Europe Cruise Reviews

My family had a wonderful experience. Just the right amount of activities and outings. Food never ending and overall very good. Cabin remarkably roomy and well laid out. Cruise Director and Captain very personable. Kids club outstanding. Only negative was terrible coffee on board - wish they had an upgrade.

The cabin was clean, food was overall good but even with all the specialty restaurants, nothing memorable. Service was polite friendly but not too personable. It's not the crew's fault....there is just a lot of passengers - 4100 is A LOT! Lines for buffet and lines for everything if you don't have a reservation. The 2 major complaints we had were in regards to tendering in port at Cannes, and the other was crowd control. In Cannes, you had to make a tender reservation...which we didn't find out about until the day prior from the TV. We got lucky and were off the ship only 30 minutes later than I had expected, but there were not enough tenders to move the number of clients, and many did not get to shore until 3 hours+ after arrival in port, which meant they lost half a day. The process was very disorganized. The 2nd complaint was crowd control and the issues with certain misbehaving clients. We had people push out of queue getting off/on the ship with no regards to others. We watched in horror as families let their children throw ice cream wrappers straight on the ground after eating them (this was while lining up to get back on the ship...the same with the hand towels being tossed on the ground or trash cans instead of the proper bin. These incidents require staff to be polite but firm....instead of being afraid to say something to these clients. 

Our least favorite ship.  Our balcony room had a poor layout compared to others.  Our bed was near to door instead of the balcony and hard to pass through.  It did have sufficient storage.  As usual our stewardship was great.  Many of us passengers missed an excersion because they changed the time without adequate notice.  So glad we visited Barcelona three days earlier.  Long bus rides to most destinations took time away from most sights.

Our most pleasant experience was dinner with our waiters & our excursions off the ship.

We were disappointed with the entire experience.  The quality of the food was not what I have experienced in prior RC cruises.  Deserts were not that great and the cheese plate was not what we experienced on past RC cruises. 

We ordered room service for breakfast 3 times and only received it once.  Which was a disappointment because we had early excursions and had no time to eat in the dining area.  The one time we did get breakfast only half was delivered and we had to wait while they brought the other half.  They apologized and brought us treats to make up for it. I have never been disappointed by RC before. 

Then in our room we ran out of toilet paper and had to ask for more.  This was after our room had been serviced and cleaned clearly an overiste. 

We met some really nice bartenders from Jamaica all 4 we met were really nice, friendly and happy. We met others that were not so friendly. 

We were too exhausted from our excursions and the time change to see any shows.  So i cannot comment on that.

We chose this cruise because of the itinerary since it made so many stops on our bucket list.  The food was fantastic, particularly in the specialty restaurants.  We will definitely sail Celebrity again!

EVERY DAY WE HAD A TOUR SCHEDULGED IN A DIFFERENT AREA OF THE VARIOUS COUNTRIES WE VISITED AND THEY WERE ALL WONDERFUL SO WE WERE TOO BUSY TO PARTICIPATE IN VARIOUS SHIP ACTIVITIES. WE ENJOY OUR EVENINGS ON THIS BEAUTIFUL SHIP AND IN THE SPECIALTY RESTAURANTS AND THE MAIN DINING ROOM

For our first ever cruise we picked a winner. Each of the ports was worth exploring and the ship itself was outstanding in every respect: meals, shows, facilities and staff. The AA add-ons made it outstanding. I had to book a suite to get the date I wanted, and it was the smartest thing I could have done. The VIP treatment associated with a suite was well worth the money.

Calculating the sun's lowest point, elevation and direction at the time of the Vernal Equinox was the most interesting activity for me.   Experiencing the vast network of fjords of Norway was the most geographically and geologically interesting..

The piano quintet performances were outstanding entertainment.

Nice ship and itinerary, too crowded at times. We liked to food, but the selections didn't change much. Enjoyed the entertainment, but most of it was difficult to understand since it was in Italian. Prices for drinks and excursions were reasonable. Overall, it was just too crowed to enjoy most of the time.

The people working on board were extremely pleasant to deal with...

Some of the food was a little too salty for my taste.

Ship was neat and clean all the time we were onboard...

The ports visited were very interesting especially, St. Petersburg,Tallin, Stockholm and Brugge

However, the rating is low because of 5 days of toilet problems where we actually had to find a toilet in the night. Sometimes we didn't get it fixed until after midnight.

Princess did have some compensation but not nearly enough to make up for the first part of the trip. Sorry Princess, you failed on this one

This wasn't our first w/ NCL, and it never disappoints. We always buy the food package, LOVE the specialty restaurants...and buffet.  O'Sheehan's was not up to our past ships.  Our suite....had a beautiful large bathroom, difference on this ship, NO SLEEPER SOFA.  It is a hard couch they convert, not good.  And the worst part is be warned...the balcony is SMALL compared to other ships.  We were told due to how large the ship is.  My only criticism would be that I realize the ships are used in different parts of the world, but the overall decor really should be changed w/ the ports, such as many change the pictures over from Caribbean theme to European feel.  It would be an easy fix...but I know it won't happen.  But when you are in Russia...and look in your suite & the pictures are beaches it really is silly.  Otherwise...great excursions by NCL, great value, organized, and the ports couldn't be better.  Already have the Singapore Cruise booked.

