ncl-norwegiansea11

Note - this page contains multiple reviews.

Name: Lynn & Mark Twohey
Email: twohey-m@rmc.ca
Age: 39
Occupation: self-employed and military
NumberOfCruises: 6
TravelAgent: No
Ship: NCL-Seaward
SailingDate: 17 Oct 99
Itinerary: Western Caribbean
Cabin: 3003
FoodDiningRoom: 78
CruiseDirector: 98
CabinComfort: 70
FoodRoomService:
CruiseStaff: 98
CabinAmenities: 80
FoodLidoDeck: 78
DiningRoomService: 76
CabinQuietness: 95
FoodMidnightBuffets: 78
CabinSteward: 100
ShoreExcVariety:
FoodVariety: 85
DeckService: 90
ShoreExcValue:
GoodForHoneymoon: 88
CasinoStaff: 80
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 75
LoungeService: 95
TenderService:
GoodForSeniors: 89
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 89
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 79
EntertShowLounge: 89
OverallPortsofCall: 80
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 95
CruiseActivities: 91
Casino: 80
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 95
EmbarkDisembark: 98
DiscoNightclubs: 85
DeckSpace: 95
Stabilization: 98
ShopsOnBoard: 89
SpaceRatio: 95
OverallCruiseValue: 81
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 09 Feb 2000
Time: 17:59:43
Remote Name: dialup13.rmc.ca
Remote User:

Comments

We traveled as part of a family trip including two parents (60 ish), four daughters (32-40), and three
son-in-laws. All but two had cruised before (on a mix on Carnival, Princess, RCCL, HAL and Cunard)
but only one on NCL (the NORWAY). Most of us traveled together on Carnival Destiny for Christmas
98 with our children, so many of our comparisons was with DESTINY in mind.

We went on Norwegian Sea primarily for a change of pace, departing out of Houston. We were all
travelling from different parts of Canada so proximity to Houston or Miami wasn't a big issue. We all
traveled on our own, with flights out of Thunder Bay, Detroit and Syracuse. One group also drove
down for a mix of business and vacation.

We arrived in Houston on the day before our flight and stayed overnight in LaPorte, which is near
the port. Nothing fancy in LaPorte, but it is close to the terminal and there are a number of stores
nearby to stock up on those last minute items. We found liquor prices there are better than
Duty-Free. As this trip was a bit of a reunion, we didn't go into Houston on Sat ni, but did go down to
Kemah, which is about 5 miles south of LaPorte which is a great collection of restaurants, bars and
shops. It is popular, and therefore busy, but fun nonetheless. There appeared to be three
chain-style hotels within a Ľ mile of each other in LaPorte: Best Western, Comfort Suites, and
LaQuinta. We stayed at LaQuinta - it was fair, but we weren't expecting or demanding much from
that overnight. If you're looking for a large, upscale hotel, you'd probably have to move further away
from the port and closer to Houston.

We took a cab to the terminal, I forget the amount but cheap. The group that drove down to Houston
drove to the airport and parked their car there, I think it was $7/day. They asked to park at the hotel
(La Quinta) but the staff wasn't interested, nor would they allow them to leave additional business
suitcases in a storage room. If you're looking for the big cruise terminal/panorama photo experience
go to Miami. I say that only because the ship and terminal are located in an industrial port area.
That being said, the Houston terminal only had to unload and load one ship while we were there, the
Norwegian Sea, and they do a good job.

Because the one member of our group had traveled on NCL before, and was a Latitudes member,
he made all our cruise bookings. This didn't get us any better bargain, but did prove handy when it
came time to board the ship. The waiting area didn't seem that big, but we didn't stay in there long
enough to watch it fill up. From what we could tell, first to board are the wedding parties. Next to
board are the Latitudes members. We were worried that only the Latitudes member and his wife
would get early boarding, but they allowed all of us to board together. The catch is, you board so
early that you don't go straight to your room, as it might not be made up yet. If you're looking for
free welcome aboard drinks, don't hold your breath. They do escort you direct to the 7 Seas Dining
room to eat. We arrived and turned in our tickets at the terminal at 11:45. At 12:20 we were eating in
the dining room. A couple of other notes on boarding, if anyone needs a wheelchair to board, walk
isn't too long but does involve a long up ramp, the staff were very helpful in arranging for
wheelchairs. Second point, checking in early does not mean that you get your luggage early. Some
suitcases arrived before supper and some arrived after supper.

