Loyal Princess Cruiser Tries NCL - And it Was BLISS!

[ceilidh1]

THE ROOM: As I mentioned earlier, we originally booked an inside room but won our bid to upgrade to a balcony. I felt we got a good deal, but only because we booked the original inside REALLY early at a great price. Now, here was another misconception I had about NCL - I had assumed that their concept of "only paying for what you use" meant that the base cruise fare would be much lower than, for example, Princess where you are paying up front for everything. This wasn't the case (at least for this ship). The base fare we paid for an inside booked a year and a half out was only marginally less than what I would pay on Princess for an inside. The balcony and above pricing was actually as much as Princess and the closer we got to sailing, the more the prices rocketed! This is not a "cheap" cruise line by any means....

 

 

Our balcony was on deck 14 aft - it was as far back as you could be without being an aft facing. It connected with a Haven room but we obviously just kept the connecting door locked. I was worried about where the room was located, given the size of the ship but it turned out to be just fine. The aft elevators were close by and were never congested (unlike the forward atrium elevators that took a long time)! I also loved that it was pretty quiet down at the aft as most of the popular spots, such as the buffet and observation lounge were forward!

 

 

The room felt smaller than a balcony on Princess but I think that was because the layout wasn't ideal. The bed was placed so close to the closet that you could barely walk between them to get clothes. There was lots of closet and shelf/cupboard space but no drawers. The room also had a couch that made into a bed - no bunkbeds in this room. The bathroom was nicer than Princess - glass enclosed shower (no clingy curtain), lots of shelf space, dispensers of shampoo, shower gel, hand soap. The shower was barely more than trickle, so that was disappointing, and it took my until day 3 to figure out how to turn up the temperature.

 

 

 

The room itself had a coffee maker and a selection of teas and coffees, but we were never left with any milk/cream. I could have asked the steward, but it wasn't that important to me. (As a side note, the coffee in the buffet and dining room was hands down the worst I have EVER had - no wonder Starbucks was always busy!) The tv was way smaller than we are used to on Princess but was interactive - you could check your account, order on demand movies, check what was going on, etc. I heard that you could also make reservations on the tv but I never figured that aspect out. The selection of free shows was pretty thin, not that we spent much time watching tv! The balcony was fine - a little smaller than Princess balconies, but big enough for two chairs and a small table. What was not great about the balcony was that if you sat in the chair, the balcony rail was exactly at eye level so to see anything you had to be standing on the balcony.

 

 

The room had the electronic key cards that you scan rather than insert - no problems with that. It was tricky getting used to the practice of having to put your card in the socket to make the lights, etc turn on. We left without the card several times and had to go back (luckily we had two other cards so could get back into the room - might be a problem if travelling solo). The lights had USB chargers, and there were plug sockets on the desk area.

 

 

 

Our steward was fine - we never really saw him, but he always made up the room promptly. The kids loved that there were towel animals every night, but were sad that there were no chocolates of cookies that they are used to on Princess!

 

 

Our rollcall arranged a cabin crawl so I got to peak at some other cabin types. The studio rooms (for solo travellers) have their own private lounge for get togethers/meet ups, which was nice. The room itself was tiny - not sure I could handle it for too long. There was basically a twin bed with the shower opposite (not in a separate room) and the toilet next to the shower.. It was well laid out and had space to walk (unlike the balcony) but felt very claustrophobic to me! We also saw an angled balcony, which was the same as our room but with a slightly bigger balcony (not to the extent that I would ever pay extra for it). The mini-suite was the biggest disappointment as I have one booked for this same cruise next year. The room is identical to the balcony - the only difference being a bigger bathroom! Really? Who cares how big the bathroom is!? I am thinking of downgrading to a balcony based on this. Finally we got to view an aft Haven suite - these aft suites are not "in" the Haven, which is a private lounge at the front of the ship. but do get all the perks. The suite was very nice - two full bathrooms, a living room, and a bedroom, and a huge balcony. One bathroom had a tub and shower, the other just a shower. The bedroom layout was such that it only had room for the large bed and the vanity - again, no walking space between bed and closet. The living room had a couch that could make into a bed, a table and chairs, large tv and huge wall cabinets with a lot of storage. There was also a bar area - this room almost had too much space and should have been smaller so that the bedroom could be bigger. The Haven suites also come with a butler - not sure what the butler does? I have sailed in the owners suite on Grand and Tahitian (showing my age) and have to say, this suite didn't even come close to those two! It may be comparable to suites on the newer ships (I heard they are getting smaller?) Not saying I wouldn't be happy sailing in it, I just would not be prepared to pay the premium price tag they sell for!

