mking8288

Following this, Prima racing north, crews only reported at 26 knots, woohoo - that's fast re-positioning to NY. Seas quite calm on a strong tail wind.

@spenecer - use your browser, input "speedtest.net" and without having to run its speedtest - the "main" screen should identify & display the server used (i.e. AT&T, Spectrum, Verizon, etc.) like "EMC" being the "default" satellite ISP. You can do this at the ship's iCafe, usually, as they have a # of work stations/terminals (typically, Acer slim desktop) with a basic browser, do the same - and key in "speedtest.net" - upload speed results often failed due to high latency & will probably timed out. But, it should "yield" the information. Cellular data speed at some of the Caribbean islands are pretty fast, they don't necessary have or find 5G being important, given their relatively small population base - 4G LTE being more than satisfactory for daily usage. Have a great cruise and thanks.

Following along ... thank you for taking time to post & share. Look forward to feedback about latest onboard entertainment ... and, if you can, list (partial) of ship's senior officers currently onboard, etc. I know of a group on a given Epic roll call that should be interested in the details. xa 6 Mbps satellite WiFi download speed is pretty good, IMHO - Epic is still using "EMC" as their ISP and not Starlink ? On the Getaway this January, I managed to get 7 Mbps using newer hardware but slower on different devices. Results for non-streaming use, I consider acceptable - streaming HD video is another story.

Glad to read about this advocated outcome in a somewhat positive way. Good work and those other channels get credits for their share of the publicity to shame NCL into executive resolution. Find it troublesome that some rather cheered NCL for the app & systems design to fault the passengers for the add-on, from what I can read as a partial view. And, yes, I looked & browsed at other sensational "sources" for information not "available" here. Remains unseen whether this trap remain not changed or fixed as TA were alerted but these add-ons from, at least the add-on app ... could stll be lurking to ruin others. And, we won't know what happened to those deleted posts and just leave it up to the imaginations and called it editorial prerogative 🤔🙄 Happy cruising !

Affirmative, been reading & following posts over the past 36 hours on this matter without commenting - it is not a mind trick, a number of posts are gone, for whatever reasons.

We're advised recently (Jan 2023) on the Getaway that for a 12 nights cruise, it was (is) still just 1 bag per Platinum or higher member for the duration of the cruise. For 15 nights (maybe, it was 14 nights) - 2 bags per Platinum or higher. YMMV. Still one "carton" or two cartons of Flow Water, regardless ... and, the other "discounts" with the fine prints.

Ditto, also, don't recall Pitaya or Dragon Fruit available or served in the buffet or MDR when ordering fresh fruit plate 😁 ... Toss a few chopped up chunks into a blender, add yogurt drink or other preferred liquid and ice cubes, bless & serve chilled - yummy smoothie !

Going to be following - perhaps, Starlink will be up & running on the Bliss by then. I might have issues on my end as not optimistic about getting a better connection at sea, except and until later in the month roaming.

Okie dokie for Haven guests to be given plastic wrapped food to go b/c ... Plus, others are using not just ziplock bags but also Tupperware containers. Heck, if that's the case, why not just walk out with their plates & bowls, covered or otherwise - perhaps, crew members are instructed to not confront their onboard guests to make corporate's announced decisions worst than what it is ... Junior crew members, perhaps, not wishing to further see more "steerage" guests endangering the practice and traditions of giving cash "recognitions" for going above & beyond. "Enforcements" of the "no takeouts" were reversed several years ago under Frankie's stewardship and there is hope & reasons to believe that this attempt would meet its demise soon, again. Hoarding of extras isn't a solution to waste management - more plates, cups & dishes piling up along the corridors being reported on another recent cruise report.

CC mods/admin have made it easier by designating the NCL decoding a sticky, just look it up on the top of page 1 here with the NCL forum, it's right there for all the previous & currently "known" codes - Going to fix this for GC ... goin' to be a happy guy b/c LATDBLX 2 extra Latitude points per night. That shall be 3 points per night for this particular cruise.

