xfer

I'm curious about this too. We were on a Norwegian sailing that stopped at Norfolk coming back from the Bahamas. They made us exit the ship, walk a short loop on the pier and then get back on the ship. The customs officers were in the theater and there were long lines as we walked this odd loop through the theater, off the ship and then back on. But it didn't take that long, since the line kept moving. It was very fast getting off the ship once we were back in New York. Since a lot of passengers hand carry their luggage in New York, it probably saved us time overall.

I booked without free at sea on my prior sailing. About a month out, the price dropped for a slightly upgraded cabin with the drink package. Norwegian will gladly let you upgrade your room, as long as the upgrade costs money. For example, if my original booking was $2000 (no drinks), and an upgraded cabin with drinks costs more than $2000, I can pay to upgrade and get the drinks package. As long as you don't need to book a certain type of cabin, like an aft balcony, then I recommend getting the cheapest cabin you can get and keep an eye on prices. Chances are they will drop as they try to fill up the ship last minute. (At least for sailings in 2022). You might get those drinks for a lot cheaper.