We just returned from a 5 night cruise on the Disney Magic out of New York, calling on Bar Harbor Maine and St. John New Brunswick. Many of the features that attract us to Disney remain - the amazing dining room staff and cabin stewards, the entertainment (many levels above other lines) and the attention to detail. However, we were quite disappointed to experience several areas where service cutbacks had been imposed very recently, and I thought that I would share them with the forum. Like many of you, I have multiple Disney cruises on multiple ships, so I know what has been delivered in the past. Some cutbacks were obvious, and some were more subtle, but the overall combination produces the unavoidable conclusion that budget consciousness has hit Disney Cruises. Given the price of the product, this news is really sad. It started at embarkation. Disney had cut out the gold and silver express line, and 95% of the passengers were forced into a single line with a wait of some 75 minutes. Given the technology available to companies today, this is simply unacceptable. Disney's "system" of allotted check in times was a complete shambles. It seems that the system has a giant hole - no one checks the boarding time until the passenger checks in, and then it is only used to determine actual boarding group. We had an 11 am to 11:30 boarding time and had to wait endlessly behind passengers with 2 or 3 pm check in times. Disney needs a better system and they need to restore the gold express check in. The Castaway Club loyalty tiers already provide very little value. Taking away one of the biggest benefits is no way to build loyalty. When we finally did board, the next cutback was presented. We were seated for lunch (I don't do buffets), and as usual were presented with a bread basket (and I am a fan of Disney breads). That's it. No butter at all. I asked my helpful server for butter, and after a while he brought butter, but just two tiny pats for a table of four. I am usually successful at suppressing my sarcasm, particularly when it comes to dining room staff, but I asked: "is there a butter shortage that I have not read about?" The surprising response was "no sir, this is the new standard we just started". I guess I laughed, because a minute or two later the head server came over and said the same thing. He was very embarrassed and suggested that I comment about it. I noticed many similar small cutbacks throughout the food service during the cruise, and found myself having to ask for many items that in the past were simply brought and offered. I understand trying to reduce waste, but at the very premium price point charged by Disney, further inflating already industry leading profit levels by cutting back on such items as butter is a disservice to the Disney cruising community. Yes, butter is a small thing, and many of you are probably thinking that I am making a big thing our of nothing, but having been affiliated with major corporation for many years, I know what happens to a company where finance rules everything. I believe that it is starting to happen here. I also saw Disney cancelling a large number of excursions this journey. I personally had 3 excursions that I had signed up for cancelled after I booked them. Bottom line - I will probably still go on another Disney Cruise at some point, but am not sure that I would recommend the line to others now. Read Less

We chose this cruise because the itinerary of cruising upper New England and Canada to view the Fall Colors appealed to us. We are recently retired and have enjoyed cruising with Princess and Celebrity, so we expect to cruise regularly in the future. We decided to give Norwegian a try. Big mistake. Embarkation was disorganized and confused. Once on board the problems and disappointment continued. The massive ship felt crowded everywhere. We had problems with our onboard account (Norwegian lost our credit card number and deactivated our account without our knowledge), the food in the crowded dining rooms was bland and uninspired (my guess is they want you to visit the Specialty Restaurants for an additional charge), and the food in the buffet wasn’t worthy of a Golden Corral. They were pushing drink packages so the ship was full of drunk, rude people. And rather surprisingly, many of the crew seemed very unhappy, some even surly. If you’re considering cruising, there are much better choices out there. I cannot imagine ever cruising with Norwegian again. Read Less

We chose the cruise because it was going someplace that we haven't been to three times before, not because of the ship. The housekeeping staff was fantastic. With that said, I'm glad this was our 4th NCL cruse for me and fifth for my wife and not our first NCL cr,uise. That's how I know NCL can do better. I've heard lots of complaints about NCL's Garden Cafes. I thought they were all bogus. I've enjoyed all of them except for this last one. (What happened to the omelettes made to order? All the Escape had was premade omelettes. And they weren't even omelettes. They were just scrambled eggs folded over, nothing inside. Yuck. Those made to omelettes are the high point of cruising and they totally screwed that.) The cigar lounge had a better view of the ocean than the Gem's, though, for the only other positive aspect of the cruise. I will never again sail on a ship that big. (A lady bumped into me and actually apologized, explaining that she doesn't have good peripheral vision on her right side. My only thought, was "Lady, people have been bumping into me for the past 5 days and you're the only one to offer an excuse!" It was like bumper cars in there except they were using people instead of cars.) Getting off the ship at cruise end was horrible. Their color coding scheme to schedule departures didn't work at all. They made it *seem* like all 4000 people were trying to get off the ship at once. That boat should be renamed Titanic and scuttled. Read Less

