Norwegian Sky 6/17-20 Review; Long and Detailed

[LollyMoz]

This was our first time sailing NCL which we picked primarily because of the itinerary and the fact that they had a balcony cabin available for this short cruise (for a reasonable cost). We drove into the Port of Miami from Palm Harbor (left the house at 9:15 a.m. and were parking the car by 2:20 p.m.). Embarkation was fairly simple and we were in our cabin just before 3:00 p.m. We unpacked our carryons (we brought a six pack of water and a few sodas in our carryons and breezed right through. Our checked bags…another story. More on that later. Our cabin was 0032, mid-ship on deck 10. I would likely pick a different location as there were definite chair scraping noises and you could hear the bass thumping from the music on the pool deck above. It wasn’t horrible, and sitting out on the balcony at night it was kind of like having a radio on. We did have a smoker on one side, but they weren’t on their balcony all that often; the other side left their balcony light on the entire cruise, even though they were only out there at sailaway and then again when we got back to Miami. :rolleyes: The cabin had plenty of hangers (though you can always ask your room steward for more if need be) and the storage was adequate for a short cruise. Bathroom was fine – shower is small though and we did wonder how some of the “fluffier” passengers would fare. There is shower gel and shampoo in the dispensers in the shower (no conditioner or lotion). There is hand soap by the sink. The TV is very small and the older type – I think NCL should investigate flat panel televisions as they could be much larger and more space efficient. There is a mini bar that is stocked with liquor, etc. for sale. We pulled everything out and set it all on the shelf above the tv. We then put our own water, wine and soda in there. The bed had lots of pillows (and we asked for more as DH is a major pillow hound), but the mattress is VERY firm. We prefer a softer bed so we did not find the mattress at all comfortable and we both experienced sore hips/backs. That’s very subjective though, so if you are a fan of a firmer mattress, you’ll love it. Time for our first libation of the cruise! The drink of the day was a Painkiller, which was quite delicious and went down quickly. I had read on previous posts that the price for drinks was different if you don’t get the souvenir cup, however, we were told that it was the same either way ($7.95 plus 15% tip), so we got the cup. DH had a Bahama Mama which was okay, but he liked my painkiller better. We walked around and investigated the ship a bit (loved the Outrigger Bar at the very front of deck 11. The outdoor deck there is the perfect spot to watch sailaway and was not at all crowded). Muster was at 4:30 and was fairly simple. You do not need to bring your life jacket to muster, but be aware that the muster stations are all outside on the deck and you do have to stand the entire time, so if standing is a problem, get there right at 4:30. It doesn’t begin until about 4:35 or so and only lasts ten minutes. After muster, we wandered up to the Buffet, which was pretty crowded. We found the Garden Café (aft) and got some food and a table in the shade. The food was fine – I had a little piece of chicken and DH had some Asian noodle salad that was awesome (we had two portions of that). After eating and more exploring, we went back to our cabin to find one of our checked bags had been delivered. Sweet! We did have a bottle of wine that we brought and it made it through okay. HOWEVER…. The next thing we know, there is a letter delivered to our cabin telling us that the other of our bags had been confiscated due to something suspicious being spotted on x-ray. The letter explained that I had to go down to deck 5 to retrieve the bag at which time it would be opened in the presence of ship’s security and examined for contraband. Sigh…..

I left DH napping in the cabin and went down to deck 5. There were a couple of other people ahead of me in the baggage security area and I watched as the guy behind the table would go get the suitcase, have the passenger open it, and them rummage through until they found the offending object(s). They pulled out bottles of mouthwash (legit, not filled with anything other than Scope), Pedialite, water, and of course liquor. If it was wine or champagne, the option of corkage ($15) is offered. Liquor is confiscated and returned at the end of the cruise. The legit items were obviously put back in the suitcase. When it came to my turn, I immediately pulled out the bottle of champagne that I had in there and asked for the corkage option, which had been my intention (though as in the case of the wine, I would not have been very sad if it had been overlooked). They put a sticker on the bottle, wrote up the charge, and I was on my way back to the cabin. When I turned around to leave, there had to be 20 people in line behind me! Hmmmm. ;)

 

Heading off to lunch....more later.

[asand5554]

We are on the same cruise (for the second time) in January. Looking forward to reading the rest of your review.

