kylenyc

P.S. I would stalk a travel site a few times a day that allows you to see available cabins in that category or for a good price drops, upgrade into a higher category balcony in a good location if the price is right, . If you see one open up call your TA or PCC to get it. Not that it will happen to you, but my first and only sailaway/guarantee was a disaster. I'd rather book the bare minimum cabin I'm happy with, keep looking for price drops, and then upgrade into them with the cabin I want, not the cabin NCL wants to give me. I think if it as many people are looking for upgrades. They will upgrade from a less desirable cabin into a more desirable cabin. What's left over are the least desirable cabins that go to those who have the sailaway/guarantee cabins.

I was able to go from a studio to a balcony when the balcony was cheaper. I did not get a refund of the difference, and my PCC said NCL would only do it once as a courtesy. Any future change had to be an upgrade (price had to be higher). Going from a guarantee balcony without Free at Sea to a Studio with Free at Sea if the latter is cheaper, seems similar to me. Your experience may differ. Your PCC or the NCL agent they get on the phone might disagree.

Next marketing gimmick. The Excitin-side TM Cabin with luxurious views of wall paper and wood verneer. I wouldn't get a hulled balcony cabin unless I was upgrading from an inside and it's cheaper any other balcony.

Regardless of which non-guarantee category you, NCL's website doesn't let you choose from all available cabins in their inventory. They usually give you a list of cabins they want to sell to you. It's doesn't what matter what NCL website's underlying algorithm is. You're better off doing a mock booking with an online travel site that shows you the available inventory and either book with them, or armed with this information, you call NCL with a list of cabins you're interested in. Example: On another site, if you try to book a BF non-guarantee balcony, it doesn't let you choose either. This implies they are sold out or held for whatever reason. Go up the next category and you see a list of all available cabins. At this point, a BF is equivalent to a sailaway (guaranteed) cabin with the Free at Sea amenities.

Ask the shop if you can leave the car there and come back for it after the cruise. Pay them for parking if you must. Take a taxi uber lyft to the port. Good luck.

Did this months ago. Doesn't sound like much has changed.

Just saying thanks to the gamblers. Learned a lot, especially the tip on the comp calculator. Given my game preference (black jack and roulette) and style of play, the theoretical loss, entertainment value of gambling, it's worth for me to spend a little time at the casino if I stick to my budget. Unfortunately, I don't wager enough or long enough to get decent comps at an NCL casino. Then again, I might shift around and concentrate more of my entertainment budget on the casino along with time/money management, and maybe get some small comp out of it. I look at gambling purely for it's entertainment value. Do I spend a few hundred dollars at the casino and which game can I play and play well for the longest amount of time as compared to spending the equivalent elsewhere. P.S. Picked up a few tips from the youtube videos. Things like when to use your casino card and when not to. Don't use your casino card if you're only there to pass the time for a few minutes. This hurts your the theo calculation. Use a single card and share with your partner if you have one. Stuff like that.

So sad. No seafood benedict or huevos ranchos is close to a deal breaker. I guest I have to pack canned lobster in addition to a bottle of maple syrup.

On Breakaway, there is a bar at the entrance next to the host station. The bar service is usually reasonably timely. If you arrive early, relaxing with a drink at the bar is nice. For the main dining room, I prefer to grab a drink at the nearest bar or where I get the best service. Try different bars and find the ones that gives you the best service and atmosphere. Gratuities are pre-paid but slipping them a dollar per drink consistently at your favorite bar usually gets me better service, and an appreciative smile. It doesn't break my bank. P.S. At some specialty restaurants there is an extra charge for certain items such as the crab cakes at $5 extra for example. It irritates me every time until I have a bite then quickly forget about. This may get a reaction from other CCers 😁 . For whatever reason NCL charges extra for some items. Some upcharges make sense others don't. My go to at Cagney's is the ribeye, crabcakes, truffle fries, and whatever incidental veggies or mushrooms to marginally make the meal healthier. 😁

In case it hasn't been mentioned already, Find a creative way to bring Soda Stream Pepsi Soda Mix on board and mix it with some club soda from the bar?

