rjm11

Thank you- it's the wine list that I'm most interested in- it might influence whether I upgrade to the beverage plus or bring my own. I know not all bars carry all wines by the glass, so I'm wondering what wines the Haven Bar offers?

I would love to see the Getaway Haven bar menu too if someone has it!

Can you prebook reservations for the Haven Restaurant for dinner? Or do you not need to?

And to add to the confusion, the "line" in the US isn't dictated at the federal level- rather it's at the state level. So although the CDC makes recommendations about who should get it first, etc, each state can do it however they want to. Here in Ohio, our governor has stated that after nursing home residents and some medical staff, teachers will get the next doses so that schools can open up. That is specific to Ohio.

I thought the beach at Harvest Caye was nicer than those we visited in Costa Maya.... I do agree that those in the Eastern Caribbean are a little "softer" white sand, but the one at Harvest Caye was really quite nice- and the sandy bottom extended into the water and made for a really nice place to swim. This was my experience last January 2020.

very happy to have this review! I've missed these!! And we are sailing on the Getaway (hopefully ) next summer- it will be our first trip on one of the newer ships, and our first Mediterranean cruise.

We tip in the neighborhood of $10 per person per day. Usually on the lower side of that because there are 4 people in the room all getting the same thing- which for a 7 day cruise would be $280. I usually tip about $200-250 for a seven day cruise depending on how much we use them for things like meals in the room. Concierge we usually tip lower, in the range of $50-$100, again depending on how many times we've needed extra help with something.

Yes, SARS and COVID-19 are both diseases.  The first is caused by SARS-CoV, and the second is caused by SARS-CoV-2.  SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 are not the same, but do have many similarities (such as the way then enter cells). So if research on SARS-CoV had not been halted, we might be a little further in the process of developing a vaccine for SARS-CoV-2. They are also both coronaviruses, but there are lots and lots of those- these two are more similar to each other than they are to other coronaviruses.

I'm actually working on some of this in my lab (I'm a geneticist)- and I'm of the mindset that there will be an effective vaccine for what that's worth (which should be no more than anyone else's opinion!)  🙂

As others have said, make sure you get a third party insurance that covers bankruptcy.  I double checked that mine did before booking for next summer with my FCC.

Well there isn't a private sundeck, but there is still the suite breakfast/lunch- it's done in Moderno- and the butler who delivers all in room dining, and snacks each afternoon, and a designated suite area for shows, and of course the priority embarkation/debarkation.  Also the priority debarkation at all ports (even with a tender) is really nice.

Mine is delayed too- I cancelled it using Peace of Mind 3 weeks ago, and still no FCCs.  My TA has called repeatedly. She keeps getting told they are working on it... should be only a few more days, etc. 

You will want a car seat for your flight as well, as it's the safest way to travel with babies.  We liked the convertible car seat/strollers like the Lilly Gold Sit n Stroll- they convert from a car seat (that is FAA approved as well) to a stroller with wheels really easily.  They are not cheap, but worth it, and you can easily resell them once your children are grown- they hold their value.

That way you have car seats for the flight, airport transfers, shore excursions, and a stroller.

wouldn't this result in even more losses than not cruising at all? Unless they really jacked up the price of the cruise anyway.  With this plan, they only get half the revenue, but have to pay for all the fuel, all the costs of running the ship, all the officers, and most of the staff.

I am in the group that wouldn't mind this at all- I never eat in the buffet, and only attend some of the shows, and would like an uncrowded, lazy ship!  But I don't see how it helps them financially.

23 minutes ago, ColeThornton said:

People keep asking and the answer remains the same.  No one knows.

 

Hope it works out for you though.

Thanks.  I guess I'm hoping SOMEONE will say "i think there's a chance...." but I'm getting less sure of it. 

I am booked on the Star for July 26 out of Southampton.  Iceland, Ireland, Scotland, Norway.... I know no one has a crystal ball, but I'm curious about other's thoughts.  Will these cruises be up and running by then in your opinion?

I just checked with my insurance provider (LeisureCare) and they said that yes, bankruptcy of the company is a covered occurrence. 

would our insurance (purchased through a third party, not NCL) cover these costs if NCL went under?  I would think it would.... but it's not specified in the policy.

10 minutes ago, morrisretired said:

Thank both of you for your replies! We are in the Haven where you can be the first off, and also have TSA Precheck for US only. But I think we will keep the 1:40 pm flight out of San Juan to be safe. Just in case there are of any delays disembarking because of Corona Virus, or at the Airport. Thanks again!

