Pride of America vs other NCL Ships

[jkbec101]

I've bene on the Escape and the Epic.  I know that the Pride of America is older and smaller and with less dining options. 

 

Is the NCL experience different, if so, how?  

[Anoynmous Phoenix]

No Casino

 

Two overnights in 7 days.

[jkbec101]

9 minutes ago, Anoynmous Phoenix said:

No Casino

 

Two overnights in 7 days.

Those things I know, I was hoping for insight beyond that.

[ColeThornton]

2 minutes ago, jkbec101 said:

Those things I know, I was hoping for insight beyond that.

 

 

Is there something specific you are trying to find out?

 

 

[chengkp75]

The crew is almost exclusively US, so the kind of customer service you get at a US restaurant or store is what you'll get on POA, not what the international crew tend to give.  I say that with being a staunch advocate of US flag cruise ships, but we just don't have the service industry attitude in the US.

[jkbec101]

4 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

The crew is almost exclusively US, so the kind of customer service you get at a US restaurant or store is what you'll get on POA, not what the international crew tend to give.  I say that with being a staunch advocate of US flag cruise ships, but we just don't have the service industry attitude in the US.

In your opinion, when you say service in a US restaurant, are we talking high end restaurant like a Morton's or service like at Denny's?  Not that I've had really bad service at Denny's, but the level of service at Morton's is elevated.

[jkbec101]

7 minutes ago, ColeThornton said:

 

 

Is there something specific you are trying to find out?

 

 

Someone else answered regarding service from an all US crew.  I've only cruised on ships with foreign crew members, so I can only imagine that things on a US flagged vessel are different, from the service, to the quality of the food, to certain policies and procedures while on board, that's what I'm looking for.  

I'm not looking so as to change the booking, but I'm asking in order to manage expectations.

[BirdTravels]

7 minutes ago, jkbec101 said:

In your opinion, when you say service in a US restaurant, are we talking high end restaurant like a Morton's or service like at Denny's?  Not that I've had really bad service at Denny's, but the level of service at Morton's is elevated.

They are the same restaurants (maybe under a slightly different name) serving the same/similar food. 
 

The steakhouse is a NCL steakhouse

 

The French Restaurant is a NCL French Restaurant. 

The quality of food, policies, service are similar.
 

My personal opinion, US workers do not work as hard as international crew members, but that is my opinion. 

 

Being in port every day with two overnights to get out and do a luau or other Hawaiian dining, the ship is your hotel room. 
 

If you are looking for people to trash the ship, you won’t get any more on the POA than any other NCL ship. 

Edited November 17, 2023 by BirdTravels

[destar]

6 minutes ago, jkbec101 said:

In your opinion, when you say service in a US restaurant, are we talking high end restaurant like a Morton's or service like at Denny's?  Not that I've had really bad service at Denny's, but the level of service at Morton's is elevated.

Absolutely nothing like a high end restaurant. Like chengkp75 said, the crew is mainly US base, unionized, so the service is not as good as others ships.

[chengkp75]

19 minutes ago, jkbec101 said:

In your opinion, when you say service in a US restaurant, are we talking high end restaurant like a Morton's or service like at Denny's?  Not that I've had really bad service at Denny's, but the level of service at Morton's is elevated.

Well, I haven't been to a Morton's, so can't fully compare, but you give quite a range.  I personally think it would be somewhere middle of the road, say a "nice" non-chain restaurant in your city/town.  As US people, they are more "familiar" with the passengers than an international crew, and more ready to air their views or sob stories than international.

 

9 minutes ago, destar said:

Absolutely nothing like a high end restaurant. Like chengkp75 said, the crew is mainly US base, unionized, so the service is not as good as others ships.

The union the hotel staff are members of, is hardly a union, and does not do anything for the members, so it plays very little into the quality of crew or service.

