Manhattan Cruise Terminal — Attraction in New York

I've been cruising with NCL for well over a decade absolutely loved everything about the cruise line. For the first time ever their prices have gone up so ridiculously high for me they have made my ability to continue to cruise with them. Granted they do offer more perks than other cruise lines, but it's still way overpriced compared to MSC and other cruise lines out of New York. I would cruise at least two times a year religiously for over 10 years and now I can barely afford one cruise with them going forward. The worst now is you now have to pay 4 months in advance which I find ridiculous as so much can happen within 4 months. When I started cruising with them it was 30 days out then it went to 60 then it went to 90 and now 120 days that is a quarter of the entire year I'm so blanked off that they're holding my money that long. I can totally get 60 days which is reasonable. I but than pushing 90 days and now 4 months is off the charts. I have a cruise booked for 2025 I have to pay relatively soon and I booked it because the price at that time was just on my budget at the very top end. Out of curiosity I went to see what it's going for now not concerned because I locked in my price, but it is up $200. The average Cruise now has gone up from $200 to a staggering $400.00 some 4 day cruises which I would never do since it's too short of a time are actually after taxes adding beverage package in $2,000 hold on it's for a studio. I've spoken to many people on Facebook groups and they all say the same thing it's so unfortunate going forward I will book the last minute if the prices go down and if they don't "say la vie" The other issue I have now is you call and you're connected obviously to a cruise consultant and you just can't ask a basic question. They make you give your Consultants name and they have to be transferred I'm not asking for the codes to a nuclear bomb, they put you through basic Cruise hell LOL. This is also the third time my Consultants have either left the company or got promoted which im very happy for them, but they don't let you know until you call and they say oh they left well that would be nice to know thank goodness I was able to get a new Cruise consultant which I had spoken to Prior and actually took their extension I'm just kind of getting fed up with the Hoops that you now have to jump through. The online chat is a complete joke they actually can be condescending which is a miracle if you consider probably half of it is AI again they will not answer a basic question and most of the time the answer is wrong if it sounds like I'm frustrated it's because I am. My loyalty was obviously high considering as a very high latitude member, it's sad that I have to now question my future loyalty with NCL I wish I could give them five stars cuz that's what they used to be. I totally will...

Excellent place... The "Terminal" Actually consists of 3 Triple or Double level piers, with parking on upper level only. If you are planning to walk there, be aware the terminal is about 3500-4000 ft (1,100 meters or so) from the closest trains or buses. This isn't a far distance for your average New Yorker but it CAN be a long walk if you are not used to walking or live somewhere where you are used to driving a car to get to places you need to go - It would therefore be less troublesome to hire an Uber or Lyft to the terminals. I did and it cost $10 for 2 adults plus luggage from 7th Ave. & 44 St. using LYFT.

Once you get there, Be Aware OF crowds! The buildings are on piers, interconnected by long halls (tunnels?), elevators and escalators. So ask an employee which buildings are interconnected and make your way using the less occupied ways up or down!

Checking in you will see long, LONG lines but the waiting on lines is usually less than hour thanks to the 30 or so travel "receptionists" who will check your paperwork for errors and will get you checked in with as little haste as possible. Be certain to do as much paperwork online and your time with the "check-in" attendants can be cut down to less than 10 minutes - or closer to an hour if you make them do all the typing.

Before you get 9n line to check in, check your papers "forms" for completion and take out all documents you need to travel to a foreign country (boarding passes, passports for everyone, credit cards for your onboard accounts, etc).

If you have a small bladder, take time to use the bathrooms before getting only - Once you get to check in, everyone in your party will be photographed individually for your ID/Room Key...even the small children. Keep this ID tied to you, even the children, in case of emergencies or to confirm you have left/returned to the ship when the ship reaches it's various ports.

Some cruiselines now use electronic "medallions" for check in, and they can cut your wait time to a "few minutes"! You just walk in and wave your medallion, present your American passport and you are waved on to the ship! Total time from taxi dropoff to getting on ship can be as little as 10 minutes or less! Look into...

Writing this on behalf of my elderly parents who just arrived from a 10 day cruise to Bermuda departing from NYC. This was her complaint to an unresponsive NCL customer service team with details of her terrible experience:

"I have cruised NCL in the past and always had a pleasant experience. This was my husband's first experience on NCL and we were excited and looking forward to a much needed vacation, birthday and wedding anniversary. Within four days of the cruise, I tested positive for COVID, fortunately my husband was negative. I was then separated from my husband and sequestered in a separate room which is where I had to spend the rest of the remaining days. As if this wasn't bad enough, no medical personnel checked on me or did any monitoring of my condition being mindful that I have stated on the form which was brought to me that I have lung issues and diabetes. Additionally, I had to make multiple calls to have dishes, linens, and toiletries removed which was very upsetting. The cleanliness of the room was grossly neglected. NCL neglected me and made me feel like a caged animal. The day of arrival back in NYC we were separated from everyone else and herded together like cattle going to slaughter! This is no way to treat a returning passenger or encourage me to book any future cruises with NCL. Despite all of the separation and adherence to protocol on the ship, my husband and the rest of my group also tested positive on our arrival. Please be weary of NCL when booking a cruise if you have medical conditions, because they simply will not...