We bid on and upgrade suite and got it.. it looked the same as a regular suite with double the size balcony and bathroom.. 3 of us in the room so it was comfortable. Mark took care of our room.. he was great and brought us anything we needed right away.. we tipped Mark everyday, which we always do on a cruise, and Mark made sure we were in need of nothing! Great experience.. We were traveling with 6 family members... all of us enjoyed something different.. My teen girl loved encore.. a place she could meet 13-17 year olds.. and spent lots of time with these kids as the days went by... The cigar lounge was our favorite place to go after dinner with my husband and adult sons.. we thoroughly enjoyed all the men and women we met there.. Learned how to play craps with my oldest son! Great late night entertainment...Met the same dynamic group of people every night..So fun! My husband enjoyed the hot tubs in the quieter part of the boat.. he also loved the water slide that drops the trap door under your feet and away you go fast through a tube over the side of the boat and back again.. We all wanted sun... it was spring break, super small pool,, lots of drunk obnoxious 21 + year olds crammed around a large bath tub.. 2 days of this until we found H2O at the front of the boat with water falls to walk through when you get hot and perfect place to talk and read... Honduras was our first stop.. We all did a snorkel and kayak tour.. Our guides were awesome.. the fruit and food were delicious Read Less

Even though our trip started under a Coronavirus cloud, we were able to make it just under the wire, with all of the cruise warnings. The Infinity did a wonderful job with near constant cleaning, Purell stations everywhere, temperature checks before boarding. We were able to get a great deal with perks in Aqua class and loved our cabin. Sure, you could tell in some areas that it is ready for a renovation, but that was not an issue in any way. I cannot say enough good things about the crew. We ate almost every meal, breakfast and dinner, in Blu. The food was amazing, and our wait staff became family by the end of the week. Since I had not been on a Celebrity cruise before, I was not familiar with what type of entertainment they would have. But, we didn't have enough time to do everything we wanted. There was always an activity or class in which we could get involved. My cousin loved it so much (it was her first cruise) that we have a deposit down on a future cruise, destination to be determined. Read Less

Definitely a more European feel, so maybe not suitable for American families with young kids. The food was wonderful with a buffet running most of the day and several dining rooms. We were in the Marco Polo dining room which had amazing and tasty food each night. The waitstaff doesn't bend over backwards for their guests, which I assure all you boomers is not actually rude, and a lot of them speak limited English, so just be smart about how you order things, and don't expect them to run around the ship getting you fancy drinks that aren't available in the dining room, get them yourself. The pool felt a bit crowded on the days at sea but get yourself a spot on the upper side decks with a view of the ocean and it's absolutely amazing. The bars are quite nice and well placed outside of the dining areas and theater. I think the entertainment and nightly shows were my favorite part. The shows usually featured signing and dancing and the acrobatics were very good. If you get a chance to see the Addams' Family show definitely go for it as it absolutely blew me away. The entertainment staff is a lot of fun and definitely works super hard to make your time not in port a memorable one. Again, just keep in mind that this is a more European feel if you're an American boarding for a Caribbean cruise and all will be perfectly fine. Also the guest relations are some of the most resilient people I've ever met, so don't expect a room upgrade under any circumstances; my cruise was during the COVID-19 outbreak with a much lower number of guests than usual and even so the best we got were chocolate covered strawberries after asking 3 days straight haha. All in all this was an absolutely amazing cruise and I think next time I'll skip out on Carnival and Princess and go for an MSC cruise. Read Less

We chose this cruise for the promo. EZ drink package, wifi and OBC. We flew directly to Miami on sailing date and were met at the airport by shuttled arranged by MSC. It was a short ride to the port and we were checking in very shortly. \ We found the Armonia to be a very well organized ship. We found our cabin (we had booked Interior Guaranteed} and were upgraded to an Oceanview. The cabin was bright and though not spacious it was sufficient for two people. I was surprised at the closet space, having been on the Meraviglia where space was limited. We were assigned first seating dining and shared a table for 6 with one other couple. We enjoyed the variety of foods offered and found the portions to be adequate. Our waiter was Landi and he did an excellent job taking care of us. We found there was a variety of activities to keep us busy when we wanted to be busy and just relax when we wanted to do that. We are older and don't stay up late so we didn't do many shows. But heard a lot of good things about the shows. The service was extraordinairy. I had to stop by Guest Service our first day and get help with my wifi. Arpy was very helpful. I accessed my messages and found that my daughter had passed away suddenly the night before. My first thought was to fly home so I went back to Arpy and explained i needed to find out how to arrange a flight. She calmly said she would put through a call to my family and I could speak with them and decide what I needed to do. This was accomplished in just a matter of minutes. After talking with my other daughter it was decided that things were under control and to stay on the cruise as it was only a week long. Thanks to having been able to talk to family I felt able to finish the cruise. With the threat of the Coronavirus and knowing we would be around family we stayed aboard while in port. We had been to Jamaica and Grand Cayman before. Our hearts went out to the crew when it was announced by the Captain that this would be the final cruise for the ship and the crew would be returning home. And although we prepaid our gratuities we tipped our waiter and wait staff knowing they were losing income. We will definitely be booking with MSC again. Read Less

This was my third MSC Yacht Club Cruise and my first Solo Cruise. A last minute work conflict prevented my wife from accompanying me this time. We have sailed all the major lines and have determined that the MSC Yacht is the best value and the standard for outstanding service. We have booked another Yacht Club cruise in October 2020. Embarkation was quick and painless. On the ship in about 30 minutes, including the temperature check. Having sailed on the Seaside several times, I found the Meraviglia a beautiful ship with some differences in the layout that some like and others don't. I myself believe that the crew makes the difference, not subtle differences in the layout. I personally like the Yacht Club layout of the Seaside better. But, when I saw my friend Justin behind the bar and Arthur, the Head Waiter, it fell like home and the comparison went out the window. They took very good care of me, which compensated for me being solo. The Suites are laid out a little different. However, they are very open and spacious. There seems to be less storage space. But, it seems be plenty adequate for two people. My butler wasn't on par with the other butlers we have had in the past. He and his assistant kept the room was spotless and fulfilled each and every request. However, he didn't anticipate my needs and follow-up, as I have grown accustom to. Not a bad butler, just different. In the Top Sail Lounge Justin, Mary and the rest of the crew provided excellent service and made each visit to the bar fun throughout the week. I ate all my meals at the Yacht Club Restaurant. Can can't say enough how I enjoyed a week of service by Arthur. The food was excellent. However, a little more European than the food on the Seaside. I was never hungry or disappointed. I must say, if you don't dine internationally, you may be a little shocked at the menu. However, they feature steaks and etc. daily. Also, if you don't see what you want, ask your server. They try to be very accommodating. Even with the circumstances of the cruiselines shutting down and many of the crew left uncertain about their futue, they were extremely professional and made it a magnificent trip. I seldom left the Yacht Club. But, I saw a good bit of this beautiful ship. Disembarkation was excellent. I was at the Miami airport in less than 45 minutes after being escorted off the ship. Read Less

