BlueHonu

We were on the week b4 you. We had about the same feelings. The hub app didn't work very well. We are in the casino a lot too. We had pretty good luck on deck 4, but drink service on deck 5 was hit and miss. Although as the week went on, we had better service since we always tip and chat with the servers. 

We stayed near MCO. Scheduled an uber for 930 am. It cost about $100 with tip. On the return, we rented a car from Avis so we could waste a little time on the way to the airport.

We decided to stay at Seal Beach. We can walk to dining if we want or drive if we want to go further. 

We are all in our 50's, so we don't need nightlife. We have another couple arriving on Friday and staying in Long Beach, so it will be easy to met them for dinner.

We live near Toledo Oh so the time change will have us to bed early.

Ballast Point Brewery looks great. We will probably hit Laguna Brewing and a couple others too. We will drive to Crystal Cove park and probably do a dolphin cruise from Newport Beach. That should leave some time to check out the pier and maybe a bike rental. And our 2 days will fly by and it will be cruise time...

I agree with the homeless people being spread across America and Canada too when we visit there.

We are very fortunate to be able to travel.

Thanks again!

Thanks for the advice. I was actually considering the Pacific Inn. One of our group warned about going north and getting into chaos. I thought Seal Beach sounded quaint. We could rent bikes or just walk around. We haven't been in the LA area in 30 years. DW and I really have no desire to see Hollywood again. I know our friends would think it would be cool to see the Hollywood sign. I think that I will look to the south for things to do. There is a couple we met 10 years ago that live in Laguna beach. Maybe we will catch up with them.

Thanks all!

I'm looking for some local advice. We are flying in early Thursday to SNA for a cruise on Saturday. I have a van rented and will  return it Saturday am at Enterprise on Ocean Blvd. I like a hotel at Seal Beach and the area sounds laid back. However, we are thinking about driving to Santa Monica on Friday am to see the sights. Possibly get a bus tour from there. I realize that traffic is terrible. Should I ditch the idea of trying to cover so much area? Would there be enough to keep us busy around Seal Beach? Should we stay somewhere between Long beach and LAX?

TIA

Have a great time, we board on the 12th.

We  had an Alamo rental and shuttle pre pandemic. In November we tried the same thing and were told that there is no longer a shuttle to POM. We took a taxi from the 4th floor of the RAC facility. I think it was $25.

We are supposed to board 2/12. Can anyone tell us if there is a soot problem for people staying in the aft balconies? And Spice H2O?

TIA!

We are booked on the Panorama for Sept. We have no plans to cancel at this time. We have already booked air and hotel. All we can do is wait and see.

We go on Breakaway in 3 weeks. We have been on most of the newer ships. 

Sit at the bar for a while. See how some people treat the bartenders. We always tip $1 a drink, generally have outstanding service. But it is more than the tip. It is treating them like an equal, not a robot/beer slave. They like to chat too, and show off a little😁

Slugg, I expect to see you at Spice H2O on the 21st.

Following along...

I have to say Go Green too... My daughter graduated from Michigan St. She recently completed basic training at Ft Leonard Wood. So we were near you a few weeks ago.

Have a great time!  We are on Breakaway April 21.

Funny thing, we don't usually get much lunch the 1st day. We lose track of time at the Spice bar.

How did you like Placencia? We are on Breakaway in April. I'm considering a visit, instead of hanging out at HC again.

Loving your stories,

thanks!

On 1/14/2019 at 8:58 AM, AAAagent18 said:

Hello All,

I am on the March 3rd sailing on the Breakaway. I have taken plenty of cruises and booked a lot for clients but never on Norweigan due to the negative reviews that we always are hearing. But I recieved a deal I couldnt pass up for this week so I booked it. We are in room 10276 which is a balcony. We also book under the specialty and free beverage package promotion. Is there anything we should be aware of about theses promotions we picked? Or about the ship? and about Port of New Orleans? All information and tips are greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Justin 

You can make dining reservations online now, as well as on board. If you don't like to wait with everyone else that didn't reserve a dining time, be sure to reserve. You can reserve dining and shows on the touch screens by the elevators. We reserve most dinners in advance. Comedy can be reserved when you board too. The prime dining times are busy.

Howl at the moon is very entertaining.

2nd the idea of attending the meet and greet. Very nice outreach by NCL.

We have ATT. We added international to include Canada and Mexico. It gives us free data and text, just not calling.

You can reserve dining and show options 120 days prior to sailing. If you want to have a certain dining time, it is a good idea to make reservations early. I usually look at port times and schedule things so we have a little time to rest after a long day off the ship.

You can also book these things as soon as you get on the ship on touch screens by the elevators. Best time to book the comedy show. Without res, you will have to wait in the standby line.

There are availability times listed for dining on tv screens throughout the ship to see what is available to walk ups. 

The shows are great and most have several run times. If you miss one, just catch another.

Howl at the moon is very entertaining. Often on the last night of the cruise, some of the production show crew members will stop by.

Spice H2O at the back of the ship is a great adult only place to relax.

There are only 2 sets of elevators. The stairs are often the best means to travel between floors.

as far as $$, you might want to purchase photos or gifts. This gets added to your on board account. You might need cash for port trips, tips, and shopping. For us the casino:)

Thanks for posting about the Winner Creek trail. We did it today.

We crossed with the tram and continued on to the road a mile past the tram.

I took the transit shuttle back to the resort. Grabbed the car and returned for the rest of my party.

The trail seemed longer than marked due to the uneven terrain.

Thanks again.

Tom

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Great photos

I'm impatiently waiting for the next posting.

We leave for Anchorage Thursday and plan on hiking near Girdwood.

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Just off the Jewel yesterday, cruise director was Dan, sorry I can't recall his last name. Concierge is John D'souza, I don't know who the butler for the Haven was, our's was Rodwin in an aft penthouse.

Short guy with dark hair

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Have a great trip!

I look forward to hearing about everything.

Hope mom recovers quickly.

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we were booked on this cruise too.

we are somewhat flexible on a new date. although, it coincided with our 30 th Anniversary.

time to find something worthwhile again.

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On our third day in Girdwood, it poured rain and the wind speed was high. All boat/air excursions were cancelled for everyone in the area. We were lucky. Didn't have any activities planned that day. We hiked a 5 mile trail in the heavily wooded Chugach Forest. It provided some shelter from the rain. Halfway through the hike, there is a hand tram for getting back and forth across the river. That was fun.

We are planning on doing this trail. Did you go to the gold mine and back?

How was the terrain?

Did you enjoy the hike?

thanks for all the info!:)

check with the bus line.

seems like I remember seeing that there is an option to have the bus line transfer your bags right to the ship.

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Thanks for the info

We r planning a similar day.

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Doug, thanks for this awesome story, and a wonderful cast of characters.

Nancy Dee... I hope to see you in the casino one day. We are on the CAS page too! I'm very interested to see how the courtesy room works out. It looks like a good solution to partition off the smoke from the rest of the ship.

Thanks to everyone for taking us along on your vacation. Cheers!

Thanks for sharing your trip. Love all of the photos.

I hope the soup returns to Cagneys too, love it.

I wonder if the singers ever get tired of the same tunes week after week?