vacationut

7 hours ago, Dr. Marit said:

The airfare without exception is horrific. They use cheapest flights day of cruise so you are hurried about getting aboard.  Prices never,  ever less expensive then booking yourself.

  Do yourself a favor and price out going the day before and celebrate your cruise take a cab or Uber to the pier. You will most likely still financially be ahead of the game even with the added cost of 1 nights hotel.

We've used the NCL air promo a few times and have ALWAYS came out ahead. I think much of a difference in those who are ok with the flights vs those who don't like the flights are the outgoing airport size. Our airport doesn't have hundreds of flights a day like major airports have. I can see ahead of time the best and worst flights I could get and how much I would save. 

We also do the two day deviation ahead of the cruise too. We enjoy exploring the port city ahead of time and not missing our cruise. LOL. 

I had to clear out my cookies but it's working for me now. Thank you. 

4 minutes ago, Agent999 said:

While we're here, let's take it a step further. If they (all 18 people) aren't put into the same cab for transport from the airport to the hotel and/or cruise ship, will that separation also be viewed as a heartless act? 

I was wondering what kind of apocalypse will happen when they can't all be seated at the same table in the dinning room? Oh the horror!  

I was browsing some cruises in January and no longer see booking the 2-for-1 airfare as an option. Thinking maybe it's too close of a date so I looked at some in August 2024 and they don't have it either. Seems strange since they still have it on their banner. Did they discontinue this offering and I missed it? 

On 4/18/2023 at 8:24 AM, quillwercruisers said:

Delta was in no hurry to get us out, and I truly believe it was because we were a third-party booking, cheapest fare, bottom of the barrel.

That's just Delta. We paid for our flights and they left us in Detroit.  Our plane was delayed from Miami and they let our connecting flight leave 15 minutes EARLY! We got to the gate and the agent said he seen our flight land but went ahead and let the plane leave. They did get us on a flight the next day but we had to find & pay for our hotel (7pm on a Friday night) and didn't get our checked bags. I will avoid Delta at all costs now. 

1 hour ago, Olyrachel said:

and of course we would prefer at least a day of leeway on either side.

Did you talk to NCL about this? They can do it but you must let them know 75 days ahead of your cruise. 

55 minutes ago, Ellipooh said:

I always bring a tray. And secretly enjoy the envious looks from others trying to balance breakfast for two…

What kind of tray do you bring? 

23 hours ago, Sinbadssailors said:

Which would be a greater threat to safety, 2000 fans(prohibited) or 2000 curling irons (permitted)?

Which would be a greater threat to safety, 2000 fans or a dozen menopausal women who haven't slept? 

21 minutes ago, sansroof said:

They would rather take the bid from the Haven person because they can then also get $2000 or whatever from someone in a balcony bidding on a regular Haven room, whereas whatever an inside cabin might bid for an upgrade to your balcony would presumably be much loser.

Ah, I wasn't thinking WHOLE picture. And that's why I don't run the upgrade program. 🤣 Thanks for straightening me out. 

*I think I will bump my owner suite bid to max. It's fun to dream sometimes. 

2 hours ago, mscdivina2016 said:

So you are currently booked into a Haven for under $4000 ($2000pp)for a week?

 

If max bid is $3000 pp it would be safe to say many will hit that and it's possible if that's the bid you are offered, those in higher categories will get a lesser amount.

 If they don't, they would have paid more and they still would be picked because it's all about revenue.

Currently in a balcony for about $1600pp. 

I get they want to maximize profit. But if I bid $3000 (my max) and someone already in the Haven bids $2500 (their max), why wouldn't they take the extra $500 of my bid? NCL already got the amount for the cabin already. So the upgrade bid should just straight up be the bigger amount. At least that's how I assume it should work. But we all know about assuming. 

Debating on maxing the bid ($3k pp) for the owners suite. Currently one available for over $21k pp. It would be an absolute steal to get it for under $5k pp total if we did win it. 

Just got our flight info for our May sailing. This is the 3rd time using NCL's discounted air. We always do the 2 day pre-cruise deviation. Flights home are later then I would have picked but we saved over $600 so it's worth it. 

