PandaBear62

I'm very interested in following your adventures. I've been thinking about doing this cruise (whether it ends on the West Coast or Hawaii). My husband is less interested, so I hope to learn some information to persuade him!

Your best option is to pack a few shelf stable items and bring yourself. When my daughter was competing, we'd be at the gym at 7am and there sometimes until 9 or 10 pm. You weren't allowed to bring in coolers, but the athletes were allowed to bring "snacks" (basically non perishables). So I got very creative! Here are some examples: 1. individual shelf stable hummus (you can buy on Amazon) with individual pita chip packages (I buy Stacy's brand at Dollar Tree). You can add individual pouches of olives (my daughter loves these) you can get at Cost Plus 2. Individual peanut butter packages with a box of crackers or individual pretzel chip (again, Dollar Tree). You can bring individual jelly packets as well. 3. prepackages dried fruit from Trader Joes 4. individually wrapped peanut butter crackers. 5. Individual tuna salad with crackers. 6. Trail mix Dollar Tree has lots of oversized individual portions. You can get an oversized rice krispie treat (for 2 or 3 to share), lots of different kinds of nuts, crackers, etc. Another good choice is Cost Plus, because all their food is shelf stable. Mine has a part of an aisle for individual portion sized items.

Thanks. That's what I thought. I just wanted to make sure I had the correct location.

Can you share a marker by Berth 4? When I look at Google Maps, it gives the address as 105-120 Schoenbar Rd and its right by Bar Harbor Ale House. Is this correct? Thank you!

Yes, that was it! I really liked the country bread, much more than an English muffin. I think next time I'll ask for the Hollandaise sauce instead of the gravy.

Yes, Cozumel was different. My cell plan covers Mexico and Central America, so my phone was "wrong" the last day on the ship.

I am having to assume you are being intentionally obtuse or like trying to bait posters. I never said NCL controls airline flights. I said that "I think many first time cruisers choose the ships airfare not just for price, but because they think it’s a safer option (the cruise line is doing it so it must be better).". Yes, those cruisers are wrong. But it doesn't mean I don't have empathy (a quality you appear to lack) for those people misunderstanding what booking your airfare through the cruise lines really means. And NCL certainly doesn't make it clear to cruisers that either. NCL advertise that the reason you should book your excursions through them is that you'll never miss the boat....they promise they wait for even the tardiest of tours. It's not a stretch for a new cruiser to assume the same for airfare. I 100% agree with you that I would never book airfare through a ship. In fact, I help many friends book cruises and I always advise them the same as well, and especially for NCL, because they seem to be the worst. (Eg, Princess allows you to choose your flight). So what you are saying is certainly true. The fact that you don't understand why it might be harsh just affirms what I said above. .

I think that’s a little harsh. I think many first time cruisers choose the ships airfare not just for price, but because they think it’s a safer option (the cruise line is doing it so it must be better). But I also would be okay with waiting for 60 people in bad weather, assuming “there for the grace of god go I”.

