Prima continues to disappoint and I haven't even sailed.

[laudergayle]

4 minutes ago, njsmom said:

We tried a lot of different things in the Indulge food hall. We never had to wait for breakfast, that's what made it handy. It seemed a lot of people didn't think about going there for breakfast. It was busy, but not too busy, and it moved fast, and the food was always replenished and was being made as you watched and put on the shelves, so it was very fresh. I liked the breakfast sandwiches like the egg and cheese croissants, the different bowls with eggs and potatoes, including the tex mex bowl, the English muffins with eggs and cheese, etc. there were always meat free options and variations with sausage and bacon and ham to please everyone, and stations with fruit and cereals and oatmeal and pastries. It wasn't anything super fancy, but it was good and we loved the setting and it was easy and fast. As others have said, the buffet doesn't have tons of seating, so we preferred Indulge rather than fight the crowds in the buffet at breakfast or the long waits in the main dining room once you order off the menu and have to wait to be served. Indulge suited us. The decor is awesome and the view of the ocean out of every window is gorgeous. That's the great thing about the Prima. They have a spot for everyone. 

Another good place for breakfast is The Local. You order off the menu there, but the food is great. We ate there our last morning, before debarkation. I wish we'd discovered it sooner for breakfast. We did eat lunch there several times, and we had snacks there quite a bit. We loved the bar side of The Local and the sit-down restaurant side. Oh, and the hot fudge sundae. My son and I had one of those every day, and my husband indulged quite a bit too. Again, cozy decor, awesome staff and just a great atmosphere overall. 

You’re making me want to cruise Prima again!! 

[Sigyn]

24 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

You’re making me want to cruise Prima again!! 

I'm making myself want to cruise Prima again! 😂

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, njsmom said:

I'm making myself want to cruise Prima again! 😂

We're waiting to sail on her in August. And it is truly wonderful to read posts about the Prima that aren't totally negative.

 

We are going with the expectation that it will not be perfect (nothing ever is), but that we will have a wonderful cruise experience.

[laudergayle]

15 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

We're waiting to sail on her in August. And it is truly wonderful to read posts about the Prima that aren't totally negative.

 

We are going with the expectation that it will not be perfect (nothing ever is), but that we will have a wonderful cruise experience.

I just looked at your itinerary…on our bucket list, for certain.  However, for now, we need to stay closer to US due to elder caregiving.  I think this will be a good itinerary for Prima.  Warmer weather but not pool weather…most people will be off the boat exploring the ports.  I hope they add some more entertainment at night…but the Donna Summer Show was very good.  And the dining venues are excellent.  Choose Hudson’s over Commodore.  Hudson’s was a more intimate setting…Commodore had larger groups and was loud.  Enjoy your cruise and the Prima. 

[ontheweb]

17 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

I just looked at your itinerary…on our bucket list, for certain.  However, for now, we need to stay closer to US due to elder caregiving.  I think this will be a good itinerary for Prima.  Warmer weather but not pool weather…most people will be off the boat exploring the ports.  I hope they add some more entertainment at night…but the Donna Summer Show was very good.  And the dining venues are excellent.  Choose Hudson’s over Commodore.  Hudson’s was a more intimate setting…Commodore had larger groups and was loud.  Enjoy your cruise and the Prima. 

I fully understand the stay closer due to elder caregiving. I was the do everything person for my late parents. Dad lived to be 101, and Mom almost 99.

 

And thanks for the advice.

[cruiseny4life]

@njsmom and @laudergayle, y'all need to be compensated by NCL for your excellent marketing of Pr1ma. This is the first time I've wanted to sail on it after hearing all the reviews on Cruise Critic/YouTube. When the marketing materials came out, I definitely wanted to hit it up, but then it seemed reality really killed the ship. I'm so glad you both had a wonderful time and now am looking forward to when I can afford to sail her...in like 100 years. 🙂 

[Liljo22]

5 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

@njsmom and @laudergayle, y'all need to be compensated by NCL for your excellent marketing of Pr1ma. This is the first time I've wanted to sail on it after hearing all the reviews on Cruise Critic/YouTube. When the marketing materials came out, I definitely wanted to hit it up, but then it seemed reality really killed the ship. I'm so glad you both had a wonderful time and now am looking forward to when I can afford to sail her...in like 100 years. 🙂 

Take a look at her Galveston sailings.  NCL is just starting to sail out of this port so I don't think people have realized it yet.  She is there December through March.  