[LollyMoz]

We watched sailaway from our cabin. The RCL Majesty of the Seas and the Carnival Dream left port before us. We finished unpacking (gasp...I forgot the kitchen sink!) and then headed up to Deck 12. The Plantation Club (aft), offers 2-4-1 martinis from 6 – 8 p.m. It is not advertised and not mentioned in the Freestyle Daily; you just have to know (thank to Cruise Critic, we DID). Wil, one of the servers in the Plantation Club, is wonderful. We each had a classic martini (with extra olives) and they went down quite nicely. Also, there were very few people there, and there was a nice guitar player one night and a trio the next night. Definitely a pre-dinner stop to consider if you enjoy a nice martini. Then, it was on to dinner at Crossings, one of the main dining rooms (deck 5 aft). I had read some pretty scathing reviews about the food, but I have to say that I can’t agree with them. The first night we had ceviche (excellent), Caesar salad w/anchovies for my anchovy-loving DH, and a spinach/onion turnover for our appetizers. For main courses we each had the lobster/red snapper option. The portions weren’t huge, but if you wanted seconds or more of anything, you had only to ask. The lobster didn’t come with drawn butter, but we asked and our server brought as much as we wanted. Food was warm and served promptly. Service was very good. For dessert I had chocolate ice cream and DH had sherbet and cream puffs. As for attire, NCL asks that no shorts be worn in the dining room and we adhered to that. I would say that probably 40-50% of the people dining there that night had on shorts, however. Some people take the “freestyle” mode to the extreme and one of the tables near ours had obviously just come from the pool deck as their beach towels were draped over the back of their chairs. Oh well, at least they weren't sitting at the dinner table in their actual bathing suits.

After dinner we headed back to our cabin to relax and enjoy the balcony breezes. We met our room steward, Errol, who was very friendly and helpful. We asked for two ice buckets each night and he was more than happy to oblige. He chatted with us and asked how our first day had gone, etc. Actually, I do have to say that every staff member we encountered, from the initial, enthusiastic greeting when boarding, to front desk staff, to stewards in the hallways, we encountered nothing but smiles and friendliness. Definitely a plus! Oh, another thing about the location of the cabin, on this particular ship there are no mid-ship elevators, so it was a bit of a walk either way to the elevators.

Another brief note about the first night – there was a bit of motion as there were some sea swells (only the first night though, the rest was calm sailing). The front desk will give you motion sickness medication if you ask – no need to buy or bring unless you think you’ll really need a lot. I did see some folks with patches on, but really it wasn’t bad. We hit the shops at one point and while I was checking out, a lady came up and asked the sales clerk if they sold Dramamine. He said "yes" and as he was mentally racking up another sale, I promptly squashed that idea as I told the nice lady that they could simply pop down to the front desk and obtain them for free. Good thing I was spending money! :rolleyes:

Day 2

I had fallen asleep the night before on the balcony, listening to the wavelets as the ship cut through the water. I think I went in to bed around 1:00 a.m. (music from pool deck ended at 11:00 and it was quiet from then on). As I mentioned earlier, the bed is FIRM as in just lie down on a concete slab and be done with it, firm. I tossed and turned quite a bit and my hips were sore. But, hey, at 8:15, the phone rang and our room service was delivered shortly thereafter (note to self, remember to put out hang tag the night before. I discovered that the room service personnel are not equipped with mental telepathy and when I forgot the next two mornings to put out my hang tag, I was sorely disappointed). We got fresh sliced fruit, coffee and tea, grapefruit juice, and buttered toast with jam. Very good. Somewhere in the vicinity of 9:30-10:00 we went down to deck 3 to catch a tender to Great Stirrup Cay. There were two tenders and the wait wasn’t long at all. The tender was not overly crowded, and the ride in was fine – not choppy at all. We found a lounge chair, got a beverage and found a spot in the water. The water, by the way, is gorgeous! I could have stayed there all day. Finally, we meandered to the water’s edge, ordered a beverage (gotta love those Painkillers), grabbed a couple of low chairs that were there in the surf, and sat down to people watch. Definitely use sunscreen – we saw lots of “lobsters” out there that day and I’m sure they were hurting for the rest of the cruise. We relaxed for a couple of hours, and about lunch time debated as to whether or not we wanted to eat the BBQ offered on the island, or head back to the ship. I was in favor of the BBQ and staying on the beach, so of course we hustled back to the ship, as I stared longingly at people staggering past us with heaping plates of (what looked like) delish food. Someone else will have to address the quality of food on GSC, but if looks or smell were indicative, then it was pretty awesome. We waited about ten minutes before the tender took off, but again, it was not crowded, nor choppy. We deposited our beach bag in our cabin and made our way to the buffet. I had a lemon roasted chicken with a mole sauce that was fabulous, roasted green beans w/mushrooms, and a sliver of shepherd’s pie. Everything was great! DH had meatloaf with mushroom gravy that he really liked as well. We grabbed some very fresh fruit for dessert (the pineapple was particularly sweet and juicy).

