Norwegian Bliss Cruise Reviews - Reviews

My husband and I just returned from a cruise on the Bliss that we booked through one of NCL’s sales agents. We booked the entire trip through this NCL employee including air fare and cruise insurance. We were nervous about the flights, and requested to fly out the night before the cruise (with overnight lodging at our own expense) or on the first flight out of Tulsa Saturday morning (as we had a layover in Dallas).We were told that we did not really get a say in booking the flights but that they would put a note on our account for our requests. When we got our flight assignment we were booked on the second flight out of Tulsa on Saturday morning which gave us a 50 minute layover in Dallas and was not scheduled to even land in Miami until 12:51 PM, after which we would have to gather our luggage and shuttle 30-35 minutes to the Port of Miami. We were concerned about this tight timeline as this would leave no margin for error for traffic or travel delays and our paperwork suggested that we not board the ship later than 2:00 PM. When we called NCL representatives 4-5 times about this and other questions leading up to the cruise we were given the same answer by each, “since you booked your flights with NCL, as long as you are to the port before 4:00 PM and this ship is still in port, you will be allowed to get on.” On the day of departure, our 6:40 AM flight from Tulsa to Dallas was delayed for 3 hours, causing us to miss our layover in Dallas. We were re-booked through the airline on a flight to Ft. Lauderdale which was to land a 2:45 PM as this was the only option available to get us to Miami or Ft. Lauderdale before 4:00. Throughout this morning, we attempted to contact our agent, the emergency travel line listed on NCL edocs, as well as all available NCL numbers to gather information about options, as we knew the flight delay would cause the time to be very close to ship departure. We were unable to get in contact with any NCL representatives, despite 30-45 minute holds, until we got to Dallas. The representative told us that we would be cutting the time very close but was unable to offer any information except telling us to call the shuttle company (that we had paid for to transport from Miami Airport to the Port of Miami). We did as he told us to but because it was Saturday the shuttle company was not open and had no way to be contacted. We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale, retrieved our luggage and hired an Uber driver (as we could not contact the pre-arranged shuttle) and got to the Port by 3:45 PM. We knew that we were very close to departure, but based on what we had repeatedly been told by NCL, fully expected to be allowed to board since NCL had booked our flights and made all other travel/transport arrangements. As we got out of the Uber, we were met by a NCL representative that said we would not be allowed on the ship and handed us a paper with contact information for NCL to see what our options were with the insurance. We told her what NCL had told us about getting on the ship and she said that no one was allowed on after 3:30 PM. We understand if this is the policy, but that is not what we were told by multiple people within NCL, including the rep we talked to in Dallas. In fact, we were never given a cut off time, only a statement that if the ship was in port we would be allowed to board. The NCL representative at the port offered no further help and told us to find a hotel. We spent the next 4 hours trying to contact NCL from the paper we were given at the port and spent 30 minutes at a time on hold. We then received different answers from different NCL representatives blaming the airline and us for not getting there on time and telling us conflicting information about how the insurance works. No one was able to lay out our options for us or break down the situation and help us, making it difficult to make an informed decision as to whether to meet the ship at the first port or fly back to Tulsa without cruising. We were extremely disappointed with the customer service of a cruise line that is touted as a premium cruise line. We had no problems getting answers or in touch with NCL when we were booking, but when we ran into a problem, no one was available to help. We stayed in a hotel in Miami Saturday night and ended up flying to Tortola to meet the ship on Tuesday. All of which was paid out of pocket (flights, hotel, taxis,food, etc.), amounting to $2000 on top of the almost $5000 we had already spent on the cruise itself. We were not able to join the cruise until day 4 of 7. This was our first cruise experience, we were traveling for my birthday, and we were very excited and pleased with NCL until we ran into a problem. We are very disappointed, as we enjoyed the ship and attentiveness of the staff once aboard, but the issues with the flights booked through NCL, the incorrect information given to us, and the poor customer service would make us extremely hesitant to ever sail with this cruise line again. UPDATE: We have been denied any compensation or credit twice now despite missing half the cruise and being out an extra $2000 for NCL's decision to deny us entry to the ship. They have strung this out over 3 months when it was supposed to take one. We have fought over and over with them, but they continue to accept no responsibility. We will NEVER use this cruise line again, and neither will anyone with any connection to us. Their lack of customer support is dumbfounding. Do not believe their reputation of being a luxury cruise line. Once they have your money, you mean absolutely nothing to them. I strongly encourage you to put your money elsewhere.

