nycmode

I booked whatever I can prior to the cruise and made changes as needed via the concierge.

When I was in the haven on the Breakaway and needed to make day-of reservations the Concierge had to deal with the same availability issues as regular folks. (E.g. I wanted 6:30pm for the Teppanyaki restaurant but they only had 6:00pm or 8:30pm)

I was on the Breakaway twice - the last sailing in late March the fireworks was on a Thursdsay night (same night we left Nassau). My friend who took the same cruise 3 weeks later also said the fireworks was on a Thursday night. I believe it was around 9:30pm or something around that time.

On my first sailing - I don't remember which night it was when we left Bermuda but I don't think it was on the same night (I believe it was on the night of the first sea day after you leave Bermuda)

Le Bistro is very good for the price point

Cagney's is decent too

Teppanyaki is great if you want a little fun to go along with the food (I personally like it), it's pricey tho

Ocean blue is very pricey but you get what you pay for

My PCC was always good and called me frequently to update me on deals. That's how I booked the current cruise that we're set to sail in 3 days.

But honestly, whenever I wanted to inquire and didn't get an answer from my PCC quickly enough I'd just call 800 number and it was always handled properly. They either tried to get a hold of that person or sent me to someone who could take care of it.

And boy, won't they be the first to complain when self-service goes out the window due to noro protocols.;)

We stayed in a garden villa in the haven area on the Jem. Our butler Nelson was actually pretty awesome. Took good care of us in terms of giving us fresh fruit and snacks each day and also took care of our special requests such as my mom's paranoid desire to have water in the room at all times.

He also took our breakfast orders in the morning, came in, set the table and served our food as well as took care of the cleanup. He picked us up from the departure lounge area during embarkation but didn't escort us off the ship during disembarkation.

Every time I think of "clean food" on a cruise ship, I think of how annoyed I get when I see people put their dirty hands on stuff in the buffet

I got my room assignment about a month in advance when I called my PCC. I booked a guaranteed balcony in Jan for a March cruise (about to sail in a few days, whoo hoo!). I checked in mid-Feb and they had a cabin assigned already (I was able to move to a higher deck once I knew where I was).

Check and see, never hurts to try

Glad you had fun. As much as I love sailing on new ships, I do have a soft spot for the Jewel. She was a nice ship

Yes/Yes/Yes (OBC)

Personally I enjoyed Burn the Floor the most. Not that I didn't enjoy Rock of Ages but I saw it on Broadway a couple of times already. They still manage to do a great job tho considering it's on a ship. But BtF is great, looking forward to seeing them again.

Make sure you also note when the BtF cast is in the Manhattan Room, so you can get good seats during dinner near the dance floor.

LOL I remember the Gangam Style on repeat. They sang it over and over again when we were docked in Bermuda last year. I wonder what they will sing this year in Nassau ...

Here's our standard packet we bring ourselves (as we don't rely on the ship to have them)

1. Bonine - works well, but make sure you take one about an hour before the ship leaves, then take as needed on the trip. They don't make you drowsy, which is helpful.

2. Ginger tablets - these seem to settle the stomach, which helps eliminate the queasy feeling

3. Sea sickness bracelets - these fit tightly on your wrist. They worked on my mom and wife, who both get sea sick, but I don't know if this works for everyone. On one particular cruise, it was exceptionally rocky and the bonine didn't work for my mom so she tried the bracelets and felt better.

4. Sour candies - these are a remedy that my wife and I use and it's always been useful for us. Not sure if it's because it helps settle our stomach acids or what not, but one time my wife got horribly sick after taking a wild rollercoaster ride. I got her a bag of sour patch kids at the store and she felt better rather quickly. I also tried this once on a cruise and it helped me too. Seems to be the same principle as sour green apples, which might have the same effect on the stomach

2 minutes ago approaching PC at 21.1 knots. Problems may be resolved

 

 

 

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Hopefully! Their ETA was 3pm ET - maybe ahead of sked after all.

I hope we hear from the folks when they reach Port Canaveral later this afternoon about what's been going on

That's good to hear.

I always have my wife take a bonine the first day before we set sail (about an hour beforehand) and it works wonders on her for the subsequent days. She gets pretty car/seasick easily.

Sour candies also do wonders. Not sure why but it works rather well :)

From my recollection you can ask for a shared table with others.

I personally just like showing up and eating whenever I wish so it's nice that NCL makes it easy (though I didn't have trouble with this on Celebrity either). We also prefer to dine alone since we interact with so many people outside of vacation so having a little couples time is always nice for us. To each their own though, of course :p

Last year we stayed in cabin 12778 which was nice - but the one right next to us (12780 i believe, just check the deck plans) had a bigger balcony due to the nature of the ship design. Don't think there is an added cost to that so definitely check it out. 12780 is on the starboard side, while 12180 is on the port side, which also has the expanded balcony

We personally liked staying on deck 12 so much we booked the same deck for our sailing next week (about 20 cabins over but in the same general area).

I originally thought the proximity to splash academy and the elevators/stairs would be noisy but oddly enough it was just fine. Didn't have any noise issues that bothered us and the fact we were so close to the elevators and stairs was actually quite nice. Saved on the hassle of walking down the narrow hallways.

Hi all - we're getting set for our third NCL cruise and wanted to get a sense from people about their spa experiences.

We're about to set sail on the Breakaway (again) and wanted to try out the spa as we didn't have a chance to do it last year.

What are your thoughts overall on the experience ... do they do a nice job and is it worth the money? Are there any specific packages for husband/wife that you recommend? Are there particular days that they tend offer good deals? (I think I remember seeing some deals on some port days) ..

Appreciate any feedback, thank you! ;)

I always get the iced tea - they always have plenty of it at the Manhattan Room, Taste and Savor. I usually get flavored water in the buffet. It's all free :)

I assume you're talking about NCL excursions.

 

If NCL cancel the tour then you will automatically get a refund. I imagine this will be the case for a Disney excursion as the new timings probably wouldn't allow for the excursion to happen.

 

If NCL don't cancel the tour, but you no longer want to take it then you can cancel it yourself, as long as you do it before the deadline (which is either 24 or 48 hours). Given the circumstances, I imagine they would be reasonably lenient if you missed that deadline.

 

Any refunds would be credited to your onboard account I believe.

Yes indeed! And thank you :)

I guess one of the reasons why we book (albeit sometimes begrudgingly) from NCL is that in case something happens we can see if we can get a refund or OBC that can be promptly spent on more liquor :D

Wow I hope this doesn't affect everyone too much, especially us since we're sailing on Sunday! :D

One question - let's say the schedule change affects the excursion timetable in Canaveral - are people entitled to get refunds? For instance we booked a trip to Disney World, but given the abridged timeline would we be able to ask for a refund in the event the same schedule pertains to us next week?

The last time I received a packet in the mail was in 2010 on the Jewel (I was in the suite/haven then). Last year on the Breakaway I had to print everything out myself and same deal this year. No biggie on my end.

One tip - I do use some clear/heavy duty tape when I put my luggage tags on, just to make sure they don't get ripped/lost before the suitcases reach my room. I also put 2 tags on each suit case just to be safe (one on the vertical, one on the horizontal handles)

Sigh St. Maarten is my favorite island too.

Oh well ... I'll just find some other way to get there in the future

I did the rope course when I was on the Breakaway last year and I did see parents with younger kids who were close to that height requirement. I couldn't examine that closely but I did see some kids who seemed to be shorter than 4 feet

Maybe use oil & vinegar?

(I have to admit, initially I did lol at this entire thread) :D