Epic Cruise from Barcelona 14/08/11

[MATHA531]

Back from my Epic cruise from Barcelona on 14/08/11 which took in Western Mediteranean. The ship is very very nice without question and on the whole, had a good time. However, there are some issues that I know may cause me to be known as a whiner but I will still bring them up.

 

CABIN: Yes, I am a non swinging solo traveller. So I stayed in one of the studio cabins. Are they adeuqate? Well as a famous US President once said, it depends on your deinition of adequate. I mean if this is the only way I can cruise and not be subject to a 100% penalty for having the audacity to cruise as a solo, then okay it's adequate. (Let me say here, I can accept say a 50% single supplement as fair to keep say two people who can cruise together form taking two single accomodations, but 100% is a penalty...last time I checked most single people do not eat twice as much food as 2 people and are more likely to buy the overpriced ship excursions which is something I doubt the bean counters can take into account)...so to charge a solo 100% surcharge is a penalty but I digress. I don't like the swanky lighting...normal lighting would do. I rarely unpack my suit case anyway so the lack of drawer space is no big deal but finding a place to store my suit case. No it won't fit under the bed and the lack of a desk means no way to download my pictures into my lap top or even use the lap top in any sort of comfort. So a mixed bag there.....

 

FOOD: Well again, adequate but not awesome, unless you're willing to pay for the swankier restaurants (I was and enjoyed teppanyaki twice and Cagney once). But comparing it to my only other basis of comparis i.e. a couple of cruises on HAL, I would rate food as distinct second grade. Buffet seemed to lack much variation from day to day. Couldn't find any sushi (maybe I missed it at the oriental station) , HAL had more choices at its omlette stations. Not once during the 7 day cruise did the main dining rooms have lobser tails and filet mignon (should have it at least once, right so of course one will simply say go to Cagney's) but I got this on HAL (again my comparison). Also on the HAL Eurodam, whatever top entrees that were available at the main dining room were also found at the buffet. Did not seem so on NCL. My final comment was that on the last two days of the cruise at breakfast, no orange juice was there. Instead we had pineapple juice. Deliberate? Penny pinching? Who knows but it is hard for me not to start the morning off with a nice healthy glass of vitamin C enriched orange juice (as a matter of fact, freshly squeezed on HAL). Whining? Perhaps but my observation.

 

I should thank NCL for my other whine about food....I knew NCL has sold its soul to pepsi products. Personally, study after study has been done showing most people don't give a doggone but those that do, prefer coke products. Before boarding the vessel in Barcelona, I tried to find a place to buy coke zero, my favored drink. Not possible nor was it possible, at least I couldn't find places, at any of the stops. So I spent the entire cruise without being able to drink any soda pop. This is certainly whining but I believe that when companies sign their soul over to pepsi products, they are showing contempt for their customers. Did drink a lot of water and iced team. Can hardly wait for the flaming that's ure to follow but again just giving my opinions.

 

ENTERTAINMENT: Again I suppose it's a matter of taste or preferene. Blue Man Group, great. Legends in Concert, great. Cirque de soleil very enjoyable. But...if you've seen them once, there are really no other shows (well the Steven Sorenstein show was enjoyable). I prefer a variety of whows but again understand it's a matter of personal preference.

 

Did these things spoil my holiday? A tad I suppose so probably as these are matters of NCL policy, I might pass on a future NCL cruise and stick to what seems to be a better company with HAL...of course there's always the 100% penalty imposed on us solos so I suppose the message will be to flame me, to stell me to stop whining, and you get what you pay for. But it is my responsibility as a reporter to report on where I think NCL misses the mark.

 

Let the flaming begin.

[Tatka]

Not a flame, but a comment. Pineapple juice has tons of vitamin C. I'd love to have this juice available during our cruises. :)

[MATHA531]

Tatka....very true but then again, part of the lack of variety I was complaining about. On the first 5 days of the cruise, beverage stations at breakfast had two spouts for orange juice, one spout each for apple juice and then for those with kidney stones, cranberry cocktail. On the last two days, we had pineapple juice instead of orange juice. Couldn't we have had both? (I like pineapple juice but not as much as orange juice and as the point I was making, on HAL the orange juice is freshly squeezed. yummy!). As I said, don't know if this is more NCL penny pinching or just to add variety. Not the worst thing in the world, of course.

[Tatka]

HAL is a bit more premium than NCL, I am not sure if you were aware of this, and their prices are higher. Maybe this is why they are offering more and better variety. I suggest you try Princess, which doesn't offer much better selection of juices, but food in free restaurants and buffets are definitely more interesting than on NCL, and sometimes than HAL's. :)

[stephenandrew]

I have never been to a restaurant, resort, theme park, cruise ship, etc. that had both Pepsi and Coke products---maybe I have led a sheltered life, but it always seems to be one or the other. Frankly, coke and pepsi are interchangeable to me, so it never makes a difference as far as I am concerned. I guess if you prefer one over another though, you are out of luck if your ship, resort, etc. carries the "other" label. Funny thing is, it is probably better for you if they don't carry your favorite---all of that stuff is bad for you, and you are better off drinking water any way.

