I am planning to go by myself, get a room with a balcony, and seriously just spend most of the day lounging in my balcony, watching the sea, cry, read book, watch a movie on my ipad...and then only going out to grab food as needed. Would this be a good cruise for me to go on?
Is this doable? Or will we lose our minds? I think husband and I would have to use the upper bunks since our kids are young and might fall off.
ETA: OOPS I MEANT 2, NOT 3 ADULTS. Sorry fat finger
I went on the Escape for my second time, returned today. I don’t remember it being offered on my last sailing but this sailing had a live show for the Fleetwood Mac Rumors album. This may be a hot take but it was one of the best shows I’ve seen on the ship yet, even a good bit over Choir of Man.
Absolutely amazing performance, great costume design, I dug the props, had some fun storytelling of the backstory of songs, just something I wish they did beyond only one night. I’m surprised I didn’t see anyone talking about it before my past two cruises.
Purchased ncl care when booking cruise this year and this would be first time utilizing travel insurance to submit a claim. Cruise is a month out, debating difference between going for 100% vs the 90%. Partner has long term chronic condition and has been under doctor care for years but condition has worsened since booking cruise. Im concerned how frustrating and time consuming gathering/submitting paperwork process might be and then to just get it denied.
I had a great PCC in april. When booking she said the 90% would be a refund to original method, minus losing the travel insurance costs. But based on other reddit posts, it looks like the 90% is a future cruise credit. Can anyone confirm? Or do they give you choice of cruise credit or refund? Is there a deadline it has to be used by, cause it doesnt seem like we'll be able to go anytime soon?
That same PCC is no longer there so completely open to using another patient PCC rep that might be able to help too. I called ncl care/aon and due to language differences, they just said submit a claim and see what happens. Unless anyone has a direct reliable contact for them where i could ask questions?
Hi! so I’m going on the ncl getaway at the end of the month and I’m wondering what I can do on the ship as an 18 year old. I’ve only ever been on Royal Caribbean growing up, and the last cruise I went on I was 16 so I could still go to the teen club, but since I’m 18 I’m aware I’ve aged out of ncl’s teen club.
are there nightclubs on board? if so, can I access them as an 18 year old or do I have to be 21? what is the drinking age too? I plan on drinking in the Bahamas since 18 is their drinking age but idk if I can on board. can I access the adult only pools being 18? lastly, what activities are available for my age group? I’m worried about there being nothing to do for my age group because it seems targeted more towards older adults.
if anyone has any info or insight from past experiences, please share! thank you!
So for context, I’ve never officially been on a cruise. I had my first cruise booked and paid on NCL Encore the first year it came out and sailed out of NY, obviously 2020. May was supposed to the the cruise to Bermuda…everyone knows the rest. So I was a bit bummed and a little put off just because of everything going on with COVID blah blah. Fast forward, me and the girlfriend have been discussing vacations, our 2nd year together so the booked cruise wasn’t with her.
Long story long, the “Freedom Sale” feels like a good deal, is it? Would likely be departing from somewhere on the east coast going south or Bermuda.
Have been looking at new ships and it seems Aqua has some very mixed reviews. Any information is appreciated!!
First time cruiser here going on Aqua 7 day later this year.
For a per day view of drink package with 2 adults this is my mental math being written down.
FAS is $28.50+$20 room charge = $48.50
FAS+ is 28.50+$50-$20 room charge = $58.50
Am I seeing this right?
Thanks!
I’m booked on to a Mediterranean cruise on the Gem later this year and wondering how the Sushi speciality restaurant works, especially as a solo traveler.
Is it order one from each section or interactive with the chefs and order as required with a time limit?
I did a 7 night cruise to Cozumel, Roatan, Harvest Caye, and Costa Maya and I had a blast! This was my first cruise and I had no idea what to expect, but this subreddit was super helpful for preparing!
