This was our first cruise and an anniversary. We won't do a ship this large, too much humanity and noise. Food was disappointing but time in ports great, just want more time. Norwegian crew and staff impressed. Not a shopper, so was not happy with the amount of events on board surrounding this. But again was not sure what to expect. We probably won't cruise again with Norwegian until we try other smaller ships/lines.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
Efficient, friendly and amazing coordination.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
2 out of 5
GREAT service was overshadowed by, all food in all venues being lukewarm or cold. We ate in 3 speciality restaurants, Manhattan dining room, observation deck and garden Cafe, so this was not isolated. Q experience was spoiled by band so loud we were yelling to place order. Buffet did have great variety, but again food temperature and trouble finding seating in Garden Cafe and observation deck made dining stressful instead of relaxing.
Cagney's Steakhouse
4 out of 5
Fantastic service. Steak best we have had. Lobster tail overcooked. A list bar is there so loud at first, but became very pleasant after that crowd was seated. We decided we should have taken all of our specialty meals here.
Atrium Bar
3 out of 5
Very loud.
The Observation Lounge
3 out of 5
Beautiful spot, but rude passengers saving seats and loud conversations took away from the experience. Crew tried to address, but people ignored.
The Manhattan Room - Main Dining Room
3 out of 5
Great service. Beautiful dining. Cool food took away from what should have been a great dinner.
The Local Bar & Grill
2 out of 5
Rude waitress with a wait time for food that exceeded 30 plus minutes. Lack of attention did not make sense since it was not crowded and mid afternoon with most passengers still in Skagway.
Q Texas Smokehouse
2 out of 5
Wonderful server, John D, tried to do a good job despite cold and disappointing food with a band so loud we had to shout.
Garden Café
2 out of 5
Lukewarm and cold food. Always crowded and difficult traffic patterns.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Pools, hot tub, spa, theater, library. Enjoyed.
Mandara Spa
4 out of 5
Wonderful nail technician. Very expensive but respectful of my budget and desires without trying to upsell.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Jersey Boys was amazing! New musical Six was good, but sound clarity was off making some of lyrics hard to understand.
Bliss theater is a great place. I would rate excellent if whomever runs sound in the smaller venues could decrease volume so music was not louder than performers and appropriate for venue size.
Bliss Theater
5 out of 5
Very nice theater only a few seats with obstructions.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
This is what made me forgive some of the other quality issues. An amazing, helpful, and very attentive crew. I loved our waiters and staff in the dining areas. Met our cruise director and his staff was top notch. I was amazed at how hard these people worked and attended to my needs. Top notch people on embarkation and disembarkation at ports. Would have rated excellent if excursion and guest service experience was better. Long lines, some rudeness. Simple questions might be served with kiosks and improving app with chat technology.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Loved ship decor. Most everything was spotless. Mini golf area was unkempt and pool bathroom was not clean. Suggest better wiping down of elevator buttons and doors. I know smoking is a issue, and felt like they tried to contain smells, but deck around casino was awful and by end of the cruise we avoided that deck as much as possible. Can someone think about areas to fill water bottles? Either side of the garden Cafe. Once we figured this out it was less stressful at breakfast and lunch.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Placement of the bed next to windows made it sometimes difficult to maneuver to bath. Storage was incredible. I loved shelves, nooks and bath was big enough. Great design everywhere. Fantastic linens and pillows were good. Initially steward missed some things, but believe there was a change. April made everyone of my requests easy and delightful. She made doubly sure my husband had his supplies for the cpap.
Ship tip
Take advantage of the pool area tables on both sides of the Don't bother bringing water bottles unless you do as we did and bring cup after cup of water back to the table. Get sanitary reasoning, but we also were told to bring them (not Norwegian) since we would have to buy water.
Experience in terminal with no clear direction and lack of people available to help get around Seattle to transportation if not transferred to the airport.
Most other lines have smaller ships that may be worth considering. Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America, and Norwegian all have smaller ships.
NCL has smaller ships than the Bliss you might want to consider. We’ve sailed RCI as well & it’s quite possible you’ll face the same situation with the food as you did on Bliss.
We have been on small and large ships and so far they’re pretty much the same to us. True smaller ships have less passengers by but also with less space. We do agree with the Bliss food service, it was a bit disappointing compare to our previous cruise. Other people have recommended the Royal Caribbean so we’re seriously considering that for our next cruise.
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