NCL Sky Repositioning to Europe in Fall 2024 Questions

[wurm914]

Hi all.  I'm trying to reconstruct a trip to Europe that got cancelled in 2020 because, you know, stuff.  I'm looking at the repo cruise of the NCL Sky in October 2024.  The price for an inside cabin is not fabulously low (approx $1400 pp) but because of our platinum status on NCL we're considering it.  I looked at the deck plans of this pretty small ship - not many public areas to sit, read, play a game, chat - anything to be out of the cabin.  I've never been on the Sky before.  Would you book this one?  What advice can you offer?

 

Thanks,

 

deb 🙂

[fredflint]

Well we were on the Star which is slightly larger and found the ship to be OK size wise but from a things to do very lacking.  One thing that was common to everyone who was working aboard the ship was that the crew cabins were small and cramped.  I feel that due to this most of the crew was hoping they could move to a bigger/better ship.  

 

If you enjoy making your own entertainment you will be fine, if you want daytime activities, decent shows at night or any alternative entertainment at night look to a bigger ship or a different cruise line.  We will probably only cruise NCL with a port intensive cruise where we are using the ship as a floating hotel vs looking for entertainment/food etc.  I have done 6 Transatlantic cruises total one on Epic the other on Star  on NCL there will not be a 3rd one no matter how good the price is.

[wurm914]

2 hours ago, fredflint said:

  I have done 6 Transatlantic cruises total one on Epic the other on Star  on NCL there will not be a 3rd one no matter how good the price is.

I appreciate your honest review.  Could you elaborate on public space availability - I didn't see anything like a Spinnaker lounge or observation area.  I agree the Star is probably quite similar to the Sky. 

Thanks,

deb 🙂

[MeHeartCruising]

The Sky has a Spinnaker Lounge on Deck 11, with what looks like a nice, relaxing location looking out the front of the ship to enjoy down time on the ship.  I have not personally been on the Sky, but was recently considering it.  Picture here...

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/sky/whats-on-board/bars-lounges

 

Deck Plans here -- see Deck 11

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/sky/deck-plans

 

But yes. This is a small ship by today's standards.   With less space for everything.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 2, 2023 by MeHeartCruising

[chengkp75]

The Star isn't really comparable to the Sky, but the Sun is her sister ship.  As the PP noted, the Spinnaker Lounge is on deck 11, forward, and has panoramic windows for viewing, was always a favorite of pax when I worked her.  The library on deck 6 is always a quiet spot.  The Great Outdoor Cafe on 11, is under an awning, so a good place to enjoy being outside, between meal hours, with a bar handy.  Deck 12 outside, forward, around the kid's splash pool (kids never seemed to find this) was an area for quiet lounging.  This was 15 years ago, but the ship hasn't changed, but maybe the demographics have.

[MBMGWM]

I was on a ten night solo cruise on the Sky in January.  She was a perfect size for relaxation.  My goal was to escape winter with the aim of spending as much time enjoying the beautiful blue water and warm temperatures as possible.  I booked a window cabin just to have some natural light, but really only utilized the cabin for sleeping and showering.  I always enjoy being "out and about" on the ship.  

 

The Great Outdoors was fantastic during the day or at night.  There was a nice variety of tables and loungers in the shade on the pool deck where many people were reading, playing games, etc.  As others have mentioned, the Spinnaker at the front of the ship is a wonderful place for relaxing and reading during the day.  I walked through it several times to go out onto forward observation deck and it always looked so inviting.  The library was also a nice space with books and board games.  

 

Enjoy whichever cruise you choose, but I wouldn't hesitate to book the Sky for such a nice trip.

[wurm914]

1 hour ago, MeHeartCruising said:

The Sky has a Spinnaker Lounge on Deck 11, with what looks like a nice, relaxing location looking out the front of the ship to enjoy down time on the ship.  I have not personally been on the Sky, but was recently considering it.  Picture here...

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/sky/whats-on-board/bars-lounges

 

Deck Plans here -- see Deck 11

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/sky/deck-plans

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you, this is very helpful!  I took a fast look at all the decks but somehow missed Deck 11.  I appreciate it!

 

deb 🙂

[wurm914]

4 minutes ago, MBMGWM said:

I was on a ten night solo cruise on the Sky in January.  She was a perfect size for relaxation. 

 

The Great Outdoors was fantastic during the day or at night.  There was a nice variety of tables and loungers in the shade on the pool deck where many people were reading, playing games, etc.  As others have mentioned, the Spinnaker at the front of the ship is a wonderful place for relaxing and reading during the day.  I walked through it several times to go out onto forward observation deck and it always looked so inviting.  The library was also a nice space with books and board games.  

 

Enjoy whichever cruise you choose, but I wouldn't hesitate to book the Sky for such a nice trip.

Very nice comments and really encouraging!  I don't need a lot of organized activities, just a few spaces where we can be comfortable outside of the cabin.  This is really helpful!

 

deb 🙂

[wurm914]

1 hour ago, chengkp75 said:

The Star isn't really comparable to the Sky, but the Sun is her sister ship.  As the PP noted, the Spinnaker Lounge is on deck 11, forward, and has panoramic windows for viewing, was always a favorite of pax when I worked her.  The library on deck 6 is always a quiet spot.  The Great Outdoor Cafe on 11, is under an awning, so a good place to enjoy being outside, between meal hours, with a bar handy.  Deck 12 outside, forward, around the kid's splash pool (kids never seemed to find this) was an area for quiet lounging.  This was 15 years ago, but the ship hasn't changed, but maybe the demographics have.