I think that's a good thought.  We too were haven and TSA precheck, and were still tighter for our 1:00 flight than I thought we'd be.  Again, it was probably because we had a nice last haven breakfast, and then had the concierge take us off around 8:45 or 9:00, but the lines were so long once we got off the boat, even without having to wait to actually disembark.

the two times we sailed out of San Juan we had really long lines coming through customs.  If you get a porter (who hang out all the way to the right of the big room full of luggage) you can get through much quicker (they have their own custom lines)... but even still it took at least 30-45 minutes to get through.  The line without the porter was over 2 hours. We did get off the ship pretty late though (maybe 9:00?) so maybe it was quicker earlier- but by that time it was really backed up. We had flights at 1:00 and were fine, but I wouldn't have wanted much earlier.  There are also additional lines at the airport because you have to get your bags scanned by the agriculture "police" too... before you can check them in. 

16 minutes ago, rocklinmom said:

We just booked one of these on the Jade for next summer (it was called an S4 instead of SC?). Will be five adults/young adults. Hoping my 6 feet tall son will fit on the bunk bed in the second bedroom...? 

I've heard there is a weight limit for the pullman bunks but I don't know what it is.  You might want to check that out.  They seem pretty long though- I would think that part would be fine.

EDIT: a quick google search says the weight limit is 300 pounds.

also, the couch in the living room doesn't exactly "pull out"- it converts to a single bed. So there is technically sleeping for 6: 2 in the master bedroom, 1 in the living room, and technically 3 in the small bedroom (two on the double sofa below, and one on the pull down wall bed), but that would be really tight. 

11 hours ago, bubbachief said:

I don't know your age, but many of the rental companies have restrictions or won't rent to drivers over 70 +. The actual age does vary, so check carefully. Enterprise has no age restriction and we have used them in the past. They have a downtown Dublin location that says they will pickup at your location  but the cost is much higher than at the airport. We are picking a car up at the airport after the cruise and driving around Ireland for a week before flying home. We have done this four times in Dublin. Don't have any experience in Belfast.

Also check if your US car insurance covers you in Ireland. Our's doesn't.

 

Thank you for the reminder about insurance- I'll double check that.  I'm 48, so I should be Ok on that front! We've done several "land trips' to Ireland and always rented cars, so I know that driving there can be a little "different"!  But it's looking like it's best to take a taxi or something to a nearby rental agency to get the car?  I'm not seeing any agencies within walking distance of either port- but maybe someone knows of one I don't see?  That's what I'm wondering- if anyone has suggestions of which agency might be closest.

Hello, our cruise this summer stops in both Belfast and Dublin, and we are interested in renting a car for the day in each of these ports.  Can anyone recommend a car rental agency that is close to the port for either of these? In Dublin we are docking at Dun Laoghaire, and in Belfast I assume it is Stormont Wharf.

Lots of decisions regarding Alaska.  The Alaska port of call forum would be helpful too.  Basically the first thing you should decide is if you want a one way cruise (either northbound or southbound) or roundtrip Seattle. The one way go to/from Vancouver and Seward (which is south of Anchorage by at least 2.5 hours). The benefits of these are that you get more of the Inside Passage, and you can extend your trip to include a bit of a land portion of Alaska (either before or after), which is really nice.  The other alternative is roundtrip from Seattle, which of course is much more convenient, but goes around the west side of Vancouver Island and therefore the first day is less scenic.  Plus it doesn't go as far north or allow for any land tour in Alaska. The other thing to consider is whether you want to make Glacier Bay a priority- I think the northbound goes there but the southbound doesn't?  But you can check on that.  Finally, for time of year, it's sometimes helpful to think about what you want to see.  If you are really into snow-capped dramatic scenery and lots and lots of daytime hours, then May/June would be best, if you're planning on excursions to see bears feeding on salmon, then August/September would be best, if you want best weather and cost isn't a factor, then July is popular, etc.

yes, the kids have a card, and you can also think about whether or not you want your kids to be able to charge stuff to their cards.  You can set it up either way (that they have charging privileges or they don't)... but one thing to consider is the arcade. They can rack up a lot of charges pretty quickly in there, so you might chose to limit them one way or another- I never saw the benefit to not letting them charge since then they'd just have to take my card (or me) with them.  The arcade does sell an "unlimited access" pass which we've found to be a good value.  It works on all the games where you can not win a prize, or tickets for a prize.