Overall a good cruise, but I'm not sure this size ship is the best idea for the Baltic. From what I've read of other reviews, ports of call seem to get skipped fairly often because of port issues that could be avoided with a smaller ship.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
We embarked from Warnemuende, Germany. Absolutely no line to wait in, very easy and fast check-in. Our luggage was brought to our cabin about 30 minutes later.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Mostly good. The buffet dining room was ridiculously crowded though. One of us would have to camp at a table once we finally found one available while the other person got their food. We went to 3 of the specialty restaurants and were happy with two of them: Ocean Blue and Cagney's. We weren't so impressed with what we had at Le Bistro. The bars overall were good.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
It was too cold most of the time to do the outdoor stuff. This part of the ship is really better suited to the Caribbean. We enjoyed our spa passes that were part of our spa balcony cabin package.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Well worth seeing.
Children's Programs
Don't have kids.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Good for the most part.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Everything was kept clean. Some bottlenecks in areas and the buffet restaurant was just too crowded. It was hard to find a table sometimes.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Laid out nicely. We had a spa balcony and were close to the spa area.
Ship tip
Weigh the pros and cons of embarking/disembarking from Copenhagen vs. Warnemunde. I'm glad we decided to embark from Warnemende, although it was a little weird being off a day in activities from most of the other people on the ship (most embark from Copenhagen). We got to spend more time in Germany this way and avoid spending 6 hours on the train to/from Berlin on the same day. Far fewer people embarking in Germany and no lines to wait in. In Copenhagen it looked like a different story. The only other thing I would add about embarking from Germany is you will be completely on your own to arrange hotels and travel arrangements from Berlin to Warnemunde. This was not a problem for us, but could be for those who want everything taken care of in a one-stop-shop sort of way or who are not as adventurous. It's a good idea to read up on the German train system before going if you're not already familiar with it. You will have to make a connection to get from Berlin to Warnemunde.
Nothing special about Warnemunde itself, other than the train station being an easy walk to the ship. There is a ton to see in Berlin. We spent one evening in West Berlin before the cruise, and two days after the cruise in East Berlin. We saw the main sights, but still barely scratched the surface.
We walked to the old town from the ship. Great place for anyone with an interest in medieval Europe. We went to the Olde Hansa medieval restaurant for lunch (in the main square, easy to find), and really enjoyed it.
We did a 2-day tour with an evening folk show add-on through a private tour company, which is really the way to go. We spent half what we would have with Norwegian, the tour size was much smaller (14 people), and we got to see more than would have been possible with Norwegian (including the newish Faberge Museum). You can't combine the 2-day tour with the evening folk show tour through Norwegian. Customs is nerve-wracking here, nothing can be done to change that, just get there as early as possible, have all of your tour information, and stay patient.
Only Norwegian excursion we took was in Stockholm. Old town, Vasa Museum, and the Ice Bar. Unfortunately, our bus got the early reservation for the Ice Bar which was before 11am and we weren't served alcohol, just fruit juice. Everyone was pretty disappointed by that, but we went to the Ice Bar on the ship the next day and made up for it. The Vasa Museum and Old town were well worth the time.
We did the hop-on-hop-off bus from the port. Spent a lot less than we would have on a tour. It was a little strange getting on and off the ship since we were a couple of the few who were not disembarking here. Those of us who were disembarking in Germany were able to use a separate and much smaller line to get back on the ship.
*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.
