What will I love about DCL after Princess?

[Nana G]

Planning a June 2012 on the Dawn. After sailing 19 times on princess we are changing lines to do Bermuda. Have many questions and reservations about trying a new line. Please advise me as to what I will look forward to. Lots of ?s about attire in main dining rooms and alternative dining. Thanks for putting me at ease!!!!

[Ms belp]

I think you meant NCL, not DCL. If you like Princess I'd stick with them. NCL is a very relaxed line. I love it and would never consider Princess but to each his own.

[jdvmd]

Variety is the spice of life!

 

We have sailed on Princess nine times and NCL, seven. You can dress up if you want to or not. We just came of the Sun last week and thought the food in the main dining room was much better than our last Princess sailing on the Crown in December.

 

The crew is friendly. Since this was a very port intensive Baltic itinerary, we went with an inside cabin midship (one of the ones that is sideways) and it was wonderful. Very comfy and meticulously cleaned.

 

Also didn't miss having to bring formal attire etc. Still brought nice outfits and could eat when we wanted to.

 

Go with an open mind. Since you are Elite, you may miss some of the perks you are accustomed to but that wouldn't be the deal breaker for me.

[Ms belp]

Clothing is relaxed casual. Some people end up in shorts in the main dining rooms. We like eating when we want to and not sharing a table with others. For us it is about being away and relaxing. Forced socializing is not my idea of a vacation.

[Nana G]

Thanks for all the info jdvmd! Being Elite has 1 perk we like and that is laundry. We haven't eaten in main dining room for a long time since we like to eat informal. tried Anytime and never had a problem except- attire. Always got a table for two, no problem.

Having said that, we are looking for a more relaxed setting. We are in a balcony cabin which looks to me a bit similar to princess mini, with sofa and tub and shower. Since Princess only stops at Bermuda for the day, we prefer to spend more time there. Sailed twice on old Pacific Princess and once on Celebrity Summit and enjoy the 3 day itinerary.

Even on princess, we never do the formal night, have seen the shows multiple times, and enjoy MUTS a lot. Being on the balcony at night under the stars is the best. I am glad to hear you enjoyed the crew and cleanliness of ship. 2 must haves!

Any more helpful insights to share?

[2ManyCruises]

Not sure what you would love about DCL but NCL is really good. LOL

 

We too are frequent Princess cruisers. What we like most about NCL is that there are so many dining options. People seem so much more relaxed. You really feel free to do whatever.

 

Have Fun

[fridaythe13th]

Just got off the Dawn to Bermuda last week. There are two "main" dining rooms. The Aqua is more dressy and men have to wear slacks, no shorts allowed. We ate at two specialty restaurants, Le Bistro and Moderno. We don't normally pay extra to eat but someone else was treating. Plenty of variety in the Garden Cafe' (buffet). There were four of us (50's) and we all rated it as very good. The Venetian dining room is open for lunch on boarding day. We rated the entertainment as good but the theater seats are so crammed together that nobody can get by you without you having to stand up. It's that close! Waiters around the pool can get annoying constantly asking you if you want bar service. UGH!! Lots of deck chairs, one pool and a separate kids pool aft. Never went there but I think you have to access it outside on 13 and walk down to 12. When you get to Bermuda there is usually a long line (right off the ship) of people buying ferry/bus passes and getting infor. If you bypass that area and walk further down the dock there is a small trailer where you can get your passes. We found the regular balcony to be on the small side but doable. Enjoy!

[cherylroslyn]

Just got off the Dawn to Bermuda last week. There are two "main" dining rooms. The Aqua is more dressy and men have to wear slacks, no shorts allowed. We ate at two specialty restaurants, Le Bistro and Moderno. We don't normally pay extra to eat but someone else was treating. Plenty of variety in the Garden Cafe' (buffet). There were four of us (50's) and we all rated it as very good. The Venetian dining room is open for lunch on boarding day. We rated the entertainment as good but the theater seats are so crammed together that nobody can get by you without you having to stand up. It's that close! Waiters around the pool can get annoying constantly asking you if you want bar service. UGH!! Lots of deck chairs, one pool and a separate kids pool aft. Never went there but I think you have to access it outside on 13 and walk down to 12. When you get to Bermuda there is usually a long line (right off the ship) of people buying ferry/bus passes and getting infor. If you bypass that area and walk further down the dock there is a small trailer where you can get your passes. We found the regular balcony to be on the small side but doable. Enjoy!

Hey Sharon...nice to see you here posting :):):) I was wondering how your trip to Bermuda was? I haope you and your family enjoyed yourselves..... Great tip about the trailer....we were fortunate enough to ask a bike vendor if there was another place to buy the tickets and she pointed me to the trailer....saved tons of time and we made the first bus out of dockyard!!!!!

