Great cruise BUT didn't receive all that was promised with regards to perks.

Item: Norwegian Jade
Rating: 3.5
Author: mvalmonte

Norwegian Jade Cruise Review to Europe - Eastern Mediterranean

mvalmonte

Contributor Level: Purser

102 Days Till Next Cruise

Cruises: 1 cruise (first)

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 11

Overall rating:

3.5 out of 5

7 Night Greek Isles (Athens Roundtrip)

Sail date: May 21, 2023

Ship: Norwegian Jade

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 11002

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

Overall, the cruise is fabulous! It was the NCL personnel and their inability to keep their word. Integrity is everything, especially when customers are spending literally thousands of dollars on dream vacations! There is no excuse for bait and switch - EVER! Then when we went to Guest Services, we get stares back looking at us like "deer in headlights". After waiting 40 minutes or so in LONG lines in front of the Guest Services desk - obviously we were not the only guests confused about our on board charges. My credit card was being charged on a DAILY basis for the first two days of our cruise until I complained again. My husband and I wasted over a half day waiting in lines to straighten things out! NCL needs to stop making these 'freebie' promises they do not intend to keep!

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Great. No complaints.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Specialty restaurants told us we had to pay full price when I know we didn't have to pay at all. We ended up eating only in complimentary dining areas.

Onboard Activities

1 out of 5

Mandara Spa - unisex relaxation lounge was supposed to be a quiet, relaxing space. Guests were allowed to talk at the top of their lungs in the jacuzzi that was in the relaxation unisex lounge. At times there was orange peel litter on the floor left by pigs. We were also given a $100 on board certificate that said "Special GIFT for you." The spa said they would honor it for a deep tissue massage that was a specialty service, so we used it for that. After the service, the spa took our signed certificate but never applied it and we were charged full price. We were told since they had a special going for an extra 25 minutes on the massage, they couldn't honor it - they backed out on their word and took our certificate! The spa also gave us a separate $40 coupon to use for any specialty service. We used it for a facial service. Again, they told us ahead of time that they would honor it. Then after the facial, they took our coupon again and once again charged us in full. I took a photo of the coupon prior to us surrendering it. The spa manager told us the coupon was only good on the 4th day of sailing - THE COUPON SAID ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ABOUT IT ONLY BEING GOOD FOR A CERTAIN DAY!

Entertainment

Not interested. We went on this cruise to relax.

Children's Programs

Couple only cruise.

Service and Staff

1 out of 5

Guest services and waiters had never heard of "Free at Sea". One waiter told us that since our room keys had "PRTY" on them, that means we could order all the drinks we want and its free. The waiter also told an elderly couple near our table who had the same "PRTY" on their room key. They were pleasantly surprised when the waiter told them that. At the end of both our meals, our two tables were both complaining why we got charged full price for the glass of wine we ordered. WE WERE ALL LIED TO! My husband and I had had enough - it was just our second day at sea! So I made such a big stink about it that the waiter went ahead and reversed the charge for our drink to our onboard account. I still have my copy of the original receipt the waiter was insisting we sign at the end of our dinner, but we refused because we were only going by what he told us about the drinks.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

I sat on food in one of the restaurants - we were seated in a darker corner for dinner. YUK!

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Excellent.

Ship tip

Have NCL provide you with EVERYTHING that comes with your package IN WRITING! Even the Next Cruise desk did a number on us... I was thinking about an Asia cruise on Norwegian Sky and inquiring about the matching travel certificates being offered while sailing. I told the desk rep that I was only inquiring and that I would more than likely come back tomorrow to purchase one $250 certificate that NCL would match with another $250 certificate. I was shocked to receive notification from my bank that $1000.00 was charged to my cc on file with NCL and I was booked without my consent on that cruise I was just inquiring about. I had to go back down once again to complain about having the charge and reservation reversed as we had not yet made a decision to go to Asia. The cruise next rep (different guy) told me, "You could gift the extra $250 certificates you don't want to family members." I WAS LIVID! I made him reverse the charge and make it right - I only wanted to purchase ONE cruise next certificate! And I made him cancel the cruise reservation and told him that my husband and I will reserve our next cruise when WE decide; we don't need someone from NCL to decide for us!

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Piraeus (Athens), Greece

5 out of 5

Santorini, Greece

5 out of 5

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

Smooth

8 Comments

Other reviews of this sailing

Nice trip to islands