We enjoyed our NCL Bliss cruise. We sailed on the NCL Getaway two years ago and wanted the same great experience. Embark and Debark were a breeze. Ship was terrific. Well designed and clean. Observation Lounge should be a must on every ship. Loved the snacks and comfort there. SO GLAD they glassed in the smoking section of the casino, that was my only complaint on the Getaway...casino smoke was all thru Atrium decks. Great change. Go carts and laser tag (go at night, glow in dark tag) were a blast, but honestly they shouldn't be an upcharge. Reserve as soon as possible, the good time slots go fast. Loungers right by the pools as always were hard to find, but roam around and there are lots available. Found some really nice sunny spots on deck 20 near Vibe and in Spice H2O area. Food was good but seems to have declined a bit since last cruise. Manhattan Room served a steak that was shameful, but mostly the food was very good. Los Lobos had outstanding food and service! Sorry I forgot the servers name but he was superb. Cagneys was very good. Garden Cafe had many options for breakfast; crowded but they manage to keep it moving. Little tip...Observation Lounge serves light breakfast, and is so much more relaxing. Overall service on the ship was excellent and polite. Special shout outs to Roman (the BEST cabin steward we've ever had) for taking such good care of us and always smiling, and to Kathleen Francisco in the Hotel Directors office. We had a couple admin issues (dinner scheduling errors and room key and room safe malfunctions) and she had everything solved before we could even get a Starbucks from across the Atrium. The Thermal Spa. I cant say enough about the spa. We booked the full week access. Waterfall jet pool, steamroom, saunas, ice room, heated loungers, and best of all SILENCE and no crowd. Worth every penny. Nothing beats relaxing in the spa pools at night looking out at the ocean. Some late nights we had the entire place to ourselves. Entertainment was good. Havana was solid. Jersey Boys also very good. Prohibition Show was amazing. Those girls brought such energy to the room. Everyone had a blast, and five free drinks. Only caught one comedy show but they were decent. Silent disco was strange but very fun. Try it. Excursions: Did St John Snorkel and Beach at St Thomas. Really fun. Ferry ride and bus ride there passes beautiful views, and Trunk Bay Beach is stunning. White sand and turquoise water surrounded by lush jungle. Decent snorkel as well. At Nassau we did the usual Atlantis thing. Really fun place but we needed more than 5 hours there. At Tortola we just wandered the town. Very pretty and very nice people, but you could still see the hurricane damage from last year. Spend some dollars there. The folks need the money to rebuild and tourism is all they have. Sad to see a gorgeous island hurt that badly. Ship/airport transfers were smooth both ways. Ciao.

Sailed on NCL Bliss last week and loved every minute of it! Beautiful ship. Ate at 4 specialty restaurants and all were great. Saw Havana and Jersey Boys - great shows! Spent a few evenings in the casino now that it is smoke-free.

Family of 4 w a 6 and 8 year old...been on other 3 NCL ships...Bliss was beautiful, wonderful restaurants, the staff was great, embarkation and disembarkation a breeze. The pool not so much unfortunately...very tight and crammed like sardines..waterslide was fun w the tubes my kids were not heavy enough for the other. Laser tag was fun. We didn't book fast enough for the double go carts...kids not tall enough for single. My kids normally are kid club freaks but they only went once(not ncls fault)..it was super cute! After this 4th NCL we are going to break from them for awhile..Royal seems to be a tad more geared to what our needs are w the ages of the kids. We love NCL and will be back!! ***In Tortola..we've been many times and were looking for something different..we chartered w Kuralu Catamaran Charters...best experience we've had! Snorkled at Norman Island and beached at Jost! Gary and his mate Jen were wonderful***

We love NCL. We've sailed on the escape and the getaway. The bliss was amazing. I would say that they made a lot of room for spaces that would have been cool (i.e. the race track and laser tag) had they not both had an upcharge and need reservation. The food was fantastic as usual but the Manhattan room no longer has a live band or dance floor. Everything in the bliss is the same as the escape except just a little smaller. The atrium, dining rooms, sun decks, the spa and ofcourse the vibe were all 30-50% smaller than the escape. The only saving Grace is that observation lounge. That needs to be a staple on all ships going forward. It's amazing to watch sail away from Port there. Would recommend the bliss to anyone for sure. Can I get a blend of the bliss and the escape please?

Absolutely amazing ship! Norwegian never disappoints. We loved the observation lounge, pool areas, and all the bars and restaurants. Food was excellent and service was top notch!