I'm a fan of Cagney's steak house on any ship if I had one choice. Their ribeye is usually excellent. Rarely not. If not, send it back and get a filet, porterhouse, prime rib. The tomahawk steak is a novelty. The ribeye is best IMHO. Extra dining vouchers, it depends on your appetite. I try to have enough for specialty dining every other day. I'm not picky and that is more than enough. The main dining rooms are fine. I've never sailed on RCL but from friends that have, they say RCL's main dining room is "better". This is of course subjective.

Does anyone else have this experience? Is the experience different between TA and a PCC? Even my PCC has had to wait an hour to get an agent to do a price adjustment. Maybe some TAs just don't want to call? As of the last cruise which was month ago, PCC told me any post-final payment credit could be requested up to two weeks before embarkation.

After paying for the application and submitting it, you should get an email "Application Pending Review". In the email, you'll get a link to upload your proof of vaccination. If you didn't get this email within 24 hours (check your spam folder), call them 1-833-570-2594 Once you get a rep on the phone they handle issues quickly. After you upload your proof of vaccination, you should get the authorization with in a day or two. If not, again, call them if you're getting close to your cruise (a few days). If you're application is complete they will process it on the phone immediately and you should get the email soon after. I got it within a minute while still on the phone, the rep immediately hung up on me without even a good bye. They are very busy!

I'm still waiting for Royal Crown Cola to come back so I can check under the cap for a free soda.

Your mileage may vary and it depends on the individual's situation. Just because someone's Haven suite benefits were extended to a non-suite guest in the past could depend on different factors such as the hotel director (whatever their title is now), concierge, butler, and the type of amenity. They may look at your cruise history and get authorization from the manager before extending said amenity. Some amenities don't cost them anything to extend while others do. It also depends on other guests with priority who may have the amenity extended already because of their cruise and casino history and spend. An amenity may be capacity controlled and there may already be VIPs and casino guests who already were extended the amenity which could preclude you from getting it. Having a non-suite passenger spend time in the Haven area if there is one? Doubtful. Having a non-suite passenger get served by the butler in your own suite for dinner? Likely. You'll need approval from Concierge and they will need to be escorted directly to your room. No unattended guests roaming the Haven area. Tip well in advance. Having a non-suite passenger join you for breakfast in Cagney's on a ship without a Haven? Maybe. Depends on your cruise history and spend. I can't remember if you need to pay for the extra guest. You get the idea. In past, I got parents in a non-Haven suite the amenities by also booking them in my Haven suite during a 3rd 4th guest free promo. This is how I did long ago and double booked guests like this. Not sure if this can be done now and may require escalating to a Haven rep during booking. In essence you are paying for their Haven privileges and they get to sleep in their own non-Haven cabin. However, unless the cabins are connected, the butler isn't going to service a non-connected non-Haven cabin out of his way.

Do your own due diligence and research from trusted sources. NCL Travel Requirements by Country https://www.ncl.com/travel-requirements-by-country#bermuda Bermuda Cruise Travel Authorization https://www.gov.bm/cruise-travel-authorisation I get NCL email fatigue. Too many emails marked "IMPORTANT INFORMATION". They should do a simple questionnaire as part of booking and again at check-in and give us clear essential information before presenting walls of text and emails containing irrelevant information. For example: As a US citizen, stop sending me emails about requirements for non-citizens traveling into the US. And for non-citizens, don't just tell them they don't need a negative test to enter the USA, explicitly warn them in the same email they may need a negative covid test result to board the ship!!!. THIS IS A FICTITIOUS EXAMPLE ONLY. DO YOUR OWN DUE DILIGENCE AND RESEARCH FROM TRUSTED SOURCES. Passenger #1 Is Bermuda a destination? Yes (Most of these questions should already be pre-filled by NCL because they have your information) Is your cruise departing from the US? Yes Will this cruise arrive in Bermuda within 4 days of departing the home port? Yes Is Passenger #1 fully vaccinated? Yes >> 1. You must have a completed and approved Bermuda Travel authorization before arriving at the embarkation terminal. https://www.gov.bm/cruise-travel-authorisation >> 2. You must have proof of vaccination prior to arriving at the embarkation terminal. >> 3. You must have a negative PCR test result within 4 days of arriving at the embarkation terminal -OR- have a negative supervised antigen test result within 2 days of arriving at the embarkation terminal. Passenger #2 Is Bermuda a destination? Yes (Most of these questions should already be pre-filled by NCL because they have your information) Is your cruise departing from the US? Yes Will this cruise arrive in Bermuda within 4 days of departing the home port? Yes Is Passenger #2 fully vaccinated? No Is Passenger #2 at least 12 years of age and older? Yes >> 1. All passengers 12 years of age and older must be fully vaccinated prior to arriving at the embarkation terminal and boarding a cruise ship destined for Bermuda. Unvaccinated passengers 12 years of age and older may not board this cruise. >> 2. You must have a completed and approved Bermuda Travel authorization before arriving at the embarkation terminal. https://www.gov.bm/cruise-travel-authorisation >> 3. You must have proof of vaccination prior to arriving at the embarkation terminal. >> 4. You must have a negative PCR test result within 4 days of arriving at the embarkation terminal -OR- have a negative supervised antigen test result within 2 days of arriving at the embarkation terminal. Repeat for passengers 2 to 11 years of age, and for passengers less than 2 years of age. THIS IS A FICTITIOUS EXAMPLE ONLY. DO YOUR OWN DUE DILIGENCE AND RESEARCH FROM TRUSTED SOURCES.

