Help me plan a cruise vacation...?

Question

I am planning a cruise vacation for December. Does anyone know anything about Norwegian Cruise Lines? I've been on Carnival and Royal Caribbean, but not Norwegian. The cruise would be on the Norwegian Dream that will go out of Houston, Texas. Is this a nice ship? Do they have good shows? How is the food? What are the cabins like? Any advice or suggestions will be appreciated.

Answer 1

I have been on many Norwegian ships, including twice on the Dream; once before it was stretched and once after. Norwegian was at one time my favorite cruise line until the line was bought by Star Cruises and they instituted the "Freestyle Cruising".

Now I do not recommend Norwegian because of their "freestyle" cruising. It means that you do not have to specify a dining option; don't have a table and waiter assigned to you. It means you can go to dinner in the main dining room any time of the evening.

But it also means that you may be standing in line awaiting a table on some days (like we had to a couple times); not what you want on a cruise. Since you go when you want, you rarely get the same waiter and so never really get to know your waiter and he/she never learns what you prefer. The option to this being pushed on NCL is their optional dining which you must pay to use. The dining options can cost $10 to $20 a person for dinner each night; not what you want after paying for a cruise. Then optional restaurants are nice, including French, Sushi, Tex-Mex, Italian, steak house restaurants. But who wants to go pay to eat on a cruise ship where all the meals are supposed to be included. We always skipped the optional restaurants and just got to the main dining early.

The ship was a good one, not as new and modern as some of the newer NCL, Princess and RC ships. It is not one of the ships that has a majority balcony and suites cabins. But it has nice features. I don't remember the shows and they change those periodically anyway.

Since Star took over NCL the line has an Asian flavor; Star is an Oriental company. Some of the performers and musicians were Asian and they had Karioke every evening. Not my cup of tea. You will enjoy, but it will be diferent from what you had on Carnival and RC.

Answer 2

Norwegian is a contempary cruise line falling into the same category as Carnival and Royal Caribbean. NCL is known for its "Freestyle Cruising" An NCL Freestyle cruise offers diverse and exciting restaurants, a more relaxed dress code.

Dining with Freestyle Cruising, you travel a world of dining options all in one week. There are French bistros and Italian trattorias to sushi and tapas bars. There are up to 10 different restaurants, There are no fixed seatings. Restaurants open from 5:30 pm to midnight so that you can choose from an early dinner before the show or a later dinner. There’s always the option of 24-hour room service.

The Norwegian Dream was stretched 1998, adding 130 feet to its length and refurbished in 2005. The Terraces restraunt has, 20-foot floor-to-ceiling windows look out on the pool and sea. The Four Seasons Dining Room offers views from port to starboard. Watch live games at the Sports Bar & Grill, or get a massage or sauna at the spa. On-board recreation includes basketball, aerobics and volleyball. A broad deck for strolling or jogging encircles the Promenade Deck. Entertainment runs the gamut from Broadway shows and Vegas-style productions to stand-up comedians, movies and theme parties.

Answer 3

I will be going on a cruise at the end of this month July, leaving from Miami to Key west then Cozumel, Mexico, I can let u know if will be a good cruise.

Answer 4

I have sold cruises on just about all of the companies. My sujestion is go to a walk up travel agency in your city. Or you can go to:

www.jaidentravel.com

Answer 5

GO TO www.ncl.com ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW IS THERE... I LIKE THEIR FREESTYLE CRUSING...