Fincherson

I'm wondering this as well. Anyone? 

1 hour ago, Pitzel said:

The Local Bar & Grill is open 24 hours and room service (for a fee) is open 24 hours. The only places to find pizza onboard are the buffet and Onda, as far as I know. I don't believe you can order a pizza from Onda for take out, though, as most of the specialty restaurants frown on taking any food out.

Thank you so much! I’m so happy to hear there are 24 hour options. We are very late night owls, especially on vacation. 

I haven’t cruised with NCL in awhile but am finally booked for January 2024. Can anyone tell me what sort of late night dining options NCL offers? Is it just the buffet or are there restaurants open as well? Is there a designated place to order pizza?

I think ports will have to open soon or risk the population going hungry from lack of revenue/supplies/food. 
 

There may never be a vaccine. Virus is far less deadly than first assumed. The cruise lines need to get on with things and let people decide what risks they are willing to take. 

6 minutes ago, Coffeeluvr05 said:

We were in a mini suite on the lido L218 and we loved it! Easy access to all lido amenities. Not sure what you mean about the layout.  They are the same as in other decks. 

Is it just a hallway with doors on the end That separates you from the Lido? I guess I don’t really know what I mean ha ha. We’re booked in cabin L202.

Can anyone tell me what they layout is like for the Lido cabins? Is it a good deck to book a Deluxe Balcony on? I know it's personal preference but we've never booked on Lido before. We sail December 28, 2020, can't wait! 

This is my first time considering traditional dining and I’m not sure how it works. If I request a table side of, say, six... does that mean my husband and I will get seated with two other random couples? This sounds fun to me but was curious if that’s how it worked and what people think of it if so. 
 

Thank you!

I’m on Sky December 2020. Following!

I feel some people are far too worried about what others are doing. Are we getting on cruise ships now just to clutch our pearls and cluck our tongues at what others dare to do on their vacation? Butt out, in my humble opinion. 😅

These replies are amazing! Thank you so much for taking the time to address my concern. I’m so happy to find there are lots of positive people on this board and that perhaps my first impression was far off from reality. 

33 minutes ago, peacefulOR said:

In January we are taking our first Princess cruise after sailing with four other lines. I have found the roll call to be much less active than Norwegian, for example, but negativity etc. are on all the cruise boards. Some people think that they sound sophisticated when they knock others or a cruise but I'm expecting a very nice class of people onboard and a wonderful experience. Maybe that's why we have always had great cruises and don't post too often. Princess is far from mediocre and I, for one, have had all 3 of another line's cruises have MAJOR mess-ups , so ignore the whiners, applaud those who offer something valuable to you, and let your attitude make a great cruise.

Thank you! I will say, we always have a great time on a cruise ship and are the type of people to overlook most negative things because, hey, we’re on a beautiful vacation regardless. We loved the NCL Getaway and I saw a lot of negative reviews about it. To each his own, I’m just glad to know it’s not a reflection of the cruise line in general. 🙂

23 minutes ago, Ombud said:

What cruise are you on? If Australia/NZ those roll calls seem to be less active.

Sky Princess December 28th 2020!

I meant Sky Princess. 🥴 I’m glad to hear that I don’t need to rebook. We’re really excited to try out Princess. I was under the impression (before coming here) that it’s top-notch. 

We just booked out first Princess Cruise (Sun Princess) after having previously sailed only Carnival and NCL. I was excited to get on Cruise Critic and join in on the fun/discussion on a new board, only to find it’s mainly negativity, rudeness and complaining. Am I missing something? Does Princess suck or are people generally more persnickety? Maybe I’m just reading the wrong threads? I’m kind of afraid to post this but I really want to know if I made a mistake giving Princess a try. Is it as mediocre as these posts make it sound?

18 days!

We're sailing on the Vista October 19th, 2019 and made Chef's Table reservations. My son's birthday is October 20th and we're wanting to take him to the steakhouse for that but would be willing to switch it to another day. However, I don't know what date our Chef's Table will be so I don't know when to make my steakhouse reservations for. Is there any way to know this at all or are you just kind of SOL until you get onboard?

Thank you!

I love all this info. Such a welcoming response and a lot to go on. Thank you guys!

50 minutes ago, cynbar said:

We enjoy suites on both NCL and Celebrity, haven't tried the Retreat year but it sounds like that makes Celebrity closer to the Haven experience. One main difference between the two lines is the dress code, so you should be at least prepared for that. On NCL, you can stay casual all day and evening if you want, except in a couple of the specialty restaurants. On Celebrity, almost everyone "cleans up" for the evening, with no shorts allowed in the restaurants at night. You can certainly go to the buffet in shorts, but you might feel out of place around the rest of the ship. No more formal nights on Celebrity, but they do have 2 Evening Chic nights where many passengers (but not all) dress up a little more. 

That IS really good to know! We did dress up on NCL any night we ate in a dining room or specialty restaurant but I would have likely been ill-prepared on Celebrity for that overall attire expectation. Thank you!

