NCL Dawn - 12/16 Very Negative Review

[myn]

Just a quick post to share with others our very negative experience onboard the NCL Dawn (12/16 - 12/23)

 

Myself and 5 others who have all sailed aboard other cruise lines (Royal Caribbean, Princess, Carnival) decided to try NCL for our Christmas cruise this year.

 

All of us shared the same thoughts on this NCL Dawn ship. Frankly, the worst cruise we ever have been on.

 

 

Things We Didn't Like:

 

1) Service in dining rooms was horrible. Averaging 2 hours per night to complete the full service. Drinks were never refilled.

 

2) The first day we noticed that none of our staterooms had the beds put together to form a single bed. Even so, the beds were definitely the worst we have slept on. After calling down to get the beds put together they decided to put 2 single sized duvets on instead of 1... This of course involved yet another phone call to get a single king size duvet. We had to call down 3 times to have the minibar emptied.

 

3) Pop/Soda on the ship was uncarbonated. Infact we witnessed the bartenders adding a little bit of canned coke into the fountain drink to add some "fizz".. Definitely what we expected after paying $60 for a coke card.

 

4) BINGO BINGO BINGO.. What can I say, every hour of the day starting at 8:00am there were BINGO announcements. So many that one of the entertainers doing improv made a skit around it.

 

5) Buffet food appeared to be leftovers from dining rooms. Not to mention an awful stench resonating once you entered the vacinity. No enforcement over sanitzier either.

 

6) Buffet lines were the worst we've seen. This we concluded was due to lack of efficiency of custom made sandwiches that started at the beginning of the buffet line.

 

7) We noticed an ever filling bucket in the middle of our hallway. After closer examination it was present to collect dripping water from above. This bucket provided a great obstacle! :( (See picture below)

 

 

8) Nastiness at the Chocoholic Buffet... Never have we seen more pigs in 1 location. The chocoholic buffet attracts a very large crowd, as such lines are formed around the chocolate buffets. The fun starts when you begin seeing folks impatiently eating directly from the buffet, licking their fingers and grabbing another.. If you can find an open table to sit down on you are eating in some elses filth as the linens weren't changed and the chocolate stains were very evident. Gross to say the least. See pics below:

 

 

 

9) The Blue Lagoon's chicken tasted like fish and the fish tasted like chicken. Can you say time to change the grease?

 

 

 

Things we did like:

 

1) The entertainment at night was spectacular

 

2) StateRoom bathroom with the 3 segregated areas (toilete/wash room/shower) was definitely the best of any ship we've been on.

 

3) embarkation was very well organized providing us with seats to sit down on as we were waiting to aboard.

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

We had high hopes that NCL would be great, having thought about taking a Hawaiian cruise this April on NCL is certainly not in order no longer. To conclude, we have a very bad taste in our mouth regarding NCL. Future cruises will be on Royal Caribbean, Princess and Carnival.

[NorthernNeighbour]

One man's hell is another man's heaven. For example, my wife and I would actually prefer to take 2 hours every night for the dining. We don't want to be rushed -- guess we lived in Europe too long to ever go back to the '30 minute' dining experience in some North American restaurants. As for the drinks, since we order wine refilling of glasses is usually not a problem. If the waiter neglects this -- it's actually better for our health, we drink less!

 

As for the beds, again we prefer a twin bed set-up (we both snore) -- so separated beds would be no problem. On a previous NCL cruise, they were together and we asked for them to be separated. It took some time -- but who cares, by the time we went to bed the room stewards had gotten around to it.

 

As for the chocolate buffet -- the pigs who eat directly from the buffet table and refuse to move on are NOT limited to NCL. I've seen the same thing on other cruise ships AND at land-based buffets also. It's one of my 'pet pieves' and I never blame the establishment, only the pigs who dine there. And I've seen pigs in some 5 star establishments at the breakfast buffet doing the same thing!!!

