Pearl 3/13 Review - Compare with RCCL

[wdw_dave]

I have been on these boards for years but to not post much. But I do find these types of post usefull in my reasearch so I wanted to contribute to help others in choosing a line or ship. This is my first NCL cruise with my DW and 2 DS (9 and 7). We are Diamond on RCCL and have cruised Disney, X, and Carnival. RCCL is our preferred line. Please note these are my opinions which might vary from yours and I might hold certain aspects of the experience more important than others. I will make comparisons to RCCL as this has helped me in other posts when I was making a ship choice. Here we go ....

 

EMBARKATION: NCL A- / RCCL A- Both lines do a great job. It was very easy getting on the Pearl with virtually no wait. Liked that they had staff lined up to welcome you. Although they had advertised when I booked welcome cocktail. Not a big deal it was not there. But they market freestyle and try to be different so this was a minus (more on freestyle later)

 

CABIN: NCL A- / RCCL B+ We had a mini-suite and really likes the layout of the cabin. The bathroom was great and the balcony was a great size. Cabin was very well maintained.

 

SHIP UPKEEP: NCL B+ / RCCL B- Given I have been on ships on both likes that had similar inyears of service it appeared NCL did a bit better job on the upkeep. Seemed to be less 'rust' around the Pearl.

 

BUFFET: NCL A- / RCCL B The Pearl buffet was great. Food was very good and seemed to be fresh and hot at all times. They had a good variety. Not sure what they do differently than RCCL but the food did not seem to sit as long and become 'stale'.

 

MAIN DINING ROOM: NCL D / RCCL B- We ate in the Main DR 2X. The food was not very good at all. Not well prepared and very tasteless. This was one of my worries when booking NCL based on what I read on the boards and reviews. And most of the reviews are correct in my opinion on the Main DRs not being very good. But I knew this based on research so planned to eat in specialty restaurants most of the cruise.

 

SPECIALTY RESTERAUNTS: NCL B+ / RCCL A-: We ate in 4 different restaurants. Cagneys was good but I felt not worth the $25. The Italian restaurant I thought was good and we ate there twice. Le Bistro was by far the best meal we had on the ship. Wish we had eaten there 2X instead of Cagneys. RCCL Chops in terms of food and service still in my opinion beats any of NCLs specialty restaurants.

 

PRODUCTION SHOWS: NCL D / RCCL B+ My family typically likes these types of shows but they were dull and boring on the Pearl. Maybe they were to 'artsy' for us but we actually walked out of the first one. We never do that.

 

NON-PRODUCTION SHOWS: NCL A / RCCL B- These were great on the Pearl. Sharkbait and Second City are great addtions to the expereince. I really liked how they did smaller shows and seminars. They were really part of the crew and not just the entertainers. This really differentiates NCL from the pack.

 

SERVICE: NCL C / RCCL A- This is really something NCL need to work on. All during the cruise I was thinking of a word to describe the service. It was not bad ... but not great. I think the right term is that it was INDIFFERENT. For the majority the staff did not go out of their way to be friendly or helpful. I think the auto-service charge greatly effects this. Little things like not filling your drinks right away, waiters not introducing themselves or asking how your day was, guy in bowling alley not wanting to keep a waiting list, bartenders look annoyed when getting soda you payed $50 for. All those little things make average service great service.

 

KIDS CLUB: NCL F / RCCL B+ NCL really fails in this. There was really no structure to the program at all and for the first time in a half dozen cruises the boys did not beg to go to the club. When looking at the schedule it boiled down to ... watch a movie or 'free play' which meant kids just did what they wanted with no structure - like play tag. There were very very few organized activities. Plus any time you were in port there was a charge for the club. The Kids Crew was the most disappointing aspect of the cruise.

 

MUSIC: NCL B+ / RCCL D I like live music and RCCL has basically done away with it. NCL had lots of live music and most of it was pretty good.

