SGCruiser2013

Howdy friends, hope the Summer is starting well and wish you great cruising...

Am in the market for my next NCL cruise, wanting to use some of those CruiseNext deposits I still have. In any event, was looking at Europe 2025 and was just surprised at the current pricing. Seems like for 8-11 day cruises, a lot of the balconies are >$3,000+/pp and Haven is well into the $5's/or more. For instance the Sky has a cool itinerary for 9 nights in either July or August, but the balconies are well over $3/pp and suites are like $7/8. Is this just early pricing to sort things out, or does it stay that way? My NCL cruises have all been Domestic to date. Thx for any tips! 

Our family is looking at an ABC cruise on Beyond in the Fall next year. We started looking at prices early November and they were pretty decent for typical Verandas. When the Black Friday deal kicked in Nov. 10th, the pricing actually got a bit worse (I believe mostly to 40% off PP moving to BOGO75, but seemed like a little more than this also). I talked to a Celebrity cruise consultant and they indicated they do expect some actual Black Friday additional sales although nothing certain, not sure if will be my cruise, not sure what type of incentive (e.g., OBC or deposit or fare, etc.). Now am seeing some Black Friday discussions around drink packages/excursions, etc. and wondering if better to book now, take advantage of some of those, and then perhaps adjust. Personally, I'd prefer less than $500 NFD but not sure if Celebrity does this very often and otherwise can see the benefit of booking now and then reprice if needed. This is one of my first times to sail Celebrity - I'd appreciate what do the Celebrity experts think?

We really enjoyed our vacation on the Prima. On the latter part, one of our party got sick and that slowed us down of course. But the first 4/7 days were very active. My biggest concern w Norway sailing would be if you thought weather would limit outside usage. If so, the crowd issues get even more exacerbated for the smaller inside venues and I would think this more likely to reduce guest experience. While this is not a new concept - e.g., smaller venues being crowded, bad weather affecting inside enjoyment, etc. - when you have a ship like Prima that has made some of the design choices it has, it in fact can vary from other ships in similar circumstances. Prima has invested a lot of space in the galaxy pavilion, in the speedway, in the Haven outside areas, in the open atrium, in the outdoor dining seating - my view/caution is that all of these design choices can make there less room for the ship to handle bad weather comfortably than others I've been on.

On 3/24/2023 at 5:01 PM, Landl cruiser said:

I can vouch for TFL coverage.   On the Prima in December, my wife visited the Medical Center , and we got a bill for over $5K.  We filed a claim thru TFL and received a check about a month later for the full amount.  

 

@Landl cruiser Can I ask whether you received & discussed billing while on the ship, or did they send you a bill later? Curious as to how NCL handles medical center visits.

30 minutes ago, sharonann24 said:

I have enjoyed reading your posts even though we will not have the Haven experience😪 this time around.  We will be on the late July Iceland/Norway cruise so I am a little concerned about the cooler weather and the indoor venues.  Where do or can you walk outside, or does this mean I head to the fitness center and do the treadmill daily?  Celebrity Edge had a wonderful walking/jogging track that I used every day.  We opted for Onda and Cagney's, so I am curious about Onda, otherwise I may switch to Le Bistro.  Thanks again!

Thanks!! As mentioned I don't cruise too much but wanted to do a live thread on this great newer ship. That said, I think perhaps could be some "Prima Fatigue" given all the recent posts and frankly not a lot of questions currently unanswered. 

Re: walking, I would second what others have mentioned which is Deck 8, Ocean Boulevard, is really the best bet for outside walking. It's the only place really that circles the ship. However, most days this is not easy to do - - which is why you see walkers/joggers out early in a.m. before things get crowded. And when I did that one morning, the ground was a bit wet from washdowns/etc. the night before (or early that morning of) and it's not the easiest b/c the ground can slip a little. So honestly, for walking, not the best situation outside. 

I think July in the Nordics sounds amazing as long as you think the outside can be appropriately utilized. If it's a full ship, and the outside becomes to cold/weather prone, then the insides will be crowded. Still an amazing ship and lots to do insides, but IMO it's much more of an outside ship.