 

The dripping bucket also -- I've seen this on other cruise lines, but NOT too often. What would, in fact, disturb me would be to see a drip without the cruise staff fetching a bucket and containing the drip.

 

My wife and I usually 'roll with the flow' while on a cruise -- it is all too easy to become jaded and criticize everything in sight that differs a bit from your previous experiences. It's the total experience that counts not each individual item of that experience.

[WinnieinWA]

:p Please read my review of the same cruise.

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=36160

 

I'd like to reply to some of your concerns and problems:

 

1. We found service in the dining rooms to be excellent and had none of the problems you spoke of. I'd be curious as to when and where you ate. A five course meal does indeed take a while but it's worth it to some of us. Ours usually lasted 1 to 1.5 hours. I'm sorry you didn't like it.

 

2. Our experience was just the opposite, our steward had ours seperated in just a few minutes and we slept very well in our beds. The pillows were fluffy and linens lovely. I'm sorry you didn't like them.

 

3. Did not do so no comment

4. Didn't seem to hear many so no comment and don't play

 

5 & 6. Wow.... we saw there were 2 hand sanitizing stations at each entrance to the buffet and dining rooms with a crew member at the second asking/reminding us to use them. I don't know how you could have missed them. We only ate at the buffet once and found the variety and quality to be excellent. The lines to the buffet are directly related to meal times of bkfs./lunch/dinner. The same as it is on land to a buffet.. if you go at the most popular times there will be lines. We walked through the buffet to the pool several times and did not smell any stench at all, rather the smell of coffee mixed with the aroma of bacon, eggs, waffles...............yummy

 

 

7. The bucket in the hall was most unfortunate. It IS a huge hotel and perhaps a pipe got a leak or the cabin above overflowed the tub. If there'd been a hundred buckets then I'd have been nervous! ;) You did not say if this prevented you from using the hallway or your room so I assume not. Did you have someone in a wheelchair so you could not have just stepped around the bucket?:confused:

 

8. Thanks for the pictures. My DD wanted to get some pictures even though we neither like chocolate but she couldn't get in because of all of the so called "pigs". You can hardly blame NCL for having "pigs" on board. On the registration form I didn't see a section to check off for being a pig or I'm sure NCL wouldn't have allowed them on! :D

 

9. I enjoyed the wings each evening about 11. I'll bet we sat next to each other.:)

 

It's interesting that we had such opposite experiences. If you read the members reviews of that same cruise you will find opposite reviews also. I'm glad we're not all alike.

 

 

So sorry you did not enjoy your cruise. I'm very sorry.:(

 

Have a very Happy New Year!

 

Winnie

[jimswims]

Sorry that you had a dissappointing cruise on NCL.

 

I remember that the chocolate buffet was complete chaos when I was on the Dawn back in August. It reminded me of all the starving people on my RCCL cruises who had just finished their second seating, a 2 hour dining experience, and had to rush through dessert just to get in line for the Midnight buffet! However, I really did not waste my time, energy and film catching people licking their fingers and eating in line. Sure, it is not good for people to do this but posting pictures is a bit much in my mind.

 

I also do not bother taking pictures of buckets in a hallway and could care less on how many times Bingo is announced. I understand that the bed set up was a nuisance but was it really such a big deal? This is my opinion and it seems like you are looking for things to complain about.

 

I have not been on a perfect cruise yet. I have had many wonderful and incredible cruises on several different lines. I do plan on continuing to "search" for the perfect cruise every chance I get. I will search on NCL, RCCL, Princess, Celebrity, or some other line.

 

I do know that my attitude will have a great impact on finding that perfect cruise. I have not been dissappointed yet.

 

Happy New Year and I hope that your next cruise is better for you.

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

Nastiness at the Chocoholic Buffet... Never have we seen more pigs in 1 location. The chocoholic buffet attracts a very large crowd, as such lines are formed around the chocolate buffets. The fun starts when you begin seeing folks impatiently eating directly from the buffet, licking their fingers and grabbing another.. If you can find an open table to sit down on you are eating in some elses filth as the linens weren't changed and the chocolate stains were very evident. Gross to say the least.

