Norwegian Cruise Lines

I know some people didn’t like the cruise, but for me it was a great cruise. I loved the food. I don’t understand where people come off complaining about the food. It was delicious. The entertainment was outstanding. David DaVinci is a great illusionist as well as an outstanding comedian. The Second City was a talented quick on your feet comedy great. The balancing act was very beautiful and amazing. I’ll be going again. It’s the best vacation for the dollar out there.

I love being able to call the Norwegian Dawn home since July of 2014. I’ve had the opportunity to perform in front of, and mingle with, some of the greatest people ever! Looking forward to many more years with Norwegian!

We recently sailed on the Norwegian Dawn out of new Orleans. Granted, it was our first cruise, but our expectations were exceeded in every area! My only complaint was the 10% rake at the poker table! We ate at the Venetian nearly every day, and every meal there better than 98% of the food I eat on the mainland. The crew was exceptionally friendly and professional. We saw the cruise director and assistant daily, rather at the theater, participating in contests, or greeting us when we returned from excursions. Our steward kept our room clean and well supplied and was great for conversation. Purchase your cruise far enough in advance to get the promotional drink package else you’ll pay about $ 8 per beer. I’m not a particular fan of New Orleans, but parking, checking in, etc was all smooth and easy at the port. I only wish they had an Eastern Carribbean cruise — the West was great, but we are ready for more islands!

We had a great time on our cruise. We went to the Western Caribbean for seven days. Food was great, people were great, and service was great. The only issue we had was our toilet got clogged twice. However, that can’t really be blamed on the cruise line. The waters were rough on our cruise, but we had an exceptional time. Can’t wait to go again.

Absolutely the worst vacation experience I have ever had.
The check in process at the port of New Orleans is without a doubt the most disorganized process I have ever been subjected to; military included.
The Port of New Orleans police are rude, aggressive and plain dumb. We were re-​routed five different times to simply drop off our luggage; each saying the person preceding them didn’t know what they were doing.
The in-​processing to get on the ship wasn’t any better; while the staff was accommodating and trying to get everyone onboard — there is absolutely no signage and mass confusion in where to go to check in. Imagine 3,000 to 5,000 people in a small room all talking while the «staff» is yelling direction.
Seriously NCL; I expected better — much better.

This has been the worst cruise ever! We have cruised at least a dozen times and the food, service, guest services expectations were so disappointing. I travel a lot and I try to give more than one chance, but I literally dreaded meal time.

We had a wonderful experience on the Norwegian Dawn cruise! The food was FANTASTIC!
Service was excellent! Only problem we had were the elevators were unpredictable, sometimes it would pass your floor even if you were on the elevator or waiting for it. Also disembarkment was very slow and very crowded.
Other than that we had a great 7 day cruise!
Shows were very good and entertaining. We would travel again on Norwegian.

Ncl dawn from New Orleans
Worse cruise ever!!!
Food horrid even in specialty restaurants.
Extremely disappointed.
Last cruise for us. It truly was that bad.

Thank you Norwegian Dawn. I had the best weekend getaway ever 11÷13−11÷15! Can’t wait till next time!

Sailed on a 7-​day cruise from NOLA to Roatan, Honduras; Costa Maya, MX; Belize City, Belize: and Cozumel, MX. Not in that order of course.
I love Norwegian, for the most part. We paid about $ 780 each for 6 of us to go on this cruise and that INCLUDED the unlimited beverage package! We booked all of our excursions off the ship to save on expense but keep in mind, you do incur some risk if you do it that way. The staff was really good for the most part but that is why there aren’t 5 stars.
My colleague and I waited at the bar for LITERALLY 10 minutes while bartender, Erickson served everyone drinks but us. At one point, my friend said something and Erickson said, «ok you guys will be next» and I will be damned if he didn’t proceed to serve someone else after he said we’d be next. He is the only person that I have ever encountered on the multiple cruises (2^nd Norwegian) that was blatantly unprofessional. Luckily the rest of the bartenders were happy to take our order AND our tips! Other that that, I will continue to cruise Norwegian and I look forward to the next one!

For our forth cruise this was the most dissapointing after 2 Carnival and a Royal Caribean experience. Some of the crew seemed to not care if you where there or not while a few really did want to deliver a great experience. The food and dining experiences where the next big dissapointing, while we did find Rey our server and assistant Chequie that where amazing the foods was less than excellent and the wait was very long, even missed the evening show on a couple nights since it took 2 hours in the dining room. The show times and activities seemed very poorly planned and the venues on the Dawn where not big enough to accommodate th demand. The one excursion that we did plan was cancelled but they never made any attempt to contact us to let us know. We had cut our other activity shorty to get back to the pick up point. The entertainment on Carnival was much better and the food on Royal Caribean was incredible.

