NCL Sky Review 2/17 - 2/21

[lilly_and_hunter]

My husband and I decided to take a short vacation by ourselves and leave the twins at home.... we chose the NCL Sky because of the price. We made a great choice!

 

We flew into Miami on Sunday and stayed at the B2 Downtown hotel near the port. Nice hotel... a bit pricey. We had a fun time walking around the marina near the hotel.

 

We checked out of the hotel at 11:00 on Monday and took the hotel shuttle to the port. Only cost us $6/person. Very quick and easy. The entire process with NCL at the port was crazy easy! Oh my! Embarkment was a breeze. NCL beats Disney big time on this. When we cruised on the Disney Dream in 2012 the whole check-in process was much more difficult. I do understand we are talking about very different sizes of ships and passengers, though. So that makes sense.

 

I wish I would've just worn my swimsuit on the ship on Monday rather than packing it in a small backpack. We walked straight to the pool deck, found 2 lounge chairs and started enjoying the sunshine.

 

Our cabin was ready by 1:00.... although we did not go to it for a few hours after this. We were loving the sun and warm weather too much. We stayed in Cabin 7206 with a picture window. The cabin was perfect. Nothing too fancy. Just right. We were comfortable and happy in it. I liked being on Deck 7 since the casino and Atrium bar were close by. Never, ever smelled cigarette smoke once except in the casino. Actually that thought never even crossed my mind until I started typing.

 

The Sail Away Party was a great time. People dancing and having fun. Lots of smiles from everyone. Great music from the DJ. The crew was leading the dances and it was a lot of fun.

 

There was the option of getting food on the pool deck - the crew was grilling chicken on huge charcoal grills. We ate this and it was good. We loved the grilling on the pool deck each day.

 

I believe we just ate the buffet that evening. It was fine. Plenty to choose from - food and beverages. Water, milk, coffee, 4 juices.

 

We went to the show the first evening. At the first show you will get to see the senior officers. The captain spoke for a few minutes. The comedian was so-so. But, whatever!

 

My husband and I did purchase the Ultimate Beverage Package and loved having it! It just took away the worry of the cost of drinks. If my drink got warm, I got a new one. We weren't worried about "getting our money worth"... no stress on this vacation! I'm sure we easily broke even each day with the UBP.

 

The Casino was lots of fun each evening. I found my favorite slot machine - Lucky Lemmings :) It was cute and I was able to play on it for a long time. We didn't spend lots of $$ in the casino... just enough to have fun. We enjoy roulette and played that each evening, too. By the end of the cruise we were a little ahead and that's always a good thing.

 

Great Stirrup Cay was awesome! Getting on the tender was super easy. No waiting at all. Just got our ticket and got right on. We loved this day best! So much fun. Not too crowded, beautiful water, warm sun, good fruity drinks, good lunch, and met a fun couple to spend the day with.

 

We ate at the Palace that evening. It was fine. We sat with 2 other couples so we wouldn't have to wait for a table. That was lots of fun, too. Great conversations.

 

Nassau the next day - only got off the ship for 45 minutes. I'm not a fan of Nassau. Someone we met went to Atlantis (on his own... not through a NCL excursion) and he loved it. My husband and I just enjoyed the sun all day. The pool deck was quiet - maybe 30 people. We enjoyed the hot tubs on the deck. My husband did jump in the pools a few times... .but the water was quite cold. He also got a massage this day. It was good.

 

We had a fun time that night at Dazzles watching the Newlywed Game. Lots of laughs from everyone. We stayed at Dazzles and listened to the band VIP for 1 1/2 hours. They were great! Listen to them if you get the chance. We listened to the band so long that we missed the White Hot Party. We were fine with that. We were having so much fun. Buffet dinner earlier that night - again, it was fine.

 

Freeport the next day - stayed on the ship. The pool deck was busier today which was okay. It was fun to "people watch".

 

We ate at Crossings the last night. We chose to sit alone. Great food for both of us here. I had red snapper and my husband had the pork chop. The waiter was super friendly. Very nice time at Crossings.

 

We enjoyed sitting at the Atrium bar each evening and listening to the different musicians that would play. I felt like there was great music all over the ship.

 

Breakfast each morning was good. We had omelets on the pool deck one morning and they were great!

 

Disembarkment was super easy, too. Sad to leave the Sky!

 

I cannot believe what an easy vacation this was. No stress. No worries. NCL makes everything so easy! The crew was fun and pleasant. This is NOT a party boat. I have no idea where this reputation came from. People were drinking just as much on the Disney cruise. Do NOT worry about that reputation.

 

There was a blend of age groups - from infants to elderly. Can't say that there was a majority of any specific age group.

 

There are lots of places to find peace and quiet if you want that. This ship truly has something for everyone. Keep in mind it is 15 years old. We cruised on the Dream when it was less than 1 year old and I can't say that I really enjoyed that ship more than the Sky.

 

No complaints from us! I would go back tomorrow if I had the option.

 

We are now fans of NCL! We wanted to make sure NCL was child friendly before bringing our twins.... and it is. They will be traveling with us next time.

 

I hope you enjoy the Sky as much as we did! I am happy to answer any questions you might have :)

[trini_ras]

Thanks for sharing

[meatball_nyc]

Thanks for sharing your review with us! Glad you had a great cruise.

 

Happy Cruising!

 

 

 

~Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

[meltingmoments]

Thanks for sharing! I love to hear about the Sky as she was our first cruise and got us hooked on cruising AND on NCL! :)

[Jagggg]

We also just got off the Sky. I agree with your review. We did different things than you and enjoyed the Sky very much. We were 3 couples ages 52-65. Wonderful variety for all ages.

[bonnie voyage]

Thanks for the review..glad you had a wonderful time! Did you carry your bags off the ship and how long did it take you to debark? Six of us are sailing in April and I am debating on whether to do the easy off route because we are flying out of FLL rather than MIA

[ladybiker4life]

Thank you for a good review. We will be on the sky at the end of April. Can't wait!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[jdvmd]

Glad you enjoyed! Last time on the Sky, we didn't bother to get off the ship! Love being able to just enjoy the pool and the ship!

[lilly_and_hunter]

Thanks for the review..glad you had a wonderful time! Did you carry your bags off the ship and how long did it take you to debark? Six of us are sailing in April and I am debating on whether to do the easy off route because we are flying out of FLL rather than MIA

 

 

Yes, we did just walk off with our bags. We only took carry-on suitcases for this trip. Looked to me like most people did the easy walk off option. We were off the ship and in the shuttle by 8:45.

 

Have fun!!

[shelly11]

I love to hear great Sky reviews!

[stormynow]

Lilly, do u remember if Rob was working at the Atrium bar. Last Jan he said he was going on vac in Feb but don't remember when. We want to plan another cruise on the Sky this spring but hate to miss him.

[lilly_and_hunter]

Stormynow,

 

Rob was not at the atrium bar.... it was always girls. I think he may have been at Breakers. Is he experienced? You can just kind of tell the difference.

 

Our favorite was Marie from the Philippines. She was a server and she was just awesome. I made sure to give her a big hug on the last night.

 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Forums mobile app

[stormynow]

Then he is probably on vac. Yes very experienced, been on the Sky at least 6 yrs. Marie is a sweetheart. Also liked Miley. Thanks for the reply.