Never again will I cruise NCL

[philatiger]

unless it's in a full suite. I bet you were all ready to pounce on me...:D

 

Just got back from a wonderful cruise on the Pearl. We originally booked and AE and got the upsell to the owner's suite and boy were we spoiled. Everything was perfect with just a few small hitches, nothing that would spoil our vacation. Been working on my trip report and will start posting tomorrow.

[sottovoce]

unless it's in a full suite. I bet you were all ready to pounce on me...:D

 

Just got back from a wonderful cruise on the Pearl. We originally booked and AE and got the upsell to the owner's suite and boy were we spoiled. Everything was perfect with just a few small hitches, nothing that would spoil our vacation. Been working on my trip report and will start posting tomorrow.

Looking forward to it. Hardly a week of life goes by without "a few small hitches." It's instructive to see how so many here are unable to handle those "small hitches."

[mailbroad]

Phew! I was thinking this would be a complaining post! Looking forward to your report. Tell us everything about the suite!

[johnql]

You almost had me - except that you left out the CAPS in your heading, and the *****, or at the very least, the !!!!.

 

Glad to hear you had a good time. Looking forward to reading your full report.

[JohnIreland]

unless it's in a full suite. I bet you were all ready to pounce on me...:D

 

Just got back from a wonderful cruise on the Pearl. We originally booked and AE and got the upsell to the owner's suite and boy were we spoiled. Everything was perfect with just a few small hitches, nothing that would spoil our vacation. Been working on my trip report and will start posting tomorrow.

 

I have put the attach dogs back in their kennels :D

[WinnieinWA]

NCL has, without a doubt, the best SUITE life on the planet! I've only had 2 suites so far but am anxiously awaiting my 3rd on the Jewel in 5 weeks. My budget won't allow too many of those suites but I enjoy them so very much!

 

Glad you had a great time. Nothing in life is "bump" free but it's all in how you handle those bumps. :)

[DMH15]

You had me going there... And I agree with you 100% about the "suite life"! I am hooked too.

[uneamie]

When I saw only " 6 " or so responses ...I knew there had to be a catch! ha ha. Happy you enjoyed your suite life. Not sure I want to take that plunge yet...I hear it takes you to a point of "no return". :D

[slotaddict]

One of these days I will book a suite - got to find out what its all about.:D

[SeaShark]

I'm confused :confused:.

 

I thought you couldn't use that as a thread title if you had more than one post...:p

[garycarla]

I'm confused :confused:.

 

I thought you couldn't use that as a thread title if you had more than one post...:p

 

Thanks for the chuckle.

 

Gonna pop some more popcorn now !

[philatiger]

I am not a great writer, but I'll do my best to not be too boring...

 

Day 1 Part 1

Saturday, 28-Nov-2009

Woke up at 6:15 in Miami, just like a kid on Christmas morning and couldn’t go back to sleep. Looked out the window of the Holiday Inn and watched a carnival ship come into port, turn around and then dock. Unfortunately I was not able to see the Pearl which made me even more anxious to check out of the hotel and head to the port.

Finally 10:00 rolled around and we couldn’t wait any longer. We checked out, and headed to the port. The taxi driver kept saying we are going over too early. In my opinion you can never be too early. I don’t like crowds, so for me I like to be at the front of the line, plus you get to watch the unseasoned travelers who provide great entertainment. The Pearl was docked at the far end of the pier and my first glimpse of her was when I stepped out of the cab. I just got more excited. We got to the port at 10:30, luggage checked in a matter of minutes. The guys at the port couldn’t have been nicer or more efficient. It was effortless and painless.

 

We got in line and a little after 11:00 they started letting us in. Breezed through security and since we are in a suite we went to the VIP check in. The check-in was on the left right after security. So keep a look out for it before you get in the long lines by mistake like many of the others did. The staff were very friendly at check in and we were seated and done in less than 5 minutes. They had a snack table set up with cookies, danish, coffee, tea and juice and of course I ate 3 cookies while we were waiting. Many of the suite passengers must have missed the sign and had checked in at the regular lines since they came into the room and only needed to get their room keys.

 

While we were waiting we met a couple from Kansas City who were part of our roll call. Hi Princess Cindy and Kent. Chatted with them for maybe 5 minutes and in walked Karan (who told us he is moving to the Epic, which we hadn't heard). He introduced himself and then escorted us all on ship. We received lots of evil looks from some of the other passengers who were waiting. We were greeted by friendly staff and Karan pulled us aside and asked us to wait for our butler Juremar and not one of the assistants. We were greeted by friendly staff offering OJ or champagne. I chose both, I wanted a mimosa. There was no problem in getting both as others had experienced.

