Don't waste your money on Norwegian Cruise Lines

My wife and I went on a 7 day cruise for our 10 year anniversary with our two children. One was 4 and one 8. No one told us that they would be seperated at the kids club so neither one of them took advantage of that perk. Our pull out bed in the ceiling was damaged so they never fixed it and both kids were forced to share a pull out couch. I booked the trip to enjoy the Great Stirrup Cay excursion but it was canceled without notice due to the Captain said rough waters were to blame. It actually was the nicest day of the trip. Thanksgiving week of 2012. I gotten food poisoning on Friday night and lasted until Sunday of the arrival day in New York. We originally booked our cruise on the Pearl because of the rock climbing wall but it was changed again without notice to the Jewel without a wall to enjoy. A vacation from hell and I am telling anyone who takes this cruise line, you would have a better time wiping your backside with the money and throwing it in the ocean than to give it to Mr. Sheehan. Customer Relations called back and said that our company policy is iron clad and they do not compensate for the weather. The cabin cleaner never reported the bed broke so that too was never on record. A real let down to save to travel on such a poor example of a cruise line.

Really? My second best cruise was on NCL. To each their own I suppose.

I am not a fan of NCL, but tens of thousands of people cruise them every day.

No cruise line is responsible for the weather.

Kids programs are divided by age groups. Did you ask about that or did you expect 2 year olds to be in with 17 year olds?

Wow. You did no research, don't know half of what you are talking about and you come here to let everyone know with your fiordt post on Cruise Critic. Kudos. In fairness, I don't think you've managed to get this new year's first 'NCL is Cruddy' post onto Cruise Critic.

My wife and I went on a 7 day cruise for our 10 year anniversary with our two children. One was 4 and one 8. No one told us that they would be seperated at the kids club so neither one of them took advantage of that perk.

You found Cruise Critic - did you never find NCL's webpage, which clearly lists the ages of the kid's club? Aren't they separated at school? Is there some reason they would have to be together?

Age Groups

Guppies: 6 mo. - 2 yrs.*

Turtles: 3 - 5 yrs.

Seals: 6 - 9 yrs.

Dolphins: 10 - 12 yrs

http://www.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise/freestyle-family-fun/kids-crew-and-teen-crew

Our pull out bed in the ceiling was damaged so they never fixed it and both kids were forced to share a pull out couch.

Did you discuss this with the front desk?

I booked the trip to enjoy the Great Stirrup Cay excursion but it was canceled without notice due to the Captain said rough waters were to blame.

That's too bad, but there's never any guarantee you will make any port, on any cruise line. The cruise line retains the right to make these decisions. If you must visit a port, take a land vacation.

I gotten food poisoning on Friday night and lasted until Sunday of the arrival day in New York.

There is no way you can know this for sure unless you have the appropriate medical tests. And somehow, I am guessing you never reported this illness to the ship's doctor. Just a hunch.

We originally booked our cruise on the Pearl because of the rock climbing wall but it was changed again without notice to the Jewel without a wall to enjoy.

So, when you showed up to board, you discovered you were sailing on the Jewel? Ships can be changed, and you agreed to this when you purchased your ticket; you just didn't read your cruise contract. I don't believe you didn't know this in advance.

A vacation from hell and I am telling anyone who takes this cruise line, you would have a better time wiping your backside with the money and throwing it in the ocean than to give it to Mr. Sheehan. Customer Relations called back and said that our company policy is iron clad and they do not compensate for the weather. .

Why in the world would a cruise line "compensate" you for weather?

I personally dislike NCL greatly, and would never cruise on this line, but feel all your complaints are ridiculous, with the exception of the broken bed. Perhaps try a land vacation the next time in the desert?

Sorry for your experience OP but the same things can happen on any cruise line if you don't do what you need to do (a little research would have helped, elevating the broken bed issue within a day of not having it fixed, etc.).

My wife and I had a great time on NCL (Star and Epic). No problems were encountered. Will definetly sail with them again!

Where is my troll-b-gone spray?

I have cruised with them once but they are not for me. Having said that we certainly did not have the "Titanic was better" experience of the OP. I agree that it is more than obvious they did little research prior to cruising. When the ship changed why didn't they opt out. Really, the entire cruise was based on the ship having a rock climbing wall??? Go to the local gym if this was supposed to be the focal point of the trip. Bed was broken. That's why the ship has maintenance people and yes they carry spare parts. Based on the lack of sympathy the OP has received it's highly unlikely we will see another post.

Sorry you experienced such a bad cruise.

I notice that this is your first cruise. Maybe cruising isn;t for you.

You should have gone to the front desk and report the bunk bed -- don't expect the cabin steward to do that for you.

During that Thanksgiving time I read where other ships also missed their private islands. It may have looked like a beautiful day to you -- but anchoring comparing to docking is a different ball game. And tendering could have been another issue.

When was there a ship change? Before your final payment? If so -- you had plenty of time to cancel your cruise without penality.

Did you need read on the NCL site the break down of the children's areas??

My wife and I went on a 7 day cruise for our 10 year anniversary with our two children. One was 4 and one 8. No one told us that they would be seperated at the kids club so neither one of them took advantage of that perk. Our pull out bed in the ceiling was damaged so they never fixed it and both kids were forced to share a pull out couch. I booked the trip to enjoy the Great Stirrup Cay excursion but it was canceled without notice due to the Captain said rough waters were to blame. It actually was the nicest day of the trip. Thanksgiving week of 2012. I gotten food poisoning on Friday night and lasted until Sunday of the arrival day in New York. We originally booked our cruise on the Pearl because of the rock climbing wall but it was changed again without notice to the Jewel without a wall to enjoy. A vacation from hell and I am telling anyone who takes this cruise line, you would have a better time wiping your backside with the money and throwing it in the ocean than to give it to Mr. Sheehan. Customer Relations called back and said that our company policy is iron clad and they do not compensate for the weather. The cabin cleaner never reported the bed broke so that too was never on record. A real let down to save to travel on such a poor example of a cruise line.

