We came away from this cruise finding NCL our least favorite cruise line to date. Communication and logistics on this ship were quite poor. This ship was not nearly as good at moving people as the other cruise lines we have sailed. The sound system on the ship was horrible. At multiple locations on board we were not able to hear or understand the announcements. Right now we would say we are not likely to book an NCL cruise again.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
There were longer lines for embarkation than we have experienced on any cruise.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Overall, the food on NCL Encore was good.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Nice fitness center. Some of our group did the racetrack which they said was fun.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Choir of Man was one of the best shows I have ever seen, on or off a ship. The cast was outstanding, the staging was creative and original and the music was great. We went twice. This show was truly the highlight of the cruise.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Overall, the staff was friendly, efficient and helpful. Our room steward was a bit of a disaster. We never knew when he would make of the room and there was no rhyme nor reason for how he leap-frogged from one room to the next. One day we returned to find our towels all gone but he did not come back to make up the room for hours. A couple of late afternoons we came back to the room to shower before dinner and our room was not made up and he was no where to be found.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
The ship was beautiful and spotless. The Observation Lounge was our favorite space.
Cabin / Stateroom
2 out of 5
This was about our 20th cruise and I have never been in a cabin as small as this one. Additionally, storage was not great. We are small and very tidy people, but this cabin was a challenge. I cannot imagine how a couple of larger people would have been able to function in it.
Cartagena was pretty and interesting. Our tour guide seemed quite experienced and knowledgeable but I say “seem” because the sound system was horrible and that in combination with his accent made the tour very difficult to understand.
We were very disappointed when NCL dropped Costa Rica and Nicaragua and added this port. We almost did not get off the ship for safety reasons, but in the end decided to check it out. It was much nicer than we had anticipated and ended up having a good day.
Tedious, mostly because we had to carry our own luggage. We were shocked to learn that a large cruise ship filled with mostly older passengers did not provide luggage service unless you had a transfer or excursion booked with them. We had tried to book an airport transfers which after an hour on the phone the agent determined they did not offer to the Long Beach airport.
Sounds like you misunderstood debarkation. NCL absolutely offers luggage service for anyone. You simply have to pick up the luggage tags yourself near guest services on the last evening. They only provide the tags directly to guests with excursions or transfers.
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