Cruising Lynne

On 5/12/2024 at 7:46 PM, morpheusofthesea said:

Just another outlook.

Love the last one above. My husband is still "Bank of Dad" to his thirty something year old children. We are turning 60 and 70 this year. I tell him that "someday" is now! We need to enjoy traveling now while we still can enjoy it.

22 hours ago, sunshine55 said:

Your videos have sound but no pic on my screen.  Anyone else have that issue?

I am having the same issue. Only a couple of the videos work for me. I am in Chrome on an older lap top.

2 hours ago, lab_love123 said:

Thank you everyone who has responded for the good info! Appreciate it!

I like to bring a regular watch on cruises that I set to the time that is being used by the ship. This is just in case the time on my phone or on a smart watch automatically adjusts to something different. Plus I do not like to always be carrying around my phone. 

NCL needs to get it together in regards to excursions.

We have a Canada/ New England cruise booked on Jade in September. One of the reasons I picked this cruise was because it goes to PEI. I wanted to see the Anne of Green Gables house. None of their excursions include this. I won't be using my 50 dollar excursion credit here, and we will just explore on our own. Luckily I have a Princess cruise booked with a similar itinerary for August. They had more than one excursion that included a stop at the Anne of Green Gables house and museum. We picked the shorter one that just goes to the house. We have never been to PEI before and I did not want to venture that far out without a ship excursion.

I know a lot of people never do ship excursions but I like the convenience and comfort level of booking with the cruise line. They generally won't leave without you if you are delayed getting back to port when your excursion is through the ship. Very rarely they may have to leave, but they will catch you back up to the ship if this happens.

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

I believe for a sofa on the Meraviglia, you need at least one of the deluxe ocean views on Deck 5.

 

On Princess ships, they don't even have sofas in the balconies...

Yeah, I think I screwed up and booked an ocean view on deck 8 for our upcoming trip on Meraviglia. I don't think it will have a couch. I will report back after our cruise.

I was also surprised when I booked a balcony room for a Princess cruise that the standard balcony room has no couch. I really do not like the only sitting area to be the bed. At least we have chairs on the balcony to sit in. Maybe there will be enough space to bring one inside the room? One of the reasons I upgrade to a balcony on NCL is to have a couch. I really do not like the only sitting area to be the bed. 

4 hours ago, ready2cruzagain said:

Never had a chair or couch in an inside cabin on Meraviglia, Seaside, Seashore or Divina. Just off of the NCL Epic and no chair or couch in inside cabin.  Most inside cabins I have been in (59 cruises, most in inside cabin) do not have a chair or a couch. There isn't enough room. Princess and Celebrity had chairs but they were tiny, thin and slid under the desk. Definitely not a comfortable chair to sit in.

Our inside cabin on Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas had a small couch. This is a Radiance Class ship. I do not know about the other classes on Royal.

Good for a night out. Dinner, show, drinks, and casino. Sounds fun if you are local.

On 5/9/2024 at 9:27 AM, mitchtech said:

Hi

Just got off the Joy and was so happy with Spice H20 being non smoking!! Yay!! 

I was wondering 

So happy to hear this! I had been looking forward to using the giant hot tub out there, but the low ceiling above the bar and hot tub area held in the smoke, so we never used it.

My husband and I have discussed that if we had this type of cabin again, we would ask to have the beds separated. I think we would like the floor space in between the beds, and no one would bang their head.

2 hours ago, Momto3girlsintheCarolinas said:

We are sailing MSC for the first time in a few days, so I have been stalking the MSC boards for months.  It has been a terrific source of information, and I am grateful.  There are lots of wonderful and very helpful folks here.

 

However, it seems like there are a lot of very affluent posters here.  Much more so than on other cruise line boards.  There are so many posts about the YC and people mentioning suites that they have spent thousands to enjoy.

 

Don't get me wrong - I am happy for you.  If you can afford it, go for it.  However, where are all the "regular folks"?   The people who travel on a budget.  The people who are glad to just be on a ship, even if they can "only afford" an inside stateroom?

 

I am feeling like I might be a social outcast on this ship in not dining in the "private dining room" or having access to the spa.

 

I am worried that the class differences will be as obvious as they were for Leo and Kate in 1997.  That's not a feeling I want while on vacation.  

 

All experiences and perspectives are welcomed.  Please play nice.

I think you may see a disproportionate amount of posts about the Yacht Club for two reasons. One being that it is not the "usual" cruise experience so people have a lot of questions about how things work. The other may be that people are excited that they are having or going to have a more exclusive, luxurious experience in the Yacht Club and want to share their excitement (and maybe brag a little).

