Bigger is not necessarily better.

Item: Norwegian Bliss
Rating: 3.3
Author: hillmargo1

Norwegian Bliss Cruise Review to Alaska - Inside Passage

hillmargo1

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 80

Overall rating:

3.3 out of 5

Verified Review

7 Night Alaska Glacier Bay (Seattle Roundtrip)

Sail date: August 04, 2019

Ship: Norwegian Bliss

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: 9413

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

Although we were looking forward to the Bliss, turns out they just put too many passengers on it for comfort or safety. The service in the dining rooms was consistently much much slower than we have ever had on any cruise before (10 or 11) and this was frustrating. Also, most public areas were just way too crowded and noisy to enjoy. The exercise room was overcrowded, with waits for the machines. Even the "library" had no comfortable chairs (it was combined with the game room -- bad idea.) They made a larger ship, but sacrificed passenger comfort in the process. And it was more expensive than other 7-day cruises that were more enjoyable -- so what's the upside?

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

2 out of 5

Our food service in the dining rooms was consistently VERY slow -- have never had this problem on any other ship, large or small.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Ping pong tables, fitness center.

Entertainment

4 out of 5

Jersey Boys was very good. Havana was boring and repetitive. Comedians were very good!

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

Our room steward was excellent. The service in the dining rooms was always consistently slow -- have never had such long waits for food on any ship prior to this. It was frustrating. We thought it was due to the fact that there were just TOO MANY people on this ship. They don't have the staff to take care of that many people.

Ship Quality

2 out of 5

The common areas were clean and well maintained. Our cabin steward did a wonderful job of keeping our cabin clean & neat. Our cabin was poorly designed though - no drawers at all for our clothes and other items! Never had a cabin so poorly designed on any ship.

Cabin / Stateroom

2 out of 5

As stated above, cabin was poorly designed. Not one drawer for clothes or bedside table items. Very few shelves, inside the closet -- but NO light in the closet! Could not find anything. Seems they made the bathrooms bigger, at the expense of making the cabin comfortable and easy to organize. For a bigger ship, we found it less comfortable than other ships.

Ship tip

Don't! You should pick a smaller ship. Everything was crowded and noisy, with long waits for food in the dining rooms, and long waits to get off the ship (we had to bail on waiting to get off at Victoria because of the long lines, so missed that stop completely, as it was only a 4-hour stop. Disappointing.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Seattle, Washington

4 out of 5

Juneau, Alaska

5 out of 5

Skagway, Alaska

5 out of 5

Cruise Glacier Bay

5 out of 5

Ketchikan, Alaska

5 out of 5

Disembarkation

2 out of 5

Very slow. It just seems that overall, there are too many people on this ship. We wondered how on earth they would get us off in an emergency. Did not feel safe.

4 Comments

Gwbigdog 2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise.

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Gwbigdog 2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise.

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nzcruiselover 5 years ago

Definitely sounds as if larger ships are not for you. I was on the transatlantic for the Bliss and had a completely different cruise to the one you had. Horses for courses I guess. Also, we had an inside cabin, but we still had a few drawers as well as shelves- not enough for two people and a long cruise, but they were still there!

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CruzeFan 5 years ago

Sorry you had a bad experience. Most have rated this ship & cruise 4-5 Stars. It’s Interesting that you went to Alaska and posted no specifics about the amazing ports and scenery there, but had a lot to say about bad things on the ship. I can’t imagine being in Alaska and noticing more about the ship than Alaska. You mention that it costs more than any 7 day cruise you have taken, but Alaska is generally more expensive than Caribbean cruises on most everything - the cruise fare, excursions, souvenirs, etc.

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Other reviews of this sailing

Alaskan Cruise

Beautiful ship!