 

I have a question about the chocolate buffet. I have never been to one. I don't particularly like buffets, but I love chocolate. Do they have tongs, and if so, would the people pick things up with the tongs, lick their fingers and then touch other tongs!? That is gross! I will never understand why people don't think about hygiene. :eek:

[CaliforniaDreamer]

Myn

 

do you have any information regarding the ports of call? did you take any excursions or would you recommend anything to do at each port?

[salty dingo]

Future cruises will be on Royal Caribbean, Princess and Carnival.

 

You honestly think these other lines are not going to have the same problems you reported here with NCL?

 

You really think a bucket in the hallway was a problem? Perhaps a big puddle would have been much nicer.

 

And pigs at the chocolate buffet? Cruise ships today are veritable swine farms. Pigs are everywhere. Good luck finding a pig free cruise on the other lines you mentioned!!

 

With an unbalanced, one-sided, carefully documented review like this, I doubt you are going to influence many people. Maybe you'll sway some farm animals.

[musicgirl63]

I'm sorry that your cruise wasn't as expected.

 

2 hour dinners in the dining room are not unusual with all the courses. I've been on DCL and Princess and on both the dinners were always long. I guess a way to look at it is that it's better for the digestion! If you don't like the wait, I gues go to the buffets.

 

Dinner leftovers at the next buffets lunch. Ummmm, I think it is quite resourceful as long as it wasn't from my plate!!! Princess did this ALL the time. For instance, do you really think the pumpkin flavored side dish from dinner was not used in the pumpkin filled ravioli??? That's what I saw this summer many times. As long as the food is good, who cares????? Why waste it? Remember all those starving children........

 

The makeshift bedcover is unacceptable, but sometimes the room hosts do get busy.

 

I hate the charge for the soda anyways which makes the flat pop ridiculous. DCL doesn't charge for pop unless you order poolside or at a bar. It is free in the dining rooms and there is a station set up by one of the pools for free all day long.

 

The pigs at the chocolate buffet are NOT NCL's fault.

 

Can't you just move the items from the mini bar to a shelf in the room? Isn't that what they do anyway??????

 

The drip in the hallway...well annoying but certainly not the end of the world.

Sometimes things break and need fixing. Was it fixed quickly, well no, but perhaps there were other problems that were more important.

 

You mentioned the sandwich/buffet backup. Could you go around the sandwich area or does it block off the entire area? I heard a lot of complaints before our Princess cruise about the buffets being designed poorly. It was never a problem, although they did move items every day, like the butter was in this area one day and then moved the next day. Whew!!!......that one would ruin my whole morning!

 

I'm sorry you were not able to enjoy the cruise. However if these are you biggest complaints, maybe it's time to say...don't make a mountain out of a molehill. I don't think any of these reason, even lumped together would make a cruise unenjoyable.

[PattyW]

To the OP - I'm sorry you didn't enjoy the cruise and that certain aspects of the cruise did not meet your expectations.

 

We will be on the Dawn in three weeks I was nervous to read the post. But, after reading it in full, I am quite relieved. None of the issues the OP posted about (even if they ALL happened to me) would cause me to have a bad cruise. So, in a way, I'm happy that you posted because it makes me feel like I will DEFINITELY have a fun cruise on the 20th

[bulgargirl]

One man's hell is another man's heaven. For example, my wife and I would actually prefer to take 2 hours every night for the dining. We don't want to be rushed -- guess we lived in Europe too long to ever go back to the '30 minute' dining experience in some North American restaurants. As for the drinks, since we order wine refilling of glasses is usually not a problem. If the waiter neglects this -- it's actually better for our health, we drink less!

