LadyZolt

And if her current surname that's on her official identification card (like her driver license) is different than her birth certificate surname, I think you're supposed to bring the bridging document, like her marriage license if she changed her name when she got married. I've always used a passport, but I believe that's what I've read before.

I always pre-pay gratuities because that just seems easier for us, but I have no idea why your TA would (1) require you to pre-pay them if you want to use MTD instead of traditional dining; or (2) care if you pre-pay them or not. If you don't pre-pay, they just add the per person per day gratuity to your daily accounting for your final bill. Do ask your TA as I'd be interested in hearing the answer. 🙂

Or -- you could read the thread a bit more carefully and see that some of us have had electronic photos that meet the requirements and the NCL site simply would not accept them, and also it wouldn't let us bypass the step in spite of the fact that everyone knows they can re-take photos at the port if a photo turns out to be unacceptable. Sometimes, there's a technical glitch (or something) going on that simply defies logic and you have to work your way around it in spite of having prepared properly beforehand.

Last night, we tried at least a dozen times and it would not bypass. I wish it had as we know they can take new ones at the pier. We did eventually get photos of both of us accepted, but it wasn't easy.

We checked in last night for an NCL cruise and we DO have recent photos (submitted for a visa for Vietnam less than two weeks ago for a different cruise -- visas approved a few days after submission), and the NCL site would not take the photos! No idea why not. Those existing photos should meet all the necessary requirements. So, we took new photos and my check-in went fine, but my husband had to try about six times before it accepted his photo. And we are *very technical* people. We're the ones friends come to for help and we re-size their photos for uploading to sites. So, even with months to prepare, sometimes you can experience an issue for no apparent reason.

I get that. I think you should stay where you are. A spa balcony is going to be fabulous! I have a bid in for a spa balcony on our upcoming Escape cruise in September. I've never done an upgrade bid before, so I don't have high expectations, but you never know. 🙂

I don't think the club balcony is an upgrade. Now, "spa club balcony" would be, but you don't want to lose the spa, I would think. Is upgrading to the Haven a choice? That might be the only thing I'd upgrade to if I already had a spa balcony.

I thought the buffet was mediocre. It was okay -- the food was edible, but it wasn't as tasty as NCL or Royal Caribbean (the other cruise lines I'm familiar with). One thing I thought was seriously lacking in the buffet was that there were supposed to be juices available, but much of the time, several of the dispensers were empty or out of order. You could get water, of course, but even the water dispensers weren't working 100% of the time and you'd have to walk to another one sometimes, which is just annoying. The main dining room dinners were entirely forgettable. Mediocre again -- edible, but nothing special. I was only on for four nights, so perhaps a longer cruise would be better. We did go to the private island Ocean Cay, and that was the best part of the cruise. It is a lovely island and we enjoyed sitting on the beach. There is a light show on the lighthouse at night, which was entertaining (and they also display it on the LED ceiling on the Meraviglia, which is cool. The pools were fine -- the entertainment was fine -- but nothing was "wow" for us. There was a "white party" and lots of people dressed in white and the staff was very lively with good music. Oh, the one really good thing is the pizza -- MSC is Italian and they do pizza very well. There was usually pizza available in the buffet and in the smaller food venue near the pool. I think that one also had ice cream if I remember correctly. We booked the lowest level, which I think is "Bella." I think if you book with your family and a higher level -- Yacht Club if you can -- you will probably have a good experience overall, but the food in the buffet and dining room will still likely be "just okay." So do go to the specialty restaurants when you can as those are pretty good. Hope this helps!

