CantWaitToCrz

If you are platinum, how do you book it and with whom?

Thanks

How do you book for the paid one? Is it also the 1st sea day?

OMG! Your husband is a hot mess! I'm laughing so hard that I'm crying! Definitely should not have watched at work... my co-workers are looking at me strange! Can't wait for my cruise in 2 weeks... traveling solo!

Hey TNGirl12, join the roll call if you haven't yet. There is info there for a Meet & Mingle and other activities.

We sailed the beautiful NCL Norwegian Escape during Spring Break 2017 and here's likely the most detailed but "unique" view of everything along the way for a highly immersive, very detailed, comprehensive yet hopefully fun for you GoPro HD Video Log. Here's the link to the video:

Travel with my slightly warped family and completely warped DH as we explore almost all ship activities, amenities and interactive visits to the ports of St. Thomas USVI, Tortola and Virgin Gorda, BVI (Including the Baths) and Nassau, Bahamas. The parking lots at the Port Miami were almost completely full when we arrived so we got to pay $20 a day to park at the farthest reaches of the terminal area. Be sure to watch until the end of the video for added bonus footage of the ship and activities as you join my DH on his long walk back to the car! Enjoy! Check out his other cruise videos from years past, including our recent new year's sailing recorded during a brief period where he was out of work and we made it 7 days without spending a dime!

https://www.youtube.com/user/FFlyDDrum1

How early did you need to get to Spice H2O to get a seat? Maybe I'll get my DH a go pro to entertain him while I sit in the sun all week.

Does any one know if there is a map of the Escape? I would like to plan our stay and I am directionally challenged. :rolleyes:

You can study the deck plans on the ncl site. I don't know if there are printable maps.

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/escape/deck-plans

On our past cruises we always enjoyed getting orange juice delivered from the Continental Breakfast Service and then adding some sparkling wine to make some mimosas. Always a nice way to start the day out on the balcony.

 

Even better now that they include a "Bottle Of Sparkling Wine" for all Latitude Reward levels. :D

 

Great idea! Thanks for sharing.

Do you choose a half hour slot for breakfast delivery? Are they usually on time?

We also love having the continental breakfast delivered to our room. In our experience, they are always early. I get tea, the water comes in a carafe and my husband gets coffee in a carafe. I don't think they ever deliver just cups of coffee. For picky tea drinkers, yes the water often tastes of coffee.

Hello, I'm fairly new to the boards and very new to NCL!

 

I just booked the 9 night Scandinavia/Russia Cruise August 2018 for myself, husband and daughter who will be 15. We are avid DCL cruisers, and did our first RCCL cruise January 2016 out of Dubai. I had a deposit down on the 7 night DCL cruise with same ports (minus berlin), but we are Canadian and found the NCL pricing to be better in Canadian funds without the exchange rate.

 

I booked a B6 large balcony, room 9722. Also could choose two of the offers so took the free specialty dining and the drink package. Any words of advice/wisdom on this particular room and about the Breakaway? Look forward to hearing all about it!

We were in 9728 a few years ago. I loved the large balcony. It was partly covered, if we wanted shade. We had a lounger to enjoy the open sunny section. My DH & I enjoyed the Breakaway as our favorite ship thus far. We felt like there was so many options for entertainment at night that we couldn't do it all. Howl at the Moon was our favorite. Have a great trip!

Great review - I'm in! Missing the Escape :-(. Loved the 13th floor - so convenient!

I'm glad to hear people liking the 13th floor. It's the highest level we've stayed on.

We have just booked our first cruise on NCL. We have done 7 CCL and 3 RCL previoulsy. We are booked on the Breakaway out of NY to Bermuda. Tell me what you like with NCL, tips, things not to miss, anything you can think of that would be helpful to a NCL newbie. Also, I've heard there are no formal nights on NCL. What is the dress code like?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

In no particular order:

- No set dinner time and table every night.

- Casual attire (search this forum or the NCL.com for the dress code) I like sundresses or capri's for dinner attire, but my DH likes jeans or khakis.

- The balcony cabin (oh, that's not NCL specific).

- take advantage of the continental breakfast delivery, instead of rushing to the crowded buffet before you're ready.

- sun decks all over the place, you don't HAVE to sit in the crowded pool area.

-Spice H20 adult area, the waterfront and Howl at the Moon (dueling pianos).

- Tips charged as one price instead of having to distribute to each server.

- What's not to like, you're on vacation!

We loved the BA. It was the roughest trip we ever had coming back into NYC, but it wouldn't stop us from going on her again.

I've read a lot about the Meet & Greets and how nice it is that the officers often make an appearance. Does anyone have suggestions for questions to ask them, or conversation starters? The only M&G I went to, they stayed for a few minutes, but no one really got them talking.

I appreciate your review and the way you didn't focus on the weather or let it bring your whole week down. I hope for awesome weather during our trip next month, but your week reminds me that I better have other things to do than lay in the sun.

Thanks everyone!

A friend claims that another friend is booked on an NCL ship out of Boston next weekend (March 18 or 19) with a stop to get more passengers in NYC. I don't see anything on NCL with Boston departures and it seems odd to have two departure ports. Does anyone know anything about this? My friend was wondering what ship it might be.

Sort of strange question; bear with me...

 

Since telling people we were going on a Norwegian Cruise I've had 2 different people tell me that if new (and better) promos come up I can call and have them added to my reservation as long as my cruise hasn't been paid in full.

