PaperSniper4

I dunno, that link sounds like cruise passengers can no longer use the Whale Lot. Of course, there has been misinformation on the interest before......😉 Doug

Very true. However, $25-$26 is still very expensive for parking.

Is this official? Anyone have a source for this? Sounds odd that that large "Whale" parking lot would suddenly be closed....and $25 per day is nuts; higher than the last time we parked near the Los Angeles cruise terminal. Doug

When I compared the Celeb Concierge cabins to the MA cabins on NCL it was for size and amenities, not price. Yeah, Celebrity generally costs more than NCL, but there are a lot of exceptions. Gotta watch those sales!😎 Yeah, the size of the balconies on NCL, at least on the ship's we've sailed (Spirit, Star, Dawn, Jewel, Breakaway) are tiny compared to Celebrity and others. It's a big deal for us for sure, but not enough for us to switch over to Carnival. We used to sail Carnival often (remember we sail from NOLA a lot), but Carnival's demographics just don't mesh with us anymore. Too loud, too busy, too rude in our experience. We like Carnival's ships just fine, and the cabins are some of the best out there. But every cruise line has things we like and don't like; thank goodness we still have a choice! Doug

We sail on Celebrity and NCL quite a bit. We are about your age. The nearest cabin type to the Celeb Concierge cabins is the "Club Balcony Suite" cabins on NCL, IMO and based on our experience on the NCL Breakaway for the last few years. Balconies in general on NCL are much, much smaller. However, the cabins are nice on both. The "perks" packages between Celeb and NCL are vastly different. Celeb's includes much more and has always included gratuities on those beverage, etc, packages. Often the price for NCL does NOT include the grats on the specialty meals and beverage packages - and those can be very expensive. And of course NCL's daily "cabin etc" gratuities are the highest in the industry. Cabin service and similar items usually cost more on NCL also, although I suspect Celeb will also offer the "more for less" that all the cruise lines are offering now. It's hard for them not to do so when their ships are sailing near 100% capacity. Demographics are better on Celebrity IMO with less unruly young people and kids. But then I am an old curmudgeon!😁 Hope you enjoy NCL, I'm sure you will in spite of the differences between it and Celebrity. We sail NCL often because they sail from a port to which we can drive (NOLA). We would prefer Celebrity or Princess, but alas, only NCL and Carnival and RCI <fall only> sail from NOLA. Doug

Merry Christmas, and drive carefully on the way to Nashville. We're about 20 miles east of Memphis, so wave as you cross the AL/TN border. You have provided a bunch of people with invaluable information on the ship and itinerary! Doug

Wonder if NCL adds a 20% gratuity to that also?🤑 Not that NCL would ever be called the King of Nichol and Diming, ya'know.😉

We've had 42 cruises....first two were inside...then 2 ocean views....all the rest have been balconies. It's impossible for my wife to go back to a lesser category. I, of course, yield to her wishes....I don't fight for a lesser category anymore!😉 Doug

Pet peeve of mine....I read the daily planner that was delivered to our cabin each evening, taking notes or highlighting events that interest me. So I know what's available the next day....then around breakfast time the CD proceeds to yak yak yak saying EXACTLY what was printed! I know I am a curmudgeon, but why? I dread the day we can no longer get that info in printed form the night before, and have to rely instead on our phone app or the yak yak from the CD! Can you tell I am an old fogey?😁 Doug

I'm enjoying his posts also, very informative. I think he ought to ignore his unappreciative wife's rolling of the eyes!😉 You asked about coffee in the cabin, which is important to us also. Nothing quite like sipping good coffee on the balcony watching the ocean roll by. Here's something I clipped from another thread on CC somewhere concerning coffee on the Breakaway. I might be a year old: ==> COFFEE: We can ask the steward to bring us a Hamilton Beach coffee maker. “I think the coffee from the Hamilton Beach machines is pretty good. I generally bring some extra pods with me to avoid having to ask for extra pods every day - from Amazon etc. "Senseo coffee pods". I have not decided if it's worth the hassle of asking for the coffee maker and perhaps getting some of those extra pods to bring with us. Coffee in the morning is super important for us, so we mainly use cabin service if available early (as in 0600), or I'll hike up to the lido deck with our insulated cups, or to the coffee bar is our cruise includes specialty coffees....we don't have that on this cruise; we have the "cheap seats" standard beverage package. Plus the $6 NCL charges for just coffee on their ships irritates me a bit.....I am so cheap I might always hike up to the lido for coffee every morning.....I wear cargo pants and carry insulated cups with lids...the croissants will fit into my cargo pants.....I've done it before!😎 Doug