Thank you for the post-cruise Epic trip report. If you did take part and went to the M&G and/or Latitudes gathering (a/k/a CruiseNext marketing sales presentation, LOL) - please kindly post the names of some of the senior officers, if available, to share, i.e. GM or HD, CD, head of F&B, etc. etc. as sometimes, those can be informative & helpful for others planning ahead, to see if so & so had previously cruised with them. With the transition to once a day housekeeping expected to be 100% done from early January thru March, it's now done and apparently, few finding it to be a pleasant & positive change, but some of us can deal and live with it, others cannot. But, as long as we can get fresh towels, tissues & TP stocked, garbage liners to use (so that we can toss the tied bags outside or somewhere for pickup & disposal without turning the cabin into a mini landfill, LOL) - we can probably "cope" and "live" with the beds not being made up twice a day ... roll with the changes and humor, and give us a week's worth of coffee pouches & tea bags, we can grab sugar & creamers elsewhere - just empty out the mini-refrigerator of items for "sale" as a matter of convenience. But, a good question was raised by one of our regular CC poster/critics as he's been on just about every NCL ship out there these days, and more than just once or twice - until these recent changes, the typical crew member are contracted to work a 12 to 14 hours day, 7 days a week for much of their 6 to 8 months contract ... some said for as much as 16 hours daily, leaving just 8 hours as personal time. Now, the unsolved puzzle is that, the room steward (attendant) are now tasked with cleaning 22 or more cabins a day, working apparently from 8 to 9 a.m. non-stop - except for meal & brief breaks - until 5 or 6 p.m. and no longer doing any kind of evening turn down services ... hence, a 9 to 10 hours work day. And, maybe spending another 1 or 2 hour to do a quick check of all their assigned cabins ... placing Freestyle Dailies outside on the door/message slot or inside the cabin, and not touch anything else. Their work load are heavy, for sure, but aren't they getting extra time on any given day - working 10 to 12 hours only now, instead of 12 to 14 hours like before ? I don't have a clear answer or insight into this - have you seen or noticed room stewards making their usual rounds in the evenings, and are they out & about, working as early as 8 or 9 a.m. daily non-stop until the late afternoon/early evening. Raising this for a bit of constructive discussion, not to stir up the "pot" and get a better feel for what's going on these days with ship's hotel operations - it seems unlikely that cruise lines will go back ... but, never say "never" like those e-Muster or virtual emergency/life safety drills for the assembly / muster stations required of all passengers. Look forward to the rest of your report, reflections and thoughts when you get the time & chance. Thanks again and much appreciated.

Ditto ... NCL's marketing is what I've called & considered, the art of deception - cautions for the less than well informed passengers beware with extra due diligence. Non-breakfast, regular room service (aside from Haven & suites) is $9.95 - hot/cold breakfast delivered (yes, that is if one wish for a pot of coffee alone) at $4.95 - PLUS 20% service charge ! ! ! I don't see them waiving it with that many club balconies onboard a typical NCL ship. Who's going to pay for Frank's rich compensation package doing consulting work 😁 😁 😁

You are on a cruise, go ahead & enjoy your vacation time onboard & ashore. Suffice to assume, Starlink hasn't rolled out yet, no Joy. Apparently, someone claimed that the Getaway is switching over, unconfirmed. We stick with Google Fi unlimited Plus plan traveling abroad, on T-Mobile & their GSM cellular partner networks ... 5G and 4G LTE signals & coverage, switch off ship's satellite WiFi as soon as pickup a solid land tower's ping, with data only sims and tethering included at no extra charge.

F&F - nephew/GF and niece/family & their in-laws, etc. sailing the Prima next month ... and they got prompted to watch the online safety video as part of the check-in, short & sweet and done. Probably get reminded again, still, to watch again ... still has to "report" to their assigned Assembly Station to get their cards scanned once onboard on Day 1, etc. to be considered finished. Otherwise, online check-in will be stalled & incomplete. Better "watch" the video while taking a short coffee/tea/beer/beverage and/or bathroom break during the check-in, let it finish & click thru the rest of the steps. IMHO, much easier to report in person 30 to 45 minutes before sailaway to wait for 694 others to eventually, hopefully, slowly gather to wait for the in-person drills, which you typically can't see or hear anyway, with all the chatters and heads moving around ... and the "we can't wait to get out of there" to rush for the stairs, elevators, watch the sailway, run for the nearest bar to get another drink, etc.

https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-warns-guests-about-heavy-weekend-homeport-traffic/96869 Well, hello - NCL 🫣

Sail and Sustain - with FDR's transitional retirement to bonus-enriched consulting work, corporate board room has to come up with other savings, i.e. run the current milky route on just 2 engines instead of 3 and 4 also ... think about the fuel saved, LOL. Currently, approximately 120 nm to PC at 11 knots, expected arrival around 0600 hours tomorrow. No "promised" stop to Bermuda this week, none whatsoever ... regardless what was advertised previously. Wow, surprised that pax on another sold-out cruise hasn't protested with the buffet at 50% capacity due to overhead water leaks & probably sections roped off for safety reasons ...

