hlsess

A bit of balance from me to this thread. I've just returned from this cruise with my wife and we were blown away by the entertainment on board.

Priscilla was excellent, and well done to NCL for taking a risk with this,

Burn the Floor was exceptional,

Howl at the moon, best thing i've seen on a cruise ship, admittedly helped by the ultimate drinks package:)

Cirque show, excellent, with great food

Beatles show, only average for us, they're just a simple cover act

 

Only real negative for us was the food was very average, but we will definitely be travelling big ship for now on, just for the entertainment, and if it comes with free drinks, all the better...

So glad to read your review. We are booked on Epic over Christmas. I'm not expecting above average food- Just average. Thanks again!!

We are booked on a private tour in Tangier, Morocco. But also see rides are offered in Las Palmas de gran Canaria. Is one place better or is it about the same??

I would definitely recommend seeing Granada and the Alhambra Palace. Yes, it is a long journey but you will really enjoy it. You can always recover with a relaxing sea day the day afterwards.

 

Suzanne

 

Don't think it is 20 hours each way but it is a full day's excursion!

Haha. That was a typo. Looking at doing it with Spain day tours. Possibly a private tour so it won't take as long to get there with the bus stops ...

which location is better or does it really matter?

It was about 2 hours - or maybe a little longer.. The bus stopped both directons at a nice truck stop -- all the tour buses stop each way at the same location -- on the way there -- the food/snacks etc. are better than the return stop --[/quote

 

so did you get back to ship in plenty of time?

 

they also have a private tour for about 100 more euros each per person.. may think about it

Tour companies generally allow plenty of time for the return journey.

 

Obviously you are safer booking your cruise ship excursion as they will generally wait for delayed passengers which they may not do if you have booked with a different company.

I understand that but a tour with 12 vs 50 is much more appealing to me :(

Around 2 hours - longer if you hit traffic jams which are notorious on that motorway.

well that worries me since we will be getting back to a cruise hmmmm

how far was the drive from Malaga to Ahlambra?

I am looking at the Ahlambra all day tour- Yuck-20hours each way but everyone tells me it is a MUST see if we are that close!! Is it really worth it?

The meet & greet is scheduled for 11 a.m on Sunday 20th and will be held in Fat Cats - this may have been renamed as the Cavern Club with the re-fit but am not sure, no doubt Jo who is organising the meeting will let us know. If you have not done so already sign in on the meet & greet sheet which Jo has mentioned in the roll call. Will you also be taking part in the Secret Santa which is taking place at the M&G - should be fun.

 

Hope you are managing to get all your various bookings sorted out.

 

See you on 20th

 

Suzanne

yes I went ahead and booked the 3 shows and xmas Eve dinner and a couple of nights dinners at Taste and Manhattan.... I was trying to figure out how to change(just in case) in MY NCL but couldn't find out how to do it if needed

thanks- I booked shows and dining- ? about breakfast and lunch- buffets and MDR's only? no specialty places open? was reading another review and said she went to cagney's for lunch/breakfast but on different ship....

Day 8

January 22

 

Today dawned sunny and bright, though cold. We changed a little money, ate breakfast in Cagney's, and got ready for the our private tour with Spain Day Tours/Top Day Tours to Granada and the Alhambra. When we made our way downstairs, we found that we were 22. We were told that when we reached the Alhambra, we would be split into 2 groups. The bus took just over two hours (with one rest stop at a very clean bathroom) to reach the Alhambra in Granada. Our tour guide, Rafael, was a veritable fount of knowledge. He had studied architecture in Spain, France, and England, so we learned a lot about a lot of things. He also had moments of being pretty funny. We traveled to Granada by bus and the weather changed about 25 times. This is my warning to people who are going to Granada... It is cold! We were seriously underdressed. I am so glad that I brought my rain jacket. My poor mother had on a very light shirt and sweater. We think that the weather is a conspiracy to make people buy hot chocolate from the vending machine... We referred to it as "hand warmers".

 

The Alhambra is lovely. And old. And really, really well restored. And reasonably priced (13 euro). I will offer another hint... Buy your tickets in advance. They only let you into the "palace" section at a specific time that is printed on your ticket. If you buy your tickets the day of, you may find your time to be 3:00 pm (as a certain young gentleman did). You may also find it prudent to have a guide, as there is a lot to see. I really loved the summer palace and the gardens the best. The craftsmanship is unbelievable.