Disregarding the old adage that one should not swim for 30 minutes after stuffing oneself, we waddled off to the pool to soak and get some sun. We found a lounge chair easily (everyone was enjoying the BBQ and beach on GSC). A quick side note about us – our kids are grown and while we love our kids and grandkids, if there is an option for an “adults only” swim area, we will always choose that, simply for the sake of peace and quiet and not being splashed or Marco/Poloed. So we were quite happy to see that there was an adults only pool and hot tub on the Sky (denoted by obvious signage on both)! Yippeee, we thought. The “free for all” pool was larger, right next to the adults pool, and there were three other hot tubs that were open to everyone. So imagine our surprise (said with tongue firmly planted in cheek) when a stream of people decidedly and markedly under the age of “children” came jumping into the adults only pool. Really??? Well, DH is not one to sit quietly for that, and he shooed a couple of them out before going to the staff for assistance. Now, on Princess, we have not really seen rules like these enforced, so we were quite pleased when an officer promptly came over to the pool and told the kids that they were free to swim in the other pool, but that this one is for adults only. The parents, who were sitting poolside watching their little darlings splash about, looked on with chagrin and pretended not to know who these offending little scoundrels were. After swimming about in the now-adults-only pool, we dried off in the sun for a bit before heading back to the cabin. One of life’s greatest pleasures has to be a shower after being in the salt water and sun all day. It took a while for the shower to figure out that I didn’t want to be scalded to death, but finally I was able to have a nice, cool, refreshing shower that was amazing. Water pressure was okay as far as I was concerned, though DH thought it was more like having a “squirrel relieve itself on his head.” That DH…such a jokester! And how would he know anyway…am I right? :D

[LollyMoz]

While I was in the shower, DH popped down to the Crossings dining room, and gave them our legal, corkage-paid champagne, to chill before dinner. When he got back, he took his turn arguing water temp with our shower, and after a glass of wine on the balcony, we both felt duly compelled to investigate the inside of our eyelids for cracks. I’m pleased to report that nary a one was found.

Ah, it’s been a couple of hours…must be time to eat…after, of course, our nightly visit to Wil the Great at Plantation. We tried a couple of different martinis and decided that we like the old standby classic the best. Off we went to Crossings for dinner. DH made nice with the wonderful Celeste who was at the main hostess stand at Crossings, and each night we got a wonderful window-side table for two. Our champagne was brought promptly and we enjoyed a nice, chilled glass while looking at the wake disappearing behind the ship. For our appetizers, we ordered the spicy tortilla soup (was so good that I ordered two), and Caesar salad (yes, those anchovies were present and accounted for). DH had tortellini and I had lemon roasted chicken. We had ice cream and sherbet for dessert again. After dinner we went to see the comedian Bert Anderson who was funny and kept his show rated PG so the kids on board could enjoy the fun. Did I mention that there were 516 kids on this particular sailing? After the comedian, we attended the White Party poolside, which was fun and lively. Then we went to Outrigger and listened to some karaoke. Notice I said “listened to” and not “participated in.” I don’t sing. I mean, I don’t even sing in church because I don’t want to scare God. Not everyone, however, shares my propensity for sparing other people’s ears… if you catch my drift. It’s all good and we had lots of fun. The crowd was very light indeed that night. We got back to the room somewhere around midnight or so (I think…darn those martinis and the legal, corkage paid champagne). :p Again, the balcony called and I was able to drift off under the stars. Ah, life aboard a cruise ship. So darn difficult! ;)

[jdvmd]

Enjoying your review so far! We sailed on the Sky last Labor Day weekend and had a great time. The staff, food, activities and ports were wonderful!

