NCL Noob Questions

[NightOne]

I have booked multiple cruises on Carnival and Royal using their websites and am now looking at possibly trying the Norwegian Escape but have some noob questions I cannot seem to find the answer to after quite a bit of searching.

 

1. The NCL website only seems to offer up suggested cabins in a category. I can neither change the deck or manually type a cabin number. Also, the all seem to be starboard cabins. (no port side cabins) Can you not pick your own cabin? If so, how?

 

2. Where do you add prepaid gratuities? I get to the final price and it never lets me add them anywhere.

 

3. I am looking at mini-suites and that gives you options to pick UBP and Dining package as part of the price. The dining package is for 3 nights in the specialty restaurants. Any way to up that for an additional cost? Also, I am guessing that the gratuities added as part of the UBP/Dining package are in additional to the normal daily gratuities?

 

4. I am totally clueless as to which decks are desirable. I am looking at mid-ship mini-suites and the seem to be on decks 10-15 which all look pretty much the same to me. (except 15 is directly below pool deck) What do I need to know? I'm looking for for mid-ship, close to elevators, close to water, and good view. Don't need sun so overhang for shade is good too. Thoughts?

 

5. I have seen in some videos where the bed is next to the balcony instead of the couch being next to the balcony. Any mini-suites like this and how do I identify them?

 

6. Finally, $1100pp (plus taxes, title license, etc.) for a mini-suite with beverage package and 3 nights of specialty dining on NCL's newest ship seems like a very good deal to me. What's the catch? What am I missing? I hear about nickel-and-diming on NCL but even with that the price seems very good.

 

Thanks

[TheDougOut]

We had 3 mini suites midship on Deck 10. We LOVED the location. Be careful of being close to District Brew House or 5 O'clock Somewhere bar on Deck 8 if you go to bed before 1am.

 

The waterfront and lifeboats extend out beyond these balconies, so you won't be able to look straight down if you're midship near these locations. Personally, I liked our view.

 

I believe the mini suites that allow 4 passengers have the bed near the balcony. We prefer this, as there's more "common space" near the desk / couch / entrance.

 

The Escape is a great ship... enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[TheDougOut]

Prepaid Service Charges can be done after you book within your reservation on NCL.COM. Under Vacation Summary, there's an option to add the charges to your cart, and then you can check out and pay. You can also add a 3 day SDP, if you want to bump your promo 3 days to 6 days total.

 

 

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[corley05]

When I did my booking there was a list of available cabins down the left side. It could be that there is only one cabin left for that specific category. Try a mock booking on expedia and see what they show available.

I think you will have a couple extra charges related to those two plans. My last sailing the gratuities were included so I can't be sure how it works now.

I really love NCL. Its not perfect but every time I sail with them I have the best time. I enjoy the freestyle so much.

Have a blast!

[Mistizoom]

I didn't book online for my Escape cruise because to get both AARP pricing and the 2 promo items I had to contact my PCC (did that and the booking all via email) but I do mock bookings all the time. ;)

 

1. When you are selecting your cabin category, note the decks that category is on. For example, on Escape MA is decks 14 and 15 and MB is 12 and 13. So if you choose MA you will only see cabins available on decks 14 and 15, you won't see any cabins on deck 12 or 13. However, during the booking tabs at the top will show the other similar categories. For example, when I pick MA it will also show MB and MC tabs on the "Your Stateroom" selection so you can switch. The cabins that show should be what's available for the number of people in your party. You can click "modify" on any selection to switch out a previous selection. If you are booking close in or on a cruise with a partial charter it is likely the rooms not showing are unavailable.

 

2. You can pre-pay the daily service charge after booking is complete on MyNCL.com. You don't add them during booking.

 

3. You can't upgrade the promo dining plan. If you want more then 3 nights you should pick another promo and pay for a higher night SDP or plan to pay a la carte for the other nights. I suppose you could probably also buy a 3 or 4 night plan in addition to the promo plan for a 7 night cruise, but I haven't heard of anyone doing that.

 

4. On both my cruises I have done MA mini-suites, mid-ship on the highest deck (yes, right below the "pool deck"). I find it to be a very convenient location and at mid-ship there is really nothing above you at night when trying to sleep. Rarely did I hear a deck chair or two being moved in the morning but I found the soundproofing, especially on the Getaway, to be very good. I love being able to take the stairs one flight up to the buffet or pool. I plan to get a spa pass next time so will also be pretty close to the spa. If you are worried about being right below the pool deck I am sure one deck lower is also a great location. Other than that, you need to balance price you want to pay with location. Some people like being closer to the areas on decks 6, 7, 8. It's up to you.

 

5. Mini-suites on Getaway at least (and I believe Escape also) that hold 4 people (+ sign) will have bed next to balcony because the pullman bed that comes down from the ceiling will be near the closet above the couch. I haven't heard much about mini-suites that hold 3 on Escape. On Getaway I believe they all have bed by closet. More mini-suites on Escape seem to hold 3 (filled triangle symbol) so I don't know if they have more with bed by closet. I actually hope so, because I prefer bed by closet and my next MA on Escape holds 3. Again, I am different than most people but I've had both, and with the bed next to the balcony it seemed very hard to access the balcony and I like to sit on the couch and look out the balcony. I felt much more cut off from the outside with the bed by the balcony. Again, personal preference.

 

6. You're not missing anything. Any extras you want to pay for after your cruise fare, taxes, fees, gratuities on UBP or SDP etc. other than daily service charge per person are completely optional.

Edited April 6, 2016 by Mistizoom

[kteg1752]

We stayed on the 13th floor in a mini suite. I highly advice you to stay as far away from Its 5 oclock somewhere as you can. We go to bed reasonable early and they love to party at that bar. Though they do make pretty fabulous drinks :)

[Viva_la_Vida]

I have booked multiple cruises on Carnival and Royal using their websites and am now looking at possibly trying the Norwegian Escape but have some noob questions I cannot seem to find the answer to after quite a bit of searching.

 

1. The NCL website only seems to offer up suggested cabins in a category. I can neither change the deck or manually type a cabin number. Also, the all seem to be starboard cabins. (no port side cabins) Can you not pick your own cabin? If so, how?

 

 

Thanks

 

I've also tried to find a way to manually type in a cabin number both on NCL's website and on different TA websites. Anyone have insight to that part of the question?

[khaide612]

6. Finally, $1100pp (plus taxes, title license, etc.) for a mini-suite with beverage package and 3 nights of specialty dining on NCL's newest ship seems like a very good deal to me. What's the catch? What am I missing? I hear about nickel-and-diming on NCL but even with that the price seems very good.

 

I've been on Royal & Carnival - NCL charges for the most of the same things that most cruise lines do.

[travelinmoma]

When I called to upgrade the NCL rep was able to assign a room that wasn't showing up as available on my online booking. You might try calling if you have some specific choices in mind.

[NightOne]

We had 3 mini suites midship on Deck 10. We LOVED the location. Be careful of being close to District Brew House or 5 O'clock Somewhere bar on Deck 8 if you go to bed before 1am.

 

The waterfront and lifeboats extend out beyond these balconies, so you won't be able to look straight down if you're midship near these locations. Personally, I liked our view.

 

I believe the mini suites that allow 4 passengers have the bed near the balcony. We prefer this, as there's more "common space" near the desk / couch / entrance.

 

The Escape is a great ship... enjoy!

 

 

Thanks for the tips and photos! They were helpful in making our choices. I prefer to be on port side as opposed to starboard so that should make the bar noise a non-issue. You were spot on about the mini-suites that hold 4 people and the bed configuration.

 

We are now booked in cabin 14178 and have been told this has the bed next to the balcony as opposed to the closet.