 

Juremar could not have been nicer. He took us on a tour of the courtyard area and the private deck that we also had access to, and then we headed down to our cabin on deck 10. Our cabin number was 10504. When he opened that door we had that deer in the head light look on our faces. We were originally booked in 9670 (AE) and would have been more than happy with this cabin. The upsell fairy called the week we were leaving and offered a deal we could not resist and could afford. Now don’t get me wrong, we are just everyday people and not used to living this kind of life, but I tell you, I could get used to it real fast.

 

The cabin was unbelievable. Everyone on CC kept saying once you go suite you will never go back. Well, once you go owner’s suite you will never ever want to go back. I told Mark that if we have to eat mac n cheese for a year we are saving for this cabin again. The bath room alone was almost as big as an inside. The cabin was very clean with no smoke odor for those who might be wondering. And we are very fussy about smelling smoke anywhere we have to live or sleep. We placed our order for the liquor, soda, and mixers and then off we went to explore.

 

We took a walk around the ship to get acclimated. The Pearl is a beautiful ship and we saw nothing showing that she is aging. Everything was clean and the staff could not have been nicer.

We headed to Cagney’s around 1:30 and met Cindy and Kent from the roll call and had a great lunch. The lunch menu offered plenty of choices and the staff was absolutely wonderful. I had the crab cakes for an appetizer and the polenta for my main course. Mark had the shrimp cocktail and the sliders. Dessert was a bowl of chocolate ice cream for me and Mark had the carrot cake. The food was very good. We are not picky eaters so as long as we don’t have to cook and clean up we are happy. I have read on CC how nice breakfast and lunch was at Cagney’s. I have to tell you I couldn’t agree more. It was so peaceful and relaxing not having to fight the crowds.

[philatiger]

I'm confused :confused:.

 

I thought you couldn't use that as a thread title if you had more than one post...:p

 

I guess I could create new screen name...lol

[philatiger]

Day 1 Part 2

 

After lunch we headed back to get acquainted with the cabin. Sounds funny but there was so much to figure out: The 15 or so light switches, lavazza coffe machine, bose surround system. The crew told us they had difficulty getting the passengers before us off the ship. They forgot a few things in the cabin such as slippers, shampoo and conditioner, soap, and pool towels. A call to our butler and they were in the cabin in less than 15 minutes. Oswald our cabin steward was very apologetic. Told him there was no reason to apologize, it was not a big deal, we weren’t in need of them at the moment anyway.

 

This is for Coka if she is reading this. Mark walked out on the front balcony and wasn’t there more than 5 minutes and he got sprayed with water from the window washers for the bridge. I was hysterical laughing. Thanks coka, got to chuckle at this twice. By the way, Karan said to say hi.

 

Off we went to the life boat drill. I have to say I really disliked the way they handled it. We were assigned to report to the stardust theatre for muster. We headed down early and were told to sit in the seats without putting on the life jackets and leaving no open seats. Right after the alarms, we are instructed to put on our life jackets. It’s hard enough putting them on while you are standing let alone sitting in a seat. Well we decided to cheat a little. We put on the jacket and just wrapped the strap around the vest and clasped it in front without fighting to get it around our waste and hitting our neighbors in the face. We did this since the woman in our section was checking. This was just a very awkward muster. As soon as we left, forgot all about it. We were off to have some more fun.

 

We headed back up to the pool for the sail away party. We met our friends at the bar and enjoyed watching the Miami coast disappear. The sail away was actually disappointing, very uneventful. We had a good time with our new friends and made our own fun. After we had enough cocktails we headed back to enjoy the cabin for a bit. When we got back to the cabin (5:00PM) our luggage was waiting for us. Unpacking didn’t take long. We just kept laughing that we have a walk in closet (we don’t even have one at home) and more drawers than we knew what to do with. I could have brought more clothes.

 

We decided to do the buffet for dinner since we really didn’t feel like getting dressed. The buffet was good, with many choices, and loved the Indian food. For the vegetarians, they had a full salad bar, Indian food, cheeses, hummus, tabouli salad, chilled soups, pizza and pasta. I heard they had tofu but I didn’t see any. I only eat fish, chicken, and turkey so I can’t comment on the other meat offerings. We probably won’t be doing the buffet again for dinner. I just hate having to jostle for food and dealing with people who think they are the only ones on the ship. And I detest those who eat while they are getting food, especially when using their fingers.

