Pearl Transatlantic - Shoreguy Blog - 2 December 2006

[Cruising Ken]

On the whole, the cruise was good. Mostly because of the people we met. But I don't think NCL are anything special. Maybe I'm not Americanised enough to appreciate them.

 

Enjoyed our stay in Miami, and would love to go back and spend more time there.

 

Thanks to everyone for the Info. before the cruise. And a special Hello to Ken and his Mum.

 

Mike and Marn.

 

Hi there you two, glad you arrived home OK. The first time we cruised with NCL we vowed NEVER AGAIN but how many cruises was that ago? You just have to get used to them. They do have their good points.

 

I'm considering going back to Miami in April for the Dream transatlantic crossing to Dover. Although she's an older smaller ship without the razzle dazzle, I like her and always feel at home on board, I for one will miss her when she's sold.:(

[insidecabin]

As far as upgrades go NCL should look into the TA they are allocating cabins to, and the prices they are charging. We were charged by Voyana a lot more for an inside cabin than some payed for outside with balcony. I am not a winger just speaking true facts, end of story.:cool:

 

One thing we don't do is worry about pricing and upgrades, when the price is right for a cruise we want we book and any upgrades are a bonus, there will allways be someone who paid less.

 

Our Voyana price was £399pp with flight/transfer, Miami to Heathrow would be around £200 thats under £200 for the cruise fare which is a bargain. booked deck 4 allocated 9.

 

Did anyone pay less than around $400 I thought even the late US lead in price was $450+ cruise only

 

One thing to remember is Voyana did a cruise only deal with NCL and the rest of the package was their own so probably put a block on upgrades I tried for an upsell with Voyana and they would not go for it.

 

It will be interesting to see what happens to the Gem pricing especialy for the trans which is likely to not be that popular being the northern route in Dec.

 

As it happens I find upgrades not that forthcoming but then we do seek out the bargains so leave little room for the cruise line to offer a lot.

[calmac]

I think cruises are like flights - it's always better NOT to ask the person next to you how much they paid - they will always have paid less than you :D

 

NCL UK does not do upsells - they claim it is a new thing being trialled in Miami - so I wouldn't expect any of the UK travel agencies to be able to gain upsells either.

 

NCL is not unique in having different "rules" between the UK and the US - soemthing we just have to live with if we want to continue cruising.

 

 

Here's to 2007 and many more happy cruising days :D

[shoreguy]

I think cruises are like flights - it's always better NOT to ask the person next to you how much they paid - they will always have paid less than you :D

 

:D

 

Great idea - I know I was upset that I had to pay 20% more in the states then the prices in the UK early on. The UK prices included air. NCL As far as paid upgrades the best deal I heard about was for someone from Kazakhstan not the states.

I ended up in an AB. The upgrade was very easy here. Started with an BA, Got out my credit card and paid the difference when the price in the states dropped a bit for an AE, AB price dropped and got my credit card again and paid the difference between the AE and AB. In the end I still paid more the 20% more then the initial UK AB price including air. No bargain upsell for this sailor.

Not sure what the issue is. I know they gave the AA and AC passenger a second cabin to sleep in during the storm since they were being throw from their beds in the forward facing cabins.:eek:

[Yorkshire Cruisers]

It was more the attitude of the girl on the desk that I didn't like, when we asked for a change of cabin for one which had a wider doorway. She couldn't have cared less.

We offered to pay for a different one, but she just said that the ship was fully sold out.

 

Anyway all that is in the past, and Christmas day has come and gone. Hope you all had a happy holiday.

 

Mike and Marn.

[shoreguy]

It was more the attitude of the girl on the desk that I didn't like, when we asked for a change of cabin for one which had a wider doorway. She couldn't have cared less.

We offered to pay for a different one, but she just said that the ship was fully sold out.

 

Anyway all that is in the past, and Christmas day has come and gone. Hope you all had a happy holiday.

 

Mike and Marn.

 

Legitimate complaint - we all knew the ship was not sold out. You know what I would have done if I got "no" for an answer. Some may not agree with escalation but in this world done right it is the path to making sure we get the full value from any service.

[electricron]

Legitimate complaint - we all knew the ship was not sold out. You know what I would have done if I got "no" for an answer. Some may not agree with escalation but in this world done right it is the path to making sure we get the full value from any service.

 

Is it a legitmate complaint? Don't all the cabins aboard the ship have the same doorway width, the exceptions being the handicap cabins. Can you state that any handicapped cabins were empty on that sailing? Aren't they the first to be booked because they are larger?

 

Getting a "no" for an answer isn't rude, nor uncaring, nor poor customer service. I'll agree a reason behind a "no" answer would have been nice, but do reasons have to be given every time? If NCL reassigned passengers from one Deck 8 parially obstructed view cabin into other unobstructed cabins for any excuse, wouldn't they be obligated to do so for every passenger in one?

 

Although I haven't measured the width of the doors with a tape measure, I doubt the door for these cabins are smaller than what's available for other "standard" cabins.

[shoreguy]

Is it a legitmate complaint? Don't all the cabins aboard the ship have the same doorway width, the exceptions being the handicap cabins. Can you state that any handicapped cabins were empty on that sailing? Aren't they the first to be booked because they are larger?

 

Getting a "no" for an answer isn't rude, nor uncaring, nor poor customer service. I'll agree a reason behind a "no" answer would have been nice, but do reasons have to be given every time?

 

The issue here is the fact the ship was not sold out. In fact lots of open cabins. Had they given a truthful answer like nothing with a larger door available if that was the case it would be a different situation and not as upsetting.

 

If you read the post that started this Yorkshire Cruisers felt their door was in fact smaller. It may have been neither of us have had the chance to measure the doors.

