Nice cruise. We did have a good time. The daily entertainment poolside was fantastic from live music to poolside games, the most fun we had. You can’t beat the alcohol package. 10 day trip much better than 7. St Kitts, St Lucia and Antigua great ports!! We were a bit surprised at how slow food service was in dining rooms, buffet was a better choice if you didn’t want to lose most of the night and your buzz. The majority of staff really weren’t that nice. We had a great room steward and a few great beverage waiters poolside. Most restaurant staff were rude. Benjamin in Tepanyakki was great and funny as heck. The two wonderful washy washy ladies were a delight. Ship definitely wasn’t as clean as we are used to on Disney. Clumps of hair at bottom of steps to jacuzzi, gag, public bathrooms not maintained, used drink glasses lined up by pool area just sat there. Little disappointed in the service aspect. Disembarkation was a nightmare, took forever and we were never told why. No communication on loudspeakers whatsoever.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Very smooth. Arrived at port around noon. Got through security quickly and was able to get right on the ship. Rooms were ready and luggage came fast
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Food was ok. Service was slow. Best meal was the Hibachi, best steak on the boat and that’s with us eating at Cagney’s as well. Cagney’s ehh. Steak wasn’t cooked correctly. All the sit downs including complimentary dining rooms took awhile, 2 hours everywhere. Thanksgiving dinner was the second best meal of the cruise.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Pools were small and hot tubs were packed. Bingo was ok but expensive. For the price you pay you only get 3 games and one of the games was four corners and that ended very quickly.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Blazing boots and the 70s show were excellent. The band Prism were fantastic. Great cover band. DJ CeeJay was very good as well.
Children's Programs
1 out of 5
My son is 10 and his friend 11, the splash academy is geared for much younger kids. They did separate 10-12 and put them in another room but the room was right next to the casino and the kids stunk of smoke which was unbelievable. The doors were closed while they were in there but open while parents were registering their kids. Same for pickup. The room looked like an unused conference room but not nearly as big.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Our room steward was fantastic and so were some of our beverage waiters. Other than that, people weren’t too friendly. The main bartender in O’Sheehans was a grump from day one.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
Layout was fine. I felt public bathrooms were a mess. Garbage pails always overflowing with paper, no toilet paper and just messy.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Great size. 3 of us fit comfortably. Balcony was nice with a great view. 2 chairs, a lounger and small table. I’ve always stayed mid ship and felt a lot of movement in this cabin in aft. Deck 8 aft and mid are great locations with easy access to O’Sheehans for a late night snack or waters to bring back to room. I thinks it’s funny how NCL still has ashtrays attached to bathroom wall when there is no smoking in cabins. Suitcases fit under the bed. The bed and pillows were great!!
Ship tip
If you’re used to Disney keep your expectations lower. Disney much cleaner and EVERYONE was pleasant.
Just horrendous. We were under Verrazano bridge at 935 am and didn’t pull into a pier until 11. Then it was the wrong pier. We had to be out of our rooms by 930 and all the food closed down by 9-30. We sat in 0’Sheehans until 145. No one was telling us anything. We had no idea why it took so long. They wouldn’t serve any snacks or drinks. Finally as we are walking out they had trays of juices. Pathetic to treat your customers that way. People that left their cars at pier 88 had to walk from 92 in the snow to get their cars. Not one explanation as to why we were so delayed.
We were on the same cruise and it was fine. As for crew being rude, that is furthest from the truth! Every place we went they said Hello. You get what you give in my opinion. The hopping place to be is always the Spinnaker lounge with Sherwin and Gary! Yes getting off was a nitemare but things happen. Apparently they were told another ship was supposed to be docking there but obviously it didn't. Trust me getting off in NYC is never that bad. And we never had to wait long in Magenta. Then again we only ate there 3 times because of specialty dining package and latitudes benefits. We spent 18 days on Gem in January and always found a spot by the pools. As for the bathrooms being dirty, maybe people are slobs and don't know how to wipe something up. I'm not saying they need to wipe down the counter, but come on people be a little neater and don't expect others to clean up your mess. I went into the ones by the Spinnaker and an officer came in and I mentioned it to her and she was on her phone right away to get someone to come. A cruise is what you make of it. You respect them and they will respect you.
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