MCMC100

I just don’t see overselling happening. I think they sell all the space available, but not more. I have seen them announce the Vibe is sold out to people standing in line ready to give them money. I have never sailed NCL without purchasing the Vibe (if it’s on the ship). They have made thousands of dollars from me by selling access. The first time I go into the Vibe and find no empty loungers nor seats at the bar will be my last time ever in the Vibe and possibly on NCL.

Of course you should. There has to be an undiscovered Pat Benatar who can play piano on board somewhere and every guy over the age of 12 has played drums in a rock n roll band (at least in his own mind). Put you on the guitar accompanied with all that on Syd’s stage and I’m going to watch for at least three beers (five if you play anything by Def Lepard).

It’s too bad NCL can’t coordinate the cast changeover a little better. To remove a very popular and marquee location like Syd’s for several cruises while the new cast is hired/trained is unfortunate and not the best way to build brand loyalty. I suspect it’s money. They may not want to pay a shipboard cast and a new cast training on land, but I’m sailing for 12 days with one of the most popular venues closed while a new cast rehearses in Chicago.

You can book theatre shows either at the box office or any of the video terminals located in each stairwell/elevator lobby. At the terminals you can only book for your cabin. You have to enter your cabin number and swipe your cabin card. The system pulls up the names of people in your cabin and you select the people who want to attend and the time you like (based on availability). Same process for reservations at restaurants, go kart tracks, laser tag and other types of entertainment. It’s quick and easy. Just do it ASAP after boarding because availability disappears quickly.

Used this for my 20 yr old a few years ago. At the time, they marked her cabin card with PC (parental consent?) and cut a notch out of one corner. It only works at sea. In port you have to abide by local law, but it was a nice perk for her.

Your cabin card will open the Vibe door. They will provide wrist bands for you in your cabin, but almost no one wears them. The Vibe staff has your name and photo so they know who has paid. The Vibe staff is excellent. They will know your name and drink preferences by Day 2. The staff will check with you frequently and bring a new beverage as soon as your other one evaporates. FYI…they seem to evaporate quickly in the Caribbean. Must have something to do with the salt air:) The Vibe doesn’t have food. You can bring items in or just skip out for 30 minutes and go to the buffet. During the day Vibe staff will come around with fruit skewers stuck in a pineapple, cookies and occasionally finger sandwiches. No need to rush to the Vibe at crack o dawn to grab a lounger. I’ve never seen more than 20-30 people in the Vibe at any one time. This may change now that the pre cruise purchase option is available. My only Vibe experience since the option was to Alaska which is not a Vibe-heavy cruise. I’m going in January on the Getaway. We shall see what the crowds are like. The Vibe is a daytime destination. I describe it as a private sun deck. There is no music, a few TVs behind the bar showing either cricket or soccer. The bar will close early (6-7 ish). You will encounter the Vibe bartenders in the theatre or elsewhere at night. The door will open until about 10pm, but no one really goes after dinner. It’s a great place to relax and engage with other passengers. No worries about getting a chair, restrooms are nearby, towels and blankets available, terrific staff. You’re going to love it. Have fun.

It’s open on port days. Sometimes best time to go. No wind…..

Syd Norman’s no longer seems to exist. On the Getaway it disappeared from my app and no longer appears in the Explore - Our Ships tab at NCL.com. I sail 1/20/23. No info from NCL regarding closure. On the Escape, the Pourhouse is still shown on the deck plans and referenced in the ship overview, but no longer listed as a bar when you dive in and research the specific bars onboard. The marketing of Syd’s as an entertainment venue appears to have ended. Prior comments from GA passengers indicate no music, just karaoke at night in Syd’s. Another poster has stated that he has some familiarity with a band member who had recently been playing Syd’s on the GA. Their time onboard came to an unexpected end a few weeks ago. Anyone travel recently on a ship with Syd N’s and detect anything? I’m wondering if a complete closure and rebranding of the venue is in the offing. I’m disappointed as the music in Syd's or the Cavern Club (same location different name on some ships) has always been a highlight.

