mking8288

Yes, 99.995% positive - we had requested CC admin to get involved and surprised that her membership wasn't suspended or terminated. Research for the Prima trails showed she had already written to, requested & confirmed the M&G with NCL, using CC as the basis - before coming over to the roll call and said, hi ... I am an experienced M&G person, yada yada. I (we) booked last minute and wasn't involved while that was going on, but caught up with it once I signed onto the RC. Wasn't smart enough to hide & fully disguise her digital trails. The rest - the cleanup and recovery wasn't easy or simple, but - got done in the end. I took credit for restoring the online roster that was nearly deleted or erased ... Don't need the spotlight or glory. More than twice the # of confirmed attendees showed up for the CC M&G, Sugar & I (and a few others) figured that those from FB all crashed the party b/c the many of them leave the CC entry blank - it was a tremendous turnout, pack that Beverde Bar/Lounge area full - beyond capacity. On the earlier Prima TA going the opposite way, only had 40+ showed up. It was bloodless, mission accomplished in straightening matters out ... that was the 2nd mess involving the Prima. Anyway, time to assemble a mini-team on the TA to pull things together and restore the continuity and transparency. She was doing the roster but never bother to even give a periodic headcount ... everyone is free to organize the slot pull, cabin crawl, sailaway, etc. and also had a no-show slot pull organizer, or was it 2 or more.

@JIMESOPUS Oops, just did a quick scan of the TA roll call. Jim, the self-declared and appointed M&G coordinator of this year's Prima TA "added to roster" that was never shared or published/posted, and disappeared after final payment, oddly enough. 100% on that platform's private group, which eventually split into 3 sub-groups, including one exclusively for solos from friend's intel. Dropped the baskets, ball and magic wand and everything else, someone else picked up the mess ... long story, apparently as a travel advisor, managed to be on a different TA cruise around the same time,odd & strange perhaps b/c the net cost being TA isn't so great to switch. Surely, there are others with dual presence here and on FB, issue an all points bulletin - wait and have the CC roll call consensus to certify her, and, find a way to inform NCL corporate (group events) - time is still on the (CC roll call) group's side to straighten matters out. This is what I've consider discrete and sometimes not-so-obvious hijacking and takeover by invoking membership in CC but really as a double agent on FB. P.S. Sy called and said it ... she's nothing but trouble for this community.

@dexddd Thank you. OJ with Vit-C to stay hydrated, no beans. Mrs. and I doing fine, her cough isn't entirely gone, sore throat and occasional coughing, no fever. PCP tele-consult advised to stay with OTC meds on mild symptoms. Nearby Walgreen, extras OTC items, still have 3 fresh boxes of tests (3x5 = 15 kits) plus 10 soon-to-expire ones from inventory, sail & sustain into 2025. Under More $$$ to sail, my take on the cover charge is that anyone, including 22 Y.O. DS can surely eat off your plate - still a believer in eating lite ? as long your account is charged for sharing with a plate, spoon or fork, and complimentary bowl, based on the minimum cover charge of $30, 40, 50 or 60, for your convenience, of course. Harry & Co. get to ding $10 per SD meal served, more SD meals on "longer" cruises = more surcharges = pool money to pay crew, after his cut, of course. Looked for beans at breakfast and lunch, etc. - it's not Cunard - it's AWOL but sauteed mushrooms ( a bit too high in sodium, IMHO) Hash browns in plentiful quantities, free & complimentary ... but, wasn't impressed on bland taste. Bagels & Lox served with a whole toasted bagel and cream cheese plus trimmings, everyday morning item of yours truly. WIsh they offer 1 or 2 daily chef's special for breakfast as it became repetitive after several days of pampering in the MDR.

How's satellite WiFi onboard the ship while at sea ? Asking for friends that will be sailing her across on the upcoming TA, thanks.

