Named-Tawny

3 hours ago, david_sobe said:

You know the old saying  "What goes up, must come down"

With so many mega ships going around, its bound to happen at some point.  However, people are cruising more than ever. Jut think, NCL has 3 ships (2 mega ones) currently sailing Alaska.  Have you seen the Alaskan prices?

I am waiting till the novelty of Alaska wears off to scratch it off my bucket list 😆

 

Having cruised Alaska and Glacier Bay, I don't think the novelty will ever wear off (at least not as long as we still have Glaciers).  It's simply stunning beauty, and relatively nearby for North American travellers.

What's the advantage to NCL of not giving children status until they turn 18, if they get all the points from their childhood cruises?  Am I missing something?

It seems that most of the benefits are either per cabin (meal, wine, etc...) or wouldn't be terribly relevant  anyhow (cocktail party, gift shop discount).  Some you'd probably want children to have if their parents had (ie priority embarkation).

Does anybody know the thinking here?

The one thing that I would definitely recommend, is getting a first breakfast delivered to your room.  Coffee, fruit, and pastries while you're getting dressed/showered is delightful, and then you can head to second breakfast.

3 minutes ago, hallux said:

So it doesn't screw with your mind, the feed should be from the same side of the ship as the "window".  If the "window" is on the port wall of the cabin, the feed will be from a camera on the port side of the ship.

Wouldn't many of those windows be facing fore or aft though?

35 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

On paper, this has changed several times from 1 per transaction, 2 per transaction, back to 1, back to 2, etc.. On the ship, 2 per card is usually the norm once bartenders figure out that both people have the package. Some people just bring 2 cards just in case. If someone brought 2 cards and asked for 4 drinks for a party of 4, the bartender might ask for the other cards if he/she suspects that 1 or 2 of the 4 people don't have a package.

Yup, the big (for me) advantage of the two drinks at a time rule means that either my partner or I can walk to the bar to grab drinks for both of us, rather than both of us having to go (and leave our stuff unattended at our seats) each time we want a drink.

8 minutes ago, smplybcause said:

I prefer the same deck as the studio lounge. No stairs to run in for some water/whatever is nice.

 

If the Encore studios are like Bliss they'll have virtual windows in it. Which I would say makes them superior to an inside. As for an oceanview - they usually tend to be on lower floors where the studios are 10/11/12. So I guess it depends if you want to be higher up or lower - since a window and a virtual window would be pretty much a draw. 

Are the virtual windows a live feed from the outside of the ship, or is it just generic pictures?

I just called about a half hour ago, and my total call time was under 7 minutes, including phone tree, hold time, and getting my cabin changed.

Might be a time-of-day thing?

Hey folks!  I just noticed that the cabin I chose for a New England/Canada tour is right over the Bliss Ultra Lounge.  Does anybody know how bad the noise levels get? Is there soundproofing?

I'm probably best to switch cabins, yeah?

5 hours ago, YankeesFan4Life said:

 

Great bottle of wine, but my go-to for Stags Leap District is always Chimney Rock...Love their Cab, the Tomahawk, and their red blend, Elevage!  One of my favorite tastings of all the wineries I've been to in Napa

 Oh gosh, the Tomahawk ranks right up there with Vineyard 29's Aida Cab as one of my top from the Valley.  I need to get back out West... *sigh*

If you're cruising and want amazing pizza, do a Med cruise that visits Naples.  Make a bee-line to Da Michele and enjoy the best (and most authentic) pizza in the world.

Just don't ask for pepperoni. 😉

One of my favourite shore excursions in Alaska was in skagway. Took the white pass train up to BC, and then rode bikes all the way back (it's all downhill. I don't know that I pedaled at all)

Also worth keeping in mind, continental breakfasts via room service are free on NCL ships as well.

I've always enjoyed having coffee, fruit, and pastries brought to me for while I'm walking up, and then heading down to the MDR for proper second breakfast

18 hours ago, esm54687 said:

When returning to Boston, try to be on the upper decks around 4pm Thursday.  If you haven't had any delays or emergencies then you will be entering Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. This is the prime area that Massachusetts based whale watching companies go...  There is a very very high chance you will see all sorts of whales, dolphins, sharks etc   

Do you know if this is the same for one ways from Quebec to Boston? My partner will be so excited about this.

