Christophene

I just noticed that the Splash Academy info has now changed to include ages 3 to 12.

https://www.ncl.com/why-cruise-norwegian/family-cruises/youth-programs
We don’t even know if our grandkids will be interested but at least it now appears to be an option.

Thanks. All are “house trained.”

Thanks, HuliHuli

My wife and I are taking our kids and grandkids on a 10 day Caribbean cruise this February on the Gem out of NYC. The grandkids are ages 2, almost 5, 7 and 10. There will be 10 of us in total. We have 3 family balconies booked, 2 adjoining and 1 nearby all on deck 10. We have sailed with NCL many times and on the Gem several times, but we have never cruised with young children before. We are wondering if anyone reading this can offer tips regarding dining, activities and anything else. For example; is it realistic to expect to enjoy eating together at a table for ten in either of the main dining rooms? In one place on the NCL website it states that children  3 to 12 may be dropped at Splash Academy but in another place it say 5 to 12. Do you suppose they might make an exception for a 4 year old who would be 5 in 6 weeks accompanied by his 2 older cousins? Any advice on these questions or any other subjects involving children would be gratefully received. 

Yes, booked through TA, however, I was notified quite promptly regarding the daily service charge increase recently, both via TA and NCL directly. 

Wow, nice of NCL to let me know (not). We are taking our kids and grandkids, ten of us in all. I wonder when we will be officially notified. I’m not too impressed that I’m finding out this way, but thank goodness for these boards and those of you that keep us all up to date. 

What is the change to the itinerary Feb 17-27? I’m booked on that cruise and have not received any notification of a change. 

Looks like she’s underway now. 

1 hour ago, schildiams said:

Just off the Bliss - the ship was full of respiratory illness and the boat was addressing it by limiting access to salt shakers/ketchup etc and other precautions. Bring Lysol. And ear plugs. 

Why earplugs?

Last January, on the Escape, I set up my CPAP machine when we first got into the cabin. When we came back to the cabin later in the evening there was a gallon of distilled water there even though I hadn’t requested it. I was quite touched that the room steward took it upon himself to provide the water. I don’t use water in my machine but I thanked him profusely for being so thoughtful. I also brought my own long extension cord and had no problem using it.

Jay

Hi John,

My wife and I could be characterized as martini snobs as well. I don’t know when anything served in a conical glass became a martini. As far as I’m concerned a martini is gin and a dash of dry vermouth served up or on the rocks. We like olives but lately NCL has been stuffing them with pickles. Can’t have pickles in a martini! We will be newly minted platinum plus cruisers on the Jan 5 Bliss trip from NYC. Bombay Saphire is our favorite gin and we have never had a problem ordering while on the beverage package. The only negative, in fact, is sticking to our personal rule of not having more than 1 each (well maybe 1 1/2; but never 2). We usually try to find a bar on the ship that isn’t super busy and then go to the same one each night so the bartenders get to know us. It usually only takes a couple of nights. There is nothing more heartwarming than to walk in to “our bar” and see the bartender look up and immediately start icing up 2 glasses without having to say a word. 
Best,

Jay

Hi Shadowmeboy,

Your pictorial tour of Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park is very thorough and accurate. Great job. I live a few minutes from Bar Harbor. I don’t know if you realize just how amazing the weather was for you that day. This past June we had nearly 10” of rain, much more than normal. The kind of day you had is more often seen in September when the wind is from the northwest. We call those days “sparklers” (pronounced “spaahklah). 

Best,

Jay

32 minutes ago, senseib said:

 

Just curious, but why would you ask an Uber driver the cost?  The Uber app gives you upfront pricing before you confirm a pickup.  You need the app to request a ride and pay for the ride.

Like I said, we were approached by a mob of them and I was just curious what they were quoting. I agree with NLH Arizona, they had Uber cards in their hands, but who knows if they were legit. 

We debarked the Escape in New York City on Jan. 20th very early (7:40am). It was raining pretty hard and there was a long line at the taxi stand across the street on 12th Ave. We were told there was another taxi stand on the floor above the street and this one was under cover. We took the elevator up and there were about 20 people waiting. No taxis in sight. We waited for about 10 minutes and never saw one come up the ramp so we decided to go back down and try our luck on the street. As we approached the stand we were mobbed by Uber drivers, or at least they claimed they were. I asked one for a rate to 28th st and 6th Ave in Manhattan. He quoted $50! I said, you gotta be kidding me! And he just walked away hoping for some sucker to pay too much. By then it had stopped raining so we decided to walk until we got away from the crowds. We didn’t have to go far. We walked toward the east until we came to 11th Ave, turned right and after a few minutes a yellow cab actually hailed us! There was no traffic at all and so our very short ride cost us a total $11 including a generous tip. 

Just off Jan. 6-20 Escape cruise. We ate at La Cucina the first night. We were told in no uncertain terms that we would have to pay the difference for any entree over $20. Only 2 were under 20 plus there was a t-bone special for 19.99 which I ended up ordering. It was very good BTW. My wife wanted salmon but would not pay the 99 cent up charge out of principle. Later, some friends told us they had spoken to the Cruise Next dept. and were told the maximum entree included had been changed to $25 but not all staff were aware. Just to complicate things even more, when we went to Le Bistro towards the end of the cruise, our waiter told us we could order any entree no matter what the price. In short, who know?

Actually our mini suite sofa does have a new look.

Hey Kev,

Your friends from Maine are enjoying this review immensely! It was great to meet you and now relive the cruise through your eyes. Hope everyone is having a happy Thanksgiving. All the best,

Jay and Candy