Day 7 At Sea Another good night's sleep so I was happy. We tried out the Observation Lounge for breakfast. It’s very simple….cold cereal, a couple pastries and 2 egg bake type items. Nice for a light breakfast. It was pretty crowded, but we found a place to sit. We picked up our baggage tags for departure and then headed back to the room to change for the pool. It started to rain after an hour or so but I stayed out. I found a place for my stuff by the hot tub so it wasn’t getting wet and just stayed in the hot tub. Actually wasn’t too hot, which was nice. It began to rain quite a bit and actually there was thunder and lightening. But it seemed far away, so I stayed in. I finally went in and back to the room to change. We were trying the Local for lunch. I enjoyed the pretzel bites and a chicken salad sandwich. I was happy for a wheat beer on tap! There was a hot fudge sundae for dessert, but, big disappointment….it was not hot fudge, but chocolate syrup. I know it sounds silly, but chocolate syrup is not and never will be hot fudge. The serving size was nice…it was essentially one scoop of ice cream. We wandered back to the Haven and I read a bit and dozed. It was still rainy and cold. The two weeks before we left were kind of crazy…I was busy at work and we were really worried about my mom. I wanted to cancel the entire cruise but she wanted us to go. I think all that worry was finally catching up with me. And the ship was rocking a bit, which was getting to me. Luckily, she does seem to be improving, although there are some permanent issues. We packed (mostly) and went up to the lounge to play cards and had a late dinner, because of our later, big lunch. It was still raining and stormy! We had our final dinner and were back at the room about 9:45 to finish packing. Haven guests have until midnight to put out their suitcases, instead of 10pm. Day 8: departure With the storms of yesterday, our arrival into Galveston was delayed. It was 9am before anyone could depart off the ship. It’s just a reminder that while ships are usually on schedule, sometimes they’re not. Anyone with an earlier flight was probably stressed. Our flights were at 1:30 and 1:45, so I appreciated the delay….a few more minutes in bed. I enjoyed my eggs Benedict and the lovely French press coffee. We were able to find seating in the lounge as people were departing. We even saw dolphins again! Our ride wasn’t until 10, so we were not stressed at all. Originally our plan was to wait in the Haven lounge at the port. I had asked before the cruise and found out you can use the Haven lounge AFTER the cruise, not just before. Expecting my mom to be on this trip, I appreciated it. However, by the time our bag color was called, we exited the ship, got our bags and our driver had arrived. Final thoughts and the good and not so good comments First, I have sailed on pretty much all the main cruise lines except RCCL since 2017 (16 including this cruise). RCCL was last in 2013. Obviously, not close to people who cruise often, but I do have some experience. I’ll be really making my comments based on my cruises after Covid, and not counting those trips right after the restart, as those were such low capacity. I've sailed Princess 4 times, Carnival once and this was my second NCL cruise since 2023 began. Regardless of the line, I think the two biggest factors in the enjoyment of the cruise are your attitude and the quantity of people on the ship. The first factor speaks for itself. I want to enjoy the cruise and I tend to overlook things I don’t prefer. If something frustrating happens, I let it go and move on. But, the number of people on a ship does impact things. I always ask now how many guests are on the ship and compare it to the number typically named by the line, which is double occupancy if each room is filled (basically for my own curiosity and comparing how the capacity feels). For this trip, the Prima holds 3099 people if each room has 2 people. There were over 3500 people on this sailing. That means people are everywhere! Not being able to find a seat if you want to eat or sit and have a drink can be frustrating. I have read the bookings are up 20% over the same time last year. If you travel during peak season (holidays, school breaks, etc) assume your ship will be very full. If for some reason it’s not, lucky you. In a crowded cruise, I’m not sure I love the smaller venues on the Prima. I mean, I like it in theory but perhaps not in implementation. And it has very cute amenities that add to the atmosphere, but perhaps aren’t as practical. For example, by one of the bars (near the Local or maybe it was the Indulge Food Hall, there are hanging rattan seats. It looks really cute, but instead of perhaps 4 spaces for people to sit, there are now two. So it reduces capacity. However, I loved the Prima Haven environment. It never felt crowded the entire trip except for this last morning, and that was because of the delay. It seemed like many people in the Haven were doing an independent walk off. The pool was really nice. My only real complaint were the hot tubs….they were hard to get in and out of. I wish there was a rail. Obviously there are advantages and disadvantages of a larger vs smaller Haven. In the Escape, we knew both bartenders and bar servers and had the same waiter every night. There was a lot more staff, which can make it harder to get to know someone. However, they were certainly all nice. But the Prima had a much nicer pool! I found myself not doing nearly as much as I thought I would. I really liked the ports of Harvest Caye and Roatan. I didn’t even get off at Cozumel and Costa Maya, although I planned to. I think all the stress leading up to this trip and then the stress the first few days of worrying my mom would get worse impacted me. Luckily, she is improving, although slowly. I just found myself very tired. I sail a lot on Princess (especially the older ships) and NCL is quite different. Taking the Haven out of the equation, I really like the International Cafe on the Princess ships. The Observation lounge has a nice view but the food choices are far superior on Princess. I really liked the brew pub on the Escape (a lot) and missed it on the Prima. I really liked the Indulge food hall on the Prima. It was fun! I wanted to like the music in the lounges on the Prima but the music was so loud. It was jarring, it was so loud, like giving me a headache. I heard this complaint from many people. Even a single guitarist was stunningly loud. I also liked all the specialty dinner choices, but it’s frustrating that NCL gives dinners through a package and sells so many dinner packages….if you don’t book immediately the choices are really limited….some sold out and others had only very late choices. NCL has amazing Broadway shows and there is really no comparison to the Princess shows. Summer was excellent and so was Choir of Man on the Escape. I also thought "The Price is Right" was really fun. Will I say NCL again? Well, most definitely with my mom. The Haven is really the best option for us given her age and current health issues. We are scheduled to sail in early June and are planning another trip for next March. However, we will likely sail on the Getaway out of New Orleans, as it has a smaller Haven. Overall, NCL is much pricier than Princess, so I will likely look towards Princess first, as I like to cruise a lot if it’s just my husband and myself. I can go on more cruises on Princess prices! Princess also has a bigger presence on the West Coast than NCL (excluding Alaska). When we like a quick getaway without having to travel far, Princess and Carnival offer the most options in CA. For example, I looked at both NCL and Princess for a cruise in the British Isles, for essentially the same time frame, length and cabin selection (obstructed view). The price differential was about $3600. So especially for port intensive cruises where I want to be out and about at every port, I would sail Princess. On the other hand, if I was planning in advance, and had the time to book the “extras” easily and was more interested in enjoying the ship, I’d definitely consider NCL. Or if I was traveling and there were kids with us, there does seem like a lot more for them on NCL.