Miscellaneous. There are a number of various critique points raised by various members in our
group and I'll put them here (before going into the standard categories) rather than leave them for
the end of the review so it doesn't finish off on a negative tone: -The NCL liquor police checked and
confiscated liquor on an inconsistent basis. We had someone bring a tequila bottle on board when
returning at night from Cozumel and the next day when returning in the afternoon they confiscated a
bottle (returning it on the day prior to return in Houston). -If you have something fragile you wish to
bring aboard or take home, suggest putting it in a hard side suitcase. This is based on previous
trips and re-confirmed on this trip based on our observation of luggage handling operations while
we were boarding the ship. -If you're looking for a laundry room or a room with an ironing board
think again - not on this ship. -If you understand from the NCL brochures that there is a sports
celebrity on each ship think again. They are only on specific cruises. -Latitudes Member only events
seem to be "sandwiched" into tight timings when guests have other things that they would likely be
doing. -Scheduling of events should be much better to avoid conflicts. One example of this was that
to win a jewelry prize from the ship store, you had to be present for the draw (one member for the
family was not acceptable). Generally we didn't have any complaint with this procedure but when
they schedule it in the middle of the early supper on a Formal Night it didn't make sense to us. We
generally found that on several occasions there was more than one popular event that many
passengers wanted to attend but they were scheduled at the same time, when moving the schedule
a little here and there would have accommodated the majority of people. We realize that there are
many activities to coordinate on board but if this is your bread and butter, we're sure that the cruise
director or someone at corporate HQ can figure it out. -Pool activities. There could have been more
fun activities by the pool. -Temperature in public rooms. Many in our group found the temperature in
the dining room and large entertainment rooms to be very cool and would recommend bringing a
sweater or shawl. -Some in our group had read reviews suggesting that this cruise out of Houston
was oriented entirely towards Texans. We never found this to be the case and everyone seemed
equally welcome. -For a ship that came into service in 88 and was refurbished in 98, this ship seems
to look much older than that. Can't put a finger exactly on what made us feel that way, but we were
all in agreement on this. The good news is that apparently it went to dock for refurbishing again
end-Jan 2000, so hopefully it will look much better when that work is complete. -Understand that if
you want no smoking there is only one ship offering that at this time. That being said we didn't find
that smoke was much of a problem on this ship and NCL does separate the seating areas into
smoking and non-smoking in the secondary entertainment areas (main shows are smoke free).
-Although there were very few children on this cruise (perhaps less than 20?), and none of us had
our children aboard to participate in the program, the room for kids didn't seem that appealing
except for very young children. That being said, perhaps the activities for older children were in
other locations.

Cabins. We all had outside cabins of varying types. One group had 4 adults share a room with two
uppers and two lower berths. Cabins on this ship were much smaller than inside cabins on Destiny.
The four adults in our group that were "roomies" together managed to get through the week, getting
dressed, showered etc., without problem. A little bit of coordination and consideration was all that
was required. The cabin bathrooms were small but functional. That includes the shower. There was
no problem stowing the luggage and the group with 4 adults simply had their cabin steward hide a
couple big pieces and bring them back on the night before departure. One complaint by all was that
the cabins needed new mattresses. Ironically those that slept in the upper berths had the best
mattresses - due to lack of use we presumed. One tip for those bringing their own appliances (read
hair dryer + curler for those using both) - if you have a dual voltage appliance, bring an adaptor.
You can use normal 110V appliances but there is also a 220V outlet on the table by the makeup
mirror that is available if you can use it.

Elevators. Four people is the limit. This could be a challenge for those who require wheelchair
access and/or are in cabins lower in the ship. The good news is that when you take the stairs you
can get a good view outside on each landing via the large windows.

Dining. Bookings had been made for the nine of us to eat together. When we checked we found that
we were split up between two tables. Two in our group went to see the maitre'D and he essentially
said that the only table for ten available was the Captain's table, when it was suggested that would
do, he laughed and said nothing doing. On the first night we ate in our assigned tables. After that
another member of our group approached the maitre D. Next thing you know we are now assigned
to the Captain's table. As I understand it, there is a reserved Captain's table in each Dining Room
so the Captain can float back and forth between table and early/late sittings as he wishes. We could
only presume that the Captain obviously didn't use his table, in our dining room, at our sitting. So,
while the maitre D gets bonus points for moving us to an appropriate table, he lost those points
when first approached by telling us that he couldn't move us. All in all a tip neutral event. In
summary, our experience was check your eating assignment immediately and continue to push for
what you had asked. There were plenty of empty smaller tables, but sorting out larger groups can
be more difficult. While in the Dining Room review section, may as well move onto

Food. Food was good, but not great, but then you try to serve that many gourmet meals at the same
time. Most of us had better meals when ordering beef rather than fish or specialty items. I suppose if
you want really "hot" food, you need to go for a smaller, more upscale ship. OK, back to the basics -
we didn't do the cooking, do the serving, or do the cleaning, so from that perspective food was just
fine thank you. Reviewing food is subjective, so we'll leave it at that. Our biggest complaint was in
food service, most of it not the fault of the actual servers. We found it odd that the waiter and
busboy weren't "paired up", as has been our experience on other ships. Here one busboy was
serving two, sometimes more waiters. This made it difficult for the waiter and busboy to coordinate
our orders and requests. They also seemed to have to serve more tables than they could
adequately handle. Again, no real complaint about the level of dedication by those serving, but they
were being asked to do cover too many tables. Our waiter was a very chatty and personable man,
and although he did a good job, he did not take the same pride in his work as compared to the
professionalism we have seen in waiters on other ships. Our busboy never stopped working - see
previous comments about having to work with more than one waiter. I guess our only critique for him
was that he must have been too busy to be able to smile now and again. One tip for new cruisers -
try to arrive on time for served meals, although you may wish to wait 5 min for the initial line to
dissipate and then head in to the dining room. We watched a number of people repeatedly come
into the dining room 30-40 min late and then try to get through all the courses. If you're having a
good time elsewhere and don't want to rush to eat, take your time and eat at the buffet. On the
other hand if you do wish to enjoy your meal in the Dining Room, you'll make it easier for your waiter
if you can be there on time. Dining room was always loud.

Food on Deck. Breakfast on the Lido Deck was good - in particular the made-to order omelettes.
Other snacks/meals we had here were inconsistent, some were terrific but then on other days you
couldn't even get a decent burger. We ate most lunch and supper meals in the dining room.
Compared to other ships, we found the pizza and ice cream hours of operation were very limited.

Food at Midnight Buffet. We thought this was a victory of form over substance. In particular we were
disappointed with the Chocoholic buffet, where all the desserts looked outstanding, but most had a
bland taste. Understand that others may have a different opinion, but this was our view.