The trip was definitely uneven starting with the loading process. We waited online for about 1.5 hours to get on the ship and found that most of the employees were not helpful at this point until someone complained to management and they came and started to direct the lines. If all of your paperwork is printed out, there is no reason that people should take more than 3-4 minutes at the counter. Cases that become more complicated should be directed to a different help desk. Most of the people working on the ship were wonderful. They had very positive attitudes. I didn't expect the overall sleezy feeling that people were always trying to sell me something. For instance, I went to a lecture on metabolism not realizing until after 40 minutes they were now going to try to sell me a product to help cleanse my system. Most talks ended up being some type of sales pitch. I truly enjoyed the Thermal Suite but resented the blatant lying about how many passes they were selling. When I bought my pass, I was told there were 20 passes left and the limit was 120. A couple of hours later, I went back for a raffle and again heard how there were only 20 passes left. Then I realized that they were also selling day passes as the cruise went on. To be honest, I only felt crowded once during my time there, but the unnecessary lying seemed foolish. Another major issue was communication. I wanted to get off at Bar Harbor a couple of hours before my tour which started at 12:50 from inside the ship. I was discouraged by the crew saying they would not be responsible if I didn't find the group off of the ship (turns out very easy to find them)- hence I stayed on the ship. Other people I met were told sure meet the tour in front of the ship and yet others were told that they could absolutely not leave the ship. Overall, the food was fine and the staff serving were exceptional. As stated- it was a very up and down experience. Read Less

We have sailed on 22 cruises decided to take in a little cold after the hot summer we had in Maryland. We got a great Casino price so we took this one. This was our 5th NCL Cruise in the past few years. The Ship is beautiful and clean. Staff was wonderful. Cabin was to small, we opted for inside since the temps would be to cold for BC tried to bid to OV but none was available. Dining was just so so. Nothing made us want to get more of anything. We did not go to the extra ala cart dining rooms, just the compliminary ones. The ala cart prices have gone crazy. Comedy club was good, we saw the same guy three nights, the production shows were great, After Midnight, and Choir of Man. It was a port intensive cruise, we stopped four ports four days, two sea days. Canada was very cold this early in the year. We did two ship excursions, hop on hop off in St. John, not impressed. Halifax did the harbor hopper, freezing cold, it was to windy to go on the water, so instead we got a condensed version of the town tour. Tour guide and driver were great, just not alot to see. Because of the cold we did not find enough to do on ship days, or after being on shore. It was bingo, deal or no deal, or casino. This was a much older crowd and slower thats for sure, we think the average age must be 60. There were only 80 children on this sailing. I think we might wait again before sailing in NCL to see if they make a few changes. Read Less

This was a great ship...the service...the staff...the food...not over crowded at all...yes breakfast buffet lines were long...but they were typical buffet lines...and we avoided them daily by going to the mini buffet stations and the omelette stations...omelette station at the seafood shack, never a wait...cruise director mikey was the best...sorry for you new guys...mikey was shipped off to the sunshine at the end of this cruise...big shout out to yulia and sonya and ivana at alchemy, best martini makers on the seas...playlist dancers were good...previous reviews had me nervous, but kept an open mind and had a great cruise...we did our own shore excursions except in halifax, where we did the hop on and hop off on the big pink bus...didn't see any problems occur on the ship...no fights...no drunks...and 8 days of beautiful seas...a little chilly in the outdoors bur this was a new england/ canada cruise...thank you carnival... Read Less

I have to agree with previous critic that the embarkation was a mess. It was 2 or more hours standing in line, hot sun, and there were many seniors there. No one was telling us what was going on. Announcements would have been reassuring . Getting off the ship was easy peasy. We were walk offs though. Food was good, but not awesome, the Beef Wellington was very nice and my table mates ate a lot of salmon. The lobster was a glorified shrimp . Desserts are great. Service was very nice. Room service was excellent. Toilets worked , hot water, etc The medallion thing was a little bit of a joke, but we moved on and off the ship quickly . One of our princess excursions did not fit he description that was advertised . So we had to use the public buses to go back into the Acadia National Park. The buses were great though, wish I had known about them instead of spending 100 or more dollars on one stop and a fisherman talk in a church ( he was great though) but I’d rather be seeking Thunder hole, Otter cliff, and Sandy beach, all of which we missed, we filled out a compliant and they refunded us 25 % Read Less