 

This seemed like a neat idea but when I called and talked to a CS rep (who seemed very unsure of herself) I was told that unless I called and cancelled my prior reservation and made a new one this wasn't a possibility.

 

I don't want to miss out on some great deals BUT I also don't want to call and wait only to get the same information.

 

Anyone ever heard this? This is my first cruise as an adult (last one was in 1993 as a teen) and I want to make sure I'm getting accurate info.

 

Thanks [emoji3]

Jen

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

This is the process that I've done in the past to get a better deal. I usually start a reservation on the website to price everything out and to see what cabins are available.

You should watch the dates for final payment, after that you can't get the refund and therefore can't make changes.

:cool:

 

Hi! We also agree with Aristocat Charter in Tortola. We sailed with them in September and absolutely had the BEST time. In fact we are on your 3/18 sailing and should be on your Aristocat Charter in Tortola--Lionheart, right?

Thanks to everyone who recommended Aristocat Charters. I just booked them for a Norman Island & Indian trip. It looks awesome!

I am a meticulous planner with spreadsheets and packing lists for every bag. I am usually packed months in advance and often repack just to make sure I am not missing anything. For my first cruise with my girlfriend (now wife), I provided her with a spreadsheet of suggested packing items so she didn't forget anything. She laughed at me and proceeded to poke fun at my organization over Christmas at her families. Fast forward to our port day in St Thomas where we had a hike planned in St. John. Guess who forgot to pack anything but flip flops and slippers, my girlfriend. We didn't have any time to try to buy shoes before our boat to St. John, so she agreed to give it a try in flip flops! I giver her credit and knew I had to marry her when she went on the hike in flip flops and tore her feet up all day without complaining. She didn't mind my first aid kit checklist that included moleskins, which she had to use the rest of cruse to cover all the blisters and cuts!!

This is me too! I go over the spreadsheets so many times to be sure I don't forget anything. I love the ideas we get here on CC. Some of the most useful are: The clip magnets for the walls to hold some of our tickets and plans. A folder of some sort to hold the dailies and papers I want to save after we've finished with them. And post-its for leaving notes on the door to tell our friends where we are etc. A highlighter to mark up the dailies with what we want to remember to do. My favorite odd thing to pack is a removable decal that we put on our balcony glass wall so we can see our balcony from shore. It makes it very easy in photos to see where we stayed.

After reading all of the posts of forgotten underwear, I think I'm packing some in each bag this year!

Doug, the late night entertainment is ok at DBH. I was hoping for a more lively crowd but it's not bad.

 

InSpice We tipped Fernando $5 2 times on Sunday and did the same yesterday.

 

The food La Cucina last night was 5 out of 10. Service was 8 out of 10.

 

Going to Coki beach today in St. Thomas.

Thank you!

Thanks for sharing while on vacation! I keep seeing how people are getting good bar service by tipping early. Do you mind saying how much you tipped? I'm hoping to park myself in Spice and having drinks delivered would be really nice.

:cool:

 

Hi! We also agree with Aristocat Charter in Tortola. We sailed with them in September and absolutely had the BEST time. In fact we are on your 3/18 sailing and should be on your Aristocat Charter in Tortola--Lionheart, right?

Is the Aristocat Charter the Norman Island Snorkel NCL excursion or did you book directly through Aristocat?

Can you get multiple copies of the same photo as part of the package? It could be a good opportunity to get nice photos to share with family.

We did the card trick on the Breakaway a few years ago to keep our things charging when out of the room. I was wondering if it was needed on the Escape since that slot seems to turn on a "we're at home" light outside your door. (I saw it on a review). What if you want the room cleaned (or whatever the other lights were.) Also, do you know if the USB plugs are turned off when not in the room?

Just one is too hard....

- After a brief shower scared all of the other sun bathers away in Spice H20, we moved to the hot tub. The awesome server kept bringing the drinks over. The shower only lasted a little while and we had the whole place to ourselves.

- Breakfast every morning delivered to our balcony.

- On one of the first nights on the Breakaway we were enjoying the Howl at The Moon performances. The piano guys were great, there were various people that would sit in on the drums with them. Someone requested a song (Journey I think) and the piano guy talked to this guy playing the drums, the guy agrees to sing it. We were floored by how awesome this guy was, it turned out to be the lead in the Rock of Ages show. The camaraderie of the performers was great.

You should be able to ask your steward for the loungers if they aren't there. I don't recall if there is room for two lounges and a table. But you can decide when you get there.

We loved our large balcony cabin on Breakaway! (9728) It definitely helped make our cruise. We were able to "escape" the crowds there. Plenty of room for 3 of us. (Have no pictures - sorry) If I were ever to cruise again on Breakaway or Getaway, that is the cabin type I would book. Only one thing bad about that balcony: We were in a port, I was standing on the balcony watching people debark into that port, and all of a sudden I got totally drenched! It seems that they were washing balcony windows decks above us, and we hadn't received any notification! Since the large balcony cabins start a stadium type formation, the water came straight down the side of the ship and got me! DH and DD thought it was the funniest thing ever. The window washer above us was very apologetic! Guest Services offered to wash and dry my clothing, and they sent us a bottle of wine to apologize. Just be aware so it doesn't happen to you!:D

Oh that is funny and unfortunate. But worth the bottle of wine. This is our cabin on our next cruise, I'm so glad to hear that you loved it. Thanks for sharing.

Sorry, forgot to ask...does anyone know anything about the behind the scenes tour? Cost? How it was? Etc?

Does anyone have this information? Or a link to the freestyle daily with it in it?