Food at Le Bistro. All of us managed to make it to the Bistro for supper over various nights. This
dining room is on the top of the ship by the stern and provides a great view. We found the food to
be slightly better than the main dining room but not a great deal so. The chocolate fondue dessert
they serve was terrific. One of the best aspects about dining at the Bistro is that it is much quieter
than the main dining rooms. We were a bit disappointed in the fact that service there is quick.
Hoping to enjoy a more relaxed and longer dinner in the Bistro we found that the courses arrived
quite rapidly, making for a meal not much longer than the usual meal in the Dining room. If it is your
intention to take your time while eating, make sure that you tell your waiter, whom in the end you tip
$5 for each person dining.

Mexican Night. One of the better food/entertainment nights was the Mexican theme deck party, on
the night we left Cozumel. It featured good entertainment, dancing and a good Mexican late-night
buffet by the pool. Don't forget to do the dollar dance.

Gambling. Those in our group who look forward to this aspect of the cruise were a little disappointed
in the casino. They had hoped for such activities as slot machine and blackjack tournaments, and if
they took place on the ship, they never heard about it. They also found the cost of Bingo a bit
pricey.

Sports Afloat Program. Most of us participated in various aspects of this program. During the week
there are selected sports activities and if you participate you get one ticket. At the end of the week
for every ten tickets you can get a NCL Sports Afloat T-shirt. All T-shirts are XL. They have a
meeting on this in the fitness center on the first night and provide a handout listing what the week's
activities will be. You can participate in this program at your own level and at your own speed. It is
really more about participation and meeting other people rather than a heavy-duty aerobic workout.
To illustrate this, I think the couple that received the most T-shirts (three each) was Betty and
Wayne who were 50+. The most common activity is the one-mile walk around the ship (at your own
pace) followed by Stretch and Relax. Each one of those provides a ticket and they did that every
day at 8:00 am. There was also a walk each afternoon between 4 and 5 pm. On the day we were in
Cozumel they dropped the 8am walk but organized a walk from the ship into the center of town
(same one-mile distance). Other activities included Ping-Pong tournament, basketball free throws,
horseshoe toss, step aerobics, and boxercise to name a few. Again people of all ages participated
in both aerobics and boxercise, but do so at their own level. Probably the most fun was the Wacky
and Wild Olympics. If you do decide to participate in this program, figure out early what your T-shirt
goal is going to be. Some in our group were not impressed when they were asked by other group
members to attend some extra sports activities at the end of the week to help get "just one more
T-shirt" in pursuit of the ever-increasing T-shirt quest.

Spa. If you want a massage, go on the spa tour on Day one (free champagne served) and sign up.
One person in our group went for a massage on Day Two and overheard someone working in the
spa on the receiving end of a phone call from a new bride who was quite bitter and indignant that
there were no massage appointments left to be had that week. Apparently her comment before
slamming down the phone was "you just get me an appointment". Don't know what happened in the
end. Our recommendation would be to go on the tour on Day One, get a free drink, and sign up if
that is what you want.

Art Auctions. Several of us attended these events, initially for something to do, and eventually some
did make some purchases. Art is rather subjective and people buy what they like - simple as that.
We can't say how the prices on the ship compare to what you'd pay on land. Some of the prices did
drop as the week went on, with silent auctions and the like. The man running the auctions, Paul, was
very entertaining, even for those of us who had no intention of making a purchase.

Cancun. Many in our group were sitting in the art auction when the Captain made the
announcement that due to the rough seas we wouldn't be going to Cancun and we would proceed to
Cozumel. This was the fourth week in a row that this had happened. The seas made no difference to
the ship as far as we could tell, but would make life very unpleasant on the smaller tenders from the
ship to shore. I was ecstatic when this announcement was made (having absolutely no interest in
going to Cancun) but as there were several people in the room who had made tour purchases and
were disappointed, I kept my comments to myself. All tour monies were refunded. Around 3 pm that
afternoon, when we were about ˝ way between Cancun and Cozumel, they made the general
announcement that at the bars on the open decks they would be serving draught beer and rum
punches free for the next hour. I guess that was to try and minimize the disappointment for not going
to Cancun. Not sure that did much for those that had their heart set on Cancun, or those that didn't
drink alcohol. On the other hand, for those of us that didn't want to go to Cancun and did drink, it
was a win-win situation.

Cozumel. Most passengers were happy with the opportunity to spend a night in Cozumel partying
without having to worry about leaving to get on the ship. If you think passengers were happy, the
crew is even more so. Not necessarily because they can get off and shop or party, but also it gives
them lots of time to find a phone and call family or friends in distant lands - calling on board ship just
too expensive. We didn't find a lot of great bargains in Cozumel on jewelry, but there were some
good inexpensive souvenirs to be had. On the next full day ˝ of our group went to PLAYA Del SOL
and ˝ went to Chankanab Beach - we just used local taxis, no ship tours. PLAYA DEL SOL has Jet
skis, banana boats, beach, showers and change rooms. Chankanab Park is a popular spot for
snorkeling and SCUBA diving - you can rent all the equipment on site fairly cheaply. If you can find a
chair, it is free (go early or late to do this). The showers are free but if you want you can rent a
locker for $2. Some in our group got lucky and found some people looking for a locker as they were
leaving so they resold them their key for $1 so both groups got a deal. There are some enterprising
underwater photographers that will take your picture as you are surrounded by colourful fish
(photographer provides fish food seconds before he snaps photo). The photos will be developed
and are for sale at the point where you get on/off buses and taxis at the entrance to the park.
Unfortunately some in our group wanted to try and buy a couple of these photos but the
photographer couldn't find the roll that he used to take our pictures. If you want to do this, make
sure you do so at least 45 min before you depart the park as they need that time to get back,
develop and print etc., If you want to try something different, just take one of the many timeshare
resorts sellers up on their offer. There are plenty of these operators around downtown and they will
provide you a free taxi to/from a fancy hotel, free lunch, free souvenir blankets, maybe even some
free tequila ? - all you have to do is be prepared to listen to a sales pitch. We didn't do this but if
you want a free meal and souvenir it's an option. Based on the fact that the ship regularly misses
Cancun and goes straight to Cozumel, recommend that you have a plan of what your
shopping/beach/party activities in Cozumel will be if you arrive a day early.