The option of embarking from New York is especially good for those of us in the northeast. We like Princess. There is a new feature called Medallion Class. Not all ships are equipped with it yet. This new system replaces the old credit card room key. If you are already booked on a Medallion Class ship and fill out the necessary paperwork your medallion will be sent to your in advance and on embarkation day you don't even have to check in, just walk through. When you approach your room the door automatically unlocks and your picture appears on a screen outside your door. A medallion class cruise also has very strong and fast WIFI. Once you reach platinum status with Princess it is free. Our room was in the forward area on the Lido deck. That puts you a short walk from the Horizon Food Court. Plus there is always an available elevator to take you down to the theater and the main shopping and reception desks. The ship was sparkling clean and the crew friendly. Read Less

Staff was the best of any cruise I have taken. They were very attentive and aimed to please. Shows were great and different every night. We had anytime dining and never had a problem, menus and quality of food was excellent. Shore excursions were handled very well.a little disappointed with St. John but that is not cruise line fault. This was the second time we sailed on Princess , some issues with ship on Alaska cruise but this one was great.. First time leaving from Brooklyn was very pleased with ease of getting to terminal, parking and leaving. Boarding and departing was fast and efficient. The ship was decorated nice and easy to navigate. I can say that I was pleased with every aspect . Some minor trouble with internet package . The medallion was convenient to use to access room. We definitely take a cruise on Princess cruise line again Read Less

This was a dreadful ship. Money money - wanted all the way. Popcorn for the show was $2 Mattress was terrible not one good night's sleep - told the mattress would be replaced at the end of October. Nothing to do for 65+ on the ship but play trivia. Except for 2 good headliner shows the entertainment was BAD. Food terrible the whole cruise. Good service in my time dining - this did not make up for poor food and almost the same menu every night. Speciality dining no better Giovannis had worse food \cooking than the dining room. Johnny Rockets was a joke!!! Some shore excursions were good. No help for anyone with walking difficulties getting on and off the ship. Disembarkation was a joke. Walked up and back through the ship. Any simple requests needed to be approved by a Supervisor e.g. Wanted a kettle took a few days to get it. Or the response was"that is not in my job description". When requesting sharpen pencils in one of the few craft activities. I will no longer be Loyal to Royal!!!! Read Less

