dmwnc1959

WOW, that’s a nice chunk of change! Here’s hoping mine would be on the lower end of that price range. 😉

Was cleaning out some old storage boxes and found this, a mint condition Cruise Travel from 30 years ago with the two year old ZENITH as the Ship of the Month. Along with her sister Horizon, the trio of gorgeous Century-class ships, and the four Millennium-class (pre-Solticization), these were my absolute favorite Celebrity ships. Man I do miss those days. They were really good.

It would be interesting to see how much this excursion costs. And if it’s done in a regular tender (that are basically just giant enclosed cocoons) or something that’s more open-air to be able to enjoy the surroundings and the glacier.

Definitely sounds like a plan! 👍

I think all my adult life I’ve been an early riser and already having had a full breakfast before my day starts (I blame the US Navy lol). Typically now, or at least before I was retired, I was eating breakfast at 5am with a midmorning snack around 10am.

I’ll have to see if I can dig up a room service menu that shows the options and times for delivery.

No, lol, one of the “rise-and-shine at 4am” events would be the morning of the Panama Canal transit. Since they appear to open the bow at 6am I’d want to be showered, dressed, completely fed, and first in line waiting to stampede the front of the ship for the prime spots when the door opens. Not much fun watching the transit when you’re several people deep into the crowd. Having never cruised NCL (and by that logic, never eaten in an O’Sheehan’s) I wasn’t sure they had some sort of pastries and other light options with juices/coffee available. Since the transit runs about 2-1/2 to 3 hours from when the bow opens to the second set of locks I’d not want to be passing out from lack of nourishment that morning. 😉 Looks like room service is going to be my only real option. 😁

GREAT video, especially loved the first half with the historical presentation. Learned a LOT of new facts!

Great images!!! And that’s just crazy, can’t recall seeing this before even though I’m sure it’s happened a lot. Quite literally exited into Gatun Lake, immediately turned around, and hit the locks outbound. 🤯 And that’s a magnificent itinerary!

After all of this in-depth research on the two ships and their itineraries, watching dozens of YouTube Panama Canal and ship tour videos, studying deck plans, buying maps and wall charts, countless hours of staring at Marine Traffic and the Panama Canal live cams, reading books, and all of this hemming and hawing, it’ll be July and I still won’t be able to make up my mind. 🤯 If I could afford both that would definitely take the cake. 🤣

OOOOH! That would be amazing! I’d jump on that in a heartbeat. Heck yes!!!

As much as I’d be really sad 😢 missing Hubbard Glacier, seeing the Inside Passage scenery from Ketchikan, Juneau, and up to Skagway would be worth the trip. Even if I never get off the ship while it’s in port, cruising past those snow covered mountains again and seeing the occasional wildlife would be simply amazing. 🥰

…what’s on the menu? I’m assuming since breakfast doesn’t officially start there until 5:30am, that breakfast items aren’t an option? The reason I’m asking is for a couple of days I might be getting up super early - I’ll be hungry (of course) - and will want to grab some hearty eats. And I’m also guessing room service isn’t 24/7. 😁

I’ve done a pricing breakdown with: NCL’s FAS benefits; adding the cost of the DSC ‘crew appreciation’ (based on what the reservation said it would be); their cruise insurance; and an additional 7-night specialty dining plan (that would give me 9 total); and it still came out to be about the same as the 16-night on Coral Princess. I do like the NCL $50 off each shore excursion. And I’m not sure the FAS Plus would be of much benefit since I’m a solo traveler and the ‘…for second guest’ additional benefits aren’t adding anything to my trip. And with all of the non-MDR complimentary dining options (especially love the idea of a 24/7 O’Sheehan’s) that Coral Princess lacks, Norwegian Jade is the clear winner. But (gosh dang it!!!), there are aspects of the Coral Princess booking I like, i.e. the Ocean Now delivery, free room service, reserved theater seating for the production shows, and unlimited digital pictures package that comes with Princess Premier.