 

As for the beds, again we prefer a twin bed set-up (we both snore) -- so separated beds would be no problem. On a previous NCL cruise, they were together and we asked for them to be separated. It took some time -- but who cares, by the time we went to bed the room stewards had gotten around to it.

 

As for the chocolate buffet -- the pigs who eat directly from the buffet table and refuse to move on are NOT limited to NCL. I've seen the same thing on other cruise ships AND at land-based buffets also. It's one of my 'pet pieves' and I never blame the establishment, only the pigs who dine there. And I've seen pigs in some 5 star establishments at the breakfast buffet doing the same thing!!!

 

The dripping bucket also -- I've seen this on other cruise lines, but NOT too often. What would, in fact, disturb me would be to see a drip without the cruise staff fetching a bucket and containing the drip.

 

My wife and I usually 'roll with the flow' while on a cruise -- it is all too easy to become jaded and criticize everything in sight that differs a bit from your previous experiences. It's the total experience that counts not each individual item of that experience.

 

I pushed my bed together myself last time. I thought that was what we were supposed to do. Lol -I am such a dork! Now that I know I can get a king size duvet, I am requesting it!!!!

 

The drip would bother me. Anything that looks like a leak while I'm in middle of the ocean would make me a little nervous no matter that Iknow it's not something to make us sink. I'm superstitious that way!

[zqvol]

Just a quick post to share with others our very negative experience onboard the NCL Dawn (12/16 - 12/23)

 

Myself and 5 others who have all sailed aboard other cruise lines (Royal Caribbean, Princess, Carnival) decided to try NCL for our Christmas cruise this year.

 

All of us shared the same thoughts on this NCL Dawn ship. Frankly, the worst cruise we ever have been on.

 

 

Things We Didn't Like:

 

1) Service in dining rooms was horrible. Averaging 2 hours per night to complete the full service. Drinks were never refilled.

 

I would not be a happy camper if drinks were not refilled. My experience on at least three other lines is that dinner service always takes at least 90 minutes to 2 hours. How long is a reasonable length for dinner service whether it is freestyle or traditional?

 

2) The first day we noticed that none of our staterooms had the beds put together to form a single bed. Even so, the beds were definitely the worst we have slept on. After calling down to get the beds put together they decided to put 2 single sized duvets on instead of 1... This of course involved yet another phone call to get a single king size duvet. We had to call down 3 times to have the minibar emptied.

 

This is very aggravating, but I wonder why any ship would agree to empty the minibar. (I know that they do it but I just don't agree that the ships should ever do it.)

 

3) Pop/Soda on the ship was uncarbonated. Infact we witnessed the bartenders adding a little bit of canned coke into the fountain drink to add some "fizz".. Definitely what we expected after paying $60 for a coke card.

 

Why do you think that they are uncarbonated? Fountain drinks tend to be "flat" a lot of times, especially when they come out of a huge service like on a ship. Was this an observation or something that you personally experienced? Did you buy a soda card?

 

4) BINGO BINGO BINGO.. What can I say, every hour of the day starting at 8:00am there were BINGO announcements. So many that one of the entertainers doing improv made a skit around it.

 

I hate BINGO, but how in heavens name can multiple BINGO games on board a cruise ship cause your cruise to be bad? I have never had trouble escaping them and in fact my experience is that I have to go look for them to find them.

 

5) Buffet food appeared to be leftovers from dining rooms. Not to mention an awful stench resonating once you entered the vacinity. No enforcement over sanitzier either.

 

The smell really is a concern, but how can you decide that the buffet food is left over from the dining room. It is just as likely that the dining room food is left over from the buffet. Truthfully the kitchens prepare large quantities of the same food and send it to different venues, especially desserts. That doesn't bother me at all, and as has been beat to death, the "sanitizers" really are ineffective so I don't care if someone is forced to use them or not. If people would wash their hands that would be better anyway.

 

6) Buffet lines were the worst we've seen. This we concluded was due to lack of efficiency of custom made sandwiches that started at the beginning of the buffet line.

