azappraiser

4 minutes ago, Anoynmous Phoenix said:

@azappraiser

 

It becomes real when I have paid the full fare.

 

It becomes really real when i am walking across the land bridge on to the actual ship!!!

 

VBG

We're sitting on the balance ourselves until it's due, so in my eyes, its already paid for... except for actually handing the $$ over.

Agree with the land bridge.

We hadn't been on a cruise since we sailed the POA in 2014, so last summer (2023), we decided to lay down a deposit for an Alaskan cruise in May 2025.  We had sailed the same itinerary on the Pearl in 2011.

At the time, most of our friends thought we were nuts for booking that far in advance.  But we wanted a particular cabin, of which there are only six, so we booked 22 months in advance.  We had sailed the same itinerary

But today, 235 days out, I was able to book our airfare... today, the cruise has become more of a reality.

While I was at it, I booked shuttles for SEATAC to our hotel, hotel to the pier, and the pier back to SEATAC.  I also prepaid our gratuities & upgraded to FAS+.

We're also flying in 2-days before embarkation, giving ourselves a day to kill. So, for DW, I found & booked a Bainbridge Island Winery Tour.  They'll pick us up in the morning, ferry over to Bainbridge Island, visit some wineries & enjoy some tastings.

My cruise became real today, Sept 25th, 2024, at 235 days to departure.  When does yours become real?

On 8/4/2024 at 2:43 PM, Calicoskies1234 said:

 

 

Thanks for your report.  DW & I will have a similar view from Deck 12 next May, except we'll be on the starboard corner... can't wait.

1 hour ago, erisajd said:

Hello all, my wife and I just booked the 15 night LA - Miami Panama Canal transit cruise for Feb 2025 on the Joy and booked cabin 13958, the aft corner suite. . . . 

 

Some questions:

After looking here it seems that Cabin 13958 on the Joy is a Config A rear cabin with the door to from the bedroom to the rear balcony - and not the one from the bath room shower outside.  Yet, it is noted as a HC cabin on our reservation and I thought the aft suites in HC have the shower window???  

 

Is this a 'zebra' cabin on the ship?  Harr Travel's videos show the HB cabins as having the bedroom balcony access and the HC cabins as having the shower window to the balcony . . .  whereas the aft cabin thread on Cruise Critic details that 13958 has the bedroom doorway. 

 

Can anyone help us out with this issue?  We're just curious - either one is fine - but I'd rather have the light into the bedroom - after the porthole window on in the forward facing cabin on bliss it will be nice to have some more light in the bedroom . . .

 

TIA - Joe [and Lynn] 

Category H6 aft suites on decks 11 and 14 have large window in bathroom overlooking aft balcony. Category H6 aft suites on decks 9, 10, 12, 13 and 15 have bedroom overlooking aft balcony.

24 minutes ago, schmoopie17 said:

I find it ironic that you Docked at Ward Cove and you flew on a Beaver plane. I guess there wasn't any way to work in June and Wally, or you'd have the whole Cleaver family.

It would be even more ironic if the two kids are named June & Wally.

I prebooked a $49 excursion (Mt. Roberts Tram in Juneau) for our May 2025 sailing just to see what would happen; I received an amenity confirmation right away and the excursion shows up on our Vacation Summary, along with the $100 stockholder OBC.

I'm going to assume that the Guest #2 bonus will be applied the same way, once we upgrade to FAS+.

Aft Balcony... IMHO the only way to go

21 hours ago, jjesq99 said:

 

I posted the Dailies from the 6/30-7/7 here...

 

 

Yes you did.  But you're quoting a post from Wed the 17th and you posted them on the 19th.

41 minutes ago, yakcruiser said:

I will be on the Jade. Should be interesting.

Interesting on arrival, yes.  You'll have a few hours in Ketchikan with 4000 fewer people as the Bliss departs at 1:15pm... the Jade doesn't leave until 4:00pm.  Shuttles should be much less crowded.

4 hours ago, shof515 said:

Next year in May 2025, both the Encore and Joy is scheduled to dock at Ward Cove on the same day. Encore is 7am to 1pm  and the Joy is 7am to like 5pm.

 

how does ward cove handle two breakaway plus ships, can the shuttle bus cope with two big ships at the same time?

 

 On Thur Apr 24th, the Bliss & Jade are both scheduled to arrive at 6:00am, and on Fri the 25th, the Encore & Joy both arrive at 7:00am.

On Fri May 9th, the Encore is scheduled at 7:00am, with the Joy scheduled at 8:00am

On Fri the 23rd, both the Encore & Joy are scheduled to arrive at 7:00.

Here's the complete schedule: https://www.cruisetimetables.com/ketchikan-alaska-cruise-ship-schedule-2025.html

Thank you for taking the time to post... much appreciated.

On 7/18/2024 at 5:04 AM, Maleficent's Dad said:

For those saying NCL doesn’t promise to wait for you, their website says differently for shore excursions:

 And to quote the first few paragraphs of the Terms & Conditions:

"The transportation of passengers and baggage is governed by the terms and conditions of the Guest Ticket Contract contained in the Passenger Cruise Ticket. Your acceptance of the Guest Ticket Contract and acceptance of passage on the vessel constitute acceptance of the terms, conditions and information contained in this brochure and the Guest Ticket Contract. The Guest Ticket Contract contains information that affects your legal rights, and we recommend you read the terms carefully.

