Nightengale212

I was in the elevator with a bunch of people from the last cruise. They all said never again and then one lady said we had a big fire. I don't know what happened on their cruise.

 

 

 

 

-Ginger

 

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I was on this sailing and in the casino when the fire alarm went off, and it surprised me as I did not smell any smoke. The captain and staff handled this situation very well, and kept the passengers well informed of the status of the situation. Within a few hours everything was back to normal.

I agree disembarkation was a little crazy and I think the reason was probably more than expected choose walk-off as my party of 3 did, so the elevators and corridors were jam packed with people and luggage long before folks were allowed off the ship. Once things began to move we got off the ship pretty quickly. We parked at the pier parking lot and were out of the city in no time.

As a side note this was my sister and niece's first NCL cruise following a number of cruises on different lines and both loved NCL and had a wonderful time. The only thing they said they would do different was to pre purchase the ultimate dining package as they really enjoyed the specialty restaurants.

Just made VIP on the Breakaway. The only perk I get going to this level during my cruise is an upgraded drink card which I had premium drinks now ultra. My niece got to enjoy several Grey Goose martini's last night as auntie is not much of a drinker. All the other perks will come next cruise which is too bad as I have 5 more days on the ship and would have been nice to spend a few more days in the spa, etc. Finally hit a jackpot last night for $1,860 on a penny Kronos machine which softened the loosing blow. Ready to dock in St. Lucia in a few minutes and the weather here is a balmy 85 degrees :)

At present I am in the atrium writing this post and watching Latin dance lessons and soon we will be in San Juan. Check-in went smooth via the CAS line, and my cabin aft balcony 12310 is the best. Sailing solo, with my sister and niece in aft balcony 12906. I just can't get over how huge these balconies are!!!

Dinner night one was at Savor, short wait and food was good. Night two was dinner in Moderno and food and service was great. Last night just has some appetizers in O'Sheehan's and then watched a little karoke.

Of course been spending time in the casino but not having much luck. Guess they feel bad for me as I got another comped dinner for my toil.

Signing off for now and will write again if time permits.

All my NCL cruises were comped by CAS, and I can't recall for which cruises the particular OBC credits were for but I do remember getting the HSC OBC, booking out greater than 9 months OBC, and booking a minisuite OBC.

You made my day sharing your positive experiences as I am leaving on this same cruise tomorrow:):)

Sorry I don't see the advantages to the smoker to bother making the effort of switching. Beats me what I would gain from doing that.

The the main ingredients in an ecig is nicotine, flavorings, water, and pharmaceutical grade propylene glycol. Propylene glycol is used routinely in prescription atomized medications such as asthma inhalers and medications used in nebulizer machines. Due to it's ability to retain moisture, prolylene glycol is also used in foods, lotions, etc., and comes under the GRAS FDA rating (generally reconized as safe).

Since you mentioned in a previous post that the ecig you used had no nicotine, so basically what you were inhaling was flavorings, water, and propylene glycol which more likely than not a far safer practice than inhaling all the chemicals contained in a cigarette and the reason I switched.

Great if you are going to stay in your own little area of the world and they don't ban them any more than they already have.

 

When I changed over I found more bans on them then on actual cigarettes so I went back to cigarettes.

 

Don't try to cross the border into Canada, they will take them away if CBP finds them. ecigs with nicotine in them are banned in Canada. So if you ever intend on leaving the U.S. you best research the place you are going to make sure they are not banned or worse yet illegal.

Thanks for the heads up on the bans.

Smoking an e-cigarette is like drinking o'douls

I thought the same thing too until my hairdresser got me off smoking and into "vaping" about a month ago. There are a number of good devices available, but my preference is an eGo C-twist battery which I attach to it a KangerTech Mini Protank-II atomizer. The atomizer is filled with a liquid which contains nicotine and tobacco flavoring, but there are many other flavors available. For someone who smoked 30 plus years, I am shocked how easily I have transitioned from smoking to "vaping" and have no desire to return to smoking.

After making an initial investment of about $50 for a start up kit and liquid, 30cc of vape liquid would last most people a month which cost is around $20. This is a huge savings compared to buying cigarettes. There are a number of good videos, forums, and other resources online on this topic you should check out.

On my Bermuda cruise we were able to drop off our carry on luggage directly after boarding.

I have to book and pay for a Carnival cruise to get any perks. So for me it's back to NCL after this sailing where they comp my cruises and give me perks. :)

Same reason I stay with NCL and have no interest to go back to Princess. Even though I have not sailed with Princess in several years, from time to time they contact me with an offer of $2,200 in free play if book and pay for one of their casino sponsored cruises. When Princess starts offering me cruise comps like my 12 day Breakaway cruise in an aft balcony leaving a week from today then I may reconsider sailing again with them.

