NYC CRUISES PLANNING/INFO ThREAD!

[pjstevens]

This seems like a good option for us, eliminating the flight to FLorida. Are the cruise prices on par w/the FLA departures or more?

Would the 8 night NY cruise be too many days at sea? We've never cruised before....

We are doing the Canadian cruise which is two sea days. Seems ideal to us. We've done Disney (and will be there twice in the next five months), so I didn't feel it was worth it to 'sail to Florida' to go to Disney. We are doing something 'new' for us. Looking very much to this.

 

[mommy2tati]

This seems like a good option for us, eliminating the flight to FLorida. Are the cruise prices on par w/the FLA departures or more?

Would the 8 night NY cruise be too many days at sea? We've never cruised before....

We've booked the 8 night out of NYC for next year. To me it's worth it. You don't have to deal with airports, security, rental cars & the like.

As far as the sea days there's always something to do on the ships. I don't think it's possible to be bored. I've never had more than one sea day but I don't think we will have any issues.

Just to compare:
We're 1 Adult & 1 child (10)

8/25/2012 Magic 8 night: $4531.12 in Cat 5B

8/25/2012 Fantasy 7 night: $4398.74 in Cat 5B + $550 (Airfare) + $100 (1 night pre-cruise hotel) + $80 (2 one way car rentals to/from the port) = $5128.74

 

[Jerseymomof2]

We've booked the 8 night out of NYC for next year. To me it's worth it. You don't have to deal with airports, security, rental cars & the like.

We are taking the NY cruise too. We live in NJ and just avoiding the airport was enough to make me do it. even if it cost us a bit more to leave from NY the saved time (I have 2 little guys) and to avoid the crazy security and luggage issues/costs had us sold!

 

[DisneyDoc1895]

We just did a NY to Canada cruise on another cruise line, that went to Halifax and Saint John. I did a mini TR on the ports, which is here:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=41714612#post41714612

Ken

 

[mommy2tati]

We are taking the NY cruise too. We live in NJ and just avoiding the airport was enough to make me do it. even if it cost us a bit more to leave from NY the saved time (I have 2 little guys) and to avoid the crazy security and luggage issues/costs had us sold!

I'm so with you on that one! I jumped at the chance when the bookings opened! I really didn't care what it cost. I was budgeting about $5000 for the 2 of us but since there are 4 of us un the cabin it's quite a bit less.

 

[yopaulie5]

I can't wait to check this out!

 

[sunny45]

We are from Lower Bucks County area and just inquired into this service and although we really aren't "saving" any money we aren't driving and are not dealing with the train and cabs. He quoted me $230 r/t for the 2 us from the Oxford Valley Mall area in Langhorne PA to the Port. My friend at work has used him before.

http://www.davesbestlimoservice.com/

 

[peachygreen]

Does anyone know what time the Manhatten terminal would open to drop off luggage?

Would it be possible to drop off luggage with the porters and then go next door to the Intrepid museum to be there when it opens at 10am and explore for a few hours before checking in at the terminal?

As a side question, in NYC what would be considered a customary ammount to tip the porters? I tipped ~$2/bag at Port Canaveral. Would that be sufficient in NYC or would you tip more because everything in NYC is more expensive in general then it is in FL.

 

[templed]

You could arrive at 10am... yes.

You could definately go next door and visit the museum... I've not been there in years... so I don't know how long it really takes to get through it.

I can't imagine it taking too long.

Unless I have like MASSIVE amounts of luggage... I usually through the porters in NY a $20... (But that's me) The general rule of thumb is that it is $2 per bag... but... it can't hurt to grease the wheels either.

Enjoy the city! if you have any questions ... fire away... Live in NYC (Staten Island) and work in Manhattan (10 + years)...

 

[Aristocath]

I believe the port opens for parking at 9am so I'm sure porters will be available then or soon after. The Intrepid is at 46th so it may be a couple of blocks down, I'm not sure if it will be a hassle to get out of the terminal and down to the Museum or not.

It will take several hours to really see the Intrepid and we paid $24/adult and $19 per kid, minus a discount for buying in advance online.

If it was me, I wouldn't do it because I'd hate to tire my kids out in a museum before they got onboard. My two older ones enjoyed it but my youngest son got very bored.

But whatever you decide to do have a great vacation.

 

[templed]

Most of the time... ships will dock in pier 88... Intrepid is literally in the next berth.... Don't let "a couple blocks" mislead you. It's a very quick walk....

If there are multiple ships in port (God help you if there are)... then you might have to walk a little further. But it's not far.

Here's a link...

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Intre...-95.677068&sspn=56.856075,109.248047&t=h&z=16

You'll see the intrepid... the next berth north is the cruise terminal. There are a few berths... but the labeling on the google map is misleading for the cruise terminal. The one that is directly next to the intrepid is the "main" terminal .... At least in my experience that is.

 

[mmouse37]

I agree that the Intrepid is right next door to the terminal and and easy walk....parking at the cruise port in NYC is $30 per day. I have cruised out of NYC several times and also always pick up and drop off people coming and going on a cruise from NYC.

