Pope Francis

How do I edit my email on this site. I have tried several different ways to no avail. Frustrated.

Anyone know if the Super Bowl will be available on NCL Jade? Or where I would look/contact to find out? We are from MN and would love to watch if possible. It’s a sea day. Skol Vikings!

In 3 of the past 4 years I have watched the Super Bowl on an NCL Ship. NCL will be rolling out large TV's to several areas or you can watch it in your room. Go Vikings!!!

We were in Bonaire last Xmas and will be there this Xmas. Last year we booked Woodwind snorkel tours. Easy 5 minute walk from the ship, just walk down the jetty and turn right and you go through a hotel's garden and Woodwinds office is right at the end. Very easy to find.

 

The only thing I found with the snorkel cruise is that the water was exceedingly chopping and churned up for our morning snorkel. Not sure if the afternoon tour is different but it might be something to consider. They offer you soft drinks on board plus after the snorkel they fed you, some kind of noodle dish that we turned down.

 

They have all sorts of equipment that you can use and if you are a bit wary about being in deep or choppy water then their guides are extremely helpful. The guide we had pretty much held on to my wife the whole time apart from when we were in shallower waters. They also have very good prescription masks, my wife has a strong prescription but they had a mask for that.

 

After the tour we walked back into the town (again, no more than 5 minutes to the ship and then kept walking another 2 minutes to a bar). After the bar we walked to the craft market were there were all kinds of local products on sale plus the local animal shelter had a stall selling beer coosies and the like to raise money.

 

This coming Xmas we have booked a golf cart through a local company. Excellent recommendations for the company both on here and on Tripadvisor. Its $90 for the day and includes gas etc. You have to put a $100 deposit down on arrival but they don't bill anything in advance. Apparently we just walk off the ship and they will be waiting.

 

Bonaire is a very pretty and under developed island so it was quite relaxing. Local beer in the bars etc. We are hoping to get to Karels which is just to the left of where the ships dock. Its on a long jetty running out into the water and looks perfect for a few cocktails before heading back on board.

 

Hope this helps

Thank You for the info!!!

We stayed at the Holiday Inn in the Rocks area and it was fantastic! The location was incredible, the HOHO stops at the door, and the rooftop has incredible views of the city, OPT, Opera House, and the Bridge!!

 

 

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Thank You.

Gidday :)

 

We have stayed at the Rendevous, agree it is a little tired, but with 2 young children it had the space we needed at the time. The kitchenette was a bonus as was the short walk to the ship at the OPT.

 

Have also stayed at The Grace, elegant with very spacious rooms and a lovely buffet breakfast. Took a taxi to the wharf, ouch!

 

Most recently there was the York Street Sofitel Apartments. Managed to score one of the 3 bedroom apartments on the top floor. Lovely staff and a manageable walk, downhill, to Circular Quay with our now much older kids.

 

Our next trip we have booked in at Sir Stamford, got a really good advance rate on Expedia, what we booked has now almost doubled in price. Hoping they will do a special on the breakfasts otherwise we can get something at one of the many cafes in the area.

 

I agree that anything close to the trains is viable. Just ensure you are okay with lugging your bags in and out of elevators ;)

 

Hope you have a great stay in Sydney and a lovely cruise!

 

TraceyG:)

Thank You TraceyG!

Looking for Hotel recommendations in Sydney near the Overseas Passenger Terminal and/or Circular Quay that won't break the bank. Thanks!

I have been told that the Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville is very near the port in Falmouth. Free pool, swimup bar, DJ - along with the restaurant.

Thank You!

We were just there and took the bus, which is very easy to do. Bus depot right across the street from the port to the left of that pink palace shopping center. Bus times are posted

We arrived to Aruba at 11 am so we got a later start, so we took the 12:15 bus to Palm Beach. The bus driver announces all the stops along the way. We took the bus to an area at Palm Beach and cut through one of the hotel lobbies. The beach was packed, but we were able to secure 4 chairs with two palapa umbrellas for $40. The beaches are beautiful.

We wanted to go to Eagle Beach instead, but we weren't sure where bathroom facilities were, so we went to Palm instead.

We rented our chairs near one of those long piers, in front of Carlito's Bar. Carlitos had 2 for 1 drinks all afternoon, and the mojitos were excellent! $5 apiece. I recommend the slushy ones

Bus $2.50 pp. pay the driver. Coming back, we were at the bus stop and a commuter van which said "bus" pulled up. My friend inquired if we could get on that bus, and they had room, so it was a fun experience. I think it fit a maximum of 15 people and it was $2 pp back to the bus depot since it is a local bus and not a tourist

Bus. [emoji2]

Thank You!

Thank You!!!

I recommend a tour in Jamaica.

 

A popular one is a visit to Dunn's River Falls.

 

Keith

Thank You! I've shied away from Dunn River Falls and my wife does not walk well so other than beach excursions, we are not sun bunnies, any recommendations?