Roatan. Clearly the most underdeveloped port of call, it does have some good resorts also. The
"market" is a few hundred feet from the dock is actually a collection of small huts, approximately 10'
x 20' that sell various hand made souvenirs, mahogany wood crafts, blankets, T-shirts,
knick-knacks, etc., We found that they weren't really interested in bargaining to any large degree.
Don't think that walking beyond these shacks will bring you to a downtown with bigger and better
shops - some of us did that expecting to see something better "just around the next corner" -
nothing doing. You will get a good idea of the poor living conditions they have, but you won't find
any souvenir type shops. In the afternoon we found a taxi (van) on our own - no ship tour- to take us
to a resort called Fantasy Island. You can go to this resort, and use their chairs and beach at no
cost. This was a very quiet place and apparently there was some snorkeling there but we didn't find
it. Frankly we just found a nice beach with chairs, dropped anchor (cooler) and spent the afternoon
right there. We later discovered that when we went back to the parking lot at the arranged time to
meet our taxi that he spent the afternoon in the parking lot. As advertised in other reviews - don't
forget the bug spray for this stop.

Entertainment. We found the shows to be very good. Even the adult show was quite funny and less
risqué than some of the regular entertainment that we saw on Destiny. The Cruise Director Paul and
his Assistant, Ritch, were great. Tisa (a member of the Cruise Director staff) gets top marks for
going out of her way to talk to passengers all day long throughout the cruise. She would always go
find a table and talk to passengers while the other staff would hang out together. The trivia, Wheel
of fortune and other games shows hosted by the Cruise Director and his staff were terrific - some
better than the evening shows. We were all impressed by the girl in the audience seated beside us
who would have made a great contestant on the real Wheel of Fortune TV show. When she
guessed "Statue of Liberty" before one letter was turned we knew she had missed her calling.

Photos. Overall we were all disappointed with the photographers and quality of pictures. First tip; if
you have a large group of people (over 6) make an appointment if you wish to have a group picture
taken together. On Destiny we had a group shot of 11 people taken on a formal night on a staircase
with no problem in about 2-3 minutes. On this ship they won't even talk to you if there are more than
6 in a group. Too many people, no room, too hard etc., So if you want a group picture, make an
appointment. When we tried to re-order a casual group shot taken on the deck when departing
Houston, they misplaced the photo/negative for about 4 days. We found prices to be higher on this
ship than Carnival and the quality was certainly no better. Tip Two - take a close look at what the
background will be for your formal photos - if you don't like the background when you're standing
there, if won't look any better on a 5x7 or 8x10. Tip Three. Bring a zip loc bag, big enough for 8x10
photos. Once your photos start showing up in the photo gallery, grab them and put them in your zip
loc bag, and then leave them in the photo gallery. Do this each day and on the day before
returning, go through what you want. If you don't you'll spend a lot of time trying to track down your
photos later in the week as they need to put the early ones aside from time to time to make room for
new ones.

Disembarkation. OK, enough with poor comparisons to Destiny. NCL wins this one hands down. We
were called for disembarkation at 8:30 and were standing outside the terminal with our luggage at
8:45. If part of that is due to the fact that it is a smaller ship, than so be it. This ran very smoothly,
even though we non-US residents had to get up a little earlier for some additional clearances. Only
minor gripe was that when we were up early for these clearances, they put out coffee while you
waited and you could have it any way you wanted it, provided you didn't want any cream/milk or
sugar.

Conclusion. All cruises are good cruises. They vary with the people you meet and what sort of
attitude you bring with you. We enjoyed our cruise but for our next trip we'll be going on Carnival
Paradise to Eastern Caribbean in May. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Name: Tom Dillon
Email: divetex@yahoo.com
Age: 57
Occupation: Technical Writing/Training Consultant
NumberOfCruises: 8
TravelAgent: No
Ship: NCL-Seaward
SailingDate: 2/27/2000
Itinerary: Texaribbean (Western)
Cabin: 2013/
FoodDiningRoom: 80
CruiseDirector: 95
CabinComfort: 70
FoodRoomService: 65
CruiseStaff: 95
CabinAmenities: 75
FoodLidoDeck: 82
DiningRoomService: 70
CabinQuietness: 100
FoodMidnightBuffets:
CabinSteward: 75
ShoreExcVariety: 95
FoodVariety: 75
DeckService: 85
ShoreExcValue: 85
GoodForHoneymoon: 75
CasinoStaff: 85
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 40
LoungeService: 90
TenderService: 50
GoodForSeniors: 80
BeautySalonStaff: 100
EntertainmentLounges: 80
WheelchairAccess: 65
ExerciseFacilities: 80
EntertShowLounge:
OverallPortsofCall: 75
BeautySalon: 80
EntertainmentPoolside: 85
CruiseActivities: 85
Casino: 85
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 80
EmbarkDisembark: 70
DiscoNightclubs:
DeckSpace: 90
Stabilization: 90
ShopsOnBoard: 95
SpaceRatio: 90
OverallCruiseValue: 90
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 06 Mar 2000
Time: 21:59:01
Remote Name: altinet267.altinet.net
Remote User:

Comments

Review of Norwegian Sea Cruise, 2/27/00 to 3/5/00

"Texaribbean" Cruise: Houston; sea day; Cancun; Cozumel; Roatan, Honduras; sea day; sea day;
Houston

Preface: Since we went on this cruise as NCL Latitudes members, we knew what to expect, and had no
unrealistic expectations. Therefore, we were neither surprised nor shocked when things didn't go as
planned. As a result, we had a very enjoyable cruise, and plan to repeat it before the end of the year,
when NCL will leave the Port of Houston for good.

