First Cruise Disappointment... need help

As one for whom food is an extremely high priority when vacationing, I would suggest Princess. The buffets on the two newest ships, Regal and Royal, have to be the best at sea and our dining room experience this past New Years was superb. Check out pictures of the food at the free International Cafe and Alfredo's Italian restaurant and, guaranteed, you'll be salivating!

As one for whom food is an extremely high priority when vacationing, I would suggest Princess. The buffets on the two newest ships, Regal and Royal, have to be the best at sea and our dining room experience this past New Years was superb. Check out pictures of the food at the free International Cafe and Alfredo's Italian restaurant and, guaranteed, you'll be salivating!

Thank you for the recommendation! I have my eye on a 7 day Eastern Caribb. on Regal at the end of march that I am really considering.

Of the lines we have sailed, NCL definitely ranks at the bottom for food in the included venues. Their specialty (additional charge) restaurants were always very good however.

A longer cruise on almost any other line should improve the food quality at least somewhat.

I couldn't wait to go on my first cruise for all of the wonderful food. I was forewarned by my mother that isn't that the food is so good, there is just a lot of it.

I think she is correct. I have also found on a cruise that this is the opportunity to try things I've never had before. Since it's all included why not. Some have been good and others not so much but it's fun trying new things.

I can only speak about Princess. I find the food good to very good. There is always something I want to eat and I love their grill and pizza during the day. What you really might want to try are the specialty restaurants. On Princess it's just $25 more per person but the meals are noticably of better quality. I wouldn't want to make a week of specialty restaurants (I'd weigh considerably more than I do now) but a couple of visits a cruise is great.

My wife and I just got off the Norweigian Sky 3day bahamas and I need some advice.

The only advice I can give is, don't give up. I've cruised the Sky. Just about every ship I've sailed on short itineraries, I would gladly cruise again. Sky is an exception. The whole ship felt cheap to me, the food was awful, and service wasn't much better. The plain white staterooms with rock hard beds and broken TV were the worst of any cruise ship I have been on.

If you want to do another short cruise, look more into other options. Royal Caribbean does short cruises on ships like Independence of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas or Enchantment of the Seas. Celebrity has short cruises on Constellation and sometimes Eclipse. Princess also does some short cruises. I believe it's currently Emerald Princess. These are all options that blow Norwegian Sky out of the water. Whichever you choose, just avoid a short cruise on an old NCL ship.

The only advice I can give is, don't give up. I've cruised the Sky. Just about every ship I've sailed on short itineraries, I would gladly cruise again. Sky is an exception. The whole ship felt cheap to me, the food was awful, and service wasn't much better. The plain white staterooms with rock hard beds and broken TV were the worst of any cruise ship I have been on.

 

If you want to do another short cruise, look more into other options. Royal Caribbean does short cruises on ships like Independence of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas or Enchantment of the Seas. Celebrity has short cruises on Constellation and sometimes Eclipse. Princess also does some short cruises. I believe it's currently Emerald Princess. These are all options that blow Norwegian Sky out of the water. Whichever you choose, just avoid a short cruise on an old NCL ship.

Thank you for your reply. I see you did RCI Majesty of the seas just after cruising NCL Sky. How would you compare the two?

When booking the Sky we actually went to book RCI majesty and it sold out right as we were going to book, so we ended up with NCL sky since it had the exact same itinerary just great stirrup cay rather than coco cay. But the reviews I read on Majesty don't seem much different than Sky.

Thank you for your reply. I see you did RCI Majesty of the seas just after cruising NCL Sky. How would you compare the two?

 

When booking the Sky we actually went to book RCI majesty and it sold out right as we were going to book, so we ended up with NCL sky since it had the exact same itinerary just great stirrup cay rather than coco cay. But the reviews I read on Majesty don't seem much different than Sky.

Majesty and Sky are very different ships. On paper Sky looks better because Majesty lacks standard balcony cabins and specialty restaurants, but boy is that misleading. Majesty is a much nicer looking ship inside and although it's still a short party crowd, the ship feels so much more classy. Service is night and day better than Sky, especially in the main dining room.

That said, Majesty is getting pretty old. RCI does a great job of keeping her looking nice but nowadays, she's so far behind the curve of great ships.

It might look like I have an agenda against NCL because I don't hold back when speaking about them but truth is, those feelings were established from my experiences on ships like the Sky. I tried to like them....even went for a second round on Sky right after the first bad experience.

