Turtles06

I got that early this morning on the U.S. site (as I was in the middle of a purchase!). It lasted momentarily and I was able to log back on. Seems their web site is having some glitches this morning.

As I've posted elsewhere, I just received a promised call back from a supervisor at the Bermuda Hotline. He confirmed that folks on our Nov. 12 sailing of the Joy, and those of you on the Nov. 19 sailing who have already paid for the TAs, will be receiving refunds. He said they have to be processed manually, and it could take a month.

Good news! I just received the promised call back from a supervisor at the Bermuda Hotline, and he confirmed that the folks on our cruise (Joy, Nov. 12) and the cruise following (Nov. 19) will be receiving refunds of the TA fees. Also, he assured me that NCL will NOT be required to ask for the TAs on Nov. 12 as a prerequisite to boarding, and that he expects all this to be clarified by NCL for cruisers and the folks at the pier this week.

Out of curiosity, I just checked the Bermuda web site to apply for a Travel Authorization for the Joy; four departure dates are showing: Nov. 5, Nov. 12, Nov. 19, and Nov. 26. When I clicked on Nov. 19, it would not accept the choice; instead, a message popped up on the screen saying "Please adjust your selection. You have selected 1 when only 0 are available." Same thing when I tried to choose Nov. 26. I think that's a good indication you will get a refund. BUT when I clicked on Nov. 12, it would allow me to proceed to apply. It seems their system has now deleted the ability to apply for a TA for ships departing after the date on which TAs are no longer required. It concerns me that our departure date of Nov. 12 is still active. (But so is Nov. 5.)

(Sunday morning.) Out of curiosity, I just opened the Bermuda web site page to apply for a Travel Authorization for the Joy; four departure dates are showing: Nov. 5, Nov. 12, Nov. 19, and Nov. 26. When I clicked on Nov. 19, it would not accept the choice; instead, a message popped up on the screen saying "Please adjust your selection. You have selected 1 when only 0 are available." Same thing when I tried to choose Nov. 26. BUT when I clicked on Nov. 12, it would allow me to proceed to apply. It seems their system has now deleted the ability to apply for a TA for ships departing after the date on which TAs are no longer required. It concerns me that our Nov. 12 departure date is still active. (But so is Nov. 5.) Hoping to find out soon if Bermuda is really going to require NCL to check for TAs at the pier on Nov. 12.

@navybankerteacher and @njhorseman thank you both! Re the Lincoln Tunnel, I think as long as I tell my friends to drive up 10th Ave. and turn left on W 55th (rather than driving up 12th Ave. and potentially getting stuck in a backup at that short left turn arrow at 55th), they should be okay. But if they prefer the straight shot from the GW Bridge down the Henry Hudson, that'll be their call. 🙂 Thanks again!

Friends will be driving to the Manhattan Cruise Terminal from their hotel just south of Newark Airport on Saturday morning, Nov. 12. (They will have easy access to the NJ Turnpike.) Is there any reason to suggest they take the GW Bridge rather than the Lincoln Tunnel coming into Manhattan? Thanks!

Even for folks on the East Coast, the system doesn’t always open up at 12:01am, even though your reservation on every device you have now says 21 days to go and tells you to check in. You can push the “check in” button all you like, but nothing will happen.

When you check in, you are able to select your arrival time at the pier. The longer you wait to check in, the less chance you may have of being able to select your preferred arrival time.

As someone who will be embarking on the Joy next weekend (Nov. 12 to Bermuda), I hope you are correct that there will be no screening at the pier for the Bermuda TAs. But there's a little bit of a mess going on right now: a number of folks on our cruise have contacted the Bermuda Hotline about getting a refund for the $40 we've paid for the TA. A couple of folks seem to have been told there will be refunds, but others of us were told no refunds, that the TA is tied to the date of embarkation and not the date of arrival in Bermuda. I was told that yesterday and again today, and when I pointed out the inconsistent answers that people are being given, I was then told that since the TA requirement had only been eliminated yesterday, the folks on the Hotline had not been given any guidance and were responding however they thought best. A supervisor at the Bermuda Hotline is supposed to be contacting the powers that be for a definitive answer. If Bermuda does not agree to refund what people on the Nov. 12 sailing have paid for the TA because it's "tied to the embarkation date," it's possible they will insist the TAs be shown at the pier. I certainly hope that is not the outcome. Assuming (as I hope) that Bermuda will not require TAs to be shown at the pier on Nov. 12, I hope that NCL and the folks at the pier can do that quick pivot this week. 🙂 Unless things are really clarified before Nov. 12, I'll report back on embarkation. (I will try to do so anyway, to update the info on how things are going.)