We had a great cruise on the Bliss. The food was very very good. The service by the waiters were excellent. The shows were great. Just a great experience.

The ship gave us so many mixed feelings. Not disappointed but felt like some of the new features were a wasted space. I can totally see enjoying the observation lounge on the Alaska sailing, However the only time we found it useful was breakfast time. The laser tag and go karts hours should have a wider variety of times. Specialty dining: If you didn’t book as soon as you boarded the ship the main time slots were 9-10pm. This was highly upsetting because it interferes with deck party fun. Cagney’s: The dining staff was great and the food was phenomenal!! The dine in experience was about 2 hours roughly from check in to signing our tab. If you order to go which we did also our last night on the ship while packing it took about 30 minutes from ordering our food to room delivery. Los Lobos : The dining staff was very attentive and the food was yummy! I highly suggest the side table guacamole and the shrimp quesadillas. Buffet: Staff was always smiling and kept the area clean. Food was good always found something we enjoyed for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We were a bit disappointed with the late night snack (pizza mainly) not being later it closed down before the after party. The Local: The staff was always friendly. This was our only late night option. It was always fresh and tasty no matter the time of day. Savor: Sea day breakfast spot on! The Manhattan: Out of all the places we ate this was our least favorite. Past cruises it has always been our main go to for dinners to eat in the main dining room. We were not so impressed with the dinner options this cruise. Our balcony cabin was as we expected seemed a tad smaller than the escape same category balcony. The beds!?!? What in the world happened here? It seemed pretty consistent throughout the ship on people not pleased with the bed comfort. They really dropped the ball on the mattress. Our room steward was friendly!

The ship was over booked, the service was too slow! The smoking area was a joke and completely unacceptable!! There should be at least on bar/deck that can be for smoking and not a tiny corner less than 100 square foot for 4,500 people to use! I realize that not all smoke but even if 10% do, that’s trying to stuff 450 people into a little square, not to enjoyable! The casino has a small not well ventilated area to smoke but no cigar smoking there!! They do have a small cigar room for those cigar smokers that fits about 10 people and the ventilation is very poor there too! If they want a smoke free ship, then just advertise it as that! I would have never spent that type of money to be treated like a third class citizen! Not happy at all!

this was i think the biggest ship i have been on being on the bliss i enjoyed it every single day from the staff to all the food and entertainment the best part is the observation deck with the big windows u can sit there all day and let the time go by

If you are a first time cruiser on Norweigan heads up you have to reserve everything. Comedy shows, go carts, laser tag, shows. Arrive early as possible get to a kiosk and reserve reserve. It is a gorgeous ship, but if you don't reserve you will be bored.

This was my 7th cruise and it was okay. I love the ship there’s just some minor things they can improve on. The shoved the rooms on the ship which means the room was very tiny and there was no mid ship elevators this also caused VERY LONG LINES. The room was cramped and the bathroom was elevated. The schedule was okay. We were in ports for a very short amount of time (7:00-3:00) Entertainment was AMAZING the Jersey Boys was super cool and fun! !Havana¡ was really just dancing and I wasn’t old enough to attended Happy Hour Prohibition (18+) The race track was good, just a very long line. I wasn’t able to attended the laser tag because it booked very quickly. Keep in mind that you only go on the race track once or twice. The food was amazing just like any NCL ship. The crew weren’t mean but they didn’t wave or high five the kids or talk to people in general like other Norwegian ships. This ship wasn’t that kid friendly they have a kids club and slides but not to much activities going on for kids many things were 18+. I was bored at night. They had adult pools and adult only areas everywhere. The hot tubs were cold and the pools were saltwater. This was an amazing cruise but there are many things NCL can fix, Norwegians other ships are super kid friendly.

Beautiful ship. Would like to see Alaska on it as there are so many observation area. There just isn’t enough outside seating to accommodate everyone who wanted to be out in the sun

The Bliss is a nice ship being new definitely a lot bigger then the other 2 we have been on. The furniture in the Atrium definitely has seen it's time. Room service, house keeping, bartenders, waiters and waitresses were definitely outstanding. Now the quality in some 2 of the restaurants we visited can use some work. Cagneys steak house I had a porter house and the steak was awful tough and fatty, my wife had the rib eye and half of it was fat. Le Bistro the food was cold not worth the time waiting for it. Because of the restaurants, the lack of pool side chair monitoring, the lack of pools and it felt like it was to commercialized it's what I am basing my star rating not because of the service the staff provided. We are frequent cruiser on NCL but I think it's time to start looking at other companies such as Royal or MSC.

