drhall

Just realized that this is a 7 year old thread..

I skipped most of the 9 pages, so sorry if I am repeating.

Make sure your side panels are basically as opaque as possible. If they're translucent...avoid light sources (shadows). In the daylight--step out there and look up, and down. If you can see ANY balconies or decks--they can see you. Avoid the railing, remind yourself that some people book and use balconies to smoke (even when told not to), so at any point anybody may be right outside. Keep that in mind, and please...be mindful of noise!

Enjoy yourself. Absolutely. But don't forget that you're not truly "alone".

Best wishes!

I was 13 on my last cruise. Dad got us walkie-talkies (to keep touch, really) and sent me out on my own. I didn't have to "check in", but I was never a rule breaker, anyway. There was only so much for me to get into--so I naturally gravitated back to them throughout the day. I did manage to make a few friends who got into some bad stuff (mostly teenage drama. Testing boundaries, etc...), but I knew better :)

Might help that I am the youngest kid of my parents 40 years of parenting and my father's 20 years of military service! Ha! The horror stories from my siblings was plenty.

Agreed with everybody on here!

You're in control of your destiny, here. On my last cruise, I was a very shy and unsure 14 year old boy questioning my orientation, but still VERY much in the closet. I managed to make two friends while on board. I can only imagine the friends I will make today now that I have the confidence and social skills that I didn't back then.

I recommend to step out of your comfort zone. Play the games. Participate in the contest. Do the tours. Make conversations in the buffet line and poolside. You're stuck with these people for days, get to know them! Put yourself out there in various situations and you're bound to meet many great people who could easily turn into lifelong relationships!

And if you don't make a lifelong friend, I bet you'll still have a blast and meet great people. Happy is what you make it to be :)

Best wishes!

Just booked..anyone else?

Hello! My partner and I are thinking of booking for our honeymoon. Couting the coins in our piggy bank and pulling the trigger shortly. We were booked on the Sky for that week--but we were told on Monday that the ship was chartered and we have to hit the plank!

Hate it for me, but the Getaway is a superior cruise. So maybe it's a secret win?

Nice to meet you, either way!

A friend in the Sky rollcall got an email saying it was cancelled and told me. I checked my email to no avail, so I called NCL customer service directly and they confirmed it was chartered for that week and I would have to rebook for any sailing besides New Years. Contacted my travel agent and they confirmed it, also, and started processing the refund.

I am very fortunate that we've got plenty of time to rebook and that I am not out any cash...but the Sky was a tremendous value for what I wanted (good price, UBP, ideal time frame) so it looks like I will be booking on a totally different ship--such as the Getaway. Very frustrating.

I will let you know what/if NCL does to take care of me.

If you weren't aware or were planning to book for this sailing, the NCL Sky 9/28 - 10/2 sailing out of Miami has been cancelled. A private group has chartered the ship that week. This is per Norwegian Customer Service today.

I booked the cruise last month and have already made travel arrangements for the sailing. Hopefully NCL agrees with me that a credit is in order in this situation..

Sigh.

It's hard sometimes. But remember, the important part is at the end of day...you marrying your spouse. Nothing else really matters in comparison.

The wedding is one day. The marriage is MANY days.

Best of luck!

So your wife got married on the ship, how about you??? LOL

Made me laugh out loud!

I've sailed Enchantment (pre-refurb) and will be sailing Sky this year. Liked Enchantment.

It really came down to this for me...

-NCL had better restaurant options for me

-NCL had better promotions (Food or Drink Package)

-NCL (IMO) had the better private island

-NCL came in about $80 cheaper after port fees and taxes, all things considered.

-NCL has the youngest cruiser age in the industry. I'm in my mid twenties with no children.

That's why I booked. I wouldn't fault either ship, they're both very comparable and actually follow each other port-to-port. NCL just had the slight advantage for my situation.

I'm that guy. If NCL didn't require us to buy a UBP for every person who is above drinking age in the cabin, my partner and I would probably consider just purchasing one and sharing it. It's $59 per day. The two of us may drink about that much per day together, but definitely not $59 per person.

My best friend is the opposite. Sharing a package or not, they would drink well over $200 per day because the luxury is there. They're on vacation and they want to enjoy it in their own way.

The industry rule exists to stop both of us. They'd make double the money on me, and lose it on my friend. There's a lot more of "my type" out there. So, the package stays affordable and profitable for the line.

However, they've had the UDP included in oceanview room fares and above for February & March so far, so that point is moot. :)

Everything everybody said ^^

I am in my mid twenties, know a fair amount about our history, but didn't know what FOD was until cruise critic. I haven't met anybody in my age bracket who knew, either. If I was on a sailing with that acronym and hadn't ever been here, it would likely just blend in to my eyes.

I know a few lines (Carnival, NCL) announce GLBT/LGBT meets. My family actually went this winter and told me they saw the meeting on their sailing as such--because they can identify it. It's commonplace now (thankfully), not taboo.

I don't take FOD as derogatory, just an aging term in a forever-younger world.

If you think you will have an issue with seasickness, I'd suggest playing it safe and getting a room lower/center.

Between Oceanview & Balcony, I suggest thinking out exactly what you will plan to use the room for. My decision was to use an Oceanview. My partner and I are not "homebodies" and would only use the room for sleeping/showering--as we would be around the boat or in port during the day. If we spent more time relaxing privately in our rooms, or if a balcony room opened up larger perks like NCL suites do, we'd go balcony--but that wasn't the case for us.

