MY NCL Pearl review Oct 14-19

[coley123]

My husband and I booked our cruise just three weeks before it departed. We tried to book through *****.com, but were told the cruise was sold out. When I called NCL they found us a room, a balcony on the ninth floor. We flew out of Toronto the night before and took a cab to the Marriott Biscayne Bay. I was disappointed with the room for $300. You can’t beat the location or view (we watched our ship arrive in the morning) but the hotel is showing its age. We have stayed at other Marriott hotels in LA that were cheaper and nicer. Regardless, we took a cab over to Bayside to shop for a bit and then walked back. Later that night we had a cab take us to a nearby complex with a Target and Marshalls.

 

The next morning we took a cab over to the port around noon. There was a long line, but good people watching to entertain us. Took about an hour to get on the boat. Our rooms weren’t ready until 1:30 p.m., so we went to the Garden Café for lunch. We were impressed with the variety of food, but preferred to eat at Summer Palace for the rest of the trip. In my opinion, when on vacation, I’ll take fine dining, fancy decor and multiple courses over a buffet any day.

 

We were very impressed with our room. It wasn’t large, but certainly comfortable. The bed was excellent and the duvet was comfy. I loved our balcony and don’t think I could ever cruise without one. I preferred sun tanning in private — the crowded pool deck with everyone packed in like sardines was not our scene.

 

As soon as we got on the boat we made our dinner reservations and headed to Cagney’s Steakhouse the first night. The food was good, but I will say my husband found the meat he had later in the week at Indigo just as good, if not better. If you are on a tight budget, I would stick to the non-fee restaurants. We were always impressed with the food. The breakfast buffets were at the Garden Café were excellent, I loved the French toast, while my husband enjoyed the oatmeal. We learned to pass by the inside lines to go to the buffet outside on the back of the ship. The lines were always shorter, especially for omelets.

 

More about the food: Lunches at the Summer Palace are worth the extra time to eat. The cold soups were to die for. We always picked the ice cream for dessert. We were disappointed towards the end of the cruise when we couldn’t get into some of the restaurants we wanted because they were booked up. You really do need to book early the day before if you want to eat at a reasonable hour. We ate at Blue Lagoon one night and enjoyed the food. Though if you’re hungry for wings, order more than one plate as you only get five at a time. The midnight chocolate buffet was absolutely sinful, my husband and I nearly made ourselves sick.

 

We also ate at Teppenaki. While we enjoyed the food and the experience it wasn’t the highlight of our trip as we had hoped. The performance is just a lot of banging and noise at points and the experience really does depend on your tablemates…I’ll leave it at that ☺ Also beware of flying food!

 

We aren’t big drinkers and didn’t want to spend lots of money on booze. We were shocked to see how much people were drinking and could only imagine their final bills. It can be dangerous when you pay with a room card and don’t know how much you’ve spent until the final day. We did learn a very valuable lesson, if you are going to drink, skip the collector’s glass. These drinks cost $8 plus tip, while the drink in a regular glass was only $6. (Not to mention our room steward later removed our glasses anyway) Plus beware of the NCL tip “scam.” When your waiter brings you the bill, there is a line for a tip. Below it states 15 per cent has already been added. I think that’s a bit greedy and was annoyed we added a dollar each time before realizing the tip was already included. Also just ask for regular water at your meals instead of the bottled or sparkling they offer.

 

Casino: We enjoyed the atmosphere here, but walked away losers. We found the slots tighter than other casinos and tried to steer clear of the casino after losing the first few nights. We also played bingo the final day, which was fun but probably not worth $60 for half an hour. I’m cheap, can you tell?

 

Shows: We skipped most of the shows, but regretted that after enjoying the last two. Sealegs was hilarious, though it wasn’t meant to be funny. My husband and I nearly wet our pants when the middle-aged lead singer offered his take of Justin Timberlake’s Sexy Back. We’re still giggling about it a week later. The final night we watched Sharkbait, which was amazing. They were so funny (for the right reasons) and I would see them again in a second. They are not the typical juggling act! The Second City troupe was also good, but get there early. We were so far back we couldn’t see and left.

