graphicguy

Yay…welcome. So sorry to hear that the visit is for such a sad occasion. Opening Day is tomorrow. The city literally shuts down for the first day of the Reds season (although they aren’t very good….but the Bengals are great). Hope you don’t get caught in the parades and hoopla. But, if you do, make the best of it. It’s a fun time. Have done the Bourbon Trail in the past. Last time, before the COVID shutdown. Need to do it again. Hopefully, will go this summer, keep traveling to the Corvette Museum for a visit, which isn’t far from some of the Distilleries. Tough, given the circumstances, but enjoy your stay.

Been in every cabin from solo cabin, to inside, to a Balcony to an Aft Suite, to the Haven. Sailed on 6 (7 next month) of her ships. It just works for me with NCL. I have yet to see one of those bidding fares that were won to be any sort of a “deal”. So, I do not participate. If I want a specific category of cabin, and it’s reasonable, I book it. I have found some really good Haven deals in the past. Just have to be diligent with shopping. Am glad NCL and the rest of the cruise industry sees the light at the end of the tunnel. NCL will be fine. It’s going to take a while, but they’ll end up fine.

I’m the same with Bourbon, my preferred drink. Over ice….No mixers! Buffalo Trace is my “go to”. But, it’s hard to find around here, and I’m a 2 hour drive from the place it’s distilled. I can get it all day, every day on any NCL ship. And, it’s included on the Drink Package. I’m all good! Cognac? I know some people like it. But, I’m not one of them. That $350 shot I had could have been MILLER LITE for all I knew. The rest? Bombay in my martinis works just fine. Tito’s in my Bloody Mary works great, too. All included!

You're better than me. I wasn't even aware of any "24 hour rule". https://www.ncl.com/about/cancellation-fee-schedule If so, "buon per loro....il mio rispetto"

OP...So, the cruise you were inquiring about sails May 1. That falls under their 31-60 days cancellation fee policy. Your friends gave up 75% of their cruise fare. Not sure what they told you, but they did not get a full refund.

I'm betting that percentage is 2.5X that number if only looking at the cruiser portion of that statistic.

Meant through the canal area.

On board with this. If I absolutely HAVE TO HAVE a particular drink that's NOT INCLUDED on the drinks package, I'll go a la carte for that. I can't imagine me wanting enough of something not in the drink package that would cost me anywhere near $55/day. Tattling on myself...the only time I really did go off the menu and ordered something not on the Drink Package menu and paid more, I was outside Syd Norman's Bar, reveling with some of my other cruise friends. Got a little crazy. Started ordering the "big bucks" Tequila by telling the nice bartender (who warned me of the upcharge for what I was ordering) "nothing is too good for my friends". Well......checking my on board account through blood shot eyes the next day, I dropped some Benjamins over and above the drink package. AND, I DON'T EVEN LIKE TEQUILA! This was before a few months before the COVID shutdown. But was sailing on one of the AWAY ships...can't remember which one, in the Haven. About half way through the cruise, I was stopping by the Haven bar for a nightcap. Wasn't really late, but the Haven bartender was getting ready to call it a night. Usually, they give fair warning, but sometimes will hang out for a bit after the designated closing time. I saw there was a group of people who had obviously been there for a while. They were feeling no pain. One of the guys asked the Haven Bartender if he'd stay open for one more shot. Jokingly, the bartender said "yes, but only if you buy some Louis XIII Cognac". I'm not a Cognac person. But, they had it prominently displayed, in a case no less, at the bar. Guy was just "happy" enough that he said he'd buy the bar a shot of it. Bartender laughed. But, the guy insisted on buying us a shot. According to the bartender it comes in a small amount (I think he said a tablespoon size), a regular shot (traditionally 2 oz) or by the entire bottle. Can't recall the prices. But, I do remember the 2 oz shot was something like $350...EACH. There was 7 of us at the bar. The bartender asked whether the guy was sure. The answer was "yes". He poured...we drank. I don't remember it being particularly memorable. But again, I'm not a Cognac drinker. Next day, saw the same guy at the bar....looking a little worse for the wear. He was drinking soft drinks. He said the previous night's activities were something he would never do again, as it cost him over $2,000 with the discount of having the drink package. I didn't know whether to laugh with him or offer condolences. So, I just thanked him again. Not sure if the Louis XIII is even included in the up level drink package.

Well said!

You’re right. I mis-spoke. It is a closed loop sailing. What I meant to say was the sailing is visiting ports that require a passport. Whether it goes through the Panama Canal or not is irrelevant. What NCL’s marketing term for the cruise is irrelevant (Caribbean Cruise). What is relevant is there will be countries they are sailing to/through that DO REQUIRE a passport. There is NO WAY I go to the pier at embarkation without my passport. Once turned away, they will forego their entire cruise fare because they didn’t have a Passport.

Yeah…but your ports of call are Columbia, Belize, Costa Rica and Panamanian waters. Up to your friends on what they do. But me? No way in the world I’m not having a Passport with me on this cruise….if they’ll even let you check in without one.

Haven’t sailed Epic in a while as she’s been in Europe, mostly. There seem to be two camps. One, it was an innovative ship (still is to a certain degree) in the industry. Much of what NCL does now was initially done on the Epic. I’m interested in sailing her again. It’s just her itinerary hasn’t lined up with what we want to do. I have lots and lots of fond memories from the EPIC. If she needs a coat of paint here or there, I can understand. She’s been sailing nearly a decade and a half. A few people were up in arms about the cabin layout. We found it quite convenient. EPIC was certainly on the forefront of entertainment at the time. We actually saw BLUE MAN GROUP there and had a blast. Generally speaking, I like the ships with THE WATERFRONT. But, those were an innovation that started on the “Away” twins. It has since carried through to every ship they’ve launched since then. You’ll find some who don’t like anything but the Jewel class. Some (like me) truly like the Breakaway and B+ ships. Epic is something that encompasses a little of everything in between. Generally speaking, as one who has sailed RCCL, CCL, HAL, MSC, I believe NCL does as good a job as anyone keeping their ships clean and in good operational shape. Like any cruise ship, some will like her. Some won’t.