7 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

I think overall you will enjoy Celebrity.  First, the ships are designed so much better.  Food much better, and service great.   More room in all public areas.  Now the suite class in the ships that have been revolutionized are great.  We sailed on the Edge suite class and it was also wonderful.  Have sailed in the Haven on the breakaway .  The haven was wonderful, however when you left the Haven area, because of the horrible layout of the ship, I felt like I was in steerage on the Titanic.  Since the only acceptable way IMO to sail on NCL is in the Haven, it is also so expensive compared to a Celebrity sky suite.

That is really good to hear, I'm excited to try it! I didn't mind the layout on NCL too much and have also sailed in balconies with enjoyment...However, I think once you get used to a suite it's hard to go back! My husband and I have five young children and we're taking them on their first cruise this coming October. Since my finances aren't at the level where I can pay for seven people to sail in a suite we're going for a lower level room. I'm really hoping for the best! Ha. It will be so good to get back to a suite on the sailing after that when my kiddos are safe at home with Grandma. 😃

On 4/20/2019 at 10:56 AM, Guindalf said:

We have moved from NCL to X in recent years and even threw in an RCCL cruise recently. The reason has been mainly because of destination/timing but also because of the perks - X, overall, was cheaper for a similar itinerary because the extras made it better value. I dislike the fact that in order to take the drinks and/or specialty dining perks on NCL come with an additional 'gratuity' fee of 20% of the inflated pricing!

 

We have never sailed in a Haven stateroom, but have had a suite on NCL (Dawn - no Haven) and must admit, it was awesome! From what I've read, the best suite experience at sea is NCL, hands down.

 

Our usual level of cruising is a minimum of a balcony cabin. X is much more relaxing that Norwegian. The entertainment is adequate for what we want and there's always a spot we can find that we can plonk down in and have a drink, listen to some music and watch the world go by.

 

We both turned 60 last year, so our tastes and needs have changed a little. I am approaching four years since I quit smoking, so the smoke-free casino is much more appealing to me!

 

Sometimes I think I'd like to be on a mega-ship. The largest, I guess, is the NCL Getaway and our last X cruise was on the Equinox. We are booked on the Eclipse in August and can't wait. We got a great deal that included the Premium drinks package, pre-paid gratuities, $300 OBC (plus another $425 from our TA), as well as a good price on the cruise itself!

 

Thank you so much for your input! I think we may just give X a try, like someone else said, to see for myself what the differences are. I guess I'm always just searching for someone to say ABSOLUTELY DO THIS LINE or this room, etc. So much easier that way. Ha!

I've been on the Getaway and it's amazing, but, NCL's biggest ship is the Bliss. Not that it matters much, they're very similarly sized!

I've been booking my cruises for the upcoming year and just finished booking for our next NCL cruise but am heavily considering booking for Edge or Apex in the near future. Has anybody sailed on both lines that can give me a fair assessment on the similarities and differences? I'd be also looking to compare The Haven vs Suite Class on Celebrity. I keep looking at reviews for Celebrity and of course a ton of videos but was really wanting some individual opinions. I love NCL but am wondering if people feel strongly one way or the other as Celebrity looks pretty amazing.

Thanks everyone!

4 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

We like the H9 Spa Suites. The are the most economical room, come with a large bath that looks out over the water, and have access to the Thermal Suite Spa included. 

 

Wrt the comment above, no Haven beds split into two beds on the Bliss or Encore. The room is designed to sleep two. 

 

Wrt to the comment above, in an apples to apples comparison, the spa suite is bigger than a standard Haven room and costs [a lot] less. Yeah, you can compare it to a larger 2 bedroom suite or Owner’s suite, but they are in a completely different price range (like comparing a Jeep to an Escalade) 

Thank you, BT! I love your reviews and I'm happy to have your perspective. My husband and I always purchase spa passes and enjoy it immensely so this is really good to hear.

21 minutes ago, dongordon said:

I have cruised in the Haven on the Breakaway (twice), Escape and this January I will be in the Haven on the Bliss.

I always take the Haven Aft Facing Suite....a long walk to the Haven in the front of the ship, but the huge balcony is worth it.  Besides, I need the exercise for all the food and drink on a cruise.  My Fitbit usually shows 5-6 miles a day....more on port days!!

The biggest negative of being in the Haven is that it is very difficult to go back to a regular cabin!!

 

Don

I am worried about that. We've always just had a standard balcony and this October we're taking our (5!) kids on Carnival's Vista in which we're staying in an interior family harbor room... which I'm dreading a bit so I'm thinking on our next cruise I will need to try out The Haven to cleanse my palate. 😂

Thank you so much for breaking it down for me. I appreciate it so much. This has been incredibly helpful

1 minute ago, valleyvillage said:

https://www.ncl.com/travel-blog/cruising-the-haven-and-suites-by-norwegian-perks-details-part-1

 

https://www.ncl.com/travel-blog/cruising-the-haven-and-suites-by-norwegian-perks-details-part-2

 

The only drawback I can think of is the the Spa Suite is usually on the other end of the ship. We enjoy being right by the Haven!

Thank you so much!!!