So nervous to try NCL we love Royal caribbean differences please

[newmexicoNita]

13 hours ago, GA Dave said:

One more plus for NCL:  They have Rebellious Fish!!!

 

Wow, that does look good: will give it a try next week

[Peachypooh]

We have sailed on Homelines (now out of business), Celebrity, RCCL and NCL.

It is true that type of cabin and size of ship would have to be equal to do a real

comparison. That said we have sailed in Owner's suites on both RCCL and NCL

but the RCCL ship was about 50% bigger. I still prefer NCL for one reason. The crew.

To me the feeling that the crew were available for any problems and took an interest

in you is important. The RCCL ship had very uninterested crew and when we had problems

(overflowing toilet in bathroom due to another cabin flushing a diaper down the toilet and

dirty cabin upon boarding) nobody would come to help

us. Thank goodness my husband knew how to turn off the water valve and I did

a thorough cleaning myself. I have never NCL be anything but on the spot help.

[swmichigan cruiser]

8 hours ago, lolo26 said:

Thanks you are very kind i do feel better now 🙂 our last cruise and trip cost 15k its allot of money we trusted celebrity and it was a let down to say the least alot went wrong on that crusie including technical things  shows were cancelled and the tour vendors were just awful for the Mediterranean cruise..we have done 15 Mediterranean cruises....it was a very depressing ship very run down..buffet was worst then dog food lol , avoid the constellation regardless of itinerary. 

Glad you found Cruise Critic this August your expertise after doing 15 Mediterranean cruises I am sure will benefit many. Just curious what cruiseline did you use most for those 15 cruises?

[sanger727]

I've never sailed royal but I have done NCL and celebrity so can make comparisons between the two. NCL is our favorite cruise line. For me NCL beats celebrity in entertainment by a wide margin. I've never been disappointed by a NCL show, for me, Celebrity is hit or miss. I think the MDR food is better on celebrity but NCL makes up for it with a massive number of included and not included specialty restaurants (usually there is a pub and on the smaller ships a Chinese restaurant that are complimentary). We usually book NCL with the dining perk so get 3-4 specialty dinners for free. Add that to the pub/Chinese restaurants and we only go to the MDR a few times. We LOVE the anytime dining concept. I know other lines offer that, but think that there tends to be more issues and lines with it when it's an add on feature. Anytime dining is all NCL offers and we haven't encountered any lines or issues with it so we think it's just easier to execute when the whole ship is on it. We also like that NCL has a casual dress code. You can certainly dress smart if you like, and many people do, but it's also nice to not have to change after a long day in port.

[GA Dave]

9 hours ago, lolo26 said:

can you share some food pics?

OP, here are some food pics for you from the Getaway.  Some are Haven, but you will get the idea.

 

Edited October 11, 2019 by GA Dave

[lolo26]

12 minutes ago, GA Dave said:

OP, here are some food pics for you from the Getaway.  Some are Haven, but you will get the idea.

 

Wonderful thanks 🥳🥳🥳

[LrgPizza]

I sailed RCCL last year after having been exclusively NCL for quite a while. There are certainly more similarities than differences. I found the food on NCL to be better, both in the complimentary and specialty venues.  I also found the bar services, drinks, etc. to be better on NCL. I preferred the pool deck on RCCL...  It just depends. If you go in thinking you will be disappointment, you will. If you go in thinking you're going to have a great vacation and enjoy trying something new, you will. 

[tomservo]

10 hours ago, lolo26 said:

can you share some food pics?

There are a ton of food pics in my Getaway review

 

 

[DublinFC]

Just wondering if anyone has an idea when NCL will release the rest of their 2021 sailings?  I saw a posting of when RC is supposed to release their schedule. 

[whitsmom]

23 hours ago, Deeliteful said:

I am Diamond on RCL and have cruised mainly with them and Celebrity but also tried others.

my first cruise with NCL was in June this year on the Breakaway, as I had no choice with the dates I had to cruise.
Like you I had some concerns but overall I had a great cruise and am off on the Getaway in December!

Positives - lots of great dining options, plenty of good bars and entertainment. The waterfront, such a great idea, have a drink or eat and watch the sea from outdoors. More adult feeling overall.

Negatives - tiny, tiny pool. Very, very casual dress (to the point of scruffiness sometimes ) but I am a Brit! 😂

I don’t see much to dislike - give it a go!