[laudergayle]

26 minutes ago, Liljo22 said:

Take a look at her Galveston sailings.  NCL is just starting to sail out of this port so I don't think people have realized it yet.  She is there December through March.  

@cruiseny4life thanks for the nice comment.  As @Liljo22 says…Prima is sailing out of Galveston and the rates are result decent right now —except it’s the same itinerary you just took.  I didn’t sail Haven so I don’t know how the Prima experience is there.  

[insidecabin]

Prima is on our list but premium price and most of the local to us cruises still involve flights for now other options are winning.

 

There are going to be things that cannot be worked around like a fixed show in a small venue either stand in line or do something else.

We find a lot of cruisers just don't try to work around their problems especially with eating they just join the same lines same time every day and moan.

 

We like NCL because on the days you are not in a paid speciality there are more than just MDR and buffet to choose from and being a little flexible on timing you often have no issues getting a seat.

 

 

We did one trip last year on an MSC it was full over 6k,  everywhere was busy and loads of complaints could not get a seat anywhere, people would just wander round and never find anywhere rather than thinking a bit, the 15mins before the 3 shows and each of the 6 dinner sittings people would move on, then seats were available(soon got filled).

 

 

 

[Liljo22]

2 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

@cruiseny4life thanks for the nice comment.  As @Liljo22 says…Prima is sailing out of Galveston and the rates are result decent right now —except it’s the same itinerary you just took.  I didn’t sail Haven so I don’t know how the Prima experience is there.  

That's my issue with sailing out of Galveston.  I am only 45 minutes from the port but you either have Costa Maya/Cozumel/Roatan(Harvest Caye with NCL) or Cozumel/Montego Bay/Grand Cayman.  I am sailing for the ship when I sail out of Galveston.  

[Liljo22]

4 minutes ago, insidecabin said:

There are going to be things that cannot be worked around like a fixed show in a small venue either stand in line or do something else.

We find a lot of cruisers just don't try to work around their problems especially with eating they just join the same lines same time every day and moan.

Syd's doesn't look any smaller than on the Getaway and that ship has over 1,000 more capacity.  It looks like there may be less seating though.  On that ship we showed up right around starting time and stood around the bar until someone left.  Its no different than going out to a bar with a good band at home. 

[Sigyn]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

@njsmom and @laudergayle, y'all need to be compensated by NCL for your excellent marketing of Pr1ma. This is the first time I've wanted to sail on it after hearing all the reviews on Cruise Critic/YouTube. When the marketing materials came out, I definitely wanted to hit it up, but then it seemed reality really killed the ship. I'm so glad you both had a wonderful time and now am looking forward to when I can afford to sail her...in like 100 years. 🙂 

lol. I just enjoyed my cruise. 🙂 my next cruise was four months later on Harmony of the Seas and I enjoyed that too, altho the food was 3x better on the Prima and I had the specialty dining plan on Harmony and didn't go to the MDR once. But as for comparison, I liked the Prima a bit more than the Harmony. It was prettier and I liked the size of the ship more. I did like Central Park on Harmony tho. It was gorgeous. I'll be on the Celebrity Millennium in July and I bet I like that one, too. 

[cruiseny4life]

44 minutes ago, Liljo22 said:

That's my issue with sailing out of Galveston.  I am only 45 minutes from the port but you either have Costa Maya/Cozumel/Roatan(Harvest Caye with NCL) or Cozumel/Montego Bay/Grand Cayman.  I am sailing for the ship when I sail out of Galveston.  

