Daveth10

1 hour ago, dbrown84 said:

Actually, I guess you didn't start with a balcony because you would have already had 3 meals.

So used to in the UK to saying outside but yes NCL say "Oceanview" which we upgraded from, through the Upgrade Programme to a Balcony at the amount I bid. I do not believe I get any more than 2 Specialist Dining meals that I got with my original booking. But if anyone can enlighten me then thankyou.

35 minutes ago, dbrown84 said:

Did you notice that you were charged more than your bid amount?  Also, did you mean from inside to balcony?

35 minutes ago, dbrown84 said:

Did you notice that you were charged more than your bid amount?  Also, did you mean from inside to balcony?

Was outside to balcony and I was charged the amount that I bid

6 hours ago, dbrown84 said:

No problem.  Happened to me the first time I upgraded from inside to balcony.  The upgrade rules make it seem like you wouldn't get extra meals, but you do.  It's not considered an extra perk since you had it to begin with 

Hmmm, I have been upgraded through the upgrade programme from Outside to Balcony (12 nights). How can I tell that I have an extra alacarte. My booking still says 2 meals in the "free at sea" section

thankyou for the replies

I will be on the Gem shortly (Balcony Cabin). We will be celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary whilst onboard. Is there any point in letting NCL know this in order to somehow make the day a bit more special in some way.

Sailing 22 November on NCL Gem, yesterday my bid for upgrade from outside to balcony of £110 pp was accepted.

I was offered an upgrade from inside to balcony. The minimum bid was £140 x 2 which subsequently reduced to £135 x 2. £270 total. I however noticed that the cost of a new booking for balcony cabins had reduced considerably (inside cabin cost had barely changed). I contacted my UK travel agent to enquire about paying the extra for a balcony and was quoted only £235 total for the cabin, a saving on the minimum upgrade bid price. I jumped at the offer and also gained the extra "free at sea" alacarte meal which I would not have received if my upgrade bid had been accepted. On my room being allocated it was a BA grade, so highly delighted. 

1 hour ago, v3cruiser said:

Amen to that. BUTTTTTTT. Its still confusing as many ports their own requirements still, some of which on ncl.com are actually contradictory to the respective country's website. 

Yes I am still very confused. Departing in three weeks time on NCL Star from Southampton and calling at 4 ports in Spain. For the un vaccinated, Spain says I need to provide a negative test result but NCL have told me in an email response that I do not?

We are leaving on the NCL Star from Southampton, UK on 26 October 2022. We are un vaccinated. We prefer to have a lateral flow test. NCL states this should be 3 days before departure. I am OK with all this. However looking at Spain's requirements, which the ship visits, they say if using a lateral flow test it has be 1 day prior to departure. This is a conflict with NCL's requirements. Do I understand the rules correctly as I do not want any problems? Also when they say 1 or 3 days before departure does this mean 24 or 72 hours before the ship sails at say 5pm?

I am somewhat confused over the free drinks package as part of the Free at Sea. 3 adults are booked in our cabin . It appears to say that only guests one and two get the free drinks package but elsewhere it states that all guests in a cabin must have the drinks package. We have not been offered a drinks package for guest 3. Do they get it automatically as part of Free at Sea? many thanks for any clarification.

On 12/28/2019 at 10:42 AM, Kerkyra said:

Anyone on Marella Discovery2  leaving Montego Bay on 21st  Jan 2020, stopping at Cozumel on Sunday 26th? If you would like to join us doing the Cozumel Bar Hop on Sunday 26th ,please check out their page. Not just a drinking excursion, it's a wonderful trip to the wild side of the island. Need minimum of 8, at the moment only 4 of us.x

Hello

My wife and I would both be very interested in joining you on this excursion if places are still available. Please if places available contact me with details etc. Many thanks Dave and Liz

Can't imagine what your bar bill will be ��������

Last year we went on two weeks to Carribean with Marella costing 1,100 pounds each, all inclusive. Marella is worth no more than this price. There are better quality and value cruises elsewhere

I’ve seen quite a few comments to the effect that other lines offer better value then Marella.

I’m still waiting for someone to show me a 14 night AI Caribbean cruise with dreamliner flights, in February, for less than the £1350pp that we paid.

I will shortly be going on Cunard's Queen Victoria, 24 nights to the Caribbean, Deluxe inside cabin, for £1,800 each, with 1,300$ of On Board Credit per cabin included

There are a few people like us who use Cunard ships for transportation, not for balls, tuxes or gowns.

 

We take our meals in the buffet, and we do not run around the ship after about 6:00PM.

 

You may never know we are there, and we totally appreciate your views and expectations.

I totally understand your position.

I have been referring to the drop in standards, by many ladies attending the formal nights in the Britannia Restaurant, by just wearing "simple plain trousers and top". More of an effort should be made. One is on a fantastic cruise ship and one has the opportunity to really dress up, yet many ladies didn't seem to make the effort.

All of you that have stated sparkly tops and the like, with smart trousers, great.... I have no issues. It is just that I observed a lot of ladies on formal nights just in an ordinary pair of trousers and plain top. To be honest the sort of outfit that one would see at the local supermarket. I believe on Cunard formal nights one should make more of an effort.

