First Time on Norwegian--Some Questions

[omahabob]

8 hours ago, Condor_Christi said:

...So My question is, essentially, what's the catch?...

 

The coffee's free in the buffet. That's the catch.

[KansasTexan]

9 hours ago, Condor_Christi said:

Hello and good morning.

 

This will be my first trip on Norwegian headed up to Alaska in late October from Seattle on The Bliss.. I have a few questions

 

I see they have a Starbucks package for $108. I bought it.   On a 7 day cruise, that seems sort of....not sure how to say this without sounding mean....reasonable????  Its a name brand, it's a captive audience, it's listed for $12.00 a day or so.  Given Starbucks drinks regularly go for $7 each....  It seems like you may actually get your money's worth out of this one.  So My question is, essentially, what's the catch?  Do they only serve shot glasses of their beverages; are they only open when you're in port or something????  Is there a hidden tax?  I pre-paid gratuities...I understand you can add more if you wish to on a transaction-by-transaction basis.  The "fine print" said that a 20% gratuity would be added but no such gratuity was added. 

 

Next is this. I work overnights and even when I am not working, I regularly find myself staying up late or even overnights in some cases. While I doubt I will be doing that on board, I see where they have a 24 hour eatery on board.  It is called the "Local Bar and Grill".  My question is this.  Can I expect to get the same offerings at 3AM that I could expect at 7PM? 

 

If anyone has been up to Alaska in October, I have some questions for you as well.

 

The Northern Lights...are they always "on".  (LOL).  Is there a season for them and if so, would I have missed it in October?

We're stopping in Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan. Will there be much open in late October? 

What are the odds of seeing large marine animals next to the ship? 

 

Any info will be helpful. 

 

If you have access to the Solo Studio Lounge, the coffee machine there is above par. I spent most of my career working in hospitals and throwing down whatever sludgy brew had been heated up for hours, though, so my reference point may be off. (I also find the coffee at the restaurants to be good. Go figure.)   As far as seeing marine life from the ship, I cruised on the Encore 2 years ago September and we so SO MANY WHALES! The trick is to watch for the water spout. When you're scanning the horizon and you see "something different", that's when you'll know a whale is nearby. So much fun!

[condorchristi]

Thanks everyone for the great advice.  Excellent insights and pertinent data.  

 

I’m a little worried about getting off the boat in Ketchikan.  In at 7, out at 1:15.  

 

How is embarkation in Seattle?  Does the terminal have a “compound” set up...I remember Galveston was terrible...(been about 6 years since I cruised out of there.  

 

 

[TheBeardedCruiser]

I've seen a long line for Starbucks all day, every day on one cruise. On another, they had self-serve Starbucks machines in the buffet and the main Starbucks line was shorter. The self-serve machines only served coffee and maybe hot chocolate (it's been a couple years, so I don't remember exactly), but you could use your cruise card to buy a plain Starbucks coffee or hot chocolate (?) with zero lines. I haven't found any website or board that tells us which NCL ships have those machines and which don't...

Edited June 24 by TheBeardedCruiser