 

 

Some other highlights: my favourite spot on the whole ship was the corner lounge bed at the Spinnaker Lounge at the top of the ship. I spent many hours napping and reading there. The piano player at the Champagne lounge is excellent. I enjoyed listening to her while my husband smoked a cigar and enjoyed a 12-year-old whiskey in the neighbouring Cigar Lounge. We also found all the staff every friendly and the ship was beautiful.

 

Some lowlights: We grew tired of waiters constantly asking us if we wanted a drink, though it got better as the week went on. Ordering pop at meals was a hassle as you had to hand other your card each time. We also hated the ship’s photographers popping up every few hours. We were horrified to find out the pictures cost $15 to buy — I think $10 would be much more reasonable and they would sell twice as many.

 

The one real pitfall of our trip happened on the first stop in Cozumel. My husband woke up to an upset digestive system. We had booked the ATV jungle tour that day and he decided to give it a try. But within minutes of being off the ship, he felt awful again. I talked to the NCL shore excursion staffer who told me if we wanted our money back my husband had to go to the doctor. The excursion was $160 and the doctor’s visit was $100. Well, my husband went and the doctor put him in quarantine in our room for 24 hours in case he had a bug. They didn’t charge for the visit though. I understand the precaution, but it was a real downer for us, especially when he felt fine an hour later. I ventured out to see Cozumel by myself, but quickly grew tired to the catcalls and haggling over prices. This is a port I would definitely do a shore excursion, as the shopping is mainly a tourist trap.

 

The next day my husband was given the clear to leave the room ( thank god for the great movie channels) and learned his lesson not to over indulge at the late night buffet on the pool deck. We got off in Grand Cayman and walked to the local dive store. We had hoped to rent snorkel gear, but were told you can only buy it. So we bought one set and took to Cemetery Beach based on reviews here. The beach was beautiful, but we saw hardly any fish. I think you had to swim out quite far to see anything and that just didn’t seem safe to us when only one person could go at a time.

 

We took the bus back to the port and enjoyed shopping. We had lunch at Guy Harvey’s and highly recommend it. My husband was almost drooling over his shrimp pasta. My crab cakes were excellent. Lunch for the two of us was $46 US.

 

Overall we enjoyed the cruise, especially the dining. We divided our time nicely between napping and eating, each gaining 3 pounds! We would sail NCL again, but likely take a longer cruise that had more stops. Next trip, hopefully Alaska.

[johnritt]

Glad to hear that you that you enjoyed your cruise. We're set for the Pearl in April and are really looking forward to it.

 

Btw, did you try the bowling?

 

Thanks, John

[Twinsfan5]

Sounds like a fun cruise! I'm going in three weeks. Did they ship feel crowded to you? How was the weather...sunny and hot?

[coley123]

We didn't bowl, which I regret. I always forgot to bring socks down. We saw lots of people having a blast doing it.

 

The ship only seemed crowded on the top deck. The pool area and sun deck were packed!!! The only other time we felt crowded was the final night at the Spinnaker Lounge for the Second City show. It was packed and we couldn't see the stage so we left. Overall though there was a great vibe on the ship of people coming and going.

 

The weather was amazing the entire trip. Miami was overcast, but warm. The rest of the trip was sunny and in the 30's. I have the burn to prove it!

[Beachbum1944]

I wish I could only gain 3 lbs.:rolleyes: I usually gain about 15 lbs.:eek: Did you venture up to the freestyle deck? We will probably spend most of our time up there.

[SweetpeaOne]

Thanks for sharing your review. Sorry to hear your husband had to be stuck in his cabin for 24 hrs. Glad he felt better...

[janiceah]

Hi, I heard the beds in the spinnaker lounge were pretty hard to come by. How did you manage to snag one as that looks like a perfect place to spend some time to me!! Janice

[Rabbit58]

Thanks for taking the time to post this review.Since this is a new ship it is nice to read about your experiences.I am even more ready now for our Nov 30th cruise....Bummer about the $300.00 Hotel room as well....Oh well right!..Thanks again..Edd & Maudie from Tucson:D

[newmexicoNita]

My husband and I booked our cruise just three weeks before it departed. We tried to book through *****.com, but were told the cruise was sold out. When I called NCL they found us a room, a balcony on the ninth floor. We flew out of Toronto the night before and took a cab to the Marriott Biscayne Bay. I was disappointed with the room for $300. You can’t beat the location or view (we watched our ship arrive in the morning) but the hotel is showing its age. We have stayed at other Marriott hotels in LA that were cheaper and nicer. Regardless, we took a cab over to Bayside to shop for a bit and then walked back. Later that night we had a cab take us to a nearby complex with a Target and Marshalls.

