This was my first cruise with NCL and I was seriously not impressed. Other than the heated pools, they had nothing on RC. The management needs to get their act together and reduce the chaos. Bring back the entertainment staff, because the ones used were not good, and don't offer drinks on a premium plus package that you don't actually offer. I feel like I way overpaid for drinks that we wanted to get and couldn't. A cruise should also never run out of pina colada mix, which was absolutely ridiculous.
Embarkation
2 out of 5
The times offered for arrival do not matter, the wait is excruciating even for priority boarding. They did not begin priority boarding until after 12:30.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
The ship ran out of pina coladas on day 2! By the end of Day 3, they offered no frozen drinks other than the mudslide and they could not do basic drinks like rum runners either due to being out of specific liquors. They do not offer anything off the premium plus package (only knockoffs, but they sure do sell it and advertise the champagne that is also not available), so that is a complete waste of money. They will try to upsell you to a bottle, not on the premium plus pkg for dinner. The food is another story- EVERYTHING had mushrooms! I have an allergy and had to order food 24 hrs ahead of time, but even ppl who can eat mushrooms do not typically enjoy it enough to have it in literally everything (soup of the day to cheese quesadillas to fried rice and every pasta available, it was in the steak sauce, omelettes, just everywhere you looked it was mushrooms.)
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
There were not many onboard activities available. The pool was heated, which was very nice; however, there are only 2 small pools and only 1 of those is an adult pool. There were also only 4 hottubs that were packed the entire time. While stopped at location, there were very few activities (a sudoku challenge, a word search challenge, and a diamond painting for kids was pretty much it) The bowling was only open for a short window of time.
Entertainment
2 out of 5
The entertainers attempted different types of music throughout the trip, but they struggled with the words. It was like they did not know what they were singing, so they would repeat the main lyric at odd times and the remaining lyrics used were gibberish.
Children's Programs
We did not bring any children; however, we did find out they do not offer a childrens pool and children in swim diapers were not allowed in the only pools available.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Staff were very friendly, for the most part. They all seemed new and clueless about what was going on, for example we inquired at the 3 shop about an event listed "charm of the day" and each shop told us to go somewhere else, then someone said it was just to buy the charms offered but it was listed as a 1 hr event so it did not make sense.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
The design was confusing, you have to go through the dining hall to get to the outdoors bar. They also reduced the amount of cleaning the staff was in charge of, so for instance one day our room was not touched until well after 6 PM and another day it was only checked early in the morning.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
The balcony suite was very small. The balcony did not have room for lay down chairs, so only 2 regular chairs were provided. The bed offered minimal room to walk past, and the couch room was very small. The size, overall, was smaller than a regular balcony room on the RC. Also- They WILL lock your mini fridge before the last night without advising you and they will also kick you out on the last day before 8 AM even if you can not debark until after 11 AM. (Also, the bars are all closed the last day and starbucks closes before 9)
The bars here were very slow, the service did not even know the drinks on their 4 drink menus, the lines are long. There are NO shops, despite the signs advertising otherwise. There are swings that are nice for a picture, and the beach was fine but it is cold this time of yr (coming from a Floridian)
Worst Ever!!! They decided to do customs on the ship so you have 1-2 people checking all guests while still on the ship- this slowed things down immensely. We missed our train and had to take a later one (3 hrs later!!!) because they did not even call out color until 11:30 AM. We were kicked out of our room at 7:45 and advised to wait in the main lobby, all bars were closed and starbucks was open for a short window. It was absolutely awful being crammed into a room with all other passengers, many whom were forced to stand or sit on the ground, with nothing to do and nothing to drink (even though I am pretty sure the package for drinks includes this day)
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