Love the Radiance Class for this 7 night Baltic Cruise, 2100 people, easy to find everything. Picked Deck 3 oceanview and for port days just walked one deck down, very handy. Food was just fine. We celebrated a major birthday and enjoyed Chops one night and Giovanni's another night. Ship is a bit dated, but everything was acceptable. Diamond level so we enjoyed the beverages in the diamond lounge, less than 100 people so lounge was not too congested, but could use all the bars. Always enjoyed Windjammer for buffet breakfast, and sat out at aft of the ship, where most people don't sit. Enjoyed the wake. Sail in/out of Stockholm was incredible. Get up early or make sure you view this, 32,000 islands. Cruise director David was one of the oldest we have ever seen, but did an ok job. evening shows had Martin Brock excellent illusionist. Abbamax, ABBA tribute band was very entertaining, had the clothing, hair and heels! 2 production shows. Vibeology was excellent, Stage to Screen ok but Vibeology the best. Had some Russian gymnasts last night, who were super. Schooner Bar, had Jayne great pianist and entertainer. Not a real large library, but daily puzzles. Captain Arias was from Columbia, so announcements in English and Spanish. Bed was comfortable. Ship will have drydock in a year or 2. In all the ports there was a Hop on Hop off red bus there, except St Petersburg. Stockholm not hard to walk into town, Vasa museum a must, ABBA close by, harbour tour also lots of fun. walked around town Talinn, older town, very interesting. Not as busy as other ports. St Petersburg, Russia, did private Alla tour, had to wait 90 min till ship tours disembarked. City is very busy, traffic jams everywhere. Hermitage museum and Peterhof gardens super, even though museum was real busy. Even took local Metro ride and great lunch. Need more than 12 hours in port to see more. Helsinki, also nice to walk around, hilly city, nice harbour tour recommended. Stay a few days pre or post cruise in Copenhagen for sure. One can actually take Bus 25 from downtown direct to port. Metro gets you central to Norreport and bus is close by. But large cruise bags will make it more difficult. You can also use hop on red bus and buy 2 day pass and get ride there. Read Less

I chose this cruise because of the ports: departing from Copenhagen, then Stockholm, Tallin, st Petersburg, Helsinki, back to Copenhagen. Overall - Amazing location, very friendly cruise staff, great service and food, we were surprised by how swift embarkation at ports were. Just check in was a little long. We arrived CPH on day of embarkation at 7am. There was already cruise staff holding a sign asking if anyone has booked cruise transfer to port. Nonetheless , my group used public transportation to Oceankaj by train then bus 25/27. We spent about 1+ hour at check in counter, we were told that it is the first sail of the year, staff was still on training to the new system as happens that system was down. I completed online check in but staff can not locate record so we have to complete whole check in process again. Team did not collect passport from us at check in, which again create a little hassle when we are on board. Cruise staff has to come to us to collect it. Once we board, staff with yellow t shirt was at every floor to help answer questions and help people familiarise with the cruise. This is my 2nd cruise with RCI, serenade of the Seas is a smaller cruise then before (quantum class cruise) which means less people, and less crowded. Never very difficult to get table at Windjammer. Dinner at main dining room was fab. Good food and attentive service. Same table and wait staff everyday Remember to download their app if you need to know info in other language. My family benefited from using the app as info were listed in chinese for them. Not really long lines at customer service. Staff are much more friendly, Cruise Director David is always around, can feel that he cares about customers. The cruise is a little dated but well maintained. Lots of storage space. Our housekeeper Sean is amazing, always checking if we are ok. Great shows and always good music on board. Less entertainment facilities on board then quantum class cruise, but I did enjoy my ‘do nothing’ time. Amazing ports especially Stockholm. Hop on hop off bus was waiting right outside departure gate for travelers. Tallin is an easy port, within walking distance to old town. Helsinki ‘s port was a little far away from downtown. Even excursion staff is unsure which port cruise will use 2 days before arrival. Wrong info given at the leaflet distributed on board. We joined independent excursion at St Petersburg, we can only depart ship 90 min after docking time. Have to let those joined cruise shorex depart first. We traveled in smaller group and with early entry to Hermitage plus an additional subway ride. Overall good cruise experience again. I would recommend this cruise and route. Read Less