I am an experienced cruiser having sailed at least 20 times in Alaska, Europe, the Caribbean, and Canada/New England. Most of my experience has been with Celebrity, which I love, but I have also cruised with Princes, Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Holland America. This was my first cruise on Norwegian and I will not be back. Here is why. The drinking water policy on the ship is obviously Norwegian’s strategy to get its guests to fork over money for what is a health necessity. You cannot bring any bottled drinking water on the ship. It will be confiscated. If you want to avoid paying for NCL’s bottled water, then you are forced to use the tap in your bathroom or the water dispensers up in the buffet. Both of these options will give you water that smells and tastes of chlorine. Yuk! The water dispensers are not without additional problems, because despite posted directions to the contrary, people fill their germy water bottles and used glasses directly under these dispensers. If you want to avoid these contaminated dispensers and purchase NCL’s bottled water, you will be forced to pay $6 per liter bottle or $16.95 for 6 bottles, $29.95 for 12 or $44.95 for 24 bottles of NCL’s “purified water,” which is not spring water and tastes exactly like the stuff out of the tap or dispensers.. For all of these prices, add a 20% gratuity as well. Really, NCL? I understand your wanting to make money on people’s desire for soda or alcohol, but water? That is pushing the limits of common decency for making a buck off of your guests. I won’t cruise with you again specifically because of this policy. My friend and I found out about the water policy when we each purchased two sealed bottles of water in a port and tried to bring them back onboard the ship. They were confiscated as we entered the ship. When we went to Guest Services to talk to them about this event, we were dealt with very shabbily. One representative pointed to a tiny blue box titled Agricultural Notice on the daily events sheet which said that “Due to public health regulations, food of any kind (hot, raw or unpacked/packed) is not allowed to be brought onboard or taken off the ship at any time. Beverages cannot be brought onboard. Wine or liquor purchased in any port of call will be stored by the ship and given back to the guest on the evening before disembarkation or the morning of disembarkation.” I understand the food restrictions for health reasons and the wine and liquor restrictions for making money, but not the restriction on bringing in water. It is not justified under any circumstances and the policy should be dropped. If NCL is going to continue such a policy to fleece their passengers, then they should make an announcement explicitly telling passengers leaving the ship to not purchase water as it will be confiscated upon their return to the ship. Don’t hide such information behind a notice regarding health restrictions and the prohibition of carrying alcohol onboard. Additional sources of irritation on the Gem were the lack of entertainment options if you did not want to go to the live shows in the theater. Forget the casino; it reeks of smoke and there is no designated movie theater on the ship like you will find on Celebrity and Holland America. Movies are played at 10:30 at night in the very public area of the atrium where you will also find a bar, Guest Services, the Excursions desk and the future cruise desk. Movies will sometimes be played here in the afternoon as well, but with all of those other services and people walking through the area to get to other portions of the ship, good luck seeing and hearing the movie. Besides, most seats there lack backs and are very uncomfortable. Very limited television options await guests in their cramped cabins. There is a movie channel but it does not always play movies and what movies there are repeat throughout the week. We found that A Star is Born was playing at least three nights on this channel. If you want more movie selections, then fork over $9.95 per movie for a just few more more films, less than a dozen. I remember that Holland America offers a huge collection of free in-room movies and the guests have their choice of numerous DVDs that can be picked up or delivered from the guest services desk. Seating for the buffet upstairs is very limited and we found that our food often got cold while we searched for a place to sit. I think this is because, unlike all other cruise ships I have been on, the buffet seating is limited to only one side of the ship. A pay restaurant and its kitchen takes up the space on the other side. You can sit in it’s very limited dining space in the morning and afternoon up until about 2 pm, but after that, it’s given over to the paying guests. While you are in there, you are bombarded with the noise of a basketball court above you. What a joke! We didn’t take any ship excursions, which are always overpriced and herded into big busses. We hired cabs and shared them with other cruisers off the Gem. If you haven’t ever done this, try it. Stand around outside and ask if anyone is interested in joining you. Negotiate a price with the cab driver and enjoy your small group excursion. The cabbie will always get you back to the ship in plenty of time and you won’t be traveling with 39 other people. Sadly, I wanted to like this cruise line, but I didn’t. That ridiculous drinking water policy ended my cruising with NCL. I won’t be back. Read Less

I chose this cruise because of the ports and food but I was very disappointed in the addition of an additional tender at Sydney and Sydney in general! It is a port that should be taken out! Instead add a day to Quebec City as the time spent there was way too short. It was also hard since the time spent there was cut short. I also think the beverage package is over priced. You should be able to get wine at the bars too especially since most days, we are not there for lunch! The spa is nice but you need more than one bathroom in the changing room. We did have wonderful staff that cleaned our room(Leadie). The food was very good especially in the specialty restaurants. The excursions were very expensive and the ones that I would have been interested in were moderate and were filled. Thank you Read Less

Told this USED TO BE a great cruise line. Times have changed tremendously!! Definitely a 3rd rate ship in need of professional leadership at the corporate level. The ship is run as though they going broke!! You pay for two fares for you and your partner, then are told the so called free internet can only be used by one of you at a time??? Or you can pay an additional $270 for the other person. They allow one bar of shower soap for two people to last 2 weeks. The same with the small bottles of lotion and shampoo ! Of course, you can purchase more.... Food quality has definitely declined significantly!!!! And the portions are meager as you almost beg for more. Waiters have been ordered not to ask would you like another drink, unless it is one you are buying. We would never cruise with Oceania again. Caveat emptor.. Read Less