Jim ... the most recent time that I know of, in using the groupevents---@ncl.com email address was late 2023 ... I don't recall the email address was used on this Spring's TA as I wasn't really involved or engaged, except to "manage" the roster on a spreadsheet. I believe, and many of the CC roll calls lately has been on ICU a/k/a "life support" in need of a good jolt from AED, that submissions are now accepted only via the portal link - once, they received the online request (not using the "unique" email address for each ship - which are funneled into Miami HQ anyway) - they will reply back to the person submitting the request & establish a more direct way of (re)confirming the arrangements. If you or someone in a given CC roll call is doing this, I suggest using that updated link as given by Laura S. and see if it go thru or not, they usually - in the past - acknowledge and get back within 1 to 2 business days. However, since "co"-affiliated folks (from the other social media platform) often come in undercover and possibly already hijacked the lead efforts as the self-declared coordinator, don't be surprised if NCL simply said, oh ... "someone else already contacted us and secured the arrangements, etc. etc." I haven't seen much chatter here lately about whether the reports / non-reaffirmed "news" within the past few months - that NCL no longer provide any free or complimentary light refreshment for even CC events onboard their ships.

Right, the stateroom TV channels will (should) be disabled until OP is forced to listen (and watch) the 10+ minutes safety video, to the end (don't fast forward it or else ...) as part of the drill, even after he/she find and report to their assigned muster station onboard, and either get checked off and bar-code scanned in compliance with maritime requirements. When staterooms and ready, while waiting for other deliveries (i.e. checked luggage, if not carried onboard) - this is a great time to unpack, use the restroom, look for those blue pool towels (tips: no longer in the staterooms) or ice bucket or hot water/coffee maker, etc. - as the video continued to play. If I remember correctly, on newer ships like the Prima, the life vests are no longer stored/kept - by design - in the staterooms but rather, will be at the muster or assembly stations. We cancelled our Sky's TA booking next month and friends are going to be on and I'm pretty sure the posse are going to be entertained by the 2+ live reports. Best wishes for a great cruise and when life toss a monkey wrench in your way, just go with the flow and recover, and move forward ... very often, a life changing event can turn out to a turning point for the better.

Hmmm, adding 4 hours of onboard time, from midnight disembarkation ... to now, an extension of 4+ hours or more before pax disembarking from the GEM, for sustainability and port operations, this all sound wonderful. That means going to bed at 7 PM (night before this) to get 8 hours of sleep with the wake-up alarm set to 3 AM, and begin the Express Self Walk-Off as early as 4 to 4:30 AM, assuming the ship will be promptly cleared on arrival. If luggage assistance is needed, desired and/or required, better finish re-packing by the afternoon, have an early-bird dinner and putting the luggage outside the stateroom by 7 or 8 PM at the latest ?? That sounds logical ?? And, NCL isn't going to charge an extra day's worth (or, pro-rate) of DSC, currently at $20 & higher pppd, how generous to be granted four + extra hours on the ship, like an extended check-up ... until the morning hours ?? Or, am I missing something ... as now I see that there is 2 different thread on the same topic/subject matter with this pilot 4 AM "special" Our next booked cruise on NCL isn't sailing until 8 PM ... someone on the roll call jokingly said, that means folks using NCL can be flown in, the day of embarkation from the West Coast and still, technically speaking, able to make their way from the airport to the cruise terminal and board the ship. Is it a win-win ? and saving a night's worth of lodging too. Imagine the possibilities of creatively spinning these moves 😉 😁 😬

The key & truthful answer lies in the notice or written announcement given to passengers onboard as to the latest time that they "must" vacate their cabin onboard the GEM at the end of the cruise. Ship can be docked at 1 AM and cleared to disembark at 3 AM or 4 AM, or whatever time that NCL choose to do, that passengers are generally sound asleep during the normal overnight hours instead of sounding the wake-up alarms and bells at 03:00 or 04:00. Would passengers be given a generous and reasonable timeframe or window to leisure disembark the ship, i.e. say for example, up until 07:00 or 08:00 before they "must" leave their cabin - while early bird breakfast is still provided and served somewhere ... or, perhaps a "grab-and-go" a la Marriott style breakfast to eat while standing in the gangway. Oh, wait, nevermind, due to local health & government regs and safety, food cannot be taken off the ship. Just one more sail to sustain, to optimize the guest onboard experience ... yada, yada /s Got it /s 😳 🙄 😬 P.S. I am sure there is an unknown & hidden side of this story on NCL's end that we are not being informed upon, as the truth ... and whole truth being disclosed (that's not going to get answered here) I trust the article reporting the information as given, whether to trust NCL or not, well - let's just say, has been a matter of ethics and credibility among the audience.