 

The quality of the crew has improved over the years (I was part of the initial ship deployment to Hawaii on the Pride of Aloha), but there are still problems.  One major one is that the USCG requires every crew member to hold a merchant mariner's credential (only deck and engine departments on foreign flag cruise ships are credentialed), which takes time for land based training, and cost for background checks before the crew member is even on the ship, so there is really no "pool" of cruise ship trained hotel staff in the US, like there is in the international fleet.  If a foreign crew member comes up sick, injured, or quits, a phone call to the hiring hall in the home country will have a replacement crew member flying out the next day.  In the US, those folks who have completed the training and investigation required by the USCG are not willing to sit around not getting paid, waiting for a call that NCL needs them.

 

And, the deck and engine officers have to be US citizens, the rest of the crew have to be 75% US citizens, while 25% can be either US Green Card Resident Aliens, or in special cases, an experienced foreign NCL supervisor with a USCG document.

Edited November 17, 2023 by chengkp75

[ChiefMateJRK]

She lacks an observation lounge, but is otherwise very similar to other smaller NCL ships.  

[Pens fan]

We just got off POA on 11/11.  It was the worst cruise we've ever taken.  I say that as someone who has loved every other NCL cruise we've taken (Sun, Gem, Jade and Joy).  But this ship has issues.  Overall, we found the crew to be great - there just aren't enough of them and service lacks for it.   Everything takes too long and lacks the attention to detail we have been used to on NCL.  The food was also a notable departure from other NCL ships.  La Cucina was great and we had one pretty decent meal at the Skyline MDR.  Other than that is was pretty bad - Tepanyaki was particularly terrible - avoid!  It didn't help that the chef lost control of a spatula while doing his spinning the tools act and it went flying right past my head.  On a positive note, it's one cruise that I didn't gain weight on!   Of course getting what I'm pretty sure was food poisoning about halfway in probably helped with that.  Yeah, that happened.  

 

But the worst part was our toilet.  It was temperamental from the beginning.  But it's a cruise ship and that sometimes happens.  No big deal.  Until it was.  It stopped working completely for the last two days.  They would come and work on it, gave us numerous excuses and in the end it still did not work when we finally left the ship.  Initially they claimed someone in our zone had flushed something they shouldn't have.  They supposedly got that cleared, but ours stopped working again a couple of hours later - never to work again.  On the very last night our butler finally got the concierge involved and he got us a key to an unoccupied solo cabin on our same deck to use.  They did end up giving us a $200 credit, while apologizing that it couldn't be more due to the fact they "had so many other people to give credits to".  

 

Never again.  Honestly, while it's nice to see all the other islands, when it was all over we agreed that the best way to enjoy Hawaii is to just be there.  We felt the time spent on the ship was a waste that would have been better spent on the islands.  Thankfully we spent 11 nights in total prior to and after the cruise on land.  That's the time we will remember and cherish.  I really can't recommend a cruise there.  Just pick a couple of islands, find a nice resort and stay.  Heck the entire time we were on that crazy cruise I kept getting ads from Southwest offering inter island flights from $39.  Kinda added insult to injury 😂😂.

 

I'll add that our concierge did come through in the end as we were exiting the ship.  He gave me a card with the website for submitting a complaint and encouraged me to do so.  I went to the site and filled everything out thinking nothing would come of it.  Much to my surprise I did get a response and while I'd rather not go into details on an online forum they have given us some additional compensation which I feel is fair.  I'm not writing off NCL in general as we've loved all our other experiences with them.  But I cannot recommend POA to anyone.  

Edited November 17, 2023 by Pens fan

[Silver Sweethearts]

3 hours ago, jkbec101 said:

Those things I know, I was hoping for insight beyond that.

 

They are the only game in town.

[NikiPinkston]

We've sailed on the POA twice and loved it both times. With every cruise and every ship, there are always things that are not perfect (not to minimize your issue, Pens fan - that was totally unacceptable). In 2016, our state room attendant was below average, but last year our SA was one of the best we've had, and we were very impressed with the majority of the crew. Finding seating in the buffet can be a real problem and the food was just average, but there was rarely a wait in the MDR or Cadillac Diner. The specialty restaurants are quite comparable to other NCL ships, in our opinion. The ship doesn't have a racetrack or laser tag court like some of the newer ships and it's a more laidback atmosphere onboard. Perhaps part of the POA's charm for me is that it's in Hawaii, which is truly paradise. With that said, our next trip to the Islands will be a week on Oahu, mainly because it's our favorite island and we feel we've done all we want to do on the other islands. The POA is a lovely ship and you should have a great time.

