NCL Bliss - LIVE - 1/22/23 to 1/27/23

[New2cruise2022]

1 minute ago, rxlowry said:

You can put some in a bowl from the buffet and it will be like you have a butler since it seems gummies and m&ms are so often requested.   

I’ll have @drwbrtdo this for me. He is 8 years younger than me and I used him as my personal butler while I was growing up. His nickname was Jeeves. He was a very good butler but I usually had to coerce him to bring me food and drinks. “He can you do something for me … wait, it’s too hard for you to do …” He would protest that he was smart enough, strong enough, or capable enough to do whatever task was required and within 30 seconds he was begging for the opportunity to make me a sandwich and get me a drink with extra ice. 
 

Now you all have an insight into our family dynamics. I know why he is my best friend, but I have to wonder why I am his …

[drwbrt]

14 minutes ago, New2cruise2022 said:

@drwbrt Rendezvoused with us late last night (around 11:30 PM). His flights were timely as well. I don’t know if this makes me a good brother or the worst brother, but instead of doing the airport pickup, I decided sent him $40 on AppleCash and told him to get an Uber. (I know, the airport pickup is a true sign of friendship, but I decided 10 hours in a car was my max for the day.) 

I would have been sad to miss Winston. There is no way a personal pickup would have been any faster. 

 

[New2cruise2022]

Arrival:

We arrived around 9 AM. We drove all the way around the parking lot at Berth 91-92 and dropped our bags off with a porter. When we went to park, they directed us to Berth 46 to park as we will return to that Berth and pick up the car there. It was about 2 miles away and signage was pretty good, like little breadcrumbs all Hansel and Gretel style. 
 

At 9 AM the pier was pretty busy. Still lots of passengers collecting bags and buses waiting to take them away. 
 

Everything feels easy and stress free. The shuttle ride (where I am sitting as I update now) is comfortable and not overly crowded. Everyone has a seat. 

[drwbrt]

The driving out to 46 and returning on the shuttle is about a 20 minute add on if you’re planning that perfect arrival window. 
 

There were plenty of shuttles available but they don’t leave until they are full. 

[New2cruise2022]

Tipping Update:
 

Tipped the shuttle driver. (Not that you need to.) I handed him two singles. Worth noting that the only other tip in his tip bin … you guessed it … a $2 bill. 

[drwbrt]

 It sure how it worked, but there was an overflow security off to the right in the second tent. This seemed like some type of priority line. It was empty so they diverted our party to that line. We were in line a total of 6 minutes before we entered the check-in area. 
 

9:54a all checked in, cards in hand. Now we’ll play some cards while we wait to board. 

Edited January 22, 2023 by drwbrt

[New2cruise2022]

We definitely had a little luck being diverted to what I assume was a priority checkin line. Our Norwegian checkin personnel was a woman in her 60s. First day on the job. First passenger she checked in. It took her time to learn what to do, and the iPad she was using may as well have been the interface for the International Space Station because she had no idea how to use it. 
 

She took 3-4 times as long to check us in as other people. But we had time on our hands and offered her all of our 1) smiles, 2) patience, and 3) understanding. If you travel with these three things EVERYONE has a better time. 

[New2cruise2022]

BTW, we are in Group 2 for boarding. I assume this means it will be after Haven, Priority, and Latitudes people and we will board sometime after them around 11:30-12.
 

FWIW, the temperature in the wait area is Goldilocks. Not too hot, not too cold.  

[New2cruise2022]

If you are worried about sustenance before you board and have unlimited food, there are vending machines for snacks and drinks. Prices seem reasonable and beat airports. About $3 for drinks, about $1.50 for snacks. There is a coffee vending machine too. 
 

[New2cruise2022]

Port WiFi:

The Port of Los Angeles has Wi-Fi available. I was never able to connect. Neither was @drwbrt My service provider (AT&T) has good coverage of both 5G and 5G+. 
 

Put the phone in Airplane Mode and tried to connect to the ship WiFi. It was nowhere to be found. So, there isn’t a scramble by people trying to reserve things. Crowd seems happy and content at this point. 

[New2cruise2022]

Note about cruising with birth certificates:

I am traveling with a passport. My boys (17 and 15) are traveling with birth certificates and IDs. 
 

At checkin at the counter this morning, I had to sign a waiver acknowledging how horrible my trip will be if we have to return to the United States any other way but on the ship. 
 

I was already aware of this, but didn’t know I would have to sign. Not a big deal, but for those that have never signed this form, now you know. 

[New2cruise2022]

It’s 11:40 now. No one has boarded yet. Just had a general announcement that land personnel is waiting for the green light from ship personnel. The waiting area is pretty full. Some of the crowd is getting restless. We have seats and are comfortable. We board when we board. 

[KP@Sea]

Thank you for doing this review. I hope the trip is everything you anticipated it to be!

 

Have a wonderful time. ⚓️

[eileeshb]

I’m looking forward to you relating your experience, I definitely like the idea of the air tags for finding each other. I’m currently trying to persuade a friend to come along on a cruise in October and we’ll be in separate cabins if she comes. 

[drwbrt]

Muster Drill

On this sailing we are having an in person muster; the full thing. Scan card, wait, hear the alarm, wait, life jacket demonstration, full list of rules. Started scanning in at 3:30p, the alarm was a little before 4p. All the announcements were finished and we were dismissed at 4:08p. 

[New2cruise2022]

Muster Drill:

First muster drill for me. Seems like it is what has been billed as traditional. The announcement was made for muster and all bars and revenue generating venues were closed. Within 15 minutes, most people were scanned and the official announcement/muster  began. This all started around 3:15 PM. 
 

