NCL Getaway Redux - Live Junket from 12/31/22 - 1/8/23

[cruiseny4life]

What a perfect day.

 

[mking8288]

4 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

Fast facts from Meet and Greet ... 

4,424 passengers onboard (99.9% full, not double occupancy, but full, full)

1,450 crew - this is 300 more than our more than double occupancy full (4,100) cruise I'm April. It's 150 less than our 35% full cruise in September. Funny how those numbers work, eh?

We are going full speed to Orlando as it's the only way to get there in such short time. I wonder if last week's cruisers would agree? They departed NYC at 6 AM the next day and still made it to Orlando on time.

Thanks for all that, I'm sure fellow CC'ers on our roll call are following all these useful & informative update ... plus more from next week's GA sailing.  Looks like GA at full speed (that could anywhere be at 18 to 20 knots or 21 to 23 knots if wind & sea states are favorable, marinetraffic has her at 19.4 knots & updated ETA of 1:45 pm (scheduled arrival @ 1 pm ??)  ... isn't that going to be a very short visit to PC ??  We would never bother with going to theme parks (especially today being a holiday & long lines) or even downtown Orlando, etc.  

 

Last night, GEM was really pushing hard at 23 knots coming up the Jersey coast, must've got a strong tailwind for that extra top end speed.  Our friends reported that on their recent GEM T/A crossing with rough seas, best that they did was no more than 13-14 knots ... maybe, they left one of the engine off in eco-mode for a sustainable blueprint, LOL.  

 

Any ideas as to whether the Dine With Officers and BTS tours are starting up anytime soon ... wine tasting are being offered ??   When we had the GA Meet & Greet last March, none of them came - except 2 from the ship's Group Services ... we only met some of the officers at the VIP cocktail reception in the Bliss Lounge.  We dine with the ship's Public Health Officer and trainee from corporate HR, explaining that they were still "isolating" and protecting the team from the bridge, minimizing and avoid direct contacts with passengers - Mario was the GM then, but Metin looked familiar, perhaps he was wearing a different hat ... holding another job title last year.   

 

If you have & get a chance to upload, calling cards/names & titles of the officers contact onboard the GA would be appreciated and helpful too, TIA.  If not, no big deal as Laszlo doing a Live post next week is going to try ... those of us on later sailings lurking here.  

 

Just to clarify, they close down the buffet for cleaning after 9:30 pm nightly - nothing available after evening dinner services ... not even light snacks, burgers, hotdogs, fries & finger sandwiches, fruits, cookies & fruits, etc. (discontinued)  - that means, exactly as you described - O'Sheehan's and Room Services, for real.  Wow, that's a "change" for 2023 that can catch a few folks by surprise & aren't even talking about the good old midnight buffet.  

 

Love all that pictures ... much thanks for taking time away from enjoying Haven to do this.  Enjoy sunny FL and the rest of the cruise, while we are looking at wet weather ahead this week in NY, in the form of showers & warm temperature - 50's and hitting low 60's this Wednesday.  

[kitkat343]

Can you post the dallies if possible?  Or just look on there for the kids club hours?   Thanks so much.  

[cruiseny4life]

Conserving internet minutes until I get cell service or my husband stops WORKING!!! Ugh... @mking8288, we have a nice long stop at Port Canaveral now. We are scheduled for a late arrival of 3:30 PM.

 

This means we will stay overnight, switch berths at midnight, and remain in Florida until 4 PM tomorrow. No one has told us what the rest of the cruise looks like. 

 

Will they cancel GSC as they have for so many others? Will they cancel Bermuda and substitute Nassau or Miami? 

 

Argh...we all know changes happen. I'm trying to roll with the punches. Ill keep everyone updated.

[cruiseny4life]

Drum Roll!!! 

 

No pun intended.

 

Syd Norman's! Here we go. The story:

 

There has not been a Syd's band on board for the last three to four cruises. There is currently no Syd's band onboard.

 

@Laszlo, it sounds like you're unfortunately out of luck. @mking8288are you cruising in mid-January? You might be in luck.

 

I was told by a well-placed crew member that the Syd's band might be back by mid-January. Not any sooner. Karaoke it is for now.

 

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news for some.

[cruiseny4life]

Day 1 Freestyle:

 

 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

Day 2 Freestyle:

 

 

 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

Update time!

 

So we leave tomorrow at 3:30 PM tomorrow from Port Canaveral.

 

Next up is Nassau at 7 AM until 6:30 PM

 

Then Great Stirrup Cay from 7 AM To 6 PM ( I think).

 

Two sea days and a return to NYC on the 8th.

 

No Bermuda. Two cruises in a row!

[bren61]

Why all the changes to itineraries? What is going on?

[cruiseny4life]

13 minutes ago, bren61 said:

Why all the changes to itineraries? What is going on?

We are now docked in Port Canaveral with several other ships. A Disney ship, one Carnival, and two Royal Caribbean ships. Not sure the other one.

