NCL Carnival

[jcool]

I love Carnival. I am thinking about taking NCL. Tell me about NCL do they nickel and dime you on NCL? I am thinking about letting NCL pick my cabin what do you think about that is that a good idea or a bad idea? How is the food? I have a kid's appetite. My love one love Filet Mignon and things like that. 

[RHilla619]

After 6 Carnival cruises, I took my first Norwegian 2 weeks ago on the Getaway. Didn't find the nickel and dime'ing to be any worse than Carnival, if you're okay with eating meals in the buffet and main dining room there isn't any upcharges. Just upcharges for the specialty restaurants just like Carnival.

 

Letting them pick your cabin is a gamble, but that goes for every line not just Norwegian. You can luck out and get a better category than you paid for, or you can get a cabin in an undesirable location because it was one that no one else wanted to book. I feel like more often than not I see people complaining about getting stuck in a loud room on a guarantee/assigned cabin, and scarcely see someone getting upgraded. Also if you book a sailaway guarantee it does not come with any of the free at sea promo's like the drink package, it's worth paying the extra money for the ability to pick your cabin because you also get the promo's. 

 

To be honest I found the food to be a bit of a let down on Norwegian. I found myself really missing Guy's Burgers and Blue Iguana around lunch time as Norwegain's buffet was just okay. The menu's in the dining at night did not change very much and I found the food to be just okay as well. I finished everything I ordered so believe me I didn't go hungry, but I just wasn't impressed by anything I ate. Norwegian's food isn't terrible/inedible, I just liked Carnival's offerings better.

 

I was also disappointed with the comedy club on Norwegian, there was not comedy every night like on Carnival, and the comedians did the same act on the nights the club was open. I am used to comedy just about every night on Carnival, with different acts from the comedians. Also really missed Carnival's alchemy bar as that was our after dinner spot.

 

All in all we enjoyed our first Norwegian cruise, and are cruising with them again in August on the Escape. We felt we had more fun on Carnival, but relaxed more on Norwegian and found the ship and environment to be more upscale, but not stuffy.  

 

 

 

[tallnthensome]

Search NCL vs Carnival threads here on the forum .... This topic is discussed heavily already on here and why you’re getting no responses . 

[beerman2]

42 minutes ago, tallnthensome said:

Search NCL vs Carnival threads here on the forum .... This topic is discussed heavily already on here and why you’re getting no responses . 

OP posted Late at night , some people do sleep and not spend hours and hours on CC. LOL

I've said it before sometimes the search engine isn't real reliable. I was taught years ago , there is no dumb question. 

[newmexicoNita]

1 hour ago, beerman2 said:

OP posted Late at night , some people do sleep and not spend hours and hours on CC. LOL

I've said it before sometimes the search engine isn't real reliable. I was taught years ago , there is no dumb question. 

very good point

[newmexicoNita]

OP, this is a debate that has been going on for years and will continue to go on. It is the as asking which line is better, NCL or RCI? 

My view: there are more similarities than differences but each his its own personality. We happen to prefer NCL. We haven't cruised Carnival for quite a few years to be fair. We like the dinning choices on NCL and have had much better service. That is why we stopped sailing Carnival 

 

As for nickel and diming, again, a matter of opinion: After you once are on the ship the only nickel and diming is what you allow. There are those who finish the cruise with absolutely no extra charges. Again, up to the cruisers We spend very little, but we do end up with some extra charges.

 

Choosing your own cabin? We always use a TA and leave the choice to her. 

[CookieShip]

I recently cruised on NCL (Escape) after only cruising three times on Carnival (Splendor). My last CCL cruise was almost 5 years ago, so maybe things have changed on them since.

 

I didn't feel nickel and dimed at all, NCL seem to have way more specialty dining, but that stuff doesn't really interest me. I found the buffet choices adequate for the most part, you also had the the dining room options. I did like that NCL offered two casual dress dining rooms and one more formal dress attire dining room with the same menus in each.

 

NCL also had an Osheehans which offered another sit down choice, there were some unique options like shepherd's pie, bangers and mash. Other more traditional options like burgers and hot dogs too. I did like that CCL had a fresh pizza option 24/7, that was also accessible from the pool areas. CCL's burger grill station was also accessible from the pool areas. On NCL, there seemed to be no options from the pool areas. I feel like they could have reconfigured to allow for that... 

 

I didn't really like NCL's reservation system for entertainment. It maybe due to me booking late or me not totally understanding it. They said reservations were required even for shows in the ship's main theater, but the place was never packed to really need reservations.Though we weren't sailing a full ship either this time. Many of the reservations would be listed as no availability in their app and the kiosks screens. I didn't bother trying to attend many of the comedy shows because I couldn't get a reservation and assumed I wouldn't be able to get in, though there is a stand by line.