Me too. budget is fine for me :-)

I agree as long as you get a budget ship at a budget price

Vitalsign

looking at newer ships there are two Millennium cruise ship ex celebrity looking for buyers same company i know there not new (2000 and (2001 both 90,ooo tonn,s could replace Dream and Celebration ;p

I have been on Celebrity Millennium and I do not believe Marella will step up to that level of class. Marella seems content at the budget end of the market

We paid extra for premium all inclusive. I would say it was only JUST worth the extra. The main advantage for us of the premium was the ability to have a variety of bottled beers. Also the standard red wine was very poor whilst the premium red wine was perfectly drinkable. Overall it is a close run thing. If I had to recommend to someone that was watching their pennies I would definitely say save your money for something else.

Thank you Scriv. I would say that if you can get a really good deal, it is worth trying. I don't regret my week on D2 even though I am not inspired to sail with them again. I had set my expectations low and they were met. If you have any questions about Marella, feel free to pm me on the other forum (CN).

Britboys, I think you have summed it up perfectly, we enjoyed our cruise, I wouldn't choose to go with Marella again, and would only recommend Marella if one was able to get the cruise at absolute rock bottom prices

Don't kid yourselves with excuses, go and read the reviews on Cruise Critic and other review sites. The majority of reviews say that Marella Cruises are awful and they will not go with them again. In my opinion unless you get a cruise with Marella, (all inclusive) for less than £80 per night inclusive of flights, go elsewhere, as you are being overcharged for poor quality.

We just disembarked from the QM2. Prior to sailing, I referred to this site about the dress standard. Please stop giving misinformation. Men for the most part looked good, but many of the women wore house dresses to dinner on many evenings . It was embarrassing to wear good dressy evening clothes.

I have to agree with everything said in this post. we sailed last year on a 17 day Mediterranean cruise on the Queen Victoria and were surprised to see how on most nights, including formal nights, the number of ladies wearing a simple pair of trousers and blouse. To prove my point we did a survey of people coming out of the Britannia restaurant on a formal night and out of 100 ladies approximately 50% were in trousers. Now in my opinion dressing up for a lady is to wear a nice dress or at least skirt and smart blouse. The majority of men had very nice dinner suits on. So come on those ladies in trousers make more of an effort

Daveth10 - The title of the review "Don't book with Marella - unless you have very low standards" Indicates that people that have booked, have low standards. Its not an accurate statement unless you have very low standards. Maybe for future reviews you should consider the people you are disrespecting with your comments. I'm sure it was not intentional, but it was very rude telling people they have "low standards" and comparing them with people in a working mans club. Have you ever been in a working mans club. I doubt it, they are very fussy and may not let you in......

OK maybe I have been a bit blunt. I am sure that in the past TUI cruises have been excellent, but I strongly believe that peoples behaviour has deteriorated and that has a risk of spoiling what a lot of people perceive to be something a bit special - "Caribbean Cruise"! I have been on two Caribbean cruises before and one Med Cruise (one of which was Thomsons) and I was to be quite frank shocked by what I saw this time, at the back of the ship. Fortunately the rest of the ship was not spoilt and it is still possible to have a great holiday. By my commenting the way I have I want people to know how best to enjoy their cruise.

Everyone is welcome to make their choice on which cruise they decide to book with - All I am reporting is what I overheard a lady say regarding urinating in the pool. I witnessed a fight outside Liberties. I saw the cruise director shocked when he reconciled the stock for the memorabilia sale (in Liberties) against his sales - I heard him say that two items were missing. More than 25% of people around the Lido area were smoking. They are facts. Other people on this site and on the Facebook Marella Celebration group said they heard about two thefts of mobile phones and saw a guest from the Celebration shoplifting in Saint Marten. This is all about the cruise I was on. People have also commented on the many fights that occurred on the trans Atlantic relocation cruise. It is all up to the individuals whether they wish to book a cruise in the future. The point of this review site is for people to relay their good and bad experiences in order that others are better equipped to judge whether to book in the future. I still enjoyed the cruise but avoided the Lido area as much as possible and this is my advice to others, if they so wish. The food, drinks and entertainment was of a good standard as was the ships décor and tidiness. My recommendation for others is not to book until last minute (unless school holiday period) as massive discounts are available. I notice that it is possible today to book the Discovery for two weeks all inclusive Caribbean for just over £1,000 each (early January) including flights. Jumping around a bit but one other recommendation for the Celebration is that it is worth paying £45 to select your cabin in order to avoid front and rear of the ship where vibration was excessive. My cabin was next to the gangway and no vibration was present.

"Guests that frequented the Lido Buffet and pool and Liberties bar at the rear of the ship were generally not up to the standards you would expect on a cruise"

 

And what "standards" would you expect from guests who book a cruise ? Maybe you should suggest the cruise operators send out a "profiling questionnaire" prior to booking

Obviously the cruise company cannot be selective over who joins the cruise - this is out of their hands. What I want to let people know is the type of guests that are now being attracted to Marella. If you are happy to have a holiday with people that steal, fight, smoke excessively and urinate in the pool then go ahead and book a cruise with Marella.

So many people on review sites are reluctant to be fully open and honest about their cruise. We enjoyed ourselves and met some lovely people. I just want to warn people what they are letting themselves in for. Other people have made similar comments about the ship being like Butlins, being like a booze cruise etc. I have also offered advice about where you can avoid the undesireables at the back of the ship. i.e. eat in the Meridian for all meals, sunbathe on top deck, frequent Horizons and Hemmingways rather than Liberties (where the fighting and thefts occurred).