mdjohn5

Having cruised both before kids and with kids, in my experience, its a whole different game.  You are not going to be able to do everything you did pre kids,  so it's best to adjust your expectations.  It is still fun,  just different.  It can be a little disappointing when you realize you cannot do everything you did without kids, but on the flip side you get to experience the cruise through their eyes instead of your own.

Car seats are one of the topics that gets two passionate online crowds fighting.  On one side you have the "its a vacation,  I am not lugging car seats everywhere" people.  On the other you have "the Laws of Physics work the same everywhere and I would never leave the house without one" people.   

Airlines usually let you check a car/booster seat for free so its definitely doable.  We lugged car seats multiple times,  but honestly we found we didn't use them as much as we expected.  We did transfers in big busses to/from the airport and mostly stayed near the ship on port days.  A lot of the stops like Turks, Amber Cove, Tiano Bay, etc have shopping and pools right where you dock.  Nothing fancy but lets you stretch your legs and swim in a real pool....not one rocking around on the ocean.  Of course the private islands do not have cars at all.  To me it really depends on how active you plan to be in ports.  You can find normal taxis with seatbelts in most places  but it might take a few attempts.  In most ports we were able to find plenty to do right off the ship and/or on the ship that we didn't feel like we needed to adventure out a lot with the kids in tow.

I would recommend a stroller of some sort.  Kids get tired and its nice to have the option to ride......plus a stroller can help you get into the "family line" at the TSA checkpoint at the airport.  We bought a cheep umbrella stroller at a garage sale for $5 with the stated purpose that we would just throw it away if it ever became a burden or beat up.....that thing lasted forever.  Bigger strollers are better for hauling all the gear you need,  but they can be harder to navigate in crowds and they can take up a lot of space in a small cabin.  You have to decide which is more important.   

My one tip would be to NOT be afraid of the main dining rooms.  Be courteous to the people around you and be ready to get up and take a walk with the kiddo to settle them down if they get unruly,  but it is a lot easier to have people bring you food while you entertain the kiddos than trying to juggle the buffet.  

I will be on the Escape next month in a Haven room.  First time on NCL and first cruise post pandemic.  Looking forward to getting back onto the sea,

My daughter (14) has developed a love for sushi and wants to make sure she get some when we are on the ship.  What are the sushi options in/out of the Haven.  I assume there are rules for raw fish that probably do not apply to other food items so I am interested in hearing any advice people have for making that happen.  Is it an upgrade restaurant only type item or are there Haven options for making it happen?

Thanks!

11 minutes ago, ColeThornton said:

If people are just going to argue I'm leaving and going to my cabin.  Wait, it's not ready yet.  😉

I see what you did there..... 🙂

As a general rule if we have extra time pre cruise we like to rent a car just to have the flexibility of restaurants, stores, etc.  It just depends on how much time you have and if there is anything else you want to do pre cruise that a car makes it easier to get to.

One tip that has worked well for us over the years when we rent a car pre cruise:  

The morning we board,  I usually take all of the checked luggage over to the ship  first and drop it off with the porters and then do the car drop at the rental facility.  Sometimes I do this alone (if the hotel is close),  sometimes we do it all together.  

Not having all the luggage with you when you hop onto the car rental shuttle back to the ship is easier and sometimes they have room for more people but not more luggage so you can sometimes sneak onto a quicker shuttle bus.

As for post cruise,  assuming just normal operations you should be able to do most of the day at Universal.  You probably won't make the park open,  but should have plenty of time. 

I have never rented a car at Canaveral post cruise so not sure on the shuttle bus situation.  I would assume they do,  but a quick phone call is probably your best option for confirmation.

Don't be afraid of the main dinning room.  We found it much easier than the buffet with small children.  At the buffet you are constantly running back and forth to make sure everyone has what they need.  In the MDR you just want to be prepared to take the kiddo for a walk around the deck if they start acting up.  

Our youngest was about that age on his first cruise and the hard dinner rolls were a big hit with him.  He only hade a few teeth and they were the perfect size to fit in his hand.  He would naw on them for 30 mins.

Just to give you another option to think about,  we have cruised out of FFL several times and used Budget Car Rental to rent a car at the airport.  This gives you a little freedom to drive to a restaurant, grocery store, etc. the night before the cruise.  The kids always forget something (its never me I swear!) ;so its nice to be able to get out to a store if you need to.