What activities would you recommend while in port in Falmouth??? Do you need an excursion in this port?

What activities would you recommend while in port in Bonaire??? Do you need an excursion in this port?

What activities would you recommend while in port in Aruba??? Do you need an excursion in this port?

Hopefully someone else can provide a bit more detail but there was one on the far end inside the port area inside the gates and there was another one just outside the gates to the left. I would not characterize them as huge though. We didn't do much shopping so can't tell you much about the pricing and such of each.

Thank You!!!

We are visiting the Port of Falmouth for the first time. Is there a Local Market for Crafts and/or Villager Goods??? In Ocho Rios there is a huge one that I have visited when we port there. If so how far from Port is it?

Yes it does. It says 2 euros but they never charged me for it. Follow the signs for shuttle transfers out of terminal 1 and head to the outside of terminal 2 - it's well signposted up to the point where you reach the multistorey car park. This is because the bus spots are immediately on your left as you face the car park - they have upright signs which tells you which hotel shuttle stops at which stop. I think Crowne Plaza was the middle island.

 

It's about 20 minutes from the airport in a very nice air-conditioned bus, which makes one stop before getting to the Crowne Plaza.

 

The hotel is perfectly situated for both the overground trains and the metro. The overground goes to the main station in 10 minutes, while the metro goes to Norreport in the same time. Between them, that's pretty much the city centre covered. There's a great food market by Norreport station, and the cruise bus leaves from just outside there if you want to catch that. The main station is right next to Tivoli gardens, which are worth a visit.

 

It's easy to buy tickets, but I recommend the City Pass if you're going to make more than a few trips. You can get a text to your phone and then that is all the ticket you need. There's also a version that gives you discounts on attractions as well.

 

Quickest way to the stations is out the back door of the hotel, through the atrium with the trees and out by the coffee shop. About 5 minute walk to both (entrances are next to each other). Couldn't be simpler.

Thank you so much for this!!!

By popular demand (well, two people...)

 

This is the first time I've done one of these, so go easy. I'm happy to answer any specific questions you might have.

 

About me:

Solo traveller. This was my 4th cruise, and 3rd on NLC, but the first time on the Getaway. I was in one of the studio cabins, but didn't really participate in the solo activities. I had the spa pass and the drinks package. I've eaten in all the speciality restaurants on other ships so made use of the free offers this time, with the exception of going to Ocean Blue as it wasn't on the other ships.

 

Copenhagen:

 

I arrived on 12th to see some of the city, as it was the first time I've been to any of the ports on this cruise. Very easy to get out of the airport and catch a free shuttle bus to the crown plaza where I was staying. This is out of the city in Orestad, but is two minutes from a metro station and a train station. It was about 10-15 minutes to the city centre using either. The hotel was very comfy and had a good set of restaurants, free wifi etc and is also just opposite the largest Danish shopping centre, if you're interested in that. There is also a very large park with jogging routes marked. Most interesting was the atrium, which was full of trees. [ATTACH]407361[/ATTACH] (spot the coffee shop).

 

Day 2, I caught the metro in to take a food tour by Copenhagen Food Tours. This started by Norreport and I recommend it if you're in the area. There is a market there with amazing stalls, including the best Danish pastries in Copenhagen. We tried open sandwiches, beer, sweets, local honey, and chocolates. I also met first Getaway passenger on the tour (we basically overran the town). [ATTACH]407362[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407363[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407364[/ATTACH]

 

After that, I spent about 5 hours in Tivoli gardens going on all the rides. Some excellent rollercoasters, and good views of the city centre too! [ATTACH]407365[/ATTACH]

 

Day 3 was the Grand Day Trip Around Copenhagen by Hamlet Tours (both tours are on Viator or can be booked directly). This took us in a small van to the Viking Ship Museum, Kronberg Castle (location of Hamlet), Roskilde Cathedral, and Frederiksborg castle. I recommend this if you want to see a lot of Denmark in a short time, without being rushed. There were several other Getaway passengers on this tour as well [ATTACH]407366[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407367[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407368[/ATTACH]

 

Day 4 I went in to Norreport station and took the bus to the cruise port - with immense thanks to Danish Viking in the ports of call forum who mapped it out for me. It was very easy to use although a bit cramped with suitcases. Funnily enough, when of the friends I made on the ship was also on the bus and we had to struggle over each others luggage (we only worked this encounter out later after several days of tours together). I arrived at 11am, and it took about an hour to get on board even though I was group 7. If you don't like queuing then you should aim for 10.30, or just arrive around 12.30 when the queue seemed to have mostly gone.

 

First goal on board the ship was to get some lunch, so I headed to Savor - which became my favourite restaurant on the ship - and had a relaxing lunch by the window. It was pretty empty, so I recommend it over the buffet.

