Norwegian Pearl Review
Rating by category
Additional details
We flew to Miami a day before embarkation to be safe and because we are complete newbies at cruising and even flying commercial airlines. Our hotel was near the Miami elevated train, and passes were only $5 or so for a day, so we explored Miami a bit before embarkation. This is a cheap and effective way to see the city. Embarkation was quite lengthy. I noticed that there was no obvious benefit to people in the Latitudes preferred lines, as they seemed to move just as slowly. After over an hour we finally made it on board
This was the Norwegian Pearl's last sailing before her refit. As I said, we are first time cruisers and have nothing else to compare to. We are not fancy people and everything doesn't have to be perfect for us, so bear that in mind as you read on.
It took a while to get our bearings. I was surprised there are no brochures or paper maps available of the deck plans. After a couple of days we got used to it. We found the crew to be very friendly. We have no complaints about them whatsoever. It seemed like a good group of passengers as well. As much drinking as what goes on aboard I was surprised that everyone seemed well behaved and I never noticed anyone being out of line. There was a mixture of all ages on board. Not a great amount of children.
Cabin Review
Mini-Suite with Balcony
We splurged a bit on a mini suite because it was our first time and this particular cruise wasn't very expensive. We would have been fine with a regular balcony cabin. We liked the layout of the bathroom with the toilet partitioned off. With both doors closed it gave a lot of privacy. Our cabin steward was a man named Wilfredo, and he was very attentive and friendly. The TV was a bit small, but we only used it a couple of times, and I understand the TVs were all going to be replaced during the refit anyway. I noticed a bit of wear and tear in places, but absolutely nothing that bothered me, and as I said, the ship was about to go for a refit anyway. Our cabin was very close to the front elevators and was directly under the ship's library. I picked the location in hopes it would be quiet. I was not disappointed.
Port Reviews
Miami
Miami is an expensive and rather sophisticated city. We were unimpressed by it. A decent roach free hotel is at least $200 a night US, or above $260 CAD.
Ocho Rios
If I could give Ochos Rios a lower rating than terrible I would do so instantly. It is a horrible place with aggressive vendors and scammers that are there to swindle tourists. It is dirty and we didn't feel safe. Every cruise line should take this place off their itinerary and sail somewhere more deserving.