I recently returned from the NCL Breakaway cruise to the Baltics and want to share directly the complaint that I registered on behalf of myself and numerous others (a list of some of the passengers and their staterooms was attached to the complaint) with the ship’s guest services during the trip. A letter was also delivered to Miami headquarters over two weeks ago, and has not yet been answered.

Weather conditions were not good for much of the trip. As a result, we missed stops in three of the five ports scheduled for the cruise. I don’t hold NCL responsible for the changed itinerary but did find that leadership was not honest with the passengers and withheld information. We boarded the ship in Copenhagen, and learned of the first change to the itinerary, i.e., no stop in Warnemunde, when we checked in. Passengers who were due to board in Warnemunde (Berlin's port city) learned of the change more than 24 hours in advance of the Copenhagen passengers and were provided with a stipend to make their way to Copenhagen. We of course spent an extra night in the Copenhagen port. No effort was spared to contact the Berlin passengers, and none was afforded to the Copenhagen passengers. I can guess why and am angry about this lack of consideration for how I choose to spend my pleasure time.

Secondly, we learned in Tallinn that Helsinki and Stockholm were dropped from the itinerary, an extra night and day was planned in Tallinn, and we would arrive in St. Petersburg a day behind the original schedule. Weather was again blamed for the changes. All the while we were on the ship, a regular schedule of ferries to and from Helsinki was operating from a berth walking distance from the Breakaway. The ferries were visible to me until late at night and very early in the morning. We were never given the option to take the ferry (or perhaps, better yet, issued vouchers) and return to the ship before departure. I can guess again why, and yes, I am angry. Read more