styxfire

Ouch. But anyway…. capacity… a recent article from the cruise industry made some comparisons for the last quarter (April thru June) — Norwegian was averaging 65% capacity, Carnival at nearly 100%, and Royal Carib at 82%. I am one who sailed Bliss at 25% capacity. There was a lonely ambiance around the ship, and the deck parties were a major dud, and some entertainment was cancelled. But on the other hand, it was the first time EVER that our whole party got poolside chairs. And finding theatre seats was easy, and we got dining and entertainment reservations easily at our desired times. Never ANY waiting at food lines, bars, at getting off at ports, nor final disembark,… we literally got everything we wanted WHEN we wanted. So yes, a nice foray into upper-crust experiences. (But then again, the price of the cruise was higher than I had ever paid before either, just due to basic price inflation and inflation in the cost of add-ons.) I’m aware that future cruising will be at the “new normal” costs but with much longer wait times and competition for seats & excursions. I would guess that the best chances for a lower-capacity sailing are: —mid-Oct to early-Nov. —Early Dec. —Late-Jan to late-Feb.

Norwegian has advertised this partnership in every day1 Freestyle Daily. Everyone scratching backs.

Re: the free fall dry slides… So, you don’t hit the edge of the plate as it opens? I’m confused how it can hold the weight of a human, and then suddenly just completely vanish under your feet, with no part of your body hitting the plate? Guess I will have to see it someday.

19 months from now will be a common spring break week in 2024. I've been looking for cabins on a specific ship, but there are almost no choices left... maybe 1 or 3 cabins remaining on each deck for most of the cabin categories, even the worst categories. And the ones left are next to service elevators or on noisy decks. Is that typical for Royal ships for spring break 19 months away? Or is the RCL website deceiving me when it says "Only 1 left on this deck" for almost every deck? (I checked Interior, OV and Balcony). I have NEVER before tried to book a cruise so far out, so I'm puzzled by what I'm seeing. With Royal being so family-oriented, do the spring break cabins get reserved a couple years in advance? Honestly, if it's true that only the cra_piest rooms are left for a cruise 19 months into the future, I might as well just skip it. Would appreciate comments about your experiences trying to book far-out for spring break on Royal.

Perhaps I’m getting old but those slides look terrifying to me. A 10-story drop! The landing space looks short, I hope they’ve tested these things out. How do you even mount the thing at the top? You must have to start in a sitting-down position, let go with your arms and free-fall. Hope they play Tom Petty’s song at the top.

Excellent photos, thanks. I’m confused, are you on the same ship, or on a different ship docked next to it?

But BOTH passengers have to buy it, so if one doesn’t drink, the other has to drink 5 a day or more just because of the tip costs. I can see both sides of the economic argument. For me personally, I can’t consume that much alcohol for that many days in a row. So I like to save stomach space for the food instead, LOL.

NO. NCL isn’t changing their source supplier. The quality of their ingredients will not be improved by streamlining their menu. Good grief.

Industry has started hiring contractors to review cruise critic content. There are agreements in place between cruise critic and some lines. Not sure whether or not they are allowed to post, but this really isn’t going to be the truth-sharing forum that it used to be.

This thread is an industry plant, right? I mean just looking at the history of a couple folks and whatnot…

Wishing you a good day.

You seem very flexible and I compliment you for that. However, I expect most people paying $1500 to $3000 per person will desire more than a Hamburger Helper equivalent for 7 nights. (That was a metaphor, not in any way intended to be a smear.) Your suggestion about asking for meat to be added to the veg meal IS a good work-around. And I will try it if this menu is forced onto my Feb cruise. But by definition, a work-around is used when there’s a problem…

This menu is workable for me (meaning I would be alive at the end of the cruise but loss of appetite.). I agree 100% that this is a big strategic mistake for NCL. Limiting the choices is a downgrade. This is fully a cost-cutting measure, not a customer experience improvement. Seeing this same dinner menu 7 days in a row would not be acceptable, let alone on a 10- or 14-day cruise. 3 of the 5 seafood choices are shrimp. Seriously. And 4 of the 6 meat choices are cattle. And only ONE chicken dinner for the whole cruise.?!?! I’m aware that Norwegian now has contractors who monitor Cruise Critic and I’m not sure whether or not they are allowed to post/influence. But I expect to read a lot of positive spin online about the new streamlined menu, even as discontent on-board grows. Increased base fares, less meal choices and more add-on charges in the “free” dining room are not a recipe for customer satisfaction. Nor is sitting down to the same exact menu for 7 days in a row. NCL seems to be doubling down on the economic strategies that are causing cruisers to look at other lines, even as NCL’s ability to fill all its cabins lags behind the other cruise companies. And just remember, if Norwegian gets it’s way (and they will), you can choose any ship in their line and get the same menu on your 2024 cruise as your 2023, and same in 2025, and… Year after year, same ol’ menu. The single menu can now be a sticky at the top of the Norwegian forum. 😞

I agree. If I were paying that price to be on-board, it would be on-board a luxury all-inclusive ship. It remains to be seen if Norwegian can fill its mainstream vessels while charging luxury rates. My guess is that if you wait 2 years to book, you’ll get the same lovely balcony at a third of the price.

I SEVERELY MISS the dancing waiters’ conga lines in the main dining room. !!! The unexpected dance-through, of all the nicely-dressed men, and hunting to find your own waiters amongst the pack…. I completely enjoyed those brief but entertaining minutes during formal dining. Now, the large dining halls and weekly assigned waiters are basically a thing of the past, but I remember them fondly.