This was our first cruise, so my comments may sound as if I am a greenhorn – which I am as far as cruises are concerned. The cruise was on the "Serenade of the Seas" (Royal Caribbean) on the Baltic Sea from Copenhagen stopping at Stockholm, Tallinn, St. Petersburg and Helsinki, then returning to Copenhagen. The ship is huge (though I was told there are even bigger), well-organized, clean, plenty of food, entertainment. There are lots of things for children to do, and of course there was the casino for those like to gamble. And, very important, the staff was very friendly and efficient. Food: you can very easily eat too much. The dining rooms are full of food for all tastes and diets. However, Reflections (the main dining room) has a limited selection for dinner, but there are changes every day. For vegetarians, there are 2 choices for starters, one for the main dish and of course no problem with dessert. This may be contrasted with the Windjammer Café, which has almost a constant buffet, and the variety of dishes is far greater. One (minor) criticism: There was no honey for breakfast on the last two days. One solution to the substantial food offered and attempts to eat two main meals only (breakfast + one other meal, be it lunch or dinner) is to offer half-board, as it were. As in hotels, everyone eats breakfast, and they can choose one of the other two meals. Anything else may be purchased and eaten at one of the cafes. This seems easy to administer: the SeaPass would have to be read (in a machine) when going in to eat lunch and supper, and if one of the two meals of that day has already been eaten, you are charged for the other. Formal dining: why bother? This is a remnant of cruising of a generation and more ago, and no longer relevant. There were a few gentlemen in tuxedos and women in long dresses, but many of the passengers dined in casual clothing, though usually with a jacket. Beverage packages: We did an overkill without realizing it. We thought that we should make sure that we have enough water in the stateroom (cabin), and that we will have enough coffee breaks apart from coffee at breakfast and dinner. But what we did not know was that there is no lack of food at meals and of course it's already paid for. As for water, we could have done with 3-4 bottles between us for the 7 days, and not 12! And the extra coffee was good, each came with a "free" cake, but if we had known, we would have made do with one card with 15 coffees, and not one card each (one for me and one for my wife). But we are new cruisers. Never had previous experience. You live and learn. Stops and shore excursions. We did not take any of the excursions organized by the ship, but made our own way around at the four ports of stop. If you want to take full advantage of the ship's facilities, then a passenger would have to cut down on going ashore. So, there is a choice between going ashore and staying on board (where activities are still going on). Going ashore allows you to see cities you may never have gone to, were it not for the cruise. However, if you do not take an organized excursion, it does take time to get off, and then to get to the centre of the city (in Stockholm by hop-on/hop-off bus, in Tallinn and Helsinki by shuttle bus and in St. Petersburg by public transport or by taxi). Of the four stops, Helsinki was in a way a waste of time. We had only half a day. We disembarked at around 9.30 -- we were on holiday, so why leave the ship at 7.30, which was possible? So, we could manage a couple of hours in town, which is not enough time. The best of the shore trips was Tallinn, perhaps because it is a small town, and you have plenty to see and you have time. The answer probably from the cruise company would be that we should take an organized excursion – that would be OK if you want to pay the fairly high price and run around after a man or woman in a flag. It's not our style. Criticisms: public loudspeakers were not clear unless you were standing or sitting in specific areas. When in your stateroom, you could hear that someone is speaking on the public address system but you can't catch what is being said. Read Less

The dining and cabin services was excellent. We enjoyed the live entainment and games. The ports visited was second to none, we enjoyed the different culture and history, and the excursions was informative. The time spend on land should be a little longer so one can appreciate the history and lifestyle. Excellent variety of excursions at the various ports of call although some were quite expensive. The crew members was very friendly and always willing to assist is any way. The ship is very clean and well maintained for its age. The meals in WJ was good, but some consideration could be given for those who do not eat beef and pork, bur overall the meals was excellent. We enjoyed the evening shows and events, it was enjoyable. Overhall is was an enjoyable for our group of 14, and we had a wonderful time onboard and at the various ports. Read Less

We were very fortunate to have amazing 80 degree temps and sunny skies during our entire cruise. The cruise ship was very clean and they stressed to sanitize your hands when ever we entered the dining area and they had the Purell stands all over the ship. I really enjoyed our Cruise director Jamie. He was hilarious he had us laughing all the time he is also a singer. We enjoyed the entertainment not only in the Tropical Lounge but also in the Atrium nightly loved the live music and the shows. Alison the Activity Cruise Director was also fabulous her and Jamie worked well together great pair. We had the pleasure of having Clifford Fernandez be our waiter in the main dining room and he provided exceptional service. I also enjoyed seeing Ty's smiling face whenever I entered the Windjammer for Breakfast and Lunch she always had a smile on her face and was always so jolly. It takes a lot of work and personnel to have a cruise ship running effectively and smoothly from the shore excursions to the cabin steward to the dining service and all the entertainment on board. Royal Caribbean did a fantastic job. Also I have been on at least 15 cruises and this is the first time I joined a Roll call list on Cruise Critics so Royal Caribbean set up a small get together Meet and Mingle for the members on the Roll Call. It was nice to talk to passengers online several months in advance before getting on the cruise. :) Read Less

My family and I celebrated my mom's 55th birthday on the cruise. The service we got from all crew members was second to none. Fantastic service from the wait staff, room attendant and especially the Head Chef. On Two of the nights we were treated to a special dinner by the chef of traditional dishes fron our home island, Trinidad and my mom was serenaded by the wait staff with a special fruit cake made for her- also a traditional cake made in Trinidad. The farewell performances by the restaurant and kitchen staff were absolutely amazing and the Parade of nations at th end of the cruise was fantastic. Our room attendant was very nice and accommodated our every requeat with a smile. The service on this cruise was like no other cruise I have ever been on. Special mention should be made of Melvin Periera and Nadie in the dining room, Head Ched Benedict and our room attendant Shermon. Read Less

