rmfortin

Hi, @laudergayle -- I know you weren't asking *us* for info, but I can say we *loved* staying at Harbor House in Galveston. It is walking distance from not only the cruise port (assuming a 5-10 minute walk is within your abilities), but the rooms are *huge* and the staff is really friendly and helpful. We disembarked Prima at 9:30 and had booked Harbor House for a post-cruise stay. Even though we could not "officially" check in until 4pm, we stopped by early and they let us leave our luggage in the lobby...and called us (while we were sightseeing) at around 11am to let us know our room was ready for check in a full 5 hours early...with no early check-in fee applied. They also have a *huge* rack of "beach bicycles" available (with locks) to use free of charge, and they allowed us to use them even after we checked out for the entire afternoon, with no problem (all while allowing our luggage to remain in the lobby prior to our Galveston Express shuttle to IAH at 4pm). We were able to see almost all of Galveston in an afternoon cruising around on these bikes. Full disclosure: it is not the cheapest place to stay in Galveston. But if convenience, location and customer service are your priority (like it is for us), it's hard to beat. If you have time, the Mooney House tour was really impressive and interesting...the online audio tour was well done and the docents there are very helpful and engaged. The history of the home is very interesting (if you are into that type of thing). But do *not* go through Groupon or other discount sites for your tickets, as the entry fee is actually *less* at the house than it is online. Airport-wise, Houston Hobby is closer to Galveston than Bush Intercontinental, but is much smaller...our shuttle actually picked someone up at Hobby before continuing to Bush (IAH) to drop us all off. I would say they are at most 20 minutes apart, so go with whichever is best for you itinerary-/cost-wise. And a quick unsponsored plug for Galveston Express--their shuttles are very nice and new (Mercedes) vans, and the drivers are communicative, time-aware, and helpful. Customer service is very good, too--I was a little worried about having time at the airport to get to our gate, and they quickly and easily rescheduled us on an hour-earlier shuttle only a day beforehand (which they did *not* technically have to do based on the "customer agreement" I agreed to when I reserved our spots). Just keep in mind that there is a good amount of construction on I-45 (which is about the only way to get to *either* airport from Galveston), so check with your shuttle service/Uber/Lyft to make sure you will have enough time for check-in, TSA, boarding, etc. Safe travels--we're sure you'll have a great time! Ross/Paula, Chicago

Hi, @seemoreroyals -- Probably easiest to comment within your original quote below!

@lilijo we agree the availability of included food is a definite miss on NCL's part. Simple example: My wife went out on several occasions to find just a plain ol' apple/orange/banana, and came up empty. At one point she went all the way up to the buffet, saw a bowl of fruit sitting out at one of the stations, but was told she could not have any b/c that station was closed. Fortunately one of the chefs walked past her conversation with the hostess, and he simply grabbed the bowl and brought it over to my wife to pick from. I don't know what 'policies' NCL has in place that discourage many staff from 'bending the rules' even slightly for so simple a request as an apple, but it's those little things that stick in customers' minds (at least they stick in ours). We were most disappointed in the weird hours for Indulge. On many occasions it didn't open for lunch until 1pm, and a few times until 2! It always seemed like we were either 30 minutes too early to eat there, or they were rushing us to order because they were closing. Frankly, we often ended up at The Local, despite the limited menu. The hours were the best by far, thewait was never more than 5 minutes tops--we usually wanted to eat outside, which helped shorten the wait, oddly-- the service was quick and efficient, and the food quality was consistent. Unfortunately, my cholesterol levels have probably not recovered from the steady dose of those Local reubens I inflicted on myself! Finally, my ranking of our specialty dining: 1. Palomar, 2. Food Republic, 3. Los Lobos, 4. Le Bistro, 5. Hasuki None were bad per se, but frankly our Le Bistro server made us feel like second class citizens because we were there on our dining package and not purchasing a la carte, and Hasuki was typical hibachi fare we could get at home...including the 'show'. There weren't a ton of folks there that night, and the energy level of both staff and diners just wasn't great...lesson learned!

FWIW, we were on the 14-day repositioning cruise from NYC to Galveston just before your cruise. There were two signficant rotations of crew during our sailing, and it sounds like maybe having a good number of "fresh" crew members helped make the service even better for you all. That's not to say our cruise suffered from poor service--quite the opposite! But there were clearly more than a few crew who were burned out and counting the days until they disembarked for home...especially the bar staff poolside and in The Local, who I would generally categorize as being "professional but curt". Conversely, the Whiskey Bar staff were absolutely the best in terms of friendliness, rapport and competence, and we regretted not finding this gem earlier in our cruise! Disembarkation was a bit of a mess for our sailing, too...Alvin was definitely announcing the color groups far too close together, and Deck 6 was somewhat chaotic for us as well. He also kept reiterating we should have our passports out and ready, but upon reaching the customs area, the terminal had people telling us to put them away (b/c they used facial recognition for verification). I'm guessing maybe he only told us to have passports out to reduce the number of cruisers who would forget them in the room otherwise...

Prima captain just cancelled our stop in Grand Cayman today...wind speeds in excess of 40 mph world make tendering too dangerous. Weather is highly overcast and (obviously) windy, so finding a deck chair may actually be possible today. 😁 Onward to Cozumel.