I certainly remember Dr. Lewis from my Star cruise. What an unfortunate tragedy :(

I have never encountered this senario as I have only had myself and hubby in the room and he got the card on my comp. Unfortunately, even when calling CAS you may get a different answer from each agent you talk with. Probably the only way you are going to know for sure is when you get on the ship.

I loved sailing on the Breakaway and a week from tomorrow will be sailing on the BA again :) For me what made this ship special was the Waterfront. To be able to fine dine outdoors or just be out there having a cocktail really enhanced my cruising experience.

I was able to use the 10/20/30 discount on sea days on the Breakaway. I booked 8AM appointments and was able to get 15 extra minutes on top of the discount.

Thanks for sharing that info. Hope this hold true for my upcoming 12 day Breakaway cruise as I have a number of sea days that I would like to take advantage of this special.

Thanks, I definetly will do that after our Oct cruise. I am sure I will spend a fair amount in the casino on an 11 day cruise so I will probably be offered something.

 

Another question.........

 

If I booked a cruise (my oct 2014 one) with an outside travel agency and spend alot of $$$ in casino on the March one nighter that I was comped with CAS, do you think if I call CAS and ask if I qualify for drink card to be applied to oct cruise? Or am I really pushing it? LOL

Not sure I understand your question, but will try to answer. It is my understanding regardless of who you are booked with you can't carry over points from one cruise to the next to apply towards a drink card. If another CASer has more accurate info please chime in.

How do you get these offers from CAS? Do they come via mail or phone call?

The Chinese New Year offer came via a mailing. Following my Bermuda Breakaway cruise I called CAS regarding the 1/19-1/31 Breakaway cruise and they comped me an aft balcony. I have also gotten e-mails with offers from CAS. If you are interested in a particular cruise give CAS a call and ask if you are eligible for a discount or comp on that cruise.

I will be on the Breakaway on Feb 2 and I am HOT with CAS. I have a couple of questions about the perks.

 

I know my drink card is for House drinks. Is there a list somewhere of what that includes? I often drink Jack & Coke or Southern Comfort & cranberry, neither of which I consider premium. I had no issues on the Gem except the time I ordered at the bar, and the bartender told me Jack Daniels was an upgrade and gave me Jim Beam and Coke - BLECH. I know I can't have my Belvedere so there will be no vodka drinks for me this time, but if Jack & SoCo are out, I might need to plan ahead.

 

As far as the free dinner goes, am I limited in where we can go? We are both Platinum so we already have Le Bistro twice, and would like to try Cagney's since I hear the view from the waterfront is pretty spectacular. Does this dinner include a bottle of wine by any chance?

 

I have heard unflattering things about the staff on the Breakaway. We were unimpressed with the casino and staff when we sailed the Epic a while back (which is why we hesitated to book the Breakaway for so long), so I was wondering how you CAS folks have found things.

 

I think that's it for now. Thanks!

I sailed this past June on the Breakaway Golden status. I am not much of a drinker, think I had one drink in the casino during my cruise so can't help with your drink questions. We had our comped dinner at Cagney's which included a bottle of wine, but I had to ask not once but three times for this "published" tier perk. Finally got the certificate for this dinner delivered day three to my cabin. Aside from the drink card and goodies delivered to my cabin a couple of times, all the other "published" perks of my tier were non existent. As far as the casino in general goes, being a slot player I did not care for the layout of the casino or the machines, but this is a personal preference.

Although I am sailing again on the Breakaway in two weeks in a comped cabin because I do like this ship and sailing out of NYC is great as we can drive to the port, but with my less than enjoyable casino experience I doubt I will be spending much if any time in the casino on this cruise. Will save my gambling funds for another cruise maybe on the Star or the Pearl again where I found playing in their casinos a much more enjoyable experience.

We got an offer thru CAS for Chinese New Year- January 31- 2 nights on the breakaway!

We booked it, and can't wait

Anybody else get it/going?

Safe sailing

 

 

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I got this offer too but passing as I am on the 12 day Breakaway cruise ending on 1/31 and need a few days to recoup before returning to work.

Was looking at that menu again and the traditional pedicure is $45 not $35; sorry.

Ok so I got some good info here. Thank you so much. I knew I could count on my CC family to help me. Now for more questions....

 

This may be a stupid question but in order to take advantage of the 10%, 20%, 30% discount for booking 3 spa services do you have to do all 3 at the same time? like in 1 visit? I want to book the 3 but don't think I can spend that much time in the spa all at once. I would like to space it out a bit. If I can space it out or over a few days, do I book and pay for all 3 when I make my appointments?