 

 

Anyway, they told us a strong current prevented us from entering Cape Canaveral at our 1 PM scheduled arrival time. My issue with this is that last week the Getaway left Manhattan 12ish hours late and was still able to dock in Port Canaveral on time. I reallybwant to believe the captain, but I struggle with that right now.

 

As for Bermuda, supposedly the weather both days will be kind of gross. But the forecast shows Bermuda pleasant on Thursday and thunderstorms on Friday. The maitre d in the Haven mentioned weather from Bermuda to NY would be foul. Perhaps. 

 

I always err on believing the captain, but in this case I'm just not sure. Alas, my vacation will not be ruined. We will enjoy ourselves, find a beach, and have good food! But, I was looking forward to Bermuda, as was my husband. 

 

Here's the updated itinerary.

 

[cruiseny4life]

3 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

Can you post the dallies if possible?  Or just look on there for the kids club hours?   Thanks so much.  

I'll be updating throughout the cruise, as data allows. I posted days 1 and 2 so far. I hope they helped!

[cruiservictor]

1 minute ago, cruiseny4life said:

I'll be updating throughout the cruise, as data allows. I posted days 1 and 2 so far. I hope they helped!

Thank you. Much appreciated. If, at the Meet and Greet, they gave you a card with the names of the Hotel Department officers, would you please post that as well?  Thanks and enjoy the rest of your cruise. 

[Laszlo]

44 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

We are now docked in Port Canaveral with several other ships. A Disney ship, one Carnival, and two Royal Caribbean ships. Not sure the other one.

 

 

Anyway, they told us a strong current prevented us from entering Cape Canaveral at our 1 PM scheduled arrival time. My issue with this is that last week the Getaway left Manhattan 12ish hours late and was still able to dock in Port Canaveral on time. I reallybwant to believe the captain, but I struggle with that right now.

 

As for Bermuda, supposedly the weather both days will be kind of gross. But the forecast shows Bermuda pleasant on Thursday and thunderstorms on Friday. The maitre d in the Haven mentioned weather from Bermuda to NY would be foul. Perhaps. 

 

I always err on believing the captain, but in this case I'm just not sure. Alas, my vacation will not be ruined. We will enjoy ourselves, find a beach, and have good food! But, I was looking forward to Bermuda, as was my husband. 

 

Here's the updated itinerary.

 

Thanks for the update..... That sucks

[cruiseny4life]

Day 3 (today's) Freestyle Daily

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

On 1/1/2023 at 1:51 PM, bren61 said:

Wishing you a wonderful cruise!! 

 

My husband and I are on the Jan 20th sailing for 12 night Southern Caribbean cruise and are a little concerned about lack of entertainment being only 3 shows for the 12 nights. If you get a chance, can you see if they are working on getting new entertainment on board anytime soon. I also heard the comedians, magicians, etc were not that good. We love to play cards & can have our own entertainment to occupy some of our time, but we love the shows, etc and that is a big factor in our cruising, so hoping that they will have something to replace Syd Norman or they get  new decent comedy or side shows.

 

We love the longer cruises & itinerary NCL offers, but prefer RCL's entertainment much more, we seem to flip flop between the 2 lines. 

 

 

Syd's aside - we've been to two of the comedians. One we've gone to twice (JT Fuller). The first night he was good. The second he was great. Really awesome improv interaction with the audience. The last 20 minutes were similar to his first show. The other (Scott Wyler) had some laughable jokes, but all one liners, extremely limited interaction, and some jokes fell flat.

 

There's a singer tonight that is doing a Wicked/Billy Elliott medley. We may go, but the beach might steal us.

 

Million Dollar Quartet and Broadway Unplugged are later in the week. No Junnk dinner show.

 

We are entertained, but we're not really big show goers. 

Edited January 2, 2023 by cruiseny4life

[mking8288]

@cruiseny4life  Thanks so much again for the various updates, nowadays ... we'll just have to roll with the punches with the "Almost Cruise To Nowhere" as NCL called them last minute.  Overnighting is good as long as folks knew ahead and can plan independently - NOT.     

 

Per Marinetraffic site: 4 ships in PC this afternoon - Carnival Freedom, Enchantment OTS, Mariners OTS and Independence OTS.   On a positive note - Jetty Park is easy walking distance, practically right next door this afternoon (until sunset) 

 

Looked at a # of maritime & weather forecasts/charts for today & next several, don't see anything that suggested today's delayed arrival - it anything, a strong tailwind that should've boosted ship's true speed in getting in early.  Tomorrow & Wed's outlook for the Bahamas looking fine, GSC is always 50:50 but later this week ... the North Atlantic including areas around Bermuda & coastal routes heading back to NY, not pretty & mother nature whipping out sea state & waves, again (fairly typical this/any time of the year.)  But, gotta have faith with the bridge team & the captain, staff captain & others responsible ... that safety first.  

