Does this sound like Norwegian to you?

[fiedav]

I want to take my first cruise on the Dawn from Boston to Bermuda next year, and I want my wife to come.

 

I am disabled (in a powered wheelchair) and my wife is a big woman who has trouble walking more than a hundred yards.

 

She's ambivalent about going (she likes peace and quiet) and e-mailed a friend about this. Her friend replied:

 

"Do not go on a cruise. Make him go with someone else or not go at all. The only people I know who have enjoyed them are very outgoing and like to dance and go into each other's rooms and drink. G------ from work loves them. Imagine being trapped on a ship with her and her kind. On the other hand, someone I really like said it wasn't fun at all to be on a cruise. The workers were always insisting on over feeding her and pressuring her have fun. Do not give in, for Pete's sake. I mean, go if you want to, but don't let R----- brow beat you."

 

I don't ever recall reading about people's experience like this. I could understand that there are groups of people on any cruise who want to behave like this, but I'm sure they can be easily avoided. My wife would like to go and lie in the sun, read novels, and have a glass or two of wine a day. She's not that social.

 

We are both in our late 60s and don't look like anyone's idea of a good time. I have all the disabled stuff arranged. Can I take it that her friend's opinion doesn't have any real relevance to Norwegian cruising?

[ColinIllinois]

I want to take my first cruise on the Dawn from Boston to Bermuda next year, and I want my wife to come.

 

I am disabled (in a powered wheelchair) and my wife is a big woman who has trouble walking more than a hundred yards.

 

She's ambivalent about going (she likes peace and quiet) and e-mailed a friend about this. Her friend replied:

 

"Do not go on a cruise. Make him go with someone else or not go at all. The only people I know who have enjoyed them are very outgoing and like to dance and go into each other's rooms and drink. G------ from work loves them. Imagine being trapped on a ship with her and her kind. On the other hand, someone I really like said it wasn't fun at all to be on a cruise. The workers were always insisting on over feeding her and pressuring her have fun. Do not give in, for Pete's sake. I mean, go if you want to, but don't let R----- brow beat you."

 

I don't ever recall reading about people's experience like this. I could understand that there are groups of people on any cruise who want to behave like this, but I'm sure they can be easily avoided. My wife would like to go and lie in the sun, read novels, and have a glass or two of wine a day. She's not that social.

 

We are both in our late 60s and don't look like anyone's idea of a good time. I have all the disabled stuff arranged. Can I take it that her friend's opinion doesn't have any real relevance to Norwegian cruising?

 

 

I think you already know the answer to that. Cruising is for all types of people. Go on a cruise. Do as much as you want or do nothing. I wouldn't give that a second thought.

[Savoy Truffle]

Don't believe everything you hear. I'm introverted and love to sit in the sun and read. I had no problem finding someplace to read 4 books on the Dawn, which I just sailed on in April. There was no pressure from crew members to participate in something I didn't want to do or to be fed, although there are plenty of dining options onboard.

 

I highly recommend that your wife try it out and form an opinion for herself. I was skeptical of cruising but once I tried it, I was total convert. And the Dawn is a great ship to try it on.

[emcelh]

I want to take my first cruise on the Dawn from Boston to Bermuda next year, and I want my wife to come.

 

I am disabled (in a powered wheelchair) and my wife is a big woman who has trouble walking more than a hundred yards.

 

She's ambivalent about going (she likes peace and quiet) and e-mailed a friend about this. Her friend replied:

 

"Do not go on a cruise. Make him go with someone else or not go at all. The only people I know who have enjoyed them are very outgoing and like to dance and go into each other's rooms and drink. G------ from work loves them. Imagine being trapped on a ship with her and her kind. On the other hand, someone I really like said it wasn't fun at all to be on a cruise. The workers were always insisting on over feeding her and pressuring her have fun. Do not give in, for Pete's sake. I mean, go if you want to, but don't let R----- brow beat you."

 

I don't ever recall reading about people's experience like this. I could understand that there are groups of people on any cruise who want to behave like this, but I'm sure they can be easily avoided. My wife would like to go and lie in the sun, read novels, and have a glass or two of wine a day. She's not that social.

 

We are both in our late 60s and don't look like anyone's idea of a good time. I have all the disabled stuff arranged. Can I take it that her friend's opinion doesn't have any real relevance to Norwegian cruising?

 

I wonder if your wife's friend has ever been on a cruise. I love to sit in the sun, read novels and have a glass or two of wine and I love cruising. No one pressured me to eat or drink more than I wanted and no one ever pressured me to participate in activities I wasn't interested in.

