robins11

1 hour ago, ClarkGriswold777 said:

Hello,

 

We will be sailing the Alaska Cruise in July on the Grand Princess.  We upgraded to the Premier Package which included unlimited dining at the "Casual Dining".  However, it doesn't look like the Grand Princess has any of those restaurants.  Is there something that I am missing?

Thanks,

Lloyd 

We have recently returned from an Alaska cruise on Grand Princess. We enjoyed Alfredo's twice during our 8 day cruise, both around midday. It was getting busy each time at lunchtime on sea days but appeared much quieter in the afternoon and evening. The offer was excellent with great service.

The casual dining outlet is next to Vines which we didn't try but friends enjoyed a glass of wine there with a charcuterie board. Both venues are regarded as casual dining and as such qualify for inclusion in the Plus and Premier packages We were on the Plus package so received two complementary meals..

We disembarked Grand Princess earlier this month at Vancouver after an 8 day cruise to Alaska. Our long haul flight was not leaving Vancouver until 9pm. So we simply left our luggage at Gray Line West Coast Sightseeing which is located inside the cruise terminal as you exit from the ship. We deposited our two suitcases there around 9am and picked them up again at 4.30pm. You have until 5pm latest to collect them. The cost was approximately 40$. It was an easy process with friendly staff. We then spent the day touring the Vancouver sights including Stanley Park.

Once we picked up our luggage late afternoon we walked around 10minutes to the Skytrain. These trains direct to the airport are frequent it seemed every 5/10 minutes or so and the journey took around 30 minutes. Simple process and good value plus it enabled us to maximise our time in this wonderful city before flying back to London.

Yes the fee was higher than I anticipated based on comments previously on this topic. It was a Sunday and by the time I had cleared immigration and picked up my bags it was just after 8.15pm. Immigration was packed so an indication of how many international flights arrived at that particular time. Maybe this is what caused rates to surge at that time? Still, it was a quick and safe ride and glad to reach my hotel in FL after a long flight. 

On 2/26/2023 at 7:52 PM, ScotBrit17 said:

Anyone recently travelled on Uber/Lyft from MIA to Fort Lauderdale airport area. I need a transport mid week around 20.00 hours from Miami International airport to a hotel at Fort Lauderdale airport and private companies are looking for $100+. At this time of day will Uber/Lyft be lower cost.

Hi

Last month I also arrived at MIA from London on BA. Now this was a Sunday evening and arrived around 7pm. I booked an Uber ride once I had got through immigration and safely picked up my bags. That process took about 45 minutes. Our Uber app indicated 5-10 minutes and almost immediately our driver was in touch. I assumed the pickup location was at the arrivals level middle waiting area as indicated on the MIA website. This was about 2-3 minutes walk.   After a short wait our driver got in touch to say he was waiting at departures !! Anyway a quick walk and elevator down a level and we safely got our lift. The journey to our Fort Lauderdale hotel close to the cruise port took about 40 minutes and cost $95 plus tip. Friendly driver and a safe journey.

thank you very much.

Very useful insights and information

Appreciate it

John

1 hour ago, ziggyuk said:

We are very interested to do an Antarctica trip but NCL use the Star, I actually like the smaller ships but as the Star does not have an observation lounge. For those with experience, how is it as a ship, does the lack of lounge mean the bars and atrium are really busy?
My alternative for an almost identical trip & cost would be Celebrity Eclipse, but I have no experience or status with Celebrity.

This is a cruise seriously considering myself. Have sailed on Star a couple of times before refurbishment, one from LA to Miami then across the Atlantic to Copenhagen in 2014. The other from Hong Kong to Singapore, in 2016, where the ship had serious propulsion issues. More recently in October this year enjoyed a cruise on Star from Southampton to France and Spain. Like yourselves I do prefer the smaller ships and Star has many advantages, especially the walk around promenade and open top deck. This means plenty of outdoors viewing opportunities of course, and from every angle, which is great in kind weather conditions or climate, or if you are happy to wrap up well !! The downside is that the lower decks can get crowded including the atrium and bars as well as the corridors. There are windows on the lower deck bars and eating venues but they become very sought after !! Yes, the lack of a forward lounge with big windows and seating is a shame though no doubt that would be busy as well. The ship though felt good, comfortable, happy crew and with a decent choice of bars, food and entertainment.

