Just off Norwegian Sky

[Jennsails]

We just returned from a 5 day itinerary on the Sky. She is a small ship. Very small. 5 days felt about a day too long and I can see why she is ideal for the 3-4 day cruises. Her refurbishment is A+. The ship is immaculate and the common area decor is sleek and modern. The service and crew were also excellent and we were extremely impressed with the impeccable service and friendliness. I'd compare the level to service experience to Seabourn, they were that good. I never had to ask twice for anything and even at the buffets, the staff were tripping over themselves to be of assistance, wiping everything down, we never saw a dirty table, never waited more than a second after finishing a plate to have it swept away. We'd only done one previous NCL cruise prior to this, (we are Celebrity fans) and will absolutely book our next cruise on NCL, just a larger ship with more space.

 

We had a balcony cabin mid ship on deck 10 and it was quiet and an excellent location. However, it was TINY. We walked in when we embarked and were shocked.

There is one small nightstand beside the bed but the other side of the bed butts right up to the chair and the chair is right against the door the the balcony. We aren't large people; I am 115 lbs and BF is 170 and we were having difficulty navigating from one side of the bed to the other. There is maybe 14 inches max between the foot of the bed and the wall and about 2 square feet of open floor space between the vanity and the chair. As I understand it, the Sky was retrofit to include the 2 decks of balcony cabins so I guess they were not designed to have the spacious feel that we'd expect on a newer ship but it was still a shock. I don't think that the bathrooms were updated in the renovation. They are fine but the shower has a curtain, not a door. The shampoo, body wash and hand wash are in dispensers and felt very watery. I always bring my own shampoo and conditioner so not a big thing but be advised. There is no conditioner or lotion in the cabin. There was also not a robe but our steward brought them for us to use soon as I asked. The balcony itself was great and had enough space so fortunately we kind of worked our way out there when one of us was trying to get ready, etc. We typically book a larger balcony cabin when we cruise so maybe we are just spoiled but this was not an option on the Sky. Another reason we'll try a newer ship with more category options next time. The cabin was super clean, bed and bedding very cozy and comfortable and we slept very well. Our cabin steward was a doll and took wonderful care of our room. The location was super as we could easily pop upstairs to the Garden Cafe for a snack or pop in to the Local for a drink or to refill our Yetis with ice water. 

 

Oddly, the Bridge Cam channel or any of the channels did not show any info like ship's speed, wave height, navigational heading or time. We really like seeing the navigation info and it was missing completely on this cruise. Even the daily on our sea day did not mention a course or what we were seeing and the Captain never came on and made any announcements about where we were or where we were going. We missed that experience from our other cruises. We keep our phones off and in the safe while in "vacation mode" but without a phone you have no way to know the time unless you walk out to the pool or 6th floor outdoor promenade and check the clock. Strange. 

 

The food on the ship was shockingly good. At first I was a little taken aback because the buffet is tiny and the options seemed extremely limited but the food selections changed every day and it never felt stale or like we couldn't find tasty options to eat. And oh my gosh, the baked goods! Every single bite we tried, from the chocolate croissants in the morning to the cakes and pies through the day, everything was to die for. HUGE compliments to the pastry chefs! I wish it wasn't all so good, especially the raspberry brownie on the menu in the Local. Literally the most decadent and delicious dessert we've ever had. Cagney's was nice but honestly, the quality of the offerings in the MDR and even the buffet at dinnertime were comparably excellent. We are not meat eaters and we enjoyed all of the seafood options at Cagney's, especially the tuna tartare. We actually went back a second night and just ordered that and the au gratin potatoes, which should not be missed, and had the perfect dinner. The buffet had delish smoked salmon every morning, which even Celebrity only seems to offer on the buffet every other day or so. That's my favorite breakfast so yay!

 

The entertainment was excellent as well, especially the bands. Poolside or in the lounges in the evening, we really enjoyed how much live music was available throughout the ship. We did not go to any of the stage shows, we were enjoying the lounge bands so much we didn't feel like we missed out on anything. The Newlywed and Not So Newlywed Game was fun and entertaining and always worth catching on any cruise. The Perfect Couple Game was more raunchy and we probably could have skipped that one.

