NCL Sky 8/17/12 - Review

[scarlett19]

I rarely post reviews, but after sailing on the Sky on 8/17 and being so pleasantly surprised I decide I should.

I am admittedly a cruise-a-holic and have sailed Royal, Celebrity, MSC, Carnival (once a very long time ago) and NCL. When I came upon an incredibly low rate a group of my friends booked several cabins on the Sky.

We got to the port at 1PM, and from the moment we boarded (very quick process) everything about the Sky was great. We met our friends at the Pool Bar for a quick drink before heading in for lunch. I took the advice of many who said to skip the crowded Buffet and went to the MDR where there were only a few tables being served and had a great lunch there. I would definitely recommend doing this instead of the Buffet.

Since we had dinner reservations for Saturday at Le Bistro and Sunday at Cagney’s we decided to go to the Crossings (MDR) for dinner the first night. There was 9 in our group so we were able to taste several of the dishes from the Lamb Shank to the Lobster/Snapper dish to my NY Strip Steak/Lobster Tail dinner. It was on the menu as just the steak, but I asked our waiter for the lobster and he didn’t think twice…

Saturday was Great Stirup Cay. I had heard a lot on the board saying that it was under construction and feared the worse. One of my friends decided to reserve a Cabana fearing that due to the construction we would not find a nice place to spend the day. While the Cabana rental is pricey ($250/day) if you are able to splurge is was great. First great thing was that although there is a 10 minute walk, you are in quieter area that is not the mob scene of the regular beach. Secondly, while the “island” music that is playing is nice the regular beach gets a blasting of the music for the entire time on the island. Thirdly, each Cabana has a small refrigerator with bottled water, a fruit platter and chips with salsa. In addition to this you can also order off a menu that includes everything from shrimp to sandwiches. We chose to eat from the food that’s provided from the ship. We all found the buffet really good. They had a good selection; hamburgers, hotdogs, fries, pizza, chicken, salads and desserts. Everything was fresh and delicious.

Saturday evening we had reservations at Le Bistro. This was the only snag that I felt during the trip. We had an 8PM reservation and since we were a large party they split us up into 2 booths. The biggest problem of the meal was the service,(or lack there of)…the food was ok, not bad, but this meal took 2 ½ hours to serve. Way to long…won’t be doing Le Bistro again.

Sunday was Paradise Island and the group took a taxi ($4pp) to Cabbage Beach. This is where we usually go when we are on a cruise and as usual the beach was beautiful. We did find that each time we are there the crowds are getting bigger. We stayed there from 11AM to 3PM and took a taxi back to the ship for lunch.

Sunday evening was dinner at Cagney’s and this experience was wonderful from start to finish. Everything from the service to the food was fantastic. Definitely worth the extra $25 and will do this again and again.

In closing I will say that I found all the staff very friendly, willing to go out of their way to make sure you have all you needed. I have already booked another cruise on NCL for October!

[Cruiser Bruiser]

Thanks for sharing your very positive review of this cruise. I'll be on the Sky on December 10, and I can't wait! Cheers.:p

[NYGirl1002]

I enjoyed your review. Thanks for posting it.

[meltingmoments]

I enjoyed your review.....thanks for posting!!

The Sky was our first cruise this time last year.......she gave us the cruising bug!! :)

[jdvmd]

Thanks for your review! Love the Sky! Sorry that LeBistro wasn't up to your expectations. 2.5 hours is very typical. I have had dinners there that went to 3.5 hours. Alternatively, you can also tell the server that you have to be out within a certain amount of time.

[DevCruise]

How long did it take you to clear customs? :confused:

[WaldosPepper]

Thanks for your review! Love the Sky! Sorry that LeBistro wasn't up to your expectations. 2.5 hours is very typical. I have had dinners there that went to 3.5 hours. Alternatively, you can also tell the server that you have to be out within a certain amount of time.

 

Agreed. LeBistro is a must-do for us on every cruise, and we look forward to lingering over each course. It would not be out of the question for us to be there 3+ hours, but we anticipate that and plan our evening accordingly. LeBistro night is always a "romance night" for us as it sets the tone perfectly. ;)

 

That being said, they will happily pick up the pace of your courses if you let them know that you need to limit your time there.

[kba1988]

Nice review. Getting more excited about our first cruise in December on the Jewel. Hope we also have such a great time.:)

[scarlett19]

Clearing customs was quick and painless. We were off the ship and in our car by 8:15AM!

[BjuneT]

Thanks for the information. This is my first cruise and I am getting very excited.

[kcdancerkc]

If you eat at the Italian rest. - is it a long dinner too?

[DevCruise]

Clearing customs was quick and painless. We were off the ship and in our car by 8:15AM!

 

Thanks! I have tickets for 12:55pm out the day the cruise arrives and was concerned about that being too early.

[chisoxfan]

Thanks for the review. We are headed for a four nighter at the end of this month. We cruised the Sky on this itinerary a few years ago and I was almost apologizing to my wife as we boarded as my expectations were not very high. This sentiment was pleasantly dashed upon boarding as we were given a guided tour of the ship with some champagne on the way to our cabin (we had a balcony and were not frequent NCL cruisers). Overall the ship was clean, food good, and super friendly crew. I am just hoping for a repeat and I will be very happy.