UKstages

they play it, you'll pardon the expression, straight. (that is to say, not for laughs... well, they play the game for laughs, but do not exploit or mock the gay couple.) it may be important to note that - typically - the "hosts" of these shows are filipino. the philippines, while a very catholic and quite religious country, has a strong record of support for LGBT folks in the workplace and in the hospitality industry. also, many of the hosts of these shows are members of the community themselves. so they lean into this quite professionally whenever it happens. and even embrace it. but the couple selection is usually, as noted, a random draw. that being said, filipinos in the workplace are not very good with improvising. they strictly follow the book, play by the rules, and do what they've been told and what they've rehearsed if the card or powerpoint slide they're reading says "she" or "he" or "husband" or "wife," they will likely stumble... read it as written, then giggle at themselves and their error and correct it on the fly. (these observations of filipino culture are based on my 48 business trips to the philippines in the past nine years.)

my limited understanding of not being able to eat outside at indulge food hall, is that it's not because of inclement weather (many have no problem sitting outside if it's windy or cold or even raining a little.) it's because you don't seem to be able to order food if you don't have a tablet in front of you. is that the case? (i'm not traveling on the prima myself till may.) based on the photos i've seen, there are no tablets on the outdoor tables. and if all the indoor tables (and tablets) are taken, how does one order and how do they bring you food? you can always order inside and take it outdoors, but if you can't get to a tablet to order inside, then it sounds like NCL has yet another problem with this restaurant concept.

it doesn't technically go to NCL, but to a tip pool administered by NCL, which - presumably doles out a portion to front of house and behind the scenes employees alike, with particular focus on those behind the scenes, most of whom you will never see or even know about. heavy emphasis here on the word presumably. in truth, we have no idea what NCL does with it or whether they take a cut for administering the tip program. tip in cash if you want your server to be rewarded. this goes for bartenders, too, who are presumably covered by the tips on the drink package. we don't know if bartenders are getting 20% of the retail cost of every drink served or not. most likely, not. even if there is some relationship, it likely gets shared across the ship, including with bartenders at service bars that passengers never see. this is why many people choose to reward bartenders with an extra dollar or two for each drink.

with today's technology, retention and upsell offers should be able to be made online. you have to meet the customer in their preferred venue or method of communication! unfortunately, NCL is, by and large, using yesterday's technology for customer acquisition. i don't think this is a calculated ploy to get you to talk to a human being... it costs them far less for you to self serve online. it's more likely a case of outdated technology.

glad it all got sorted out. another thing to consider in the future... not only are coupons sometimes targeted, but the coupons are often for specific sailings or only valid on specific ships. and, typically, those are not the ships or sailings i'm interested in. "here's 50% off on this much older ship that we're about to retire next year running a seldom-sailed itinerary that we're having trouble filling." YMMV.

as an american, i actually cruise with a european to US adapter, which gives me access to an additional outlet!

just to further clarify the reasoning behind the advice you've been given here, which is absolutely correct... alcoholic drinks, with a drink package, are "free" at any bar. alcoholic drinks delivered to your room - anywhere on the ship, including the haven - count as "room service" and while there is no fee for room service delivery in the haven, you would be charged the cost of the beverages. as suggested, it's much simpler (and probably quicker) to get your drinks in the haven bar and take them back to your room. some butlers bend the rules and you may be able to get "free" drinks delivered to your room; some haven guests have reported this, but it should not be your expectation. and it most likely won't happen. a pot of coffee in the morning is a piece of cake. butlers do that in their sleep! in fact, they can, with your permission, do it in your sleep... they can let themselves in and leave a pot of coffee, along with a piece of cake! (or whatever else you'd like to eat for breakfast.)

i also tend to make reservations for MDRs and did so on an upcoming B2B on the prima. typically, i can make a reservation on the ship just a day or two before or even on the day, but with the prima, i decided to reserve in advance due to the capacity restrictions of some venues. traveling solo doesn't really make a difference, as a table for one is also a table for two (unless you're sitting at a counter or bar).

i'm for anybody getting whatever points out of NCL that they can. that being said, excluding suites and haven (that ordinarily get extra points per night), "triple points" means 1X for booking, as per usual, plus 2X additional points for a total of 3X points per night. if they say "an additional 3X points per night," that would actually be a 4X promotion. but if they just say it's a 3X promotion, that is in fact 2X additional points per night. most cruisers and many travel agents and NCL reps continue to be perplexed by the calculation of bonus points because, A) it's math and B) the marketing is intentionally confusing. if an agent says, "you'll get triple points," there is wiggle room... he or she is not wrong, you do indeed get 3X points, but you don't get three additional points... you get 2 extra points per night on top of the one point you'd normally earn.

if you own 100 shares or more, you will get: $250 onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 15 days or more. $100 onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 7 to 14 days. $50 onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 6 days or fewer.

i did the "swim with the chair hogs" excursion, but they had to refund my money because the chair hogs never showed up.

they only take another photo if the one you've uploaded is determined to be unusable. i also have had trouble uploading photos. the same photo used on the first leg of a B2B would not be accepted online for the second cruise when i checked in online five days later. last time i cruised out of manhattan, the agent looked at me, then looked at my photo (a professional head shot) and said, "well, it's not going to get any better than that!" i think she meant it was a good photo, with good lighting, but still... a fella could take that the wrong way.