I will be taking my first MSC cruise very soon on Meraviglia. We will be in a regular Fantastica ocean view cabin. I will report back our experience, and may be some comparing to NCL, which has been our most frequently sailed line.

32 minutes ago, Anoynmous Phoenix said:

@Cruising Lynne

 

Are you doing a Canada/New England cruise? We just made final payment on one, out of Boston in September.

 

No the only cruises we have are the two Ambassador one, Pride twice staring in a fortnight

 That is exciting. We enjoyed an anniversary cruise on Pride of America back in 2011. It was a very enjoyable trip, even though Pride sometimes get bad reviews I would enjoy going on her again. My husband and I are not quite up for the long flight from Massachusetts again. Our first cruise with NCL was also in Hawaii, Wind back in 2006. This trip had me hooked on NCLs Freestyle dining and laid back vibe.

On 5/2/2024 at 1:36 PM, OrtonPark said:

I went to a nudist camp a few years back, and trust me – it’s nothing they haven’t seen before!I went to a nudist camp a few years back, and trust me – it’s nothing they haven’t seen before!

My grandparents would have loved this cruise. They used to spend the summer at a nudist camp in the the Berkshires back in the 70's and 80's. I never went, just not for me. I agree with the comment about having seen it all before. We encountered a group of nudists on a special snorkeling  excursion at an island off St. Maarten. We were there on a "regular" ship excursion. They were not quite nude as they all had on masks and flippers. It was quite interesting people watching! We had been forewarned of there being possible nudity seen on this excursion. I believe we were on a Royal ship at the time.

Best wishes to you both. We are hoping to be able to cruise as long as you have. Becoming Ambassador seems like a goal I would like to achieve. It is great that you were able to enjoy so many cruises before now. Whenever some one I know seems surprised I am going on another cruise, I tell them that I am enjoying them well I still can. Enjoy all your great memories!!

Are you doing a Canada/New England cruise? We just made final payment on one, out of Boston in September.

I wouldn't get back off the ship in Manhattan, unless I wanted to go to the Intrepid Museum, which is right next door. The earliest we have seen boarding start in Manhattan was 11:00 for Haven and shortly after that handicapped people board. Being Sapphire Lattitudes we have boarded by about 11:30.

4 hours ago, schmoopie17 said:

WOW...looks like a huge "crowd" for Deal or no Deal. That was about the same size "crowd" we had for Wheel of Fortune on the Jade. Hoping NCL observes the "crowds" and decides to pull the plug on the game show fiasco.

Agree.

It may help if other people stop complaining about how crowded the atrium is when they hold games there. Some people do not read the Freestyle Daily and having it in the atrium may attract spur of the moment players who see the event while passing through.

 Having a game in the theater during the day is okay, but I enjoy a show or some other type of performance at night. Wheel of Fortune is not a good replacement for a show.

On 5/4/2024 at 11:39 AM, umaine89 said:

Breakfast this morning, back at Great Outdoors which is behind Great Cafe. 
 

 

I love the two drinks at a time. I didn’t even ask for 2. RCL makes pina coladas with dark rum. In NCL, it is always light rum unless I ask for Goslings. It should be dark rum, IMHO, but this is definitely a first world problem. Haha. 
 

I have never been to the buffet when I didn't see multiple tables open by the window. This ship does not feel crowded at all. 
 

That said, it’s windy on the deck and they closed the port side top deck. So you’re not finding a lounger right now. 
 

 

Loving the picture of your breakfast. On my last cruise I enjoyed a pina colada with my breakfast. My husband was a little surprised when I headed to the bar, but it goes very well with the fresh fruit! Not a bad idea on a sea day.

I hope that whatever they do, they update the website to reflect any changes. Sometimes they aren't very good about that.

Thanks Radio for posting all the awesome pictures. We were on Joy last September and really enjoyed it. I watched you back away from the pier yesterday on the Port New York webcam. So exciting and I wished I was there. Have a great trip!

20 hours ago, DRGrammy said:

Thank you for this info.  I wondered if they were getting into port very late.  Since I’m guessing you’ve watched ships on the harbor a lot, can you tell me which side of the ship will pass the Statue of Liberty?  I’m assuming port side?   I’m wondering where we should position ourselves for sail away.  

Leaving from Manhattan, I believe the Statue of Liberty is on the starboard side. If you go to an upper deck you can also watch as you go under the Verrazano Bridge. 

