We are thinking of flying to Hawaii next August and taking a NCL Hawaii Cruise. Season we hear lots of bad service complaints about the crews on these ship. Is it really that bad? Is it better to wait until a different time of year and Take HAL or Princess out of San Diego?
We are trying to find a cruise for the end of July or beginning of August.
Our family did the 7 day NCL Hawaiian cruise the last week of Sept. I too had read numerous reviews of NCL and their Hawaiian cruises. Our experience was just the opposite of many of the negative reviewers. The service aboard was fine as was the food. We found the staff to be extremely friendly and helpful. The dining experience was not a problem at all. Actually we met our waiter (from the previous evening)at the breakfast buffet. He offerred and then made reservations for us and provided admirable service for several dinners during the week.
I am a highly critical person with cruise experience and have no hesitation at all recommending the NCL Hawaiian cruise. We sailed on Pride of America.
I'm an agent and the overall reviews are still below the rest of the industry for food and service. I'm delighted to read the previous post and have been getting better reports lately. They recently had a major infusion of capitol from an investment group. With the slow but steady improvement in the reports from the Hawaii maret on these ships and the plans to move Pride of Hawaii to Europe to lower supply and possible increase revenue on the two remaining ships the outlook is better than it has been since the inception of this program. Hopefully they have turned the corner and will have a product at least equal to the product in the rest of the industry.
With predominantly U.S. crew members and a union it's hard to get a crew as hard working and dedicated as other ships offer. There are some very good ones, like the previous poster was fortunate enough to get. But there is still heavy turnover, many trainees on each sailing and some morale issues that are common.
These sailings have, as a result of the poor reviews had a softer market. That means great pricing for a Hawaiian cruise. With pricing like we've seen the past couple of years it would be worth a little bit of a disappointment with the food and service. Even better if you get a great rate and very good food and service.
I was so disappointed to read all the terrible reviews. I am getting married in July and really want to go to Hawaii for my honeymoon. Unfortunately, this cruise was probably my only hope, because of the affordability. I need to know if anyone thinks I should just go for it or if I should plan to go else where? I have cruised before but only with Princess and they have always exceded my expectations, by far.
Hi MCarroll, and welcome to cruise-chat. And, congratulations on your upcoming wedding!
I wouldn't be too concerned about your cruise. I've been hearing better reviews recently -- and as Neil posted above, so has he (and he gets to hear a lot more feedback than I do). I would not expect the same experience on NCLA as you've had on Princess, but as this is more of a destination cruise, keep an open mind and enjoy! (BTW, I did a cruise last year on a line I hadn't been crazy about in the past, but booked it solely for its destination--and it turned out to be a great cruise. I just adjusted my expectations a bit. I'm even thinking of repeating it next year.)
Palace Main Restaurant (Main Dining Room)
Cuisine: Continental
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans after 6:00 p.m. in the dining rooms.
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No
Hours
Breakfast: 7:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Lunch: 12:00 noon – 2:30 p.m.
Dinner: 5:30 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
Crossings Main Restaurant (Main Dining Room)
Cuisine: Continental
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans after 6:00 p.m. in the dining rooms.
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No
Hours
Breakfast: 7:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Lunch: 12:00 noon – 2:30 p.m.
Dinner: 5:30 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
Royal Palm Bistro
Cuisine: French
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans after 6:00 p.m. in the dining rooms.
Surcharge: Yes, $15 plus tax per person
Reservations Required: Yes
Hours
Dinner Only: 5:30 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Kahili Restaurant
Cuisine: Italian
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans after 6:00 p.m. in the dining rooms.
Surcharge: Yes, $15 plus tax per person
Reservations Required: Yes
Hours
Dinner Only: 5:30 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Pacific Heights Restaurant
Cuisine: Hawaiian/Asian
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans after 6:00 p.m. in the dining rooms.
Surcharge: Yes, $12.50 plus tax per person
Reservations Required: Yes
Hours
Lunch: 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Dinner : 5:30 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.
MCarroll, worry ye not! We've just returned from Pride of Aloha's 11 day cruise around the Islands and agree with LisaP that if it's Hawaii that you fancy, concentrate on the destinations. We've cruised with various other lines and would rate NCLA (this cruise)as our least preferred but that's not to say that there's anything particularly wrong with the ship/service. I was actually pleasantly surprised after reading some fairly negative feedback after we booked our holiday, it was simply not as good as other cruises we have enjoyed.
I would suggest that you avoid booking a cabin anywhere 'forward' if at all possible. We were on Deck 6a and were woken at approx 0600hrs on docking or tendering days (engine or anchoring noises)!
The food in the cafe's and main dining rooms was nice - limited choices, but well cooked & presented but the service could be quite slow. The specialty restaurants provided larger servings but equally as nice but in more private settings. The buffet on the Hukilau Cafe & Lenai was disapointing on the whole (available choices)and it was sometimes difficult to find a seat.
I would also strongly suggest that you don't depend on booking excursions from NCL. The exact same tours are available from the same tour company NCL use (plus another company)at quite big savings. Flyers were handed to everyone waiting to board the ship and the freephone numbers can be used from any island to book a tour for your next stop. With comimg from UK we pre-booked a couple with NCL (fear of the unknown) but booked the remainder locally. Every port also has a free shuttle services to get you to a Hilo Hattie store or a major shopping centre. Shuttles to beaches were also available at some ports (short walking distance at others).
Regards - Chris
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