FINAL THOUGHTS This was our first NCL cruise since the EPIC maybe 10 years ago which seems like the “before times” at this point. Here are the most pros/cons we can think of.

PROS

-Haven was great, service was 💯, Haven restaurant was as good as any on ship, room was beautiful, butler Sam and steward Lawrence were both 💯

-Haven bar with Kent, Rommel was 💯 really it’s the best place on the ship and the Avion margaritas were made with care. Dma ordered the JW Blue and received it free on our FAS+ package in Prima Haven bar, I know had been some mixed experience with this

-I never felt crowded in Haven, or on Haven deck. Felt exclusive to us

-The ship is new and beautiful, our room was beautiful cabin 14906

-Donna Summer show was amazing

-FAS+ was a good deal for us, we didn’t worry about charges, drank lots of Veuve, premium margs and great bottles of wine at 40% off

-Embarkation a total breeze

-Specialty restaurants consistently good save for one. Our ranking was: Le Bistro, Cagney’s, Los Lobos, Haven restaurant, Palomar…and a distant last Hasuki 🙂

-Behind the Scenes tour was amazing and worth quite a bit of $$

-Starbucks every morning

-Observation lounge was almost always not crowded and peaceful 

-Prima speedway and the Escape room

CONS

-Shower and lighting operation in rooms requires a PHD to understand

-The ship inside venues get very crowded on a full sailing. I believe this ship is much better built for good weather and utilizes a lot of outdoor space. If was cold out like in Alaska or Norway, I think that’s a risk of crowds that I’d be hesitant to take

-The entertainment is subpar for this premium new ship. While DS is great you really can’t just have one feature show like that. I suspect DS plus Noise Boys was better

-I prefer when ships have a good walking trail/loop around them, this really didn’t

-Same menu in Haven is non preferable to me, it’s not a super long menu and I wish they would have at least one rotating meal each night

-When you open patio door to go out, and close the door, the person inside heard an annoying wind whistle in our cabin

-Eventually we learned the ship layout and there are only like three decks you really need to “learn” that otherwise are a bit confusing, but I have preferred other ships with a more logical layout and flow

Thanks much for following along! 

PRICE IS RIGHT we saw this show night before our last. Doesn’t quite know what to expect. In some ways I was pleasantly surprised and in other ways it was similar to many other comments I’ve seen on the boards. I personally dont think it should be elevated to a second feature show status on a ship like Prima. 
 

Good points were that the crowd attendance was high and the energy level was very high. People were into it. They showed old clips of the price is right which were very well produced and sequenced. The hosts had a good banter and were funny and the games they played were iconic and looked fun. The show length was about right save for comment below.

On the other side, the prizes were lame. If you are going to feature a show like this, you have to give away decent prizes! I was encouraged when first guy won a Tumi suitcase but then after that the prizes were small. A beats headphone set and $100. A guy spun the wheel and got the 💯 and his price was only … 💯 and he got nothing for his second spin. Also … if you are gonna have a showcase showdown, the winner needs to win some sort of a showcase!!! In our cruise show, the showcase showdown went quick and then all of a sudden the event was over. It felt a bit abrupt and a bit of “that’s it?”. Would suggest they work on prizes and ending. 
 

DISEMBARK was a bit of a ..show. We had reason to utilize wheelchair service this trip off and all went smoothly until just before we got to luggage. I guess because of two ships disembarking and our change to Terminal 3, there was very short staff at the port. So after moving off the ship fairly hastily, we were left in a line of wheelchairs waiting for one or two people to take them each one by one through customs, luggage and outside. Was about a 30 minute wait just sitting there which is a bit annoying but also a first world problem as we were ultimately picked up at our room around 8:30 and sitting in the transit car around 9:30 with all luggage accounted for. 

LOS LOBOS tonight we had an open late dinner and Haven magicians got us a table reservation (there were actually a few tables empty…wonder if they get a decent amount of no shows on last eve). SO GLAD we did this! We are from Texas and thought the food was excellent. 
 

