Disappointed not to see Ketchikan, very few shows and entertainment, too many Specialty restaurants, slow service; not enough variety in food and entertainment. terrible casino; expensive amenities and shopping. I have been on several NCL cruises and this was the first negative one. I have taken over 35 cruises on various Cruise lines and have lost count.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
efficient and painless
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Main dining room food was very good; service not so good; quite slow; I don't care for specialty restaurants at all as they have taken away from the pleasure of an old fashioned cruise experience; Never care for the buffets, only under duress.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
As a senior I look forward to great Shows every night; good lounges with good music; afternoon tea; Bingo; Casino. You had practically no shows on this cruise. Beatles and Jersey Boys were great, but not so the Six. Other nights there was nothing going on in the Bliss theatre, a great disappointment. The Bingo was too expensive so did not participate; the Casino had terrible machines and too expensive. Roulette's minimum was $10, over my budget. No afternoon teas, a great disappointment. All activities were held in the Atrium, too crowded and not big enough to accommodate all the guests that wanted to participate. In other words, not good planning. No 24 hour pizza, did not care for the Local café food, etc. And you practically have to pay outrageous prices for everything, al specialties.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Not good
Children's Programs
Senior traveller
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
The servers did their job as required but they no longer go out of their way to please guests because the gratuity is automatically added and they know they are getting paid, regardless. I realize some guests are inconsiderate and do not leave tips, but for the most part, they do.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Good design and roomy, however, the Theatre did not get enough use and all activities were on the Atrium creating chaos with guest services, internet desk, tour desk, etc. Bad planning. Then right above was the Local café, bars, etc. creating more noise. Adding the Bar in the same spot created lots of noise. When one had to go to the Guest services or the other services, there was too much noise/disruption. Terrible.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
For myself it was very good. The Toilet area a little too small but adequate. The service was very good.
Ship tip
If you want entertainment, peace and quiet and like shows, don't go.
Unfortunately, the last time I was in Alaska I missed Ketchikan because I made the mistake of notifying Medical that I was sick. But it was due to my history of Colitis and I was food poisoned by the lunch I had at the hotel prior to my boarding the ship. Without even checking me out by the Medical staff (it wasn't NCL) they decided to quarantine me for 24 hrs. I missed my excursion. This time we looked forward to seeing it but it was cancelled due to weather and the schedule was messed up. Very disappointed. So I will not go to Alaska again.
Our tour was conducted at night, saw nothing but some lights, did not see any gardens, buildings as described in the tour description, were given 1 hour for shopping (for what???everything was closed). Very upset
I can understand some of your review. If I've been to a port several times, sometimes I don't get off the ship, or I do but for shopping only.
With regards to everything being in the atrium, I understand your concern. I'm putting on my Professional Activity Director's hat now. One thing I consider when planning activities is the space available to me. How big is it and what activities can I do there? I've seen some cruise lines hold dance classes in the atrium. I think they're crazy: I dance too so I understand it takes space and holding the class in the atrium generally makes things very cramped. Trivia games in the atrium...maybe, but no dance class! I would much rather have the larger groups in the lounges or pool deck and the smaller groups (such as music performances) in the atrium.
It definitely seems like cruising and possibly travel is not for you. You seem to either have bad luck or not enjoy much of anything. I cannot imagine going to Alaska and not enjoying it or not even getting off the ship at a port.
*Cruiseline.com is not a booking agent or travel agency,
and does not charge any service fees to users of our site. Our partners
(travel agencies and cruise lines) provide prices, which we list for our
users' convenience. Cruiseline.com does not guarantee any specific rates or
prices. While prices are updated daily, please check with the booking site
for the exact amount. Cruiseline.com is not responsible for content on
external web sites.
Contact us
Submitting...
Need help from a personal vacation planner?
Loading...
Find the perfect cruise with weekly tips and cruise deals for as little as $30/night!
Sign up for weekly cruise deals
Join other subscribers and get the best
cruise deals of the week in your inbox every Thursday.
