PATRLR

I agree there isn't a reasonable fix. I can't help but think the designers intended it this way. Put this venue right in the highest traffic area, make it a bit undersized so it's always packed and likely people standing and it will give off this positive, good-times-being-had here, vibe. And that's the part that disappoints me yet reinforces that the Atrium situation is exactly as NCL wants it.

Getaway, Bliss, and Encore, our experience was that for certain shows in the Atrium the Osheehans level was also full. The few times we found a seat up there, the background noise made it less than ideal.

yes you can book your own excursions. Check on the port of call forums for information on private excursions in your ports. Only use companies with good reutations. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/2-ports-of-call/

Strange that the smaller ship is at Amber Cove. I wonder what the weather is like today. Maybe it's incredibly calm/mild and safe to enter? Probably cheaper to go to TB so send the big ship there if they can?

I assume you meant to write "medium chance of being impacted". The more I've thought about it I've kind of resigned myself to the fact that we probably won't get on that ship on that date. Now that the TA's first stop in US is Miami, and considering that my Dec 6 cruise is a Wednesday to Wednesday, at the very least I expect it to be chock full of TAs (much the way the first Encore out of Miami this season was) but more likely I get kicked off in favor of more important people than me. I also wonder if the unavailability of Vibe is somehow related - not going to collect those funds if confidence is low that cruise actually happens? Or worse, not going to collect those funds because we're going to dedicate Vibe to VIPs?

I don't know if you are stating this because you believe it to be true, but, despite what they say I do not believe NCL is making these changes to "save the environment". I have no doubt they are motivated only by cost savings.

Does Bliss have the USBs next to the beds? I know Encore does, I don't recall Bliss having them when I was on it in 2018.

I did follow the links and I agree they are unhelpful with respect to the water. I'm going to try to save that screen shot I have in case the water disappears (which I expect it will). We actually do drink the water, we'd likely buy a 6 pack so if I can get even one free, I'll take it.

Not to sound like a broken record, but, you really should go check out the Mexican Riviera forums. I'll bet anything if you go there search "Medano Beach", you'll get loads of information, including answers to questions you never thought to ask.

Nonsense. I don't doubt that maybe someone in NCL says something like this but I call BS. Far more contamination happens in the buffet line or the hot tubs than would happen at a proper bottle filling station. They don't have bottle filling stations because it would be an added expense and it would likely impact sales of bottle water. It has nothing to do with safety or contamination.

Can I ask where/how you found those terms? What's a bit interesting is I booked on December 16, so, I should be out of luck. But, my reservation currently says I get the water as shown in the picture. Even when I follow the "Click Here" link and follow to the T&Cs I don't see anything about the December 15 date. Another funny thing is, when I try to print that page to a PDF for safe keeping, that section isn't getting printed.

It does, but that's OK. You will get much, much closer to the glacier than Bliss does. Look for @BirdTravelsLive report from the Bliss in June 2018. I was on that cruise and this excursion as was Bird. Bird has pictures from this excursion and I'm pretty sure Bird shows how distant Bliss is from the small boat. That excursion is my absolute favorite of any cruise ship excursion I've been on. I urge you to book it ASAP before it sells out (and it will sell out).

Really? You couldn't acknowledge the relationship between check-in times and boarding times and help the OP out? @flyguy909 My experience is that the check-in times are not enforced. If I were in your shoes, I would still plan to get to the port as early as I possibly could, recognizing that they may decide to enforce the times and you'll find yourself waiting. But I've not experienced that.

I second the "do it yourself" suggestion. Spend some time on the Mexican Riviera boards here at CC and also Trip Advisor. Book with someone reputable. They will get you back on time, their reputation (aka their livelihood) depends on it. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/124-mexican-riviera/

On ships with public hot tubs that people stew in seemingly all day long, do you really think germs are a concern?

I think you would be wise to change that advice when it comes to NCL. We will soon be looking at European cruises where the ports are everything and I realize that we will probably need to investigate the reliability of other lines when it comes to actually making it to the ports they advertise. I think this paragraph sums it up well. We will definitely be taking a long hard look at alternatives. I know I'd be very angry. I hope it works out for you. I don't think anyone has questioned that very obvious fact. I think you have missed the points people are raising.

I agree that the right thing to do is skip Taino Bay, but don't you think NCL knows well in advance if they aren't going to be able to get into Amber Cover and they should let passengers know DR isn't going to happen? I think that's the issue with NCL and the DR - NCL knows and for some reason they don't want to communicate it. Heck - everyone who pays attention knows. There is a story on another forum of someone trying to book a private excursion and the excursion operator saying "no" because they knew the NCL ship wasn't coming. The passenger asks NCL and insists they are going to DR and of course in the end, upon embarkation, passengers are told they were skipping DR. I'm sorry, but that's just no way to treat your customers.

I'm a bit surprised a cruise line hasn't figured out how to monetize this. If you want a second service, pay for it. I'm sure staffing is a problem - how many 2nd services are you likely to have on any given cruise, but over time I'd think they could get an idea of roughly how many extra staff are needed.

They want to cut staff. That's the extent of their "staffing issues" - they want less staff.

Damn right. That is exactly why I tip bar servers and bar tenders extra. And I find that it works.

There was also a "Dress Up or Not" night promoted. May have been the same evening as Norwegian night out, may not. But becuase the OP specifically asked about "Dress Up or Not" night, I think it's important to be clear that "Dress Up or Not" night did indeed exist and apparently no longer does.

The question posed was "wanted to know if things changed." And the answer is, apparently, "yes, they have changed, NCL no longer promotes a specific dress up or not night". But, as you stated, you can always dress up on any night that you want to.

You can always ask your server which restaurant it's from.

@Podyon18 As others have said, 30 minutes is the standard and what I have observed. More important is the reliability of the excursion operator. I'd make sure they have a long term, excellent reputation. Their reputation (aka their livelihood) is at stake if they don't get you back on time. I personally would be OK with an operator getting me back 30 minutes prior to departure assuming they met my criteria for reputation. The Tortola forums might be of interest here. Search for your operator to see if there are any experiences with them. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/202-tortola/

I'm concerned about my Dec 6 booking. Sure, I get just a tad less concerned each day, but, until that ship is sailing, I'll be concerned.