GA Dave

BirdTravels,

I have been lurking here all week. Really appreciate the huge effort you put into this trip report. Amazing photos, plus all the little details you covered. Thanks!

This conversation reminds me of the infamous “Chalk Circle Lady” at Disney World. This woman drew a big circle on the curb on Main Street one time about an hour before a parade. People there said it was at least 15 - 20 feet long. Every time someone tried to sit down in that area, she freaked out and started screaming and cussing that that was her family’s spot for the parade and no one could sit there. Someone finally called security after she physically pushed a small child who had sat down on her chalk line. She was thrown out of the park. People who stayed said four people showed up just as the parade was starting looking for her.

Some people are just a little too possessive! :')

Last time we sailed (2002), my onboard spend was right around $1000 (DW and I). They are now saying it has increased to $76/day/person. If I look at that, 76 * 7 days * 2 people = $1064. Still seems reasonable to me, given that we have the UBP and three free specialty dinners. Guess I will be visiting the gelato shop and the candy shop alot this time! :D

I have booked three nights of specialty dinners for our Sept. 9th sailing. I did it two weeks ago. If you keep having problems, call NCL directly.

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Just go there cheap independently. Bananarama is excellent and reliable. Includes great shaded lounge chairs, security and best- superb beach access that you can enjoy with the freedom of staying out as long as you like.

 

I don't find any value in the overpriced ship tours.

 

It is best to book ahead in my opinion. Transportation all set up etc. You may have to wait for cabs, and if you want any lounge chairs you are paying for that anyway. I would not just leave my stuff on a beach there, way too much potential for theft with hordes of foot traffic.

Guess it is my New York upbringing, but $85 seemed reasonable to me! Broadway shows left the $85 tickets at the trash heap a long time ago! :')

I have to ask it. How much is Passport cost in USA and how much problem it is to order it. WHY??? Why Americans on this forum always have problem with passports?

We had no problem getting my wife a passport for our trip. Brought her Birth Certificate, DL, etc. to the local post office, took 10 minutes to swear her in, and then we received the passport in 2.5 weeks. No expedite fee or anything.

I have already booked the Tabyana Beach Party on 9/11 for my cruise. This is what it says on MyNCL:

"Discover the lost Caribbean in Roatan with a shore excursion to Tabyana Beach, a place where coconut, grape, and almond trees converge with a seemingly endless white sand beach and the clear turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Enjoy a swim in the beautiful water, take a stroll on the beach, kick back and relax as you listen to live Caribbean music. When you’ve worked up an appetite there’s hamburgers, hot dogs, BBQ chicken, beans & rice, cole slaw, watermelon, pineapple, papaya, lemonade and iced tea waiting for you. At Tabyana Beach, it's all about relaxation, natural beauty and a whole lot of fun!"

My wife and I are really looking forward to it as we never get to the beach here anymore. I thought it was reasonable at $85 each.

I never took my kids on a cruise since they were not really into things offered by the ships. Their "vacation" money was spent on Space Camps, summers marching/touring in Drum & Bugle Corps (DCI), and a bunch of trips to Universal Orlando. Every kid is different.

We bought a case of Cruzan rum in St. Thomas and it was one-third the price we pay here in GA.

Not sure what ship you are on but we were on the Sky a couple of weeks ago and had to vacate our cabin by 9 a.m. Breakfast was served until 9:30 a.m., at which point we were told that they needed to clean the area and we had to move. We just went ahead and left because the lines were very long. Said that Cuba sailings are different.

We are on the Getaway in early September. So far there are still cabins available in every category, so we are hoping it is not real full.

Yes, room and board are included. However, unless the crew member is living with his parents or similar, he/she have to pay rent/mortgage on a home back in their country, and likely supporting (food) for a family back home. Unless you are prepared to box up everything you own and put it into storage every time you sign on a ship, the "free room and board" argument is moot. Even if there is no family, and the apartment or home is empty while the crew is on the ship, there will still be expenses. I've sailed for 43 years, had a family, and always had to make mortgage and car payments when on the ship, and my paycheck paid for the family's food while I was away.

Yes, that is basically what I was asking. Thanks for responding. I know in my business we have a good percentage of the employees on a contract basis. They all have their permanent home somewhere (usually with a family as well), plus they need to pay for housing, meals, car, etc. here. Gets very expensive in a hurry.

Okay, I do not want to start any arguments about the level of wages or anything, just an honest question: When people are working on a ship on a contract, are all of their meals included with the job? And do they have to pay anything for their quarters on the ship, or are they included as well? I would think that having those two big ticket items included would definitely make the salaries more palatable to younger people. I know rents and food make up a pretty good percentage of people's costs around here.

