awinte2

We did the 26 Glacier tour last May. They take you so close where the cruise ship cannot go. Absolutely worth it.

Just approved for upgrade from interior to partial obstructed balcony. 27 days out of sailing on Enchanted Princess February 26. Cost was 385.00 for 10 days.

Try to keep it brief.  Loved the ship (other than the tacky shower curtain) . Hollywood Conservatory was great.  Pool was heated.  Great viewing but always busy.

Ate in dining room every night.  Only couple of nights was it just ok. The rest of time loved it. Had same waiters and table for  14 days. The service was impeccable. If there is something you would like instead of what is on the menu just ask and they will accommodate if they can.

Did lots of excursions. Seen lots of whales, otters, seals, eagles but we did not see any bears.  Did the 6.5 hours wildlife/glacier excusion in Anchorage/Whittier and it was great. .

Only down side of whole cruise there was a lot of colds, coughing,  .  Elevators were packed at busy times. Very few wearing masks. People we talked to after cruise some got covid some just a virus some bronchical.  Our cruise was sold out and being 14 days bound to catch something which we did on the last day.

Our first cruise to Alaska was 7 days straight up 20 years ago and wanted to do it again and glad we did.  Just a work of advice people looking to go to Alaska.  Glacier Bay and College Fiord are a must see.  Only doing the inside passage is ok but just not the same.

You have absolutely nothing to lose by asking your cabin steward of the possibility of getting a lounger. We did  and on the 2nd day one magically appeared on our balcony. Don't ask don't get. Good luck.

On 4/29/2023 at 9:37 PM, cruzsnooze said:

Does anyone know if bids are put up for cruise tours? I'm sailing in May a cruise tour  in a reserve class mini and would consider bidding on a full suite.

Go into your account and see of the upgrade your stateroom option is on there.  If it is will show the options available to you.  

6 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

Several weeks out, many categories sold out, losing hope for bid upgrade.  But…..my bid hasn’t been rejected yet.  Seems strange that they would not take me out of my misery and stress.  
 

Not surprised.  Rarely win the lottery, door prizes, raffles, etc…..

Don’t give up hope. Some don’t hear until a few days before cruise.

Upgrade was for a 14 day Alaskan.

For those who are waiting to hear about their bids.  Just had our  upgrade bid accepted  30 days prior to sailing on Majestic to Alaska. 

Had 5 bids in, obstructed balcony, balcony, obstructed deluxe balcony, deluxe balcony and premium deluxe balcony. We were in an entry inside

stateroom that  was comped through the casino. Got the deluxe balcony for a bid of 600.00 each.

Would not normally bid as we are fine with an inside but we have done Alaska many years ago in a balcony and the scenery is breath taking

so bid a bit extra for the deluxe and premium balcony as I new the ship is almost full.

42 minutes ago, hernonmom4 said:

Booking a somewhat last minute Alaska Cruise for the last week of June. The week in non-negotiable. We are  2 couples who have both cruised but not together. DH and I have been loyal to Royal Caribbean (10 or more) with one Carnival aberration  (we did not enjoy) and one NCL (which was ok). We know how Royal works and love the Pub with live guitar player every night. We are looking to go in and out of Seattle with a day or 2 on the front or back to see Seattle. Any strong opinions on which ship? The itinerary's are similar with the Quantum just not doing Glacier Bay where the other 2 do. Also each ship is only offering balcony cabins that are run of the house (they pick it for you), probably due to it being so close to sailing. So we will most likely end up with an obstructed view no matter which ship we choose. Price wise they are all in the same range. Also open to another recommendation for a 7 day R/T Seattle. Thank you all, after years of stalking I know I will get some good advice.

sorry hernonmom4

I misread your posting.  I thought you were talking about the Royal Ship from Princess.  My mistake.

However my statement about Glacier Bay still stands. Don't  miss it.

Cannot comment on RC but if you are going to Alaska , Glacier Bay is so important.  It is absolutely stunning to see.

We have sailed on both the Epic and the Royal.  Had good cruises on both but would pick  Royal over Epic.  (our personal preference).

Alaska is all about the scenery and wildlife.  I would suggest the balcony .  If you are getting a guarantee you probably cannot pick between starboard and port side. 

3 minutes ago, MSUjohn said:

to the best of my knowledge only the prima class has the same menu all week, because of the food hall and whatnot. 

 

the rest of the fleet uses a different menu.