The food was a LOT better than I was expecting. Online reviews for Escape's food seemed pretty split, but I loved basically everything I ate. The buffet was pretty meh, but I just ate there on embarkation day because it was the only thing open for breakfast. The Manhattan Room, Savor, and Taste were all delicious, I highly recommend the shrimp linguine alfredo. O'Sheahan's was surprisingly good too; the fish and chips was especially tasty. The American Diner was about what I was expecting, its basically non-union Johnny Rockets. Tasty but nothing to write home about. I only ate there once.
I did specialty dining at La Cucina, Cagney's, La Churrascia, and Bayamo, and the food blew me away. I left dinner every night stuffed to the gills, and I really liked the option to dine on the promenade. Sipping a cocktail while you watch the ship pull away from port and the sun start to set is very vibey, it felt like I was on the Titanic(good).
I do think La Churrascia didn't do enough to distinguish itself from Cagney's. It was delicious, but at the end of the day it was a bunch of (delicious) steak and side dishes, same as Cagney's. One of the Vibe bartenders told me that when the ship goes to drydock this fall, they will be expanding Cagney's to fill the La Churrascia space, so it seems I'n not the only one who found La Churrascia was superfluous. On the plus side, they did a great job with the tableside meat service even for those of us dining outside. I never had to flag anyone down or gesticulate through the window to get more picanha. But if I had to do it over I'd probably choose Le Bistro or Food Republic over La Churrascia.
The Vibe Beach club was so worth it, Alvin and James freaking rocked. It was so nice to know I could stop by and get a drink or chill on a lounger without having to fight the crowds on the pool deck. (and boy was the pool deck crowded!) One thing to note is that it does get quite windy on the top decks, and there were times when it was too windy for the staff to deploy the umbrellas. So if you want guaranteed shade, grab a seat at the bar or spring for a cabana.
The entertainment options were a bit of a mixed bag but overall good! Choir of Man was amazing (definitely worth seeing), the Crew Talent Show was cute and fun, but the stand up comics were pretty meh. I saw Mike Head's 18+ show and he started strong, (I think he was at his best when he was doing crowd work!) but fell back on a lot of tired stand-up tropes about vegetarians, trans/nonbinary people, and fat people. None of it was super offensive or rude, the takes were just stale and very much what you'd hear from any other "edgy" stand-up comic. By the end of his set I half expected to hear how there's too many milk options at coffee shops, or how much airline food sucks lol
Cabin-wise, I did half the cruise in a solo studio and half in an inside room, moving cabins because of a leaky pipe in my studio. Having the extra space in the full sized room was nice, but honestly I liked the solo studio way better. Despite being smaller, you could tell that the layout was very intentionally designed to maximize the small space. I'd like to get a balcony next time I cruise, but I would happily do another week in a solo studio no problem
We are traveling to Venice (Ravenna) for a Mediterranean cruise next month. We wanted to figure out logistics and possibility of us this:
We land at Venice airport at 855am the day of cruise disembarkation. We have never been to actual Venice and wanted to do a gondola ride before the departure but I didn’t realize the dang port is so far. Has anyone done this or had an ant experience? Ships leaves at 5pm. We also would love to know best way to get to port
Going on a Baltic Sea cruise and want to bring some THC, either gummies or vape. Anybody done this before?
I have a cruise on the NCL Luna coming up soon and I was just wondering what to expect from my cabin. I have a forward facing suite on deck 9 and I didn’t realize it at the time of booking but the theater/club appears to be just below us on deck 8. Has anyone here stayed in forward cabins at or near the very front of the ship on deck 9? Did you notice a lot of noise and vibration from the theater/club? If so, what time of night does the club close? I’m asking because we’re bringing my elderly mother on her first cruise and I hope to make this a pleasant experience. I tried looking online for answers but I guess because the ship is new, there are no reviews yet for my particular cabin.
Hi does anyone have recommendations for third party service for health travel insurance as i will not be using what norwegian is charging me for? Also happy 4th everyone!
I got the free at sea package but having never been to a bar or really drink before, what’s the interaction like? Do you just walk up and ask for something? Is it weird to ask for hard liquor (I want to try things to see what I like) and walk around? Where do you drop off cups? Not really wanting to sit down and drink at the bar. Sorry if stupid question. Thanks!
