11/24-12/1/07 Majesty Review

[maybesomeday]

Ok, this was our first cruise so we had no expectations or anything to compare her to, but we had a great time!

 

When I read reviews, some made me nervous about my decision, but when I filtered through the reviews I noticed a few things. You can tell the demanding people that expect perfection (probably for anything in life), and the ones that are easy going and roll with the punches in life. At a young age (25), I have learned that you have to look at what you have and not be so concerned with what you DON'T have. There will always be someone smarter, faster, stronger... someone with a bigger house, nicer car, prettier wife... whatever! You have to be happy with what you have and be content. We are a middle class family, live comfortably, and are thankful we were on the beautiful ocean enjoying the awe of it all!!!! So, that all being said, we entered the Majesty with the thought that we are on vacation... as long as the food is edible, who cares what it tastes like; we didn't have to prepare it or clean the kitchen after preparing it... how bad can that be?!?

 

We were actually happy with all the food selections. My husband ate two entrees every night, and I the pickiest eater in the world never went hungry either!!!! We ate with people every day that also were having fun and enjoying the cruise and food, except one day. We sat with a horrid man and his wife that complained the whole dinner about the ship, crew, and food. They couldn't take a joke from service, the wife asked the waitress "CAN YOU UNDERSTAND ME" in a very condescending tone... but you know what... for the food being HORRIBLE, GHASTLY, NOT UP TO PAR... both cleaned their plates!! (hmmm... either they were REALLY hungry or exaggerating). :rolleyes: He will be on here I am sure to post a horrible review, but they were the people that aren't happy with anything in life. Just talking to them for an hour gave me that impression. So, make sure you can pick out where you fit in with these reviews, before you judge the Majesty.

 

Day 0: Embarking

The port police had a very nice system going. We were allowed to enter at noon; we dropped our baggage off at a tent, then proceeded around the corner to a warehouse where we parked for the cruise. I assume it was locked while we were gone. Our car was safe and sound for the whole 7 days!! We got our carry ons together and made our way to a shuttle bus. We went through the check in process pretty easily and were having lunch by 12:30 or so... our baggage was there by around 2pm, and our stateroom was ready when we boarded at 12:30...

 

Day 1: Sea Day

There isn't much to do on the Majesty as the reviews indicate, but we relaxed, watched the beautiful water, and enjoyed life, and the fact that we weren't at work!!! That night, I had strip steak, and it had a pesto sauce on it that I didn't care for, our waitress brought me out another steak in a very quick minute, and it was delicious without the sauce!!! The people that complained about the strip steak being leather probably ordered it well done... we take our steaks Medium rare and they were awesome!!! I had the most delicious dessert of the whole trip this night... it was vanilla bean souffle!!! We saw a show that had a little of everything, it was entertaining, and we went to sleep after that.

 

Day 2: Sea Day

Another beautiful sunrise and sunset aboard the Majesty!! We watched for dolphins in the wake, while eating our cheeseburgers for lunch, and then went to top deck to take a nap in the sun!!!! We both had the New York strip this night, and again at Medium Rare was great. Our tablemates ordered it well and were asking for Ketchup... if you order a well steak on mainland I would expect dry and leather, why would on board a cruise ship be any different?!? We saw the Blackstreet boys.. Hilarious with a good message, only one race in the world... the HUMAN race!

 

Day 3: Grand Cayman

Went to the theatre to wait on our excursion to call us down to tender. It wasn't a FAST process, but a pretty organized one. We tendered and caught our tour! We swam with stingrays and it was so much fun. I was a little nervous at first, but they were so graceful in the water and were like silk rubbing against your legs as they glided by!!! I am losing track of what I ate when, but I think this was prime rib night, and it was delicious! Make sure you get the Fajita appetizer too, you won't be disappointed!!!

 

Day 4: Cozumel

Maybe a little complaint here... everyone trying to leave the ship at the same time down the same stairwell was a little much. It was like herding cattle, but we had to be in the mess, because we had an organized shore excursion that we had to get off the boat for. Once, off we met with our group, and we were on a taxi on our way to swim with dolphins at the National Park Chatataab (something like that)... we had a wonderful time, and ended up buying the DVD for $38, I didn't think that was too horrible of a price. Our organizer then got us free snorkel equipment and we snorkled the day away, and rode back to the ship. I took a sun nap again before dinner, and I had beef wellington and my husband had flounder I think... I might be butchering when we ate what, because I lost track of days!! (that is a sign of a good vacation, I didn't know if it was Tuesday or Wednesday half the time!!!)

