Trying to see if NCL is a good fit

My hubby (62) and I (55) went on Celebrity Reflection for out 1st cruise, just 2 years ago and while we enjoyed it and thought the ship was beautiful, we kinda got bored by the end of the week. Also it might have been a little more dressier than what we were use to as well. I am wanting to try a different line for a weeks trip with our adult children (daughter 30 and son 26) and their spouses in May 2019. I'm thinking any Caribbean cruise would work great, as none of them have been on ANY cruise. None of us are HUGE party animals, lol but I also don't think we want to spend our time at art auctions. So I guess what I'm asking is.....does NCL have enough variety to keep things fun without it being on a HUGE megaship? Any info would be much appreciated [emoji4]

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Left the Escape yesterday. There were lots of low key bars, high energy shows, miscellaneous activities and a lot of good dining with little to no forced dress up. I think you could make it work fine if you don't mind some crowding at the buffet (you will end up there sometimes unless you do all up charge restaurants) and the unnatural perfume smell that wafts up through the atrium holes (sorry, I can't call them anything else) from the casino. It masks the smoke, but after a few days, it is worse. If you are not smell sensitive, it's ok.

NCL can be many things to many people but choosing the right ship and stateroom category is VERY important.

Some smaller ships are a very different experience vs the larger ships. Interior vs suite can be a world of difference. Choosing the right ship and the right accommodations/promos is probably more important than choosing the cruise line

I only have experience on one of the NCL mega ships, the Epic, but will be sailing the Dawn in five weeks. I'm not a fan of the large crowds, but there was plenty to see, do and eat on the Epic. I wasn't a big fan of having to make reservations for most of it though. I do like more casual attire during my cruises, and was happy that we really didn't need to get dressed up, even for the MDR.

It appears that in May of 2019, NCL is only offering Caribbean cruises out of Miami on the Breakaway. If you don't wish to sail on a ship that large, you'll have to try one of the other cruise lines anyway.

I'm 75 and my wife is 66. We were on the Escape this past December, and loved it Lots to do,the food was very good, even in the MDR. Last May we were on the Jewel in Alaska, and loved that too. In fact, that cruise led us to book the Escape.Try it, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised, as we were.

We have done Breakaway, Gem and Dawn. Traveling with teens, I prefer the Breakaway because of all the activities for the kids, such as water slides, ropes course, rock climbing wall, sports court. The pool area is very crowded so it is not really a “lounge by the pool” vacation for us. They do have VIBE that you can purchase a pass to, as well as Spice H2O (free) that is adult only. There are no pools at either place but Spice H2O does have a water feature you can cool off in. Always lots of events going on throughout the ship. You need reservations for all the shows (or can show up and hope all reservations are not taken). The Gem and the Dawn had pool area more conducive to lounging and different shows every night which I enjoyed. No reservations needed. Again, always events going on but a lot less crowded. If I was cruising without kids my choice would be the Gem. The dress code on all of them is very lax.

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My hubby (62) and I (55) went on Celebrity Reflection for out 1st cruise, just 2 years ago and while we enjoyed it and thought the ship was beautiful, we kinda got bored by the end of the week. Also it might have been a little more dressier than what we were use to as well. I am wanting to try a different line for a weeks trip with our adult children (daughter 30 and son 26) and their spouses in May 2019. I'm thinking any Caribbean cruise would work great, as none of them have been on ANY cruise. None of us are HUGE party animals, lol but I also don't think we want to spend our time at art auctions. So I guess what I'm asking is.....does NCL have enough variety to keep things fun without it being on a HUGE megaship? Any info would be much appreciated [emoji4]

 

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Pick a cruise with a lot of ports so you're not reliant on the ship.

I love Celebrity and very much like NCL, but in some reason we enjoyed more Jewel class than Breakaway. Less crowded, easier to reach all points and yes, different shows with no reservations needed in theater

NCL caters to your demograohic. And the mean age of the passengers are late 50s. We like the big ships like the Escape since they have more venues to experience different entertainment at night.

NCL Freestyle cruising means you can do what you want, when you want. You’re on vacation. I need to be shamed into a suit and tie for dinner (which you wouldn’t do at home) when a polo shirt and jeans are perfectly acceptable in a fine dining restaurant.

I think your daughter and son might prefer the bigger ships (Escape, Getaway, Breakaway, and the new Bliss). I have been on the Escape twice, the Getaway once as well as the Jade and have a cruise on the Dawn in several weeks. I’m 64 and love NCL...switched from RCCL several years ago. I tend to like to have more options which is what the mega ships have. Chose the smaller one due to itinerary. Don’t think you can go wrong with whatever you decide! Have fun!

