quillwercruisers

35 minutes ago, dmwnc1959 said:

All great advice! 👍 Unless things change, I’m booked on the B2B where Whittier is now my turnaround day from the 25-night coming from Florida through the Panama Canal. The idea of spending another week on board Norwegian Jade and ending up in Vancouver, maybe spending a night or two post-cruise then flying home, was quite appealing. 
 

That sounds like a FANTASTIC plan!!

On 5/2/2024 at 6:33 AM, dmwnc1959 said:

Realizing that Norwegian Jade will be the NCL guinea pig for this port in 2025, stumbled across the fact that there's apparently a 2-1/2 mile one-way tunnel in and out, and it's the the longest (2.5 miles) highway tunnel in North America.

 

https://www.facebook.com/story.php?id=100044584939798&story_fbid=1865960627184285

 

https://www.whittieralaska.gov/tunnel/

 

https://dot.alaska.gov/creg/whittiertunnel/schedule.shtml

 

 

This is the coolest thing to go through.

I understand the wanting to plan things out as soon as the decision is made to book the cruise. I am the same way. But, just remember as well, that with the people doing B2B's as mentioned above, some people could be staying in Whittier even though it is a pretty remote town, or they could have people picking them up, so they all may not be trying to get an excursion or a transfer. Like said above, transfers are usually pretty easy to do. If it makes you feel more comfortable, call NCL and ask them to add the transfer on to your reservation. Then if an excursion does show up that you want to take instead, just cancel the transfer and book the excursion. That way, even if you are unable to book an excursion before it fills up, your trip to the airport would still be covered.

13 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

You will meet them at the NCL check in desk inside Canada Place.

 

Thank you very much.

Enjoying your review!! Happy cruising to you both. We filled out the accessibility form for me and one other person we are traveling with for wheelchair assistance, can you tell me where you would actually meet someone to get this assistance? We are in a suite, but the other person is not. Thanks in advance.

Also, the luggage tags might actually go to your TA's office instead of directly to you. We have never used a TA, but since they control your reservation it is a possibility. They may already have them, but if you don't receive them, you can print them out from your e-docs. Happy Cruising.

1 hour ago, erisajd said:

we're in the Haven . . . .so . . . .but you are correct 

We are in a Suite on the Jewel on our upcoming cruise, and we got our luggage tags and concierge letter in the mail about 2 1/2 weeks ago. Every time we have been in the Haven/Suite we have gotten luggage tags in the mail. But I have heard of some people not getting them and having to just print them. That is the only "documentation" we have ever received in the mail.

Thanks everyone. We will be flying on Alaska Airlines. 

5 hours ago, GALSews said:

Thanks for documenting your cruise and letting us follow along.

Wishing you uneventful flights. 

We will be in Vancouver in 3 weeks from tomorrow as we'll board the Jewel there on Monday. 

 

Us too!!🙂

Thank you!

Yes, US citizens with passport. Thank you both for the information.

I tried to search, but couldn't find what I was looking for. First time transiting SEA, and I'm trying to find out what the procedure is in SEA when you are transiting there to fly into Vancouver. Will we go through any kind of customs/immigration at SEA? Is there separate domestic and international terminals? Will we have to go out of security and go back in?

Thanks in advance for any knowledge you can pass on.

50 minutes ago, LadyBerard said:

I did not book direct with NCL.

Sorry, but this response confused me. You booked direct with NCL and not a TA? or you did not book direct with NCL and booked with a TA?

Did you book through a TA? If so, it might be something that they are giving you.

11 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

Why can’t people with tattoos go to the spa?

That was my first thought as well.

1 minute ago, PartyPlannerLady said:

More precisely, sadly Jimmy Bufffett ended last year.

While this is true, the rebranding was done way before he passed.

8 minutes ago, nordicacres said:

More questions, ha!

 

I just got an email stating I am upgrade eligible. When I click on the link it says:

 

Balcony Stateroom - $75/pp

 

Club Balcony Suite - $100/pp

 

So that means for either $150 or $200 TOTAL I can upgrade us from ocean view to balcony?