 

Day 5: Key West

A lot easier getting off this time than in Cozumel. We met with our group, and got on the Conch train through town. We did a sunset catamaran sunset cruise. Fun times, with 2 hours free alcohol! We had a pretty sunset, and then the sailboat docked. The Fury crew were great! We walked through some of the shops and had dinner at Two Friends Bar/Restaraunt. My husband had some of the best blue crab cakes he had ever tasted, and I had shrimp!!! We bought a few souveneirs, and then caught the train back to our ship. The chocolate buffet was nice, and we had just got settled into our cabin with CODE ALPHA came over the intercom. It scared me as a first time cruiser, thinking we were all in danger. It wasn't until the next morning that we learned about the accident. I hope the man is alright, and learns from his mistake, becuase there is NO way you can accidently fall from the stairwell, he was either climbing on them or sliding down... he had to be doing SOMETHING stupid, but my thoughts go out to him and his family during this time!

 

Day 6: Sea Day

It was getting colder as we were going up the coast, so we played in the casino mostly this day, we spent $100 a piece and it lasted us a long time. We went to dinner, and had English Loin, very good. My husband also got the pork roast and said it was good as well. We went back to our stateroom and packed up our things.

 

Day 7: Disembark

We took express, but had to go through customs because we had 3 bottle of liqour for 2 people. We got checked, they didn't charge us for the extra bottle, and we were off the boat and driving by 8am!!! I say it was pretty seemless to carry your own bags off!

 

Service: There were times that it was a little slow, but even if you go to the nicest restaraunt on mainland, that can happen. We got friendly staff that worked their tails off all 7 days!

 

Stateroom: Our stateroom was always made up and turned down nicely. We had cute towel animals every night. Our view was amazing out our nice sized window, and our stateroom was quiet. It wasn't around any ammenities. I heard some complaints if you were over the show lounge, casino, or the fireworks lounge... when you book check out the deck plans and book accordingly!!

 

Water: We had no brown water to speak of, and actually never saw ANY brown water for the whole cruise!!!

 

Seven Seas: This dining hall is a little rough to eat in being all the way in the back of the ship. You can definitely feel the ships movement, so if you prefer to not feel that, go to Four Seasons! There were towels busted out on the last two days along the wall at Seven Seas, but I didn't think they were that big of an eye sore!

 

 

Have fun if you choose the Majesty, you will love her if you know what you are buying... if you expect all the modern ammenties you will be disappointed, but if you want a relaxing VALUE cruise, you will walk off smiling!!! :D

[meagent]

Thanks for the detailed review! We are heading out on the same cruise in two weeks time. I hope we have as great of a time as you did. We are all 20-somethings and with the bar set-up we purchased, should be able to handle any issues that come up :)

[tuffy88]

Thanks for the review. We are thinking about the same cruise next November, and were wondering about the weather the first sea day out and the last sea day coming back. Not sure what the weather is like in Charleston in November. You said it was a little cold on the last sea day. Do you know what is normal for Charleston that time of year?

 

Charles

[maybesomeday]

Very normal to be windy and cold one day out and one day back, and the Atlantic is pretty rough also both days. We rocked in rolled first and last day so take your dramamine or bonine!

[tuffy88]

Thanks. Guess we will continue to go out of Miami or earlier in the fall.

 

Charles

[salty dingo]

We sat with a horrid man and his wife that complained the whole dinner about the ship, crew, and food. They couldn't take a joke from service, the wife asked the waitress "CAN YOU UNDERSTAND ME" in a very condescending tone... but you know what... for the food being HORRIBLE, GHASTLY, NOT UP TO PAR... both cleaned their plates!!

 

Thanks for the wonderful, detailed review. I have said before that some people are born to be miserable and you apparently ran into some, but thankfully they were only there with you one night!

 

These unhappy folks, in my opinion, post far more often than satisfied customers like yourselves. I am glad you did post.