OP, thanks for heads-up. Friends from NY onboard the sailing along with you & others, just texted them using WhatsApp, in the unlikely event that they aren't informed - as they typically will share "important" offline news & updates with us, sometimes to pass along. They have NCL written/prior approval to early disembark once GA reach NYC via PD and Canada first, instead of sailing onward to Miami (looking forward to stopping at walkable Sydney, NS but been to Halifax x number of times before) but now seemingly doubtful with hurricane/storms and revisions to "optimal" routes for safety & well-beings of all. Safe travel on the crossing to all onboard ... following.

@Jim_Iain Hey, Jim ... greetings again. We disembarked RC's Liberty yesterday and home again, next cruise isn't planned until Jan. 2025 on RC again to the warmer Caribbeans. Put together some notes for NCL friends on CC (as well as new ones here on the Cunard board, and I wanted to say here, thank you all for making us in being welcomed with the tips & advice, helps and suggestions, really made our QE cruise a joy ... opened up an additional line of 4 Queens into our short list for future cruises, much obliged) as they will be doing some longer cruises, TA coming up and will possibility find the option helpful & practical, to have an extra eSim installed and ready to activate and use while at sea, over cellular 4G LTE via satellite, at reasonable data rates instead of paying for a full unlimited plan at cruise line's going rates. Streaming is supported at no extra cost, good for tasks like Zoom and Facetime, but will get pricey for watching Youtube - in which case, line's daily passes and/or unlimited plan is $$ better. Here's that link to the "Semi-Live or Not" link on the RC's board/forum here - post # 351 and #352 https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/3029349-liberty-of-the-seas-26-sept-2024-semi-live-or-not-times-a-changing-perhaps-return-to-rcl-after-10-years/?do=findComment&comment=67995750

A brief summary/review ... reflections, thoughts, comments, etc. to follow - sometime tomorrow, from this pool of NCL Diamonds, Sapphire & Platinum cruisers that just disembarked this morning - feel free to ask questions or posts helpful-useful "corrections", as we haven't sailed RCL in over 10 years, just going to be our opinions. The post-cruise emails already hit the In-Boxes this afternoon. We'll compare and see how we feel about things on NCL and also our first & one and only cruise on one of the 4 Queens, Cunard's Queen Elizabeth (on a late August 10 nights Alaska RT cruise out of Vancouver, BC) Easiest to do at the moment - technical / geek data for the few interested folks, rest of non-geek cruisers not interested in staying connected while at sea and/or travel abroad, just skip this part & move on. The facts - Our digital hardware platform is mostly Android (Windows & Chromebook) based but the principles generally applied to iOS or Apple "gadgets" as we also used an iPad on this cruise. How we managed to keep our data use/cost down while at sea and on a cruise ship with X-Starlink / Voom coverage (which, in comparison against NCL, is faster by a factor of 2x to 3x but much "slower" with Cunard's Starlink as we just used theirs earlier this month - it's the fastest, much ... much faster than RC's) For USA and Canada voice, text messaging and data - our ISP of choice is Google Fi, which partners and used mostly T-Mobile towers when outside our "home" area, and we incurred zero additional costs, no voice/WiFi/VoIP calls made. IM - SMS - Messaging just works, except when we choose to place devices into Airplane Mode and WiFi turned "off" My "Fi" was bumped up to the "Unlimited Plus" plan at $65 /mo + taxes/fees before the Alaska trip, and the 3 included add-on (no extra cost/charges) data-only nano Sim - were used on additional devices set to WiFi only mode, worked great with mostly 5G coverage, except in places where 4G LTE is the highest & best signal available to post-paid T-Mo accounts. During the last monthly billing cycle, used about 12 GB worth of data, about 8 GB from tethered devices (WiFi hotspot) Between Thursday & today, new billing cycle, used about 1.1 GB data, 650 MB on tethered devices. All of this covered under that $75 a month billing for the account. Mrs. M is on a limited plan, typically about $40 a month PAYG data charges included - when we travel & cruise, it varied from somewhere between $5 to $20 in "extra" data charges, when not covered from tethering off my "Plus" plan coverage, isn't that nice ... that's b/c she prefer to watch streaming content when other WiFi sources aren't free or available, or practical, etc. GigSky is a new eSim addition to our travel "toolkit" of staying connected, especially while at sea - works great at very reliable & consistent 4G LTE speed (since, maritime satellite connection does NOT run over 5G networks, hahaha / LOL) as it is beamed over ship's satellite signal to ground/land towers - available in over 200 ships of various cruiselines, as coverage is via Cellular At Sea, an ISP providing maritime/satellite coverage. With a 20% discount option, the prepaid 3GB data plan cost a little, $56 and it is good for 15 days and can be topped up when it runs low. *** On a longer cruises if you expect to use the internet more often, I recommend paying a little more upfront to get the 5GB plan at a lower GB cost. GIgSky does offer a 100 MB trial free, you should consider giving that a try to see whether you are comfortable with the eSim and how to configure it for use while traveling - your iPhone or Android must be factory and/or carrier "Sim" unlocked. As of this date, have 442 MB of unused data out of 3GB purchased on GigSky, 3 days of coverage remaining with the installed eSim. As mentioned, cost - $56 only Voom - we purchased only 2 full 24 hour day pass, for a total of $55 on sea days only - with longer stretches between ports, that's all ... and we used the "unlimited" access to upgrade our iPhone, iPad, and 4 Android smartphones with OEM updates, security patches and apps, etc. - slower connections than Fios at home, of course but did that during off-peak hours to take advantage of better speed. In short, we spend about $110 for high-speed data while cruising (and, we're able to stream, not blocked or need to go "premium" like when cruising on NCL or Cunard, despite their much superior, turbo-fast speed on their basic Cunard data plan, with day pass options too) plus Mrs. M will probably have another $20 in data charges as she was doing her usual while in Canada and not always tethering off my "hotspot" signal. Pretty good & smart money spend for a 10 days cruise. Our BIL is on T-Mobile and ran into his data cap restrictions, blocked when the limits hit; and, SIL being on a different premium AT&T Plan, also hit a safety hall of $100 in data charges and blocked against further use. Our best friends, simply purchased Royal's Voom plan for the duration onboard via the Royal app, about $170 is the amount that I recalled. Learning my way around - our next RC cruise is January, think we'll do something similar and have better ideas on additional money saving moves.

