LAFFNVEGAS LIVE From the NCL Pearl Heading North Up The West Coast

[NEcruisers????]

Thanks for your FANTASTIC review! I look forward to reading your final thoughts...

"All GOOD things must (sadly) come to an end"....:(

[IllinoisAuthor]

Is it available for Kindle?

 

The first three books in my series--Murder of a Small-Town Honey, Murder of a Sweet Old Lady, and Murder of a Sleeping Beauty are available on Kindle, but the remaining nine aren't currently being sold as e-books.

 

Best,

[IllinoisAuthor]

I read a little bit of everything, I love The Plum Series of Janet Evanovich (cannot wait for the next one that will be out soon) but I am caught up with all of hers as well as I love James Patterson Women's Murder Mystery series (the next one of that should be out soon as well). I also read Sue Grafton of which I did bring "U" with me but have not started yet but just about to finish Stephhanie Bond 5 Bodies to Die For.

That is great you are a writer looks like I have a new Author/books to check out, they definitely sound like my type of reading. Thanks so much:)

 

I really can't thank you enough for your wonderful reports. We have been cruising almost exclusively on Princess and Celebrity and some of the negative posts about NCL's food and service were worrying me. I chose the Pearl because I read about the Courtyard suites and the sweet life and just had to try it out. Your live from thread has really reassured me and made me even more eager for January.

 

Hope you enjoy my books. A couple of reviewers have called my the small town Janet Evanovich (while I'm flattered, I doubt she'd feel the same way, but I do have a lot of humor and a touch of romance ;))

 

Thanks again!

[Koshlong]

Lisa, I'm glad you had such a good time on your cruise. You certainly enjoyed your perks.

 

I'd love to read a similar comparison from someone who sailed in a regular cabin and ate at the all-inclusive restaurants. That would make comparisons much more meaningful for those of us who must sail in the "cheap seats". I realize that since the base prices on NCL are lower, it makes sense to use the savings to upgrade accommodations and dining. However, if I booked NCL, it would probably be to save money....so wouldn't do many upgrades.

 

How about it...........has anyone done this?

[timeforadaiquiri]

Thank you so much for sharing your cruise with us and have a safe trip home. I look forward to hearing more and hoping you share pictures of the Pearl and your trip.

[swedish weave]

Lisa, I'm glad you had such a good time on your cruise. You certainly enjoyed your perks.

 

I'd love to read a similar comparison from someone who sailed in a regular cabin and ate at the all-inclusive restaurants. That would make comparisons much more meaningful for those of us who must sail in the "cheap seats". I realize that since the base prices on NCL are lower, it makes sense to use the savings to upgrade accommodations and dining. However, if I booked NCL, it would probably be to save money....so wouldn't do many upgrades.

 

How about it...........has anyone done this?

 

You are talking about us !! We book inside cabins and eat in the included restaurants most of the time. On occasion, we spend the extra 10 to 25 bucks per person and do the specialty restaurants.

 

We find the food very good, and as proof in point, we have sailed on the Star over 30 times and have been on the Pearl once in addition to some other NCL ships. I like to say "If it wasn't great, I wouldn't keep coming back".

 

We have also sailed on HAL, Princess, and Celebrity, and although there are some differences, we think NCL is simply a better fit for us. Particularly the dress code and freestyle dining along with the friendliness of the crew. The crew thing could be because we have known some of "our kids" for five years or so !!:D

[pmd98052]

Thanks for taking the time, money and effort to post these - its been great reading them each day. Thanks so much! I really appreciate everyone who posts "Live from" and also those who post long detailed (and often funny, especially Coka!) reviews.

 

We leave on the Pearl in 8 days time from Seattle. We'll try to do the same. We booked two joining Oceanviews but are now in two ajoining Balconies. Looking forward to it! Also booked the Deluxe Romance Package as a treat for my wife since she will enjoy the Spa items (and I'm secretly looking forward to the afternoon tea service!

[optiron]

Thanks for the posts enjoyed then all. I thought you said you were now in travel-are you an agent?

[TTown Traveller]

Hi, great review so far. Just off the Pearl as you were boarding and agree that it is a wonderful ship filled with wonderful staff. Do go to the White Hot Party-it was really a blast although a little loud. Danced our heads off and enjoyed watching everyone whenever we were too tired to dance! CD Andy was the live of the party!

Wish I was still on the Pearl with you:rolleyes:

Me too Buffy!! And the White Hot Party was a lot of fun. Still have to send you and Judy the pics.

