Review Pearl Dec 8-15 W Carib – dailies, Haven & more!

[Artemis]

I’m getting a jump start on my review of our Pearl cruise next week. I don’t know if I’ll do any live postings, but if anyone has specific questions for me to try to answer while on board, please post them here (now and during the cruise week), and I will try to check in and get answers for you. I’ll definitely post the Freestyle dailies on return, as I wasn’t able to find a recent collection from a 7-nighter. I’ll also update everyone on the current officers and key staff, as the forum info is out of date. And we’ll be in The Haven, so I’ll report on our first experience with NCL suite life, too! Special thanks to WaldosPepper for the invaluable contribution of a comprehensive list of current NCL suite perks and to palmyrafan for posting all the scoop on our cabin, a category S5 Haven Courtyard Penthouse.

 

Cruise Review - NCL Pearl December 8-15, 2003: A 7-night roundtrip out of Miami with port calls on NCL’s private beach Great Stirrup Cay, Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman and Cozumel.

 

Dancing with the one that brung us: This is our 32nd cruise. Our very first cruise was on the old NCL Sea out of Houston in 1999 (now SuperStar Libra in the Star Cruises fleet). Like a first kiss or car, we were smitten. We started cruising a lot (then with our kids—we think it’s a great way for families to vacation), trying various lines depending on date, budget, itinerary, etc. In 2002, we returned to NCL for a Hawaiian cruise on the then-new Freestyle concept on the also then-new Star. We weren’t so smitten! This was pre-Pride of America days when NCL had to make the long trek across the International Date Line to call on foreign Kiribati to avoid a Passenger Vessel Services Act violation. Kiribati was a peace of “stranded on an island” heaven, but Freestyle wasn’t ready for prime time. Fast forward through 11 cruise years giving NCL a pass, and in the “never say never category,” when we started looking for this year’s “value break” during the bargain basement fare weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I saw we could get into The Haven on Pearl for a very reasonable sum. (This was right at the 30-day out mark, after final payment when fares often drop to get the ship filled.) I had read a lot of CC buzz about how NCL’s suite life beat all others. It was kismet.

 

So…it feels good to be “dancing with the one that brung us,” as Southerners like to say. We’re awfully excited! :D

 

Here we go….

 

About Us and What We’ll Be Doing this Cruise: We are a mid-50’s empty nest couple from Texas. We are show people and like good food, so I’ll be reporting on the entertainment and dining. We pre-booked the bundle of three specialty restaurants (Cagney’s, La Cucina and Le Bistro) and reserved our embarkation dinner at Cagney’s to enjoy the “eat at a specialty restaurant embarkation night and your bottle of wine is on us” deal. We may end up adding specialty restaurants—it depends on our MDR experience. Because we’ve been to all the ports many times and have tried all the highlight adventures in each, we plan to do little more than kicking back on the beach (or even in the Haven) those days. There’s an active CC Roll Call for this cruise—I’ll try hard to attend the get together, especially as NCL is usually a trooper about sending an enthusiastic rep to those gatherings. But if there’s a hot trivia game, irresistible arts and crafts activity or my Haven pool deck chair needs hogging, I may not make it! I will be in the gym and/or walking the decks daily (if I like the walking conditions). Stay tuned!

 

Our Pre-Cruise Plan: We’re flying to Miami tomorrow, the Saturday evening before embarkation. Note to self for future years: this is Art Basel weekend—hotel availability has been from hunger since we booked this cruise back in November! We consider ourselves black belt Priceliners, but it’s clear we’re getting no deals this time and are at risk of being assigned to the rare undesirable property as availability is really slim. We decided to add some Starwood points and booked Element at the airport with airport shuttle and complimentary Internet. There’s a cruise port shuttle for $12pp and a complimentary breakfast, but we’re meeting up with local friends who’ll take us to brunch and the port.

 

That’s all for now. :) Feel free to start adding any questions.

[david_sobe]

Yes Miami is packed for Art Basel. The traffic is really bad and all hotels are booked. Enjoy your cruise! Should be excellent weather sailing from Miami!

[Mrs. Squirrel]

OP, We'll be on this cruise with you. Are you coming to the M&G? First sea day 11:00am in Cagney's. Loving you writing style already! :D

[tofu_tonight]

I’ll definitely post the Freestyle dailies on return, as I wasn’t able to find a recent collection from a 7-nighter. I’ll also update everyone on the current officers and key staff, as the forum info is out of date.

 

We're sailing on the Pearl in a couple of weeks and I am really looking forward to your review, especially the information from the dailies and anything about the shows you attend. I hope you have a wonderful time!

