Travelling2Some

I think you all have figured it out collectively. Thank you. Yes, it has always been my understanding that CFAR insurance is not allowed to be sold in NY. I was told a few years ago that this is because CFAR does not meet their definition of an insurance product. NY also doesn't allow annual travel insurance policies to be sold. I don't know the "why" on that one.

Thank you so much for your very informative answer. What you say makes perfect sense. Yes, the wording you cited is what I am referring to. Called the number given and talked to 3 different people who never heard of this. I will call again after the weekend and ask for a supervisor. I should have thought to do that! And I will post again here to let folks know what I find out.

Thank you for this very informative and interesting information. No link as the information does not appear anywhere on NCL's website. I know this is unusual but I have no idea how to do screenshots without consulting my children, lol. I was only able to read about the NY option after I had already purchased the insurance and printed out the policy - a bit deceptive??? Since I have several upcoming cruises and am now better informed I would like to buy this feature separately (as advertised) for my other cruises. I already have third party medical/evacuation insurance for future cruises through a third party insurer but we have a large family and life happens so I would find it worthwhile to purchase (if reasonable) this extra insurance. New York seems to have very annoying insurance regulations. I was unable to purchase an annual policy and they do not allow Cancel For Any Reason travel insurance to be sold. NCL is advertising that NYS residents may purchase this cancellation insurance apart from taking the Booksafe policy so I would love to hear from any others who have actually managed to figure out how to do it?

I have in writing that residents of New York State are allowed to purchase this single feature without buying the Booksafe insurance plan sold by Aon through NCL but am getting the "run around" trying to figure out how to actually do so. We already have a medical only policy from Trip Insurance Store (Thanks, Steve!). The "cancellation feature" is provided by NCL, not Aon. The phone number given for NYS residents to "get the details" just connects you to Aon. We have called that number several times this morning in hopes of getting someone knowledgeable. Nobody knows what we are referring to. Of course, the NCL call center is completely useless. I suspect NCL does not want us to be able to figure out how to purchase this feature separately even though we are supposed to be able to. If we call Aon they refer us to NCL. If we call NCL they tell us to call Aon. Have any of our fellow New Yorkers been able to figure out how to buy this?

I will cross post this to the insurance forum but, since it is specific to NCL, I am also asking here. The paperwork I have clearly states that residents of NY can purchase this feature without buying the Booksafe insurance plan sold by Aon through NCL. They give a phone number to "get the details" which just connects you to Aon. We have called that number several times this morning in hopes of getting someone knowledgeable. Nobody knows what we are referring to. It is also stated that this feature is provided by Norwegian and is "not an insurance benefit" which makes sense but why give a number for the insurance company then? Of course, the NCL call center is completely clueless too. I suspect they don't want us to be able to figure out how to purchase this feature separately even though we are supposed to be able to. We already have third party medical only insurance so not interested in buying the whole Booksafe policy, just the cancel for any reason credit feature. Have any of our fellow New Yorkers been able to figure out how to buy this?

Yup. I could agree with that and might even do it 🙂 RCI's accounting and IT are even worse, lol! What I don't get is why anyone would pay the entire cost of the cruise at the time of booking when the cruise is many months or even years away. Now that's an interest free loan.

Interesting. We always have the "free" drink package on NCL but we also tip the bartenders $1 a drink in cash. Even on land, anyplace I suspect the management confiscates tips I palm it to the worker inconspicuously just in case.

Make it three. I never pre-pay anything. Just don't see any advantage at all in it. My normal habit is to keep my money in my own pocket until a bill is due. I don't want to have to chase after a refund if we cancel for some reason. This is just a small amount but with larger amounts (like paying for the whole cruise way in advance) why would I go around giving out interest free loans???

We are taking an (unusual for November) transatlantic going from New York to Lisbon. NCL still canceled our Bermuda stop (substituted Newport, RI) even though our embarkation tests would have still been valid since Bermuda was to be our first stop. This decision was VERY popular judging by the reaction on our Roll Call. As has been stated several times, there is a big difference in attitude towards the Bermuda testing between those who's main destination is Bermuda itself and those who are primarily headed to more distant ports where Bermuda was to be just one (unnecessary) stop among many. Speaking for myself, I have all kinds of money (and time!) already laid out on the several weeks we have planned in Europe after we get off the ship. We have been trying to take this trip since "the before times" so it would be a huge disappointment to have it all ruined (yet again) at the very last minute.

We took the most inexpensive ship's tour just to get to Oia as quickly as possible. Once there, we just ditched the excursion and did our own thing for the day. From Oia you can take the public bus to Fira whenever you are ready. (Sit on the left side of the bus for added excitement or sit on the right if you are afraid of heights!)

Thanks so much for reporting. We are on the Sun's transatlantic a few cruises from now. My DH is wondering if there is a usable HDMI port in the back of the TVs? With 5 consecutive sea days we might want to watch some of our old home movies and things like that (not trying to use wifi). He has all the necessary tech but doesn't want to bring it along if we won't be able to use it. Have a great cruise and thanks for any info.

