Would I be dissappointed if I went with NCL? when I love RCCL

[skyw]

I want to take a short trip with my DH but don't want to break the bank. Unfortunately, I only have a few dates that we can go. The prices are pretty high on RCCL. (navigator). I see a military discount on NCL jewel that is quite reasonable but am afraid to book out of fear of disappointment. We are in our 40's and active. On sea days we like to work out, do some tanning and some sport (putt putt etc). What are your thoughts?

[ondeckatsea]

If you got a good price, go for it. The Jewel is a nice ship. You will see a lot of differences between NCL and Royal Caribbean but if the dates, prices and itinerary are what you want I think you'll be fine. In my opinion, having cruised on both lines, RCI comes out ahead, but I'd never turn down a nice cruise on any ship. It's good to change lines once in a while. They are all basically nice but there are differences. You might even like it better!

[green eyed lady]

We were on NCL Dawn last Nov and hated it. Service was way below RCCL...we would not sail NCL again unless it was free! :D

[icanflossu]

I've cruised both, we alternate year to year. Honestly, I've come to love things about each one. I guess it would depend what kind of cruiser you are. We're easy, we'll go with the flow. I do a ton of reading ahead of time and I usually know what to expect. I have never ever had bad service on NCL. I think some people think that unless the staff is kissing their butts they aren't getting good service. I'm not like that.

[lvtotrvl1]

I also prefer NCL over RCCL. I recommend trying it...you may be surprised! Personally any cruise is good for me.

[mikefast]

We have sailed both, and though we prefer RCCL we sure wouldn't hesitate to go on NCL again.

[jackdiamond]

Any cruise is an acceptable cruise; however, Radiance class or larger is a far superior choice. On the other hand, Majesty or Sovereign may be in the same class as NCL.

[willysgrandma]

There are big differences between RCL and NCL, particularly with service and the actual cabins. There is no assigned dining on NCL, it is all Freestyle. And it is a very casual line - they allow jeans at dinner. The dedicate one restaurant to those who want to dress formally - the rest you can dress however you like, even on formal night.

 

I prefer RCL but if you have no other choice but NCl - no cruise is ever a bad cruise. Just don't expect RCL standards.

[tinker]

We have sailed four different lines and I agree that the destination, price, embarkation point and itinerary sway my decision making rather than the line.

 

Of the four lines experienced, RC is our favorite and Celebrity was actually our least favorite cruise and that opinion stems from the ship alyout, most entertainment geared to the much older cruiser and at the risk of being flamed, fellow cruise passengers with rude behaviors.

 

I would rate our experience as follows and wouldn't rule out any of the lines for future sailings, except maybe Celebrity. As you can see, our two cruises for 2008 both happen to be on NCL, as the itinerary, embarkation and pricing were the best for our needs this year.

 

1. RCCL

2. Norwegian

3. Carnival

4. Celebrity

[petesweet]

Both lines are great, although different. Depends on the ship. Always read the reviews. The Jewel, which you mentioned, is highly rated for the most part.

 

In today's newsletter from Frommer, it lists that very ship as one of the best in mainstream cruise lines:

 

Top Mainstream Ships

Norwegian Cruise Line: Norwegian Jewel, Norwegian Pearl, Norwegian Jade, Norwegian Gem (Five stars)

 

To be honest, my preference is RCCL, but I wouldn't turn down a cruise on NCL. We cruise both.

[98Charlie]

I want to take a short trip with my DH but don't want to break the bank. Unfortunately, I only have a few dates that we can go. The prices are pretty high on RCCL. (navigator). I see a military discount on NCL jewel that is quite reasonable but am afraid to book out of fear of disappointment. We are in our 40's and active. On sea days we like to work out, do some tanning and some sport (putt putt etc). What are your thoughts?

 

 

Having sailed both lines as well as several others, I'd say if you sail with an open mind about Freestyle dining, you would be happy on the Jewel even though your heart belongs to RCCL.

 

Freestyle cruising is not for everyone. People who enjoy having a set dining time and set dining partners sometimes have a hard time dealing with the freestyle dining concept.

 

DH & I enjoy freestyle as well as set time dining and select our cruises based on itinerary more than the ship or dining style itself.

 

That being said, we actually prefer NCL over RCCL in several areas. Dining options and food quality are at the top of our list.

 

While others have posted that RCCL service is above NCL, we have never experienced that sensation and would rank both lies equal in stateroom service. However, some of the worse dining experiences we have had in 20 cruises over 5 cruiselines have been on RCCL ships.

 

I'd say if you like the itinerary of the Jewel and the price is right - go for it with an open mind about freestyle dining concept.

