Bliss Reviews Making Me Nervous!

[christyk82]

Hello, All! I'll be sailing on NCL Bliss this December to the Caribbean and have been reading some alarming reviews of its Alaska sailings. I am an inexperienced cruiser heading a large family gathering and hoped this beautiful new ship would blow us away, but the reports of rudeness, boring food, over crowding and nickel and dimeing have me concerned. Is it possible that all of these kinks can be worked out by December?! Is this typical of a Norwegian cruise?

[david_sobe]

I don't know what reviews you are reading but I am fascinated with Bliss videos because I think its one of the best ships ever. I am booked on Bliss's sister ship Encore and not worried about a thing and hope its almost identical to Bliss.

[YVRBassElectric]

on CC there are 85 cruise reviews that say Bliss is Excellent or Very Good and 27 say poor or terrible CC listed the ship as 4/5

 

In my experience the Freestyle dining is something cruisers love or hate, it's just like a restaurant on land, large groups, special occasions - make a reservation, otherwise, go to the restaurant when you want to eat and you might wait a few minutes. If anyone is expecting traditional dining, where you eat at the same table every night, with the same servers - you won't get that on NCL.

 

If anyone in your group is a smoker, warn them that the smoking areas are VERY limited - enclosed casino and outside on Spice H2O

 

90% of the time Guest service staff are dealing with money issues - don't go there for help with anything else

 

NCL is a main stream, mass market line, you won't get the service of a 5* boutique hotel. The crew I have dealt with, like their jobs and want the passengers to enjoy their holidays.

 

Go with a smile, prepared to enjoy your cruise and I bet your family have a great time

[YVRBassElectric]

I will also add we booked Alaska because we had such a great time on the TA and Panama cruises - counting down to Sept 1

[BirdTravels]

Hello, All! I'll be sailing on NCL Bliss this December to the Caribbean and have been reading some alarming reviews of its Alaska sailings. I am an inexperienced cruiser heading a large family gathering and hoped this beautiful new ship would blow us away, but the reports of rudeness, boring food, over crowding and nickel and dimeing have me concerned. Is it possible that all of these kinks can be worked out by December?! Is this typical of a Norwegian cruise?

So, just because it is on the internet, does not make it true. People like to complain and some are even out there trolling.

 

We were on the Bliss to Alaska and really truly did not encounter any rudeness. Positive, great crew interaction was lightyears ahead of our cruise on the Allure of the Seas in March. The crew was very friendly and inviting.

 

We found the food to be good. Certain restaurants/meals we liked better than others. But never had a "bad" meal. But, as frequent cruisers, we understand that the ship's galleys serve 20,000 meals a day. Consider if your favorite local restaurant was asked to serve 20,000 people. There are certain techniques used that allow them to serve that many meals (i.e., every meal is not cooked to order).

 

As for nickel and diming, you can have a wonderful cruise without spending another penny (if you pre-pay your Daily Service Charge). If you want to buy a $5000 ring in the gift shop, they will be happy to take your money. But there is nothing that "requires" you to spend money to enjoy yourself. Room is paid for. Main Dining Room, The Local, and the Buffet food is complimentary (you can have a white tablecloth served meal 3 times a day). Entertainment is free. We [often] have a near zero balance on our room account.

 

The Bliss is a beautiful new ship with a friendly crew and wonderful food. Enjoy yourself!

[riclop]

Hello, All! I'll be sailing on NCL Bliss this December to the Caribbean and have been reading some alarming reviews of its Alaska sailings. I am an inexperienced cruiser heading a large family gathering and hoped this beautiful new ship would blow us away, but the reports of rudeness, boring food, over crowding and nickel and dimeing have me concerned. Is it possible that all of these kinks can be worked out by December?! Is this typical of a Norwegian cruise?

Nickle and diming will never go away. it's NCL.

[eddeb]

Bring back da Labstah in the MDRs!

 

NCL's new business model:

 

Kevin> FreeStyle cruising.

 

Andy n Frank> FeeStyle cruising.

 

We really miss FreeStyle... :cool:

[TruckerDave]

Nickle and diming will never go away. it's NCL.

 

it's only "nickel and diming" if you choose to let it. There is no reason you can't walk off the ship not spending one penny over what you had paid before you boarded. This whole "they N & D you" is just nonsense.

