Ladydee

Can someone clarify this for me?  I have heard so many different descriptions - from a) everyone wears white to b) it's 80s night to c) this is the night to dress formally (for those that are so inclined), etc.  Then I heard they give you glo sticks, while others said to bring our own.

Also, where does this take place and what time?

On 1/8/2024 at 5:02 AM, bandtaxi said:

 I will be happy to report back to you after that if you still need info. Anything specific you want me to check out or look for?  We plan to go in to Mahahual and see how things are there. 

Nothing specific, and I don't remember the names of anything.  I guess just hoping to find some quiet stretch of clean beach where he can be on the sand (in the shade) and relax.

On 1/6/2024 at 1:19 PM, crewsweeper said:

 

What places does your father remember and be interested in seeing again?

 

 

My memory is a little hazy, and I'm confused because I think (in my FB group) that people call the whole port, "Mahahual."  When I was there, we had the port - a big, constructed cement area with a fountain, Diamonds International, etc., and then we had to leave that area and "drive to" Mahahual (I thought).  There was basically just a beach, some little hut-type place to get food, a guy walking up and down with an iguana for photos, and a girl giving massages.

I think my dad would just like to have that unspoiled experience again.  Chairs in the sand, cheap beer and tacos, not a care in the world for those few hours.

Yes, they are, thank you!

Can anyone please post pics of the Dailies for this cruise?  I deeply enjoyed and appreciated Hoosier's live reports, but I can't read the most of the text on the Dailies.  I'm hoping someone has some clearer photos with better resolution.  Thanks!

16 minutes ago, pete_coach said:

You can wear what you want anytime.

I have seen gowns and tuxedos and shorts and pants.

It is great that you are not forced to dress a certain way. I am on vacation and choose what I wish to wear.

I know you "can," but I want to get a feel for how many people "do," and to what extent.

Thanks.  That's pretty much the answer I expected.  Sometimes I just get to feeling nostalgic I guess

I'm not sure where to post this question.  Its been several years since I've signed in to Cruise Critic, but I remember there used to be like a home page where you just saw all the most recent questions from all the boards.  Am I making that up?  Is that feature gone, or how can I see it?

I'm excited to be taking my first cruise since 2016, and looking forward to trying Norwegian line for the first time.  The ladies in my group are disappointed though that there is no formal night.  I saw somewhere that they still have some kind of "dress up if you want" night, but my question is 1)  How dressed up?  i.e., are there still women who'd wear long gowns and men tuxes?  or are we talking a basic out-to-dinner midi dress and sport coat for the guys?    2)  If people DO dress to the nines ever, about what percentage?  We will be sailing on the Breakaway if that matters

... where should I be looking?  I want the formal nights with long gowns and tuxedos, the midnight buffet (if that even exists anymore), etc.  I can appreciate all the modern marvels of floating at sea, and enjoy them, but I also would like to take a traditional voyage now and then.

I have one.  Just trying to get people's opinions

Yes, I have read all that.  But without "being" on the ship, its hard to anticipate every activity, outlet, venue and so on.

Trying to keep this short but factual, and I'd like input from regular cruisers of multiple lines.  I'm planning a Caribbean cruise for early 2024 for family group of 14.  We have all cruised before, but not since 2016.  We're just about to pull the trigger on the Norwegian Breakaway.  This is a big leap of faith for us because we enjoy and have the most experience with RCCL.  We're open-minded in that we know its a different style of cruising for one, and we are all painfully aware of how "the Covid Effect" has left no industry unscathed.  It seemed that NCL had the best prices for our budgets (mixed generations with some 20-somethings still building careers, and some retirees), and the Free at Sea promo is attractive. Personally, I would have loved to try Celebrity, but the quotes for ships I was looking at were too high.  In any case, I keep hearing and reading how just about everything on board the Breakaway is an upcharge, and by the time the week is over, many are disheartened and/or surprised to realize the true cost of their cruise.  I had assumed all cruise lines were doing this, following suit like the airlines and hotels, but it kind of seems that NCL gets singled out, so maybe my assumption was wrong.  Maybe when all is said and done, NCL isn't the value cruise it appears to be, and I should go back and re-evaluate.  This is a hard question to ask without a face to face conversation, but I'm hoping someone gets where I'm at and can offer some input here.  Yes, I know its just personal opinions, but that is what I want.  Thanks!

On 7/17/2023 at 9:32 AM, BirdTravels said:

So,,, we're Diamond RCCL and Diamond NCL cruisers, sailing multiple times on each cruise line each year. Both are both mid-market cruise lines. 

 

NCL has been the innovator leading the cruise industry to meet the desired of the contemporary cruiser. That turns some old-time cruisers off. We have been cruising for decades and really enjoy the innovation. We hate traditional dining and old time cruise ship entertainment. Royal continues to play catch up. The Icon will be Royal's first venture into modern cursing.

 

For example, there was an uproar on cruise critic when NCL removed deep fried fish fingers from the lunch menu and replaced it with poached salmon. Or more recently when mac&cheese was removed from the dinner menu. 

 

As you said, opinions are not worth that much. And you really don't get anything by trying to do a side-by-side comparison. 

 

Here's my opinion that isn't worth that much...

 

Sailing both cruise lines multiple times a year, I greatly prefer NCL. For years, NCL has embraced Freestyle Cruising. That is the overall cruise experience. Not a party ship. Not a stuffy ship (yup, we're Platinum cruisers on Cunard and go there if we want stuff).