This was our first ever cruise, and it exceeded our expectations, especially after reading so many peoples' bad reviews. I don't understand what people have to complain about? Every staff member that we talked to were so amazing, and wanting to make sure we were happy. The Whiskey Bar on Deck 6 had great service, and we got to know Joana and Jia the servers, and they always had a smile for us and by day 2 they were calling us by our name and knew what we wanted to drink. We were on deck 8, just down the hall from O'Sheehan's bar, the location was excellent. Our room steward was Komang, who was also amazing. If you take a minute to talk to the staff, you understand that they are all young and away from home, and a kind word goes a long way. Komang always called us by our name and stopped what he was doing to say hello and find out if we had a good day. It was an obstructed Oceanview, but I thought it had plenty of space. The food was good. The buffet in the morning was very busy, but just wait your turn, and the food was always hot and fresh, and you could choose whatever you wanted. We always took our food to the La Cucina italian restaurant to eat, it was closed until dinner, but we had the whole place to ourselves to eat breakfast. The Indigo dining room was great as well. No formal dress code, which was nice - of course there are always some of hthe older crowd that liked to dress up, but to each their own. Their choices were always good, and I found that if the side dishes weren't to your liking, just ask for what you want to eat, simple. We had the dining package and ate at Cagneys Steakhouse/Teppanyaki/Le Bistro. The food was great, especially Teppanyaki - I have never had tenderloin that good, and the huge shrimp, yummy! The presentation they put on was entertaining, even for the adults. Most of the port days we waited to get off the ship till after lunch. So, in the morning, we had the pool to ourselves, there was nobody around, it was great. Sea days are another story - full of the college kids partying it up - so we found other areas to hang out on the sea days. The evenings were spent at the Whiskey bar (hello to Joanna & Jia!!)- there was always a band playing in all the different lounges. Spinnaker's Lounge had great views, with windows covering the whole area. But, it was at the very front of the ship, so when the waves were high, you could definitely feel it here. The first 2 days the wind was blowing and the waves were high, so you definitely felt the motion, but that's not the ship's fault. Overall, the size of the ship was great, not too big. We would definitely cruise on the Pearl again. Read Less

I'm an avid cruiser being on at least 40 Cruise's since 1983. Having cruised on RCCL (diamond member), Princess, Carnival, NCL, HAL, Celebrity, Red Boat, Admiral I have a reasonable idea what makes for a good cruise. I booked an inside cabin and pre purchased the Thermal Spa pass in place of a balcony. This usually works out great on NCL and Holland since they have great spas with large window views. Due to the Covid19 virus I called to see if I could postpone my cruise. I was told sure no problem. They took all the information made it sound like everyone is doing this not to worry. Then I was transferred to the "response team." Well he was just another customer service rep who said no you can only cancel trips to Asia. I then asked how much to upgrade to a balcony just in case we get stuck at sea for awhile. I was told it would be an additional $1477. I passed on the up grade since it would have been cheaper to cancel loose all my money and rebook for less. (They were giving balconies away for $299pp 7 days at that point). I call again the next day to make sure they knew what they were doing. The svc rep said no to canceling so I again asked about upgrading. After a few minutes she comes back on the line and says okay your new room is xxxxx and we can bill you $400 for the upgrade. I told her I just wanted a quote and no I'll stay with my inside room. Of course now she had to change everything back puts me back on hold and after 10 minutes tells me I lost the room and can't get it back. She did give me 5 other's to pick from. When I asked her where these rooms were she had no idea and told me to pull up MSCs web site. She also said she never cruised on MSC? Wow... Now I had to boot up the laptop and start over picking a room closest to the Spa which she also had no idea where it was located. When all was said and done a total of 2 hour's was wasted between the two calls and I had to reprint everything again. So we were off to a bad start. Got to Miami around 12:30 to check in. Got on line which was doing okay and then it just stopped for about 20 minutes. One agent was taking guest the other 15 were just standing there. Nobody said anything we were all looking at each other confused. They could have made up something like we're sorry the computer's are down anything would have be reassuring. Finally got on the ship and went to the room. Had a bad smell in the bathroom like cat piss. Waited on purser desk line almost an hour to report the room problem and ask about an upgrade to balcony. I was quoted $240. I said great I'll take it to be told we'll get back to you tommorow. They sent a cabin attending to the room to clean the bathroom again. A supervisor came by and everything seemed okay till the next morning when it stunk again. I ended up opening the vent over the shower and got rid of the problem myself. So for the rest of the week I had to listen to the vent blowing like a wind tunnel to keep the room smelling good. The room is a terrible layout. Bed is against the back wall instead of the side. The TV is located by the bathroom wall so far away that unless you get out of bed and walk up to it you can't read much. Only 2 draws for your clothes. One shelf. Just a poor design for such a new ship. Announcements will drive you crazy since everything is in 5 or 6 launages. Especially the muster drill. Buffet was just okay. Same exact food ever day. Never really changed. Burger, hotdogs,salad, tacos,desert,bread, just nothing special. And forgot the late night food. Literally more like midnight scrap's than midnight buffet. Pizza, leftover fruit and leftover small sandwiches. Thermal Spa was another poor design. I pre paid $140 pp per week. No windows anywhere. The hot tub had 6 spots to lounge in. There were only 3 heated loungers never available. Another hot tub without built-in loungers usually no more than 3 or 4 people would go in at the same time. Any more and you would feel like your sitting in someone's lap. 3 rooms with regular lounge chairs. Also thin towels in the bathroom only. No robes or slippers (not included). No water station. And I pre paid so those who paid on the ship were probably charged $150 or more each. If you want a great thermal Spa experience try NCL or Holland America for the same price. They have whirlpools with plenty of room and lots of heated loungers. Restaurant service was great but I was surprised at how poor the food quality was for an Italian line. Stakes were half fat and had veins running through it so a lot went in the garbage. No surf and turf night unless you paid extra. Just not all that good. Even the lasagna was just okay. The ship is beautiful, new and clean. The shows were great. And the new private island was great. Only problem there was the food line. Which was long and hardly moving so I decided to skip and went back to the buffet on the ship. All said and done I'm sorry to say I probably won't be going on another MSC cruise. Read Less

