piper45maru

I'm on the same sailing and had no problem booking any of the entertainment/dining options, but I can't pre-pay the service charges for some reason. I get a message stating "we are unable to display this option at this time". No edocs yet either. NCL can't figure out why the pre-pay service charge option is not displaying, and they can't add it on their end either, so they have escalated the issue.

I got the same message intermittently, and eventually after a few days, it was finally available. I read in another thread that others have had the same experience. No one was sure why it didn't work or why it suddenly did work. Good luck!

6 days to the Western Med via Rome!!!!

Thanks for the responses, everyone. Very helpful!

Are you in the roll call for the Aug 26th departure?

I am on the roll call. Being able to post in the roll call thread is the whole reason I created an account here. :)

On my upcoming cruise, I was offered the same discount for being a veteran as I was for being a Michigan resident.

How did it turn out TSUmom? We are doing a Rome embarkation next week.

I'm doing a Rome embarkation next week as well! Would also love to soak up as much knowledge as possible about the process before I leave. Thanks in advance to anyone who answers.

Thank you' date=' too, piper. All responses are appreciated! Really, I'm just so excited that I'm being really impatient. Also, I like to know everything in advance and obsess over until I do know.[/quote']

 

 

Me too! Did I mention that the reason I called my TA was to go from a BX to picking my own room because I couldn't take the uncertainty anymore? [emoji56] As a result of an unusual confluence of events, I booked relatively spur of the moment with (for me) very little research (which is how I ended up in a guarantee; had wanted to do Studio, but it sold out an hour before!), but after I found this site and was able to do a ton of research, I just had to be in control again, lol! So, I completely understand. Hope you get a fantastic room!

Thank you' date=' rmmom and Demonyte. Appreciate the responses. My edocs were ready last week but no cabin assignment yet. I'll just keeping checking myncl daily :)[/quote']

 

 

Your question's already been answered but I wanted to add that when I called my TA to change my room, my edocs (and luggage tags) were already updated on the NCL site before I was off even the phone with her. I was impressed with how quickly it was updated!

Beautiful! Congratulations!

Hi there I am about to book epic aug 26. Can you tell me what side is best while in port to see land.

I'm on that sailing! I haven't been before but according to the research I've done, starboard is best for while you're traveling to see the coastline. As far as in port, I've read the ship may position itself differently in different ports, so there's no advantage to either side there. Somebody who's actually been on the cruise may correct me/have more info, but that's what I've read. HTH!

We're disembarking in Civitavecchia, but flying out the day after the cruise. Granted we aren't staying at the hotel recommended by NCL.

We were posting at the same time! This is exactly my situation as well. I chose to stay near the airport, so I'm going to have the excursion drop me at the airport and take a shuttle to my hotel. I'll let you know how it goes!

I am taking that exact excursion on my 8/26 Epic cruise out of Rome. If no one has provided an answer yet, I will report back here when I return.

When is your cruise?

Very soon! August 26 on the Epic out of Rome.

We found the same thing happened when we cruised on the Epic. There were mostly Europeans cruising with many foreign languages. We were so looking forward to the Meet and Greet. I had asked to have one on the roll call but not too many people even posted.

Last year on the Gem, we finally had our first meet and greet. It was a nice meeting. It was wonderful to see the officers show up and to meet those we had posted with.

That probably explains it! Our roll call has been pretty quiet, and the major port of embarkation is actually Barcelona 3 days earlier. There's a Meet and Greet for that embarkation, but it's before I board.

I guess I'll just have to book another cruise to experience one--any excuse to cruise again, right? :p

It sounds great. I'm bummed because no one on my roll call is interested in a meet and greet, and I would have loved to attend one, especially since I'm traveling alone.

Looking forward to reading these posts! I'm doing this exact itinerary on the Epic--solo!--in 3 weeks! I'm an obsessive researcher, too (by nature and by trade), so I'm thrilled to add your blog as another source. Thank you!

A little off topic but since it was mentioned can someone explain what exactly a spa pass is and the cost. Thanks.

The pass gives you access to the thermal spa with thallasotherapy pools, and it's adults only. From what I've been able to tell, the cost depends on the cruise. For my 7-night, port-intensive cruise (only one sea day), the online cost is $129, which is advertised as a $20 savings compared to onboard. I've seen other people report that they got theirs for $199 for a 7-day cruise, one that had more sea days than mine, which is when people generally use them more. I've seen higher prices for longer cruises. So you'd have to check your specific cruise to know the cost.

Just wanted to add a comment about pre-booking excursions. You can pre-book excursions without pre-paying if you're using the shore excursion credit that's part of the current promotions.