[rpb718]

I would not put much stock in advice from someone who has never been on a cruise.

 

A cruise is what you make it. There are plenty of quiet places on a ship to sit and relax without anyone bothering you or trying to pressure you into anything.

 

Book a nice balcony cabin, bring a couple of bottles of wine on board, and your wife can sit and read to her hearts content.

[hladygirl]

My husband and I are not the partying type either. We love cruising on ncl. No one has ever tried to pressure us into any activities or food. If you like sun,fresh air,being waited on everyday and very friendly people then you will love cruising. Our favorite thing to do is sit on our balcony and have coffee or cocktails delivered to us out there. Go!! You'll love it!!!

[sdmike]

Follow the friend's advice. Go on a cruise without her. :p

 

To answer your question...no. That's not what cruising is like. The "friend" giving advice is misinformed and clearly stepping over the line.

[Fishbait17]

There is plenty of peace and quiet on an NCL cruise. I spend time in the casino alone, hubby spends time lounging and reading alone, and we spend the rest of the time together, just relaxing.. We will occasionally meet people that we hit it off with and might have a drink with them, but usually it's just hubby and myself, finally enjoying some quiet time together... I used to dislike old-style cruising, hated dressing up, hated having to make conversation with strangers at dinner, hated the " forced" feeling of the whole thing. NCL's Freestyle changed all that.. Now we cruise to just relax, and half the time could care less where the ship is headed! I highly recommend a nice balcony cabin if it's in your budget, or even better, a suite - in the suite you might not even have to leave the cabin at all if you don't want to! Some people could care less about the cabin, and like to be out and about the ship. We prefer our down time in a nice cabin, just (I'll say it again) relaxing..

 

Ps - the only time I have ever visited anyone else's cabin was on a cabin crawl (a tour of cabin types)..

 

Robin

[Homosassa]

It depends on what cruiseline you are on as to what type of passengers you will find. If you take a 3-4 day "Booze" cruise on another very popular line, you will find what your wife's friend is describing (actually, you have a good chance of finding that on that line's 7 day cruises).

 

On NCL, you will find some of what was described to you. Hopefully, those passengers will not be on your deck. The majority will be as others have described - people enjoying a quiet, relaxing time.

 

NCL is a good entry level line to try for your first cruise. You can judge from your experience on the cruise what you may wish to look for on your next cruise (either still on NCL or another line).

 

The one thing you may wish to consider about the Bermuda cruise is if your ship is docked out at the Navy wharf (the north end of the island chain) you will be very isolated from the rest of Bermuda and will need to spend a lot of time on buses and ferries to do any type of sightseeing.

[NLH Arizona]

"Do not go on a cruise. Make him go with someone else or not go at all. The only people I know who have enjoyed them are very outgoing and like to dance and go into each other's rooms and drink. G------ from work loves them. Imagine being trapped on a ship with her and her kind. On the other hand, someone I really like said it wasn't fun at all to be on a cruise. The workers were always insisting on over feeding her and pressuring her have fun. Do not give in, for Pete's sake. I mean, go if you want to, but don't let R----- brow beat you."

 

Well I guess I shouldn't go on a cruise and enjoy myself, which I have done on over 30 cruises. I'm very outgoing, but on a cruise I pretty much stay to myself. I don't dance, I have two left feet and neither of them know anything about dancing. No one has ever tried to overfeed me and actually I usually lose a couple of pounds while I'm on a cruise. You and your wife can eat as much or as little as you like, no one (staff or other passengers) will care. I've never had anyone pressure me to have fun and I'm sure they don't do it to others, since one person's fun is another person's agony. Sounds to me like you wife's friend is a little jealous. But if you wife is apprehensive, maybe a cruise is not the way to go, especially if she would be critical and complain the entire trip.

[valleyvillage]

Please allow me to translate:

 

Don't go on a cruise! I've never been on one and I'm afraid to go on one. If you go and have a good time I will be jealous. And after writing this I will look like an idiot. Please stay home and be miserable along with me.

[sinclaj]

Hi fiedav,

 

I hope that you and your wife do try a cruise. I know I had to talk my husband into it about 10 years ago and we have now had 10 cruises. NCL is the way to go if you want to more or less keep to yourselves. We often go on them just to get away from the stress at work and although we may certainly meet or talk to other people from time to time, we do like to dine by ourselves (NCL has great tables for 2 by the windows) and spend time reading, chatting and having a drink on the balcony.

