Smitheroo

3 minutes ago, hallux said:

It's almost like the person you quoted mentioned that category...

I dont think he did which i why I did. If I made a mistake, oooh, I'm sorry

On 2/28/2024 at 12:33 PM, zounds said:

I was recently in a studio cabin on Prima and used it only for morning coffee.  It has 3 sizeable rooms which I seldom saw anyone using and drink machines were often not working and nothing was available on day 7.  I expect you know that studio cabins/lounge require key card access.

I couldnt figure out how to use the coffee machine and there was no one to ask easily. I did enjoy helping myself to cookies in the evening.  Only saw 1 man using the lounge on a couple of days.

I sure would like to know what people miss so much about no more "turn down service"  Ok, I get the towel animals. They're cute. But people are upset because someone doesnt come into their cabin before bed and turn down the covers? (I'm assuming that's what it is)  Seriously?   

For $300 I would definitely go for the balcony although some have pointed out, some balconies are not ideal. I think your 7 yr old daughter would like it too.  Usually when trying to decide the price of the balcony is much greater which a factor for anyone on a budget.  I understand some are not and that's great

1 hour ago, mjkacmom said:

One of my favorite things I use the balcony for it at night, put on my pajamas and sit out there, so peaceful.

of course that depends on time of year and also itenarary. There would be no sitting out in your pajamas on the cruises I've been on in Fall, Spring and even January to Bermuda.  During the day maybe, but not at night unless you wear a parka

On 2/27/2024 at 6:09 PM, shof515 said:

the only thing i hate about studio cabin is the toilet is in the narrow room. depending on your size it can be a tight fit

and also on it own. I hate when there is a toilet with no access to a sink closely,  I know it is fairly common in hotels, RVs etc but I hate it

On 2/27/2024 at 6:19 PM, www3traveler said:

A Solo Inside is a fairly new category of a cabin.  It is priced for a solo passenger.  There are also now a Solo Oceanview and a Solo Balcony. 

and also a Solo Inside

What I love best about cruising with NCL is Freestyle Dining.  So many choices in restaurants and other eateries and times that you can eat whenever and wherever your mood takes you.   

17 minutes ago, Pookie2u said:

I think this would depend on your ship and of course your personal preferences.  Yes, you get more space with the solo inside but you can weigh out the price difference to see if that space is worth it.  Some ships have studio areas in great locations on the ship, central to about everything.  Do you plan to meet other solo travelers?  Of course being in the studio area is where most are.  I also find the studio areas to be much more peaceful.  I've done both and I like both, I'd lean toward studio on a ship with a good solo setup.

I agree with you about the location of the studio. On the Getaway the studio section was a short distance down the hall from one of the lobbies.  It was very peaceful also., with interesting lighting. But I only saw one or two people in the studio lounge at one time.  Someone told me that was because there was a solo meetup elsewhere on the ship.

The studio doesnt have a refrigerator

16 minutes ago, FLAHAM said:

Go for the studio.  It’s laid out better, is less claustrophobic, has access to the studio lounge and is in a protected area of the ship.

It's laid out better? The toilet is in its own walled off area, the shower stands alone and the sink is on another wall.  the inside cabin has a regular bathroom, all 3 things in one room, with shelves.  The thing that makes the studio work is that it is just for one person

On 2/23/2024 at 1:24 PM, SoloAlaska said:

So one thing people don’t realize is there are infants who are potty trained. My niece has only had a handful of dirty diapers  since she was a few weeks old. Finding clothes that fit was not easy because everything was meant for diapers. She also has a pool at home and will ask for someone to take her to the washroom while she’s swimming because she has to go pee.

That is very unusual, what you would call an outlier lol  Most infants in the splash pool wont be potty trained

6 minutes ago, MrsTocko said:

After the shingles in April 2022, we had a European cruise in July 2022.  On the way to security at lax before our flight to London, I tripped off the up escalator. Thankfully my face broke my fall, split my lip, and a big knot above my left eye.  Looked like DH had beat the crap out of me (he didn’t).  Had a black eye for the entire trip.  DH put us in a travel ban.  Thankfully that has been lifted.

Oh no.....that must have been awful.  I almost fell on my face (or as they say "faceplanted") in Mexico with a margarita in my hand. It was an uneven edge to the sidewalk. I caught myself and heard a woman behind me gasp.  Freak accidents can happen anywhere  It usually happens so quickly that you dont know until its over but in your case you had "souvenirs".  One time in NYC I was walking along the sidewalk with the crowd and for some reason my ankle just went out on me. I almost went down but a man walking beside me (another helpful New Yorker!) managed to catch my elbow and pull  me upright, then continued walking and talking with the group he was with.