[SenatorsFan]

This should be good! I'm sailing this same itinerary in 29 days (but who's counting?:)). I'll just be happy to soak up any info you'd like to provide us with. I hope you have a fantastic voyage!:) One question: will you be eating at Moderno? Would you recommend it? Thanks!

Heather

Edited December 7, 2013 by SenatorsFan

[SolidGoldCruiser]

We sail on Jan. 5, and I am interested in learning what the current price for a 7-day spa pass is.

 

Also, I would like to learn which pier is used by the Pearl in Ocho Rios and Cozumel.

 

Thank you, Artemis, for offering to provide information, and I hope you have a fantastic cruise!

 

Jean

[Artemis]

Live from Ocho Rios - having a wonderful week at sea, the Pearl is a happy ship with a lot going for it!

 

Thanks for your questions, Heather and SolidGoldCruiser. I will get the scoop and let you know when we return.

[realcindylouwho]

We sail on Jan. 5, and I am interested in learning what the current price for a 7-day spa pass is.

 

Also, I would like to learn which pier is used by the Pearl in Ocho Rios and Cozumel.

 

Thank you, Artemis, for offering to provide information, and I hope you have a fantastic cruise!

 

Jean

 

In Ocho Rios, we used the small pier that is NOT located in the shopping/downtown area. When you get off the ship you will need to walk 5-10 minutes (per NCL instructions not mine:) it looked a lot further to me as we were being driven past it) to reach the shopping area. However...you will be walking along a sidewalk with LOTS of vendors which is along a heavy traffic street. My personal opinion is that I wouldn't feel particularly comfortable doing this. It is an industrial/stockyard looking pier. We booked an NCL excursion of zip lining and a float/raft down the White River. We got off the ship and were lead to a waiting van which then drove us out of the pier parking lot. It would be outside of my comfort level to do an excursion outside of NCL in Jamaica, but we book on our own in other ports.

 

In Cozumel, we docked at the pier that is attached to a nice two story shopping mall.

 

I wish I had the names of these piers, but I don't, sorry! You may or may not dock at these same piers though.

 

I don't know the cost of the spa pass.

 

There was a Caribbean Deck Party the night of Ocho Rios and the White Hot party was the night of Grand Cayman. We didn't attend either as we were completely worn out from our daytime excursions! I may be able to answer other questions anyone else has.

[SenatorsFan]

Live from Ocho Rios - having a wonderful week at sea, the Pearl is a happy ship with a lot going for it!

 

Thanks for your questions, Heather and SolidGoldCruiser. I will get the scoop and let you know when we return.

 

Glad to hear this about the Pearl!:) Keep having fun.

Heather

[realcindylouwho]

So sorry, the sail date was just 11 days ago on 12/01/13 and not in 2012!

[Artemis]

Live from Cayman--it's a gorgeous day in the Caribbean! Tonight is the white party.

 

We used the main downtown pier in Ocho yesterday, so I guess it varies. I will try to find out more on pier schedule.

 

Here's a pic of main atrium decorated for Christmas and featuring NFL action. Tapatalk app sizes iPhone pix down....

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[OurDogCisco]

Hope you are having a great trip. I can't wait to read the review when you return.

[Artemis]

Another day in paradise...this time literally: we're at Paradise Beach in Cozumel. Here's my view.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[juliehope]

Artemis-

Thank you for your enthusiasim and reporting-- we are sailing Dec 22 and cannot wait-

you had mentioned that you are planning to post dailies-- if you can post the kids dailies for the 6-9 year old age group that would be great!!

hope the end of the cruise is as relaxing as it looks from your lounge in Paridise ( we were there last year and my husband saw pic and knew right away where you where!!) Enjoy the sand between your toes...

[Artemis]

Sunday night update--home from a great week on the Pearl! I have started scanning docs and will post all tomorrow, as well as reply to your requests re: Moderno (loved it), spa pricing, piers in Ocho and Coz (got a little more scoop) and the 6-9 kids' schedule (got it!).

 

(Wow, what a bummer. Tapatalk didn't handle my iPhone picture posts very well.)

[jdvmd]

Lovely start! Can't wait to hear more!

[SenatorsFan]

I'll be waiting for the rest. :D

Heather

[tofu_tonight]

I'm so glad you had a great vacation-- looking forward to reading about everything! :)

[Artemis]

Alrighty, here we go! Thank you all for your interest and kind support. To Heather, SolidGoldCruiser and juliehope, please follow along for the answers to your specific questions!

 

The good news is, I have scans of most everything!

