Crown S.A. review 11-29-06 18 night

[cruisingrandy]

We flew to Buenos Aires a day early so we could see a few things there. We flew from Lima Peru so it was only a 4 hour flight. We were met at airport by a prearranged guide and taken to Hotel Carolinas Suites. We made the hotel reservation on the internet ahead of time and I thought it was a very good value for the price of $62 including tax and breakfast. It is located in the midst of everything only 2 blocks from Florida St. That night we went to Tango Show Esquina Carlos Gardel and it was very good and took a city tour the next day.

 

We boarded on Nov. 29 in Buenos Aires and it went fairly smoothly only took about 30 minutes or so. We only booked 3 weeks before sailing and bought a inside guarantee but we ended up with room 3001 which is an outside cabin that is bigger because it is on the end of the hall. This was my 20th cruise and this room is the biggest I have ever had.

 

We booked no tours from the ship but did make several tour reservations ahead of time on the internet with some other guests sailing with us. In Most ports you could get a taxi and spend much less than what the ship charges. We have one big advantage though as my wife speaks fluent Spanish.In Puerto Chacabuco, Talchauno, Valdivia, and Coquimbo there were few if any natives who speak any english. But most of these are only ports for the 18 night cruise.

The penguins in Puerto Madryn are well worth the long drive out to see them and early December is right after most have had there babies. We really also thought Punta Del Este was one of the prettiest cities we have ever seen. We had a great time in all ports though, except for Puerto Chacabuco which is a total waste of time as there is nothing to see or do except use the Internet.

 

I would rate the dining as good to very good in both the restaurant and the buffet but the buffet did get a little old after so many days on board. We never waited for a table in the dining room more than 5 minutes or so and the only time you saw a line was around 8:30

 

There were passengers on the ship from over 30 different countries and my guess is 30 % were spanish speaking only. Also it seemed that there were many really older people who never got off of the ship

 

The shows were mostly good and the German comedian was great in both the shows he did. Also the Ventriloquist-comedian was good. A woman comedian named Debbie Kramer was the worst act I have ever seen on a cruise line and hope NCL reads this and never uses her again. The Jean Ryan dancers were very good and had good shows. the early show was always standing room only but the late show was never very crowded.

 

Alive star in the Top of the Crown Club and Trio Cruz Del Sur in the Casino bar both played very good music. The TOP of the Crown was usually packed from about 10:30-11:30 pm. A note to gamblers, the casino was closed for one whole week as we were to close to Chile.

 

We stayed an extra night in Santiago so we avoided the departure day travel jitters.

 

The Crown was in very nice condition and very clean also. The room and public areas all were in nice condition. It is a shame NCL has already sold her and next year the Dream will do this itinerary. I really like this size ship and it seems that many cruise linesw are bringing out new ships of this size or less

 

We will definitely cruise again on NCL

[electricron]

It is a shame NCL has already sold her and next year the Dream will do this itinerary. I really like this size ship and it seems that many cruise lines are bringing out new ships of this size or less

We will definitely cruise again on NCL

 

I'm happy to read you had a great South American cruise aboard the Crown. It is a shame it's leaving the NCL fleet next fall. It will start sailing for Fred Olsen Cruise Lines in January 2008.

 

While other cruise lines are introducing 30,000 tons cruise ships, they all aren't brand spanking new. Princess and Celebrity have acquired used modern R class cruise ships that inititally sailed for the bankrupted Renaissance. They have plenty of cabins with balconies, and many restaurants, and would easily adapt to NCL's Freestyle Cruising. Only 8 of this class were built, Princess and Oceania have acquired 3 ships each, and Celebrity has recently acquired the last 2 ships. There are no other R class ships to buy.

[7SeasLover]

Thank you for the review! We leave for Buenos Aires on March 23rd for a pre-cruise stay. We will be on the Crown the next day. We booked a suite on the Riviera deck. My husband didn't want to go, so I'm curising with a girlfriend. Very happy to read your review. We did book a tour in Puerto Chcabuco. Hmmm... hope I won't be disappointed. We didn't opt to see the penguins, as my girlfriend is recovering from back surgery and the description said the roads are very rough. She is also slated for hip replacement, so we decided to play it safe and just do city tours.

 

If you took any photos, I'd love to see them!