Back from Majesty

[xocynxo]

We returned from our cruise on the majesty last weekend and I just wanted to share a few thoughts.

Embarkation/Debarkation -- absolute breeze

Ship atmosphere -- quite lovely

Ship maintenance -- showing age and rust spots but no real neglect

Crew -- nice friendly

Room -- small but well maintained

Entertainment -- enjoyable

Pools -- small and only one was open

Whirlpools -- crowded with brown water a few days...adults only was also used by children

Dining rooms -- adequate staff, very rushed...our waiter gave us a lengthy discourse on how freestyle had ruined the excellent dining experience...less service for patrons and less money for the waiters...only dined two nights as the food was not worth waiting on...lobster was so tough and rubbery that I could not cut into it...dessert was nice and bread excellent

Buffets –

Breakfast was fair and had very good bran muffins...

Lunch and Dinner had same excellent bread as dining room and a nice sandwich could be made with whatever meat was on the buffet...entrees were not good and my husband had a hamburger from the back grill for most of his meals on board..

I thought he was going to turn into a hamburger...neither of us liked the buffet desserts but both enjoyed the ice cream on deck..

Drinks -- reasonably priced and adequately prepared not strong but not weak either

Bar staff -- very friendly and always on hand

Excursion staff -- both the ship staff and actual excursion staff were excellent...I had a medical mishap on the excursion and it could not have been handled more efficiently or kindly…4 thumbs up!! (my husband’s and mine)

 

All in all we had a great time...this shipped rocked much more than the ship I had previously been on...my husband had never cruised before so had nothing to compare it to...I thought NCL had incredibly nice staff but would probably sail another ship next time...I was very disappointed in the food since I had wonderful food on my last cruise...however, we always found something we could eat and we never went hungry...

This cruise accomplished my goal of seeing if my husband would like cruising and he did yeah!!

For the price we felt we got our money's worth and would sail with NCL again if the price is right

but we will sail with any line if the price is right :)

[Kar313]

Thanks for the info. We are sailing on the Majesty on 2/25. I have a few questions for you.

 

How long were the waits in the main dining room?

Did you try any of the speciality restaurants?

[tstruth]

I will be going on my first cruise in April on the Majesty. I was wondering why only one pool was open, from the pictures the pools look small, it must have been very crowded. Also, how was the entertainment?

Thanks

[xocynxo]

Kar313 - we did not wait at all the two nights we ate in the dining room...however the nights we did not eat in the dining room we were told to expect an hours wait which is why we went on to the buffet...we did not try the specialty restaurants...

 

Tstruth - we have no idea why the second pool was never opened and yes the other pool was rather crowded...we enjoyed the newlywed show, the sexy legs contest by the pool and mrs norwegian also by the pool..we did not see any of the other shows...we did play bingo once and took the waltz and swing lessons..the lessons were so well attended there was not enough room though....we spent alot of time just relaxing on deck watching the waves and then going to bed early ;)

[cruzeluver]

Thanks for all the info. Really looking forward to the Majesty now.

 

What was the casino like? Seems to be the one area of the ship I can't find any decent pics of. Also, do you know what the prices were like at the coffee bar? Thanks again.

[tstruth]

Thanks for the info, it is really nice to hear what to expect. I hope when I go they have both pools open.

Thanks

[Havgun Wiltravel]

I called Majesty today...they said the pools are both working...hmmmm:confused:

[duncanmaria]

We sailed the Majesty on 1/14 and the "adult" pool was closed the entire cruise. Don't know why. . . but didn't hear any complaints about that.

 

We also heard many complaints concerning the food from other pax. For us, the Piazza San Marco, the Pasta Cafe and Le Bistro had the best food on the ship. The buffet and dining rooms fell far behind, IMHO.

 

Regardless, we feel that expectations for cruise food quality are often too high. We loved our time on the Majesty and would sail her again in a heartbeat if the time was right!