 

SUMMARY: I give NCL lots of credit on marketing the Freestyle concept. In my opinion it is really all marketing. You still need to plan out your days if you want to see some of the shows. You still need to disembark at certain times (you get to pick your tags but they tell you which category you have to fall into). The dining is the big change - I did like the different dining venues but really missed the personalized service you get at a traditional DR. I would go on another NCL cruise based on itinerary and price. I would have to include the cost of eating in all the specialty restaurants into my cost comparison as I would not eat in main DR room again. Overall a great cruise and good itineray - Overall score NCL B / RCCL A-

 

Dave

[Dr. Jack Daniels]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review.

 

I agree with most of your observations regarding the Pearl. Especially your entertainment comments. The Jean Ann Ryan production shows were flat out bad. However, I too enjoyed Sharkbait and Second City. Sharkbait may have been the best how I have ever seen in 11 cruises.

 

I disagree with you on a couple of points. I don't think the main dining room food was "D" quality. Granted it is not the quality of the specialty restaurants but a "D" makes me think it was barely edible. Certainly not the case.

 

Another point in which we differ is service. I found it to be very good. What you may consider "indifferent" I consider "efficient". I never spoke to my room steward a single time on the Pearl but everyone one of my needs were attended to. I left him notes and he took care of my requests. He didn't ask me how my day was and I didn't care.

 

Thanks again for sharing!

[flashdog_1]

Thanks for posting your comparison.

 

I hope your next NCL cruise will fill all your needs. Every sailing is slightly different from the one before, or on a different ship. My first NCL was not great, but the succeeding ones were.

[Darthdaddy]

My expereince was on the 3/6 cruise of the Pearl, but my assessments are very similar to yours.

 

The MDR service is "indifferent" at best. It is not bad, but there is little to no effort to inform the diner about the menu. On one occassion I affirmatively engaged the waiter about a menu item. I wanted to give him a chance to show off. Instead, he had almost nothing to offer about the item. The standard service was to hand us our menus and provide ZERO information or description. We could just as easily have been ordeing a #3 combo meal at a fast food restaurant. At one meal I asked for coffee with dessert. The dessert arrived. I waited for my coffee. I waited. I waited some more. Finally, a cup of coffee was served. I indicated ( politely, I promise) that I prefer my coffee with my dessert. The waiter looked at me like I had 3 heads. This was not a language issue. It was a SERVICE issue.

 

One meal had some sort of cheese sauce. It was a fair approximation of cheez whiz. Other meals were better, but there were definite disappointments.

 

Sharkbait is very, very good. I totally agree that they are far more than just one-show performers. They presented a truly informative "class" on juggling. The ran the Quest adult game, and also participated in the Dancing with the stars show. "Oh what a Night" is a good show. Live music around the ship is very good. The big production shows are NOT good.

 

If you get a chance to sail on the Dawn. Check out Josie & Patti...you'll be glad you did.

[Dancinfeet]

We love ncl!!! :) :) :)

[coffeebean]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review.

 

I agree with most of your observations regarding the Pearl. Especially your entertainment comments. The Jean Ann Ryan production shows were flat out bad. However, I too enjoyed Sharkbait and Second City. Sharkbait may have been the best how I have ever seen in 11 cruises.

 

I disagree with you on a couple of points. I don't think the main dining room food was "D" quality. Granted it is not the quality of the specialty restaurants but a "D" makes me think it was barely edible. Certainly not the case.

 

Another point in which we differ is service. I found it to be very good. What you may consider "indifferent" I consider "efficient". I never spoke to my room steward a single time on the Pearl but everyone one of my needs were attended to. I left him notes and he took care of my requests. He didn't ask me how my day was and I didn't care.

 

Thanks again for sharing!

This baffles me. You agree with the OP that JAR production shows were lacking. In all my experience cruising all mass market lines with a total of nearly thirty cruises, I have found the JAR production shows to be the absolute best out there (with the exception of RCCL ice shows). Hmmmm.