 

I am traveling with my son and we need two beds. What are balcony room bed configurations? TY!

 

It means you can BID to upgrade. Does not guarantee that you will get it. I guess I should say that is if the email mentioned bidding. I've never personally seen an email that just says pay this and you upgrade automatically without bidding against other people.

Also the Hilton Riverside.

2 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

Oh my! Don't look at when I joined vs. post count...well ok, now that I've pointed it out. Do! 😁

I just love your sense of humor. Really enjoy reading what you have to say. 🙂

I'm on the Cruise Control band wagon as well!

Passengers attempt to bring 100 bags of weed onto cruise ship | Watch (msn.com)

According to the clip, they said it was for personal use...

On 12/29/2023 at 9:18 AM, ACoupleAtSea said:

Hello - We are a family of 4 looking for a car service recommendation from YVR to Canada Place.  Any suggestions?

Does the cruise line that you are sailing on offer transfers? We are sailing on NCL, and I know that they do.

1 hour ago, laudergayle said:

Hi @YVRteacher, we’ll be getting on the day you get back.  I’m sad we won’t be on the same sailing, but am hopeful you will be sharing your journey.  Is your Dad going with you on this B2B?

We are getting on at the same time as you. I'm looking forward to reading another live review from @YVRteacher if she does one. Happy New Year everyone!!

8 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

First, not all charters are 'full-ship'.  A chartering agency may contract for a partial charter where only a fraction of the ship is chartered.  Can be a real issue depending upon the group being chartered.  Not everyone wants to be on a ship with every type of group.  Particularly when the group is a significant fraction of the ship's capacity.  Also, a partial charter can negotiate for special priviledges.  For example, a group can get sole-use of a very popular venue.  If they're willing to pay, they can get it.  A group had exclusive use of the crows nest on a Holland cruise while the ship was in Glacier Bay.  The cruise line will not disclose partial charters claiming disclosure would be privacy violation.  IOW, you won't know until you're on board and there is a problem.

 

 

 

This happened to us on our B2B a couple of years ago. A group chartered the Vibe for the entire week. It was a bummer because we had so much fun in the vibe the first week but didn't get to use it the second week. We were notified ahead of the sailing that they cancelled our reservation for the vibe, so we knew going in, but although it was still a bummer, it didn't ruin our cruise. We made friends with the bartender, and he said that the group hardly used the area. The group took over some of the other venues as well.

54 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

We prefer 12-14 day cruises.  Shorter cruises go by too quickly for us. It’s harder since COVID to find a nice 2 week cruise because it seems like most cruise lines have been moving more towards the 4-7 day cruise schedules.  We normally start hitting our cruise wall around Day 12-13.  Our favorite cruise was on the NCL Sun repositioning 15 day cruise from Miami to Santiago, Chile. 
 

This is our first B2B - last year we did a side by side - 8 days on Royal Odyssey of Seas and 7 days on Celebrity Beyond, so we had to pack up and go to a different ship in the same port.  The B2B has been a more relaxing experience.  I’ll give a few posts at the end of this review specific to B2B.  We would definitely do a B2B again.  
 

Our vacation schedule has always been 2 weeks in December and 2 weeks in June, so this B2B timeline is about the time we normally take.  I retired from the Army last year, so I have much more flexibility.  I didn’t let Eric bring his work phone with him, but part of the reason we got the internet package is so people can reach out to him if needed and he won’t feel overwhelmed when he gets back to work. 
 

Glad you are finding this helpful!

We (or I should say "I") like the longer cruises. Hubby is just a long for the ride.  lol.. If I can't do a longer, then I look for a B2B. Sometimes you can get them where they actually go to different ports on each leg of the cruise. Depends on when and where you are going.

Thank you very much for your review, we like the Escape as well, and it has been fun following along.

Thank you for your service and congratulations on your retirement.

19 minutes ago, HoosierShipmate said:

Controversial post:

 

As much as I like real straws, I like the boxed water better than bottled. We will have Aqua Panna at dinner but that of course is glass so none of that here. By the pool I like the boxed.

 

We didn't mind the flow boxed water either.