bmwman

Excellent review

The room service charge is new and mixed feelings.

How much will change though with the dry dock!! Water park supposed to be as is if not improved.

Watch the prices though they are moving in an upwardly direction.

Our kids agree with your regarding the kids clubs almost to the word.

As to the Spa on our cruise the treatments were quite - very quite and the staff were saying its due to VAT and the 18% service charge which in general Europeans will not pay. In fact one day we heard (not sure if true) 50% reduction So why not build it into the price?

It has been in effect couple of years already, people were abusing the system when there was no charge.

Thanks you are right it is two years ago since.

But how does it work if I buy Blackjack chips with my OBC does that still get 3% charge - presume it does?

Its anti-bacterial, so yes it does do a function. However, Norwalk is a VIRUS and therefore washing with soap and water is the practice one should use to alleviate that possiblity. The entertainment value of the washy washy people is a fun thing and no need to knock it.

Nice comment - but after the years it is now getting a bit boring but does remind you all the time. It does serve a function but limited as some people do not and some put it on just one hand. I suggest that if you checked there would be all sorts of nasties but thats life!

It's on every ship in the Norwegian Fleet

Did not see it on the EPIC at all this year

Thank you for the useful information

Is the 3% new as last year i cashed up the OBC in the Casino and no charges:confused:

with the desalinizition process, how bad is the sodium content in the water? Last year when we cruised I had a terrible time with my legs and feet swelling so badly I was mostly unable to wear shoes and couldn't walk well enough to do anything really. When I got back the Dr. said the biggest culprit on cruise ships is the water and that I should drink bottled water on board. any suggestions besides carrying it on

Drank the ship water by the pint no issues but each of us are different so what did not affect me may affect you.

UK UBP - no service charges so I bet that is built into our cruise prices

mkm1988, I am also sailing out of Civitavecchia in November. The new situation of having to take the port shuttle to the city shuttle to the Civi train station put me off. I will be heading to the airport from the ship and just booked a shuttle. There are a number of companies that run both shared and private shuttles to both Rome and the airport. I went ahead and booked a private as I have a group, shared shuttles save a few dollars (about EU25-30 each) well worth it to me. I'm sure they will take you to the Termini station. Make sure the company you chose can pick you up right at the ship (port privileges). From other posts I've read, I bet that there will be plenty of shared shuttles waiting near the ship that will have room for a few extra people to add at the last minute. I'm not a gambler like that so booked ahead.

There is no shuttle to train station just an irregular bus service!!? " port priveliges" all taxis can go to the ship if booked in advance. That is the only thing you need to concern yourself. I would be careful with shared shuttles and spare spaces as we saw one guy stopped for having more passengers than booked. How do we know - we were in it!

In November the weather will have cooled sown and its a nice 10 min walk to the station from the port entrance and we love the fast train 40 mins to Termini. Even the airport is now only 1:15 and for 33 Euro for four of us that more money saved and no worries of Italian traffic Jams.

But each to his own

We have UDP as a promo on booking and when I tried to book Cirq it was charged. I know the UDP has changed, but when we were given it in Jan the cirq was free on first sail night.

You may still get it free if you booked it before the changes. Worth a call.

Old Marseille is quite nice. And getting to Aix en Provence or Avignon a good choice.

Agreed but the traffic in the summer and its all so far from the port

We have 2 Norwegian cruises booked next year. I actually canceled a Celebrity transatlantic so that we could go on Norwegian...leaving the same date next year. Saved over $600, still have a beautiful aft balcony and the free UBP. For 2 of us over 14 days this is a big saving!

 

The other one I am going by myself on a Pacific Coastal. Just paid half of the single occupancy rate and also have the UBP for an ocean view cabin.

 

Norwegian is my new favourite cruise line!

 

So happy and looking forward to our trips.

Sounds great did you get the UBP on a transatlantic.?:confused::confused:

We are traveling on the Epic 7-16 Mediterranean and they have changed our Itinerary, We are not going to Palma de mallorca now does anyone really know why, that is the best part of the trip

Thanks:confused:

Marseille is an. Industrial port where there is nothing.. Palma has she beaches and is lovely.

Unless someone from NCL says why any other comment is speculation.

We still have not been told although we did book through a TA. Marseille was a dump the last time we went but that was years ago.

Still is much prefer Palma

Are you sure about this? As ALL the ships seem to have shorter port stops now, to conserve fuel. Its cheaper to sail slower than to stay in a place longer and steam ahead to the next one.

Yes absolutely 100% sure

I was on the Breakaway in June. There was a lot of discussion on the roll call page and about 40 people signed up for the meet and greet. Of those, maybe half actually showed up. The cruiser who coordinated the M&G had put a lot of effort into organizing it, so I was disappointed so few people showed up. We did a gift exchange that was to signify something about where we lived. After the gifts were exchanged each of the givers explained what the gift meant to the recipient. It was a nice way to get to know a little about someone else and there were some clever gifts.

