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Thinking about trying NCL

Daghis

By Daghis,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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Daghis

Daghis

Posted
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Hello, everyone!

 

I recently received a promotion from a local casino (The Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, PA) entitling me to a free* cruise either on the Norwegian Sky for a 3-4 Bahamas cruise out of Miami or a 7-day Western Caribbean cruise on the Norwegian Spirit out of New Orleans.

 

I've cruise most often with Royal Caribbean, but would enjoy the possibility to see what Freestyle cruising is like. Plus, I'm very intrigued by the ports that the Norwegian Spirit visits, most notably including Belize.

 

I've been reading through lots of information since receiving this promotion, trying to learn as much about the ships and what reviews people have written. I'm a bit concerned by the wide variation in cruise reviews, ranging anywhere from 1 to 5 ribbons. I'll need to spend more time reading each review to try and uncover the peoples' particular feelings about the cruise and find out which ones might match my own set of expectations.

 

Anyway, I just wanted to stop in and say hello now that I'm browsing this side of the fence, too. :)

 

* Free is relative, of course, as I'd still have to pay port fees, taxes, daily service charge, airfare, etc.

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trish1c

trish1c

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The biggest difference is the atrium. NCL ships don't have that grand feeling in the middle of the ship.

They are more laid back. As a generally proposition you don't have a CD screaming at you all the time to "join the fun" or "have a good time."

I would do the 7 day over the Bahamas run any day. Sky = RCL's Majesty & Sovereign.

Over all they are more alike than different.

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Daghis

Daghis

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I would do the 7 day over the Bahamas run any day. Sky = RCL's Majesty & Sovereign.

Yeah, I'm thinking I would do the 7-day cruise, too. I've been to the Bahamas before, and will be going to Nassau on my next cruise. Plus, I've never been to Roatan or Belize City.

 

From what I saw on Wikipedia, it doesn't look as though the Norwegian Spirit is that much larger than the Majesty of the Seas, both around 75,000 gr.t.

 

I'm generally accustomed to the larger ships. Note that I've generally sailed on 140,000+ gr.t. ships on my last several cruises, with the recent Majesty of the Seas cruise as an exception. That last cruise was sort of an experiment to see what it would be like to sail on a smaller ship, and I found it to be just fine in terms of entertainment, activities, and such. So, I think I have reasonable expectations for the Norwegian Spirit.

 

Thank you all so far for your warm welcome to this forum. I'm looking forward to reading more over here.

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dasmonkey

dasmonkey

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The biggest difference is the atrium. NCL ships don't have that grand feeling in the middle of the ship.

 

They are more laid back. As a generally proposition you don't have a CD screaming at you all the time to "join the fun" or "have a good time."

 

I would do the 7 day over the Bahamas run any day. Sky = RCL's Majesty & Sovereign.

 

Over all they are more alike than different.

 

I have seen this mentioned more than once and not really sure how this applies to the Spirit. I suppose "grand" is subjective but for a ship in the 75k ton range it aint too shabby.

 

I have done over 25 cruises on 5 different lines and I think the Spirit is a fantastic ship with the best staff I have ever encountered. Go and enjoy!

 

norwegianspiritjan31stf.th.jpg

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che5904

che5904

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We got this offer for the first time back in 2009. Since I am understanding that RC's ships may be a lot bigger than NCL's (with the exception of course of the EPIC which is NCL's new baby) I would stick to either the Dawn or Jewel class which are not as small as the Sky class or Spirit. I would also definately recommend the 7 day :).

 

OP please don't even think of comparing these cruiselines treat NCL as a new country you are visiting and measure it on it's own merits.

 

Happy cruising and welcome to the NCL boards.

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Azure Moon

Azure Moon

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Welcome and congratulations on the "free" cruise!

 

For many of the reasons already given, I'd also choose the Spirit 7 Day Western trip.

 

Book an excursion for Belize and you're pretty sure to have a great time. It's also a great port to sit out at the back of the ship and watch leaving the port as the ship has to sail a certain "course". It's fun to watch the zig-zagging of the wake and any ships that are sailing behind your ship.

 

We're going on the Spirit this summer with 7 newbies to Roatan and Belize and can't wait to see their reactions :).

 

Have a great time!

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slotaddict

slotaddict

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I would choose the Spirit...I loved her and would sail her again in a heartbeat....I have also sailed RCCL, Explorer, Voyager and Radiance...they are more alike than different, the only real difference is not having to dress up and eating whenever you want...

 

I loved the crew on the Spirit, they love their ship and it shows...

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Daghis

Daghis

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Thanks to your wonderful input, I've decided to take a cruise on the Norwegian Spirit for next March. A friend will be joining me to take advantage of this "free" cruise, so that'll be extra nice to have someone to vacation with.