That must be why I was able to, then. Thanks for clarifying this! Like I said, my first NCL cruise! (And first cruise in over a decade!)

I honestly thought that my experience was normal or I never would have said anything at all.

You can now pre-book the spa pass and the a la carte restaurants all say "Complimentary" but then go on to say you will pay onboard since they don't know what you will order. I know this is true for the Escape at the very least.

Thank you for confirming my experience! I was starting to feel crazy! :)

That is contradictory to the normal policies. How were you able to do this?

I called to reserve the shore excursions because I chose the shore excursion package because it was the best deal for me. It wasn't showing up in my online account under "amenity details" so I called to make sure I had the credit, and the NCL rep confirmed I did and booked my shore excursions. He said I would pay onboard, and I know my credit card has not been charged. I don't know why it was different than normal, as this is my first NCL cruise. I actually wanted to pay ahead of time for the difference in price between my shore excursion credit and the price of the excursions I chose.

Well we know the website requires payment when you book, and she says she was told she'd pay on board. Also as far as I know, there is no way to pre-reserve spa services, and I know if you want to reserve a shore excursion now, you must pay for it now. Look forward to hearing how she supposedly pre-reserved these items.

I didn't "supposedly" did--I did, as I explained above. I do not know why I was told something different than others. Maybe because I have the shore excursion credit?

I was allowed to pre-reserve the spa, too. When I log into My NCL and go under the "Explore and Plan" option, there is an offer to pre-book the spa pass for $20 less online vs. onboard. I've seen others in other threads mention that they've seen an option to pre-book the spa pass within X (60? 90? I can't remember) number of days of their cruise, so I'm not sure why you think there's "no way" to reserve the spa.

My NCL account is showing that I have these things reserved when I look at my Vacation Summary. I don't know what to tell you, but I am telling the truth and don't appreciate the insinuation otherwise.

I pre-reserved the spa, one specialty dining, and shore excursions, and I did not have to prepay any of them. I was told I would pay for them on the ship. The dining venue is the same price whether I pre-reserved it or booked on the ship. The spa pass is cheaper if you pre-reserve it, but AFAIK that is the only discount for reserving ahead of time.

I'm getting married next week on the Breakaway.

I hope you have a beautiful day! Congratulations!

I have a B6 room booked on an upcoming Epic cruise, and a review I read about my specific room said that the balcony had one lounger, two chairs, and a table, and there was still lots of room left over. I hope it has that configuration when I board--I'm traveling solo so one lounger is perfect for me, and I'd love to have the option of chairs for sitting down a nice balcony breakfast if I choose.

Piper....thanks for the information...very helpful...and something i never would have considered with the direct book at the port...good stuff..

I forgot to add...you do have to have some risk tolerance by booking directly. If Carnival had changed the itinerary, by booking the coordinator directly, I would have been out of luck, as where Carnival would have had to have refunded everything if I had gone with them directly. Something else to consider, if your BIL or his bride are risk-aversive! :) In any event, I hope the wedding is lovely and you all have a fantastic cruise!

I don't know if your BIL wants to get married on the ship or in port, but I got married at a cruise ship port (St. Thomas). It was with Carnival and it was 12 years ago, but my experience was that it was waaaaaay cheaper to go with a wedding coordinator in port than go through the ship. After booking my coordinator, I found out she also contracted with Carnival, and she would have done my wedding anyway--with a Carnival go-between and many less options.

By booking her directly, I saved myself Carnival's 50% markup, was able to work with her without a go-between, and could take advantage of more of her options (one was an *absolutely incredible* locally made coconut wedding cake instead of having one from the Carnival kitchen--I still dream about that cake!).

I don't know if Norwegian works this way or not, but it may be something for your BIL to look into if he and his bride are interested in getting married at a port. HTH.

I'm excited about this! Vietnam is my #1 bucket list destination, and I've been researching land-based vacations for a couple of years now.

I was also thinking about taking advantage of the Cruise Next Ultimate offer while on my W Med cruise, which leaves on 8/26. With booking starting on 8/24, sounds like perfect timing for me to do so!

It is quite fascinating to view it from the "other side" and see how much stress it causes for the crew.

 

The crew has to really stress as to whether the passengers are truly missing or whether they're onboard and not responding to the millions of overhead announcements.

 

The Captain and officers were visibly running and discussing scenarios of how long they could wait before running into fuel/navigation/weather and who knows what other kind of problems.

 

The decision to leave is most definitely NOT taken lightly on the bridge.

What a great perspective. Thank you!