review of NCL Pearl, 9 day cruise, Feb. 8

[seasprite]

Hi CC friends,

It seems like ages since returning from our cruise, while actually it has been less than a week! I've read two thorough reviews of this cruise already posted online, and thought I'd add my 2 cents. I have cruised on NCL four times and enjoyed it each time, as well as all of my other cruises on other lines. Cruising is the best vacation!!

 

That being said, I have to agree with other posters that the food quality of dinner in the main dining rooms seems to be variable, at least on this latest cruise. It was certainly not enough to stop us from cruising again lol! Perhaps this is a way of cutting costs...once we found that they were running out of an item (English trifle) and rather than not serve it, our waiter confided to us that they just cut back on the ingredients. We did find the quality of the buffet food to be superior, sometimes better than the dining rooms, surprisingly. The specialty restaurants seemed rather short-handed staff-wise, with long waits to order and much confusion over orders. This happened to us on two different occasions. Again, nothing serious, just worth noting that it could stand improvement, especially when the service in the main dining rooms was so excellent. We love the free-style concept... eating when and where we choose. Flexibility is the name of the game! We only had to wait once (our choice since we wanted a particular restaurant) and were even able to request a favorite waiter. If we chose (which we did twice) we were seated with other guests, or could dine separately. It is a great concept!

 

Entertainment was wonderful....I love NCL's acrobatics and aerial couples and their Cirque de Sol type presentation and would like to see more of it. Their headliners were exceptional as well, particularly Jeff Trachta. I had never heard of him before, but am now a fan...his singing, impersonations and overall talent were outstanding! The cruise director and staff were excellent...always on top of everything. I enjoyed the workshop on improv by Second City...a unique offering onboard ship. Gameshows were fun, as usual, and entertainment around the ship and on deck was typical cruise fare. I know I'm on a cruise when I hear "Brown Eyed Girl" and "Red Red Wine"!

 

I loved the Pearl...No complaints about cleanliness, service or anything like that. We found the ship to be delightful and our steward attentive. I loved the photograph murals by the elevators. The ship didn't feel crowded, and we were able to

find quiet space when we needed it. I enjoyed the pool deck and the huge adult pool complete with waterfall. If you searched, you could always find lounge chairs available, particularly on the level above the pool. My favorite deck was deck 7....comfy lounge chairs and splashing waves made this a relaxing spot on sea days, but finding a chair took some patience.

 

The ports were as expected, and Barbados was my personal favorite. We ended up hiring a taxi for the day and saw much of the island. Crane Beach is not to be missed, if you are a beach lover and a fan of waves. It is breathtakingly beautiful and exhilerating to swim there as well. We took 3 NCL excursions, but actually preferred those we did on our own. I am including a link to photographs from our trip, including our days in port. http://picasaweb.google.com/niteowlpam/NCLPearlSamanaTortulaAntiguaBarbadosStLucia

 

I hope this review may help future travelers and I'd be happy to answer any questions anyone may have. The Pearl was beautiful and left us with many lovely memories. Until the next cruise........

[lhall85917]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, can't wait until we go next month!!

[seasprite]

I'm jealous!! Have a wonderful trip! Are you doing the 5 day, 9 day or 14 day? We found that there were lots of folks aboard our cruise from England doing the combination of Western and Eastern for 14 days, and they loved it. It made for a more international group and lots of fun. There were many Canadians onboard too, along with us Americans. Lots of diversity and many opportunities to meet nice people. Not to mention, getting spoiled onboard ship. I've been sick since getting home....I asked my dr. to write me a perscription for another cruise to get over this bronchitis (sunshine and pampering would do the trick!), but no go. Anyway, if I can answer any questions, feel free to ask. Have a great trip!