phillygwm

Probably stuck the same day I was there. I told people that I'd laugh about the story someday, just not THAT day. Now I chuckle as I receive marketing emails from Greyhound 🤣

Agreed. For MIA I can take my chances with a one day. Worst case, as I mentioned, I could drive it straight through (splitting the driving with my travelmates.) But if this were Europe or even West Coast, I'd build more time in. And, of course, travel insurance.

It doesn't take much to royally mess up flight schedules and it happens more frequently than it used to because of weather patterns and the lack of "slack" in the system; flights rarely go off half full like in the old days. That's why I come in the day before but even that isn't foolproof. I had a business trip to Montreal which I extended over a weekend a couple months ago. Big storm on the Eastern Seaboard so all Sunday flights cancelled: BOS, PVD, LGA, JFK, EWR, PHL, BWI etc. Earliest flight I would have gotten would have been Wednesday. Amtrak wasn't an option because of flooding (I love train travel so a long train ride wouldn't have been too onerous.) I wound up taking a Greyhound from MTL to NY then Amtrak from NYP-PHL which was about as unpleasant as it sounds but marginally better than driving myself. It's fresh enough in my mind that I now plan for contingencies. My next cruise goes out of MIA. If Friday flights get cancelled, at least I'll make my departure if I jump into a rental and drive it.

As others have stated, prepaying saves you a charge at the end of the cruise and protects you in case DSC were to increase after you prepaid. Personally, I like to spread out my charges from the time I book until I sail so I don't get a big final payment or an unpleasant charge at the end of the cruise. Just my preference; others have equally valid reasons not to prepay, the biggest being if you had refundable OBC which can be used toward onboard DSC.

Econ 101, supply and demand. NCL will charge what the market will bear. There are deals to be had but with more people traveling, perhaps fewer deals than before. If a ship is under capacity with a month or two to go, the price will drop. Of course, not everyone has the flexibility to take advantage of that. To answer the question posed: I pretty much know what to expect on an NCL cruise. If I were in the Haven, my expectations would be higher but for the rest of the ship, it's generally going to fall in a certain range. What I pay for that is another question entirely, more a function of where I'm going, whether I'm in peak season, length of the cruise, when I book, etc.

Ah, the fine print! This makes sense. An empty cabin at sailing not only means no fare revenue, it means no add-ons: excursions, additional premium meals, jewelry, etc. So if a sailing isn't already at capacity, it will tend to be deeply discounted as the date approaches. That's also why you see reduced/waived single supplement on some 2023 cruises. If they can perhaps discount the base fare a bit less, it would potentially offset any cost NCL might be incurring for the service.

The earlier the better. Prices can always increase. Conversely, if they change something in the package you can always cancel. I usually spread my cruise expenses out so I don't have one big bill but otherwise there's no science to it.

This is actually a point that confuses a lot of people. When you check in, a temp authorization is run on your card. I think it's $200-300, though I may be off there. This reduces your card availability by that amount. Over the course of your cruise, if you spend more than that authorized amount loading up on artwork and Invicta watches, they'll run one or more subsequent authorizations. The vast majority of the time, it's really no big deal unless you're using a card with limited availability. You generally won't even notice unless you're looking at your card activity and you confuse these holds with actual charges posted (they're not.) However, you don't want to use a debit card for this reason; those temp holds can mess up your checking account.

Yeah, but this would be mid-November. I totally agree: In the Florida Summer I'm moving from air conditioned building to A/C'd car and repeat!

IF I do the buffet, I make sure it's during off-peak times.. There's nothing that puts me in a bad mood more than obnoxious people in a crowded buffet plus I understand the Washy Washy staff has been cut back, to your point. Maybe I'm deluding myself but IMHO it's likely safer and saner in Taste/Savor.

Which raises a larger point: This isn't 2020. The 2023 COVID variants usually aren't much worse than the flu, though I don't want to sit next to someone with the flu either. Of course, neither is fun and if you're in a high risk group both can be dangerous or even lethal, but hopefully one takes precautions. As someone who is generally healthy but checks a couple of the risk boxes, I'll get boosted/flu vaxxed, I'll try to keep distances where possible, and I'll carry tests and masks with me but that's about it. Yeah, I had the same concern. I don't want to sound heartless but NCL has to keep cruisers as safe as possible, recognizing that we're knowingly taking a certain degree of risk by being on a ship with ~4000 people. I expect that standard of care so I don't want to be near anyone who is obviously ill. But I also recognize there are lot of asymptomatic people walking around so things happen.

