Price of NCL cruise was reasonable however, beware of extras. With “free drink package, drinks are “free” but you pay 20% gratuity on each drink totaling well over $300.
Research each port in advance and Don't be afraid of negotiating a taxi to tour you around- safe and much cheaper than ship excursions!
Avoid travelling in July and August unless you don’t mind oppressive heat, crushing crowds and screaming children.
Great itinerary,however be aware that it takes 1-2 hours by bus/ train to get into Florence and Rome from the port where ship docks.
Budget for lunches off ship when touring - due to travel times, won’t be back onboard for lunch
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Well organized and smooth process
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Very slow service in Taste and Savour. Excellent service in Manhattan Room. Garden Cafe buffet same every day - got monotonous . Moderno not worth the price - only 2 of 7 meat offerings were edible - rest were tough. Bayamo - nice waterfront table. Scallops were tough and chewy even though slightly undercooked. Shrimp was excellent. Waiter advised sea bass was Chilean sea bass - NOT! (Boring flat fish from Mediterranean, not the succulent, thick chunk sea bass I have enjoyed in other restaurants) portion sizes were just right. Staff very polite, attentive and accomodating.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Pool - very crowded, especially on sea day which was understandable. Sign at hot tub clearly stated no children yet the tub was full of kids. I appreciated that attendants removed towels from deck loungers left unoccupied for more than 1 hour although we witnessed guest rage when they returned 3 hours later and found their stuff gone
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Choir of Man was excellent. dueling pianos/ howl at the moon - excellent, versatile musicians however, we Didn’t like their constant badgering for tips to play requests. Bamba kings guitar duo were fabulous
Children's Programs
Not travelling with kids. However, appreciated that kids had their own pool and play area
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Polite, attentive, cheerful staff . Slow service in Taste and Savour dining rooms most days.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Would have liked quiet lounge area with comfortable furniture to relax and read. Once outside your cabin, noisy and crowded everywhere.really Liked the lounge areas on Norwegian Bliss with floor to ceiling windows and comfortable sofas and chairs. Would have preferred to see families with young children in one area of dining room so all the screaming, whining, fussing and crying could be contained instead of disbursed throughout the dining room
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Cabin was adequate. Comfortable beds. Would have preferred full length loungers instead of upright deck chairs on balcony
Ship tip
Avoid travelling during summer months unless screaming kids, crowds, and 30+ degree temperatures don’t bother you
Took train into Rome from the port, hop-on-hop-off bus in Rome. Less than half the price of ship excursion. Disappointed that Vatican was closed for a holiday the day we were in Rome - had we known that, we would have booked Venice to Barcelona routing a week lainstead
Hired a private taxi for 4 hours and driver took us where we wanted to go. Most tours drove by landmarks inthe north- best experiences were in the south . Boat ride through Blue Grotto, Dingli cliffs,Mdina absolutely phenomenal.
Primarily a beach town and it Rained most of the day so we only got off ship and walked around for an hour late afternoon. Will probably plan a return trip
Took train into Venice, then water ferry to hotel. Plan to stay 2 days to really get a feel for this beautiful city. A quick stop before leaving for the airport is not visiting Venice
I'm assuming you chose the 4 for free when booking. When you get to the payment section, it clearly states that there is a gratuity added for drink and restaurant package, so it should not have been a surprise to you. If you don't want to pay around $140 or so in gratuities for a drink package, then don't add to cruise total, you can opt out. The gratuity amount is far less than buying drinks individually on cruise, so I personally think it's well worth it.
Free drink package? Did you get the Free at Sea?
Glad you had a good cruise despite things that you didn't like. Summer fun for kids to go on c
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