I chose this cruise because I am single now, and I had friend going on this sailing. I sailed NCL in1987 and had been very happy with the experience. On the plus side I found the staff very pleasant and helpful. Officers did not engage at all. The ship was very clean and my cabin comfortable with plenty of closet space. The food was hit and miss, my visit to the Italian specialty restaurant was disappointing, food Luke warm, sent back, still not hot. I gave up. The entertainment was low budget, but I found that I enjoyed most of the entertainers. We missed three of our ports due to poor weather, all needed to be tendered, I don’t recommend this ship if you have a disability, tendering difficult with lots of stairs. I would have gone on NCL again, if I had friends going, but this is the deal breaker. They having smoking in their casinos, putting their employees and customers in a proven unsafe health environment. With what we know of the hazards of secondhand smoke, this is unforgivable. Read Less

All the Viking cruises are of an excellent standard and all ships seems to be the same design so you feel at home very quickly. Staff are excellent, cabin spacious and well maintained. Wifi access good, food good. The only poor thing we have found on Viking recently is the quality of the musicians who play, usually as a duo or sometimes pianist. Do Viking not listen to them before they are engaged? The standard is so poor, the repertoire so limited and mostly more of a funeral type of music that we have found that we 'dodge' these 'musicians' who play in the open areas. Excursions are always excellent and well organised. Viking appear to be expensive, and their prices seem to be increasing considerably, but you do on the whole get good value for money. Viking do look after their customers well and pay attention to detail. Would recommend Read Less

My husband really likes the Viking experience, and we liked the itinerary. Although I see that no opportunity is provided for negative comments, I will do so here. We were extremely disappointed to be kept "in the dark" about arrangements for our post-tour excursion via train to Oslo. A few days before disenbarkation we went to the guest services and the asian lady with shorter hair would NOT give us ANY information!! She merely pointed to the information in the Viking today flyer and started reading that aloud to us. Of course, we had already read that! Although she wasn't actually rude to us, she was cold, detached and disengaged. Obviously she couldn't have cared less about us. Sadly, I didn't look at her name badge. After disembarkation, we had NO IDEA what was going to happen to us, other than we would board a train. We were taken on a surprise tour of Bergen, which turned out to be our 3rd time past many of the sites. Most of the folks on that bus and later on the train were griping about not receiving any information. Furthermore, when we arrived in Oslo, we didn't know that we would be going on another bus tour there and didn't even know the name of the hotel! I vomited on the bus due to the rough bus ride. One couple on the train had been given a paper outlining the post-tour excursion. Why didn't the rest of us receive that??? My other complaint is about local currency. We knew that the ship did not provide local currency. I had called ahead and learned that Euros would be accepted by our tour guides in some countries and US dollars would be in another. However, I felt bad giving different currencies to these folks, and we had nothing to pay for restroom visits, either. Local guides shouldn't have to keep exchanging the currencies. And we would hardly want to get zlotys when we are only in Poland for 1/2 day. I wrote out a detailed suggestion to guest services, summarized as follows: Guests could pre-order packages of local currencies, paid in advance. I suggest providing roughly $10 of local currency for each country visited. These could be bundled in manila envelopes for us to pick up. Then we would have enough local currency to be able to tip our local guides appropriately, pay for use of restrooms, and maybe have enough leftover to buy a few postcards or something. Guest services left a message on my phone, summarily rejecting my suggestion by saying that they don't provide local currencies. I feel that this is a valuable and practical suggestion that I wish would be considered. I got kind of tired of the buffet food in 15 days. The Asian food at the Chef's table was disgusting. We didn't go to any of the entertainment events. Shore excursions were mostly good, but I regretted not knowing about the museum of hardanger fiddles before we got to Stavanger. I did not enjoy to train ride to Berlin - too long, and city is kind of ugly. I think that shorter excursions to charming villages closer to the port would have been better. Excellent service by wait staff, most were pleasant and engaging. Read Less