Day 6 Cozumel Hurrah! A good nights sleep. I was up and about by 9 and finally made it to the Haven breakfast. I had the country bread with poached egg. It was all right….it had a kind of brown gravy that didn’t do much for me. But I sure love that French press coffee. We went up to the pool area. I thought about going into Cozumel but there were apparently about 7 ships in port and I changed my mind. We stayed at the pool until about 1 and then headed to lunch at the Indulge Food Hall, which I had been wanting to try. It didn’t open until 1 today, which I assume they were allowing for people to return from Cozumel. I had a noodle dish and tomato soup, which was quite good. The food was delivered quite fast. My sister ate here the night we went to Los Lobos and she said the menu is different for lunch and dinner, which is nice. We ended up back in the room as I had some work to do and honestly, the longer the cruise goes, I seem to be accumulating fatigue. We went out to the lounge, played cards before dinner and then went into dinner. I’ve been surprised how uncrowded the Haven dining room is…..on the Escape it seemed crowded all the time. After dinner we ventured out for some music. There was a band playing “one hit wonders”. But either they didn’t know what “one hit wonders” are or they changed the show, because here are some of the songs played: Living on a Prayer. Ring of Fire Hallelujah Old Time Rock and Roll Not really “one hit wonders” in my book, lol! We played cards while listening and actually stayed out the latest we have the entire cruise. But eventually we made it back to the room. Reading this, I am realizing what a boring day we had!!!

