rmurray847

ENTERTAINMENT

There is a lot available, and my wife and I are pretty avid consumers.  We're very much dinner & a show types...but that's a little more sporadic on a trip like this when one day you're in Juneau until 10:30 pm and another you're in Victoria from 7:30 to midnight (and 7:30 ended up being changed to 8:30...more on THIS later, too).  So we didn't make it to every comedy show, and the theater schedule was a little spotty too.

In the main theater (which is a terrible, too small, uninspired space compared to the lovely theaters on NCL's smaller ships), we very much enjoyed the dance-heavy HAVANA.  The original songs were only so-so, and there isn't really a plot...it's all about dance and setting a sultry, slightly risque mood.  We also really enjoyed JERSEY BOYS.  The cast was quite good, and this show (which we've seen in other venues) zips along briskly.  No intermission...so be sure to visit the restroom ahead of time!  It's about 100 minutes long.  We also saw a couple of Beatles shows.  The first night on the ship, the on-board Beatles impersonators presented a concert of early era Beatles songs, and then at 6:30 pm on the last day (before we arrived in Victoria), there was another show, which covered all Beatles eras.  Other than that, the main theater didn't have any shows.  They did show movies on occasion, which we did not attend.

The comedy club (The Social) was a nice venue and even though we got onboard too late to make advance reservations via the clumsy, slow screens available near the elevators, we never had any problem getting in on standby and getting good seats.  Both comedians were funny.  Each had a clean & adult show.  The "host" (Jason, I think was his name) was not terribly funny...but the two main guys were.  We saw the clean show from one guy and the adult show from the other.  Normally, we would have seen all, but scheduling just didn't work.

The Cavern Club, while hosting other events like karaoke, was mostly home for smaller shows from the Beatles group.  For those, the place really does get crowded.  For the "early years" show, we arrived about 45 minutes beforehand, and were among the first 10 or so to get in.  Later on the cruise, we only made it about 30 minutes early for the "Abbey Road years" show, and it was already pretty crowded.  We got seats, but barely.  So my advice...arrive about 40-45 minutes early.  By 10 minutes before the show, it was standing room only, and people were coming in the doors and then turning around and leaving.  It's a VERY fun show if you like the music (we do!) and lots of singing along.  The guys sounded pretty darn good, and while the resemblance to the actual Fab Four was quite superficial...it didn't really matter. The music, played well, carried the night.  It's absolutely worth going.  The shows in the main theater are fun...but you really get to sing along and join in quite enthusiastically in the Cavern Club.

The Atrium, as on the Breakway, is miserable.  This is where all the game shows and such are held...seemingly all day long endlessly.  The space is simply TOO SMALL.  For any of the popular shows like the Newlywed Game, it is insane.  75% of the crowd has to stand.  It's loud.  For dance lessons, the stage is too small.  For trivia, the place is overkill.  We were actively turned off from attending things here, and did very few activities there that in other venues, we would have enjoyed.  Other ships we've been on, both smaller and larger, have better venues that the central area right next to guest services.  Just horrible design and they need to STOP.  I actually would think twice about sailing another Away-class ship in colder weather because of how not-fun this space is.  Sounds petty, yes?  Well, maybe it is...but unless you've experienced this particular chaos, don't judge.  I've not heard too much in the way of admiration for the Atrium space.

Observation Lounge.  Not really entertainment space (although some piano-man type entertainment does happen occasionally) but the space for "lectures" on Alaska.  One day, there were a series of "audio lectures" scheduled on topics like "Alaska Wildlife", "Alaska Marine Life", etc.  We circled all those on our schedule and showed up for the first.  We discovered that these are simply pre-taped lectures piped in over the speakers.  Okay...except the volume was so low, you could only hear sporadically.  So it was pretty useless, and we skipped the others.  And yes, some people really do camp out there for much of the day.  It wasn't as horrible as I feared...but it IS gross when folks put their bare feet up on the sofas, despite signs everywhere asking us NOT to.  These are upholstered couches, not outdoor loungers.  The staff put out little pads to go on the ends of the sofas, but I saw, in most cases, the users had kicked those to the floor.  People eat on these.  It was all just vaguely unsanitary.  The armchairs and such were what WE used when we spent time there!  You can still get good views.  I just didn't see the appeal of camping there for hour after hour after hour.

