NCL Ships at Amber Cove

[CruzinMel]

1 hour ago, kitkat343 said:

Here's the update for those on the 1/8 sailing (my family is in two cabins and only my husband's cabin was notified so I'm posting it below so everyone has a chance to change their plans.  Three of the other port times are now later.

 

riginal Day Destination Arrive Depart   Sun NEW YORK CITY, NY   3:00 pm   Mon AT SEA       Tue AT SEA       Wed SAN JUAN, PR 4:00 pm 10:30 pm   Thu BASSETERRE, SAINT KITTS - NEVIS 12:00 pm 7:00 pm   Fri CASTRIES, SAINT LUCIA 8:00 am 5:00 pm   Sat BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS 7:00 am 4:00 pm   Sun ST. JOHN'S, ANTIGUA 9:00 am 6:00 pm   Mon ST. THOMAS, VIRGIN ISLANDS 7:00 am 3:00 pm   Tue PUERTO PLATA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 9:00 am 4:00 pm   Wed AT SEA       Thu AT SEA       Fri NEW YORK CITY, NY 7:00 am

Revised Day Destination Arrive Depart   Sun NEW YORK CITY, NY   3:00 pm   Mon AT SEA       Tue AT SEA       Wed SAN JUAN, PR 4:00 pm 10:30 pm   Thu BASSETERRE, SAINT KITTS - NEVIS 12:00 pm 7:00 pm   Fri CASTRIES, SAINT LUCIA 10:00 am 7:00 pm   Sat BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS 7:00 am 4:00 pm   Sun ST. JOHN'S, ANTIGUA 12:00 pm 6:00 pm   Mon ST. THOMAS, VIRGIN ISLANDS 7:00 am 6:00 pm   Tue AT SEA       Wed AT SEA       Thu AT SEA       Fri NEW YORK CITY, NY 7:00 am

 

KitKat, where do you find this layout?

[kitkat343]

My husband and I are each booked in separate cabins because we have three children.  My husband is under a different reservation and he received the email but I didn't so I wanted to post it here.  This is the accompanying text (which makes no sense because I have no idea what changing arrival and departure times has to do with the environment. I'm assuming they are pushing back the port time because we already have three sea days in a row so there's no need to leave the DR earlier.  My youngest is 4, but children between 6 months and 12 months are not allowed to sail with three sea days in a row, so I'd assume NCL will fully refund any passengers if their itinerary change makes a child ineligible to sail.

 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION Itinerary Change         Princeton NJ 08540-4948 US Dear Valued Guests and Travel Partners: On behalf of Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), we thank you for your loyalty and for making us your vacation of choice. We have important information regarding Norwegian Getaway's sailing on January 8, 2023. Travel partners must share the below information with guests who may be affected.   Our company is committed to driving a positive impact on society and the environment. As part of our global sustainability program, Sail & Sustain, we are continually seeking opportunities to reduce our overall carbon footprint, and recently committed to pursuing net zero greenhouse gas emissions across our operations and value chain by 2050. To support this mission, we have optimized our arrival and departure times. We appreciate your understanding and support on this important sustainability initiative. The revised itinerary is as follows:  SHORE EXCURSIONS Shore excursions booked through NCL for Castries, St, Lucia, St. John's, Antigua, and St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands will be automatically adjusted to the new dates and times in port; no further action is required. Shore excursions booked through NCL for Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic will be automatically canceled, and a full monetary refund of the fare paid will be issued to your onboard account; no further action is required. If you are interested in booking new excursions for your upcoming vacation, please login to your MyNCL account or contact us directly at (866) 625-1167. Guests residing outside of the U.S. or Canada should visit www.ncl.com for local contact information. TRAVEL DOCUMENTS Depending on nationality, guests may require a passport and/or a visa to visit certain ports of call. All necessary documentation should be printed and available to present at check-in on embarkation day. Guests who fail to obtain these documents will be denied boarding. For more information on the necessary documentation to sail and for all ports of call, please visit www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/cruise-travel-documents. Requirements and policies are subject to change. YOUR HEALTH AND SAFETY  We have updated our protocols to further align to those of the broader travel, leisure and hospitality industry worldwide, making it easier for guests to return to sea with us. As such, we welcome all guests to sail with us, regardless of vaccination status and age, and with no testing or masking requirements. For additional information on our health and safety protocols, please visit www.ncl.com/sail-safe.  Please note that destination specific travel requirements supersede any NCL embarkation protocols. As such, we strongly encourage you to visit www.ncl.com/travel-requirements-by-country to ensure you are in compliance and avoid any chance of being denied boarding. We encourage you to check these sites often, as regulations change frequently and with very short notice. We sincerely appreciate your understanding and look forward to welcoming you aboard the beautiful Norwegian Getaway for your dream vacation at sea! As always, we are at your service.  Sincerely, Katty Byrd Senior Vice President, Guest Services

