The highlight was Canal transit and I have made this trip on a past cruise. The ship was adequate but shows it age and design. With the Dining and Beverage package it made for a decent trip.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
The embarkation was slow but the staff was friendly. Disappointed, but not unexpected, to find a $300 hold on my C.C. It was so noisy in the large room that something might have been said, but was missed.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The Java Café bar was outstanding, especially since we had the Ultimate Beverage Package (UBP). Bartenders were friendly and pour/mixed a wide variety of premium sprits. Indigo, the casual dress dining room, was less noisy than the Palace, which required men in long pants and no Tank tops, similar attire for women. Food was average, even the Specialty Dining was hit or miss. Some entrees were very bland and others were too spicy!
The rating above was for Bar service and the Dining would be 3 Stars. The Buffet and Outdoor Café were setup Cafeteria style, with a long serving area, instead of Food stations. People were cutting in line and backed up for other services. The staff waiting on the table did not offer to bring water/coffee/ or Juice as we have had on other ships - purely Self serve.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
The Cruise Director was replaced on our first or second stop due to personal reasons, and the Assistant had to take over, he did his best and there were always activities going on, but may of those were money driven (numerous Art auctions, Bingo, Pull tabs, and Casino activities). Numerous Trivia contest were in the Atrium lobby.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
There were no major shows, but several performers were hired. Performers were basically lounge acts or slightly above. In-house entertainment was used frequently.
Children's Programs
no children, only 20 children on-board.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Outstanding room attendant and the general cleaning was good, waiters were average. Officers did not interact with passengers very much. The Captain was a poor speaker and very hard to understand, even though he was from the U.S. On the Norwegian Getaway, officers interacted frequently, took your cabin number, and the next morning a fruit plate was delivered with a note thanking us for our concerns, not so on the Pearl.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
Balcony rooms, including the bathrooms were the smallest and most cramped of the ships were have been on. You had to be a contortionist to use the toilet in the room. Some of the public areas were showing some signs of wear. Not really sure what was done during the dry dock of early 2017.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
Room was the smallest we have stayed at. See notes above.
Ship tip
Mid ship rooms are convenient to most areas and watch which side of the ship you are on, compared to the direction you are heading for best views. We were on the Starboard (right) side and faced the water for 75% of our cruise, the Port side had land views whenever we were close enough. This was my biggest disappointment on room location.
Totally overbuilt from new construction and very crowded harbor, was a very nice harbor in past visits. No excursions, we have been there several times.
Took a tour of the Harbor and up the side of a mountain for pictures. Traffic was terrible and street level views of the water were obscured due building taking up every inch of waterfront. We have been there several times, so excursion was needed.
The nastiest harbor and town we visited. Water was muddy, beach was all mud, and very unappealing, as was the town itself. Did not take a tour of the jungle areas due to high price of tours. People that went had difficulty returning to the ship due to mudslides in the mountains. Very disappointing, as we hoped to return someday.
Never made it past the Duty free store and the end of the harbor due to the extreme heat (90 + degrees and 90% + humidity). The duty free store is a must see, as it has numerous birds, storks, parrots, monkeys, and peacocks on view and the monkeys and McCaw parrots were free to roam and very accessible. The city has a beautiful skyline with all building painted white to reflect the heat. Several people left the tours they were on due to heavy traffic and extreme heat.
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