We chose this cruise because we had never visited any of these countries. Our state room was clean and very well-attended. The breakfast food in the Windjammers Cafe was okay. We especially enjoyed the dinner in the main dining room. Not every dish was a hit, but those that were were stellar, and the service was truly exceptional. Entertainment options on the boat were quite limited. We found that we enjoyed the musicians in the bars more than the actual theater shows. We thoroughly enjoyed the destinations we visited and would highly recommend Alla Tours, which we took in Stockholm, Tallinn, and St. Petersburg. Kirsten, our tour guide in Tallinn, was especially memorable. She was patient, thorough, and extremely knowledgeable, able to answer all of our questions about the history of Estonia, its culture, and its beautiful architecture. We would recommend this cruise to anyone interested in visiting these destinations - just maybe not for someone expecting an exciting show every night. Read Less

We selected this cruise for the exciting ports. The ports were incredible and memorable. But what was an unexpected surprise was how much fun we had on the ship. The ship is incredibly clean. I know this ship is older, but I found it in incredible condition. I have to give credit to the dining areas. How they are able to feed that many people and keep things so fresh and clean is truly a feat. I have been on a more expensive cruise and I did not care for the food. The food on this cruise was very very good. Truly. My particular mother in law said she never tried anything that she didn’t like. We didn’t go to any shows but I enjoyed the entertainment on board. We have a 7 year old son and the kids club was a complete success. I must pay special mention to our cabin steward. JOHNATHAN. He was so kind and made our cabins so fresh. Also a special note about MARK who I did arts and crafts with. Also the bar tenders were very nice. Special mention to Vortex and the schooner bar. Read Less

We chose this cruise as St Petersburgh was high on my husband's bucket list and we had a great deal. Although I normally don't like the larger ships, this one worked very well for us. We knew that it would not be a sun trip and were equipped for the, to us, cold weather. We were not bored on the sea days and found the entertainment, as per usual when travelling with NCL, great with plenty of choice. Although there are additional 'to pay for' restaurants and entertainments we stuck to the included and were not disappointed. I am not a lover of buffets but the variety of food was very good and the restaurants were very good. We had no need to visit the speciality 'pay for' restaurants. We did this trip on a budget so opted unusually for an inside cabin but we had no problem. The cabin lacked wardrobe space but otherwise was good. We were a couple and were quite happy with the facilities on board. We tend to try and avoid ships tours as they tend to be very expensive. After researching, we booked tours with TJ Travel and cannot praise them enough. They provided exactly what they offered - smaller groups, excellent guides, timely pick up and return to the ship. Would highly recommend this company. Read Less

First of all we choose a cruise to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. But the destinations on this cruise's itinerary were once in a life time for us. We loved each and every port. The differences in these ancient cities were not always apparent, but fun to discover. And each one in its own way could draws us back for a closer look. We found the ship amazing. This was our first ever cruise and with advice of family and travel professionals we were assured that Norwegian would not let us down. The entertainment venues were excellent. The number of available places to dine or drink made it easy to feel like we were not on a ship with 4000+ other cruisers. There was always a quiet place to have a drink or just to relax. Each and every crew member except one treated us like family, usually calling us by our first name on a second encounter. The one exception was a service desk staff member that did not completely detail our disembarkation procedure after purchasing Norwegian supplied airport transfer. No real harm was done by this as we were quickly brought up to speed on that morning by others. Read Less

We have always wanted to visit the Baltics as I have Scandinavian heritage and we chose Norwegian Getaway as we have sailed with them before and liked this itinerary. We were not at all disappointed! The ship was lovely and public areas were always clean. The staff were welcoming and friendly every day and always smiling. There was a lot of choice for restaurants and we tried several of them. "Taste" happened to be our favourite but we actually liked them all. There was a large variety of entertainment options and we attended several of the shows. We found the quality of the shows to be quite high. There was always something different going on in the central atrium and we watched the games and enjoyed the variety of music. We learned a lot on our excursions and found the history and culture of the different countries very interesting. The disembarkation process was well organized and the smoothest we have seen! Thank you Norwegian Getaway! Read Less