[ceilidh1]

ENTERTAINMENT: There were definite hits, and definite misses with the entertainment! As mentioned earlier, reservations were required for certain shows - this included the two big production shows Havana and Jersey Boys. I made reservations online without really having any idea of what else would be going on. This turned out to be problematic as, when we got on the ship, we found that the reservations were for the same day/time as other things we wanted to do. Have I mentioned that I hate being tied to a schedule on vacation?GAH! I bit the bullet and kept the reservations, partly because once onbaord, all the others time slots appeared to be full already! My kids opted out of both shows as they wanted to do the offerings at kids club - in hindsight, this was a good thing as the shows were long and not really "kid-friendly". Havana had amazing singers and dancers and the costumes were beautiful. Other than that, it was just ok. No real storyline, no recognisable songs or music, nothing to captivate me. Jersey Boys, on the other hand, was outstanding. The singing was top notch and the story was a good one. It did have a lot of F-Bombs and lasted for about an hour and a half, but I still wanted more! It got a standing ovation at the end, and this was well deserved! The other big show was Prohibition, which had an extra charge of around $40 I believe. I had no interest in this.

 

 

The comedy club required reservations - there were early. family friendly shows, and then a later adult only show. We were able to book onboard for the early show and it wasn't full. I believe the late show was standing room only. One thing to mention is that all the reservation events also have a standby line - from what I saw, many people in the standby line were able to get in to many of the events so hope is not lost if you don't have a reservation. The comedians also did an additional show in the theatre, which did not require reservations. Both comedians were good - not outstanding, but very enjoyable. My kids, in particular, loved Dylan - partly because he picked my 7 year old out of the crowd and asked how many cruises he had been on. The fact that he has been on 26 at 7 years old became part of the show....which he loved!

 

 

The Beatles band was excellent - though the Cavern Club was way too small for the number of folks that wanted to see. They did do a great show in the theatre, which was a far better venue!

 

 

Siglo, the cruise band were great. They did just about every type of music and really knew how to work the crowd! I enjoyed them a lot! There was also a duo, Phil and Keysha, who played in the atrium quite a lot. They were good, too!

 

 

 

Sailaway was odd as we love the sailaway parties. Since we weren't leaving until the early hours of the morning, they held a welcome aboard bash in the atrium instead. Well, let me say, this was way more risque and raunchy than anything I have seen on Princess (or even Carnival!) There were some extremely interesting dance moves and lots of twerking by both staff and passengers!! It was a lot of fun, but my kids may be scarred for life - LOL.

 

 

Cruise Staff - they were wonderful! Silas, the cruise director, was personable, funny, and cute (always helps). Jose, the Energizer Bunny, was an absolute hoot - we loved anything that he was involved with! All of the cruise staff were terrific dancers - and I'm not talking line dancing like Princess, I'm talking real dancing that takes talent and rhythm. They were always smiling, always willing to stop and chat, and really seemed to enjoy what they were doing. While we have had outstanding cruise staff on Princess, we have also had some who just didn't want to be there and showed it!

 

 

Family Events - Most days there was at least one family activity outside of the kids programming. This usually involved some kind of game show but it was nice to do something with the kids. The circus show with the kids on stage in the theatre was fun and DD loved being centre stage as a clown! She really wanted to do the Big Top - Escape but it was recommended for 12 and up and I was unsure if she would hold other team members back, so we opted out.

 

 

Other activities: This ranged from definitely "adult only" viewing (newlywed game show, dance off, Caliente) to karaoke, deal or no deal, bingo, trivia, etc. We were never short of things to do but the problem was getting a seat to actually do them!

[canadianbear]

What an outstanding review you are doing-so much detail-love it. Never been on NCL but enjoy reading reviews as maybe one day we will be on it. Thank you for taking the time to do this.

[Colo Cruiser]

Excellent review! Thanks for taking the time to put it together and post. :)

[crochetcruise]

Thank you for confirming my impression that the Solo cabins are NOT suitable for someone using a Rollator for mobility.

 

I found negotiating the crowd on the golden Princess sometimes a challenge, and other times easy.

[yoyosma]

Great review, it has been a very long time since I was on an NCL ship and probably won't go on one again but I was curious about the solo cabins myself. They do look cramped in the room layouts and photos I have seen. I can't figure out if they even have a closet. But I think I would like the entertainment but I would hate to make reservations for everything. Too much like Disney anymore.

