GoldenGirl327

On 1/6/2022 at 10:52 AM, GoonerBill said:

We are flying in on Friday 2/18 for 2/20 Breakaway departure.  Currently NCL is 96 hours.  So we should be tested by 3pm NY time on Wednesday 2/16. (1 hour time difference to NOLA)  If that testing is screwed up somehow, is there ability to get tested at the pier on Saturday or Sunday?

we are cruising out of NOLA on Sunday 1/23 and flying in on Friday 1/21. I scheduled testing for my family at https://www.nolacovidtesting.com/ in NOLA for PCR. Website says results should be same day. I got the info from CC (can't remember who posted it).

I'm probably in the minority for my age group (mid 40's) who like to dress for dinner. Not evening gown dress but at least something other than jeans and a t-shirt. 

I guess it boils down to how you were brought up. I was brought up always getting dressed to go to Broadway shows (never going in jeans, but a nice skirt and top and a sport coat for my dad) and Friday night dinners pajamas were NOT allowed. 

I think a lot has to do with the particular line you're on - as someone posted previously. 

Our first cruise was on Princess (in my 30's with 2 young boys 3 and 6). I brought outfits for every night for everyone and found that most people on Princess did dress up pretty fancy. If not in a dress or suit (for men) they were in fancy blouses and skirts, polo shirts and slacks for men. 

My feeling is, if you want casual, go to the buffet or an early seating when most families will be there. Later seatings will have the older crowd who may dress more 'smartly'. With Norwegian, there is no "seating time" so people come and go as they please. It's harder to time when families will go, but they will generally go between 5-7. 

2 minutes ago, jeffw67 said:

Thanks! I'll have a margarita please😁

If you’re on Breakaway in 1.5 weeks, no problem!👍 🤗

1 hour ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Why isn't anybody focused on this?!

Message someone on the NCL app to bring you a mojito (or whatever you drink) 🥃🍹. I’ll gladly help someone out 😀

Do they give you the details of where/when you may have been close to someone who tested positive? I’m sure they can’t give names bc of HIPPA (does that even exist in international waters?) but do they at least give you some inkling?

I know it’s a super far fetched thought, but if you, knowingly or not, tick off an employee, they can theoretically quarantine you for having “close contact” as retribution. And then come up with excuses that they’re not testing on board. Crazy, I know and not likely to happen, but I’m curious if they show you anything or you just have to take their word for it. 
I know there’s facial recognition everywhere these days (from before covid) but I like to go by facts. 
 

I truly can't imagine the frustration that everyone's been through with all these cancellations. Our last cruise was January 2019 right before the world shut down (coincidentally, my husband got pneumonia a week after the cruise which, in retrospect may have been Covid but who knew about Covid back in January 2019?). 

I also think the cruise lines should extend FCC indefinitely - what do they care? They already have your money - it's not like they're giving your money back. It doesn't really cost them anything extra b/c your credits go towards your next booking, right? It's not like you're getting the same room at that price 10 years from now. It's a 'merchandise credit' so to speak. They're not out anything. 

I've been nagging my husband to put in a bid for a Haven for our upcoming cruise. FINALLY today he did...now I'm crossing my fingers it's accepted. This will most likely be our last cruise as a "family" since my youngest will be off to college next year and with all the unknowns on board I said "just do it. We should take advantage while the offers are low". 

Now I'm bouncing from foot to foot waiting to hear...🙏🏻

2 minutes ago, ggTexasGal said:

I'm fairly certain I saw your post above state that you are going out of New Orleans on the Breakaway.

You can find answers to your questions about the Breakaway here:

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/breakaway#!#whats-on-board   OR (more specifically)

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/breakaway/deck-plans  (Specialty Restaurants outside on Deck 8!) 

Last time we were on Breakaway was in 2015 and it was out of Florida. Maybe they added stuff since then so I'll take a look. Thanks for the links!

1 hour ago, aubreyc1988 said:

it's a "cover their *sses email, haha! But still, it is a nice move, especially as most people are not on CC and could genuinely be unaware of things. 

That's what I thought. NCL can post it 100 times on their website but many people probably don't check the website as often as they check their email. Sending out the letter basically says "we sent out a notice, it's not our fault you didn't read it". 

33 minutes ago, CaribbeanJen said:

I would check your bags.  While check in is smooth you will find you are going from line to line and moving around a bit.  I would not want luggage with me for this part.  

 

We saw the comedians and there was a comedy magic show.  We enjoyed them but nothing super special.  We are not people who generally go to many shows.  We are happy to enjoy the ocean.  We also really enjoyed dining on the waterfront.  Tip:  You can stop at any of the restaurants at 5:30 and request to eat at the waterfront.  It worked for us twice.   

Thank you!

