PATRLR

Bull! Our Encore cruise in November 22 we couldn't get into 1 of the showings. We ended up at the later showing on the second night in seats way at the back. And if Kinky Boots really wasn't drawing crowds, why not replace it with a full production show that does? I'll answer it for you: cost. It's way cheaper to put a game show in their than a full production show.

Nonsense. It's just another cost cutting move. But, I get it, you need to promote that company line. Well said. I find the "contemporary cruiser" line to be not much different than the "for your convenience" line.

That was an Excursion so yes you could use it. Your excursion happed to end at the airport. What you did was much different than the "airport transfers" that take you direct from the ship to the airport.

Yeah, I accept that. I thought, but definitively wasn't sure, they might have been one of those house bands whose members rotated thorough, similar to the Beatles bands. That would have also explained why the band I saw perform a few songs were not very good musicians and sang most of the songs I heard in the wrong key. Oh well, to each his own, I know I am in the minority of people who really didn't care for them.

We did the Viva Southern Caribbean in December. Port every day. We booked Vibe and it was worth every penny. We were in it every day, it was the place to go when coming back from the port or an excursion. Look at your schedule, you might find some ports you leave early and have a good chunk of the afternoon at sea. We are the types that like to just chill out in a quiet relaxing space. We like the sense of community that develops in the Vibe and in particular around the bar. We're at the point where if Vibe isn't available, we probably won't book.

Agree on that one. Very disappointed in Palomar.

And they'd probably be more hygenic than some humans I've seen at the buffet. Pretty sure a dog isn't going to put something back that it handled 🙂 (this is a joke for those that might not recognize it)

I couldn't use the credit when I purchased the transfers in San Juan.

What is "NCLs recommended amount" for MDR servers? If you are referring to the DSC, the DSC is different from the tips being discussed here. I for one consider the DSC to be the "something" the server deserves. Should that server or service be exceptional I give something more in cash. I can't remember the last time I had exceptional service in an NCL MDR. Rather than attacking the poster, why don't you answer his questions? Disagree. Just this past December in SJ, I tipped them and walked away with the bags still on the curb and a second porter loading them onto his hand cart. The larger carts that are eventually loaded on the ship were no where to be seen. I'm pretty sure it was a similar situation at Port Liberty this past summer. Even if I saw them being loaded onto the larger carts, those larger carts still need to get from the curb to the staging area so they can be loaded on the ship. There is a lot that the porters do to get your bag delivered that you don't see or doesn't happen "within seconds of your proffering said tip". Tipping the porters is most definitely a bribe per the party planner's definition.

Really @Smitheroo? You screw up by posting something totally off topic, @complawyer asks you to explain and you attack him? My Dad used to say "when you are in the wrong, you apologize and then shut your mouth". Seems to apply here.

There are other cruise lines? Really? Some might argue, why create a new thread when one exists already. Some forums (the UA forum on FlyerTalk comes to mind) have active mods that will combine a new thread into an existing thread. @Sherilly No need to apologize, there is no rule against using an existing thread.

My comment on Q is that anyone that knows and enjoys good BBQ is going to be disappointed.

I'd say "ouch" for the audience. 😉 (I know I am in the minority but I thought the version of Siglo on my cruise was awful)

Yes, it's an NCL thing. In my experience and observations, NCL really doesn't care how it's actions may impact the guests. Some things they recognize won't be well received - those things they will almost always wait as long as they can, long after final payment, to notify you about. If you are happy on Royal, I suspect this will indeed be your last cruise on NCL.

I wonder if this would be a question/discussion with the Access Desk? Looking at this page, it does appear they get into much more than just accessability: https://www.ncl.com/about/accessible-cruising

No, if that was all you said. This quote for example, "We are truly fortunate that CC has so many amateur nautical engineers who can immediately see the solutions overlooked by professional engineers." isn't just insisting there are trade-offs.

This is one view of Viva during a sail-away. I wish I had a similar picture of deck 17 but I assure you there were far more people on 17 than down on 8. Warm weather cruise, if the demographic preferred 8, I'd expect to see a lot more people down there.

This is not the only thread where you have insisted that commenters must also be designers.

I don't understand why stating observations and reactions to something instantly makes us designers. Or, at least some people here expect us to be designers. The buffet on Viva is too small. Even the people running the buffet know it's too small so they have to prop open the unmarked back door to Food Republic. Making the statement I did, or taking the action the staff has taken shouldn't require them to come up with a functioning alternative design. (By the way, propping open a door is a real classy way to run your shiny new high class ship) FWIW, my stating the buffet is too small does not mean I am saying they need to make it bigger (e.g. a partial solution might be to expand the hours). I don't know nor do I care how they solve the problem. I'm just stating the observation. I recently was shopping for a new vehicle. I'm a tall guy, long legs. I can't extend my legs in some models, the firewall is too close. Do I now have a responsibility to redesign those cars? Of course not, I just look for one that works for me. Same with cruise ships (we have not ruled out Prima class for future cruises despite a negative observations I might state).

As does the Viva. My observation during my December Viva Southern Caribbean cruise is the "contemporary cruiser" still prefers to be on Deck 17 and the traditional pool. Maybe eventually the demographic will work on these new ships, but my observation is they currently aren't working as I think the designers intended.

Why do any of us have to expound on what the correct number is? Why can't we state observations? If every time I walked by Syds/Improv and I stuck my head in (if I could) and saw a packed SRO venue why can't I conclude that those venues are too small? If I notice that every time the buffet is open, they have to prop open the unmarked back door to Food Republic so people have a place to eat why can't I conclude that the buffet is too small? Clearly the NCL staff has concluded it's too small - or are you going to criticize those folks as armchair designers too?

They do on Prima? I was on Viva and at one point I looked becuase I was curious and I didn't recognize anything that looked like a heater. I didn't think there was anything around either of the "beaches" nor the "Terrazza" areas. Maybe back around Indulge there is? How about back by Soleil?

One problem with Indulge/Local as the alternative to the buffett is they are on deck 8. If I am up on 16/17 I really don't want to go all the way down to 8 to get something to eat. Part of this problem is an operational decision by NCL by limiting hours. But that's NCL being cheap, not a design issue. Maybe they thought more people would be hanging on deck 8. While there are more people on deck 8 than you'll find on the *Away* classes, there aren't so many that it justifies the lack of casual food up top. I think deck 8 has some beautiful areas, but on the Caribbean cruise I was on, that space was woefully under utilized compared to the upper decks.

You seem to imply that the engineers can't or don't make mistakes? I agree with the common criticisms that many have voiced about Prima/Viva, in particular that many venues are just too small. The implication is they should be bigger. Does my saying the venues are too small make me an "amateur nautical engineers "? I think I'm not, I'm just a passenger relaying my opinion based on my experiences.

Wow. We are of the mindset that Vibe is a requirement on an NCL ship - if I can't get Vibe passes, we aren't going to book. I would be absolutely livid if this happened to us. I think my heart rate is up just thinking about it. I'd bet we will eventually learn that a group has taken over Vibe. That didn't happen just days before sailing, that happened weeks if not months ago. That would make me even angrier, NCL waiting until the last minute to notify people so that it's too late to cancel their booking entirely.