14 hours ago, sunshine3838 said:

Wonderful review. Wondering if you have any menu from the main dining room? Thanks!!

Thanks.  I did not take ANY menu photos, I'm afraid.  That just isn't something I think about in the moment.  Sorry.

BARS AND DRINK PACKAGE

The "included" drink package is more than worthwhile for me.  Yes, it isn't totally "free" because you have to pay the gratuity, but 2-3 drinks per day gets you over that threshold.  I had NO problems with that.  Even my wife, who drinks less than me by a bit, had no problem getting her value as well.

I've heard folks say that bar service is often slow.  This was not the case for us when actually approaching the bar.  The bars on deck were not very busy (again, it's cold weather Alaska!) and we were served very quickly.  Mixx Bar (between Taste & Savor) is a bit of a hot spot, but they were fast.  The Atrium Bar is the busiest of all (again, more on the dread Atrium later), but even there the wait was minimal.  No issues.  We never developed any "favorite" bars...just whatever was closest.  Cavern Club when watching the Beatles.  The Social Bar when watching comedy.  All fast and fairly friendly.

Special mention of The District Brewhouse, though.  We spent a lot of time here, because I love beer, and they actually have a fairly credible list of craft beers.  Although I have to make the following complaint:  the menus were not up to date.  I ordered, for example, the Dogfish Head 90 off the draft menu (what a treat that would be).  Well, I was informed that the menu was the "east cost" menu and they when they moved West they had taken on some new beer.  I was assured the menu would be updated soon.  It never was. Still plenty of good beers, but I had to always to up to the bar and look in their glass fridge or scan the tap.  And many of the most exciting beers on the menu were gone (I'd say 20% or more of the "craft" beers...they always have Budweiser).  But it was a great space for some quiet (with views of the sea), board games and that "brewery smell."  We stopped by here, at least briefly, every day.  (In the evening, they had some guy playing piano and doing "humor" that drew out all the drunks, and we left during those times.  It was loud and obnoxious and everything the District WASN'T the rest of the time.)

"SPECIALTY" DINING (Paid)

We didn't do very much of this on this cruise.  But we did experience (and enjoy) both Q and Food Republic.

We did Q at 8:15pm after a long day in Skagway.  Excellent dinner.  I had sausage and my wife had brisket...with lots of side items included and added-on.  There was a band playing, but it wasn't dance music yet, but background music, and we really enjoyed that.  Our waitress, from St. Lucia, was great.  (And she brought straws for our mudslides without being asked!  First and only on the ship.)  The food was plentiful and tasty and made for great comfort food.  The place was not terribly busy...not sure if that was usual, or due to the long day in port, or even the late-ish hour.

On our first sea day, we had lunch at Food Republic.  This is a small plates restaurant, and I think I ordered one small plate too many.  Our final bill was $50, which was too much for lunch.  We were stuffed, because of over-ordering, and probably could have gotten out with about $42, which is STILL too much.  If we did it again, we'd go here for a plate or two as more of a snack.  It is a very nice place.  Decorated with modern flair and bright colors, it's also off the beaten path.  Deck 7, but not part of the larger Ocean 678 place or the Waterfront area.  Service was friendly (although you order via tablets placed at each table, which is a mixed blessing).  We very much enjoyed it...but it is pricey for what you get.  Be disciplined about how much food you order.

Only other fee-added place we tried was getting a few bon-bons at Coco's.  We had originally planned to indulge one time with one of their crazy $15 milkshakes...but it never happened.  The place was always empty and the service there was the worst (by far) of any we saw on the ship.  As my wife said, "They never looked happy to see a customer."  I think NCL has missed an opportunity here.

