It’s like a Holiday Inn & TGIFriday’s meets cruise ship. If you go with those expectations, you will not be disappointed. The ship is older and cabin bathrooms need an update. Most notably the food/menu needs a complete makeover! Recommend this cruise in Sept-October.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
The main dining for dinner is similar Applebee’s at best; everything was over salted or had too much garlic. One of our upgrades allowed us 4 nights specialty dining, so we tried four different specialty restaurants (Sushi, French, Japaneese Hibacci, and the Steak House). The only restaurant we loved & finished our plate was the specialty Steak House; by far the best service & food on the ship! The reservation was our last night and given our experience I was nervous, but my filet arrived cooked a perfect medium rare! If I could do it again we would have made reservations for all 4 nights at the Steak House - it was that good & other restaurants were that BAD!!! From the main buffet, we found 3-4 items for breakfast & lunch. The burgers served pool side were edible. Don’t expect to overindulge and/or order more than 1 starter/entree like most cruises; expect around 2 & 1/2 star quality & you’ll be pleased; anything higher and you’ll be gravely disappointed. Alcohol package does not include coffee or daily alcohol cocktail. The daily cocktail is made from a mix, so you’re not missing anything. The only coffee that’s included is from the main buffet & it’s terrible. In order to get a decent cup of coffee you must go to the cafe or order at dinner, but it’s an extra $3.95/cup. So the alcohol package includes all alcohol up to $15 (including sodas/water) but no coffee. I can order 5 entrees for dinner, but no coffee!!! I can order Irish coffee, but coffee without alcohol is an extra charge.
Teppanyaki
2 out of 5
If you’ve been to a hibachi restaurant, you know it’s not true hibachi ingredients. Fish & meats are marinated in butter, garlic, and soy sauce; true hibachi uses teriyaki. The miso soup tastes like they used ocean water and then added more salt!
The good: chefs are fun & very entertaining.
Cagney's Steakhouse
4 out of 5
The best restaurant on the ship! We had an upgrade to enjoy 4 specialty restaurants, but if I could do it again I would have made 4 nights of reservations at Cagney’s. Yes, the difference in service, taste & quality was that vast! We actually finished our meal.
Ginza
2 out of 5
Same taste and quality that you would expect find from grocery store sushi.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Room service is an extra $7.95 charge (previously cruised w/ Celebrity, while they had a limited menu there was NO fee), another attempt to squeeze extra money. I wasn’t feeling well & excused myself from dinner at Versailles early one night. My husband ordered a dessert to bring back to the cabin, but on his way out the waiter would not let him leave. We assumed because they wanted us to order room service & pay the fee, but the item wasn’t on the room service menu. He didn’t pay for it so just dropped it off at the nearest table and left. A cruise with better customer service may have mentioned the rule, but then waived him along & told him to enjoy. Everywhere we looked people weren’t taking buffet plates back to their rooms or around the pool, so we only assume this guy was following a rule everyone else ignored. It’s little things like this that set Norwegian’s level of customer service below other cruise lines.
Far too crowded in July! Sadly overtourism had ruined venice. To find good food that isn’t over priced, get away from the main tourist areas & avoid restaurants with pictures on their menu.
Another port accepting too many cruise ships. It’s so overcrowded & hot in July, unless you’re going on an excursion I wouldn’t bother getting off the ship.
Not sure of your negative coffee comments. Coffee was always free in the Buffet and restaurants - all both comp and specialty. You should have tried Le Bistro also - we like it even better than Cagneys.
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