Here's one I noticed on Pr1ma sailing out of Galveston that is a wee bit different than the cruise I took which @laudergayle mentioned. We can't take that many days off work yet, but someday we'll be able to enjoy an eleven day cruise! And yes, as soon as you said Galveston/better pricing, I immediately went to NCL! 🙂 

 

[Liljo22]

26 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Here's one I noticed on Pr1ma sailing out of Galveston that is a wee bit different than the cruise I took which @laudergayle mentioned. We can't take that many days off work yet, but someday we'll be able to enjoy an eleven day cruise! And yes, as soon as you said Galveston/better pricing, I immediately went to NCL! 🙂 

 

Same boat as you(pun not intended).  The cruise lines have started offering longer cruises to different ports but can't take more than a week off of work and pull the kids out of school.  Royal has a couple that go out to Coco Cay that are longer also.  

 

Sad also that Prima's stay is only short term.  Thought it was permanent but Escape is replacing it next year.     

[laudergayle]

1 hour ago, Liljo22 said:

Same boat as you(pun not intended).

@cruiseny4life, @Liljo22 Same same, too.  We have elder care duty so are limited to short cruises closer to home.  But…someday, too!

[ontheweb]

On 5/29/2023 at 7:57 AM, McFins said:

 

It opens at 7 a.m.  

Is there food anywhere available before that time?

[JGmf]

6 hours ago, Liljo22 said:

Syd's doesn't look any smaller than on the Getaway and that ship has over 1,000 more capacity.  It looks like there may be less seating though.  On that ship we showed up right around starting time and stood around the bar until someone left.  Its no different than going out to a bar with a good band at home. 

 

Sailed on both Getaway and Prima.  Syd's definitely has less seating and isn't tiered like Getwaway.  Has way more of a chaos-like feel when entering and trying to find a spot.

[Goldenknight]

On 5/29/2023 at 7:40 AM, ontheweb said:

We're waiting to sail on her in August. And it is truly wonderful to read posts about the Prima that aren't totally negative.

 

We are going with the expectation that it will not be perfect (nothing ever is), but that we will have a wonderful cruise experience.

 

+1

 

We're on the Prima for an 11 day cruise, and looking forward to this.  Like you, we have reasonable expectations; plus, it's better than work!

[Ajnp]

On 5/30/2023 at 12:40 AM, ontheweb said:

We're waiting to sail on her in August. And it is truly wonderful to read posts about the Prima that aren't totally negative.

 

We are going with the expectation that it will not be perfect (nothing ever is), but that we will have a wonderful cruise experience.

 

I second this!

We are going in October.

[BrianLo]

On 5/28/2023 at 11:18 PM, njsmom said:

I wouldn't consider it a big loss. We didn't like Palomar much when we were on the Prima in December. We loved Onda the most, Le Bistro second, Food Republic third, Cagney's fourth and Palomar most definitely came in fifth place. It tasted fine, but it wasn't anything special, whereas Onda blew us away and so did Le Bistro, and Food Republic was just fun and delicious with lots of things to try. Cagney's was a typical steakhouse with well prepared steaks but nothing different than what you get at any steakhouse. Palomar didn't seem to have a strong identity. It wanted to be fancier than it really is, or something like that. We went in expecting to be impressed and found it sorely lacking. None of the dishes were particularly flavorful or standouts. 

 

Overall, we found the Prima to be a wonderful ship and we had a great time, despite rainy, cold weather during part of our Caribbean cruise. It's a beautiful ship. My husband, teenage son and I were on it from 12/23 -12/30. Don't listen to the naysayers. It's a fun ship for a vacation. We really loved the Indulge food hall. We had breakfast there most mornings. The bars are fun places to hang out, and the crew is so friendly. 

I dined at Palomar last night. I agree it’s weirdly lacking an identity. The music was mostly Elvis, though I don’t know at what level the music is chosen (corporate versus onboard management). The table behind me pointed it out and I agree, 50/60’s rock and roll doesn’t scream fish house.