 

Thanks

[NightOne]

Prepaid Service Charges can be done after you book within your reservation on NCL.COM. Under Vacation Summary, there's an option to add the charges to your cart, and then you can check out and pay. You can also add a 3 day SDP, if you want to bump your promo 3 days to 6 days total.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

Also correct and confirmed by NCL reservations guy. :) It is like you know exactly what you are talking about! LOL :D:D:D

 

We added pre-paid gratuities at booking time. He stated that if you add them later it just adds it to your balance that can be paid before final payment and does not have to be paid immediately. (according to him - we added at booking time so do not know the accuracy of that)

 

Thanks

[NightOne]

I didn't book online for my Escape cruise because to get both AARP pricing and the 2 promo items I had to contact my PCC (did that and the booking all via email) but I do mock bookings all the time. ;)

 

You just personally saved me 5% on our cruise and I thank you! I seen the 5% AARP discount and the promo items but wrongly guessed that they would not allow them to be combined. After seeing your post I called reservations and they did combine the deals.

 

 

 

1. When you are selecting your cabin category, note the decks that category is on. For example, on Escape MA is decks 14 and 15 and MB is 12 and 13. So if you choose MA you will only see cabins available on decks 14 and 15, you won't see any cabins on deck 12 or 13. However, during the booking tabs at the top will show the other similar categories. For example, when I pick MA it will also show MB and MC tabs on the "Your Stateroom" selection so you can switch. The cabins that show should be what's available for the number of people in your party. You can click "modify" on any selection to switch out a previous selection. If you are booking close in or on a cruise with a partial charter it is likely the rooms not showing are unavailable.

 

Rooms were definitely available where I wanted on deck 14 (mid-ship port-side) but it just doesn't allow you to choose a specific cabin on the website outside of the recommend ones. (just a limitation I guess) The reservations guy on the phone had no explanation as to why that isn't a feature.

 

2. You can pre-pay the daily service charge after booking is complete on MyNCL.com. You don't add them during booking.

 

They guy on the phone let me add them but you are correct in stating they can be added later. :)

 

3. You can't upgrade the promo dining plan. If you want more then 3 nights you should pick another promo and pay for a higher night SDP or plan to pay a la carte for the other nights. I suppose you could probably also buy a 3 or 4 night plan in addition to the promo plan for a 7 night cruise, but I haven't heard of anyone doing that.

 

Yup, he said I could just buy a 3 (or 4 day) dining package later if I wanted to push it out to 6 or 7 days.

 

4. On both my cruises I have done MA mini-suites, mid-ship on the highest deck (yes, right below the "pool deck"). I find it to be a very convenient location and at mid-ship there is really nothing above you at night when trying to sleep. Rarely did I hear a deck chair or two being moved in the morning but I found the soundproofing, especially on the Getaway, to be very good. I love being able to take the stairs one flight up to the buffet or pool. I plan to get a spa pass next time so will also be pretty close to the spa. If you are worried about being right below the pool deck I am sure one deck lower is also a great location. Other than that, you need to balance price you want to pay with location. Some people like being closer to the areas on decks 6, 7, 8. It's up to you.

 

After reading this and looking at photos of the larger overhand on deck 15 balconies I was ready to take a deck 15 mini-suite but the wife wouldn't let go of the possible noise issue from the pool deck so we booked on 14 which is still higher than I would have went before the advice here.

 

5. Mini-suites on Getaway at least (and I believe Escape also) that hold 4 people (+ sign) will have bed next to balcony because the pullman bed that comes down from the ceiling will be near the closet above the couch. I haven't heard much about mini-suites that hold 3 on Escape. On Getaway I believe they all have bed by closet. More mini-suites on Escape seem to hold 3 (filled triangle symbol) so I don't know if they have more with bed by closet. I actually hope so, because I prefer bed by closet and my next MA on Escape holds 3. Again, I am different than most people but I've had both, and with the bed next to the balcony it seemed very hard to access the balcony and I like to sit on the couch and look out the balcony. I felt much more cut off from the outside with the bed by the balcony. Again, personal preference.

 

Confirmed by the guy on the phone. Look for the ones with a + on them to guarantee the bed will be by the balcony. We preferred to have a more open area around the couch/closet area so we went that route. Like you said though: personal preference. :)

 

Thanks again

[NightOne]

When I called to upgrade the NCL rep was able to assign a room that wasn't showing up as available on my online booking. You might try calling if you have some specific choices in mind.

