What is your favorite thing about cruising? About NCL?

[MamaToMany]

I’d love to hear about your very favorite cruise-y things! I’d love to hear what you love about NCL too! (We will be sailing on Bliss, so keep your tips coming!)

 

This will only be our second cruise, and first vacation without our 5 kids in our 15 year marriage. At this point, I’d cheerfully row the ship if I had to, so everything has me excited.

 

On our first cruise, one of my very favorite things was simply sitting out on the balcony and watching the ocean go by while I drank my tea in the morning. It was so gorgeous and peaceful! Another favorite was standing out on our balcony at night and watching a huge lightning storm over Cuba as we sailed by. It was incredible!

[BostonGal35]

Favorite things:

 

Walking the promenade and pausing to view the wake at the aft each and every lap. Its my fave view, and i once had the pleasure of staying in an aft balcony room.

No laundry or cooking for a week!

Chatting with staff and learning about their lives back home.

Meeting new people and making new friends.

That giddy feeling on embark day as you walk up the gangway.

Food, 24/7

Booze, 24/7

Not have to worry about who is gonna drive home.

Water slides

[www3traveler]

I love being able to see new places and meeting interesting people both staff and passengers.

[josephmz]

Specialty restaurants if I want to.

 

Not having to wear a suit or tuxedo.

 

Dining according to my schedule and not when I'm forced to.

[JC5240]

-Late night strolls around the ship with my SO, cocktail in hand, just taking it all in while the rest of the ship begins to turn in for sleep

-Exploring (almost) every deck on the last sea day (night), admiring the art around the ship, and thanking the crew that I see

-Relaxing around the waterfront watching the world go by

-THE SLIDES!!

-Snapping a million pictures of that "perfect shot" during the sunset on the Aft of the ship (works out better when you have an aft-facing balcony so you're not giving people watchers a show lol)

-Waking up before sunrise at least once

-Dinner on the waterfront at least once

-Being completely disconnected from the "real world" back home

-That first drink upon embarkation (usually a Bloody Mary or a Moscow Mule)

-That gangway selfie with my SO (I also love the photobombers because we usually do this pic as we're walking the gangway to not hold up the other excited passengers - always makes for a laugh when I rewatch the iPhone live photo!)

-Being rocked to sleep by the ship (although very subtle)

-Waking up on that first morning with that "ahh I am on vacation!" feeling

-The live music throughout the ship

-That last day "cry" lmao (don't act like you guys don't have that emotional feeling on your last night!!!)

[CruiseJB]

Favorite... sitting on our balcony. I too am looking forward to the Bliss in December. If you are on the 15th sailing...I'll help you row!

[grapau27]

I’d love to hear about your very favorite cruise-y things! I’d love to hear what you love about NCL too! (We will be sailing on Bliss, so keep your tips coming!)

 

This will only be our second cruise, and first vacation without our 5 kids in our 15 year marriage. At this point, I’d cheerfully row the ship if I had to, so everything has me excited.

 

On our first cruise, one of my very favorite things was simply sitting out on the balcony and watching the ocean go by while I drank my tea in the morning. It was so gorgeous and peaceful! Another favorite was standing out on our balcony at night and watching a huge lightning storm over Cuba as we sailed by. It was incredible!

The number and variety of restaurants on board.

[Mom2B&Z]

Great thread!

 

Our favourite things about cruising:

-Disconnecting completely. DH and I both have jobs where we are tied to our work cell phones, but they don’t leave the country so we are free at sea!

-Conversations with our family at every meal. At home we connect every day at supper, but on vacation we connect at every meal. Some of our best conversations have been on cruises.

-Sitting on the balcony and listening to the ocean. Priceless, especially if we are in a H6 aft suite. That is bliss!

-Exploring new places every day. We are bored easily, and love the daily change of scenery that cruising gives us.

 

Things we love about NCL:

-Freestyle everything. We are not into dressing up all the time or eating at set times while on vacation.

-Butler and concierge in suites. We don’t need the Haven, the suite perks are perfectly adequate for us.