 

Does anyone know what time the spa opens? I'm an early riser (5:00 - 5:30) and may consider getting a treatment early. Not that early but 7:00 or 8:00 would be great.

 

I think I have decided on Elemis Oxydermy Facial and Elemis Aroma Spa seaweed massage but can't pick third. Please help me to decide. What isn't included in those 2 that I should try?

 

On a side note: Has anyone noticed that one of the treatments is called FAT GIRL SLIM? :eek:

For the 10/20/30 special you do not have to have all the treatments on the same day but they do have to be on a port day. I would suggest doing the Oxydermy Facial and either a Stone Massage or Exotic Lime & Ginger Salt Glow on a port day early in your cruise before you have had too much sun exposure because with a slight sunburn these treatments can be painful. I would do the Seaweed massage toward the end of your cruise on a port day that is followed by a sea day as this treatment had a detox effect on me, and in addition to feeling generally funky the next day I spent a good deal of time in the bathroom and was glad I was never too far from my cabin.

From my Breakaway spa menu these are the pedicure prices. An 18% tip will be added automatically to these prices.

Fire & Ice Pedicure - $70

Elemis Sole Delight Ritual Pedicure - $65

Traditional Pedicure - $35

But some of the nurses around there are notorious for "eating their young" and if you get on their bad side, they will set you up for failure or frame you to get fired. I can't believe all the people I have seen come and go within months of getting hired there. That's what scares me. Sometimes I just want to go somewhere else and start over fresh with new faces and hope for the best. The other half of me wants to stay where I love the job. Ugh.

Kim, listen to this old ER nurse, do not, and I repeat do not, let any of these power trip nurses or doctors get the best of you!!! Unfortunately, these types are everywhere, and in every profession, and the only way they are able to feel a sense of worthiness is through intimidating other individuals. More than likely, if your hospital offers you a position after graduation it will probably be on a med/surg unit or with your background maybe telemetry or ICU. Although you have great love for the ER, you will get exceptional experience working in these specialty areas which will build your skill set and confidence. So, when you are able to transition back to the ER you will be an experienced confident R.N. with a strong foundation which the intimidators will not be able to shake.

Thanks for the words of encouragement. Love the name. ;)

 

I have worked at the local hospital since 1984 and I work in the ED. So hopefully this will give me the "edge" of getting offered a job there as well. I'm not sure if it's where I want to work when I graduate, but I thought maybe it would at least give me the experience before transferring to somewhere else. I know when you are a new grad, you can't "pick" where you want to work and pretty much have to take whatever is offered to you to start. It seems like most new grads around here take about 4 months to find a job after graduation (unless you have an "in" already).

 

I didn't know about the VA hospital. That sounds like an awesome opportunity. We have a VA Ambulatory Care center here. I'm not sure if that's the same or not but it looks like a big place. Does it make a difference if it's a hospital or not? I would assume that they are all Federal jobs.

 

Thanks for the info. I will definitely look into it.

I actually work in a VA ambulatory care facility as a case manager. Some VA ambulatory care facilities are attached to VA hospitals like mine, and some which we call CBOCs are separate but all under the same VA banner. Yes these are Federal positions. I was an ER nurse for about 25 years before I transitioned to case manager, and ER tech experience will be very helpful to you in the job search. Good Luck.

I am very much enjoying your review, and get a kick out of your comments about nursing school :) I am 56 and have been an R.N. for 35 years and wanted to offer you encouragement to hang in there because this part of your nursing journey will be over in the blink of an eye.

Do not know what your work plans are after graduation, but if there is a VA Hospital in your area put in an application. All full time R.N.s regardless of time in service get 5 weeks of vacation annually. That is the benefit that drew me to the VA 12 years ago which allows me to cruise several times a year and the reason I could last minute book my upcoming 12 day Breakaway cruise.

Having the use of the spa with the thermal pools, various showers, sauna, salt room, etc is great. If you think you'll use them, get a spa room. However, they're on 14 and the noise above them from the deck can be very loud. Chairs constantly being shuffled, stacked, dragged over your head and people running around (sounds like elephants at times). If you're a light sleeper, beware. We just got off the ship and had friends in other spa balconies and minis and they had similar noise issues.

I agree with the noise. My balcony had a large pipe running down it which is the water drainage route when the deck above it is washed down. They do this wash down very early in the morning which produced a very loud slushing sound which will probably wake you up if you are a light sleeper. As far as I could see it looked like these pipes were placed in every 4th balcony on this deck.