This was our 1st cruise. Will probably cruise again but probably not on Norwegian. The reason I say that is every time you turned around they were trying to sell you something, from overpriced art prints, very expensive photos, spa treatments, jewelry and watches. They even went through the audience before shows trying to sell you pull tabs from the casino. Another complaint was the drinks package. We like wine. They has very few wines available without an up charge. There was a reasonably good Sauvignon Blanc from Chile. You could get this at dinner, but the regular bars were almost always out. They wanted to substitute a very poor white wine from Israel. If they have it as the restaurants why were they constantly out at the bars? As part of a promotion, we had two dinners in the specialty (charge) restaurants. We found almost no difference in the quality between the main dining rooms and the specialty restaurants. We tried the French restaurant (the only one with any sort of a dress code) and that was the dinner we liked least. We almost skipped our second specialty dinner but didn’t. It was no better than the dinners in Summer Palace and Indigo, the two main dining rooms. If you have to pay for a dinner package, my advice is don’t. You will have excellent meals in the main dining rooms and at the buffet (which had a small selection of excellent Indian entrees).
Embarkation
3 out of 5
It was OK. Could have been better. Took hours to get our bags
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The food was generally very good. The food in the main restaurants was the best. Portions were small but the quality was high. The buffer was much better that expected. The Indian selections were exceptional. The premium restaurants were really not worth the extra cost. Don't buy a package, it is not worth it.
Unless you plan to spend all day at the bear, the drink packages are of questionable value.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
Pools OK but overcrowded. Other activities a waste of time. They were playing one of the endless silly games in the lobby below Lotus Garden one evening and the sound carried into the restaurant. It was a little after 6 and I asked the host how long it would go on. He said he did not know, but perhaps another hour. We left and went to another restaurant. Why did the cruise director allow this to happen?
Entertainment
2 out of 5
Entertainment, and I use the word cautiously, was generally OK to poor. The only performers worth your time were the gymnasts. Most performers had the volume up so high it made it hard to talk anywhere near them. I really wasn’t expecting much, and I got what I was expecting. The endless “game shows” were loud and of no interest.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
The staff was great and went out of their way to help guests. I am talking about the stewards, wait staff, bar tenders and the like. I would give them 5 stars. However, many of the activity staff and shore excursion staff I would rate as average. For example, where leaving the ship in ports they did a very poor job of lining people up and giving clear directions. The elevator lobby filled with people, and they had one person to direct people coming off a bank of elevators to go to the end of the time. It didn’t work. People just pushed in line and milled around. Why didn’t he ship stop elevators going to that floor or put more than one staff person in front of the doors. It was always a mess.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Excellent cabin and great location
Ship tip
Don't take any packages and be careful with tours. The tour we took a tour to the Bell Museum in Sydney NS the A/C on the bus broke down half way and the guide was was awful.
From my experience all cruise lines would try to sell you something: watches, diamonds, spa tratments... They have to justify and compensate for relatively low cruise prices. Norwegian suite would probably be best for you as it comes with bonuses like access to the spa, separate sun deck, and specialty restaurants. Many other companies would offer similar perks.
I've been on 4 different cruise lines ( NCL, Carnival, Holland, and most often on Royal Caribbean). They all have some good things to offer. I also enjoy good wine and I found the Holland line had the best of the 4 cruise lines. It was also the most expensive. If money is not a factor, I would try a more expensive cruise lines such as Oceana, Viking, etc. for a better drink package.
Who knew NCL and the all you can drink package did not include fine wine? Not sure if the luxury cruises would measure up for you but you might give them a try. Of course, you will pay several times the price of a budget NCL cruise.
Glad you enjoyed most of it. Up selling is common on all main stream cruise lines, especially since Covid. Try Oceania, Regent Seven Seas, Seabourn or Viking for a better experience, just be prepared to pay 3-5+ times what NCL and other mainstream lines charge.
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