Norwegian Wind - Pros and Cons??

[golfnut1]

DH and I just booked a repo cruise with this ship for our 47th next April (Honolulu to Ensenada) and know nothing about NCL at all. We know it's an older ship, but has anyone any good things - or bad - to say about the Wind or NCL? Food, recreation, stateroom sizes, staff, crew, etc., etc. Thanks! :p

[Atomica]

I was on the Wind a very, very long time ago just after it was stretched, but I personally really enjoyed it, and would have no problems sailing on her again. It's not a 'mega' ship and it lacks some things like an atrium, but I found it had a very 'cozy' feel to it, if that makes any sense. Sailed on NCL again this year, and while I though the food was sometimes hit-and-miss, the crew was spectacular. As for the cabins, even an inside should be adequate for two people - any more and you'll probably want to look into a larger outside or one of the few balcony cabins on the Wind. Hope that helps!!

[golfnut1]

Thanks, Aaron! Nice to know you'd sail on it again. We do have an outside cabin booked, so sounds like it will be a good size. I doubt we'll miss the atrium. We usually sail on the Windstar line as we love the smaller "cozy" feel:) Have a great time on your next sail.....10 days, wow!!!

[cuppy]

We were on the Wind in May - we had good service from some of the crew (wait staff, room stewards, bar staff) and lousy service from others (reception desk, future cruise consultant, and the shore excursion desk).

 

We prefer the larger ships and we are not huge fans of Freestyle dining. That being said - we did eat at all the resteraunts and really enjoyed the specialty resteraunt (order the chocolate fondue), some nights there were 1 - 2 hour waits so we walked to other resteraunts until we found a place to goto with less than 20 minutes to wait. Unfortunately we only got sat with other people 3 times on our 11 night cruise :confused: we really enjoy getting to meet people and talk to them to learn about their cruise experience and getting tips and didn't get the opportunity on this cruise. As for the shows, on 3 occassions we could not go into the show because the theater was full and they stopped letting people in.

 

My biggest complaint was there are only 2 small pools. We chose to use the one on deck 9 (which you can only get to by going to the back of deck 8 and going up the stairs, or going to deck 10 and going down the stairs) less crowded but very choppy waters in the pool. Also we had an outside cabin with obstructed view - although we could see over the life boat the problem came when my husband & I were in our cabin one afternoon and had left the curtains open and there was a man standing in the life boat doing work on it looking in :eek: :eek: :eek: NCL doesn't notify you if anyone will be outside in the lifeboats or even apologize for it.

 

All in all - we would sail on this ship again if we went back to Hawaii. The price was right and except for reception area the service was really good.

[Middleager]

We were just only the Wind Aug. 24-Sept. 3 in the Hawaii sailing. It was pretty good. It's a mid-sized ship, the crew were good. We were on the 8th floor, in an obstructed outside room. It was fine, we could see the sky and coast over the boat in front of us.

 

The restaurants were good, especially Le Bistro which we had to pay $10/person more. They also serve "Surf & Turf" which you add $5/person, to get filet Mignon and 3 half-pieces of lobster. It was good.

 

The ship is not laid out that well, especially location of the Stardust lounge where the shows are. There are only 2 hot tubs, so at times it's crowded. But we took the cruise for the Hawaiian ports, and they were wonderful.

[NCmom]

We were on the wind for a 10 night cruise this past June. I thought the staff was excellent. We didn't try for Le Bistro reservations so I can't speak to that. We were never able to get a seating in La Trattoria--too long to wait each time we tried. Most nights there was some wait, but it was bearable. We were always seated privately, except for one time when we were asked it we mind sharing a table.

 

I enjoyed the trivia and the craft classes onboard. We didn't use the pools much, so I can't speak to how crowded they were.

 

I do agree the set-up in the stardust was awkward, but thought the entertainers did a very good job with the limitations.

