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Tennis*fan

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Posts posted by Tennis*fan

    Tortola Excursion Question

    in Tortola

    Posted

    Which tour operator did you use? I've been looking on TripAdvisor and can only find one, but it gets only 1 star. :( Looking for DH and I to go on a kayak tour while on Tortola.

     

     

     

    Alex from ground sea adventures BVI - they have 5 stars and 80 reviews on trip advisor. Website is groundseabvi.com

     

     

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    "I wish I knew before..."

    in First Time Cruisers

    Posted

    Hello everyone! Thanks so much for this awesome thread with all of your tips and advice! I've spent the last several days reading over all of them! My boyfriend and I are seriously considering taking a cruise this summer for a trip together. We're hoping to book soon, to the Caribbean! I did have a few general questions.

     

     

     


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    • How early can you book excursions?
       
    • Do all cabins typically have a refrigerator in them?
       
    • Are cruise carry on dimensions similar to planes? I'm assuming we could just carry on all of our stuff, but it doesn't seem like people do that from reading here.
       
    • We're heavily considering Celebrity, but we also liked a Royal Caribbean itinerary as well. However right now Celebrity is less expensive. It doesn't look like we could go horribly wrong with any cruise line, but of these 2 which would you recommend for a young couple? He's 29 and I'm 28.
       
    • How much of a problem are pickpockets in ports? I plan to prepare for the possibility regardless, but I was curious.
       
    • Are there outdoor dining options available on cruises? Obviously it's not a make-or-break thing, but I do love eating outside on occasion.
       
    • When dressing for an excursion, is it a good rule of thumb to perhaps just wear a swimsuit underneath a coverup like a casual dress or something similar?
       
    • We love going to the gym and are wondering how gyms usually are on board. They look fairly decent from what I could tell, but I was just curious if anyone had any experience with the weights in these gyms.
       

    I'm sorry for all of the questions! We just have a lot of them and are very excited! :) Thank you again for all of your tips! I've already taken some notes :)

     

     

     

    I don't have answers to everything, but can say:

    1. Look at excursions on TripAdvisor....I think you can book far out (6 months or more) and they are more reasonable and less crowded than the ones you get through the cruise ships.

    2. I think all rooms have refrigerators.

    3. ? They take your luggage when you arrive and you get your luggage in front of your room later that day/evening. Pack a backpack with your suit and other must have items so you can have items you need until your luggage arrives. You do not want to carry around your luggage waiting for your room to be ready...it will weigh you down - literally.

    4. I've heard Celebrity is for an older crowd (my 80 yr old mil loves Celebrity). I would do RCCL. Norwegian is good too and is more affordable.

    5. Unsure about pick pocketers....nobody gets close enough to me and I take only what I need.

    6. Unsure of outdoor dining...depends on cruise ship, but I think most dining is inside.

    7. I usually pack a backpack with change of clothes, towel, etc...and wear my suit with coverup or shirt/shorts.

    8. Depends on ship, but they all have gyms loaded with cardio equipment and all weights. I always bring my gym clothes...and they never see the gym. Lol.

     

    Have fun! We are going on our next cruise in March 2019...too long to wait, but excited none the less.

     

     

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    Tortola Excursion Question

    in Tortola

    Posted

    We are on the Norwegian Bliss January 2019. One of the stops is Tortola and I'm trying to figure out what to do there. We want a relaxing, fun day and love the water so I'm considering a catamaran that goes to Norman Island and The Caves. We're looking at Kuralu Charters. They have great reviews on Trip Advisor but wondering if anyone on here has went with them? Also, is going to Jost Van Dyke an option from where the Bliss will dock in port? I'm assuming some things will be rebuilt from the hurricanes by then.

     

     

     

    Thanks for everyone's help.

     

     

     

    By far, our favorite excursion was on Tortola. We did a kayak/sup board through mangroves that I found on Tripadvisor. Awesome and small group, just our family of 5 and another family of 4. We went to a section where jellyfish covered the sea floor just under us and we could hold the jellyfish. A catamaran would be really nice too - as long as you do it through TripAdvisor. I would stay away from the cruise ship excursions.

     

     

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    Escape Info/Tips

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    I noticed that your departure was from New York, can anyone who has taken the ship out of Miami confirm whether the vibe pass is usable or not? I know it's a relative question and depends a lot about the weather forecast, which is a tossup, but we're sailing on the Jan 13 Escape and would appreciate any feedback that someone who has sailed out of Miami recently might share. Thanks!