Thanks for the info. I agree with poster above that this seems to be a larger issue. Syd Normans no longer appears as a venue. It has completely disappeared from NCL marketing-it’s not shown as entertainment or one of the bars for either my specific cruise on my app or under the “explore” tab for the GA at NCL.com. Perhaps a rebranding?

Any information regarding bands/entertainment would be appreciated. There are postings saying the Getaway currently has very limited entertainment. The show Junk’d and Syd Normans Pourhouse no longer appear as entertainment options for our cruise (1/20). A prior passenger has commented that Syd Normans does not have the traditional rock n roll show-only karaoke at night. This would bring me great sadness if true. Thanks….Happy New Year. (I’m a Syracuse area fella, but know Utica well.)

You can get a check in time without completing the on-line check-in process. Picking a check-in time is a question in one of the fields, but it doesn’t require 100% field completion to pick a time. I did four people earlier today for a cruise 21 days out- I still need photos for 2. We all have check in times of 930-10. The system just doesn’t show a green “complete” arrow for Section 7 - Health and Safety. I usually just take a picture of their passport photos. That’s worked in the past but today I only had a 50% success rate. If I printed the passport on 8x11 paper and snapped a photo from that it would probably work, I’ve done it before but it wastes a ton of ink. At some point I need to take their picture or just wait until embarkation day and let NCL take a picture.

Check in time is NOT boarding time. No one gets on the ship until all the previous passengers have disembarked and various administrative matters with the USG and onboard have been addressed. Once they begin boarding (11-1130 ish) everyone is onboard in about 30 minutes. Check in times are merely suggestions designed to prevent a rush of passengers at terminal security showing their eDocs and clamoring for cabin keys at 9am (aka the check in process). No one at the port will check- they’re employed by the port not NCL. Tomorrow they are putting people on a Carnival or Disney ship. If you encounter the only port employee enforcing the obscure “check in time”, tell them your flight landed early and it took less time to get to the terminal than Google Maps said it would. They won’t make you stand outside with your luggage. Show up whenever.

In many cruises from several ports, I have never had a port employee ask to see my EDocs to review my check-in time. It just makes sense that way. You have thousands of people arriving from literally across the country. Most of us can’t control our arrival time to a specific 30 minute window. We get to the terminal when arriving aircraft, mass transit, busses, trains, Uber, the Taxi and Limousine Commission, local traffic, hotel front desk efficiency, parking availability and weather allow us. To turn people away ( to go where exactly?) is simply more trouble than it’s worth. If I get through traffic quicker than I anticipated and arrive 90 minutes early should I stand out front with my luggage as a navigation hazard to others arriving? The check in time is an attempt to control the volume of passengers arriving at any given time. I suspect for everyone that arrives early, someone is late because the George Washington Bridge is a parking lot (pick your own traffic mess at your port). Go early and take advantage of the opportunity to board a little early with CAS.

They will try to sell whatever the Vibe capacity is. Each ship is slightly different. The Vibe on Getaway is larger than the Escape or Bliss and laid out differently than the Encore. In my previous winter departures from NYC (2018/2020) the Vibe didn’t sell out. People didn’t want to spend the money when the beginning and ending sea days are cold and wintry. It’s usually windy up there; 40 degrees in the wind with some possible precipitation does not draw the crowds in. Embarkation day and the first sea day are “limited use” days (as is the last day) - the weather just isn’t pleasant! In 2020 on the Bliss they only sold appx 80 passes. We were in the low 70’s when we got to Headliners for our passes. Only a few people came in after us. The NCL employee had a stack of passes left to pass out when we received ours. (This is the old system of first come, first served on embarkation day). It will be interesting to see if more people purchase passes now that they are available prior to sailing. Until we see what this winter season out of NY looks like it’s anyones guess how busy it will be with the new pre-sail purchase option. In the past it was typical to have 10-15 people max in the Vibe at any given time. No matter, the crowds will be limited because they sell only enough passes as they have loungers/cabanas. I’m on the 12 day Getaway 1/20/22 - either with you or right after you. Perhaps we find out together how busy it is.