When you pay a lot for cruise to begin with you shouldn’t have to pay for entertainment. I get paying for go carts and laser tag but this should be something everyone on ship gets to do but can’t because you have to sign up and every spot was taken before we were able to.

Felt for this being a big line...CS was just not at all good

I completely enjoyed the Norwegian Bliss! Embarkation: The SMOOTHEST I’ve experienced yet! We arrived at the port around 9:45am and the doors opened around 10:15am. We were boarding by 10:45am. Ship: beautiful ship, lots of nice areas, fun laser tag and race trac areas, nice decor, etc. Dining: AMAZING FOOD!!! Very yummy and I love that there is freestyle dining (so you can eat at whatever time you’d like) and I loved that there is no assigned seating either so you’re seated as you come in and they never seat you with other parties. Speciality dining is very fun and yummy! We had a great and probably the most fun at the Teppenyaki restaurant (I’ve been to many Hibachi restaurants but this was the most fun I’ve had). There is so much food served all the time throughout the day, if not at the buffet at the other two restaurants (Taste and Savor) but also in the Observation Lounge and The Local. There is always something to eat! Cabin: by far this was the most spacious cabin we’ve experienced. We had an interior stateroom because we booked the cruise kind of late and we thought it was going to be tiny and uncomfortable plus we were on deck 5 so we thought it would be a bad location. We were so happy to know the rooms were really roomy (the bathroom was the BIGGEST we’d seen on cruises) and decorated really nicely! No complaints when it comes to cleaning either. The cleaning crew came in twice a day and replaced towels, fixed the bed, tidied up, and left the daily newsletters as well as animal towels. We felt very special and well taken care of the entire time. Entertainment & Activities: this is where I think the cruise lacked a little because there was very little diversity with the music (bands and DJ) and I felt as though there should have been more activities taking place in the pool deck area, which is where most people were especially during sea days. They had most of the activities in the Theater and Atrium, which is fine in the evenings but not during the day when people are at the pool and have to get out of the pool and sometimes change if they want to participate or see an activity taking place. I thought it was boring most of the time at the pool deck, which from past cruises should be one of the best places to be and experience fun! The shows are spectacular, though. I was only able to see the first show of the cruise and Havana but I was completely taken aback by the talent on board. It was fantastic! We also went to see one comedy show and the comedians were pretty hilarious! We weren’t able to see more shows because you had to reserve them and reservations are not available prior to boarding so you have to make lines and go to specific places when you board the cruise to make reservations (which I honestly didn’t like too much because there’s so much more one wants to do with their time on board than sit in lines or making reservations to shows). The activities like laser tag and race track were very fun! Laser tag was really really fun!!! Absolutely loved it. The only thing I felt was odd is that they charge $9.95 per person per activity. I understand that there’s activities that have an up charge but when we decided to get on this cruise, these two were the main reasons we became interested in the cruise. We think that it was just “wrong” to charge for this or at least at that price. Spa & Thermal Suites: we absolutely loved the spa and thermal suites! It’s the biggest we’ve seen as well and very relaxing. I had a couple of massages and the ladies were very professional and they didn’t push me to buy anything (as I had previously experienced on Carnival). The spa area is kept clean and workers are always wiping down the wet areas and there is an unlimited amount of towels available at all times. The robes and locker rooms are very nice and just top quality! The sauna, sanarium, snow room, and steam room were fantastic! The salt room felt like nothing but they recommended you to sit there after and that your skin would soak in the salt (I did it but felt nothing). Gym: We had good experiences at the gym. I think there are enough treadmills and other machines since not many people work out during their vacations. There are free weights as well as mats and they always have towels and Clorox wipes. Raffles: there are raffles several times a day throughout the cruise! My husband won one for $250 for spa services (this is what I used for my two massages and paid the balance). I highly recommend people to attend those raffles! They raffles out an Invicta watch, several Eddy jewelry, Spa Credits, etc! Ports of Call & Shore Excursions: our cruise went to St. Thomas, Tortola, and Bahamas. All of which were very nice and we felt safe. It was my first time in St. Thomas and Tortola so we booked shore excursions at these stops. We did Helmet Dive in St.Thomas. It was a lot of fun and very interesting but we felt that it was too short for the amount paid ($119 per person). We paid the same amount of money for the excursion in Tortola (Normal Island Snorkle) and it was really fun! They took us to caves and the water was perfect! We saw sooo many different fishes and coral reefs! Then we went to a private island where chairs were provided and we were able to continue snorkeling or tan up and relax. The snorkeling gear was also provided. The staff was also very very nice and friendly! Cruise App: I was disappointed that we couldn’t use the cruise app unless we purchased a WiFi package. So we were unable to keep up with the activities on board and our own reservations as a result. The good thing is that I had printed out all of the items we reserved prior to boarding and that we had been diligent in making the reservations via ncl.com. But I was disappointed because any other reservation made on board and all other activities were difficult to keep up with. We ended up having to take pictures of the newsletters on our phones to be able to stay in the know or carry the paper copies of the newsletters around. Overall: I think this cruise was excellent!! The staff is truly the happiest and jolly! It was always a pleasure walking past any of them. They treated us very good all the while working so hard to keep the cruise clean and well decorated for themed parties, etc

