njhorseman

I think you have to realize that those of us who don't live in California are being fed pictures of flooding and mudslides and stories that include words like "1000-year storm" by the media. It's next to impossible to discern what the effects of the storms are in any particular area, so it's understandable that people would be concerned about their travel plans being disrupted.

The place to look for that information is the official port website, not what some rando posts on their Facebook or TikTok page: https://nycruise.com/brooklyn-terminal/parking/

Explaining changes by blaming them on an NCL takeover flies in the face of the facts. While Oceania did become part of NCLH, it has always been run by Oceania executives and in fact NCLH itself has almost exclusively been run by Oceania executives since absorbing Oceania. Except for a very brief time immediately after Oceania's becoming part of NCLH, NCLH has been headed by Oceania executives. First, Frank Del Rio, the founder of Oceania and now Harry Sommer, who was a long-time key executive under FDR. In fact FDR put Sommer in charge of NCL before Sommer ultimately took over the CEO's office at NCLH...so NCL was actually run by an Oceania executive, not the other way around. Any cuts in service you may see are a reality of post COVID-19 financial struggles. NCLH, as well as Carnival and Royal Caribbean, accumulated billions in high interest rate debt during the COVID shutdown. That debt has to be paid down, and in order to do so cruise lines have both increased fares and made cuts in service. Read the Cruise Critic boards for almost every other cruise line and you'll see the same complaints about higher fares and a degraded product being voiced.

I have no doubt that it predates the movie. I know far more than I care to about the Nevele. My parents honeymooned there in 1945 and decided it would be a great idea to return fir for their 50th wedding anniversary..."treating" their children and their families to a weekend there. I think we outnumbered the other guests staying there that weekend.

Woody Allen opens the movie Annie Hall with that joke.

I'm going to take a stab at this. A US citizen holding a NEXUS card must have a valid passport ,so if they provided their ;passport information when completing the pre cruise online registration, the NEXUS card would link to same passport number and information as was provided in the on line registration .

I agree that Los Angeles can be problematic, but it's because it doesn't (as you noted) have separate lines for US and non-US passport holders, not because US passport holders are subject to extensive screening. It's the screening of the non-US passport holders that causes the delays. When disembarking in New York, which has separate lines, I've not experienced any unusual delays or additional screening. .

I've done six Panama Canal cruises, all before the facial recognition process was put into place and never was subject to "a full Q+A", just the same quick look at my passport that was done on every other cruise.

We did an itinerary almost identical to your Santiago to Buenos Aires option some years ago and were quite pleased with the cruise. The ports in Chile were worth visiting and the Chilean fjords are beautiful.

A passport is required: https://www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/cruise-travel-documents "A valid passport is required on all sailings that begin in one US port and end in another US port." And specifically for Panama Canal cruises: "Panama Canal or Cruises Visiting Panamanian or Colombian Ports Valid passports are required to board the ship for all Panama Canal sailings. No passport cards, birth certificates or other form of proof of US citizenship will be accepted. Failure to present a valid passport at check-in will result in denial of boarding. "

You make your shuttle arrangements with the hotel. Different hotels have different packages and methods for your transfers to and from the cruise port. Some packages include private car service, some may be shared ride service with other hotel guests. When you make your reservations with Trinity be sure to carefully check the descriptions because any individual hotel may have more than one package available.

I've taken the NCL excursion to Horseshoe Bay because NCL gives you a $50 "use it or lose it" shore excursion credit, so the excursion doesn't cost anything. It works out well for me because 2 or 3 hours at the beach is as long as I care to stay. For those who want to do other types of excursions like glass bottom boat rides the $50 credit may also make those cheaper than they would be if you purchased them directly from the tour operator.

This board serves as the departure board for San Juan in addition to its titled roll as a Port of Call board. For people to give you hotel suggestions it would be helpful for you to provide information on when you'll need your hotel, how many nights you'll be staying, your budget, what facilities you might want such as being on a beach, being in Old San Juan, etc. You can also scan this board as there are many posts mentioning hotels.