[MATHA531]

HAL is a bit more premium than NCL, I am not sure if you were aware of this, and their prices are higher. Maybe this is why they are offering more and better variety. I suggest you try Princess, which doesn't offer much better selection of juices, but food in free restaurants and buffets are definitely more interesting than on NCL, and sometimes than HAL's. :)

 

Well I certainly know that now and of course should have known that from the prices being charged...so I guess you get what you pay for!

 

I do research things through and pretty much got what I expected, I tried to make that clear. If only, I could find a cruise line, other than NCL, with some sort of sympathy for solo travellers which ultimately was the bottom line here I suppose.

[computerworks]

...with some sort of sympathy for solo travellers which ultimately was the bottom line here I suppose.

 

I thought the Studios were favorably priced for singles...not so?

[MATHA531]

I have never been to a restaurant, resort, theme park, cruise ship, etc. that had both Pepsi and Coke products---maybe I have led a sheltered life, but it always seems to be one or the other. Frankly, coke and pepsi are interchangeable to me, so it never makes a difference as far as I am concerned. I guess if you prefer one over another though, you are out of luck if your ship, resort, etc. carries the "other" label. Funny thing is, it is probably better for you if they don't carry your favorite---all of that stuff is bad for you, and you are better off drinking water any way.

 

That of course is very true but if you go to a theme park, it's one day....a cruise is 7 (of course you might stay say at a Circus Circus type place on the Vegas strip which has only pepsi products)....of course I knew this full well going on and believe me I made every effort to get some coke products before the cruise but just couldn't find a way to do it....the shore excursions I took did not stop at an autogrill say where I could have stocked up on coke zero. Just still my opinion, although I understand this is the way it is, that while most people like yourself find coke and pepsi interchangeable (no pepsi does not have a drink like coke zero which has the taste of the original without the diet soda taste) where people do have a preference, it's amost always coke.

 

Again, just my opinion....is this done to save money and keep NCL prices down? Who knows.

[NEW 2 CRUISIN]

... there are some issues that I know may cause me to be known as a whiner...

 

I hate to say it, but after reading your "review", I have to agree that on this point you are absolutely correct!

[MATHA531]

I thought the Studios were favorably priced for singles...not so?

 

It has worked out that way although from what I've read, it was not really the original purpose of the studios; perhaps my memory is faulty there. Again, they are adequate as a place to lay my weary bones down at the end of a hard day of doing a shore excursion with lots of walking but that's about it. Whether a cabin should provide more is obviously a matter of taste; it does show single cabins can work. I just don't like what should I call it the sense of isolation of having their own corridor with key entrance necessary' others might like it. I don't need the psychodelic changes in light. But if money is the first issue, and I suppose it is to all of us, one can last for a week in one. I just wuld prefer other reasonable options, that's all I'm saying.

[MATHA531]

I thought the Studios were favorably priced for singles...not so?

 

 

Yup I sure am. Anything wrong with that or in this world should we just accept everything that is thrown at us without pointing out their shortcomings?

 

Now you should hear, the complaints I will be making to American Airlines regarding my flight home today on an aircraft that in this day and age does not have the individual screens for a trans-continental flight.

 

But all the things I noted are well known and like I said, I went into this in full knowledge of this and in a way my worst fears came to fruition (but in other ways it was a nice cruise). Take it for whatever little it's worth.

[VAGentleman05]

Well I certainly know that now and of course should have known that from the prices being charged...so I guess you get what you pay for!

 

I do research things through and pretty much got what I expected, I tried to make that clear. If only, I could find a cruise line, other than NCL, with some sort of sympathy for solo travellers which ultimately was the bottom line here I suppose.

 

A quick search of your posting history indicates that you had a number of complaints about your HAL cruise as well (costly internet service, no Coke Zero, etc.). Like you, I've been on two cruises with different itineraries on different lines, but I have yet to find a single thing to complain about. I'm thinking it's all a matter of attitude - if soda or pineapple juice or seeing a show you've already seen before can put a damper on your vacation, then I'm not sure you'd be happy on any vacation.

[skt4cruise]

OK gottcha on the good and bad but most important.....did they have dancing classes???:)

[sinclaj]

They had either coke zero or coke lite at the little convenience store just before you go up the escalator to get on the ship in Barcelona. We also found coke zero in the grocery stores in Barcelona. We picked some up for my daughter and carried it aboard.

 

The sushi is there every day in the buffet from what I recall.

[Ti2m]

Can you tell us about the excursions you took?