We are Emerald with RCI; however, we are also taking out first NCL (Getaway) in November out of New Orleans.  We have a Spa-Mini suite booked so that is a first for us (only done Balcony on RCI) and we get to use the indoor spa pool and etc with our room.  When we booked, we got the $1 deposit.  We will have a good time I'm sure and I look forward to trying something a little different.  I think the only thing that I will miss is not having a set table at dinner to have the same wait staff.  We always enjoyed having the same team but we are open for new adventures for sure.  Any day you are on a cruise and not at work is a GREAT day!

[pamrose228]

No one mentioned HAL. Best food on any cruise line hands down.

 

Best service.

 

Most boring senior crowd in cabin by 9 pm.

 

But my Panama Canal transit cruise was by far the best. Daily lectures all about the canal by professionals. A lunch and dinner comped for a small error at their one specialty restaurant .   Had king crab legs never did before on a cruise ship. They let me buy their non alcoholic beverage package for $22:day and the rest of my cabin did not need to buy one of anything.

 

The ship was beautiful old style wood with big crystal chandeliers. Great ports. 

[AlohaLivin]

29 minutes ago, whitsmom said:

We are Emerald with RCI; however, we are also taking out first NCL (Getaway) in November out of New Orleans.  We have a Spa-Mini suite booked so that is a first for us (only done Balcony on RCI) and we get to use the indoor spa pool and etc with our room.  When we booked, we got the $1 deposit.  We will have a good time I'm sure and I look forward to trying something a little different.  I think the only thing that I will miss is not having a set table at dinner to have the same wait staff.  We always enjoyed having the same team but we are open for new adventures for sure.  Any day you are on a cruise and not at work is a GREAT day!

Was only the flexible eating option left? They do have a set dining option. I would check with them in the dining room just when you get on board, there are always people who change their minds and they do hold back a certain percentage of options/reservations until boarding. I hope that you enjoying although I am sure that you will!

[Cruising89143]

Over twenty plus cruises on RCI. Currently on the Bliss out of Los Angeles. If you were to blindfold me I could not tell the two lines apart. I think the Oasis class ships are the best going but we also had the worst specialty dining on our Allure cruises out of all cruises. 
 

Overall our service throughout the ship has for the most part been very good and friendly. I find the two cruise lines equal here. So far we have dined in Cagney’s, Los Lobos, La Cucina, Q and one evening in the Haven dining room. All but Q have been great. Q was overall just okay IMHO but the live band was so loud that you could not carry on a conversation with the person sitting across from you. 
 

The Bliss is beautiful and I am no longer tied to one cruise line. Took me long time to cut the strings. I still feel that Celebrity is the best of the large ships but it’s good to step out and try other lines. 

[whitsmom]

24 minutes ago, AlohaLivin said:

Was only the flexible eating option left? They do have a set dining option. I would check with them in the dining room just when you get on board, there are always people who change their minds and they do hold back a certain percentage of options/reservations until boarding. I hope that you enjoying although I am sure that you will!

We have 3 nights of specialty dining that we have reservations for; however, the rest is my time dining.  We are going to try and get a set time and table (son-n-law is working on that).

[AlohaLivin]

29 minutes ago, whitsmom said:

We have 3 nights of specialty dining that we have reservations for; however, the rest is my time dining.  We are going to try and get a set time and table (son-n-law is working on that).

Oh good! We always do the flexible one, but we have friends who love the set time and getting to know people at their table.  The food on the NCL ships is quite good in our opinion, I have no doubt you will agree. ENJOY!

[Deeliteful]

Just wondering why you would copy (quote) 13 food pics just to put two words underneath it! 😱

[peteukmcr]

We've sailed 21 times on RCI (Diamond +) but have now moved to NCL. Don't get me wrong, we still have 3 RCI sailings in the pipeline but that's basically because of the ships we want to sail on (Anthem, Allure) and itineraries (Transatlantic and South Pacific). We have now completed 4 NCL sailings over the past few years, 3 since 2018 (Epic TA November 2018, Breakaway April 2019 and just off Escape in September this year).

 

However, there are many similarities as they are both mass market cruise lines and both have great entertainment in terms of broadway shows on the bigger ships (RCI with Hairspray, Mamma Mia, Grease, Saturday Night Fever etc and NCL with Priscilla, Rock of Ages, After Midnight, Choir of Man).

 

What has become a big plus for us is the Freestyle Dining options, the sheer number of speciality restaurants, and the variety and number of complimentary dining venues. The 24 hour opening of table service venues such as O'Sheehans gives something RCI just does not offer. The lack of pressure to share tables when there's only 2 of you and in most cases on NCL, where you are given a table for 4 and 2 place settings removed, and the tables are not crammed in next to the next table for 2 which is tiresome on RCI as you might as well be sharing a table for 4 or even 6 with 2 couples on either side of you!