 

 

Edited May 7, 2019 by CookieShip

[davy jones]

17 hours ago, jcool said:

I love Carnival. I am thinking about taking NCL. Tell me about NCL do they nickel and dime you on NCL?  (Yes, they are the masters of nickle and diming, but Carnival certainly does their share)   I am thinking about letting NCL pick my cabin what do you think about that is that a good idea or a bad idea? (It involves the same risk as a guarantee on any other cruise line)  How is the food? (Subjective, but IMO overall, pretty good.  Each line has it's own things that it does well and not as well.  I am satisfied on both)  I have a kid's appetite. My love one love Filet Mignon and things like that. 

  

I would add that I prefer NCL nightime entertainment.  The production shows are far superior to the Playlist Productions shows on Carnival.  They also have headline performers on nights without production shows.  It is best to get reservations for them and the comedy shows to insure a seat.  

[jcool]

Thanks everyone for your help. The ship we are thinking about is the Breakaway. I do not mind any cabin the only thing I am scared of is being over under the night club.  

[newmexicoNita]

13 hours ago, jcool said:

Thanks everyone for your help. The ship we are thinking about is the Breakaway. I do not mind any cabin the only thing I am scared of is being over under the night club.  

will just add one more thing: people talk abut show reservations but what is not being mentioned those show reservations are only for specialty shows there are plenty of night time activities where you do not have to reserve in advance. 

[rydi8]

13 hours ago, jcool said:

Thanks everyone for your help. The ship we are thinking about is the Breakaway. I do not mind any cabin the only thing I am scared of is being over under the night club.  

 

I booked a Sail Away Balcony on the Breakaway for October. With a Sail Away cabin, you don't qualify for any of NCL's promotions, but according to my TA, I saved at least $500 per person from selecting the next lowest Balcony category. My stateroom hasn't been assigned yet, but I'll let you know what I get when it is.

 

Previously, I booked a Sail Away Balcony for my cruise aboard the Dawn in March and was assigned to Mid-ship Balcony 9680 which was surrounded by Casino at Sea VIP cabins & steps away from the Deck 9 lounge area that was quiet & rarely occupied. Not only did we enjoy our assigned stateroom more than the one we picked aboard our previous cruise, we saved $200 per person after purchasing our own dining & internet packages.

 

For perspective, we picked our Balcony stateroom aboard the Bliss last July. I'm not sure if there was an issue with my neighbors' door or my neighbors, but my mother was annoyed by the constant slamming of their door. Unless you're also selecting your neighbors around and above you, you could say that every stateroom is a bit of gamble.

 

One last thing...you have nothing to fear. Bliss Ultra Lounge is on Deck 7 aboard the Breakaway. Below it on Deck 6 is Savor Dining Room & above it on Deck 8 is Tradewinds Tax & Duty Free Shop. 

[Lovedogs57]

On 5/6/2019 at 3:48 PM, jcool said:

I love Carnival. I am thinking about taking NCL. Tell me about NCL do they nickel and dime you on NCL? I am thinking about letting NCL pick my cabin what do you think about that is that a good idea or a bad idea? How is the food? I have a kid's appetite. My love one love Filet Mignon and things like that. 

I just got my Sail Away Balcony cabin assignment yesterday, was more than happy. They gave me a midship on 12th deck, cabins above and below. Also went up 3 categories.

This is my 4th Norwegian cruise, so far the food has been fine.

I don't think the nickel and diming is any different than other cruise lines I've used.

[graphicguy]

19 hours ago, jcool said:

Thanks everyone for your help. The ship we are thinking about is the Breakaway. I do not mind any cabin the only thing I am scared of is being over under the night club.  

Breakaway is one of my favorite ships.  As others have said, CCL (or RCCL, or Celebrity, or MSC, etc) vs NCL extra fees are made up of what you choose to spend.  Once on board, if you eat in the Main Dining areas, O’Sheehans, Garden Buffet, Shangahai Noodle Bar, etc, there are no specialty dining fees.  If you don’t drink, then there are no bar charges or tips added to your bill.  There are all sorts of ”no charge” entertainment on board.  The entertainment is very, very good, too.

 

The price goes up if you want to choose your own cabin and where it is on the ship.  But, you can certainly save a bit of money by having NCL choose the cabin for you (GTY).

 

So, just like every line, you can choose to spend as much, as little or nothing at all, other than the fare.  The more you spend, the better the choices, and the more options available to you.

 

Pretty simple, really!