I'm  not big on the "big" shows but I know my son was looking forward to Six. Glad the comedians were performing. 

What do you mean dining on the waterfront? You mean by the pool? That's interesting. How does that work with what you order? They bring it to you up there? 

6 hours ago, HerWife said:

Just off the Breakaway and can report a similarly wonderful experience that was minimally impacted by COVID. Our upgrade to the Haven didn’t hurt either. 😉

Hi! We are going on the Breakaway 1/23. Curious about checking bags at the pier vs bringing them with us. I don’t anticipate testing positive (have appointments set up in NOLA for pre-travel) but I’m that neurotic “what if” person. Did you see a lot of ppl bringing their own bags to get covid testing at the pier? 

Also how was the entertainment?

thanks!!

1 hour ago, ssalaam85 said:

Click on Matthew's tab and see what's he's missing.  

This happened to me and it was because we didn't click a link on the health & safety section. 

Thanks - he’s missing 1 thing so that’s probably it. 

I checked in online for our trip on 1/23. I keep getting emails reminding me to check in and I haven’t received our e-docs to print. Any idea why this is?

11 minutes ago, susanf31 said:

Important to note that he is quarantining because he can't back into Ireland. Not because of any rules or laws in Florida.  If you live in the USA and get off a ship in Florida testing positive, you are free to return home.  I live right behind the Radisson - it's a nice hotel and near many restaurants he can walk to but I still feel badly for them.  I'm surprised Radisson is taking quarartining folks. It's the #1 hotel in the area where people stay before getting on a cruise...that's not a good mix.

Right - in countries where they have strict quarantine rules for inbound traveling, there are "quarantine hotels" specifically set up just for this situation. The whole hotel is just for quarantining passengers - it's paid for by the government.

Since the US does not test when someone comes into the country (only before they board in the originating country) the US is not set up to handle an influx of just recently tested positive cruise passengers. So I don't know why NCL gave them that paper that said they'll be met by someone and taken to a specific hotel. I think NCL should've just said upfront that if you test positive you're on your own to find a place to quarantine - even if it's at your own expense. Why should NCL reimburse you for testing positive and having to quarantine (unless the trip is cancelled or shortened by them or you have travel insurance through them )? 

10 hours ago, nocl said:

 

In this case there were very clear failures of NCL to execute not only items they were responsible for, but items that they said they would handle.  Not a case of someone complaining that they got covid. NCL told them that they would provide transport.  NCL told them that they had made hotel arrangements.  Instead they were left standing by a fence, with no help, no one responding to phone calls trying to ask what to do. 

 

To be honest I would have walked over to the check in area with my mask on (staying away from passengers) and walk up to one of the staff (6 feet away)  and say in a loud voice that I had just gotten off of the ship with others that were infected and were left by the fence and cannot contact anyone from NCL about where to go next. Maybe that would have gotten somebodies attention from the cruise line.

 

The other option would have been to call the counties department of Health and tell them what happened and ask them if we can just go make our own arrangements.  One of the issues in this case is since some of them were infected they were not provided what they could or could not do once on shore.

 

I can guarantee you if I was in the OP place I would go down the list of everyone involved in the company.  The entity with which the cruise line signed the port agreements, and any other potential regulatory authority.  

 

The point is if you cannot get a response from the other areas of NCL then maybe the PR section might get internal action  that talking to NCL does not seem to be getting.  After all its in their interest to resolve the situation directly.  Better for them to respond to the OP and resolve any remaining issues, If they don't then I would have absolutely no issues with pointing out in public how they left  them hanging out to dry.

 

After all in this case it is not some imagined concern.  It was a set of real issues where NCL failed to perform.  Not only that but where they are not even effectively responding.

 

If it takes contacting the head of media relations and give them a chance to respond or get the appropriate departments to respond then why not.  According to the OP nothing else seems effective.

@nocl agree 100%.

@cruisingguy007 The point of going to the media or PR or Twitter is not to stroke an ego. It's to let the company know how their employees are carrying out the company's policies. The employees are representatives of the company and if Covid wasn't creating enough bad press, then employee relations and treatment will. The OP followed NCL's Guest Cruise Ticket, complied with their requirements, why shouldn't NCL live up to their end? Sure, they could've taken a taxi and made their own arrangements as soon as they disembarked but I'm sure at that moment they were probably thinking "I need to do what I'm supposed to so I'll be taken care of". No one is expecting a red carpet roll-out but at least someone from NCL to tell them what's happening - they were, after all, given paperwork stating as much.  That's already a breach of contract and/or an outright lie. 

And yes, this does give incentive for people to 'hide' symptoms - is that better? Wouldn't it be better for NCL to live up to their end of the deal and leave cruisers with a sense that NCL does care rather than people foregoing stepping up and saying they're ill? 

