RosieRoo

I agree with all of the above and will add that during Covid when I had cruises cancelled and refunds and FCCs to be issued, it was my TA a who spent hours on hold handling everything.

Sailed in an aft suite on the Pearl in June. Loved the cabin and didn’t miss the Haven since it has no restaurant. We still got all the other suite benefits, just not the use of the Haven itself.

Not sure if you know this, but you can still transfer that reservation over to a TA for extra perks if you find one. I believe you have thirty days in which to complete the transfer.

I’m sorry I can’t recommend a TA, but it’s against the Cruise Critic guidelines. Keep searching. There are some that discount off NCL’s price or provide OBC.

Mine expires 12/31.

Absolutely.

We are on in another couple of weeks also. Considering upgrading my current suite to an aft now that prices have come down. I’ve been hesitating because of the comments I’ve read on here. Most were from almost a year ago so I was hoping a recent cruiser might chime in. I hope the problem has been fixed for your sake.

Hello fellow NH resident. It doesn’t matter if you book direct or through an agency as long as the charge comes up as NCL. There are tons of TAs out there that will provide you with extra perks. Just make sure they don’t charge any additional fees for cancelling or making changes.

Looking to book an aft suite on the Joy, but I have read some previous posts that say there is terrible vibration on the aft. Has anyone sailed in an aft suite on Joy recently that could comment if this has been fixed? Thanks

The arctic crossing is usually once a year and very popular. I had the one for 2023 on the Serenade ending in Boston booked and then Royal went and cancelled it. Looks like they aren’t doing one in 2023 that ends in Boston. Celebrity had something similar where they had one sailing from Bayonne to Iceland and then Iceland to Boston, but the pricing was really high when I looked at it. There are some good deals on transatlantics, but the suites and the most desirable cabins don’t last long. If you’re looking for something special watch the deployment threads here and jump on it as soon as it comes out.

Just experienced the new MTD schedule on Voyager. They don’t open now until 6:45 so the line was ridiculous when we arrived for our 7 pm reservation (reserved months in advance). After waiting almost an hour we gave up and went to the Windjammer. Ended up switching to fixed seating at 8pm.

Are they transferable like the Cruise Next certificates? Maybe you could make a deal with a friend who does have an NCL cruise booked.

Thank you for sharing this. Just booked 14778 on the Joy for November. Glad to hear all your positive feedback.

Thanks all for your advice. Decided not to chance the 11 am train. It’s actually cheaper to fly out of La Guardia to Boston than it is to take the train. I’m assuming I should be able to make a 2pm flight from there.

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to answer. Much appreciated.

I always tell people that about flights, so I appreciate your opinion.

Thank you for taking the time to respond. The next Acela is 2:10. We are in the Haven on NCL so we are usually able to disembark first if we want to. Ships arrival is 7. I was hoping the 11 would work.

Cruising into Manhattan and want to take the Acela to Boston. I have never done the train before. Would it be reasonable to book an 11 am train? Does that allow for enough time to get to the station?

I know some people like to keep control of their reservations themselves, but I’ll give you the flip side of that. I use a TA whose pricing is always less than NCL and during Covid they were the ones who took care of everything, spending hours on hold with the cruise lines to get things done. Last week I noticed a price drop on one of my sailings which is past final payment. I sent an email and in a couple of days I had FCCs for almost $500. It pays to use a TA if you find a good one.

For anyone who has been watching these fares, is there a magic number of days prior to the cruise where the prices hit bottom? I’m looking at a sailing in the beginning of November. There are 60 Haven cabins open at the moment, but none are a great price. Last time I booked a suite two months out the price dropped the following week.

If you want to do private tours, you will find great information on the roll call for your sailing as well as on the ports of call boards. There are tons of private tour companies out there that will set up itineraries for you. Years ago we used Rome in Limo (not sure if they are still in business) and they worked with us to see as much as possible, even including tickets and special entrances into some of the more crowded places like the Vatican.

I agree. Cruise in December, got the offer to bid from an aft suite to a 2 bedroom haven suite, minimum bid was $500 pp. I upgraded directly thru NCL for $143.

We are the same, 86 and many more planned. Some were better than others, but none were bad. I’d have to say most lines are more alike than different. They each have their strong points.

Sorry I seem to have offended you. I was just writing about my own personal experience on my last two cruises, one on NCL and one on Celebrity. I never said anything about it being fleetwide for either cruise line. Didn’t realize my opinion was a reason to be attacked.

I’m confused by this. In suites, on Celebrity it’s the most expensive drink package. In suites on NCL it’s only the classic. There were several wines I wasn’t able to get on the NCL package. Also NCLs included package does not include any bottled water, sparkling or still. You have to pay extra for that. Keep in mind I’m only comparing the suite inclusions and just offering my opinions on the two different experiences I had. Other peoples experiences may be different.