I paid $2,157 for an interior for my husband and I. This included the FAS drinks package.
I see I can bid $120 per person as the lowest for a balcony upgrade.
Is it really worth it?
And do the lowest amounts I can bid fluctuate or lower even closer to the cruise?
Or will they always be this price?
First time cruiser here so trying to figure out my way still. My husband and I truly don’t mind the inside but if the balcony is really amazing I won’t mind the upgrade.
I saw people on my last cruise who had whiteboards on their doors and have been wanting to do one too now. Is the door itself magnetic? Or do I have to get a hook of some sort to hang the whiteboard on to
Edit: since people think I’m just putting up a blank whiteboard for whatever reason, it’s for questions… my hallway last cruise had 3 whiteboards where they asked daily questions, I made sure I passed those doors everyday so I could answer with the multitude of other people who answered.
Ok forgive me but this is my first cruise as a high gambler. How can I get 10K on board without paying a ridiculous amount of fees? I really don't want to bring that much cash on the boat.
On a cruise, what can I use credit card points for?
Sailing on the NCL Breakaway soon to Bermuda. Got the free at sea package for the specialty dining mostly but also a couple drinks when I want one and whatever the wife may want also. Saw the advertisement to upgrade to Free at Sea Plus, and it said unlimited access to bottles water. Which raised my alarm bells.
Do I need to pack a water bottle to have access to drinkable water? Or is the bottled water they offer, (for purchase apparently), the only water on ship? I plan on working out during the vacation too so I would imagine there is water in there but maybe not? I appreciate any information people have.
P.S. if anyone has info on the gym on Breakaway Id be curious to hear about that too. Whether its just cardio machines or if they have free weights and cardio machines.
My husband and I just got off the Aqua this morning. He had never cruised before and was wary of the crowds and lines, but I convinced him to try it (I cruised once before on RC, pre-pandemic). We purchased Free at Sea Plus so we could drink top shelf everything, have unlimited Starbucks, bottles of water, and streaming internet. Here are our thoughts.
1.The ship: some say the layout is confusing but we had no issues. I'm terrible at new spaces but I learned it quickly. Staying on decks 6/7/8 became our go-to which meant no long elevator rides, just some stairs. We found the decor beautiful and inviting, modern but not cold. Plenty of little nooks and crannies to sit and enjoy the ocean. It was also super clean and never smelled.
Yes, it lacked pools/ability to swim. You can't really swim at all as the main pool is tiny and shallow. The two other infinite pools are small. The two hot tubs are packed at all times. We didn't mind too much but for kids this might not work. The kids area in general had no pool and just a small splash pad for toddlers. Our first sea day was totally rained out and it did feel crowded.
The cleanliness: amazing. Spotless and no bad smells the entire trip. The daily room cleaning crew hit it out of the park: super friendly and accommodating. I had brought my own bed linens and blankets (I just sleep better with them) and they nicely made the bed with them each day. Our PJs folded and put on our pillows. Fresh towels whenever we wanted. And again, it smelled fresh and clean the whole trip - not overly perfumed or bleach-y.
a. Indulge Food Hall: we went for breakfast each morning. We like a little bit of everything in the am and it worked well for us. Highlights: blueberry compote for pancakes, mini omelets, crispy bacon, soft baked goods. Best thing we ate on the boat, by far: Tamara Indian food station. We love Indian food and it was as good as anything in NYC - don't miss the chicken korma, lentils, garlic naan, and chicken biryani. Perfectly spiced and not salty.
b. Surfside Cafe: we went for a buffet dinner one night. Yes, like most say, it's a poor layout - narrow and only one path for food. RC's buffet was more easily navigated and less crowded. The variety was good but the quality hit or miss. We liked: fried lemon cauliflower, jerk chicken (but get the sauce to add needed spice), simple salad station (we needed greens), berry cobbler, and rum cake. We did not like any of the pastas (dried out from sitting) or the pizzas (congealed cheese and not tasty).
c. Observation Deck: great hidden snack spot. Loved the scones and mini tea sandwiches. Also a quieter part of the ship.
d. Specialty dining, two included with Free at Sea Plus:
LE BISTRO: beautiful dining space and we got a lovely booth at a window. Unfortunately we didn't love the food. My goat cheese salad was dry, the french onion soup very salty. My coq au vin was perfectly cooked but also very salty. The fish was light and nothing special. The dark chocolate dessert was my favorite on the entire ship, however - not too sweet or rich and very delicious.
