On board the Majesty: Aug. 29 to Sept. 5

[billpitcher]

Bermuda is wonderful. Believe all of the good you read, and none of the bad. This was the best vacation destination of my life. The weather was perfect. The locals were friendly. The ocean was warm. It was four days of paradise, and we’ll be back.

 

As for the ship, hmmm.

 

We got what we paid for aboard the Norwegian Majesty. At $100 per person per day, it was much more affordable than flying, staying in a hotel, and dining on our own – but not the luxurious bargain I secretly wished for. All in all, the Majesty met my expectations. I realistically expected Holiday Inn quality, and with a few exceptions – both good and bad – that’s what we got.

 

I was struck by an overall lack of attention to the small things, but maybe that’s how things are nowadays. Restaurants opened a few minutes late and closed early. The pool was never open on time, and when it did finally open, the towels were nowhere to be found. Burned out light bulbs and elevator lights remained dark all week. Windows were on the dirty side. The same droopy flowers we noted at breakfast in the buffet remained at that table all week – as did the two sets of saltshakers with no pepper shaker.

 

It continued, rather annoyingly, with NCL’s professional correspondence. The Freestyle Daily, the menus, and other literature were riddled with errors – spelling, punctuation, etc. Twice the Freestyle Daily came with a week-old date. The disembarking information was three weeks old and credited a captain and cruise director we’d never heard of. It’s fine to recycle information, of course, but you don’t have make it look recycled.

 

We took great amusement at the photo board with key Majesty personnel which managed to misspell one employee’s country of origin. And we got a kick out of a room service menu that had no number for calling room service, as well as the a card telling us to contact the steward for our needs, without giving us a way to contact him. We constantly saw references to the reception desk, even though there was no such thing. I assume the purser’s desk held those responsibilities, but strictly speaking, the purser desk is the money desk, and not the place you’d think about going to ask for clean towels.

 

Those issues aside, the Majesty is not an unpleasant ship.

 

Our cabin, a no-frills inside stateroom, was larger than we expected, and while small, the bathroom was perfectly fine. Our television didn’t get all of the channels it was supposed to, and our bathroom didn’t have cold water in the sink, but other than that, no complaints. The stewards’ service was efficient. We were never disturbed, and we had fresh ice and Andes candies every night. One of the gentlemen knew of my wife’s love for the green ones instead of the gold, and we found eight or 10 on her pillow every night.

 

The entertainment was certainly a high point. The acrobat/impressionist for the first half of the week was surprisingly enjoyable, because I don’t usually like cooky stuff, and the comedian for the second half, Ted Holum, was as funny of a guy as I’ve ever heard. The staff entertainment was good to excellent, although we unfortunately had to leave one act early because we’d grown fed up with the waitstaff. During a sparsely attended tribute to the big-band era, we seemingly couldn’t get through a beat without being asked whether we were interested in a drink. After six solicitations by the middle of the third song, we left, unable to enjoy the performance. The poolside band was excellent, and the assorted piano players were good as well.

 

The food runs the gamut, but I’ll give points for creativity. The two fifth-deck restaurants always had at least one appetizer and entrée that got my attention, and rarely did they disappoint. We especially enjoyed the soups, although the “cream” soups suspiciously showed up on the menu the same day they stopped serving that flavor of ice cream. Dinners were the winner, and lunches were also good. Breakfast had potential, but until that kitchen staff learns how to poach an egg, I’ll reserve the high marks. Out of eight poached eggs, only one even flirted with being poached. The other seven were completely solid.

 

The buffet was serviceable, but, in my opinion, pretty limited. No soups, few salads. We had one lunch there and only returned on the mornings that the restaurant closed early. (I kid you not, we left our staterooms at 9:20 three mornings and were turned away each time.) The pool deck also has a 24-hour restaurant serving burgers, dogs, pizza, etc. No complaints there. But our favorite place was the pasta café tucked away on Deck 9 in the Royal Observatory. Blink and you’ll miss it. But it was small and intimate, with a piano player, excellent food, and the best service on the ship. Late night snacks were OK, but nothing special. The highlight of the chocolate buffet was ice sculptures, which doesn't say much about the pastry chefs.

 

(The menu at LeBistro, with the $15 per person cover, was impressive, but not impressive enough for the Mrs. We skipped it. They do offer a few cooking classes, though, which are worth the time.)

 

Speaking of service, this is the tradeoff with NCL’s Freestyle concept. I enjoyed eating whenever I wanted, and dressing casually, but I would have preferred to get to know the waitstaff. We only had one or two repeats, and they wouldn’t have recognized us from Adam. I suspect service would have been better with a steady waitstaff – especially one dependent on gratuities – and I also imagine I’d have been able to pick up their accents easier, rather than having to say “Excuse me?” at every meal.

 

A few random notes:

 

THE ART AUCTION: It’s a joke. Well, maybe not, but don’t have your expectations too high there. The pace is plodding, and the “free” artwork carries a $35 shipping charge, plus you have to apply for credit from the art gallery.

 

 

PHOTOS: There is no shortage of opportunities for having your photo taken, but we were disappointed with all of the prints of us. The camera was tilted, the light was too bright, etc. And, very annoyingly, the photographer had camera malfunctions on three separate instances while taking our photo, causing a line to form behind us each time.

 

SOLITUDE: While at sea with 400 kids, we surprisingly found a few places to find peace and quiet. First, try the Royal Observatory. This is a smoke-free bar, and until the Pasta Café opens at 5:30, it’s desolate. We’d take games up there, relax there, watch TV there – and usually be all by ourselves. Runner-up would be the board room, where the only people would either be Bridge fanatics or Scrabble players.

 

DRINKS: Only iced tea and water are available during the day, and you have to go to Deck 10 to get them, unless you find a friendly bartender. Soft drinks are $1.50, which isn’t completely unreasonable for a ship, and alcoholic beverages are obviously on the pricey side. (Don’t miss the drinks in a monkey head.)

 

One final note. We were a little disturbed by what we perceived to be a bit of an adult tone even when children were present. The cruise director, Pedro, was very pleasant, but some of his jokes made me glad our child was at home. I’m not a prude or anything. I just think it’s inappropriate humor for family activites, and I’ll address this with a letter to NCL.

 

Any questions? I know I’m only skimming the surface. Bring ’em on.