Hutcha

Do they do an afternoon tea service in the TSL?

Cruising on Seascape, out of Miami, in Sept. DW wants to catch an 11:00 flight for work, out of MIA. A friend is picking me and DS up, and hanging out with us until our 6 p.m. flight out of FLL. Can DW be first off, and the 2 of us be towards the end?

Yes, that was from Celebrity. Yes, if you wait and just buy the drink package, it is really expensive. My point was that there are many cruise lines (X, NCL, MSC) that let you bundle your fare to include a drink package. NCL is something like $120 pp/pd, plus grat, if you opt out of it when you book and try to add it later. On my 7 day X cruise in Feb, it was about a $500 pp difference for the cruise. When you include the internet and tips, it's a really good deal. The drink package alone was more than that. I like the convenience of the drink package, but I'm not getting it on Royal at $107 pp/pd on my Feb cruise. They are going to need to do something to remain competitive. The Diamonds and above might not care about a package, but a lot of people do.

The way that it was explained to me last month is that you'll get the free cruise when the current year closes out on Mar 31, 2024. You should have received an offer while on board, based on your play. That offer would be a limited offer for certain sailings, or can be redeemed for $500 off a different one.

Did you hit prime since March of this year? I think the offer fo r the free cruise comes after the year closes out.

Here's a comparable deal on RCL the same month (first one I pulled up). So, The base cruise fare, plus the drink package (incl grat) is $2,749 pp. Yes, it is a better drink package.

Every line that offers a drink package included also has a cheaper option that doesn't include it. I just pulled a random one up and it was $75 pp/pd for drinks, wifi, and tips. That's a far cry from the $107 pp/pd for just drinks on my Icon cruise.

The prices go from ridiculous to outrageous. Especially in this day of competing lines offering free drinks (including Celebrity). On my Mar 2024 Icon cruise it's running over $1500 (incl grat) for two people, on a 7 day.

The jazz club was usually empty. They should have made this the smokers casino.

IMO, they don't have sales. Only different promotions that offer the same price.

You are just pre-paying the gratuity. It is not part of the cruise fare, and you can have it removed. It was probably put there by your TA. Actually, now that I look at it, It's there so that they can show that it's part of your Star class inclusions. You are not paying it.

As far as customs, I think it's $10k per person. You should be able to split it between the two of you. ***Edit*** A quick search would have told me that I was wrong. It's $10k per household, sorry 😞

They learned from their drink package pricing, putting everyone in the same dilemma. They raise the price until people stop buying it.

Finally! Someone honest about why they remove the gratuities. It's refreshing. ...in b4 the lock

No filet on the first night in CK?!? I thought that was a tradition? I might have to switch up my res for this Sunday! ***Edit...I just checked the app. Those are just the "Classic Entrees. Crisis averted.

Nice review so far. I'm on her, in YC, for the first time in Sept. Excited to read the rest.

What makes you think that tips added to the bill are shared by all those on board?

Was dining on NCL in The Haven or MDR?

This has to be one of the best, most detailed reviews I have ever read. Thank you. I'm on the seascape, first MSC cruise, in September. My room is is on 16, but the other side of the ship. Gusti sounds amazing. I wonder if others can comment on the level of service received from him. Especially if they were on the same cruise as you. I love your tipping method, and I'm sure it plays into the level of service that you received. My only change would be to the aspect of tipping the asst and night butler the same as your main butler. Personally, I think I'll try this method on my cruise, but I'll cut the amount in half for the other two. Looking forward to the rest.... p.s. My only tip for improving the review would be to see if you can attach higher resolution pictures.

When asked, my TA confirmed that dealing with MSC is very time consuming and tedious. It took months, and dozens of calls and emails to get a military discount applied to my two bookings. On your list of complaints/drawbacks, don't let others minimize your viewpoint. If it's important to you, that's all that matters. Someone else might have the same views as you, and they'll appreciate your insight. Thanks for the info!

They should make that the smoking casino. They got it backwards.

Can anyone speak to reliability? We are coming in the night before, and staying at a Hobby hotel. There are 7 of us, so we would need an XL and a normal to fit everyone and bags. My wife is nervous that we will get a bunch of drivers that cancel on us. Last year, out of Port Canaveral, we got a private van from Orlando, but here they want almost $600 RT for private transportation. How hard is it to secure a ride?

I looked at several cruises on NCL, that are over a year away, and the sail away rate is "sold out". How does one not pay for something they don't want ,but the rate is inflated because of it?

@corman-cruise you've awaken the beast. The NCL loyalist have come out to defend!! I would agree with you. NCL nickels and dimes you. Just because it's in the terms, doesn't mean you need to be happy with it. All cruise lines have been trying to extract extra money from you, in this post covid world, but I take exception to some of the things that NCL does. Forgive me if my numbers aren't exact, but here are some examples. Yes, advertising and marketing are great ploys that companies use to lure you. NCL is great at it. Take the drink package, and the gratuity on it. Other cruise lines include the gratuity when the package is included (MSC and Celebrity come to mind). NCL inflates the cost of the drink package ($119/day?) so they can extract a higher grat out of you. Who else charges this much for a drink package? Bottled water. What line charges so much for a drink package, and doesn't include bottled water? A big pet peeve of mine is the miniscule amount of top deck space that is taken up with pay for amenities, The Vibe, The Haven, laser tag, racetrack, etc I feel that deck and pool space is inadequate. For that reason I will not sail NCL outside of The Haven. The exception might be to try the Prima class. The Haven. Great product, if you can get it for the right price, but it still has it's limits. I sailed with the premium plus drink package. You could get a steak dinner delivered to your room, but if you want a glass of wine delivered with it, you have to pay for it. Same with the minibar. For the price these rooms go for it, those things should be included. The included internet is a joke. Is it factual, sure. I probably will sail NCL again, but I can't imagine doing it outside of The Haven. That opinion might change after my MSC Yacht Club cruise this fall.