Should I do NCL

[beer1234]

Tell me it,s not so. As a five time RCL cruiser I,m thinking about an Ncl cruise next year. From what I.m reading on this site I,m not sure I,d like it. With freestyle Iwould not expect to wait in line for food. I find this absurd. I read about ten or twenty minute waits! Also with the relaxed dress code I would not care to have dinner or any other meal with someone in sandles and tanktops reeking of the pool. I've read too that the crews have a severe case of the mumbles.Shows are crowded. (1 or 2 shows a night??) The best reviews seem to come from first time cruisers who don,t know any better so i came here for your advice. Thanks so much.

[dispachcops]

The relaxed dress code is typically "resort casual" I never saw tanktops and flipflops and people reeking of the pool. Everyone that I saw had dockers and a shirt at minimum, now I know that they have just relaxed a bit and are allowing jeans as well. But I dont think that they are allowing swimsuits and flipflops.

 

I like the ability to go to dinner when I want, and sure if you go right at primetime 5:30-6:00 pm on the night when they serve lobster, you might have a bit of a wait (20-30 min), but if you want to avoid that, either eat a little earlier or a little later. You can sit with strangers if you want, or you can sit alone if you want, it is totally up to you. As far as the shows, I usually got there early so I didnt ever have to worry about it being crowded. and yes, they do 2 performances of each show each night.

[TPEINC1958]

If this is a real request for information "Dispachcops" has given a good start to the answers.

 

But, to me this looks like someone poking a little fun at NCL. A nice summary of all the pots shots that are consistently taken at freestyle. All of which are consistently proven wrong.

 

Come on back beer dude, and re-ask the question, in not such a finger pointing way, and you will get all of the information you can handle to make an "educated" decision.

 

Till then, I'll leave this one alone.

 

John

[bduenskie]

I just came back on a cruise with NCL and I was nothing but disappointed. The freestyle dining has it's ups and downs. I found there's wasn't a wait at all when first opened or the last hour before closing. During the peak times the wait ranged from 10 minutes to 40 minutes. Our ship was fully booked so I'm sure that had an effect.

 

My cruise had 1 show a night and they were always packed, you need to get there at least an hour early.

[nancyfancy40]

Tell me it,s not so. As a five time RCL cruiser I,m thinking about an Ncl cruise next year. From what I.m reading on this site I,m not sure I,d like it. With freestyle Iwould not expect to wait in line for food. I find this absurd. I read about ten or twenty minute waits! Also with the relaxed dress code I would not care to have dinner or any other meal with someone in sandles and tanktops reeking of the pool. I've read too that the crews have a severe case of the mumbles.Shows are crowded. (1 or 2 shows a night??) The best reviews seem to come from first time cruisers who don,t know any better so i came here for your advice. Thanks so much.

 

Be careful of forming an opionon on what others say. :eek: :eek: I have never cruised NCL before, but look forward to my upcoming cruise with gusto. I have cruised Princess and Carnival. If I had based my decision on some of the writings, I would never leave port on any ship. There are lots of good reviews for NCL. Most negative reviews you will find are from people who have never posted prior to their cruise and did not bother to find anything about their voyage to be. Every ship from evey company has strenghts and weaknesses, it is up to the traveler to find out about it and optimize what they like for their best voyage.

 

nancy

[newmexicoNita]

Tell me it,s not so. As a five time RCL cruiser I,m thinking about an Ncl cruise next year. From what I.m reading on this site I,m not sure I,d like it. With freestyle Iwould not expect to wait in line for food. I find this absurd. I read about ten or twenty minute waits! Also with the relaxed dress code I would not care to have dinner or any other meal with someone in sandles and tanktops reeking of the pool. I've read too that the crews have a severe case of the mumbles.Shows are crowded. (1 or 2 shows a night??) The best reviews seem to come from first time cruisers who don,t know any better so i came here for your advice. Thanks so much.

No, the best reviews do not come from first time cruisers, I don't know where or what you are reading. That being said, and the impressions you have gotten are all wrong, but with the attitude you already have I think you might be better off cruising another line. You are prepared to hate NCL, most likely you will be looking for everything wrong just to satisfy yourself.

 

Nita

[beer1234]

I poke fun at no one and wish to offend no one either! I simply stated what what I found and asked for fresh advice. What I need are intellegent answers Johnny not you trying to read my mind.

[Toyz711]

it's like a gossip game...with NCL the target. so fun to hear what "others" say and they are SOOOOO wrong. but they still enjoy saying it. when i read the boards for the other cruiselines, it's the same thing.

the worst reviews come from people who have never been on these ships.