I am not brand loyal and want decent food when I cruise...my first princess trip was last jan on the regal....her buffet blows all the others out of the water.....the selection is amazing and everything I tried was well-prepared with decent ingredients.....we ate twice in the mdr and had our worst meal there but still edible...she is a beautiful ship and I would sail her again ....have sailed ncl to bermuda twice....ate a lot of salad and mashed potatoes....not impressed with much of the food....but bermuda was so worth it.....hope your next cruise is much better and I bet it will be!

I understand your disappointment, for me, I don't like the food on any Cruise line that I have been on. When I started cruising back in the 80's the cruises and the food were much better then, over the years all the cruise lines have cut back in so many ways, and have cut corners that the cruise industry as a whole is completely different now than early on. Don't get me wrong, cruising is still the most economical vacation you can take for value received. My advise is to do your research, check them all out and remember cheaper is not always the best value. The 3, 4 5 and 6 day cruises are generally the lesser of the cruise durations for many reasons, I have never taken less than a 7 day and many of mine have been 10 day and longer. I haven't been on many like so many people that I have met over the years, last November was our 42 cruise and it was on Princess, my wife and I have always been more happy with Princess, it seems to fit our style. Many people have their favorite, you just have to decide for you. You learn by doing, learning that you don't have to take everything you own in your suitcase. Remember the cruise industry is a business and they will do many little things to separate you from your cash. Don't get your expectations too high that you don't enjoy your time on the cruise. Some advise to new Cruisers, stay away from the VIP cards that the shopping people want to pass out. They tell you if you use them that you will get their best deal and save money. THIS IS WHAT THEY DONT TELL YOU. If you go into the shop that they recommend and use the VIP card, that store or shop has to pay the cruise line 20% for that recommendation. Want to save that 20% for yourself. Never and I mean never discuss a vip card with the stores and shops. Deal with the manager your self and you can get the item you want with that 20% discount that they would have to pay the Cruise Line for your self, you can save that discount for yourself. I know I have done it many times for jewelry and watches. I have made friends with many shop owners in the Caribbean and they tell me things like this and yes even Diamonds International and the large companies pay the same. Save your money, don't give it to the cruise lines. Another thing, they tell you about their guarantee it you buy through one on their guarantee stores, the item you buy has to be rather pricey for the guarantee to be any good, I know that most items under $500 they will no deal with. When you are there, ask questions and get it in writing. happy cruising

Hi, I have been on a few different low budget cruise lines and I find that the food has definitely deteriorated over the course of the years. The first cruise I took was Norwegian and I remember thinking the food was stellar and "pigging out" at every opportunity. Of the cruises I took more recently, I would rank the food RC, then Norwegian, then Carnival (which was really terrible foodwise). I would definitely recommend a different cruiseline - if you are on the ball and constantly checking cruise prices you can get some extremely good deals. (For example, we just booked a Nowegian 7 day cruise for $349 a person) I heard that Celebrity is known to have the best food, and they had an Oceanview 10 day cruise in December for about $900 a person which included 2 of their 4 perks (free drinks, onboard credit, etc). If this doesn't break your bank, definitely go for that; otherwise try to scout for a good Royal Caribbean deal.

Hope that was helpful. :) Unfortunately, the general trend IS worse food and trying to nickel and dime you... alas.

My wife and I just got off the Norweigian Sky 3day bahamas and I need some advice. Growing up everyone always talked about how amazing cruises are especially the food. This was my first cruise and while we had a good time, the food was the most awful garbage I have ever encountered in my life. I do not consider myself picky. I like buffets and all kinds of food, but the food on this boat was nearly inedible. I'm a graduate student on a budget who eats basically rice and beans everyday and I was so excited to be able to pig out on a cruise. I feel like I should at least be satisfied with the $820 the trip cost us. I had to spread food around my plate on almost every meal just to make it look like I ate more.

 

I want to know is this how all cruises are? Inedible food? It was worse than hospital cafeterias I've worked in. Hot dogs and hamburgers every meal at the buffet, soups that aren't even on par with a can of Campbells, rice that is mush... We were planning on this being a "foot in the water" cruise, and thinking about a 5-7 day cruise late spring and now I don't know if it's worth it. Is it just Norwegian Sky that's bad? Or is this how all Norwegian ships will be? Or is this how all cruises are?

 

My wife and I do not drink, we do not dance, we do not party, we just want to eat like pigs and relax. Is there a boat out there that's decent or should I just give up cruising?

 

TL;DR - NCL Sky food was terrible, is this representation of all cruises? PLS HELP

Understand you disappoint. We have well over 50 cruises, on Princess (22), Celebrity, Holland America, Cunard and NCL (Pride of America) recently. Over the years we have cruised on 9 different lines.

