10 Nights Greek Isles: Santorini, Rhodes & Istanbul Cruise

La Viva Bella from Greece

Excellent ship, excellent itinerary! The ship is pretty new (<2 years old). Very modern, a modern palette of colors without garish neon and annoying pin-point LEDs everywhere. Flow through the ship is managed very well and it never felt crowded. Embarkation was exceedingly slow. Even though NCL promised to make people wait until their selected boarding time, they did not, so things were slow. After finally making it through check-in and security, we had to board a bus to take us to the opposite end of the pier to get on the ship. From there, things went more smoothly. We dropped our bags in our stateroom (an inside, like usual, but it felt bigger, somehow). We headed up to The Local for some lunch and an embarkation drink. The Local must be the replacement for O'Sheehan's, and it's a good substitute. The outdoor deck spaces are really nice. There some infinity pools, the requisite hot tubs, and lots of lounging space on Deck 8. You can always find somewhere to sit. There are a few roving bartenders, but they are rare (as seems to be the trend over the past several years). No matter, as there seems to be a bar within easy walking distance. And if you like to walk, Deck 8 is the place to do it. You can literally walk the entire perimeter of the ship from stem to stern without ever ducking inside due to some impediment. And on sea days, Deck 8 is the place to lounge! Dining was a bit of a disappointment. Hudson's and The Commodore feel a bit posh for a ship's main dining rooms, but the dining rooms on larger ships like Breakaway feel very nice, too. The menu is the problem. The appetizers rarely change -- they do, but if something you like is missing today, it will definitely be there tomorrow. There is a selection of about 4 entrees that are available every meal. The daily entrees change, but there are only 5 or 6, and they are a bit lackluster. You're not going to find lobster. Or filet mignon. Or escargot. You can pay extra to get a lobster tail and/or filet mignon. I think you can find escargot at Le Bistro. But the standard fare is, well, standard. It is quite obvious NCL wants you to spend $$ in the specialty restaurants. PRO TIP: don't wait to book your "complimentary" (with More at Sea) specialty meals. We did, and wound up only being able to get a table at Food Republic. Thankfully, it was covered by More at Sea. Otherwise, it's a $60 cover charge and definitely not worth it. Our 2 teens seemed to have a great time on the ship. Entourage kept them entertained, and they always seemed to wander in around midnight (the ship does have a 1am curfew for those under 18). We did require them to check in with us via text every hour. They missed the deadline one time early in the cruise, which meant I had to walk up to Entourage and retrieve them. They weren't causing any problems, but they missed our parental-implemented deadline and had to come back early. Interestingly, they never missed a check-in after that. I did ride the go-karts with them twice, and I have to say, that was a blast. They are electric, and they will move! Not sure how fast they go, but when you're at the top of a moving ship, it feels really fast. Service was generally good. Our cabin got cleaned once per day, and we only had to call for extra towels once -- they arrived quickly. Bar service was quick with what seemed like somewhat generous pours (or maybe it was just the giant ice cubes they used). For quick table service, head to the Whiskey Bar. Good selection, and more roving bartenders than out on deck. A few dollars or euros with each round means the next round won't be too far away. Dining service was hit or miss. It felt like lunch service was a training run for new servers. They either took forever or completely missed the mark on our order. Dinner was a smidge better, but not much. They have a couple of maitre d's about and they seemed to exert quite a bit of influence on the servers, but they servers need more experience. We didn't avail ourselves of any ship excursions. We quit doing that about 5 years ago when we discovered a company called Tours by Locals. They offer private tours that are customized to what we want to do, and they are invariably less expensive and more expansive that ship tours. Even in Egypt, we found a guide to pick us up in Alexandria, drive us to Cairo, tour us around the Coptic Quarter and the bazaar, drop us at our hotel (yes, we spent the overnight in Cairo instead of aboard the ship), pick us up for our Nile dinner cruise, and then pick us up the next morning, tour us around the Sphinx and Great Pyramids, do a camel ride, visit the Saqqara step pyramid, and drive us back to Alexandria to rejoin the ship for less than what NCL wanted for a 10hr bus trip to the pyramids and back. And it was just the 6 of us, not a bus full of fellow cruise passengers. We would definitely sail the Viva again (and probably any Prima-class ship). Modern and sleek, it was full of fun and, most interestingly, was never crowded. There seemed to be no wait for anything except maybe 5 minutes for a dining table at dinner. Dining could be better, or NCL could try to be less conspicuous about wanting you to go to a specialty restaurant.

NCL Haven 4/26 Lisbon to Rome - 5 Stars!

Wonderful services, food, cabins and ports! Such a wonderful experience for our first cruise from Lisbon to Rome! I learned a lot, including the fact that deals on things (spa/art/shops/next cruise) improve as the days pass. Live and Learn! The excursions offered were excellent and reasonably priced. Had a few local experts that either weren’t loud enough and didn’t use Vox and/or didn’t speak English very well, but not NCLs fault. We had one day at sea and took advantage of the Spa and Gym. One thing I learned is the Spa is an unrelated party from NCL and every time you come in contact with the staff there’s a sales pitch for their products. The Haven is definitely the way to go! The butler service, bartenders, concierge, stewards, restaurant staff were friendly, helpful, accommodating and we developed a fondness for many of them! Overall an excellent experience that I look forward to repeating!

NCL Viva is a fabulous cruiseship!

I was a bit concerned after reading some pretty negative reviews for the Viva. This was my second NCL cruise and 5th cruise overall. I was traveling with my sister and we both thought it was a fabulous cruise. The ship is gorgeous, clean and not very difficult to find your way around. The food options were numerous and all were excellent. We did not eat at the buffet as we normally avoid those anyway on other cruises. The Indulge Food Hall was incredible. It's so fast, fresh, hot, and delicious. It has something fo everyone. We loved the Local as well, especially the wings and burgers. Waiters were spot on. We ate at the main dining room Hudsons 3 times for breakfast, and 4 times for dinner. Again, great food and service. We had no reservations at Hudsons (you can't reserve precruise), and never waited more than 5 minutes. Onda Italian was superb! We had reserved our dining time several months before for the specialty dining. The Los Lobos Mexican was pretty good, but not our favorite. The guacamole and service was great. Our favorite quiet and relaxing place was the Observation Lounge, just gorgeous with the best bartenders on the ship. The only long wait we had for drinks was at the main bar in the atrium area, but it was understandably very crowded. There was always some organized activity going on there. I agree with most reviews that the entertainment venues such as Sid Normans and comedy club should be much bigger. We loved the Oceanwalk area, but generally avoided the main pool area which is always packed. We did catch the Fleetwood Mac Rumours show. We got there an hour early and just chatted with some nice folks while waiting in line, no big deal. The show was definitely worth the hour wait. I will say we did not care for the Beetlejuice show at all. It was awful. With that said, there are so many activities on the ship going on, it would be impossible to get bored. We booked all independent excursions through the Shore excursion group website and Viator for Aruba, Curacao, St Lucia, and St Kitts. Much cheaper than the cruise line excursions, smaller group size, and all great. We also had great massages at the spa and played slots in the casino. I wish NCL sold 1 day spa passes instead of just the weekly. I really am baffled at the negative reviews especially regarding the food and the ship itself. I always preplan my activities, specialty dining reservations, and spa appointments ahead of time, so maybe it just comes down to precruise organization and planning for a smoother cruise? The crew overall was excellent and our cabin steward was always available. He kept our cabin spotless and we saw him several times a day, so he was always available for any requests. Our balcony cabin was on deck 14 midship and very spacious and quiet. Don't hesitate to book this ship and if you have already, no worries, you will have a great time!