I sailed on a short 4-night cruise on the Meraviglia last December. I sailed the Bliss in September, and the Breakaway a few years ago, and we are booked on the Escape for this upcoming September. In my opinion, if you want to try the MSC cruises at the level it sounds like you enjoy, you should book the Yacht Club level. It will give you the best food and service. We didn't book at that level, but spoke to people who did and I think if we ever sail with them again, we'd choose Yacht Club. MSC is pretty new to the USA market -- their employees are trying, but they are not as familiar with the USA or English as I think NCL employees are. For example, there's a "Sports Bar" on the Meraviglia. It is a bar located near the area where people play sports. It's like someone from MSC heard Americans like "sports bars," but didn't really understand what "sports bar" means to an American -- a place with lots of TV screens watching live games going on. Two more examples: We sailed in December and as we were leaving, there was a sign that said, "We wish you a happy holidays." Yes, we know what they mean -- but it's not quite right. Last one: A sign near one of those emergency fire alarm pulls behind a bit of glass -- "Brake in case of emergency." They didn't have anyone fluent in English proofread things. It's fine -- you know they mean well. But it's not quite the experience you would be delighted to have. We now say MSC stands for "Mediocre So-So Cruises." The one really great thing about MSC is that they "status match." Whatever your highest loyalty level is, they will let you sign up with them and start you at that level. They will match most cruises and major hotel chains. Because my husband is the highest level of Hilton Honors, he got matched to MSC's highest level -- and got robes and slippers, chocolates and champagne, and a free dinner at one of the specialty restaurants. And all the employees -- on the phone and in person -- are quite nice and trying very hard to make you happy. I think if you do try them, don't have high expectations, and do book at their Yacht Club level.

There are some "passport fairs" this month still coming up in New Jersey -- here's a link and it also mentions what to do if you need a passport quickly: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/passports/special-passport-acceptance-fairs.html?fbclid=IwAR24WimoljHCJAC4jUoh1YTv2OOEQ-0nm7T9IT86D3Ek3hA8uAJe84fRMgI

Here's a link to the Guest Conduct Policy updated in February of this year. In the last paragraph on page 10, it says "Curling irons and hair dryers are allowed." https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/dam/royal/resources/pdf/guest-conduct-policy.pdf

Thanks! 🙂

This is a service offered by Seattle -- it is not cruise-line specific. We used it after our NCL Bliss trip last fall. https://www.portseattle.org/page/port-valet-enjoy-seattle-luggage-free

Transfers are included with my booking. Thanks!

Thanks, everyone! Appreciate your insight! 🙂

I was aware that NCL would book us a red eye, so I'm not surprised they did. However, our flight then arrives at JFK at around 6:00 am. What happens then? Will Norwegian have someone ready to take us to the pier even though the ship won't be sailing until later in the afternoon? Or do we have to hang out at the airport until a certain time? Any experiences or helpful thoughts will be appreciated. 🙂 -Dorothy

The letter might not even be related to the champagne. It doesn't mention anything like, "Here is a gift to thank you for cruising again." Maybe it's a perk from your credit card -- like AmEx platinum card or something like that.

Just FYI: We sailed on the Radiance in March and got the $200 OBC, but didn't get the champagne. I even asked about it and the people in Guest Services acted like they had never heard of such a thing. Since I've gotten it before -- on the Radiance -- I don't know where the disconnect happened. I didn't mind that much as we did get the OBC. We're sailing on NCL in September and we should get the dinner at Le Bistro in addition to OBC, so we'll see. Also -- I'm on the upcoming Royal Caribbean world cruise. Wonder if AmEx will give OBC for all 17 of the mini legs on that voyage. 🙂

We had a balcony cabin on our March cruise on the Radiance and received $200 OBC from AmEx. Our TA got it for us.

I know this is likely just a typo and the OP meant "guest" services, but I love this as you often have to "guess" what they're going to tell you when you bring your concern to them. This is my new favorite way to refer to them. Thanks!

The Celebrity "Cancellation"? Subconsciously, perhaps you don't really want to go on Celebrity. 😉

Right -- but it's not like you could have spent that OBC on something else. It immediately goes toward the CN. I think that's where people get confused. They are calling it OBC, but it's not actually OBC the way that most of us think of OBC.

Log into your American Express account. Scroll down past your current pending transactions and you should see "AmEx Offers and Benefits." Select "View All" and you can then see everything or choose one of the categories -- if you have this offer, it should be listed in the "Travel" category.

Hmm. Disappearing and reappearing. Reminiscent of the pirate ship with a similar name -- the "Black Pearl." 😉

You pay when you book them. Yes, you will get a refund if you cancel. I think you have to cancel something like 24 hours or more before the excursion. You will be automatically refunded if the ship ends up not being able to provide the excursion, like if weather causes the ship to miss a port or something along those lines.