We went on a NCL ship a few years ago in the Mediterranean because we liked the itinerary... even so, we knew NCL is not like the other lines we typically cruise on, Princess, Celebrity, HAL, Cunard. The price was cheaper so we decided to give it a try after we had not been on NCL in 10 years.

We went to the MDR for lunch and dinner the first time, that was the last time on an 11 day cruise. The service and food were not up to our expectations. We decided we would simply do the buffet late afternoon after returning from port... we went up made a salad and sandwich from the salad bar items each day and let it go at that, which was okay. Knowing we had paid a much lower prices we felt we got what we paid for and that was good enough.

We don't cruise for food, we eat better home to be honest. So if you want to eat better you need to pay more on a better line than NCL period, I believe.

Food on all lines is not what it once was for sure. There are some who say if you pay extra on NCL you can get a good meal... we were not motivated to pay more based on our experience and were satisfied with a salad and sandwich.

We hate NCL and food is only one reason. Think about a bigger, newer Carnival ship. Carnival is no longer a party cruse, LOTS of families! They have Guy's burgers which are grilled and you gat them off the grill. Even if there is a line its never long. And they have a fix'n bar with all sorts of things you can put on your burger. If you want a hop dog you have to get it at the deli which is open at 11am. This is where they make your sandwich for you while you wait. They have Reuben's, pastrami even grilled cheese. At the lunch buffet they have a carving station with different meats each day, 1st day is always roast beef, then ham, pork, lamb, other beef, etc.

We like the 8:15 dinner in the dining room. We eat with the same people, have the same waiter who after the 1st night will bring my husbands milk with out being asked.

Think the Sunshine, which also has a taco bar and a Mongolian Bar. Also the Breeze, Dream, etc.

Give another cruise a chance!

"Cruise line dining now primarily consists of opening a can or preparing a mix." - I can't say that this has been my experience. I've had some good prepared from scratch meal on Carnival, Princess, and HAL.

Those of you who feel this way must go to some pretty classy restaurants on a regular basis.

Roz

...

 

We don't cruise for food, we eat better home to be honest. So if you want to eat better you need to pay more on a better line than NCL period, I believe.

 

This is our experience as well. We eat much higher quality food items at home than on a cruise. We never cruise for the food, but I can certainly understand how poor quality items can put a damper on the entire cruise experience.

amad01, if you prefer, keep an eye on the shorter cruises from South Florida that are occasionally offered, such as Holland America's brand new Koningsdam (making her debut next month). She has a 4 day (November 9-13) sailing, r.t. from Ft. Lauderdale to the Bahamas, Half Moon Cay (private island), and day at sea. HAL is a traditional cruise experience, including the teak Promenade Deck that makes a full circle around the ship, I love that! Our only Holland America cruise was so great, it makes me wish I'd continued to book more with them. I recall wonderful service and cuisine, beautiful ship and accommodations, fresh flowers everywhere. :)

Princess offers 4 and 5 night cruises, r.t. from Ft. Lauderdale to the Eastern and Western Caribbean. And Celebrity has 2, 3, and 4 night sailings r.t. from Ft. Lauderdale. Fyi- the shorter cruises that are known for partying are typically Fri.-Mon., taking place over the weekend. Your next cruise will be better!

Occasionally the so called better lines offer shortie cruises to attract new cruisers or to fill in days to permit Saturday departures on longer, like 7 day, cruises.Just noticed Celebrity Constellation doing a JAN 28 2 day to Bahamas from FLL. From$99! Look it up on CelebrityExcitingDeals .com posted weekly for a Tues/Wed of next week purchase.You can install it on your computer.usually new offers come up by Friday.Rare chance for Celebrity trial.My fav food line until into luxury category.

5 lbs in 4 days!

Food was yuck.

Even teenage nephews couldn't find much good food.

As you can see we have tried fourl different cruise lines.....princess Is next.

And the sky was the worst food of all.

Keep trying!

amad01, if you prefer, keep an eye on the shorter cruises from South Florida that are occasionally offered, such as Holland America's brand new Koningsdam (making her debut next month). She has a 4 day (November 9-13) sailing, r.t. from Ft. Lauderdale to the Bahamas, Half Moon Cay (private island), and day at sea. HAL is a traditional cruise experience, including the teak Promenade Deck that makes a full circle around the ship, I love that! Our only Holland America cruise was so great, it makes me wish I'd continued to book more with them. I recall wonderful service and cuisine, beautiful ship and accommodations, fresh flowers everywhere. :)

Thank you very much for posting this. I'm going to consider booking that cruise. It'll be a great way to sample the brand new ship. HAL doesn't do 4 nighters very often.