Day 5: Roatan We docked early in Roatan (7am) and were off the ship early (about 7:15). This was a challenge for me because I had a bad night. That’s my euphemism for my ridiculous insomnia. I fell asleep around 4:30 or 5 and was up about 6:45. I was not feeling good. We had a tour booked with Victor Bodden tours. They do not charge anything in advance. For private tours, they ask that you are off the ship within 2 hours of arrival, or they will release the private guide for other guests, which seems fair to me. It was already warm getting off the ship! In terms of price, it was supposed to be $25 per person with 4 people. Since there were 3 of us, it was now $30 each. Our tour guide was William and he was awesome. We started going to the small monkey and sloth rescue. You got in with some monkeys and we were able to book the sloth hug, which was what I was waiting for. We were given a private guide here as well. The cost was $10 per person and worth every penny to me. We tipped our guide $20 for the three of us. After this we went to the glass bottom boat. But, it wasn’t really a glass bottom boat but more like a submarine, where you went below and there were windows on all sides. This was $35. We saw a sea turtle and lots of fish. Honduras has the second biggest coral reef in the world. It’s only second to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. It was fun, but not the highlight for me. Finally, we went to the Iguana Sanctuary. Iguanas were being killed her to such a great degree that this gentleman opened the sanctuary to preserve them in the Island. They started with a small number and now have 2000 over 12 acres. The small ones are caged after being born until they are large enough to survive from their predators (birds, small animals, etc) You were able to feed the iguanas. You got a large leaf and held it down on towards the ground and the iguanas came and ate. It was really interesting and fun. I only have videos of the feeding which I don’t think work but here’s a picture! After the iguanas we headed back to town. We stopped at a look out and did a little shopping. My husband got a t-shirt. I had picked up a rash guard type top at the sloth sanctuary which made me happy. We were back on the ship about 1, had lunch (I was starving) and I went back in the room for a nap. I now napping screws up my sleep and I try never to do it. But I was seriously exhausted. I napped about 2.5 hours and got up and showered (I was feeling pretty groggy) and we headed down for a drink and for our reservation at Hasuki. This is a Japanese steakhouse. It was part of our two meals from the beverage plan. It was so much fun! I had a great Japanese beer (lager) and John, the chef was outstanding. They do lots of “sing along”, basically short snippets of songs. It sounds cheesy but it was a great time. I should have taken pictures but honestly, it was so fun I didn’t even think about it. We had about an hour before the comedy show T 9:30 so played cards behind Starbucks. The comedy show was fine. Not fantastic but not bad either. After the comedy show we heard back to the room. Not even to the Haven bar, but our room. I was still tired and hoping for a decent night sleep tonight!

Day 4 Harvest Caye We ate a quick breakfast at the Haven buffet and headed out to the beach. We took the elevator to deck 6 and Haven staff were there to take us right to where we disembark. Easy peasy. We had loungers with an umbrella and a third lounger right by the lifeguard (2) and near the grill. We immediately went into the water and enjoyed the perfect water temperature. Heaven! Water was $4, $4.50 with tax. We chatted with lots of nice people as we bobbed up and down in the water. About 12ish, the water was getting cooler and lots more seaweed, as the tide seemed to be coming in. So we bailed on the beach to head back to the room and up to the Haven pool. Here’s a menu of the grill at Harvest Caye. We also wandered around the pool area. It was quite nice and very large. There is even a swim up bar and spots to put your drink. There are cabanas here and the shade is much better here, because there are so many umbrellas As you can see, there is a zero debth entry area. Lunch was a hot dog and tempura vegetables. I tried a new drink that was on tap. It’s only in the Haven bar. It’s a little hard to read, but left to rights it’s Smoky Dragon, Rum’ble and Honey Jasmine bubbles. Smoky Dragon is tequila and watermelon, Rum’Ble is rum and maybe papaya??? And honey jasmine bubbles is gin and vodka (but you can’t taste the gin at all….and I know because I don’t like gin) and citrus. I adored the Honey Jasmine bubbles. We stayed all afternoon at the pool. Departure was at 5. We wanted an early dinner as we were heading to the comedy show and for my husband, Donna Summer. I would have gone to see Donna Summer again but with only 2 performances this week, it didn’t seem fair. Dinner tonight was quick and we even skipped dessert. I had the pork belly appetizer and crab cakes with the kale salad, which I really like. And I can pretend I’m eating healthy….kale is healthy, right? The comedy show was funny and after it we went by the bar near Cagneys to listen to music but it was loud. Way too loud. So we headed back to the Haven and played cards. We want to be up early tomorrow. We have a private tour booked with Victor Boden tours and plan to see monkeys and sloths!

