bkrickles1

They should definitely reprice for you. I'm using the discount for my sailing on Joy in July. As someone else said here, once you're enrolled it just shows up automatically and provides the discount automatically. I served almost 40 years ago and it could not have been easier to get this done.

At Teppenyaki they have crew there to book ALL the specialty dining. One stop shopping. Lol 😂

My preference, and I did this on Escape, is to get on the ship as early as possible, go directly to the Social and book any remaining entertainment that I'm interested in and then go across the hall to Teppenyaki and book specialty dining. I prefer dealing with crew as opposed to the kiosks. It's a super quick process and I've done the same on my last 3 NCL sailings and I'll be doing it again in July on Joy.

Taste or Savor, The Local or the buffet are free. American Diner costs

I was very surprised! There was virtually no interaction between the guest and the representative.

Just to answer what you're asking: I get up every morning on a cruise at 5:30AM to, either go to the gym (on NCL it's always open when I go at that time) or get some coffee on the Waterfront and relax. It's also a great time to go to Guest Services with any questions/issues as there is no line at all. One morning on my Encore sailing in January, 2020 (just as pandemic was beginning), I went to GS at 5:40AM with a minor issue and was behind someone (extremely rare at that time) who asked for the form to remove DSC. She was given the form without question and, by the time I was finished asking my question, was giving the form back to GS. I lingered for just a moment to see if GS asked how they could help resolve any issues the guest had, but they just took the form and said it would be taken care of immediately. It was kind of sad, actually, that GS didn't utilize the opportunity to find out more and see if they could improve the guests experience.

I totally agree about the circular bar in the OL. It was one of my favorites on Encore and drew me there more often because of it. With that being said, drink service wherever I sat up there was pretty good without getting up from my comfy seat. The snacks available all day were a pretty good draw too. Lol!

I didn't realize that about 1 deck fewer passengers. Interesting. I sailed Joy last summer and will again this summer. Thermal spa is never for me in warm itineraries so I didn't miss it and I like the combination of having Spice and the OL. It's kind of the sweet spot between the escape and encore. Entertainment and staff were also great on Joy. Looking forward to July.

Los Lobos was my favorite meal on Encore!

I sailed Encore in January, 2020 and I wore nice shorts twice in the Manhattan dining room with no issues. Obviously, I can't speak for what they're doing now, but I didn't bring any pants with me on that sailing.

Charles is right. Mini bus is the way to go. It costs way less, $7 each way per person, and there are so many of them waiting at the pier and at Horseshoe. I've probably done it this way a dozen times or more with great success and zero worries. And definitely get there before the ships excursion and there will be many chairs and umbrellas to rent and they put them wherever you want. I'm going to be there July 26-28 on the ncl joy and I'll be going to Horseshoe at least 2 times.

$5 per bag!!

Do I need to have photos of everyone in my sailing party for online check in? Yes What about photos of our passports? No, but you need everyone's passport infor Do you have to wait for them to "approve" your check in or do you just check in and you are done? No wait

I won't comment on "a" as that statement scares me. If I comprehend "b" properly, you're saying that if I leave my book and sunglasses on my lounge chair and go to the bathroom and stop at the bar to get a drink on my way back, that my personal items should be taken to the lost and found the minute I walk away? Am I comprehending you properly?

I'm stunned! Literally nothing you wrote makes any sense.

Yep! Love NCL's consistency. Lmao!! I've seen all 3 too. 15 minutes is just crazy. I wouldn't be opposed to 30 minutes, but I think 60 is the right amount. And, as you said, passengers should never be touching someone else's personal belongings!

I don't mean to be confrontational, but have you actually done this? Have you moved someone's "personal" property? If so, did you do it because you wanted the lounger/chair for yourself or because someone was breaking the rules? Did you actually watch for 60 minutes to determine that it was illegally unoccupied? I've been on many absolutely packed pool decks and it would be extremely difficult to monitor this as a passenger. Not to mention that you'd be spending 60 minutes, not enjoying your vacation. And, wouldn't that 60 minutes be better spent looking for a lounger that is actually unoccupied? Again, I mean no disrespect to anyone on here, but it's a little confusing to me how you could 100% know that a "chair hog" infraction has taken place to the point that you felt it necessary or your right to move someone's personal stuff. If you got it wrong, you deserve whatever happens next.