Just curious.

Seems like Nassau is on almost everyone's list. Wonder why they still go there??

When do you sail? The internet packages only showed up for my cruise around 45 days prior to sailing, it just said zero before that.

That may be the issue. We are still 96 days out. Thanks for the info.

So, when we bought our cruise on the Getaway, we included the UBP and the specialty dining package. Everything is already paid for and we have a balance of zero in our online bill account. My DW and I just came into some unexpected funds and we now want to add the social internet access to our cruise. BUT, when I go into My NCL account, the internet packages available show as "0". Has anyone else ever run into the issue of wanting to add something after the fact and have it show as not available? I could understand excursions or shows getting filled up, but I would not think internet access would be limited. Help!

I wear a lanyard every day at work. All 16,000 people where I work do as well. It is the only efficient way to enter and exit every building, office area, etc. Guess we are all “tourists”! ;p

Seriously, I just want my vacation to be relaxing and convenient. If it means putting my key card on a gaudy lanyard, so be it.

Can I bother you to tell me the weather? It was 51 with a bone chilling rain here. Don't know where June went. Can't wait to get to some warm weather

92 degrees in Savannah today! So, I am sure it is nice and toasty in the Caribbean.

It's really disheartening to hear people saying that what NCL is doing is a "joke" or some plot to save money. These are the people I am going to be travelling with? Here is what is happening in the real world.

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2018/05/31/hotels-airlines-airports-cruises-getting-rid-plastic-straws-and-waste/658804002/

I do not believe that anyone is making a joke of the trash in our oceans. I just think we are focusing on some pretty trivial matters in our attempts to save the environment. As a life-long Engineer, I can tell you that the carbon emissions from these monster cruise ships have a much more detrimental impact on the overall environment than the straws used during a cruise. Plus, almost everyone going on these cruises has to fly or drive to the departure location, adding even more carbon to the footprint. Adding in the oils and hydraulic fluids that naturally emit from these vessels, the environmental impact is pretty severe.

Are we all willing to give up our cruises until technology figures out a carbon-free replacement for the monster diesels running these cruise ships?

Ship - Getaway

Deck - 8

Stateroom # - 8726

Stateroom Category – Mini-Suite

Starboard or Port Side - Starboard

 

Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – Very Quiet. Towards the end of the hallway so not too much traffic.

 

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No

 

Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – The balcony was an extended balcony. Two loungers, two regular chairs, and a nice sized round table. It does extend out so balconies above have a clear view, but the extra size was well worth it. No obstructions at all.

 

Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Oversize. Balconies got smaller and narrower on decks 9 and then 10 and up

 

Was wind a problem? - No

 

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - n/a

 

Any specific problems with this cabin? - not at all. Plenty of storage space. Bathroom has a double sink and the Rainshower system with glass shower doors. Hair dryer works great and fridge kept our water cold

 

Any other comments? - Hallways are very narrow and low. My husband is 6'7 and kept hitting the exit signs with his head if he did not duck. Don't forget the look for the swimming fish on the carpet as they point towards the front of the ship.

Thanks for the review on this stateroom! This will be our cabin in less than 14 weeks!! :D

Awesome trip report so far! Thanks for all the pics. :D

I read today that the next big thing for environmentalists is people going in the water with sunscreen on, killing the fish. They say up to 14,000 tons of sunscreen are released into the water each year.

Pretty soon, we won’t be able to breath on cruises. I am sure they will find something wrong with that.

https://www.thedailybeast/sunscreen-great-for-humans-awful-for-the-ocean

Thanks all. This is our 30th anniversary trip, so I want everything to be top-shelf.

You might get a better response asking on the Florida Departures board.

I searched that board. It seemed kind of dead and the last post about this subject was from two years ago. :o

Looking forward to your posts. We are still 14 weeks out from our cruise on the Getaway, but getting excited already.

Being old fashioned, my DW and I are still not into using Uber or Lyft for anything we are planning in advance. I still feel much better using a towncar or limo service for bigger celebrations/important trips. I searched the boards and did not find anything current about towncar/limo serves in Miami. We are sailing on the Getaway in September and we are looking for a good service to use from MIA to the Marriott Biscayne Bay the day before our cruise (Saturday), and then from the Marriott to MIA the day after our cruise (Monday). Has anyone used a good quality service in Miami recently? Most of the services we see online have good ratings, but we would rather hear it from people here. Any information is appreciated.