mininewman

I've been enjoying my cruise, and it didn't seem like there was much interest in this thread so I was letting it be. Downloading the dailies has.. failed me. I am keeping paper copies, I can scan them when back on land of people want. Day 3 was Bermuda, we arrived without issue and it was a slightly chilly day that had intermittent rain. I had an evening excursion planned, but as I stepped off the boat it started pouring on me, so I noped out. My excursion today was cancelled for weather (catamaran snorkeling), it was beautiful out so I walked around Nassau for an hour, and now I am convinced I will actually do a beach day if we make GSC, since I missed the ocean today. Day 4 we left Bermuda, 5 at sea, and 6 now in Nassau have all had pretty much perfect weather. Warm, sunny, winds were okay, ship was not rocking much, etc. I've had 2x mdr meals both of which were pretty good (food wise, service is... Well I'm on my dessert right now and still haven't got the drink I ordered before ordering my starter...). I did la cucina once more outside during sunset, which was amazing as usual. Entertainment wise I've caught one comedy act, it was just okay. Burn the Floor was good, and I loved Broadway unplugged. I have high hopes for million dollar quartet. Some more food pics, a mix of MDR, the one course I changed at La Cucina, and O'Sheehans.

We made it into Bermuda without issue. It's 70 but overcast. Yesterday's seaday 1 was calm but cold and windy. Didn't stop the hot tub crowd though, and vibe still had shots flowing. Night 1 I went to teppanyaki however they wanted to seat me alone, so I opted out and went to Moderno instead. The food there was definitely not up to the standard of a land based churascarria, the salad bar was still great though. Day 2 was breakfast buffet, O'Sheehans lunch, and La Cucina for dinner. Service and food great at all, and thankfully the buffet was not nearly as bad as it was on day 1. La cucina was enforcing the 1-1-1, so I did not get a salad and app... Still enough food. Really no problem finding anything on p+ yet, and lines at Starbucks have been surprisingly short at 8am. So far today I had buffet for breakfast and lunch, and will do it again for dinner since I have a 615 excursion and I want to eat before I leave. That means no photos from today's meals. I will probably hit up O'Sheehans tonight depending on when my excursion returns. Day 2 food pics included. I won't post any more buffet pics but will try to get any restaurant ones the next week. FreeStyle Daily (3)

Little breezy, appear to be Bermuda bound! FreeStyle Daily (2)

Day 1 is coming to a close. There is a 9pm and 11pm comedy show but dinner took longer than 9 and I don't know that I can stay up for the 11 considering my early departure this morning and my... Partaking if certain libations... Weather was about as good as it could be in NYC in March. Looking forward to a casual sea day tomorrow.

Check in was easy. Both vibe and mixx have Veuve, so NY taxes are going to kill me. The vibe on this ship is huge compared to others I've been on, I'm wondering if it will be anywhere near the value of previous trips. Time shall tell. Rooms were ready a little after 2pm. I normally avoid the buffet on embarkation day, opting instead for a sit down meal, but today I decided to give it a try. Big mistake, the place was packed to the gills. I did a full loop and didn't see a single open table, with several groups camping near tables waiting for them to get up, people eating on loungers on the deck, etc. I ended up grabbing just a light lunch and ate standing up. Alternatively, check in only took 15 minutes or so, I had pretty much no line when reserving stage shows, and walked straight to an agent to reserve meals. I had no problems getting the specialty dining and stage shows I wanted despite the later than normap check in. The app has been updated instantly with my taxes on drinks, but still shows last week's daily.

NCL air was smooth, united, left on time and arrived in Newark at 950 or so. Ditched the transfer and took the train in for $15 instead, met with a friend for a bagel in Manhattan, now in a cab to the pier. On another site many people are posting pictures onboard and saying embarkation was smooth, I hope to join them soon.

I will also be on this cruise. Like the OP, I booked this kind of late in the game for a cruise (late December), but all of the stars aligned to make it work out okay. I will be flying, using NCL air (gag) into NYC tomorrow morning. I have heard horror stories regarding NCL air, however the few times I have used it I haven't had a problem, and I want that streak to continue. It is the first flight on that particular plane out of my airport in the morning, direct to Newark, and weather appears to be fine in both places all day tomorrow, so fingers crossed! I will be solo as well, but will be in an inside cabin, as when I booked those were cheaper than the studios. I have free at sea plus along with a vibe pass, and am platinum so I'm looking forward to 5 (or 7 if I can find an equitable trade) signature meals, and if the OP doesn't mind I may be able to throw a few photos this way. I have the Gosling Rum Sunset cruise booked in Bermuda, Seahorse Catamaran Snorkel for Nassau, and I will meet up with family for a board game and beach day in Port Canaveral. In drastic contrast to the OP, I work in a formal environment (full suit and tie every day), so I look forward to being in shorts and a tshirt every day of vacation. It's part of the reason (along with solo amenities and open bar) that this will be my 12th cruise with NCL.

The reason is that NCL's system wants to charge you for the fixed price restaurants the moment you book them. If you book them first, it will assume you want to use your FAS credit toward it. Then since you do not prepay for the ala carte restaurants, you can book them and use vouchers like normal. If you try to book the ala carte restaurant first, the system will assume you use your FAS credit for that, then require you to pay for the fixed price upfront. This is because NCL does not allow for redemption of platinum+ vouchers online (it doesn't seem there is any form of programming for this), so when you are booking, the NCL site just has no idea you won't have to pay.

I have my edocs for an upcoming cruise, and it has a discrepency for my transfer and my flight. The flight lands in EWR, however the airport-port transfer states: "Transportation Provider: SMS INTERNATIONAL SHORE OPERATIONS NYC 125 N.E. 9TH STREET Miami FL, 33132 P (305)290-3000 F Transfer Information LaGuardia Airport to Port of New York. Please claim all luggage checked with the airline upon arrival. An NCL representative will meet your flight inside the baggage claim area. Representatives are available at 8:30am. If you are unable to locate our representative, please call 347-539-9255. >Please have your transfer vouchers ready. Transportation is arranged as a scheduled shuttle service, based on guest¿s arrival time and numbers. You may experience a short wait until the arrival of the next available shuttle. >Guests arriving prior to day of sailing requesting transfers on day of sailing should meet at the following airport location: Delta arrival terminal D by the Welcome Center. >Hand -carry all travel documents, medications, and valuables. >Transfers are non-refundable and no credit will be given for any unused portion. In the event of an emergency or flight change, please contact Norwegian Cruise Line at 1-800-327-7030 within the USA. Outside of the USA please call 305-436-4000>" Interestingly, the return transfer does not have any airport listed. I want to assume that NCL just uses the same provider for each airport, and the listed airport does not matter. I would call customer service, but the chance of them knowing anything about it is probably less than 10%. I might call SMS international at the provided number, but I figured it would be quicker and easier to ask here first and see if anyone has any firsthand experience with this, and if it is likely to matter. Thanks!