 

I checked the "Roll Calls" forum and didn't find a thread started for the March 18, 2012, sail date, so I guess once I get booked, I'll get to be the first. :D

 

The one thing that my friend mentioned which I had overlooked was that this could very well be a spring break cruise for some. From what I've read in others' reviews, that could make it interesting. Fortunately, I'm more of the kind of person to go with the flow, so I doubt it'll make much of a difference to me.

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fridaythe13th

fridaythe13th

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The Spirit is a great ship and has a great crew! Check out Henry's Pub. It's a great place to sit back and enjoy some music. I have pictures in my signature below. We did Boston to Bermuda on her. We did find the cabins really small. Since it is an Asian ship there are no #4's in the cabin #'s. Just something I found interesting... Congrats and enjoy!

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Daghis

Daghis

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No 4s? That's certainly interesting. I wonder why.

 

As far as the cabins being small (at 149 sq. ft. for an inside cabin), it'll be a step up from my last cruise on the Majesty of the Seas which were only 114 sq. ft., but it will be a step down from our next cruise on the Allure of the Seas (in a Promenade stateroom with 194 sq. ft.). That's okay, though. I was concerned how tiny the Majesty's stateroom was going to be, but it turned out to be more than adequate.

 

Thanks for the pointer to your photo albums. I'm watching a slide show of the Spirit pictures now. :)

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dohspc

dohspc

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Spirit and NCL were my first cruise and totally loved it. Say hi to washy washy and wakey wakey for me. Going to ship on the EPIC in December. Here are some pics of the ship from April 2011.

 

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Daghis

Daghis

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This has something to do with it being built in the Asia and 4 being an unlucky number.

That's interesting... and a bit of a coincidence. I just made my booking (yay!), and in the process, we were discussing cabin numbers. The woman with whom I was speaking mentioned that she had a previous caller who also had a casino booking say that she didn't want to stay in a cabin number that had a 4 in it because it was unlucky. I hadn't heard that before this thread.

 

Anyway, I'm now booked. I guess I'm off to start a roll call thread... after I look at dohspc's pictures first. :)

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Taxguy77

Taxguy77

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That's interesting... and a bit of a coincidence. I just made my booking (yay!), and in the process, we were discussing cabin numbers. The woman with whom I was speaking mentioned that she had a previous caller who also had a casino booking say that she didn't want to stay in a cabin number that had a 4 in it because it was unlucky. I hadn't heard that before this thread.

:)

 

Never heard of the 4. DW is from Peru, and 13 is a lucky # to her with some very good things happening May 13. (But Jan. 13 in Harrah's New Orleans, she fell down an escalator and was badly injured.)

 

A good friend of ours who gambles a lot took his first cruise on NCL to Bermuda. He enjoyed it but not the $5.00+tip for his drink! With his status at Harrahs (who runs the casino franchise) drinks are free, so he only drank in the casino after the first day. (After his gambling)

 

Roatan is very interesting. Research the back side of the island, we had a wonderful day there.

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che5904

che5904

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A good friend of ours who gambles a lot took his first cruise on NCL to Bermuda. He enjoyed it but not the $5.00+tip for his drink! With his status at Harrahs (who runs the casino franchise) drinks are free, so he only drank in the casino after the first day. (After his gambling)

 

What kind of drink did he order that would have cost him 5+ for a tip, unless he chose to throw a $5 bill at the waiter/ess or bartender.

 

One of the most expensive drinks is the specialty drink of the day including the glass at $7.95 = 15% mandatory tip ($1.19).

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Daghis

Daghis

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What kind of drink did he order that would have cost him 5+ for a tip, unless he chose to throw a $5 bill at the waiter/ess or bartender.

If I were to guess, I think what was meant was a $5 drink plus the tip.

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TravelWise101

TravelWise101

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Ohhh I'd do the 7-day one in a heartbeat! New Orleans! There is a Harrah's casino there too - just before you head into the garden district. Ohhh the chickory coffee at Cafe Du Mond...... with those powder sugar begniets.....(sigh). Congratulations!

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TravelWise101

TravelWise101

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:) yes perhaps you are right. I reread the post and you can take it the 2 different ways. Thank you.

 

If I were to guess, I think what was meant was a $5 drink plus the tip.

 

<laughing>

Went to Vegas (Caesars Palace) and at the bar two drinks before tip $25. OUCH! Good thing I was using comps but stupid me forgot that if we sat at a machine and could flag a hostess we'd get the drink for free (slapping forehead).:p

 

It was a wonderful lemon drop (grin) that I had.

 

On one of the casino threads I read that you can buy a $50 slot play coupon for $25 to use on NCL ships. I wasn't sure if you our your friend played slots but thought I'd mention it for your upcomming cruise. Good luck! www slotplaycoupons dot com

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