Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian Cruise Lines Experience

No cruise cruise line has vessels that vary one to the next more than NCL, so watch our ratings and reviews. They vary from being old and small to modern, state-of-the-art vessels. The average age of their ships has become much younger in the last few years as they phase out the older ones (mostly sending them to obscure Asian ports to sail for Star Cruises) and introduce newer models to the fleet.

Some of the older vessels include sister ships Norwegian Dream (1992) and Norwegian Wind (1992), both of which were "stretched" in 1998 which is another way of saying a large addition was added mid-ships to both ships to add more public rooms, and unfortunately many more cabins. As a result, though these ships truly have some lovely public rooms, they are small and crowded ships, with few balcony cabins, and lines tend to get long. Look for bargains on these ships. Norwegian Majesty (1992), is just recently stretched and refurbished. Norwegian Crown (sailed for Orient Lines as the Crown Odyssey for many years) and Norwegian Sea are still unstretched.

To experience the best of Free-style cruising, seek out the newer vessels, as bargains can be found on them as well. Norwegian Sun, (2001), was the first purpose-built vessel as a "Free-style" ship. Another ship, Pride of Aloha (one of the NCL-America Ships) was originally Norwegian Sky (1999). Norwegian Star , Norwegian Dawn (year-round from New York City), and the brand new Norwegian Jewel are lovely, new ships built for Free-style cruising. NCL also nabbed an additional "Freestyle"-designed ship; parent company Star Cruises has traded in its SuperStar Leo in exchange for Norwegian Sea (which left NCL's fleet in fall 2005) and renamed it Norwegian Spirit, now also sailing out of New York.

Similar to Norwegian Jewel. Norwegian Pearl and Norwegian Gem are scheduled for launch in February and October, 2007. All are 93,502-tons and feature modifications in both technical and passenger areas. The new "Bar Central" connects three venues - a martini bar, champagne and wine bar and beer and whiskey pub. The new ships have 10 restaurants, a passenger capacity of 2,376 and are capable of 24-25 knot speeds. And Norwegian Pearl has something which is a first at sea - an actual bowling alley. Pride of Hawaii is the same design, sailing under the NCL-America banner (but no bowling alley).

Though they get a little bigger with each new ship, NCL's standard inside and outside cabins are noticeably smaller than a lot of the competition's. Indeed, Carnival's 185-square-foot standard cabins snicker disdainfully at NCL's 110 to 165 square feet. Moreover, the older ships have few balconies ? only 16 on Crown, and a grand total of none on poor Majesty.

Lavish Broadway-style entertainment is on offer. Singer Jane L. Powell, she of the big, memorable voice, is regularly featured across the fleet. While the main dining rooms are unlikely to serve you anything to make you swoon with delight, there's a wide variety of alternative dining on all the ships, and these restaurants almost all offer excellent cuisine and service well worth the additional service charge. And if all else fails, there's a "Chocoholic Buffet" on every cruise to pacify your sweet tooth.

Fitness and sports programs vary by ship. Europe, Hawaii, Bermuda and Caribbean cruises offer golf instruction on special Tee-Up Golf cruises, The Dive-In Snorkeling program is a popular feature of Caribbean, Bermuda, and Hawaii cruises. There are courts for paddleball, volleyball or basketball, golf nets, and jogging tracks.

When it comes to service, the main thing to understand about NCL is that there is a huge difference in the way the NCL ships are crewed versus the NCL-America ships sailing in Hawaii. The Hawaii ships, frankly, experienced tremendous service issues when they first came out, due to the fact that U.S. young people had never held cruise ship jobs before, and (due to no fault of NCL at all) they did not prove to be of the temperament required to do such a job. See individual ship reviews for more details. The non-U.S.-crewed ships have very personable crew and staff-members, many of them gracious Asians who understand the benefits a loyal and humble disposition add to a service position

Norwegian Cruise Lines | Fellow Passengers

Especially in its Caribbean itineraries, NCL attracts many first-time cruisers seeking a low- to mid-price cruise vacation. Dress code is flexible, which is to say a couple of large steps down from country club casual. Don't be shocked to glimpse T-shirts among the tuxedoes in the dining room. Expect many first-time cruisers and honeymooners; during summer vacations and school vacations, families with children; Europe- and New England/Canada-bound cruises attract mostly couples over 55. Lots of different countries are typically represented all of them English-speaking including Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.

Norwegian Cruise Lines | Taking Kids on a Norwegian Cruise

Except on Europe sailings NCL offers "Kid Crew" -- age-appropriate activities ranging from parties and video arcades to learning sessions -- to Junior Sailors, ages 2-5; First Mates aged 6-8; Navigators, aged 9-12 and Teens aged 13-17. Staff members won't change diapers, but you'll be given a beeper so the staff can let you know that your Junior Sailor has committed an indiscretion. There are cribs for younger passengers.

In-cabin private babysitting is no longer offered, but group babysitting for ages two to 12 is available from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. each evening and on port days from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for a fee.

NCL insists that visitors to its casinos be at least 21. There are no casinos on NCL-America ships. There is one NCL ship (Norwegian Wind, currently) that does sail the Hawaiian islands on an 10 or 11-day (alternating) itinerary that includes a visit to distant Fanning Island. This ship is not U.S,-flagged and therefore has foreign crew-members and a casino.

Norwegian Cruise Lines Shore Excursions

NCL's tours run the gamut from bus rides to private helicopter tours. "Dive-in Snorkeling" and the Sports Afloat programs help scuba and snorkel enthusiasts prepare for their destination dives while still onboard the ship. Shore excursions are outlined on the NCL web site.

Tipping:
NCL automatically adds a fixed service charge of $10 to the shipboard accounts of passengers over 13 to make service personnel feel appreciated; children between three and 12 are charged $5. Those under three get off scot-free.

While further tipping is not compulsory, NCL recommends a 15 percent gratuity for bar service and urges the beneficiaries of concierge or butler services to come up with a little something extra. All else is at the passenger's discretion.

Norwegian Cruise Lines Repeat Passenger Programs

Latitudes, the past passenger program, is comprised of four levels depending on number of cruises you have taken Bronze,(1-4), Silver, (5-8), Gold (9-13), and Platinum (14+). NCL, NCL-America and Orient Lines sponsor special member cruises world-wide throughout the year. Other benefits include access to a Latitudes Customer Service desk; a complimentary subscription to Latitudes, a quarterly members-only magazine; exclusive pricing on all sailings; the added enjoyment of Polo Club benefits when sailing on Orient Line?s Marco Polo; Latitudes Check-in Desk at the pier; a Latitudes ship pin; a members-only cocktail party hosted by the Captain; and a Latitudes onboard liaison to ensure that all past guests receive their benefits. Additionally Silver Members receive an invitation to an exclusive gathering on board and treats delivered to their stateroom twice during the cruise; Gold Members receive VIP service, which includes priority boarding, an in-stateroom welcome basket upon embarkation; priority restaurant reservations; priority tender tickets; priority disembarkation and an invitation to the Captain?s VIP cocktail party. Platinum members receive all of the above and enjoy the added benefit of a complimentary dinner in NCL's signature restaurant, Le Bistro. For more information call 800-343-0098.