I hope that NCL never goes to the same menu every day fleetwide. 

Just of Prima

If  the dining room on the Dawn has the same menu all week like the Prima I would definitely upgrade.

We only had 1 on our cruise and had always enjoyed the MDR but not so much now with the same menu every day.  

2 hours ago, mypleasure said:

I have already done the research. Most bars will have both Gin and Tonic. Most will have Coke Zero or diet coke. Wine may be a bit harder but not insurmountable as I am quite flexible and often like to try something new to me. I like a glass of champagne too. My husband loves Real Ale but never drinks beer on ships as he only drinks cask conditioned real ales and cruise ships do not carry this type of beer. He too will drink G & T, Wine or sometimes a scotch.

 

Your point is very valid and will definitely help many people. Thank you for pointing out my omission.

Good that you have done the research.  It saves a lot of time when you get on the ship.

When on the Prima we had a later time at a restaurant that did not work for us so we contacted the restaurant directly and asked if the could get us an earlier time.  It took a couple days to get back to us but they were able to move us up.

3 hours ago, mypleasure said:

We are booked to sail on Prima in Sept this year.

 

Right from the day the ship launched I have avidly been following reviews of guests who have already sailed. I have read the reviews and have come to realise that this is a ship which challenges peoples thinking. Complaints seem to revolve around a tiny pool deck, a tiny buffet, lack of staff causing long lines to get a drink served and cutting back on room steward service.

With the design of the Prima and the future ships of this class we will all have to accept that we need to  change our thinking. Prima has a small pool deck and pool but it has the infinity pools on the sides.

 

Prima has a small buffett but offers The Local and Indulge Food Hall as well as main dining rooms to eat all main meals as well as a lot of speciality dining if you like that. Given the complaints about being unable to get reservations for the restaurants it seems they are very popular and will be easing some of the demand elsewhere.

 

There seems to be a lot of bars, so take a short walk and find another nearby with less of a line. Get two drinks if you feel that is necessary.

 

I believe Staffing and Supply chain issues will resolve over time as the world continues to recover from Covid. I am fine with once a day service to our room. Prima has a huge Haven area which has it's own facilities thereby taking a lot of guests out of main areas.

 

Where I think things have gone wrong is by having a virtual reality fun park instead of a decent sized lounge where people could relax indoors in the daytime and enjoy some entertainment at night. Then there is the tiny Pour House and Improv. I am unable to stand in a line for an hour to get in to these areas so have already accepted that those places are off limits to me. I have heart issue that means I can't go on the slides or the carts either. None of this will ruin my experience. I am very much looking forward to the cruise.

Just a heads up on the bars.  They all do not carry the same beverages. Some you can only get draft beer and some only bottled.  Some only certain liquors and some not.   Best to do a little research on which ones carry what so you do not wait in line and then be told you cannot get your drink at this bar.

We just got off the Prima in February and had read the reviews before we sailed but I would not pass judgement till our cruise was finished.  We have sailed NCL many times and other cruiselines with 3500 capacity.

This is my takeaway and all reviews posted are those individuals opinions. 

Understaffed especially in bar areas so was a bit of a wait to get beverages.  Buffet definitely too small for amount of people. New repeated menu in MDR gets old very quickly.  Most entertainment venues are too small and long lines and wait times to get in .  Booking in specialty restaurants and theatre shows sell out fast so do it as soon as you can. Many people on our cruise could not get into the shows or restaurants . Pool area definitely too small.

Found the layout of the ship a bit challenging.

Ship is beautiful. Stateroom the best we've ever been in.  Service was spot on in every area.

Would we go on this ship again even is if is the itinerary we want probably not. We had a good time on this holiday but not a great time as we have had on others. 

Hard decision for you to make and perhaps you will be like us and make the decision to go and be the judge yourself.  You are still going to a beautiful place on a beautiful ship and you don't want to regret not going to Norway.

i

1 hour ago, SunnyMer said:

A quick background. We are not what I would call frequent cruisers, but have some experience. We’ve been on 7 Disney cruises over the years, and once our children were a bit older (they are now 15 & 17), we moved on to RCL and have cruised them 3x (Voyager, Freedom, Allure) and have an Alaskan on Quantum booked this summer. 