 

NCL has no set time dining, you eat when you are hungry or when it fits your schedule (Royal My Time Dining on steroids),,, all MDRs are open seating and you get a table for your group, not shared. I am on vacation and appreciate that there are no [attempts] at Formal Night,,, shorts are welcome in all restaurants for all meals with the exception of two restaurants (Le Bistro French specialty dining and one other (varies by ship)). A 24/7 restaurant is great for us, since we are usually up late (more than a slice of pizza from Sorentos). There is an included beverage package, some specialty dining, a credit on shore excursions, a few free internet minutes. Yup, you'll get a lot of commentary on what the "free" items costs, but they are included and we use all of it. 

 

On Royal, the diamond vouchers are great for free drinks. With the vouchers, the diamond lounges become useless waste of space on ship. We like the ice shows on Royal. But Royal still tries to cling on to old fashion, old school cruising, which shows a lack of understanding of what the contemporary cruiser wants. We've only cruised once with the new menus and the jury is still out on that. 

 

What ship are you considering?

Thanks so much!  I think we are looking at the Breakaway or the Joy

Thank you, everyone!  I truly do appreciate your personal insights.  When I posted the question, I was just considering NCL in general, but now it looks like my group is focusing in on the Breakaway or the Joy, for a Caribbean cruise.

I realize this is a loaded question, but I am apprehensive and need to get opinions from somewhere!  I have cruised 3 times on Royal's Voyager Class, and twice on the Radiance class.  I really love how they do things - the cabins, the decor, the spaciousness of their public areas, the dining room, etc.  How will I feel on Norwegian?  To be honest, we tried a Carnival once, and my entire party was so underwhelmed that we'll likely never go back.  Please help if you can with some honest feedback.

Thank you.  I believe we were looking at the Escape....

We have never cruised Norwegian before, and I have tried to find my answer online, but did not.  For the Club Balcony rooms, can the bed be configured into 2 beds?  If so, is there a nightstand or anything between them?  My dilemma is that two members of my group, a man and a woman, who are family friends but not a couple, are considering sharing a cabin so they can afford a balcony room.  They've both cruised several times on RCCL, so know what they are about in terms of tight quarters.  In addition to the bed configuration, I'm just wondering if this room feels more spacious than the standard.

Thank you very much. That is surely a testament to the country :) I am thinking of planning a 25th anniversary trip to either Croatia or Portugal. I know this is a cruise forum, but I have been a member for a long time, and appreciate the integrity and community of the people on these boards, as opposed to other travel forums.

Would you return to Croatia as a vacation destination in itself? Is it clean? Is it safe (we are seasoned travellers, so I mean beyond the obvious cautions...)? Thank you.

It's amazing the difference people have on the same ship. My party of 14 was impressed by the main dinning room food and chops food but thought the windjammer was very subpar for lunch. We went to dinning room as much as possible. Although they did have some nice items at windjammer it was not enough for the lack of choices they had at lunch.

 

I even overheard crew on the ship talking about the motion, it was rocking badly that may not have caused any issues with you, but you had to at least notice you were rocking much more than normally.

I'll admit that walking in and out of the theater was a bit challenging on some nights!

We love Dominica. You need to get away from the port area to discover the beauty of the Island

This was our second visit here. The first time we did leave the port area, drove around the island, and did river tubing. It was ok. We just don't care for the whole feel of the island, I guess.

Ladydee,

 

They charged you $$$$ to reserve the Centrum for NYE? How much?

We were on for Thanksgiving and it was always crowded and you could rarely find a seat.

 

Someone else may have to jump in here. I believe there were different packages, and not only on Centrum, Deck 4, but for tables overlooking the Centrum on Decks 5 and 6. I know the table near where we were sitting on Deck 6 paid $600. We were also offered a package for $2000 for our group of 10.

You had crab legs? Wow, never saw that.

 

We had Lobster Tail and Filet Mignon on NYE in the MDR.

 

We paid $1.99 each to have two shirts pressed. Royal has never had an ironing room......I miss that as Carnival, Holland and Princess have full laundry

rooms.

 

We did not go to Tortola or Dominica this cruise, but next time if you go, you MUST go to the Baths in Virgin Gorda, a beautiful beach with large boulders. Victoria's Secret and Sports Ill have been shot there,

 

In Dominica, years ago we went to the Emerald Pool in the rain forest. This was back when nothing was developed for cruise ship passengers. We couldn't even buy a tee shirt and a post card! The people were very poor, living in shacks, but the children were just as clean, pressed, and properly dressed for school. We watched them coming down the hills for school.

 

We also loved the captain and Topi. The captain was as dry as Topi was witty!!

 

We also had a new mattress and it was wonderful! The upholstery in the theatre needed cleaning, but over all we too liked all the glass on the ship after cruising Anthem..........a very different experience, and a REAL Schooner Bar!! Did they ever finish the Titanic puzzle?

I saw a puzzle in the Schooner Bar, but never looked at it up close! It was far from being put together though.

I was on that ship and it was ok. Cruise director was a little Boring. The captain couldn't drive that ship well, actually worst captain ever. Took the worst route shook the boat. I have been on over 15 cruises and never had to take a pill. To top it off at one port the gangway fell into the water because a gust of wind blew the boat and it wasn't secured. Someone could of died!!!

 

Lunch at windjammer sucked but dinner was generally better. They had lobster at windjammer for formal night.

 

Only food past 1am was room service even on New Years which was no good at all!

Hm. I'll leave you to our own opinions regarding the Captain and Cruise Director, with which I wholeheartedly disagree, on both counts. As far as the gangway falling, the Captain explained during his Captain's Corner session, that in spite of it being properly secured, a small squall, like we had that day, can cause such an incident, and it happens from time to time. It was not due to negligence.

I thought the lunch at Windjammer was good, and quite in line with past cruises. It was only in the Main Dining Room (and Chops), that I perceived a decrease in quality.

No one in our party of 10 had any issues with the motion of the ship.