Frequent Princess Cruiser On NCL for 1st Time

[LastUsernameEver]

I'm excited to be on my first NCL cruise after having been on more than 15 Princess Cruises.

 

Any tips or differences any of you NCL experts can tell me about?

 

I'll be in a mini-suite (guarantee-not yet assigned) on the Getaway Feb 12th from NYC.

 

Especially interested in things about the ship (or room) that I can share with the first time cruiser who'll be traveling with me. :-)

[casofilia]

The main thing we miss is 'Afternoon Tea'.

[BirdTravels]

I'm excited to be on my first NCL cruise after having been on more than 15 Princess Cruises.

 

Any tips or differences any of you NCL experts can tell me about?

 

I'll be in a mini-suite (guarantee-not yet assigned) on the Getaway Feb 12th from NYC.

 

Especially interested in things about the ship (or room) that I can share with the first time cruiser who'll be traveling with me. :-)

 

Welcome to NCL!

 

The getaway is a beautiful ship. We were in her inagural voyage out of Miami and have sailed on her and her sister ships 6 times.

 

Welcome to freestyle cruising,,,, but being in a mega ship, shows and specialty dining will require reservations 90 days prior to sailing.

 

Both Broadway shows are great!

 

You can book one comedy show onboard (early shows are family oriented, late shows 18+. We book one and gonstandy by every night they are performing.

 

Ropes course and water slides are a blast.

[TonyFred]

I think you will be pleasantly surprised. The ship is gorgeous and the food is very good, especially in the specialty restaurants. I like Princess too, but right now NCL has my business.

[Lido_Deck]

I'm excited to be on my first NCL cruise after having been on more than 15 Princess Cruises.

 

Any tips or differences any of you NCL experts can tell me about?

 

I'll be in a mini-suite (guarantee-not yet assigned) on the Getaway Feb 12th from NYC.

 

Especially interested in things about the ship (or room) that I can share with the first time cruiser who'll be traveling with me. :-)

 

The cabins are not laid out as well on NCL ships as they are on most Princess ships.

 

I presume you're Elite on Princess so you are going to miss the having your laundry done, the free Internet minutes and complimentary mini-bar set up.

 

The production shows on the Getaway put anything Princess has ever put out to complete shame and are not to be missed, especially "Burn the Floor."

 

The buffet in the Garden Cafe is so much larger wih far more choices. The crepe station is a great place to go for dessert even if you dined in one of the dining rooms.

 

The Tropicana Room is a great place for dinner and then a dance club later in the evening. They will have live music and actors from Burn the Floor do a short show. Try to get a table up front near the entertainment.

 

O'Sheeans is a great alternative to the main dining rooms or Garden Cafe, especially when they have prime rib (usually the first night of the cruise) or you just want to have a cheeseburger.

 

Sadly, the pool area and facilities are much too small for so many passenger and simply disgusting how packed they are with so many people. I enjoy the hot tubs on the top decks on most Princess ships, but on the Breakaway Class ships I avoid them like the plague because they are so crowded.

 

If you have kids you will like the water slide and giant "Jungle Gym." If you don't have kids, you are going to miss the peace and quiet of Princess.

 

Margaritaville is a great place for the complimentary breakfast buffet and omelet station. Since it's usually nearly deserted it is very quiet and peaceful.

 

Howl at the Moon is a lot of fun if you like to sing along.

 

There's good and bad so focus on the good and see what you think.

[LastUsernameEver]

Thanks all, for your thoughtful replies. And, yes, I expect differences...even though I am Elite on Princess I've barely ever used the drycleaning...but, yes...the internet minutes are nice.

 

Any sacrifices are made up for by the price though. 1099/pp for a 7 day in a MiniSuite? I mean...c'mon. Hard to pass that up.

 

I can't wait.

[don't-use-real-name]

You have only just opened the cruise book !

Read on - the many topics and discussions of cruising 101 NCL style.

 

The ONE MAIN TOPIC HIGHLIGHT is the FREESTYLE CRUISING !