[srpilo]

OP.. Thanks for the review...

 

 

To those who've never seen the Bliss, --> We we're ported next to the Bliss a week ago Friday in Victoria on the Star , and the size of this ship defies description, it was by far the largest and ugliest ocean going monstrosity I've ever personally witness.

 

Of course, mine is but one opinion, and others will vary, but for me, I'll stick with vessels that still resemble a ship, and not a floating amusement park... YMMV

 

Srpilo

[ceilidh1]

OP.. Thanks for the review...

 

 

To those who've never seen the Bliss, --> We we're ported next to the Bliss a week ago Friday in Victoria on the Star , and the size of this ship defies description, it was by far the largest and ugliest ocean going monstrosity I've ever personally witness.

 

Of course, mine is but one opinion, and others will vary, but for me, I'll stick with vessels that still resemble a ship, and not a floating amusement park... YMMV

 

Srpilo

 

I agree - it makes the other ships (that I once thought were huge) look tiny! Inside it is truly beautiful - the downside of it is that you really don't feel as if you are on a ship. It feels like a large land based resort if you are not in direct view of the ocean!

 

(More of the review to come - once I've eaten mu turkey dinner. Happy Thanksgiving Canada!)

[KruzPrincess]

Thanks for taking the time to write such a lengthy review. I’m a Princess cruiser, but I try other cruise lines. Last December I reluctantly went on the Breakaway to cruise with friends. We had met on Princess cruises over they years and now they all like NCL. I thought what the heck. I had an outstanding time. In September, I went on the Bliss to Alaska. I had gone on the Ruby last September to Alaska. The cruise on the Bliss was a far better experience. The ship is beautiful. The entertainment is far superior to Princess. Most people get amenities when they book. I don’t drink, so I typically choose the dinner package. The specialty restaurants are fun and good. My steaks in Cagney’s were better quality than the Crown Grill, IMO. I never experienced nickel and diming any more than any other ship. I, also, bid up to a great balcony cabin on the Bliss. Last year, I was offered an upsell on the Ruby which I was happy with. I paid less for the upsell on the Bliss than on the Ruby. I had no issues with any booking or checking in on the Bliss. My friends had no issues either. Everyone I dealt with was happy and helpful. The staff all had great attitudes. I did pre-book our activities because I read on CC here that it would be wise to do so. None of the specialty restaurants were ever full when we went there. We never had trouble getting seats at the shows that we reserved, but we did get there early. Jersey Boys on the Bliss and Rock of Ages on the Breakaway are the best shows I’ve seen on a cruise ship. The Beatles tribute shows in the Cavern were always packed and there were no reservations for that. The food was all good. I like the buffet better on the NCL ships by far and that includes the Royal class ships. I’m okay with the buffet on the Royal class ships, but it is confusing and too spread out. I agree that there aren’t enough pools on the NCL ships, but I’m no longer a pool person. I miss MUTS on NCL. The only disappointment with my Alaska cruise was that glacier cruising was cancelled due to a medical emergency and that is out of everyone’s control.

 

I’m going on the Regal soon. It will be interesting to compare. I have to say that NCL is doing a lot right. NCL is getting better and Princess is not what it once was. I still love Princess , but I have to admit that NCL is winning me over.

 

 

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[KruzPrincess]

Thanks for taking the time to write such a lengthy review. I’m a Princess cruiser, but I try other cruise lines. Last December I reluctantly went on the Breakaway to cruise with friends. We had met on Princess cruises over they years and now they all like NCL. I thought what the heck. I had an outstanding time. In September, I went on the Bliss to Alaska. I had gone on the Ruby last September to Alaska. The cruise on the Bliss was a far better experience. The ship is beautiful. The entertainment is far superior to Princess. Most people get amenities when they book. I don’t drink, so I typically choose the dinner package. The specialty restaurants are fun and good. My steaks in Cagney’s were better quality than the Crown Grill, IMO. I never experienced nickel and diming any more than any other ship. I, also, bid up to a great balcony cabin on the Bliss. Last year, I was offered an upsell on the Ruby which I was happy with. I paid less for the upsell on the Bliss than on the Ruby. I had no issues with any booking or checking in on the Bliss. My friends had no issues either. Everyone I dealt with was happy and helpful. The staff all had great attitudes. I did pre-book our activities because I read on CC here that it would be wise to do so. None of the specialty restaurants were ever full when we went there. We never had trouble getting seats at the shows that we reserved, but we did get there early. Jersey Boys on the Bliss and Rock of Ages on the Breakaway are the best shows I’ve seen on a cruise ship. The Beatles tribute shows in the Cavern were always packed and there were no reservations for that. The food was all good. I like the buffet better on the NCL ships by far and that includes the Royal class ships. I’m okay with the buffet on the Royal class ships, but it is confusing and too spread out. I agree that there aren’t enough pools on the NCL ships, but I’m no longer a pool person. I miss MUTS on NCL. The only disappointment with my Alaska cruise was that glacier cruising was cancelled due to a medical emergency and that is out of everyone’s control.

