PEARL review - 7/29-8/5

[cruzbums]

Background: We are a couple in our early 70's and have cruised on HAL, RCCL and Princess. This was our 2nd cruise on NCL. We went on the STAR two years ago.

 

Enbarkation: We were book in a Owners Suite so had VIP embarkation. We were on the ship and in our room within half an hour. My wife has a medical condition that requires we bringh cases of medical supplies with us. We had informed NCL's Special Needs Dept. about this situation during the booking process and they in turn informed the Concierge, Alex and he saw to it that the supplies were brought to our room within 20 minutes. If we do not get the supplies in our room before we sail we have to leave the ship. This happened on another ship as they had misplaced the boxes so we had to leave the ship. They seemed to have a laxadazical attitude while NCL takes it very seriously. NCL and Alex understood and met our needs better than the other cruise lines.

 

The Ship: Very impressive! We had a lot of fun finding all the nooks and crannys.

 

Our Room: As I stated we had an Owners Suite(10504). The suite was quite large and well laid out. The bathroom is amazing with a nice tub, TV, walk in shower with glass door, dressing area, toilet area with door. There is dining alcove and nice size living room. There are flat panel TV's in the living room, bedroom and bathroom. Our butler Denny was excellent.

 

Dining: We didn't eat much at the special restaurants but did find what we wanted in the Garden Cafe. We mostly snack all day long rather than eat regular meals. I spent a lot of time at the ice cream bar. Good choices and toppings too. I did eat most of my breakfasts at Cagneys. Everything was cooked to perfection. We did eat one meal at Summer Palace which was pretty good. It is a beautiful room. Some of the food was over cooked but for the most part was good to very good.

 

We have been to Alaska many times so we don't go ashore much. If you haven't been to Alaska before there are a lot of things to see and do.

 

Overall we really like NCL. We have traveled in suites on HAL, Princess and RCCL and feel that NCL does the suite thing better than the others by a long shot.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I am not that good at writing reviews.

[SURRY GENT]

Cruz was the ice cream bar open all day and part of the evening. I love Ice Cream.

[driker2]

Background: We are a couple in our early 70's and have cruised on HAL, RCCL and Princess. This was our 2nd cruise on NCL. We went on the STAR two years ago. We were booked in a Owners Suite (10504).

Are you sure you are not us? I am in my early 70's and though my wife is a kid of 63, we have to travel with a fair amount of medical supplies and equipment for her. AND, we are doing the September 29th 15 day Panama Canal repositioning cruise IN SUITE 10504.

We have cruised in a number of NCL suites and have always been happy. The only other line we tried was Princess and, while the suite was nice, their little touches just did not touch NCL's. Alex comes most highly recommended as our concierge. What can you tell us about butler/Denny? Approximate age? Nationality? Friendly guy? Readily available? And don't get the impression that we're nosy, or anything.

My wife and I would really appreciate your taking the trouble for some additional input from you on 10504 and its staff.

[electricron]

Thanks for the short and sweet review.

 

Looks like you had a great cruise.

[cruzbums]

The ice cream bar opened about noon and closed at 11:00 pm. I don't know how true it is but I think I read somwhere that they make their own ice cream.

 

It was surely popular. Sometimes there would be double lines and two people serving.

[jame_g]

Doing the Pearl to Alaska in September. Looking forward to it, and nice to hear your positive review.

[cruzbums]

I envy you doing a fifteen dayer.

 

We really loved the suite and I'm sure you will too.

 

I would say Denny is between 25 and 30. He has a wife and a couple of kids back home. He said he is going to do another contract after this one and then quit to stay home with his family.

 

He is Indonesian form Jakarda.

 

He was very friendly and was always available to us although we really are not very demanding. My wife had trouble with the coffee maker and he always came to help with a smile on his face. He delivered treats and sometimes just stopped by to see how things were going. He would also make sure that we got any reservations we might want.

 

Have a great cruise!

[brunolvr]

Background: We are a couple in our early 70's and have cruised on HAL, RCCL and Princess. This was our 2nd cruise on NCL. We went on the STAR two years ago.

 

Enbarkation: We were book in a Owners Suite so had VIP embarkation. We were on the ship and in our room within half an hour. My wife has a medical condition that requires we bringh cases of medical supplies with us. We had informed NCL's Special Needs Dept. about this situation during the booking process and they in turn informed the Concierge, Alex and he saw to it that the supplies were brought to our room within 20 minutes. If we do not get the supplies in our room before we sail we have to leave the ship. This happened on another ship as they had misplaced the boxes so we had to leave the ship. They seemed to have a laxadazical attitude while NCL takes it very seriously. NCL and Alex understood and met our needs better than the other cruise lines.

 

The Ship: Very impressive! We had a lot of fun finding all the nooks and crannys.

 

Our Room: As I stated we had an Owners Suite(10504). The suite was quite large and well laid out. The bathroom is amazing with a nice tub, TV, walk in shower with glass door, dressing area, toilet area with door. There is dining alcove and nice size living room. There are flat panel TV's in the living room, bedroom and bathroom. Our butler Denny was excellent.

 

Dining: We didn't eat much at the special restaurants but did find what we wanted in the Garden Cafe. We mostly snack all day long rather than eat regular meals. I spent a lot of time at the ice cream bar. Good choices and toppings too. I did eat most of my breakfasts at Cagneys. Everything was cooked to perfection. We did eat one meal at Summer Palace which was pretty good. It is a beautiful room. Some of the food was over cooked but for the most part was good to very good.

 

We have been to Alaska many times so we don't go ashore much. If you haven't been to Alaska before there are a lot of things to see and do.

 

Overall we really like NCL. We have traveled in suites on HAL, Princess and RCCL and feel that NCL does the suite thing better than the others by a long shot.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I am not that good at writing reviews.

 

Hello, cruzbums! We're almost neighbors of yours as we live in Lakewood, WA, just a few miles north of you! Glad to hear you had a good cruise! Alex excels in taking care of people!

 

Just wondering how much time you were able to spend on your front balcony? Was it pretty windy most of the time out there? I can imagine you had some terrific views! We've never been in an Owner's Suite, but it sounds nice!

[cruzbums]

I only went out on the front deck a couple of times.

 

When the ship is under way it is really windy out their. It is really only usable in port and when the ship is moving slowly. There is a side balcony that is really nice well protected from the wind.

 

We really like the Owners Suites. We were in the same suite on the NCL Star two years ago.

 

Happy cruising!

[romy]

Hello Cruzbums, I'm so glad you two had a lovely time on the Pearl. I too can't wait to search out the nooks and crannies, not to mention the ice cream;) .

 

By the way, I think you not only write a "good review" but an excellent one!

 

Thank you for the review!

 

Happy Sails!

Romy

[whatawonderfulworld]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review!

 

Happy sailing!

 

Ciao,

W A W W