wonderland1

On 11/26/2018 at 12:41 AM, 2Beeze said:

 

That was part of the joy of the Jewel, that it was lovely and small - so it could get down into that long arm while larger ships cannot. I have to tell you that the morning drifting down the Endicott arm, showering looking out at the ice floating by in water like Tiffany blue, and being on the top most deck with blankets, hot chocolate, and the very slow spin at the glacier is something that I will never forget.  As you can see since I have described it twice 🙀😹 I will post a couple of pictures here, but I have very recently  put together some videos of the suite and this trip and a couple of other recent ones (it’s not something that I advertise, I am not trying for social media star 🙌🏼 ), but i decided to make these videos for our use and to share with those who would appreciate them. If you would like to see them, they are at my new and very small YouTube home under channel 2BEEZE. I hope you will enjoy them and also hope you will make the same journey!

 

Lynn

 

(The top image with the long view of the glacier is from the Haven Suite)

Wow. Really amazing. 

On 8/23/2018 at 9:56 AM, 2Beeze said:

Haven on Norwegian- 2 bd 2 ba. The master bathroom is past fabulous! First, it’s huge. Secondly, it has a large window over the jacuzzi tub and a long window in the shower. Cruising the morning we saw the Mendenhall Glacier in that shower with that blue, blue water and ice chunks was the best shower EVER! It was also steps away from a private pool and jacuzzi, as well as a short flight of stairs to a private deck at the very top of the ship. Simply amazing overall!

Wow. Thanks for sharing. Must put this on the list.

On 12/8/2018 at 4:37 AM, paul929207 said:

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

Some suggestions - Join the Roll Call for your cruise. This is a part of Cruise Critic and will put you in touch with others sailing with you. People on the Roll Call often plan private excursions and are looking for others to join them and split the cost. That way they are much cheaper than the cruise line tours. 

 

Check out the packages offered for things like soda, alcohol, wine, coffee, etc. Only you can decide which one(s) would be to your benefit. 

 

Practice saying "No". The cruise line and the vendors in town will offer lots of ways to overspend. 

Well advised. Specially on saying "NO" to lots of temptations. Good luck. 😉

wow yah. Thanks for the info @KmomChicago and @Heidi13

On 12/9/2018 at 8:54 AM, cb at sea said:

Bad stuff can happen anywhere.  You are safer on a ship than on the USA interstate systems!  You are more likely to be struck by lightening than being on a sinking ship!

Haha. But I agree with this. Just keep calm and look forward on the enjoyment part. :)

On 12/10/2018 at 10:01 AM, leaveitallbehind said:

Off topic to your questions, but just to be certain you are aware, if you are on an itinerary with more than two consecutive sea days most cruise lines require that your child be no younger than 12 months old as of the sailing date. If that would apply to your itinerary, confirm the policy with your cruise line before booking it.  (You are fine with your 7 month old on itineraries with less than that).

 

As to seat belts for car seats, you are correct that there is likely no way to be certain for sure that they would be present.

Agree with this.

This thread is helpful for newbies. And funny at the same time.

On 9/11/2018 at 8:58 PM, noobcruiser said:

Link to a different website that doesn't require an account to read the article: https://www.cruiselawnews.com/2018/09/articles/crew-member-rights/arbitrator-orders-ncl-pay-3337500-seriously-injured-crew-member/

Thanks for sharing.

On 11/25/2018 at 10:47 PM, Relax@Sea said:

A way that I kept track of my 16 year old Daughter "when she was 16 now 29" was to buy the soda package. I would get to know one or two of the drink servers on the pool deck and if I had any concerns I would ask them to check my Daughters folio number to see were she had made her last purchase this would tell me where she had been.

After a few days those servers, since they walk around the decks a lot would tell me her location if they have seen her.

I know this sounds like I didn't trust her which I did but with the help I was able to allow her more freedom.

This looks cute to me. At least you gave her freedom at the same time you are updated on what she was doing or where she was without even bothering her. I thing it's not being "no trust" we're just being protective as parent as it is. :)

16 hours ago, Nebr.cruiser said:

For the itinerary you are using, US dollars will be fine.  Do try to bring newer, unwrinkled bills because some vendors will not accept used looking ones.  Just happened to us in Grenada last week; had a meal on the Carenage and the waitress brought the tip back as she said her bank wouldn't take it.  

 

We have had that happen before and some non-ship tour companies also ask for newer bills.

oh this one is a good tip about bringing a dollar. Also experienced ones that they really didn't accept mine cause it looks over used and is asking me for a newer bill.  IDK why.

On 11/28/2018 at 7:43 PM, John Bull said:

One of the things I like about Thomson (now Marella) is that they offer unusual itineraries instead of the same-old same-old  itineraries offered by other Brit  cruise lines. 

That's my excuse for guessing wrongly 

 

Ship's currency is sterling, so I doubt the ship can break-down large dollar bills.

But you won't have the trouble & expense of currency exchange for your on-board account.

The reverse of that of course is that putting left-over dollars into your on-board account is poor value - but they're very acceptable if like most folk you want to tip crew members like your cabin steward who go the extra mile. 

 

Unlike every other cruise line, Marella used to charge for using a credit card, so we always paid with a debit card.

I don't know whether the fairly recent UK ban on credit card charges applies to ships (international law is pretty complicated) but it's worth finding out - and taking a debit card if it doesn't.

 

Marella are nowhere near as glitzy as US ships, but a Brit ship is best for a Brit's first cruise.

And Marella's on-board costs (drinks prices, no service charges etc) are significantly lower than on US ships.

Have a good one

 

JB 

NIce. Thanks for sharing.

IDK. But I'll still go for bringing with the original. :)

On 11/21/2018 at 11:01 PM, SRF said:

I always like reading the bad reviews.  But find most of them are actually about minor things that people got worked up over.

 

And things DO go wrong.  It is unfortunate, but with over 16 million people cruising every year, some will have not so great experiences.

 

But I do find many of the bad reviews are due to the reviewer having unreasonable expectations.  There is a thread here on CC about a Facebook post about a "horrible experience" with a cruise.  It seems the writer returned to the ship over an hour after sail away time, and the ship had left.  And how the cruise line was at fault.  REALLY??
 

Or I have seen bad reviews of restaurants, that the reviewer admits they never ate all.  They either could not get reservations, or showed up without reservations on a busy night.  How DARE the restaurant not seat them no matter what.

 

But I do look at the ratio.  If 90+% are average or higher.  Or a large percentage are above average or higher, this is good.

Agree with this. There will always be a bad reviews but I also rate the reviews which is higher percentage the bad, minors, and/or good reviews. Anyways, it is still up to us to enjoy the cruise no matter what happen.