I can't help you . We don't eat sushi.

Orchid Garden on the Gem is not set up as you describe. You're thinking of the Asian restaurants on newer, larger ships.

The St. George to Battery Park City (Note: no stop at South Ferry) to Pier 79 route is now operated by NYC Ferry, the same company that runs the South Brooklyn ferry that stops at Pier 11 Wall St. and Red Hook as well as several other routes. NYC Ferry is owned by Hornblower. The yellow "New York Water Taxi" boats are now apparently solely a charter/rental operation. They're part of New York Cruise Lines, the company that operates Circle Line, as well as a couple of floating restaurants and a speed boat ride.

I've also advocated for this change, which is what Cruise Critic's parent, Tripadvisor does.

Yes, but that's the sushi bar, which is an extra cost a la carte part of the Asian restaurant area and I believe it isn't what most are thinking of when referring to Orchid Garden, which is an included, and IMO not particularly good mostly "Chinese" "Asian Fusion" restaurant.

@mugtech, you are correct. There are no show reservations on the Gem.

I've eaten there exactly once in all my years of cruising on NCL and as far as i recall I didn't make a reservation.

I've never sailed on Princess so I don't have any first hand knowledge of the ship. I've sailed on the Norwegian Jade's siblings the Gem and the Jewel many times and they are far and away my favorite class of NCL ship. All other things being reasonably similar I'd take a 25 night cruise over a 15 night cruise at the same price...and the fact that you get Alaska in addition to the Panama Canal on the Jade cruise is a giant plus in my eyes. It makes the Princess itinerary look very ordinary by comparison. On a 25 night cruise the absolute last thing I'd be worried about are spring breakers and holidays. That cruise is far too long for spring breakers and for that matter most working adults . The cruise's demographic is going to be heavily weighted to retirees

There's no wrong way to do a Panama Canal transit. The strongest suggestion I have for a first-timer is to do the cruise on a ship that uses the original locks if you at all can...but if that won't work for you for one reason or another, then don't hesitate to take the voyage on a ship using the new locks. Beyond that just pick the ship and itinerary that appeals to you the most and don't worry about minor differences. We've done six full transits, all using the original locks. Four on the Norwegian Gem...two in each direction, one north to south on the Oceania Insignia and one north to south on the Oceania Marina. We fully enjoyed each transit.

I don't think any of the Port of Miami garages are fully automated. Per the website: Hours and Access Cruise Days (Cruise Ships at Port) All garages are open and staffed by a parking attendant from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.

It's open daily for dinner. I've never seen it open for lunch.

Per the official port website that's not true for vehicles with only standard handicapped plates or permits. It's only true for disabled veterans and vehicles with specialized equipment such a ramps, lifts and hand controls. https://www.miamidade.gov/portmiami/parking-information.asp Disabled Parking Miami-Dade County Ordinance requires all guests with a disabled parking permit or license tag to pay standard parking rates except as provided by Florida State Law. However, two hours of complimentary parking will be provided to vehicles displaying a disabled parking permit or license tag In accordance with Florida Statute 316.1964, ONLY vehicles with specialized equipment such as ramps, lifts, or foot or hand controls, for use by a person who has a disability, or any vehicle displaying a State of Florida license plate for disabled veterans (issued under s. 320.084, s. 320.0842, or s. 320.0845 or displaying the Florida Toll Exemption permit, is exempt from parking charges Disabled Veterans Parking Effective July 1, 2016, disabled veterans displaying a Florida license plate for disabled veterans, issued under Florida Statute 320.084, will receive free parking. The disabled veteran to whom the license plate was issued must be in the vehicle for this exception to apply Please note that as long as your vehicle has a State of Florida disabled veterans tag, your parking is complimentary in accordance with Florida Statutes. When you exit the parking facility, please present the Toll Attendant your original parking ticket, driver's license and State of Florida vehicle registration. The toll attendant will have you complete a short form and that is all there is to it