GeminiBrian

I am a CAS guest and there is always a separate Priority check-in for us. Boarding, however, has varied based on Latitudes level. I'm currently Platinum (almost Sapphire) and have usually boarded right after the Haven guests. I should note I primarily sail out of either Miami or Port Canaveral.

Thank you for all the wonderful photos, videos, and commentary. I am booked on the same cruise for October 22. I can't wait. This will be my 12th cruise on NCL (and 4th on the Getaway) and my first post-CV cruise. My last was in 2018 on the Escape.

Removed

3 hours ago, Sand and Seas said:

I book with Casinos at Sea and haven't had a problem.

I love Casinos at Sea.

Oh. Dang, my bad. I didn't go past the screen I showed before. Indeed, they do still say Sold Out. Guess I had my 'wishful thinking' blinders on.

It looks like October cruises are no longer showing as Sold Out. I checked a number of different ships and ports. This image is indicative of what shows for October 2020.

New article on Breitbart about reports of people receiving positive covid test results when they were never tested and the incredibly high positivity rates for covid tests. There is definitely something amiss here.

Gov. DeSantis Calls for Investigation as Those Not Tested for Coronavirus Receive Positive Results

I have not sailed on the Bliss or Encore but the deck plan for Deck 14 shows your cabin is almost all the way aft:

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/bliss/deck-plans

I apologize if this is not helpful or exactly answering your posted question.

Being a child of the 80s, I really enjoyed For The Record: Brat Pack on the Escape. I saw them on two different sailings.

https://youtu.be/yrh6Bh_zngc

It is my understanding that NCL is doing some shuffling with ships, ports and destinations.

Dr. Scott Jensen of Minnesota responds to the Board of Medical Practice investigating him because of complaints about statements he made regarding covid-19. These statements were all factually accurate. In this video he makes some clarifications about covid-19 and the inaccurate reporting of covid-19 as the cause of death on death certificates.

https://twitter.com/drscottjensen/status/1280179586140180480

TLDR; Wearing masks by people who are infected can help prevent the spread of the virus. Wearing masks by healthy people has little to no effect and can carry grave risks for the person wearing the mask. Hand hygiene is more important and more effective than wearing a mask.

The following text is quoted from this document by the WHO:

https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/331693/WHO-2019-nCov-IPC_Masks-2020.3-eng.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Wearing a medical mask is one of the prevention measures that can limit the spread of certain respiratory viral diseases, including COVID-19. However, the use of a mask alone is insufficient to provide an adequate level of protection, and other measures should also be adopted.Whether or not masks are used, maximum compliance with hand hygiene and other IPC measures is critical to prevent human-to-human transmission of COVID-19.

Studies of influenza, influenza-like illness, and human coronaviruses provide evidence that the use of a medical mask can prevent the spread of infectious droplets from an infected person to someone else and potential contamination of the environment by these droplets.13 There is limited evidence that wearing a medical mask by healthy individuals in the households or among contacts of a sick patient, or among attendees of mass gatherings may be beneficial as a preventive measure.14-23 However, there is currently no evidence that wearing a mask (whether medical or other types) by healthy persons in the wider community setting, including universal community masking, can prevent them from infection with respiratory viruses, including COVID-19.

The document was originally published on April 6, 2020. There was an update to this document on June 5, 2020, but the referenced section above was not changed.

On a related note, a study of cloth masks by BMJ Journals in 2015 showed these results:

"Penetration of cloth masks by particles was almost 97% and medical masks 44%."

Source: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/5/4/e006577

The Epic is certainly a unique class. I have seen posts from others that the thermal suite on the Epic is their favorite. My last sailing on the Epic was in 2016 so my memory might be faded somewhat or the impression surpassed by my more recent sailings on the Escape.

Personally, my favorite ships are the Escape and the Epic and I enjoyed the thermal suite on both ships.

I have sailed on the Spirit, Gem, Epic, Getaway, Breakaway, Escape, and Bliss. Escape is by far my favorite for a variety reasons. My second favorite is the Epic. It is unique in class. It may not have the best appearance from the exterior but I loved its layout and amenities.

I book my cruises on NCL through their Casinos At Sea program. I was fortunate enough to win a large jackpot back in 2016 and their offers to me since have been amazing. The cabin is comp'ed and usually upgraded to a balcony or mini-suite and includes all of their Free at Sea promotions. I only have to pay port fees and taxes which usually amount to 500-600 USD.

I just booked a cruise for December 2020 and they upgraded me to a Club Balcony Suite that includes full access to the thermal suite. My total cost for the 7-day cruise is 560 USD.

I have been on cruises with NCL where the total cost was as low as 370 USD. I typically use the extra savings for additional perks on the ship, like more specialty dining.

Oh. I apologize for misinterpreting. The thermal suite is awesome, especially on the Escape. My rankings of thermal suites would be: 1) Escape, 2) Bliss, 3) Getaway, 4) Epic, 5) Breakaway.

The hydrotherapy pool offers some great relaxing features. There is also a steam room, salt room, ice room, sauna, and solarium (wet heat sauna). People are, for the most part, respectful of the quiet atmosphere. Occasionally, the conversations of people in the hot tub or hydrotherapy pool can carry to the heated ceramic S-curve chairs. Those heated seats are incredibly relaxing. There is also an area with chaise lounges where people often read books or just enjoy the view.

I use the thermal suite on every cruise where it is available. I have a cruise booked for this December on the Escape and am booked into a Club Balcony Spa Suite (formerly called mini-suites). These suites are forward on the ship and are relatively close to the spa. This will be my first sailing in one of the spa suites. My other sailings were for balcony and mini-suite cabins midship. The only concern I have for this sailing is that the suite is on deck 15 and the main pool deck is deck 16. I am rarely in my cabin during the day so noise shouldn't be a problem. Just something to keep in mind.

I have a cruise booked for December 12 on the Escape. I have to make the final payment on August 14. I hope there is an announcement before then. This will be my 3rd cruise on the Escape and 12th overall with Norwegian. I chose this cruise because of the embarkation port at Port Canaveral so that I can drive there instead of flying to Miami. There are great 'stay and cruise' offers from hotels in Cocoa Beach that end up being cheaper than parking at the cruise terminal.