I’ve enjoyed the Vibe on the Escape, Bliss and Encore….with the Getaway reserved for January. To me, the Vibe’s main attraction is a private sun deck with a top notch bar, bathrooms, guaranteed access to a lounger/towel/umbrella and no crowds. To use OP’s analogy, you never have to circle the Vibe like a vulture looking for a lounger. In my experience it’s a fun, relaxing place to hang out, meet some new people and take advantage of the great staff, nice amenities and sunshine. People have always been friendly and open, but I would characterize the “vibe” as more “sit on the beach and enjoy a book and a beer” than a “dance the night away” atmosphere. There isn’t any music as best I recall. Perhaps some playing in the background but definitely not a focal point. Nobody is dancing and singing along with Jimmy. Buffett while quaffing margaritas. (Which is kinda a shame). I have never encountered more than 25-30 people in the Vibe nor sat at the bar with more than 5 or 6 other people at any given time. We are usually in/out throughout the day. We’ll set up in the Vibe and then go to the pool bar and listen to a band for awhile, grab something to eat or hit the water slides, go karts etc and then go back to the Vibe. Sea days are busy, port days ramp up later as people return to the ship. The bar closes fairly early (7ish) and although the hot tubs are open until 10ish, the Vibe is really a daytime private sun deck. I hope this doesn’t seem negative nor give an indication that the Vibe reception is cool or unfriendly - I find it quite the opposite. I’m Irish, I will talk to anyone, about anything at anytime. I’ll argue with you even if I agree with you - it’s part of my charm. I have always enjoyed talking to people and meeting new people in the Vibe Everyone is on vacation and you can absolutely make new friends and have a lot of fun in the the Vibe. I just believe that the Vibe focus is on selling small crowds, no kids in the hot tub, a great bar, top notch service, guaranteed access to a lounger, the security of knowing that you can leave your book and RayBans on your lounger, go to the buffet and they’ll be there when you come back atmosphere more than they are selling the Caribbean beach party atmosphere. Only you can decide if it’s worth it for you.

The alcohol restriction while docked in Canada is a law. The ship can only open one bar per deck. My memory fails trying to recall which ones were open. (Atrium and The Local seem logical, but I just can’t remember). I’m very confident that we had drinks in the MDR during dinner before we got off to tour Victoria, BC so there is some sort of workaround for drinking while dining. Victoria is nice, but basically a throwaway stop to meet the foreign port requirement on Alaska cruises. It’s a bit of an anticlimactic end to an Alaska cruise because almost all the bars close around 4 pm when you arrive and never reopen when you leave around 11. Nothing to do in the Victoria port area, downtown Victoria is a 20 minute walk and the ship feels like a boarded up ghost town.

The check-in times are, in my experience, nothing more than suggestions in the hopes that enough people assume they are inflexible and arrive as scheduled. This spreads the passenger load out over the course of the morning and prevents overcrowding at 8am. I have never had any port employee look at my documents to see when check-in was scheduled. Show up early, late or precisely as scheduled. No matter when you arrive, you’re not boarding the ship until late morning (11-1130 ish).

Babr is correct. We are discussing two separate things in this thread. The OP and I are wondering if any NY residents have been able to obtain the NCL offered Cancel For Any Reason credit feature without purchasing the BookSafe insurance. As shown below, NCL states in the NY specific T&C’s for BookSafe that NY residents do not have to purchase BookSafe in order to obtain CFAR protection…..problem is no one at Aon or NCL seems to know what we are talking about when we contact them. From the NCL BookSafe Terms and Conditions for NY——- Please note: Residents of the state of New York are not required to purchase the BookSafe Travel Protection Plan in order to purchase the Cancel For Any Reason Credit Feature. Please contact 1-888-722-2195 for details. Have any fellow Empire Staters made it thru the maze? How do we follow? What does it cost?