 

Dianne

[hazz24]

I too have cruised both and have to say that NCL is below RCI. We had an awful staff on our NCL cruise (not because they don't kiss our butts we don't expect that kind of service) staff on our RCI cruises have been outstanding thus far. Food on NCL was good I have no complaints about food. Entertainment was lacking on NCL on our cruise we found that everything seem to shut down by 10:00 unless you wanted to go to the casino. We did not like NCL and so far love RCI (until they provide us with a bad cruise) Good luck with your choice. Happy Cruising

[cruise_lover]

September 2005 I sailed on the Carnival Conquest. January 2007 I sailed on the NCL SUN - I went from a large ship to a small ship. This Sunday I am sailing on the Voyager of the Seas for the first time so I can not help you compare RCL with NCL but I can tell you this. We loved sailing on the SUN even though it was a smaller and much older ship. Most people who say they "hate" NCL over RCL are comparing apples (large mega ships) to oranges (small, older ships). If I had a choice to sail on NCL or not sail at all I would choose to sail on NCL in a heart beat. Its not always what type of ship you are sailing on but what you do, as an individual to make your cruise more enjoyable that counts.

 

Ask yourself two questions:

1. How bad do you want to cruise?
   
2. Do you trust your own judgment enough to make up your own mind on whether or not you will like or dislike a certain cruise line?

[castle701]

Worst experience ever - our one night cruise on the Spirit - remember you get what you pay for....

[negc]

I want to take a short trip with my DH but don't want to break the bank. Unfortunately, I only have a few dates that we can go. The prices are pretty high on RCCL. (navigator). I see a military discount on NCL jewel that is quite reasonable but am afraid to book out of fear of disappointment. We are in our 40's and active. On sea days we like to work out, do some tanning and some sport (putt putt etc). What are your thoughts?

 

If you want the NCL cruise to be exactly like your RCI cruises you may well be disappointed, but if you allow for some differences, you may discover that you like some things about NCL more than RCI and some things about RCI that you find preferable to NCL. They will be different experiences (freestyle dining vs traditional), decor etc. Many, but not all, of the activities available on one line are available on the other, and the gym facilities on both lines, especially with regards to their newest ships, are for the most part state of the art. If you don't concentrate on the differences but enjoy the similarities you should have a good cruise on the Norwegian Jewel. Afterwards you will at least have first hand knowledge to use in comparing the two lines and deciding which is a better fit.:)

[Kimmer727]

We went on NCL in May to Alaska. Never again. We absolutely hated the service and the food. Only good thing was our Penthouse Suite, we had a butler and he was a riot.

I will never stray from Royal or Princess again.

[98Charlie]

We went on NCL in May to Alaska. Never again. We absolutely hated the service and the food. Only good thing was our Penthouse Suite, we had a butler and he was a riot.

I will never stray from Royal or Princess again.

 

 

Sailed the Star 3 times so far, once to Alaska 2 years ago and to the Mex. Rivieria in 2005 and 2007. Had great cruises all 3 times. Only complaint I had was with the Hotel Director on our 2007 cruise. He didn't show up for our CC meeting.:)

 

Dianne

[cruise116antwon]

I sailed on the norwegian spirit last summer, and I actually liked it better than royal. the freestyle is much better and much more convenient

[tray]

Our cruise history: RCL Rhapsody of the Seas, RCL Navigator of the Seas, NCL Sun, NCL Jewel, NCL Pride of Hawaii, and now we are booked on RCL Voyager this March. So, RCL and NCL are all we know so far. I personally thought the food on NCL was much better than any of the dishes we had on either of our RCL cruises, with so many more choices for dining. My DH also preferred the food on NCL. My parents have cruised 26 times (Princess, RCL and Holland America....never NCL until they went to Hawaii with us) and their favorite food out of all the cruises was on the Pride of Hawaii. My dad is still talking about it. But it is important to note that we did dine in several of the specialty restaurants (most are free with no extra fee). I do think RCL has a better night life to offer, as it did seem to quiet down after about midnight on the NCL ships we were on and the partying went on until the wee hours on RCL. This did not bother me, though because I am always tired by midnight anyway, and ready to relax and watch a little tv in bed by that time. I do think the freestyle dining has a GREAT DEAL to do with the reason why some people really despise NCL. You do sometimes have to wait longer for seating in the dining room if you go to dinner at a 'common' time (translation for us was simple: time for cocktail hour while we wait with beeper in hand!), and your waiters are not the same every night so that is the luck of the draw. Having said that, we have never, ever had poor service from a waiter on any of our NCL sailings. Our room stewards on both lines have always been excellent, minus our concierge on our Pride of Hawaii trip. He was just plain negligent.....apparently he and his partner had broken up the week we were sailing and his partner worked in the martini bar on the ship. So, he was pretty darned grumpy when we did see him (which was hardly ever the whole week). We did have to wait over an hour for a table on formal night and almost missed our show on the Pride of Hawaii, but I found an officer and expressed my frustrations and they worked with us to find us a table and accomodate us so we could see the show. They were nothing but professional and caring.