PROS The ship was incredible Didn’t feel crowded at all even with 6 thousand people on board Lots of room around the pools Lots to do while on board Solarium was nice Led Zepellin cover band was fantastic Ice show was good Aqua show was good Cats was ok Dining room service was good as was our cabin attendant CONS Very loud music made it hard to have a conversation or read Lineups for Food 30 people lined up for an ice cream cone Line ups for dinner even with reservation In general the service in windjammer and other free restaurants was poor. Tables were not cleared quickly Staff starring out the windows or Talking to each other Staff didn’t seem as happy as on other ships we’ve been on Food was a big disappointment Selection was limited, repetitive and poor quality Food was frequently cold Bread didn’t seem fresh The main dining room staff tried valiantly to make up for the poor effort made to the menu by the kitchen Terrible coffee Eggs benny cold with hardly any ham on it served with something similar to a McDonald’s hashbrowns Tuna tataki overcooked should be rare inside cooked all the way through Steak tasted ok but I had trouble cutting it because of gristle throughout Prime rib ordered medium rare but served rare even after we returned it they just poured gravy over it the second time Rare from edge to edge Shrimp Ceviche was a frozen prawn on some shredded lettuce When I sent it back they just squirted some lemon juice on it Told me it was a shrimp Not even the right animal The brownie dessert I ordered had about a half of 1 side of what seemed like an Oreo cookie The worst food we’ve experienced on any cruise We got tired of complaining about it Not even close Other passengers we talked with voiced similar concerns about the free eating venues People were constantly trying to push the pay restaurants Which I heard were excellent The staff on the PA systems were frequently telling everyone how great the service and food was and that we should give them scores of 10 and 9 minimum They even suggested we give them a standing ovation in the dinning room on the last night because they were so great People did but it wasn’t spontaneous The ship was wow The food and some of the service not so much Read Less

I chose this cruise because of the date and embarkation port. There was a long wait to board due to inspection of each passport. After that it was smooth and excellent sailing. On the second day the captain announced new policies due to the virus. All restaurant tables were cleared of everything, disposable paper menus were used, and everything was handed to diners by gloved servers. Crew were cleaning every 20 minutes. This attention to every detail kept all healthy. Other than the restaurant situation, everything carried on. We did not miss any ports, the entertainment was entertaining and the food was OK- outstanding. Please try the butter chicken Found at the buffet! Delicious!! My stateroom was well looked after and the cruise was near capacity. We were allowed to visit and disembark at each port. Disembarkation was easy. We were waiting for our ride within 15 minutes. However the Port of Miami was full of many cruise ships as NCL was not sailing for 30 days fleet wide. The entire crew went above and beyond and were cheerful and friendly despite the required extra work due to the virus. We were chosen for the Offices’s Dinner and the next day we arrived to a cabin with 3 towel animals, a birthday banner, and sign from the head if housekeeping to celebrate my adult daughter’s birthday. What a great surprise. Bravo NCL Pearl for a vacation of a lifetime. Read Less

Heard it was great but honestly it is too big and we don’t smoke and think they should place smoking section anywhere except wher the two main bars on the swimming pools are located. Every time you went to get the over priced drink you had to walk through the smoking area to get it. The beds are terrible, the repair had to be made to our balcony door because of wind noise. It took 3 request from our room attendant before we got a ice bucket in our room. We like Royal Caribbean however when they revamped this ship they did not spend any money on the cabins. The furniture all over the cruise ship is made for smaller people and uncomfortable. If we cruise again it may be with Carnival, for what we spent on this cruise we paid champagne prices for cheap beer and will think twice before booking another one. Read Less

Plain and simple - disappointing. To say the least we were very mislead. This was not a cheap vacation and we didn’t expect it to be, but we also expected it to be at least worth what we paid. We chose this cruise because it matched our travel dates, budgets, and it had a great itinerary. We loved the idea of freestyle dining. No set times, no dress codes, and we didn’t have to eat at tables with strangers - this was the best part about NCL, Freestyle Dining. The port staff in Miami were very rude and rushed us through without allowing us to ask questions. We arrived in our stateroom to have it not be the stateroom that we booked. Guest relations was able to get it situated. Our steward was very sweet, however I was in complete disbelief at how incredibly rude, unfriendly, and unwelcoming the staff on board was. I was literally yelled at numerous times for asking simple questions. The restaurant staff in the specialty restaurants were extremely professional and good at what they do. The buffet was a nightmare. The food is odd - absolutely terrible in complimentary dining rooms (and all serve the same food at the same time, including the buffet) - absolutely outstanding in the specialty restaurants. The bartenders were slower than snails. Inside bartenders were more attentive than outside ones. They couldn’t care less outside, and the “cocktail servers” hid in corners and talked most the time. We were usually right in schedule or early arriving into ports which was nice, however tendering was a total nightmare. Some of us waiting over 4 hours and most people with excursions canceled. It was very disorganized, there was no communication from the directors - it was the equivalent to waiting in an airport terminal for a very delayed flight. What a way to spend vacation. The excursions were well worth it, but any cruise line utilizes them so I don’t feel NCL deserves the credit for these. If you visit Roátan, I highly recommend Jolly Roger Catamaran and Snorkeling - these guys are a blast and it’s an absolutely great time! There were people of all ages from early teens to 70s. Mandy, our Cruise Director, as well as the rest of the entertainment staff were great. Mandy was the only Crewmember on board to even stop and ask our how our day was. She was so personable and really kept us entertained. There is ALWAYS something going on at all times of the day and night. If you aren’t much for excursions or want something more low-key and private, I highly recommend day passes to the Mandara Spa. It is so relaxing and quiet. They were $246 per person but we used our moneys worth. Unfortunately it closed early the last night of the cruise without notice, so I was very disappointed when I went to get my last steam room session in. The ship was clean and there was a lot to do. Unfortunately due to the Coronavirus, our amenities were limited to literally the pool, casino, and shops. Everything else was closed the entire cruise. The water slides, minigolf, shuffleboard, ropes course, all closed and no staff anywhere to tell anyone. I get the circumstances, but it was a bit insane and nobody was even apologetic. All in all, we probably will not be back to NCL after this. We were also really looking forward to our first time on NCL with this cruise, to take advantage of the CruiseNext for our group cruise coming up, however as good as the deal was, I wouldn’t waste my money on this line. I did not feel valued or welcomed hardly at all on the ship. Read Less

