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To use it on board, you don't have to pay for Wi-Fi, but you do have to be on the ship’s Wi-Fi network. To access most of what it offers, including the saunas, pools, salt room, steam rooms and heated loungers in relaxation rooms, you need to buy a pass either for a day or a full voyage. You may be used to lots of entertainment in the form of singing and dancing on cruise ships, but the Prima doesn’t have a lot of it. If you like game shows and smaller venues for comedy and music, as well as thrills like go-karts, slides and escape rooms, this ship is for you. Booking can be a bit of a game since cruise lines always seem to have sales and offers they say are for a limited time.
I took my first Norwegian cruise after more than a decade. Here are my honest thoughts
Norwegian Cruise Line ships are also known for their colorful hull art that makes them stand out in ports around the world. I regret to say that my experience with this cruise line was deeply disappointing. The crew's attitude was consistently poor, with minimal effort to provide satisfactory service. Most facilities, including the bar and common areas, were inexplicably closed for the majority of the voyage. While the food was passable, it failed to make up for the overall lack of quality service. Glad I know now and will never step on this cheap cruise line again.
What can you expect when cruising on board – Our Norwegian Dawn Review
Norwegian Bliss Cruise Reviews (2024 UPDATED): Ratings of Norwegian Bliss - Cruise Critic
Norwegian Bliss Cruise Reviews (2024 UPDATED): Ratings of Norwegian Bliss.
Posted: Tue, 12 Sep 2023 12:10:13 GMT [source]
Additionally, this two night sailing on Norwegian Sun didn’t totally provide a holistic view of the cruise line. Since we boarded at the tail-end of a long sailing, the vibes onboard were very subdued. This certainly wasn’t a traditional cruise and felt more like we came super late to the party, like when a party is almost over and everyone’s getting ready to go home. Guest services indicated that those of us joining for just two nights didn’t have any options for purchasing drink or Internet packages, much to our surprise. We learned quickly that most people on the ship had been sailing on a 14-night Canary Islands itinerary that set sail from Lisbon.
Spa, and Fitness on the Dawn
Aft-facing balconies on decks 8 through 10 are the same size as regular balcony cabins but offer a larger veranda, ranging in size from 71 to 136 square feet. The dining options are incredible and the ship has all of the legacy restaurants you’d expect from NCL including O’Sheehan’s Pub, Garden Cafe, and Bamboo Asian food. There are also the staple specialty dining restaurants including Le Bistro, La Cucina, Los Lobos, Teppanyaki, Sushi, Cagney’s & Moderno. Other Norwegian cruise ships, such as Norwegian Epic and Norwegian Sun, have specific features that might make them better options for solo travelers or retirees.
Royal Caribbean
While the ship was refurbished in 2016, the cabins were left mostly untouched. Even though they feel a little dated, the staterooms are extremely clean and well-maintained considering they’re mostly original materials and fixtures. It’s in the rear of the ship on deck 13 making it a little difficult to find. Having it separate from the main pool is pretty smart, keeping kids occupied in a different wet area. If you're sure you know what sort of cabin you want, on which ship, on which itinerary — and about a dozen other things — you can head over to ncl.com to make a booking directly.
These relaxing rooms are located close to the Mandara Spa and include access to the Thermal Spa Suites, sauna, hydrotherapy pools, steam room, and heated loungers. Norwegian offers many different types of staterooms to accommodate all kinds of travelers. Whether you’re traveling solo or with the whole family, on a budget or looking to splurge, you’ll find a stateroom that will suit your needs. But, we give Norwegian somewhat of a downgrade for its safety record.
In addition, Norwegian Cruise Line is the only mainstream cruise line to have round-trip sailings from Hawaii. Back in 2012, I sailed on Pride of America with my family when I was in high school exploring the Hawaiian Islands. This was my first and only experience with the cruise line, but it left a lasting, positive impression. Impact on your credit may vary, as credit scores are independently determined by credit bureaus based on a number of factors including the financial decisions you make with other financial services organizations.