The Port of Houston: For people who have never seen the Pasadena/ Deer Park/La Porte area, it can be
described in two words: ugly and smelly. Even the port of Curaçao, back in the oil storage area, is nicer.
If you could receive a $10 bill for every refinery you counted between the airport and the ship, you could
probably pay for your cruise. We drove and parked our car in the fenced and patrolled lot for $49 for the
week. No problem, but if you do this in your personal car, wash your car as soon as you can (after
leaving the immediate area). The chemicals from the refineries and the salt air can ruin the finish on your
paint job very quickly). The small terminal is adjacent to an area where they unload huge container ships,
and there is not much else to see except a beautiful suspension bridge toward the city. The small size of
the terminal causes a huge delay getting off the ship. They only let about 50 people at a time leave the
ship, and it can become a real zoo trying to find your luggage. You'll have to walk up/down a very long
ramp to board/debark the ship, so if you have to push a wheelchair or carry a heavy carry-on, plan on a
few rest stops.

The Ship: It was obvious that the Norwegian Sea was built in 1988. Although it's not new, it looks to be in
very good shape. The paint was new, but the ship was not particularly clean. There are quite a few public
areas on the ship, although not as many as we would have liked. There are two showrooms on Deck 5,
one forward and one aft. There are several nice bars, although they are rather small. A reformed smoker
of 31 years, I am very intolerant of cigarette smoke, but never found smoke in a bar to be a problem. Of
the four NCL cruises we've been on, this one was by far the best in terms of NCL enforcing their smoking
policy: no smoking on the port side of the ship or in dining rooms. It just wasn't much of a problem this
time. The ship has only one shop onboard, but it is very large and well- stocked. The Internet Café had
about 8 PCs that cost $.75 per minute. I think they charge $3.75 per email if you use the ship's email
address. If you use Yahoo Mail, AOL, Hotmail, etc, you save the $3.75. Nice hardware, but pay attention
to the instructions on logging off, or you can cost yourself money. There is no printing capability. There
was a horrible vibration in the aft areas of the ship. Fortunately, the Deck 2 cabins aft are all crew
quarters, but we felt and heard the vibrations in the dining room on Deck 5 virtually every time we ate
there. The ship has two pools on Deck 9. One is tiny and one is rather large. Few swimmers made use of
them. We never saw anyone who was unable to find a deck chair on Deck 9 or 10, and the staff did
enforce their policy of removing personal items from deck chairs that had not been used for more than 30
minutes. There were no deck chairs on the Promenade Deck, and we thought that there should be some.
The deck is very wide, and there was ample room for deck chairs without interfering with walkers/joggers.
The only places to sit on the Promenade Deck were on top of lifejacket lockers or on the deck itself.

Entertainment: We only attended one matinee magic/comedy show, so cannot critique the entertainment.
The show we did see was probably OK, but we could neither hear nor see it well because we arrived too
late to get seats close to the stage. The cruise director and his staff seemed very personable, and most
everyone seemed to like them. Poolside activities were typical. I found the poolside band to be very
entertaining, although their music did become somewhat monotonous toward the end of the cruise. The
Jean Ryan troupe did Grease and Sea Legs, and I heard positive comments from other passengers on
both productions.

Casino: It was very small with not a lot of slot machines, although several paid off during the cruise. My
wife came out ahead on the slots and I came out ahead on the craps table, so I guess we did OK. The
casino could get smoky at times, but that's what we expected. It wasn't particularly noisy, though.

Onboard Photographers: We saw a few good photos that they took of other people, but for the most part,
they photographers were not very good. On the other hand, this was our first NCL cruise in which the
photographers weren't "in your face" all the time. A simple shake of the head and they'd move off to find
another subject. I had five rolls of film developed onboard, and it took them 44 hours instead of their
advertised 24. One roll of the five was extremely overexposed; the others were fine. They don't do nearly
as good a job on film developing as either RCI or Princess ships.

Food: My wife and I have always felt that this is the singular area in which NCL was better than either RCI
or Princess. On this cruise, however, if it was typical of the fleet, it was readily apparent that the quality of
the overall dining experience on NCL has declined…just as it has on both Princess and RCI. Ours was
the first cruise with a totally new menu, and we felt that they probably should have kept the old one. The
quality of the food was mediocre, although its presentation was always excellent. We were served
outstanding prime rib early in the cruise, but all of the other beef we tried in the dining room was very
tough and dry, similar to the beef often found in restaurants in Mexico. The alternative dining facility, Le
Bistro, was consistently outstanding, with beef that was "melt in your mouth." We thoroughly enjoyed the
two meals we ate there. Unfortunately, they don't change the Le Bistro menu during the cruise, so it could
become monotonous. Le Bistro makes a wonderful Caesar salad, and the French onion soup is
absolutely wonderful, but extremely hot. We added ice cubes to it and still scalded our mouths! A tip
here: You can take your own wine to Le Bistro. The $10 corkage fee is less than the cost of two glasses
of their wine. The overall Le Bistro experience is nicely done for a suggested $5/person tip that you can
charge to your room or pay in cash, as you prefer. The buffet (Big Apple Café) had what I would call "just
food," although some of it was nice. I heard it compared to Howard Johnson's, Luby's Cafeteria, high
school cafeteria cuisine, etc. We didn't find it all that bad. In fact, the food itself was very good; it was the
presentation that left something to be desired. They did have an excellent omelet chef there for
breakfast, but he didn't set up until 8:00 a.m. They served mediocre hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza
there every afternoon. Popcorn was available at the Deck 9 pool bar in the afternoon. The free ice cream
on Deck 9 was available from 1:00 until 3:00 p.m. each day. NCL used to market this cruise as having
something like 30 or more different kinds of salsa. We're from Texas, and for us, bottled hot sauce is not
salsa. NCL must believe otherwise. The only actual salsa available on board tasted like canned tomatoes
with some kind of pepper juice in it. The dining room uses a lot of cilantro for garnish, but it was never put
into the salsa…..nor were onions, peppers, etc. I like bottled habańero hot sauce, but I don't need 30
varieties of it.