This is my 12th RCCL cruise and my 1st on Anthem (quantum class). After a few hiccups when we first got on...toilets were not flushing all over ship and even though we were told two years ago that our wrist bands (that we paid $5 for) were “always” going to be exchanged, we found out that no, they’re not excusing them anymore. They are a nice convenience but not if you have to pay each time you get on a ship. Now for the good, best snd teuly amazing: The food. Simply the best of any ship (this is my 20+ Cruise). The food is just unsurpassed. This ship is different. No formal nights (don’t bother to call RCCL customer service because they know NOTHING!!! They are now called “dress your best.” Which is everything between sport coat and nice trousers for men and cocktail dresses and nice dress pants for women. We did see a tremendous saint if people who dressed up guy if you don’t have to drag special shoes/jacket, etc for two nights then all the better. The cabins are smaller but CERY well organized. USB plugs are in every cabin. The best part for me is that this ship has 12 single cabins so I don’t have to pay for two people when traveling!! One can only hope as they dry-dock ships they introduce more single cabinets (also called studios). They are hard to find in the website so ask your travel agent to look for you. On Anthem, they are category 2F and 2W The entertainment is terrific. So many live music choices. Something fir everyone. In my opinion and observations, this ship is probably intended for colder weather itineraries. They have a pool with a retractable roof. The kids pool area is very small so I would say this isn’t the as good as some other RCCL ships (like Oasis, Allure and Harmony) but I was told that the Tern activities are by far the best on this ship. Getting in was the easiest if sny cruises. No waiting at all. No traditional d Big desks to stand at. If you have a chance, download the app and check on with it. You won’t even have to do a thing when you get to the pier. We took a Lyft from the airport. It was only $17 much better than the cruise line transfer if you have a couple of people. I love the four smaller dining rooms rather than the huge two story on other ships. Much better acoustics and less “chatter.” Read Less

We chose this cruise because of the route & ports. In previous cruises up the coast to Canada, only the biggest ports were included because of the ship size. So the Pearl Mist being smaller, was able to stop at places like Lunenburg, Gaspe, Isles de la Madeleine and Saguenay that bigger ships can't. However, it was not to be. In Bar Harbor, the ship lay at anchor for a full day because of a mechanical problem. So two of the smaller ports that we had planned on were cut. To increase the uncertainty, the bridge never gave ongoing information about the reason for the unplanned stop and its consequences. Further, the captain was Romanian and was not a good speaker. So, his few announcements were almost unintelligible. There were three pleasant surprises however that we learned about on arrival - the brochure stated that there would be "Premium" excursions at some ports. But all the excursions were complimentary. Further, there was a full complimentary bar in the late afternoon. If one wanted a drink at another time - or anything else within reason, room service would provide it at no charge. But then again, the bar was open at 5:30, the same time that the dining room opened. It would have been more convenient if the bar had opened before dinner time. And there was a complimentary laundry service. It took a day or so to be returned, but everything was nicely folded. The per day charge for the cruise was at a level similar to that at Regent or Crystal, for example. Thus, we were expecting a certain level of luxury, as claimed. In my mind, I justified the higher-than-expected cost that since the ship visited more than one US port, that it would have to abide by the Jones act and have a more-expensive crew than the usual complement of south Asians. I was surprised to note that there were very few US citizens in the crew, and certainly not the 75% called for. How the ship avoided those restrictions I do not know. In the dining room, the server delivered orders accurately and were friendly. However, the service was slow. A typical dinner was a two-hour affair - sometimes the wait for the entree itself was an hour. All meals were served at the tables. In most other lines, breakfast and lunch are cafeteria-style, but not on the Mist. I was surprised to note that at most meals, there was no supervisor present and the waiters were so busy that it was hard to get their attention for more coffee, water, etc. In the cabins, the light fixtures at the bedside table were insufficiently bright to read by, in our judgement. However, I particularly liked the shower in the bathroom. The usual fixture to control the shower has two controls, one for flow rate and the other for temperature. I find it confusing to operate. However, this shower had the usual one-knob control; rotate for temperature and pull for flow rate - much more logical in my opinion. Furthermore, the shower door had a full height magnetic closure that assured that no water would escape onto the floor. There was insufficient shelf space in the bathroom however - it would have been useful to add a few more, perhaps in place of part of the large mirror. The housekeeping staff is very quick, efficient and accommodating for requests. I found the musical entertainer - Kenny Holliday to be excellent. Similarly, the guest lecturer was well informed and knowledgeable. The self-service hot drink machines were well designed and produced a wide variety of drinks. The wifi on the ship was available and free, but almost worthless because of its very small capacity. Finally, at Saguenay, the last port before Quebec, the excursion was to something called La Fableuse. We had no idea was it was. In fact it was an extraordinary stage performance of local history by a group of local volunteer actors. The stage was HUGE, there were more than 100 performers on stage at various times, six horses, two antique automobiles, several carriages, a battle scene, explosions, a pig, a goat, a flock of geese, real fire, waterfalls, amazing lighting effects, crops that grew out of the stage and a host of other effects. All in all, it was a terrific way to end the trip. All in all, the trip was enjoyable, but not up to the luxury level claimed by the line. Read Less