[golfnut1]

Are there 2 shows per night or only one? I was a tad confused when Cuppy said they couldn't get in one night. Is there entertainment in any of the bar areas? With 6 days at sea, we will certainly need some :p

[KeystoneCruiser]

Remember that NCL is a Freestyle Operation. Here in a nutshell is what that means:

 

1.) No set dining times. You go to dinner when you feel like it. The restaurants are open from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m..

2.) No set waiter or restaurant. You most likely will have a different waiter each night. There are two main restaurants serving traditional cruise fare and several "specialty" restaurants featuring Italian, Steak House, Bistro, Oriental, etc. You pick the restaurant you want. The main dining rooms do not take reservations (except for large parties) but the specialty restaurants do. (you can make reservations when on board.) The main restaurants are free, most of the specialty restaurants charge you a cover charge of between $15-25 per person. There is also a buffet open for all meals.

Note: do not plan on "dinner" entertainment. There is no Baked Alaska parade or dancing waiters on NCL.

3.) No set dining partners. You can eat by yourself or you can ask to be seated with others. Your choice.

4.) No need to dress up. There is one or two "OPTIONAL" formal nights on NCL cruises, but you do not have to dress up even on those nights. You can wear "resort casual" to every meal in any restaurant any night. Resort Casual simply means no shorts, jeans, or t-shirts in the dining rooms after 5:00 p.m.. Polo shirts, Kahaki pants, pant suits, sundresses are just fine. I have never worn a tie or dress pants on board any NCL ship. Even on the formal nights, you will find that it runs 50-50 between those who dress up and those who don't.

5.) No tipping. NCL will add a $10 per person per day Service Charge to your bill and that takes care of tipping most of the staff including room stewards and wait staff. You can give additional if you want, but you don't have to. In addition, NCL charges a 15% serivice charge to bar tabs and spa tabs. No need to carry cash to fill envelopes!

6.) Disembarkation: You will receive colored luggage tags the night before disembarkation. You can stay in your cabin until your color is called to disembark. No need to be crammed into a public lounge waiting to get off, stay in your cabin!!!

 

These are the highlights of Freestyle Cruising and are why I love to cruise with NCL.

 

Another thing: NCL is not perfect, they make mistakes but so does every other cruise line. Take the negative things that you read on these boards and USE them to your advantage! Learn from what others have gone through to avoid the problems! Have a great cruise.

[mg93901]

The Wind is my first cruise. Your info is really helpful. :)

[james_1043]

with NCL I am sure you will have an ok time. To be honest. I have cruised with NCL 4 times 3 on the Star and the Dawn the last on what we dubbed the "winded" there really is no comparison with the older ships that were retrofitted for free style vs the new ones that were built with it in mind. I happen to love the freestyle concept and if you are on Dawn or Star or upcoming for me the Jewel they have upwards of 8 different restaurants. The wind awkwardly has two specialty and 2 regular. When it was stretched it cuts off some floors and its a bit confusing to get around. The cabins although refurbished in the late 90's are clearly well worn and dated. BTW I was in an Owners suite on Deck 11. It is definitely an older ship that some love and some dont. If you read the reviews posted I think you will see what I mean.

[mg93901]

I've done a little reading here on the Wind. I know it's an older ship, but that's okay with me. Honestly, I'm just excited about being on a BIG boat! Since this is my first, I won't have anything to compare it to. I was supposed to be in Cozumel today (Elation from Galveston), but Katrina and Rita thwarted those plans. So now I'm really looking forward to Hawaii and Fanning Island. :D

[Old Salty Dog]

We sailed on the Wind just over a year ago and were pleasantly surprised. Having sailed on HA and Princess we expected the NCL ship to be a notch lower. It was, but we were still very satisfied. It was comfortable, adequate room, and the food was generally very good. Some people complained about the 4 days of sea time to get to Fanning Island, but we liked it - gave us a chance to enjoy what the ship had to offer. No casino on that cruise, but didn't miss it. The shore trips were easy and a good value. We only did a few since we have spent much land time in Hawaii.