I was a bit wary to be on such a large ship with so many passengers. I decided to put itinerary over ship size and hope for the best. I thought I would spend the cruise in endless queues throughout the trip. That did not happen. In fact, I spent less time in lines and felt less crowded in the Getaway than on other ships with half the passengers. Well done NCL. 

We arrived at 1300. Boarding was completed quickly. We went straight to our cabin without delay. Our cabin steward was in the hall and welcomed us and demonstrated where everything was and how it all operated. Thank you, Ms. Sheila. 

The cabin was spotless and kept that way throughout the trip by our cabin steward. Bathroom was spacious for a ship and well stocked with all the necessities. Our luggage was at our cabin door within less than 45 minutes. 

How the crew crew keeps the ship with so many passengers roaming around at all hours so clean and spotless is amazing. Clearly they are constantly at work yet the process is so unobtrusive that it is almost invisible. The first class NCL Getaway experience is provided by the (literally) thousands of crew members working 24 hours each day on the front lines and behind the scenes.

The ship is huge but we never felt crowded. The crew keeps everything in order and moving but we never felt rushed. Food, of course, was plentiful as well as consistently delicious. The dining rooms each have lovely views of the surroundings.. Each meal was an excellent experience. 

The shows on the ship are worth watching. I suggest making time to see them. The Freestyle dining allows for scheduling dinner and a show at your favorite time; early or later is up to you. Nice. 

The leaving and returning to the ship at each port was clearly explained and went according to schedule. Upon arrival back to the ship on a rather cold and blustery day, we were greeted by crew members offering hot tea or broth. What a nice touch that was. Every time we came back to the ship we were offered warm towels to clean our hands and then had the opportunity to use waterless hand cleaner to further remove possible germs. It was obvious that the crew was intent on keeping contact transferred microorganisms to a minimum. We appreciated their efforts.

Our cabin was located to take advantage of some of the most spectacular sunsets I have ever seen. The ship’s size minimizes wave movement providing smooth sailing. The ship is also very quiet. We heard nothing from the ship’s engines or our neighbors. 

Leaving the ship at our final port was organized by time and whether you chose to take your luggage off the ship yourself (independent) or preferred to have the crew take your bags to the staging area in the port. We chose independent at 0920. We walked right off the ship. No queue. This was the easiest and quickest disembarking process I have experienced. 

Be aware that the taxi line to return to Copenhagen is very long although well organized and moves quicker than you would expect. Free wifi is available so the waiting is less tedious. This, of course, is not under NCL control but something to know when choosing between the options for returning to the city or the airport. 

This ship and its crew provide a wonderful cruising experience. They live up to and go beyond expectations. Well done NCL. 

The staff were great & friendly. 

The casino was very small and the slots were not very good.

I do suggest more activities and/or shows be added to the sea days.

For starters, we watched an age 60-ish man have a heart attack and die on the Lido deck shortly before leaving Corfu on June 7, 2017. The medical team response time was nearly 15 minutes - this is double the time for biological death to occur post MI (code called @ 3:21PM, 1st call to medical staff @ 3:24PM, med team arrival 3:36PM). Only passengers beginning CPR promptly gave this man any chance of survival.

Operationally, the wait and basic service staff were excellent, yet Princess seems very overstaffed, incompetent and avaricious in management. Examples: One of our excursions and our departure port transfer tickets did not match what was in their own systems, and as documented on-line and in our cruise summary. Of course, we had to make a trip to Passenger services to correct this. We waited just under an hour for our excursion to Corfu as passengers booed the staff in the Princess theater, for the "convenience" of being charged near double mark-up for what these excursions can be purchased for on your own. Excessive charges for minor things like 0.75/min for internet and short shuttle rides. Consistently rude, sexist and inflexible photographer and gallery staff. Even cut off my head in our boarding photo, using a tripod, and having a digital image preview they called "good". Value for the price: < 1 on a scale of 10.

Dartmouth was our favorite port.  I highly recommend the River Ferry and Steam Train shore excursion in Dartmouth!

Overall, the itinerary was excellent!  The Explorer was the most beautiful ship I have ever been on! Great restaurants and great staff!

Tender service was not good.  They only use 3 small tenders from the ship and do not hire any extras from the port authority.  This results in up to one hour plus waits for tender service.  This is especially bad when it is raining!

We missed the port of Cobh, Ireland because the captain did not order enough tugs to get us away from the dock in Liverpool, England.  This resulted in an extra sea day.  Disappointing!

We were hesitant about a cruise but two destinations are/were on our "bucket list." Unfortunately the destinations got changed after our booking but before we left port.  Other than that everything was great.  We will definitely cruise again.

Try it you will like it. People were friendly at all stops. Yes, there were lines. They were only really long getting off the boat in Russia. Stop in Sweden was an unexpected pleasure. Town was magnificent

Enjoyed every minute of the cruise. Staff was great and friendly. Service outstanding. No problem ever finding a table at the buffet. Getting on and off on the different ports was quick and easy.

The cruise was more then expected.  The Artic circle crossing event was a real surprise and a joy to participate in. One disappointment was the King Crab Safari which was booked on the website as having the opportunity to view take photos of a king crab, and wild life followed by a trip to a Sami experience of fresh caught and cooked King Crab.  The excursion turned out to be only photo.