[MMMD]

Regarding the auto service charge comment. In looking at EOS for this summer I read the following on the RC site:

 

 

 

Suite attendant: $5.75 USD a day per guest

Stateroom attendant: $3.50 USD a day per guest

Dining Room Waiter: $3.50 USD a day per guest

Assistant Waiter: $2.00 USD a day per guest

Headwaiter: $.75 USD a day per guest

 

Note: These gratuities apply to guests of all ages.

 

Gratuities for other service personnel are at your discretion.

 

A 15% gratuity will automatically be added to your bar bill or wine check when you are served.

Notice to Guests: Gratuities may be shared with other crew members depending on the particular service requirement.

 

Envelopes for gratuities will be provided in your stateroom on the last night of the cruise. Gratuities may be paid in the following ways:

 

Added to your onboard SeaPass account.

 

Pre paid by having them added to your reservation by your booking agent.

 

Paid in cash at the end of the cruise.

 

 

 

My question is this:

 

If I pre-pay my tips are you saying that I can receive this same indifferent service on Royal?

 

Personally I'd rather just pre-pay them to get it out of the way and offer extra cash at the end for quality service. However I wonder why the service I would receive will suffer if I opt to pay the tips first.

[wdw_dave]

Regarding the auto service charge comment. In looking at EOS for this summer I read the following on the RC site:

 

 

 

Suite attendant: $5.75 USD a day per guest

Stateroom attendant: $3.50 USD a day per guest

Dining Room Waiter: $3.50 USD a day per guest

Assistant Waiter: $2.00 USD a day per guest

Headwaiter: $.75 USD a day per guest

 

Note: These gratuities apply to guests of all ages.

 

Gratuities for other service personnel are at your discretion.

 

A 15% gratuity will automatically be added to your bar bill or wine check when you are served.

Notice to Guests: Gratuities may be shared with other crew members depending on the particular service requirement.

 

Envelopes for gratuities will be provided in your stateroom on the last night of the cruise. Gratuities may be paid in the following ways:

 

Added to your onboard SeaPass account.

 

Pre paid by having them added to your reservation by your booking agent.

 

Paid in cash at the end of the cruise.

 

 

 

My question is this:

 

If I pre-pay my tips are you saying that I can receive this same indifferent service on Royal?

 

Personally I'd rather just pre-pay them to get it out of the way and offer extra cash at the end for quality service. However I wonder why the service I would receive will suffer if I opt to pay the tips first.

Again this is just my opinion .... On RCCL they are suggested. You get envelopes at the end of the cruise to put the cash in. If you pre pay you get vouchers to put in the envelope. There seems to still be an incentive to go above and beyond on RCCL. As I write this I am remembering there was not even a survey to fill out.

 

So I guess that is a good question .... what incentives do the staff on NCL have to go above and beyond? Tips are already a given and there is no survey to reward or weed out the under performers .....

 

Dave

 

Dave

[Dr. Jack Daniels]

This baffles me. You agree with the OP that JAR production shows were lacking. In all my experience cruising all mass market lines with a total of nearly thirty cruises, I have found the JAR production shows to be the absolute best out there (with the exception of RCCL ice shows). Hmmmm.

 

What baffles you? The fact that someone has a different opinon than you?:rolleyes:

[scchasgal]

.... what incentives do the staff on NCL have to go above and beyond? Tips are already a given and there is no survey to reward or weed out the under performers .....

 

Dave

 

Dave

 

NCL has the STYLE cards that is a reward based program to point out crew that went above and beyond. You also get a survey online a few days after you return from your cruise.

[Luv4dacruise]

Everyone that is getting on the OP's case for there review, c'mon, get over it. I thought it was qa very well balanced review and think the OP truly knows about cruising.

 

There are so many people on CC that havent a clue about cruising but think they are king or queen of cruising knowledge, and it's just really annoying.