[chefchick]

I’ve never understood the “nickle and diming” comments either...once your cruise fare and DSC is paid for, anything else is your discretion. If you want included cocktails and specialty dining then you should try an all inclusive line like Seabourn, for example...you will still pay for it one way or the other.

 

To the OP, do your research. Find our what details are priorities for your party and go from there...have fun, it’s a vacation!

[Shevys]

We were on the Bliss a few weeks ago and encountered exactly zero rudeness while on the ship, with the exception of one time a woman refused to let us share a seating area on the observation deck. I couldn’t believe how nice and attentive the staff was! For the hours they worked, they sure had a good attitude. I found our specialty dining experiences excellent, and Taste/Savor (never made it to the Manhattan room) and the Garden Cafe much better than expected. For us it was a great experience and highly recommended.

[gambit57]

I’ve never understood the “nickle and diming” comments either...once your cruise fare and DSC is paid for, anything else is your discretion. If you want included cocktails and specialty dining then you should try an all inclusive line like Seabourn, for example...you will still pay for it one way or the other.

 

To the OP, do your research. Find our what details are priorities for your party and go from there...have fun, it’s a vacation!

 

For outsiders, the general consensus seems to be that the free food is merely "adequate". If you want "good" food, you have to pay up. So, that feels like forced nickel and diming. Rivals like Princess, Disney, Celebrity, RCL, etc tend not to have that same rep for the food.

[newmexicoNita]

Hello, All! I'll be sailing on NCL Bliss this December to the Caribbean and have been reading some alarming reviews of its Alaska sailings. I am an inexperienced cruiser heading a large family gathering and hoped this beautiful new ship would blow us away, but the reports of rudeness, boring food, over crowding and nickel and dimeing have me concerned. Is it possible that all of these kinks can be worked out by December?! Is this typical of a Norwegian cruise?

As an experienced cruiser it seems like you would realize it takes about 6 months to iron our the wrinkles on a new ship, just like it does a new hotel or restaurant. Add to that, there will always be those who are more inclined to post negatives than positives. We all expect things to go well. If they don't we want to let everyone know. If they do, we generally don't say much cause we got what we expected.

 

One of our favorite cruises was on the Jewel when she made her maiden voyage from England to the USA. and yes, there were bumps along the way.

[newmexicoNita]

Nickle and diming will never go away. it's NCL.

nickle and diming is not something you only see on NCL. Normally we have a little OBC when we board the ship, but not 100s of $$. At the end of the cruise, we have had a great experience and other than DSC, if we have not paid them up front our bill is almost nothing. Our last cruise, a couple of excursions charged to our cabin, but we had enough discounts, with the $50 plus some on board credit, we bought a little in the stores and gambled a little, but not much. We ended up wiht a bill of $20.67

 

ganbit: I would disagree with you about the comparison of food on NCL ships with other lines: yes, food on Celebrity and a few other mass marketed lines get better reviews than NCL< I am guessing if you did take a survey Carnival, RCI and NCL would come out pretty equal. I am talking MDR and probably the buffets. Of course NCL comes out ahead on the specialty dining, but yes,that is an extra cost item, but not as costly as some specialty dining room. on other ships

 

BTW as for whomever posted about Moderno's being missing on the Bliss, we asked on our last cruise a couple of months ago if it was true they are on their was out on all ships and the answer was "yes" That will be sad for some of us.

Edited July 29, 2018 by newmexicoNita

[T4raegirl]

Do not be worried. People are so spoiled and ungrateful and just love to complain. We sailed a few years ago on the Pearl, a much older ship, smaller and showing wear, but we had the time of our lives! We are simple and loved everything and the food is very good. Of course the buffet is hit or miss but every meal we had in the main dining or specialty was served hot and tasted great! The drinks were great and our room was always clean. I am expecting the Bliss to be crowded because it is a mega ship. We know that going in. We will make the best of everything else.

[Georgia_Peaches]

Hello, All! I'll be sailing on NCL Bliss this December to the Caribbean and have been reading some alarming reviews of its Alaska sailings. I am an inexperienced cruiser heading a large family gathering and hoped this beautiful new ship would blow us away, but the reports of rudeness, boring food, over crowding and nickel and dimeing have me concerned. Is it possible that all of these kinks can be worked out by December?! Is this typical of a Norwegian cruise?