We booked the Iceland/Norway cruise on Prima for next summer. We selected this cruise solely for the itinerary. After researching a bit, the Prima looked like an exciting new ship that our older teens would really enjoy. However, the more reviews I read, the more I begin to second guess this. The main issues I see are all related to the design of the ship not handling crowds well. I realize when you cruise with 3k of your closest friends, some crowds are unavoidable. My concern is on a cold weather itinerary, with limited access to the outdoor spaces, the interior crowds will be even worse than the reviews I’m reading for Caribbean routes. 
 

RCL does offer a similar itinerary (excluding Norway) on the Jewel, but we were really looking forward to Norway. 

For those more familiar with NCL, I would love to hear your thoughts, feedback, opinions, etc! We are considering making the switch to the Jewel, but I’m so conflicted. Any help would be great. 
 

Thank you all in advance! 

Not sure what is happening.  Have you used the credit card before.  I would call the credit card company and just have them check your card to ensure everything is in order with it before you just show up at embarktion and it still doesnt work.

We just sailed on NCL Prima the end of  February with their new Same Menu All  Week In MDR. We absolutely got tired of it by the 3rd day. We sail Princess and NCL only and now going with Princess this May to Alaska and looking forward to their MDR which we always liked so much we never went to Restaurant you had to pay for.  I believe NCL is going this route so more people will go to the alternative restaurants that cost extra. NCL also went the route of offering special cuts of beef at additional cost in the MDR.  

Understand the cruise lines are trying to save money and only hope Princess does not go the same route, 

Just now, SeaShark said:

 

The flaw here is that the person could have come back at any time between 8:30 and 10:30 and then left again prior to your return. Just because a chair was unoccupied at 8:30 and it is unoccupied at 10:30 does NOT mean that it was unoccupied for the entire time in between.

No you are correct but there was well over 30 chairs reserved at 8:30  and there was many reserved ones  to pick from when we came back at 10:30.  If more people did this the Chair Hogs would get the hint and quit coming down before the sun rises to reserve their chairs.

I am not out to take anyones chair only the ones that reserve for hours and hours and never come back. Also if you are on the pool deck and you know the chairs beside you have been reserved for hours with no one coming back. Mention to people that are searching and have them get the cruise line rep to remove them so they may sit down.

We were on the Prima in February and as usual the Chair Hogs were out in full force.  We  talked to the NCL head of pool area and said they would remove the passengers items if the chairs had been unattended for over 1/2 hour.  So this is what we did.

We walked through the pool area at 8:30 on our way to breakfast and took pics of chairs that had towels laid on them. At 10:30  came to the pool area  and found 2 chairs that we had taken pic of  and showed them to the NCL rep in the towel booth and he immediately removed their towels and we sat down. No confrontation with anyone..

We will do this from now on as it is not proper for us to remove someones belongings and we do not want to get into  it with anyone as we are on holidays .  Keep in mind that the chair must be reserved for over 1/2 hour as some people can be in the pool, washroom or quick trip to buffet or stateroom and coming right back. 

Please disregard my post as it was a glich in my computer .  My apologies to all.

Just wondering if this has ever happened to anyone.

Email pops up from Princess in PDF form cancelling my 14 day Alaskan cruise for this May. I know the cruise is sold out so I am wondering What the Heck.

I immediately call  Princess  (this all takes about 8 minutes).  I explain to the Princess rep and she assures me that my booking is still valid.  I look at my computer screen and the email is gone, recalled or whatever but it is nowhere on my screen. The Princess rep sent me a new email to assure me everything was in order.

I was not imagining, seeing double, . It was there and then it was not.  Has this ever happened to you.

Ty for info.  Hope you get yours pathi.  Will see what happens.

Just wondering. Our May 27 Majestic Cruise to Alaska is Sold Out.  Has anyone received an upgrade bid on a Sold Out Cruise.  

4 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

That is certainly one way to do it. 

 

I think to make it more hilarious for @Jeter02 and others is to simply remove the towels and sit down when the "owners" are nowhere in sight.  If they ever do come back and complain, just tell them you found the chair empty.  (It was empty of a human after all).  They will have no idea who removed their towel or book, etc.  If you really wanted to get them, you could turn anything else into lost & found.  Now that would be really hilarious.

Not sure Jeter02 that it is good idea to remove " personal belongings".  That is why you should get the cruise rep to remove and they take them to the towel area. You always run the risk of damaging their property or them saying something was there and now it is not because you touched it.  That just opens up another can of worms and remember we are on vacation and who needs it.

As for the OP who mentioned the sanctuary it wonderful that you are fortunate to be able to book this.

Not everyone can budget the extra expense.