Sailed for the first time on NCL in a Haven Penthouse Balcony room. The NCL embarkation and disembarkation processes need a lot of work. Although we were pretty much escorted through the throngs of people it was still a little bit convoluted. We arrived about 10:15 am and there were already at least a thousand people in various lines waiting to board. I can see why people get upset over the process as there were not nearly enough employees to assist those standing in long lines. The Haven experience is wonderful and the Haven restaurant is elegant and welcoming. The staff there are the best and special kudos to Griffin-the greeter who I think has never had a bad day. He was friendly, cheerful and caring-simply a great employee. The Haven pool area has a small sitting pool with chairs in it and a 4 ft deep little lap pool. There is also a dry sauna just off the pool deck and plenty of chairs near the pool and on the deck above. The service in the Haven pool area was also great with drinks and lunch brought to those hanging out there. The Haven bar area was spacious and elegant. The bartenders were the best with a special shout out to Shah-who makes the best lemon drop martini we have ever had. The rest of the ship is vast with bars everywhere that will soothe your taste buds. We really liked the Adults only Spice H2O sunning area on the rear of the ship. There were plenty of chairs there and a waterfall cavern to cool you off We ate at three specialty restaurants-steak house, Japanese and Italian and all were very, very good with great service. The Haven restaurant dinners were scrumptious but the menu was the same every day. Having said that the menu included filet mignon, surf and turf, prime rib, rack of lamb, sea bass, etc. You could literally have lobster every nite if you chose to. The breakfast in the Haven was the best-steak and eggs(actually filet mignon and eggs) and the pressed coffee was the best! We thought the entertainment was just Ok. The two main shows were After Midnight and Choir of Man. Both shows were high energy with outstanding performers. We really enjoyed the Choir of Man and thought it was one of the best shows we have seen on any of our 25+ cruises. The rest of the entertainment was merely ok and nothing really stood out. We only took one excursion-Tepanyaki Beach on Roatan. It was a very relaxing beach day and the beach vendors were kept at bay by the security personnel. The beach there is beautiful and there are a variety of water activities you can choose from. We had no problem with the tendering process but heard that it was a nightmare for some of the guests. All in all a very nice cruise experience and we will try NCL in the future. Read Less

We book a cruise with our adult children and our grandchildren during spring break each year. We choose Norwegian because of the kids sail free offers and the number of activities available for the little ones. This year the cruise was not as worry free as usual because of the virus scares throughout the world. We did not cancel because our cruise was before the Norwegian offers to give passengers credit for a future cruise, and our children did not have CFA insurance and would have taken a significant economic hit. Overall, we had a good cruise. There were many good things but also some "misses." Embarkation was terrible for us. We arrived at the port at 12:30, went quickly through the temperature screen, security, etc, but then my husband and I were in line to board the ship for over an hour. We did not make in on board until after 2:00. This delay was in no way related to the virus because we had already completed the extra screening prior to getting into the line. We went straight to Taste for a bite of lunch. We finished a quick lunch, went to our mini suite, met our steward, and unpacked our carry-ons before the muster drill. Our room steward kept our cabin clean and we were pleased with him. I wouldn't say that he went above and beyond, but he did a nice job and responded to my request for additional coffee packets promptly. Personally, I do miss the towel animals a little and think not having them removes a bit of the fun. I know I could have requested them, but I did not. My children requested them for their cabins because they have little ones. They asked for the children so I hated to also ask for adults. I felt it was important for the little ones to have that experience. We gave him a nice extra tip for doing the animals. Perhaps Norwegian could do towels for all guests just one night during the cruise so guests could have that experience at some point during their voyage. Our first port was Roatan, and we did a private excursion there, which turned out to be our favorite day. We visited the sloth sanctuary before splitting our group into 2 parties. Half went snorkeling while the others went to Las Palmas Beach. Both groups had a wonderful time, and we returned to the ship with time to spare before our scheduled departure from the port. We had to tender at the private island, but that tender went fairly quickly and efficiently. We rented clamshells, let the kids splay in the splash pad area, spent time on the beach, and really enjoyed the time there. The tender back to the ship was also not excessive. We chose to stay on the ship at Costa Maya but planned to go ashore at Cozumel. That is one decision I would change now if I were making new plans. Cozumel was a disaster so I wish we had gone ashore at Costa Maya. I will address that in more detail later. We ate at Cagney's, Teppanyaki, and LaCucina and enjoyed all three. We had amazing waiters at Cagney's and LaCucina. Suma at Cagney's went above and beyond trying to please one of our picky diners. The chef at Teppanyaki was quick to make the show as special as possible for our three year olds, and I would not hesitate to rebook at any of those specialty restaurants. One real positive that I saw was the effort that the crew was making in sanitizing the ship. Cleaning, cleaning, and more cleaning was observed all day in the common areas and hallways. You did not enter a restaurant without using the hand sanitizers. No salt shakers or condiments were on tables without request so contact between other passengers were avoided that way. Tables and chairs were disinfected between use. I think Norwegian was doing their best in that area. We are not big buffet lovers, but the one morning we needed to eat at the buffet because of an early port time. Turns out that was at Cozumel so it was a mistake too, but the buffet was not self serve. Everything was done to keep people safe from germs and the virus. The one big negative on our trip was the stop at Cozumel. Norwegian could not dock on the day we were there so the plan was to tender. That was a disaster. When we discovered we were tendering, we immediately reacted and secured Tender Tickets for Tender # 1 never dreaming how bad it would be. We thought we were in good shape with an early tender until we reached the theater to wait and saw what was happening. One whole side was filled with people waiting who had priority tender, and they had not boarded yet. No one was boarding because there weren't enough tenders, and of course, they had to sanitize them after every trip over and back. I understand that the sanitizing slowed the process down, but what we experienced was ridiculous, and it was not all because of sanitizing. There were not enough tenders, and even without the sanitizing, there would have been long delays. They called Tender Groups 1-3 at 8:30, and we were still waiting at 10:00! When we asked if they had any idea of how much longer it would be, they had no guess except maybe 45 more minutes. We'd booked a private excursion, but we were going to miss it so we finally gave up, forfeited our excursion deposit, and left to let the kids enjoy amenities on the ship instead of waiting for a tender. Lots of other people left too. They were still calling tender numbers at noon and were only half way through the list. I think Norwegian needs to re-evaluate the itinerary during this cruise shutdown. If the ship can't dock at the pier in Cozumel, perhaps they need to change their order of the ports, and if they know you will be tendering there, they should let you know in advance so you can plan accordingly. They knew about the tendering before we sailed because someone told me they were doing a bi-weekly share of the dock. One week tender; next week dock. We tried to salvage the rest of our day, but this is a problem that they need to solve. We also experienced shutdowns of mini golf, ropes course, etc. due to sanitation, which made the few days hard on our little ones. Some of that I understand, but golf clubs, golf balls and bocci balls could have been checked out with equipment sanitized between uses. They could have checked them out at the same spot that was signing out pool towels. Interestingly enough, bowling was open. That is a "for fee" activity so I guess those balls were safe for guests to handle but not golf balls and clubs. We returned to Miami under a cloud because of the virus, but disembarkation was super simple for us. We never see a reason to try to get off the ship early so we get luggage tags for 8:30 or 9:00, depending on what is available. This time it was 8:30. We vacated our cabin at 7:45, went to Savor, had a nice breakfast, and went to the line at 8:40. It moved quickly, and we were off the ship, in our cars, and on the way home by 9:30. I want to close by once again saying how hard the crew on this cruise worked at trying to keep the ship free of the virus. I truly feel sorry for them during this time because they will suffer income loss and are probably worried above loved ones just like the rest of us. Even if Norwegian pays them, they will be missing out on tips. We stopped for lunch on our drive home, which is about 6 hours. What we saw at the restaurant was far more concerning than ANYTHING we experienced on the cruise. Of course, now we are on a 14-day quarantine just because we were on the cruise. My kids can't work, kids can't go to day care, etc. Good news is that we are now 8 days post cruise with no symptoms. I'm thankful we were able to go on this cruise, even if it wasn't perfect. I look forward to a future cruise when all the craziness is over, but I will reevaluate whether or not I wish to port in Cozumel. Read Less

