DinaS

14 minutes ago, trish1c said:

Yes there is a max # (it's a pretty high # like 11 or something)  but they can & will cut you off if you are obviously & visibly intoxicated.  It's a generous standard.  I have seen many passengers who should have been cut off earlier.  😱

No, there is no maximum number of drinks allowed on NCL. 

They will, however, cut you off if you are visibly intoxicated.

10 minutes ago, Dixxon said:

Shot me a text or email to discuss

 

dixxon2222@yahoo.com

Two simple questions.  No need for private conversations until I find out the cost and expiration date.  

If you want to sell a legitimate CruiseNext certificate, ANYONE will need that information.

3 minutes ago, Pitzel said:

In reality, your $100 OBC went to offset the $250 cost of the certificate. So, you essentially paid $150 for the CruiseNext certificate plus your $15 pp/pd service charge. If you look at the final amount that you paid, the totals should add up.

I didn't realize they just offset the CruiseNext cost with the OBC. 

Of course the total amount was exactly the same, whether they use it to offset the cost of the certificate, or applied it to my service charges.

Thanks!

6 minutes ago, Dixxon said:

I also have 1 $250 cruse next certificate I’m looking to sell.

 

please text me 631-356-5071

How much do you want for it, and when does it expire?

On 2/19/2019 at 8:25 AM, dcipjr said:

We're in 11510 in the Gem in less than three weeks.

 

It looks like it's under the Spa steam rooms so hopefully it won't be too noisy. We've never had a minisuite before—we've cruised in an inside, oceanview, balcony, aft balcony, and a suite, but never a minisuite. We booked it this time because we're cruising with a toddler—so the extra space (for a pack-and-play) and the tub will come in handy. 

 

I can report back afterwards, provided our bid to upgrade to a 2BR suite doesn't pan out. 🙂

Hi - I didn't see that you ever reported back (sorry if I missed it).   We have 11510 booked for a 12 day Caribbean cruise for next year, and were wondering about the noise.  That was the only minisuite available that we would consider because it looks like it is under the steam rooms.  We did one a couple of years ago under the pool area, and vowed never again after all the chair-dragging very early morning.

Any word on noise?  

Thanks so much!

On 11/23/2019 at 3:38 PM, Pitzel said:

NCL has two types of onboard credit — refundable and non-refundable. Most credit that is given to you by NCL is non-refundable. Any credit that you purchase and some of the credit that is given to you as a perk from a travel agent is refundable credit. 
 

Refundable credit can be used for the daily service charges. Non-refundable

credit cannot be used for the DSC. 
 

As the names imply, any refundable credit left over on your account will be mailed to you as a check several weeks after the cruise. Non-refundable credit is “use it or

loose it”. 

 

I just double-checked my invoice from my Escape cruise last month.  I purchased a $250 CruiseNext certificate, and according to NCL, the $100 OBC credit is non-refundable OBC.  (I just checked online on NCL - and this is what it says:  1. When you purchase a CruiseNext Deposit (CND), your shipboard account will be charged in USD and you will receive an instant shipboard credit (listed on your final bill as Non-Refundable Onboard Credit) towards your current cruise.)

They did use the $100 non-refundable OBC towards the $15 per day service charge.  Is this an exception?  I would never purchase a CruiseNext certificate if the OBC doesn't pay for the service charges.  It's rare that I buy anything else while on board, so the only major outstanding amounts are the daily service charges..

16 minutes ago, jancl57 said:

We did, thanks.  It was $600 total to upgrade to a balcony.  Twice what our bid is.

Good luck!   😉

16 hours ago, jancl57 said:

Just received my offer to bid on an upgrade email.  We are sailing on the Pearl Feb 22-27.  We are booked in an interior.  The min bid for an OV was $25 pp, we bid $50.  The min bid for a balcony was $75.  We bid $150.  Have never bid before.  Hoping for the best but not counting on it!

Did you check the website to find out how much it would be to upgrade directly?

If you are using the specialty dining package just for lobster, save your money.  

We had lobster at Bayamo last month on the Escape - it was not as good as what we get from our local supermarket.

The reason we use the specialty dining package is for the upscale meals at places like Le Bistro - where their rack of lamb is some of the best we have ever had.   Most appetizers, entrees and desserts at Le Bistro are about as good as any  good French restaurant on land in the NY/NJ area.   We have enjoyed every meal at Le Bistro - on both the Gem and the Escape.  We eat there multiple times during our cruise.  We have had bad meals at both Cagney's and Bayamo, and will not go back there.  

57 minutes ago, bostonfred said:

I have been charged for ice water in specialty restaurants using the drink package...it was a couple of years ago on Star...can’t remember on Dawn last year..we pushed back a little, but servers said it was policy and they seemed embarrassed...we did not push issue

We always get water (tap water) with ice in restaurants - both free and specialty - and have never been charged.  No drink package is necessary for tap water with ice.

Perhaps a misunderstanding occurred and they thought you asked for bottled or other non-tap water.