[electricron]

I agree. NCL doesn't market it's food at the main restaurants as 5 Stars, so why do people expect 4 Stars? A week's cruise with food coming aboard at the homeport means it isn't fresh. 4 and 5 Star restaurants ashore have the ability to get fresh food every day, meat, fish, and vegetable from the local markets, that restaurants aboard a ship can't do. The best you should expect is 3 Stars and lower.

[xocynxo]

Cruzluver - The casino seemed well run and was not very crowded, it was sorta smoky but we dont smoke so are very sensitive to it...

as for the coffee bar, we did not use it so i cant say, however the coffee i had at breakfast and dinner was very good...

 

Electricron - I did not expect 5 star nor even 4 star food as I have cruised before...but I did expect to have food as good as I had on my other cruise which was a long time ago on a cheaper, smaller ship...Having the burgers from the grill and my own hand made sandwiches (both of which were very good) as the best food on the ship was a disappointment to me.

[electricron]

I'm sorry you feel this way, but I thought the food on the new NCL menus were delicous, especially the oxtails everyone seems to be flaming.

 

Live a little, try something new.

[retiredAF]

Thanks for the review xocynxo. We are first time cruisers heading out on the Majesty this week. My husbad is a very early riser and wondered if the breakfast buffet (or more importantly coffee) is available very early in the morning (before 6 AM)?

Thanks!

[Janearl]

We were on the Majesty in January and were very happy with it. We were first time cruisers and didn't know what to expect. Somestimes the food was great and others it was food. You will not go hungry. Hamburgers and hot dogs and french fries were very good. Le Bistro was great. The buffet was just that. some good and some bad.

We had coffee and juice sent to the room every morning at 6 or 6:30. My husband loves coffee first thing before his feet hit the floor. Don't be afraid to use the room service, it was very nice and usually not a long wait.

The casino was never really crowded but it was smokey at times. Do all the shows you can and even the corny ones. They were actually the funniest.

We would go again and will when we get time. Enjoy

[Ralphinsc]

I plan on doing the room service for a wake-up call/ semi-breakfast. my only question is whether they have croisannts available for breakfast room service? I'd settle for a bagel but would really like a croissant or two to go with some juice, coffee, and fruit.

[retiredAF]

Thanks Janearl!! I appreciate the info.

[Janearl]

If I remember right the croissant was on the breakfast menu..

also at 3:30 in the afternoon they have snacks on the buffet..great cookies... Any more questions just ask..I will try to answer them.

[Ralphinsc]

Did you happen to see whether there was a Martini clinic on your recently completed voyage. It sounds like a great deal and something me and the wife may find interesting. I know it is done on other ships but am not sure if it is done on the Majesty.

[tsage]

I was wondering - did you carry your own sodas or water on board - or did you seen anyone else doing that? We are big Pepsi fans and would like to bring our own. We are first time cruisers - any other suggestions? Sailing on Majesty

[tsage]

I was wondering - did you carry your own sodas or water on board - or did you seen anyone else doing that? We are big Pepsi fans and would like to bring our own. We are first time cruisers - any other suggestions? Sailing on Majesty March

[tsage]

I was wondering - did you carry your own sodas or water on board - or did you seen anyone else doing that? We are big Pepsi fans and would like to bring our own. We are first time cruisers - any other suggestions? Sailing on Majesty March 25.

[Janearl]

My husband can only drink decaf coffee and sodas and we brought a small carry on with a 12 pk of diet coke and also a couple of water bottles. No problem. it was the only bag they searched when we boarded . They wanted to make sure they were unopened

[Janearl]

I went back and looked at a freestyle daily from our cruise and we did have a Martini Bar at 5 in the afternoon.

[tsage]

:eek: I apologize for the triple post - computer was freezing up and I wasn't sure it posted. Sorry

[Bberry]

My husband carried an entire case of flavored sparkling water onto the Majesty when we cruised over Thanksgiving. I can't drink caffeine or sugar which left we without anything other than plain water to drink. He just put the case of water on his shoulder and carried it right thru the embarkation line. Nobody said anything about it. :)

[Ralphinsc]

Thanks! :D