 

I was worried the entertainment on NCL couldn't possibly be as good as RCL, but I found it comparable. One thing that RCL definitely wins all the way in is their choices of activities: rock climbing wall, ice skating rink, inline skating rink, mini golf, etc. The NCL ships DO have basketball courts (in fact the Jewel & POH have an awesome raised seating court), so my DS was very happy with both lines. We went with a bunch of teens with extended family on NCL Jewel, and they seemed to really like RCL better. I do think there were more teenagers on the RCL cruises than on the NCL cruises. But my son said he liked both lines equally and believe me, he found plenty of teens on both cruise lines to hang out with the whole week!!

 

Overall, both cruise lines are fantastic and I don't think you can go wrong. I do think NCL is for a particular type of cruiser, not for everyone. If traditional dining and a structured schedule fit your personality better, I would say NCL would NOT be a good choice. If you are the type to sort of 'go with the flow' and not be too concerned with a wait every now and then, then I say give NCL a try. I will tell you that we sailed all 3 times on NCL in an AB Penthouse suite for the same price we are sailing in two regular balconies on the Voyager with NO PERKS. So if money and itinerary are important to you and you are willing to go in with an open mind, I say go for NCL. If you know what you like about cruising, and you don't like the freestyle concept, then I say go with RCL which we all know is a fabulous cruiseline!! Good Luck and have fun no matter what you choose to do!

[WinnieinWA]

I want to take a short trip with my DH but don't want to break the bank. Unfortunately, I only have a few dates that we can go. The prices are pretty high on RCCL. (navigator). I see a military discount on NCL jewel that is quite reasonable but am afraid to book out of fear of disappointment. We are in our 40's and active. On sea days we like to work out, do some tanning and some sport (putt putt etc). What are your thoughts?

 

I am doing a RCI next month and it will be my first with them. I'm excited to be trying something new. I LOVE NCL and especially FREESTYLE.

 

I cruised NCL Dawn a few weeks ago and there was so much going on that you can't possibly be bored. There were all age groups. Try it.. you might like it.:D Then keep us posted.

 

Winnie

[Flob1954]

I want to take a short trip with my DH but don't want to break the bank. Unfortunately, I only have a few dates that we can go. The prices are pretty high on RCCL. (navigator). I see a military discount on NCL jewel that is quite reasonable but am afraid to book out of fear of disappointment. We are in our 40's and active. On sea days we like to work out, do some tanning and some sport (putt putt etc). What are your thoughts?

 

 

Ihave cruised on NCL and hated every minute of the NCL Sea.. I t was an old rust bucket half the elevators did not work and the crew was extremely rude! I will never give one cent to NCL again!

[jimdicap]

I have done both lines, as well as Princess and Carnival. To me, one of the attractions of a cruise is meeting new friends, and getting to know others. If this is the case, NCL is not for you. The ship was ok, but to me this was a big drawback. I have met many friends on other cruises, so will neve go back to NCL. It is NOT a bad cruise, but I didn't care for freestyle--takes a lot of the allure away....

Go through the reviews on this site on each line, or better, the ships you are considering--it may help....

[cruisingbooboo]

I've only cruised NCL and RCI, love both for different reasons. Many things are the same but I LOVE LOVE LOVE freestyle dining!

[Jeka]

Any cruise is an acceptable cruise; however, Radiance class or larger is a far superior choice. On the other hand, Majesty or Sovereign may be in the same class as NCL.

 

Huh? Not sure what your point is. Both lines have smaller/older and larger/newer ships. What RCI and NCL ships have you cruised on?

[Shoequeen]

All cruise lines have their pros and cons, but I would definitely say that RCCL is absolutely better than NCL. I've taken NCL 4 times. The first time was so so.... 2nd time was great even though it was an older smaller ship. Third time on the Dream was TERRIBLE! The ship was terrible, and the service was TERRIBLE. 4th time was Pride of Hawaii... The itinerary was great. A different island each day. The service stunk. First of all, if you weren't up and in line by 7:30a.m. to make reservations for dinner the NEXT night, you could almost guarantee that you wouldn't get in anyplace and have to go to the buffet. Also, our cabin stewardess hardly cleaned our room. We snorkeled one day so we got sand on our carpet and in the shower. The sand was still there for the next 3 days until we got off of the ship. The shower was never cleaned! We went so far as to take that part of our tip off of our bill. Why tip somebody for not doing their job properly.

I know that some do prefer NCL, but my opinion is, that unless the price is a real steal, stay away from them.