We choose this cruise for the Itinerary, and our first chance to try Norwegian Cruise Lines, but maybe should have stayed on Holland America in the spring for this route. The ports of call were great and we liked the 10 day trip and met nice people. Our four days in Copenhagen before embarkation worked out nicely and it is a pleasant, walkable city, although quite expensive (2 very ordinary fish & chip lunches cost us C$85 with one beer at Nyhavn). Embarkation was very smooth and the ship is quite lovely - not overly ostentatious but nice furniture, carpets, colours, etc. in good nick, and our stateroom was attractive with more than adequate storage, roomy bathroom, nice finishes. The closet was a little awkward to get into, but big enough. Staff was pleasant, although a lot seem to speak NO English. Dining room service was more than adequate - we never had any long waits or mixed up orders. The variety was good and we enjoyed the open seating. We felt the food was OK but way below exceptional. Many items seemed of low quality, like something you might grab from the frozen food section at home. The Tropicana room was HORRIBLE for noise (music). Expecting a nice dinner / dance environment, the sound volume really ruined the atmosphere. You could not even chat with dinner mates, except if the entertainers took a break. We liked Taste and Savour, but the buffet was disappointing even for breakfast, and o'Sheehans managed to blow it for every breakfast. Specialty restaurants - Tepenaki and Italian were very good. Much entertainment involved additional cost, like bingo cards, etc. and dance lessons were conducted in the TOO SMALL Tropicana room. Evening entertainment was mostly limited to Burn the Floor and the Million Dollar Quartet, which were both Excellent. WHO ever designed or permitted those SEATS in the theatre ? ? ? They were the MOST uncomfortable theatre seats I've ever sat in anywhere. Or they were installed incorrectly! The slope of the theatre was also very gradual and awkward. The Captain's Talk was enjoyable, but mostly we felt like we were not actually "hosted" by anyone. Silas (Cruise Director) was full of himself and hard to take. Debarkation went very well. It would be nice to have self-serve laundry. Read Less

I've wanted to sail the Baltics for a while now so this cruise was perfect for me! I enjoyed all the ports, but wished the shore excursions offered more free time to walk around the beautiful towns, especially for the late sail away ports. You can't control the weather...so we had rain from day 1 to the last day. Make sure you pack warm and waterproof clothes. And for shore excursions, make sure you bring a windbreaker/umbrella because you never know when it's going to rain. Travelled from September 10-18. Stayed 2 days before and 1 day after in Copenhagen. I would recommend going in early September if you don't like the cold. Loved the onboard entertainment. The trivia was by far the most entertaining. The escape the big top was a fun activity as well. The food was good, a lot of variety. Love the freestyle dining concept. Overall a great cruise. Read Less

My husband and I wanted to see this part of the world. We love cruising and we love cruising on Norwegian so it was a perfect match. The Getaway, though a big ship, did not feel "big". We loved the way La Cucina and Le Bistro (two of our favourite restraints) were set up as sidewalk cafes. The service and food, as always were excellent. The entertainment was superb from Burn the Floor, Cirque Dreams and Steam, to Million Dollar Quartette. We enjoyed many of the lounges for pre-dinner cocktails. Upgrading to a balcony was a great idea. The extra space and the views were exciting. We did excursions in all the ports and enjoyed them all. Rostock and Talin were quaint and picturesque St Petersburg was amazing Loved touring Helsinki and Stockholm Of course, we met wonderful fellow cruisers, had many enlightening conversations and made new friends. It was a wonderful trip and we look forward to our Panama Canal Cruise on the Star in April. Read Less

You get to visit numerous ports on this cruise--Berlin (2.5 hr drive to the city), Talin, St Petersburg, Helsinki and Stockholm, plus Copenhagen if you want to arrive early or stay after the cruise. Depending on the excursion you choose, you get to see palaces, churches, museums, statues and more. Not sure if it's climate change, but the weather (Sept 2017) was terrible--mostly 50s, rain almost every day and dreary on the other days. Worst experience was customs at St Petersburg. Every other port, you simply get off the ship. In St Petersburg, we waited about 90 minutes the first day in wind and rain for non-English speaking bureaucrats to look at our passports and excursion receipts (needed to avoid having to pay for a visa). The second day wasn't much better. Try to be the first one off the ship in St Petersburg. Many activities listed in the ship's newsletter each day. You find yourself eating at the buffet so you can get lunch/dinner out of the way quickly so you have time to fit things in. Entertainment was OUTSTANDING, with Burn the Floor (dance show), Million Dollar Quartet (same as the show on Broadway), and a Cirque du Soleil type show (extra charge, includes dinner) among others. Finally, unless you want to walk with your luggage, sign up for the transfer to the Copenhagen airport. Did not see one taxi at the port when we docked. Read Less

We had a wonderful time on this cruise. We did not participate in every event as we don’t like to be over programmed. So, here is what we did find: The food overall was very good. The Windjammer buffet restaurant was always busy for breakfast and on the day of the first shore excursion, there was a huge backup. Their food was good. The one day we tried Room Service was a travesty because everyone else tried it that day due to a 6:30 am shore excursion. However, we really enjoyed dinners in Reflections, the main dining room. The food was very tasty- not an unusual selection if that is important to you. Our waiter and the asst. waiter were very attentive and had a great sense of humor. We tried Giavannis (sp?). The quality of the food was not worth the extra price. However, we got a wider range of more expensive options at Giavannis. The last nights Chef’s dance was a riot. The entertainment was incredible. Topi, the cruise director, was extremely talented (comedien, dancer and singer). We would sign up for another cruise just based on his being there. The other entertainers were very talented and we enjoyed each show. We couldn’t stay awake for the late night entertainment each evening but the one we did attend was energetic, fun and humorous. There was a wide range of shipboard activities. We enjoyed the dancing lessons, the various contests and last night’s presentations. There was bingo, the marriage game, a few lectures, and more – you could have been busy from the time you got up until you go to sleep. We only went on 2 of the St. Petersburg shore excursions (see the end of this review). They were mediocre. Our goal was to explore the cities on our own and that worked for us. However, it does take more planning and the willingness to get lost. Read Less

