What will we love about NCL?

[pinma]

We've cruised celebrity and RCL and are looking at doing an NCL cruise. Every cruise line has it's strengths. I need to 'sell' NCL to the hubby and teen both of whom think it won't be 'fancy' enough. For DH that means lack of crowds and lack of a party atmosphere. For the teen than means formal dining experiences and shows that feel grown up but that he still enjoys.

[my_crib_too]

NCL is not fancy. It is best described as casual or very casual. If your husband and teen feel that fancy is a requirement for a great vacation, NCL may not be a great choice. NCL is not for everyone.

[dalgirl]

Your description of your family's likes will make NCL a tough sell for you - many who have cruised on other lines have returned saying that the food is not as good as say RCL or Celebrity. They did not really like the freestyle casual dining - many passengers enjoy having the same dinner time, in the same restaurant, at the same table, with the same tablemates and wait staff. And although there are "dress up or not" evenings where you do see people dressed up, they mix with fellow passengers running around in shorts and flip-flops who may have just dined in the buffet.

 

I can tell you from my personal viewpoint: I love the casual dining, the food is just fine and can be delicious, and being able to plan my activities and fit in dinner when I choose can't be beat.

 

You have to be somewhat open minded, casual and flexible to enjoy an NCL cruise - it is a fun atmosphere, (think beach vacation, but NOT spring break). An idea: take a short cruise - my suggestion a 4 day cruise to "try it out." Otherwise, if you win the day on a longer cruise and the cruise is not to their liking, you may never hear the end of it;)

[CleoV]

Just got off Epic, and if I were traveling with a teen, I'd make that ship my NCL choice. LOADS of great shows a teen will enjoy, and you can be as 'fancy' as you like.

 

We love to dress up and never felt 'over dressed' in spite of the somewhat more casual nature of NCL.

 

We ate only at the signature restaurants (with one night at the main dining room), since we do like the more formal, upscale experience when cruising, and would certainly say they compare favorably with, say, Celebrity Eclipse.

 

I had the same questions you have about the party atomosphere, the 'special' feeling of being on an upscale ship, and the ability to get away from the crowds on a big ship, but I felt all of those concerns were well met on Epic. It's big, no doubt about it, but the only place that felt crowded was the pool deck, and we've found that to be the case on any ship geared toward families.

[che5904]

We've cruised celebrity and RCL and are looking at doing an NCL cruise. Every cruise line has it's strengths. I need to 'sell' NCL to the hubby and teen both of whom think it won't be 'fancy' enough. For DH that means lack of crowds and lack of a party atmosphere. For the teen than means formal dining experiences and shows that feel grown up but that he still enjoys.

 

I'm not really sure what fancy has to do with crowds or lack of partying. And if formal evenings for all passengers on board is what makes your teen feel grown up. I think NCL will be a disappointment. Your teen can still dress up all fancy if they choose, thats the joy of NCL but not expect it from fellow cruisers (some do, some don't).

 

I've never cruised on other lines, but from all of my research and reading of the mainstream lines, NCL is about the closest to life as most live it.

 

I feel the strengths of NCL is the fact that no one is tellling you what, when, where and how to enjoy your vacation. The choice is all yours. If you are hungry you go and eat, if you wish to dress up you do it, if you wish to dress down, you do it. Although food and shows are very subjective, NCL has a lot of return passengers which must mean they are satisfying a lot of people. Their crew gets very high marks from most for probably the friendliest and most passenger pleasing on the high seas.

 

If you wish a higher standard feel to your cruise, book a suite. Again NCL seems to excel in this area and you have a butler and consierge at your disposal. Eat at the specialty restaurants where most seem to dress up a little more than the MDR.

[fergusonvt]

A teen that wants fancy! A rare teen indeed.

[pinma]

I know! I thought he'd be all over not having to get dressed up. I'm still leaning towards 'pushing' for an NCL cruise. If we do go fancy I'll have to buy him dress clothes... and next time I turn around they'll all be too small again.

 

DH wasn't totally happy on RCL - found it loud and crowded vs our experience on Celebrity. I think *he* would enjoy casual dressing but he will NOT enjoy loud and crowded, long lines, and people complaining about all the kids on board (we heard a LOT of that on our RCL cruise during a vacation week). Fancy is probably the wrong word for what he's after.

 

We all want the food to be reasonably good. While the kids love to try new things, we would all be happy to have simple food decently-executed. ie, we eat at Texas Roadhouse, Longhorn, Bertucci's. It's not fancy and it's not gourmet but it's fine. OTOH, ponderosa, old country buffet, dennys.... not fine because the food just is not to our liking.

[fergusonvt]

I know! I thought he'd be all over not having to get dressed up. I'm still leaning towards 'pushing' for an NCL cruise. If we do go fancy I'll have to buy him dress clothes... and next time I turn around they'll all be too small again.

 

DH wasn't totally happy on RCL - found it loud and crowded vs our experience on Celebrity. I think *he* would enjoy casual dressing but he will NOT enjoy loud and crowded, long lines, and people complaining about all the kids on board (we heard a LOT of that on our RCL cruise during a vacation week). Fancy is probably the wrong word for what he's after.