We chose this cruise for the itinerary and value. Only problem is that on this small vessel the only balcony cabins are mini suites and above. The ocean view cabins and inside cabins are pretty small. No couch or easy chair, only the bed and vanity chair to sit on. However, if you are out of your room enjoying the activities and only need to use the bathroom and the bed, it's OK. The ship itself is really nice for the smallest ship in the fleet. The crew does an outstanding job of keeping it well maintained and very clean. It only has one specialty restaurant; Chops, but that's OK too. The bar hubs are the Schooner, and Boleros, with the casino bar handling that area. Viking Crown lounge is not the greatest when comparing to larger ships but it is a very nice area to relax in during the day, unless it's being used for a kids activity or something like that. The fitness area is above the lounge on a balcony that runs around it, accessible only by stairs in the back of the lounge. No criticism, it is what it is. Food: Our service and food in the main dining room was outstanding. We always choose my time dining so we can eat early, and we got the same table, same waiters and outstanding service every night. We didn't go to chops this time because we always enjoyed the menu the chef selected. Only downside was windjammer lunch. it was good but not outstanding. My breakfast is light, simple and was always good. One huge exception: Chef Kennedy on two days set up a hot dog station. Amazing!!! He makes the best sauce I've ever eaten in my life. Shows: The production team does two shows. Baileros and Three. Don't miss them. The singers and dancers were amazing. I hope you get this crew. They sing with passion and power and don't scream. Costuming and choreography are perfect. the band is terrific. Our headliners were outstanding. Cruise director and staff. Steve (from Canada) does a great job. He is experienced, funny, and very well prepared and informative, His activities director Tanya is in a word: "Special." Not short bus special, but she's crazy, fun, wild, outgoing and a great lady. She will make a great cruise director. One team member, Andy, from Great Britain does an Elton John show that will astound you. Hotel Director John and his staff are to be highly commended for their efforts on keeping the ship clean, safe and sanitary. No one on this cruise came down with so much as a case of indigestion much less a virus. He and his officers were accessible and available for any questions or concerns, no matter how dumb. And believe me, on this cruise I did hear some dumb questions. So to RCCL, the staff and crew of the Empress of the Seas: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!! Read Less

We truly enjoyed the staff on this ship. Last sailing for a month due to covid19 virus. The ship took extra measures to keep us safe. Yes the pool and bathroom is small but how much time is actually spent there. Cruisers seemed to mingle more maybe because it is smaller. I only wish there was a designated room to iron. You can send out to be done for a fee but needed to be done by second day. Downey wrinkle release to the rescue. Our room steward was awesome. We chose any time dinning but ate the same time every night, so we had the same waite staff. Our young ladies were spot on. Remembered our names and what we liked. Comedy shows were good . Offered a good selection of movies under the stars. Wish they had popcorn. I need ten more words to be able to post....was a great vacation with a great crew all around. Would definitely sale on this ship again Read Less

We thought we would try Norwegian Cruises - really liked the route and got a great deal on a mini suite. I had visions of a large cabin and large balcony - not so much. Cabin was well appointed but indistinguishable from balconies on Celebrity or RCC. Service and food were hit and miss. We really enjoyed the Manhattan Dining Room where the service and food quality was better than Taste or Savor (which was odd considering they have the same menu.) Loved O'Sheehans Pub, we ate lunch there every day and food quality and service always good. Shows were quite entertaining - thought the idea of the Supper Club was brilliant - but the food there was bland (altho service good.) NCL has a very loud and somewhat raucous crowd, so we purchased passes to the VIBE private lounge. Definitely worth it - quiet and super pleasant - but not cheap at $209 USD per person. Only one hot tub, and it was broken. We could not figure out the stateroom attendant. Seemed nice enough, but brought a power bar when we asked for an extension cord for my husband's CPAP machine; this was weird given he said he had worked on cruise ships for 10 years and that he was a 'suite' attendant. Ports of call were ok - Honduras you pretty much had to book an excursion, and the excursion staff person was completely not helpful when we went to ask questions, so we ended up just getting off the boat and walking around. Belize and Harvest Caye was really good - although unlike the other islands owned by cruise companies (coco caye and labadee) you had to pay for everything - if you wanted a drink or something to eat, be prepared to pay for it! Tendering to the ports was a complete nightmare, some groups waited a total of 4 hours (2 hrs each way) to get off in Harvest Caye or Cozumel. To be fair, this was due to the extra cleaning required for corona virus. The absolute worst part of the trip was getting on the ship. My husband had injured his ankle prior to the trip and requested a wheelchair. We called NCL and confirmed that a wheelchair/escort would be provided upon our arrival at the pier. This did not happen and no one knew what was going on; my husband ended up walking onto the ship with me towing all of our carry on bags. Not fun. And made worse by the lack of helpfulness of NCL representatives. Read Less

