JandC_Cruising

Put us in the camp of CHEERING for the idea of closing down Galaxy Pavilion and building out a Thermal Suite. The lack of a Thermal Suite is the one shortcoming of the Joy. I would think that the revenue generated through that feature would be greater than that of the Galaxy Pavilion, but obviously that's just a guess. I would expect they re-classify a bunch of cabins to be "Spa Cabins" without any modifications to those cabins. The flip side is that the cost of operation of the Thermal Suite is likely greater than that of GP..

The current "program" for Premium Plus is that you can get any of the bottles at dinner that are already offered by the glass. This does allow you to get wines above $15/glass, but aside from not having to wait on staff to bring you another glass, that is now the Free bottle of wines at dinner benefit. If you purchase any bottles you will get 40% discount, which is pretty good. If you do not finish that bottle, they will tag it for you and you can finish the next evening. Just notify your restaurant before you get there and they will have the bottle ready for you. Not a problem at all!

If you budget allows, deviate as much as possible. There will be no lack of things to do in Rome! Keep in mind that most any flight from North America to Europe will leave at night and arrive the following morning. I've seen conflicting reports as to how NCL books North America to European deviation request...Is it based on when you leave home or when you arrive at your destination? We've done NCL Bogo Flights before and deviated, but never to Europe. If you ask to deviate 2 days and it's a Sunday Departure: Will they book you on a flight Thursday (3 days before cruise), arriving in Rome on Friday (2 days before cruise) Or Will they book you an a flight Friday (2 days before cruise), arriving in Rome on Saturday morning (1 day before cruise)

This March on the Joy, there was a healthy selection at Maltings! I took the attached picture...may be hard to see all the choices since I'm still using an Iphone 8 😜 Additionally, if you enjoy Old Fashions, they had a number of homemade bitters (Coffee, banana, chocolate, etc.). We went most evenings for pre-dinner cocktails and let them craft us something special each night.

While it cannot be known to all of us how many complained, YOU deserve tremendous kudos for posting the issue on CC and bringing the issue to everyone's attention. While it sounds as if several "issues" are getting compensated here, there is no doubt that by putting the rationale in this letter, they acknowledge utilizing the OL in the way they had planned was inappropriate. I hope you enjoy the balance of the cruise!

"Sinner Shows"? I bet that one fills up quickly 😆

It looks like the OL on the Prima is significantly smaller than those on the BA+ ships. I just took a look at the deck plan and also a youtube video and it must be 1/2 the size. The Port and Starboard sides are definitely shorter and the front only has a fraction of the space of the Joy and Encore. Still, depending upon the itinerary, a full cruise shutdown of that space will certainly create upset passengers. We're booked for the Prima summer '25 for Norway/Iceland (what the OP is currently on) and losing that space would likely make us upset too!

The best deal happens Mid cruise. $29 for a “full bag”…as much as you can stuff in there. It’s a cheap paper bag, but we are always able to fit 3 days worth of shorts, Shirts, underwear etc. without any problems. On a Sunday to Sunday cruise it will be offered on Wednesday. Leave it for your steward in the morning and you get it back by Thursday afternoon. We take advantage every cruise! I just don’t send them my Tommy Bahamas. 😁

It means the occupants plan on overworking their drink package and think putting a big A#$ sticker on their door will help them find their cabin at the end of the day!

Yes. We have paid to move ourselves from balcony to the Haven after bidding had started but the price came down. When you do it this way, you get the extra Latitude nights from a Haven booking. If you win a bid, you only get the standard latitude points from your original cabin booking. After we changed our cabin, We had to contact NCL to have them do some sort of "reset" and then we got a new invitation, with new bidding opportunities. We didn't bother bidding again as we were happy with the suite we had purchased directly, but the answer to your question is YES.

Depending upon the wine club you belong to, it may have less to do with COVID and more to do with the 2020 California wild fires. Many northern Napa Valley wineries threw away their entire 2020 crops due to the the smoke and ash tainting the grapes. Others were able to continue to produce, but a lower volumes as many grapes just could not be used after harvesting.

$1159 ?!?!?!? Upgrading costs $34.80 per person per day.($29 +20% gratuity)..Are you on a 30 day cruise? If not, there is an error in your math...

NCL does not have any "formal night" on any of their ships. Typically only a couple of specialty restaurants have any dress code (men must wear pants and collared shirt). Le Bistro, for example. Most sailings will have an evening called "dress up or not night" and there will be photographers strategically placed throughout the ship for portraits. But honestly, they are out each evening taking pictures, We love the more casual environment. The dressiest I get are Khakis and a nice Tommy Bahama shirt. Enjoy!