Edited December 21, 2022 by kitkat343

[kitkat343]

8 minutes ago, CruzinMel said:

I'm on Escape departing 12/31 and we are supposed to hit the DR on 1/2 - I want to book an excursion, but I don't want to have to deal with the stop possibly getting canceled or feeling rushed and uncomfortable.  Things happen, but this is getting a wee bit out of hand.  

How many ships in total are scheduled for the DR on your arrival date?  I think they have been fairly consistent in going to Amber Cove when possible (fewer than 2 Carnival ships already scheduled to dock).  If you are booking an excursion with transportation, the switch isn't a big deal.  If you just wanted to walk around, the port change is more problematic because it might require you to get transportation.  

 

Things get a bit more difficult if you want to book an independent excursion, in which case  you need to be very careful about their cancellation policy (we wanted to go to Ocean World, and that's usually nonrefundable but the independent tour providers usually give refunds if your ship doesn't dock).

[Laszlo]

12 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

Here's the update for those on the 1/8 sailing (my family is in two cabins and only my husband's cabin was notified so I'm posting it below so everyone has a chance to change their plans.  Three of the other port times are now later.

 

riginal Day Destination Arrive Depart   Sun NEW YORK CITY, NY   3:00 pm   Mon AT SEA       Tue AT SEA       Wed SAN JUAN, PR 4:00 pm 10:30 pm   Thu BASSETERRE, SAINT KITTS - NEVIS 12:00 pm 7:00 pm   Fri CASTRIES, SAINT LUCIA 8:00 am 5:00 pm   Sat BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS 7:00 am 4:00 pm   Sun ST. JOHN'S, ANTIGUA 9:00 am 6:00 pm   Mon ST. THOMAS, VIRGIN ISLANDS 7:00 am 3:00 pm   Tue PUERTO PLATA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 9:00 am 4:00 pm   Wed AT SEA       Thu AT SEA       Fri NEW YORK CITY, NY 7:00 am

Revised Day Destination Arrive Depart   Sun NEW YORK CITY, NY   3:00 pm   Mon AT SEA       Tue AT SEA       Wed SAN JUAN, PR 4:00 pm 10:30 pm   Thu BASSETERRE, SAINT KITTS - NEVIS 12:00 pm 7:00 pm   Fri CASTRIES, SAINT LUCIA 10:00 am 7:00 pm   Sat BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS 7:00 am 4:00 pm   Sun ST. JOHN'S, ANTIGUA 12:00 pm 6:00 pm   Mon ST. THOMAS, VIRGIN ISLANDS 7:00 am 6:00 pm   Tue AT SEA       Wed AT SEA       Thu AT SEA       Fri NEW YORK CITY, NY 7:00 am

 

Where did you see this? I haven't received an email with the change, just looked at my NCL and its still the original itinerary. *****.... they shortened St John by three hours. Its like our 2018 14 day cruise all over again Lol

Edited December 21, 2022 by Laszlo

[Laszlo]

11 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

This is the accompanying text (which makes no sense because I have no idea what changing arrival and departure times has to do with the environment.

We are arriving later because they are saving on fuel and traveling slower..... LOL

 

It doesn't make sense, not happy about loosing three hours of beach time in St John

 

 

[asmit4]

Gotta love how they claim it's to save the earth and yet we all know it's just a cost cutting measure wrapped up in fake concern for the earth. 

[Laszlo]

22 minutes ago, asmit4 said:

Gotta love how they claim it's to save the earth and yet we all know it's just a cost cutting measure wrapped up in fake concern for the earth. 

Wondering after two years why they need another three hours to get from Barbados to St John, its not like the distance has changed Lol

[asmit4]

3 hours ago, Laszlo said:

Wondering after two years why they need another three hours to get from Barbados to St John, its not like the distance has changed Lol

Their claim is if they go slower they will save gas and that helps the earth. It's nothing but marketing BS. They SAVE $$$ on gas by going slower. 