We didnt need to wait long. For Donna Summer, doors open 30 minutes before. We were told to arrive 35 minutes ahead of time and there was a dedicated entrance on deck 6 on the left when facing the theatre. we did the comedy show and arrived about 35-40 minutes before with doors opening 30 minutes ahead. The one place with issues is Sid Norman’s. We arrived 40 minutes ahead and it was totally full.

I apologize for the delay in uploading pictures and reports. I was trying to, but it just wasn’t working on the ships wifi . Day 3 Costa Maya I got out of bed very late today….basically close to 10. I had a bad night and was up until about 4 am. Woke up exhausted at 7, dozed and woke up again and 8 and then 9 and finally dragged myself out of bed. My husband and sister had been up a couple of hours and went to breakfast. We went out to the lounge area and my sister and I played cards. We ended up sitting right in front of the concierge desk, which turned out to be somewhat entertaining. Someone was quite frustrated because they were in line for the 6:30 Donna Summer show and it was canceled. I had no idea the show was even cancelled! As an aside here, I went on my first cruise at 21, in 1983. My parents took me and we went again in 1986, when I finished grad school. Then my husband and I cruised for our honeymoon in 1991. Then, I didn’t do a cruise again until 2013 when I went with my mom and sister and daughter. I could never understand why people would stay on the ship instead of exploring the port. But now,this is my 16th cruise since 2017 and I get it! I still like to do excursions, don’t get me wrong, but I also enjoy a day on a quiet ship! So my sister left to go on her excursion and my husband and I headed up to the Haven pool. It’s about 80 degrees so quite warm in the sun. A beautiful day. My view from my lounger: The pool was lovely….bath weather warm and I spent hours here. We finally left in the late afternoon and went to the room to shower and get ready for the weekend. My sisters excursion was late so we went to dinner late and I was starving! I basically only had a pastry at breakfast and the tempura veggies for lunch (obviously my own fault, as food is readily available). So at dinner I had the lobster deviled eggs, filet mignon and lobster tail and macadamia nut ice cream for dessert. Instead of the sides I had the creamy mashed potatoes and kale salad. I wasn’t crazy about the mashed potatoes and would prefer a baked potato. But I really liked the kale salad with miso vinegarette. I was so hungry I didn’t take pictures. We missed the 7pm comedian and we’ve already seen the 9pm comedian twice so went to the lounge and played cards. As I’ve mentioned, our cruising style has changed over the years. I appreciate just being able to hang out with my sister and chat and play cards, since we live 2000 miles apart. We played until about 10 and headed to the room for bed as we wanted to be the first out tomorrow.

Just a quick ending to the day….my husband went back to the room….hr was exhausted and wasn’t sure why. So my sister and I went to see the Donna Summer show. It was outstanding. The three different women who played Donna at different ages….amazing! There was just one glitch…a code A in deck 10. Someone in our row told us that was a signal for someone overboard. But when I looked it up after the show, I found it to mean a medical emergency. Regardless, it was a few minutes delay and the performers continued on. I certainly hope whatever happened wasn’t too serious. As a side note, in the elevator back to our room, a couple of people were talking about Los Lobos and how good it was. I shared that I ate there tonight as well and had read some bad reviews and was so glad I ignored them, because our meal was excellent. They said the same thing.