Because NCL hasn’t told anyone this, Margaritaville is longer existent on this ship, and we booked in February (it was removed before we even booked). We tried to upgrade rooms and had no help from Norwegian or the website although we kept getting emails to upgrade. Our cruise rep, Brandon, was supposed to call us the day before and did not. So we made attempts the day before sailing and the day of departure to contact him with no success. We tried to ask at the terminal but the woman was so rude and rushed us through she wouldn’t let us ask questions. Our stateroom was wrong and not what we booked. We also were supposed to have a cake in the room which we never received. Everyone other than the cruise director, Mandy, and our steward, Michelle, the staff was miserable. Mandy and Michelle always had smiles and great energy and always stopped to ask us how our day was. Aside from 2 servers from a restaurant and the stewards on our deck, nobody even looked at you. They charge you tips and service fees ($15 per passenger per day) in addition to the ones already paid. You get yelled at by guest services for asking questions like I did this morning when I called to get charges removed (the guest services rep yelled at us and hung up). I get better service at Waffle House. O’Sheehans - wow - the service is slow and they ALWAYS forget you, as well as your meals sometimes (happened to use twice out of the 3 times we ate there). Taste and Savor are the same restaurants with different atmospheres but are pretty much the same. We went to the Manhattan room the first night and I ordered the beef dish with curly potatoes - which meant frozen curly fries. All of the complimentary dining rooms were the same menus and food that were on the buffet, the only difference was the sit down restaurants served it to you. I highly recommend all the specialty restaurants, I did have some of the best meals I’ve ever had when dining in them. We waited 4 hours for tender boats in Cozumel. They took away every amenity on board except the pool and casino with no compensation or explanation (if you questioned them you were yelled at). The ship is clean and well maintained, but the one outdoor adult pool is smaller than my bedroom. We purchased week passes to the spa and had amenities in there taken away after day 2 of 7. No apologies, discounts, or refunds. The bartenders at the bars outside are slower than snails. They do not serve whoever is next and you have to fight to get drinks. The cocktail servers leave the bars and go stand in corners away from everyone with their trays pretending like they’re working. Read Less

My husband & I had low expectations after reading the negative reviews. We have been on 20 prior cruises between multiple cruise lines. We decided a few weeks out to go on a short winter getaway and this cruise fit perfectly in our time frame. We were both pleasantly surprised with the ship and our cruise experience. The ship had been refurbished in lot of areas a couple of months prior which helped. The pool was a nice size and had plenty of chairs surrounding it. The bar service was better than our 4 prior cruises and in general the service on this ship was a better than prior cruises. Even though there wasn't a Steak House, we were happy with the food & service in the dining room. Normally we eat in the Steak House 2 -3 times during a 7 night cruise. Did miss the wine you only get at the Steak House. All the Entertainment on board was very good, again better than previous cruises. The band was a standout, they played a variety of music and kept everyone dancing. Our favorite bar is the Alchemy Bar and the service is always first rate. If you like craft cocktails and willing to try something new, this is the place for you. We loved the ports - Key West was a lot of fun and Cozumel is always a favorite of ours. Overall we were very happy with our cruise and would definitely recommend this cruise to our friends for a short getaway. Read Less

We read , and foolishly believed the slogan” the most luxurious ship in the world, so promptly booked a Miami round trip, visiting Belize and Guatemala. We flew to Miami, staying in the superb Biltmore hotel prior to our cruise. Embarkation was a quick process, and we were welcomed onboard by smiling staff proffering small glasses of champagne. As it was lunchtime, we decided quickly to enjoy a light lunch and then to explore the ship . Lunch was adequate , buffet style, with no showpiece dishes to wow, but as we were hungry it mattered little that day, accompanied by a glass of wine. After lunch, like most people we made our way to our cabin , a stern facing deck 7 standard stateroom. It was large, but very oddly decorated and furnished. A sombre dark brown pleather bed head stretched up and over the bed, not matched by the grey and black bedspread. Cream cabinets faced a large dark brown foam slab sofa, sitting on orange and beige carpets, with red and cream curtains separating the two areas of the cabin. It all seemed to be a 1980s throwback in decor, far from luxurious. A welcome bottle of champagne stood chilling, but we didn’t open it at that point. Our stern facing , metal fronted , balcony was furnished with two huge rattan chairs ,no footstools and a tiny table. We explored the ship, loving the glamorously appointed public areas, the top deck sports areas and the lovely swimming pool, surrounded by sun loungers for sun lovers. We enjoyed the small deep infinity pool at the stern of the ship, always quieter and great for a dip. Prior to joining the ship, we had made dinner reservations online for the speciality restaurants, especially enjoying the French Chartreuse, and the Asian Pacific Rim. Other restaurants were popular, as was the main dining room. The food was, on the whole extremely good, but we couldn’t understand why fish was always served overcooked and in tiny portions, especially when compared to the gargantuan steaks being served. We found the breads were dull, the desserts very average, but the cheeseboards were excellent, as were the daily wine selections. As our preferences are for European wines, the sommeliers were always happy to offer wines to our tastes. As a malt whisky connoisseur, my husband was disappointed by the selection offered in the bars, and we were disappointed by the port on offer. As excursions were included, we had prebooked those that appealed in each port of call, tending to choose those of cultural or historical interest, the guides were fine, the transport the best available locally, often school buses being repurposed. We enjoyed the opportunities to revisit the rich Mayan history of the area. Entertainment onboard was very mediocre, we felt, with the usual singing and dancing shows, little in the way of classical offerings, and comedians of limited appeal to international guests. The showroom was comfortable, with good sight lines. For an upmarket expensive cruise line, we felt they could have done better, especially compared to the parent company, NCL which has fabulous entertainment. Read Less