 

 

 

7) We noticed an ever filling bucket in the middle of our hallway. After closer examination it was present to collect dripping water from above. This bucket provided a great obstacle! :( (See picture below)

 

While I agree that this is unsightly and blocks the hall, would you prefer a wet mildewy carpet? This is a no win situation for the crew until they can isolate the leak and make a repair. But, you are right it is an obstacle.

 

 

8) Nastiness at the Chocoholic Buffet... Never have we seen more pigs in 1 location. The chocoholic buffet attracts a very large crowd, as such lines are formed around the chocolate buffets. The fun starts when you begin seeing folks impatiently eating directly from the buffet, licking their fingers and grabbing another.. If you can find an open table to sit down on you are eating in some elses filth as the linens weren't changed and the chocolate stains were very evident. Gross to say the least. See pics below:

You are right people are pigs. I am not sure how the staff could change table linens during a buffet, but I do agree that sitting down at a table with dirty lines is not my idea of fun.

 

 

9) The Blue Lagoon's chicken tasted like fish and the fish tasted like chicken. Can you say time to change the grease?

 

Maybe it is time to get another fryer so that they do not have to cross cook. You are right though that it is not acceptable to have food tasting like what it isn't.

 

 

 

Things we did like:

 

1) The entertainment at night was spectacular

 

What made it spectular? I have never seen any entertainment on any ship that was worth the effort it took to go to the show.

 

2) StateRoom bathroom with the 3 segregated areas (toilete/wash room/shower) was definitely the best of any ship we've been on.

 

I agree that this is a very desirable setup.

 

3) embarkation was very well organized providing us with seats to sit down on as we were waiting to aboard.

 

Every time I have sailed from Miami the terminals have all been very nice. Glad to know that the NCL one is too.

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

We had high hopes that NCL would be great, having thought about taking a Hawaiian cruise this April on NCL is certainly not in order no longer. Just a note that the NCL cruises in Hawaii are run by a different company NCLAmerica. But reviews have been bad of late. To conclude, we have a very bad taste in our mouth regarding NCL. Future cruises will be on Royal Caribbean, Princess and Carnival.

 

Sorry that your cruise did not meet your expectations. I stuck my comments and questions above, in red.

[greywillow]

I hate the charge for the soda anyways which makes the flat pop ridiculous. DCL doesn't charge for pop unless you order poolside or at a bar. It is free in the dining rooms and there is a station set up by one of the pools for free all day long.

Just went over to the Disney web site and priced out a seven-day Caribbean cruise in February: about $3500 for an oceanview stateroom for two. Comparable NCL cruises run $1500-2000 for two. Very expensive "pop" on Disney, I'd say. But, to each his own.

[TXRed]

Just a quick post to share with others our very negative experience onboard the NCL Dawn (12/16 - 12/23)

 

Myself and 5 others who have all sailed aboard other cruise lines (Royal Caribbean, Princess, Carnival) decided to try NCL for our Christmas cruise this year.

 

All of us shared the same thoughts on this NCL Dawn ship. Frankly, the worst cruise we ever have been on.

 

 

Things We Didn't Like:

 

1) Service in dining rooms was horrible. Averaging 2 hours per night to complete the full service. Drinks were never refilled.

 

2) The first day we noticed that none of our staterooms had the beds put together to form a single bed. Even so, the beds were definitely the worst we have slept on. After calling down to get the beds put together they decided to put 2 single sized duvets on instead of 1... This of course involved yet another phone call to get a single king size duvet. We had to call down 3 times to have the minibar emptied.

 

3) Pop/Soda on the ship was uncarbonated. Infact we witnessed the bartenders adding a little bit of canned coke into the fountain drink to add some "fizz".. Definitely what we expected after paying $60 for a coke card.

 

4) BINGO BINGO BINGO.. What can I say, every hour of the day starting at 8:00am there were BINGO announcements. So many that one of the entertainers doing improv made a skit around it.