The ncl corkage fee is amazing value. When you board, bring your bottles to the MDR and ask to check them. They'll give you numbered cards, and take the wine to their temp controlled cellar.

From there, you can hand the card to your waiter from any restaurant on the ship, and they'll bring you your wine. It's fantastic, IMO

10 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

Two Whistle Pigs a day...it’s paid for. Opinions vary.  

I don't think I've tried it before.  Any good?

So I was just looking at my upcoming (Oct 2020) trip, and noticed that I now have the option to upgrade my Premium drinks package freebie to a premium plus one, for USD30/day, plus tips.  This could be a game changer.

Opens up the bar to drinks of any price (including single malt Scotches) and bottles of wine during dinner (and possibly lunch?  The headline says 'during dinner' but the T&C says 'while dining') including some reasonable Champagne (Veuve NV), and other premium bottles (Barolo, Napa Cabs, etc...)

Normally I always bring a couple of bottles from my cellar for my specialty dining dinners, but this may make that worth changing.=D

What are other folks thinking on this upgrade?

I had that same problem when I booked last week - I gave them a call and they corrected it.  Apparently, it's a known issue with online bookings.

10 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

Well, as said the "sale" got extended. Let's see if it get extended again .... and again just like NCL's Free at Sea promotion. If all of our 20% sailings never go back up in price it more or less proves that the cruise price was just simply overpriced to begin with and we simply paid a more realistic adjusted price versus receiving a special 20% off. Like I said earlier, I want to see my fare go up 20% and only then will I feel that we got a real sale price which is something none of the lines really offer anymore. 

Not really.  If you log out and try to make the booking as a first-timer, you'll see that the prices are higher.

This is absolutely a sale for repeat cruisers

52 minutes ago, drcarp4 said:

Quebec City

The major airports that have direct connections to YQB are Toronto, Chicago, Newark, and Philly.  Per NCL's T&C for the free air programme " Norwegian Cruise Line will book guests' airfare with a maximum of one connection when possible; air schedules permitting.".

So, assuming you can get to one of those four airports from Atlanta (you can) you shouldn't have more than one connection.

4 minutes ago, bones774 said:

maybe in name only, it's another thing to get a flight. Albany NY is called international also, good luck with that!

Fair enough.  I know it has direct flights to PHL, EWR, ORD, and YYZ, so I assumed that getting most place in North America on one connection (via UA, AC, or AA) should have been fairly simple.

Going from small airport to small airport would definitely be tougher though, absolutely. =/

Teppanyaki is a lot of fun - once.  If you've not been before (or to something similar) I'd say do it for the experience.  The food is good but not great, but the entertainment factor is fun.

10 minutes ago, bones774 said:

think people are doing back to back. flying out is a bit of a pita, Quebec to Montreal via train, then linking up a flight and adding a possible overnight in Montreal.

Amtrak to NY also a forever(slow) proposition.

Quebec City has an international airport.  Surely that would be simpler?

On 7/19/2019 at 1:39 PM, FranknBeans said:

Thanks for that info we were able to take advantage for a Canada New England cruise 2020

Us too!  It was exactly what we needed to get back into Cruising (our last cruise was 2017).  Seven days Quebec to Boston - all for less than the price of a Caribbean All-Inclusive Resort.  Yes please!

Halifax is beautiful, and you could absolutely spend all day there (pro-tip, if you're looking for a quick burst of activity, they have an outdoor roller skating oval with free skate rentals!).

But if you're looking to get out of town and don't want all of the Peggy's Cove crowds, head across to the Annapolis Valley and do some wine tasting (it's also right on the Bay of Fundy, so you can check the tides off your list at the same time.)  Wolfville is a gorgeous little college town, with a great botanical gardens and a lovely campus.

Everything on the specialty menus is included up to $15 (not coffee or bottled water, of course). The only exception I know of is the Veuve Clicquot champagne by the glass at Le Bistro; it costs less than $15 but is totally excluded.

That's really disappointing! We were excited about that when we saw it on the menu!