KeithJenner

i can’t really help at the moment with your question as we don’t tend to use taxis, but we are on the first Viva Lisbon to Rome trip in a couple of weeks and I may do a live report. If I do then remind me at the time at relevant ports and I will have a look out for the taxis and report back.

I’ve done two eastbound transatlantic and both involved long queues to get off the ship. On one (New York) I waited before trying to disembark and the queues had died down by then but in Miami the queue went almost totally round an entire deck and then into the terminal. In New York the queues certainly seemed shorter. Like so much, it seems to be something that can vary, but be prepared for it to take a while. I think I have read that sometimes immigration may happen at an earlier port, but can’t say for sure (both my trips were non stop). Edited to add, I’m from the UK so obviously the actual immigration part took longer for me than it would for a US citizen, but that only split out at the end.

Late departures are relatively common on European cruises, and embarkation time remains the same at just before midday, although remember you will likely to need to get there early in order to get an early boarding group. Remember that some groups have priority (suites, latitudes) so even if you are the first one at the port then there will be others boarding ahead of you if you aren’t in one of those groups In case you aren’t aware, Piraeus is quite a way from the centre of Athens so if you are planning on heading back there for the afternoon you need to make sure you have reliable transport in place.

O’Sheehans/The Local is our usual lunch place for embarkation day and we have never had any wait at all there. We board fairly early, but sometimes have things to do before lunch, and I don’t ever recall seeing people waiting when we leave.

The problem with CruiseNext Haven is that the discount per voucher is the same as for cruisenext, so there isn’t a bigger discount for using them. Two cruisenext vouchers worth $500 in total cost $250 but two cruisenext haven vouchers worth $1,000 cost $750, so the discount is the same.

If you have the Starbucks package then the charge to your room will be zero. The procedure is still the same. They scan your card and you sign the slip, it just says zero if you have the package. My experience is from using the premium plus beverage package but I’d be surprised if it is different for the Starbucks package.

I don’t know what the current situation is, but you may be ok. It could be that they keep some spaces available for people boarding in Rome and there may be a wines around the world during the Barcelona to Rome leg that you would have first shot at booking. If they have the behind the scenes tour straight after Barcelona (it used to be first day after Barcelona on the Epic, which was a sea day) then again you may be able to book that before others board as well.

They had free at sea plus, which includes the premium plus beverage package.

Yes, this is very common, especially on this itinerary. NCL have been doing this, originally on the Epic, on Western Med itineraries for about 15 years now. We have done a similar itinerary (when it was a 7 day cruise on the Epic) a number of times. We always embarked in Barcelona, which was the main embarkation port (cruise days were numbered from there and most people embarked there) and it was barely even noticeable from there. There used to be comments on here from people who embarked in Rome saying that they had issues with things already having been booked or similar, but I think that the numbers of people embarking in each port is probably a bit more even these days so it probably isn’t as much of an issue. There may be a few minor issues but it shouldn’t be a big deal.

You are correct that the free at sea package doesn’t include bottled water. If you are only upgrading for the water then the premium plus beverage package will work. That is the one that is mentioned above for $29 a day (I haven’t checked that price but it sounds about right). Free at Sea + (the one for $49 a day) also gives you an extra couple of speciality meals, unlimited internet and an extra $50 per excursion discount for guest 2. The post you quoted suggests you need free at sea plus for the water and coffee but that is incorrect.

It would have been very odd for all of the first 20 or so parties into the restaurant on multiple days to have all been higher latitudes. I’m going to stick with my view that they were sitting everyone there. Also, we are diamond and are certainly not seated in prime positions every time. Sometimes they clearly do so, but more often than not they don’t. Priority seating is a latitudes benefit but it is inconsistently applied.

I’ve had the strip a few times in the MDR and it has always been decent. Not fantastic, but certainly not as bad as I often read people saying it is on here. I’d certainly order it again.

If you are booking more meals than you have dining credits for (usually due to latitudes but may be due to buying additional dining packages later) you should make your reservations for fixed price places first. The system only lets you book the number of meals you have dining credits to cover before it starts charging you. The charge for a la carte places is zero, but for fixed price places it is that cover charge. Always make reservations for fixed price places first to avoid any potential charges. You can still decide how to pay for them on the day.

I'm sure that is sometimes true, but not always. When we were last on the Jade they were sitting everyone by the aft window first. I can't believe that all of them were due to Latitudes.

Yes, you do get asked for a PIN sometimes with contactless, but using Apple Pay (or similar I assume) avoids that. Also takes away the limit that exists with contactless.

The rear of Grand Pacific is very nice, although sometimes the sun can be an issue near any of the windows. They often fill the areas near the windows first so I'n certainly get there before they open to give yourself the best chance. You don't have to get there too early, maybe 5 minutes. One other thing to be aware of is that some people (customers in suites and higher latitudes levels) get preferred seating, although that is inconsistently applied, so you may find that they leave some spaces for those.

There are about 21 MDR menus, so on a 25 day cruise there will be some duplication, but not too much. As for seating, there is no effort to seat you in the same place. Every time you turn up you will be seated wherever is convenient (i.e. balancing customers per server). In the example you gave of going there a few times at the start of the cruise and then again towards the end there would be no difference between days 1 and day 2 or day 2 and day 20. Each time they will seat you wherever is available when you arrive. You can request the same place and I'm sure they will try to assist (never tried it myself), but it certainly wouldn't be guaranteed. You may not get the same servers anyway.

Contactless, or Apple Pay/Android Pay or whatever, is probably the most common way of paying in most places these days, I can't remember the last time I used by PIN number.

I can only help with some of your questions. Can't really help with the music. I'm not sure what you mean about the music in the ports, and I assume you are talking about music playing on the pool decks onboard, which we generally avoid. There is no fixed charge for toilets. More places charge in Europe than the US. but this varies from place to place. I've never really noticed how much the charges are, when they apply, but it isn't much. I've don't recall ever being charged in places like restaurants or bars. The ships are the same ones that sail in the US at other times of year. There are both US and European plug sockets. If you are asking about hotels or airports in Europe then they will be European sockets. I don't do many organised excursions, but we have never had to use our own headphones. Anywhere where there have been headphones to help hear the guide we have been provided them. In some places there may be options to use an app on your phone as a guide, in which case you would use the headphones that you have for your phone. If you are happy to use a card for spending (I would recommend doing so) then you don't need many Euros. We usually have about €50-100 just in case, but I usually end up taking it back home with me. Cards are accepted almost everywhere.

They are ones that are charged at a flat rate, rather than per item. As above it is Moderno and Teppanyaki (or whatever it’s called on Prima/Viva). Book these ones first to avoid being charged.

The “welcome to” and “welcome back” cards are also different colours, as mentioned earlier.

For a short while a few years ago, NCL included a carton of water a day per passenger, delivered to your room on day one for European customers. There were three of us on a 15 day cruise. Trying to store that, plus the ones we got for latitudes was a challenge.

I assume you mean the premium plus package, which is the upgraded one. Bottled water (or cartons) isn’t included in the standard package, which is, rather confusingly, called the premium beverage package.

They let you book loads of things before final payment. Why should dining be any different? Also, final payment date is different around the world. We have always booked meals well before final payment date (currently nearly two months before). This is a question which only occurs to people in a few countries, primarily the US.

It’s not just Holland. The whole of Europe changes their clocks at the end of March, a couple of weeks after the US. We also change back at a slightly different time. It’s a pain for those of us who watch US sport, as the times get thrown out. We have been travelling over to the US a few times when they change and it can get quite confusing, sometimes ending putting the clocks back or forward twice and other times missing it completely.