[cruiseny4life]

So basically, they are saving gas money. 

 

Couldn't they just siphon from Carnival's ships?

 

[pjtjmn]

Hi all, 

 

I’ve been reading this thread fairly closely, and I think my stop in “Puerto Plata” will be skipped.

 

I'm on the Escape and due to stop there on Monday, January 30th.  I just checked the Amber Cove port website, and I see that carnival spirit and magic are due that day. 
 

Based on that is it safe to assume we’ll be getting a bonus sea day?  

Friday that week, we are scheduled in GSC, and after reading all the challenges with tenders, I’m thinking we have reasonably good odds of missing that one as well.   

I’m pretty new to this, so I’d love to hear from those with more experience if I am looking at this correctly. 

 

Thanks

 

[cementhands]

We’re on Ncl getaway January 20, 23 and supposedly going to Amber Cove but have read many ncl ships canceled. Also rumors of engine issues ongoing with ship too. Hoping for the best!

[wil e coyote]

1 hour ago, pjtjmn said:

Hi all, 

 

I’ve been reading this thread fairly closely, and I think my stop in “Puerto Plata” will be skipped.

 

I'm on the Escape and due to stop there on Monday, January 30th.  I just checked the Amber Cove port website, and I see that carnival spirit and magic are due that day. 
 

Based on that is it safe to assume we’ll be getting a bonus sea day?  

Friday that week, we are scheduled in GSC, and after reading all the challenges with tenders, I’m thinking we have reasonably good odds of missing that one as well.   

I’m pretty new to this, so I’d love to hear from those with more experience if I am looking at this correctly. 

 

Thanks

 

We're on the same sailing - as they say, past performance is no guarantee of future results, but at present it appears NCL won't take the larger ships into Taino Bay, and Escape is a larger ship. So, barring a change in NCL's practices, or a cancellation by one of the two Carnival ships currently scheduled to be at Amber Cove on 1/30, it looks like we will get another sea day.

To be honest, it doesn't affect us all that much. The port call is so short that we were seriously considering staying on board anyway. But if I had an excursion I really wanted to do (like Damajagua Falls, for instance) and then we got cancelled, I'd be disappointed.

[wil e coyote]

17 hours ago, CruzinMel said:

I'm on Escape departing 12/31 and we are supposed to hit the DR on 1/2 - I want to book an excursion, but I don't want to have to deal with the stop possibly getting canceled or feeling rushed and uncomfortable.  Things happen, but this is getting a wee bit out of hand.  

@CruzinMel, you probably shouldn't use the term "hit" when talking about the Escape and the DR...🤣

[CruzinMel]

10 hours ago, wil e coyote said:

@CruzinMel, you probably shouldn't use the term "hit" when talking about the Escape and the DR...🤣

Oh, holy cow, you are RIGHT!!!!  No jinxes here!!!

[Laszlo]

On 12/20/2022 at 8:10 PM, kitkat343 said:

My husband and I are each booked in separate cabins because we have three children.  My husband is under a different reservation and he received the email but I didn't so I wanted to post it here.  This is the accompanying text (which makes no sense because I have no idea what changing arrival and departure times has to do with the environment. I'm assuming they are pushing back the port time because we already have three sea days in a row so there's no need to leave the DR earlier.  My youngest is 4, but children between 6 months and 12 months are not allowed to sail with three sea days in a row, so I'd assume NCL will fully refund any passengers if their itinerary change makes a child ineligible to sail.