Rudeness, boring food, over crowding, and nickel and dimeing are pretty typical complaints for all cruise lines. I would suggest you take the reviews with a grain of salt and keep in mind that of the few people who actually post a negative review, there are many, many more satisfied customers who will never post a word. I read many negative reviews about the Epic before our trip last Thanksgiving. Like you, I was in charge of planning for a large group of people. We had a fantastic time!! Had I let the reviews I read prior to embarkation get into my head, we might very well have missed out on a fabulous vacation.

CM

[graphicguy]

I’ve seen a few of the video reviews of the Bliss. ALL OF THEM were overwhelmingly positive.

 

Complaints you state are true of all mainstream cruise lines. All have tips that people pay. All have service charges. All have, for fee, food options. All have all sorts of ways to part you from your money. You can choose to spend more money, or not. It’s up to you.

 

I’ve found the “no extra cost” food venues to be generally great. You do not have to go to the fee based restaurants to get good food. Free food venues are all over the ship and offer food much better than you probably make for yourself at home. And, you get served and don’t have to clean up afterwards.

 

Same goes for drinks. Coffee, water, milk, juices, teas are all available at no charge. If you want something other than that, they make it available for a fee. Try finding another restaurant anywhere that won’t charge you for tea or juice.

 

On the Bliss you’ll be able to eat, outside, sailing blue waters, while enjoying some of the best service available anywhere.

 

You’re going to see/hear some of the best entertainment anywhere, mostly for no charge.

 

These ships rival some of the nicest hotels in the world. The Bliss is in particular, is quite nice.

 

Sail the Bliss. Have fun. The only opinion that matters is yours. If I were a betting man (and I am), you will love it.

[PATRLR]

Hello, All! I'll be sailing on NCL Bliss this December to the Caribbean and have been reading some alarming reviews of its Alaska sailings. I am an inexperienced cruiser heading a large family gathering and hoped this beautiful new ship would blow us away, but the reports of rudeness, boring food, over crowding and nickel and dimeing have me concerned. Is it possible that all of these kinks can be worked out by December?! Is this typical of a Norwegian cruise?

 

>>reports of rudeness

I'm not sure what you were reading, unless it's the chair hogs in the OL, but that problem will occur on all mass market cruise lines. OL in Alaska, or around the pool in the Caribbean.

 

>>boring food

Yes, the food is mass produced and generally of the quality you will get at mass market chain restaurants on land. Not quite as bad as a Golden Corral, think Applebees or Fridays. All mass market cruise lines are like this. If you want a nicer meal you need to go to a specialty restaurant and it will cost you more. Just like on land.

 

>over crowding

4000 passengers - I'm sure feeling crowded happens, but, I didn't experience this on any of the 3-4000 passenger ships I've been on. Yes, the buffet will be crowded an hour before the gangway opens to a port, but even then I didn't have a problem finding a seat. I might have had to walk around a bit looking, but, I was able to find it. Yes, some excursions will have 100s of people going on it, so, there will be a large group of people gathering for it. Sure, the Atrium gets croweded for some shows, so get their early, or find another activity. I never felt there was too many people and my vacation was being ruined. I felt more crowded on the older ships that only held 800-1000 passengers. These new ships are very well designed to handle the crowds.

 

>nickle and diming

Like all the mass market cruise lines, they have a low price to get you on the ship and then they do everything they can to get more money out of you. But, it's not required. You can have a great cruise and never spend any extra money. That being said, I have been critical of NCL is this area. An example, from the Bliss: Crepes were available on many of the other NCL ships in the buffet at night time. A nice treat that I enjoyed often. On the Bliss, crepes have been moved down to "CoCos" where you have to pay for them. Nickle and diming. But, they didn't get a dime out of me, I just didn't have any crepes and I still had a wonderful time on the Bliss.

[Hllb]

I'm canceling my 2019 trip on the Bliss today. Mainly because of the cost of the trip and the disappointment in how the extras on the ship are working. We booked the Bliss because we have 3 kids (ages 9, 14, and 15 next summer) and thought the go karts and laser tag would be great for them. When we booked (quite a while ago), NCL hadn't stated those activities cost extra. I did find that out pretty quickly, and got over that issue. Then, they started raising the pricing, from $5 each to $7, and now I believe they are $10 each. Not thrilled with the price increases but still generally OK enough with it. Then I started reading that unless you're on the ship and reserve times before noon on embarkation day, all the slots are sold out. That was my tipping point. For a family of 5, with excursions and plane tickets, the AK cruise was going to cost us nearly $15,000. For just one week of vacation. When I start thinking about what else I could do with that money (we spend less than that for 2 weeks in Korea, could easily spend 2 weeks in Europe for less too) it just wasn't worth it. Add on the competition to get reservations for activities, and it just was no longer worth it to me. We'll pick a different vacation for next year and maybe my husband and I will do an AK cruise when the kids are older.