 

Having been on Majesty before, I know she's a good deal. And I love your attitude

as long as the food is edible, who cares what it tastes like.

 

If more people had that attitude, the cruising world would be a much nicer place.

[RedHeadTexan]

maybesomeday: Thanks for the review! I am boarding the Majesty on Saturday and it was great to hear about your experience.

 

My expectations for the cruise are rather simple. I want to sleep thru the night (bringing the earplugs this time) and go scuba diving. If, for some odd reason, our itinerary gets changed, so what. Just give me clear, warm water to dive in and I will be a happy camper.:D

[greywillow]

Seven Seas: This dining hall is a little rough to eat in being all the way in the back of the ship. You can definitely feel the ships movement, so if you prefer to not feel that, go to Four Seasons! There were towels busted out on the last two days along the wall at Seven Seas, but I didn't think they were that big of an eye sore!

 

Those towels have been there for at least two years. I hope one of these days one of us will find out what the problem is and post it here.;)

 

I'm with maybesomeday, however: Not a big deal.

[CoastalCounseling]

Thanks for the review! Our family was also on this cruise. I agree with much of what you said. We had a blast! We were also lucky to meet some of the other cruise critics out there. Our experience has been that once you start cruising, you cant stop! :) That being said, we have only cruised one other line... HAL, three times.

 

The NCL Majesty cruise was a very good price with ports we have enjoyed before. Plus sailing from Charleston saved us the cost of airfare to Florida. For 6 people, a close to home port saves a lot of money. We are situated between Norfolk and Charleston so both ports work for us.

 

We found the dining rooms food to be the best. I thought the beef wellington was amazing. We are also partial to eggs benedict in the am. The buffet food was ok but the dining rooms meals were great. The room service menu seemed limited compared to what we have experienced on our HAL cruises. Again, the price made the NCL cruise a "cant go wrong" deal.

 

We were not lucky enough to secure a good room steward this time. (Three previous cruises with great room stewards... only one bad.) We approached him politely, with smiles each time we encountered him. Maybe he had a bad week. He was rude, only did 3 towel animals, as we practically begged for them and gave "lectures" my husband politely brushed off. Win some lose some. I may not be a happy camper if I had his job. Its hard work I am sure. After all, we were on a CRUISE, so how bad can you let one thing bother you. :)

 

On the other hand, the KIDS KORNER staff was amazing. Our son loved the kids staff. He wanted to be in kids club more than with his parents and grand parents. He loved the pirate treasure hunt, playing the Wii video game and painting a t shirt the last night. The staff for the kids club is not included in the standard tipping so be sure to tip these ladies if you get as good of service as we did. They were worth it! :)

 

I was not aware of the guest falling 5 stories and medical coast guard rescue transport until reading the boards today. We were also awaken by the middle of the night "Code Alpha" alert. We asked staff the next day what it was for and were told "medical emergency".

 

We had a great day at Paradise Beach in Cozumel. I posted photos and a full review on the PORTS Cozumel board. The sting rays in Grand Cayman were another highlight of this trip. Fun cruise, inexpensive and a port closer to home made the NCL Majesty a good choice.

[snipper2]

Thanks for the great reviews! We'll be boarding also on 12/15 and are looking forward to it. It's nice to hear some good for a change. All in all, it's a good price for a 7 day cruise and it's close to home. What more can you ask for!

[iheartbda]

maybesomeday and Coastal counseling

 

The two of you did wonderful reviews and I wish more people would take note of a way to do one! Too many people focus on the negative, don't look at the whole picture and trash a ship or cruise line unfairly. Everything is never going to be perfect for everyone.

 

Kudos to both of you.:)

[jdarch]

Nicely balanced reviews. Glad you enjoyed your trip. Thank you.

[smeyer418]

Nice review from a newcomber(not meant in a derogatory way)...you of course have heard the joke...

 

person to companion....you know this food is terrible...

 

companions response...and the portions are so small....

 

I have never had a really bad meal on any ship of any cruise line. Someone else is cooking and serving me(I rarely eat in the buffet) and I have always found the food tasty and well prepared. I really don't understand what people expect....do they eat any better at home? or do they always eat at three star restauarants....the only time I got food poisoning was at a well know three star in NY City....

