Is Norwegian Abandoning New York

[NYcruzzer]

9 hours ago, MaryZ said:

I just looked to hop on an NCL in March from NYC and there is just the Getaway.

We dislike that ship, so that ends it for us.
It seems to me CAS has been really trying to get us back.  We get offers every other day to book our free cruise...lol
We've been sailing on the Venezia and Royal for the past year.  I do miss the Haven but I won't sail on the Getaway ever again.
Hated it in Miami, hated it even more from NY. 
The Prima doesn't look appealing for cold weather, so that ship is out for us too. 

How did you like Venezia ? We sailed on her in October with a super low casino offer. We hated the ship so much that we canceled our January sailing on her and switched to Getaway 2/6. The Venezia casino is super smoky. More than any other Carnival ship. The little smoke free annex casino didn't have the machines I wanted to play. Service was very spotty. Especially casino drink service and MDR..Next Winter I'm going back on MSC Meraviglia. Nice winter itineraries January '25

[mking8288]

1 hour ago, SoloAlaska said:

Absolutely it was a surprise and we missed Bermuda but it was nice to see a bit of NYC 

Our "Escape" early return to NY topped yours with 3 nights off the VZ Bridge whereas I think you're able to do an early return to Pier 88 ... and allowed to come & go ashore until disembarkation morning, LOL.  Not to mention that "generous" partial OBC and the 10% FCC, which we put to use.  

 

10 hours ago, macewank said:

Yeah if there's one thing for sure on the Prima class ships, they're 100% designed for warm weather.  

Ditto for the Joy in 2018-19 when NCL bailed out of the promised China market and returned to the Americas, on her 3rd dry dock and got retrofitted for outdoor heaters ... it can be remedied at a reasonable costs, if various corporate departments reached a consolidated opinion to move ahead.  Alas, there's not a ship near perfection in the NCL fleet ... and other lines for that matter, grass isn't always greener across the rivers.  NY isn't the exception either.  

 

As for Brooklyn's Red Hook pier vs. MCT, I don't think we'll have a problem if we sail to/from there, aside from noting that there's a moderate risk of storm surge & flooding from waterfront cruise parking (Sandy 2012 ... ditto for Cape Liberty, folks' memory fade whereas Pier 88/90/92 is rooftop & relatively "safe")  Car service/Uber ride will be a cheaper for us & easier to have someone drive us there & drop us off in Red Hook - i.e. MSC.  Looking at them seriously ahead, basic balcony for us starting "well" below NCL's sailaway no-frills, of course, YC and other "experiences" are extras but ... 

 

Meanwhile, there is hope for 2025 as NCL starting to re-shuttle the GA, Epic & other ship schedules, some of them being fully chartered.  Looking at last minute deals & prices, quite a few ships leaving from TA ahead on 2024's Spring TA waves, cheaper than the 10 or 12 days Caribbean loops for us, a matter of adding up the airfares & other incidentals and extra hotel nights, which many cruises do anyway ... not easy for folks working full-time and need their HR approval to take 2+ weeks off.  

[MaryZ]

10 hours ago, NYcruzzer said:

How did you like Venezia ? We sailed on her in October with a super low casino offer. We hated the ship so much that we canceled our January sailing on her and switched to Getaway 2/6. The Venezia casino is super smoky. More than any other Carnival ship. The little smoke free annex casino didn't have the machines I wanted to play. Service was very spotty. Especially casino drink service and MDR..Next Winter I'm going back on MSC Meraviglia. Nice winter itineraries January '25

It can be smokey.  It was bad in September but over New Year's Eve surprisingly, it was not smokey nor as crowded.  The following week we stayed on was for an ultra casino offer and was a little more smokey and more crowded but not as bad as the September cruise. 
We never have a problem with drink service.  My husband makes friends with the servers and tips generously.  Which of course, is the key for good service. 

As far the MDR, ehhhh...it was a toss up.  We do mytime dining but kind of stick with 2 or 3 different tables we like.  So at times the service is slow but overall not so bad.  The food is always the issue.  Most of it I'm not that fond of.  Same for Royal.  But on royal, we pay for the dining package.  We usually go to the steakhouse, Teppanyaki and Bonsai sushi on Venezia.   
We like the ship but only because it's out of NY.  We prefer the excel class (mardi gras etc) and will go out of florida next winter for our cruises. But for now, we are sailing the Venezia for this winter and then the Symphony in the spring.  
We've been on the Meraviglia, it's the most beautiful ship. 

[Faulkh]

On 1/24/2024 at 10:47 AM, PatJim said:

Would ❤️ for you to join us, Bjlaac.

@PatJim That is probably one of the nicest things I have read on here. Kudos