Sky-tastic! Review of our May Cruise

[coffeecat]

Hey CC,

 

I wrote this review when we got back from the Sky last spring and I never posted it. Sorry!!! I have been reading some reviews of the Sky since then and thought that some may find my review helpful (although probably not as entertaining as Terry's or Coka's reviews!).

 

My husband and I went on this cruise together and are in our mid-thirties(we are DINKS!). Since our sailing, my husband's parents and his aunt and uncle have also been on the Sky. The parents were on a four day sailing in an owner's suite (August) and the aunt/uncle were on a three day sailing in a balcony (November). All were completely thrilled with their vacations and they also loved the Sky, food, service, and of course, weather.

 

Here goes....

 

Pre-Cruise: We flew to Miami the day before our 4 day trip. Stayed at the Doubletree Surfcomber with rewards points. Nice hotel. It was the Annual Memorial Day weekend Hip-hop Conference and South Beach was party central for sure. Caught a taxi for about $15-20 to the pier the next day.

 

Embarkation: After going through the metal detector, we were escorted to the VIP check-in area. Wow! There was coffee, juice, finger sandwiches, and pastries. Our concierge Virginia met us and escorted us directly onto the ship and to Cagney’s. The new menu (same daily) had been implemented and through the course of the cruise we tried just about everything! It was fantastic.

 

Ports: Stayed on the boat at GSC and Freeport as we just wanted to lay low and relax. Had been to GSC previously and it was a nice beach. My only comparison is to Labadee a couple years ago on a Royal Caribbean cruise. Labadee was larger and was more developed but GSC is still a nice stop for sure. Some of the folks we met on board spent the day at GSC and they came back with excellent reports of a good time being had by all.

 

In Nassau we booked the Atlantis excursion with the water park. We met our tour at 9 and arrived in Atlantis at 10:30. In retrospect we would have gotten our wristbands and then caught a cab directly to the hotel as the harbor cruise took a long time. My first impression was that this would be a great place to spend a few days on a land vacation! It was like Vegas but on a tropical Island. The water park was fun but DH lost our licenses, room keys, a credit card, and some cash on one of the rides! Yikes!

We went to the Atlantis lost-and-found and the staff there was awful. I guess we were just used to the excellent and helpful folks aboard the Sky that we were dismayed by this one employee's rudeness. Yes, we know we were careless with our items and it was our own fault and I am sure the lady at Atlantis thought the same thing BUT we had to ask her to fill out a report, she wouldn’t give us a copy and the whole time she rolled her eyes and hemmed and hawed and so forth. A few people on the ship also said that they encountered not so friendly staff at the Atlantis. We did, however, have a couple of lifeguards in the facility help us look for our items which was very kind of them.

 

So what happens when you lose everything in a foreign country and you need to get back on a ship? Long story short, we were able to get through port security and were escorted back to the boat by a Bahamian port authority officer (both the port agent checking ID and our escort were very kind and professional-despite probably thinking we were idiots!) and answered a series of questions (this must be one of the reasons that photos of passengers are taken) and were allowed back on board. At this time, the escort left the ship. Take-home point: we’ll probably each keep our own money/ids/cards etc. that way if we lose one set we will still have something to buy the requisite island souveniers! I think NCL is still allowing alternative ID for cruises to the Bahamas but without our passports as a back up it would have been interesting trying to get home. It was 1:45 when we got back on the ship and we went to Cagney’s. Saint Virginia the concierge arrived and offered to make new room keys for us which arrived during lunch then assisted us in making phone calls/internet to cancel our credit card. She was so helpful and we were so happy to have her! It was not the most fun experience losing our items but it went smoothly thanks to NCL.

 

Food: Ate at Le Bistro (amazing-elegant restaurant with delicious food and impeccable service), Crossings on two nights, and the buffet the last night. Food was great! I do think the edge goes to the pay restaurants but the other food was really good. When booking with NCL just compare overall cruise prices then add in what you think you will pay if eating at specialty restaurants to have a better idea. They are so worth it in my opinion.

 

The Sky: Very beautiful ship. She had just come out of dry-dock a week or two earlier and she was spotless. Per the staff, they cleaned, painted, replaced furniture, and changed out the carpets. We had previously sailed on the Pearl and my husband prefered that ship-he liked that it was newer, larger and had sushi which he loves. I loved them both. Hey, I am on a cruise afterall! I wouldn’t hesitate to book another trip on the Sky. All staff that we encountered throughout the ship were very friendly and clearly worked very hard.

 

Room: Stayed in an AB Aft/stern suite. What a great room with a beautiful balcony. The last three nights we had our butler Rojin-the-amazing set up veggies/fruit/chips/cheese in our room at 5 pm (the second night he just showed up without us even asking and set it up for us! It was great!). People that we had met on board came to our cabin and we just had a great time hanging out on the balcony and grazing on the snacks before dinner. Again, the coffee was scrumptious and the bed was ridiculously comfortable. Our room steward Oswald did a great job as well.

 

Entertainment: Spent a fair amount of time at the Casino which, even though we left with less money, was a lot of fun. No shows but we did attend The Quest! Very fun but don't bring your kids!

 

Debarkation: Straight off the ship thanks to Virginia and about 30 minutes to get through customs. Stayed at the Hilton Bentley in South Beach for one night which is a very nice hotel with a very nice beach. Ate at the best Sushi place ever, Soji, which was about a 5 minute walk from the hotel.

 

Why we love NCL: I am completely sold on NCL and Freestyle. There is a really good mix of passengers of all ages and backgrounds. The other passengers were friendly and the kids were really well behaved and seemed like they were having a ball! We like the relaxed dress code and the many delicious dining options. It was fun to meet new people during the day and then all head to dinner whenever. This flexibility was great. The staff were hard-working and very friendly. They seemed completely invested in making sure all the guests had a good time. Thank you Norwegian for the memorable vacation.

 

I’d be happy to answer any questions!

 

Coffeecat