Three adults to a balcony cabin on Pearl...any tips?

[jonsmom]

On The Pearl, deck 12 all the way forward, is a spa (called MANDARA SPA). I suppose anyone can go there for a massage, etc. To use the Thermo Spa one must have the "spa pass". It's offered for sale online (from what I understand) at 100 days prior to a cruise for suite guests and at 90 days prior to everyone else. When you logon to your online account and go to your cruise reservation there is a section for buying WHATEVER. Look for the spa pass there. Not everyone on the reservation has to buy one. It's a little cheaper in advance but they do sell them on board if there are any left. For my 10-day Alaskan cruise it was about $159, I think. They only sell about 95 per cruise on Pearl. The spa pass lets one do self service things like a steam room, sauna, ice-cold Japanese plunge pool, heated tile loungers, etc. The large Thalasso Therapy Pool is pretty cool - the size of a small swimming pool but like a giant jacuzzi. There are also some lounge chairs facing forward with nice views of where the ship is heading. There is a co-ed main area plus a men's & women's area with locker room, showers, the sauna, steam room, etc.

 

Here's a link for official NCL info: SPA PASS

 

Thanks for your reply. Is there shampoo, hairdryer that kind of stuff in showers, or do you need to supply your own?

[hillfolk7551]

Sailing on The Pearl in January for the first time. We have purchased the Thermal Spa pass for entire duration. If we just want to take advantage of quiet place to read and lounge could we go in street clothes or is swim wear the norm? I realize we would need to understand the risk that someone had lounged in a wet swim suit on any of the furniture... sit at own risk. Do you change to swim wear and cover up in cabin or use locker rooms if you will be using hot tubs/pools?

[mamasylvia]

I am totally with your parents. DH and I are doing the May 21 Alaska cruise on the Pearl next year and when I saw we could bring 2 more people along for only the taxes and gratuities, I booked my (adult) children without even asking them if they wanted to come. Unsurprisingly, they both jumped at the opportunity, so there will be FOUR of us in our aft balcony cabin! It will add so much to my enjoyment of this beautiful area to be able to share it with my children. And my BIL and SIL are in an inside cabin around the corner.

 

I have said early and often that we don't have to do EVERYTHING together. We are different people with different tastes, and I want to make sure my children feel free to do the things we will enjoy. I am going to try to gather us together for dinner most days, and also try to get everyone who wants to do the same excursion on them together. But I am wheelchair dependent, so the more time my kids spend on activities outside the room, the more peace and quiet I will have in the room. lol Don't be afraid to get away on your own occasionally, I bet your parents will enjoy the break too.

 

Ask for the room number if you don't already have it, and look at the deck plans. Find all the rooms in that exact category. (There are several categories of balcony, for instance; they are color-coded on the NCL website.) There *may* be some rooms that are larger than others; it is worth a few minutes to look IMNSHO. If you find something larger, suggest to your parents that they see if that room number has been booked yet and switch if it is the same price. I got an accessible room with a larger-than-standard balcony that way on our last cruise. If you don't find anything, all you have lost is a little of your time.

 

If finances permit (and they may not, I know many 20-somethings are struggling financially), it would be a nice gesture for you to offer to pay for an excursion for the 3 of you. Just have a few suggestions ready that you can afford, they are mostly expensive and some of them are REALLY pricey! But in any case, make sure you show your parents how much you are looking forward to the cruise, and how much you enjoy it as it happens - that will be the best reward they could hope for.

 

> I'm sure I'll be in bed well before them

 

Sleep mask. Something like 5 bucks at Walmart. Ear plugs wouldn't be a bad idea either. And if you lay out your clothes at night, as someone else mentioned, you can get dressed and slip out without waking them.