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Very confusing....the Freestyle Daily you posted shows a la carte and has different hours listed. Can you post the rest of the dailies? Do they show a cover charge instead of a la carte?

Keep in mind, the experimental $14.95 cover charge for whatever you order only applies to the Breakaway for now. The recent posting of a sample Daily was from day one on the Getaway (GA) was to show how it hasn't changed on the GA yet (still A la carte pricing). Day 1 restaurant hours are seldom typical of the rest of the cruise.

Really? I really doubt that. Does anyone have experience with this?

I do believe, smoking is allowed on the outside decks on the starboard side of the ship - so, yes, it might be a problem if you want to avoid it on your balcony.

We will be on the Baltic Getaway cruise next week and its our first time with NCL. My husband is interested in purchasing a watch and wondering if there is a large selection (brands?) and good sales? I know on previous Caribbean cruises we'd check ports and ship prices, but not sure if Baltic cruises would be similar in variety and good prices? Also we were thinking of purchasing wine at our first stop in Germany versus at embarkation. Is it ok to buy wine at any stop and bring it back on and pay the corkage fee so that its available to you throughout the cruise, or will they hold any wine you buy if not brought on at embarking port? Thanks

Things a little bit different on a European cruise when it comes to port shopping. Unlike the Caribbean where you may see a lot of "duty-free" items, in the ports you'll be paying prices that include VAT, which if your purchases are above a certain amount, you can apply for a refund of. If I recall, near the end of the cruise, a representative is on board to process the paperwork (but this could change). SAVE YOUR RECEIPTS! Google VAT Tax Refunds for more info.

Putting aside the, "if only I had waited" we all feel when we see prices drop below what we paid, bear with me through a little math to see what NCL may reasonably accommodate you with if you ask. Including what you paid with your casino offer and the $70 pp upgrade bid, what is your total outlay? Is this amount more than your "new" cabin is selling for? If so, you may have two options: 1. ask to apply what you've paid so far to a cabin you would prefer, or see if they will offer you a cabin credit for 25% of the difference.

If what you paid in total is still less than the current rate, comparing a retail price drop is a false equivalency. Try not to dwell on it and be happy that through the casino program you are still paying less than the general public and enjoy your cruise.

Thanks! Always nice to get helpful tips.

On NCL most specialty restaurants other than Moderno & Tepanyaki have gone to a' la carte pricing. With the dining plan you are limited to one entrée, but can order additional appetizers, sides , & desserts.

Just off the Breakaway yesterday (Sunday, Aug 6.) The Margaritaville Bar is open from 12 noon until 4:00 PM and I ordered a "Who's To Blame" using my UBP on Saturday, Aug 5. No cover charge was applied. Also, I saw others using their UBP for various drinks at this bar and no charges were applied.

Did you see many folks dining?

Without being too technical (or snarky), cruise-lines have two important goals, fill the ship & limit refunds. Let's say, I'm NCL. I have mini-suites I want to sell, but determine the price point they will go for is the same price as a balcony. If I lower the price to the balcony, I may sell the mini-suites, but upset those currently booked in a mini. But if I sell a GTY balcony and bump someone to a mini, everyone is happy. So often when they sell a GTY, there really are no cabins left in that category, they just know they can sell remaining cabins at that price.

Hi. I am thinking about booking a balcony cabin 9256 below Tradewinds and Shaker's on the Breakaway. What is Shaker's exactly? I am just wondering if it is a nightclub or how noisy it will get, especially with it having the waterfront. What hours are they open? Does anyone have experience with this?

 

 

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Cabin 9256 is above the Tradewinds gift shop and below balcony cabins above. Shakers' Waterfront stretches back to cabin 9248 Shaker's is a martini bar, which I don't believe has much in the way of loud entertainment. Smoking is supposed to be limited to the Starboard Waterfront, so that shouldn't be a problem if that's a concern.

https://www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/best-price-guarantee

Unfortunately the above quoted NCL Guarantee is only good within 48 hours of booking.

You shouldn't have to cancel just ask if there is a price change. They will make the change if there is. I just had mine corrected for a Dec cruise.

The important thing is to ask - NCL if you booked with them; your TA if not. If you're beyond your final payment date, you may be able to upgrade to a similar or higher priced cabin if it's price has dropped too (we got a Haven Spa Suite a few years back that way). Some have also had success negotiating a partial (25%?) cabin credit for the difference, but again, you have to ask (the worst that could happen is they say, "no."). Do be aware: generally if you make any changes the promotions & terms you booked under may not port over to your revised booking and your booking will now fall under current promos and rules. E.G. if you booked with pre-paid gratuities and they are no longer offered, you may no longer have that option (it's like cancelling and re-booking without loosing your assigned cabin).

Thank you! I will call them shortly and confirm and see my options. I will make sure I'm talking to someone who can confirm these things. I'm sure like anywhere, the people work work in customer service run the gamut. I just wish I saved the one person's name or contact number who really seemed to know what she was talking about!