We chose this cruise as my son has always wanted to see Eastern Europe. We were told to embark at 1030am which i was suprised at because it seemed quite early but were happy to go along with it. When we checked in we were given an empty folder pocket which apparently should have had a wifi code in but didnt, we should have had 2 drinks package stickers which we didnt and we got our coffee card which nobody pointed out was worthless because we had the drinks packages. on embarking the ship we found nothing really open, pools were shut and the windjammer wasnt open yet. We ate then went to see the cabin (1090). the room seemed in really good condition tbh, and i honestly didnt see any signs of obvious wear and tear. the sofa folded out into a futon which my 6ft 4 son found uncomfortable. When we got on we found no clue about setting up the wifi so just logged in presuming as we had paid this was ok. we also went to guest services to enquire about the dinner mystery show i had paid for. i said when i booked and paid i was told it was the first night. the guy assured me it was in estonia and it later changed to st. petersburg. so it changed 3 times in date, i was told there was no record of my booking twice (had paperwork on me with what i'd paid for). same with the drinks packages. until my paperwork was produced they denied all knowledge of my inclusive packages. in my opinion you should sack the entire guest services department. they dont do their job. as far as the 'adults only calm oasis to relax and unwind' pool seriously false advertising at its finest. it ended up with marauding packs of children in all three pools (apparently due to inclement weather unless adults wanted to swim before 12 (ummm excursions) or after 7 you could forget about anywhere to unwind and have a pleasant swim. the temperature outside during the day wasnt inclement, it was in the mid to late 20's which means that children could have used the pools with no bother whatsoever. and whats with the kids get the pool all afternoon thing. this seriously was a deal breaker to me, but i did try to swim in the solarium a few times, but after being jumped on (pool attendants not reminding people not to jump or dive, just staring into space), headbutted in the stomach twice by the same child, had a spanish boy literally thrown at me by his dad, was regularly kicked by unaccompanied children hanging off bridge in there i literally gave up with the swimming for my own safety. i did complain a few times, but it was just ignored. what i found inexcusable was a pool attendant singling out british people to shower before they entered the pool, whilst ignoring those from other nations who hadnt showered. i felt humiliated by this but just went along with things. we were turned away from the windjammer one day after a trip because there was no room. they wouldnt even let us in there. this meant that we had to go to park cafe and for 2 meals that day just eat snacks. this is inexcusable when there is literally nowhere else to get a meal on board. what would have been the effort in getting some hot plates and putting things like burgers, fries and a couple of other things by the pool letting those of us that wanted hot food eat something. this is a ship that would seriously benefit from splitting the pool bar in half and putting casual dining in the other half. we did try the movies under the stars the night we couldnt get into beauty and the beast in the cinema. but at night it was chilly. i know other cruise lines have crew dispensiing blankets and hot chocolate on these sort of occasions but nope, not this time so gave up. the tv on the room is basicaly 8 shows on a loop unless you want to pay $11.99 to rent a movie. although we dont spend loads of time in a room an hour relaxing always means its good to have tv. on our last day at sea we were spoiled for choiice between a movie about the turkish/armenian genocide, getting the crap kicked out of me in the pool again or going into the main theatre to see the cruise directors holidiay snaps he took in panama. really. we did laugh about the choice of movie since we had just watched a proud parade of 61 onboard nations (although they couldnt produce one union jack, but passed off a scottish flag as representing the united kingdom. so a movie inciting hatred against a nation seemed an odd choice. when we got the onboard account we were charged yet again for our prepaid internet, had tips taken twice and although the first day i had been to guest services and stated that i didnt want gratuities taken off for the dining staff as i didnt intend to eat in the main dining room it was taken off so i had over £300 unbudgeted removed from my account. on going on their facebook page and accusing them of piracy they did amend things. as far as the entertainment side of things goes i found it distinctly lacking. in the main theatre we had a maths guy, a show called velocity about music which was awful, the worst abba tribute band i've ever seen (from the pictures it looked like a bee gee / abba crossover, the cruise director and his band one night (the balancing act had his luggage go missing) and a 46 year old gymnast. we found that if you fully utilise your drinks package it makes it easier. the tribute to the musicals was stunning though. although it cost me a weeks wages the highlight of our cruise was the mystery dinner show. for families with teenagers it was so good. copious wine, nice food and we were all laughing at the end of the night. the actors were cheesy, came out with one liners totally off the cuff and made the night. the shore excursions we did were all royal caribbean ones ranging from dreadful (sweden by land and sea - boat portion couldnt hear anything then once on the bus the only thing we saw was the town hall), to absolutely brilliant estonia highlights (lovely older lady who knew so much and was mothering us the whole way round) to mega efficient (hermitage museum with gold room). and the free time in 3 places bus driver in helsinki was a real character who honestly was just as good if not better than a tour guide. on last night we had made a reservation with guest services for giovannis and were told there would be 25% off because of all the confusion over the dinner show. turned up and (what a suprise) giovanni had no record of our reservation or discount. i had also left my cabin steward tip with guest services but when i told the steward he said that he was unlikely to get it ???? honestly i really wanted to like this cruise, i had paid a fortune for things and just felt it came up totally lacking. with a bit of imagination like more casual dining, blankets for movie nights, better all round entertainment and a totally revamped guest services department this could be so much more. i had to pay a weeks wages for the dinner show, so for the date to be changed 3 times and being denied i had a reservation twice it trigged my IBS and for 3 nights i had crippling stomach pains with all the added stress. this coupled together with being headbutted in the stomach twice by children in the adults only pool i just felt badly let down for the amount of money i had paid. i would suggest anyone going on there takes copious proof of what they have paid for because you will need it. 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This is 4th RCC cruise. This was one area we hadn't traveled before. Glad we did, but not one we'd repeat, as we would the Venice, Croatia, Santori cruise. I agree with those who say the Serenade of the Sea is a good but worn ship. Guess it's because of the size of the ports but not as enjoyable as the larger ships we've cruised on in the past. I also agree that the food wasn't as good as on other cruises. That dining service was outstanding, as always, but there were a few nights, we just didn't care for any of the the starters or entrees and had to go to the "classics" grilled chicken which we knew was good, but tiring after 3 times. The deserts were also not as fun as on prior cruises. I'm not sure if this is due to cost cutting efforts or to lack of creativity. Did enjoy the waiters and the show they provided on day 3. I would like to mention the guides during the port excursions as I didn't see an area to comment on them on the official RCC survey. The ABSOLUTELY BEST GUIDE we've ever had in all 5 cruises we've taken was our guide "group 8, Stockholm"-- on Aug 14th. I really wish I had taken his name so he would receive credit due, but hopefully his company will note this reference. He was amazing! Informative, entertaining! Was no doubt working as a guide as a supplement to his acting jobs as he gave us descriptions and history of each site as if it was a play and he was the main character. We really felt we had gone back in time and were experiencing the event! On the other end, our guide in Tallin, Estonia was terrible, Siiri from Den Ensti tours. I took time to note her name in hopes of also letting her company know how we did not enjoy this cruise. We had earphones on. She walked ahead, with her back to us, talking in a chronic "sing song" voice, like she was reading from a book. No real interaction, no energy. Several of us just took out our earphones and followed her around, not really caring what she was saying. One recommendation to RCC is to consider offering one palace tour combined with a walk around the town with free time instead of 2 palace tours on one excursion. In both St. Petersberg and Copenhagen we had 2 palace or museum tours and no free time to actually see the town. We loved the tour of the palaces but as we saw nothing else, felt we really didn't see either of those cities. Read Less