Bars: There are several good bars and bartenders on the ship. One of the best was Michael, on Deck
10. He mixed a very good margarita, as long as we had him use Husson's tequila instead of their usual
Jose Cuervo. It cost a bit more, but was well worth it. Oscar's Lounge had many, many brands of tequila
available, from the Cuervo junk to some really good blue agave brands. We never had a problem getting
a drink at poolside, and the service was very good. They did have a "tequila tasting," but we didn't
attend. They also had a wine tasting, but we chose to miss that, too.

The Salon: I didn't use it, but my wife did. It was very small, but well-run. She said that the manicure and
pedicure she got was the best she's ever had, and that the young lady (Theresa?) who did it was
outstanding.

Workout Facilities: Aerobics take place on the pool deck, which makes it very noisy for other cruisers.
The gym itself is very small, and gets very hot even early in the day. It contains 3 treadmills, 2 or 3
stair-steppers, a few free weights (mostly in kilograms, not pounds) and a few pieces of Nautilus-type
equipment. There IS a cold water fountain and plenty of towels. There was a 30-minute limit on the
mechanized cardio equipment. There are also men's and women's saunas, but we didn't use them. The
showers up there (this is Deck 10) are much larger than those in the staterooms, and I understand that
some passengers used them in lieu of their own showers. Unfortunately, the only access to the "gym" is
by going outside into the usually-strong wind.

Stateroom: We were in an outside cabin on Deck 2, so we had a porthole instead of a window. No
problem. The cabin was smaller than the old Royal Caribbean inside cabins, but there was so much
storage room that we never had a problem finding places to put things until the last night, when we had
suitcases all over the place. By keeping the beds separate, there was ample room. If we had put them
together into a queen, it would have been horrible for lack of space. The only problems we had in the
cabin were a horribly uncomfortable mattress (foam pad, actually) on my bed, a creaky bed for my wife,
and a room that we couldn't get cool. We expected this, so we had brought a small fan with us…believe
me, it helped us survive. At night, the bedding is arranged in the form of a duvet, so we opted to get extra
sheets from the cabin steward and sleep under them, atop the duvet cover. There was ample room under
the beds for storing all of our luggage and my scuba equipment. The bathroom was small, but it wasn't
necessary to sit sideways on the toilet. The shower was quite small. We did have difficulty finding cool
water from the tap at times. The hair dryer provided was extremely weak, but my wife had taken her own,
so we had no problem.

Other: The ship has a small game/card room, and we saw it being used several times. That room also
had a paperback exchange, but we never saw any books left there. Table tennis is available on Deck 9
forward on both sides of the ship, and the tables were used frequently. On the Promenade Deck, aft, is a
fairly large basketball court, but we didn't see it used much. We did walk the Promenade Deck several
times (4.25 laps = 1 mile) early in the morning before breakfast and watched the flying fish sail out of our
way.

The Ports: I won't say much here, for it's fairly straightforward. Cancun: They anchored so far out in the
bay that it took a 30-minute ferry ride to get ashore, after waiting for more than an hour for the second
tender. The tender landed at Fat Tuesday, which was already starting to get into the swing of Spring
Break. The locals funneled us INTO Fat Tuesday to get to the street, but we just kept walking and took a
cab to the Forum mall. The cabs are $7.00 for the entire taxi, so we joined another couple and paid $4
per couple. The Forum is just like any other mall, except for the view outside the windows: beautiful. It
contains a large Rainforest Café (whoopie) and a Hard Rock Café. The Hard Rock has a very nice
outside deck overlooking the water….very nice place to enjoy a cold Corona and watch the surf. If we
repeat this cruise, though, and want to shop, we won't go to the Forum. Instead, if we want to shop, we'll
go to Plaza Caracol: It's much nicer, has better shops, better prices, and friendlier staff. On the other
hand, we'll probably either take the shore excursion to Isla Mujeres or just stay on the ship. Cancun isn't
much of a port. If the waves are too high, they won't stop there anyway. Cozumel: What can I say about
Cozumel? It's our favorite port. I scuba dived while my wife shopped, and then we met and went ashore
for a few hours. We went to Palmeras for some of the world's best margaritas (on-the-rocks, not
frozen)…they pour triples, I think. We did a little shopping and went back to the ship. Roatan, Honduras:
This is a beautiful island. The reefs are in wonderful shape, and the diving (with Anthony's Key Resort)
was world-class. There is virtually no shopping except for a straw market-setup just off the pier. If you
leave the ship, wear insect repellent! The sand fleas can be horrible. The ship's snorkel excursion went
to Tabyana Beach Resort, which was the same beach where we stopped for lunch between dives. The
beach was beautiful and the lunch was excellent; it reminded me of a private island meal: hamburgers,
hot dogs, wonderful BBQ chicken, fresh papaya, outstanding spiced iced tea, etc. Great day, great dive,
great port…but don't expect too much other than beautiful scenery, beautiful wooden bowls and carved
boxes, and very friendly people.