We cruised the South Atlantic on Norwegian Sun in 2008, including Argentina, Falkland Islands and Chile, and it is the most amazing experience. The scenery and wildlife is incredible. The weather in December was also pretty kind to us. That ship had a lounge forward so if you include the outdoor decks it was ideal. To add Antarctica to your itinerary  adds up to a most incredible voyage. 

Certainly worth doing on whatever ship I feel however researching other ships and lines is a good idea.

10 hours ago, Ladyshopper23 said:

Hi John.

 

This is massively helpful, thank you. I have let NCL know of our dietary requirements. I'm also vegetarian as well as having to be gluten-free, so I guess I'm one of those super awkward people! Am well used to having to order meals the night before, hopefully NCL will be as accommodating as other cruise lines in being able to make something for me that suits my requirements if there is nothing on the menu that does.

Did you wife find that they were helpful in the buffet in terms of getting food fresh from the kitchen to avoid cross contamination? Are things like gluten-free bread readily available?

Am well used to gluten-free desserts being terrible (and in general not vegetarian friendly either, as they tend to use gelatine). I've already got a stash of goodies ready to take on board with us, and we've also hired a car for our port stop in Lanzarote so can go to the supermarket if necessary to stock up on some sweet treats!

I don't suppose you happen to know if there is any gluten-free lager on board like bottled Daura Damm do you? I can't find any information at all about this.

Thank you again for taking the time to reply, I really appreciate it.

One other thing - I don't know if you've ever sailed with them, but P&O are amazing for gluten free. It's so easy, everything marked up, loads of choices, decent desserts (they make a lot of their cakes gluten free as standard, plus have a range of pre-packaged cakes you can pick up), and you can even get gluten-free biscuits in your cabin if you ask your cabin host. We've recently got back from a week on Iona and the GF eating experience was amazing. Just thought I'd mention it!

Anyway, sorry to derail the original post, so will leave it there. Thanks again.

Hey no problem at all. The buffet unfortunately did not really provide the level of choice or service that the main dining room, speciality restaurants, etc offered, as regards Gluten free options. Bread was available at the buffet on request but sometimes the wait was up to 10 minutes. Since there was no food labelling my wife asked the chefs if such and such would be suitable. They needed to go away and check in most cases, and again there was a time delay, before a yes or no response. As regards desserts the answer was more often than not, no !! They did have an Indian food night in the buffet one evening and after checking, many of the items offered were suitable for her. Alleluia !

As i mentioned choices are available around the ship in the restaurants but strongly advise to select and order the night before. 

My wife couldn't get a suitable Gluten free beer onboard so stuck with cider. 

Most staff were very helpful and were not taking risks. However there is room for improvement regarding choice and labelling especially in the buffet.

Thank you for the tip regarding P&O, will do some research. Enjoy your cruise in a few weeks.

Also many thanks Analog187 for your posts and hope you are having a great time.

6 hours ago, Ladyshopper23 said:

I'm really enjoying your posts, thank you. We're getting on the Star in a couple of weeks, first time on her and only our 2nd ever NCL cruise (1st one was on Getaway back on 2017).

I've got a couple of questions if you have time to check them out and get back to me? No worries at all if you can't, obviously I'll find out in a couple of weeks anyway. I just liked to be prepared! They're along the same theme, as we're strictly gluten-free, so it's to do with that (neither of us were gluten-free last time we sailed, so it's a big change).

Do the menus in the main dining room have allergen markers on them at all for gluten?