This was our 26th cruise, our 16th cruise with NCL and our 2nd cruise on Getaway. First time sailing in the summer and probably the last. The ports and ship venues were all a lot more crowded and of course there were a lot more kids on board (noise). Embarkation was a breeze and we were onboard by 11:30am. Headed directly to O'Sheehan's for a Stella and lunch (yummy fajitas and chicken wings). Our room steward, Mark, took great care of us for the entire cruise. He kept the cabin well stocked and clean - with a smiling face and cheerful manner at all times. Thanks Mark!! The Shrimp Cocktail, Prime Rib and Surf and Turf at Cagney’s was delicious. At La Bistro, we tried the Escargot, Mushroom Soup, Beef Tenderloin and Shrimp; excellent as usual. At both of these restaurants, the service was top notch. In the main dining, Tropicana Room, we found the food very good as well and the service was great! We still love O'Sheehans, but since the menu changed (no more prime rib nights or chicken pot pie) it gets a little repetitious. However, what is on the menu is good and the bartenders here were very attentive as were those in the casino bar and the buffet bar. The Sunset Bar on the Waterfront was one of our favourites for sailaways. Truly excellent bartenders there. Thanks Mark, Edwar and Christian!! Our entire casino experience was excellent and the casino hostess, Rimarie, deserves special mention. A very professional yet super fun lady, she made our week when she sent special birthday treats to our cabin for my 60th birthday and treated us to a meal at Cagney’s. Love this lady! Took advantage of the Perfect Day spa special for a massage and facial, which was very enjoyable; except for the noise above which seems to be a recurring thing, due to positioning of the massage rooms. NCL could do a rethink on a lot of the ships with this issue. Disembarkation was also very smooth; we took the NCL transfer to the airport. Picked up our bags there, great service. So, another enjoyable NCL cruise thanks to some excellent crew members and an interesting itinerary. Looking forward to our next NCL adventure in November! Read Less

