pintessential

Yeah, I completely agree. I've never seen such widespread deck party participation on any cruise ship period.

I also loved the Flamingo Grill as well. I really loved the rice, beans, grilled chicken, tres leche dessert and cinnamon rice pudding. I also really enjoyed Joel as the cruise director as there was just a shining aura to him (if that makes any sense). The deck parties were also awesome as a result of Joel and his staffers. They were great at getting people to participate.

I feel your pain here. NCL will typically offer you an upgrade or 25% of the difference back in OBC if you contact them after a price drop in a category for your specific sailing. I think loyal guests that book in advance should be rewarded for it but unfortunately, that's rarely the case. In NCL's defense, its in their best interest to fill every cabin despite the cost so they can recoop more back. I would recommend booking Carnival Early Saver if you're firm with dates. By booking in advance, you are refunded the full value of price drops up until you sail.

Here's a review I posted on CC:

And now on to my two major complaints: This week was not selling well right into December. I booked the studio in early December and received a ‘Latitudes’ rate. A week later NCL started a major promotion where they dropped balcony rates substantially plus added perks like free specialty dining, a free beverage package or OBC. There were couples on board who paid less per person in a large family balcony with free drinks included than what I did for the studio. And NCL would do nothing when I called them and when my TA called them. It feels as though they think that with the studio program they are the only game in town and don’t have to work very hard to keep this market. So I was stuck with a nice bill for specialty dining and drinks for the week where others were getting it for free. And it irked me further when I realized the chardonnay I was paying $8.34 a glass for with tip sells for 5 bucks and change by the bottle at Publix.

I should be able to answer those. The deck chairs by the pool filled up every morning, but people started to leave around lunchtime so we had no issue finding chairs around 1-2pm. You'll have an easier time finding a chair on the deck 16 sundeck or Spice H20 (adults-only during the day but no pool, only hot tubs).

The fitness center is a decent size, but I found it crowded around prime-time (before dinner). I noticed a lot of ship performers in the gym. Keep in mind the gym faces sideways, which made some people dizzy (one person fell off a treadmill onto another treadmill but fortunately everyone was okay).

Thanks for your review. I am going in February so I appreciate the feedback. I was wondering about the deck chair situation. I consistently read you can't get a chair after 10 am. I don't need to be by the pool, but absolutely want a chair. I was also wondering if you went to the gym. I was curious what time of day is best.

 

Thank you again.

To give you some background, this was my 8th cruise (4th on NCL), I sailed with my wife (we're both 29), and we're from Washington, DC. I'd been on Celebrity Solstice, RCI Mariner/Allure OTS, Carnival Breeze, and NCL Sea/Pearl/Epic. Here are some hits and misses from the sailing we just returned from:

Hits:

- Howl at the Moon - we loved this on Epic and it again proved to be our favorite attraction on the ship (Drew DeFour is especially awesome and will be on playing with his wife Colleen until mid-Feb)

- The Grammy Experience - the featured performer was Sugar Blue, an amazing harmonica player, who played with a live band.

- Illusionarium - great performance and loved the first two courses of the meal (dessert was mediocre). Floor seats have a much better view. I was annoyed that NCL refused to honor the 20% discount other nights after publishing the discount in the planner (first night cancelled on our sailing).

- Burn the Floor - great addition to NCL's entertainment (would've been nice if the dinner performances were later than 5ish)

- Live Music - enjoyed the Latin sounds of Star Trio and the Caribbean vibe of Groove International (a lack of live entertainment was my biggest "miss" on Carnival).

- Miami DJ Dance Party at Pool - some of the most hilarious dancing I've seen

- Carlo's Bakeshop - the best Cannoli I've ever had.

- MDR food - this might puzzle some, but despite being somewhat of a "food snob" from DC, I enjoyed the food in the main dining room. I typically went for the items the staff recommended and was rarely disappointed. I loved the Warm Chocolate Volcano with Chocolate Chip Gelato (better than Carnival's original).

- Garden Cafe Omelette and Crepe (NUTELLA) stations.

- Flamingo Grill - ate a lot of plantains and fried yucca - these are the main items that led to this cruise's weight gain.

- Stateroom Attendant - "invisible" and went above and beyond the call of duty.

- Ropes Course - fantastic views of the sea, including the plank (I should've dished out the $25 for a plank photo)

- Cruise Director - Jersey Boy Joel was really good at his job and managed to be everywhere simultaneously (even made an appearance as the judge in Legally Blonde)

- Deck Parties - NCL does a great job organizing these - enjoyed the fireworks/80's and Glow (replaces white-hot) parties especially

Misses:

- Major congestion during debarkation (almost missed our flight)

- NCL not enforcing posted rules - people consistently kept smoking outside of the designated areas and I think NCL gave up on trying to stop them. Also, there were young kids jumping up and down in the adult only hot tubs.

- Hot tubs - speaking of which, the 6 on the ship are way too few for the number of pax, and this should be addressed during the first refurb.

- Bad manners - this is more poor parenting, but kids were licking food off their fingers and reaching back into the buffet with their hands. Germs can spread very easily on a ship, so I think NCL should assign staff to help keep this under control.

- Room Layout - didn't mind that our stateroom was smaller than usual, but only 2 outlets, no drawers, very small balcony in category BD. There were additional storage features but not the most accessible.

- Legally Blonde - half-a**ed "broadway-style" entertainment. All the music instrumentals were pre-recorded rather than played by live musicians. Seems like a shame for a boat with dozens of live musicians (Royal Caribbean Broadway shows are excellent in contrast).

- Ocean Blue - let me preface this by saying we had a good meal, but for the amount of seafood, it was worth no more than half the $39/pp surcharge.

- Speed waterslides - I enjoy a thrill, but not a eye/mouth/noseful of water despite holding my breath and closing my eyes. Enjoyed the other slides.

- Deal or No Deal, Bingo, and Blackjack Tourney - the only winner is NCL - the structure of these games gave a laughable payout to the participants compared to the buy-in. Give more consolation prizes to runners up, and stop rigging the games with computers. Both our contestants happened to be holding the maximum case for Deal or No Deal after settling for a lower offer. Would be more fun if audience members held real cases.

- Nickel and Diming - I understand NCL only turns a profit by selling extras, but it would be nicer if they weren't constantly broadcasting sales pitches on the intercom - I knew this going in, but this aspect was MUCH better on Carnival.

For excursions, we did the following:

St. Maarten: Bernard's Tours (5 stars) - excellent tour guide, good overview of island, drinks included for a great price of under $50/pp.

St. Thomas: St. John Beach and Snorkel (3 stars) - beautiful beach but ferry going there/back was overcrowded and 4.5 hour excursion was rushed.

Nassau: Freddie's Hi-Tech Parasailing (5 stars) - reasonable price, 8 minutes flying time, great views of the island including Atlantis.

Let me know if you have any questions regarding the ship.

Just booked an Alaska Cruise on the Solstice for next summer through a popular TA that starts with C. For oceanview and above, I was able to get prepaid gratuities PLUS either $200 OBC or the classic drink package. Drink package was a no-brainer for us.