UKstages

i've been looking at close-in booking for a couple of repositioning cruises in april and may on the spirit. the sixteen day 4/22 departure from honolulu through alaska to vancouver is sold out in every category, except suites. (while not technically a transpacific, it has a lot of the characteristics of a TP and is the first leg on its transpacific repositioning journey.) the may 8 transpacific from vancouver through alaska and on to tokyo is completely sold out and no longer showing up on the NCL website. i was looking potentially at doing a back to back on these two. so, while i agree that TAs and TPs have historically been underpopulated, that may no longer be true. the travelers do tend to skew older, with very few children. it's not just the length of the cruise, but you have to be predisposed towards enjoying sea days. some of these itineraries have six or seven sea days in a row and that doesn't appeal to everybody.

you’re an ambassador within NCL’s ecosystem and you’ve chosen to abandon ship, is that correct?

i don't think NCL employees actually have much insight themselves into the OSC distribution policies or behind the scenes machinations. there is very little transparency when it come sto the OSC.

that's great news. kudos to NCL for being proactive here.

the very same comedians who work "clean," also have "blue" material. it's an esthetic and marketing decision to do adult material, not anything borne of desperation or lack of talent. invariably, the same comedians that you have enjoyed on NCL ships, return later in the week, or sometimes the same night, to do an "adults only" show. so, just be aware that most of the comedians you have enjoyed in their clean shows will also work "blue."

wow. if it's anything like a standard arrival day, all restaurants and bars will be closed after breakfast... as will most of the public venues. there's not going to be many places for 4000 people to hang out on the ship. the good news for those embarking is it sounds like rooms will be ready by the time they'll be onboard, or soon thereafter. and the ship may leave close to scheduled departure time, depending on how long it takes to load new passengers, goods and freight. speaking of which, i walked by the west side highway in manhattan earlier this evening. there are already a bunch of trucks in queue waiting to unload... it's going to be a very long night for them.

yes, it's on fifth avenue, but it was held today, saturday, march 16th. they do that sometimes... change the date, for a variety of reasons. (probably moved it so as not conflict with the cookie and hash brown hunt. the city could not possibly accommodate the crowds from both on one day.) there won't be any parade traffic at all, however, the NYC half marathon is tomorrow, 3/17, and some streets from times square to central park will be closed.

the haven staff, particularly the cabin attendants, are very agreeable about bag drops in the room, even before the rooms are fully made up. provided you're just dropping off and not exploring an unmade cabin, there should be no problem. typically, you won't be able to do it upon embarkation and "on the way to haven lounge," if you're boarding with the concierge or a butler who is taking a group of people... you'll need to stay together and listen to a short welcome and orientation speech. then you can drop your bags.

the third sunday in march, the getaway traditionally holds its annual cookie and hash brown hunt. the staff hides cookies and hash browns throughout the ship and guests are invited to search for them. it's a lot of fun for the kids, but the older folks like it, too, as it engenders a warm nostalgic feeling of times gone by, while bringing different generations of families together. this year, the hunt is extra special, as they've added splits of veuve to the mix, so participation - and competition - among the older crowd is expected to be fierce. also new this year, for the young'uns, is the costume character "Free at Sea Bee," who will have old and young unlike all abuzz as he randomly distributes free internet minutes and dining vouchers. also this year, the hunt falls on a disembarkation/embarkation day and that has caused problems, delaying arrival. but the crew also needs extra time for cleaning. those hockey pucks can be greasy! and have you ever tried to get melted chocolate chip cookies out of a lounge chair? this will affect arrival and disembarkation schedules, and will cause crowding in the terminal, but NCL is still expected to leave very close to departure time, only about an hour late. still, they will not let anybody onboard until every hash brown is locked down.