 

On the Breakaway and Breakaway Plus ships, the Waterfront is fantastic in our opinion with bars and restaurants having outdoor areas in addition to the numerous seating areas designated as quiet zones.

 

There are so many nice touches in the cabins too. Coffee maker provided as standard, pool towels in the room, no need to 'check out' towels on the pool deck, toiletries in the bathroom and separate shampoo and body wash dispensers in the shower and hand washer over the basin. Robes provided without asking and even for us as relatively new NCL cruisers. Complementary bottle of sparkling wine for all returning guests in your cabin, regardless of loyalty level.

 

As for food, although I've mentioned the number of speciality restaurants, we enjoy the complimentary food, and definitely the burgers in the buffet and O'Sheehans beat RCI's pathetic offerings hands down. We think the buffet food to be of a better quality as in our opinion RCI's Windjammer offerings have declined over the years with the desserts awful. NCL's are far superior. Although to be fair, food is so subjective it should not be the only thing to convince someone to sail NCL.

 

The disembarkation process is also so uncomplicated at the end of the sailing. If you want NCL to transfer your bags to the terminal, you decide on the time and go and pick the appropriate luggage tags, they are not decided for you like on RCI (and then you have to go and change them!). You can stay in your cabin for longer on NCL than has been the case on RCI. Table service breakfast is also available on NCL but you're not forced to share a table like on RCI on that final morning which is something we detest!

 

There are only a couple of things we don't like, such as the $15 per bottle corkage charge for taking bottles of wine/champagne onboard during initial embarkation even if you are consuming them in your cabin (to be fair I've only been charged on 1 occasion over 4 sailings though). The beverage packages don't include bottled water nor speciality coffees.

 

There also seems to be far fewer announcements on NCL compared to what seems to be continuous advertising of Bingo, Art Auctions, $10 sales and Pool games on RCI which seem to interrupt your relaxing time during the day.

 

I have 2 reviews from our recent NCL cruises, the latest of which is here

 

https://highseasescapades.co.uk/ncl-escape-from-new-york-to-new-england-and-canada/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 11, 2019 by peteukmcr

[peteukmcr]

I only have a few food 'porn' photos. 2 are from Le Bistro (scallop starter and pork tenderloin main) and 2 from O'Sheehan's (nachos and cheeseburger). All excellent btw

 

 

Edited October 11, 2019 by peteukmcr

[lolo26]

2 hours ago, peteukmcr said:

We've sailed 21 times on RCI (Diamond +) but have now moved to NCL. Don't get me wrong, we still have 3 RCI sailings in the pipeline but that's basically because of the ships we want to sail on (Anthem, Allure) and itineraries (Transatlantic and South Pacific). We have now completed 4 NCL sailings over the past few years, 3 since 2018 (Epic TA November 2018, Breakaway April 2019 and just off Escape in September this year).

 

However, there are many similarities as they are both mass market cruise lines and both have great entertainment in terms of broadway shows on the bigger ships (RCI with Hairspray, Mamma Mia, Grease, Saturday Night Fever etc and NCL with Priscilla, Rock of Ages, After Midnight, Choir of Man).

 

What has become a big plus for us is the Freestyle Dining options, the sheer number of speciality restaurants, and the variety and number of complimentary dining venues. The 24 hour opening of table service venues such as O'Sheehans gives something RCI just does not offer. The lack of pressure to share tables when there's only 2 of you and in most cases on NCL, where you are given a table for 4 and 2 place settings removed, and the tables are not crammed in next to the next table for 2 which is tiresome on RCI as you might as well be sharing a table for 4 or even 6 with 2 couples on either side of you!

 

On the Breakaway and Breakaway Plus ships, the Waterfront is fantastic in our opinion with bars and restaurants having outdoor areas in addition to the numerous seating areas designated as quiet zones.

 

There are so many nice touches in the cabins too. Coffee maker provided as standard, pool towels in the room, no need to 'check out' towels on the pool deck, toiletries in the bathroom and separate shampoo and body wash dispensers in the shower and hand washer over the basin. Robes provided without asking and even for us as relatively new NCL cruisers. Complementary bottle of sparkling wine for all returning guests in your cabin, regardless of loyalty level.

 

As for food, although I've mentioned the number of speciality restaurants, we enjoy the complimentary food, and definitely the burgers in the buffet and O'Sheehans beat RCI's pathetic offerings hands down. We think the buffet food to be of a better quality as in our opinion RCI's Windjammer offerings have declined over the years with the desserts awful. NCL's are far superior. Although to be fair, food is so subjective it should not be the only thing to convince someone to sail NCL.