I take the luggage over to the ship early and drop it off while the family hangs at the hotel.  I then go back and pick up the family.  Budget and a few other car rental agencies have locations right at the gate to the port where you can return the car and they have a shuttle that will drop you at the ship.  If you have pre dropped the big luggage and just have your backpacks and a car seat I have found that it works pretty well.

Have a great cruise!

I cannot help,  but I am interested in the responses you get.  I am coming from the other side of the question,  I have been in RC Grand Suites several times and just booked my first NCL Haven cruise.

FWIW we have found RC service to be frustratingly inconsistent.   Sometimes it is over the top awesome, and then the next time it seems almost non existent.    We found ourselves drifting more to HA just to get more consistent service,  even though the RC ships have a lot more bells and whistles. 

My experience is pre covid so take it with a grain of salt but one issue that stood out on RC was that they had a ton of Diamond passengers.   They tried to give the D+ people the suite perks (happy hour drinks, etc) and it always seemed like a clusterF.   I think maybe they have addressed that with the newer ships and the diamond people having their own space but it left a bad taste with me. 

I am Haven Hopeful but time will tell 🙂

When our kids were that size we went to a garage sale and bought an umbrella stroller for $5-$10 with the full intention of just abandoning it if it ever got in the way.....that thing lasted forever.

If you can get a balcony room,  its a nice place to sit while they fall asleep.   Plus, if you bring dry erase markers,  the plexi glass can be hours of entertainment for a toddler...  

Two cruises with RCI where we needed a pack and play.  We reserved one both times through our TA. 

First cruise was no problem,  it showed up within minutes of us being in the room. 

However,  the second cruise we never got it.  We went back and forth with multiple people and they could never produce one for us.   After a week at sea sleeping in the bed...the boy refused to go back to sleeping in a crib once we got home. 

Ah fun times!

If you have it with you anyways,  I would probably just throw a tag on it and send it up to your room.

On the Zuiderdam from 3/20 through 3/31 and there was no upcharge.

1 hour ago, VTcruisenut said:

  When we left the ship, we all had balances left on those cards because they wouldn't work!

That's interesting. 

I thought I was being careful managing the cards...I had 4 to juggle...but on the last day I tried to use the last one and they told me the balance was 0.  I was confused, but just assumed I messed somewhere up and threw away the wrong card...but I bet I had the same issue.

Overall I am not a fan of the beverage card system.  Live and learn I guess.

We were given some $100 beverage cards for our Zuiderdam cruise last week from our TA.  We normally purchase a wine package when we cruise and  I had planned to use the beverage cards to offset that cost.

Unfortunately,  they would not let us use the beverage cards for the wine package.  There was some explanation about not being able to use them with discounted beverages, but I wasn't really following the logic.  I am sure if you purchase them yourself there is probably some fine print that explains the limitations,  but these were just given to us and I just assumed we could use them for any beverages.

 We ended up using them on individual bottles of wine and a few mixed drinks,  but it was pretty frustrating to not be able to use them on the normal wine packages.

Just wanted to give a heads up to anyone planning on using them for the wine packages.

$50 per person per day seems a bit expensive for the current benefits.  Might as well pay for the NS at that point.

However,  I suspect Club Orange will morph into a spiff they can give people as a customer resolution tool.  Something with perceived value that doesn't really cost them anything to give to people on an as-needed basis to resolve an issue. 

On ‎2‎/‎18‎/‎2019 at 2:27 PM, *Miss G* said:

 

 Club Orange on the Koningsdam came in second, then the Nieuw Amsterdam Pinnacle Grill breakfasts came in a dead last.  We actually hated the NA PG experience for multiple reasons.   The tables were on top of each other and the service was haphazard, unfriendly, and scarce.  We only dined there a couple of times since it was so abysmal.

We had the same experience on NA last year.  For whatever reason the breakfast service in the NA PG that cruise was bad.  

Yes,  sorry if that was unclear.

For breakfast the Pinnacle Grill food is the same as the MDR.  Once it turns over to the steakhouse it is a different menu with better quality meat.

They do use the steakhouse (Pinnacle Grill) for NS breakfast.  It is the same food as the MDR,  but a nicer, smaller setting.

Even with the loss of the free drink happy hour going from Royal to HA,  I have found the concierge lounge on HA to be a better overall experience than on Royal. 

On Royal,  they have 1 person,  and everyone lines up to talk to them during their set time in the lounge.  If there are lot of Diamond level peeps on the ship it gets pretty crowded and hard to get your stuff taken care of.