My experience, yours may vary. As an American who's made frequent border crossing into Canada including this year, I've never had an issue a crossing. 95% of the agents are pleasant and even the 5% are entitled to have a bad day. There have even been occasions where the border agent didn't ask to see the ArriveCan app or paper work because they already have it in their records (although I'd recommend taking screen shots with your phone, and print out everything there is to print out and have the hardcopies in hand ready for the agent). They already know everything there is to know about every US traveler presenting a valid passport... Whether you're right or left handed, whether you stole cookies out of the jar as a child, whether you called Trudeau mean names on social media, etc. Greeting the agent with a patient and polite disposition no matter how long or difficult your travels, or how long the line is at the crossing, and respect for the customs of country you are visiting goes a long way to ensuring a pleasant crossing.

You can also do a mock booking on any online site that show the cabins by category and marks which cabins are available with a dot on the deck plan. This is helpful even if you're going to call your cruise consultant. It saves them time if you know ahead of time which cabin you want.

I pack a few tide pods in a zip loc freezer bag and handwash in the sink. It's compact and a little detergent goes a long way for washing a few items and for spot treatments. In all my land and sea travels I've only had occasion to use one pod. For more laundry as others have commented, wait for the discounts laundry bag special. A cc poster a whiles back said to stuff all your clothes into a pillow case before putting inside the thin fragile paper laundry bag. You can pack a heck of a lot more into the laundry bag that way.

Mudslide Cocktail (on the rocks not frozen) or White Russian if NCL is still upcharging for Bailey's. Godiva Chocolate Martini. Anything with chocolate 😄 Appletini is nice.

I'd kindly ask @chengkp75 if he can explain the process used on NCL ships to produce drinking water and its purity. I only vaguely remember the behind the scene's ship tour and the engineer explaining the ship's tap water is the purest you can get anywhere. Sea water converted to steam in part from the heat of ship's engine.

I was responding to PATRLR who said they understood your "lack of urgency". You had enough of a the sense of urgency to speak to a hotel receptionist about medical care. You had enough sense of urgency to interrupt your vacation to go to a hospital to seek medical care. In the end you declined to have a physician visit you at the hotel and you left the hospital when you were there before obtaining a diagnosis and opted to board the ship and seek care from NCL medical staff. This is based on your account in previous posts. I have not expressed any new opinion here and leave it up to others to do so... or not.

The OBC appears on your ncl.com vacation summary. If it's not there, forward the email you got with the case number right away and ask for it again. Include your brokerage statement with account number and anything else you feel needs to be redacted except your name and the NCLH shares. Their requested lead time is 15 days. My experience has been they respond in a hours to a few days.

Nice take on things. I'd add... Give your steward an extra tip the very first time you meet them and tell them your wants... coffee maker, what extras you want with it, extra wash clothes, etc. If you get the desired reaction, then tip them steadily throughout the cruise. I've had stewards who worked harder than some butlers and some who were extremely grateful for the extra tip.

The OP had enough sense of urgency to go to a hospital. They chose to leave. They had the option to have been seen by a physician. They chose not to.