 

The next morning we took a cab over to the port around noon. There was a long line, but good people watching to entertain us. Took about an hour to get on the boat. Our rooms weren’t ready until 1:30 p.m., so we went to the Garden Café for lunch. We were impressed with the variety of food, but preferred to eat at Summer Palace for the rest of the trip. In my opinion, when on vacation, I’ll take fine dining, fancy decor and multiple courses over a buffet any day.

 

We were very impressed with our room. It wasn’t large, but certainly comfortable. The bed was excellent and the duvet was comfy. I loved our balcony and don’t think I could ever cruise without one. I preferred sun tanning in private — the crowded pool deck with everyone packed in like sardines was not our scene.

 

As soon as we got on the boat we made our dinner reservations and headed to Cagney’s Steakhouse the first night. The food was good, but I will say my husband found the meat he had later in the week at Indigo just as good, if not better. If you are on a tight budget, I would stick to the non-fee restaurants. We were always impressed with the food. The breakfast buffets were at the Garden Café were excellent, I loved the French toast, while my husband enjoyed the oatmeal. We learned to pass by the inside lines to go to the buffet outside on the back of the ship. The lines were always shorter, especially for omelets.

 

More about the food: Lunches at the Summer Palace are worth the extra time to eat. The cold soups were to die for. We always picked the ice cream for dessert. We were disappointed towards the end of the cruise when we couldn’t get into some of the restaurants we wanted because they were booked up. You really do need to book early the day before if you want to eat at a reasonable hour. We ate at Blue Lagoon one night and enjoyed the food. Though if you’re hungry for wings, order more than one plate as you only get five at a time. The midnight chocolate buffet was absolutely sinful, my husband and I nearly made ourselves sick.

 

We also ate at Teppenaki. While we enjoyed the food and the experience it wasn’t the highlight of our trip as we had hoped. The performance is just a lot of banging and noise at points and the experience really does depend on your tablemates…I’ll leave it at that ☺ Also beware of flying food!

 

We aren’t big drinkers and didn’t want to spend lots of money on booze. We were shocked to see how much people were drinking and could only imagine their final bills. It can be dangerous when you pay with a room card and don’t know how much you’ve spent until the final day. We did learn a very valuable lesson, if you are going to drink, skip the collector’s glass. These drinks cost $8 plus tip, while the drink in a regular glass was only $6. (Not to mention our room steward later removed our glasses anyway) Plus beware of the NCL tip “scam.” When your waiter brings you the bill, there is a line for a tip. Below it states 15 per cent has already been added. I think that’s a bit greedy and was annoyed we added a dollar each time before realizing the tip was already included. Also just ask for regular water at your meals instead of the bottled or sparkling they offer.

 

Casino: We enjoyed the atmosphere here, but walked away losers. We found the slots tighter than other casinos and tried to steer clear of the casino after losing the first few nights. We also played bingo the final day, which was fun but probably not worth $60 for half an hour. I’m cheap, can you tell?

 

Shows: We skipped most of the shows, but regretted that after enjoying the last two. Sealegs was hilarious, though it wasn’t meant to be funny. My husband and I nearly wet our pants when the middle-aged lead singer offered his take of Justin Timberlake’s Sexy Back. We’re still giggling about it a week later. The final night we watched Sharkbait, which was amazing. They were so funny (for the right reasons) and I would see them again in a second. They are not the typical juggling act! The Second City troupe was also good, but get there early. We were so far back we couldn’t see and left.

 

 

Some other highlights: my favourite spot on the whole ship was the corner lounge bed at the Spinnaker Lounge at the top of the ship. I spent many hours napping and reading there. The piano player at the Champagne lounge is excellent. I enjoyed listening to her while my husband smoked a cigar and enjoyed a 12-year-old whiskey in the neighbouring Cigar Lounge. We also found all the staff every friendly and the ship was beautiful.