As a fellow "Long Islander", I agree with much of what you're saying except for one thing (and I know this kind of goes against the New Yorker creed). I preface this by saying that I'm certainly not afraid/opposed to confrontation, but I don't feel a passenger should ever move someone's "personal" belongings or directly confront them for any infraction. I don't believe passengers should be enforcing rules and it could lead to unintended circumstances. I've personally witnessed 2 all out brawls on cruises, so I know how the combination of sun and drinking can alter the part of the brain in charge of common sense. Lmao! All cruise ships are run similarly to the military. There's a chain of command. If someone is committing an infraction that bothers you so much that you can't ignore it, then go to a crew member and address it. If that crew member is unable or unwilling to remedy the situation, then go up the chain of command. If your gripe is true and justified, you'll get to someone, eventually, that will help. Personally, I've been on a decent amount of cruises, and I've never observed an infraction that was so egregious that I felt the need to confront someone or that I needed to report to the crew. I've never stayed in the Haven, Vibe or any other exclusive space on a cruise ship and I don't find it hard to not only deal with some of the crazies, but thoroughly enjoy the entire experience. I'm sailing Joy in July and expect it to be another fabulous cruise. Just the opinion of a fellow "Long Islander".

I/we fall into the #1 category. As an example, last summer we sailed on Joy and there was 7 of us. 5 adults and 2 children. Every day, after going to the gym, I'd go up to the deck above the pool deck (17) around 7 - 7:30am and reserve 5 loungers overlooking the pool. This is our favorite spot on every ship. It does get crowded, but it happens way later than the actual pool deck and gives a great vantage point to whatever activities go on down by the pool. I didn't leave these loungers until my daughter came up with her bf. We'll keep these chairs practically all day. Sometimes we are all there and sometimes there may be only 1 of us, but we never leave our loungers unattended. We'll take turns going to eat throughout the day, go in the pool or hot tub, or get a drink from the bar. This is how we've operated for all of our cruises, going back a long time and we feel good about it. Now, when I pass by the pool area at 5:45am or so to go to the gym, I'll already see chairs with towels on them right by the pool. When I pass by an hour later to go shower, I'll see even more and when I return 30 minutes later, there's more. I'll watch and pay attention, as I'm usually alone at this time, and people get away with reserving these chairs for hours, completely unattended. That I find to be a problem.

As I and others keep saying, the processing doesn't take hours if you arrive early. And, when you finish getting through security and check-in, the wait is not uncomfortable. I've done the same thing at 4 different terminals, with 2 different cruise lines, and it works better for many that want to get their vacation going. NYC has the oldest and crappiest of the 4 terminals I've mentioned, and it still was a comfortable and non stress wait. I just did all this last June, getting on Joy, and we were seated comfortably at Savor by 12 noon having a relaxing lunch. We are usually finished with security and check-in by around 9:30am, if we arrive early. Then, we sit and get excited looking at our home for the next week and we board somewhere in the neighborhood of 11am. I have a cocktail in my hand by or before 11:30am and I'm on vacation. Different strokes for different folks.

I agree with Sand. Onda and Los Lobos are terrific. I really enjoyed Los Lobos and was sad it wasn't on Joy. I'd choose Teppanyaki if you want to have some fun. I'd choose Cagney's if you want an awesome seven layer cake. Lmao!!

If you arrived at MCT or Miami or Bayonne at 11:15, you wouldn't board before 1pm. My sister in law joined us last year on Joy and she got to the pier around 11:30 and it took just about 2 hours to get on board. I have no knowledge of nola but I've been to these others many times. You either show up early or come much later to board quickly and risk that you won't get good reservation times.

I have no priority and I've made a habit of getting to the piers as early as possible, so I disagree. Be it NYC, Bayonne or Miami, I've consistently gotten to the pier by around 8:30AM, so getting that 9AM slot (now that they do that) is important to me. This strategy has allowed me to be, consistently, a part of the first 10% of passengers to board. That gets me on the ship, 9 out of 10 times, between 11 and 11:30AM. In the old days it was strictly so we could maximize our vacation and get started with the fun stuff. Now, with advent of reservations for dining and entertainment, it allows us to make/change our reservations so that our week is set up with no worries. For example, last June we sailed Joy out of NYC. We arrived at the pier before they even started lining up for security. We lined up, waited a while until they started that process and basically zipped through that and check-in and seated ourselves in the waiting area by around 9:30 - 9:45AM. From there it's a bit of a wait but it wasn't shoulder to shoulder and none of us felt unsafe in the least. We chatted with other excited passengers and began to build up our appetites. Lmao!! They started boarding priority people a few minutes before 11AM and our group was called within 15 minutes of that. We boarded, adjusted all of our reservations to our liking, did the famous emuster, and were sitting in Savor for lunch by 12 noon. My wife complains that we get to the piers so early and she hates the waiting, but she loves when we're having lunch and a cocktail by 12. I'm sailing Joy again this July and I'll be doing the same process again. Happy Sailing!!

I do remember when ALL room service was complimentary. You could even get dinner delivered that was off the menu in the mdr. We never used it much, but we did like getting coffee, pastries and fruit delivered in the morning at a specific time as a kind of wake up call. I probably won't pay 4.95+ for that service, even though it's a small amount in the overall scheme of things.

This is where my memory is doing tricks on me. Lmao!! I sailed Joy last summer and I remember completing the check-in checklist sections before 21 days out and then going in at midnight at 21 days out and choosing my check-in time at the pier. 9am is always my goal.