I may be in the minority, but in my opinion, I could sail quite happily without a cruise director on board. I do feel the need for a ship's captain, and of course, for the hotel director who is always the guy that makes or breaks a cruise. 😎 Doug

Thanks. I think when we last sailed rolls n coffee was still without charge. Roger that on the coffee, I remember now. Doug

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Thanks, must have been for dinner I assume. So we will plan on eating dinner earlier. Better earlier than later for our old digestive systems. 😳 Doug

This 30 minutes was for lunch or dinner? What time? We generally eat around 1730-1830 (aka 530pm-630pm). Hopefully the long wait times are later than that. Doug

Yeah, yeah. Dirt cheap then....but what about ME? I bought CCL at $65 long before the plague came.😩 I'd have to cruise until I'm 112 years old to recoup that money! That experience soured me on cruise line insurance, even though I know it's probably still a pretty good investment. I ought to get NCL's since we plan to mostly cruise from NOLA from here on. We don't sail on Carnival anymore, at least not any cruises from domestic ports. Doug

Thanks, I'll note that for our cruise in March. We did like the Manhattan MDR, and we usually eat pretty early so it was not too crowded. Doug

Thanks, I was asking in jest anyway, but I did not know that, so thanks. Doug

You docked at Punta Langosta, yes? We like that area because it's near our favorite place to get a beverage and/or brunch, Las Palmeras. We have been to Coz so many times we're sometimes tempted to not disembark, but then we remember the fun and good food we've had at that restaurant, and off we go. (Warning: their margaritas are POTENT). We were recently in Cabo San Lucus on the west coast; what a different vibe from Cozumel. Neither bad, just very different. Also, you have visited at least two of the MDR's so far. I'm wondering which you prefer and why? On our last Breakaway cruise we use the Manhattan for all meals other than the "Specialty Dining" at Cagney's and Le Bistro. We enjoyed the Manhattan, and just never got around to trying the others. Keep in mind we are two oldsters and like peace and quiet and decorum over excitement! I don't recall the loud music in Manhattan you mentioned, I suppose we were never seated too close to the band. Doug

I'm the former, but fortunately not the latter. I wonder if I can get a 25% discount? 27 years USN. Doug

I believe NCL will collect a tax on beverages until you are out of Lousiana waters. That is applied with or without the NCL beverage package. So basically the first night; at least for us, we hit the sack before leaving the Mississippi river. 😉Seems on our last NOLA cruise that was around $2 or so per drink? Can someone confirm; I am curious. Doug

Ah, inflation, inflation. Sure glad I got that HUGE SS increase since inflation is so low right now.....😉 Doug

HoosierShipmate, thanks for the reply regarding the Whale Lot. Doug

I'm assuming non-refundable OBC still cannot be used to pay the gratuities? So sad.......😪

We often cruise out of NOLA also and drive down from near Memphis. In our younger days we'd drive the 420 miles in one go, leaving home around 0500 to be sure to get on the ship with a little buffer time. However, now we're older we plan next March to drive to a Hammond, LA motel the day before, then do the 90 minute drive to the Breakaway the following morning. Coming home we will just drive straight back. We have not sailed out of NOLA since October 2019 <also on the Breakaway>, so we're curious about the changes at the cruise port, especially the Whale Parking lot. I recall we paid about $20 a day last time to park there. There have been reports of vandalism; I hope those are overblown. I'm curious as to lunch that first day on the ship. We're in a Club Balcony Suite (category MA) cabin if that makes a difference. Those are not real suites BTW for those who are new to NCL. We always avoid the lido deck for most meals, and especially for that first day craziness. Sometimes one of the MDRs has a lunch available. Would you please check if something like that on your cruise? I think last time we went to O'Sheehan's on deck 7. But it was pretty crowded also. Yes, please post the dailies when you can. We're interested in all that's going on, although we probably will not attend many shows, etc. Our last two cruise this year resulted in both of us getting Covid on one, and Norovirus on the other. This in spite of exceptional efforts like hand washing, masks, Purell, bleach towelettes, gloves, etc. I guess our immune systems aren't what they used to be!😪 If we have health issues on our March 2024 cruise we will probably discontinue cruising. That would be very sad. Enjoy your cruise!😀 Doug