 

To the OP: In terms of the production shows esspecially i am in complete aggreement with you there. Put it this way, the Norwegian Dawn went into service in 2002, since her inaugural voyage, they have had the same production show (Bollywood***Cringe***) playing. NCL just does not put the same amount of money into this aspect of the cruising experience.

[debshomespun]

To Dave, I enjoyed reading your opinion on the comparison between NCL and RC. Our 2 cruises on NCL have had great room stewards. I think the MDR food is better on RC, didn't care for it as well on NCL. We don't do the specialty restaurants. I also agree the production shows are much better on RC. While just on the Liberty in Feb., we did the behind the scenes tour backstage, and it was very interesting.

 

I feel the OP did a great job, and it is, after all, his opinion.

[Darthdaddy]

To the cheerleaders:

 

I am not a food snob; I am very easy on wait staff. Nevertheless, it is no exaggeration to state that I get more information about the menu and food prep at our local Appleby's than I did in the MDR's on the Pearl 2 weeks ago. The Indigo staff were particularly lacking in this regard. I have posted specific examples in a prior post. These are facts. You may not like them, but they happened. You may not think they are important, but others may disagree. The best service we received in the MDR's would be considered 'efficient." "Indifferent" really is a good description of the balance of the service. It wasn't terrible...there was simply ZERO effort put into enhancing our experience. We were handed menus and our orders were taken...nothing less, but nothing more. We may as well have been greeted with a blank stare and a monotone, " do you want fries with that?"

 

The Jean Ann Ryan "productions" may be no worse than similar "Broadway-style" shows on other cruise lines. That doesn't mean they are any good. On the other hand some people probably love them. Count me among those who could do w/o sitting through another hour of plumes & feathers. How did we resolve this problem? Simple, we chose not to go to South Beach Rave or one of the other extravaganzas. I only wish we had skipped the dreadful "Sea Legs." On the other hand, we thoroughly enjoyed Sharkbait and "Oh What A Night." That's why Baskin-Robbins has all those flavors.

 

I am satisfied with the value I receive from NCL, but that doesn't mean everything is wonderful. To paraphrase Shakespeare, "neither a basher, nor a cheerleader be."

[izodlacoste]

Thanks for your review OP. I am a platinum member of RCCL and just booked a European cruise on EPIC. I appreciated the review. I think RCCL is great . I have not been on NCL since the 80's! I chose EPIC merely because of the Courtyard Villa.

[newmexicoNita]

I have been on these boards for years but to not post much. But I do find these types of post usefull in my reasearch so I wanted to contribute to help others in choosing a line or ship. This is my first NCL cruise with my DW and 2 DS (9 and 7). We are Diamond on RCCL and have cruised Disney, X, and Carnival. RCCL is our preferred line. Please note these are my opinions which might vary from yours and I might hold certain aspects of the experience more important than others. I will make comparisons to RCCL as this has helped me in other posts when I was making a ship choice. Here we go ....

 

EMBARKATION: NCL A- / RCCL A- Both lines do a great job. It was very easy getting on the Pearl with virtually no wait. Liked that they had staff lined up to welcome you. Although they had advertised when I booked welcome cocktail. Not a big deal it was not there. But they market freestyle and try to be different so this was a minus (more on freestyle later)

 

CABIN: NCL A- / RCCL B+ We had a mini-suite and really likes the layout of the cabin. The bathroom was great and the balcony was a great size. Cabin was very well maintained.

 

SHIP UPKEEP: NCL B+ / RCCL B- Given I have been on ships on both likes that had similar inyears of service it appeared NCL did a bit better job on the upkeep. Seemed to be less 'rust' around the Pearl.

 

BUFFET: NCL A- / RCCL B The Pearl buffet was great. Food was very good and seemed to be fresh and hot at all times. They had a good variety. Not sure what they do differently than RCCL but the food did not seem to sit as long and become 'stale'.