2 hours ago, Gypsygirl100% said:

Whenever I have requested pitchers of ice water for my cabin from my stewards, they told me to call room service. Room service then told me (on several NCL ships), that it would be a $7.95 charge for each pitcher. I even talked to a room service manager, and they said the same thing. I do not sail in a suite. I gave up the fight and get a glass of ice water to take back with me to the cabin at night.

You can get an ice bucket, filled with ice, in a regular cabin by request from your cabin steward.   We have done that in regular cabins on every cruise we have been on, including the Escape last  month.  

Melting ice = ice water.

1 hour ago, Crusue said:

Wow!  This is way too confusing for a "Free Drink Package"  loopholes everywhere!

Why not sail on Crystal or Silversea.....free  means FREE.  No surcharges, fees, taxes or other  hidden charges.

LOL

Considering the price of a Crystal or Silversea cruise, you are paying through the nose for their "free" drink package.

2 hours ago, Gypsygirl100% said:

I have requested a pitcher of ice water for my cabin on several NCL ships and was told by room service and manager that I would be charged $7.95 for it. However, since then I have simply taken a glass of ice water from the closest bar to my room.

A pitcher of ice water comes from room service, hence the $7.95 charge.

An ice bucket, filled with ice, comes from your cabin steward - for free upon request.

We had a freshly filled ice bucket every day (twice a day) on all cruises to date - including last month on the Escape. 

Melting ice = ice water.

We brought a refillable (insulated) bottle, and it was perfect.

On 10/27/2019 at 8:12 PM, valleyvillage said:

I think this is the problem (https://www.cruisecritic.com/reviews/review.cfm?ShipID=481)

 

Not included with your cruise fare:

•  Gratuities ($14.99 per person, per day or $17.99 per person, per day for those staying in suites)
•  Automatic beverage and spa tips (20 percent for both)
•  Ice water, tea (including iced tea), coffee and select juices in the buffet
•  Cirque Dreams dinner shows
•  Spa treatments and most fitness classes
•  Shore excursions
•  Wi-Fi
•  Late night (after 10:30 p.m.) group babysitting
•  Activities including, but not limited to, wine and whiskey tastings, bowling at O'Sheehan's, arcade games and bingo
•  Photos and artwork

That's also wrong for the service charge amount - albeit not by much.

From NCL's website:

• • $18 USD per person per day for The Haven, Concierge and Suites
  • $15 USD per person per day for all other stateroom types

On 11/15/2019 at 10:12 PM, waterjock said:

I ate in Ocean Blue on Escape the seafood was outstanding. You are limited to one selection each of 3 courses and any 2 sides.The jumbo scrimp app and the mixed seafood where the the best i have ever had.

We were told by the hostess on the Escape last month, and again by the waitress that we could not order two apps, but the NCL website clearly states that the only LIMITED item is the entrée.  

We decided to go ahead and order three apps total for two people, and were NOT charged extra. 

The folks on the ship are either trying to cut costs, or they have no idea what the actual NCL website says.

(As it turned out, we should have ordered more apps - they were the best part of the meal.  Entrees and desserts were mediocre - and that's being generous.  I don't know how they could ruin lobster, but they did.)

None on the bigger ships, but we had them on the Gem on some sea days on every previous cruise.  They bring out big grills and do something a little different than standard burgers and hot dogs, which are always available on the pool deck.

3 minutes ago, mitsugirly said:

 

 

I went back and did a "mock" booking and I only see an option for sailaway. How do you find the GTY then? I guess I have never noticed any difference before or thought they were the same thing. 

You have to keep going with the mock booking.  If you try selecting a regular category with limited inventory, it will not give you a choice of cabin numbers, and will come up with "GTY".

We did that with a BD Balcony and ended up getting upgraded to an MA Mini-suite.  We had to beg our TA (NCL) to downgrade us back to an MC category, since the MA was right under the pool deck.  They don't normally do that, but thankfully ours did.  I believe that is one of the benefits of booking with an NCL TA.

1 hour ago, prbffd28 said:

You basically said exactly what I was thinking I would get for responses due to it being a pretty "common sense" post so I do appreciate it. I guess my thought by posting the questions was due to my wondering if bidding on a spa balcony or lower end Haven would be worth it. I suppose I probably should have worded my OP better!! Thanks again, pretty new to CC postings as you can tell!!

When we got our upgrade email for our last cruise, we bid really low offers on one category - only after checking out all the possible locations for any of those cabins.  

For example, we did NOT bid on a spa mini suite, because they are mainly under the pool deck.  We also didn't bid on any Haven forward 1 bedrooms cabins, because they all have smaller balconies (and we really enjoy our balcony).

We did bid low-ball on the Haven Courtyard penthouse, but didn't get it.  But we made sure we would be happy with any of those cabins in any location they would be.

13 minutes ago, prbffd28 said:

We just recieved the upgrade email yesterday, 90 days out, for the Encore sailing. We're already in a midship balcony on deck 10 so I'm interested to ask for opinions on if to bid at all and if so which option to try it on, not wanting to spend a crazy amount on top of my already somewhat pricey cruise. Thanks in advance!

No one can tell you what you should bid on, or even how much you should bid.  If you are happy with the cabin you have (type and location), stay there.  If you want to spend some money, and gamble on a cabin in an unknown location, then figure out how much you are comfortable paying, and try it.