In the buffet, are dishes marked up with any allergen markers? Or any markers of any kind, such as vegetarian etc?

If you do get chance to have a look and report back that would be great, but as I said, no problem at all if you can't.

The final question is were is the slightly hot hot tub located please?!

Hi  Just on the subject of Gluten free options. We were on Star from Southampton October 16th-26th this year. My wife has a Gluten free diet. We had advised NCL in advance as requested when booking so at least her particular diet needs were recognised in advance.  Just from her experience onboard if this helps, there were no allergen markers at all in the buffet with the occasional one marked vegetarian or dairy free. She needed to ask a senior chef each time to highlight what dishes might be available. With the main dining rooms some dishes on the menu were marked Gluten free. However she was advised to speak to a chef/senior server after each meal and choose a selection for the following day. In this way the choices were greater as then some dishes could be specially prepared in advance. Desserts were always very limited which was disappointing. This also applied to some of the speciality restaurants where again the advice was to seek assistance in advance. Interesting in O'Sheehans  although again allergen markings were very limited, the staff there were so helpful and could advise on selections for the various menus throughout the day including breakfast. Overall most of the staff were very helpful, and my wife enjoyed a decent selection of options, with the odd delay in service. However the lack of allergen indication in the buffet was poor and across the ship Gluten free dessert options were very limited. 

Hope that helps

John

I think Fiumicino airport is around 40-50km from the port but there is no direct rail link hence the need to change trains in Rome. Never found it difficult to do though with lots of luggage it could be a challenge. Alternatively arrange a shuttle transfer a number of taxi companies offer this. Lots of choices for hotels in Civitavecchia. We have stayed at the Traghetto a few times, good value, friendly and comfortable. (That is going back to pre pandemic days !) Its around 15 minutes walk from the station but then only a couple of minutes from the boarding area for the port shuttle buses the following morning. Plenty of other choices depending on your budget. Lots of great eating places within walking distance. Worth exploring the town with many interesting sights. 

You could also fly into Ciampiano airport, to the south east of the city and a bit further out, then as mentioned in a previous post get a bus shuttle into central Rome (Termini). From there a direct train to Civitavecchia. 

Have flown into Fiumicino several times in order to sail from Civitavecchia on a cruise the following day. We have transferred by rail a couple of times but also booked a shared or private shuttle as well direct from the airport either to the port or to an hotel in Civitavecchia.

You can travel by a regular train service from the airport changing at Rome Trastevere then picking up a regular connection to the port. There are various options and prices. We either book on Trenitalia or you can use booking companies such as Trainline. Price depends on the time of day and whether express or slower trains but from around £10 single. Allow a hour and a half to two hours for the journey.

I have always found Civitavecchia to be a lovely place to stay the night before a cruise. It has a good selection of hotels and cafes and restaurants, a market, local shops, historic buildings and churches with a nice promenade. Check out Trip Advisor for options certainly good value prices compared to central Rome. 

I received this credit for an upcoming cruise.

I managed to find an old document that had my service number and name on it and an MOD address

Good luck with the Defence Discount Card, worth a try. Otherwise contact the MOD and get an official letter or confirmation of your service.

The process took about two weeks with Princess and just prior to Christmas.

Showed up as OBC on my booking confirmation.

We enjoyed pre-dinner drinks listening to the music in Magnum's Champagne & Wine Bar on Jewel, deck 6. Great atmosphere with a varied music offer including piano and guitar. Although as recent as December 2019 on a cruise around New Zealand it feels like a lifetime ago. Hey, here's to the next cruise. Great ship.

I cancelled our cruise, (May 8th Getaway, from Civitavecchia), on 6th March and was assured my refund would be credited to my credit card within 7 to 10 working days. This I did by calling the reservations team in the UK.

By Friday 20th, that is 10 working days no sign of the refund, so I spoke again with the UK team and was assured that the refund was due for payment that day. Well it showed up in full on my credit card account 23rd March and had been processed as promised on the 20th, that is 10 working days. Given the pressure that team are under with calls, the two agents I spoke with were really helpful and reassuring. I am also relieved too !! 