 

Yeah, we are sailing her once Laszlo come back.  Whether Syd' Norman will be back, personally, don't matter to us but could be true for others - as long as they don't put on a movie in lieu of the production shows (... could watch them at home at 4k, LOL.) 

 

[cruiseny4life]

7 hours ago, BostonTwo said:

Are there many other gay couples on board this sailing in The Haven? On the ship as a whole?

There are at least two other gay couples in the Haven. I've seen two lesbian couples (not Haven). Otherwise, not as much family as I'm used to seeing onboard. In the past it seemed like half the Haven was one part (or another) of the alphabet soup. Not like that this time. At least I haven't noticed it yet. 

 

The comedian was very gay friendly. He used us for a few jokes and they were funny, but not at our expense. We certainly enjoyed them, as did most of the crowd. NCL has always had a really positive crowd who seem very friendly toward us. 

[kitkat343]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

I'll be updating throughout the cruise, as data allows. I posted days 1 and 2 so far. I hope they helped!

Thanks so much.  Someone on another posting said the kids club is closed on port days, and when I contacted ncl all they could tell me was that each ship is setting its own hours.  I’m on the getaways next sailing so thank you so much - the kids club is open on port days at least for your cruise.  My kids love the kids club, and they’ve already lost the Dominican Republic and the chance to see an island filled with tortoises  (ncl claims for environmental reasons they cut the DR, and the morning from another stop, which is when the tortoise  place is open) and my kids love the kids club.  I asked ncl if they’d let me cancel and they refused, so I am really glad to learn that at least on your sailing the kids club is open.  

Edited January 2, 2023 by kitkat343

[KKB]

On 12/31/2022 at 4:26 PM, cruiseinfoseeker said:

im going to chime in here. I am on the 1/8 sailing. A person who has been a group member for that sailing on some other site had said a few weeks back that her daughter is one of the singers at Syds (and would be on our sailing 1/8 as that is why she was going). So when I read this week that there was no band there I asked her if her daughter was on anymore. She indicated that the band isn't on any more and they have no indication whatsoever when (or if) they are going back. The lady was heartbroken and might cancel because of this. I didn't ask for any further details as it seemed tacky to do that. But the way she expressed it was obvious that her daughter and the band had every intention of being on at this point because the mother would not have booked the cruise in that case.

 

---Now, was the contract over and they weren't renewed? Were they displaced mid-contract? Are they negotiating?...etc?, etc?, etc? (insert any number of rampant speculations here). She did not give any details that would help determine the reason.  But I will say, this is --to me-- a reliable source. Enough so that I feel comfortable making this comment. It is not a friend of a friend that "heard" from whatever unknown bla, bla, bla that "read" it somewhere. 

I contacted a Syd band member on the Breakaway & she wasn't sure but thought it temporary.

Additionally, someone on another thread posted auditions stateside for Syd bands...

Now, Syds is only showing on the Prima right now as an entertainment option on the NCL site--weird as Breakaway was there a couple days ago (and the band member I spoke with said they are on until June), so who knows what is going on...

[KKB]

8 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

 

Be cautious late night hungry folks. It's O'Sheehans, room service, or nothing after 9:30 or 10'ish at night.

This is a bad plan, IMO. 

Celebrity has a small buffet open later. 

Princess has International Cafe.

Most people want grab & go at that time of night, not a sit down & wait like O'Sheehans...

[kitkat343]

25 minutes ago, KKB said:

This is a bad plan, IMO. 

Celebrity has a small buffet open later. 

Princess has International Cafe.

Most people want grab & go at that time of night, not a sit down & wait like O'Sheehans...

Does O'Sheehans do take out?

[KKB]

24 minutes ago, kitkat343 said:

Does O'Sheehans do take out?

Honestly not sure...but again, you are going to wait...

[cusematt4]

Hope you are enjoying your cruise.

 

the reason why we still arrived on time last week despite the 12 hour delay was that we had 2 sea days scheduled.  By leaving at 6am we still had 2 full days and nights at sea and just lost out on 12 hours, with it only taking a day and a half or so to get from nyc to Orlando.

 

Have you seen Desire at sugarcane yet?  She truly is such an above and beyond crew member.

 

curious how your cruise goes but for us the entertainment is what lacked.  Aside from the comedians, we had a magician and the 2 production shows.  There were 5 nights of no professional entertainment over an expensive holiday sailing aside from live music.

 

and while zennhitt band was amazing, the live music was as severely lacking.  Prior ncl cruises and current rcl cruises have 2-3 duos, 3 full bands and a couple of soloists/pianists.  This ship has one band and 2 duos.  About half the live music a ship this full of this size should have had.  And without syds, ncl should have made up with an additional band or show.

[cruiseny4life]

Current action at Port Canaveral Berth 3. I don't know what this is, but I think I'm right when I say most cruise shipsmdont have giant cranes parked nearby hoisting tunes to the top deck. 

 

[cruiseny4life]