BTW, when it comes to travel, i make my own judgements..otherwise i would never go anywhere.

NCL...resort casual dress code..the dress code is posted on the website, but, no, tank tops and shorts are not allowed in any of the dining rooms after 5pm.

depends on the ship and how many dining rooms, if you have any waits. on our last cruise, if there was a line at one dining room...you go over the the other...no wait. early or late diners, usually, have no wait. same as a local restaurant where you live. the newer, bigger ships with many dining venues spread the crowds out better then the older ships with few dining areas.

all cruise ships have 1 or 2 shows a night, don't understand what is being discussed there. you have an early show and a late show, same as every other mass market cruise line. 1 show a night for special entertainment.

you mean that everyone NCL hires is sub-par, that seems silly to me. why would a company that is in the travel business make it a point to hire people who mumbles? sorry, but you did say "everyone". "everyone" we saw on our last cruise was very friendly and always had a HELLO for us when we walked by. same as with any cruise or travel..you see and hear what you want.

like any gossip, it gets twisted and changed as it spreads.

[TPEINC1958]

I poke fun at no one and wish to offend no one either! I simply stated what what I found and asked for fresh advice. What I need are intellegent (spelling???) answers Johnny not you trying to read my mind.

 

Sorry, "beery! Not trying to read your mind. As I stated in my post if you had read the whole thing:

 

 

"If this is a real request for information "Dispachcops" has given a good start to the answers.

 

But, to me this looks like someone poking a little fun at NCL. A nice summary of all the pots shots that are consistently taken at freestyle. All of which are consistently proven wrong.

 

Come on back beer dude, and re-ask the question, in not such a finger pointing way, and you will get all of the information you can handle to make an "educated" decision."

 

John...just John :rolleyes:

[bandit0000]

Here is the link to my review from the NCL Jewel from which I returned this last Sunday. Hopefully it will dispel some of the myths you have read about.

Just to add, ours was a full cruise, but there was always somewhere to sit to watch the shows, even for latecomers. I found if you arrived around 10 mins early for a show, you could have your pick of seats. No mumbles from any staff I met. All very pleasant & helpful.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=620984

 

Why not give them a try, you never know you may prefer NCL to RCI, I know I do.

Lisa:)

[eric-n-beth]

We will be taking our forth cruise aboard NCL next spring and since our first cruise with them, they have moved to the Freesyle Cruising. My wife and I really like it. It allows us to eat where we want and when we want.

 

Waiting 20 minutes to be seated for dinner is not a huge obstical for us because we assume that the same may happen when we go to any land based restaurant between 6:00 and 8:00 at night.

 

There are evenings when we will wait to get a table for two and there are other evenings when we request two seats at any table and we make friends with people we would never have met.

 

I agree that the attire may be casual but I have never been offended in any of the "sit down" restaurants. The buffet style cafes will have your bathing suits and flip flops.

 

The idea of going to a more relaxed option and allowing people to wear jeans does not bother me too much. Living in Portland, Oregon all my life, jeans and Birkenstocks are the norm, not the exception :). Why anyone would choose to wear jeans in the Caribbean in beyond me (IMHO)...to heavy and hot...but to each their own.

 

We do not typically take in too many of the show because we choose to dine later and the shows have often started or are just beginning to when we are finishing our eveing meal. I can not comment but it would not surprise me if the main show is packed...you put 2,000 people on a floating island where the main entertainment can only accomodate 300 +/- guests and it will fill up. We choose to go the the piano bar, a jazz lounge, etc with friends and have a drink and chat. Again...just our preference.

 

I'm not quite sure how to address the mumbles issue. We have never had an issue communicating our desires with any of the crew members on an NCL ship nor have we had any issues comprehending their responses. I have always found the crew members to be very attentive, polite, accomodating and professional.

 

If we had experienced some of these issues we likely would not be returning for another cruise. As I'm sure you are aware, each cruise line has its assets and detractions. Do I think that NCL does everything the best? NO WAY! Do I believe that I get a great vacation for the money? ABSOLUTELY!

 

We do have a limited set of experience having only sailed Princess and NCL and I feel that Princess does some things better than NCL but everytime we go to book another cruise and I evaluate price, itinerary, time, ship, etc, we are always please to go back to NCL.

 

I hope this gives you some useful informaiton. I would encourage you to try NCL, keep an open mind and compare it to your experiences on RCL. The worst case scenario is that you will realize that RCL is the line that suits your taste the best, and the best case scenario is that you will find out that you were missing something that you really like on NCL and you will begin booking future cruises on your new favorite cruise line.

 

Good luck in your decision and continue to ask the tough questions...that is the best way to inform yourself of what to expect.