Overall: As I said at the start of this long review, we plan to do this same cruise again before NCL leaves
the Port of Houston at the end of this year. We found things about the cruise that we didn't care for, and
we found many things that we liked. In essence, this cruise proved, once again, that attitude is the
primary factor in determining whether a cruise is good or bad. We had a pretty good idea what to expect
from NCL, which wasn't much, but we went on the cruise knowing that we were going to have a good time,
and we did... in spite of an incompetent and extremely slow dining room waiter, in spite of food that I didn't
care for, and in spite of several other things I didn't like. Hey….a land-based vacation isn't always what
you expect, either. All in all, we enjoyed the cruise immensely, and do want to do it again.

Name: Larry DiGioia
Email: larryd@newmantech.com
Age: 45
Occupation: engineer
NumberOfCruises: 6
TravelAgent: No
Ship: NCL-Seaward
SailingDate: 3-19-00
Itinerary: Texarribean
Cabin: 3128
FoodDiningRoom: 75
CruiseDirector: 80
CabinComfort: 70
FoodRoomService:
CruiseStaff: 85
CabinAmenities: 70
FoodLidoDeck: 60
DiningRoomService: 90
CabinQuietness: 40
FoodMidnightBuffets:
CabinSteward: 90
ShoreExcVariety: 60
FoodVariety:
DeckService:
ShoreExcValue: 60
GoodForHoneymoon:
CasinoStaff:
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 80
LoungeService:
TenderService: 80
GoodForSeniors: 70
BeautySalonStaff: 90
EntertainmentLounges:
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 70
EntertShowLounge: 85
OverallPortsofCall: 60
BeautySalon: 70
EntertainmentPoolside: 90
CruiseActivities: 70
Casino: 70
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 90
EmbarkDisembark: 90
DiscoNightclubs:
DeckSpace: 80
Stabilization: 90
ShopsOnBoard:
SpaceRatio:
OverallCruiseValue: 90
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 29 Mar 2000
Time: 21:52:28
Remote Name: cardinal.redbird.net
Remote User:

Comments

We took a last-minute deal that appeared via email, from an online cruise agency only 3 weeks before
sailing. It turned out to be an excellent value. There were people at our table who paid 4 times what we
did, as well as people who got a deal similar to ours, online. This cruise is an excellent one for both first
time cruisers, and those who want a quick getaway with a minimum of fuss. Since the port is in Houston,
(it is the only ship that leaves from there) we met many people who don't even like to fly, and many were
from Texas and Louisiana. The average age was the lowest I have seen on any cruise. This was partly
due, of course, to the fact that we had at least 25% 'spring breakers.' They stayed mostly out of the way
on board, and were mainly interested in Mexico. The only two disadvantages I see are that because of
the age of the ship, the cabins are small, and the engines are noisy. Neither of those bothered us.

The
dining room service was the best we have seen. Both main rooms are a little cramped. I was
EXTREMELY pleased to find that we had a selection of 70 hot sauces available, in packs of 6 at each
table. I kept going to different tables and borrowing different sets of bottles at each meal. The
Texarribean theme continues into the entertainment as well, with a Comedian/Magician who was first
class, and a more conventional Comedian. We also very much enjoyed the enrichment lecturer, who
gave a series of 4 somewhat unrelated talks. Unfortunately, he was not given any A/V equipment or
materials. The night-time shows were also very good, and far superior to the usual Las-Vegas-style stuff
we have seen on other ships. Unfortunately, the main show lounge had a terrible sound system (1
speaker!) even though there was a very advanced and expensive lighting system. There was even a
failure of the dancer's wireless microphones, very embarrassing. Although there were the usual pitches
for Bingo and the silly art auctions, neither were overdone as on other ships.

The selection of TV
channels and movies were a little sparse, but OK by me. There is also Internet access on board, but be
prepared to pay a whopping 75 cents per minute, PLUS an extra $4 per email message you send...
unless you have an account on an independent web-based mail system. Even then, you may have a bit
of trouble figuring out how to get there from the mandatory AOL-based menus. Better than nothing, I
guess. In Cancun, we just took a cab over to a large grocery store and bought a few interesting things
there, then back to the ship. In Cozumel, we did the Tulum ruins tour, and a little shopping. We enjoyed
the 'authentic' dancers and performers at Tulum. We had a small problem with one of the tenders
coming back from Cozumel, it sat outside the ship, waiting for a door to open for 1/2 hour before giving
up and taking us around to the other side of the ship. No explanation. At least the tenders are large,
commercial water taxis, instead of lifeboats. They even had air conditioning. At Roatan, we went to the
private beach (Tabyana) to do a little snorkeling... not the best, but we are spoiled in that regard. Good
if you like coral, only fair if you are looking for fish. But it definitely has easy access and calm water. A
picture-perfect beach. We enjoyed the fitness walks on board every morning. On this ship, fitness,
shops, and even the beauty facilities are short on space. Even the Casino is pretty small. Many
remarked that it was a shame that there was no library on board. Altogether we are very pleased, and
we would suggest this cruise to anyone who needs a quick break from cold weather at (potentially) a
very reasonable price.