 

We all want the food to be reasonably good. While the kids love to try new things, we would all be happy to have simple food decently-executed. ie, we eat at Texas Roadhouse, Longhorn, Bertucci's. It's not fancy and it's not gourmet but it's fine. OTOH, ponderosa, old country buffet, dennys.... not fine because the food just is not to our liking.

 

 

You can be fancy on NCL. There are usually 2 dress up or not nights and you can dress as fancy as you want any night. If you do choose to dress up eat in the larger of the MDR's as that is generally the one which requires more of a dress code. That being said you will be eating with other folks dressed in jeans. As long as that doesn't bother you or your family you will be fine. Personally I like the food on NCL (my opinion).

 

As for lots of kids on board it will depend on when you cruise. Almost none on our cruise on the Star on 1/29 but when you are cruising with children of your own you will obviously be cruising with lots of other peoples kids. With our DS in college we took our first cruise in January when he was on break and planned this last cruise for after he went back :)

[che5904]

I know! I thought he'd be all over not having to get dressed up. I'm still leaning towards 'pushing' for an NCL cruise. If we do go fancy I'll have to buy him dress clothes... and next time I turn around they'll all be too small again.

 

DH wasn't totally happy on RCL - found it loud and crowded vs our experience on Celebrity. I think *he* would enjoy casual dressing but he will NOT enjoy loud and crowded, long lines, and people complaining about all the kids on board (we heard a LOT of that on our RCL cruise during a vacation week). Fancy is probably the wrong word for what he's after.

 

We all want the food to be reasonably good. While the kids love to try new things, we would all be happy to have simple food decently-executed. ie, we eat at Texas Roadhouse, Longhorn, Bertucci's. It's not fancy and it's not gourmet but it's fine. OTOH, ponderosa, old country buffet, dennys.... not fine because the food just is not to our liking.

 

OK this description makes it a little easier to answer. We've never found NCL loud and noisy, we've never been bothered by kids and never had any lines anywhere. But, I would think it would depend on what time of the year you travel as well. We found the pool area loud and crowded in the afternoon and we just avoided the disco. Any other place was not loud or crowded on our cruises.

 

We travel in February (kids for the most part are still in school). NCL has a great kid's program that appear to keep them quite busy. And the only people that would be complaining to you, would be people you choose to associate with. Since NCL meals are designed like home, you eat with only the number in your party you don't have to sit with anyone and create small talk. You may prefer the specialty restaurants, but I would at least try the MDR and if it doesn't meet your liking you do have other options.

 

Again we've never stood in any long line ups and really can't think of where there would be, unless you decided to go before the MDR actually opened and stand in line (we did this by accident one night, but as soon as the doors opened the line dispersed quickly).

[cruisejunkie]

I have been on rcl 7 times ncl 5 times and celebrity once. I found celebrity stuffy and would never do again. Rcl is lots of fun fun fun. I really like ncl service and great staff You may want to look at Holland America and Princess. Both are more upscale.

[pinma]

Eating at any time we want with JUST our family will probably be enough to get DH to try NCL.

 

What makes Celebrity 'stuffy' vs NCL? I can't think of a difference in terms of stuffiness between Celebrity and RCL. Maybe the service was a tad more formal? We just thought we had friendlier wait staff and steward on RCL. If *that's* the difference, that would be a good thing for us.

[CleoV]

This past week was mid-winter break for many states, and one crew member told us there were nearly 1000 children on our sailing. However, we never felt as if they were running wild or disturbing in any way. The pool area is always a bit chaotic, and we did avoid the buffet, but other than the smallest children, every child we saw in the dining areas were well behaved.

 

TBH, I expected to find NCL a bit closer to the Carnival crowd (more a "party" style), but at least on our sailing, that wasn't the case at all. We were very pleasantly surprised.

 

Our oldest teen is like yours; he loves to put on a suit and tie for dinner when we cruise. Hilarious, since he's normally a jeans and t-shirt guy. Big thumbs up for your teen for enjoying an 'adult' atmosphere!

 

Would just agree with the person who said Princess may be another good option for you.

[dalgirl]

When we have cruised during school breaks the cruises have still enjoyable, but we avoid them when we can. Spring break is going to be crowded with kids of all ages. That might appeal to your son, but it definitely won't appeal to your husband. Parents tend to be looser with there older kids on a cruise (and before I am flamed, I have been there, and done that, myself) so time of year will be very important.

 

Holland America or Princess may work well for you, or as mentioned before, a suite on NCL - the "suite life" is different, or so I have been told. Alas, I would rather cruise more often in the lower ranks than only once in the suite - but I am sure it is be magical:) A suite would definitely appeal to your family.... or so I have heard;)

[pinma]

DH doesn't have a problem with kids. We just got tired of hearing other pax complaining about all the kids. It was Feb. break. Of course, there were going to be kids. I think people were extra grumpy bc we'd lost a port due to bad weather and had noro restrictions in place for the first 3 days if the cruise.