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DW and I are mid 60's and absolutely loved the Escape! It was our best cruise to date.

With NCL perks (pick 2) , we choose Drinks and Specialty Dining ( you get 3 of them.

Waterfront is great for enjoying a stroll, drinks, dining.

Comedy, shows, Howl at the Moon ( dueling piano's).

We are 62 and 59 and love NCL. The entertainment is really great. I liked the Escape a lot, but sometimes the smaller ships are less crowded and more fun. We were on the Sky and the Dawn and will be on the Sun in March. I think you will be happy with NCL.

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Based on your list of likes and dislikes, I beleve the Breakaway class ships would be well suited to your profile. We are roughly the same age and love the NCL free style concept. Structure, formality and pretentiousness are not our cup of tea.

I am 29, and have sailed on Princess (two 12 day cruises), RCCL, and NCL. I assume Princess is similar to Celebrity - I was on Princess in my early twenties - and I still had a BLAST because it was a free vacation and I have a lot of fun with my siblings, we are the type of people that would be up late dancing in a club that only had 10 people in it. I add this because knowing a little bit of who I am is important since despite being the same age as your children I am may be different since I am an extreme extrovert and a drinker.

I started cruising NCL because of how they cater to solos. I think this has increased their nightlife and made them more desirable to younger cruisers. On the NCL Escape there were lots of solos my age and it definitely felt young without feeling like children were everywhere. There was SO much to do. I enjoyed my time but really missed my family. I kept thinking how much fun everything would have been with them.

I sailed on the NCL Dawn a few months after that. It was a last minute amazing deal and a very different experience for me but I still enjoyed it a lot. I probably will go back to the more "mega ships" though. Like the Escape I met a bunch of solos who were about my age - we actually all connected on here right before the cruise and the five of us were quite the crew. We made more friends as the 5 days went on and had a last night dinner with maybe 15 people who with the exception of a few had never met before the trip. Even though there was a lot less to do on the ship it was still quite lively (sailed from New Orleans so idk if that could affect it). The GLOW party was less of a hit but I definitely think that there was still quite a lively crowd on the ship.

I also enjoyed my trip on RCCL. I was on Freedom of the Seas I think it was an 8 day trip. Out of all my cruises this is the one I remember least - take that with it what you want.

Sailed on Reflection twice. Loved both sailings. But it does tend to get boring, as you stated. Im 62 and my lady is 59. Been on Getaway and Escape. Going back on Getaway this summer and next January. My lady is taking her boys on a Breakaway Baltic this June. Needless to say you will like NCL as we do

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I would say, go for it, the NCL, and then by the end of the cruise you can decide if NCL is for you or not.

We went on our first NCL in 2006 with an open mind (after, RCCL, Princess and Hurtigruten) and look what happened - we are hooked on the NCL product. We are easy-going 70 and 59.

As for the Art Auctions, we always get invites for them, but it's off to the bin they go, except we save an envelope to store the receipts!

I have sailed on NCL six times but always on the mid-size ships, not the mega ships. I don't have much experience with other lines but am going with Royal Caribbean and Princess this year. I think people are right and your children would probably enjoy the big ones more because there are more amenities although any of the NCL ships I've been on had lots of night life options. As well, I would pick a cruise with only a couple of sea days so there will be lots of opportunities for exciting excursions. When it's just yourself and your husband, you might take a look at the Celestial Crystal Cruise Around Cuba. Fantastic excursions are included as are drinks and the service was wonderful. An older, smaller ship but one of the best cruises I have been on.

So much AMAZING information from everyone!!!! Thank u so much!!! We are not 100% set on May 2019.....it was just a month that popped into my head!!! Lol All I know for certain is I want to go before school let's out for the summer and I'd like to avoid spring break, if at all possible 😉

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We have been on 5 of the major lines and NCL is our favorite. We are in the same age range as you are and have twin sons age 34 who travel with us on occasion. We all love NCL because of the relaxed atmosphere and never get bored. We have our different interest and find things to keep us busy. Give it a try. I think you just may find it is what you are looking for.

I think you'll enjoy NCL. We certainly do, and we're in our early 60s but started with NCL 8 or 9 years ago.