Yeah…looks like it’s clearly stated, passports are needed to go through the canal. I forget the exact regulations, but IIRC, if a cruise ship enters territorial waters, they are considered being the same as if you set foot on that territory’s land. Caribbean covers a lot of ground. Haiti is considered Caribbean. Part of the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean are Dutch. Point being, it’s not really a closed loop sailing. If your friends can get to a Passport agency, and make an appointment to get in, they MIGHT be able to secure one in time. I wouldn’t wait to debate if they needed the passport, though. They don’t have time. They need to get one now.

Yeah…whatever their reasoning, if the security people have been informed not to let fans through the X-Ray machine, they’ll pull you aside and confiscate them (it). Do I understand it? Does it make sense? To me? No! I don’t care if someone uses a fan in their cabin. But apparently NCL has an issue. So be it. Maybe people were brining them out to the pool and there was fear of getting shocked if wet? Maybe they’re fearful people will stick their hands in the fans? Who knows? Just spit balling here.

I don't have an issue with Safari or Firefox. Chrome on occasion gives me fits.

I've been cruising for a while (almost 30 years). I've sailed Carnival, MSC, Royal, Celebrity, HAL and NCL. I've sailed NCL the most. Mostly, I like their product. But, they always want to make sure I'm enjoying myself. If something goes sideways, I let them know, and they do their level best to make it better. Do they stub their toes from time-to-time? Absolutely! I was so PO'd at them after the start up I swore them off. Then, the deals started....good deals. That got me back on board. I remembered why I liked sailing them. Not a swipe at any of the other cruise lines. I will still sail them when the itinerary, fare, and/or timing works. Overall, NCL offers a good product (usually). Have said it many times, their entertainment is the best at sea. They have beautiful and well-maintained ships....some of them, the most innovative at sea. Their crew does their absolute best to make sure I'm happy. The "vibe" of their cruises fits with what I like (dine where and when I like without worrying about packing "dress" clothes). I know some get their panties in a bunch over this or that fee. But, they tend not to look at their total cruise cash outlay. If you drink alcohol and like specialty dinners, the daily tips on the drink package and the dining packages are well under what you'd pay to go a la carte on any other cruise line's packages. Not sure I could ask for much more.

Well....now I feel like a rube!!!!!!! LOL!!!!!

EDIT....I skimmed the OP's letter. I think there's a bit of confusion about Peace of Mind and what it was (it's no longer in effect, but it wouldn't have pertained to the OP's situation). OP...Peace of Mind (POM) policy put in effect some safeguards regarding COVID. In brief, if you came down with COVID within a certain period before the cruise, you could cancel with no penalty. For a bit, you were granted a refund. Later on, you got 100% FCC and a % bonus. If you contracted COVID while on the cruise, you would have had your medical care covered and transport back home at no charge, in addition to getting either a refund or FCC. It DID NOT cover any service you may have been dissatisfied with, or any drinks you did not like, etc, etc, etc. But, the POM policy expired well over a year ago, anyway. I am a little surprised customer service reps did not explain this to you. Although, NCL hired many, many new people after the restart. So, it could be they had never heard of the policy.

So, I sailed a few times when NCL was offering the POM policy. When did you make your reservations? And, why/when did you cancel? I'm pretty familiar with the policy when it was in effect.

Agree. But, would you think the security people would take the time to differentiate one from the other? I'm thinking NCL is trying to make a blanket policy to keep any potential confusion to a minimum. If it's an electric fan, it ain't getting on.

Couple of suggestions..... A). When you are ready to send a letter both barrels blazing, you are probably not going to get anything but a canned response. B) Try some of these folks if all you want to do is state your unhappiness. https://www.ncl.com/about/contact-us# What exactly do you want them to do for you?

I'm sure what they mean are those battery operated fans that are small enough where you could possibly consider holding it in your hand. Might be a stretch, but I'm sure someone would try to define it as such. I think it is a recent addition. Someone, somewhere tried to bring a big fan on board. NCL said no. And, instead of trying to split hairs, they just banned all electric fans. Can you get away with bringing a small one on board? Maybe. Their screeners are sometimes lax. Then again, I've run into some surly security people on the cruise lines who aren't very friendly, customer focused or willing to let things "slide". I guess you can try. What's the worst that could happen? It gets confiscated.

Pete…great vids. Thanks!

Thanks! Forgoing the Vibe. Appreciate the insight. Excited about sailing the Bliss. Had sailed to Alaska for the first time right after the start up. It was like trying to drink from a fire hose. So much to see and do. I literally didn’t know where to start. This time I’ll have a little more of an understanding and will be able to focus on what I really want to do and see with that knowledge. Thanks for following along.

Yeah...the Alaska coupons were sort of a "cluster". Even the PCC I booked it said it created chaos. The only thing I could tell was it was distributed to some Latitudes members who didn't have an Alaska cruise booked. But, I also heard that there were at least a few Latitudes members who didn't get the coupons and didn't have an Alaska cruise booked. Promo is good. Implementation of it, not so much. I still can't figure out how they came up with my fare. Not complaining, though. I tried to alert them. So, I did my part. I've never sailed the Bliss. I chose that ship as a result. Although, the 50% off fares on the smaller ships were mighty tempting. The Observation Lounge kind of tipped it for me. That's a great space for an Alaska cruise.