Speaking of missed opportunities, I must say that Margaritaville was a dud on this trip.  Never saw anyone having lunch or dinner here, even though it was open.  This was the same as we experienced on the Breakaway during our Transatlantic last year.  I assume the place is  hopping when the ship is in the Caribbean...but it is really sad during colder weather.  Why NCL touts the Bliss as "designed especially for Alaska" and then puts in a space like this is a bit perplexing.  

We did not try the other for-fee places, but I have to say that Ocean Blue, Le Bistro and La Cuchina never looked remotely busy.  We didn't even see Cagney's or Los Lobos.  Based on the reservation boards around the ship, Teppanyaki was still a winner, though.

1 hour ago, jvsnana said:

We are planning to use Uber next week, but this sounds interesting.

So these huge pool of drivers were not taxis or Uber/Lyft?  Who are they and how did you know they were waiting to drive folks to the airport?

they are sort of like gypsy cabs in NYC.  As soon as we stepped out of the terminal, there was a group of nearly 20 guys in suits all looking to sell you a ride.  

4 hours ago, Scotts73 said:

I can't wait to hear more about the Bliss!  We will be sailing in August. I have a question, I have searched and can't seem to find the answer.  Do you know if there are any "self-service" laundry rooms onboard?  I have read about the mid-week "Fill the bag" special, but I thought I read somewhere that there are laundry rooms for passengers to use.  ??  Can you confirm this?  We will be on deck 15, mini-suite near the Observation Lounge.  I don't see any laundry rooms on our deck.

 

Thanks so much!  

 

 

No laundry room of any kind.  You have to send it out.  Yes, about mid-way through they gave us a bag to use that was "one price for all you could cram in", but we didn't use it. As I implied earlier, we had overpacked anyway!!!  So no need for laundry.

DINING (Free)

We enjoy dining in the MDRs.  So most evenings, we spent in the Manhattan Room, including the first night.  I had made reservations in advance online, so we were always seated immediately.  But once, we showed up at a different time, and they still got us in right away.  It never seemed completely packed.  And we were there at 5:30 and at 7:30 (depending on the day).  Always saw a handful of tables open.  We've sailed on the Breakaway before, so I missed the live orchestra...but the room is still lovely for an MDR.  We often were seated near to the back, so we could see the waters (and of course, we were far enough north that it was light out).  The food was never terrible, and was often good.  Not every meal was a home run...but we never left unhappy.  Most days, we found three appetizers to share between us because they had many tasty choices.  Desserts were nice as well.  The service was generally good as well.  With the dine-anytime approach, you don't get the same staff from day to day, so we never developed any connections with the staff, but the service was always friendly.  Also, bar service was pretty fast...which is often a problem in the MDR.  For wine by the glass, they had many of the bottles handy nearby and we were filled within minutes of asking.  (Yes, we had the drink package.)

We had lunch/breakfast at Taste and Savor (each meal once at each place), and all was good there too.  They are exactly the same except for the colors.  One leans more blue-green and the other more burgundy.  Again service was just fine.  We particularly enjoy breakfast in these spots, where you can make a total pig of yourself!!

We never had  dinner at the buffet, but we did have some breakfasts and lunches.  Usually for port days, or to grab something quick before heading into Glacier Bay.  Usually, these places are insanely busy and finding a seat is tough...but we actually didn't have too much trouble.  The food was the usual predictable fare...but it was hot and plentiful.  Service throughout the room was non-existent, though.  The folks are there to clean tables.  That's fine, but once a guy asked me if I needed anything and I asked for salt, as our shaker was empty.  "Right away, sir" he said, and I never saw him again!  The late night snack place was pretty popular, and it has a limited menu.  Burgers, hot dogs, some other entre, a few desserts and a few salad-type items.  Great when you're hungry...but really scaled down.