We chose this cruise for a late-Winter getaway to the Western Caribbean as a great way to evaluate the all-inclusive nature of Regent. We were not disappointed at all. The accommodations are very nice (especially after getting bumped up two levels), the food is very good, and the crew is exemplary! The Coronavirus was just getting a foothold in the USA and Regent was surprisingly well prepared. Hand sanitizers were everywhere you looked and proper hygiene was highly recommended and later required. About three days before the end of the cruise, the CDC bumped up their report and Regent took a more stringent approach. Too many changes to write here, but as an example, the library was off limits, due to the prospect of sanitizing each and every page of each and every book, etc. The numerous free excursions were top-notch and the shipboard entertainment was amazing. The cruise director even sang and has a voice bar none. The free wine and liquor was also top notch and flowing. I really can't find anything bad to say about the cruise, but if I had to, I would say that I think Oceania's Mariner had a more beautiful atrium reception lobby with all it's Lalique crystal (which I believe is now gone). I highly recommend this ship and crew to anyone wanting a great voyage. It was worth every penny. Read Less

Landed in Miami the day before sailing and Regent set us up in a very nice luxury hotel for the night. Breakfast in the morning was with other people embarking on the cruise and allowed us to meet a few new couples that we would see again aboard. We explored downtown Miami in the morning and then headed back to the hotel to catch the bus to the port that Regent had arranged. Embarkation was a very simple process and we were greeted upon boarding by one of the show performers with glasses of Champaign. Ship was impressive looking inside and out with nicely detailed furnishings, walls, and flooring. Spa treatments were a bit overpriced and many of the ports offered massages for 90% of the quality at less than 10% of the price. Dining was the clear highlight of the trip. From most to least enjoyable they are Pacific Rim, Chartreuse, Compass Rose, Sette Mari, and Prime 7. Prime 7 though not our favorite was still more than adequate. Breakfast was probably the worst meal on the ship as it was clear that they conceded a bit of quality in order to quickly feed everyone aboard. Although the food wasn’t terrible, it was the same every day and became quite boring by the end of the trip. We ate at the pool bar for lunch most days which offered burgers, pizza, cold cut sandwiches, and salads which were good for a light bite. Our one lunch at Chartreuse was spectacular but most days our excursion had us back too late to partake in the other restaurants for lunch. In general the menus were static for the specialty restaurants except at lunch when they had daily specials. At Sette Mari and Compass Rose, half of the menu changed every day with many of these items being fantastic and giving great variety while still allowing you to find a go-to regular item that you could get every night. I’m not one for the shows but my wife really enjoyed all of the three musical shows we went to. Daily activities like MENSA puzzles and team trivia allowed us to make great friends and accrue points towards Regent branded shirts and bags at the end of the cruise.. Generally service was great with only a few long waits to order at the restaurants when they were particularly busy. Excursions were generally very well organized with all of the activities in the descriptions being accurate. Note that many of the excursions tended to run longer than listed on the description which meant we almost always meant the pool grill was the only option left for lunch. In general the cruise was worth the rather high price that we paid. We are currently planning how to fit our next Regent Cruise into the budget/work schedule Read Less

This cruise was on sale which was the main reason I booked. I've been on MSC before had had a good idea of what to expect. The ship is the oldest and the smallest in their fleet, so it does not have all the newest features. The ship was not originally built to handle the amount of passengers that it currently carries. Sometimes in the common areas it was a bit crowded, and that was with the ship at about 80% capacity. Remembering that the line is European and caters the that clientele, the food was good and well prepared but I thought bland. But I am told that is that way that it is preferred there. It's better to prepare food for 2000 people on the bland side so they can spice it up on their own, as compared to the other way around. We had an interior cabin which was small but adequate, once again we were going for price. The crew was very concerned about the cleanliness of everything and hand washing was encouraged everywhere. The entertainment was good. I am already looking for another cruise for next year. I did not do any shore excursions so I am only giving that a medium score. We went with several friends and we all had a good time. Read Less

I chose this cruise line because they advertise in my TV area of Texas and after a total of eight cruises Cunard and Holland American Cruises I thought I would try a different line. Booked and paid for $2,100.00 for balcony aurea all inclusive package. Did western Caribbean cruise and was not accommodated with easy access tours. Was told I am too old (age 76) and disabled to cruise the Caribbean, they are poor counties and not set up to accommodate the people confined to a scooter. Not allowed anything but water in your stateroom, if you want a soda or drink you are expected to purchase it out of the minibar in the refrigerator in the room, even if you have an all you can drink card. Can only order 2 items per person through room service. You have to pay extra for iced coffee drinks, gelato and juice bar.Thermal spa has no water feature, only outside whirlpools that require climbing steps to get in and out. Hard to get scooter over threshold of doors. Food is under seasoned and undercooked. Main stage shows are uninspired and boring and there is no harmony of the voices and they only have a week of rehearsal so the dances are less than exciting. The only good thing, and it is really good, is the staff and crew. They are really friendly, helpful to the point allowed by corporate, and always greet you with a smile. If you sail this line do not miss the crew show, it is better than any other entertainment on the cruise. My personal experience was hurtful, disheartening and disappointing. I feel I was deceived by the company and feel I did not get the value for the money I paid, and taken for a fool. Read Less

