We wanted to see Cuba before it gets back on the Do Not Visit list and we accomplished that. The ship was the means of getting there and back but was not special or very entertaining. We enjoyed the singers and dancers but the seating was crowded the way it is designed and should be redesigned. So I would recommend the cruise to someone with our same goals, not someone looking for an entertaining and enlightening ship.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Fastest we have ever gotten through the embarkation process...well done! Very happy to find the dining room open so we avoided the mob scene at the buffet. NOTE: There is very little communication from Norwegian prior to the cruise. We are experienced travelers and followed up making sure we had all of our paperwork in order. Others may not have and not have a good embarkation experience.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
The food was good and it was a pleasure not to have to purchase the wine package. We did not do a lot of drinking on this ship, but enjoy wine with lunch and dinner.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Enjoyed trivia in the Captain Hooks area. Really did not find a lot of activities that we wanted to do. Would be nice to have had lectures/seminars from an "expert" about Cuba, even after the visit.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
we went to all the shows except the night in Cuba when we went to a Cuban cabaret. The dancers and singers were good and what one would expect on a cruise. Did not especially like the "over-enthusiastic" DJ, found them annoying and LOUD!
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Almost all the dining staff were good and friendly. It would be a good idea to have a little education about pulling out chairs and assisting in seating. There is no need to help gentlemen who have no disabilities into their chairs while watching the lady do her own.Either don't help anyone, or be a gentleman and assist the lady. This category got a GOOD rating because of the wait and bar staff, cannot say the same about the room steward whom I never saw and it would be nice to have ice in the ice bucket on all days, not just embarkation. Rooms were not made up until after 11 on 2 days. The bar tenders seemed inexperienced and did not have or could not make many drinks. Example: I ordered an Appletini and he said he could only make Lemon Drops and Cosmos. The following night I asked for a Lemon Drop and this bar tender said he could not make it, only cosmos's. Those are not unusual drinks and was also the only time I ordered a drink other than wine.
Ship Quality
2 out of 5
The ship was tired and drab. It probably was fairly clean as cruise ships go but there was no outstanding art, sculptures, lights or exciting decorations, just framed pictures on the wall. Since it was an inexpensive cruise and went where we wanted to go, it gets a pass, but barely. Common areas seemed to be clean and there were ample number of hand sanitizers throughout the ship.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
Cabin was adequate for a short cruise. (Balcony was not available) My only complaints are that 2 days the room was not made up until after 11 and the other 2 days we were not there to know when it was made up. The room steward never filled the ice bucket after embarkation. The bathroom was just fine. The cabin safe was attached to NOTHING. How safe it that?
Ship tip
1. Follow through with whomever you booked with to make sure your papers are in order. 2. Be prepared to NOT GO TO GREAT STIRRUP CAY because it is a "tendered" location and the ship won't permit it if there is any wave action at all. 3. Be prepared for a minor drink choice, but wine selection was adequate. 4. Pack light, there is no need to have a lot of clothes and it makes it a lot easier to get off the ship for debarkation.
We loved this port. We had a private guide, hired ahead of time and was with him from 9 am to past midnight. It was fairly easy to go through Cuban Entry but when we came back to the ship after midnight the Security was extremely lax, mostly on the part of the Cubans who never looked at or wanted Identification and the scanner buzzer went off because of my knee replacements and no one cared and we just continued on. When we got to passport control and she took about 2 seconds to look at the passport and wave us on. The ship did check our key card.
Ship anchored and sat there and then announced there were too many waves to use the tenders. We are boaters and if the waves that day prevent the tenders from use, Norwegian better find another stop. What an incredibly boring day it was!
*Cruiseline.com is not a booking agent or travel agency,
and does not charge any service fees to users of our site. Our partners
(travel agencies and cruise lines) provide prices, which we list for our
users' convenience. Cruiseline.com does not guarantee any specific rates or
prices. While prices are updated daily, please check with the booking site
for the exact amount. Cruiseline.com is not responsible for content on
external web sites.
Contact us
Submitting...
Need help from a personal vacation planner?
Loading...
Find the perfect cruise with weekly tips and cruise deals for as little as $30/night!
Sign up for weekly cruise deals
Join other subscribers and get the best
cruise deals of the week in your inbox every Thursday.
