First time cruiser with questions!

[Lilbecky]

Hi all,

I have never been on a cruise before ever and we are looking to take one for our honeymooon, September 2008. We absolutely want to visit Europe and found a Norwegian cruise that seems perfect. But I have a few questions. Has anyone taken a Norwegian cruise in Europe? Is English spoken much on the ship? I took spanish for 4 years in school, its a bit rusty though and I am having a friend in Italy teach me italian phrases. (Like Help I am lost and how to order ice cream and pizza. :-) ) I am just worried about being able to communicate and understand people. Also, Is Norwegian a good cruise line to take for firstimers? We like to do and see and we aren't high maintenance type of people either. And I think we would prefer the no set eating times. (I think) I haven't read every post here, but I have noticed that it might be cheaper to wait a bit to book the cruise, do most people agree with that? We arent highly picky about our room. (Would like an ocean view over inside or even balcony if it is affordable, but will take what we can get.) I know I had more questions, but this is all I can think of right now. Thank you all for your suggestions and advice in advance!!!!!!

[family cruisers]

Hi,

I know I'm not answering your question regarding sailing to europe but I have been on NCL and am going again in a few weeks. We too are not picky , high maintainance people and LOVE NCL...

I will tell you that my boss sails the mediteranian every year on the princess line and Loves that. I too have been on princess in the caribbean and really enjoyed that as well.

Whatever you choose - Best wishes on your upcoming wedding.

Cruising IS the way to go.

[smeyer418]

English is spoken on the ship and in most of the ports you are going which are major cities many people will speak fluid English(if not most people)...English is the international language of business(the French are not amused) and you will rarely have a problem but you have a good idea in learning some phrases in the local language...

[Toyz711]

most folks over in europe speak many languages, english is one of them. all the tour guides will be well spoken...whether booked from the ship or independently. english is the main language on the cruise ship..most of the crew, that you will see and talk to, know and understand english well.

usually you will find that many in those countries can switch from one language to another without blinking.

[Fishbait17]

I sailed the Med on the Jewel in August, and I can assure you that the ship's staff are entirely english speaking (at least every one that we came into contact with). Everything on the ship was in english as well (shows, casino, postings, etc), even though our ship was full of Spaniards (it was the big vacation week in Spain and since we sailed out of Barcelona, we had many, many locals on board). I speak a little spanish, and it was handy on our pre-cruise stay in Barcelona, but we could have easily gotten away with no knowledge whatsoever. In the ports, we had no problems finding our way on trains, buses, whatever, even though I speak very little italian. If you choose to do ship's tours, all were in english, with a few duplicates in spanish for our shipmates. Trust me, you will have no problems with a language barrier. I loved NCL for sailing Europe; Freestyle was PERFECT for those long days of sightseeing and walking!

 

From what I understand, there is a big sale coming up this month. I read about it here on CC, but have no ideas on details.. I generally book whenever we get to planning, and rates haven't changed much except to go up. Our biggest problem is getting the cabin we want of we book too late - our Aug Med sold out a few weeks prior in all categories, and our particular suite was sold out shortly after we booked it 2 months ahead. I would recommend you look for this upcoming sale and book it, especially if you can secure one of the aft balconies or minisuites on many ships. You will see that the price doesn't seem to fluctuate much (from my experience) and you should be happy with your "honeymoon" cabin. Europe is expensive, both on cruises and on land, so plan accordingly. You can save a lot of money by doing things on your own in ports (trains, etc) but that's another chapter to be explored after your cruise is booked :D.

 

Congrats!

 

Robin

[pauline wales]

We sailed on the Jewel last year and loved it so much we sailed on her again in September. I am not sure what itinery you a looking , but will be plad to answer any questions regarding Europe.

[Lilbecky]

Thank you guys! You are the best! The language was what I was most worried about. The schedule we are looking at is Barcelona; Valletta; Naples/Pompeii; Rome (Civitavecchia); Florence / Pisa (Livorno); Nice (Villefranche) back to Barcelona. I know this is a port/excursion heavy cruise with only one day at sea, but we arent for sitting around much. (Last trip to Florida, we did 7 theme parks in 7 days) We definitely want to visit the ruins of Pompeii and visit the Colosseum and get inside it. I know little about Nice and Valletta, so I am going to have to do some research on those. You guys are great, thank you so much!!!!

[soccerref]

Hi Lilbecky,

we did the Norwegian Jewel last summer on a slightly different itinerary. I think it would be the perfect intro to cruising and to the delights of Southern Europe. Do not worry about the language as most people in the main tourist areas speak some English. If you are worried then do ship's tours where they have English speaking guides to help you.

You say you don't know much about Valetta and Niec so here are a few bits of info. I hope they are useful.

 

Valetta is the capital of Malta. Malta is a small but fascinating island. The majority of people speak very good English. Valetta is easily explored on foot and there are many interesting buildings, churches and museums. There is a cheap and reliable bus service which serves all areas of the island and there is a bus station in Valetta. A lot depends on how much time you have in port but our favourite places are Valetta, Medina (ancient walled city) , the blue grotto, Malliha (sp?) Bay (sandy beach) and Malta’s sister island, Gozo, which is a short ferry ride north of Malta.

We docked in Villefranche which is a small town between Nice and Monaco.This was a spectacular place and well worth being up early to watch the entering of the bay with the sun rising behind the hills. The tendering was no problem for us as we were on a ship’s tour. I don’t know how the independent travellers went on. We went to Nice (the market was amazing and I managed to get a lot of souvenirs there) and then Monaco and Monte Carlo. Both these places were interesting and I was glad I had the chance to see them. The guide was very informative and I learned a lot. The highlight of the visit though was sitting in a café on the waterfront in Villefranche, drinking coffee and taking in the fantastic views. I would love to spend more time in Villefranche. It is such a pretty town.

[torybruno]

Hi Becky....my only advice is that it's worth the splurge for your honeymoon. Get a balcony cabin. We mostly book inside cabins because of cost, but one time did a balcony to see what we were missing. Actually I found out I wasn't missing that much, I did enjoy it but I couldn't justify the cost for a caribbean cruise....but if I did Mediterrian, Hawaii or Alaska, I will splurge again.

 

Happy Honeymoon!!

[Fishbait17]

Almost the same itinerary that I was on, except we went to Messina, Sicily instead of Valetta. One piece of advice: Since you seem active and don't like to "sit around", I would definitely recommend going out on your own in ports instead of joining the ship's excursions. For most of your itin, its very easy, much cheaper, and you can see so much more! My only concern would be that you take care of your plans before you get too busy with the wedding (last minute). There are very easy ways to see all of the ports (don't know about Valetta) on your own, if you do a little research and prep work ahead of time. The "Ports of Call" boards here are fantastic.. One example: we did Rome on our own, and we were able to spend more than 8 hours in Rome, where the ship's "On Your Own Tour" had 5 hrs in town and cost more than 6 times as much. In Pompeii, we had a private guide for the 2 of us for less than 1/2 the ship's price for a huge group, plus got to go to Sorrento and thru Naples as well. There are plenty of great ideas on the boards, and it was so much easier than even I had anticipated (and I had been to most of the ports before!)

 

Robin