-Family friendly environment...most of the time ;)

-The activities...we all love waterslides, the ropes courses, trivia etc and NCL always comes through for us!

 

 

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[YVRBassElectric]

no to do lists, no phone calls - just hubby and I enjoying each others company

 

NCL crew seem to like their jobs, despite the hard work & long hours - that makes it easier for me to relax and enjoy my vacation

 

We were in the Haven on the Bliss, I was able to find a couch that was perfectly comfortable, with an amazingly big window (side not front) & watch the ocean and the wildlife. Waterfront is also beautiful and my idea of the perfect patio dining

[FranknBeans]

Love the choices of specialty dining options as we don't like buffets.

[PTC DAWG]

The favorite things for the Bride and I are not having to worry about anything. You get hungry, go get something to eat. You want a drink, go get one..or three. Etc...zero cleaning, etc...

[mjkacmom]

Our first cruise was just the two of us, but my favorite thing is having breakfast and dinner with our five kids (and not having cooked it). We started cruising with them when they ranged from 4 - 11, on our last cruise they were 14 - 20, and it’s the perfect balance of togetherness and everyone doing what they want. I love not having set dining times, especially with 3 teenaged girls.

[JamieLogical]

I love everything about cruising it seems like! Here are a few of my favorites:

 

- "Continental Breakfast" items are free from room service on NCL, if you fill out the door hangers and leave them on the door the night before. So one of my favorite things is to sit out on the balcony eating a chocolate croissant and drinking a cup of coffee in the morning before I shower and get dressed and go to "real" breakfast.

 

- I love finding a quiet place to sit and read and listen to the ocean on sea days.

 

- I love locking my phone in the safe on Day 1 and staying disconnected from the world for a full week!

 

- I love the casual vibe and freestyle dining on NCL. Just eat whatever and whenever I want.

 

- I love the UBP and being able to drink and not worry about driving or "wasting" money on alcohol. I prefer to "waste" my money in the casino instead! ;)

 

- I enjoy the live music throughout the ship. Just sitting with a drink and listening and sometimes singing along.

 

- I enjoy the trivia and teaming up with random strangers to try our hardest to win, even though there are no real prizes.

 

- I love meeting people and chatting with them. Everyone is in a good mood, because they are on vacation!

 

- I love the water. In the Caribbean especially, because the color is unreal. But really, it's interesting no matter where you go to see the way the color/clarity of the water is different.

 

- I love the feat of modern engineering that is a cruise ship. I often find myself in awe that humans could make something like that. It's really amazing when you think about it.

 

- I enjoy the cheerful and helpful staff that bend over backwards to make sure you have the best experience possible.

 

Really, from the moment I'm on board to the moment I get off the ship, I just love being in this separate universe that is nothing like real life. A place where I can truly relax and enjoy everything without a single worry or negative thought. Ahhh... I can't wait until October!

[klfhngr]

Don't have to worry about hearing wifey say 'I'm tired'!

[cruiselover19811981]

Many responses I love about cruising have already been mentioned. Nonetheless, my husband and I have been on 1 each of a Royal Caribbean, Carnival & NCL cruise. On Saturday we are boarding the Bliss to Alaska for our 4th cruise and our son & daughter's 2nd cruise. They are 8 & 10, and cruised with us on the Escape to Seattle 2 yrs ago. We feel NCL is perfect for our family right now - - - they enjoy eating at main dining rooms over the buffet for dinner, but NCL has a more smart casual dress code, for which it makes it easier to pack when flying to port cities, rather than having to worry about packing dresses, and more formal attire. Additionally, we love the NCL vibe....family oriented, laid back, but also lots to do as a family...or our favorite, to sit on our balcony/Waterfront and enjoy some R&R, family chats and views of the ocean

[tallnthensome]

I love the UBP Promo ...... for longer cruises. This is where it really shines versus having to purchase one outright on another line. We always receive or purchase a drink package. We love our cocktails while crusing so it's a must. By selecting the NCL Bliss for our 15 Panama Canal cruise next year, the UBP made this cruise $800 chesper overall than a 14 day on Carnival having to purchase Cheers for those 14 days. $425 for the NCL service charge for the UBP vesus paying $1600 out of pocket for Carnival's Cheers. It was the deciding factor in our decision .... ON TOP of it being a day longer and on the brand new Bliss of course!!! :)

[lisakoivu]

I love doing the martini tastings. Number one they are a great deal if you don't have the UBP, which I never do. Number two, you meet really fun people. Number three, the bar staff put on a great show, and then give you a lot of free "extra" martinis, and then make you martinis and wave you off when you try to pay - at least on the Breakaway this past March. Most fun of the whole trip!

