Norwegian Sky to Alaska: One of the best vacations I have ever had!
Written: Aug 26 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great scenery, staff, food, accommodations.
Cons: Absolutely none!
The Bottom Line: A wonderful ship with a staff that really goes the extra mile! A great vacation, especially for families.
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| gerper's Full Review: Norwegian Sky |
When my family first brought up the issue of taking a cruise to Alaska, it was last fall, and even then, the plan was to take it “in a few years” as a family. Well, in February of 2001, my father was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, so we knew that if we didn’t take a cruise to Alaska soon, we might not all be able to take it as a family. So, after my father completed his chemotherapy treatments this past June, we were given the green light by his doctor and finalized plans to take a cruise to Alaska’s Inside Passage on the Norwegian Sky.
My sister made all of the arrangements for my family (a party of seven) earlier this year. As with all cruises, they tend to book fairly fast, with rates increasing as the departure time approaches, so we made sure to book early to avoid problems. The cruise itself departed from Pier 66 in Seattle (which is near our homes), so airfare wasn’t involved, and we just had to go down to the Pier and hop on the ship. I should mention that the trip itself was $1250.00 per person, which included port charges, for inside stateroom lodging (no windows).
Now, before I go on with my actual review, I will be the first to admit that I had my reservations about this family vacation, especially since there was really no place to go until we were in the ports. I fully anticipated cranky family members along with at least some bickering during the week. However, this did not happen, and we got along better than ever, thanks much in part to the wonderful amenities on the ship and the great scenery of Alaska.
The Ship - The Norwegian Sky’s maiden voyage was in August of 1999, so this ship is considered a “brand new” ship in the world of cruising. Having never been on a cruise, nor seen a cruise ship in person (other than “The Love Boat” when I was a kid), I was completely amazed at how big the ship (at 850 feet) actually was. The “Sky”, as it is known, has 12 decks, has a tonnage of 77,000. As far as capacity, the Sky can carry 2,400 guests, along with a crew of nearly 1,000. So, in doing the math, there is about one crew member for every two guests, which means that you are pretty much treated like royalty, in terms of service and attention.
The amenities - As I previously mentioned, the Sky is a brand new ship, and I often found crew members cleaning, washing, scrubbing, and even painting parts of the ship while aboard, which keeps the ship in top-notch condition. Basically, the ship gleamed and was spotless, which really helped showcase the finer parts of the ship.
During the seven day cruise, it seemed that we were constantly busy on the Sky, as there were two pools, four hot tubs, a cabaret, casino, as well as ten other bars and lounges. There was also a library, gym, running track, daycare, beauty salon, as well as various shops.
Food and drink - The food, of course, is free, with the except of the Ciao Chow, and The Horizons of Italy, which charge a ten dollar cover at dinner time. There are seven eateries on the Sky, and with the concept of “Freestyle Cruising”, you are welcome to eat at anytime, with no reservations required. However, this does present wait times, but the longest we had to wait was 15 minutes, the other times we were seated immediately.
With the Freestyle Cruising eating concept, Norwegian requires guests to simply wear “resort attire”, meaning no jeans, shorts, t-shirts, or tank tops. Khaki pants and sundresses are acceptable, and I found most of the guests wore casual clothes to these restaurants, along with a few that went all out and dressed up.
Besides the exception of Ciao Chow and Horizons of Italy, we ate in all of the eateries, and found each of them to have really good food. Of course, since the buffet (The Garden Café), was often the most convenient, we found ourselves eating there much of the time.
As for the food itself, it was really amazingly good, and was always freshly prepared, even in the buffets. During my week at sea, in addition to “normal food” (i.e., pizza, fish and chips, sandwiches, etc), which was always available, I also indulged in oysters Rockefeller, Escargot, crepes, prime rib, Alaskan king crab, shrimp, baked Alaska, numerous cuts of steak, and lobster. Basically, I took the opportunity to try new foods, ones that I normally wouldn’t eat or buy, and I can honestly say that I liked just about everything new I tried, even the Escargot.
