Nightmare Cruise

Norwegian Pearl Cruise Review to Bermuda

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 25

Overall rating:

3 out of 5
Verified Review
Norwegian Pearl

7 Night Bermuda (Boston Roundtrip)

Sail date: July 01, 2022

Ship: Norwegian Pearl

Cabin type: Oceanview

Cabin number: 4560

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 2 years ago

Review summary

Booking number: 48673214 Norwegian Pearl Departure date: 07/01/2022 Annette Crum, BJ’s Travel agent (888)743-2735 x38347 Room type: OF (Oceanview Stateroom) Room Number: 4560 To Whom It May Concern, Recently my wife and I along with my two daughters decided to cruise to Bermuda out of Boston to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary. We were so excited and it was our first time booking through BJ’s Travel as well as sailing with NCL. We have had two other cruises with Royal Caribbean and have had great success so we were hesitant about changing cruise lines. I called directly to BJ’s Travel and spoke to Annette who was very professional and helpful. I was able to hand pick an Oceanview Stateroom. She gave the guidance needed to feel comfortable that we made the right choice for this milestone event in our lives. We originally booked the trip in April for the July timeframe. When it become closer to the date, I actually reached out to NCL directly. It took awhile to connect to a person because I went through an alternative travel agency but the woman, I spoke to was very gracious. She gave me the correct direction going forward to include how to contact Bermuda Tourism site. This was unexpected task and fee of $40 per person which probably should have better explained by BJ’s Travel. Regardless we still felt like we were on track. The day of the cruise, we “sailed” right through and gained access to the ship immediately! To our horror, we discovered that we were given an Inside Stateroom. Our First cabin Number: 9517, Inside Stateroom was definitely unacceptable especially since we paid in full for an Oceanview Stateroom. You can only imagine our disappointment! Plus, my wife suffers from claustrophobia, for that reason, we paid extra for that window. We immediately went down to complain about the accommodations but had to wait in a long line where we clearly noticed that we weren’t the only victims of deceit. When finally arriving to speak to a person, the woman was very carefree of this inconvenience. She exclaimed that there was nothing we could do until we sail out of Boston? I asked to speak to her manager and she said “No Managers” were available. We decided to try to relax and wait for the ship to depart. You have to remember that we paid for an unforgettable experience and so far, it was but not a favorable one! After sailing, we went back down to complain about our room and of course had to wait again in a long line. When we finally arrived at the window again, we were never offered an upgrade even though that’s all you heard throughout the ship that it was available. Apparently, the ship was full and couldn’t help? She explained that someone is going to get in touch with me and it may take a day or two! I believe that’s when I exploded and my wife was in tears. The woman then said that she’d be able to give us an Oceanview with an obstructed view. I asked if there was going to be a discount because I paid for an Oceanview! She said that management would contact me and I exclaimed how? My cell phone is off and how exactly are you going to locate me? Very disappointed with her professionalism and NCL! We took the Obstructed Oceanview Stateroom, moved our luggage from the 9th floor to the 8th to find another disappointment. The room was setup only for two? Once again, I was forced to go back, wait in line and suffer further disappointment. I calmly asked how long it would take to prepare the room for four? Once again, they gave me the run around and said that we would have to come back later! To remind you again, this was to be a wonderful family cruise celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary and all we could think was this was a total mistake. We were catered by Royal Caribbean and never had an issue with our former cruises. I guess you get what you pay for! When we finally went back to the front desk, we had a nice manager offer us two rooms: First cabin Number: 9517, Inside Stateroom Second Cabin Number: 8594, Obstructed Oceanview Stateroom Third Cabin Number: 8575, Inside Stateroom We chose to keep the two rooms in exchange of the room we originally picked out and paid for. The kicker is that the room they gave us was right next to O’Sheehan’s Bar & Grill which was conveniently open 24hrs! We were able to experience the party all night long! The most memorable parts were the screaming, yelling, laughing of our fellow night owl passengers in the hallway and ones awaiting the elevator. By far the best was when we had to yell at the cleaning guy vacuuming near the elevators at 2 a.m. one evening. We never went back to complain again! I can’t tell you how upset we are. I can tell you for a fact that we won’t be adding any new Latitude points or levels to our family, friends and anyone else I come into contact with because we will NEVER cruise with NCL again! Thank you for the unforgettable vacation! I strongly suggest that BJ’s Travel remove themselves from NCL too. Disappointed, John McDonald

Embarkation

1 out of 5
The day of the cruise, we “sailed” right through and gained access to the ship immediately! To our horror, we discovered that we were given an Inside Stateroom. Our First cabin Number: 9517, Inside Stateroom was definitely unacceptable especially since we paid in full for an Oceanview Stateroom. You can only imagine our disappointment! Plus, my wife suffers from claustrophobia, for that reason, we paid extra for that window. We immediately went down to complain about the accommodations but had to wait in a long line where we clearly noticed that we weren’t the only victims of deceit. When finally arriving to speak to a person, the woman was very carefree of this inconvenience. She exclaimed that there was nothing we could do until we sail out of Boston? I asked to speak to her manager and she said “No Managers” were available. We decided to try to relax and wait for the ship to depart.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5
Good

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5
Kinda disappointed. I believe the rock wall was open only twice and the window of operation was short. Pool vibe was nice and active!

Entertainment

3 out of 5
Okay. I was kinda expecting to be more wowed but guess you get what you pay for...

Service and Staff

2 out of 5
I don't want to wrap everyone in this! Some wait staff were high performers while others were so so. I never really felt catered like on Royal Caribbean. The staff at the front desk were unprofessional and unhelpful!!!

Ship Quality

4 out of 5
Well maintained.

Cabin / Stateroom

1 out of 5
Never made it to Cabin 4560!!! Read the summary!!!!

Ship tip

Be advised, you get what you pay for. Even though you pay for a Oceanview cabin, you might not get one and the service is sub par.

Ports of call

Royal Naval Dockyard, West End, Bermuda

4 out of 5
Regardless of all the woe from NCL, Bermuda is a beautiful island with beautiful friendly people. We will definitely go back but probably by plane or another cruise line. We went on an excursion separate from the cruise line.

Bar Harbor, Maine

4 out of 5
We did not go on an excursion. We lost about two hours of shore time trying to disembark and tender to the main land. Bar Harbor is a beautiful town!

Disembarkation

4 out of 5
Surprisingly, the disembarkation was a bit hectic but went faster than expected.
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