[sakura3]

Cruising in general- getting to see a bunch of places without having to constantly pack up and deal with transportation

NCL- Freestyle dining. I don't want to sit with strangers for my meals (any of them). If I want to make friends I'll chat it up at the bar or pool

[casofilia]

New places and new faces!! Unpacking once.

[graphicguy]

1. Seeing the ship as you pull into the embarkation area.

2. Walking up the gangway

3. The first signs of entering the ship when you see the crew singing and dancing

4. Not having to do anything, ever, at all...or, packing each and every day with tons of activities or sights to see

5. Not cleaning my cabin

6. Not making my own drinks or food

7. Walking around ship on that firs day and getting lost

8. Finally figuring out where everything is............the 2nd last day of the cruise

9. People watching

10. The serenity of sitting on your balcony watching the water move by

 

NCL

1. The perks....UBP, UDP, Generous OBC, excursion credits (making them a little more affordable (sometimes everything is offered on the same cruise

2. The service and friendliness of the staff and crew

3. Best entertainment at sea

4. The cleanliness and look of the ships, no matter if they're new or old

5. The outdoor dining and drinking areas on the "-Away, Away plus" ships

6. The Haven and/or Suite experience....by far the best cruise experience on any of the mainstream cruiselines

8. Solo cabins

9. Fat Cats

10. Best cabin beds at sea

[cincicruisers]

Lunch on first day. We made it on ship, made our reservations, and are ready to enjoy our vacation.

[AZ Irish]

Most of what I love about cruising has already been mentioned. So I'll just say what I love about NCL.

1. Best line for solos. Not only having solo cabins (no single supplement) but they just treat solo passengers well. Solo lounge with free espresso machine, water, juice & snacks. Also, they arrange group dinners & entertainment. It's been great every time for me.

2. Best affordable and varied Suites. We love the 2 bedroom family suites for our group of 4.

3. UBP perk. Granted, it used to be totally free but it is still a great option for drinkers on a cruise with a lot of sea days.

4. Honestly I've met some of the friendliest staff on NCL. Not quite as friendly on some other lines, IMHO.

[Jana60]

My favorite thing is sitting on my balcony watching the ocean as I sip a big cup of coffee! There’s no better way to start the day!

 

 

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[LincolnLog]

-Late night strolls around the ship with my SO, cocktail in hand, just taking it all in while the rest of the ship begins to turn in for sleep

-Exploring (almost) every deck on the last sea day (night), admiring the art around the ship, and thanking the crew that I see

-Relaxing around the waterfront watching the world go by

-THE SLIDES!!

-Snapping a million pictures of that "perfect shot" during the sunset on the Aft of the ship (works out better when you have an aft-facing balcony so you're not giving people watchers a show lol)

-Waking up before sunrise at least once

-Dinner on the waterfront at least once

-Being completely disconnected from the "real world" back home

-That first drink upon embarkation (usually a Bloody Mary or a Moscow Mule)

-That gangway selfie with my SO (I also love the photobombers because we usually do this pic as we're walking the gangway to not hold up the other excited passengers - always makes for a laugh when I rewatch the iPhone live photo!)

-Being rocked to sleep by the ship (although very subtle)

-Waking up on that first morning with that "ahh I am on vacation!" feeling

-The live music throughout the ship

-That last day "cry" lmao (don't act like you guys don't have that emotional feeling on your last night!!!)

 

Wow this is a great list! I will make a note of some of these. Makes me excited for my next cruise...59 days and counting!

[fastpitchdad]

Not having to worry about our kids barging in at any hour without knocking first.