2 minutes ago, MrsTocko said:

I travel with it all. Pesto, Tylenol, motrin, hydrocortisone, butt paste, triple antibiotic ointment, tums, allergy meds, bandaids, gauze, aloe, sunscreen, Dramamine, Bonine, sea bands

ha ha, you are prepared!  

10 hours ago, Laszlo said:

I've seen some people do some pretty gross things at the buffet. The worse is one someone picks up a piece of food, usually something baked. They sniff it and put it back......🤢

 

If you touch food you own it, it doesn't get put back

When I was on the QM2 many years ago after a major norovirus outbreak in the previous cruise, only staff were allowed to serve the food from the self serve areas of the buffet. They were standing there with tongs and you told them what you wanted.

9 minutes ago, MrsTocko said:

I fall into a few of these….i suffer from horrible allergies.  That often times will manifest into a sinus infection depending on the time of year. Severe congestion, and I sound horrible…had to fly home from Europe with that…not fun. I usually have to take a pill before I eat, because I can’t get away from my allergens easily.  Different foods and concentrations cause different reactions, from congestion to hives to vomiting.

 

I admit I’m not as diligent at home as I should be, but I use the towel on the door handle in every public restroom. I don’t care if I have wet hands yet from washing them, I will washy washy with the best of them.

 

i woke up on morning 1 of a 10 day Alaskan cruise, with that turned out to be shingles.  Self treated with hot compresses, Tylenol, triple antibiotic ointment and Boudreaux’s Butt Paste (which personally I think was the magic trick) DH was not getting anything, and it wasn’t spreading from my back and the one spot on my front.  Blisters didn’t open. (Open blisters and contact are what causes them spread from one person to the next.) And I kept them covered (near impossible for me to NOT have covered them naturally).  Other than uncomfortable, I was ok.  If they were spreading or getting worse would have treated different.  But I was lucky enough I guess to get shingles at 49…we did initially suspect an allergic reaction to something, we just weren’t sure what.

 

While I know myself and my allergies, I also know that others do not, so I do my best to put people at ease as much as possible.  If I’m in a full on attack, I will have DH do more for me, not because I can’t, but because Joe stranger will jump to incorrect conclusions, if they see me at the buffet not being able to breathe trying to get food…

what rotten luck! 

2 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

Well my friend, as we say in the south… Count your blessings.  That being said, get a travel prescription for generic zofran.  You will be thankful you were on CC and someone suggested it.

yes, my daughter says the same.  Pepto bismal and immodium work farely well for anything I've had (except the noro, there was no time to try any remedy and I suspect I had a very mild infection as it didnt last very long) 

31 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

So what are you saying?  Are you suggesting that sitting on a sofa that was contaminated would not make you ill?  Are you saying noro cannot be air bound.  Confused by what you are saying?

I just saw your question about whether it can be air bound. That's a good question. Not in the sense that Covid is air bound.   The norovirus would have to be in an aerosol which a person might breath in or get in their mouths.   But it doesnt travel through the air like a respiratory infection does.  that's why they keep wiping down surfaces that people have touched with possibly contaminated hands.

3 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

Perhaps.  DH sat down while I got a cheese plate.  Once I smelled the seating area, we moved.  Since this was the pinnacle of Covid testing, I actually wiped down the new table with wipes.  All I know is it spreads invisibly.  To all cruisers, beware and always travel with Zofran. 

Yes norovirus is very contagious and invisible     I like to say I dont get norovirus because I dont eat in exotic places ,which might protect against food poisoning but I dont really think it protects against norovirus)   I really try not to have hand mouth contact (its hard), I wash my hands often. (hand sanitizer apparently has no effect on this virus)  but it might really be due to those genetic mutations I referred to or luck.   I can count on one hand the times I've had any of what people refer to as "stomach flu".  People would be dropping like flies around me at work and I'd be fine. I did get it once 

12 minutes ago, mugtech said:

You best avoid the Boodlefight restaurants in the Philippines.   A mat of banana or coconut leaves is spread across the table and everyone is forced to wash their hands.  Then food is piled on the table and everyone eats using only their bare hands, no utensils.   The big pile of white rice placed in front of each patron is for that person only, all the other piles are fair game.

Yeah, that would not be my favorite type of restaurant. This is one reason I have not had any inclination to travel to exotic places.  I never ever eat off food trucks.  I wouldnt mind a cruise to an exotic place but in that case I would only eat on the ship. Dull, I know    And eating only on the ship might make food poisoning less likely, as we know norovirus is still there.  You have to wash your hands and keep them away from your mouth.

12 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

So what are you saying?  Are you suggesting that sitting on a sofa that was contaminated would not make you ill?  Confused by what you are saying?