My shrimp fajitas 9/10

DW burrito rojo 

 

CHURROS, which actually aren’t churros but rather are Mexican donuts, might be the best dessert on the ship!

Wrap Up thoughts coming tomorrow after debarkation.

GSC was cool, we stayed just a couple of hours. The ziplining looked great, wish we had done that! Beautiful day…

$omeone el$e’s cabana

SORRY NOT SORRY I love Oasis lol however isn’t this ship the prettiest??!

She’s so fly…

BEAUTIFUL DAY AT CO….Oops wrong cruise

GRAND STIRRUP CAY TODAY

Coco Neighbor

Water is blue blue blue

Our friend the Oasis

DW and my chariot awaits

PALOMAR our last specialty restaurant was a great one. DW and I tried Palomar and took the best seafood they had to offer. 
 

Menu, bread and Avion margarita 10/10

Appetizer: Tuna crudo (not pictured as it was six eeeny-beeeny pieces that were fine before the picture) 7/10

Appetizer: Octopus (not pictured as it was so delicious to be gone before the picture) 10/10

Mains: Seabass 8/10 weirdly skin-up?

Mains: Dover Sole 9/10 delicious

Dessert: Apple tartine with vice cream 8/10

Overall a very nice experience and strong rebound from Hasuki which was not as much our preference. Feel overall like maybe an 8/10 and a great time. 

Nothing like enjoying a Rommel-hand-crafted Avion margarita on your patio, listening to the waves, admiring the stars on a mild evening…

I personally think the Avion margarita is superior to the Patron Reposado version, though @sid_9169 might differ.

10 hours ago, JessLCH said:

What do you mean by the mini golf was "broken?"

Well as I understand it, the games have features that when turned in/working make it more interactive. Like for example, there a trivia hole where it is supposed to flash a true/false question and you have to putt either the true side or the false side. And most of the 9 holes have some sort of interactive feature like that. 
 

Alas, for us, free golf and nada interactive.

JAMAICA MON Yesterday was beautiful Jamaica an island we’ve been to several times. For various reasons DW and I stayed in and had a ship day! We started at breakfast in Seaside buffet area where again the food was very good. Fresh and hot, made to order eggs and omelettes, YUM City. We sat outside to avoid the crowds.

We played the putt putt golf course which was a 9 hole course and was free this whole cruise YAY…..because it is broken…😬 If it was working it might have been cool

We then spent a good time enjoying the Haven sun deck and pool area which was quite open with the crowds in Jamaica. So relaxing! 
 

Finally did two meals we got to try Local for lunch. Amazing chicken wings, DW loved her BBQ western type burger, tasty fries and I had fish and chips (just OK). Would triple down on wings next time they were the real deal. Forgot pics! But might get that again…

For dinner we had our first bad meal. Hasuki. We enjoy Japanese hibachi and have been to tons of places back home so perhaps this was sufferage by comparison. Miso soup was bland, rice was overcooked, the steak was in very large cubes, the sauces were not our style - could go on but you get the gist. I think just not our place as service was great and we enjoyed meeting some new people! Shrimp were huge and tasty so that’s a high point! 
 

Today is a Sea Day we will see what is in store. Any questions we can answer just let me know!!

16 hours ago, snorklinbarb said:

Great to read your review as we'll be on Prima end of April.  I was on last fall for a 5 nighter so it will be fun to go now with DH!

 

As for the "mature" Donna, do you happen to know if it is Kimberly Locke?  She was fabulous in the role and I'm hoping she might be on when we're on. I wonder if any of the CD staff might know?

 

She performed and did very well on "American Idol".  

 

Look forward to the rest of your review.  On Prima (even last year) "The Price is Right" was considered a feature show. I missed it (thinking just another game show) but guests who went said it was "the real deal" with prizes.  

 

I did see one vlogger who said the "Newlywed and Not so Newlywed" show was one of the nights in the theater.  Will be interesting to see if your cruise has the same....that one hardly seems like a substitute for good entertainment for the whole theater....when I was on they had "Noise Boys".  Very different but also very interesting.  Read here that it was canceled.  Since we're cruising soon, I'm wondering if there will be an alternative by then?