     

     

     

    We were out of Miami- it is totally usable and we went there on all at sea days (which was 3 days). It was windy one day which made it not as enjoyable, but the other days were perfect. You can use them on days you port too. Some people stay on ship in vibe rather than going into Nassau.

     

     

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    Escape Info/Tips

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    Several tips: GET VIBE PASSES! So worth the extra $100.

     

     

     

     

     

    I always think about getting VIBE but then I "cheap out" because I remember that I don't like to sit down for more than 20 minutes, and would be thinking about all the stuff going on while I was sitting sunbathing.

     

     

     

    Am I missing something really good? I know lots of people want to go up there?

     

     

     

    It’s like the haven space. You have nice chairs, private with your own servers and a jacuzzi. They come by with fruit and cold towels and cucumber infused water. We like to veg and layout though so if that’s not your thing, then it’s probably not worth it.

     

     

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    Escape Info/Tips

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    Several tips: GET VIBE PASSES! So worth the extra $100.

     

     

     

     

     

    I always think about getting VIBE but then I "cheap out" because I remember that I don't like to sit down for more than 20 minutes, and would be thinking about all the stuff going on while I was sitting sunbathing.

     

     

     

    Am I missing something really good? I know lots of people want to go up there?

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

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    Escape Info/Tips

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    Several tips: GET VIBE PASSES! So worth the extra $100. We got an earlier boarding pass so we could book it to get them...when you get on ship head to Headliners and purchase them - you will not be sorry. We really enjoyed the shows "The Brat Pack" and "After Midnight". You need to get tickets 60 days in advance as you will also need to do this for specialty dinner reservations. We really enjoyed Teppanyaki, Cagney's & the ala crate Sushi place (Food Republic). We went to Headliners comedy and enjoyed that as well. There are other fun stuff that happens in the main center of ship (Like Deal or No Deal, etc)...always something to do. We gambled too. It is smokey, but fun and you can actually win (not slots though). My husband won $2000 in the onboard lottery the first night - made the trip quite memorable and enjoyable. Also bring ones for tips - if you tip you will be treated like royalty - felt like norm on cheers.

     

     

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    Help on Planning vacation for a family of 6

    in First Time Cruisers

    Posted

    We did NCL Escape last year with 5 of us and had two connecting rooms. It is a lot cheaper than the Haven. If you are looking for luxury, than go for the Haven...I've heard it is amazing. We traveled with a then 12, 14 and 17 year old. My 12 year old was one year shy of being in the teen group so he did not want to be with the "babies" and did not do the kids program (which stunk), my 14 year old was in heaven...loved the teen group and immediately made friends with a group she hung out with all week, my 17 year old wasn't interested in doing the teen club, but he's not super social. The curfew is 1:00 a.m. For the teens and we felt the ship was safe.

     

     

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    "I wish I knew before..."

    in First Time Cruisers

    Posted

    Tip and you will be treated like royalty. No kidding...we brought a bunch of ones and tipped frequently. The crew are so kind and do not get paid a bunch and work really hard. NCL also delivered chocolate covered strawberries to our room daily and I swear it was because we were kind to the staff.

     

     

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    Best 3 or 4 day cruise for girls getaway

    in Ask a Cruise Question

    Posted

    Princess sometimes has some shorter cruises out of California! Worth checking out! :D

     

    Just wondering ... do you have a travel agent who could give you all of your options?

     

    Our long time travel agent is always helpful.

     

     

     

    I do have a travel agent. Thanks for all the suggestions...I'll look into them all.

     

     

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    Anyone that has enjoyed both NCL Escape and Epic?

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    We did adjoining balcony rooms on Escape for family of 5 with 17, 14 and 12 year old and it worked great. FYI - If your 17 year old will be turning 18 before cruise they can gamble and drink beer & wine (if you ok it). My 14 year old was not seen the whole cruise because she met her posse in Entourage on the first full sailing day. She loved it! They have a ton of fun stuff for everyone. Comedy club was great, shows great. My kids liked the Deal or No Deal show and Bingo too.

     

     

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    Escape SDP choices

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    Food Republic and Pinchos are not part of the SDP. They are a la carte and you will have to pay in addition to the SDP. We ate 2 times at Food Republic and it is great - it is sushi and asian fusion cuisine, not really street food. Cagney's was great and teppanyaki's was too. We didn't go to any of the other Specialty restaurants so I cannot comment.

     

     

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