[TTown Traveller]

Lisa, I have to ask a pointed question: do you think you'd love it as much if were just you and Tom rather than having friends with you? I, also am a HAL (quiet) cheerleader, but just booked an NCL Sun cruise because we live close to Canaveral and it's an easy drive. I ask this because when you are traveling with friends everything is different than if just the 2 of you, I think.

 

I hope we enjoy NCL as much as you are.:o I hope we didn't make a mistake not booking HAL.

My DH and I were disembarking as Lisa was embarking and though we sailed "just the two of us" by the time our cruise was finished we felt like we were travelling with a group of friends thanks to CC and our meet and greet. It was wonderful and didn't feel isolated at all. I love NCL! You won't believe how much you don't like being tied to time table until you don't have one and the service on the Pearl is wonderful even if you aren't in a suite.

[Atomica]

Thanks Lisa for the fantastic trip reports!

 

I hope you had a good flight back from Vancouver, and that you were here long enough to see that the sun, indeed, did come out today!

[TTown Traveller]

I'm not clear on the dinners in the main dining rooms.....are you saying that they have the same menu every night in Indigo and the same menu every night in Summer Palace? As opposed to different entreés every night?

Or did you mean that the menus in the two restaurants match eachother every night? Sorry.....just trying to get an idea for our Pearl cruise next month.

The two restaurants share the same galley so the menu is the same in both on any given evening. They have a portion of the menu that is the same everyday(steak, tilapia, etc) and then daily specials which change. The ambience is different between the two restaurants though. DH and I actually preferred the Indigo. Hope that helps.

[TTown Traveller]

Lisa, I'm glad you had such a good time on your cruise. You certainly enjoyed your perks.

 

I'd love to read a similar comparison from someone who sailed in a regular cabin and ate at the all-inclusive restaurants. That would make comparisons much more meaningful for those of us who must sail in the "cheap seats". I realize that since the base prices on NCL are lower, it makes sense to use the savings to upgrade accommodations and dining. However, if I booked NCL, it would probably be to save money....so wouldn't do many upgrades.

 

How about it...........has anyone done this?

DH and I sailed with Marelind and Knitwits on the Pearl for her Panama Canal repo cruise and we were in a regular mid ship balcony cabin, not a suite and still absolutely loved it! We did eat at a few of the specialty restaurants (14 day cruise) but mostly in the MDRs or the buffet which we found to be excellent for a casual meal. In fact the buffet's food was wonderful for each of the 3 meals and perfect for grabbing a plate and taking back to the cabin.

The food in the MDR was quite good, I'll grant you Le Bistro was a definite cut above but no complaints. We had our final dinner with new CC friends at Teppenyaki and that was fantastic! I would recommend taking at least one night of your cruise and making it special with one of the premium restaurants but think you will still be happy even if you stick to the included venues.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Lisa, I have to ask a pointed question: do you think you'd love it as much if were just you and Tom rather than having friends with you? I, also am a HAL (quiet) cheerleader, but just booked an NCL Sun cruise because we live close to Canaveral and it's an easy drive. I ask this because when you are traveling with friends everything is different than if just the 2 of you, I think.

 

I hope we enjoy NCL as much as you are.:o I hope we didn't make a mistake not booking HAL.

 

I have to get ready for work shortly, yes darn it I must return to work today and on Sundays I work 8:30 till 5.

Esther, comparing S Suites on HAL to Full Suites on NCL well let's just say they are so far apart. NCL Suite life really is amazing, the perks far exceed anything HAL can offer. The only thing I would advise from one HAL person to another is please do not let your frist reaction of the decor bother you. The cabin and the ammenities even in the cabin are wonderful it just takes a while to get use to the carpeting and curtains :D But trust me you soon forget after a few days. I have to say that once you have done a suite at NCL it will be really hard to go back to HAL.

 

Thanks Lisa for the fantastic trip reports!

 

I hope you had a good flight back from Vancouver, and that you were here long enough to see that the sun, indeed, did come out today!

Aaron, we did see the sun come out, unfrotunately we did not stay long we had a 3:30 flight out on Phillipines Air Lines that got us on the ground in Las Vegas in an amazing 2 hours.

 

The two restaurants share the same galley so the menu is the same in both on any given evening. They have a portion of the menu that is the same everyday(steak, tilapia, etc) and then daily specials which change. The ambience is different between the two restaurants though. DH and I actually preferred the Indigo. Hope that helps.