 

MAIN DINING ROOM: NCL D / RCCL B- We ate in the Main DR 2X. The food was not very good at all. Not well prepared and very tasteless. This was one of my worries when booking NCL based on what I read on the boards and reviews. And most of the reviews are correct in my opinion on the Main DRs not being very good. But I knew this based on research so planned to eat in specialty restaurants most of the cruise.

 

SPECIALTY RESTERAUNTS: NCL B+ / RCCL A-: We ate in 4 different restaurants. Cagneys was good but I felt not worth the $25. The Italian restaurant I thought was good and we ate there twice. Le Bistro was by far the best meal we had on the ship. Wish we had eaten there 2X instead of Cagneys. RCCL Chops in terms of food and service still in my opinion beats any of NCLs specialty restaurants.

 

PRODUCTION SHOWS: NCL D / RCCL B+ My family typically likes these types of shows but they were dull and boring on the Pearl. Maybe they were to 'artsy' for us but we actually walked out of the first one. We never do that.

 

NON-PRODUCTION SHOWS: NCL A / RCCL B- These were great on the Pearl. Sharkbait and Second City are great addtions to the expereince. I really liked how they did smaller shows and seminars. They were really part of the crew and not just the entertainers. This really differentiates NCL from the pack.

 

SERVICE: NCL C / RCCL A- This is really something NCL need to work on. All during the cruise I was thinking of a word to describe the service. It was not bad ... but not great. I think the right term is that it was INDIFFERENT. For the majority the staff did not go out of their way to be friendly or helpful. I think the auto-service charge greatly effects this. Little things like not filling your drinks right away, waiters not introducing themselves or asking how your day was, guy in bowling alley not wanting to keep a waiting list, bartenders look annoyed when getting soda you payed $50 for. All those little things make average service great service.

 

KIDS CLUB: NCL F / RCCL B+ NCL really fails in this. There was really no structure to the program at all and for the first time in a half dozen cruises the boys did not beg to go to the club. When looking at the schedule it boiled down to ... watch a movie or 'free play' which meant kids just did what they wanted with no structure - like play tag. There were very very few organized activities. Plus any time you were in port there was a charge for the club. The Kids Crew was the most disappointing aspect of the cruise.

 

MUSIC: NCL B+ / RCCL D I like live music and RCCL has basically done away with it. NCL had lots of live music and most of it was pretty good.

 

SUMMARY: I give NCL lots of credit on marketing the Freestyle concept. In my opinion it is really all marketing. You still need to plan out your days if you want to see some of the shows. You still need to disembark at certain times (you get to pick your tags but they tell you which category you have to fall into). The dining is the big change - I did like the different dining venues but really missed the personalized service you get at a traditional DR. I would go on another NCL cruise based on itinerary and price. I would have to include the cost of eating in all the specialty restaurants into my cost comparison as I would not eat in main DR room again. Overall a great cruise and good itineray - Overall score NCL B / RCCL A-

 

Dave

 

Dave, though i may not totally agree with you, I certainly think you gave a fair review and comparison as you say it and yes, many do like traditional dining better. That is why we are so lucky to have cruisng choices. Thanks for your input.

Nita

[boaterette]

We love ncl!!! :) :) :)

 

Rah Rah sis boom bah

You had nothing to say

but you posted anyway

[boaterette]

I have been on these boards for years but to not post much. But I do find these types of post usefull in my reasearch so I wanted to contribute to help others in choosing a line or ship. This is my first NCL cruise with my DW and 2 DS (9 and 7). We are Diamond on RCCL and have cruised Disney, X, and Carnival. RCCL is our preferred line. Please note these are my opinions which might vary from yours and I might hold certain aspects of the experience more important than others. I will make comparisons to RCCL as this has helped me in other posts when I was making a ship choice. Here we go ....

 

EMBARKATION: NCL A- / RCCL A- Both lines do a great job. It was very easy getting on the Pearl with virtually no wait. Liked that they had staff lined up to welcome you. Although they had advertised when I booked welcome cocktail. Not a big deal it was not there. But they market freestyle and try to be different so this was a minus (more on freestyle later)

 

CABIN: NCL A- / RCCL B+ We had a mini-suite and really likes the layout of the cabin. The bathroom was great and the balcony was a great size. Cabin was very well maintained.