 

Yes, for some reason it only shows 15 recommended rooms per category. (and it loves the starboard side)

 

Royal has been doing the recommended room thing for a long time on their website but they have always let you manually type cabin numbers in and tell you if it is available or not. Carnival doesn't allow you type in a number (that I have seen) but always lists all the open ones for your category. (based on occupancy)

 

Just different I guess.

 

Oh, and when I called: all the rooms I was interested in were available. :)

Edited April 6, 2016 by NightOne

[CP3o]

I haven't cruised NCL besides POA but have booked Escape so really shouldn't be weighing in, LOL. But, for my sailing, the difference between minisuite and regular balcony was significant and might be worth it for more than 2 in cabin but for us, party of 2, I couldn't see spending the difference for such a small difference in space (mostly bigger bathroom). It's nothing like the difference on RCCL between balcony and junior suite, fyi.

 

I looked at the sink and the minisuite seemed to have less area for stuff and more area for the sink part, two faucets. I suppose it might be handy if trying to do laundry in sink but the two of us are unlikely to need to brush teeth at the same time so I didn't feel the difference in cost was worth it. We booked the cheapest family balcony on deck 9, non connecting, and think it should be ok.

 

good luck!

[TheDougOut]

I prefer to be on port side as opposed to starboard so that should make the bar noise a non-issue. You were spot on about the mini-suites that hold 4 people and the bed configuration.

 

We are now booked in cabin 14178 and have been told this has the bed next to the balcony as opposed to the closet.

 

Both the brew house and 5 o'clock are on the port side. Being 6 decks above the brew house - you may be able to hear it out on your balcony, but in no way should it disrupt your peace.

 

Great room location you chose!

 

Not sure which itin you're on, but if you're doing the Eastern Carribean, you'll have a great island show from your port side balcony for about an hour after departing Tortola.

[TheDougOut]

We booked the cheapest family balcony on deck 9, non connecting, and think it should be ok.

 

Did you check to see what's below you? There are some significant late night noise-maker spots down on deck 8.

[NightOne]

Both the brew house and 5 o'clock are on the port side. Being 6 decks above the brew house - you may be able to hear it out on your balcony, but in no way should it disrupt your peace.

 

Great room location you chose!

 

Not sure which itin you're on, but if you're doing the Eastern Carribean, you'll have a great island show from your port side balcony for about an hour after departing Tortola.

 

Thus far it looks like the Escape only does that one itinerary and yes we are going to St. Thomas, Tortola, and Nassau. Good to hear we are on the right side ... wait we're on the left... :D:D:D

 

All the deck plans I see show 5 O'Clock Sometime on the Starboard side. I just noticed that District Brew House is on the port side a little forward of us though but I thought it was the less noisy of those two.

 

http://www.cruiseshipdeckplan.com/ncl-norwegian-escape/

 

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/escape/deck-plans

[TheDougOut]

You're right on 5 o'clock - starboard side. That's funny... I went all cruise picturing it down below us. Damn UBP. :)

[NightOne]

Damn UBP. :)

 

LOL

 

The wife will be breaking them on that one.

 

Her + UBP with included fruity cruise drinks = NCL stock price drop. :D:D:D

[CP3o]

Did you check to see what's below you? There are some significant late night noise-maker spots down on deck 8.

 

Thanks for the info.

 

If I'm lining it up correctly, I believe we have the duty free shop below us. I'm more concerned about some reports of nearby cabins doing a lot of creaking, I really dislike that. But I also dislike my husband's snoring and earplugs bother me to use ALL the time so I "splurge" and use them only on cruises so think I'll be ok.

 

For my sailing the B4 = 1,099 pp and the family minisuite = 1,399 pp. Great deal on guarantee minisuite at 999pp, I'd take it if didn't want to make sure teens next door.

 

I was trying to think how much more I'd pay to be in a minisuite over a balcony............. maybe 50-100 per cabin tops. Just can't justify it over two cabins next to each other holding two each.