Norwegian Pearl Review
A wonderful first NCL experience and a perfect week in Alaska!
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Having sailed 3 other lines, I was anxious to give NCL a try. Alaska was a perfect itinerary to do so,as we took the train up to Seattle from Portland and got to save some money for the excursions and a sweet upgrade.
We upgraded into an aft Penthouse suite (8132) the week of sailing. Super excited,as I have always wanted an aft balcony. The extra perks of being in a suite were a bonus,especially breakfast and lunch in a separate restaurant ('though the menus don't change all week,which would be nice) By far,the best perk to us was being able to get off the ship at ports through the super secret hallways,making it two minutes or less every time ! ( Seattle embark/ disembark was bizarrely fast- I'm talking we were off the ship and through customs with our luggage and at,a taxi is less than ten minutes!)
I could go into every detail,but that's what the forum boards are for,right?! but I will say the Pearl is a wonderful ship for sure! 98 percent of the staff we had contact with was very pleasant. No signs of Noro this week,as serving spoons always faced outward and the salt and pepper weren't taken! Public areas were kept very clean overall ( PSA-* if you have a blowout in the bathroom,please take some personal responsibility and clean up your carnage! Don't leave that filth for the staff to deal with-I don't care if you're on vacation,it's just gross.Public women's rooms never cease to amaze me)
Cabin Review
Penthouse with Large Balcony
My dream stateroom- an aft balcony! Very spacious for the two of us. Very well kept.
Mattress and bedding was extremely comfortable- it lead to daily naps I NEVER take at home!
Bathroom was spacious and tub was nice and deep. Water pressure was great every shower taken,although the temperature fluctuated a little bit here and there.Nice hot showers daily! Didn't care for the strongly scented Elemis Spa products in the small bottles,but I did like both the shampoo and body wash in the dispenser. You can hear a bit of noise in the bathroom,especially the last night's bass thumping party below in Bliss. Wasn't awful. Oh,and the toilet creaks when you sit. Way to make you not want to hit the buffet! ( there's a scale in the bathroom,if you,feel the need...)
Closet ( which opens from both sides) and storage was plentiful and plenty of hangers were provided.far more storage than we needed for the two of us,which was convenient. Two nice robes and sets of basic slippers were provided in the closet as well as a golf sized umbrella.Two small safes gave us plenty of locked storage for valuables. The vanity with several small drawers and an outlet with a small stool outside of the bathroom had a large regular mirror as well as a magnified makeup mirror,tissues and cotton balls.
Table and 4 chairs was a very convenient thing to have,as we used room service a few times and had a place to keep the camera at the ready right by the balcony door.
Ahhh...the balcony door. My only complaint. The door did not catch properly the entire week. It wasn't UBP induced operator error,either! It generally took several minutes to get the door to lock. One or both of us gave up several times and left e other person to deal with it. The door suddenly slid open several times over the course of the week when we thought it was locked. Twice,in the middle of the night,which was actually pretty,scary to wake to. Now,I must note the staff was very quickly in our room three times,trying to fix it. Hotel director Cary himself had someone jump on it.It wasn't ignored,but it needs more time than a two minute fix I think.On day two the balcony jammed closed in the locked position. The thought of not being able to go out onto the balcony would have been devastating,but they got it open...only so it wouldn't lock closed again! At least the crew got to experience it so they didn't think I was crazy....
The balcony itself was everything I wanted- very protected from the cold wind and rain with a padded chaise,two chairs and a small table. Many extra chances at pics and many many Orca sightings! Smelled the bakery most days working its magic- yum! Do note-heading North was fine,heading back south to Seattle there was a pretty rediculous and frequent smell of cigarette smoke. Eww. It's from right below on deck 7, where everyone sits and chats and smokes what felt like a pack at a time. Must have been wind direction on the way back?