We chose this cruise so we could visit new destinations and this was an excellent itinerary.We chose NCL once again because we have cruised with almost all of the others and NCL remains our favourite cruise line. The main reason for our loyalty is the excellent people you have looking after us and the friendly excellent service they provide to us.. We enjoyed this cruise having good food and good ports to visit and more excellent service from your crew. We did not however enjoy the large ship, Between noisy groups showing little, or no regard for others and the noise and nuisance created by (poorly supervised) children in specialty restaurants like the Bistro where couples and small groups sought refuge and peaceful, romantic dining. This ship offered many family oriented places for dining and activities so there should also be places for adults and small groups (table of 4 or less)to dine and enjoy besides the Haven. Therefore we will select smaller ships for future NCL cruises or book the Haven. We are already planning our next NCL cruise and very much enjoyed meeting Carina Peters from your future cruise area and the training supervisor ,Jibin and the help and advice they provided to us. Read Less

The NCL GetAway is quite a large ship. 4000 passenger -- that's a lot of people!! Our Balcony Midship cabin was quiet and clean. Our cabin steward was kind and friendly. We loved our daily towel animals. Dining in the Tropicana Dining room had the best food. Due to food allergies, I had to order my food 1 day in advance. Unfortunately, dining in specialty restaurants -- you had to be pre-order 1 day in advance as well. This was confusing when Guest Services tells you that you can't order in advance and to just tell the waiter (for Cirque of Dreams) when the Special Diet maitre de stated that pre-ordering was required at all restaurants. Unfortunately, the Cirque of Dreams food (Surf and Turf) was not the best. Our steak was rare whereas another guests steak was well done. Our salmon was overcooked, broccoli was inedible (due to being too spicy to eat). Who puts chili flakes on broccoli! A guest had to guzzle water to wash out what they ate. I'm surprised they didn't spit it out! The buffet would have been much better food. The Best of St. Petersburg two day shore excursion was very strenuous -- very early morning excursion (7 am) and lots of walking. The next At Sea day couldn't come any sooner to get some well needed rest. Unfortunately, it was disturbing and very offensive that the leading Jewelry Sales Associate(s) made fun of the Asian language when calling out the number of the winning ticket for their raffle. The staff thought is was funny and most customers just laughed when the Sales member said gobbly-gook in made up Chinese. Numbers were said correctly in Spanish and English. Raffles were conducted daily and I saw this occur almost every day. I don't condone and accept the heckling/ridiculing of cultures and have given NCL feedback on our experiences. For the most part, the Jewelry staff was kind and helpful, however, this bad behavior is concerning. Read Less

timing and itinerary. Wanted to share the cruising experience with a friend who had never done it before. I think they will cruise again. The Baltic cruise has been on our bucket list for a while now. The Assistant Maitre D did a superb job in meeting our special needs. The ship had great amenities including the water park rope course and mimi golf all of which we used at least once. For many of the shore excursions we used ALLA Tours and I have to say they did a superb job and I highly recommend them. All in all a great if tiring experience. The weather was generally pretty cooperative but we did have some heavy rain in Berlin and Tallinn but that only lasted for most of the morning and the tour guides adjusted the itinerary so we were on the bus most of the time the weather refused to cooperate. Read Less

We chose this cruise because we prefer small groups, good food, great destinations and comfort. . .we have been on two cruises, both small boats with a little more than 100 passengers. Normally we travel on our own, unguided but well researched beforehand. We found the Orion to be everything we thought it would be. . .comfortable, great views, a wonderful room, smooth running and quiet too and the staff were exceptional. Billy, our room cleaner was pleasant, friendly and quite capable. The staff that served us were outstanding and the Captain and crew were charming and professional. Many of the places we visited were educational as well as being extremely attractive locales. Our breakfasts and lunches and tea time were top-notch. . .dinners less so. For example; an Oso Buco would have required a chainsaw to cut the meat. . .my Halibut was cooked to a fare-thee-well. . so dry it was inedible and my wife had a fish meal that was too salty to eat. . the menus on the other hand were comprehensive and offered a wide range of choices. As for our expeditions. . .our first trip around the Weather Islands in Sweden was one in which a lot of quite old people got very wet. . I know I didn’t come on the tour to be beat up by ocean swells in a Zodiac so I don’t understand the purpose of that particular expedition. In Olso we booked the trip to the Market and a cooking class where they were going to show us how to prepare Tapis. . .the market is closed on Mondays and your organizers should have known that. . our guide on the bus was almost completely incompetent, and the cooking involved chicken breasts and fruit desserts. . and while quite good was not what was promised. On the other hand, Vigeland and Linda, our guide, was outstanding. And on our last expedition day. . our All Day trip to Osa. . it had to be modified because your contact in Osa could not field 2 buses instead having to drop some off at one venue and go back and get more passengers. . so the all day became a partial day. And finally. . . .clearing Customs and Immigration in Bergen became an ordeal for those of us suffering from Arthritis when the leader misdirected us to the wrong side of a very long building in the rain. Read Less