We chose the cruise because of the sailing dates... and the price seemed reasonable. But the dates were the deciding factor. I had never cruised with MSC before. This was a 7 night Caribbean cruise. Ship is old and service is subpar. The employees are friendly enough, but for the most part, inept. Our waiter at dinner seemed new so I asked him. He said he worked 5 years for RCL but left because they were too demanding. Haha, RCL is not even a premium cruise line so you can understand how bad our service was. Long wait time between courses and dirty plates not removed, water glasses not refilled, coffee served luke warm, ice cream half melted, food so so. We tried their premium restaurant, Surf and Turf for an extra $35 a person. DO NOT spend your money. They bill this as a fine dining experience. Complete Fail. There was a group of 12 seated behind us who acted like it was their office party and were shouting at each other the entire meal. Across from us was a family with a small baby who cried off and on the whole time. A man at another table walked in with a collarless t shirt and shorts. Our reservation was at 6:45 and it was half full. The lobster tails were tiny and the steak was bland. They never brought the bernaise sauce or refilled our water. Oh, and if you have the Easy Beverage package, and not the Premium Beverage package, you can’t even order wine ....or bottled water for that matter, without paying for it. Believe me, the dinner was no fine dining experience. Getting back on board when they use tenders is a nightmare. They made us wait in lines for 30-40 minutes because they only opened one scanner and one xray machine. No excuse. Casino is old....it’s filled with smoke because smokers use it since there are only 2 other places you can smoke. You will see smokers sitting at slot machines, not playing, smoking and drinking. They take up machines that others want to play and blow smoke in others faces. It’s one big ashtray. I’ve sailed on RCL, NCL, Celebrity, Holland American, Princess, Costa, and UniWorld so I’m familiar with how cruises should be. This cruise line and this ship are at the bottom. I would never go on any of their ships again. You will be frustrated the entire time.....it’s just one thing after another. I don’t have time to mention everything. And even if they try to do something nice, they are inept. Our AC wasn’t working at first so as an apology they delivered to our cabin a plate of chocolate covered strawberries. They did it on a port day so by the time we returned to our cabin they had melted and were soggy....plus one of us is allergic to strawberries and the other is on a diet. What a Fail. . Complete waste of money on their part and only aggravated us because if they had asked, a better option could have been delivered when we were in our cabin. That would have made us happy and would have been appreciated. They try, they just are inept. Again, do not be fooled by the price. You will be miserable. Oh, and the ship does not have the newer stabilization technologies, the ships rocks a lot. Another reason to avoid this ship. Read Less

We choose this cruise because of the beautiful ship, price and itinerary. Embarkation and disembarkation were very smooth. We were able to board the ship at the time of our scheduled arrival. The disembarkation was amazing. We could stay in our rooms until 8:00am and then had access to a full buffet breakfast. We could also go anywhere on the ship until it was time to get off. The ship was awesome. It was spotless and the crew was constantly cleaning it. Our cabin fit our family of four very well. Our children are 11 and 13 and they slept in the bunkbeds. The bunkbeds were awesome because each child used them as her designated space. We also had a balcony on the 11th floor. We loved it and used to to relax and play card games. We ate in the Waves dining room for all but one dinner. The staff was outstanding. We had Christian as our main waiter and Nicole as the assistant waiter. They put sparkling water on the table for us each night, since our girls loved it. They knew our preferences and were amazing with our cocktail orders and dinner selections. We enjoyed the food. The portions were very reasonable and not overwhelming. I loved the variation in menus each night. Most of our table tried something from the local menu each night, but my 11 year old stuck with the pasta and ceasar salad most of the time. We did eat dinner in the buffet one night and ate outside, overlooking the water. Again, the food was great and the pizza was amazing. The entertainment was good and there are some very talented people onboard. We liked the music and performers outside of the Broadway Theatre. Since there are so many people from so many different places, the big stage productions didn't include a lot of spoken word. They were a little cheesy and we left in the middle of two. There was a staff talent show during our trip and it was AMAZING. Staff from all over the ship performed and I've never seen anything like it. The ship butcher sang an Italian opera, two waiters sang outstanding show tunes, and one crew member even performed a standup routine. The highlight was when the Samoan firefighters performed their native dances. The show was a hightlight of our trip. Gene the cruise director did a one man show one afternoon. It was amazing and a lot of fun. He shared some funny and touching stories. He does have an amazing voice. I suggest attending if he offers this on an upcoming cruise. Our kids loved the kids club. It gave them a place to go and hang out with other young people. My 11 year old was allowed to go to the Young Club with her 13 year old sister. We just had to sign a waiver. They had a blast playing board games and doing activities with other teens and preteens. We also knew they were in a safe, supervised place while we enjoyed music in the pub or lounge. We loved the Cirque show onboard the ship. We've seen a lot of them in Las Vegas and with a local troupe in Minnesota. The performers were very talented and the show was a lot of fun. Service throughout the week was outstanding. We ate breakfast most mornings in the buffet and had the Easy Drink package. The morning buffet crew could make excellent cappucinos and fancy coffees. Breakfast was outstanding and had many selections from all over the world. The Easy Drink package was great for our family. All of the wines were pretty good, but we are not super big winos. My husband seemed fine with the mixed drinks. Our children liked getting sodas and frozen drinks whenever they wanted them. We loved our shore excursions. In Costa Maya we took a taxi to the little nearby town and went to 40 Cannons Beach Club. It was $40 a person for lunch, non-alcoholic drinks and a beach chair. We loved our Belize City trip to the Crystal Caverns and Ziplines with Peter from Chukka Excursions. We booked through the ship and the service was outstanding on that trip. In Roatan we rode horses on the beach and had some beach time. The service was very good and we booked through the ship for this activity as well. I suggest booking through the ship for Belize City and Roatan. Travel is pretty slow and if you are late, they have to wait for you if you booked through the cruiseline. If you were late on your own, you'd be stuck in that city. Our kids loved the ship and we prepurchased a fun pass. We didn't get to go to Ocean Cay because of weather and the fun pass was a lifesaver! The virtual games, bowling and aviation ride were a big hit with our family. My 13 year old competed in the Junior Master Chef at Sea and it was awesome. She was technically too old for it, but lots of big kids from the kids club did it with her. We received a big refund from the cancelled stop at Ocean Cay. We had to wait in line for two minutes to get the refund. They gave it to us in cash. The crew kept us up to date on the weather and changes to our cruise, but they didn't yammer on and on over the intercom. We attended the Cruise Critic Meet and Mingle. They made us feel very special and shared some good tips about how to best experience the ship. We went to the casino a few times but didn't gamble. It can be very smoky. The pools were fine, but we prefer to swim in the ocean so we didn't spend a lot of time there. We loved the Bamboo Pool and hot tubs best. The kids loved the water park and ropes course. Even on the at sea days we didn't have long lines. We enjoyed spending time on the decks, but stayed away from the smokers' area. There is hardly any ventilation and the air is terrible for non-smokers. Our room steward, John, was fabulous. He kept everything very neat and tidy and we barely saw him. He was very fast and efficient! We are pretty easy going people and really loved this cruise. We liked MSC's ala carte way of business.We felt like we didn't ahve to pay for things we didn't use. We travel overseas a lot and enjoyed spending time with people from all over the world. I look forward to seeing the new MSC terminal in Miami in a few years! Read Less