Edited November 17, 2023 by NikiPinkston

[cruiser2015]

8 hours ago, NikiPinkston said:

We've sailed on the POA twice and loved it both times. With every cruise and every ship, there are always things that are not perfect (not to minimize your issue, Pens fan - that was totally unacceptable). In 2016, our state room attendant was below average, but last year our SA was one of the best we've had, and we were very impressed with the majority of the crew. Finding seating in the buffet can be a real problem and the food was just average, but there was rarely a wait in the MDR or Cadillac Diner. The specialty restaurants are quite comparable to other NCL ships, in our opinion. The ship doesn't have a racetrack or laser tag court like some of the newer ships and it's a more laidback atmosphere onboard. Perhaps part of the POA's charm for me is that it's in Hawaii, which is truly paradise. With that said, our next trip to the Islands will be a week on Oahu, mainly because it's our favorite island and we feel we've done all we want to do on the other islands. The POA is a lovely ship and you should have a great time.

You wrote what I was thinking as I was reading your post:

It's Hawaii!!

I spent two weeks on 4 islands many years ago when I was single. Great trip. Sailed on POA several years ago with my DW + 4 days pre cruise in Waikiki. Great trip. Again. 

Paradise, indeed.

[LouChamp]

Aloha. We are blessed to divide our time between NY and Honolulu and have been cruising since 1971 and for decades with NCL and others. That said in 2004 we were scheduled to sail on the POA but due to a problem with the ship, it was replaced with the Pride of Aloha.  Having a carefree attitude even I had to complain politely but firmly and NCL did step up and comped us in the specialty dining rooms and other rebates. The food in those dining rooms were up to NCL par but the service throughout the ship not so much. Enter POA which to this day whilst improving is still below international crew expectations and experience.  The Morton’s example is well founded. We regularly dine at Mortons and other similar and while the POA has improved you need to sail with the understanding that in general, seasoned cruisers will be somewhat disappointed because we have come to expect a certain atmosphere provided by the crew which is different aboard the POA. The pro is that you save flying around the islands and use the ship in its pure sense as a floating hotel. The convenience is excellent for first time visitors who want a sample of the islands and then hopefully can visit them for longer times in the future. Well worth it. We have sailed the POA a few times for fun although we fly to the Big Island and Maui for staycation weekends.  That said it has its positives but you must go with positive attitude lest you be disappointed. And chengkp75 I am sure we were on the Pride of Aloha during that summer of 2004! It is always a pleasure to read your posts and contributions!!!

[fstuff1]

18 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

The crew is almost exclusively US, so the kind of customer service you get at a US restaurant or store is what you'll get on POA, not what the international crew tend to give.  I say that with being a staunch advocate of US flag cruise ships, but we just don't have the service industry attitude in the US.

 

Ncl also had problems recently of keeping the ship fully staffed.

On a few cruises, I read they randomly cancelled reservations because of staff shortages.

 

Even with full refund and fcc, most of those pax were rightfully unhappy

Edited November 18, 2023 by fstuff1

[LadyLion_AP]

15 hours ago, NikiPinkston said:

We've sailed on the POA twice and loved it both times. With every cruise and every ship, there are always things that are not perfect (not to minimize your issue, Pens fan - that was totally unacceptable). In 2016, our state room attendant was below average, but last year our SA was one of the best we've had, and we were very impressed with the majority of the crew. Finding seating in the buffet can be a real problem and the food was just average, but there was rarely a wait in the MDR or Cadillac Diner. The specialty restaurants are quite comparable to other NCL ships, in our opinion. The ship doesn't have a racetrack or laser tag court like some of the newer ships and it's a more laidback atmosphere onboard. Perhaps part of the POA's charm for me is that it's in Hawaii, which is truly paradise. With that said, our next trip to the Islands will be a week on Oahu, mainly because it's our favorite island and we feel we've done all we want to do on the other islands. The POA is a lovely ship and you should have a great time.