NCL is very interested in post-cruise sentiment. they conduct surveys and have an entire department set up to evaluate customer feedback, from feedback submitted both on and off the ship. the most important metric is customer's "intent to return," their interest in cruising again with NCL... when those scores fall, NCL pays attention... to the fleet overall as well as individual ships. so, yes, certainly, if nobody went to the shows and the audiences remained scarce, that would be an indication that they have a dud on their hands... if that information gets reported back to corproate, which it may not. anyway, that's not realistic. people are on vacation, they want entertainment and they're going to go to the shows. if you want to protest, then don't buy a game card (WOF or D or ND) and make sure you rate these shows very low in surveys and onboard comment cards. you're not complaining; you're providing valuable feedback NCL genuinely wants and needs to take course correction and improve.

when i was on the prima, all comedy shows were held in the theatre due to the small size of the improv. i don't know why they've put them back in the improv, which is a fraction of the capacity. i can't see that priority haven access would make sense for the same reason, plus there is really no convenient back door for the concierge to sneak folks through.

yes, indeed. i was responding to your post and i quoted your price. you pay the price in effect at the time you purchase, not the day you sail. my info comes from a conversation with NCL, make of that what you will. the prices apparently went up, ever so slightly, rather recently. current price on the getaway for 10+ days is $309. you may have paid less; that's the way price increases work. current price on the viva for 10+ days is $329. whether $319 or $329... it's a great price for a 19-day cruise, as you can amortize the cost over a much longer period. they charge the same for a ten day cruise, as they do for nineteen days. day passes, when available in the past, have usually been $99. not sure if they are still offered, but they were as recently as january. i also think the different prices for different ship classes is new... i think it used to be the same price across the fleet, but i could be wrong.

ten days on the getaway is currently going for $309. fourteen days on the prima at $329 is standard. vibe pricing varies, based on the duration of the trip, but also the ship. NCL has placed the ships into three pricing "buckets." breakaway, getaway and escape are the lowest priced, with 7 days at $249 and 10+ days at $309 followed by bliss, encore and joy, with 7 days at $259 and 10+ days at $319. and the prima and viva (and presumably aqua) are the most expensive, with 7 days currently at $269 and 10+ days at $329. all the ships have $20 per day incremental pricing along the way, until they cap out at 10+ days.

a youtube video of what? a syd's scripted prom show performed by the syd's cast in the theatre or, as somebody suggested above, a generic prom "party?"

sorry for me? how so? because i've never seen anyone die getting off the ship? on a recent B2B, i saw a man have a heart attack in miami, as we were waiting in a roped off area to go through immigration and get back on the ship. does that count? because i've never seen folks struggle with their luggage during self-assist disembarkation, as you claim happens all the time? better luck? how so? what you talkin' 'bout, willis? because i mentioned that deck seven was a bottleneck? (what i don't mention is how i subsequently got off the ship in five minutes.) you guess that i don't cruise very often? i've averaged 4 - 5 cruises a year since the restart. i don't live on a cruise ship, but geez, louise, that ain't bad. don't cry for me, little birdie. and to think... not moments ago... i just defended you in another thread! and that wasn't the first time! that's the thing... i call 'em like i see 'em. when you're right you're right and when you're wrong you're wrong. ridiculously, outlandishly wrong. there really is little need to warn people about the great disembarkation luggage struggle. people struggling with their own luggage as they exit the ship just isn't a widespread problem. and i've still never met anybody named earl!