1 hour ago, BillDz said:

This is a recent acount from the Jewel. 

 

Last cruise ship on the ocean?

Thank you for that account

I trust you got home safely

We were on Jewel late December 2019. A lovely ship with a wonderful crew.

Could never have imagined then what would be happening just a few short months later

John 

17 hours ago, babydaryl24 said:

This is new. Wow.

 

Who did you speak to?? Calling now.

Could you forward your receipt to me on here? For proof? I would  love you forever.

 

Hi sorry couldn't reply yesterday. Hope you have sorted your cruise refund/future credit out now

Events have moved so fast. My booking was made in the UK so spoke to their reservations team in Southampton UK various people the names escape me right now.

Perhaps some variation in policy interpretation for different countries. 

Just waiting for the refund to appear in 10 days or so now before I finally relax.

Anyway here's to future cruising without the drama

17 hours ago, babydaryl24 said:

This is new. Wow.

 

Who did you speak to?? Calling now.

Could you forward your receipt to me on here? For proof? I would  love you forever.

 

Hi sorry couldn't reply yesterday. Hope you have sorted your cruise refund/future credit out now

Events have moved so fast. My booking was made in the UK so spoke to their reservations team in Southampton UK various people the names escape me right now.

Perhaps some variation in policy interpretation for different countries. 

Just waiting for the refund to appear in 10 days or so now before I finally relax.

Anyway here's to future cruising without the drama

I cancelled our Mediterranean early this evening. It was that or live with the uncertainty of NCL cancelling it, flights being disrupted or airport access restricted plus the social impact of the virus itself. We were due to sail on Getaway on 8th May from  Civitavecchia  for 10 days. We were 63 days out in terms of the cancellation policy and when I called NCL UK in the afternoon I was told the only option was a 35% cancellation payment as per the official terms and conditions. I asked about goodwill, loyalty, rebooking in the future and there was a negative response. However following the news in the late afternoon about other cruise companies altering their cancellation policies I decided to try again and called back. This time I was offered a full refund less my deposit. I was left on hold for a few minutes while a supervisor checked details but the good news was yes a full refund. Minutes later the confirmation was emailed across and payment is due sometime over the next week to ten days. Friends of ours on the same cruise also called late afternoon and had the same result, a full refund !! 

1 hour ago, danny8826 said:

Hi,

 

We are thinking about cruising on the Norwegian Jewel for the Australia & New Zealand Cruise.

We haven't cruise NCL for a long time (5+ Years).

We are hoping someone who has been on this ship before can help answer a few of our questions since the reviews seems to be mixed.

 

1.  How was the service? 

2.  How was the food quality & variety?

3.  How's the entertainment? 

4  Are there any dance class during the day?

5. Would you recommend this particular ship?

 

Thank you,

Danny

Hi

We have recently returned from a New Zealand cruise on Jewel. It was actually our first time on this ship but have sailed on many other Norwegian vessels.

As you might expect the itinerary was just superb and as for the ship itself that also was just brilliant. Found service from the crew to be professional with a great smile and attitude throughout the ship. We engaged with many of them, appreciating their service. 

As has already being mentioned never had a bad meal. Yes an occasional poor choice but you learn ! Enjoyed the main dining rooms as well as the buffet especially being able to enjoy a drink and meal outside in the The Great Outdoors. 

We were selective in which shows we attended and enjoyed them while there seemed to be a pretty full entertainments programme to suit all tastes. Not totally sure but seem to remember a dance class or two in The Bliss Lounge

Would I recommend this ship, yes without a doubt. We would want to sail on her again.

John 

19 minutes ago, schildiams said:

Has anyone had any experience disembarking at Civeteveccia and getting to FCO Rome airport? Is a 12:50pm flight late enough?

That should not be an issue.