 

I’m going on the Regal soon. It will be interesting to compare. I have to say that NCL is doing a lot right. NCL is getting better and Princess is not what it once was. I still love Princess , but I have to admit that NCL is winning me over.

 

 

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I want to add that I had friends in the Haven on the Breakaway last year and it was really great. Princess has nothing like the Haven experience.

 

 

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[Lucky TGO]

Nice review but i’m Staying with Princess. Like my friend Thrak said $18.00 for milkshake FUGHEDDABOUDIT !!! :rolleyes:

Tony

[DrivesLikeMario]

Thank you so much for the review.

[MandyGirl]

That's about it for the ship, so I am going to circle back to embarkation and let you know what happened when we went to guest services to fix the card mix up! Of course, like all guest services, there was a line up. It took about 10 minutes in line to get to an agent and then another 10 minutes explaining what had happened, explaining who was who, which picture should go with which card, etc, etc etc. Finally, it got sorted out and new cards were issued for all of us. Off I went to test out the drink package. I ordered my mudslide, handed over my card, and was told "This card is for a minor!" WHAAATTTTT????? Back we went to guest services - only this time, the line was even longer. Another 30 minutes at guest services where they confirmed that my picture and name were correct, but my DD's date of birth was linked to my card. They fixed it, printed us yet another set of cards, and sent us on our way. Back to the bar I went. So ready for that mudslide. Handed over my card, the bartender swipes it, all is good. YAY. Or so I thought......Several drinks later, I checked on my onboard account only to find that I had been charged for all the drinks. I asked the bartender and he told me that my card had a soda package. I then gave him my 11 year old's card. Yup, you've guessed it....she had the all inclusive beverage package....guess where our next stop was???? If you think we have had it easy with guest services prior to this, you would be right. This turned out to be a real problem as it wasn't simply a case of switching the packages. Phone calls needed to be made, permission needed to be granted, emails to corporate and finance needed to be composed....at one point I offered to just change my name to my daughter's!!! It took us almost an hour to get the drink package sorted but, thankfully, this was the end of our troubles and it was smooth sailing from there.....

 

 

More tomorrow....

 

The drink packages are tied to passengers one and two on the reservation how they are listed. Usually an agent can rearrange names if one is going to a different person, but the finance piece comes in because of the service charge / gratuities on the package you are paying for an adult package versus a soda package since a higher cost between the two packages Definitely easier to fix it prior to a cruise with the way computers area. No fun to have to deal with that onboard. :(

[Griller]

Great review, it has been a very long time since I was on an NCL ship and probably won't go on one again but I was curious about the solo cabins myself. They do look cramped in the room layouts and photos I have seen. I can't figure out if they even have a closet. But I think I would like the entertainment but I would hate to make reservations for everything. Too much like Disney anymore.

 

I have had a studio cabin on NCL Epic and it has everything you need, and enough space as well.. Nice!

And you get admittance to the Studio Lounge which has TV, free espresso machines, bar, tables, chairs etc for socializing.

 

When I did the 14 day transatlantic on Epic it was $399 plus taxes for the solo cabin. And a free drinks package. I could not turn that down. Late booking of course.

 

Making a reservation for shows is so easy, go up to a screen and scan your card, see what suits you and touch OK and then you have the reservation.

They scan your card to go into the show and then the computer knows if you have a reservation, but there are always some unreserved seats if you want to line up and take a chance.

[helencruising]

Thank you for your review. Interesting to read. I’ve sailed HAL, Princess, RCCL, and Carnival. Princess being my favorite. I can’t imagine having to reserve entertainment or not having the beautiful atrium experience that is Princess. I have a few friends that have sailed NCL. Only one liked it but they must have loyal clients or they would be out of business. Different strokes for different folks

[Griller]

Thank you for your review. Interesting to read. I’ve sailed HAL, Princess, RCCL, and Carnival. Princess being my favorite. I can’t imagine having to reserve entertainment or not having the beautiful atrium experience that is Princess. I have a few friends that have sailed NCL. Only one liked it but they must have loyal clients or they would be out of business. Different strokes for different folks

 

On our recent Regal Princess theater experience we found that for the popular shows we had to be in there and seated within a very few minutes of the doors opening for the first performance or it was full.

