An "OK" cruise to all the right places.
Norwegian Pearl Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America
Sail date: November 19, 2015
Ship: Norwegian Pearl
Cabin type: Balcony
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 8 years ago
Review summary
We took an 11 day cruise out of Miami to the Panama Canal. It was on our bucket list and it was well worth visiting. The shore excursions from Panama's Gatan Lake are only available from NCL and it was the only NCL shore excursion that we felt was worthwhile. We took 2 other NCL shore excursions- one was fair and the other was not good at all.
The cruise ship (The Pearl) was large (2400 passengers) but except for the embarkation and disembarking, we did not really notice the "crowds".
The specialty restaurants were generally not worth the premium, except for Cagney's steak house - that was excellent - we should have dined there 2 or 3 times.
Our stateroom (Balcony-GUAR) was very nice. The service from the room steward helped add to the ambience of the stateroom. We thought the original cost was a bit high, but this was to be our special Thanksgiving vacation. However the NCL website was selling the same staterooms for almost 50% less the week before the cruise departed. Even Mini-suites were selling for less than we paid. When I inquired about an upgrade, had to go through NCL, and NCL was not offering any consideration. They said I would have to cancel my current reservation (at a penalty) and then re-book to get the new rate. NET COST INCREASE!
The gratuities and the daily service charges (which were increased this year!) have become a hefty surcharge to the cost of a cruise. We found that the bartenders and the room steward fully earned their gratuities. The dining room staff and the table waiters in the lounges gave only fair to often very poor service. (However the hostess in the Garden Palace Dining room was outstanding!)
Overall, NCL would not be my first choice on a future cruise. Two of the enticements (free premium specialty dinners-you still pay the gratuities, free beverages-you still pay the gratuities) might make a cruise appealing if it were going to the right places, but I would do a lot of comparisons between several alternative cruise lines before choosing NCL. I would definitely choose United Cruise Lines shore excursions over NCL's. United's were better, with fewer people, more informative, and generally a bit lower in price. Definitely better value.
Despite a few disappointments, overall, we had a good time.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Ship tip
Cagney's Steak House is the only specialty restaurant that exceeded our expectations. The Hot Tubs are nice for relaxation on days at sea. The buffet is usually a mad-house at meal time. Even with mediocre service at times, the Summer Palace is a better place to take breakfast and dinner.
Ports of call
Cruise Gatun Lake And Panama Canal
Coxen Hole, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras
2 Comments
MrChocoholic 8 years ago
This was a pretty good review, I'd give it 3 out of 5 quill pens. You were fair and balanced, covered most of the stuff most cruisers want to know. Glad you got off the ship at ports of call in order to give us your impression. Your tip, while unoriginal, was spot on. I'm very surprised you mentioned nothing about the Garden Cafe overlooking the stern or the gorgeous Chihuly sculpture in the lobby atrium.