on AA, it's "concierge key." on united, you are correct, it's "global services." and, yes, these folks almost always get upgraded, within a 72 hour window, not 48 hours and not within 24 hours. most folks are unaware because, by the time the upgrade list is published, these folks have already been upgraded. they receive other special services, as well. in my opinion, the most valuable benefit is the ability to use upgrade "coupons" on award travel. i once booked a free ticket to london in coach for 40K or 50K miles, received my advance upgrade to business using a virtual coupon, and then was upgraded to first at the gate. when i had GS status on united (for about a decade, up through and including three years post-pandemic), and i had a tight connection, they would meet me at the aircraft door with a sign with my name on it, escort me down to the tarmac and put me in a late model mercedes SUV and drive me to my next plane. if i didn't have a tight connection, they'd bring me to the lounge. (for the record, i only bought business class tickets on international flights, domestic flights were strictly purchased in coach and i would put my GS domestic upgrade percentage at something like 85%.) membership status is based on spend, and there are no published criteria for the program, but savvy flyers believe super premium preferred elite status such as this begins at 50K spend per year. and, yes, it's mostly from folks spending other people's money... business travel. in my case, i achieved status with just six or seven roundtrip business class journeys to asia each year and a few transcontinental trips. so, yes, indeed, there are super premium preferred elite status flyers and they really do get upgraded on almost every flight. whether the bird falls in this category, i couldn't tell you. there is also a halo... if your business travel career is long enough, and you have earned enough "lifetime" miles or hotel guest points, for that matter, you will actually be given the status in most programs for the rest of your life, even as your travel and level of spend declines. i have lifetime status in hilton, marriot and AA. (sadly, not with UA, which, ironically is where most of my lielage is these days.) so, it is possible that the bird and company are in this category. the bird also alludes to personal connections in the travel industry, with friendships and acquaintanceships with key players (GMs and such) onboard NCL ships. it is possible her reach extends beyond NCL and she has connections at one or more airlines and is able to secure upgrades through them. while i find many of the bird's unwavering and unilateral opinions laughable, particularly when it comes to the NCL's vibe, i have seen no reason - yet - to disbelieve her upgrade claims.

yes.

can you tell us more about this? why do think it appears that is so? are you saying you saw a "syd's" prom show presented in the theatre? with the syd's cast and characters as normally presented in syd norman's pourhouse? if so, that would either be a violation of the contract or that means the contract has been renegotiated. i'm skeptical that either of these things has taken place, but i could be wrong.

people! it's not "all of a sudden." it's the boiling frog syndrome!

i'm not a contemporary cruiser, but i'd like to play this just so i can support my woodland preserve. when it came to be my turn, i'd declare my intent by proclaiming loudly "i'd like to buy an owl, please."

i kindly suggest you visit loginnow.com and logout.com and return here and tell us what you see.

i always use the app, but i'm pretty sure the browser-based address while onboard has always been loginnow.com and not anything else. (that may have changed with the introduction of starlink service, i don't know.)

actually, this is a pro tip. and few people realize it can be done. calling room service for restaurant reservations (or changes to your reservation) usually results in a quick and painless experience. "restaurant reservations" is not always printed next to a button on the phone, and i suppose there are some ships on which this may not work, but i have had always had great success calling room service to book or amend my dining reservations. it doesn't work early on embarkation day because they don't begin answering until after rooms are ready late in the afternoon. but you can definitely book by phone. (i wouldn't advise calling at dinner time, because they you'll likely have to wait a few minutes.) showing up at the restaurant on any given day also works, provided you have flexibility with your dining time. while they can help you book for other days, if not busy, their primary concern after 5 pm is the queue of diners waiting to enter the restaurant at that time. so, it's best to go to the theatre on embarkation day. if for some reason, those reservations are no longer being made in the theatre, there will be another designated spot where they are.

that's absolutely true and that's a valid complaint of the casinos at sea program, but it's tangential to the removal of OSC discussion in this thread. there are not making enough in CAS admin fees to offset a shortfall in OSC, i'm pretty sure. the fee is just completely bogus and pure profit,. ostensibly, they can argue that it helps defray the costs of running the CAS operation, but that's just nonsense. it's a money grab, plain and simple. (btw, changes are being made to the CAS program on april 1. we can certainly hope those changes include the removal of that admin fee to make them more competitive with other cruise lines' casino programs, but that would just be conjecture on my part at this point.)

you are most welcome. i'm pretty much universally adored on CC for my ability to listen and understand and respond appropriately to questions others treat with contempt and disdain. i can't imagine curmudgeonly cruise critics could ever find fault with my crystal clear, concise and comprehensible comments.