 

I also have to agree with other posters that the tongs are very hard to handle. I felt like I was on candid camera when I was trying to pick up grilled chicken from the skillet, it kept slipping out of the tongs. I decided after reading the boards to try the chilled soups, tonight it was peach. It was very good. Thanks CC’ERS. I’ll post at the end all the soups I tried.

 

After dinner we headed off to Spinnaker for the FOD at 8:15. We decided to skip the show tonight (Jean Ann Ryan Company – South Beach Rave). Met a great group of guys and 2 women. One of the guys did karaoke and sung 2 songs and was pretty good. Me, if I had to sing I would be on the bloopers for American Idol. Next we strolled over to check out the casino. We picked up a CAS card and played the slots for not very long. It was extremely smoky and we had a hard time with that. The one thing about the ships layout that I did not like was that if you left the Stardust theatre on deck six you had to walk through the casino through the smoke.

 

After a long day we headed back to enjoy a good night’s sleep in a king size bed. Not used to that luxury either. I have to say that the bed and the bedding were just outstanding. NCL did a great job with this enhancement. Best sleep I have ever had on any vacation.

[RambleRocket]

Glad you had a great time. I agree that NCL suites are absolutely amazing! :D

[Planer's Edge]

 

After a long day we headed back to enjoy a good night’s sleep in a king size bed. Not used to that luxury either. I have to say that the bed and the bedding were just outstanding. NCL did a great job with this enhancement. Best sleep I have ever had on any vacation.

What, no loud creaking and groaning of the ship to keep you awake? :rolleyes:

 

Great review so far.

 

PE

[swedish weave]

unless it's in a full suite. I bet you were all ready to pounce on me...:D

 

Just got back from a wonderful cruise on the Pearl. We originally booked and AE and got the upsell to the owner's suite and boy were we spoiled. Everything was perfect with just a few small hitches, nothing that would spoil our vacation. Been working on my trip report and will start posting tomorrow.

 

Can you possibly open a school?? Others who were on that cruise need lessons on how to enjoy themselves..

[rickechambers1@aol.com]

Thanks for the great review! Bringing back fond Owners Suite memories of Jewel. We just talked last night about booking Epic Deluxe Owners Suite for my 40th Birthday getaway, but decided that the Courtyard area will be too crowded. So we decided we might just go back to Aruba (we've vacationed there cumulatively for nearly 6 months in the past 8 years and really do love it), but after reading this review, might have to take an Owners Suite on Pearl. :)

Thanks again!

[mbisson]

but after reading this review, might have to take an Owners Suite on Pearl. :)

Thanks again!

 

We were in the Court Yard on the Pearl (disembarked a week ago) and I don't think there were ever more than 6 or 8 in the CY when we used it. Often we had it to ourselves! :D

 

Gary was a great butler for us, and Karan was fantastic as our concierge!! :D

Outstanding Steward and attendant in the courtyard as well!

[llam]

I am loving reading your review. More please ;).

[islandgirlejfan]

Posting live from the Pearl right now sitting in my AE suite that I refused to part with for the upsell....very glad I didn't go for more. Love the wireless service....not as slow as the Sky and it's almost like we are the only ones on the ship. A cruiser at our CC gathering this morning heard there were only 600 or so on our cruise.....loving everything and ready to buy a future cruise credit!! Glad you are had a great time philatiger!

[CruisinMaterial]

Great review so far... love the positive and negative balance and I'm GLAD you loved the cold soups of NCL. I absolutely LOVE them! I hope to have this tooth issue fixed by the cruise so I may enjoy them on my Western run on the Jewel and the Bahamas on the Sky (ooh, I love them so much i don't care if I have them over again the next week)!! :)

 

Keep the review coming... eagerly awaiting here!

[philatiger]

I created another thread for my trip report. Wanted it under a more appropriate title. I created this one for fun.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1100905

[downsized]

This is a wonderful post! Thank you!

Welcome to the "suite life".

We too, were "upsold" to the OS on our first (and only) cruise on the PoA.

How could anyone refuse?

We're booked for our second cruise in March, and although we have had to scrimp a bit, we will be in the OS again.

[LOWTYD]

Great reading Chuck. It's nice to read the workd of someone who had a good time. I have not had the Suite Life experience yet :(so I get to live it though those who have.:)