GigSky eSim for cruising on LTE /cellular - over Starlink/satellite at sea, by the MB/GB. It's not a limited plan and not a daily pass, but metered plan that served us well - combined with Voom's 24 hour day pass with unlimited use.

FYI only on GS, go to the official website and check/verify that the specific ship is covered, included (I believe the NCL fleet are) - purchase & download the eSim on your device (newer iPhone and Android, factory/carrier-unlocked should support additional eSims - and set up the App to manage the account. Once the ship has sailed out into int'l water and/or at least 30+ minutes to 1 hour or more from port, and the roaming cellular services is turned ON, you should be able to pick-up the 4G LTE signal (and, it should say GigSky on the top menu bar/home screen while idle) Be sure roaming is turned on and you should be good to go, make sure your primary sim is OFF, but do not enable Airplane Mode & turn off WiFi. A "carrier" update might need to be downloaded, install and the device rebooted, then you are good & ready to go online. Do check your usage on the App every now & then as there is no meter when you "exit" by turning on Airplane mode to stop data traffic. The first time you do this while at sea, the eSim is fully activated - there isn't a way to check or verify that it will work, or not, until you sail. To be cautious, you can buy just 1GB to try it first, then top-off with either 3GB or 5GB, and add more if necessary. Each user is different on how much data is needed for X number of days at sea, this isn't a day pass nor is it unlimited, be careful about streaming but for basic online email, news, weather, messaging and calls using Apps, etc. - I now consider this a good alternative solution to Starlink, especially how bad it is on NCL ships. It is less congested and faster than, if not the same speed as Starlink at most times. For our recent NE/C 9 nights cruise, we only brought 2 days worth of Voom day pass plus the 3GB prepaid GS data, since whenever we're docked in ports, our data cost is covered & included, no roaming fees for 4G and 5G. Drop over to the Liberty thread/post with more questions.

Nevermind just their usual weekend IT funky bug as @cruiseny4life said. No changes on TA's site & booking (re-priced/saved $$$ prior to Oct 1, whew) look fine using their link ... booking still intact on NCL site and now the itinerary is showing up again searching incognito mode. Looks safe for now but booking is pretty soft, plenty of inventory across multiple categories (and sub's within) at 6 months out) With just 1 ship sailing from NYC, expected majority of cabins to be booked for winter getaways but apparently, not - MSC prices dominating with their 7 days itinerary. Looks like good deals for solo, won't be surprised if prices will drop further. Under More at $$$, 2 extra SD meals going cost as it's 8 days but drink options don't affect us since we opt out all these years. Repricing yielded a net increase of $94, LOL. Dirty Harry won't get extra dollars from us anymore with upgrade to unlimited WiFi with GigSky at sea data.

