NY to Bermuda-Is Zenith nice?

[gmwwmg]

Going in mid-August. Is Zenith better than NCL-Crown. What are the pros/cons of Zenith. 5 poeple in my party. Cabin size? Food? Thank you.

[newtocc]

As much as I love Celebrity, I must admit, the cabin size is much larger than the portion size! Hope this helps!

This ship 10/91
That ship 11/95
Whatever ship 12/98
here a ship 13/99
there a ship 14/00
everywhere
a
ship ship 15/05

<font size="3" color=red>Over 1 year</font> into my LMBO cruise

[PatC]

5 in a cabin? Or just 5 going? Zenith is a beautiful ship, we love her and have done Bermuda on her, BUT 5 in a cabin won't do it.

Dolphin - 1990
Horizon - 1994, 1995, 1995
Century - 1997, 2000, 2001
Galaxy - 1998
Zenith - 1992, 1999, 2002
Millennium - 2003
Summit 2004
Summit 2005

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=008000&cdt=2005;3;11;16;30;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]
Countdown to Summit 2005

[tug]

I'm curious about this too. The Zenith has the same itinerary as the NCL Crown. Has anyone been on both to offer a comparison?

[marco]

I have been on the "Zenith" a couple of times. While I have not been on the "Crown", I have been on NCL. IMHO (and it is ONLY that) "Zenith" would be like taking a Lincoln Town Car, NCL would be the Ford Escort.

[tug]

marco, thanks for that analogy. could i take it further to assume that the Lincoln Town car can only "fill up" at expensive diesel stations at designated times, whereas the economical Escort can "freestyle" at any ole station? ;-)

that imagery aside, how would they compare for children's activities and room amenities?

[gmwwmg]

Thanks for the responses. It is 5 people, 3 cabins.

[FSHLOT]

Been on NCL and ZENITH.....ZENITH is a much better time IMO...As for kids,They stay at home during cruise time!!!!Just kidding,i don't have kids!!! [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img],Only because i love cruising too much!!!

You will love Bermuda.Beautiful island and friendly ppl there!!! [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

dreamward 1994
zenith 1996
norweigen 1998
zenith 2000
nordic empress 2002 ....zenith 2003....THE SEA IS SO GREAT...AND MY BOAT IS SO SMALL!!!

[bshabazian]

I hope Zenith is okay for kids. We are traveling with 5 children to Bermuda from NY on 5/29. Not all in the same room.

Anyone else ever taken children on Zenith? Any tips or advice?

[marco]

Tug: I liked that, the expensive deisel or fill-ups at any ole station" Actually, the last time we were on the "Zenith" was to Bermuda the end of May. There were not as many kids on as there will be after mid-June through the rest of the summer, but the kid's program seemed to be fine, and utilitzed by the 20-30 or so kids on board. In summer, it could be as many as 200 or more. (One of the reasons we prefer to take that particular cruise before June, or after Labor Day. As far as room amenities...We were on "X" this past January, it's been a few years since our NCL cruise (I was disappointed) and I really don't remember all the details, but the cabin certainly was adequate. I don't think there were robes, there are on "X". Toiletries were more extensive on "X" than NCL (there were q-tips and cotton balls in the bathroom and I thought shampoo/soap, etc was a better quality on "X". We had a bowl of fruit in our cabin all the time withoug asking, again, just little things, like the little things that make a town car different from an escort, even though both will get you from point "a" to point "b". The staff and crew was MUCH friendlier and accomodating on "X", and the dining experience is much more polished on "X".

[tug]

thanks for your input, marco. my husband is really enticed by NCL's freestyle cruising program. I'm still undecided. the jaded NYer in me thinks that it may be an idea to go "Ford Escort" for the first cruise .. it can only get better from there? ;-)

[Jacqueline]

NCL is really for some people and not for others. At all. The one comment I would make on freestyle dining options- early reviews touted the ship as having X many restaurants to choose from every night ! One response was that the food court at the mall has a lot of choices too but it doesnt speak to the quality of the overall experience.

Jacqueline
Constellation 3/20/04
HAL Westerdam 7/30/04
Tahitian Princess August 2003
Grand Princess Western Caribbean 2003
Brilliance of the Seas Baltic 2002
Ocean Princess- Alaska 2001
Celebrity Zenith- Bermuda 2001
Grand Princess Med 2000

[Guest]

As long as you are going during the summer months when school is out the Children's programs on the Zenith will keep your children busy. The ship is excellent for children at that time of the year. I took my to Bermuda and they had a great time.

Don

[Guest]

Tug:

The Zenith does not have the same itinerary as the Crown. The crown spends one day in St. George, one day in Hamilton and two days at Kings Wharf. The Zenith splits its time between St. George and Hamilton. St. George and Hamilton are are much preferable than Kings Wharf.

Don

[tug]

Thanks Don,

Is the island small enough to compensate for that? What I mean is, will we be able to travel around easily regardless of which port we are docked at?

We are planning to travel in Aug., 4 days after my daughter turns 10 :-)

~tug

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by dkjretired:
Tug:

The Zenith does not have the same itinerary as the Crown. The crown spends one day in St. George, one day in Hamilton and two days at Kings Wharf. The Zenith splits its time between St. George and Hamilton. St. George and Hamilton are are much preferable than Kings Wharf.

Don<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[Bozo]

Tug
Don't do it going on NCL my sister has done both lines and she thought the free style stunk the food was not nearly as good as Celebrity plus the cabins were smaller.

[garykool81]

I've had mixed experience aboard NCL. I sailed to Bermuda on the Norwegian Sea in July 2003, which turned out to be a pretty poor experience as far as the ship was concerned. Even following a major rehab, she was showing her age badly and screamed "1985!" with her poor decorations, etc.

I've seen photos of "the" (::sorry, Danno:[img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img] Zenith and her sister, "THE" (::dodges brick:[img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]Horizon, and would definitely sail on them. They are older, but appear to be beautiful ships for their age.

In contast, and in defense of NCL -- I sailed also aboard the slightly newer Norwegian Majesty, which set sail first in 1991 if memory serves correctly. She was a BEAUTIFUL ship worthy of being a member of Celebrity's fleet, with a wonderful staff, fabulous food, etc.

In fact, I had a BETTER experience overall (just barely, but still...) aboard the Norwegian Majesty than I had aboard my recent Galaxy cruise...just a thought.

I have doubts and second guesses constantly about sailing NCL in the future, though, because of the inconsistency of service I experienced between the Majesty and Sea. They were total 180 degree opposites from each other.

Gary Kulash
[url="http://www.badelephant.com"]www.badelephant.com[/url]

Carnival Holiday 8/02
NCL Majesty 1/03
NCL Norway 5/25/03
NCL Sea 7/03
Celebrity Galaxy 3/04
Celebrity Mercury 10/04

[Guest]

Tug:

The island is indeed small enough that the ports are not a real big deal. The dockyards are about a half hour from Hamilton. The Hamilton and St. George stops are better because there are lots of things to do around them which is not the case at the dockyards. Just really a matter of losing some time.

Don