Thank you very much for posting this. I'm going to consider booking that cruise. It'll be a great way to sample the brand new ship. HAL doesn't do 4 nighters very often.

It looks like they are clumping the 4-day with a 10-day to make a 14-day. They seem to just go back to ft lauderdale mid trip and drop off/ pick up groups of people. This ship looks amazing! I'm also really thinking about this regal princess late march the price just dropped :).

It looks like they are clumping the 4-day with a 10-day to make a 14-day. They seem to just go back to ft lauderdale mid trip and drop off/ pick up groups of people. This ship looks amazing! I'm also really thinking about this regal princess late march the price just dropped :).

I cruised the Regal last year. She's a beautiful ship. Total night and day difference from the NCL Sky. If you stick with that cruise, you're going to love it. :)

Thank you very much for posting this. I'm going to consider booking that cruise. It'll be a great way to sample the brand new ship. HAL doesn't do 4 nighters very often.

You're very welcome, Paul! It is a great opportunity to experience the new Koningsdam, although with only the one sailing, I wouldn't wait too long to book! I just saw this CC Review on the Koningsdam with a nice Overview (Cabins, Dining, Activities): http://www.cruisecritic.com/v-4/reviews/review.cfm?ShipID=986.

HAL offers a nice selection of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 day Pacific Coastal cruises, in May and September each year. Yes, a 1 day cruise- from Seattle to Vancouver, B.C.! I think it's great that people can book a quick getaway, or experience a cruise for the first time on these shorter cruises. And we'll take all the ships on the West Coast that we can get! I hope that you really enjoy the Koningsdam, it sounds amazing! :cool:

Thank you for the recommendation! I have my eye on a 7 day Eastern Caribb. on Regal at the end of march that I am really considering.

If it is the 27th I will be on that one and the food looks great. There are videos on YouTube from 2 girls, sea cruisers, is their name I think. They basically show you all the food available on the Regal and they went on a 3 day cruise. Maybe you will see a difference. Just Google regal cruise videos and hopefully it will pop up...did for me.

If you are looking at short cruises, try to find a 4 or 5 night cruise that sails on weekdays. Avoid the 3 night weekend cruises.

You're very welcome, Paul! It is a great opportunity to experience the new Koningsdam, although with only the one sailing, I wouldn't wait too long to book! I just saw this CC Review on the Koningsdam with a nice Overview (Cabins, Dining, Activities): http://www.cruisecritic.com/v-4/reviews/review.cfm?ShipID=986.

 

HAL offers a nice selection of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 day Pacific Coastal cruises, in May and September each year. Yes, a 1 day cruise- from Seattle to Vancouver, B.C.! I think it's great that people can book a quick getaway, or experience a cruise for the first time on these shorter cruises. And we'll take all the ships on the West Coast that we can get! I hope that you really enjoy the Koningsdam, it sounds amazing! :cool:

That's great you have all those options with HAL on the W coast. I know your options are normally pretty limited over there. My only hang up with HAL is the fact they still allow balcony smoking. Great for smokers...not so much for non smokers. I won't be booking any more long cruises with them until that policy changes, but it most likely won't stop me from trying 4 nights on Koningsdam.

If it is the 27th I will be on that one and the food looks great. There are videos on YouTube from 2 girls, sea cruisers, is their name I think. They basically show you all the food available on the Regal and they went on a 3 day cruise. Maybe you will see a difference. Just Google regal cruise videos and hopefully it will pop up...did for me.

Where Regal shines is her buffet. It was the best buffet I've seen on any cruise ship. Also, her main dining room is more spacious and much less chaotic than other Princess ships. Entertainment is also really, really good. The tiny balconies leave a lot to be desired, but that's a non-issue if the OP isn't looking at balcony rooms.

 

 

 

On our last evening at dinner they asked my wife if she didn't like her chicken parmigiana bc she barely ate any of it (it was a frozen rubber breaded chicken patty with spaghetti noodles and basically tomato paste) but she just said she was full bc she didn't want to wait nor did she have faith anything else would be decent.

 

I was under the impression that NCL was one of the better cruise lines

If your wife would have said she didn't like the meal they would have been more then happy to get her something else.

I personally have never thought of NCL as one of the better cruise lines. Don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with them. I am going on them in June but strictly for price and they are going when and where I want to go. If you are not a partier as I am not.. You may enjoy Princess a but more. I really liked the food on our trip and it was a very relaxing atmosphere. But at 40 I was on the lower age bracket. But then that trip was to Alaska.

Try it again on a different line or different ship. I'm sure you will love it.