 

"The cabin we had was not the usual long shaped one, it was a sideways one, with not quite as much room as the others, and, as I said, the doorways were narrower"

[Guest Anorak33]

I must agree that I didn't find the ladies on reception on the Pearl at all helpful, I was also given misinformation.

I wrote to complain and handed in my letter at reception that day but never received any reply.

It wasn''t so important but even so it did nothing to make me feel better about the problem.

Part of the trouble I think is that English is not the first language of the Filipina ladies they had on reception most of the time. Misunderstandings can occur because of this. Its nearly impossible to get some ideas over to them, and their poor responses can be interpreted by us as rudeness. I don't think they intend to be rude but it does come over as stonewalling and rudeness.They have them on the reception desks on most ships and lines, not just Pearl or NCL, I guess they cost less. I heard several passengers taking off their gratuities just because they couldn't get any sense out of reception about their problems, thats a shame for the stewards who work for those gratuitities.

On the last day they had a couple of Canadian ladies on the desk, I got my account sorted out then without any problem. If only they had been on the desk during the rest of the cruise things would have gone better. Passengers were pretty frustrated.

 

As far as the cabin doorways are concerned mine started out wide enough for me to walk through without any problem but became smaller as the cruise progressed. Could be connected to the excellent grub.

 

Ours was a midships cabin on deck 9, never had much movement there at all, certainly no throwing out of bed or anything falling over. I sympathise with those who were at the ends of the ship, you wouldn't have thought it would make so much diference but that seems to have been the case.

 

In fact we didn't think the weather was too bad at all, bit windy and biggish waves for sure but we've experienced much worse and still not been even a little queasy.

 

Just get me back on Pearl, soon please....

[flyingpirate]

Legitimate complaints - yes.

 

We had one of the funny cabins on 8 for the Rosie and had the same problem getting Charlie's walker through the door. They did find us a handicapped room, but it was on four, behind heavy double doors, almost unaccessable, since only one elevator went there. We elected to remain in our original room, since it was only one night.

 

I also agree about the reception ladies, I'm sure they tried, but most of the time, they just stood there with stupid smiles....the Canadian (Kristy) and South African women were very efficient. I don't think it's so much a language as a cooperation problem. If these front line girls can make us go away, NCL's problem is solved.:p That's why there are supervisors, managers and executives to turn to.

 

And, as for pricing, as we all know that goes all over the board....we usually buy our AA and pay full price for it, so we have the exact date and cabin we want. Invariably, I speak to/read about people who have the same cabin having bought a BA or AF and paid a few hundred dollars more for my cabin on an upsell. They get my owners suite for less than half of what I pay for it.

 

Oh woe is me, someone got a better deal.:eek:;)

[Yorkshire Cruisers]

The other half of Yorkshire Cruises - our friends Dorothy and Archie - had a cabin a few doors from us. The doorway in that one was no trouble at all for me to get the walker through. They did offer to change cabins, but I didn't think it fair to them.

The "funny" cabin doorways are deffinately narrower.

[Birdnutty]

Which cabin were you in? I'm curious to see it on the deckplan.

 

Thanks!

[tuffy88]

I would also be interested in which cabin you were in. We will be in an inside cabin in the very front of the ship on deck 8 for our cruise on 2/2/07. Thanks

 

Charles

[shoreguy]

I would also be interested in which cabin you were in. We will be in an inside cabin in the very front of the ship on deck 8 for our cruise on 2/2/07. Thanks

 

Charles

 

It would be one of the sideways inside cabins like 5573

[Yorkshire Cruisers]

I would also be interested in which cabin you were in. We will be in an inside cabin in the very front of the ship on deck 8 for our cruise on 2/2/07. Thanks

 

Charles

 

Our cabin was 5521 near the front of the ship.

[sellie]

Hi,

 

we are back to Germany since a few days.

We enjoyed our second cruise on the Freedom of the seas on very calm seas.

 

But the cruise with you all were the best we ever had!!!

We really hope to hear from you via eMail!!!

 

All the best for 2007!!!

 

Petra & Joerg & Sellie

[cruisecap]

Can anyone recommend a good wine to purchase onboard the Pearl. I just don't want to carry wine onboard with me, seems like a pain. I would like a sweeter type wine that doesn't cost a fortune. Any recommends would be appreciated, as I am not much of a wine expert.

 

Thanks

[shoreguy]

Can anyone recommend a good wine to purchase onboard the Pearl. I just don't want to carry wine onboard with me, seems like a pain. I would like a sweeter type wine that doesn't cost a fortune. Any recommends would be appreciated, as I am not much of a wine expert.

 

Thanks

 

Red or white ?? Lots of options available by the glass that you try before you purchase a bottle.

[Ask4Jay]

cruisecap -

Our preferred wine at home and on a cruise is White Zinfandel. It's definitely not a dry wine, but we like the slightly fruity and 'sweetish' flavor. The Sun, Jewel and Dawn all carried Beringer White Zinfandel, so I presume the Jewel would too. It was either $26 or $28 per bottle. It is listed towards the lower end of their wine list, which is just above our pain threshold. If you do not finish a bottle in one sitting, they will store it for you in a central location, and you can finish it another day, no matter in which restaurant.

Cheers!

 

Shoreguy -

Been following your short thread. Welcome back.

[mbisson]

cruisecap -

Our preferred wine at home and on a cruise is White Zinfandel. It's definitely not a dry wine, but we like the slightly fruity and 'sweetish' flavor. The Sun, Jewel and Dawn all carried Beringer White Zinfandel, so I presume the Jewel would too. It was either $26 or $28 per bottle. .

 

From the bar list I "picked up" in Sept on the Sun, Beringer White Zinfandel was $5.25 per glass and $22.00 Bottle (+15% Service Charge). We enjoyed it also :)

 

-Monte