Freestyle cruising

[hawaiilvr]

We have only sailed on NCL - but the first cruise in 1994 was a "traditional cruise" with set dining times and dining companions. This turned DW off so much that it took 13 years to get her back onto another ship. We talked about it for years but the dining stress and dressing up turned her off so much that the only way I could get her back onto a ship was that it was in Hawaii. Now she is hooked. We have two cruises booked within the next year.

 

Freestyle worked especially great in a port-intensive itinerary like Hawaii. With the ship being in port every day and overnighting in two ports, it made the whole experience so much more pleasant to get back to the ship at our convenience and have options for dining besides room service and the buffet. We ate as late as 9:30 a couple of nights at the Italian restaurant. The tables for two were great, except that the tables were really close to each other, so we didn't have too private of a conversation:eek:

 

Totally off-topic - we went to the local Cheesecake Factory and had dinner between two tables of six each. We were literally a couple of feet from each table on both sides. We both commented that it was like eating on the Pride of America again! It was fine, just made us laugh a little.

[Ms belp]

We've been on the Jewel twice and loved it! We were on the Dawn in November. We will be on the Pearl soon. We love NCL and freestyle, and don't even consider the other lines as we are so pleased.

[beachchick]

coffeebean: Yes, I guess what I meant by more elegant and refined is design and decor on the Radiance and Voyager class ships. Those soaring atriums, the rich colors, and that atmosphere all combine to make the ships feel just a bit more something-something for us. OTOH, on PoH, the vibrant and tropical themes worked perfectly. One of our favorite little "details" was that the hull art's Hawaiian hula girl had a porthole for a belly button. Also, the "stained glass" ceiling art was pretty too.

 

The overall "class" of NCL and RCI has been (for us) quite similar.

 

beachchick