1^st cruise — learned some good and bad: Norwegian Dawn from N.O.
— booked through a reseller: try NOT to do that. I met people who were buying the same cabin for half price the month before the sail.
— NCL is nice, my cabin was nice, the staff was nice… etc. Nice. If that is what you’re looking for, then NCL and other boats will fit you.
— singles. most of the boat was over 50… like MOST of the boat. So, they had LGBT mixers, but nothing for the under 50 singles crowd.
— the poolside meals while at sea were the best. better than buffet.
— the seated free dining got worse after the first sail. day one, service was good, day 5, my table of 8 were waiting for waters, food, table clearing, etc.
— remember that the free dining rooms are serving very prepared foods to handle the crowds. getting something custom or cooked perfectly requires you to pay the $ 25 upcharge at other restaurants.
— they were very good at accommodating my food allergy.
— they don’t have enough vegetarian flavor choices besides indian.
— the shore excursions are very safe: the boat will wait for you if the charter is late. if you go on your own, the boat will not wait.
— the terminal in new orleans is run well — getting off the boat was a little bit tedious, but did not wait very long at stations.
— you will meet people if you want to meet people. I didn’t stay long in the cabin, so I met friends.

Fourth cruise, first time with Norwegian (Star). We loved the staff and we loved the excursions! The biggest problems were that the rooms were older looking with small tv’s (without the ability to order any movies) and the loud announcements in the rooms every day all day. I love cruises, but it was my husband’s first cruise. He said that the loud announcements in our room (especially early in the morning) ruined the trip for him and that he may never take another cruise. We complained about it, so they turned it down a little, but it was still so loud. I don’t remember the loud announcements in the room on any other ships. I love cruising, but not sure if we will be able to go again unless we can find a ship with no or very little announcements.

WARNING– my brother bought 7 cruise tickets through Norwegian Cruises with insurance that he was promised the tickets could be refunded «at any time». They told him this over the phone (yet never sent him info on the insurance).
One couple cancelled so he tried to use his insurance for the promised refund. They didn’t stand by their salespersons word and only refunded $ 2500 of a $ 3500 ticket. He escalated it and they still refused, although they did offer $ 750 off his next cruise… as if any of us would take another cruise with them after their blatant false sales techniques.
We had two cruises we were planning to do through Norwegian. Their loss! On our cruises we had excursions for 5 at each stop, two of us spent major $$ on art plus drinks, games etc. Norwegian your failure to stand behind your poorly trained and/​or lying salespeople has successfully lost you far more than $ 1000. Yes, this is posted on my FB and some of my friends pages too.

This was our first cruise, so we don’t have anything to compare it to. I only want to say that I can say our experience was really good. After doing so much research on which cruise line was the ‘right’ one, I was ready to buy my own boat and risk the open waters. So many people complaining about stuff I know better to complain about, as a seasoned traveler.
We decided on the Jewel, despite people in other reviews saying it was outdated and worn out. To me, if it is clean I am basically good. The ship was very clean and the staff couldn’t have been nicer, with the exception of an extremely rude waiter during the VERY expensive bingo game. What is VERY expensive you ask? Bingo came in at around $ 100 for two people, one card, and a handful of bonus games. I don’t know, I was not feeling it all and I love bingo. That is the only part of the trip I wish we had not done.
As soon as we boarded we ran straight to the spa and bought the spa add on, which it was the best thing we did, as we used the hot tubs, cold plunge pool and heated tile chairs every single day we were there. When we signed up, we booked a couple pedicure for later in the day. It turned out to be the best one I have ever had and they were nice, and yes they do tell you about their products, but they weren’t pushy. Then we went back the next day for a couples massage, you could pick four zones you wanted out of 8 areas for $ 69 on special. The only complaint there is they sat us in a salon chair and pulled up a foot rest and had us lay back. It got uncomfortable towards the end of the hour, but otherwise it was great.
We did not eat once in the buffet, we booked the restaurants in advance and booked three pay restaurants. In the restaurants, you can order more than one dinner, which my husband did on a couple of occasions. I didn’t realize steak and lobster night was only on the first night, I wondered why people had three and four lobster tails on their plates. I didn’t realize that was ‘allowed’ otherwise, I would lobstered it up.
Also, room service is free, except the $ 5 pizza delivery, so we ordered ice cream, pizza, cookies (turns out to be 8) chicken tenders, which were real chicken breast strips, and some good macaroni and cheese. The strawberry cake was pretty good too. When coming back from shore we were usually worn out and used what last bits of energy we had to push room service on the phone.
The ports were Cozumel, Belize, Honduras, Costa Maya. We did the Mayan ruins in Belize and couldn’t understand why other people complained online and on the bus about the bumpy road, it wasn’t that bad. The distance also allowed for seeing some of the country, as it is about an hour drive to the site. We also did a swim with the dolphins at Anthony Keys in Honduras, travel went smooth from the ship and back.
We didn’t go to any shows, as we were enjoying the spa a lot and sitting on the balcony. By the way Costco had the best prices for this particular cruise and we had $ 200 shipboard credit from that, so that helps if you want to do spa treatments.
The game room proved to be a lot of fun as well, we played yahtzee almost every night with great views. We stayed busy doing exactly what we wanted to do and for everyone, that means something different. I had fun and would cruise again, with them but probably a different ship, just to compare.