 

The bad news is, I am going to be short on the review...in spite of my best laid plans, I didn't get lick of Christmas decorating, shopping, baking, etc. done before we left. So guess what I'm doing this week?!

 

>> Click here to find all of these documents:

 

Dailies - Each of the 7 Freestyle Daily newsletters, plus the brief Welcome Aboard flyer, the handy week in review and the detailed Disembarkation guide.

Kids Program - The week's schedule for every youth group from toddler to teen (juliehope, you'll want to download the Seals age 6-9).

Spa and Internet - The spa price list (heads up, SolidGoldCruiser!) and everything you wanted to know about the Internet!

Map of the ship - You can pick up one of these at Guest Services, but it might help before you cruise to figure out how to get from your cabin to eat and play!

 

My mini-review of our cruise

 

In sum, we had a great week aboard the Pearl. As I said in the intro, although our first and thus our sweetest cruise was with NCL, we hadn't been on an NCL ship since 2002, so it was a delight to return and see what this line has become. We were impressed by so many things. The overriding feeling I came back with was how much the officers, staff and crew care about the passenger experience. You know how you keep running into other passengers all week--there's that pretty woman again, or what is up with that guy in the hat?! Well, this cruise, I ran into the Captain a lot, out and about mingling with pax, not just making his obligatory showing at the captain's reception, and every single day, I saw the #2 boss in charge of all the things pax care about from cabins to dining and more, the lovely Hotel Director Mirsad Bucuk. These gentlemen at the top set the tone for their key staff right down to the lowliest crew member, all of whom were generally very visible, friendly and engaged with the passengers. Don't miss the farewell show--all of the officers and a bunch of representative staff and crew gather on stage to say goodbye. They received a well-deserved standing ovation for delivering a terrific week at sea!

 

The personnel roster goes something like this:

 

Captain Carl-Gunnar Hammerin

Chief Engineer Plamen Belyovski

Hotel Director Mirsad Bucuk

Cruise Director Archie Archbold

Food & Beverage Director Messiah Ritzinger

Executive Chef Francis Gomes

Guest Services Manager Neda Spasojevic

Cruise Consultant (who also serves as the Latitudes Loyalty Ambassador, I think) Silvio Prio

 

(I have a few other names if there is any position in particular you are wondering about.)

 

Before I launch into other things, let me just say, the ship was beautifully decorated for Christmas. Here's a repost of that picture I previously tried to upload via Tapatalk--the central atrium as with tree and lighting, plus a shot of the huge screen that was often in live broadcast mode so all the NFL football fans didn't miss a game!

 

[Artemis]

Here's another view of the atrium, with another NFL game in play, from the Moderno specialty restaurant. Heather, this was our favorite of the specialty restaurants we tried (Cagney's, La Cucina and Lotus Garden)! If there's a sporting event on the big screen, this would be a great place for fans to enjoy a meat feast while cheering on their team! (It might not be the right place for a romantic dinner for two, although there is some more secluded, quiet seating along the back side of the restaurant.)

 

 

Here's the menu (pieced together--sorry, all my shots are iPhone snaps, so the quality isn't great, but I hope you get the idea).

 

 

Hands down, we received the very best dining service in a specialty restaurant at Moderno. The restaurant manager came around several times to make sure our meal was exactly what we wanted, and our waiter and the men who served us the various cuts of meat were terrific. You can ask for as many repeated rounds of a particular cut as often as you like. We thought the quality of the meat was very good. Our favorites were the flavorful picanha and filet mignon. My husband also loved the lamb (they are ready with mint jelly, if you like). You can ask for a piece at your preferred doneness, e.g., medium rare. The salad bar is delicious, and they are very proud of their seafood soup--but don't fill up! The only thing we thought needed a little work was the bread: the cheese balls were hard and crusty, not soft and almost gooey as we've had in other churrascurias. But again, you're not there for the fillers! I didn't have room for dessert--they were nice enough to invite me to come back any time just for dessert.

 

One extra-special touch was the roasted pineapple. It must have been coated with a little bit of sugar and cinnamon. Here's a picture of the sweet pineapple guy who made a special trip back just so I could take his picture (and another piece, of course!).

 

[Artemis]

More on dining...

 

Cagney's - We did this as part of the bundle of three specialty restaurants we pre-purchased and to collect the complimentary bottle of wine offered when you dine at one of the three on embarkation night. We both give high marks to the filet. The sides and desserts were good, but nothing to write home about. The service was just okay; the look and feel of the restaurant is a strange mix between cowboy and gangster, but it is comfortable and quiet. Here's the house red label:

 

 

La Cucina - We really liked the food! The pizza here is way better than the "regular" pizza, and our pasta dishes were delish, as was the tiramisu. The service was a bit off, and the ambiance is casual and noisy. (We traded our third package night at Le Bistro for Moderno, so we missed the romantic restaurant experience I'd expect at Le Bistro.)