I'm sure some of the newer, larger ships might be a bit better, but we would sail on the Wind again.

[Shellyjean]

My mom and I are going on the Wind on 4/1/06. We just booked yesterday and are getting excited. I have read mixed reviews-folks love or hate the ship/line. I am SO excited to have 11 days of someone else doing the dishes, that so long as they don't drag me into KP, I will be happy!! (mom of 3).

 

I think that with some exceptions, whether a vacation is 'good' or not has more to do with your attitude than anything the line,crew or other passengers can do.

 

I am wondering if the casino will be open between hawaii and mexico or not. We got some faulty info on the need for passports already and am wondering if the 'no casino' statement was part of the same confusion that thought we were going to fanning island.

[pugsbest]

My mom and I are going on the Wind on 4/1/06. We just booked yesterday and are getting excited. I have read mixed reviews-folks love or hate the ship/line. I am SO excited to have 11 days of someone else doing the dishes, that so long as they don't drag me into KP, I will be happy!! (mom of 3).

 

I think that with some exceptions, whether a vacation is 'good' or not has more to do with your attitude than anything the line,crew or other passengers can do.

 

I am wondering if the casino will be open between hawaii and mexico or not. We got some faulty info on the need for passports already and am wondering if the 'no casino' statement was part of the same confusion that thought we were going to fanning island.

 

There isn't a casino on the ship at all. The space is used to display the art for the auctions and they set up folding chairs during the art auction times. The only gambling on the ship is bingo and it is really popular!

[golfnut1]

Hi Shelly Jean, glad to know we're having company on our cruise. I posted a message on Roll Call Boards, but so far, no one has answered. Pick me up over there, for further chats:) :p

[Markandrews]

I would say the casino will be refitted. Just not sure if it will be before or after your cruise. There is no way NCL will operated a ship without a casino if the law does not prohibit it. Casinos are big money for the Cruise lines.

 

BTW. we really liked the Wind both times we sailed on her. It is not huge like the Jewel but there are positves to a smaller sized ship.

 

Enjoy your cruise

[MidtheNight]

We were on an 11 day Honolulu to Honolulu last June (2004). We had pretty good service all the way around. Had one waiter on the pool deck, show lounge, etc that would look for us all the time (we were joking around with him from the first day) and one of the bartenders in Lucky's Bar (went every day for a pre-dinner cocktail) who absolutely went out of their way to make us happy. Even though they add on that "gratuity surcharge" to the drink bill we gave them both $20 on the last night as an extra tip. You would have thought we gave them the world on a platter from their expressions.

 

IMO if you treat the staff nice (be friendly, respectful), talk to them (ask their opinion on ports, ship board activities or anything) they'll be fantastic and give you some of the best service you've ever had. Don't be afraid to slip them something extra at the end of the cruise (remember, a huge number are from lesser developed countries and they are sending their $ back home to support a family they haven't seen in months a lot of the time).

 

The only "problem" we ever encountered was that on sea days everybody and their uncle wanted to eat dinner at 5:30-6:00pm. On port days you can't get a lot of people to go that early (we prefer eating early rather than later and there was never a wait) but on sea days you can have quite a wait (one day it was an hour or so) to get into dinner. Bringing your patience on those days is the key...and never ever rant at the host/hostess as it's not their fault so many people decided to eat at the same time.

 

:) :) :)

[Xev]

I really enjoyed my Sept '05 sailing on the wind. I've done a review on it somewhere...Summary: My overall experience was very good. I would definately do it again.

[golfnut1]

Thanks everyone for the reviews. I'm sure we will enjoy everything the ship has to offer, and we're much happier on the smaller "cozier" ships :D We've been to Hawaii every year for 24 years, but have never taken the cruise around the islands.....how weird is that :rolleyes: