no control over the flight other than to pick our departure airport.  Close to trip time, we were able to pick (& upgrade) our seats, and we had to pay for luggage.  I originally moaned about the long layover times in Frankfurt and Toronto, but because of FL weather delays and dual (Canadian & US) passport controls, it ended up working out.  Some people lucked out and got direct flights.  

I completely understand why you can't debark with flowers, plants, etc. as they could be harboring unwanted insects....but NCL not allowing any flowers pre-bought on board by passengers or florists I don't get....If I had suitcase space I'd brighten up my stateroom by bringing a fake Christmas tree or poinsettia on board!!  Is that on the forbidden list with the guns, knives & drugs??  It's not the end of the world, but it was always such a nice touch that NCL provided for us.

I'll pass, thank you!

Oh no!  I have these strange little things around my yard....mine are half dead and they look better than this!

I was afraid that would be the answer......I'm not anti-cactus but it sure isn't as nice as fresh flowers....Thanks for the feedback.

We'll be going on a 2 week cruise and have booked a non-Haven suite.  We did a similar trip last year and NCL provided a small but lovely fresh floral arrangement in the room.  Since that trip it seems that you can't order flowers as a gift for yourself.  Has NCL done away with this suite perk?

Clearing the cookies fixed my problem too.  Thanks!

Not working on Chrome but okay using Edge.  The App on my IPhone is working fine too

We stayed in suite 12022 last year and it had a separate tub and shower set up.  It was a family suite with balcony.

We bought Priority Access for our cruise out of Rome in Sept.  For the boarding and debarkation it was useless, but with VERY early excursion meeting times 8 mornings in a row, the full warm breakfast room service was wonderful.  It arrived on time every morning and we were able to meet for excursions on time.  Cost effective....not really, but convenient.  We have sailed out of Canaveral a few times, and the itineraries are much more laid back and not as intensive as in Europe.  We would not be utilizing the room service breakfast if we weren't in a time crunch so it would be a waste.

We took an NCL excursion in late Sept.  We tendered to the new port where we boarded a bus which took us to a winery, Oia, and then back to Fira.  We were given the cable car ticket to go down to the old port to catch a tender back to the ship.  We pretty much had no time to do anything in Fira as we had to get in the very long line for the cable car.  The wait was about an hour and a half.  We were lucky, as shortly after we got back to the ship, Santorini had a power outage which disabled the cable car.  Ship passengers in Fira had to walk down the steep path in the dark to the old port...NCL waited for everyone to return before leaving.

It took me 2 tries to get everything settled.  The first was restoring the excursions at the original price and that went okay.  When I got the paperwork though (cruise confirmation & online) it showed that I owed for all of the shore excursions.  A second call cleared that all up and my balance is back to zero.  Just check your accounts carefully after excursion reinstatement.

From Orlando we flew to Rome, via Frankfurt Germany on Lufthansa.  On the way back we flew Air Canada via Toronto

12 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

Interesting, thank you. We purchased Priority Access only once before, prior to the cruise*. However, due to Covid-related protocols, NCL cancelled the Priority Access and gave us our money back. This was in 2021. I figured if they didn't show it as an option, they just weren't doing it anymore. I will look out for this when I check in next month. Any other perks, like priority embarkation, tendering, etc.?

 

*IIRC, we were allowed to perform most of the check-in procedures far ahead of the now 21 days prior. So maybe it *was* offered at check-in, but that occurred much earlier than it does now (if that makes sense).

Cruising this month but was able to buy Priority Access months ago.  I couldn't find it advertised on the web site, so I called NCL...got it added no problem.  At online check-in it was an option to add on to the reservation.  I think they limit the number of PAs on each cruise.  We got it for the in room breakfasts before early excursions, and for the priority debarkation.

Okay...I have another question regarding ETAs....This one is more urgent as I leave for Europe in about a month.  I am a US citizen.  Our flight back from Rome to Orlando, FL is through Toronto, Canada.......Do I need to have a travel authorization to travel from Rome to Toronto??  This is all new to me and the Canadian site regarding visas just is not clear to me.  

Sounds good to me!  I just need to know what to do and what to pay so that I can enjoy Europe again.  I'll keep my eyes open for updates.  I'm not on the NCL general Cruise Critic board all that much...I stick mostly on the Roll Calls