One of our favorite spots was The Local.  We had breakfast here twice, lunch twice (I think) and after our late day in Juneau, even dinner.  (That was nuts...a long line to get in....other than that we never really had a wait).  We had a late night visit there too.  The breakfast menu is pretty skimpy, as is the late night menu.  You can find something, but the choices aren't overwhelming.  The full lunch/dinner menu, though, is pretty darn good.  We LOVED "The Rachel" sandwich and also the turkey pot pie.  The greek salad with watermelon was  pleasant surprise too.  My only issue with the Local (apart from occasionally slow service) was the noise from the Atrium below.  More on the Atrium later...but as a sneak preview...I HATE the Atrium.  What a design flaw!!

The final "Free" spot is the small buffet on the Observation deck.  (We never went to Margaritaville for the breakfast buffet).  Be prepared, it truly is a "small" buffet.  After one time grabbing breakfast there, we didn't go back.  Other than sliced lunch meat, there's no real protein to be had.  Our cabin was on Deck 14, so it WAS nice to be able to run up there for tea & coffee...but otherwise, we really didn't take advantage.  Yes, if we were less pig-like in our consumption when cruising, it would have been fine.  But, well, we were on a cruise...moderation was not an adjective one would have used to describe our approach to food (or mine to drink).  On shore, we're both temperate and reasonable eaters.

CABIN

We had been upgraded to a mid-ship mini-suite, our first time in anything "higher" than a balcony.  As many others have said, the main cabin is no larger than a standard balcony cabin.  The extra space is all in the bathroom...and we loved it.  Dual sinks really made a huge difference!  The bigger shower was super nice too.  For some reason, I thought it was a tub with a shower, but it's just a shower that takes up the footprint of a small tub.  It was very nice.  We really enjoyed this small upgrade...wonderful when getting ready in the morning to each have a sink to call our very own.  The storage in the room was a bit more than usual too, and it was much appreciated.  (We also enjoyed having a tiny coffee maker in the room!)

The bed was comfortable as always.  I ALWAYS sleep like a rock on cruises...the stress of work just drifts away.  The balcony was tiny, as expected, but in my opinion, no Alaska cruise would be complete without one.  We spent so much time on deck enjoying the scenery, but even in our cabin, we saw so much natural beauty.  It's just essential, IMO.

Silly items:  the trash container in the bathroom is in a little drawer below the sink.  So if you had trash, you had to pull the drawer out.  Just kind of a pain.  (I know, first world problems!!).   We brought, as usual, our own shampoo and conditioner, because we just don't like the shampoo/conditioner combo that comes standard.  The closet was a little tricky to get to...you sort of have to climb over the furniture a little.  But it was big enough to accommodate our stuff.

Our steward we only saw one time, in the hallway.  I've read that NCL is trying to make their stewards invisible.  Well, they darn near succeeded.  He did a great job supplying ice and we had a new towel animal EVERY evening.  So I have no complaints about the service we got, but it was strange never seeing the guy.  Not sure I like the "invisibility" concept.

I've been back from my trip for over a week, and am just now caught up enough to start sharing some thoughts.  I'd love to put together a really coordinated review, but I think that's unrealistic for me at this time.  But I'd still like this to be a helpful "review"...so please ask any questions you have about our recent experience.

My wife (56) and I (55), on our ninth cruise, but first to Alaska.  We have done Europe, Transatlantic, Caribbean, Pacific Coast and Mexican previously.  We've sailed roughly evenly on Royal and Norwegian. We tend to go with itinerary first, then timing, then price, then cruise line.  On this occasion, we sailed from Seattle on a Sunday, so we arrived in town a day ahead.  I won't bore you with those details, except to say that we arrived in Seattle from Albuquerque at 9:15 am, Seattle City Pass in hand, and a rental car waiting for us.  We hit the Aquarium, lunch at a lovely downtown spot called The London Plane, a visit to the Science Center and the Zoo, plus time at Reuben's Brews and dinner at Sawyer.  We stayed at a B&B we had enjoyed our last time in the city, one with a great view of the OTHER cruise ship ports, where we saw the Oosterdam and the Golden Princess waiting to sail away when the Bliss did.  On Sunday morning, I had the following crazy idea, which actually worked out perfectly.