I have found that the port is very chaotic in the AM and porters are concentrating on getting the existing passengers to their vehicles, buses, etc. I do not think they will accept incoming luggage until at least 11:00 or so. I usually drop people off after 11:30 and there are porters around to accept luggage...most of the exiting passengers are gone and most of the incoming have not arrived yet.

NCL and Carnival request you do not arrive before noon I think. I can't find the exact pargaraph yet as it is in the online docs and they are not available to fill out yet but I will post when they are.

I did find this on my parents confirmation for their upcoming cruise on NCL and I am sure it can help someone. I also posted many pics of the port in another post that I will link here.

SEE POST #10 AND #11

Driving Directions and Parking Information

New York City Passenger Ship Terminal
711 12th Avenue
New York, NY 10019

The New York City Passenger Ship Terminal is located 15 miles from Newark International Airport, 15 miles from LaGuardia Airport and 20 miles from JFK International Airport. Parking is $30.00 per day (rates are subject to change by the Port Authority).

From outside New York City - Take the New Jersey Turnpike North/South to the Lincoln Tunnel. Take the Lincoln Tunnel to New York City. Go north on 12th Avenue to 55th Street. Go west on 55th Street. Proceed to Pier 88/90/92.

From John F. Kennedy Airport - Take the ramp toward Airport Exit/Other Terminals. Stay straight and get on the JFK Expressway. Merge onto I-678 N/Van Wyck Expressway. Then, merge onto Grand Central Parkway W via exit 10. Take the I-495 W exit. Merge onto I-495 W/Long Island Expressway via exit 10W. Take the I-278 W exit, toward Brooklyn-Queens Expressway/Brooklyn. Merge onto I-495 W via the exit on the left toward Midtown Tunnel/Manhattan. Keep left at the fork in the ramp. Stay straight to go onto Queens Midtown Tunnel Exit. Turn right onto E 34th St. Turn right onto 12th Ave/NY-9A N/West Side Highway. Turn left onto W 55th St. Proceed to Pier 88/90/92.

MJ

 

[flexsmom]

My DS7 and I spent many hours at the Intrepid last summer. He LOVED it. It probably helped that he has an uncle who flew F14s, comes from a Marine Corps family, and his grandma is a Pearl Harbor survivor - so I tried to relate much of the exhibit and some of the "experiences" (such as the Kamakaze discussion) to his family.

You can get an audio tour device, and he loved that. I actually think it's a great way to kill some time before you get underway on the ship - and it's not like there is that much actual "physical" activity associated with kids getting on a ship and going to the sail-away party anyway!

 

[42trvl]

You should have plenty of time to visit the Intrepid. I think the port terminal should be fairly quiet by 10am, and it is a very quick walk to the Intrepid. I know when we were getting off a ship last summer at the NY terminal at 8:30 there were already people dropping luggage off. Not sure of the ages (if you have kids) and interests of your group, but you can go online ahead of time and figure out what you'd like to see at the Intrepid. Cruise or no cruise, I would find it hard to spend more than a few hours there anyway and it is possible to cover quite a bit in 3 hours, especially if you've done some advance planning. One of the highlights with many of the kids (and adults also) we know who have been there is the actual submarine they have. It's definitely a worthwhile and fairly easy thing to do if you are going to be so close with a few extra hours.

 

[lisamarch]

Anybody know which airport to fly into in NYC for DCL transportation?

 

[mmouse37]

Anybody know which airport to fly into in NYC for DCL transportation?

The three major airports for the NYC area are JFK, LGA (LaGuardia) and EWR (Newark, NJ). Any of those would be acceptable for the cruise....LGA and EWR would be the closest to the NYC terminal.

But...DCL has not listed what airports they will have transportation available (that I am aware of) so we may have to wait a bit until they release that info. or, call DCL maybe they can tell you if they will have buses from all the major airports.

There is also a smaller airport called HPN (White Plains), but they only serve a few airlines...let JetBlue and AirTran.

MJ

 

[mmouse37]

Best bet is to contact the port directly and see what time they are accepting luggage.....and please post if you do get an answer. Here is the link to port. It also has a ton of info on NYC and some photos so is a nice site to check out.

http://www.nycruise.com/

MJ

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I asked my TA this before and she told me that DCL ground transfers are from JFK, LaGuardia, & Newark. We are close enough to drive but were considering avoiding NYC traffic/navigating by parking at Newark and taking DCL bus from there.
(Now we're probably switching from a NY sailing to an Alaska 2013 sailing so I haven't been paying much attention to NY.)

 

[mmouse37]

bumping up

 

[Happy Goofy]

We live in Rocky Hill, CT and we were wondering if anyone got a price for a van to take you to the port.We are not quite two hours from there.
Does anyone know if DCL is providing transfers from any of the hotels? We were thinking of going the day before if we can get a good hotel rate and one that would take us to the port in the morning.