I've been using cheap luggage for years and I'm ready for an upgrade. I've always had soft sided but am thinking about going hard this time. My biggest concern is the wheels. The current bag has had a bum spinner since the second trip. It drives me crazy.

My biggest concern is the wheels getting roughed up and if they warranty/replace them. Price range I'm looking for is $200-$400 per bag. I'm leaning towards Beis but Monos looks nice too. Anyone with experience with these? 

42 minutes ago, farmecologist said:

I agree...The e-muster was/is a great idea.  Not sure why they need to go back to an inferior way of doing things, especially with reduced staff.  Sigh...

Definitely with you on e-muster being great. DH is hard of hearing and when there is a lot of crowd noise there isn't a reason to pay attention to the presentation. It was nice being able to watch the video at home and at the terminal while waiting to board. Then when we got on board, it was easy to casually find our way to the station to check in. If it was a herd, we would have just moved with the mob. 

4 hours ago, farmecologist said:

One thing I would recommend is to get yourself a top tier travel credit card like Chase Sapphire, etc....and use that to pay for your trips.  As for Chase Sapphire, their travel insurance is great...and they do advocate for you.    

Have you had to use their travel coverage? I got the card a few years ago and have often wondered how difficult claims would be and if they really cover much without a fight. 

11 hours ago, J_RAD said:

You have no real say in the flight selection (airline, schedule, etc.) and are not notified of the details until approximately 60 days prior to sailing. We attempted to add an extra day with hotel to the front-end and tail-end of our itinerary, but NCL told us there was no availability for arrival on the front-end.

Seems like some details are missing on this. When did you ask about adding onto the front-end? You mention a hotel and no availability. Were you getting the hotel through NCL?

Sounds like this was one of two scenarios: waited until flights were booked before asking for a deviation or was going through NCL for deviation but they didn't have any hotel opening in Hawaii Christmas week. If it was the second, you could have taken the deviation and made your own hotel reservations. 

11 hours ago, J_RAD said:

You have no real say in the flight selection (airline, schedule, etc.) and are not notified of the details until approximately 60 days prior to sailing. We attempted to add an extra day with hotel to the front-end and tail-end of our itinerary, but NCL told us there was no availability for arrival on the front-end.

Seems like some details are missing on this. When did you ask about adding onto the front-end? You mention a hotel and no availability. Were you getting the hotel through NCL?

Sounds like this was one of two scenarios: waited until flights were booked before asking for a deviation or was going through NCL for deviation but they didn't have any hotel opening in Hawaii Christmas week. If it was the second, you could have taken the deviation and made your own hotel reservations. 

On 1/20/2023 at 5:15 PM, Two Wheels Only said:

Bed near balcony on Joy...

 

9376, 9378, 9976

 

 

Bed near closet on Joy...

 

9380, 9978

 

 

What's the secret decoder to tell which way they are? 

1 hour ago, Cruise5life said:

 I gave him 5.00. 2x2.00 and a single.

Why didn't you give him one of the $5 bills you had? 

On a side note, I don't understand why people take pics of their money. 

30 minutes ago, twinsaj said:

2. Has anyone received an upgrade not giving the highest bid on the scale they give you?

Last year we got an upgrade from balcony to club balcony for the min bid of $50 pp. They cancelled the cruise the next day but I still count it as "winning the bid". 😁

They can always find a hotel (granted it is an extra expense) with a free airport shuttle. Stay there for the night, then be dropped off at the airport to get on the shuttle the next day. Better to fly in the day before with the way flights are going nowadays. 

Booked on the Joy for May earlier this week. It's not listed in the Latitudes cruise list. When I got the confirmation it has LATDBLX listed. 🥳 

I think it really depends on where you are originating from on the flights. There are only so many flights out of our local airport so I already know the best/worst flights and what I could end up with. For our next cruise, the flights through NCL were $418. If I booked on our own it was over $1000. 

59 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

. SDP meals can be enjoyed at American Diner, Cagney’s Steakhouse, Food Republic, Italian, Le Bistro, Los Lobos, Moderno Churrascaria, Pincho Tapas Bar, Q Texas Smokehouse, Raw Bar, Seafood, Sushi and Teppanyaki.

No Ocean Blue? 

Oops.