[collectingcoke]

Lollymoz I am so enjoying your review.

[LollyMoz]

Day 3 - Nassau

Rain actually chased me inside the night before and I snuggled up on the concrete slab..ahem, I mean bed for a few hours of tossing and turning. Since I had been waylaid by too much fun the night before and found my duly-completed room service hang tag right on the desk where it would do us no good at all, we made our way to the buffet for breakfast. We were docked right next to the Behemoth, oh no, I mean Oasis of the Seas (which made the Sky look like a row boat) and the Carnival Dream. The Carnival Inspiration was just leaving as we were docking. The buffet was fine – we had standard breakfast fare of eggs, bacon, grits, etc. I did opt for the $3.50 fresh squeezed juice and if I had that little decision to make over again, I would most assuredly pass. Not that it wasn’t good, but I live in Florida and fresh squeezed juice is not the novelty to me that it might be to someone from say, Idaho. DH got in the hot tub for a bit and then we made our way downstairs to get ready for our excursion to Blue Lagoon (beach day).

We met our group down on the pier at 9:50 and by 10:10 were walking to the ferry that would take us over to Blue Lagoon/Dolphin Encounter (about a 20 minute ride). I do highly recommend this day. While we did not splurge for the “swim with the dolphins” portion, anyone on the island can walk through the exhibits and see the sea lions, the dolphins, etc. You can watch the groups who HAVE paid for this and squirm enviously as they enjoy their dolphin interactions.

The rest of the island is a great location for both families and couples. There are a plethora of hammocks, quiet areas tucked away (be sure to explore the entire place), private beaches, floating/bouncing/climbing toys, coconut bowling, ping pong, volleyball, etc. etc. There is a beach bar and the BBQ lunch is included. We brought our own snorkeling gear and snorkeled a bit. We saw a couple of barracuda including a bunch of babies. There were a few colorful fish, but frankly, it wasn’t the best snorkeling ever. It was overcast for most of the day and you know how that goes – you don’t think you need sunscreen, but alas, you DO. I definitely got a bit too much sun and as I write this, am beginning to peel on my nose. Very attractive.

Star Sighting: We went back on the final ferry at 4:00 (say that ten times real fast) and elected to sit on the upper level at the very back of the boat. Soon, camera men, sound techs, directors, production assistants, lighting guys and who knows who else came tromping up the stairs lugging all the paraphernalia needed for filming something. What could it be? Real Housewives of Norwegian? Tori and Dean go to the Bahamas??? No, indeed the T.O. Show was filming and the next thing you know, Terrell Owens is standing next to me and I am leaning over my husband’s lap to avoid being in the shot, as they film T.O. talking to his girlfriend about their day at the Dolphin Encounter. I hadn’t even known they were on our cruise, but as we left the ferry, we walked back behind their group and of course from then on, saw them several more times during the remainder of our cruise. Weird how that happens.

We did the scalding dance with our shower (secret: leave it on once you have the temp set and let your spouse get in right after you). We showered and napped and had a glass of wine on the balcony. The other three ships had taken off and we were the last in port. As we were standing at the balcony railing, we looked down and saw two good sized sharks swimming about 20 yards from the boat. Yikes. And before you ask, yes, they were definitely sharks, not dolphin. Very easy to tell the difference. We finished our wine and celebrated the fact that we were not actually swimming down there with said sharks, before heading down to the Palace (mid-ship main dining room) for dinner. We had escargot…well, I had escargot and hubby had three, yes, three orders of escargot. They were quite good, in his defense. We had a tomato/mozzarella salad and I had the English Strip Loin (prime rib sliced thin) and he had a sirloin steak (came out pretty rare but he didn’t send it back). For dessert it was German chocolate cake and warm coconut soufflé. It was raining pretty heavily at that point so we walked around the shops one last time, breezed through the smoky casino (we don’t gamble, so can’t comment on that), and went to the final show which was a variety show, a second performance (different act however) by the comedian, and a very cute skit called Fountains that was put on by members of the crew. I won’t spoil it for you, but do see it if you get a chance. You’ll laugh.