Oceanview it is!

Only you know your tolerance best, but I think 12 is very long...excursions and all. For a first sailing, I would personally sail between 3 to 5 days. That way, you'll get a good mix of experience without feeling "trapped" in boat-life for too long.

You'll get a different clientele on a long sailing. Less kids, less younger folks, less "seasonal vacationers" and more sightseers and an overall older, more mature crowd. I mention this because, for me, a lively and party-like environment is a must for my sailing.

Two weeks is something I would do when I become an empty nester, IMO.

I read it. I guess a "treat" is what it is to an individual, I'd call going through all that a short, busy, expensive "treat".:eek:

Seconded.

Either way, have fun!

I heard that it ends on February 28th.

Have fun!

I have been to Disney World for the past two years (10 day vacations total) and visted all four parks and both water parks. Stayed at all of them from open to close. I still missed a lot.

This is the most visited theme park in the entire world. Lines are LONG (shortest are usually 30 minutes, i've seen 240 minute queues before), the parks are HUGE (20 minute walks from one side to the other), and if you want to see any of the characters--add more waiting in line to the tune to 30 minutes. Then, there's the parades that you have to plan to see or get stuck on another side of the park while it passes. Getting up to Magic Kingdom is a 10-15 minute trip in itself, and that's just to put boots to the ground.

They changed their fast pass system. In the past, you could work it out so that you had fast passes to multiple rides at a time...but now you can only reserve 3 rides at a time...all day, and they barely overlap. The system works it out so that you eat up majority of your day in the park (better for business). Even then, fast pass lines teeter around 0-15 minutes a piece...and Disney doesn't put their hot rides side by side. You'll be running all across the park. Fast Passes also are snatched up quickly. Last year we were up at 7am reserving fast passes and still missed a lot of the good time slots. If we waited too long--we were getting suggetions for 4:00pm..and that was reserving them nine hours earlier.

I HIGHLY suggest going to Magic Kingdom as a vacation, but it's not a day trip...especially if you're not starting at 9:00am sharp. Without even trying, you will miss 70% of the park. Multiply that by all the variables of Florida traffic, car agencies, and playing beat-the-clock with the ship...I would not risk it.

Just FYI :)

Everything said above.

I flew to Disney World with my partner last year. Allegient happens to service my local airport, so it was a no brainer. Competiting companies were charging $400 per person--round trip. My Allgiant Air fare (after 1 checked bag for 2 people, taxes, everything) was $280 round trip. Nearly a $500 savings..no brainer for me.

I picked it because the flight from tarmac to tarmac was one hour, however actual flight time felt more like 30 minutes. The lack of food service, on-flight entertainment, plush newer jets, reclining seats, etc.. didn't affect me because we wouldn't be flying that long.

If I was flying a greater distance (2+ hours), I would have seriously considered a non-budget line for the accomodations, but for this purpose...it was:

1. Spend 10 hours (each way) driving to/from Orlando for about $150 in fuel + wear/tear
   
2. Spend 1 hour (each way) flying for $280. Add rental car.
   

The extra 18 hours of my life was well worth the cost in this case. :cool:

I recommend them, myself.

If you're not sold, I also recommend checking neighboring cities (if you have them). It's always cheaper for me to drive a couple of hours to Nashville or Atlanta to fly out on Delta/US Airways/etc.. than it is to fly from my town--especially because the fight connects in those cities, anyway.

Yay! I'm not the only one.

Had a porthole on RCI per my mother. The only two times I used it was in the mornings to see if we were in port, and in the evenings to close the curtains.

We aren't "stay inside" type people, so paying extra for the "leisure" that is a window or private balcony seemed silly for us.

The less money I spend on the room, the more I spend on drinks, excursions, spa, food, casino and shopping. I don't recall the porthole very well or anything I saw through it--but I DO recall the things I did on the boat!

I've heard, on ship, you'll find less trouble than you may find at home. Everybody is out to have a good time and are pretty self absorbed and only paying attention to the things that directly affect them. The old saying "people think about you less than you realize" applies here.

However, how have you all addressed any issues in ports? I have read in the past of locals asking the tourists (man/man woman/woman, etc.) sometimes agressively if they are siblings, as it is unusual in their customs for two people who aren't married or related to travel and vacation together.

My partner and I are not of the same nationality...so... "we're brothers/cousins" isn't going to work here :)

I'm not an attorney, so I would suggest consulting one to be sure, but what I am familiar with is people writing out a letter stating "(You) are allowed to take (child 1) & (child 2) out of the country to (these places) during (this time frame)" and have all parents or legal guardians sign it, along with all adults traveling with you, in front of a notary.

The documentation, I think, is more for everybody's protection in the event something happened...you can show that you have permission to have them. I don't believe that the cruise line really cares either way, but they're not in the business of protecting you legally.

Definitely check with an attorney if NCL isn't being clear.

I would suggest calling the cruise line in question and see if that is sufficient documentation to travel.

If you mother isn't traveling with you, I don't think it'd be an issue...but i'm not an expert.

Different ship, different line, but my parents had an issue on their last cruise with being too close to the hardware (anchors, engines, etc). They were at the aft on one of the lower levels.

Each time the ship made it to port in the morning--they were woken up by the sounds of the anchors dropping.

Something to consider :)