3^rd cruise and first out of New Orleans. We sailed on the Norwegian Jewel. The boat itself seemed a little dated. The outer hull was rusted and the interior carpets were a little old and worn.
The ports of call were on Cozumel, Honduras, Costa Maya, and Belize. I found that the ports in Honduras and Belize were very eye opening. I ended up feeling bad that I was feasting on these buffets while the people living in these ports were starving.
The saving grace for this cruise was the crew. Very hardworking and humble people. Most employees were from out of country trying to make money for their families back home. I got to talk to quite a few of them and they were very down to earth… again making me feel guilty for being on this cruise.
Overall: ok ship, ports of call in Belize was weird and the only beach in town was Man made water park in old Belize. Cozumel was awesome with the Mayan ruins. Crew was very friendly. Nothing spectacular with this cruise. Good was mediocre at best.

I was a little unimpressed, although the service was fantastic, the overall experience was a little lacking. Feel free to message me if you have any questions about it…

4^th cruise, 2^nd time on Norwegian.
First Norwegian cruise was on «Epic». So, it’s difficult to compare this ship, the «Star», which is much smaller because they are a completely different breed of ships. However, the friendly staff and exceptional service was just as comparable. I was prepared to give 2 stars at the start of our trip, but the staff redeemed themselves.
When we checked into our cabin, we noticed an awful odor in the room, even after the fact the room was fully cleaned. It seemed that there was somewhat of a vomit smell lingering. I know I know, this story has a happy ending though.
Now, I’m not one to complain, but when the port docks smell like roses compared to your cabin, something has to be said. So, I made it aware to our cabin steward. He was very friendly and volunteered to resolve the issue right away. Within minutes him and his crew were back in the cabin, cleaning and shampooing the carpet. In addition, they put an air purifier in the room to help.
The smell improved, but still it was unpleasant to be in the cabin. Before I could call housekeeping, he knocked on the door to check. I told him it was better, but I still was not happy.
Well, only minutes later I got a call from the cabin supervisor and the guest services director. They informed me that the issue would be resolved by the following day and they apologized for not being able to switch us cabins (I didn’t even ask yet) because the cruise was full.
Check this out! Next day we hung out on the lido deck for a few hours. By the time we returned to the room, it’s smelled fresh and clean and there was a note from the guest services director along with a complimentary bottle of wine and chocolate covered strawberries. Redeemed!!!
The rest of the cruise went very smooth. All the restaurants and even the buffet served decent food, but the buffet was lacking the variety factor. I highly recommend Cagney’s steakhouse and Ginza Asian fusion. Entertainment was great, but get there early because the small theater and lounges fill up fast.
Washy Washy! (You will find out what that means on the cruise)
P. S. don’t miss bingo, raffles, and… Deal or No Deal!!!

Norwegian Star. The staff was outstanding. They were super friendly, very outgoing, and very helpful. The ship was very clean and well maintained.
However, the beds were very uncomfortable and completely broken in. Everyone I talk to complained about the big hole in the middle of their mattresses.
The seating in the main theater was terribly uncomfortable and very broke in and it was hard to sit for more than 30 minutes. The restaurant food was average. The buffet was very limited and plain.

This month I went on my very first cruise!
I didn’t know what to expect, but my expectations (the few I did have) were surpassed dramatically. Norwegian Cruise Lines will be my one stop shop for any cruising activities I may book in the future. I was that impressed.
I paid for a penthouse suite on our seven day ocean cruise to the Caribbean and I am so glad I spent the money I did. My room was massive coming equipped with a big screen TV, espresso machine, a MASSIVE private balcony, a personal steward and chocolate covered strawberries and champagne on arrival.
The special treatment didn’t stop there. All my breakfast and lunch meals were comped for the entire week, a personal butler brought tasty treats to my room daily and I got a fifty dollar discount on any spa treatment of my choice. I’m not a princess, but for a week I got to be!
The whole experience was just fabulous. Since NCL promotes freestyle cruising, you are on no ones time schedule. You can eat when you want, drink when you want and do everything at your own pace. The cruise staff only has seven days to get to know you, but by day one, you feel like family. They put so much care into making their guests happy and I for one, could not be happier.