AnitaVacation

When was this? We were on the BA last Oct and our Conceirge made it very clear that this was a thing and to just let her know which nights we wanted to go so that she could make sure she or someone else was available to take us down. I'm sorry that you did not get the same experience. 😞 Do you mean the big/main theatre? I don't remember if being escorted to the main theatre was a thing...just that there was a section reserved for Haven guests (and honestly, not even a good section), we make our own way to the main theatre and get our own seats, if we want good seats we arrive a little earlier than usual... We've mostly had a good experience with our conceirge and tip accordingly. There was one sailing, our very first Owner's Suite on the Dawn where I felt like the conceirge completly ignored us, she didn't even muster up a 'good morning' at breakfast (her desk was just outside of Cagney's). She never really said anything to us at all.. but I did see her engage with other guests... her tip reflected her efforts... $0

Great to hear!! This will be the third time I’ve booked this cabin… maybe this time we’ll get to see it!!

I'm probably going to regret not making an upgrade but, we've got a Mini suite with large balcony (deck 8 fwd) and everytime I book this cabin (M6), we get an upgrade, so I've never sailed in an M6... This may be the time... (still keeping my fingers crossed for a last minute surprise though).

I do believe Syds holds more than 50 people… although I’m not sure, because as a Haven elitist everyone else was behind me 😂😜🤪

So, last night I did get some information regarding our sailing. Apparently there are nearly 800 available cabins on our sailing (approx. 40 days out). That's got to be close to 1/3? I was wondering about capacity mostly because a few weeks ago, there were a bunch (like 80%) of cabins available in the Haven. We were offered to bid on an upgrade to a Haven suite... we bid on several different suites. About 10 days ago, they even dropped the minimum bid on some of these cabins. Then, very suddenly, (within about a 5 day period), the Haven is Sold Out. Basically, our week went on sale, so it is quite possible that those cabins were scooped up. I was wondering if there was a chance that NCL had already started the upgrade process that's why the Haven is sold out... I know it doesn't seem possible, but I'm sure it's not entirely impossible.

This is a problem that NCL needs to address. Thank you for the great shows, music, comedy, etc... perhaps you could make your venues a little larger?? We miss alot of the small venue shows because I am not willing to stand in line for an hour... instead of 6 small venues, maybe 2 or 3 larger ones??

We encountered one on our last Haven sailing (last year). Older/Middle aged man (kinda big guy) with his petite little wife that wouldn't say Boo if she could. Every morning at breakfast, this ogre would make a scene... demanding a particular flavor yogurt for his wife or a particular cereal (corn flakes, I think)... yelling at his waiter to 'go get my butler'... I was terribly embarassed for his wife, who just sat there looking down at her plate while he showed what a big man he was.... Sad that people think they need to act that way.... no common decency ....smh

We’ll be sailing next month, just wanted to know what to expect.

Question for recent passengers. Any idea how full the ships have been lately?? Conflicting information lately… I’ve read ‘sold out’ and I’ve read ‘below capacity due to staffing’ … is there a place where you can see the headcount of a ship??

I do disagree. It's a perk of the Haven which does not come cheap. It's what I pay for..... and in my experience, there was just the two of us, so it's not like Haven guests are taking over the whole place....

We did not go to the Rumours show. Maybe we will this time. I don't remember if they do a different show each time, but the show we went to was the 80's...

When we were on the Breakaway (Haven) last fall, the conceirge was more than happy to escort us to the back door about 30/45 minutes before showtime. We were the only ones. Apparently, some girls that had been first in line outside the door were a little upset that we got in before them.... I think we took their seats... Anyway, those of you that have seen it, what did you think?? I found it to be only ok... it was very staged and seemed like they were actors going thru the motions. With just a little more effort, it could have been fabulous. We are on the Getaway next month, we will probably give them a second chance to 'wow' us,.... I do love the music.

I've always thought this was a very likely scenerio, since we had to take a covid test 2-3 prior to sailing. I think just a coinkydink..... we both brought it home from our May cruise (bahamas)... and then my travel mate caught it on our June cruise.... well, up until recently...we all had to be vaccinated.

Yes, that was on the Gem.... I have recently looked at some videos of the Away class ships and those front facing balconies do have glass so you do get a better view... I wonder how windy it is to be out there while the ship is sailing?? On the Gem, it was not pleasant at all, unless you like being in a wind tunnel 🤪

I didn't expect to get text messages, but I do. I get text messages from people that have iphones (like me)... but I will usually just contact people (my kids) via fb messenger. We are sailing 10 days in November. We are not paying for the additional wifi ($200 per person?? wha???) we each have 150 minutes...15 minutes a day is more than I need online...lol... for those of you on limited time, like us...here's a wifi tip: have a plan.... I usually log in, update my email, check stupid fb and anything else I need to do (quickly) and then log off.... then I will read my emails (off-line) read fb posts (off-line) and type up any necessary replies and make any necessary fb post...then log back in to send the emails/fb posts, etc... then we spend that $400 on more useful things...like excursions and having a good time on our vacation 😉 Of course, I totally understand about being self employed and having to keep up with day to day business dealings...just be aware that some parts of the ship will have better reception than others... (aft balconies usually have terrible wifi, IMO)

I need to recant my statement.... It did not say the bidding would close on 10/16, but the price drop/sale bidding would end on 10/16.... sorry about that!! On a side note: We have bids on several different Haven Suite categories. Last time I checked that room inventory, there were ALOT of available suites (like 85%).... I just checked again today...and most of the Haven categories say SOLD OUT.... I find it very difficult to believe that they sold all those suites in the last week or two.... I wonder if they are holding them for bidders?? We still have 57 days to go and alot can happen between now and then.... maybe a bunch of people had to recently cancel sailings due to Ivan and rebooked with us??