If you can please link your live thread. Yes, I’m lazy and don’t want to go searching for it lol. 😁

Please, by all means, do expand on this. And don’t pull any punches. It’s exactly why I posted this. 😎 I’m not dedicated or loyal to any particular cruise line. Either is fine, I just want get the most bang for the buck without sacrificing the most important aspect of the trip, which for me is the full-transit of the Panama Canal.

When I was a kid I saw a Sea Classics magazine at the drugstore with Titanic on the cover. It was all over at that point. Joined the Navy, spent 10 years at sea on the bridge of ships (with two years of shore duty in Europe), and absolutely LOVE being on the ocean with nothing around for 100’s of miles. It’s the most amazing feeling in the world. Just can never get enough sea days. Unfortunately, recent health issues have been thinking I’m not going to make it to 75. So I’m going jump on this one last cruise, maybe knock off a couple of Bucket List land trips here in the US, and see what else my health has in store for me. I think the one advantage of having a lot fewer casual dining options on Coral Princes is that I won’t get fatter - not going to starve to death either lol.

The main reason for this trip (which will more than likely be my last cruise ever) was to cross off a Bucket List item and do a full transit of the Panama Canal. I had already booked Coral Princess, but about a month later found the one on Norwegian Jade and made a deposit on it while weighing the pros and cons of each. That’s when visiting Alaska again came into play. I have been there five times on three of the cruise lines, but sort of wanted to see it again since I’m pushing 65 and not getting any younger, and this cruise sort of kills two birds with one stone. 😉 😁

Going to Hubbard Glacier was the other main reason for liking this extended cruise. I’ve been to Glacier Bay and College Fjord and they were both beautiful in their own right. Also already been to Los Angeles in San Francisco (which are the port of calls prior to a Astoria), but the idea of going back to those two places was attractive, mainly to see either the Queen Mary or the USS Iowa in LA and just hanging out at Fisherman’s Wharf in SF. I hate the thought of going on this 25-day cruise and missing one of the two main highlights. Have a great time in Alaska!

I’ve been watching the live Panama Canal WebCams for years, but only recently to observe the small boat short excursions that go from Gamboa or Fuerte Amador. And you are correct that the small boats always tag-along with a much larger ship going through the lock, but I think that would be a lot of fun!

That’s one thing that I really like about Coral Princess are the forward and aft ‘secret’ observation decks, which would allow some degree of solitude while cruising the Inside Passage. That’s exactly why I booked my cabin aft on Coral Princess so that I can access those decks early in the morning no matter where we are at. Norwegian Jade only has glassed-in top decks, but they do open the bow for the Panama Canal. Both have a wrap-around promenade deck, but Coral Princess takes home the winning prize on hers.

I’m definitely an early eater, at home I’m usually sitting down for dinner by 5pm. I’ll have to check to see what the earliest ATD slots are.

Not really a casino person, and of my last bunch of cruises I really never set foot in the dining room other than to take pictures. That’s what I sort of like about the Norwegian Jade, having so many complementary and specialty dining options that weren’t the main dining room. I’m guessing with a lot fewer casual dining options on Coral Princess that would necessitate eating in the MDR, I’m just a quick eater from my time in the US Navy and sitting down for an hour is something I would have to conform to. And I’m definitely casual (but not sloppy). 😁

I do understand that coming into Alaskan ports towards the end of April is not ideal, that the seasonal workers may not have arrived yet, and some (if not most) shops and tours will be very limited. I’ve already been to Alaska 5x, so shopping and onshore sightseeing isn’t really really a priority. But as for the scenery, is it just not worth the effort to come in this very early in the season? I’ve included some screenshots of the itinerary and the dates. This is the tail-end of a 25-day cruise coming from Tampa through the Panama Canal.

I think very much that I would love all of the sea days! It would definitely give me a chance to enjoy those wide-open promenade decks and those padded steamer chairs. Norwegian Jade is also Panamax so will transit the old locks. I did already check some late April flights (albeit they were for 2024 schedules) from Anchorage back to Pittsburgh, and I’m OK with those. I’m definitely not a ‘foodie’, but was curious if you have sailed on Coral Princess for a long cruise i.e. 16 days or longer and did not get bored with the limited casual dining options. Not really an MDR person.