 

We will go up on deck and watch the goings-on and have a drink but we have never been urged to join anything, dance or do anything we didn't want to do.

 

I'm a "big girl" myself, although I don't have trouble walking -- but trust me -- she'll see all shapes and sizes and won't feel out of place.

 

She will have lots of time to relax and read - I love to do that too.

Let us know if you go. As I told my husband -- if we don't do it now, when will we ever be younger, richer or healthier?

Judy

[Kamloops50]

I want to take my first cruise on the Dawn from Boston to Bermuda next year, and I want my wife to come.

 

I am disabled (in a powered wheelchair) and my wife is a big woman who has trouble walking more than a hundred yards.

 

She's ambivalent about going (she likes peace and quiet) and e-mailed a friend about this. Her friend replied:

 

"Do not go on a cruise. Make him go with someone else or not go at all. The only people I know who have enjoyed them are very outgoing and like to dance and go into each other's rooms and drink. G------ from work loves them. Imagine being trapped on a ship with her and her kind. On the other hand, someone I really like said it wasn't fun at all to be on a cruise. The workers were always insisting on over feeding her and pressuring her have fun. Do not give in, for Pete's sake. I mean, go if you want to, but don't let R----- brow beat you."

 

I don't ever recall reading about people's experience like this. I could understand that there are groups of people on any cruise who want to behave like this, but I'm sure they can be easily avoided. My wife would like to go and lie in the sun, read novels, and have a glass or two of wine a day. She's not that social.

 

We are both in our late 60s and don't look like anyone's idea of a good time. I have all the disabled stuff arranged. Can I take it that her friend's opinion doesn't have any real relevance to Norwegian cruising?

 

On a cruise you do as little or as much as you want. Most of the staff will leave you alone if you don't a drink or cocktail. The cruise staff doesn't drag you to activities even if are just sitting in the area and reading . Nightly shows are on your schedule the same as meals.

 

The cruise is your holiday not someone else' s. Do what you want on your on time , not the ship or staff's time.

[kerrytens]

OP, a coworker of mine sounds very much like the person you quoted. She has never stepped foot on a cruise ship yet her views of a cruise are based solely on her husband's one and only cruise that took place 40 years ago ....:rolleyes::rolleyes: To her, everything is super regimented. You NEED to do what the cruise director tells you to do (ie no personal time). You can't enjoy any country you visit because you aren't there long enough. OK, you get the idea.

 

I'd never allow anyone to sway my decision. I like to form my own opinions personally. Thank goodness I've always felt that way otherwise I would have missed out on some of the best vacations of my life had I 'listened' to her and her very uneducated view.

 

If you truly believe that you would enjoy taking a cruise, I say go for it. Perhaps you might want to try a 5 day cruise to start with. I hope that you and your wife get the opportunity to try it out. Please let us know what you decide too!

[moey142]

I agree that a cruise is what you make it. There is something for everyone. My husband and I each do what we like and not always together. He likes laying on the sundeck while I prefer my balcony with a good book. No one pushes food on you but you can always find something to eat when you want. Our first cruises we dressed up on formal nights. Now we dont bother. Thats just a personal choice. I really enjoy the ports more than sea days. We were on the dawn in april and looking forward to a future cruise on royal. Hope you and your wife go.

[kerrytens]

Please allow me to translate:

 

Don't go on a cruise! I've never been on one and I'm afraid to go on one. If you go and have a good time I will be jealous. And after writing this I will look like an idiot. Please stay home and be miserable along with me.

:D:D OK, that is funny AND spot on!!! :D:D

[Jasalth]

Honestly, her friend is full of BS! Espeically since it sounds like this friend has never been on a cruise themselves. It would be like me giving advice to NEVER go to NYC! There is a ton of crime, you are going to get robbed or worse, and they are going to charge you for everything! Now, I have never been to NYC, but I have heard this stuff on the news so it must be true right :rolleyes:

 

I am a lot like your wife in that I like piece and quiet. I am not outgoing, don't like to dance, and I don't drink. As a matter of fact, going to Walmart at the wrong time of the week sends me into a panic attack.

 

That being said, I love to cruise! Don't get my wrong, I wouldn't go w/o a balcony because of how I am. I spend all of my time there unless we are in port or eating. Well maybe some time in the casino if I am up to it. The only reason I even consider going to say, the pool, is because my youngest really wants to swim and we aren't in a port.

 

A cruise is just like any other vacation. If you were to go to a hotel somewhere, would you expect the only way to enjoy yourself is by going dancing, or into STRANGERS rooms to drink?