Ok, but what is the CFAR coverage, how do you get it and how much does it cost?

I had same question and experience as OP. The NY specific Terms and Conditions clearly state you can obtain CFAR coverage without buying the insurance. I was interested because I live close enough to Manhattan Cruise Terminal to walk if I want - not worried about flight delays, cancellations or list luggage. On a NE/Canada cruise I don’t need medical coverage or assistance returning to US if I’m sick or injured. I am only interested in CFAR. I called the number NCL provided in the NY T&C’s. They told me they were the insurance claims processing unit. Referred me to NCL customer service. NCL wanted to sell me travel protection and had no idea what I was talking about. NCL referred me to the insurance; insurance referred me to NCL. Nobody knew how to handle a question outside their prepared flowcharts. A classic circular firing squad. Clearly a half hearted attempt to comply with NYS law that consumers must be told they can get CFAR without buying travel insurance. Many states have specific consumer protection laws like this, but no one at NCL or the travel protection providers bother to train their staffs. I gave up, as NCL hopes, because I figured if I finally found the one person who could/would answer the question I would be quoted a price for CFAR credit protection that was higher than the travel protection.

We did the Encore in July to Alaska and found the Vibe to be worth the cost. Even though Alaska is not a “beach day” type of cruise the Vibe still offers a lot. With limited capacity you can come and go as you please knowing you have a lounger to sit in and a private bar to relax. I was in the hot tub during sail away (80 and sunny) and while cruising Glacier Bay (55 and not so sunny). The other advantage is the ability to move around while sightseeing (particularly in Glacier Bay). We had whales near the ship and we could get to the railing and easily watch them and take photos. I looked down to the pool deck below us and people were packed 2-3 at the rail jostling for a picture. You can easily move port to starboard in the Vibe and see everything around the ship. We were a group of 5 and even though the ship was not full we would have struggled to find seats together on the pool deck - and the hunt would be repeated every time we left the deck for lunch or just to walk around. The Vibe is a private area that always offers you a lounger, a private bar, easy access to restrooms, friendly staff, occasional snacks, hot tubs not filled with babies in diapers, and the knowledge that you can leave your book, sweatshirt and sunglasses on your chair while you go to lunch and they will still be there when you return. To us, the Vibe offers an experience that is not destination driven. We enjoy the ability to station ourselves in one spot at the beginning of the day and come and go as we please.

They have umbrellas on the Encore. The Vibe staff puts them up/takes them down depending on wind speed. The Encore Vibe is large….it takes up the sun deck space on deck 20 that is accessible to non-Vibe passengers on some other ships that I recall (Bliss and Escape). It’s very windy up there and umbrellas were a rarity on the upper deck. My best guess is they were closed slightly more than open due to wind on deck 19 - but I was on Encore in Alaska so it was not exactly a traditional sit-in-the-sun Vibe experience.

Sailed in July. Seattle is odd…. I saw a sign for Haven guests, but did not notice a CAS or Latitude area. Much of the boarding area was taken up by people completing the ArriveCAN documents or taking last minute Covid tests. (You will be amazed at the number of people who arrive unprepared). Passengers were seated off to the left in no apparent order and in a constrained area. Once they started boarding they ran thru the groups in a matter of minutes. You could be a priority boarder, but if you are not near the doors when your group is called, you will be boarding whenever you finally get to the door. It’s not like they wait five minutes to make certain all boarding group 1 is on before they call 2. Perhaps there is a segregated area for priority boarding, but I never saw it. Organized chaos in a tight space is best way to describe Seattle.

Sorry…I was thinking of something else. I don’t know if the Vibe staff will bring you Starbucks. They were bringing us chowder and hot chocolate from the buffet not Starbucks.

You can purchase Starbucks coffee from a machine in the buffet if you don’t want to travel all the way to deck 6 - the buffet is below the Vibe. You swipe your keycard and make your selection. The Vibe staff will get it for you as well, but that takes some time.