 

SHIP UPKEEP: NCL B+ / RCCL B- Given I have been on ships on both likes that had similar inyears of service it appeared NCL did a bit better job on the upkeep. Seemed to be less 'rust' around the Pearl.

 

BUFFET: NCL A- / RCCL B The Pearl buffet was great. Food was very good and seemed to be fresh and hot at all times. They had a good variety. Not sure what they do differently than RCCL but the food did not seem to sit as long and become 'stale'.

 

MAIN DINING ROOM: NCL D / RCCL B- We ate in the Main DR 2X. The food was not very good at all. Not well prepared and very tasteless. This was one of my worries when booking NCL based on what I read on the boards and reviews. And most of the reviews are correct in my opinion on the Main DRs not being very good. But I knew this based on research so planned to eat in specialty restaurants most of the cruise.

 

SPECIALTY RESTERAUNTS: NCL B+ / RCCL A-: We ate in 4 different restaurants. Cagneys was good but I felt not worth the $25. The Italian restaurant I thought was good and we ate there twice. Le Bistro was by far the best meal we had on the ship. Wish we had eaten there 2X instead of Cagneys. RCCL Chops in terms of food and service still in my opinion beats any of NCLs specialty restaurants.

 

PRODUCTION SHOWS: NCL D / RCCL B+ My family typically likes these types of shows but they were dull and boring on the Pearl. Maybe they were to 'artsy' for us but we actually walked out of the first one. We never do that.

 

NON-PRODUCTION SHOWS: NCL A / RCCL B- These were great on the Pearl. Sharkbait and Second City are great addtions to the expereince. I really liked how they did smaller shows and seminars. They were really part of the crew and not just the entertainers. This really differentiates NCL from the pack.

 

SERVICE: NCL C / RCCL A- This is really something NCL need to work on. All during the cruise I was thinking of a word to describe the service. It was not bad ... but not great. I think the right term is that it was INDIFFERENT. For the majority the staff did not go out of their way to be friendly or helpful. I think the auto-service charge greatly effects this. Little things like not filling your drinks right away, waiters not introducing themselves or asking how your day was, guy in bowling alley not wanting to keep a waiting list, bartenders look annoyed when getting soda you payed $50 for. All those little things make average service great service.

 

KIDS CLUB: NCL F / RCCL B+ NCL really fails in this. There was really no structure to the program at all and for the first time in a half dozen cruises the boys did not beg to go to the club. When looking at the schedule it boiled down to ... watch a movie or 'free play' which meant kids just did what they wanted with no structure - like play tag. There were very very few organized activities. Plus any time you were in port there was a charge for the club. The Kids Crew was the most disappointing aspect of the cruise.

 

MUSIC: NCL B+ / RCCL D I like live music and RCCL has basically done away with it. NCL had lots of live music and most of it was pretty good.

 

SUMMARY: I give NCL lots of credit on marketing the Freestyle concept. In my opinion it is really all marketing. You still need to plan out your days if you want to see some of the shows. You still need to disembark at certain times (you get to pick your tags but they tell you which category you have to fall into). The dining is the big change - I did like the different dining venues but really missed the personalized service you get at a traditional DR. I would go on another NCL cruise based on itinerary and price. I would have to include the cost of eating in all the specialty restaurants into my cost comparison as I would not eat in main DR room again. Overall a great cruise and good itineray - Overall score NCL B / RCCL A-

 

Dave

 

Nice review. I would agree with you. I have been on ncl twice and rccl five times. The free dining rooms just don't compare food and service wise. I think the absolute worst food had to be the mushed peas in the blue lagoon. Those are disgusting. I think ncl's buffet had a wider selection but the flavor just wasn't there. Thanks for posting.