I’ve only sailed the ship once AND agree with your take!

[chengkp75]

This is what I said when mentioning the restrictions/requirements that the USCG puts on the crewing of the ship.  Not many people will commit to taking training and then sitting around waiting for a job to open, so when an opening happens, it takes time to get the new crew credentialed.  And, while the credentialing happens, the ship sails short staffed.

Edited November 18, 2023 by chengkp75

[fstuff1]

32 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

This is what I said when mentioning the restrictions/requirements that the USCG puts on the crewing of the ship.  Not many people will commit to taking training and then sitting around waiting for a job to open, so when an opening happens, it takes time to get the new crew credentialed.  And, while the credentialing happens, the ship sails short staffed.

Who pays for the training and credentialing?

and why sit around since POA seems short staffed? POA cruises are almost always 7 days.

so 6day wait at most?

 

edit:

hm.. i guess they arent being paid while their creds are being processed?

how long does it take to get credentialed after taking the training?

Edited November 18, 2023 by fstuff1

[chengkp75]

14 minutes ago, fstuff1 said:

Who pays for the training and credentialing?

and why sit around since POA seems short staffed? POA cruises are almost always 7 days.

so 6day wait at most?

 

edit:

hm.. i guess they arent being paid while their creds are being processed?

how long does it take to get credentialed after taking the training?

No, they are not being paid during training or credentialing.  It can take several months to get their credentials processed.  NCL pays for the credentialing and training.  When we started the US flag operations back in 2004, it took an average of $8000 to get a new crew member to the ship for the first time, and many of those early crew would quit within a day or two of joining the ship.

 

The 6 day wait would be if the job was correct for the person waiting.  If the person was hired as a bartender, he would not want to take a job as a dishwasher, if that was the job that opened.

[WillCruiseForMoney]

We have sailed on POA 4 times, most recently last December.  Had great experiences on all of them.  The crew was wonderful everytime, did not feel it was less than other ships.  The food was on par with the rest of our NCL cruises.

 

Only issue we have experienced related to the post-covid staffing shortages mentioned by others which resulted in a couple  of the specialty restauants being closed.  

 

Would happily cruise on the POA every year if the price was not so high.  US flagged ship with its increased staff costs.

[philv]

Sailed on POA in September 2022. First trip to Hawaii and was attracted by chance to see 4 islands in 7 days with no change of hotel. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Doing it again in 2024. The ship is definitely not the attraction. The chance to see so much of Hawaii so easily is. We were satisfied with the quality of the ship and food but did little else than sleep there and eat meals. Didn’t use the pool once, used fitness center a few times (basic), walked the promenade after dinner each night, that’s about it. Not much interaction with our cabin steward but cabin was okay and serviced adequately. Different kind of cruise from what we are used to but great way to see islands.

[mcmomny]

We also enjoyed our POA cruise several years ago.

 

We went into it thinking it was our floating hotel and not much else, we had read bad reviews about old tired ship, rude employees, no entertainment and poor food.

 

Well, we had excellent service!  We found the employees really enjoyed conversing with us. Yes everyone of them said that when their contract was up they would not be staying, that one tour was enough for them!

 

The food was excellent but we ate every lunch off ship and several dinners too. On ship we stuck to the MDR's and the buffet.

 

Not really much entertainment on this ship as the entertainment is the Islands!

 

Yes the ship was older and looked tired in some areas but it was clean and comfortable.

 

We still say we want to do this cruise again someday!

[BDL]

We sailed POA in a penthouse suite for a big anniversary several years ago.  Found used q-tip in the bathroom on the floor near the toilet and used pool towels on the closet floor.  When we asked about in-suite dining for our anniversary our butler discouraged us saying the food would most likely be cold by the time it arrived. No recommendation for what we should do for our anniversary.  Just walked away.  We saw the butler only three times all week and had to go looking for things we asked for.  The room steward was OK.  We had ice every evening but not refreshed in the morning as we had asked.  We were not impressed in the least.

It was several more years before we'd sail on NCL again. We did Haven on Getaway and it was a wonderful experience.  Personally we'd never do POA again.