say what? you left the ship in bermuda? do tell. sounds like you had a fairly decent time, but this will be your first and last cruise? do tell.

if you have no mobility issues and you're traveling light, consider walking ten blocks or so to port authority bus terminal where you can take a "coach express" bus to EWR for about $19 per person, with senior rates less than $10. the bus is purpose built for airport transportation and has plenty of room for luggage. tickets are bookable in advance online. i prefer the train from penn station, which is a further eight or nine blocks south. the fare is only $13.50 per person, with senior rates a couple of dollars less. the train is more reliable and more comfortable, in my opinion, but lacks designated areas for luggage (except for small overhead racks).even so, if you have a large suitcase and a carry on, you'd be able to travel easily by train. tickets are purchasable in advance via their app or from machines at the station. there is frequent service, with trains running to the airport at least three times an hour at most times of the day. (the train makes other stops, including one in newark that is NOT the airport, so listen closely to the announcements.) you can tell which trains run to the airport because there is a plane icon next to those trains on the departure TV screens.

did you have the soda (only) plan? i'm pretty sure what is being discussed here is a special cup to identify those with the soda plan, not those with a full beverage package who order soda. the cup was more of a way to recognize soda plan participants than it was a souvenir cup, but i guess it served that purpose, too. my experience has been that bartenders rarely, if ever, look at your card or swipe when dispensing soda, so perhaps NCL determined that a special cup was no longer necessary.

the link you posted includes your personal latitudes account number, which is probably not a good idea, but it also means that the link won't work for anybody but you. here is the generic link: https://www.ncl.com/latitudes-rewards-program

for a fourteen year old, provided he likes mexican food, i would say: definitely! the food is very good at every incarnation of los lobos i have been to on any ship. the tableside quac is a bit of a show and the mexican street corn is out of this world. cagney's can be good or bad depending on the ship and a variety of factors. i've had many mediocre meals at cageny's, whereas i've never had a bad meal at los lobos.

$5 would be the minimum per bag, i would think. tip less, only if you don't care if you'll ever see your bag again. you tip $10-$15 in total for a collection of three or four bags? or you tip $10 - $15 per bag, which is incredibly generous. same question... $10 per bag?

i have done this! your meal essentially comes in the same containers they give you for leftovers. please understand that Q food has a very short shelf life. and that fired food (like onion rings) will steam and get soggy once in a bag or enclosed container. as long as you don't mind your food being at sub optimal temperatures, and not being as fresh as it was when it came out of the kitchen, then you'll enjoy. (to be fair, much of the food served in Q is believed to be made off the ship and only warmed up in the kitchen, so maybe it's not that big a difference!)

i booked the prima a few days ago... about 45 days away from sailing. i went in and had no trouble getting dinner reservations for six specialty restaurant slots and three MDR slots, but i was flexible as to which restaurant to eat in on which night. granted, most of my reservations were for fairly late dining, 8:30, 9:00, 9;30... because that was the only thing that was available. but that suits me, and even so, i know that i can rejigger once i board, especially if i get on the ship early. i too am concerned about getting a lunch time table at indulge, especially since i'm on an itinerary with a potentially colder climate.

contact their VP of guest services to state your concerns and your reasonable expected compensation/resolution: katty byrd NCL7665 corporate center dr.miami, fl 33126 kbyrd@ncl.com

i'm on that side of the coin! i book CAS cruises routinely and the admin fee is a bitter pill to swallow. however, on my most recent booking, i found out something i didn't know before... if you have a percentage off coupon in your account, it won't reduce the "fare" because the cost basis for the fare is zero. that much i knew. but what i didn't know is that you can indeed apply it to the booking and it will take that percentage off of the admin fee! i saved about $50 doing this on an upcoming cruise.

none.

i completely agree. i wasn't suggesting they make those venues bigger. i was suggesting that it was unfair criticism of the prima to say that you couldn't get into syd's, for isntance,, since the inability to accommodate all guests is a factor for all ships with those small venues.

this is the way that's done: (from "five easy pieces") Bobby : I'd like a plain omelette, no potatoes, tomatoes instead, a cup of coffee and wheat toast. Waitress : [points at his menu] No substitutions. Bobby : What do you mean? You don't have any tomatoes? Waitress : Only what's on the menu. You can have a number two, a plain omelette, it comes with cottage fries and rolls. Bobby : Yeah, I know what it comes with, but it's not what I want. Waitress : Well, I'll come back when you make up your mind Bobby : Wait a minute, I have made up my mind. I'd like a plain omelette, no potatoes on the plate, a cup of coffee and a side order of wheat toast. Waitress : I'm sorry, we don't have any side orders of toast. I'll give you an English muffin or a coffee roll. Bobby : What do you mean you don't make side orders of toast? You make sandwiches, don't you? Waitress : Would you like to talk to the manager? Palm Apodaca : Hey, mac... Bobby : Shut up. [to the waitress] Bobby : You've got bread and a toaster of some kind? Waitress : I don't make the rules. Bobby : OK, I'll make it as easy for you as I can. I'd like an omelette, plain, and a chicken salad sandwich on wheat toast, no mayonnaise, no butter, no lettuce, and a cup of coffee. Waitress : A number two, a chicken salad sand. Hold the butter, the lettuce, and the mayonnaise, and a cup of coffee. Anything else? Bobby : Yeah, now all you have to do is hold the chicken, bring me the toast, give me a cheque for the chicken salad sandwich, and you haven't broken any rules.