My NCL vs Disney Experience

[disneymomto5]

Let me preface by saying that my family and I have cruised on Disney twice before; this time it was just my husband and I and we wanted to go to Alaska through Seattle. Since it was just the two of us and Disney only leaves from Vancouver we decided to try NCL.

Alaska was beautiful and fabulous and if you get the chance to go.....GO! It was a once in a lifetime trip for us and we enjoyed the alone time and the scenery. However, I now see why Disney costs so much more than other cruise lines and for us the Disney experience is worth it!

First-the maintenance and upkeep on the Disney cruise far surpasses NCL (or at least the ship we were on). NCL was rundown, tired and basically needed a lot of love.

Second-my husband is a very picky eater and they would not accommodate any food requests. Several times he asked for a garden salad which they could not or would not bring him. I am not all that picky and honestly the food was not good. We ended up eating at all the NCL specialty restaurants (for a fee), because we could not tolerate the mediocrity of the no fee restaurants. Also the menu stayed the same for most of the week, as I recall Disney changed their menu at least a little.

Third-entertainment. Need I say more? Disney far surpasses any entertainment venues that NCL had. We did see some good acts onboard but not many. I can honestly say I've never seen a bad show onboard the Disney ships.

Anyway, if you're wondering whether the Disney line is worth it- for us it is. While my husband isn't a big lover of cruises even he says NCL is a never again for him. All week we couldn't help but compare the two companies.

 

[quickcat]

Thanks for posting! What ship were you on? We are debating between the Jewel and the Wonder for next year to Alaska. We currently have both booked but obviously are going to cancel one. We booked on the Norwegian Jewel with the KSF promotion so the price difference is a lot.
I appreciate you taking the time to post- glad you would recommend Alaska, we are looking forward to it!

 

[disneymomto5]

We were on the Pearl (forgot to mention that). Also we've always gotten an inside stateroom and the NCL one was very tiny compared to Disney.

 

[Homemom]

Thank you for your report. We have taken 2 Disney cruises and thought we would give NCL a try for Alaska next year for the same reasons you listed. We're willing to give NCL a try (we saved a lot with the KSF promo, plus we get to see Glacier Bay). I think as long as we go into it knowing it's not Disney we should be ok.

 

[wdw1972]

NCL is pretty much bottom of the barrel - think Walmart of cruise lines. For Alaska, your best experience will be Holland America Line or Princes. I've done several DCL cruises and even I have to admit they're overpriced (not worth the surcharge) but I'll never do another NCL cruise. I'd stay home first.

 

[WonkaBar]

We have done about 8 NCL and 8 DCL cruises. On NCL we only do the newer ships like Breakaway or Epic. We loved Blue Man group and Rock of Ages and the night life is little more lively on NCL. Overall we still prefer DCL but NCL is an option and now that Breakaway sails out of NYC it is very convenient for us.