I had never been to the top of the Space Needle.  I was included on our city pass and opened at 9.  I suggested we arrive there at 8:30, which we did, and we were on the first elevator up, and in fact, for nearly 20 minutes, there were less that 20 of us up there.  An hour later, when we came down, it was much busier.  From there, we drove to the port and dropped off our luggage (around 10:30).  The traffic in front of the port area is INSANE.  Unforgivably so, in my opinion.  It's chaos, with no traffic flow logic that I could see.  BUT, with patience, we pulled over and a porter rushed right up, took our bags in about 2 minutes right from our trunk, and we were off again.  We returned the rental car a few blocks away, then walked to breakfast and did some browsing at the Public Market.  We passed a pleasant 90 minutes or so.  Then we just walked the relatively short stroll to port and arrived a little after 12:30 to join the line at security.

EMBARKING/DISEMBARKING:

We joined the line that stretched outside onto the sidewalk.  It moved fairly fast...we had our ID checked first, THEN through security scanners, then actual check-in with NCL.  Because we were relatively late, we had not wait, but just went right onto the ship.  The process moved well enough...but the building is dreary.  Low ceilings, old flooring, it just all dampened any excitement we were feeling.  I'm amazed that there's a major cruise ship port right at this spot.  It's cool to be able to see the ship from all around downtown Seattle, but it does make for some chaos.  But we were quickly on the ship, boarding on Deck 7, essentially right into the casino.  

At the end of the cruise, we elected for the first time in awhile NOT to do the self-assist debarkation.  I hate to admit it, but we seriously overpacked, and I just didn't want to lug all the bags off the ship.  Thank goodness.  We were in the 8:30 group and they called us at about 8:25 (we were allowed to stay in our cabins until 9:15, which was nice).  We grabbed our carryons and joined the LONGEST line I've ever experienced in my life.  There was literally just ONE person scanning each key card, and they called us at least 30 minutes before they needed to.  We joined the line at 8:30.  We left the ship at 9:15.  Absolutely no reason for this mess to have occurred.  Staff more people, and don't be so anxious to call out groups.  VERY sorry ending to a great cruise.  Once off the ship, we found our luggage and were through customs in 5 minutes...so that was great.  We had an 11:55 flight, so we weren't worried about missing the flight.  I just saw no reason to be in such a LOOOONG line.  We found a driver from the huge pool of drivers waiting to drive folks to the airport, so I didn't even bother with Uber.  Uber's estimate of cost was $37.  We found a guy willing to take us for $40, so off we went.  25 minutes later, we were at the airport, with LOTS of time to spare.

I will pause here and keep adding as time allows.  But PLEASE ask questions...that will give me the motivation to carry on!!

26 minutes ago, jcool said:

If I am right there is only two cruise port in Honduras. Everyone under the Carnival umbrella stop at Mahogany Bay everyone else stops at Roatan Bay Island. 

If you look at your original post, you didn't mention Honduras (or any location).  Hence the previous question.

On 5/13/2019 at 2:48 PM, dancingfish said:

Trying to plan a cruise for hubby and I for his birthday and everytime I think I have a great itenerary i look at the reviews and it seems everyone hates the cruises! Are people just being jerks or is travel by cruise ship just not fun anymore?

 

We haven't cruised in over 15 years but had a great time on our last cruise to Alaska!

Please don't fall into this trap!  Cruising is great.  I'm not the incredibly experience cruiser like some on this board (yes, I'm jealous), but I have 9 under my belt and another starting Sunday.  Every cruise has been great.  And EVERY cruise has had a fair number of annoyances.  The boarding process sometimes.  The disembarkation process sometimes (I'm looking at you Galveston!).  Sometimes the service at dinner a couple of nights.  Sometimes the entertainer that evening.  etc. etc.  But I can assure you, we always enjoyed ourselves.  As my wife says (and she's not alone):  You go to so many cool places and your hotel travels with you.  Except your hotel also comes with hoards of food choices and great entertainment.  

