July 2015 - 7 Night Alaska Glacier Bay (Seattle Roundtrip) Cruise on Norwegian Pearl
Great service on NCL
quercusalba
Purser
Joined 07/2015
1
Cruise3
Reviews55
Helpful VotesPast cruises
Norwegian Epic
Sail date: December 12, 2021
Great itinerary, needed vacation after 2 years of burnout and isolation.
Appreciate NCLs 100% Vaccination policy--more of industry should do this, including airlines.
Norwegian Dawn
Sail date: November 14, 2023
10 Day History of Western Civilization Course
This is a cruise designed to introduce travelers to some of the most important sites in Western history and culture, while giving you a comfortable bed, tasty meal, and ample libations along the way.
Norwegian Pearl
Sail date: July 19, 2015
This is our 3rd cruise with NCL, our 2nd on the Pearl. They never cease to impress with their commitment to service. The itinerary is a bit of a weakness, as the spectacular views can be obscured unpredictably by weather, and the ports are nothing too special (as well as being very brief visits). Still, this has been on my list for a long time, and was worth doing once in my life.
Cruise tips
We stayed 2 days after and really enjoyed Istanbul.
Rainy day--walked to archaeological museum in town.
EARLY excursion to Ephesus. Great site--better than the Acropolis. (Could have done without the carpet sales pitch at lunch, though.)
Nicest weather day, but Mykonos was almost empty--clearly post-tourist season. We were able to shuttle to town, walk around on our own (with Rick Steeves' walking tour guide), found a lunch, got "bombed" by a local pigeon... Nice day.
NCL excursion to Salona ruins and Troje village, returned with still enough time to visit Diocletian palace in Split.
Did HOHO bus on own from port. Athens is a big place--even off-season Acropolis is crowded, but a must-see if you haven't been.
High winds prevented safe docking, so had unplanned sea day. Disappointed to miss Olympia, but made best of the day.
Again weather forced 3 ships to be disembarking in old port area...long wait for cable car. Had private excursion, which turned out well, but left with somewhat jaded impression of the place. Must be a real mess in summer!
Many choices. Enjoyed NCL excursions to Krk island to monastery and medieval town.
Please stop equating it with (Venice) with those parentheses, NCL, unless you're going to do more to assist passengers with transfers--it is a 2 hour rail trip to Venice. People not doing their research were taken by surprise. I'm glad that Venice is not exposed to the ravages of mega ships any longer, but it is not easy to visit--even if one is staying nearby for a day or 2 before the cruise. And Trieste, Solvenia, and the Dolomite region certainly would have enough to see in their own right!
Never thought I'd visit Albania unless I was a spy or POW. Good on them for realizing that they have things to show the world. Did Blue Eye and castle excursion--quite a bit of hiking!
Very walkable town. That's all we did.
Sailed to Nevis on excursion for snorkeling and beach time. 10/10 would recommend!
Did a land and sea bus/sailing tour. Sailing part was phenomenal. The island is lovely, but too much time in bus, and lots of winding mountain roads!
Ship skipped port due to change in COVID rules on shore. Enjoyed an extra sea day!
We love San Juan, and having the cruise sail from here was a major reason to book it. That said, SJU is a horrible airport for visitors. We were fortunate to not be stuck here on departure day as many others were.
Found nice beach in walking distance, did late excursion (Sunset Sail) thru NCL.
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This is our 3rd cruise with NCL, our 2nd on the Pearl. They never cease to impress with their commitment to service. The itinerary is a bit of a weakness, as the spectacular views can be obscured unpredictably by weather, and the ports are nothing too special (as well as being very brief visits). Still, this has been on my list for a long time, and was worth doing once in my life.