 

Actually the Pearl tried something new for our cruise hoping to get more out to the Speciality restaurants that were empty most of the cruise. Both Indigo and Summer Palace had the same menu every night but the majority of the items were the same all week every night not just the steak and the fish. It was sort of flip flopped each night was only one new items which was a Chef's Special.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Thank you so much for sharing your cruise with us and have a safe trip home. I look forward to hearing more and hoping you share pictures of the Pearl and your trip.

 

I plan to write a realy final report soon but I will say it will be absolutely positive :) An yes I have lots of photos to upload and I will post a link.

 

Thanks for the posts enjoyed then all. I thought you said you were now in travel-are you an agent?

 

Yes, I am but CC does not let me say much :o But I cannot believe it will be a year in July that I have been doing this. I do not book as a TA and I do pay full fare except for this one we used my husbands membership in a Union get us the Union Fare. Which speaking of they say they will ask for proof when you check in, they did not.

OK now I must get ready for work.

Any questions fee free to ask and I will answer tonight.:)

[mafig]

Hi, Lisa,

Don't know if you remember us but we were on the Eurodam with you (Dec. 08 -- we always think of it as "Becky's cruise:)).

 

I must have missed it, but what category suite are you in? We're in an AE and looking forward to it but wonder if we should upgrade to an AD for the larger balcony.

 

Thanks for the review.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Hi, Lisa,

Don't know if you remember us but we were on the Eurodam with you (Dec. 08 -- we always think of it as "Becky's cruise:)).

 

I must have missed it, but what category suite are you in? We're in an AE and looking forward to it but wonder if we should upgrade to an AD for the larger balcony.

 

Thanks for the review.

Of course I remember you :) We were in category AD, although AE is still a Full Suite (Penthouse category) just different location. We absolutely loved the aft balcony, the biggest different we found from a HAL aft cabin was the lack of wind. Could be the way the ship is designed but we could be out there any time se or port day and we had absolutely no wind. So especially when the sun was shining it was perfect and actually very warm. Tom and i both agreed that we spent the most time on the balcony than we have spent on any balcony in a very long time. So it was definitely worth it.;)

[coffeecat]

Of course I remember you :) We were in category AD, although AE is still a Full Suite (Penthouse category) just different location. We absolutely loved the aft balcony, the biggest different we found from a HAL aft cabin was the lack of wind. Could be the way the ship is designed but we could be out there any time se or port day and we had absolutely no wind. So especially when the sun was shining it was perfect and actually very warm. Tom and i both agreed that we spent the most time on the balcony than we have spent on any balcony in a very long time. So it was definitely worth it.;)

 

Thanks for taking the time to write a review! It was fun reading about all of your adventures!

We have the 10666 suite booked on the Pearl for next Feb so it was great reading your impressions. Did you happen to peak next door to compare the balcony size? Was thinking it would be nice to be in an outside AD...do you think one would be better than the other?

 

Thanks in advance,

Coffeecat

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Thanks for taking the time to write a review! It was fun reading about all of your adventures!

We have the 10666 suite booked on the Pearl for next Feb so it was great reading your impressions. Did you happen to peak next door to compare the balcony size? Was thinking it would be nice to be in an outside AD...do you think one would be better than the other?

 

Thanks in advance,

Coffeecat

Yes we did do some peaking of the corner cabin. Actually that balcony looked ever so slightly smaller and you would not be able to look around the corner. I also believe it could have a bit more wind. I know that we will definitely chose this cabin location again :)

[jmk22574]

Hi Lisa! I'll be reading this entire thread as soon as I make it home....just not sure when that will be. I can't get anywhere near my house right now with all the flooding in Nashville, but I hope to make it home in the next couple of days (I'm in Michigan currently). Hope you guys had a GREAT cruise!

Jill

[snorklinbarb]

Hello Lisa,

I'm having withdrawal symptoms after being taken along day by day on your fantastic Pearl cruise! I've been on the Pearl 3x and agree she is a superb ship with an even better staff of officers & crew. We've never sailed HAL but have tried Celebrity, Cunard & Windstar in addition to NCL and it is the friendly special crew on NCL that keeps us coming back every time. It all starts at the top and it sounds like HD Denis Prguda and his team have set a very high standard. Reading your travelogue certainly gives the impression of a happy crew, happy passengers!:)

 

Can't wait for your "wrap up" comments. It's always interesting to let the dust settle when you get home & then reflect again on the cruise. You can really tell if you'd like to repeat a particular cruise line or ship and it sure sounds like NCL has gained a new customer.;) Any ideas where you're going to use your future cruise award? (Tip: You can buy up to 4 of them per person next time.;):D)

 

As a platinum member of NCL I sure enjoy some of the special things like dinner for 2 in Le Bistro with wine, etc. I do feel like NCL appreciates my loyalty and treasure all the special people onboard over the years who have made every cruise memorable & fun (like concierge Ryan Rabe - isn't he just superb?) Loved reading about your meeting up with the exec. chef who had worked for HAL.

