First, I must preface this review by saying that we all had an awesome time. We really hit a home run with this cruise as both my wife and I and our 13 and 15 year old agreed that this was our best vacation ever. I’ll also say that you can and will always find some negatives on any vacation but if you have realistic expectations this cruise will not disappoint you at all. We arrived in Seattle via NY the day before as not to stress ourselves with getting to the cruise from the airport the same day.. We had an OK night in Seattle but it's not my favorite town, the waterfront is a bit too touristy for me.and the food is overpriced. Overall a very ecclectic and interesting place. We stayed at the Marqueen hotel and had only good things to say about the place. Very good location. The morning arrived and we had a car service take us to the ship. The NCL was ready with curbside service and took our bags and alas our trip had begun. The boat totally impressed me and the live music and ambience on deck 13 got us into the vacation mode. It is a very easy process in boarding this cruise. OK, here we go. The room, a mini suite with Balcony was perfect for us. I know the economy is tough but if you do this cruise please try to get a balcony. It will give you a totally differnt perspective and you will spend hours enjoying the view from it. We saw many whales and other scenery from the balcony that we otherwise might have missed. You can see the sights from the ships decks too but it's alot easier with a balcony. The bathroom was great and the room stewards were very accommodating.
Now my favorite subject, the food. . The buffet is great for breakfast, good for lunch. but not my cup of tea for dinner. I like a more formal atmosphere in the evening so the self serve thing does not work at dinner and I'm not a snob, but on a vacation I like to be pampered a bit. The two formal restaurants are fair for dinners but if you have the bucks you’ll want to spend them at the specialty restaurants, you will be very impressed. Great value and good service. Don't be penny wise and pound foolinh when it come to dinner. Alas, there is a real hot spot that is free, the Blue Lagoon, that’s on the 7th deck and they have great chicken wings. Most folks we spoke to did not even know that there was a such a place so make sure to check it out.
Heading out to sea the weather was sort of rainy and dreary but life on the ship was lively and active with something always going on. Miraculously we had great weather at the ports. It seems the sun would always come out in the nick of time. . We Had a memorable day in glacier bay and the weather was perfect. What a magnicant place, it's a day I'll never forget.
My kids were kept busy 24/7 in the teen club and made lot's of friends. If you have kids please encourage them to get involved with the activities offered as it was will be good for everyone!!!
Again as with the Balcony suggestion here is another one that is expensive, excursions!!! You need to book some to ully experience Alaska and they are very costly. You'll spend big bucks but for us the dog sledding, whale watching as well as the zip lining made the trip a memory that will never be forgotten. I know that you could wander about town without the excursions and some folks we spoke to even rented cars and explored independently but this would have been too stressful for us.
Peronally I was dissapointed in the shopping at the port towns. . It sort of felt like the shopping was set up by the cruise ships for the cruise ships. Most stores sold the same stuff, jewelry and T-shirts. I wondered where the "local" type stores were. Maybe due to the very limited economy in these small towns they really don’t exsist. ????? Again, as in Seattle, too touristy for me but most folks seemd to like the towns and came back with many shopping bags. The entertainment was very good. We really took advantage of all of the shows, music and comedy. Guitar player Kenny Giordano is a jewel on the pearl!!! On a side note the gym and the spa are top nothch and we went for the $99.00 package that allows you tom have access to the private hot tubs and assorted amenities such as "hot beds" and is limited to 120 adult guests. This is very well worth it otherwise you will share a hot tub with a bunch of teens as they like hanging out in the jacuzzi's in the public area hot tubas. The scenery on the boat, the excursions, and yes, the entertainment made this trip a winner. It is important to note that a family of four can spend from $3000 to $25,000 for this cruise so there is a lot of financial flexibility in tailoring your vacation. Please my port reviews for a more in depth look at the ports.
