bonvoyagie

We did a 21 day cruise from SFO to NYC on the Gem in Jan 2020. We were in an aft suite on deck 10 starboard corner. It was a great spot for overall viewing, got lots of in your face shots of the mules. It was nice to be able to step into AC. Every now and then. I also read the book and even took it with me.

It also depends on the country you are booking with as some countries include the DSC with the fare. There are also travel agents who will also pay it for you. However in a suite you have butlers and the concierge who are not part of the DSC pool and need to be tipped accordingly.

The FAS benefit is wired into the key cards, if Aunt is the third person in your cabin she won't be covered under the FAS so she should always be included in the Platinum voucher. We cruised in a suite with my MIL back in 2016, she was a third on the res but somehow got all of the drinks and meals we did.

Cruises to Greenland, Iceland, and Northern Europe have the best chances.

On our 3 wk cruise in 2020 platinum and above were told in the CC M&G that they could have one bag each week.

Well I did a quick check and the Jade is doing the same ports both directions and Glacier Bay is not on either of them. In fact the only glacier viewing is Hubbard. Also there is no mention of a SB Authentic Alaska cruise tour. BTW this is the one I highly recommend.

Then you are way better off doing the whole cruise tour. Next year the Jade will replace the Jewel on the one ways and they will depart from Whittier. I also believe that the itinerary of the ship has changed. When we did our tour in 2023, the NB cruise went to Glacier Bay while the SB went to ISP. We had seen GB but had not seen ISP so we opted for the SB tour.

All the hotels were nice some had kitchens so you could shop at the store and make your own meals (eating out is expensive). We were the last portion of our tour group with about 30 people the other bus had 50. Yes the company was Premier and they were good, at least our guide and driver were. It also helped that we were always back on time or early. BTW our hotel in Denali was on the hill above the Princess lodge and had a great view of the park. All in all we enjoyed the whole tour. Perhaps the best part was the train ride. We were in a private car at the end of the train. We had a full bar service as well as a great meal (all extra cost, but well worth it.). We also had our own guide to point out the sights.

We did the 14 day Authentic Alaska tour SB last summer. The pace was fast as day one toured Fairbanks and ended in Denali where we spent two nights. We then rode the train to Talkeetna and overnighted in Anchorage. The next day we went to Homer for two nights then to Seward to catch the ship. Lots of up by 7 to be on the bus by 8. The best part is that they handled the luggage. All our rooms were pre arranged and our guide had our room cards as we left the bus. Not knowing anything about the layout of Denali or any of the places we visited, having a tour was great. It saved me from having to research and plan it all myself. Now that I have been there I know what to expect if there is a next time. I also felt I saved money using the cruise line as most of the hotels we stayed at were 300 to 500 per night.

One also has to remember that MSC is also a freight line and gets most of its revenue from that source so they can offer cheaper cruises with better service.

On our last cruise (June '23) we won our upgrade bid a few days prior to the cruise. Upon check in our key cards were blank even though we had the FAS. I paid for our first round and then went to GS the first agent simply said we lost the FAS in the upgrade,I didn't buy that. When I went back to get my paperwork I discovered that I had not printed the amenities document from the upgrade. I called my TA and he got NCL to send my a new one directly so I could show them. My next trip to GS I got a different agent who was taking room numbers of people with the same issue. Saying that Miami was closed and they would have resolution tomorrow, he looked at my Email and said they would have to verify it. The next morning I got a call from GS that our new cards were ready. They also wiped the bar tab from the previous day off.

A new, different, GM can make a world of difference in the hotel area. Thankfully I have not had to interface with any GM as their underlings have taken care of any problems I have had. Last year on the Jewel we had toilet issues too, our room steward saw it it that the issue was fixed while we were on shore, both him and our butler let us know it was fixed when we got back. This was last summer on the Jewel in cabin 10666. It sounds like you are not letting these things get you down. Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

I kind of like the new ap. It looks like they have the status info fixed. It does seem a bit clunky and seems to revert to the web pages or the old ap. I could not see the payment status, but I bet it is because I use a TA, who is great with sending me that info.

upgrade yes, downgrade no. especially after final payment. If you are solo in a non-solo cabin then you could possibly add a second person with minimal hassle.