Very true and also very strange. I have no clue why both posts were attributed to you. I have been posting to CC for years and have never had that happen before. I have to assume it was some sort of tech glitch.

We are on that one and Newport is being substituted for Bermuda. I've seen at least two other upcoming transatlantics also dropping Bermuda so it may be across the board. In the NCL Sun's case the cruise originates in Miami on 10/31 and then has additional people embarking in New York on 11/3 and would not arrive in Bermuda until 11/5, so a bit of a logistical headache for NCL. On top of that there are many people on our Roll Call for whom this transatlantic is the second half of a B2B Panama Canal cruise that started from Seattle and ends in Miami. Transatlantic cruisers are focused on Europe so, understandably, have a very different mindset than those who have booked a cruise having Bermuda as their main destination.

You may get your wish very soon. People on various upcoming transatlantics are reporting that Bermuda has now been dropped from their itineraries. The decision seems to be very popular. We just got the notice that our New York to Lisbon in November will stop at Newport rather than Bermuda and we were very happy to hear it. There is another thread with discussion of this: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2878666-bermuda-covid-protocol/

Bermuda was just dropped from our transatlantic as well (New York to Lisbon Nov.3 departure). Newport has been substituted. We are VERY pleased with the change. Bermuda's requirements were causing needless stress and expense for those of us who just want to get to the European ports on our itinerary. I am not on the "other site" and had no idea there was a letter writing effort to NCL about this. In general, it is not a good idea to book a cruise for one port since there is always a possibility you will not make that port. I am VERY surprised to hear that NCL had no problem with someone disembarking in Bermuda. That has been contrary to their policy and they have been quite rigid about it from what I've seen on these boards. Even in the "before times" they would not even let us leave the ship overnight in one port and catch up with the ship the next day in the next port. Both ports were in Spain and were only two hours apart by car.

Hmm . . . maybe somebody who (1) got a fantastic deal on the 18 day Sun transatlantic, (2) doesn't care about bells and whistles and pampering - I'm happy reading a book no matter what ship I'm on, (3) isn't food focused - I can eat fine cuisine at home and the gin & tonics are the same on any ship (4) is mainly interested in post-cruise in Lisbon with the Canaries, Azores and Spain being bonuses. I've already booked the Viva and the Bliss BUT we are about itinerary and the "rust buckets" tend to get the best ones. I'll book any ship that's going where I want to go and I think I just proved it by booking the Carnival Pride (horrors!) to Iceland out of London. Definitely a major "old tub" but so port intensive that it's a non-issue - besides we'll likely get a kick out of it being a fun "retro-nostalgic" blast from the past. Maybe we'll think we're still 25 if we don't pass any mirrors, lol!

The incident you cite occurred in the open ocean off the coast of northern Norway. It was not a fjords itinerary. Anyone who has cruised the fjords will know that the water inside a fjord is like a river, not at all like the open ocean.

Exactly the sort of thing I meant in my previous post. My husband and I never want to stay with friends or relatives when we travel. We love seeing them and going out to dinner or activities but at the end of the day we want our own space to read, relax, talk without others present, etc. It is awkward when they keep insisting that we stay at their house.

Consider a Norwegian fjords cruise for guaranteed calm waters. The Med and the Baltics are also good bets for those concerned about seasickness. We have relatives who we know would be avid cruisers (more so that us!) if they would only try it once. But the wife is afraid the boat will sink or be attacked by terrorists. She also fears flying so they spend their golden years driving up and down I-95 to the same (boring) places over and over again. They are amazed by all the places we have been via cruise ship and the husband obviously wants to go. We send a few photos from time to time but don't push. With all that said, it has been my general experience in life that many people have hidden agendas. There is the reason the give and then there may be another REAL reason. At the end of the day, people find a way to do or not do what they truly want to do or not do.

We would not expect to be able to stream on most of a transatlantic. Just looking to play our own downloaded stuff on the Sun. Thanks for the info on the Dawn. We are booked on the Dawn later this year but it is a very port intensive cruise in the Baltics. Not a single sea day so we would not watch movies on that cruise anyway. I do not understand tech stuff but will show your post to DH and I'm sure he will understand it. I joke with him about how complicated it is just to watch TV in our house thanks to tech overkill. Very good thing that I prefer to read books anyway, lol. Thanks - all info is appreciated!

If I recall correctly the American Diner concept was originally aimed at the Asian market where it was more of a fun novelty. It wasn't really meant to wow Americans who would consider this type of food very ordinary and not worthy of a special venue.

Thanks for the succinct and to the point reply:) I did try to search "HDMI + Sun" but did not come up with anything relevant.

Thanks. I agree that it sounds like my best bet is to ask on the Roll Calls.

Thanks so much! I was just looking at some of the YouTube cabin tours and I saw a good indication in several that the back and sides of the TVs are fully accessible. We're not in a suite but in several inside/standard balcony cabin tours I could see that the TV is mounted on an flexible arm and can easily be pulled away from the wall. Gotta love YouTube, lol. We would just be wanting to watch movies and maybe even family/travel photos that are already downloaded to various devices. My husband knows how to do all that so he was just needing to know if the port exists and is accessible. Thanks again to all who answered.