BJ's / Norwegian poor experience
Norwegian Pearl Cruise Review to Caribbean - Bahamas
4 Night Bahamas (Miami Roundtrip)
Sail date: February 21, 2015
Ship: Norwegian Pearl
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: 9006
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 9 years ago
Review summary
Booking the cruise thru BJ's was confusing. We had to keep calling back and forth between Norwegian and BJ's to book the cruise and flight and we had no choice on flight times. Because there was not enough time between connecting flights we missed our flight in Atlanta and our cruise ship in Miami.
The best Delta Airlines could do was fly us to Key West the next day, so we missed a full day of our cruise.
Compared to other cruises we have been on , Norwegian was disorganized and the food was below our expectations. We will not be using BJ's travel service again because we we're not happy with the experience.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
Ports of call
Great Stirrup Cay (Cruise Line Private Island), Bahamas
3 Comments
JusMe 9 years ago
I'm sorry that BJ's left you with a bad taste in your mouth for the rest of your adventure. This was the fault of the TA and not NCL. I am glad that you gave a balanced review and did give good ratings to the staff and cabin.
I agree the food on NCL is not the greatest. Did you try any of the extra pay dining options ? The steak house is good as is the French, Mexican and the Sushi. If I ever book NCL again I would consider the premium dining package so that I would get good food. Ncl is typically less then other cruise lines so I see the dining package as just part of the cruise cost.
For your next cruise I would suggest if you have to fly in, get in a day or two early so no mishaps with missing the ship. I tend to book my own flights and hotels so I know what I'll be getting. I also tend to get better hotels for less then through a TA (the internet is my TA, finding hotels and reviews before booking. I check a few sites before booking.) If you book yourself, get enough travel Insurance to cover your flight and hotel.
I hope your next cruise goes smoothly.
MrChocoholic 9 years ago
Interesting review. I'm curious though about what you expected after being so let down by what you went through just to get aboard. We know from experience it takes at least a whole day to get oriented on a ship. Missing the first day is THE WORST. Constantly playing "hurry up and relax" is itself stressing. Anyway, it just makes it a bit harder to be completely unbiased if you arrive with a sour taste already. Since you've been on another couple of cruises, how did you compare the Pearl's kitchen output and service to the other ship(s) aboard which you cruised? Were your expectations along the lines of a 3-star Michelin restaurant, or IHOP? Did you have a fair sampling of dishes, or were you steadfast in ordering the "tried and true?"