 

I see you have "our favorite repo" listed in your future cruises....good to see you have made it official....once you have a count down clock or a signature line you are legall bound to take the cruise!!!!!

[Nana G]

Great info on the bus ticket kiosk. Will keep it in mind. So glad to hear you found the dining options good. Thanks so much for the good info. We will definitely make the regular balcony doable. It was a price we couldn't resist to re-visit Bermuda!

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Clothing is relaxed casual. Some people end up in shorts in the main dining rooms. We like eating when we want to and not sharing a table with others. For us it is about being away and relaxing. Forced socializing is not my idea of a vacation.

 

so all you have to do is sign up for anytime dining and you won't be forced to eat with anyone.

 

Bill

[jdvmd]

Thanks for all the info jdvmd! Being Elite has 1 perk we like and that is laundry. We haven't eaten in main dining room for a long time since we like to eat informal. tried Anytime and never had a problem except- attire. Always got a table for two, no problem.

Having said that, we are looking for a more relaxed setting. We are in a balcony cabin which looks to me a bit similar to princess mini, with sofa and tub and shower. Since Princess only stops at Bermuda for the day, we prefer to spend more time there. Sailed twice on old Pacific Princess and once on Celebrity Summit and enjoy the 3 day itinerary.

Even on princess, we never do the formal night, have seen the shows multiple times, and enjoy MUTS a lot. Being on the balcony at night under the stars is the best. I am glad to hear you enjoyed the crew and cleanliness of ship. 2 must haves!

Any more helpful insights to share?

 

Hi Nana G.,

Regarding laundry -- That is a great perk for the Princess Elite crowd. I get the same amenity on Celebrity. You won't get this on NCL as you know. There is a laundry special periodically offered for $24.95, i.e. stuff the paper bag deal. On the Baltic cruise, it was offerered once and I am proud to say I got 52 pieces of clothing in that bag, mostly underwear and pairs of socks but still had a lot of other items. On Princess, you have the self laundromat but you won't have that option on NCL. There are also pressing specials offered.

Sounds like you would be a good fit for NCL if you don't have to have a set time. On Princess, we have waited longer for a table than we ever have on NCL. Our wish for table size has always been accommodated as well. Good thing with NCL is the variety of alternative restaurants if you don't want to do the main dining rooms. I highly recommend LeBistro. A lot of people love Cagneys and Moderno but I like LeBistro better. Also, I used to like LaCucina and then they changed their menu and I didn't like it as much. On the Baltic trip, we tried it again and it was wonderful. Teppanayki is also good.

We have never had anything above a mini suite on Princess but do love the size of the Caribe deck balconies. We are balcony people also and have always found the space to be comfortable no matter what ship. It won't be the Caribe deck but if you know that going into it, I don't think that would be an issue either.

[vols_159]

so all you have to do is sign up for anytime dining and you won't be forced to eat with anyone.

 

Bill

 

 

bill

theres no sign up when you decide to eat you walk into which resturant you choose and they seat you with your party and only your party.. ncl is freestyle theres no set dinning time for anybody.. but they do take reservations for specilty dinning rooms like moderno cagneys and libstro.. on my last cruise we would go to the mdr than go to the buffet for some fruit/ ice cream than maybe visit the sports bar for chicken wings/cheese cake after the nightly shows

[S.S.Oceanlover]

bill

theres no sign up when you decide to eat you walk into which resturant you choose and they seat you with your party and only your party.. ncl is freestyle theres no set dinning time for anybody.. but they do take reservations for specilty dinning rooms like moderno cagneys and libstro.. on my last cruise we would go to the mdr than go to the buffet for some fruit/ ice cream than maybe visit the sports bar for chicken wings/cheese cake after the nightly shows

 

On Princess you don't sign up on the ship. You pick the anytime dining option when you book the cruise.

 

princess still has both as some cruisers are traditionalist and have to do either early or late to have the same waiters or the same people at their tables.

 

Other people like the anytime dining option where you eat when you feel like it.

 

Bill

[Nana G]

Wow guys- all this talk about food is making me hungry!!!! Thanks so much. I think we will fit in perfectly on the Dawn. After all, we get to Bermuda for 3 days! What's not to enjoy? You have all been sooooo helpful.

[my_crib_too]

Did you look at the Holland America cruise to Bermuda? I am also looking to book a 2012 cruise to Bermuda and see that NCL spends only three days in Bermuda while HAL spends five days on the island. HAL also does two ports (weather permitting) while NCL does a single port. Just something I am considering prior to booking.