We have disembarked at Civitavecchia three times and have not had any problems getting to FCO to check in with lots of time to spare for midday flights. We use a shared shuttle service, were met at the port as we left the arrivals hall adjacent to the ship, reaching the airport within 90 minutes. I usually arrange for a pickup around 8am or 8.30.

John 

Thank you so much to the OP for a 'heads up' on this offer.

Yesterday I was able to secure a £852 saving, against published rates, on a Mediterranean cruise on Getaway for next May 2020.

This also included 20% off the 'free at sea' offer as well. Really pleased. 

First went on 'my NCL', then 'Insider offers' on Latitudes. Clicked on terms and conditions on the Past Guest offer, then 'applicable sailings' to see if our original choices were listed. Some were others were not. Rang NCL in Southampton and away we went. Many thanks and a great offer.

4 hours ago, bennybear said:

We usually book a private transfer with the excellent Rome cabs and share it.  This time, we seem to be at an odd time so are looking at the shared shuttles from FCO to  Civitavecchia.  Does anyone have recommendations?   We are looking at NCC.  Thanks.

Hi

We have used NCC a few times now, both private and shared, for journeys  between FCO and Civitavecchia and return.

Always found them punctual, polite, good value clearly indicated at the pick up point.

John

Yes, there are facilities for tea/coffee making in balcony staterooms

Also yes to bathrobes as well, however there may be a delay on the first day in receiving them as they are all laundered following previous occupants departure. Just ask your stateroom attendant for them 

John

Hi

We were on Norwegian Spirit in May 2017 and the shuttle was free from the port into the town and return.

This regular bus shuttle only took 5 minutes or so and from the drop off point it was then a few minutes walk to the promenade and attractive town squares. Numerous cafes and bars along the way. Do explore the town's narrow streets away from the seafront. 

There was also an option to take a small boat for a few euros return that dropped you off at the town pier. 

John

On 3/17/2019 at 2:00 AM, cruiselove87 said:

Hi, thank you for the information. Can you send me a link to their website please?

Hi sorry for the delay in responding but been away working

This is the site I used  http://www.nccplus.it/

All info on there plus opportunity to get quotes. Suggest check out Trip Advisor as well for reviews on this company

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g187791-d3215437-Reviews-NCC_Airport-Rome_Lazio.html

Hope it helps

John

47 minutes ago, cruiselove87 said:

Hi, thank you. yes we will be staying near the airport and have a lot of luggage so are planning to take a car service. The NCL loading spot that busses you to the ship that you mentioned is what I was referring to in my first post. Is this where the car service would drop us off? What time is the earliest you would think people could arrive to that location if boarding time officially starts at noon?

We have used a prepaid car service several times from Rome Fiumicino airport to the port and again after our cruise. The shuttle company we used was NCC and they proved to be good value and reliable. I checked then out via Trip Advisor and their own website. the costs vary based on whether its a private hire car or a shared shuttle, usually a minivan. The service drops you off and picks up at the cruise terminal. These official car service companies apparently have authority to enter the port almost right to the ship's side. From the airport it takes around an hour, from the centre of Rome up to two hours depending on time of day.

The bus shuttle is located about a third of a mile from the port gate and is used for the free shuttle provided by the port to and from the ships. These shuttles are for passengers going into the port that might have stayed the night in Civitavecchia having arrived early and maybe by rail. Similarly for disembarking passengers off the ship with onward travel by rail. When cruise ships are in port this bus terminal see hundreds of passengers using the free shuttles from ships. They then haul their cases through the centre of the town to the rail station, about a 15 minute walk.    

Travelling by rail from the centre of Rome takes about an hour, can be very good value, but potentially tricky with heavy cases. There is a bus service from the station to the cruise shuttle bus terminal for a few euros. For those arriving the night before there are some decent hotels in Civitavvechia along with some nice walks, shops, historical sights, bars and restaurants.

Hope this helps

John