laudergayle

Thanks for your balanced review. A couple days in Positano sound amazing! It’s on my very long bucket list.

@Crown Vic I am now an official Luna-tick. Thanks.

Thanks for the tip. We’ll be on the Sky next year and I’ve heard the cabins are compact. What cabin type did you have?

Absolutely not…ever. We’ve been cardholders of various Amex cards since 1983. Sorry others for the Delta info. I didn’t realize I was on the MasterCard FAQ thread.

We have Amex Delta cards, Platinum and Reserve. DH is primary cardholder and I am additional. The total cost for us is $250 for Platinum and $650/$150 for Reserve. So right around $1000 per year. With that DH gets $2500 + $2500 MQD’s which gets him Silver Skymiles status without ever flying. With Silver we can pick exit row seating for no additional charge. Both Platinum and Reserve give an annual main cabin Companion ticket (Reserve you can fly Comfort+ or First Class). This year Delta expanded where you can fly to include the Caribbean, Hawaii, Alaska and PR. So that’s two free flights. Reserve has pretty good travel insurance and 2 free checked bags per person plus early boarding…and drink coupons. But what I really like is the Sky Club access. We fly out of ATL and live 100 miles away. You never know about traffic in/around Atlanta so we always leave very early to ensure we get to the airport on time. Plus they have free nibbles and drinks, saving us from forking out another $30 per trip for crappy airport food. With vacationing 4-5 times per year, the Amex Delta cards allow us to travel like we have status even though we bought it😂.

Where ya been lately? Welcome back. Calling it a simple cabin upgrade is probably understated. The signup bonus of 30,000 points allows you to book an inside and upgrade to Oceanview, or book Oceanview and upgrade to a Balcony. It’s not like hotel upgrades where there is a slight difference in pricing to go from street view to ocean view. It can be a savings of several thousand dollars, especially on longer cruises. As @julig22 mentioned, for frequent NCL cruisers, getting 3x points when using the NCL card to pay for your cruise, excursions and onboard expenses can yield significant savings. And, like @julig22 I also have other cards which are used strategically to earn points and miles for hotels and air.

I just noticed that sign up bonus is now 30,000. Unless the rules have changed, this is enough for a one category upgrade.

Just an FYI. And, I will post in the NCL Mastercard FAQ. right now, the points for a new NCL credit card is 30,000 which is enough for a one category upgrade…limited to Balcony at the highest. Sorry CBS, Suites and Haven. best offer I’ve seen ever. Check out the first post on the NCL Forum for lots of details.

Our cabin 13391 in early August also smelled like pee. The smell was buy the sofa so nowhere near the bathroom. It was only a three day cruise and we weren’t in cabin much. In hindsight, I should have alerted head housekeeper since the smell must not have been obvious to the room steward. Time for a deep clean for the Seashore.

Lol. Only brilliant if it works. But please report back as we’re on the Sky next year. Enjoy your cruise😊

Ouch. Booking basic economy fare on Delta must be fairly new. I’ve read on several occasions where people here on CC with promo air have upgraded. This will definitely keep me from chancing it with NCL air promo. Thanks for sharing.

Try going over to the Roll Call forum snd post in a one of the recently sailed cruises.

Just FYI, yesterday I submitted my OBC form. This morning the OBC has been applied. Crazy fast! Yay.

OMG I love the new submission form/process. Sooooo much easier!

@ChiefMateJRK Funny…I had forgotten that you were the OP🤣. Can’t wait to hear your perspective of “the situation” after a few Guinness’ and bourbons (or is it whiskey…or both). Bon Voyage to your family 😊

Just an FYI. If you want to go to the top of the Spanish Steps, there is an elevator. When facing the steps, on the left is a small alcove with a couple small stores. At the back there is a lift to the top.

When doing a mock booking the only Balcony cabins are Guarantee. I have an OA booked on the Sky. While I’m a few points short, my question is do I need to wait until balcony cabins are no longer Guarantee before I can upgrade and pick my cabin?

While I’ve not been to Corfu (it was canceled on our cruise in 2021), I will tell you that Olympia is a great stop. Take the excursion to the Original Olympic site and the archeological museum there. Also, as @complawyer said, the excursion to Delos from Mykonos is also a not-to-miss. In addition to the archeologists and scientists, the island is also home to lots of stray cats. Take cat food or treats if you can.

Yay…can’t wait to enjoy your cruise experience with you. I like big ships, little ships, midsize ships…just as long they’re a cruise ship 🚢. Your cruise timing should be really beautiful up in Canada and New England. Can’t wait to see some pics.

I enjoyed Fortress of the Bears. We were there at feeding time and the bears are trained to do certain tricks (body movements) so they can be evaluated for health reasons…checking paws, agility, teeth, etc. From a humanitarian perspective…I’m not certain if a few bears in captivity really demonstrates a real concern for distressed wildlife. I sure hope the $$$ raised from visitors goes further than the upkeep for the facility and the 6-8 bears housed there.

The two US cruises we took this year the Gratuity was done as one lump sum on the second day. Last year it was by day. re: wifi. This is for 7-day World Europa in November…but, keep in mind we already have 1 device pp as part of our original package.

Oh my!! Haven’t continued, yet, for update…but hoping everyone is coping well. And, FWIW…I actually would consider Cunard based on your review and images of what one might expect onboard. The menu is a little above my culinary vocabulary…but the pics look delish. We’re not big gamblers…but would hope we could get a slot or two in the evening. Really enjoying your LIVE, thank you.

If you can ever get cabins Aft near the Panoramic lift…it’s highly recommended. It’s as though you have a personal elevator.

I actually didn’t think it was more overly priced than the other NCL cruises these days. I’m giving it serious thought…new ship, itinerary with lots of ports we’ve not been too…cruising with some nice CC folks. Tempting.

Gosh…well at least that wasn’t going to be one of your choices. For me, that’s my favorite! I guess from a revenue standpoint it makes sense for the ship’s bottom line. Especially if they are doing a fixed menu. Far better it’s LeBistro than the District Brewhouse. Enjoy your cruise..cheers!