You're absolutely right - Sun is the sister ship - I haven't been on either of them but I think I may be in 2024!  Your comments are very encouraging, thank you!

 

deb 🙂

[AK Dreaming]

I"ve been on the Sky several times and would not recommend it for anything but a weekend get a way.  It is of course personal preference, but the lack of entertainment and space would be too long for anything more that 3 days.

[me_phisto]

Hi,

 

I was on the Sun (Sky‘s sister ship) for 14 days in South America and for that route it was a perfect ship as it offers a lot of public decks to enjoy the scenery. During the trip there were almost every day a lot of things to see (i.e waterfalls, fjords,..)

If you are doing a transatlantic with a lot of sea days the Sky/Sun would be too small for me as activities are more limited than on bigger ships.

 

 

Kind regards,

Dominik

 

[wurm914]

49 minutes ago, AK Dreaming said:

I"ve been on the Sky several times and would not recommend it for anything but a weekend get a way.  It is of course personal preference, but the lack of entertainment and space would be too long for anything more that 3 days.

thank you.  3/4 day cruises have been what I remember seeing up until recently.  I appreciate your input. 

deb 🙂

 

[wurm914]

47 minutes ago, me_phisto said:

Hi,

 

I was on the Sun (Sky‘s sister ship) for 14 days in South America and for that route it was a perfect ship as it offers a lot of public decks to enjoy the scenery. During the trip there were almost every day a lot of things to see (i.e waterfalls, fjords,..)

If you are doing a transatlantic with a lot of sea days the Sky/Sun would be too small for me as activities are more limited than on bigger ships.

 

 

Kind regards,

Dominik

 

Thank you Dominik, we don't usually take part in a lot of activities - a little trivia, a couple shows, we appreciate live music especially in the evening.  Did the Sun have much in the way of live music?

 

deb 🙂

[MartaMartian]

I did a 7 day Western Caribbean on the Sky last October. I would go back on her in a heartbeat but I enjoy the slower pace of a smaller ship. I didn’t hang out in Spinnakers but it’s a quiet lounge during the day with karaoke at night. There was live music throughout the ship, in the Atrium Bar, Bliss Ultra Lounge, and Sugarcane. There were theater shows every night, either musical acts, magician, or comedy.
 

I could see myself getting bored during the day on a TA cause there’s not much to do besides eat, drink, gamble, and lounge in the sun, if you’re lucky.

[wurm914]

On 3/2/2023 at 11:38 PM, MartaMartian said:

I did a 7 day Western Caribbean on the Sky last October. I would go back on her in a heartbeat but I enjoy the slower pace of a smaller ship. I didn’t hang out in Spinnakers but it’s a quiet lounge during the day with karaoke at night. There was live music throughout the ship, in the Atrium Bar, Bliss Ultra Lounge, and Sugarcane. There were theater shows every night, either musical acts, magician, or comedy.
 

I could see myself getting bored during the day on a TA cause there’s not much to do besides eat, drink, gamble, and lounge in the sun, if you’re lucky.

thank you for your input - we like smaller ships too.  I have no need for a go cart track or rock wall 🙂  A quiet place to read or play cards/dominoes is what we're after. 

 

deb 🙂

[fredflint]

On 3/2/2023 at 10:00 AM, wurm914 said:

I appreciate your honest review.  Could you elaborate on public space availability - I didn't see anything like a Spinnaker lounge or observation area.  I agree the Star is probably quite similar to the Sky. 

Thanks,

deb 🙂

Well there are public spaces but just not much to do we ate a lot of meals at O'Sheehan's  they offer a nice cook to order breakfast and a nice lunch offering.  We usually pick midsize ships as my wife does not like the mega ships with all the issues getting on and off etc.   The lectures on the Star was about all there was to do, there was no real organized activities, from a cooking demonstration, contest to even an egg drop competition.  

 

The daily trivia sheets were sometimes just wrong.  We don't usually require much to keep us entertained but there was not much at all the shows at night we just poorly produced.  My wife has taught piano for several years and commented to me that the singers were off key.  I have a degree in Theatre and  worked on some professional shows, I worked the lights so unlike a lot of people I watched a lot of shows from a decent higher up seat,  The choreography itself was not always  good as far as I was concerned and their timing was definitely off.  NCL boasts about having a facility in Florida where the acts rehearse and it seems these folks just skipped that part.  Now my cruise did go to South America where I am assuming a lot of people on the next cruises would  be native Spanish or Portuguese speakers so it is possible they had a a hard time finding people to work the cruise.   I would suggest a ship in the 3,000 passenger range.

[edspec]

I was on the Sun last year and loved it, in fact looking for cruises on either Sun or Sky just because the Sun was a great fit for me.  As others have said lots of quiet places to play cards, read, look at the ocean, and the Great Outdoors was wonderful.  The entertainment didn't have the bells and whistles like an Oasis or newer NCL ship but it was very enjoyable.  There's a full promenade deck too, always a plus.