 

While we haven't been on NCL just yet, I have been on 3 other lines and have never been pressured into anything, be it food, drinks or buying something. It's what you make of it. If you want a nice quiet time in the sun, then that is what you get to do!

[calmpets]

My husband was very-anti cruise once upon a time: They are like giant floating petri dishes, everyone gets sick, they catch on fire, you're stuck in the middle of the ocean with nothing to do, etc. Then I convinced him we should take my dad on a cruise for his 60th birthday. Of my party of four I was the only one who had cruised before and knew what to expect, and by the time we had to get off nobody wanted to leave! Lots of misconceptions out there, but the only way to know for sure if you'd like it yourself is to try it. Opinions of other people, especially ones who've never cruised personally, aren't worth much in the big scheme of things.

[Tralfie]

You know what I wouldn't want?

 

To be on a cruise with the woman who wrote that to you!

 

There's a class of people known as "underminers." They are never happier than when they can make others as unhappy as themselves. If they hear you talking about something you are excited about, they try and find ways to make you feel bad about it. They are the kind of person who will say things like, "Oh, you like your new hairstyle? You aren't afraid it makes you look too young?" They have never, ever in their lives done something -- no matter how awesome -- without walking away from it with a complaint.

 

It is ridiculous of her to say that the staff is going to "overfeed" you. Does she think you're going to Guantanamo and staging a hunger strike and they'll wind up stuffing tubes down your throat?

 

I had a person like this -- an underminer -- in my life for years. I finally had to tell them, "Listen, it's awesome that you baste in misery and revel in imperfections, but I have this weird thing where I like to enjoy life."

 

We don't talk much anymore... LOL

 

Go! Enjoy! And make sure to go into it with the attitude that this is YOUR trip, and you are going to do what YOU want WHEN you want. You're going to overlook any negatives (and let's face it... as with any vacation, if you look for them, you can find them!) and instead focus on the positives.

 

Do that... you'll have an awesome time. And then you can tell your underminer that she's missing out on one of the most awesome experiences there is: Living life to its fullest!

 

Tralfie/Richard

[NLH Arizona]

"Oh, you like your new hairstyle? You aren't afraid it makes you look too young?"

 

Now, anyone that would tell you that your hairstyle makes you look younger is not an underminer, that is a really good friend!

[vols_159]

I didn't know if I would like cruisin but I tried it 4 cruises later its the only vacation for me

[cruiser12]

Hello my name is Jo-Ann my last cruise was just this May 4 2013 ( 34 )

My husband is in a jazzy wheel chair and up until 4 years ago I had very bad knees , easy fix for me I now have two new ones.

Cruising is a nice vacation, we get a handicapped cabin and please do so and book it now they go fast due to so few. There are many quiet places for you to hang out read a few books. If you would like to wheel your self around the ship to check it out you go right ahead. If you have any special needs there are officers that are in charge just for those reasons.

I would like to share more info with you , not sure how to do that here on this thread or how you can contact me if any one knows please share

If you have any question from this response please ask away.

This last sailing there could have been a wheels race ten fold.

[cruiser1955a]

Having just returned from the first Dawn/Bermuda cruise of the season, I can guarantee that no one will force you to do anything you don't want to do, eat anything you don't want to eat, or drink anything you don't want to drink. In fact, not one passenger invited me to their cabin to drink :(

 

A cruise is no different than an all inclusive land vacation, with more dining & entertainment choices. Your wife can choose not to participate in anything and have a great time.

[bonvoyagie]

While I have only cruised on NCL, I really can't imagine any of the mass market cruise lines of today trying to force feed you, or make you do anything you don't want to. As for mobility, I would suggest that you either look into cabins mid ship or perhaps more towards the aft the reason being that both the garden café and one of the MDRs are located between mid ship and aft. I would also suggest trying to snag a handicapped cabin - or even opting for an aft suite or mini suite for a bit more room. BTW with the full suite you can eat every meal in your suite delivered to you by your own butler.:).

 

As for the person trying to persuade you from not taking the cruise - tell her where to go - while you are enjoying your cruise :D

[mypleasure]

Only last week I was telling a couple who are in their eighties and about to be married that a cruise might suit them very well due to their mobility issues. No wheelchair but can't walk huge distances. I explained that they didn't need to get off the ship unless they wanted to, could socialize if they wanted, enjoy the shows, enjoy meals together and just enjoy the view. They were quite taken with the idea of the way it is on NCL.