You got the straight story, @mking8288Henry... came back from our walk around Aruba to see these decorations. They were continuing to put them up everywhere throughout the day/evening...theater, outside the casino, etc. Marc S. was roamng deck 8 while we were taking these photos down on 6 and yelled down that they just got them delivered in Aruba and that they were originally sent to the wrong port. So I guess all's well that ends well. The deco is understated but beautiful. There have been two crew swaps on this cruise, and frankly the general attitude and demeanor in general seems to have improved. Bartenders are still the least friendly crew, with a couple notable exceptions. Commodore waitstaff still the best, though they moved our favorite waiter to The Local yesterday in a move that will completely waste his kindness, charisma and ability to connect with his diners. Thought about mentioning it to Marc or Zafer next time we see them, but not sure it's our business to meddle in staffing moves like that...I assume they have logical, necessary reasons for shifting staff to completely different venues. Overall trip had been great...weather mostly cooperating, highs mid-80s. Late leaving only out of San Juan, learned that Prima got a new anchor delivered there, but whoever was hired to install it brought a too-small crane! Will post more when Paula doesn't need the premium wifi for work...cabin crawl in a couple hours so may get some pics from that to share as well. --Ross

Hi @seemoreroyals... you are correct, no decorations at all as of today. Sporadic Christmas music... sometimes in the cabin hallways but not by the elevators, sometimes in the atrium but not in the dining venues. Was readily apparent today in Curacao docked next to the Rotterdam, which was thoroughly decked out, including a Santa in his sleigh with reindeer hanging between the stacks. Not sure if NCL is trying to be religiously neutral, or holding out till the 'real' holiday cruise(s) start after ours to put up the decorations. But it is noticeable in its absence, and perhaps the biggest disappointment of the cruise thus far. We're hoping maybe they will go up next week, but not terribly optimistic. --Ross

Hi @mking8288 Henry--Apologies for the 'crickets' as we are still knocking the rust off our cruising chops and just trying to keep up with everyone and everything happening onboard. We were so sorry to hear you didn't (re)join us in NYC, and hope all is/will be well for you soon. With the caveat that any semi-live I would post will be from a prodigal cruiser's perspective, I can certainly try my best to capture the overall situation on the repo cruise leg of what would've been your B2B. Without spoiling the plot, I will say we have seen little/any of the service issues you've described at length. But we've had conversations with several staff that might at least partially explain the polar opposite shift we are experiencing. More to come. I will figure out how to set up my own semi-live posting topic as soon as I can in the morning, pre-San Juan. It will certainly pale in comparison to your posts in every way...photo quantity/quality, in-depth analysis of every aspect of daily Prima experience.... but I will do my best. It's the least I can try to do for my CC mentor! With that said, maybe @azcruise Janet & Mike can provide a more accurate comparison TA vs Repo. We met them at the M&G (obviously) and later in passing after dinner, and you are correct that they are very kind, knowledgeable, and helpful... so glad to have met them! More details soon...typing this in between courses at Le Bistro and desert is on the way, so full attention is required. 😁 --Ross

Darn...thanks for that heads-up, @PistolPete13, because it looks like we might be at our res in Hasuki for sail away on Friday. 😪 Rookie mistake! -- Ross/Paula, Chicago

Thanks for the update/info @mking8288 Henry--really appreciate all the insights and photos you've taken the time to post and share with everyone. FYI, we will be staying just a few blocks from the terminal on Friday morning, and frankly, I'm sure I'll be awake well before 5am on embarkation day if you want someone to capture you coming in to port. Still negotiating which lenses I can borrow for the trip with our videographer/photographer son, but tell me where you'll be on deck and I'll do my best to capture the moment (I'm assuming you will be up and waving, right? 😁) Seriously--see you soon and safe travels the rest of the way! -- Ross

Thanks for alerting us repo cruisers to this helpful info from the TA cruise, @mking8288 Henry. Just curious: do you know whether this cruise was at/near capacity? I only ask b/c I was surprised to read that Indulge was relatively empty for dinner, since it seems to be a favorite food venue among vloggers and travel reviewers. And I must admit, I have a (hopefully irrational) fear that *everywhere* is crowded if/when this ship is full! --Ross

Thanks all...I watched several (ok, TOO MANY) tour vids on Prima and other NCL ships and thought the same re: layout. I also noticed the Prima spa has no hot tub per se, though it looked like Breakaway class spas *do*. I think we will take our chances without upgrading and save it for one of the ships with a better spa layout, and hopefully can find someplace quiet on Prima that isn't elbow-to-elbow cruisers! First question I'm immediately asking when boarding: "Have any Vibe spots opened up?" 😁 Safe travels, everyone--Ross/Paula

Lol, I appreciate the heads-up (literally 😁)! Did you use the spa much... basically, was it worth having the room/access, esp. for the entire cruise (vs. one or more day passes)? I was just thinking that it would save a good deal of dough to bid on a spa balcony for maybe $150-200, and if we got it, it'd save a lot vs. the over $800 price tag for separate spa passes. Hell, even the max bid amount is "only" $350! Thanks again, @PhillyTravelBug--Ross/Paula

Hi @boots2.. did you end up upgrading to a Spa Balcony for your Prima cruise last December? If so, any advice/experience you can provide? Looking to bid on an upgrade for our cruise this December, but I worry about fitness center noise/foot traffic, plus Galaxy Pavilion noise from above. TIA! -- Ross, Chicago