 

5) Buffet food appeared to be leftovers from dining rooms. Not to mention an awful stench resonating once you entered the vacinity. No enforcement over sanitzier either.

 

6) Buffet lines were the worst we've seen. This we concluded was due to lack of efficiency of custom made sandwiches that started at the beginning of the buffet line.

 

7) We noticed an ever filling bucket in the middle of our hallway. After closer examination it was present to collect dripping water from above. This bucket provided a great obstacle! :( (See picture below)

 

 

 

8) Nastiness at the Chocoholic Buffet... Never have we seen more pigs in 1 location.

 

 

this is where I stopped reading....no sense reading any further....I hope your next cruise is better for you

[zqvol]

this is where I stopped reading....no sense reading any further....I hope your next cruise is better for you

 

You should have kept going this OP was both accurately describing what was seen as documented by the photos, and a common opinion about the behavior of a lot of people.

[WinnieinWA]

To the OP - I'm sorry you didn't enjoy the cruise and that certain aspects of the cruise did not meet your expectations.

 

We will be on the Dawn in three weeks I was nervous to read the post. But, after reading it in full, I am quite relieved. None of the issues the OP posted about (even if they ALL happened to me) would cause me to have a bad cruise. So, in a way, I'm happy that you posted because it makes me feel like I will DEFINITELY have a fun cruise on the 20th

 

If you check out the Member Reviews for this cruise you will find more good reviews than bad. I'd post a link but am on a new laptop and not sure how.. but check it out.

 

I had a blast and ate and was served like royalty..DD and I just loved this cruise.

 

Winnie <------> wrote a review :D

[myn]

You honestly think these other lines are not going to have the same problems you reported here with NCL?

 

You really think a bucket in the hallway was a problem? Perhaps a big puddle would have been much nicer.

 

And pigs at the chocolate buffet? Cruise ships today are veritable swine farms. Pigs are everywhere. Good luck finding a pig free cruise on the other lines you mentioned!!

 

With an unbalanced, one-sided, carefully documented review like this, I doubt you are going to influence many people. Maybe you'll sway some farm animals.

 

As I mentioned, I have been very happy with my past cruises. This one unfortunately wasn't a positive experience.

 

Just to clarify a few things. The bucket in the hallway was a permanent fixture that was there the entire week..

 

Also to mention on past cruises, notably on the RCCL and Princess lines we never saw the number of pigs that we saw on this one.

[myn]

If you check out the Member Reviews for this cruise you will find more good reviews than bad. I'd post a link but am on a new laptop and not sure how.. but check it out.

 

I had a blast and ate and was served like royalty..DD and I just loved this cruise.

 

Winnie <------> wrote a review :D

 

Winnie, we actually based our decision for this cruise on those very postive comments. That's what so disappointing.

 

IMHO the cruise ratings should include a section to include what other cruises the users have been on as this will more accurately reflect it's associated rating.

[coffeebean]

Drinks were never refilled??? Do you think this only happens on NCL??? This has happed to us on other lines but we don't allow it to get to the point where I would use the word "never". Speak to the maitr d' regarding the lack of service. That should take care of any problems you encounter on any cruise line. Speak up!!!

[greywillow]

Drinks were never refilled??? Do you think this only happens on NCL??? This has happed to us on other lines but we don't allow it to get to the point where I would use the word "never". Speak to the maitr d' regarding the lack of service. That should take care of any problems you encounter on any cruise line. Speak up!!!

Some people would rather have something to complain about here than get their drinks refilled.

[myn]

Myn

 

do you have any information regarding the ports of call? did you take any excursions or would you recommend anything to do at each port?

 

 

The Ports were great. We did the Jeep 4x4 tour in St Thomas. It was definitely worth the money. The tour guide was top notch. We've been to St Thomas 3 times now and each time we seem to discover a new part of the island.

 

In Samana we did the bike, hike and kayak. It was also very very good. The kayaking in the ocean was our favorite.

