Candy Apple 12

Here’s an example I just pulled up for a cruise embarking from Italy tomorrow. It’s just after 11 PM in Italy right now.

When we were there in December 2023, there was a HOHO bus available at the port. I took pictures of the brochure but we did not take it.

I do both. Letter on day one and daily conversations. Communicate early and often to have the best experience.

If NCL and DCL dining were comparable ten years ago, then I agree that NCL should go back to what it was 10 years ago. My first NCL cruise was June 2018, so I don’t know what NCL was like in 2014. I also don’t know if DCL quality has declined since my last cruise on DCL in 2015, hence my caveat of “if DCL quality is the same as it was on the many cruises I took with them, Disney is the model of what NCL should strive for.” Regardless, it would be nice if NCL worked on their food offerings. I’ve never cruised with Virgin, so I can’t comment on that.

What is a guest experience case? It’ll be interesting to hear their response.

Perhaps you can mention this on your post-cruise survey and suggest some of the ideas that others have posted here.

NCL is missing an opportunity to save $$ by not catering to vegetarians. Many simply prepared vegetables are cheaper than steak. I haven’t been on a Disney cruise since 2015 because my kids have outgrown it and I’m not much of a Disney fan, but if DCL quality is the same as it was on the many cruises I took with them, Disney is the model of what NCL should strive for. Agreed.

Ugh…Sea bass is what I would have ordered. I agree that a seafood place should have great seafood. Maybe I’ll give Los Lobos a try. It seems to be getting good reviews on this thread.

Thank you. I may try the sea bass, my favorite fish. Which ones we choose will depend on my fellow travelers. My FIL also ordered the duck last time.

Wow, four posters don’t recommend Palomar. I was thinking of trying it on my upcoming cruise. I wanted to try the sea bass, my favorite fish. Anyone care to comment more specifically as to why you were disappointed with Palomar?

I always order the duck at Le Bistro. Do you have the link for the new menu? I’ll need to decide whether to bother going there on my next cruise if there’s no duck.

You’ll have to either take the forward elevators or the stairs by the forward elevators to deck 17 to enter the Haven and then take the Haven elevator or stairs to the Haven restaurant. The Haven elevator doesn’t go to deck 15. Alternately, you could go up the elevator or stairs and take the “back entrance” to the Haven restaurant. These photos might help.

It looks like you’d have to walk through the Vibe to get to the Haven sundeck if you took the elevators, but maybe the concierge or other Haven staff could facilitate this if you had difficulty with stairs. It just seems like poor planning, but maybe there was no room for the Haven elevators on deck 17. We’ll see how the elders are doing with stairs come January. Hopefully no issues.

Thanks for your quick reply. I really enjoyed the details you included in this thread. I was on the Escape the same week, and I just found this thread when @Taconix posted on Thursday. Hopefully your ankle is fully healed by now. I’ll be on the lookout for water on the floor near the Local because my mom and in-laws will be on the cruise with my husband and me. One question that you might be able to help with: Are stairs the only way to get to the Haven sundeck on deck 17? That’s how it appears from the deck plans.

Was this at Indulge? Are the pictures of the doors taken from inside or outside the Haven? I’ll have too look for them in January.

Same here and we also cruise in January 2025. In the past I first learned about the Haven concierge phone number here, before getting any communication from NCL, so if NCL is sending this out to anyone with a future Haven reservation, it’ll be helpful for Haven newbies.

A 3 day cruise is closer to a 2 1/2 day cruise, the way I look at it even if you embark by noon. Plus you have the additional hassle of packing and unpacking each time, getting to the port, going through security and other lines at the port, and traveling home. Living in Florida does simplify the travel piece of the equation, but if I want to maximize my fun time to overall vacation time spent ratio, I vote for the longer cruises. Now, some people prefer shorter mini-vacations, so now that you have more information, only you can decide how to spend your vacation time. As for me, I love sea days. I love the motion of the ocean (even if we’re rocking and rolling). I enjoy spending walking around and exploring the ship. Sea days are relaxing with no specific times to do anything unless you schedule a specialty dinner, a show, or a spa treatment.

FIL drinks regular Coke and likes it flat. Hubby says Diet Coke doesn’t taste as good flat.

We’ve never bought the drink package or the soda package, hence my question on the success of getting a pitcher without the drink package. They don’t drink enough to make the soda package worth it. My FIL has had some success ordering a soda in the Haven restaurant without the soda package. He expected to pay, but they never brought him a charge slip. I’m guessing with such small ships that the Galapagos cruises are very pricey.

We never get the drink package but my husband and his dad would love a pitcher of Coke. Has anyone done this without a drink package? I’d love to try it on our next cruise.

Thanks for the comparison. Does Celebrity go to the Galapagos? It’s a trip I’d like to take, but otherwise based on your post, I’ll stick with the Haven. The butler brought a pitcher of fountain soda for free? Did you have the drink package?

How about a photo of it being used?

Do most crew have shore training before getting on the ship? Or do they do all their onboarding with HR and training for their position specific duties on the ship? Just curious since this was the crew member’s first day on the ship. I wondered how much in person interaction he had with NCL prior to that day.

To clarify, is this after you enter the building?

@kismetique Thank you for sharing your ChatGPT poems. You’ve taken @Sthrngary’s butler letter to the next level!