 

Some lowlights: We grew tired of waiters constantly asking us if we wanted a drink, though it got better as the week went on. Ordering pop at meals was a hassle as you had to hand other your card each time. We also hated the ship’s photographers popping up every few hours. We were horrified to find out the pictures cost $15 to buy — I think $10 would be much more reasonable and they would sell twice as many.

 

The one real pitfall of our trip happened on the first stop in Cozumel. My husband woke up to an upset digestive system. We had booked the ATV jungle tour that day and he decided to give it a try. But within minutes of being off the ship, he felt awful again. I talked to the NCL shore excursion staffer who told me if we wanted our money back my husband had to go to the doctor. The excursion was $160 and the doctor’s visit was $100. Well, my husband went and the doctor put him in quarantine in our room for 24 hours in case he had a bug. They didn’t charge for the visit though. I understand the precaution, but it was a real downer for us, especially when he felt fine an hour later. I ventured out to see Cozumel by myself, but quickly grew tired to the catcalls and haggling over prices. This is a port I would definitely do a shore excursion, as the shopping is mainly a tourist trap.

 

The next day my husband was given the clear to leave the room ( thank god for the great movie channels) and learned his lesson not to over indulge at the late night buffet on the pool deck. We got off in Grand Cayman and walked to the local dive store. We had hoped to rent snorkel gear, but were told you can only buy it. So we bought one set and took to Cemetery Beach based on reviews here. The beach was beautiful, but we saw hardly any fish. I think you had to swim out quite far to see anything and that just didn’t seem safe to us when only one person could go at a time.

 

We took the bus back to the port and enjoyed shopping. We had lunch at Guy Harvey’s and highly recommend it. My husband was almost drooling over his shrimp pasta. My crab cakes were excellent. Lunch for the two of us was $46 US.

 

Overall we enjoyed the cruise, especially the dining. We divided our time nicely between napping and eating, each gaining 3 pounds! We would sail NCL again, but likely take a longer cruise that had more stops. Next trip, hopefully Alaska.

 

thanks for your very objective review, sounds like fun and yet, I agree, a 5 day cruise isn't the same. We have done a few as well as 4 days one, I doubt, unless it was something very unusual we would do any shorter than 7 days. As for the wings in Blue Lagoon, I just found the same thing on the Star, hardly enough to get a taste.

 

Thanks again for letting us share your experience.

 

Nita

[vacation fool]

Coley123-thanks for the review. We are going on 11/11. The restaurant you ate lunch at in Cozumel-Guy Harvey's. By any chance is it owned by the same Guy Harvey that does all the fishing paintings and shirts? Just wondering because my hubby is a fan of his. Thanks:)

[coley123]

Thanks for all the nice feedback. I found the beds in the spinnaker lounge easy to snag during the afternoons. At night they were near impossible to come by.

And the restaurant is indeed owned by the same guy and decorated with his work. He was even there the same day we were!

[CruisinAround]

Seems like this also happened on the 11/30 sailing. . . I just got a call from one of my clients who were both quarantined for 2 days.

[wxtrix]

Seems like this also happened on the 11/30 sailing. . . I just got a call from one of my clients who were both quarantined for 2 days.

 

 

except her husband didn't have Noro.

 

anyway there is a lengthy thread on the Noro outbreak already underway.

[2boyzmom]

Who knows what he had? Vomiting and or dirrahea definitely could have been noro...

[LindaRH]

Coley123-thanks for the review. We are going on 11/11. The restaurant you ate lunch at in Cozumel-Guy Harvey's. By any chance is it owned by the same Guy Harvey that does all the fishing paintings and shirts? Just wondering because my hubby is a fan of his. Thanks:)

 

Speaking of Guy Harvey...we were on a western Caribbean cruise. It was Grand Cayman, I think, where Guy Harvey just moved to from Hawaii...first I can't believe he gave up Hawaii for Grand Cayman..oh well. We just happened to be in his new studio shop when he came walking in. My son, who was 17 at the time, was barely containing his excitement. It turns out my son is also a fan of Guy Harvey so you can imagine the emotions. In a nutshell - Guy Harvey was one of the sweetest, nicest people I had the pleasure of meeting. My son got a wonderful picture of him with his autograph along with a piece of his work..all autographed. It was a wonderful birthday present for my son. It was his birthday on that day. We got great photo's together too.