We were meeting at the bar right outside the casino for the slot pull. There were almost 70 people! We had to leave early for our Go-Kart reservation so couldn’t stay until the end. The Go-Karts were fun, but we had a few glitches. We arrived and both my sister and I had small crossbody purses (like 5x5). Basically big enough for my Kindle and phone. We had to go back to our room and leave them. That’s not anywhere in the app nor on their sign with restrictions. So we left and came back and got in line again. The go-karts were fun, but it really depended on what kart you got. I had my pedal to the floor but it only went a certain speed. The guy behind me was really mad and complaining when he got off that his ride was ruined because I was so slow and he only got 4 laps instead of 5. For us, it is a one and done. I’m sure kids would like to ride many times! We also checked out the mini golf. But with a $10 charge we weren’t highly motivated to play. Maybe later in the week? We headed back to the Haven and sat outside and had a quick snack. With a 5:30 dinner we didn’t want to eat too much. So my husband had a hot dog and my sister and I split an order of tempura vegetables, which I really liked. Since it was getting a little breezy, we went inside and played cards near the bar. We headed to Los Lobos about 5:15 for a 5:30 reservation. I feel like this restaurant gets uneven reviews, but really enjoyed it. I had the queso fundido as an appetizer. My husband had the slpa de tortilla which he enjoyed We both had tacos for dinner. Mine were shrimp and his were bistec con queso. My sides were the elote, but they offer to take it off the cob as esquite, which I did and the jicama slaw. Both were very good. We shared one dessert, which was the churros. We ran from the restaurant to make the 7pm comedy show with Dean Edwards. It was “clean”. I’m not a fan of super raunchy comedy. In general, I think comedians who are super raunchy and use a lot of profanity lack the talent to be funny and try to get laughs the only way they can. (Don’t jump all over me….it's just my opinion. You can think differently than me). We really enjoyed his show. We then waited by Starbucks (rain downstairs to get a drink at the Penrose bar) for the Donna Summer show. My husband was really tired and went back to the room. While waiting I went to Guest Services and asked about the number of people sailing. 3500 people are on the ship, with a crew of 1500. Not really surprising it’s so full, as mid March is a big spring break week. Google told me that if each room has 2 people that is 3099 people. It feels really crowded whenever I walk around the ship but when I go to the Haven, the feeling is so different. I was a little nervous that we’d paid for the Haven and it would feel crowded, but I was SO wrong.

I don’t disagree. I just wish you could reserve via the app (I mean anyone, not just Haven).

On the Escape last summer anyone could book in the app for the comedy shows. Then if you didn’t arrive by 15 minutes before, the standby line was let in. On this trip on my Prima, no Haven priority and no booking via the app. We’re going tonight. I’ll let you know

We received a note in our cabin about priority disembarkation in port This will be especially nice for us in Harvest Caye, as we want to get off early to get nice lounger space and in Roatan, as we have a private excursion booked and want to be off as early as possible to beat the crowds. I had read someone saying they were in the Haven on the Prima recently and there was no priority disembarkation, so I was a little nervous. All I can assume is perhaps they were trying to get it outside the posted hours? I don’t know. Our afternoon plans are to do our Facebook group slot pull and then ride the Go-Karts. Here’s to a big win in the casino! I generally don’t gamble on cruise ships, as I believe the returns are very poor. I save my gambling for Vegas. However, I consider slot pulls a social event rather than gambling.

Day 2 At Sea I was up later today….a little after 9. When I travel with my mom, I always set an alarm, because she has terrible sleep issues and is usually awake by 6. So I never sleep later than 7. So last night I did not set an alarm! My husband and sister were finishing breakfast and I joined them and had a latte and pastry (breakfast was no longer being served but the buffet portion was still available. We then wandered around on the pool deck (16). At a little after 10, one side was getting full but there were still lots of loungers left. There was also lots of space on deck 17 (16+ space) I assumed this ship is quite full, as well as the Haven. I have meant to ask but kept forgetting when I’m actually near the concierge. But on this sea day, at 11:15, you could still come out near the pool or hot tub and get a lounger. I was afraid with the Haven being so much larger than I was used to from the Escape, there would be issues, but so far not at all. However, we did have a note from the ship that our passports were messed up and they think we’re paying cash for expenses? When we checked in there were issues with our passports and they were “fixed” at embarkation. And I know positively I provided a credit card when I was checking in at home. They can’t say what happened with the passports, but it’s fixed now. For the credit card, I was told I should have just used my card and add my husband, which is what I did. But then, when my husband checked in, the app wouldn’t let him finalize the check in process until he also put a credit card in. The problem was we have two cards, one with my name and one with his, but the same number. The system flags this as an error. But, we got it all fixed and our passports were returned to us and we continued our day.