My only complaint about the portions is that they give are a bit small, so if there is something that you know you will want to eat a larger amount of, order more than one. However, since the restaurants offer numerous courses, we found that these small portions allowed us to try food from many different menus, which was a welcome change, as many of the restaurants in the United States simply “overload” you with one dish.
Drinks, of course, are pricey, even the non-alcoholic ones, and are billed to your room using your “room key card”, and they all add up… fast. Also billed to your room are port excursions, pictures (if you chose to purchase them, as they take many of them throughout the cruise), and tipping. At first, I was a bit peeved about the “$10.00 per day per person” charge of tipping, ($70.00 for the week), that was going to be added onto my bill, but after the cruise, I was more than happy to pay this, as service was really top notch. I would advise to keep an eye on your spending, as I managed to rack up nearly a $750.00 bill (which was far less than what I had expected). Billing is done the night before the cruise ends, and is given to guests in an itemized list.
Service - Again, service was excellent, as they have the two to one ratio of staff to guests. I found that all of the staff I encountered to be both friendly and interesting, as a majority of them are from other countries. The other guests were also very friendly (after all, everyone was on vacation), and I met people from Australia, Russia, Philippines, Germany, Italy, as well as the United States. After a day or two, I really made it a point to try and meet someone during every activity that I participated in, whether it was while dining or playing a board game, and found people to be extremely receptive when approached in this manner.
Entertainment - I was really surprised at the entertainment that was offered on the ship, and found it to be incredibly good. The Jean-Ann-Ryan Company were the featured performers, and gave three shows: “Running Wild”, “Hey Mr. Producer” (which a tribute to Cameron McIntosh), and “Sea Leg Cirque”. There were also vocalists, jugglers, and comedians, but the dance shows were really the crowd pleasers, and garnered the most attendance.
If shows aren’t your thing, there are a number of activities that were also available: bingo (of course), gambling, art auctions, cigar sampling, wine tasting, ship tours, workout groups, as well trivia contests.
Ports - The Norwegian Sky stopped in four ports: Juneau, Skagway, Ketchekan, and Victoria BC. Docking into the port was well worth getting up to the top deck, as it is amazing how such a large ship can maneuver so intricately. Gangways to disembark the ship were crowded during the first hour, so we tended to wait until the lines died down before disembarking the ship.
As for the ports, they were complete tourists traps, as they are all owned by the cruise lines. Cheaply made trinkets, shirts, magnets, as well as totem poles (many of which were made in foreign countries), were readily available at outrageous prices, as many products must be shipped into Alaska by plane or boat. We found that these shops were all the same, and got the most “bang for our buck” by looking at local art galleries and taking the tours, which ranged from a price tag of $20.00 to $250.00, so there was something for just about every budget.
The scenery itself was breathtaking, especially that of Glacier Bay. Plan to bring lots of film and a camcorder to preserve the memories of these sights. I would also advise that you dress for just about every weather condition, as it can change within minutes. We we’re lucky to have pretty nice weather, but found that the ports can get a bit windy, especially in the rain. To get the most out the scenery, I would also recommend bringing binoculars, as there was a great deal of wildlife that is simply too far away to been seen without them. I would also suggest bringing two-way radios, if you want to keep in touch with family members on the boat, as it is easy to lose track of where people are at what time.
So did you throw any family members overboard? -Nope, as this vacation was better than I ever could have ever imagined. We ate wonderful food, relaxed, and had some of the best and most interesting conversations as a family. Activities that we did together were fun and the memories will last me a lifetime. It had been 19 years since we last vacationed as a family, and this trip made the wait well worth it.
Overall thoughts - If you have never been on a cruise, try it! I really enjoyed the Norwegian Cruise Line, and felt that the Sky was a wonderful ship, and the staff treated guests like royalty, which really made it easy to forget that the trip was only seven days. I highly recommend seeing Alaska aboard a cruise ship, as there were areas that were too remote to access by car of plane. A great cruise, worth every penny.
As always, thanks for reading!
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
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gerper
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Member: gerper
Location: Seattle
Reviews written: 223
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