Hope this works out. BTW: I just checked some photos of various M2 Family Mini-Suites. So far all of them have shower tubs. Cruisedeckplans has lots of photos, you might find some of your cabin there. MAs seem to all have showers only.

There is NO self service laundry on any Norwegian. Too big of a fire hazard.

I'm sorry, but I don't buy the fire hazard story. Even the newest Carnival & Disney ships have self-service laundry.

Crazy question, but are there self service washer and dryers on board the ship? Thanks : )

Unfortunately, not.

Спасибо вам всем!

Вызов - хорошая идея, но мой английский не очень хорошо разговаривает с оператором. Поэтому я спросил об электронной почте.

BTW: This translates from Russian to: "

Thank you all!Calling is a good idea, but my English does not speak very well with the operator. So I asked about e-mail." [Thanks Google Translate]

Thank you for that information. I am glad I asked this question because logically it should be based upon number of drinks consumed.

Basically, it's 18% of the package price you would pay if you didn't select it as a booking bonus. So, 18% of $79 per day, or a little less than $100pp for a 7 day cruise.

i am just about 112 days out from Epic cruise. If I add specialty dining today when can I book my reservations?

 

Which are the best value for the cost of only

the cover charge? Hubs would like the Brazilian for sure as he is meat eater. I love steak and salmon. No picky eaters, we love new places.

Moderno is about $25 or Tepanyaki is $30 A 3 day package averages out to $23 a day, so you can determine how good a value that is to you. You can rack up much more than that at Cagney's, definitely.

Not sure what ship this was on, but a funny 'communication malfunction' happened after dinner one evening. Our waiter, it seems, had a bit of a problem pronouncing certain words in the English language. After dinner, he came by and said to us, "Shark Minnow?"

 

DH and I looked at each other, rather befuddled. DH said to the waiter, "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

 

The waiter smiled and repeated, "Shark Minnow?" Again, we were very confused and began to giggle. I said to the waiter, "Did you just say Shark Minnow?"

 

He said, "Yes, Shark Minnow?" as he was handing me the dessert menu.

 

"Ohhhhh," we replied, trying not to laugh hysterically. "You mean Dessert Menu?"

 

"Yes," he replied. "Shark Minnow!"

 

To this day, whenever we are cruising, we frequently will ask each other after dinner if we think we might want something from the Shark Minnow!

Now I know why native French speakers cringe when I try to speak their language. :D I wonder what they think I'm saying?

I haven't cruised NCL for a couple years but if you want a soda and rum separate I've never had a problem, especially at dinner. What you are saying sounds like a normal request. I think you would have trouble if it seems you are trying to share

 

 

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Dinner's the easy one, as your server can see you're not sharing. At a bar where you order your drinks and walk away, they might be hesitant. Getting to know your bartender, explaining your situation, and adding an extra tip here and there will go a long way.

I got the NCL MasterCard for the points for OBC but recently found out it could not be used for the daily service charge but I know you can get cash from the casino against your account for a 3% fee. Would there be anything stopping me from then turning around and putting this cash on my account through guest services to take care of the DSC?

 

Thanks!

Double check you account's terms & conditions. The current posting states, "Onboard credit must be used or WorldPoints points will be forfeited. Onboard credit has no monetary value and is non-transferable. Applies to all onboard charges excluding Foreign Exchange (applicable ships only)." This seems to indicate the DSC would not be excluded. Double check with the purser once on board.

Also would like the ability to mix/match. My partner can't tolerate alcohol (much to his dismay) but is "forced" to get the UBP if I do. Sure, we know some people would cheat and sneak drinks for their cabin-mates, but why "punish" the rest of us.

The Star is a lovely ship. As with all NCL ships, what they call a "mini-suite" is actually just a larger balcony cabin (no extra perks other than size). However on the Star the mini-suites are about 40% larger than a standard balcony. As always avoid rooms under the pool deck and over entertainment venues.

I was in the Dawn a couple of years ago and a big group of 40 people came dressed as pirates on the the first day😂 Okay confession I got talked into it as well from our Facebook group it was so Funny got lots of strange looks 😂😂

For us it was the opposite. (Forgive the fact it was on a Disney ship, not NCL). Everyone was encouraged to dress like a pirate for the second night on deck celebration. According to the CC Disney boards this was a big deal - so we came prepared. Well, I don't think anyone else on our cruise read CC (shame on them!), so we felt like the folks who got pranked into thinking a formal affair was a costume party.

However, talking and interacting afterwards with the five-year-old boy at our dinner table who was convinced I actually was Captain Jack Sparrow was priceless!

I'm also on the 8/13/17 sailing. No new updates from what I can see when I log into MyNCL.

I still haven't heard anything new. Stay tuned.

I think I understand the dilemma. To quote NCL, it's a: "18% gratuity and specialty service charge." So, how much does the server actually get as a gratuity vs the service charge that supposedly is distributed among various staff & crew? If you assume the server gets 10% (strictly a guess on my part) then on a 3 day UDP they're getting $3.30 per person. We usually figure how much we would be tipping for a similar meal on land and add the difference.