 

I spent the rest of the day exploring the ship, picking up my spa pass, and eyeing up the rope course and water slides to see if I dared go on them. I ended up reading on the waterfront, which is an amazingly quiet place, and then having dinner at Savor. [ATTACH]407369[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407370[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407371[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407372[/ATTACH][ATTACH]407373[/ATTACH]

We are staying at the Crowne Plaza as well. Does it have airport Shuttles? How far is it from the Airport and Downtown?

Thanks Matha!!!

Sorry I meant Euro...and I give up...The question is not being answered So I will continue to try to find answers somewhere other than Cruise Critic.

So do you carry the denominations with you from the U S.??? Suggestion is to have at least some Rubles on you...But don't use a CC in St Petersburg...Same with Estonia and carrying Marks.

Bad Rates and NCL states that they cannot supply the ship.

U S Banks state that they dont have an answer. So just punt???

Currency Question; Can you get Rubles, Euro's Krona and Or Krone from the ship Pursor in exchange for U.S. Dollars???

given the headaches of customer service and passengers, the embarrassment, monies refunded, bad PR, history of this problem, etc. i would be surprised if NCL allowed the azipods to fail again.

6 times on the Star and after the last fiasco...NCL could not pay me to board that ship. They lie to you up-front...and than when the inevitable happens, they scurry away as if customer service doesnt count. But wait yes they have your money...Never again NCL

100% refund plus 50% off a future cruise to be temporarily stuck off the best city in the world :):). Lucky ducks!

A total lie on NCL's part so lucky...I don't think so...

I went on this cruise to see Australia, New Zealand Itinerary with the Port stops. We saw nothing and did nothing.

NCL lied to us right up to leaving for the cruise that the one Azipod s would be fixed. When they were not, I asked to be able to have our cruise canceled so we could get our own flight money back. They said no. (They were already offering a full refund on the Cruise portion so allowing our cruise to be canceled would cost them nothing other than what we would be spending on the ship). We flew 20 hours to Sydney, got on the ship day one and the B2B cruisers were still very angry about their NCL customer service treat mention the previous cruise leg. In fact, customer service at the reception desk was nonexistent. No answers and/or smiles. The dark-haired Cruise Next lady needs to be fired as she would snap atyou as you approached her outside if her office. I wasn't interrupting her. She had no-one in front of her. She just didn't want to be talked to.

Day 2: Sea Day

Day 3 & 4: Melbourne: We over nighted in Melbourne due to two canceled ports prior to the cruise because of the One Azipod issue,(Burnie, Tasmania and Napier, New Zealand and a day in Milford Sound).

Day 5: 150 (???) Miles out at sea we are dead in the water.Second Azipod has now failed. Tug boat and eventually three pull us back to Melbourne. No answers on what is happening.

Day 6: Re docked at Melbourne, but no feedback on what is happening.

Day 7: Still no answers but we make a decision to change our flights and return to the U.S. on February 14th.

Day 8; the Star announces that it will leave Melbourne on Day 9, Feb 14th at noon.

Day 9: We catch the 7:00 AM bus that NCL arranged and went to the Airport to fly home.

*** Additional: On day 4 on the Star and Day 6 in Australia, my wife and I came down with a very bad virus. Many on the ship were coughing. It got so bad that I literally thought that I wasn't going to get her home. Either alive and or with-out hospitalization***.

*** Well we made it and we are so pleased to be home***.

Long story short: We went on a bucket list cruise where:

- We saw nothing!

- Did Nothing!

- and ate nothing.

Very hard to do a cruise like this NCL???

***I have been questioned why we on the Star didn’t know what was happening and my response was this; ***

We were not all getting the info!!! (See more)

We would find out from Manny...Director of Hotel Services that he had sent out a document...I would go to the Reception Desk and read it for the first time...On the Feb.12th were not getting info. We scheduled our revised flights home on a guess on the 14th. It wasn't untilthat afternoon that we found out that the ship was leaving Melbourne at noon on the 14th. A few that I was talking to scheduled an excursion in Melbourne forthe 15 only to have to re-cancel them when the Star announced that they were sailing on the 14th. Long story short you on land, where-ever, were getting probably more info then some of us on the ship. Additionally, unless you caught Manny or another officer in the Atrium, the reception desk would not answer your questions. "We do not know". Finally, this having been the 14th cruise on NCL, it is the only cruise that I have ever been on that the Captain did not show his face to my knowledge in public. At least in any of the public venues I was on ship. Last year on the Spirit...I saw the Captain at least once per day if not more at different venues. It was clear on the Star that except for Manny who was very present...Most of the officers were in hiding mode!!!

Bad news NCL has a revised schedule we are not going to Arlie Beach and Brisbane. The Captain said it not related to the Azipod issue we also going to miss Komodo island. We going to get $300 more dollars plus half off for a future cruise.

 

 

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Any reason given why the revised schedule?

Does anyone have news on the Star Azipod fix and have the Repairs have been completed

successfully?