NCL provided coffee, pastries and cakes for the people in our group who had birthdays and anniversaries. And we got to meet most of the crew. It was nice, but I wish people would have stuck around for more than the 15 or so minutes we spent there so we could talk a little more. I know some people are very uncomfortable around those they don't know well, but most of us had been talking via the roll call site for months before sailing. I did see some of them during the cruise and said my hellos, but only one other couple ever tried to get a conversation going. I think the free-style concept makes cruising a little more impersonal. On other cruises, you get to know those you are seated with at the dining table.

Agree with this post.

So on what ship might we find her???

The post asked where Ruth Haggar is

Ruth is currently on leave so we understand - she is great

The majority of us Brits can't get there head round tipping extra when you are forced to pay 18% on every drink served. If my wife and I were in a bar in the UK and our drinks were £10, we wouldn't dream of giving the server £2 each time.

 

18% is more than enough, but it must be a cultural thing !

Agreed and that's why we Brits will never in general add anything to the tips. As far as I am concerned 18% for opening a bottle and doing my job is OTT

Indeed I am embarrassed to say that some Brits actually removed it from the final bill as well as the DSC.

I think the time has come for the cruise lines to realise that whilst they can keeping upping charges many will keep removing them it's that simple

Did you really think it was in need of dry dock? I'm not a very experienced cruiser, I can't say we noticed any glaring signs of wear and tear, but maybe that was the extra bottle of wine? ;)

 

I agree that the crew are wonderful.......and I'm sorry you had an awful year but glad you had a great time. :)

Ok where do I start its not just wear and tear

Engines being replaced that's the cause of the shortened stops

On ours a pipe had broken loose on the balcony and that was a suite

I could type until midnight but hey it did not spoil my break. Just we saw here in the inaugural season and can see the changes.

We were awake early, around 7:15am, but just chilled on the balcony for a while before heading to the Garden Café for breakfast. It was crowded, as to be expected. But we managed. Then began the hunt for a bed!

We ended up on Deck 18 at the front, but didn't last too long......it was SO hot....I was meltingmoments!

 

Today was a day to chill and relax. We had lunch, we wandered, we stopped for a drink, we wandered some more and we came across a member of staff selling the Viva Vino package that we had bought yesterday. DH stopped to chat to her about not being able to get the red he had ordered. She looked bemused by this and asked to see his slips and double checked which wine he had ordered. The wine that was WRITTEN on the slip was NOT on board........but the wine he had ORDERED ......WAS! The crew member was VERY apologetic and took DH's slips from him and gave him 4 more with the CORRECT wine on. Now being honest people, we told her we already had one bottle of red in replacement for the one that hadn't been available, but she just shook her head and said "no problem...our mistake" So DH ended up with an extra bottle of wine!

Nice - We just got off EPIC but oh is it in need of dry dock but loved it. The ship and crew are wonderful and we had the best time after what has been an awful year.

C'mon, just throw a a towel over it. Conversation over.

Everything is such a crisis. Geeeezzzzzz

Great answer

Generally find one or two servers that are fun, anticipate a re-fill, are extra friendly. Nice to give them a bit more cash at the end to reward their great services. I don't subscribe to the tip on top of a tip just to get basic service thing though.

OK but I still feel that 18% is enough but good on you for going the extra mile!

Exactly right.

 

 

I think they're trying to give us a sermon about gambling. Its called gambling for a reason. I think after all these years, we know the odds and know what we're doing.

 

I'm going to gamble either way, so pile the perks on.

No lecture from me I have a casino less than a few miles from home and go there often and lose!! I just do not need to feel that I am getting a comp cruise when it is not. I know I get a cruise and food but I prefer to gamble at home that's it. I like to gamble as much as the next but if I got a comp downgraded I too would be upset;)

None of which has anything to do with the OP's situation and is just an attempt to sidetrack this thread. Honestly getting tired of it.

If you are tired of it do not bother to answer. I did not start this side track so read the thread.

That very well may be true....however, why pay for a cabin for your next cruise if you can get it comped.....just to continue your theoretical gambling loss (and believe me, it's not always a loss), which you're going to do regardless if the cabin is comped or not.

 

Harriet

Overall it will be a loss otherwise casino would not be in business - Simple. You see that not everyone falls for the comp thing. CAS need you on the ships and the higher the roller the more they will pay because on balance they will win.

I get the the fact that if you are going to gamble anyway and treat losses as an entertainment then it's fine but in no way is it free cruise

Prem said exactly that at our M&G last year.

Yes but Prem is one of the finest HD in NCL

We have UDP as a promo on booking and when I tried to book Cirq it was charged. I know the UDP has changed, but when we were given it in Jan the cirq was free on first sail night.

20% of now (premium seats before discount $47.19)