 

The disembarkation process is also so uncomplicated at the end of the sailing. If you want NCL to transfer your bags to the terminal, you decide on the time and go and pick the appropriate luggage tags, they are not decided for you like on RCI (and then you have to go and change them!). You can stay in your cabin for longer on NCL than has been the case on RCI. Table service breakfast is also available on NCL but you're not forced to share a table like on RCI on that final morning which is something we detest!

 

There are only a couple of things we don't like, such as the $15 per bottle corkage charge for taking bottles of wine/champagne onboard during initial embarkation even if you are consuming them in your cabin (to be fair I've only been charged on 1 occasion over 4 sailings though). The beverage packages don't include bottled water nor speciality coffees.

 

There also seems to be far fewer announcements on NCL compared to what seems to be continuous advertising of Bingo, Art Auctions, $10 sales and Pool games on RCI which seem to interrupt your relaxing time during the day.

 

I have 2 reviews from our recent NCL cruises, the latest of which is here

 

https://highseasescapades.co.uk/ncl-escape-from-new-york-to-new-england-and-canada/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amazing review very nice and helpful im glad your on this board as we need more friendless here 🙂

[swmichigan cruiser]

19 hours ago, lolo26 said:

Thanks you are very kind i do feel better now 🙂 our last cruise and trip cost 15k its allot of money we trusted celebrity and it was a let down to say the least alot went wrong on that crusie including technical things  shows were cancelled and the tour vendors were just awful for the Mediterranean cruise..we have done 15 Mediterranean cruises....it was a very depressing ship very run down..buffet was worst then dog food lol , avoid the constellation regardless of itinerary. 

What cruise line did you use for the 15 Mediterranean cruises? They must be very good And I may want to see if they would be a good fit for my family. Thanks

[hallux]

4 hours ago, cruisingator2 said:

The Bliss is beautiful

I won't disagree.  That feeling is so strong, in fact, that I'm sailing on her in 2 weeks, making it the second time in 6 months (almost to the day!).

[Deeliteful]

All fair points peteukmcr except imo the disembarkation on my Breakaway cruise in June was an absolute nightmare. Quite the worst of any cruise line I’ve been  on , just chaotic.

Embarkation was the complete opposite! Smooth, well organised and really easy.

Edited October 11, 2019 by Deeliteful

[peteukmcr]

9 hours ago, Deeliteful said:

All fair points peteukmcr except imo the disembarkation on my Breakaway cruise in June was an absolute nightmare. Quite the worst of any cruise line I’ve been  on , just chaotic.

Embarkation was the complete opposite! Smooth, well organised and really easy.

Such a shame, our disembarkation off Breakaway in April was a breeze, it was just finding the car rental shuttle that was a mess. Just off Escape in NYC was a little slow as the terminal was obviously not built for the number of guests on a Breakaway plus ship, so we were held outside the terminal once off the ship, but only for a short while and immigration was brilliant as NCL and the US officials are testing facial recognition, and we just got a green light and walked through. 

 

In both cases, must say check in and boarding was easy, a little longer in NYC, but again I think that's because of the capacity of the terminal. But not stressful in either Miami or NYC.

[newmexicoNita]

21 hours ago, GA Dave said:

OP, here are some food pics for you from the Getaway.  Some are Haven, but you will get the idea.

 

love the carrot on the carrot cake and the little one right next to the cake. Reminds me of the time my daughter and I were sailing on the Sun. When it was dessert time the waiter asked her what she wanted, she said nothing thank you. A few minutes later out comes this plate with the words "nothing thank you" written on it. 

[newmexicoNita]

16 hours ago, pamrose228 said:

No one mentioned HAL. Best food on any cruise line hands down.

 

Best service.

 

Most boring senior crowd in cabin by 9 pm.

 

But my Panama Canal transit cruise was by far the best. Daily lectures all about the canal by professionals. A lunch and dinner comped for a small error at their one specialty restaurant .   Had king crab legs never did before on a cruise ship. They let me buy their non alcoholic beverage package for $22:day and the rest of my cabin did not need to buy one of anything.

 

The ship was beautiful old style wood with big crystal chandeliers. Great ports. 

We too love HAL. WE did one, a partial Panama canal with friends about 10 years ago. We loved the daily lectures, the food and our cabin steward. Our only negative was the boring guests, yes, in bed by 9pm and we hated our table mates. those were the day with no open dining. Thank God we were with good friends or we would have probably asked to have our seating changed. We also could not stand the gal in the casino cashier cage or it seemed like a cage. 

 

As our friends said, they still enjoyed NCL more. As she said: NCL just has more energy. We do have to laugh because we too couldn't get over how old everyone was and we were in our early 70s at the time