Starlink gone live on the GA, you meant ?? Haven't read or heard anything but good. If true, that's good news - yeah, give them a little time to switch & get their new server configurations straighten out. It can't get worst than before (now) Ships is heading to Florida, slowly - due to arrival tomorrow morning ... hopefully, we'll hear sooner than later. Give them a break, they are vacationing on their cruise.

Following and thank you. Always refreshing to get a newbie's perspective to cruising - the good, the so so and the not so great onboard experience, getting on the ship and hearing the announcement of it's final call, get off the ship, etc. Watch for the pier runners. Do go to the M&G, it's informal, fun and you get to see some of the senior officers in charge of the ship's operations. They give out a card with their names, titles and onboard extensions to dial directly - if you can post that here, much appreciated in advance. As for that unique shower & bathroom setup ... pack some sort of (spray it) air freshener - that, plus a bit of natural sound coming from the TV if both of you are in the cabin. Enjoy that first cruise experience, start the final countdown. Just think, the ship is boarding with 20 to 25 aircraft's worth of passengers on just one end of Terminal 1 at O'Hare with just 2 gates (referred to as "gangways") Go with the flow, patience and humor.

Satellite internet onboard has been reaffirmed ... apparently, as being slow, sluggish & barely working with 4,800+ pax onboard and floating at sea.

Sticking to virtual mustering again, but it is still going to be announced - the CD conducted the drill while we're onboard on our last 4 cruises within the past years ... made for a better overall experience without the massive gathering. Maybe, someone figured it out for their convenience, not ours, and that it still comply with various regulations, including the USCG ... since other cruise lines are okay with it. With fewer crew members onboard these days, this does make sense - and some of us will probably see our checked luggage, hmmm, a little faster and the stateroom attendants can get the remaining cabins ready sooner than later. Frankie is going to claim credits for this as one of his accomplishments, LOL.

Exactly, we aren't exactly seeing how this is going to benefit our onboard experience. And, do stay clear of competing in the China market b/c they are about to launch their own first home-built mega cruise ship from their own shipyard - not going to be another Joy 2.0

When the GEM recently skipped / cancelled her 5 days NYC-Bermuda quickie round-trip due to marine forecast and weather (this January) - she sailed south for Bahamas & made an evening stop at Nassau, for technical reason to satisfy USG regulations, for several hours & then it was all abroad for the return to NY ... not really enough time to do anything in Nassau (shops & restaurants mostly closed ahead of/by ship's late arrival) - doubtful that it was worthwhile for go anywhere else there, i.e. Atlantis Strong headwind and rough seas didn't help either - unusual winter storms & weather pattern for the Northeast this season ... didn't help. Prima has a 5 nighter coming up ... CC friends on her next week and early forecast for Bermuda isn't looking all that great, but. Some of the Bahamas sailings have Norfolk, VA as a scheduled stop within the last 12 months and some of them met similar cancellations due to "unforeseen reasons" for your (in)convenience, of course. NCL, historically, AFAIW - over the last 20+ years, seldom put Bermuda on the fleet's winter schedule until post-Covid era in 2022-23 season. I cannot think of any "recent" diversion north to Canada during the winter months. At least one T/A last December, might be 2 T/A westbound with scheduled stop at Bermuda also cancelled & skipped, sailed way south across the Atlantic into warmer ocean bordering the Caribbeans.

A good summary of some of the challenges onboard last week from Paul ... thank you from another CC addict here. There is additional comment/feedback, another brief summary posted this morning on the GA's roll call - here's the link, easier to go direct as newbies might get lost with CC's no so great "search" function - https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2857287-march-10-2023-ncl-getaway/page/3/#comments If the above report is true & close to accurate - 4,850 pax is practically almost at max lifeboat capacity and being short on staff (crew members ... plus the relative lack of experienced one & trainees in action on their first contract) - oh mine, that'll not make for a smooth onboard experience. As I learned to say often these days, just go with the flow and easy does it.

I thought 🫣 it was the washy washy line at the entrance to the buffet 😁 Patience, sense of humor and go with the flow.

NCL has made the Latitudes Platinum dining more flexible in the past year, this letter was in our cabin along with the mini booklet. NCL's website descriptions haven't been kept up and or updated with all the changes, when in doubt - ask onboard. Of course, CruiseNext or Latitudes desk and SD host/ess might give you different guidance vs. what your waiter/ress say, bottom line is will you get charged extra, LOL Confusing, sure. Why worry about that extra $10 or $20 ?