 

Really the only negatives that we experienced were the casino, (smoking) and the Fury Catamaran excursion we took in Cozumel. It is listed and marketed as a 4 hour excursion and it was but only about 30 mins of it is spent snorkeling and even then you are kept within a small, roped-off area and on top of everyone else on the excursion. I spent most of our 30 minute time avoiding getting a flipper in my face than seeing many fish. Then they dump you on their own "Fury Beach" for 90 MINUTES to swim and hang out. They have watery draft beer and watery margaritas but offer no bottled water or any beverages. There is food for purchase. We were really annoyed that we were stuck there for so long and had we known, we would have never done that excursion. Also, BF came home with Covid. We can't blame the cruise because they seemed to be cleaning and did what they could, (washy washy!) but I guess it still happens. 

 

Overall, we really came to enjoy the small ship, mostly because of her excellent crew and beautiful renovation but the Sky would not be the choice for us next time. We are definitely looking forward to another cruise with NCL but for sure will be on a bigger ship with more to do onboard and more spacious cabins.   

 

 

Edited August 22, 2022 by Jennsails

[AtlantaCruiser72]

Quick 2 questions:

1. Was there any live music in Sugarcane mojito bar?  If so what type (loved the Latin music in that venue on Encore)

2. What were the operating hours of the Local? Is it still only open in the evenings?  It was my go-to breakfast and lunch spot on Escape, Epic and Encore

[purplecow15]

We’re booked to sail Sky in March . First time on that particular ship. Thanks for the great review. Looking forward to it!

[Jennsails]

12 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

Quick 2 questions:

1. Was there any live music in Sugarcane mojito bar?  If so what type (loved the Latin music in that venue on Encore)

2. What were the operating hours of the Local? Is it still only open in the evenings?  It was my go-to breakfast and lunch spot on Escape, Epic and Encore

If there was music in Sugarcane, we never caught it. The music we saw was poolside, in the main atrium and Bliss Lounge. Every time we passed through Sugarcane it was fairly quiet. I forgot to mention the Spinnaker Lounge, which was a great place to relax in the evenings. Local was open for drinks pretty much anytime but you could only order food from 6pm-5am. Not a big issue because of its' proximity to the Great Outdoors and GC and they did not mind when we brought plates in from the buffet to enjoy at their bar. For breakfast and lunch the Local does not have any menu offerings, unfortunately.  

[AtlantaCruiser72]

@Jennsails Thanks for the detailed follow up!  Glad to hear overall such positive feedback. Sky cabins being teeny-eenie has long been a known issue. I personally think her pluses outweigh her minuses. 

[Jennsails]

27 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

@Jennsails Thanks for the detailed follow up!  Glad to hear overall such positive feedback. Sky cabins being teeny-eenie has long been a known issue. I personally think her pluses outweigh her minuses. 

Yes, bad on me for not doing my homework about the cabin size. I would have been better prepared and not so taken aback. The schedule and itinerary made the delusion for me and the Sky fit both. 

[cruisemom67]

Thanks for your wonderful review. We booked for next July on a 9 night. I prefer the smaller ships and the cabin size doesn't really bother me. We are bringing friends this time so I better warn them!

[Coastalbreezes]

Thanks for a thorough review. I'll be on Sky for the first time next Sunday (7 days) and while I usually cruise the larger ships I do enjoy the smaller ships and am looking forward to this adventure.

[phillygwm]

19 hours ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

Quick 2 questions:

1. Was there any live music in Sugarcane mojito bar?  If so what type (loved the Latin music in that venue on Encore)

2. What were the operating hours of the Local? Is it still only open in the evenings?  It was my go-to breakfast and lunch spot on Escape, Epic and Encore

I was on Sky a few weeks ago.  OP and I will disagree on a few points, but we especially agree on room size (I thought that was just my cabin) and the casino.  I found the buffet to be adequate for breakfast but ate dinner in Cagneys and Le Bistro which were both very good.  She also had a better experience with her room steward but mine was new and still going through training so I didn't want to totally slam him, as he was nice enough.

 

I never heard any music in Sugarcane.  It's located next to Bliss, which often had something going on (Newlywed Game was particularly loud) and bled over.   I found the other bars crowded and lacking but somehow, as small as the ship was, I never made it to Spinnaker Lounge which I think I would have enjoyed.