 

 

The three singers in Donna 2.0 were so great! Not Kimberly tho as mentioned above. 
 

You are correct last night the Newly/Not-so-Newlywed game was featured in Prima theater last night, presumably as NCL evaluates what to do post-Noise Boys. 

Today went to HELL™️. Straight past purgatory and right to HELL™️. No time to even say HELLo™️ this morning. 
 

GRAND CAYMAN yes ok we went to HELL™️. And we had been there before and it’s the same. And there was a hell scape of hell puns 🙂

Our beautiful ship from the Tender:

We looked to do something for the first time today and settled on the Cayman Bicycle Adventure and Coral Beach tour. We had low expectations which I recommend for most Caribbean excursions but we had fun. 
 

Summary of excursion: 9:45 meet in Commodore, 9:55 board Tender, 10:20 arrive Cayman, 10:30 excursion start with coach ride to bicycle house, 10:45 arrive and get bikes and helmets, 11-ish to 1-ish was bike ride (about 6 total miles, mostly flat, mostly at low speeds so group could stay together, we visited lookout in West Bay, HELL™️, then after getting the HELL™️ outta there we stopped at a liquor store for Rum drink and Rum cake, then bikes to Dolphin discovery for tank viewing, then bike back to house), 1:15 bus to Coral Beach, 1:35 order rum punch, coconut shrimp, and quesadillas, 2:30 bus back to tender port, ~3pm arrival back at ship. 
 

Some pics from Cayman, including you know where™️:

Aaagh™️

I FEEL THE NEED, THE NEED FOR SPEEDway Well had to try the Prima speedway today. Tickets lined up for 3:30pm for DW and me. Somehow I achieved the pole position

This was a FUN time. Worth the charge. I thought the go karts move pretty fast, at least they felt so. Pro tip: maybe try doing the full ride until they tell you to stop. I took off first and thought we only got 4 laps and then I saw a check flag and so pulled into pit stop. The quizzical looks they gave me were funny…in hindsight. I was offered and have accepted a redo for Friday and will surrender my pole station and just follow the crowd. It looks like most got 7 laps in. 
 

ESCAPE ON THE PRIMA Our party of four also braved the Escape Room. This was fun. I’ve done escape rooms a couple of times before and I thought it was mostly on par save for the last “big clue” which for whatever reason was not operating today so we ended early. The story/puzzles were medium hard and they did not give a lot of clues which really made you try and fail more often than usual. But ultimately we escaped so this LIVE thread can move forward.

“Absorption in things other than self is the secret of a happy life” - James CAGNEY

Cagney’s steakhouse dinner tonight. Given @Greenpea2’s experience I was most interested of course in the shrimp appetizer lol. Happy to report the shrimp were big and not rubbery 🙂

Overall a rather quiet meal. We had a great bottle of wine. The salads were great - best Caesar we’ve had thus far on the ship and the Wedge was also perfect. Steaks and lamb chops all served as ordered with extra mint jelly. But while overall quality was good, it seemed 8/10 good and not 10/10 good. The Haven restaurant night 1 is actually our favorite of the three meals thus far. Though Bistro a close second. Cagney’s was super crowded tonight and it felt slightly more “crowded ship” vs “exciting hustle and bustle” but the service was great. 
 

Here are pics:

Dma’s shrimp which she shared 🙂

My tuna tartare tasty 8/10

Wedge blue cheese was perfect

Lamb choppers 

COZUMEL beautiful arrival to beautiful weather. 80 degrees and mostly sunny. While Dma is off for a tequila tasting, we went simple and walked from Porta Langosta to Restaurant La Mission which had been recommended on the CC boards as well as on TA. 
 

Awesome lunch!! Totally recommend. Great margs and seafood. 
 

Lobster plate w coconut shrimp

DDyo Seafood plate 

Coconut shrimp were huge and fresh and had a great sauce. Five to an order. 