I hope they don't remove them. Some day I may be lucky enough to enjoy them. I would love to have my own private whirlpool. I enjoy a nice bath, and do not like the trend of hotels going to just showers and not the tub/shower combo. Having a tub option on the cruise ship is nice for people who want to soak their sore muscles or bathe children. 

6 minutes ago, Laszlo said:

My son and his girlfriends family went Glamping in Acadia last year over the 4th and had a great time. Town was crowded but it seemed to clear out after the parade

Glamping could work for me.

3 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Personally, I hope Bar Harbor keeps the ban. Heck, I'd be ok with them decreasing the number to 250. 

 

I do have to agree about four days in Bermuda! That would be lovely! 

We can always drive to Bar Harbor from Massachusetts, but I enjoyed the two times I stopped there on cruises. Once on a Boston to Bermuda cruise, and once on a Canada/New England cruise. Hubby wants to camp up at Acadia, but I tell him my idea of roughing is when we get an inside cabin instead of a balcony! 

1 hour ago, Menocchio said:

I'm getting the very vague impression that Juneau isn't aiming for as restrictive a ban as Bar Harbor did. These days, every port should probably draw a line somewhere lest they end up with multiple Icons of the Seas showing up at the same time. 

The Icon class ships really bother me. I am sure they are fun to be on, but I feel that they give cruising in general a bad image. They dump too many passengers into a port all at once. It is ships like these that help lead to all these restrictions and bans. They also cause damage to port areas and lead to more dredging and need larger piers built to accommodate them.

2 hours ago, Laszlo said:

Unless you go on a ship with less than 1000 passengers you are not going to Bar Harbor after 2024. I guess NCL is out of Bar Harbor for good. NCL still have Bar Harbor on the 2025 itinerary and they know dam well they are not stopping there

 

I would take a 4th day in Bermuda over Portland in a heartbeat

Id love a fourth day in Bermuda. Unfortunately, they have to get out of there to make room for the next ship to come in.

Maybe NCL hopes that Bar Harbor will change the restriction by 2025. I think they should raise the number of passengers allowed and just ban the really big ships. Less than 1000 passengers is ridiculous. Many of the businesses in Bar Harbor would agree.

11 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

So basically what I'm hearing is this: people who choose to tip bartenders on NCL in addition to the gratuities they paid for the all-inclusive beverage package are to blame when people like me (who DON'T carry around a stack of bills for extra tips) end up having to wait around longer for their drinks. Thanks a lot. In the future, I will be reporting this to management, and on the last night, if serving times haven't improved, I'll be removing the DSC and I'll tell management so in my follow-up survey. It's ridiculous to create a two-tiered system where only the people who bribe bartenders get served. EDIT: this might be an idle threat, or it might not be. But I'm not saying whether or not I will ever do this.

LOL We often (not always) tip the bartender extra, and do not get preferential treatment. I have seen it though. I wonder how much those people tip?

It absolutely should be first come first served at the bars. I think it is the heavy drinkers who get recognized. You know, the people that park at one of the bars all day. We are too busy for that. I often get drinks from one of the drink servers so I do not have to deal with the crowds at the bars. Tipping them extra does help ensure that they return promptly to see if I need another drink. I do not like to worry about having cash for tips every time I leave the room, but will tip if I have some bills on me .Again, not always, and not the amounts that some people claim to tip.

6 hours ago, marktwothousand said:

Doing Meraviglia from Brooklyn for May 26th week Memorial Day. What of environment and demographic should I expect coming from NCL for this kind of cruise?

 

it was VERY cheap..

 

Given the cheap drinks pack, I am thinking it is more of a party crowd? What are kids like during Memorial Day cruises?

 

On one hand, it is a holiday so I know a lot of people like to go with their family, but it’s only a 1-day holiday and the end of the school year is only a month later, so I’m thinking a lot of families with kids Might just be waiting until then.

 

all insight welcome

 We are getting off the day you embark. We usually do Boston to Bermuda that week, but are making the leap from NCL to try something new. We are in Massachusetts, and school does not get out here until June 12th. This is a little early due to the lack of snow days this year. The Seniors get out earlier. This should help keep the number of families with young children down. You may have an increase in college age kids.

A ship as big as Meraviglia should have some quiet spots to get away from the crowds. We shall see. I have wanted to go on Meraviglia ever since it was new. The ceiling in the Promenade and the Swarovkski Crystal stair cases seemed like something I would like to see.

  I recognize you and Jamie from the Cruise Critic boards, but not on board ships. Happy sailing!!