@szpal wow...what an awful experience to have to go through. Appreciate the factual information so that one can make an informed decision about what to do for their own situation - whether on board or after they disembark. 

I agree that precautions should be taken by NCL on board but I have to wonder if before Covid, were they in Hazmat suits when there were norovirus outbreaks (which are just as contagious and spread just as rapidly and can be much less sanitary when the onboard sewer system gets backed up)? 

I hope everyone who was in that group is recovering as that is the most important thing - but I have to wonder where the humanity and treating people with dignity has gone since the word "covid" came into the news almost 2 years ago... 

This might be clearer - i copied and pasted it to a Word document

From.docx

Good morning everyone!

We are set to go on the Breakaway out of NOLA on 1/23. My husband just got an email from NCL that only The Entourage will be open for kids 13-17. Splash Academy will be closed. NCL will be offering family events in its place that have to be attended with a parent. 

We are traveling with our 17 year old so this doesn't affect us, but I know as a parent who's used the Splash Academy and whose kids have loved it, this can be a bummer...

Just passing the info along.

Happy sailing!

Dear Valued Guest,

Thank you for choosing Norwegian Cruise Line. We're glad to have you sailing aboard Norwegian Cruise Line and can't wait to help you make new and exciting memories on your amazing vacation.

Sailing from the US, and per the CDC Guidelines, Entourage Teen Program will be open for teens ages 13-17. Once onboard, you can refer to the Entourage Daily Program for activity times and locations.

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic and CDC Guidelines, Splash Academy will not be offering drop-off services during your sailing for children ages 5-12 years old.

However, we will be providing tailored activities for youth and families on board. We are offering a range of daily activities from relaxing movie nights and game shows to our fun Feel Free Play sessions. Feel Free Play is not a drop off service and parents must attend the session with their children. Times and locations will be noted in the Freestyle Daily.

Check out the Freestyle Daily for the complete schedule, times and locations. In addition, be sure to download the NCL mobile app, so you can keep up to date with everything happening on board right at your fingertips!

To ensure your health & safety, and with an abundance of care, all activities will follow the social distancing, sanitizing and mask protocols that are in place on board. All guests must adhere to the direction of the crew while participating in the activities.

We hope you have an incredible vacation, and we look forward to seeing you around the ship.

Best Regards,
Norwegian Cruise Line

34 minutes ago, halos said:

It says plain as day, OR

You get a refund OR your FCC

Correct. I asked a rep whose discretion it is to issue a refund OR the FCC. They said you have to fill out a form from their website and submit it to guest services. I'm waiting to see what happens on my 1/23/22 cruise out of NOLA but I noticed the "OR" and wondered the same thing. 

21 hours ago, broberts said:

 

In Chrome on PC: three vertical dots right end of tool bar, Settings, Privacy and security, Notifications. Make sure Sites can ask to send notifications is selected. Make sure boards.cruisecritic.com is not in the Not allowed to send list. You should then be able to enable push notifications in your cc account settings.

 

Thank you @broberts!  I had to play around with the site address but once I added boards.cruisecritic.com it allowed me to enable push notifications!!

Just now, SireDoime said:

 

Where (or how) did you get this?

I cannot see it anywhere on their site.

The search function is useless (to me anyway).

I can't see any links suggesting anything close to this announcement.

I ask, because, while my sailing is not effected, I would like to have a hard copy.

Thanks

i found it on ncl.com/newsroom/media-statements

30 minutes ago, gingersvp said:

 

@GoldenGirl327 literally just posted that they were on the prior sailing and there was a large covid outbreak

I know they were just on the sailing. My question wasn't directed to them. It was a general question as to how the outbreaks start. What prompts people to get tested on board? I have friends that get tested everyday "just because" so I'm wondering if that's the same idea.

I'm trying to figure out Push Notifications. I have notifications set to send me an email and to come up in the website. But with the Push Notifications, I'm unable to enable that feature. There's an "X" that says "Permission was denied in this browser". I'm using Chrome on a PC. Any ideas? 

2 minutes ago, chuckhendo2 said:

Wife wasn’t feeling well, and we didn’t want to risk getting anyone else sick. So we called medical and reported the symptoms. This was on day 5 of the cruise 

so sorry to hear about your wife...hope she is feeling better and you are well. Thanks for responding.

Asking out of curiosity, not to debate whether to test or not to test:

is NCL doing testing on board of passengers or are people lining up to get tested "just to see" and end up in quarantine? If you have to test at the port, how are people getting tested positive on board? Or are people suddenly fall ill enough to warrant a visit to the onboard medical facility? I'm just wondering how everyone who tested negative at the port are suddenly testing positive on board.