Yes, I think CC should award you one and put it on your avatar. 🙂

There is no similar "perk" on Celebrity for Captain's Club members. (On any cruise line, some folks might get invited to the Captain's table for dinner.)

Is the one-year limit a "sail by" date or an "apply by" date? Thanks!

Peg, thanks for that info. Happy to learn my memory wasn't faulty! 😂 That new 50% "sale" actually resulted in a price drop for our Gem PC cruise (the Feb. 6 leg), so I requested whatever it is they could give us. We'll see. (Not sure it will be enough to entice another booking in the time frame allotted.)

As Bermuda's web site says, it's re-instating their Arrival Card, which they used prior to the pandemic. The Card never applied to people arriving by cruise ship (I have sailed there before the pandemic), and by its own terms does not now. The application form for the Card plainly says: "NOTE: All visitors arriving by airline or yacht should complete this form." http://www.bermudaarrivalcard.com/ The form also says: "Once you complete the form you receive an email confirmation and present it to our border agents to help expedite processing on arrival." Cruise ship pax don't encounter border agents in Bermuda; the entire ship is cleared at once for disembarkation. It's not like flying in from another country and having to pass individually through immigration control. You can fill in that Arrival Card form if you like, but I don't think you'll find anyone to hand your confirming email to when your ship arrives in Bermuda. 🙂 (If I'm wrong, I'm sure the Bermuda experts like @njhorseman and @Charles4515will correct me.)

When did the credit given for a price drop after final payment turn into an FCC that is not issued until the cruise is over and that has to be used in a year? My recollection, which may be faulty, is that (pre-pandemic) you used to get some OBC that could be used on the same cruise on which the price dropped.

I suspect you would. The Epic's capacity is 4,100, and the Breakaway's is 3963.

Meanwhile, someone on our Joy roll call emailed Bermuda about a refund and received this reply: "Good day, As announced today, travel authorizations will no longer be required for arrivals on or after November 14th. Refunds will be issued in due time for all travelers who’s authorizations are for November 14 and onwards. Kind regards, COVID-19 Response Team Government of Bermuda | Department of Health Continental Building | 25 Church Street | Hamilton, Bermuda HM 12 P.O. Box HM 1195 l Hamilton, Bermuda HM EX Direct Telephone: 441 444 2498 | Email: coronavirus@gov."

I have to correct myself; I meant they didn't need the pre-cruise testing (not didn't need the TA).

Even sooner! 😊

I thought that was the case too. Folks embarking on Oct. 22ish did not need the TA when their ships weren’t arriving until Oct. 25. (I might have the precise dates wrong.)

As I mentioned on the NCL board, we're on the Joy's Nov. 12 sailing out of NY, not arriving in Bermuda until Nov. 15. Obviously, we already have our TAs, which we can now frame as among the last ever issued to cruise ship pax. Would have been nice not to have paid $80 for something that will not be needed when we actually arrive in Bermuda. (Out of curiosity, and obviously because I have too much time on my hands, I just called them to ask about refunds. They said no, because it goes by embarkation date.)

I must have too much time on my hands, since I just called them to ask. They said it goes by embarkation date, so no refunds. I asked about someone arriving by plane on Nov. 15, same day we arrive by ship; under the existing rules, those folks could actually wait until Nov. 13 or Nov. 14 to apply for the TA, at which point they wouldn't need one. Then the woman said, "I don't make the rules," the refuge of people who in fact don't make the rules. See you on the 12th! 🙂

Our Bermuda cruise on the Joy embarks on Nov. 12, arrives in Bermuda on Nov. 15. Will they give us our $80 back? LOL! I guess everyone on our cruise can frame our Travel Authorizations as among the last issued to cruise ship pax. 😂

Sorry, I knew the Summit had been doing some itineraries out of Boston, didn’t realize Bermuda wasn’t one of them. I agree with you, if there’s a good option in your own state, that’s worth a great deal! 😊