It did on our upcoming November cruise. We have bids on several different categories of Haven Suites. We did not bid on the 2 bdrm suite or the forward facing suites because we have had those before and they were just 'eh and this week they dropped the minimum bid on those two categories....the 2 bdrm suite is nice...but almost NO balcony (so tiny)... and the forward facing suite, you cannot use your balcony while the ship is moving (I found that balcony to be pretty useless) and also, the front facing balcony, the wall is so high that you cannot see anything if you are sitting or lounging...you pretty much have to be standing at the rail for a view... Our sailing is 11/28... the bidding closes 10/16... so I am hoping they will let us know early!! I really don't care if we get a Haven or not.... we've already got an extended balcony mini suite and I'm good with that....

(fingers crossed that it stays that way) 🙂 I have a family member that was an avid cruiser and is anti-vax...when the cruise lines opened up to 'vaxxed only' she swore off cruising forever... I wonder if there is alot of people in that same boat 🤪(pun intended)

We got our upgrade bid offers about 2 weeks ago... as of today, we are 86 days out... I just did a quick inventory of available Haven suites...there appears to be 48 available Haven cabins...(which is funny because if you do a google search, it says that the Getaway only has 42 suites)... we have bids on all but the 2bdrm and Deluxe OS... I really thought that once they opened the doors for everyone, that these rooms would book up... Anyway,..I'll be keeping an eye on the inventory... fingers crossed!! (I would really love an aft suite)

Not really a 'bidding' story, but one time (not at band camp 😉 ), my friend and I had booked adjoining studios...and three days before sailing, ncl dropped the single supplement and the price of cabins...we each got a balcony cabin (not adjoining) for $50 each... I even got an aft balcony!! Albeit, the price per person for those studio cabins is pretty steep for what they are....

We used to prefer NCL over Carnival. NCL always had way better entertainment, but Carnival had larger cabins (on the older ships, about 10-15 years ago)...but now, they are pretty much the same...I think NCL has lowered it's standards slightly and Carnival has raised theirs...so they are more alike than not. Everyone has their own list of what is important to them on a cruise.... some people cruise for the ports, some people cruise for the cabin, etc.... Our list is basic, we do not require extra attention from staff... Our preference is a clean and comfortable balcony cabin (or above), someone to make my bed and make my meals, a quiet place to relax in the sun ... our evening activities usually include a show or a band a few drinks, the casino.... and to be with each other...

Yes, I should have clarified... cruising in general (most cruiselines) are cheaper during those times. That being said, the casino deals we get from Carnival are unbeatable...(IMO)... the NCL cruise we have booked (Getaway, November) was also a casino deal, but with the upgrade in cabin and airfare it's still more than we pay with Carnival...(but we had to use this credit)...in comparison, we are booked on a 14 day (b2b), extended balcony, on the Mardi-Gras in January all inclusive (except airfare) for $1000 each week ($2000 total)... free drinks everywhere, $200 obc each week and $500 free play for each of us for each week ($2400 total)... and we have the same deal booked for a 14 day b2b again in Sepetember 2023.... (and no, we do not spend thousands in the casino...not at all...)

Well... they do have a lot of revenue to make up... alot of people are cruising on 'covid credit' from previously canceled cruises, so there is no money coming in there.... we are on the Getaway in Nov/Dec for 10 days, Casino deal, regular balcony cabin, with airfare for 2 and it cost us the entire $4000 credit that we had from 2 previously canceled cruises... But there are still some pretty good deals to be had...we find the best deals in the fall & winter (Sept-Jan) outside of holiday weeks, between Thanksgiving and Christmas and also in January after new years. Once you get into Feb/Mar, you have to dodge mid-winter recess (in the Northeast) and then you have to dodge 'spring break' and we always avoid cruising June - August... The newest ships will be the most expensive.... We don't shy away from cruising during hurricane season.... in fact, it's our favorite time to go, the weather and price is usually really nice...and if we have to skip a port and/or go elsewhere, that's ok too....

I just read a recommendation for Radisson Resort at the Port... I think I might book it... you can book a package that includes shuttle from MCO airport to the hotel, from the hotel to the cruise, from the cruise back to the hotel and then from the hotel back to the airport (mco only)... this works into our plans nicely since our flight home is not until like 9pm... so, no big hurry to get back to the airport...

OK...our sailing countdown just hit double digits (99 days from today)....I'M READY TO GO!!! 🤪