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Norwegian Cruise Line

MS Norwegian Dream

Your Rating:
Reviewed by: Jo Lamey
# previous cruises: 8
Date of Trip: April 19, 1999
Itinerary: Transatlantic

This cruise left from San Juan, Puerto Rico, sailed transatlantic for 7 days with the first port of call being Funchel, Maidera, Portugal. Great itinerary, wonderful to be at sea for 7 days since the weather was in the 70's and allowed for lots of deck time. I would highly recommend a transatlantic cruise for the seasoned cruiser. It gives you time to enjoy the ship and meet fellow passengers. Having ports of call afterwards was wonderful - we were all well rested for our shore excursions.

Public areas were wonderful. The cruise was full at approx 1300 passengers, yet you never felt crowded. Our favorite areas were the deck off the Sports Bar on the fantail and the Observatory Lounge in the forward top deck. The ship had a wonderful walk-around promenade on deck 7, and great pools on deck 11 and 10.

The ship has 3 dining rooms, all are very pleasant and have great ambiance. The food was only mediocre, lots of repeat items and not very flavorful. The best description I heard was that if it were a country club it would not pass standard. There were two deck buffets open for breakfast and lunch, but again, they tended to have the same items every day. This can get old after 15 days! The ship has a great small Bistro where you can dine for $5.00 per person in the evening. We ate there twice and really enjoyed the change and the intimate atmosphere.

We were in a Superior Deluxe Suite on deck 9. There was plenty of closet and drawer space for 2 people, we took clip hangers to hang several skirts, shirts etc. and it was a life saver. The cabin was fairly spacious by ship standards and included a love seat and 2 chairs next to a large picture window. The view was unobstructed and we found ourselves spending lots of time there watching the sea go by. The bathroom was adequate and shower had great showerhead. Our cabin was very quiet, but we had other cabins above and below us. We looked at several categories of cabins, most were the same size and only differed in amenities like fridge, window size and closet space. Even the lowest catagory inside cabin was large and well furnished.

The entertainment was good, it included two great evening of dance by the Jean Ryan dancers. Other evenings featured a concert pianist, singers, magicians and comediennes. We felt that the cruise staff was okay, but were not particularly "approachable".

Activities on ship were weak. I attended the perfume and napkin folding seminars and thought they were both poorly organized. They held "art auctions" almost every other day - the artwork was garish and I could only think it was strictly a money maker for the ship! The health club was great, they had 3 treadmills, a couple life cycles and about 3 stair climbers. It is located on the top deck and the view out the windows is wonderful. They also have an aerobic rooms with free weights and machines and individual locker rooms, steam baths and saunas. Ports of call were Funchel and Lisbon, Portugal; Vigo, Spain; LaRochelle, France; and Dover, England. Portugal stops were not much, Spain and France were absolutely wonderful. Everyone commented on how good the tour guides were in Spain. Others were only average. They had a children's program, we didn't use it, but they seemed to have a lot going on for the kids.

This was probably the biggest surprise! There was huge diversity in the passengers ages and interests. I had expected mostly older people, but there were lots of young people along also. Most passengers were very friendly, down to earth types. We decided that no one looked like they had purchased special cruise wear - they just packed from their closets. Lots of casual clothing, almost the JC Penney variety. It really made you feel quite comfortable. We had great table mates, if they lived here we would definitely have them over for dinner.