Really? Would you like to be seated next to her on the transfer bus? NCL is in a bad position here: They don't want people with COVID, even with a "greatly reduced" viral load, exposing others who aren't sick. That's especially so if OP is still symptomatic. Sure, we all know that a certain number of people are going to get COVID as a result of any cruise, but if I were put on a bus next to someone who was obviously ill, I'd be livid. While it might have been nice for NCL to pickup the tab for a taxi, I don't see why they'd be under any obligation to do so. I'm getting my booster at the end of this month in preparation for my November cruise. But if I test positive onboard? I'll self-quarantine but it will otherwise be my little secret. I wonder whether those Mexican pharmacies carry Paxlovid?

You're coming across as clingy. It was a nice gesture on your part but to everyone else's point, it's 4.5 months, not 4.5 years. I have friends who haven't introduced their kid to the bf after that period. And while you'll surely ingratiate yourself to him by putting them up in the Haven, that isn't great if the relationship fizzles.

While I agree, I've been awakened more than once by a Code Alpha where the room number is announced to the entire ship. I always wondered why that was necessary; wouldn't the medics have radios etc? Of course, I'm sure there is much I'm not considering (which is why I enjoy reading @chengkp75insightful posts!)

Or they're not authorized to speak about it. But hope all turns out well. Every cruiser's worst nightmare!

Few if any countries still have strict COVID restrictions but that isn't to say it couldn't happen again, were there an uptick in serious cases. So essentially, it's a CYA email. I'd keep an eye on here; if anything changes, you can be virtually certain there will be posts about it!

I have the ability to complete the form online and save as a pdf. Yeah, you have to sign, but they'll accept anything. I even used a mouse signature (didn't have a touchscreen.) No issues.

Agree with the others. If in doubt, request the accommodation. The person should conserve energy for when they absolutely need to walk (getting on buses, visiting sites, etc.) I travelled with a friend who uses a cane. He walked to check-in but then he was done. He got a wheelchair assist at the terminal before boarding. It's a lot of walking and, depending on when you get there, you may or may not get a seat. Add to that, I believe the wheelchairs are boarded first. Same goes for any ports. The gangway zigzags, regardless of ship, so it's a fair amount of walking just to disembark.

I believe the pools are heated; obviously, the hot tubs are. If you're indoors on the ship, you'd dress just as you would in any other building. Some places are drafty by the exits but otherwise, no need to bundle up. Of course, anything outside will be weather dependent. There is always SOMETHING going on. Inside, during the day, it might be a trivia contest, bingo, port overviews, previews of other cruises/ships, etc. There are also bands up on the pool deck during the day. In the evening, most of the entertainment is on 6-7-8 (sadly, Footloose is no longer available.) You can look at the dailies for specifics. Things vary a bit from ship to ship but if you pulled up a daily for any ship you'd have a pretty good idea of what to expect on the Joy. I've heard reports of some of the post-drydock changes. Suffice to say, if you were on the ship in November and again in February, you'll notice some changes (smaller Observation Lounge, for instance) but you won't find anything game changing.

I was going to go into a lot of detail but the above post pretty much sums it up. Should you have any questions after watching it, just ask.

For men, a polo shirt and a pair of long pants (Dockers etc.) are about as dressy as you'll ever need to be. Even then, it's only necessary in select restaurants.

I was just looking into this for my MIA cruise in November. They have a few options; I was looking at an Everglades airboat tour but you're only 1/2 hour in the boat and was looking for something a bit longer. The whole tour is 3.5 hours. The big advantage to the NCL excursion, versus on your own, is that your bags are stowed on the bus. A city tour was also available, which is 2 hours long. At the end of the tour, both drop you at MIA (though I believe FLL is an option as well.)

I don't really blame people since I wouldn't have thought of such a thing. I use baby wipes for my CPAP but don't never flush those. It reminds me of the thread a while back re: keeping your balcony slider open. I used to do that ALL THE TIME on my early cruises. I loved the ocean breeze and the sound of the waves. Little did I know that messed the HVAC up for my neighbors, for technical reasons ably explained by @chengkp75 that I don't pretend to understand or remember. At least there are now notices not to leave the slider open. Maybe there needs to be a similar sticker about flushing stuff. Or maybe there already is and I just never noticed.

I have the better part of a day to kill once my ship arrives back in Miami. The ship offers an Everglades airboat excursion with a return to MIA. Given that you have a place to stow your bags, this is ideal, if a bit pricey. However, the tour length is pretty short; you're only on the airboat for about 1/2 hour. Has anyone done this "on your own"? I'd like the boat tour to be at least an hour, preferably a bit longer. We don't need to be at the airport until 2:00 conservatively. If a company picks up at Cruiseport Miami, that's great but we can jump into a taxi/Uber if needed. More important would be a place to safely stow luggage while we're out on the tour. Thanks in advance!

Sometimes, when I'm taking a warm weather cruise in the Winter or vice versa, I find them months later. It does bring back pleasant memories, though!