 

Regards,

 

Eric

[beer1234]

Perhaps I was reading member reviews on an older ship. Upon re- reading my post it does sound sort of bad. So sorry all!! I was planning going on the Gem which I think is a new ship so some of the bad things may not apply. By the way for those of you who have cruised other lines how does the quality of the food compare!

[soccerref]

Tell me it,s not so. As a five time RCL cruiser I,m thinking about an Ncl cruise next year. From what I.m reading on this site I,m not sure I,d like it. With freestyle Iwould not expect to wait in line for food. I find this absurd. I read about ten or twenty minute waits! Also with the relaxed dress code I would not care to have dinner or any other meal with someone in sandles and tanktops reeking of the pool. I've read too that the crews have a severe case of the mumbles.Shows are crowded. (1 or 2 shows a night??) The best reviews seem to come from first time cruisers who don,t know any better so i came here for your advice. Thanks so much.

 

Hi Beer1234. My DH and I have done 15 cruise. These have been 2 on Carnivel, 2 with Star cruises in the Far East, 3 on RCI, 1 on Princess and 7 with NCL. We have just returned from Alaska on the Pearl and had a wonderful time. We are quite laid back but appreciate good food and service. I would cruise any line if the price, itinerary and timing are right but we return again and again to NCL because we enjoy the 'freestyle' so much. Where on this earth, in a hotel, do you have to sit with the same people at the same table, at the same time every night? There are very few times where we have had to wait to be seated particularly as we are flexible and will sit alone or with others. The most we have waited is 10 minutes and would find this acceptable at a land based restaurant where we hadn't made a reservation. On this cruise we ate in 5 different 'free' venues and 2 'supplement' restaurants and enjoyed the food in all 7 - there are very few cruise lines with such varied choices. We never saw people inappropriately dressed in the main dining venues (or smelled people) but it is good not to have to worry too much about 'posh frocks' and 'DJ' especially with the restrictive weight allowances on flights.

 

Every crew member was pleasant and extremely polite and helpful. We never had trouble finding seats at the shows - 2 a night (7.15 and 9.30) - and planned our meal times round the shows depending on whether we felt hungry before the first show. The great thing is not having to rush to be ready for a set time and not standing with the 'herd' waiting for the dining room doors to be opened.

 

It is amazing how many other cruise lines are now adopting some form of 'freestyle' dining. Princess and Holland America already have it and RCI are investigating the possibility.

 

When all is said and done, a 7 day trip out of the whole of your life is not much so give it a try with an open mind and, if you hate it, go back to a more traditional line.

Best wishes SR

[TPEINC1958]

Sailing on the Gem should be the best possible scenario to trying Freestyle. When NCL rolls out a new ship they select the best of the best from throughout the fleet to staff this new ship.

 

Along with Klaus as the Hotel Director these new ships come out running like a well oiled machine. Little inconvenience are remedied very quickly by his staff.

 

I have sailed on 4 of the mainstream lines and find the food to very similar in quality. Some present a little better than others but all in all cruise line food is quite good.

 

John

[garycarla]

We are about to do our 4th cruise on NCL, but I will admit it is not for everyone.

 

In particular if you like to dress up and make dinner a bit for structured as cruiselines have done for years, then NCL might not work. There is a reason the structured sitting times has worked for many years and I believe it will stay around on many ships for a long time.

 

We have loved Seabourn, Queen Mary, Princess and NCL. Each is a bit different. And, each time you cruise the experience will vary as well depending on the mix of passengers and current "mood" of the staff.

[beer1234]

Thanks John. I think I'll give it a try. This trip has a free booze rider so if I don't like it I'll relax my way through.

[momof5js]

Almost afraid to post my response, as I'm afraid of getting yelled at.........but here goes.

 

We were a first time cruiser in July on POH. We had read & studied different cruise lines. And also spoke to 3 friends & family members that have cruised more than once. We were warned about NCL but my husband was dead set on doing NCL & Hawaii.

 

First off, we LOVED Hawaii & would do it again in a heartbeat. However I don't think we'd do NCL again for along time. We were lucky in the fact we were in a suite so we got priority restaurant reservations & show seatings. But we spoke to several on board who were having nightmares with trying to get a dinner reservation. We saw more than one couple at more than one restaurant turned away because they were told the restaurant was full or there was too long a wait.

 

Food we found to be nothing great. Service was below average. My husband said he felt the food was no better than Denny's or Country Buffet. A couple of times on the buffet the food was cold or dry.