No, unless you somehow got the contaminant in your mouth. (your hand would be the most likely way as I doubt you would put your face on the sofa especially if it smelled)  I'm not sure that a dry material could still transmit virus although I think norovirus is quite hardy.  If all you did was sit on the sofa then no you probably would not get norovirus from it. (kind of like the toilet seat business, to catch an STD from a toilet sit it would have to be visibly dirty as well as expose mucous membranes to it)  If you touched the sofa with your hands, or touched your clothes with your hands, and then put your hands near your mouth, then you might.   If norovirus was on board there were many places you could have picked it up.   I suppose its also possible to get norovirus if you ingest an aerosol like if someone vomited right next to you and your mouth was open. An aerosol with viral particles could possibly get into your mouth.  Ewwwwww, I know.  Norovirus is a gastrointestinal illness that you pick up by something getting the virus into your mouth. And we put our hands near our mouth all the time, eat with our hands (bag of chips, french fries, etc)   And of course the next question is why did you not get it? You sat on the same sofa?  You were in close contact with him sharing a room and even the bathroom?   Our immune systems are very interesting.  I read that people with some genetic mutations to their DNA (too long to go into what these are) have a resistance to the norovirus. I have only had "stomach flu" once or twice in my life and I'm in my 70's. (I do have these genetic mutations)  One time I'm sure it was norovirus and I read that year it was a very virulent strain.

On 3/31/2023 at 10:29 AM, cruiseny4life said:

Why? I firmly believe (watch out, opinion here, no factual data whatsoever)!! that NCL is just trying to control electricity costs. 

 

When I sailed Joy last week, it was the hottest sailing I've had this year. The entire ship had me sweating. They're not using A/C on that ship...well they are, but only a minimal level. We've never had an issue getting our room to be comfortable for sleeping, but Joy was ridiculously hot even with the A/C on. We reported this issue to the Concierge three times. Three times the Concierge claimed a "report has been filed" which means maintenance was in the room. They may have been in the room, but they didn't fix anything. 

 

And yes, I know the little snowflake does nothing. We set the A/C at the lowest possible temperature and left it there. It was always, at least 75 degrees in the room. We never found it necessary to travel with a fan, but after our experience in a Haven room on Joy, well...a fan is now necessary. 

 

I'm sure this is part of NCL's "sustainability" push. There's no other reason to ban battery-controlled fans or to use a minimal amount of A/C. Those batteries sure do eat up a lot of garbage space when they're used up and thrown out...I wonder if ships recycle batteries? 

 

So @DCGuy64, that's the reason! I don't care what anyone else says....Also, if you actually want the reason, probably better to contact NCL as @goldmom did. 

I was on the Getaway in January and thought that my studio room was too warm and stuffy.  I also tried fooling around with the A/C thing on the wall with no results

11 hours ago, laudergayle said:

In May of 2022 we had just arrived at port in Seattle to board the Bliss for our AK cruise.  Outside the terminal they were handing out flyers which stated that the previous cruise had a >2% outbreak of Norovirus and they were required by the CDC to inform passengers.  We were offered a full refund (don’t know if it was FCC or refund).

 

Well, we thought “what are the chances” and we boarded.  Two days in and Hubby was soooo sick.  He saw AK from the bed in a balcony cabin.  I saw AK from the balcony.

 

If you have never had noro, you have no idea how viscous this illness is.  If you have…we’ll then you know.

 

I would be thinking long and hard about whether I would be willing to board the Dawn…and I hope they are offered the option to cancel without penalty.

 

P.s.  We have a fairly good idea that he picked up the germ in the Observation Lounge soft seating which had a sour smell as if vomit may have been present at one time.  So, it really can happen to even those who are diligent with hand washing and personal hygiene.

 

 

 

Norovirus is spread by hand to mouth contact so ideally you should never eat anything with your bare hands because you dont what you have touched since you last washed them.  You can wash your hands frequently and still touch a contaminated surface. 

On 2/25/2024 at 5:47 AM, Asawi said:

As I understand they have taken samples to be analyzed to make sure it's "just" norovirus (or similar) and not cholera. Analyze can take up to 48 hours.

So sorry for those of those that should have embarked today! They must be so frustrated.

I feel most sorry for the people who have the sickness  If you havent gotten on the ship yet you are actually lucky  Anyone who has ever had norovirus will agree.  Although it might just be  a 'stomach flu" in some people in most it is not. It is *horrible*  It can strike at any moment with very little warning. 

1 hour ago, cruiser2015 said:

Or, you can just hit the sanitizer dispenser at the entrance to all restaurants.

Apparently hand sanitizer is useless on norovirus