Name: Thom Hasenpflug
Email: thasmin13@hotmail.com
Age: 33
Occupation: Professor
NumberOfCruises: 3
TravelAgent: No
Ship: NCL-Seaward
SailingDate: 8/1/99
Itinerary: texarribean
Cabin: Cat H - Oceanview
FoodDiningRoom: 93
CruiseDirector: 88
CabinComfort: 92
FoodRoomService:
CruiseStaff: 90
CabinAmenities: 92
FoodLidoDeck: 90
DiningRoomService: 98
CabinQuietness: 99
FoodMidnightBuffets: 95
CabinSteward: 95
ShoreExcVariety: 95
FoodVariety: 94
DeckService: 95
ShoreExcValue: 75
GoodForHoneymoon: 90
CasinoStaff: 90
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 90
LoungeService: 90
TenderService: 90
GoodForSeniors: 90
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 75
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 90
EntertShowLounge: 90
OverallPortsofCall: 85
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 90
CruiseActivities: 90
Casino: 90
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 93
EmbarkDisembark: 90
DiscoNightclubs: 85
DeckSpace: 93
Stabilization: 94
ShopsOnBoard: 80
SpaceRatio: 93
OverallCruiseValue: 93
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 24 Apr 2000
Time: 13:04:00
Remote Name: 336ppp35.usd.edu
Remote User:

Comments

Norwegian Sea - 7 Day August 1999 Western Caribbean (Texaribbean) R/T Houston (Cancun, Cozumel,
Roatan Honduras)

I was switching jobs, and decided to spend hard earned cash on a cruise between positions. Single male, age
32, booked a run-of-ship, guaranteed single, through my local travel agent at the last minute. Looking back on
it, I might have gotten a slightly better price shopping around, knowing what I know now, but that's water under
the bridge. I would classify this as a very good cruise. There are plenty of folks out there who love to bash
NCL as being inferior to the other mass market lines, and while I haven't sailed them all, I feel it is appropriate
to defend NCL and the sweet Norwegian Sea against some overly harsh judgements.

General: Food - very good; Service - excellent; Entertainment - both good and not so good; Ship condition -
reasonably good; Cabin - plenty of room for one, functional and decent, although very small.

The ship: The Sea is a ship made for sailing - no mega mall here by any means. The Sea has a heartbeat.
Passenger capacity is about 1500, ship was built in 1988. A medium small 2 story atrium with fountain greets
the passenger. Decorative and pleasant, but not impressive like Carnival / RCI. The ship is clean and well
maintained - some small signs of wear showing especially in the stair / hallway carpet. Public areas are
pleasant and varied.

Special plusses include 1) the wine and piano bar all the way upstairs (Gatsby's?) very classy, a great place
for a cocktail or a glass of wine. 2) A full promenade deck complete with jogging track 3) 2 Large pools, and
plenty of room on the pool and sun decks. I never had trouble finding a chair or a towel. 4) sports and fitness
facilities, including a little basketball court all the way aft. 5) as usual, the required casino, disco, a couple bars
scattered about the ship. Disadvantages include: 1) No library, although there is a card room - not really any
reason to sit in there as it is kind of a thoroughfare to other places. 2) A design that requires you to walk
through the casino all the time - if it's closed, it's hard to get from one end of the ship to the other. 3) Not
enough teak - Blue, blue painted metal everywhere. Also the aforementioned carpet wear and tear. 4) older
ship - both good and bad - but there just isn't that mutch glitz and flash here.

Service: Quite excellent. Always friendly and professional, both cabin and restaurant. Food service was always
a joy (Zita from Turkey), and bar service was more casual but OK. Cabin was always cleaned and turned down
nicely. Special plus: I apparently injured my neck while snorkelling. Couldn't turn my head from side to side,
terrible pain - The fitness coordinator went out of her way to help me after I asked her if there were any
options for physical therapy on board. She exercised and stretched me for an hour, and gave me a half hour
sports massage out on deck beyond duty hours - for NO charge. She went out of her way to help alleviate my
pain. I still hurt alot, but it helped.

Food: Very good. I favoured the dining room for the most part, although there is a rave alternative Bistro on
board. I didn't eat anything bad. I found the vegetarian dishes and fitness cuisine to be real tasty. The meats
were OK. I did not care for the soups by and large, nor did my table. They were bland and uninspired
consomme type. Desserts were great, especially the tarts - and many varied ice creams. Midnight chocoholic
buffet! Big apple cafe is nowhere near as bad as other reviews would have you believe. Most food up there is
quite good. They made omlettes, and special oriental noodle soups to order, and other neat things. Poolside
cuisine was bar food, but decent at that. The wings there were truly excellent, and as a New Yorker I know alot
about real Buffalo wings. Drinks were the same as on any mass market line. Complete with souvenir glasses,
etc. Only free drinks were at the captain's welcome party. (Where I got to say a quick Hei pa Norsk) 70 - 80
some bottles of different hot sauce on board!

Cabin: Fine, but small. I was single so no problem. Shower is miniscule! A few nice toiletries are included.
Lotion, soap, etc. Lighting was good in the cabin. Everything worked. Ice brought in every day.

Excursions - I really liked the "island party boat" from Cozumel. It was kind of a dumpy little Gilligans island
boat, but man they brought out the beers - then we hit this secluded island beach and played volleyball - great
sand - the Mexicans kicked our ass. There was also some limited snorkeling, and an unplanned event: an
entire school of dolphins decided they would follow our party boat for a while and play around just cause they
felt like it - like 7 or 8 of them. They knew where the beer was. I had never seen that before. The East end
discovery tour on Roatan, however, was to be avoided. We were crammed into a 3rd world minivan, and
drove past all the cool stuff, but we managed to stop at plenty of cheap dumb overpriced roadside kickback I
mean souvenir stands. Including the house of an American who sold jam. Like I can get that at Shop Rite OK?
But you never know until after you take them what they're going to be like....

Summary: A very good cruise! I was never bored, and felt comfortable on the sweet Norwegian Sea as it
steamed around like a good ship should. The Sea will apparently cease the Texaribbean run out of Houston
next year. I would recommend doing it before that happens!

Thomas thasmin13@hotmail.com

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