 

We did see a man in shorts & a lady in clearing a bathing suit cover up dress sitting at the table next to us in Alizar's (main dining room). We saw jeans, shorts with holes in them. Resort casual has gone to resort tacky. We were very disappointed in the dress code (or lack of it).

 

That being said, we did have a wonderful cruise the two of us. We made the most of it & decided we definetly had more fun off the ship than on it. And that's sad.

 

We will cruise again & are in the process of planning a Disney cruise right now.

 

So if you're only wanting beautiful ports & not expecting more than a floating hotel, then try NCL. If you're wanting a 5 star cruise experience stick with your tried & true.

 

Sorry if I offended anyone. Just stating my side.

[garycarla]

...This trip has a free booze rider so if I don't like it I'll relax my way through.

 

What is a free booze rider - and where do I sign up?

[garycarla]

Almost afraid to post my response, as I'm afraid of getting yelled at.........but here goes.

 

We were a first time cruiser in July on POH. ......So if you're only wanting beautiful ports & not expecting more than a floating hotel, then try NCL. If you're wanting a 5 star cruise experience stick with your tried & true.

 

Sorry if I offended anyone. Just stating my side.

 

Some very good points, but they apply primarily to NCLA, not NCL.

 

Based on talking to people that have traveled NCLA and the reviews on this board, I would never take NCLA, even if free, but will continue to cruise NCL. Not saying NCL is the best, but there is a BIG difference between NCLA and NCL.

[momof5js]

Some very good points, but they apply primarily to NCLA, not NCL.

 

Based on talking to people that have traveled NCLA and the reviews on this board, I would never take NCLA, even if free, but will continue to cruise NCL. Not saying NCL is the best, but there is a BIG difference between NCLA and NCL.

 

 

Thanks for pointing out the difference about NCL & NCLA. I have heard the European based ships with international crews are MUCH MUCH BETTER. We may someday give NCL a try someday.

 

Thanks again for stating the difference.

[TPEINC1958]

 

 

We did see a man in shorts & a lady in clearing a bathing suit cover up dress sitting at the table next to us in Alizar's (main dining room).

 

 

If this was during dinner service, that is completely unacceptable. If however it was during lunch service then everything is fine since that is acceptable.

 

I'll say it again, I don't believe everyone will like Freestyle. I know people that absolutely love the structure of traditional dining. That is their choice. You did not to seem to like Freestyle, but still enjoyed your cruise. Good on ya.

 

John

[momof5js]

If this was during dinner service, that is completely unacceptable. If however it was during lunch service then everything is fine since that is acceptable.

 

 

John,

 

This was 7:00 at night in the main dining room. This is why we felt it was so unacceptable.

[tomk3212]

Perhaps I was reading member reviews on an older ship. Upon re- reading my post it does sound sort of bad. So sorry all!! I was planning going on the Gem which I think is a new ship so some of the bad things may not apply. By the way for those of you who have cruised other lines how does the quality of the food compare!

 

Hey, O Beery one...lol

 

We've sailed on Celebrity before & found the food on NCL just as good. We are also going on the Gem (out of Barcelona in November) and cannot wait!!

 

Garycarla is absolutely correct; NCL & Freestyle cruising is NOT for everyone. My in-laws (who are used to Celebrity & HAL) took the Jewel out of Miami earlier this year (they're snowbirds). They liked cruise but we could tell they weren't thrilled by it & would have preferred sitting with other people, set dinner seatings, etc. Don't think they'll cruise NCL again but, as they say, "that's what makes a horse race."

 

Will you wait for dinner? Yes, if you insist on dining at peak hour (7PM - 8PM). We usually dine between 5:30 & 6 & the only night we end up waiting is lobster/filet mignon night. So plan accordingly. They'll also give you a beeper so you can walk around the ship until your table is ready.

 

You didn't mention the specialty restaurants but you also may want to give them a try. There is a cover charge but you do NOT wait for a table.

 

Will the ship be crowded (as some posters have stated) ? Yes, again if you insist on cruising during peak season (translation: when the kids are out of school!). Our kids are all over 20 (TG!) so we can cruise off-season & not worry as much about the crowds.

 

Finally, to repeat Garycarla's question: what the devil is a "free booze rider"...oh, yeah, and how do we sign up for it?...lol

 

Tom & Eileen

[gcjstri]

Hey Beer1234,

 

I need ta know what the Free Booze Rider is. I will be on my 8th NCL cruise on Sept 29th and my DH and i would love to sign up for the Free Booze Rider.

 

thank u

cindi

P.S. we love NCL, never had a problem with them

[gcjstri]

Hey Beer Guy, i need ta know about the Free Booze Rider ?????

thank u

cindi