I think everyone covered most of the details. I'll point out a couple of things that are different from Celebrity:

1. When you board, go to either 0'Sheehan's pub or the main dining room that is open for lunch on embarkation day. While a lot of cruise lines force you into the buffet for lunch, you can enjoy a sit down meal with just the members of your family. It will give you an idea of what the main dining room food is like (we think it is fine and eat there most nights ... it is not true that you have to pay for specialty dinners each night).

2. NCL usually has a sail away party up on the pool deck that is a insight into the fun for the upcoming cruise. After being let into your cabins, wander up there around 4 PM and watch it get started.

3. When all of you decide to go to dinner just go to one of the main dining rooms. All of them have the same menu that night. We always prefer the aft dining room. I think it has a dress code .... no shorts. Yeah, that's it, for every night. Leave the ties and sportcoats at home. Just like at a restaurant on land, they will seat you at a table with your family. You may have to wait 10 minutes for a table of six, but they give you a pager if there is a wait.

4. If they have the "Howl at the Moon" dueling piano show it is usually very good. The musicians take requests, and everyone sings along. It's in a bar, so usually people start joining in.

I recommend allowing each couple to have unscheduled "couple time" as well, and don't over-schedule things if you can help it. If you are the commando style planner, and they can go with the flow, that's fine, but when cruising with others some will want to do one thing, and others another ... and that's great for us.You guys will have a blast!

I think you'll enjoy NCL. We certainly do, and we're in our early 60s but started with NCL 8 or 9 years ago.

 

I think everyone covered most of the details. I'll point out a couple of things that are different from Celebrity:

 

1. When you board, go to either 0'Sheehan's pub or the main dining room that is open for lunch on embarkation day. While a lot of cruise lines force you into the buffet for lunch, you can enjoy a sit down meal with just the members of your family. It will give you an idea of what the main dining room food is like (we think it is fine and eat there most nights ... it is not true that you have to pay for specialty dinners each night).

2. NCL usually has a sail away party up on the pool deck that is a insight into the fun for the upcoming cruise. After being let into your cabins, wander up there around 4 PM and watch it get started.

3. When all of you decide to go to dinner just go to one of the main dining rooms. All of them have the same menu that night. We always prefer the aft dining room. I think it has a dress code .... no shorts. Yeah, that's it, for every night. Leave the ties and sportcoats at home. Just like at a restaurant on land, they will seat you at a table with your family. You may have to wait 10 minutes for a table of six, but they give you a pager if there is a wait.

4. If they have the "Howl at the Moon" dueling piano show it is usually very good. The musicians take requests, and everyone sings along. It's in a bar, so usually people start joining in.

 

I recommend allowing each couple to have unscheduled "couple time" as well, and don't over-schedule things if you can help it. If you are the commando style planner, and they can go with the flow, that's fine, but when cruising with others some will want to do one thing, and others another ... and that's great for us.You guys will have a blast!

More wonderful information......thank you!!!! We've pretty much told the kids to do their own thing but that maybe we can have dinners together. Both of them live in NC, as did we, until we recently moved to Ohio. This is the1st time I've been so far away and I admit, I miss them! 😉

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We we're RCL loyalists for awhile but have mainly cruised NCL the past few years. We did do the Harmony over Thanksgiving last year and it made me realize we are NCL people. For us, it feels like a more relaxed experience. And we love that there is no pressure to dress up for dinner.

We have only been on one small NCL ship. We booked the Sun last minute for spring break a few years ago. Didn't love it. Just not enough to keep us engaged. We like activity and things to do. Sun failed in that regard. We are Mega ship people. If you want lots of activity and options, the small ships probably aren't going to please.

Getting ready for a second cruise on the Escape for spring break. It's our favorite ship so far. Just love everything about it, especially bellying up to the mojito bar ;)

More wonderful information......thank you!!!! We've pretty much told the kids to do their own thing but that maybe we can have dinners together. Both of them live in NC, as did we, until we recently moved to Ohio. This is the1st time I've been so far away and I admit, I miss them! 😉

I hear that! We live in California and our kids moved to Kansas and New York. :(

I hear that! We live in California and our kids moved to Kansas and New York. :(

I feel ur pain! It's so hard to watch them fly the nest but at the same time so wonderful to see them become (hopefully) kind hearted, productive adults!!!! Can u tell there's a bit of pride in this Mama Bear??? Lol

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I was wondering........do y'all think it's possible to get 3 rooms within a close proximity of each other? Also.....what is this Haven room I've read about and can it sleep 6 comfotably?

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