pettygirl

This is exactly what I was looking for, and I believe I saw one of your prior posts about this subject, too, when I was looking around CC! SO Helpful, thank you! (notwithstanding my verb typo in my original post ugh!!) The timing on security vs. Haven line is great to know. Part of the prior issue my group had is that no one knew where to go, and no staff knew either, so that tracks if folks were asking/looking prior to security. It sounds as if there is ample signage (or at least a clear route where to go/look for this) 'now'. And GOOD note re: arrival prior to 11AM. I think we'll take this advice - after all, that means a more leisurely breakfast in the Big Easy anyway. 😉 Any tips about port arrival via cab transport? Did you get dropped off, or? Any issues with a clear porter queue, or was that all "cruise port normal"? THX

A few years ago (and in these boards!), NOLA cruise terminal experiences seem like a nightmare: no signage, no staff knowledge, long lines and bottlenecks, confused pax, and just... general mayhem. Not the way to start a cruise, amiright? Does anyone has any recent (Oct 2023 - January 2024) experiences with Port arrival, security, embarkation/debark to share? What should we know prior to boarding and post-cruise departure? We are heading out of NCL/Julia Street terminal next month late Feb 2024, after Mardi Gras. Most of the CC boards talk about self-parking and lot issues, but we're not local and are planning on using cab/Uber/Lyft. Double bonus awesome points if you have Haven line/lounge knowledge, portside? (x-posted to Ports of Call > New Orleans forum)

A few years ago (and in these boards!), NOLA cruise terminal experiences seem like a nightmare: no signage, no staff knowledge, long lines and bottlenecks, confused pax, and just... general mayhem. Not the way to start a cruise, amiright? Does anyone has any recent (Oct 2023 - January 2024) experiences with Port arrival, security, embarkation/debark? What should we know prior to boarding and post-cruise departure? We are heading out of NCL terminal next month late Feb 2024, after Mardi Gras. Most of the CC boards talk about self-parking and lot issues, but we're not local and are planning on using cab/Uber/Lyft. Double bonus awesome points if you have Haven line/lounge knowledge, portside? Thanks!! (x-posted to Departures forum)

Also just received this notification, for Breakaway in Feb 2024. NO stateroom changes, just the renaming of the category from Spa Suite H9, to Haven Penthouse HI. In an abundance of caution, since we're many months out, I'm going to make sure to bring hardcopies of my rez with the Spa Suite category, and a copy of the email/doc stating in writing that access to the Thermal Spa will be honored. Unless I'm missing something - this change, while annoying, only affects Spa access, right? I didn't think I would need to rely on Haven concierge for anything, but I may ask them to handle rather than Guest Services - it's right in their wheelhouse, nay?

Chiming in to say a 2024 out of NOLA on Breakaway is also all sea days. Fleet-wide rush on the Lido Deck, baby! Chair hogs get those towel clips ready 🫠🤣

Jumping into this post because we have just done the exact same: jumped lines to NCL from Royal/Princess, mainly because of Haven, which we have booked for 2024. Excited to learn all the in-n-outs of NCL and Haven, and currently busy reading the nearly 70+ pages for Gary's Haven 2022 update. 😅 One question I also have, in addition to the above, is other specialty onboard dinners? Reliably on Royal/Princess there have been on-ship dinners like Chef's Table or a special Winemaker's dinner/pairing, Princess has 360, etc. We know that these cannot be booked prior, and we always look or request these once we get onship. Part of the 'gametime' fun of begin underway! For NCL, should we save room or look for impromtu meals like these once we're aboard? I see from the boards that NCL has done away with Chef's Table, but do similar special meals exist on this line?

Can anyone offer insight to your experience of the onboard kids programs? We sail in April 2023 on Discovery and while the Princess FAQ is helpful, with hours and ages and such, I'm looking for what actually happens on ship, what we need to know in advance, and any tips or practical experience. The few boards I've found on CC are limited with testimonial info, and usually just repeat the Princess FAQ, which we already are familiar with. We have two boys age 6, super well-adjusted, already socialized, cool little kids - and we plan to use Camp Discovery, and hopefully the drop-in babysitting hours over the dinner/late night hours at some point. We already plan to go to the kids area ASAP for signups when we board the ship. Any and all info or descriptions of experience is appreciated!

Thank you so much, @vjmatty!

Oh, so the cabana includes the two loungers? The videos I've seen have a chair and a couch underneath the canopy, and what seemed like two loungers very close to the entrance to the covered cabana. Those loungers are part of the cabana, technically? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kk3vAezv-2s As I understand it, any additional lounges needed would then need more reservations/pax from other staterooms to book. But one passenger could book a single cabana with room for about 6? We're not fussed about cost-sharing across our group per se - we're just trying to understand how many people need to be actually be in line to book the Sanctuary, and if other passengers in other staterooms could join us if they wanted without being on the reservation. Thanks!

Hi all - Looking for experiences and/or tips and suggestions for booking a day at the Sanctuary onboard. I understand you cannot book in advance, you must rush up there in person on embarkation day, and one person from each stateroom must go together to reserve (only if you're you're trying to book enough loungers). But what about the cabana? Can other adults join you in your cabana if they haven't made a booking themselves? We are thinking just sending an emissary to reserve a cabana for the day, and everyone else in our travel group (3 staterooms) and come and go if/as they please. From videos I've seen it looks as if there is two loungers very close right outside the covered area but it doesn't look like they are part of the cabana booking. So, max 3-4 people in the cabana at one time possibly, and if we want the loungers, someone will have to join our emissary to book together on embarkation to battle for lounge-supremacy. 😆 Any other insights we should be aware of? I'm seeing that there is also cabanas at the Retreat Pool, too? Thanks! 😎

OP here. 😇 My particular pre-paid excursion was cancelled online 9/17 (a Saturday), so I was prepared to start the clock on the Monday (9/19). Once I clicked 'cancel' on each pax line, the reservation disappeared from my booking. Did this for the 3 in our stateroom, but didn't get an email notification of cancellation for any of us. Surprisingly, my refund showed up today, 9/21 (Weds)! 🤩 Based on other people's experience of refunds being applied to other excursions, AND Princess' own FAQ, I did not rebook another excursion at the time. Just didn't want to have wires crossed. But I am about to, now that the refund has gone through and no need to dispute moving forward. Just wanted to memorialize for the boards that this type of refund - booking and cancelling months in advance, with NO OBC or FCC involved, and no other open excursions to apply a refund to - seems only to take a few days, but annoyingly without any proof of cancellation other than the excursion disappearing from the booking page. YMMV. Thanks to all who offered insight!

Outstanding, thanks everyone. I'll check in about a week and give it a few more days after that.

Sailing for Spring Break 2023 with extended family - so plenty of advance time, but we need to cancel a pre-paid shore excursion, and rebook a different one. At some point in our research the excursion FAQ said 24 hours refund to CC on file, but now I see it reads: "all refunds will be processed in due course, but delays should be anticipated. Please allow us sufficient time to manage this process[...]" I have trawled through the forums extensively and not really finding a specific answer: How long is it taking for just a normal refund of something booked well in advance? NOT a covid-, OBC-, or FCC-related refund? Some of the experiences I read about refunds on Princess sound legit nightmarish, but a lot of these are post-cruise, covid-isolation, dealing with onboard overcharge disputes, etc. If you've had just a regular refund of excursion, spa, or any other pre-booked fees recently - how long did it take? Thanks!