I think I would rather reserve a seat and plan my evening ahead a little.

Much less frustrating.

 

 

It is generally a younger age group on NCL, or at least a livelier one.

[ceilidh1]

Nickle and Diming: I had been a little wary about the fact that there was so much on this ship that was an extra charge. I like to just pay my fare and know that everything is included (other than alcohol, of course!). I was determined not to fall into the trap of paying for a bunch of other stuff on top of what I had already paid, so I pre-paid gratuities and purchased $100 onboard credit before we cruised. As mentioned, I had the beverage package and DD had the soda package, DS doesn't drink soda so there was no package to purchase for him (he was happy with water, free juices, and hot chocolate). We don't do the spa, salon, or casino, so no problems there. I had no interest in the paid show and, as mentioned earlier, we opted out of Go Karts and Lazer Tag. The specialty restaurants would have been nice to try had I been with another adult - I honestly didn't think it was worthwhile to pay for them with two kids (though kids do eat free if eating from the kids menu in them). DD splurged on the $18 milkshake, and DS had a blast spending his money in the arcade. There was nothing in any of the stores we wanted to buy. I did buy some of the pull tab cards in the hope of striking it rich - we won $3!!! YAY! At the end of the 5 days, my bill was a whopping $5.31! Even on Princess I have never walked away with a bill that low!

 

 

I didn't feel that anything was "pushed" on you. Sure there were lots of options to spend lots of money - but you didn't have to do any of these things to have a great time. For every paid thing, there was something free! I didn't notice as much of the constant announcements for art auctions, spa services, Effy products that I notice on Princess, and there were definitely less paper ads in the stateroom. One thing that was a big downside for me was the lack of self service laundries - if you needed something washing, you had to pay to get it cleaned on the ship. Travelling with kids, this is a huge pro for Princess (now I get free elite laundry, but prior to this I would always pack light and just throw in a load for a few dollars)!

 

 

Drink prices were much higher than I'm used to seeing on Princess, but the drink menus were much larger and more interesting. I have to say, the beverage package is better in some ways (though I would NEVER pay to have it on NCL - almost $90 a day???) - there is no limit on number of drinks and you can order two drinks per transaction (I assume because they make everyone in the room purchase it, so cuts down on sharing?). It covers all drinks up to $15 but if you order a drink more than $15 you only pay the difference. The weird thing is that it does not cover bottled water - not sure why?

[ceilidh1]

Disembarkation: Before we talk about disembarking in LA, I will tell you about the experience getting off the ship in San Francisco. Since we sailed from Vancouver and had Victoria as our first port, we weren't able to pre-clear US immigration in Vancouver. This made embarkation relatively fast and painless (at least for passengers that didn't get the cards screwed up - lol) BUT I knew that this would mean lines and delays at our first US port, which was San Francisco. I warned everyone on our roll call to expect waits and not to book early tours, etc. I wasn't wrong! I have done this process a number of times with Princess and it has always been relatively lengthy - this has nothing to do with the cruiseline and everything to do with the US CBP officers. Norwegian had a flyer in the stateroom the night before explaining the process and also made many, many announcements during the morning - yet a lot of passengers still appeared to be clueless about whether they had to get off the ship, and if they could get back on, etc. The basic message was simple - they will call you deck by deck to get off the ship and be processed. If you weren't planning to go ashore, you were still required to disembark and could not get back on until the entire ship had been cleared. Many times it was said that if you did not plan on going ashore, wait until the last group is called. We were fortunate to be on deck 14, which was the first group - our line up and wait time was only an hour. I heard that some passengers had 2-3 hour waits. I also heard many complaints about folks that disembarked first thing with the intention of walking straight back on - and were told they had to wait (some for 4-5 hours) until the ship was cleared. I think Norwegian did the best they could with the situation - they made things very clear (as long as you cared to read or listen to announcements) and were at the mercy of the immigration officers. Let's face it, getting 4000 passengers through immigration that had 5 officers (when we went through) was never going to be fast!