Norwegian Cruise Line also recommends that all guests review the Additional Terms and Conditions listed below.

Norwegian Cruise Line is not responsible or liable for typographical errors, omissions or misprints. Norwegian Cruise Line further reserves the right to correct or amend the brochure or website. This web page may be withdrawn by Norwegian Cruise Line at any time, in its sole discretion, without notice to any party."

On the Encore next May... looking forward to your "Live" review plus Dailies! 

Based on your plan, it looks like you'll have a great time... enjoy.

29 minutes ago, jjesq99 said:

 

 

I brought home all seven days...:)

 

I am going to review the cruise tonight/tomorrow and post some pics.  I'll have them up there 🙂

Thank you very much; looking forward your post.  Hope you had a great time!

1 hour ago, The Traveling Man said:

The thread which currently appears just above yours on this forum was posted by @jjesq99 who stated that he or she was booked on the Encore for the first week of July.  You might try asking them or checking the CC roll calls for recent sailings of the Encore.

Someone already asked them in the thread, they replied "they didn't keep them".

1 minute ago, ColeThornton said:

 

 

You can ask for the rice to be just cooked plain and they will accommodate.

While that is certainly an option, we choose to use our specialty dining credits elsewhere.

We'd always been fans of "teppanyaki" style restaurants, so, we were excited to see one on the Pearl when we sailed NCL for the first time in 2011.  We were not prepared for the Fried Garlic with rice.  I would guess the ratio was close to 50/50.  Totally unpalatable, hardly anyone ate it.  The rest of the meal was top notch, so we chalked it up as an anomaly.

We then sailed on the Gem, and decided to give Teppanyaki another try... same deal as before with the fried rice, although this time, there was far more garlic than rice.  We passed on the rice, as did nearly everyone at the table, once again.

We still eat at land-based Teppanyaki restaurants, but no more on a cruise.  

Repost: Looking for anyone recently off the Encore to post the Freestyle Dailys from your trip... please?

Asking anyone recently back from Alaska on the Encore, if you were to post copies of the Freestyle Dailys, I sure other CCers will join me in saying Thank You.  Anyone...please?  Fingers crossed.

9 hours ago, JohnBosw said:

Hey all, I'm on board the Encore now 6/23-30 in the Haven and can confirm what others have recently said on the Joy etc, no limits on ordering lobster. The servers confirmed that the extra fee per lobster was a very short lived rule that backfired.  I think I am up to 10 extra tails and counting .. cheers! 

Would love to see copies of the Freestyle Daily when you return & to hear what you thought about the ship & itinerary.  We're in an Aft Haven PH next May, can't wait.

20 hours ago, floatplan said:

 

There's now a great 11 minute video on YT if you search for "NCL Joy Premier Owners Suite" 

 

There are some others on the Joy Refurbishment...

 

 

Just watched the video... points out all the outlets

2 hours ago, 9tee2Sea said:

If you want a quirky tour of Seattle, do the Underground Tour.  Buy tickets in Pioneer Square.  It takes you underground, to the original streets of Seattle.  The guide will talk about the history of why they abandoned the ground floors, and rebuilt above.  You will see soon of the original store fronts.  I believe hey also take you into one of the oldest restaurants in Seattle.  It's about 90 min long tour, not wheelchair accessible.  You can take the Light Rail from Pioneer Square directly to SeaTac ( about 30 min ride).  Nice Seattle skyline views on the way out.

I echo this recommendation, we did the tour in 2011 pre-cruise.  We also did the city pass and checked out the aquarium, as well as the harbor cruise, which was also very cool.

This time around, we're looking into an all-day winery tour.  There are several available if you look.

FAS+ (Free At Sea Plus) is an upgrade, which adds $50 Shorex Credit to 2nd Guest, in addition to Premium Beverages, Water, Starbucks, as well as extra Specialty Dinners & Unlimited WiFi without Streaming.

As your PCC for an updated Booking Confirmation.

21 hours ago, ccqueenanne said:

$79 for the Street Car tour seems really expensive, unless you have no other opportunity for spending a credit, or if walking isn't easy for you. The downtown area is very easily walked, and there are buses that go out further for about $5. You might enjoy taking the bus out and exploring the gold rush cemetery and walk to the falls.

First of all, I did find the Street Car excursion after a little digging around on NCL's site.  And if we didn't have a $50 PP Shorex Credit (FAS Prem+), I would agree that $79 might be a bit pricey; but for $29 plus tax, I don't think that's too out of line.

We're also going to the White Pass RR up & back, and I may even be able to squeeze in a hike to the old cemetery & waterfall.

58 minutes ago, Luv2cruz1000 said:

My two cents, rent a car for the price of 2 for the train. You can stop at the suspension bridge and Caribou Crossing to see if you want to do the dog sled. 

That's a great idea as well, however, I'm on vacation and would prefer to be taken or driven everywhere, when not on foot, by someone else as I would like to see the sights, not just when we stop... call it my three cents 🙂