The worst that can happen is your bid is not accepted, or it is accepted, and you don't like the location of your new, more expensive cabin 🙂

Ship - Escape

Deck - 10

Stateroom # - 10794

Stateroom Category – MC

Starboard or Port Side - starboard side

Quiet Stateroom?  Yes

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom?  Yes, but didn't use it and barely noticed the extra door.

Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue.  No obstructions, but looking down, you see the overhang from the Waterfront on Deck 8.  Not really an issue, but you can't look straight down to see water.

Balcony Size?  Normal size for mini-suite.

Was wind a problem?  No

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem?  N/A

Any specific problems with this cabin?  No problems, other than occasionally the toilet wouldn't flush.  Cabin steward said that it needed to build pressure.  Not sure if that was accurate, but it wasn't a real issue.

Any other comments?   Good location - close enough to the elevators for convenience, but far enough away to avoid noise 🙂  

Delete - sorry.

On 10/29/2019 at 5:43 AM, Beer Belly said:

I agree with the towel issue....PITA. I thought you can get Towel Animals upon request ?

You can get towel animals on request, as well as an ice bucket.  

This review will be written in several parts, so I will be posting as I have time.

This was our first experience on one of the big ships.  We were really hesitant about booking a big ship, because we enjoy our own idea of "freestyle" cruising - and not having to make reservations in advance.  Normally we stick with the Gem size ships, but this was our only option to Bermuda during this time period from NY.

Embarkation wasn't as bad as we had heard it could be.  We arrived shortly before 11:00AM, and were on board around 12:40PM.  Lines weren't crazy, and we were group 13 to board.

We knew we had to make restaurant reservations when we boarded, because while we had reservations, they were at really bad times, and our NCL rep could only make reservations for a party of 4 (we were only 2).  We were able to change our three reservations to slightly better dinner times.  (We received reservation receipts for each reservation made/changed on-board, and they came in handy because Bayamo didn't show on our vacation summary, and they told us they had no record of our reservation - even though we had our reservation receipt in-hand.)

We already had show reservations - and that was good because both Choir or Man and After Midnight were completely sold out.  It turned out, however, that there were standby lines for just about every show, and we were able to get in standby for a couple of events in the smaller venues.

After we dealt with our dinner reservations, we decided to have lunch in Savor.   Food was good, service was excellent, and we had a leisurely lunch.  When we were done, cabins were still not ready.  It was raining, and so we remembered about the covered area with comfy chairs and sofas on the Waterfront - so that's where we went.  Within a few minutes, the announcement was made that cabins were ready.  We waited a bit for the rush to slow down, and headed up to our cabin.  It was nice - and just as expected.  Bathroom was the biggest we have ever encountered in any balcony cabin or mini-suite.   It's just too bad that the "mini-suite" is not a suite in any form - just a balcony cabin with a fancier bathroom.  I don't know why they can't put a dividing curtain/drape between the living and sleeping area like they have on the Gem.  That would make it more of a mini-suite.  On the Gem, there is a heavy curtain that makes each area private for sleeping or watching TV, or whatever else you might want to do.

We found our cabin steward, Dominick, and asked for a few things - extra bath towels, ice twice a day, and an extra blanket for sitting out on the balcony.  All were there when we got back to the cabin that evening.  He remembered everything each day - except we never saw him the last night - he never even came to change towels.  No big deal, but strange since we were looking for him to give him an extra tip.  We did get to see him the morning we left, and gave it to him then.  We also filled out a "Vacation hero" card, since he was really good.

We did dinner at O'Sheehan's the first night because it was Prime Rib night.  My partner loves Prime Rib, and we didn't want to do the buffet.  He really enjoyed his Prime rib.  My Shepherd's pie was pretty good. Food was hot and fresh, and it was a nice way to start our cruise. 

We enjoy wine with lunch and dinner, and there were decent wines included in the beverage package.  

Bars were sometimes crowded, but wait times for a drink were not unreasonable.  After a day or so, it was easy to find a bar that wasn't so crowded.  It was also easy to figure out where to go for the type of drink you wanted.  For example, I got my best mudslide at the Atrium bar, and my best margarita (the Perfect margarita - frozen) at Margaritaville.  Other things were hit or miss.  For example, my partner enjoys bloody marys in the morning, and some places didn't even have celery for his drink.  (To me, a bloody mary is worthless without celery...LOL)

We also found that the bar just outside the Vibe area is not crowded and makes great drinks.  There are also some comfy chairs up there near the hot tub, so we hung out there a couple of times.  Its a quiet area, and was indeed quiet for the most part.  

2 hours ago, salty dingo said:

Sure, you can bring food into there. The main draw is easy access to drinks, as there is a private bar right there, but they may not serve you much more than skewered fruit and whatever veggies they lob into your drink.

I think you are confusing Spice H2O with Vibe.

It is highly unlikely that the price will go down - it's already really low for a balcony.  There is more of a likelihood it will go up as less and less cabins become available.

I would just book wherever you get the best deal, or the most OBC.