NCL provided zero explanation other than “increased demand”. What kind of increased demand would necessitate an entire change of world destination? Norwegian already has 2 ships sailing this itinerary for this entire upcoming winter. Maybe they mean increased demand at the western Caribbean itinerary… Maybe those western ports are over-scheduled, so Escape was forced to find other ports to dock at?? Cynical me suspects that this has nothing to do with any type of a demand increase anywhere. Norwegian is already lagging behind Royal and Carnival in terms of not filling their ships to full capacity. I dunno, just wanted to express that NOT giving a better explanation is very POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE.

“Howl at the moon” is still advertised on NCL‘s website as part of their current entertainment lineup on Escape. I personally haven’t been on escape and haven’t found any 2022 freestyle dailies for escape yet. Perhaps somebody who has sailed on Escape recently can vouch for it or offer a glimpse at some of the dailies…?

Some of the negative reviews are undoubtedly because of the current closures: the H2O adults-only deck/pool/bar/grill/dance-floor and Sports Complex. NCL pretty-much angered all age-groups with the closure, and the complaints that preceded it. Whatever the issue is, once it's repaired and fully open again, I would suspect your cruise would be everything you want. I have NO interest in seeing the Priscilla musical, and the bathrooms sound weird, so I won't be sailing Epic. But I know Howl at the Moon is awesome, and would love to see the Beatles performers. And, the itinerary would be awesome. I think there's enough good things on board that you could feel safe giving it a shot. I've only done 1 European cruise, and it was on a plain dull ship (a different cruiseline), but the itinerary was SO FABULOUS that I feel it was my best cruise ever. You can have a GREAT cruise on ANY ship, if other ingredients are there...

Stunning colors in these photos, I love it! Wish that’s what it looked like in real life, instead of just white & blue. I could really dig a big gold bar floating across the sea!!!

I’m fully fascinated by the shape of the REAR third of these ships, the cyclindrical hotel, the circular deck on top (which is probably Haven so I’ll never get to see it), and immensely love (!!!) the full-surround boardwalk which Norwegian has been SORELY lacking. Regarding the front of the hull, am I the only one who finds it lovable solely due to its ugliness? And I’m confused how the people on the very-center-front deck are going to stay dry. Just saying… if I’m water, and the front of that ship comes at me, I’m gonna take the path of least resistance & run up the center front onto the deck… I was underwhelmed seeing the blue artwork on the Prima hull. 1) The design doesn’t look like anything tangible to me. 2). Just what we don’t need, another blue paint job. But now, seeing similar swirly graphics on Viva, and very similar color, I’m not just underwhelmed, I’m frustrated. Or rather, majorly disappointed in the branding. FOR ME, one of the great things about sailing NCL is coming back to your ship after a shore excursion, seeing the playful exuberance on the hull and being proud to ride such a lively animal compared to the other dull-looking ships at the pier. But lately, with every NCL being blu & white, it’s drab. Having said all that, I hope I don’t have to wait 10 years before prices come down enuf for me to ride! Congrats all who are sailing her early cruises. I hope those of you whose cruises got cancelled because of the maiden delay can easily get similar rooms on the NEW maiden date.. Kinda a bummer to have the inaugural voyage booked and then get it pulled out from under…

May be worth it for that alone, as I am thinking back to my last cruise which was during Covid: ship was less than 50% capacity, and my whole party was able to sit at the pool on deck (the regular included pool deck). And it was fun! Yet in my previous decade + of cruising, we’ve NEVER been able to do that before, as a group of 4 together. Can’t wake up early enough to get 4 adjacent chairs before they’re taken. Regarding getting more personal touch from the servers (like what you used to get in the main dining room through a full week encounter), one would certainly get a better value in Vibe for that than from Haven. Thanks for helping me think this through. While it wouldn’t have made sense during covid, I can definitely see the draw as we start sailing 100% capacity again. Especially now that a couple ships have converted even MORE of the free chairs into Vibe chairs. I feel a bit sad though that everything which used to be free — meals, desserts, coffee, classes, performances, hot tubs, water and now chairs — has a pay version of it. God help us when they start charging for toilets.

I read his. Is it correct then that for a person with the spa pass, the advantage of vibe is narrowed down to just better chance of chair availability? Trying to make sure I’m not losing something in the comprehension.

Thanks for the quick responses, that helps a lot, I appreciate it. Need to start searching for a cruise now! Lol. fyi I’m less inclined to buy from a reseller cuz the value is less (after they tack on their profit), and I worry about the hassle. That’s just me. It’s an idea to consider, though, thanks.

When can I buy the full size $250 CruiseNext? I know they of course can’t be redeemed on cruises <6 nights, but my question is about BUYing, not redeeming. I am considering taking a cruise specifically so I can buy 2 CruiseNext while onboard. Will I be able to BUY them on a 3-to-5 day cruise? Or on a short cruise would I be limited to only the “lite version”.? i.e. I want to go on a short cruise to buy CruiseNexts for a long cruise. Possible?

Is the advantage of the Vibe that you can probably get a chair, and hot tub access, whereas if you’re relegated to just the normal deck you may never get a chair or hot tub space? I’m asking because if a person has a weeklong spa pass, then they can get in the spa hot tub whenever they want…, so then the only advantage of the vibe would be a guaranteed sundeck chair?