My friend and I were excited to be cruising on the Norwegian Dawn, that quickly changed. We’ve both have been on 12 cruises each, and this had to be the worst experience we’ve had on any ship. The food in the dining room was like basic “diner food” - Absolutely No- 5 star unless you wanted to pay$$ at one of their seven restaurants. There was not enough staff in the dining room and it would take over an hour to get your food. Not a lot of actives going on around the cruise ship, so we would go sit in our cabins to watch the same movies played over and over again. The last 3 days of our cruise I noticed red bite marks on my skin that were extremely itchy...I was scared it might have been bed bugs. Today, I decided to looked into bed bug complaints on the NCL Dawn and found a news story about a family that were bitten by bed bugs, on deck 8 of the Norwegian Dawn, last year. Obviously, the bed bug situation is still a PROBLEM. Our cabin was #8003 on deck 8 - and when we disembarked they were turning the ship around and going back to New York for 12 days. Read Less

Being a Travel Advisor, I wanted to experience the Medallion Concept. It was wonderful. So easy to get into your stateroom, by just walking up to it. Also great to keep in contact with family members. The wi-fi was wonderful. Better than any cruise we have taken before I also had this cruise on my bucket list and it did not disappoint. My favoite ports were Boston,Charlotte Town, and Quebec. It is a must to get to the Princess Theater show room in advance or else you will not get a seat. The staff was very friendly and food choices were very good. In the buffet area, they have the greatest system for egg dishes. They give you a buzzer that signals when your eggs are ready to pick up. They were always hot and cooked to perfection. Great service with choices for my friend with a gluten free diet. There was an issue before our cruise that required special sanitation, so while onboard, we were not able to use the salt and pepper shakers on our own. The staff did it for us at the table. It was alittle annoying but kept us all well. All in all it was a great cruise. Read Less

My wife and I wanted to do a different cruise this year so we decided on the New England to Quebec cruise. After looking at several cruise lines we choose Princess because of the itinerary and the reputation. We arrived 2 days early in New York and stayed in Brooklyn not far from the cruise terminal which worked out great, as we could drop our bags in the morning and then take the NYC Ferry to NYC and back to the terminal. Embarkation was smooth and so easy with the Medallions. Our room was nice, the bathrooms are what you can expect on most ships. The bed was a bit short. Comfortable but short. Our steward was very nice and did a great job. He kept the room clean and always had ice in the fridge. Our only real room glitch was we ordered some items to be in the room on arrival to the room but they were not there. We ordered robes to be in the room and I ordered a Stanley Bear to be in the room. The robes did not show up till a full day or more later and I had to go get the Bear at the shop, which kinda killed the surprise. Oh well. We went to the Steakhouse on the first night and it was lovely. Wonderful food and attentive staff. We used the buffet for breakfast a few times, had the Ernesto Burger by the pool, went to anytime dining, went to tea in the dining room twice and had our daily coffee at the International Cafe. The buffet was your average buffet. The food was good and tasty, I would have liked to see more fruit, including bananas. Due to a gastro-intestinal issue on the previous cruise we could not handle the salt and pepper which made seasoning eggs and such a pain. We ended up buying salt/pepper shakers on an excursion as well as some hot sauce and took it to the buffet and morning dining room. The international cafe and the coffee card were perfect for us in the AM. and the egg muffin sandwich was great for early excursions or on debarkation. Loved the International Cafe. The Ernesto burger was very good indeed. Well worth the 15 minute wait. The anytime dining was good. The food was on par with other cruise lines I have been on. Service was a bit slow but not terribly so until the last 3 days and it seemed to get slower and slower. We did have a couple of mix ups at dinner. Like not having the curry sauce on a dish with curry sauce and not getting a appetizer portion of some pasta even though it was ordered. I eat too much on cruises so that last one is not a real issue. The desserts were great especially the chocolate items. I would have like to see more vegetables though. The itinerary was action packed. 9 stops in 10 days. All of them were excellent and offered something for every one. We planned our own excursions or simply walked around town. there was plenty of time a each to enjoy the port. I had a couple of disappointments with the overall experience which makes me think that maybe Princess is not for me. 1. On board activities often overlapped so I could not get to all the things I liked. for instance the photo classes and the go pro classes were at the same time or overlapped so i could not do both. I did as much of the trivia challenges as I could but many were so tight on the schedule I could not do them all. 2. I love the medallion. It made getting off and on the ship a breeze and getting into the state room easy. Paying for stuff was also easy. The Apps were not as flawless. there is a disconnect between the website the apps and the written items on the ship. Also the staff does not understand the app or what they can do so sometimes I ended up know more than the staff . I felt like a beta tester and that the apps were a little rushed to get out. Overall I really did enjoy the cruise and the ship. I just don't feel that Princess is the right line for me at this time. Read Less