We explored the ship and went to the Indulge Food hall. It looked good and we plan to try it! We went to dinner in the Haven. I had the consommé and prime rib and the coconut mousse. My husband went back to the room to charge his phone. My sister and I enjoyed a drink at the Haven bar. We then went to see the comedian in the theater. Loved the drink holder! The comedians were Dean Edwards and Spencer James They were both good. Liked the drink holder in the theatre as well. I should add that some of the officers were introduced before the show. I was impressed that so many were women. After the show we went to the Haven bar. Had excellent conversations with those around us and headed to tension about 11:15

no, at least for the first day, it was just Haven guests.

I booked this trip back last July 2023, while my mom and sister and I were sailing on the Escape out of Miami. We had booked the Haven for that trip, as I had learned about this small ship within a ship and thought it would be helpful for my mom. She will be 88 this summer and and has mobility issues.. I’ve been taking my mom on 2 vacations a year since my dad died (2016). We do March (spring break) and summer, because my sister is a teacher and she joins us. This is the first year my husband is joining us. I enjoyed NCL so much last July I wanted my husband to try it out (NCL hasn’t been as prevalent on the West Coast as Princess, Carnival and Disney). We hadn’t sailed NCL since our honeymoon in 1991! While we were on the trip in July, we booked two more trips: the Prima out of Galveston in March and the Encore out of Seattle in June. More recently, my mom has gotten worse in terms of her mobility and was starting to use a cane all the time and can’t walk as far as she could before and uses the wheelchair more. To be honest, I would never book the Haven except with my mom (typically my husband and I book an obstructed view cabin), but darn, I sure did enjoy it the last time! Galveston is a good location for us to sail, as it’s easy for my mom and sister to get to Houston from St. Louis. It’s also easy for my dh and myself, as there are lots of non stop flights from the West Coast to Houston. We are all flying into Hobby. And spending the night near the airport, and using a car service to get to Galveston on Friday. Of course, as it sometimes happens, things went a little crazy. My mom was in a car accident about 2.5 weeks before our departure. She was hit by a car in front of her (yes, he backed into her) and then sped off. The airbag deployed. This set a series of health events in motion (they were probably there, the car accident seemed to accelerate everything) and the upshot was she could no longer go on the cruise. I debated the rest of us cancelling, but my mom didn’t want us to miss as well. My daughter volunteered to take some sick days and fly out and be with her grandmother. So I packed and dh packed and we got on a plane at 7:05 on Thursday the 14th. We had not made many cruise plans, with the exception of our two specialty dinners at Le Bistro and Los Lobos. I had made one private excursion that could handle the wheelchair and booked a pool cabana at Havest Cay. So I quickly trying to figure things out yesterday. Port Days: Costa Maya, Mexico: My husband and I will walk around the port area and enjoy the pool area. I even packed my favorite pool floatie! My sister is doing a tour of the Chacchoben Mayan ruins. She does a lot for my mom all year long, so I had wanted her to get to do some fun things, and my dh and I had just planned to stay on the ship with my mom. Harvest Caye, Belize: I had booked a pool cabana for my mom, so she would have regular chairs (and not loungers) but we are cancelling this and will just walk out early that day for loungers and hopefully enjoy warm ocean water. Roatán (Bay Islands), Honduras: We have a reservation with Bodden Tours to see the sloths and monkeys. Super excited about this one. . Cozumel Mexico: I’ve been to some of the day beach resorts here before. Most likely we’ll enjoy the hopefully quieter pool areas on board the ship. Our flight was easy and we checked into the Courtyard Marriott Hobby airport, taking their shuttle to the airport. We had dinner at a BBQ place (Pappas) with cousins that live in Houston. My sister arrived about 10pm after a delayed flight and temporary airport closure so we were glad she arrived. Friday morning at 9 (today) we took a private car to Galveston. We arrived about 9:45 (no traffic the entire way and no construction). We got through the line and boarded about 9:50. The Haven is really large on this ship and when we arrived we dropped off our bags in the and went into the lounge. Had a drink and listened to the concierge's announcements. They asked people to note which shows they wanted to attend as the concierge would give us priority entrance. The shows are Donna Sunner and The Price is Right. We chose to have lunch in Cagneys since it is offered to Haven guests free this boarding day. I had the butternut squash risotto which was quite nice. My husband and sister had the French dip and hamburger and they said they were good For dessert my husband just had ice cream. I had a banana toffee thing and my sister the chocolate cake. The cake slice was so large and she couldn’t come close to finishing it. I ate every bite of mine…it was amazing!! Our room was ready at this point so we popped down to the room and then wandered the ship. The weeks schedule for Sid Norman’s Definitely plan to check out a show here. We made our way back to the Haven and I canceled our cabana at the pool at Harvest Caye. We really only booked it so my mom would have a regular chair and table, rather than a lounger. We booked go-karts and then changed from LeBistro (again booked for my mom) and changed to the Japanese Steakhouse (for my husband) And we then relaxed out at the Haven pool. it’s hard to see but we saw dolphins! First just one, then more like a half dozen.