 

On our last port we actually had to bypass NCL's private island (Great Stirup Cay) and instead docked in the Bahamas

[myn]

Drinks were never refilled??? Do you think this only happens on NCL??? This has happed to us on other lines but we don't allow it to get to the point where I would use the word "never". Speak to the maitr d' regarding the lack of service. That should take care of any problems you encounter on any cruise line. Speak up!!!

 

As I mentioned, I am comparing my NCL Dawn experience to past cruises. In which all past cases fresh drinks were always on the table. Perhaps we've been very very lucky.

 

Also note that I was with 5 others who shared the same opinions I am posting. All of which are vetrean cruisers that have never sailed NCL.

[coffeebean]

Some people would rather have something to complain about here than get their drinks refilled.

 

Funny you should say that because I almost posted this exact sentiment in my response to the OP.

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

I've stated my opinion in red. Now I'll quit reading this entire post.

 

I agree with you. The question about the chocolate buffet was mine. What's with the "type of cruiser" comment? I was asking an honest question and get such rude negativity. I'm with you and quit this entire post also.

[Sparkylok6]

"While this may not be NCL's fault, it's indicative of the type of cruisers this ship/intenary attracts"

 

I saw this comment and couldn't believe my eyes. It is obvious to me that the OP is tacky and rude to make the generalization that was made. I must say that I am insulted, as well as others should be. The comment was completely out of line.

[DAGVBSB]

Just a quick post to share with others our very negative experience onboard the NCL Dawn (12/16 - 12/23)

 

1) Service in dining rooms was horrible. Averaging 2 hours per night to complete the full service. Drinks were never refilled.

 

4) BINGO BINGO BINGO.. What can I say, every hour of the day starting at 8:00am there were BINGO announcements. So many that one of the entertainers doing improv made a skit around it.

 

5) Buffet food appeared to be leftovers from dining rooms. Not to mention an awful stench resonating once you entered the vacinity. No enforcement over sanitzier either.

 

6) Buffet lines were the worst we've seen. This we concluded was due to lack of efficiency of custom made sandwiches that started at the beginning of the buffet line.

 

8) Nastiness at the Chocoholic Buffet... Never have we seen more pigs in 1 location. The chocoholic buffet attracts a very large crowd, as such lines are formed around the chocolate buffets. The fun starts when you begin seeing folks impatiently eating directly from the buffet, licking their fingers and grabbing another.. If you can find an open table to sit down on you are eating in some elses filth as the linens weren't changed and the chocolate stains were very evident. Gross to say the least. See pics below:

 

9) The Blue Lagoon's chicken tasted like fish and the fish tasted like chicken. Can you say time to change the grease?

 

First...THANK YOU for your review. It is a very creditbale review because you back up all of your points with facts or observations. Also, you have been very generous in responding to questions.

 

These are the kinds of negative reviews that are helpful in assisting people in avoiding some of those problems or choosing a different line.

 

Now some quick comments:

1.) Not the first person to comment about the drink refill problem. Happened to us on the Dawn in 2006.

 

4.) Yep. More and more reports of NCL pushing Bingo and Krack-its until people are ready to barf.

 

5.) & 6.): Now I liked the buffet food, I always found it very good and a wide selection, but I do agree with your assesment that their operation system for traffic flow is not very good and actually kind of stupid.

 

8.) People's behavior is not NCL's fault, but unfortunately when people get something they think is a free bonus, they make pigs of themselves and are just plain ignorant slobs. They are so afraid that someone else will get something that they didn't have, that they load their plate and then throw half of it away. (not to mention the problem with hygene and proper ettique.....and we wonder why buffets have sneeze guards....)

 

9.) Funny, I thought the Blue Lagoons Chicken tasted like fish (which I hate.) Maybe they should mix the frying oil from my cruise with yours so that they could have a great mix....lol)

 

 

Again, thanks for a great and credible review.