Versus I recently did Ocean Blue on Bliss and it met the fine dining assignment well. 

 

Palomar has a beautiful location, though it needs a rethink. 

[ontheweb]

8 hours ago, Goldenknight said:

 

+1

 

We're on the Prima for an 11 day cruise, and looking forward to this.  Like you, we have reasonable expectations; plus, it's better than work!

Which 11 day cruise? Ours is London (Southampton) to Reykjavik 8/6.

[sharonann24]

I am reading this with much interest as we sail on July 27 on the Iceland cruise.  We are not in the Haven--kind of tired of hearing about those trials and tribulations!  We have done the Haven before and loved it, but not in the cards this time and we are "settling" for a balcony, though an 11 day European cruise to Iceland hardly sounds like settling!  LOL.  Thrilled to be lucky and healthy enough to enjoy this adventure, especially with my 94 year old father!   We "only" have the 2 specialty restaurants and I am also happy to see so many positive reviews of Hudson's since that is where we will be most nights. We love Le Bistro and Cagney's but we are trying Onda on this cruise.  If I can talk my dad into another night it will be Le Bistro. Not a pool cruise but neither is the Baltics in the summer most times and we managed quite nicely.  I also saw the comparisons to the Edge which we were on in February and the naysayers had it all wrong there too!  Travel is a wonderful experience and I always go prepared to have the best time and try to plan enough to minimize issues.  
Relax and enjoy the trip.

[ontheweb]

34 minutes ago, sharonann24 said:

I am reading this with much interest as we sail on July 27 on the Iceland cruise.  We are not in the Haven--kind of tired of hearing about those trials and tribulations!  We have done the Haven before and loved it, but not in the cards this time and we are "settling" for a balcony, though an 11 day European cruise to Iceland hardly sounds like settling!  LOL.  Thrilled to be lucky and healthy enough to enjoy this adventure, especially with my 94 year old father!   We "only" have the 2 specialty restaurants and I am also happy to see so many positive reviews of Hudson's since that is where we will be most nights. We love Le Bistro and Cagney's but we are trying Onda on this cruise.  If I can talk my dad into another night it will be Le Bistro. Not a pool cruise but neither is the Baltics in the summer most times and we managed quite nicely.  I also saw the comparisons to the Edge which we were on in February and the naysayers had it all wrong there too!  Travel is a wonderful experience and I always go prepared to have the best time and try to plan enough to minimize issues.  
Relax and enjoy the trip.

We are doing this trip in August. Could you after your cruise answer the following question. Is Isafjordur a tender port for the Prima. NCL says it is not, but everything I have read says it is except for small ships. Also, we have booked a private tour in that port, and the tour operator says to meet her where the tenders come in.

 

Thanks in advance. And have a great cruise.

[slakko]

On 5/29/2023 at 3:40 PM, ontheweb said:

We're waiting to sail on her in August. And it is truly wonderful to read posts about the Prima that aren't totally negative.

 

We are going with the expectation that it will not be perfect (nothing ever is), but that we will have a wonderful cruise experience.

On the basis of our experience in the Transatlantic, while the weather was a bit of a problem the Prima wasn't at all and I look forward to being on board again!

 

The Indulge was my go-to breakfast option most days; I didn't need much but still ended up trying something from pretty much all of the main hot food stations there.  The days when I missed it the hot savoury option in the Observation Lounge was a meat free selection from the same set (e.g. Cheese and egg English muffin or croissant) so the indulge options were everywhere.

[sharonann24]

11 hours ago, ontheweb said:

We are doing this trip in August. Could you after your cruise answer the following question. Is Isafjordur a tender port for the Prima. NCL says it is not, but everything I have read says it is except for small ships. Also, we have booked a private tour in that port, and the tour operator says to meet her where the tenders come in.

 

Thanks in advance. And have a great cruise.

I will try to check in advance. I have not seen anything to indicate this, but to be honest I haven't looked.