CAGNEY'S: it gets rave reviews for a reason. Wedge and caesar salads both crispy with fresh dressing. Filet mignon and rib eye both a perfect medium and medium rare. My husband is picky about his steak but he was very impressed. Baked potato side dish fresh and hot with the ability to choose toppings - cheese, sour cream, bacon bits, chives. We both loved the raspberry creme brulee dessert - crunchy sugar topping and not too sweet.
e. Main Dining Rooms: we went to Hudson's and the Commodore. Same menus at both, but we preferred Hudson's due to the more open air feel and sleeker decor (Commodore felt dark to us). On RC you can make a res for a specific time and I did miss that - this was the longest time we waited in a line the whole trip, as we just didn't time dinner to avoid the crowds. In general, though, pleasantly surprised by the MDR - chicken dishes tasty and not at all dry, fish dishes light but flavorful. Fig and apple tart just okay, chocolate mousse cake very good. We got the wine pairing included with Free at Sea Plus and liked the majority of the pairings. Dare we say it was better than Le Bistro.
Final thoughts on the food: Yes, Norwegian doesn't really have snack stations throughout the day like RC does, and late night after 9pm all you have is a small menu at the Local with burgers and pretzel bites. We knew this going in. But one huge miss we found was when they streamed a USA World Cup game on the main pool deck TV. The deck was packed and it was 9pm. Literally zero food served. It would have been awesome with some popcorn, pizza, something fun and festive. Everyone was drinking and could have used some snacks.
If you like coffee, get the Starbucks included. The ship coffee isn't good and won't give you a buzz.
The bars: we chose our favorites and returned often. The Whiskey Bar was best, great vibe and made the best drinks. Swirl Wine Bar was hidden and quiet. Other bars on the ship were fine and we never waited too long for drinks.
The entertainment: we didn't do many activities on the boat but my husband enjoyed the casino. We went to two themed DJ nights, the 80s and 70s. The app showed a 90s party but it never happened and we were sad! I love 80s music and that night was great - they even showed retro music videos on a big screen. Good song choices and not too crowded. We added on a wine + cheese tasting at Onda and enjoyed it - four wines and four cheeses, easy to follow sommelier who guided us through the short tasting. We tried to go on the Aqua Coaster but we chose a sea day to try it (obvious mistake) and the line was too long, so we decided to forgo.
The internet: we got unlimited streaming with our package. It was fine. Scrolling on our phones worked well. When we tried to stream from Netflix or Verizon Fios it was glitchy and at some times better than others, but we expected that.
The crowd: lots of cruisers seem to worry about kids being the most annoying people on board, but the kids on our ship were better behaved than the adults! We witnessed people cursing at ship employees when they came late to the food hall and missed lunch. A short wait in a Starbucks line had adults huffing and puffing. The kids were just happy to get their mocha fraps. Of course the chair hoggers showed up at 5am to claim loungers on sea days, but we expected that. Getting a chair mid day was easier once everyone went to lunch. We did one NCL excursion to the crystal caves and many adults on the bus complained the entire time - it was too hot, too long of a trip, the driver was talking too much, the caves had too many steps - which means they didn't read what the excursion was all about, and that's on them. The kids? Happy and excited to see such an old cave and listen to the cool history.
Overall: we enjoyed Norwegian and would repeat. My husband was pleasantly surprised at the ability to escape the crowds on the ship and lack of long lines. However, if we bring our son (he's 10), we would probably try for a ship that has more slides/water activities that would keep him busy.
AMA!