Since the size of the Dawn is smaller than more modern ships, you’d expect the pool and pool areas to be smaller as well. While they are in fact smaller than mega-ship pools, the way the Dawn creatively has seating around the pool makes up for the actual size! In a unique “stadium style” seating arrangement around the pain pool and various spaces with loungers, it’s easy to actually get a space in a time where chair hogs run wild. The Venetian dining room is what is typical of cruise ships this age with large open spaces, tons of tables, and windows overlooking the ocean.
While this was nice, anyone sleeping next to the balcony would have a difficult time getting out of bed without hitting the sliding glass door or the bed. There is an aqua park for kids, a waterslide and a few hot tubs and smaller pools and lounging areas on other decks, but no one large gathering place for water and sun fun. My family chose this ship and cruise line because of a great itinerary.
If you’re traveling by yourself, check out the Studios on Norwegian Getaway, Norwegian Breakaway, Norwegian Epic, Norwegian Escape, Norwegian Encore, Norwegian Bliss, and Pride of America. These 1 person accommodations are designed for the solo traveler — and priced accordingly. For the 3 packages above, you must be 21 years old or older to purchase. If 1 person purchases a package, everyone (over 21 years old) residing in the same stateroom or additional staterooms that were under the same form of payment is required to purchase it. Anyone under 21 years of age on the same reservation will be required to purchase the Soda Program. If luxury is what you’re after, you can rent a private villa at Silver Cove.
Overall, the NCL Dawn cruise experience is one of relaxation, comfort, and simple (but good) entertainment. You’ll have plenty of options for how to spend your time, whether you want to kick back and relax by the pool or take part in activities and excursions. With great food, decent entertainment, and full NCL amenities, it’s a fantastic choice for anyone looking to experience a quality cruise vacation. The cabins come in different sizes to suit everyone’s budget, from the expected inside cabins, oceanview staterooms, balcony staterooms, and a selection of suites. It’s important to know though, that the Dawn does NOT have the “Haven” experience.
The open-air laser tag arenas also are significant venues that are unlike anything you'll find atop the ships of other lines. The one on Norwegian Encore, which is the largest laser tag arena ever put on a ship, is themed around the lost city of Atlantis and spans the back of the vessel. The Galaxy Pavilion on Norwegian Encore is the biggest of them all. Among added features, it includes a 45-minute escape room experience laced with special effects. Themed around a Spanish galleon, it's designed to be played by up to six people at a time. Like Royal Caribbean ships, Norwegian vessels have an inordinate amount of teen- and tween-friendly attractions — everything from some of the largest waterslides at sea to the only go-kart tracks on the ocean.
While it’s an older ship from 2002, it was refurbished in 2016 and the modernization was extremely well done! NCL has modernized older ships in the fleet, and those updates make it feel like you’re cruising on a nearly new ship, just smaller and more intimate and often more affordable than the newer large mega-ships. Norwegian is also heralded for kicking off the trend of more solo cabins on cruise ships. In 2010, it debuted an entire zone of small studio cabins for one — 128 in all — on its then-new, 4,070-passenger Norwegian Epic, and it has since added them to seven more new ships.
The food at all of the specialty restaurants was wonderful, and I was definitely stuffed afterward. Norwegian touts its Freestyle Dining as a way to have freedom and flexibility about where and when you eat. There are no set dining times, and while that sounds great, you can’t just walk up and go wherever you want. The cabin seemed very spacious because the bed was by the balcony, which left a big open space in the cabin.
Norwegian Cruise Line pioneered many features aboard its ships, some of which other cruise lines have imitated. These are some of the special features you'll find aboard some or all of the ships in NCL’s fleet. If you're looking for a romantic vacation, perhaps you'll want a smaller ship or a cabin in The Haven, which is a hotel-within-a-hotel concept with more personalized service. The Haven is only available on select Norwegian ships, including Encore, Viva and Prima. Its loyalty program, onboard amenities and variety of cabin types offer something for every type of traveler. Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is one of the top players in large-ship cruising, and its fleet is seeing one of its biggest refits in decades with its new Prima fleet of ships.
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