 

 

Disembarkation in LA could not have been more different. Unlike Princess, you are not assigned disembarkation groups. Instead, you are given a break down of times that each colour will be called to disembark and you get to choose which group suits you. Once you decide on the time you want to disembark, you grab that colour luggage tag from a desk in the atrium and you are all set! Self assist was scheduled at 7:30am and it started right on time. We chose the 8:30am time slot as we had a ride booked for 9:30am and I wasn't sure how behind schedule they might be running. I need not have worried - we were off the ship, bags in hand, and curbside by 8:45am!

[ceilidh1]

To sum up, we had a great cruise and I am glad we bit the bullet and tried NCL. The Bliss is a magnificent ship and, in many ways, I preferred the experience to Princess. I am definitely starting to notice that Princess is slipping in many areas and they no longer have those little extras that really set them apart from other lines. I would definitely sail with Norwegian again, and plan on doing this same cruise on Bliss next year. Having said that, Princess will still be my first choice....but they do have competition!

 

 

Happy to answer any questions if anyone has any! Thanks for reading.....

[caribill]

To sum up, we had a great cruise and I am glad we bit the bullet and tried NCL. The Bliss is a magnificent ship and, in many ways, I preferred the experience to Princess. I am definitely starting to notice that Princess is slipping in many areas and they no longer have those little extras that really set them apart from other lines. I would definitely sail with Norwegian again, and plan on doing this same cruise on Bliss next year. Having said that, Princess will still be my first choice....but they do have competition!

 

A very important thing. Most of our cruises have been on Princess but Princess is becoming less and less special as they eliminate the things that made them different than the competition. (Examples: able to book shore excursions before the cruise and pay for them at the end of the cruise; chocolate covered strawberries as an Elite perk on formal evenings; crepes served during the party with the Champagne Waterfall; welcome aboard cookies in every stateroom; beef medallions on the always available part of the dinner menu; only one small ship left than can go to the many ports that were part of very special itineraries).

[luckyinpa]

i'm glad i found this review. thanks for all the input!  i'm hoping to find more input if there is any regarding princess vs bliss

 

my history is my 1st two cruises were on the Breakaway and my next 2 were on the Regal to canada. I was spoiled 1st cruise by the haven but then did a balcony next time. princess i had a  mini but 2nd trip i got upsell to the suite at the front of the ship and i was spoiled.

 

my criteria  for cruising is a local drive to NYC or baltimore. and this year may try a christmas cruise. this leaves me with anthem of the seas. grandeur. pride, or bliss. 

 

i checked out the reviews and their statistics  and i usually try to see how many poor ones there are. of course reading some of that stuff is scary. 

 

i know bliss has 1000 more pax than regal and im expecting the same crowds on bliss that were on the BA. things i hated about the BA were the organization of the buffet. regal has them beat hands down there. also the elevators suck on BA but that cannot stop me from taking a cruise. i loved the space of the piazza on regal and i know the atrium on bliss is just a big closet

 

i know all christmas cruises will be at least 33% or more kids so i'm ok with that. but just wondering how you felt going from princess to NCL in general. id prefer a princess ship im sure but no way can i do christmas airfares to get to one. those are insane. i can park for 280 in manhattan  which is cheap compared to flights /hotel nite etc. 

 

my feelings going from NCL to princess were very laid back. much older crowd. more elegant. the BA had narrow public halls for such a large ship and i felt squeezed in the middle. i know bliss is the same design. but my gf hasnt been on NCL so this would be all new to her. 

[Level six]

Nice review! Thanks

 

We have sailed about equal amounts on Princess and NCL (150+ days on each) and we think they are almost the same.  There are some things that Princess is far better at (tendering being the first) and some that NCL is better at(entertainment is very good).  I feel the same amount of nickle and dime efforts on both.  

 

I have also sailed RCCI (only 21 days)and Holland(10 days).  Holland was the worst ever......yawn, so boring.

 

We just book for the itinerary and cost, but, really, all the same.  Happy sailing!

[happy cruzer]

NCL has the Viva Vino package for wine drinkers.  So no need to do the beverage package if you are a wine drinker.

 

The balcony cabins have a sofa for those who are upset about the barrel chairs.

 

Also on many of the ships there is some form of promenade deck.

 

For us, NCL is a great choice for "home port" cruising.  Drive to the port and enjoy the ship for what it is.  We tend to use the "Sailaway" prices and then pay the nickel and dimes for the things we enjoy.

 

It is all good.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

Thank you for your review.  I also loved NCL Bliss.

[JEH]

Great review !