Good cruise, but terrible itineray and times at ports
Norwegian Getaway Cruise Review to Europe - Mediterranean
9 Night Greek Isles: Santorini Mykonos & Istanbul (Athens To Rome)
Sail date: July 12, 2023
Ship: Norwegian Getaway
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: 14866
Traveled as: Family (young children)
Reviewed: 1 year ago
Review summary
Very disappointed with the itinerary for the cruise. When I purchased my cruise, we were supposed to stay overnight in Istambul and in reality we spent a day at sea and arrived early in Istambul to leave before 3 pm. This did not allow enough time to visit this great city (one key reason I chose this cruise, by the way) and also it did not allow for a chance to visit the mosques since they are closed to visitors in the morning (something I would have expected NCL knows and understands). Additionally, our stop in Mykonos was cancelled due to "weather reasons". In fact, there was a bit of wind but nothing terrible that would/should not have allowed us to disembark. Myknonos was the other key reason why I wanted to go on this cruise and NCL failed to deliver on this also. Finally, the time spent at ports was ridiculously short. Even the crew that we talked to agreed! You can check the final intineray we had so that I don't have to list it but spending 4-5 hours in a port and arriving at 6 am is just ridiculous. We are on a vacation, everyone was rushing and going crazy, not even getting to eat breakfast well.... terrible. Another point is regarding the Ports... you should definitely consider removing Napoli, Catania and Olympia from your stops. It is all very terrible to get off and the cities are very ugly and dirty. Santorini is pretty but lacks the infrastructure to attend to cruise ships. Finally, I'd like you to consider that not everyone that travels in NCL is from the U.S. and therefore not everyone shares the same dining hours. Having lunch at 1:30 the latest (some restaurants actually closed at 1:30) is not customary to customers from Europe or Latin America. This is not fair. Plus, the Shanghai bar was impossible to experience since you ran out of beepers and we had to wait over 3 hours to potentially get in (when it would be closed). On a final note, please consider removing the 20% mandatory gratuity. When tips and gratuities are forced on us, there is absolutely no incentive for staff to do exceptional work. Charging 20% is extremely high. Again, in Europe it is not customary to charge tips or gratuities. They are given when exceptional service is provided. Otherwise, it is understood that it is part of the service for the highly-priced food and beverage and hotel rooms that we're paying that we'll get adequate service.Embarkation
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
Ports of call
Mykonos, Greece Did not visit port
Livorno (Florence & Pisa), Italy