DONNA SUMMER last night was awesome. One of the best musical performances I’ve seen on a cruise ship. All three Donnas (young, prime, mature) were great. Toss up between middle and older Donna as to whom my fave was, they were both simply outstanding. Also I appreciated it was feature length, they really got to tell a story. Rest of the Company was excellent top to bottom, while the Donnas were featured the whole group was so, so talented. Bravo!

Haven seating was pretty easy in hindsight. We gathered at Haven lounge about 45 mins beforehand and when they were about to open doors we were escorted down and let into the theater. The first four rows of left side were exclusively reserved for Haven but you could sit anywhere. So really it functioned mostly like a separate Haven line/entrance to the show. 
 

So far the Avion margaritas are outperforming the Patron Silver margs. 

6 hours ago, cruiservictor said:

@SGCruiser2013 That BTS tour sounds great, especially the visit to the bridge. You mentioned the Captain spent time with you. Do you happen to know his name?

Roger Gustavsen. Has been a captain since circa ~ 2007 I believe. His 6th or 7th ship to captain if I recollect. 

1 hour ago, david_sobe said:

Do they still give you a behind the scenes professional photo with a chef hat working in the kitchen?  IMHO that was worth half the price of the experience.

Yes! Was a great picture. Unfortunately DW and I skipped it … but Ddyo and Dma pic turned out super good.

7 hours ago, The Admiral said:

I am currently currently also sailing on the 3/19 Prima in the Haven and my quick take so far is:

 

1) staff is awesome, very friendly and accommodating. 5 stars 

 

2) embarkation easy and efficient. 5 Stars

 

3) ship design is beautifully done and very elegant. 5 Stars

 

4.) food is good and has plenty of choices. 4-5 Stars 

 

But there are two areas that will make me think twice about NCL in the future and here they are:

 

1) the entertainment is lacking, although there is good variety in terms of lounge music, so far there’s only one professional show - a Donna Summer Review and when I asked staff if there’s any other professional show like acrobats or magicians or broadway reviews (which NCL made its name on) I was told twice that the only show was the same one noted above and nothing else. I hope this is not true and we will pick up entertainers in Cozumel.
 

If in fact NCL Prima only has one type of theatre show repeating all 7 days this is a fatal flaw in my opinion. Professional entertainment is expected on cruise lines especially when they sell Haven rooms for a hefty premium.

one staff member told me they have two different shows as they counted the “Price is Right” as one (sorry in my opinion that’s not a show)

 

So  if nothing changes entertainment is 1-2 Star and that’s only because of the comedy club and the different singers in the various lounges who are good.

 

2) on Prima it seems like more passengers were added to Haven. NCL seems to Nikel and dime for everything. If you’re traveling with kids there are charges for a bunch of items they want to do. Also If you a 10 drink or more a day passenger it doesn’t make sense to pay hundreds of dollars in tips for the cabin for the drink package, if all you do is have a soft drink here and there and maybe a glass or two of wine before or with dinner. 
 

if NCL wants to better compete in terms of the ship within a ship concept part of the passenger equation they need to just include all drinks with the haven and not complicate folks lives while on board. NCL, figure out a reasonable cost for drinks and gratuities (so hard working crew don’t get left without gratuities) and just build it into the price of the Haven so no matter what anyone’s drinking preferences are if you’re in the Haven all your alcohol, soft drinks and specialty coffees are included - no hassle cruising NCL!

 

This is my preliminary opinion, The two negatives above (Haven and Entertainment) may change later on in the week but this is where I am at day 2.

 

But remember any cruise is better than being on land! 🙂

 
All great points and hope you are having an awesome cruise! 
 

I don’t think our entertainment is changing significantly, but I think there is a chance it may be because Noise Boys contract just recently ended and they may not have picked up the new act/show yet. I agree for a ship of this caliber and price you would expect more than one feature show. So for our cruise out of luck I think but hopefully NCL doesn’t make this business as usual. 
 

For us cruise pricing is an interesting animal. NCL Free at Sea throwing in four categories of included items was attractive or at least competitive with other cruise lines as it reduces nickel and dime. Also, beforehand we bought FAS+ which while not an insignificant add has really reduced the number of extra charges and we have already made back our $ with no by the glass charges and the 40% savings on bottles.