We purchased the basic "package", which gives 2 specialty dining credits. I was thinking of either purchasing 2 more, or perhaps just paying a la carte at the time. I am totally confused about the additional fees. Online, it says this about the packages: Specialty Dining Package from 2 - 7 Days There’s no better way to enjoy our wide selection of delicious dining options than with our Specialty Dining Packages. Enjoy specialty restaurants on your choi ... PER PERSON PRICE $118.80 - $310.80 Price range includes a 20% specialty service charge. Okay, that makes sense (or so I thought). If I purchase a 2 meal package, it is $118.80, which also includes the gratuity. I also know I prepaid the gratuity for my meals in the package, so I assumed I was set. But then I read the FAQ's for the specialty dining. Here are some questions and the answers, per NCL. The FAQ's say that the specialty dining package adds the service charge on top of the fee. And what's a specialty service charge? You have to pay fpr the peal, gratuity and specialty charge? I also though that you could make reservations at a certain time frame before your cruise. But the AQ makes it sound like you can make the reservation as soon as you purchase it. Is this true? ARE GRATUITIES INCLUDED IN THE SPECIALTY DINING PACKAGE PRICE? No, a 20% gratuity and specialty service charge will be automatically added to the cost of your package. HOW CAN I MAKE DINING RESERVATIONS FOR A SPECIALTY DINING PACKAGE? Once purchased, you can make reservations online in our "Dining" section at ncl.com/myncl or through Norwegian Reservations at 1-866-234-7350. Once onboard, you can also make reservations by calling or visiting the Restaurant Reservations Desk or using the Norwegian App.

I think you raised excellent points. I sailed on my first Haven cruise this past July. It was an excellent option for my mom, who is very mobility challenged and is probably Stage 2 of cognitive decline. We enjoyed it so much we booked two more Haven experiences for her. It was great having a small area for her to be in, staff quickly learned her name and preferences, and the sitting area by the concierge and bar was an excellent location for us to play cards, and have her see people coming and going. However, while I do enjoy many aspects of the Haven experience, it is not enough value for me when I book cruises for my husband and myself. So when the time comes that my mom is gone (or not able to travel), I will be done traveling in the Haven, unless something changes (the value I perceive, or we win a huge lottery so money is inconsequential in the decision......not holding my breath, though).