After the Alhambra, we were let loose in downtown Granada for a couple of hours. My mom and I sampled the tapas, and then shopped a bit.

 

I do want to add a side note here. My mom and I have traveled all over the world. She has mobility impairments and occasionally, she cannot access all areas of the local attractions. I was amazed at how accessible the Alhambra was. They had ramps everywhere. The staff there were also willing to help. For those of you who need a wheelchair or love someone who does, this is amazing and unusual.

 

The saddest part of visiting Malaga and Granada is one day is just not enough time. This little corner of the world is so lovely and enchanting. I am trying to find a way to come back to stay longer. I have not been to Spain since I was very young, and my memories of Madrid are not my fondest.

 

All aboard was 6:30 pm and we pulled in at 6:25. Fortunately, we came in with an NCL shore ex, so there were no frowny faces. I pushed my mom up to our room, and when she opened the door, she exclaimed that it really needed to be vacuumed. Upon further inspection, we found that the room had been completely decorated for my birthday! This included many balloons, streamers, signs, and confetti all over the floor. In the bedroom, instead of a towel animal, there was a "towel birthday cake"! So cute! This was truly an "above and beyond" demonstration by the crew. I am most certainly grateful.

 

We dropped our bags, took a bunch of photos, and headed to the Stardust Theater for the Elements Show. I have to say, NCL has it over Princess and HAL in their entertainment. Most cruise ship entertainment is really, really cheesy (and there was a bit of cheese on NCL, as well), but there were were a couple of production shows I would have paid to see.

 

After the show, I dropped my mother in the casino and made my way to the Blue Lagoon for a bit of soup. The service here was great and they really keep the people moving.

 

Tonight also hosted the Chocoholics Extravaganza. We convened at Deck 11 at 9:45. While much of it looked delicious, it might have been too much of a good thing. I had a pineapple crepe and a chocolate banana. And a glass of milk!

 

That's it. Stick a fork in me. I am done! It was a wonderful and fun day!

 

More later,

Tracie-Lynn :)

I am looking at doing the Alhambra - My mother and Sister in law say is it a MUST DO- taking my children 20 and 23- never been to Spain- I've read on TA to book thru ship... what do you think- do not want to get left by ship!! How cold was it??

Ok. Thx. I'll book what I can tomorrow. .. I joined roll call but not sure when meet and greet is. Hopefully I'll figure it out!

thanks- think we will wait until we get there to decide about lunchand just book Cirque anyway that night=? about Howl at the Moon -is it a show ? we went to howl at the moon in Chicago and it was really fun!!

ok thanks that helps- was trying to do something special on Xmas- Like Cirque - is there much else going on during the day/night on Christmas?

Christmas day is AT Sea and MDR's are booked... guess we will do a buffet or specialty restaurant

thanks- they are both booked for lunch- how about the buffets? we just planned this very last minute this week!!

First timer here and I am looking at dining options- thinking we will do Cagney's on Xmas Eve and Cirque on Xmas Night...No idea about Xmas day- Is Taste or Manhattan better or about the same- do menus change? looks like Chinese and and sushi don't take reservations so you just go whenever... any other tips as far as booking ahead? is the Garden Café and Great Outdoors buffet decent?

What is DSC?

I'm assuming tips are included from what I've read on this thread....

There is a thread with menus somewhere and the menus from epic have just been posted. I love cagneys but our tradition for Xmas eve is to get a chinese take away so hopefully we will go to Shanghia.

 

Really looking forward to it, have you joined our roll call?

 

Liverpool Jo

Yes I joined roll call. What do you do Xmas day?

Thx

Looking at Cagneys. Is it very good? Anything else served besides steak?

Thx. Just talked to Verizon and daughters plan will work so if we do buy wifi we will all use her phone. Hate to pay more for 2 other phones. Time to disconnect

Regular sized pool? Hot tubs too? Can u take a cocktail in there. LOL?

Trying to find out about cruise wifi. Daughter already has international plan bc she is living in Spain now. Does the plan work on ship? Hoping to just do wifi at ports but have 2 college age kids....