There was no chaos and everyone seemed happy and compliant, both passengers and crew. I have heard the complaints about waiting. From a safety standpoint this must be done. From a business standpoint, the ship is motivated to conduct the drill as quickly and efficiently as possible to get the revenue generators back up and running. 
 

I know this is an ongoing debate of preferences. I thought it was organized. Easy to hear the instructions overhead. Easy to see the demonstrations. Does it take more time than it should? Probably. But the time constraint honestly has to do more with how quickly passengers assemble at the station. Good attitudes and kindness should be the rule of thumb for drills and in the event of an emergency. 
 

TOTAL TIME: Approx. 50 minutes from the first announcement. 
 

Our must station was in the Manhattan, as shown below. My only complaint — and not a big one — is that it feels a little bit like sitting on an airplane that is in line to take off. It’s slow, and a bit hot. I wish they were cranking the AC. 
 

Pro Tip: Keep a drink (or two) in your hand. Then you have something to sip on. 

[LauraAnneC]

Really enjoying your report so far. Looking forward to reading the rest of it! Enjoy!

 

[New2cruise2022]

NFL Playoffs on (NOT on) Board:

We have some football fans. Specifically, the Cincinnati Bengals. (Who Dey?) For those traveling in the next few weeks, we were not able to find the game when we boarded. Not on the TVs in staterooms and not on the TVs in the Local. We will report back and let you know if the Niners/Cowboys is anywhere to be found. (It seems about as likely we will see the Cowboys’  game as Brett Maher will hit an extra point …)

Note: YouTubeTV was able to stream on my network connection with AT&T. So, we did watch the game on the phone. Go Bengals. 

[drwbrt]

For super nerds you absolutely can access the hdmi on your stateroom tv. Just bring a universal remote and the necessary connections for whatever you’re bringing. Shows obviously need to be downloaded ahead of time. The remote was $10 on Amazon. I haven’t played with the screencast option yet; I’ll update when I do.

[CruzinMel]

58 minutes ago, New2cruise2022 said:

Muster Drill:

First muster drill for me. Seems like it is what has been billed as traditional. The announcement was made for muster and all bars and revenue generating venues were closed. Within 15 minutes, most people were scanned and the official announcement/muster  began. This all started around 3:15 PM. 
 

There was no chaos and everyone seemed happy and compliant, both passengers and crew. I have heard the complaints about waiting. From a safety standpoint this must be done. From a business standpoint, the ship is motivated to conduct the drill as quickly and efficiently as possible to get the revenue generators back up and running. 
 

I know this is an ongoing debate of preferences. I thought it was organized. Easy to hear the instructions overhead. Easy to see the demonstrations. Does it take more time than it should? Probably. But the time constraint honestly has to do more with how quickly passengers assemble at the station. Good attitudes and kindness should be the rule of thumb for drills and in the event of an emergency. 
 

TOTAL TIME: Approx. 50 minutes from the first announcement. 
 

Our must station was in the Manhattan, as shown below. My only complaint — and not a big one — is that it feels a little bit like sitting on an airplane that is in line to take off. It’s slow, and a bit hot. I wish they were cranking the AC. 
 

Pro Tip: Keep a drink (or two) in your hand. Then you have something to sip on. 

On the drinks- you are NOT WRONG.  I used to time it so that I was at a bar at 3:15 getting a beverage before they shut down at 330 for a 4 pm departure.

[CruzinMel]

24 minutes ago, New2cruise2022 said:

NFL Playoffs on (NOT on) Board:

We have some football fans. Specifically, the Cincinnati Bengals. (Who Dey?) For those traveling in the next few weeks, we were not able to find the game when we boarded. Not on the TVs in staterooms and not on the TVs in the Local. We will report back and let you know if the Niners/Cowboys is anywhere to be found. (It seems about as likely we will see the Cowboys’  game as Brett Maher will hit an extra point …)

Note: YouTubeTV was able to stream on my network connection with AT&T. So, we did watch the game on the phone. Go Bengals. 

On Escape, sports were on Channel 27, and also on the big screens at Spice H20 and O'Sheehans - that was the NYE bowl games, which would be comparable to today's. 

 

Dallas' kicker continues to be cursed.  Hopefully somebody will get him a bucket of chicken and give Jobu some rum at halftime.  

[New2cruise2022]

For our entertainment on board we may skip the comedy shows and read @CruzinMel’s comments. Someone is bringing the funny to the LIVE. Thanks for your participation!

[eileeshb]

1 hour ago, New2cruise2022 said:

NFL Playoffs on (NOT on) Board:

We have some football fans. Specifically, the Cincinnati Bengals. (Who Dey?) For those traveling in the next few weeks, we were not able to find the game when we boarded. Not on the TVs in staterooms and not on the TVs in the Local. We will report back and let you know if the Niners/Cowboys is anywhere to be found. (It seems about as likely we will see the Cowboys’  game as Brett Maher will hit an extra point …)

Note: YouTubeTV was able to stream on my network connection with AT&T. So, we did watch the game on the phone. Go Bengals. 

Try being a rugby fan on a cruise ship… I’ve now mastered the art of finding the strongest WiFi on the ship to use the vpn streaming of my Irish tv subscription services . My next cruise is overlapping the rugby World Cup, I’m hoping if Ireland are still involved in the tournament they’ll have the decency to be in the games that don’t clash with embarkation and disembarkation. 

[New2cruise2022]

Sailaway (aka GTFO):

Published itinerary was 4 PM embarkation. We were in Cagney’s (great table next to the aft windows) when felt the first movements and saw the scenery start to change. That was an hour into dinner at 6:30 PM. (More on dinner later, but it was a great dinner and a great way to get this all started.)

[NW Pacific]

Any idea if all Ships are going back to traditional muster drill, the last year or so has been done online watching a video and then just as you board go to your assigned station and get your card scanned???