The main theme here is the dining - you don't have to dress-up to

go to dinner. No Penguin Tuxedo suits fancy ball room dresses

just pure and simple Cruise Casual albeit some restaurants put

the nix on shorts flip flops sleeveless "T" shirts but you will not

starve typical of the cruise industry there will always be the Buffet !

There are no dress-up nights (UNLESS you want to).

 

Other than this a ship is a ship is a ship - you go thru something

called check-in and your documents are checked - your baggage

taken to your stateroom (we are not so formal around here we

call it a cabin) - you have the key card (sign your life away and sail)

it gets into and out of all the things happening on the ship.

 

You have events shows excursions beverage parties and all that stuff

some are free others use the key card - you having been on multiple

Princess Cruises should know the drill - it doesn't change much from

ship line to cruise line. You have the customary muster drill and like

I told 3 school teachers one time to pay attention there will be a test

onboard. OK joking is not allowed during the muster it's supposed to

be serious. I have had only one cruise on Princess my first I may add

a lot has changed - with your booking status through NCL or a TA you

may receive token OBC to spend - careful of the type you get some

can not be cashed out. Then you may have received Promos for booking

a certain category of cabin:

 

Some of these are: UBP - Ultimate Beverage Package - a lot of drinks

for very little money with limitations - SDP - Specialty Dining Package -

the Buffet is FREE other restaurants may have surcharge to dine there.

You can receive the SDP as a Promo offering or simple buy it - have it

and there will no surcharge. Other promo items are free internet or

limited access - free credits for shore excursions - friends and family

travel free or with discount.

 

And as usual even NCL does it level best to keep everyone confused.

One of these is the DSC (Daily Service Charge) - everyone has this

added to their cruise invoice in varying amounts - it is used to uniformly

tip (gratuity) the crew (all of them except for the officers butlers and

concierge) So this is supposed to take care of tipping anyone that helps

your during the cruise ! BUT you can tip more if you want to and to a

specific crew member - you also can withhold a portion or all of the

DSC if something really went wrong and haywire that was not adjusted

to your satisfaction. Read more about tips and gratuities - sometimes

this gets to be hot button topic

 

YMM-certainly-V

 

Also your MINI-SUITE does not give you all the bells buzzers and real

deals of a full suite. It is nothing more than a DELUXE balcony cabin

with a few extra square feet of space which may include a bath tub -

cruises of several days the extra space may or may not offer respite.

On some ships the extra space may offer more closet or storage space.

As for Location mini-suites are generally on upper decks with better

than average viewing - located mostly on the sides mid-ship less so

in the bow or stern.

 

At NCL CC we have a lot to offer - read on - come back with questions !

 

Are you working directly thru NCL or a TA (Travel Agent) ?

 

And Welcome aboard here at CC (the NCL version) !

[Lido_Deck]

Thanks all, for your thoughtful replies. And, yes, I expect differences...even though I am Elite on Princess I've barely ever used the drycleaning...but, yes...the internet minutes are nice.

 

Any sacrifices are made up for by the price though. 1099/pp for a 7 day in a MiniSuite? I mean...c'mon. Hard to pass that up.

 

I can't wait.

 

LOL! That's way too pricey for me. I can stack up quite a bit of OBC with Princess so I only cruise on NCL (or any other cruise line) when I can get a 7 day Inside for under $300...Oh, yeah...That's for a single.

[LastUsernameEver]

That's great! You know how to find those deals!

 

I want a balcony this time. So...for me this is a great price.

 

LOL! That's way too pricey for me. I can stack up quite a bit of OBC with Princess so I only cruise on NCL (or any other cruise line) when I can get a 7 day Inside for under $300...Oh, yeah...That's for a single.

[Lido_Deck]

That's great! You know how to find those deals!

 

I want a balcony this time. So...for me this is a great price.

 

I'm fortunate enough to live 20 minutes from Port Everglades and 45 minutes from POM so I don't have to worry about airfare and can wait until the last minute for the great deals.

 

I can easily take two or three cruises for the for the price of one balcony cruise so I just won't pay for one.