JGmf

I'm seconding this comment. I was blue lane a few weeks ago after being green lane in the past. The difference was almost imperceptible with regard to waiting times.

@PartyPlannerLady The question is about Manhattan Cruise Terminal (MCT). For some, there's a need to get limited dates/times booked in-person for dining and/or to acquire limited slots in, say, the Vibe. Hence, the desire to get on as early as possible. Me? I like getting on the ship early, even if we are waiting on a cabin, b/c I'm maximizing my vacation experience, and yeah, my drink package too.

Stay put. You may end up 4 decks and half the ship's length apart should you get an upgrade(s).

Awesome. I'll come over and say hello!

Hope to see both @UKstages and @vacation44 in the Vibe in about a month on 6/2! (Not sure how we'd know who is who, but that's fine too).

@vacation44 you may recall that over on our June 2 roll call thread I was talking about my friends who couldn't score regular Vibe passes b/c they were sold out....well about a month ago they called the regular NCL customer service and were able to get into the Vibe via the cabana route. So, I'm not clear what's going on. Maybe the cabanas are sold out for our sailing?

Regarding shade, the Vibe encompasses the full width of the ship, so you can follow the shade to your liking. Regarding "quiet place to relax", um, yes, the Vibe can be a library sometimes 😝, but during peak hours, it can get boisterous at and around the bar and hot tubs (thankfully). That said, you could likely find solace in some other corner of the Vibe. Also, the Waterfront has tons of (free) comfortable seating in shaded areas than could become your home base for reading and chatting.

Are all the cabanas on the new, top level of the Joy Vibe?

That was the exact reaction of me and my wife when we were on the Enchanted in March.

No problem making a 10:15am FLL flight...unless perhaps you are mobility challenged. I've self-assist luggage walked off a Princess ship and arrived at the airport in time for a 9am flight.

I was on Enchanted two weeks ago. I used the app and had success, but that was after 1am, when the bars were closed and that was the only way to get drinks for the group we were hanging out with. It worked fine then, but likely due to very low demand at that time. @JamieLogical I hope you and your husband have an amazing cruise!

As others have said, yes, dispute the charge with credit card company. Typically when you do this online you are asked if the vendor was contacted, which they were, but it appears that the vendor didn't follow-through....so dispute it without hestitation!

Totally agree. Disembarkation and cab/Uber travel to FLL is so quick and easy that early flights (as early as 9am) are very doable. Port Everglades is definitely better than other Florida cruise ports for this very reason.

Yes, it's frictionless, so to speak. When getting a drink, there's no paper for signatures as your Medallion (along with your bartender) records it to your account. Thereafter you'll see the drink (+gratuity) posted to your folio. Anyway, in the event you have a credit card with the ship, then you'll be billed at the end of your cruise. If you provide funds up front, yes, that's refundable to you, but make sure you get any money back by the end of the last day or else you'll get sent to guest services when you are trying to disembark the ship and go home.

Just chiming-in that my offers are getting more paltry too. Same play, but ratcheted-back on free play amounts. That said, I just got off Enchanted last week. Hoping I get more offers loaded to my online profile sooner than later.

Ha! I did the same for my trip on the Enchanted last week....then I ran out of the singles and fives by Wednesday....way quicker than I thought I would....and had to go to guest services for more change. The casino cashier, yes, is an option, but would only give me 5 singles at a time. I do wish Princess had the bill breaker in the casino like on NCL ships instead of that little bodega ATM they have...

When we were on the Enchanted in March, we used our Medallion to enter. Generally, it's a good spot to get a snack or soft drink if your location makes it more convenient than any other spot for such things on the ship. Having them escort you for port stops that require tendering is probably the biggest benefit. Other than that, in my opinion, it's not a hang-out place. It's small and windowless.

Obviously you can Google it and find out something more based on long-term trends, but I did a late-September cruise out of NYC to along New England to St. John's...and the weather was in the mid-60's to mid-70's depending on location.

I'm assuming they'll be bored. I was on the Enchanted a few months ago (and boarding it again tomorrow!); and there aren't any kid-focused facilities like water slides or rock-climbing walls like you'll find on other ships on other cruise lines. Plus, 14 days is a lot of days....which will deter other families. That said, if they can keep each other company -- and maybe find one or two other kids -- they can eat all the pizza, soft-serve, and buffet food they want; maybe shoot hoops on the athletic court; spend some money in the small arcade; and go to the 80's dance party and enjoy the people-watching, seeing the WAY WAY OLDER crowd wearing retro outfits. Those are kind of the teen highlights from what I witnessed (and having my own teen cruise with us...but that was with NCL).

Just repping our local company, Beekman 1802...glad it's got a lot of love.

Best of luck to you. Please report back if you are successful.

I'm assuming this question will be moved to this board: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/315-west-coast-departures/ I'm assuming a lot of your questions are already answered there...

@lgar88 Based on a lot of experience sailing on both NCL and Princess, your issues are just the norm when cruising and eating in a MDR on a mass market cruise line. The Medallion is great and has zero to do with it. Too few staff is the issue. Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

Reading this thread it appears we can't identify the location of our muster station until we are on board. Am I wrong? Well, I'll be on board in 6 days and my app shows exactly what @BamaVol showed....meaning it doesn't identify the location. . That, um, seems rather stupid, especially since your muster station is linked to your room assignment and the tech to link the two and show it on the app is rudimentary. It shouldn't be a mystery. (Yeah, I know I'll ask a crew member once on board. It's not the end of the world, just puzzling).

That's really odd. I've done 10+ trips out of MCT, 3 last year, all of them parking adjacent to the ship, all of them having luggage porters right there, as soon as you pull-in, to unload your luggage and take your bags. It's a smooth operation.