The portions that NCL credits should each go back to the original form of payment. That's what happened to us in the past. So if you used multiple cards, each should get back what was charged to that specific card. The last cancellation we were involved with (actually helped my parents cancel) their insurance company mailed them a check for what they covered.

They just cancelled the December through April,2024 cruises and gave effected customers a 20% Discount on any European Cruise to be used from June 1 to April 30, 2024.. I wonder if they accidentally dropped one in your account and then caught the error before you could apply it. Gotta be faster on the draw next time! 🤣

@marne-cWe have travelled Haven with family. Like @Sthrngary suggested we were in the Joy 2BR with our two adult children and one of their SO's. This worked out great. That said, it can still be a healthy bill. On two other occasions, we have traveled with friends with tighter budgets. (heck we were even looking to save a bit of money as Haven is not an every time deal for us!) In those cases, we booked standard balconies (or Spa Balconies) and all get access to the Thermal Spa on-board and also booked the Vibe Beach Club (adult only sun deck). That gave us all nicer areas to relax at a lower cost than the Haven bill. Check out those options.

With NCL Air Promo, you must request a deviation (up to 2 days on either end) at least 75 days before departure. You must make that request, otherwise, you will arrive the day of your cruise. Keep in mind a flight from the US to Rome will likely be an overnight flight. Regarding booking a cabin, the NCL system will assign a cabin in the price category you are trying to book. There is an option to select a different stateroom on the screen. From there you will get to see floors, open cabins, and additional fees if a cabin has an upcharge from the originally selected cabin. I usually open up the ship's deck plan in a separate window on my computer to more easily see where any cabin I am considering is located within the ship

I've had to cancel a person in our cabin once. If you cancel, you will be refunded: 1. Your taxes and port fees 2. Any "Free at Sea" gratuities (if you selected f@s drinks/dining) 3. Any pre-paid Daily service fees 4. Any pre-paid excursions and other pre-paid service (Vibe, Thermal Spa, upgrade dining, drink, internet packages, etc.) In essence what you lose is the value of your "cabin fare".

We were on the Encore this January and the Encore Thermal Spa is wonderful. Unless you desperately wish to have a Haven Suite that has a separate living area (Forward Facing has that) then I would stick with the Haven Spa Suite and make use of the Thermal Spa throughout your cruise.

Assuming you received the same letter as the OP: 1. I assume you are asking about booking a "European" cruise before December 1st and use the 20% discount. If so, YES....You can choose a November 2023 European Cruise (for example). 2. According to the letter, you will receive your 20% discount coupon on June 1st. Based on my experience, you will need to wait to book until that date so that you have the discount in your Latitude's Account so it can be applied to a cruise you book (Any European Cruise from that point until April 30th 2024 - per the letter) 3. No issue, NCL did not buy your airfare yet (and you have only paid your deposit). For you (in USA) The deposit is fully refundable and will go back to your original form of payment, again per the letter provide. 4. The perks you receive on any newly booked cruise will be those which are in effect at the time of that new booking...None of your "old promo's" transfer to a new booking. So, if you pick a cruise that is currently offering the 2-for-1 air for example, you will be able to select that. Hope that helps with some clarification.

As @Two Wheels Only noted, you can get any 4 menu items there. Our experience has been that as a couple, we will only use 1 specialty meal there and "IF" we want more, we order additional items a la carte. Depending on the day, and what/when we ate earlier, Food Republic is a great place for a lighter dinner where everything is shared.

Your Key Card is coded so that it will open the sliding door into the Vibe. Our past two cruises (Encore in January and Joy in March) they also put an envelope in the stateroom with a letter with the Vibe hours and services along with wristbands. Most everyone wore the wristbands for the first couple of days, but then cut them off once it was clear who had Vibe access.

Closed toed shoes are required on the go-carts, such as sneakers. Flip flops are not allowed. Water shoes will only be allowed if they are fully closed toed.

As mentioned, experiences can vary. We have been able to pick a soup and a salad rather than an appetizer in the past. SIL did this at Cagney's earlier this year getting the Onion Soup and the Caesar Salad, rather than one of the seafood apps.

When we were on the Encore in January, they were doing in-person dinning reservations at a table in the Atrium just to the left of the Starbuck's entrance. On the Joy they actually setup the specialty dinning reservation sign-up in Teppanyaki. We've also seen them setup in the Social in the past. Since all those places are just a few paces from one another, you should be able to find it quickly.