Norwegian Pearl or Celebrity Infinity to Alasky July 2017. Advice needed!

[laurajc]

We are booked on the Infinity, but the reviews are making me nervous. Should we change ships? Have to decide in the next 2 weeks. We are in our early 50's travelling with in-laws and 20 something year old kids. Please share experiences!

[moqui_girl]

I haven't read the reviews, what are the main issues? We travelled on the Infinity to Alaska and had a fantastic time. It was a couple of years ago but I can't imagine it has changed that much. One thing we especially liked was the naturalist on board who gave great port talks and live commentary on deck at certain points. The food was also great.

 

 

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[laurajc]

Thanks for your thoughts. The reviews from the recent Panama/South America trips seem negative about dining, entertainment and maintenance of the ship. It's our first cruise with our son in law and son's girlfriend too, want everyone to have a great time.

[SuiteTraveler]

Can you tell us what your expectations are for this cruise? Are you someone who wants a luxury experience or are you looking for something modest because seeing Alaska on a budget is what you care about most? That would help us in determining if you should change cruise lines.

 

Infinity is an older ship and it shows but many of the less expensive ships in Alaska are like that.

[laurajc]

Exactly, I am not sure the Pearl will be much different. My husband and I have done the Northbound on the Coral Princess. Loved the trip, but Princess not so much, we found there was very little to do on ship. We are going again to show our kids as much of Alaska as we can in the time they have available and to share the experience with their grandparents. We don't need a big party boat, but a nice piano bar and good food would be great. Hoping there will be a naturalist on board. We liked the covered pool area on the Infinity and have never sailed Celebrity.

The budget is a bit tighter as we are hosting...

[SuiteTraveler]

The NCL Pearl was recently dry docked - in fact she just got out a few days ago.

http://www.eglobaltravelmedia.com.au/norwegian-pearl-shines-with-shipwide-enhancements/

I've sailed on her sister ship, Jade. What I can tell you about NCL is that I love The Haven on NCL. So, if you were planning on suites, I would say, yes, do go on the Pearl and make sure you are in suites in The Haven complex as it is a very special experience! For regular cabins, it's not such a great experience. It's not bad, it's just not special or upscale. I would think of it as a small step up from Carnival. That said, the whole orientation of NCL cruises is to eat in a different restaurant every night of your cruise. We tend to eat breakfast and lunch in the area set aside for Haven guests (a specialty restaurant). Then dinner we rotate through Le Bistro, Cagney's, Sushi, Moderno, back to Le Bistro, maybe La Cucina - all of which cost extra. You have to make all your specialty dining reservations in advance or your won't get in due to the dining package. For the regular cabins, the big negative of this ship is the buffet which was not designed to host the number of guests onboard, so if you go there for breakfast, your chances of finding somewhere to sit are slim to none when it is busy. Also, there is no covered pool except in The Haven and also the spa thermal suite which you have to pay to enter.

 

On Celebrity, we tend to eat in the MDR mostly, but we also have gone to specialty restaurants. Our favorite is QSine - but it is best to go there with a group so you can try lots of things on the menu. I noticed that the Celebrity Solstice (built 2008, refurbished 2016) is sailing round trip from Seattle. This is a considerably nicer and newer ship than the Infinity so you might want to consider that ship instead. It has a huge spa pool that is covered and a whole lot of different restaurants, great martini bar and Iove their wine bar. This ship would definitely be a step up from infinity or NCL Pearl. Price for Solstice is nearly the same as for Infinity, so what you would get is a ship with a lot more onboard overall that is much newer. I would think this would be a good choice if you like the itinerary.

 

Beyond that the only other thing you might do, which would be a considerable step up for not so much more money would be Oceania Regatta - but this is a very Country Club type cruise and geared to sophisticated travelers who like fine wine, fine dining, string quartets, luxury among only 684 other pampered cruisers. It would be an awesome experience if your family is into these things, but not so much for those who are not.

[rugerdog]

I've been on the Infinity to Alaska. We are your age, and we also took the parents with us, and we also were hosting. I've also been on ONE cruise with NCL (although it wasn't on the Pearl). I agree with everything the other posters have said. It completely depends on your expectations and interests.

 

Alaska on a 7 day round trip (if that is your plan) is pretty busy, therefore the activities on board are not as big of a factor. The scenery is compelling and many people spend their on board time simply looking outside and watching for whales. The Infinity is older and not as pretty as some others. By comparison within the Celebrity line, the Solstice is beautiful.

 

However, in my experience the real difference is the food and the service, both of which have always been excellent on Celebrity. I've never been compelled to eat in one of the fee-extra dining venues on Celebrity, because the included offerings were so great. On NCL, the only time I enjoyed a meal was when went to the extra charge restaurants. If given the choice, I would choose Celebrity any day of the week. Another line may offer more on board activities which likely would be more important on a cruise with lots of sea days. But based on your particular situation, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the Infinity or, as Suite Traveler said, the Solstice.

 

If you do choose the Celebrity cruise, the naturalist on board our cruise was very worthwhile. I think we attended every one of his presentations.

 

One other consideration may be the size of the ship. Depending on your itinerary, I remember hearing that some of the larger ships could not maneuver into the smaller fjords and therefore couldn't get as close to the glaciers. No idea if this is still the case, but at the time we went, that is why we chose the Infinity, it was smaller.

 

I hope you have a great time with your family!

[taglovestocruise]

If your concern is about the ship and nightlife bump up to Solstice or try RCCL Radiance; These ships offer more to do for the 20 something's. Our choice for a trip to Alaska would be on the Radiance, beautiful ship with lots of glass windows. happy cruising

[JMorris271]

We hated the Coral P. Boring, needed refurbishing ,forget being entertained, it didn't help that there was little calling or whales

 

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