So then I read these negative reviews!  YIKES, I guess I must be stupid to enjoy myself.  But if you read in more depth, there seem to be two broad categories:  1)  Complaints about very specific things that 99% of us would consider minor and for this passenger, it was a trigger.  2)  Passengers who did little or no research.  So these reviews are full of statements like "If I had known that I would have to..."  Research and prepare.  Heck, the prep work is a huge chunk of the fun for us.  Watching you tube videos, reading Cruise Critic boards, reading Rick Steves' guides, and yes, reading reviews (but lots of them, to get some balance).  (And beware of those who bemoan "nickel and diming".  That's a subcategory of not being prepared.)

1 hour ago, mls0974 said:

We are a family of 5 that have booked a cruise for special birthdays and anniversaries. I (probably naively) thought that when i booked the cruise and looked at the itinerary that we would be really close to the destinations (forgot about the fact that some are inland!).  We don't want to spend a fortune doing all the excursions with Tui if we can easily do them ourselves.  Has anyone been to the following cruise ports and can give us some information about getting about.  We have spoken to people who have been on cruises who say it is so easy to just get off the boat and jump in a taxi but some of the destinations are quite far away and i suspect a taxi would be a small fortune.

 

Marina di Carrara - for Florence and Pisa

Saint Raphael - for St Tropez

Salerno - for Pompeii and Herculaneum

 

Any information you could give would be gratefully received.

 

Thank you

We've done both Florence/Pisa and Salerno.  You can google and find reputable drivers to take you to the places you want to so.  With a group of 5, you might even save money over the cruise ship.  But better than that, you'll get more out of your day.  When we were in Salerno, my wife and I booked a private driver, just the two of us.  For about $100 more than a bus trip to Pompeii, we:  1)  Toured the Amalfi coast, including brief stops in both Amalfi and Positano (enough time to walk down to the beach).  2)  We did some ceramic shopping, at our request  3)  We visited Mt. Vesuvius and hiked to the rim.  In AUGUST...crazy hot, but fun.  4)  Stopped for pizza at a little out of the way place near the base of the mountain.  Best Caprese salad we've ever had  5)  Went to Pompeii.  6)  Back to Salerno with 30 minutes to spare.  One of our best days ever on an excursion.  We had to rush Pompeii a little bit, I'll admit, but not too bad.  

I just mention this to emphasize that you MIGHT pay a little more for a private excursion (by that I mean, not just going outside the cruise line, but just booking something for your group).  But the flexibility and speed is not to be overlooked.  We act as though we might never get back to that port again, so we spend a little more to get a LOT more.

Florence/Pisa is a bit more whirlwind because you're so far away from the port.  If you book a private excursion, ask to go to Pisa right away.  We got there nearly 45 minutes before the first bus arrived, and practically had the grounds to ourselves (although the cathedral was closed that early) and we were in the first group of the day to go up the tower.  Florence is always a bit of a madhouse, so no really good reason to rush to get there.  One piece of advise:  if you're planning to visit with the Accademia (to see "David") or the Uffizi Galleries, you can get tickets online ahead of time.  Strongly advised.  You'll save 20-30 minutes in line at each place, and save a couple of bucks.

On 5/9/2019 at 9:20 AM, Hlitner said:

There are many references around CC Blogs about "Loyalty" to specific cruise lines.  We have always joked that we are "equal opportunity cruisers" since we are loyal to cruising but to a particular line.  For us this has resulted in an interesting phenomenon.   We now have 5 cruises booked in the next 12 months and they are with 5 different cruise lines (Celebrity, Seabourn,  Princess, MSC and HAL!   Am wondering about the experience of other "equal opportunity cruisers."

 

Hank

Loyalty does have a part in our decision making...but it's down this list of priorities.  Price, dates & itinerary will always trump.  (That being said, we've only done 2 lines over 10 cruises.  But I shop around with virtually everyone.)

4 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

It really does depend on ship, port of departure, sail date, etc. I sailed on the Bliss out of Miami in February. Prices for that sailing just went up and up and up. I paid $1079 per person for our BA balcony booked a year out. By the final months, BAs were up to $1929 per person!

 

But, on my Escape sailing in April out of NYC, prices went down and down and down. A B1 was $1449 per person when we booked in November and dropped to $1199 per person by about two weeks out with a couple of drops along the way.

 

It really DOES depend.  Our TA on the Breakaway last April kept dropping (even with a very reasonable initial price).  Each time there was a drop, I called.  I ended up with an upgraded cabin and $400 in onboard credit.  Plus strawberries and sparkling wine delivered to the room. 

Other cruises just go up.  And UP.

I live in land-locked Albuquerque, New Mexico...so an amphibious ship that can sail from Albuquerque would be ideal.

2 hours ago, Ships R Great said:

Well, you have all made me feel better.  Sleeping on it helped, too.  Also got a handicapped cabin right near Customer relations.  All seems better today.  Thanks for the god words.

Good!  Every cruise we've been on, we enjoyed, and we enjoyed the ships too.  EVERY one.  And yet, when I read some of the reviews...my goodness, it sounds like the ship was the Black Hole of Calcutta!  I find in many cases, those who had a bad time will write page after page of vitriol to purge themselves, and the folks who had a great time often just say:  "It was a great cruise.  So much fun.  Would go again in a heartbeat!"  and that's it.  (Always exceptions to both, of course).  So I tell myself that it's highly unlikely the cruise lines would allow the experience on any of their ships to be akin to a Soviet-era gulag.  Yes, sometimes a certain person might not be the friendliest, or a line might get long, or a tender is chaotic...but really, the overall experience and what these hard-working folks manage to pull off is amazing.  I do feel bad for the folks whose expectations are apparently at unrealistic levels and are unable to emotional accommodate any shortfall.

2 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

No. The MDR, buffet and Local specials are independent of each other. 

I understand the validity of the OP's question, though.  Two years ago when we sailed on the Jewel, O'Sheehan's (same as The Local) often had signage out touting something like Prime Rib, which wasn't on their regular menu, and then it turned out that the buffet had that as a featured entree too.  When I sailed the Breakaway last year, I didn't notice that happening.  So there may NOT be a 100% definite answer.  

Thanks for sharing all this!  We're on this itinerary in less than two weeks!!

12 hours ago, debbyfelse1963 said:

Can anybody tell me typically how long it takes to disembark from the cruise in this port. We have a 9:30am pickup at the port and I wanted to make sure that was enough time

It's fast.  I can't imagine you'd have an issue with a 9:30 pickup.

On 5/7/2019 at 9:52 AM, PelicanBill said:

Any top deck with quick views to both sides is ideal... so you can see Manhattan AND New Jersey on both sides as you depart and shift to the starboard for the Statue of Liberty and then be up high to go under the Verazzano Narrows Bridge.

Agree.  Your starboard balcony will be good for seeing the Statue of Liberty, but you won't see the NYC skyline, which is pretty cool.  

17 hours ago, Scootoir said:

Murray847, of all the cruises in your signature which itinerary did you most enjoy and which ship was your favorite?

Oh my, that's a REALLY tough (maybe impossible) question.  We've enjoyed all our cruises for various reasons.  Some because the ports were so great.  Some because the ship was awesome.  Usually some combination of the 2.  If forced to decide, the ones we reminisce about the most involve Europe.  Those were all just full of amazing sights and experiences.  Our Caribbean cruises were fun too...but we're not so strongly "beach" people, so, for example, we were blown away by ALLURE OF THE SEAS as a great ship to have fun on, no matter than ports.  And even our Pacific Coast Cruise was great...it was very relaxing and low stress.  Everyone spoke English, our phones worked, commerce was easy and the places we visited were sensational.  I think we'd have to work hard to dislike a cruise.

On 4/23/2019 at 4:24 PM, Harvest02 said:

We ended up picking Norwegian Breakaway! Lots of nightlife and loved the itinerary. We are excited. Glad we decided not to do Princess. This decision for Norwegian feels right!

We sailed on the Breakaway (Transatlantic) last April.  I think you should be pretty happy.  There are a lot of venues for "nightlife" from an actual night club, to a comedy club (you must see HOWL AT THE MOON if they're still doing it), and several other bars.  Spice H20 is a blast too, if you like dancing.  I've never sailed Princess...but I can tell you that my wife and I (55ish) enjoyed the Breakaway.  And the party mood on a shorter cruise should be amplified even more.  

23 hours ago, Scootoir said:

 

Thanks, I will order the holders if I can find out the dimensions of Viking's tags.  I've checked for the chat option on their website a couple times today and it was not available.  I'll keep trying.

You can actually search Amazon for Viking specific luggage tags.  

I've not sailed on Viking Ocean either, but if it's similar to others, when you arrive at the port, it will seem like chaos.  Fortunately, it is usually controlled chaos...these folks have done these things a million times.  But you'll want to have your luggage tags on in advance.  I find that my stress level drops the moment the porter comes and politely takes my pre-tagged luggage away...usually very quickly.  I've never had to wait for more than 60 seconds for a porter to appear.  Be ready to tip them a few bucks.

Usually they will ask, but I will tell you also:  be sure to NOT leave you passports, boarding documents, important meds in a bag the porter takes away.  It's really tough to check in for the cruise without them!  But letting the porter lighten your load is really nice.  Your bags will show up by your room a few hours later.  Yes, you can pack a change of clothes to bring on with you...but it's worth noting that the first night on ships tends to be more casual, because not everyone gets their bags prior to their dinner time.  Viking, a more premium line, may be different.

Enjoy your first cruise!  Nothing beats cruising!!!

On 5/2/2019 at 6:12 AM, Grandma Dazzles said:

By the time you collect your luggage, pick up whatever you need and drive to Miami, plus have breakfast, I don’t think you will need to kill time.

 

Many people fly in the day before just to be safe - thinking flight/ baggage /traffic delays. You will be fine heading to the port. You can check in and boarding usually starts around 11:00. 

I also essentially agree with this.  Last November, we sailed from Miami but flew in/out of Ft. Lauderdale (SW Air!).  We arrived the night before and stayed in Miami.  When we left the ship, I was surprised that the drive by to Fort Lauderdale was pretty slow going.  If you arrive at 7:30, you'll have your bags ready to go no sooner than 8:15, I would think.  Assume an hour getting to the port.  So for me, the only question would be...what to do about breakfast.  Eat at the airport?  Find a place near the port, and uber there first and then get a new uber to the port?  (that's probably what we'd do).  But by 10:30 - 11 is not too early to arrive at the port, so I don't think you'll actually have that much time to kill.

It's easy for us to say, not knowing your budget or time constraints, but arriving the day before is so much less stressful.  I've cruised 8 times.  In all but one case, we arrived at least the day before and had no issues and always found fun stuff to do in the city, even if it's just for an evening.  But one time, we flew in day of the cruise.  That was from Albuquerque (my city) to LA.  Early flight, due to arrive in LAX at 8:30, with MORE than enough time to get to the port.  Well...fog arrived in ABQ (a twice a year at most event) and delayed us 3 hours.  We still made it onto the ship without much trouble, but we arrived after cabins were open and the ship was kind of a madhouse, and it just wasn't relaxing at all.  For us, it was a lesson learned.

We have sailed both NCL and RCCL.  We have sailed on Oasis class ships (just not the Oasis itself) and we have sailed on the Breakaway.  We've enjoyed every experience we've had.  We've sailed from NYC and from Ft. Lauderdale & Miami (not Canaveral).  All have pros and cons.  But if you held a gun to my head and made me pick...I think I'd go with Oasis.  That class of ship is SO MUCH FUN!  The Breakaway class is very nice too...but Oasis class has so much to do on board (and Central Park is gorgeous).