I sympathize with you on the cabin issue. My experience with the onboard staff especially the Cruise Next folks is that they are great at pitches and fancy words. It looks like you got the only handicapped cabin in that category - deck 13 port - right? Unfortunately these cabins along with the aft penthouses sell out fast on AK cruises - even though you booked 13 mo in advance, these cruises had been on sale for two years so it was quite possible that it was the only cabin left in that category. I do use a TA for my cruises, however I also tell him what cabin I want. He also says if it is not in writing it may not happen. It is hard to say exactly who fouled up but I think that with a room number someone somewhere could have looked it up and discovered the error- or at least questioned the need for a handicapped cabin. I do believe that you are entitled to communicate with a higher up in the company and not get the boilerplate treatment. There used to be a VP - i believe that her name was Kate or Kathy who was in charge of Guest Services - perhaps a search of this site will lead to her name and contact information. Good Luck

It been twelve years now since I took the train to Carcross with Chilcoot tours. Best excursion on that trip. We were on the Jewel last summer and found the breakfast service in Modernaro to be less than satisfactory. We happened to be sat at a table that each of the waiters thought the other one was handling. We complained to the concierge who was sitting at the bar, he stepped in and we soon had our food.

Ships without Havens are Sky, Sun, POA, Spirit, Dawn, and Star - these ships have suites and those suites have designated places for breakfast and lunch. They also have butler service for the suites. Ships with small Havens without the lounge and restaurant are Pearl, Gem, Jade, and Jewel their Havens have a small pool area and a private sun deck, they can eat breakfast and lunch at designated places along with the suites. Ships with large Havens with lounges and restaurants are Epic, Prima, Viva, Getaway, Breakaway, Joy, Bliss, Encore, and Escape. These ships (except the Viva and Prima) have nothing but Haven Suites that all have access to the Haven. We have cruised in suites on the Jewel class ships as well as the Dawn and find them to be decent value on longer cruises (14+ days) with several sea days. Being able to eat in a seperate area for breakfast and lunch are nice - in most cases the concierge is there during breakfast so you can make plans for the day. IMHO the extra for the Haven on these ships is not worth it.

Sometimes countries change their entrance requirements. NCL does not want to have any liability for bad or outdated information on these matters, so it places the onus on the passenger to determine the documents they need. My wife gets those letters before every cruise - somehow I don't. For our upcoming cruise Venezuela recently added visa requirements for entry from some countries. we got the same generic e-mail, looked into it and discovered that US citizens are not required to get a visa - our passport is enough.

Question, is the Spirit still chartered out? If so is it still an NCL crew?

Sorry to hear about your situation. My mother had terminal cancer back in 2016, we had a 14 day cruise planned for that fall. Towards the start of the cruise she took a dive I didn't think of trying to join the cruise later, luckily she hung on until just after Christmas. As far as joining the cruise mid stream. You do need to arrange this with NCL to make sure all the customs issues are taken care of.

We had a similar situation on our last cruise. We were awarded a cabin upgrade and in the process list all the FAS stuff. One clerk at the front desk said that was correct with upgrades. I did not like that answer so I called my TA who had NCL send my my amenities document. Then I went back and found a different agent who said that I was not the only person with that issue, he did look at the document but said that when they could reach Miami they would official confirmation. Sure enough, the next morning we had new key cards and all the beverage charges from the previous day were gone.

On my last cruise we had two excursions cancelled on us. The credit showed up as OBC which they cashed out at the end of the cruise. It was all automatic and made tipping the butler, cabin steward, and concierge easier.

You need to remember that a third party handles all the upgrades - Not NCL.

Well I think I have also seen these ads, these are large TAs who buy blocks of cabins in all categories, take a huge discount from NCL and then offer to pay things like the Daily Service Charge, or offer Onboard Credit. Usually, they do not accept existing reservations, you need to buy one of their rooms. Be careful as some of these agents will not allow changes and some will not refund deposits if you cancel/ So read the fine print and make your choice according.

The Sky is smaller and was new in 1998 or 99. The Dawn and Star are more similar to each other and were the forerunners of the Jewel class ships and were made in the early to mid 2000's. None of them have Havens, but all have suites.