 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION Itinerary Change         Princeton NJ 08540-4948 US Dear Valued Guests and Travel Partners: On behalf of Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), we thank you for your loyalty and for making us your vacation of choice. We have important information regarding Norwegian Getaway's sailing on January 8, 2023. Travel partners must share the below information with guests who may be affected.   Our company is committed to driving a positive impact on society and the environment. As part of our global sustainability program, Sail & Sustain, we are continually seeking opportunities to reduce our overall carbon footprint, and recently committed to pursuing net zero greenhouse gas emissions across our operations and value chain by 2050. To support this mission, we have optimized our arrival and departure times. We appreciate your understanding and support on this important sustainability initiative. The revised itinerary is as follows:  SHORE EXCURSIONS Shore excursions booked through NCL for Castries, St, Lucia, St. John's, Antigua, and St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands will be automatically adjusted to the new dates and times in port; no further action is required. Shore excursions booked through NCL for Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic will be automatically canceled, and a full monetary refund of the fare paid will be issued to your onboard account; no further action is required. If you are interested in booking new excursions for your upcoming vacation, please login to your MyNCL account or contact us directly at (866) 625-1167. Guests residing outside of the U.S. or Canada should visit www.ncl.com for local contact information. TRAVEL DOCUMENTS Depending on nationality, guests may require a passport and/or a visa to visit certain ports of call. All necessary documentation should be printed and available to present at check-in on embarkation day. Guests who fail to obtain these documents will be denied boarding. For more information on the necessary documentation to sail and for all ports of call, please visit www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/cruise-travel-documents. Requirements and policies are subject to change. YOUR HEALTH AND SAFETY  We have updated our protocols to further align to those of the broader travel, leisure and hospitality industry worldwide, making it easier for guests to return to sea with us. As such, we welcome all guests to sail with us, regardless of vaccination status and age, and with no testing or masking requirements. For additional information on our health and safety protocols, please visit www.ncl.com/sail-safe.  Please note that destination specific travel requirements supersede any NCL embarkation protocols. As such, we strongly encourage you to visit www.ncl.com/travel-requirements-by-country to ensure you are in compliance and avoid any chance of being denied boarding. We encourage you to check these sites often, as regulations change frequently and with very short notice. We sincerely appreciate your understanding and look forward to welcoming you aboard the beautiful Norwegian Getaway for your dream vacation at sea! As always, we are at your service.  Sincerely, Katty Byrd Senior Vice President, Guest Services

What I find really strange is not all of us going on this cruise have received any information. I know a few people going and they don't have it. I called my TA who works for a large travel company in NJ. The last official info they have from NCL is the daily rate changes. When I called NCL last night and spoke to two people they knew nothing about the change in itinerary 

[cruiseny4life]

1 hour ago, Laszlo said:

What I find really strange is not all of us going on this cruise have received any information. I know a few people going and they don't have it. I called my TA who works for a large travel company in NJ. The last official info they have from NCL is the daily rate changes. When I called NCL last night and spoke to two people they knew nothing about the change in itinerary 

That is crazy not everyone has received the letter from NCL. 

 

Here it is. Same as posted above, just in PDF form. N. Getaway 1.8.2023 Itinerary Change (2).pdf

[SunshineGal2022]

On 12/21/2022 at 6:52 AM, asmit4 said:

Their claim is if they go slower they will save gas and that helps the earth. It's nothing but marketing BS. They SAVE $$$ on gas by going slower. 

I have family who work on emissions testing of boats in the port in Los Angeles. 

 

The majority of newer boat engines were built to have better emissions than the engines of boats from many decades ago.  HOWEVER, the majority of the new engines have their emissions tested at normal ocean cruising speed and not at slower speeds (like when coming into port, or when boats go slow to save gas).  Regulators forgot to include to test the emissions at slower speeds.  Consequently, engines in slow moving boats are often worse for the environment than engines in boats moving at faster speeds.  More pollutants are released into the air at the slower speeds.

 

This also applies to big rig trucks. Most of the engines were created to have good emissions at highway speed.  But they didn’t account for when the truck is slower moving in a city.  Oftentimes the engines will let out considerably more emissions in a city than on the highway.  

 

It wouldn't surprise me to see new US emission regulations with high and low speed maximums in the future. 

 

>>>

 

Sorry for the OT discussion.  I am watching this thread closely because I am praying they fix the situation at DR.  I really would like to go on the excursions on the island.  

[Laszlo]

17 minutes ago, SunshineGal2022 said:

I have family who work on emissions testing of boats in the port in Los Angeles. 

 

The majority of newer boat engines were built to have better emissions than the engines of boats from many decades ago.  HOWEVER, the majority of the new engines have their emissions tested at normal ocean cruising speed and not at slower speeds (like when coming into port, or when boats go slow to save gas).  Regulators forgot to include to test the emissions at slower speeds.  Consequently, engines in slow moving boats are often worse for the environment than engines in boats moving at faster speeds.  More pollutants are released into the air at the slower speeds.

 

This also applies to big rig trucks. Most of the engines were created to have good emissions at highway speed.  But they didn’t account for when the truck is slower moving in a city.  Oftentimes the engines will let out considerably more emissions in a city than on the highway.  