We were both exhausted, so we stumbled back to the cabin, and watched a movie. I woke up at 2:00 and went out to the balcony to see the moon shining on the water and the RCL Majesty of the Seas sailing on our port side. I stayed up till about 3:30 and then crawled back onto the slab for a few hours rest.

We elected to carry our bags off and after packing, went to the Palace DR for breakfast, which was fine. We left the room right at 9:00 a.m. and by 9:20 were pulling out of the Port on our way back to Palm Harbor.

All in all – great cruise. Too short by at least a day. Too much driving and packing/unpacking for that length of time. Next time would elect an itinerary of at least one more day.

NCL is a good line with a younger demographic. We don’t normally sail when school is out of session, and don’t normally encounter as many families as we did this time around. There’s no such thing as a “bad” cruise, unless of course you are in the middle of the Baltic Sea in a hurricane. So yes, we’d sail NCL again, if the right itinerary/price came along.

I’m happy to answer any questions – fire away!! :)

[mombg20062009]

I was on the same sailing as you. I'll try to post a detailed review later, but I agree with you on the room. We were in room 0014- just down the hall from you. Next time, I wouldn't get a room on the 10th deck. We could also hear the bass from the music and we could hear weights being dropped from the exercise room 6am-11pm each day.

[david_sobe]

Thanks for the great review

I return to the Sky in October. I love to learn something from a review. I see that NCL now charges the same price for drinks with or without the plastic cup. I guess we here and Cruise Critic taught too many that valuble lesson to save $2.25 on every drink.

It is a shame though.

[HammerDog]

Great review!!

 

We (My new wife to be and I) will be going on this cruise this coming Monday for our honeymoon. Thanks for the write up.

[LollyMoz]

Great review!!

 

We (My new wife to be and I) will be going on this cruise this coming Monday for our honeymoon. Thanks for the write up.

 

Congratulations on your upcoming marriage and enjoy your honeymoon! You'll have a great time.

[geegee1]

Thanks for the review. Just sent my wife an email to remind us about putting out the room service tag the night before for breakfast.

[sparks1093]

Thanks for the great review

I return to the Sky in October. I love to learn something from a review. I see that NCL now charges the same price for drinks with or without the plastic cup. I guess we here and Cruise Critic taught too many that valuble lesson to save $2.25 on every drink.

It is a shame though.

 

I suspect that's only for the DoD where the price is the same regardless. I would still ask for a regular mixed drink in a regular glass just to be sure.

 

OP, thanks for the review!

[Cruiser303!]

I really enjoyed reading your review - very nicely written plus you had me laughing out loud a few times (the squirrel and the slab). Thank you!:)

[kcfoxy]

I love firm beds but sympathized/laughed with your experiences on the slab. It's too late now, but I believe the Sky, just like the Spirit, gives you the option of asking your cabin steward for a foam mattress topper to help just a bit...

 

Hilarious, newsy and fun review...felt like I was there, and loved the food details. We'll be trying out the Sky come this October, expecting less kiddos of course ;)

[HammerDog]

LollyMoz, what would be your suggestion on a formal dining nite as far as restaurant?

Cagney's or LeBistro

[LollyMoz]

LollyMoz, what would be your suggestion on a formal dining nite as far as restaurant?

Cagney's or LeBistro

 

I would personally vote for Cagney's, but then we aren't big French food fans. But I'm sure either one would be fabulous. Enjoy!

[cat2610]

Great review. Appreciated the sense of humor. We're planning a trip in Oct. and you alleviated some of my fears. I'd read some of the negative reviews, but I have to wonder if some people aren't just too picky. We haven't sailed on Norwegian in several years. They used to do a midnight chocolate buffet. I haven't seen that mentioned lately. Has that gone by the way side?

[spacepotatoes]

Great review. Appreciated the sense of humor. We're planning a trip in Oct. and you alleviated some of my fears. I'd read some of the negative reviews, but I have to wonder if some people aren't just too picky. We haven't sailed on Norwegian in several years. They used to do a midnight chocolate buffet. I haven't seen that mentioned lately. Has that gone by the way side?

 

I have seen it mentioned in some of the more detailed reviews, so I think they are still doing it. But it doesn't happen on these shorter sailings so if you're specifically looking for it on the Sky, that's why you're not seeing it mentioned.