 

That's not to say that the Bliss is a bad ship and that everyone would view the scheduling and upcharge issues the way I do. I just decided that spending almost $2200 per day was not a good use of my money.

[Georgie562]

I’ve never understood the “nickle and diming” comments either...once your cruise fare and DSC is paid for, anything else is your discretion. If you want included cocktails and specialty dining then you should try an all inclusive line like Seabourn, for example...you will still pay for it one way or the other.

 

To the OP, do your research. Find our what details are priorities for your party and go from there...have fun, it’s a vacation!

 

The whole nickel and dimeing is because of all the fees they charge, fees for this fees for that, fees to have bottled water delivered to your cabin, also the sudden increase in prices on stuff like the go karts from $7 to $10, prohibition the musical from $20 to $23 overnight, the retail value of the beverage package from $54 to $79 to $89 in a matter of 2-3 years, that's where the NiCkeL and dimeing comes from.

[CP3o]

Just skimmed these posts but spa pass is 250 now instead of 200 and I can see have families w kids attracted to karts and laser tag would have second thoughts. There isn’t a basketball court either which most ships offer, even small ones.

 

 

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[cathi007]

For outsiders, the general consensus seems to be that the free food is merely "adequate". If you want "good" food, you have to pay up. So, that feels like forced nickel and diming. Rivals like Princess, Disney, Celebrity, RCL, etc tend not to have that same rep for the food.

Weird, I have been on 2 NCL cruises, I have sailed Celebrity, Royal, and Carnival, and I thought the food on NCL was superior then both Carnival and Royal. And I am a picky eater. I think it just depends on your tastes, the staff at the time, and people who just complain too much. The last cruise I took was on the Gem and I did eat 8 or the ten nights in the specialty restaurants, but 2 dinners and all other meals were in the buffet, or main dr, and I didn't have a bad meal.

[graphicguy]

I've never had a bad meal (actually they were all good to great) on any of my NCL cruises.

 

There is so much really good entertainment, and drink choices (coffee, milk, teas, water, etc) that you don't have to spend extra for any of it.

 

You can choose some of the other fee areas, but you will certainly have a good time without spending for those extras.

[Love my butler]

Hello, All! I'll be sailing on NCL Bliss this December to the Caribbean and have been reading some alarming reviews of its Alaska sailings. I am an inexperienced cruiser heading a large family gathering and hoped this beautiful new ship would blow us away, but the reports of rudeness, boring food, over crowding and nickel and dimeing have me concerned. Is it possible that all of these kinks can be worked out by December?! Is this typical of a Norwegian cruise?

 

Nope. These are not 'kinks' The ship and experience will be the same in December. The ship was built to be crowded (more revenue), the food is cheap and boring (more revenue), nickel and diming is fleet wide (more revenue). The rudeness factor, crew and passenger will always be hit and miss. Yes, this is a typical Norwegian cruise.

 

It's for your convenience.......

[beerman2]

Nope. These are not 'kinks' The ship and experience will be the same in December. The ship was built to be crowded (more revenue), the food is cheap and boring (more revenue), nickel and diming is fleet wide (more revenue). The rudeness factor, crew and passenger will always be hit and miss. Yes, this is a typical Norwegian cruise.

 

It's for your convenience.......

 

"Yes, this your typical Norwegian cruise."?????

 

Quite the opposite, I've found NCL, RCI, and Carnival fairly similar in comparison. There are plenty of free options, food is so subjective it shouldn't even be debated, there are rude pax on every ship.

 

Thanks but I can't wait until Jan., and pretty certain I won't be N&D, I won't starve to death/will not eat cheap food and yep I will encounter the self entitled/rude pax.

[4Mast]

I now know that I will not starve to death - I am so relived! Food is a subjective and sometimes we have expectations that may not be met. However I have never had a poor or bad meal on a cruise (perhaps its luck) despite reports that by the percentage of them suggesting I will at some time.

I am booked on a cruise with NCL (first time on the line and with apprehension ) but it seems there are few reviews about Jade (I know its often based in mainland Europe) and I do wonder what the experience will be like.