Yoy may like Carnival better. But before you cruise again, do your research. One inportant thing you would have found out is all the cruiselines divide the kids into the clubs by ages and its a shame they did not get to go. They would have had a ball. Yes, the captain makes the decisions on weather realated issues

OP, you are going to have to post this somewhere that no one knows anything about cruising if you want to get any sympathy. Not doing any research does not make your cruise failure the cruiseline's fault.

Although I think I have a better chance of being the first gay jew on Mars than having the OP read this, here goes:

Two of your biggest gripes could, can, and have happened on all cruise lines so if they are deal breakers then perhaps cruising is not for you. Ports are cancelled all the time and for a variety of reasons. Ones that require the use of tenders are most apt to being skipped if seas are not calm enough, a decision only the captain can make. Believe it or not, your safety is their first concern and he has access to information regarding seas conditions that you do not. Additionally, all cruise line separate kids out by age groups and for very good reason. A little research on your part could have saved you some stress here.

Where is my troll-b-gone spray?

Great! Now I hafta clean the monitor!

Where is my troll-b-gone spray?

Hahahahaha. This thread makes me laugh!

I would be very hesitant to sail on Norwegian, but I agree with those who say you should have done better research before you cruised.

Lack of knowledge is not the cruise line's problem. You agreed to their conditions when you bought the ticket, and you should try to do at least some basic research into cruising before you go. I'm not saying you need to read every post here--in fact, you can do a lot of research about cruising without using Cruise Critic at all. But it's still up to you to do that. And up to you to complain to the guest services desk if something isn't right.

Although I think I have a better chance of being the first gay jew on Mars than having the OP read this, here goes:

.......................

OP is reading, just not responding.;):)

Fooch 1972----

Your little green light is on so I know you are following the posts!!!!!

I agree with everyone, you did no research!

We have done ncl 3 times carnival once , RCL once and celebrity coming up. I would go on NCL in a heart beat! Love it.

Oh and I had the stomach flu a couple weeks ago and I hadn't been out of the house for a week (vacation at home time). I can only blame myself for food poisoning? Or it was the stomach flu!!!

It's amazing that people find cc when they have a complaint!!!,

Research would have been a great idea. Ports are always missed due to the weather, you should maybe try and go in the summer months instead - still not going to assure you the ports will be made. We also missed GSC, it was a bummer but we were still in the sunshine...drinking and enjoying that we were not at work. Good Luck with future vacations.

I did my first NCL cruise last April. I’ve cruised on many different lines, mostly on Celebrity and Crystal. I chose to cruise on NCL because it was less expensive (I get a discount through Harrah’s Total Rewards program) and I would be able to do more cruising. I was apprehensive when I boarded the Pearl, but was quite surprised by my experience. The cabin was smaller than I was use to, but it had great storage space. I didn’t eat in the MDR, I chose to eat in specialty restaurants - all were fantastic, but one which didn’t do it for me. The staff was also fantastic; very pleasant and efficient. Was it Celebrity, no. Was it Crystal, no. But I didn’t expect it to be, it was a different cruising experience. Was I happy that I chose NCL, you bet - I booked two more cruises with them.

Some suggestions if you are planning a cruise on any cruise line: Do research. If you have children, check to see what they have available for them to do. Check to see what the amenities are that you are interested in and ports you want to visit.

Some suggestions while you are on the cruise: If there is something wrong (like the OP’s pull down bed), report it immediately to your cabin steward and if it is not corrected in 24 hours or less, go directly to the front desk or the head of housekeeping. If you think you got food poisoning on the ship, report it immediately to the ship’s medical staff (if it is really food poisoning, they would be able to remove the food that caused it, so others don’t get it). Most of the time, it is not food poisoning, but a virus, which could have been caught off the ship or from a passenger on the ship. And most of all, remember you are on vacations and things might happen - you might miss a port, weather might be bad, but, again, you are on vacation. Relax and enjoy the good parts of your cruise, because when you only focus on the negatives, you will have a lousy vacation. Why let a few things ruin your vacation!!!!

I gotten food poisoning on Friday night and lasted until Sunday of the arrival day in New York.

If the Captain HAD stopped at the private island with rough seas, I can imagine that the OP would have a lot to say about how the lives of his family were put in danger, Captain should have known better, blah, blah, blah. Why do so many people think they know more about weather conditions and piloting a ship than the Captain does? (Schettino excluded, of course!)

We are sorry for your bad experience. The cabin problem should have been immediately resolved on board (sometimes you need to be politely assertive) or you should have received some type of compensation. As to all the other factors....this is just the nature of cruising. Missing a port because of weather, swells, wind, etc. is beyond the control of the cruise line and is part of cruising anywhere in the world with any cruise line. I am curious why you agreed to change ships and then whine about the amenities. If you were unhappy with the change you could have refused.

I used to love NCL back in the 80's and 90's sailed her 13 times , sailed SS Norway 7 times, now this is only line I will not sail on, service and food are much better on all the other lines.

Poor Schnookooms!

:o

You were the only one on the whole entire ship that got food poisoning?

That's really rotten luck.

:rolleyes: