- Go for the scenery, the food, the adult entertainment.
- Keep expectations low on the port visits.
- Leave your kids at home.
- Don't buy the onboard entertainment packages. They are a complete ripoff.
Embarkation
1 out of 5
Forced to take a covid test to board at $70 a pop after the cruise line claimed to dispense with screening protocols. Stalled by Canadian registration as will. Should be covered extensively by their online boarding process.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Food/drink was adequate. Packages were fairly priced. Language barrier with waiters/waitresses so they tended to get orders wrong every now and then.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
If you are an adult going for typical cruise line events, no issues. For children or a teenager, terrible experiences. Toddler room was not gated or supervised. The VR Galaxy sucked for the prices they charged (just use an occulus), Laser Tag was closed most of the time, and the Race Track closes if a drizzle occurs and in Alaska that was almost constantly. Teenager room was almost always not available when mine could have really used it to get away. This was not a kid friendly ship imo.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Entertainment was adequate.
Children's Programs
1 out of 5
Horrible, everything shut down during port calls and could have been useful at Icy Straits when all the excursions were booked while being stuck at that port all fricken day.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
My room steward was a rock star, everyone else was so-so. Slow on providing drinks and refills, wrong orders occasionally, annoying hostesses at buffet. "Washy Washy, Wakey Wakey!" when a good morning, please wash your hands at our station would suffice.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Can't complain, wait staff is very quick to clean up messes.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The cabin was the saving grace of this cruise. Great size for a family of 4, awesome front view of the ship, shower/bath combo, and plenty of storage space.
Ship tip
Go for the scenery, your schedule will be massacred by the time you get on board for excursions.
Juneau, although small was a nice first stop. Aside from the ridiculous amount of jewelry stores targeting tourists, I had a fun time seeing the Mendenhall Glacier.
The scenery is lovely, but this is clearly a theme park stop for Norwegian. Local tribe negotiated to have a few "attractions" installed at the location to keep people busy, however if they fill up there is very little to do. Our Skagway port visit got cancelled along with the iconic train ride we had booked so we could visit this boring port. On top of it all, the ship spent all day here and closed many ship entertainment venues during it. BOO!
Norwegian employees were rude and incompetent during the disembarking process. They use some facial recognition software to try and automatic custom functions that is broken and caused mayhem with my family when we just needed to show the official immigration officer our passports. getting to SEATAC on time was pure hell. At least 30 minutes to check in bags, another hour to get through security, and the tire exploded on the bus transit provided by Norwegian. Don't rely on them for your return.
*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.