 

Lotus Garden - We wanted an Asian fix, but weren't in the mood for Teppanyaki, and we're those strange people who don't do sushi, so Lotus Garden it was.... The service was fine, and the ambiance is okay considering all the Asian restaurants are lofted above the bar area where there's usually music playing. But we didn't think the food measured up to even chain restaurant PF Chang standards.

 

I have to take a break--laundry calls! More later....

[Artemis]

Main Dining Room - We had dinner three nights in the Summer Palace. It is the main dining room set aside for people who "dress." If you want to wear shorts and flip flops, you go to the other main dining room, Indigo. Both feature the same menu, with the exception that on the "classics served everyday" left side of the menu, the standing beef entree is rib eye in the Summer Palace and NY strip (I think) in Indigo. We never had to wait for seating in the MDR. All around the ship, there are restaurant status boards that show green, yellow and red lights indicating how full or not any given restaurant may be at a certain time. We received the best overall dining service of the cruise our three nights in Summer Palace. This was particularly remarkable as our voyage suffered a unique staff turnover all over the ship quoted at various levels up to 50% due to experienced staffers being flown to Germany to board the new Getaway for her upcoming maiden voyage. As our Summer Palace waiters explained while asking for our patience and understanding, they were training brand new NCL employees as assistant waiters! All in all, we thought our waiters and their newbie assistants did a fine job. As for the food, it was mostly good with some highlights and lowlights. We thought our meal would shine on the one "formal" night, which the ship bills as "Norwegian's Night Out," and we weren't disappointed. Here's what was featured on the formal night menu. Again, my husband was all about the lamb. I can't remember what I had. :o

 

 

Here's the left side of the Summer Palace dinner menu--you can order any of these standing classics any night.

 

 

Lunch buffet in the Garden Cafe - We ate several lunches in the Garden Cafe and were usually pleasantly surprised by the quality and freshness of the food. In addition to the daily specials, there is always a custom pasta bar and an Asian section featuring yummy Indian curry and other regional cuisines. There were plenty of wait staffers to assist, and during prime times, they did a commendable job bussing tables and replenishing food. You can even dine al fresco at the far end called the Great Outdoors, which leads me to this:

 

Bavarian Beer Fest on the Last Sea Day - What a treat! Several days, there are themed lunches, e.g., Mexican. But the last sea day, they featured an Oktoberfest celebration at the Great Outdoors, and it was fabulous! On the menu were a range of Bavarian specialties including some of the best veal Weiner Schnitzel we've had outside of Bavaria itself, delectable roast suckling pig--the whole pig was laid out there in all its glory!--and some "to die for" apple strudel. This unexpected themed event is the brainchild of the Food & Beverage Director, Messiah Ritzinger, who hails from Munich and is proud to share a taste of Bavaria with cruisers. Be sure to tell him how much you enjoyed it--he is easy to spot with his signature mustache and twinkle in his eye!

 

Chocoholic Buffet - I thought the cruise lines had ditched this tradition, but NCL rolls out their Chocoholic Buffet with style on the night of Day 6.

 

Breakfasts at Cagney's - We took advantage of our suite privileges to eat breakfast daily at Cagney's. They make the best eggs benedict! The waffles are thin and very flavorful, too--I gather you can get the same waffles in other breakfast venues. I had read here on CC that the waffle syrup was "nasty." I think there's a even a thread dedicated to the topic, and people talk about bringing their own syrup?! As we were flying, I couldn't see giving up a toiletry to squeeze a 3 oz. container of syrup into my TSA-approved bag of liquids, so I took a chance on their syrup...and it was AOK. So either they serve better syrup to the suite guests than the rowers ;) or I'm "syrup easy" after all those years I happily slurped up Aunt Jemima's before discovering real maple syrup!

Edited December 16, 2013 by Artemis

[juliehope]

Artemis-

you are the best thanks so much for the invaluable info you have/are sharing--

 

We sail this sunday ( our roll call is very small and quiet..though i know it will be a very full cruise being Christmas week and all...

 

I like to plan ahead and this info is extremely helpful

 

thank you many times over

[Sarasa]

Thank you so much for the menus and the dailies! :)

[minn55441]

Thanks for posting the dailies and the menus.

 

It's always fun to start planning ahead and thinking about our time on board.