In all honesty I went on this cruise because of the "freebies". I travel solo so I look for ways I can save money ( or I would travel with you more often). There was no solo supplement, had free air ( although I upgraded), and picked up bar tab and crew tips. Lindblad/NatGeo is my favorite tour company. I like traveling at sea They have great speakers. They are quite knowledgeable in many areas. I learn a lot about the wildlife and nature in general. All shore excursions are included in the price. Most trips have an emphasis on wild life. We have choices of walks. The Orion has great food and is very "homey". There aren't too many people. The only thing I would wish for are mikes and head sets so you can hear what a speaker is saying when one is outside walking. It is impossible to hear a speaker without them. Read Less

Although a number of reviews have already covered this particular cruise - I'll add my opinions as well. Overall - I'd rate the cruise a C+ (average) for a number of reasons: Positives: 1. I enjoyed the ship, liked the overall size (although it is possible this contributed to some of the negatives listed below). I liked most of the bar and lounge areas, and really liked the Waterfront area / deck on Deck 8. 2. Inside stateroom was comfortable and just fine for this cruise. We spent so much time in port or around the decks, there really wasn't a reason to be in the room to much. 3. Plenty of deck space and pool space (if you could handle the cooler temperatures!) Waterslides and Ropes course were fun to go on as well. 4. Food was really good in most places. In particular, Ocean Blue was a specialty restaurant we dined at on the evening we departed St Petersburg. (One of the best meals we had!) The Garden Cafe buffet was good and had plenty of variety for breakfast and lunch. I wasn't impressed with Garden Cafe as much for dinner - and we generally tried to go to the main dining rooms Taste or Savor for dinner which were good although sometimes a bit slow in service time. 5. Show / Entertainment in general was good. We went to the Illusionarium one night for the dinner / Cirque du Soleil type show -- highly recommended!! I also enjoyed the dueling piano bar in Headliners, and some of the shows / events in the Atrium were enjoyable to watch (however - see my comment below re: the Atrium) 6. The ports make / break this cruise. St Petersburg and Stockholm were fantastic to visit! (Note - we used TJ tours for a 2-day program -- and they were fantastic! Highly recommended!!) As an added note - the docking in Nynasham Sweden rather than downtown Stockholm is a non-issue in my opinion. The cruise extended our port time by 2 hours allowing everyone time to travel back and forth between our docking point and downtown Stockholm Negatives: 1. Missed ports -- unfortunately - this creates an automatic downgrade of the cruise in my opinion. I get that we could not get into the small port of Warnemunde on the first day due to high winds (and the impact it had on a ship of our size trying to get into a small channel). But the larger problem is that we were unable to continue to Tallin, and instead had to continue circling the port for a full day. When we finally docked the next day, there was insufficient time to go to Berlin as we had to leave by 2pm in order to get to St Petersburg on time. Had we just missed Warnemunde (Berlin) on the first day, I would be more understanding, but the issue here is why Norwegian would schedule a 2nd embark / departure port which did not allow us to continue on to Tallin on the 1st day. Missing 1 port was bad enough, but missing 2 ports justifies an automatic downgrade of the cruise experience. 2. Atrium area -- conceptually, it is a great idea and a neat gathering place. In practice however, it becomes way too loud and too crowded for the types of events they want to hold there. On top of this, the guest services, shore excursion desks are in the same lobby area. In the evening, it was very difficult to have a conversation with anyone in the vicinity. 3. Getting back on the ship in Warnemunde -- not sure what happened but have never seen anything like this before. Seemed like most of the ships passengers (all 4000 of us) were stuck milling around outside of the ship and in crazy long lines. I ended up walking back to Warnemunde, grabbed a beer to go, and then walked back and sat in the shade for an hour until the lines started moving! 4. Smoke in the casino - should not be allowed. It drifts between levels 6, 7, and 8 of the ship which is a central area for indoor entertainment. I could nitpick a few more minor items here and there, but overall those were the biggest negatives. Considering how our cruise started, I think the Captain tried as best as possible to inform everyone of what was happening. The Captain also spent additional time during the Captain's talk on the final day of the cruise showing us diagrams of how it was not possible for our ship to dock in Warnemunde on the first day. (I don't doubt the decision at all - my beef is with Norwegian on why they would make Warnemunde a mandatory and 2nd embarkation stop if it is such a narrow docking channel) But in spite of an overall rough start, I think Norwegian recovered fairly well and were able to proceed with the rest of the cruise within reason. I'll cruise again with Norwegian as my experience with them is generally positive. Read Less