On HA, they have people staffing the room all day.  There are times it gets busy but most of the time you can walk in and talk to someone quickly...and without 5 people lined up behind you.  They also seem to get things done better for whatever reason.. 

Don't sleep on that free laundry either.....that's a nice perk!

The Neptune Lounge on Z does not have a bar like the Royal ships.  Unfortunately, they don't do the free drink hour like Royal does. 

However,  they have a little spread of snack food and beverages (coffee, tea, water, etc) that are always out.   They are also staffed all day, unlike on Royal ship which is nice.   You don't have to try and catch the concierge during their "office hours" in the lounge.

Your fist stop should be the Neptune Lounge and introduce yourself to the concierges! 

They can actually take care a of a lot of things for you right there without having to track down all of the individuals in different departments. 

If you are arriving early, another option is to rent a car for a few hours.   We have done this several times and it works pretty well.

Dollar has a car rental location right at the entrance to the port .  When you return the car there,  they have a free shuttle to the ships.  I have only used Dollar,  but I  think most of the major car rental companies also have Port Lauderdale locations.

That also gives you some freedom to do a few things in Fort Lauderdale before going to the ship.

We surprised our kids (7 and 9) with a Disney Trip last year. 

The day before we left a box appeared in the house with a note that said, "Open me tomorrow".

There was a lot of speculation that evening on what was in the box,  but no one guessed a trip.  We had to be up early the next day to catch our flight,  so I woke the kids up about 5:00am and told them I couldn't wait...open the box.

The box had a Disney balloon in it with a note that said,  "Get dressed, we are going to Disney World"

Our family of 4 (kids are 8 and 10) have done several cruises in Neptune suites.  We have been very pleased with the suites.

The bed and couch provide a lot of sleeping room, especially when two of them are kids.  The couch is not the most comfortable,  but its fine for the kids.  The bed is actually big enough for an adult and two kids....if I tuck the family in and hit the casino for a few hours I frequently find myself relegated to the couch by myself...

Neptune lounge is nice to have close by,  they always have cookies and snacks out for the kids to grab something quick.   Its not a place we really hang out though,  more like pass through and grab something.  They concierges are always welcoming to the children.  We have never felt out of place.  They ask that kids be supervised in the lounge,  which has never been an issue for us,  we don't send them down there by themselves. 

Our kids don't drink a lot of soda so the drink package never made sense for our family.   You can get lemonade and ice tea for free in the lido and the lounge always has water, juice, milk etc set out.   We just buy soda the few times we want one.

Excursions can be hard at that age.  Don't overlook just staying on the ship during a port visit as an option.

When the ship docks and 90% of the people get off,  it leaves a lot of things open around the ship that small kids might not be able to do when the ship is full...sport court, mini golf, etc. 

1 hour ago, ksmaxey said:

We also found the best part of the Neptune Suites is the concierges.  They take care of everything from scheduling dinner to exchanging money for foreign ports.  They have even gotten us dinner reservations when things were "all booked."

 

The laundry service is a great perk, but 100% agree with this comment. 

While HAL service is generally good overall,  things always have a chance to go sidewise on you and the concierges are awesome about getting things worked out for you. 

I also like to just casually have my room key out when I am interacting with staff around the ship (bar tenders, the maiter d's, etc).  The Neptune suite keys are yellow/gold vs the standard blue.  I feel like when staff see the yellow room card,  they tend to be willing to do a little extra for you....the again it could be all in my head...but I still do it :)

That sounds like an awesome trip!

Unfortunately I can't offer a lot of port advice port.   Of those, I have only been to St Martin, and that was pre-hurricane last year so things may have changed. 

However, for St Martin,  they will have excursions that run up to Orient Beach that use motor coaches if you are not bringing the seats.  Great Bay beach is right off Front Street where the main Philipsburg shopping is,  If I remember right,  the taxis that take you there are usualy just the open trucks with bench seating, so a car seat would not help anyways.   

If you are taking the seats,  St. Martin is fairly easy to drive around on your own if you consider renting your own vehicle.  We have spent a couple weeks there on land vacations with the kids.  The roads can be narrow in spots but its all right side driving and other drivers are courteous.

The good news is this is the hardest stage with the kids.  Once they are old enough for booster seats,  things get exponentially easier.   When they are in that full car seat stage,  the logistics just get tough and kind of limits what you can do. .....Still better than sitting at my desk at work though :)