 

Definitely no suite for us. We're definitely in the cruise more often camp. Looking at adjoining insides, in fact.

 

I need to check a few more sites but I think given our restrictions - drive to the port and fit it into April break we've only got NCL Jewel or Gem to choose from so it's NCL or sit at home and not cruise as a family until next year. I'm pretty sure given the choice, all will say NCL but I want to build the right expectations, play up the right things. Ie, DH will love only having the 4 of us at a table (is this true for all 3 meals?). DD will love not dressing up. I will love not cooking :-) DS wants a fancy cruise but he'll take any cruise over a land-based vacation (or staying home).

[skittl1321]

It was Feb. break. Of course, there were going to be kids.

 

What is February break? I've never heard of such a thing, so if I booked a February cruise, I wouldn't expect many kids, thinking they are in school. Spring break is usually March/April, isn't it?

[ella99]

What is February break? I've never heard of such a thing, so if I booked a February cruise, I wouldn't expect many kids, thinking they are in school. Spring break is usually March/April, isn't it?

 

Here in NY the schools close for the week of Presidents Day in February.

[halos]

What is February break? I've never heard of such a thing, so if I booked a February cruise, I wouldn't expect many kids, thinking they are in school. Spring break is usually March/April, isn't it?

 

In the NE part of the country, the kids get 'winter break' from schools.

Here in NY the schools close for the week of Presidents Day in February.

 

 

 

Exactly...The week of Presidents Day.

 

I think it's a New England states thing. I know PA doesn't have it, so I assume it's from NY on up.

[laxlove6]

Epic is about as trendy a ship you will find. The décor is modern and up scale not unlike a W hotel. There's is more night life on the Epic then any ship at sea.

The more up scale, pricier ships, celebrity, princess have a older crowd and a lot less night life.

[che5904]

DH doesn't have a problem with kids. We just got tired of hearing other pax complaining about all the kids. It was Feb. break. Of course, there were going to be kids. I think people were extra grumpy bc we'd lost a port due to bad weather and had noro restrictions in place for the first 3 days if the cruise.

 

Definitely no suite for us. We're definitely in the cruise more often camp. Looking at adjoining insides, in fact.

 

I need to check a few more sites but I think given our restrictions - drive to the port and fit it into April break we've only got NCL Jewel or Gem to choose from so it's NCL or sit at home and not cruise as a family until next year. I'm pretty sure given the choice, all will say NCL but I want to build the right expectations, play up the right things. Ie, DH will love only having the 4 of us at a table (is this true for all 3 meals?). DD will love not dressing up. I will love not cooking :-) DS wants a fancy cruise but he'll take any cruise over a land-based vacation (or staying home).

 

Depending on whether you cruise the Jewel or the Gem you will have 9-10 included dining venues and 9-10 upcharge dining choices.

 

http://www2.ncl.com/sites/default/files/Dining_Flyer_062211.pdf

 

Yes all 3 meals. They have varying hours the same as restaurants on land. Just check your freestyle daily (daily newspaper put in your stateroom the night before) for the times they are open. All dining venues/all meals you eat the same as any land restaurant you eat with whoever you go to the dining venue with and whatever time you are hungry. Check the time the MDR is open tell your host/hostess how many is in your party, sit, order, eat. For the upcharge restaurants (the same as an upscale restaurant on land), make reservations, give the host/hostess your name, sit, order, eat. Some ships (and I can't speak about the Gem or Jewel), have a board that lets you know how busy that particular restaurant is so you don't have to go stand in line if it is busy. Each ship has 2 MDRs to choose from that basically have the same menu, so you can just pick whichever is not busy at the time you wish to eat.

 

If your teens want to meet others there age, I've read the best time is to go the first night and sign up for the kid's crew that is for their age, whether they want to participate during the whole week or not at least they'll get to meet others. Someone that is more familiar with the kids crew could probably chime in on that.

 

NCL does a really nice job with their meet and greets. Usually a fair number of officers attend, they usually have coffee and treats. So you may want to sign up for your roll call when you make your decision. All officers on our cruise were very friendly and more than willing to listen if you had an issue and try to rectify it.

 

Depending on the age of your teens they may get a kick out of the fleet wide "white hot party" but be forwarned (for your DH) very loud and crowded. Just google youtube for "ncl white hot party".

[JMHAM1]

NCL is not fancy but it is our preference.

 

There are plenty of things to do. Whether it is a loud, party crowd or a kid crowd or an older crowd will most likely depend on the time of year you cruise, where you go and how long the cruise is.

 

It seems that the shorter the cruise, the more "party" the crowd and the more kids. If you book during the Summer or school holidays, then there will be plenty of kids. For some reason it seems the Bahamas attracts a younger, party type crowd.

 

We cruised Jan 29th and in our early 40's, could be considered a part of the young crowd. There were very few kids aboard too.

 

If you want fancy, book a suite on one of the ships that have the Haven. We prefer NCL but it is not for everyone. You just have to go into it with the right expectations. Good luck and let us know what you decide.