The itinerary was great. Food quality was not the same as it has been before when we sailed in 2016 with Caribbean Princess. - [ ] New York receiving people are not very helpful - [ ] Once onboard the Safety training had nothing to do with safety - [ ] Food was not up to past princess sailings - [ ] Sanitizing was way out of control. Sinks in fresh market slowed the process. - [ ] Wait staff not friendly nor very helpful. - [ ] Security staff are out right rude! - [ ] room steward was excellent - [ ] Medallion made it easy to enter cabins. - [ ] Medallion apps are somewhat confusing and I’m a tech guy. - [ ] Cabin was cold. - [ ] No posting of dinner menu, as I was rushed at dinner by the waiter this would have been helpful. - [ ] Medallion made embarkation easy. - [ ] Poor choices in dinner menu. - [ ] Sabatini was the best meal and service I had on board. - [ ] Quebec city representatives were very helpful. - [ ] Itinerary was very good. - [ ] Polite cabin stewards. - [ ] Port exits were good. - [ ] Excursions were good and timely. - [ ] Entertainment was good but not enough seating. Read Less

Positives Excellent itinerary - 3 US, 4 Canadian ports, nicely spaced with sea days Friendliness of staff everywhere Oceanview remodel and decor Oceanview food offerings - Indian dishes Oceanview Made to Order station - omelets and stir fry Remodeled stateroom bathrooms Lighting in staterooms Navigation screens on TV Comfort of bed and pillows Internet package - good stability, no worry about minutes, good value Negatives Library removed in remodel $14.99 in room movies No movie theater - some film notices buried in daily planner Nickel and Dime sales attempts Competent but unmemorable main dining room menus Poor communication - examples: - Menus unavailable on TV - we didn't know menus were on app for 3 days - Captain's heavy accent and rapid speech, with a lack of clear, distinct pronunciation - Soft spoken waiters and service staff - hard to comprehend - Inconsistent verbal directions among staff to find things on ship (e.g. Where's the library?) - No signs telling of upcoming unavailability of Sky Lounge - we got tossed out - Magnetic door stickers - "Deep Sleep" x 2 - no way to say room is ready for cleaning Loud dining room Small portions on big plates looks unappealing - presentation lacking Bars closed at wrong times (e.g. following return to ship from excursions) May not be returning to Celebrity anytime soon. Read Less

We really enjoyed the cruise. Just wanted to commend Norwegian's staff for the time they took to get us on board. We had forgot our passports and they worked hard to help us get on board. I wish I had gotten their names. The only grip I have is the entertainment was not up to standard of what Norwegian usually has. Ports were great. Staff friendly and helpful. We did not do any excursions but enjoyed just walking in the ports. Food was great and service was great. The Atrium could use some more seating if they continue to do events there. It was very packed. I did miss the open area at the back to eat outside but understand that as the crowds are large and in the event of inclimate weather there would not be enough seating. Will be cruising next fall through the panama canal from Los Angeles to Miami Read Less

Ship as chosen for the New England, S Canada experience.. Loved the outside decks for walking and relaxing. Staff was very polite, friendly and accommodating.Good choices of food and restaurants on board. Size of the ship meant a lot of walking and stair climbing and long waits for elevators. Wished a free WiFi service could be provided to contact friends on board. A bit hectic embarking and disembarking the ship because of the number of people on the ship, especially on the NYCity port in finding luggage and busses. Small pool for the size of the ship. Larger areas for the entertainment shows. Health office was closed for several hours during the day. Frustrated always in finding our room with the number of rooms on the ship. Enjoyed the ports and the daily newspaper informing us of the events of the day. We were blessed with great weather and calm seas. Read Less