 

I'm glad NCL now has a separate website dedicated to suites & villas because your review sure illustrates how NCL excels in that area. Now you're spoiled for life!:D

 

Thanks again for "taking me along" on your cruise and hope to see you around these boards often!!

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Thanks so much for all the wonderful comments :)

 

It is so hard to believe that it has been less than a week since we disembarked the Beautiful Pearl, once back to work the pampered week seems like months ago :o

I have my thoughts together and pretty much I wanted to get my pictures up loaded to share with all of you when I posted my final comments.

 

First off I have to say the week was Smashing!!! :D

 

ok I just had to say that ;)

 

Going into this cruise I knew it would be a good week and Tom was hesitant because he thought our 2 night cruise on the Star last November was a fluke and did not want to get his hopes up. He is actually the one that is really amazed at the Suite Life on NCL. We cruised on Princess this past January and everything we read about Princess we figured it would be a nice 2nd option to HAL. In all honesty while the Princess cruise was not bad it was not great and I just feel that Princess is not a good fit for us but NCL...... definitely is!!!!

 

The Suite amenities and perks and service exceeded all of our expectations and definitely is several steps above Holland America. Based on price points for full suites for both lines NCL is a somewhat better value. The reason I say somewhat is that one tends to spend far more on their on board account than they do with HAL so for HAL cruisers you do need to take that into account. Your daily gratuities are a bit higher plus with the addition of a Butler and Concierge that far exceeded our expectations you will also want to tip them. While I have always tipped HAL Stewards and the Concierges in the Neptune when they have done something special for us for the most part the last several cruises with HAL the Concierges barely knew our name and did nothing for us so I felt no need to tip them.

Also as for spending, all alcohol prices are definitely higher on NCL than HAL but NCL prices are par with Princess, RCI and Celebrity from what I can tell.

You also have to take into account for a bit more premium experience you really should plan to go to the various premium restaurants every single night. That is one of the many things that do set NCL apart from the other cruise lines. When I talk about NCL I always recommend doing this and just consider this part of the cruise cost.

 

I think the single most outstanding thing that NCL offers is the Officers and Crew and the dedication to service and friendliness. I stated this when we did that short 2 day cruise on the Star and many from the HAL board just could not believe that I felt the crew were as friendly if not friendlier than HAL. In recent years with HAL I have seen this diminish and possibly because HAL crew are more over worked I am just not sure. Boarding the Pearl you just feel that instant warmness of being welcomed even with out that Welcome Aboard Champagne. I hope that NCL does not lose this it is definitely one of the things that will keep me coming back to NCL.

 

The other two outstanding or should I say Smashing things about the Pearl was the Spa which for right now is definitely the number one Spa on a ship I have been on and the Entertainment which far exceeds HAL in so many levels.

 

The only negative is that some (not all) of the meals were not that great. But then food is very subjective. I thought the meals we had in Le Bistro far exceeded anything I have had on HAL but the Main Dining Room and even the two (Star and Pearl) evening meals I have had in Cagneys the steak quality was not as good as HAL's Pinnacle Grill. But let me say that Cagney's far exceeds the Crown Grill on Princess. Yet Breakfast and Lunch for Suite Passengers in Cagneys far exceeds what HAL has in the Pinnacle but the evening steak quality just is not quite as good. Oddly the steaks were far superior in Le Bistro.

My only regret is we still did not make it to Sushi which I may have to do my first night on my next NCL cruise.

I will say that there were several areas of the food that did exceed anything we have had on HAL, the fruit was amazing, the bowls of fruit brought to our cabins were picture perfect and the taste especially the strawberries were amazing.

 

 

This is my link to my photos

[size=3 [/size]

 

Any questions feel free to ask

 

Many thanks to all of you who followed along on our cruise adventure.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

OK if clicking on the little thumbnail picture does not take you to my album try this link

http://travel.webshots.com/slideshow/577565275QJKVNt

[numberguy]

Lisa,

 

The pictures look fantastic. I'm so glad all of you had a great time.

 

--Michael

[sjnyc323]

Great pictures. Thanks for sharing .