Hahaha, I know and we walked by that joint without stopping, better local food near-by. BTW, I'm back as some of you know and trying to catch up. Our March booking has gone MIA, and I smell something rotten, not just with this More $$$ to See, hopefully is an I.T. glitch and not playing games with charter & repositioning the fleet deployment again.

Hi again and thanks, Ellie ... Not to worry about catching C19, we're not looking forwarding to the potential risk. Susan said, the odds caught up with us b/c we flew to Vancouver, sail Cunard and then flew back earlier last month, all uneventful - reasonably sure our body's immunity level did its part and experienced just mild symptoms. Just one more reasons that we always packed our medical "care" kit along. Yes, will see about doing a similar trip report next January for others & you, etc. as a blueprint ... going to be actively looking for additional sailings out of Cape Liberty. Haven't use the port since 2012 and we loved all the changes and flow, both boading & disembarking, clockwork smooth & quick, staterooms ready by 1 PM, although we do "miss" the sit-down lunch - almost everything is a trade-off. Food & meals, good to excellent, above NCL's established baseline as we mostly come to know from dozens & dozens of sailings - missed Cunard's afternoon tea time ... going to spin the dial for Princess, perhaps, out of Brooklyn. From the time we headed from Deck 4 toward the gangway exit, thru the terminal, parking & the short drive home, just 90 minutes if not for the extra pit stop, is good. Car service costs to/from MCT become costly & that's without the Manhattan congestion pricing penalty. Absolutely a joy to not deal with flying except for those one-way TA and repo cruises, and now that we are far more flexible, could definitely see us doing B2B across the Atlantic in the future. Best regards & stay "in touch" here on CC, hopefully, we'll come across each other onboard a future cruise again.

Honestly, plantains that might've left in the deep fryer a bit too long, looked too dark but still fine. French onion soup definitely matched well against Cagney's classic on that other line, complimentary vs. specialty, RC's filled with plenty of cheese over a slice of thick bread & rich broth. Mrs. tested positive this afternoon, now that we are home, not surprised at all, resting - took OTC med - and said, we need another vacation soon (just 3 months to the Odyssey OTS, south to the tropical Caribbean) to sail & sustain ourselves. Should I dig more into (just saw another spam email) from dirty Harry, this "More $$$ to cruise at Sea" tied to our upcoming reservations. Gossips, rumors and headlines over at the other board is mostly negative and more surprises for our inconvenience to boost dissatisfactions, depressing and sad to read & skim thru, let alone add my 2 cents to counter diehard pom poms. DW actually asked, are we still outside final payment windows and free to cancel, to which I affirm.

Ice Show - HD video clip 30 seconds (90 MB size) that we couldn't upload over Voom or GigSky LTE while at sea PXL_20241002_004217942.TS.mp4

Farewell dinner evening dance from the Liberty - PXL_20241004_221435573.TS.mp4 dining teams - HD video 280 MB size

10:05 AM, back in Queens, dropped off brother-in-law, hearing home next. Very smooth disembarkation, called about 8:30 and quick exit via MDR to security by AFT gangway, 2 elevators and 2 down escalators, into luggage hall with bags sorted by number tags, got a porter within 3 minutes, thru CBP via easy facial recognition, off to shuttle area, bus over to get our cars, return to get the other w bags waiting. Loaded up for 45 minutes drive thru Holland Tunnel, Canal Street to WB to BQE for Queens/airport.

Bonus pictures while we wait on Deck 4, exit to gangway, Starbound side

07:57 still hasn't called the Express Self-Walk Off and Priority 08:00 Tags getting called now. Brother & sister-in-law using WC assist disembarkation, go to check & wait by 8. Our number is 21, will be a while.

Good morning, back inside NY harbor ... going to breakfast next 07:00 engine stopped, ship has come to a full stop at Cape Liberty.

😆 LOL maybe we'll flag down the QM2 that just left Brooklyn's Red Hook Pier ... 20 days at sea out of the 5 weeks, conditioning ourselves for longer and/or more cruises on different lines in 2025 ?

Room Service Menu for $7.95 per delivery