Questions about NCL from a newbie

[Aleciajoyful1]

Although I am not new to cruising, I am new to NCL. We are very excited about trying the Freestyle thing for a change. We booked POH for October and I have read that the Hawaii cruises tend to be a bit different based on the port intensity.

 

Now I know NCL is about being non-traditional, but do they do some of the traditional cruise things, like the midnight buffet on the pool deck or the chocolate buffet??

 

As far as dining, is it absolutely necessary to reserve our dinner the night before? I would rather not lose out on activities in the ports to try and get back for dinner on time. One of the reasons we want to try NCL. We really intend to be free to do what we want when we want.

 

Lastly, if we are in an interior cabin, what typical amenities are provided? Do they offer the basic shampoo and soap? What about hairdryers?

 

I have 4 months to go, so I'm sure I'll have more questions! But that is all for now. I appreciate you veteran NCLers input!

[Zeno]

Although I am not new to cruising, I am new to NCL. We are very excited about trying the Freestyle thing for a change. We booked POH for October and I have read that the Hawaii cruises tend to be a bit different based on the port intensity.

 

Now I know NCL is about being non-traditional, but do they do some of the traditional cruise things, like the midnight buffet on the pool deck or the chocolate buffet??

Very few cruiselines still have a midnight buffet. NCL/NCLA does not.

NCL ships have a chocolate buffet - I don't know about NCLA ("Pride of" ships).

 

As far as dining, is it absolutely necessary to reserve our dinner the night before? I would rather not lose out on activities in the ports to try and get back for dinner on time. One of the reasons we want to try NCL. We really intend to be free to do what we want when we want.

 

In a word - no. As long as you eat in the main dining rooms, you do not need reservations. However if you dine at "prime time" - approximately 7PM - 8:00PM - you may have a wait to be seated. Also the 'specialty' restaurants require reservations. (They are much smaller than the main dining rooms).

Lastly, if we are in an interior cabin, what typical amenities are provided? Do they offer the basic shampoo and soap? What about hairdryers?

 

On all our NCL cruises we have had a hairdryer in the room. There are shampoo and soap dispensers in the bathroom (but I don't like their shampoo and usually bring my own.)

I have 4 months to go, so I'm sure I'll have more questions! But that is all for now. I appreciate you veteran NCLers input!

 

I wish I could be a little more helpful but I have only been on NCL ships (as opposed to NCLA) and I know there are some differences. Hopefully you will get some NCLA specific responses. Have a great cruise!