[luv2gocruzin]

thanks for the encouraging review....I sail in alittle over 7 weeks on the Majesty, and I have the same attitude that you have....I know I'm going to have a great cruise anyway, but your review is so uplifting...it only excites me more!

I know you are going to be hooked on cruising now, as the rest of us are!!

[luv2gocruzin]

By the way, if you get a chance, copy and paste this post and post it on the "REVIEWS" board, too...

the last couple of reviews on there for the Majesty have not been good, so it would be nice for folks looking there to see YOUR post and thoughts!!

[mama_hao]

 

On the other hand, the KIDS KORNER staff was amazing. Our son loved the kids staff. He wanted to be in kids club more than with his parents and grand parents. He loved the pirate treasure hunt, playing the Wii video game and painting a t shirt the last night. The staff for the kids club is not included in the standard tipping so be sure to tip these ladies if you get as good of service as we did. They were worth it! :)

 

I am so glad to hear this. Our 4yo will be participating in the Kids Korner and I am happy to hear something about them. We have sailed Carnival 3 times and she absolutely loved her 'school' on them. Sounds like she will enjoy this 'school' too.

[CoastalCounseling]

I would love ot hear more about the kids club on Carnival as we may try them next. NCL had a different theme each night, beach party, pirates, PJ party, even Dora the Explorer in the todlers section. I had a child in each of the 2-5 and 6-9 age groups. The 6 year old NEVER wanted to leave and even tried to throw a fit when we tried to bring him home 15 mintues early one night.... "but mom I want to do the Egg Drop". He would talk all day about what the nights special activity was going to be.

 

Your four year old will likely meet in the kids club playroom on deck 9. They are fully stocked with art supplies, games, leggos, movies. Dont miss the last night where they get fabric markers to color a t shirt. Our little one was still in diapers so we were issued a pager for any necessary diaper changes. My 2 year old was going thru some speration anxiety and they would sit him on their lap or carry him until he was settled in. We peeked in several times, (not allowing him to see us) and he was well cared for.

 

The staff in each age group were fabulous. Many had Bachelors degrees in early childhood or child development. All that I talked with had child related work experience. I was impressed with the staff and I am a child mental health therapist.

 

Hope you have as good of an experience as we did!

[maybesomeday]

You are all very welcome for the review. I felt it was my duty to report back my experience on this grand little ship.... I would do it in again in a heartbeat...

 

I added my review to the review section and it is under review before being posted...

 

I just read reviews on the Grandeur of the Seas Thanksgiving cruise, because we were booked on that originally and then decided to go with the cheaper offering at NCL so that we could drink, gamble, and do the excursions of a lifetime... BOY AM I GLAD I MADE THIS DECISION. According to the review up there were 500+ kids under 16 on the other ship... I saw maybe 20 kids on our cruise...

 

It was our honeymoon, so the relaxation from all the wedding planning and stress was needed... I am thanking my lucky stars I didn't pay DOUBLE for my stateroom to encounter children running and splashing me the whole trip in the pool. The review indicates that the captain put a family off of the Grandeur because of the behavior of their children, so it must have gotten pretty bad...

 

I feel blessed to have dodged that bullet and relaxed on the MS Majesty! I will forever remember her; because, yes there maybe grander ships, but she has given me a great entry to the addiction of cruising!!!

 

I was already looking at 2008 iteneraries!!! HAHAHA :D

[mama_hao]

 

Your four year old will likely meet in the kids club playroom on deck 9.

 

Actually our stateroom is 2 doors down from the kids club on deck 9. Maybe a little noisy for some but convenient for us.

[Cruisetini]

Great reviews....I choose Majesty for a low key relaxing holiday from what I have ready seems like this will be just right. 4 more days now......watching a cold windy sunset sure beats 25 degrees and an ice storm! Bonine & Jacket are packed!

[rebeljohn]

Thanks for posting your review. We are sailing on the Majesty for NYE, in four weeks. Like you, we are easy to please, and are looking to this cruise to be one for relaxing...........resting from all the hustle and bustle of the Holidays..........Thanks for taking the time to write it.............

[ChampionCruiser]

Thanks for posting, i'm glad that you too enjoyed the Majesty.