We sailed on the Bliss for our anniversary after sailing her in Alaska last year. She is still a beautiful ship, but I’m beginning to think I really prefer the Jewel class. The number of people onboard can be a bit claustrophobic - especially when a crowd lets out at once, like when Jersey Boys finishes. The itinerary was a bit strange with a lot of sea days, but I think the amount of passengers tends to limit the number of ports the ship can visit without tendering. St Thomas and Tortola were fine, although both are still recovering from the hurricanes. Nassau is a waste of a day, in my opinion (we stayed on the ship). The staff was good to excellent, mostly excellent. I would happily sail with this crew again. Mark is a great Hotel Director and Dan Dan is a great Cruise Director. The rest of the staff take their leads from them. The Observation Lounge is a great facility. All ships should have a similar space. One disappointing issue - Food Republic has a very interesting tapas-style menu and very short hours. It seems like a wasted space since it is not open more. Everything from my previous notes from Alaska still apply. This is a beautiful, well-staffed ship. You will appreciate the sea days on this itinerary because there is a lot to discover onboard.

We were very pleased with the embarkation process. It was very smooth and fast. Well, until the elevators. Elevators was a common problem, except when Bliss was in a port and lots of people off the ship. Disembarking also went smoothly, until we got outside the terminal, the NCL bus lines were very slow. We were lucky to have paid for it outside, so we could get a refund after waiting a long time. We were able to hop a taxi for $27 to the Miami airport without a wait ... and arrived at the gate before others that were waiting in front us in the bus lines. The ship is really clean, and staff is attentive but not overbearing. Beautiful rooms, and comfy beds for a ship. (I.e. no backache until the last night of 7 day cruise.) A traveler in our group had a rolling walker, and had troubles getting through the narrow hallways on cabin floors when cleaning carts were around (which was nearly all the time). Studio rooms for single travelers were nice, but narrow doors were a challenge for the rolling walker. We were pleased to not have photographers bombarding us constantly. We were disappointed that many amenities were extras (go carts and laser tag was $9.95/person), as we usually cruise Royal Caribbean and they don’t charge for climbing wall, surf simulator, etc ... felt like we were being nickel and dimed, but then staff didn’t charge for wine or soda at dinner many of the nights. Go figure if you purchased the soda or a beverage plan. Also, go carts and laser tag required reservations, so if you want to do those things make reservations early, because nothing is available later in the cruise. Food was pretty good, but no lobster night and it seemed they were diverting dinner crowds from dining rooms by advertising prime rib and seafood night at buffet. The Manhattan, Taste and Saveur dinner menu was good some nights and not as inspiring other nights ... normally we can’t decide between many deserts, and this cruise there were nights I could hardly find one worth the calories. Same for entrees, some nights were not inspiring. Appetizers/salads were the bright spot ... always many good choices. For the size of the ship, I was expecting a more interesting ship ... but it really is like most cruise ships only on a larger scale ... no Wow factor like RC Oasis ships. The Haven area that was off limits to us “steerage” passengers is kind of a turn off ... and is space that could have been available for all, maybe for another pool, because pools are sorely missing with so many passengers. It also seemed like there wasn’t that much to do ... well unless you wanted to pay an additional fee. By size, this ship should compare to RC Oasis class, which has a lot more entertainment opportunities. On a positive, Jersey boys and Britian’s Finest were really high quality shows, Havana was just another cruise ship show that was too loud.

Overall great cruise and we will definitely cruise with NCL again as the good out weighed the not so good. This was our first time with NCL and only our second cruise total our first was on RCCL Mariner of the Seas in 2008, oh how things change! We'll be back next year hopefully.