 

It wouldn't surprise me to see new US emission regulations with high and low speed maximums in the future. 

 

>>>

 

Sorry for the OT discussion.  I am watching this thread closely because I am praying they fix the situation at DR.  I really would like to go on the excursions on the island.  

On my particular cruise NCL using the emissions and environmental excuse for the time changes to the port schedule is a joke. Considering we are traveling about 3800 miles total, the slower speed from Barbados to St John, (260 miles) now putting us three hours later than the original port time isn't going to help much over the total trip. Now that we have sea days to putt putt back instead of two I guess would help more

[alwalaska]

On 12/2/2022 at 1:55 PM, zqvol said:

Notice that after the first of the year no NCL ships dock at Amber Cove.

I'm wondering if that is because it has not been updated yet.  I do not think any of the large ships will dock at Taino Bay until the problems (narrow channel or something) that led to the damage on one of the ships last March is fixed.

 

I've heard of a couple of cruises lately where they simply missed Puerto Plata or were changed to another port.  One was told "civil unrest" which is possible, but not likely since there wasn't anything I could find in the news and the other was told "unknown" reasons.

 

It seems like NCL is very low on the priority list for Amber Cove and only 2 ships can dock there.  The Sky has been reliably hitting Taino Bay but is has a smaller draught that any of the other ships trying to call there.

 

I'm curious to see what happens on Christmas with the Dawn since that is the ship we will be on in February.  I guess we will find out when we get on board.  So far, we are still going to Key West, but I realize that may change as well since the December sailings all had Key West cancelled.

[alwalaska]

On 12/14/2022 at 1:14 PM, asmit4 said:

The smaller ships are still going to Taino. The larger ones are the problem. 

The question is, other than the Sky, what is considered a smaller ship?  We're on the Dawn in Feb and as far as I know, it has not been to Taino Bay yet, but our cruise hasn't been updated officially to Amber Cove either.  Luckily (??), I don't see any other ships at either location on Feb 11, so hopefully we will make it to at least one of the two ports.  I ended up booking a private tour rather than depending on being able to walk into town.  Not giving NCL extra money just because they can't keep people informed.

[Turtles06]

2 minutes ago, alwalaska said:

The question is, other than the Sky, what is considered a smaller ship?  We're on the Dawn in Feb

 

I would consider the Sky, Spirit, Dawn, Star, POA, and all of the Jewel-class ships to be NCL's "smaller ships." 

[alwalaska]

2 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

 

I would consider the Sky, Spirit, Dawn, Star, POA, and all of the Jewel-class ships to be NCL's "smaller ships." 

I hope you are right.  I was trying to find the draught on the different ships, but it is not easy to find.  It looks like the Sky is about 18 inches better off than the Dawn and the Dawn is only 6 inches better off than the Escape, unless the info I found was wrong.

[mpcaruth]

We are scheduled to be in DR on the Escape on 1/9.  One of the main reasons for choosing this cruise over others (considered RC and Carnival) was the DR stop.  I have a private tour booked, and will not be happy if we miss this port, especially if the cruiseline knows in advanced and chooses to hide this info from customers.

 

There are 2 Carnival ships, one RC, and the Escape currently on the Amber Cove schedule (cruisemapper.com).  And based on history, it appears to be only a 50% chance of making it to GSC! Oy Vey, fingers crossed.

 

 

Edited December 23, 2022 by mpcaruth

[European_CruiseGirl]

On 12/22/2022 at 8:39 PM, alwalaska said:

I hope you are right.  I was trying to find the draught on the different ships, but it is not easy to find.  It looks like the Sky is about 18 inches better off than the Dawn and the Dawn is only 6 inches better off than the Escape, unless the info I found was wrong.

I would definitely consider Dawn small 😊

 

Edited December 23, 2022 by European_CruiseGirl

[alwalaska]

12 minutes ago, European_CruiseGirl said:

I would definitely consider Dawn small 😊

 

 

Me too, but as far as Puerto Plato goes, it seems like the Dawn is not going to dock at La Taino.  When the most recent sailing boarded yesterday, they were given a letter saying the port has been replace with Puerto Rico.  I checked the schedule and Amber Cove will have 2 ships on the day they were supposed to be there, so at least that part of the theory is still standing.  I really wish NCL would tell people BEFORE they get on the ship.