This ship just looks absolutely stunning. I do agree re: seating options - I think this is the biggest game-changer for me. I found the same on Valiant Lady - it was so lovely to have a comfy sofa to sit on outside in the sunshine, rather than just the usual paper thin lounger option!
Some Cruise Content Creators who have already been on the NCL Prima have addressed some of the "Negatives" about the ship. 1. The Buffet is small and does not have enough room for the amount of passengers ... that some people were actually standing up with their plates of food waiting for someone to get done to take the seat/table. 2. Lots of passengers were unable to get into the Theatre and Comedy shows, because all the reservations were taken and the venue could not hold more people. 3. That the 2 Main Dinning Rooms had the exact same Menus every night!! 4. That the Food Indulgence Hall was not frequented by the younger demographic, because of its uniqueness ... people just wanted fast and easy selections. 5. The lack of closet space for everyone particularly for women's clothing and dresses not hanging straight down. 6. Some passengers complained that the "Open Area" on the top deck no longer has the basketball or soccer areas, but instead has other "odd games" like the beer pong game. 7. Upcharge for the Putt-Putt. 8. Unreliable/slow Internet. 9. Many passengers complained that the ship seems too small for the amount of passengers being put on the ship ... that it seems like NCL crowded the same venues you would find on a regular/larger Breakaway or Breakaway Plus Class onto this smaller ship. 8. That one Live Band venue was so small that passengers were placing chairs next to the large plate glass window area so they could see and hear the music "outside" of the indoor space.
I'm just off Prima. She's an amazing ship. A totally different vibe than other ships, all good . Going to the Indulge food truck area is a must... food is amazing especially the Indians! Saying that ALL food is amazing even the MDR's, go to Hudsons for the amazing view. Cabins are really spacious and the Spa is a must for those wanting to chill out.. a really indulgent feel.
Did you all actually like it? For me the ship was nice but the dining on a full cruise was atrocious. We waited an entire lunch period for a table and never got one. We couldn't even book a specialty after we had that experience with more than a couple of the complimentary venues. I really would have liked it, but hot dang, it was like black Friday at the mall ALL the time at meal times no matter the restaurant. It's like they didn't expect the ship to be full... All I can come up with is a third of the ship is for Haven High Rollers only...
Thanks great to know the designs are super improving. Wish I could afford a cruise on Prima. Hope it is a tremendous success. I request you make another presentation on the design team, construction and engineering?
We just got off the Prima on a Norway fjords cruise from Iceland to Southampton. I've got lots to say about it, mostly not good. First of all, do NOT book this ship for a cruise in the North Atlantic. The weather was horrible (as it usually is in the North Atlantic) and the inside areas were way overpacked because of how the ship is laid out. The ship would be fine if the outside areas were open, but they were not for most of the cruise. Even as we were leaving Geiranger, the weather wasn't great, but we wanted to eat outside in the Indulge Food Hall. We were told that they were closing the outside after we had already sat down. It was like pulling teeth to get them to accommodate our larger group outside. Even if we wanted to eat inside, the buffet was so overpacked that we had to use other nearby restaurants (Food Republic and Palomar) when they were closed as overflow seating. That being said, the Indulge Food Hall was the only bright spot on an otherwise dreary cruise. The Local Bar and Grill was nice, but beware that they don't serve the same food in both. Most of the food that is available in the Grill side aren't available on the Bar side, even though they are right next to each other. The ship is probably good for Caribbean or nice weather cruises, but for our cruise that went out of Reykjavik and ended in Southampton, we saw only two full days of sunshine on a 10-day cruise. All of the outside areas were closed which meant no slides, no pools, no raceways, no minigolf. Nothing. Just overpacked inside areas. They utilized Syd Norman's for trivia, which didn't work well because the drums on the stage blocked the video screen. The trivia host's attitude about this was "oh, well. Deal with it". The central Penrose Atrium area is horribly designed. It is split up into smaller areas, but when they have something going on there, most of the seats are obstructed or cordoned off so you don't feel like you're really part of the action. This is such a downgrade from what is available on their smaller/older ships like the Joy or Breakaway. We REALLY wanted to like this ship after seeing so many positive reviews on TH-cam, but it really didn't live up to the hype. Especially on this particular weather-cursed sailing.
We went on this ship and I was not impressed compared to some of their other ships. For one there is only one pool and it is not very big for all the guess and can get over crowded fast. They call it free sailing, yet everything on this ship you had to reserve or schedule out. Want to go to one of the main shows, you have to reserve a seat, want to go to eat at one of the nicer facilities, you better schedule a time as soon as your feet hit the deck of the boat, even the go karts where based on schedule, even if you showed up and no one was there or no line. The tube slides are ok they use a carpet like what you see at local and state fair rides, its not as fast as you think. They have a area to play table tennis, foosball, feet soccer, and pickle ball. Pickle ball court was fun and the foot soccer, the other items either were missing the balls or paddles were broke. They had mini golf that was a fun little course but broken the entire time as it had some virtual features to it. They have darts, but you have to pay to play. They also have a virtual game area, every game they charge you and it depends on what you play. There was a couple of neat things, great staff, I did like the pub they had that you could get food all night. They also had a really neat area to drop off kids and let them hang so parents could see some of the more adult comedy shows. I would just say for all the hype and I spoke to folks who have done multiple trips and live in Florida that this ship did not live up to the great expectations. I would give it a 5 out of 10.
@Allison Taylor your correct I forgot the infinity pools. The Haven has one also but that is a special area. I should and meant really only one pool for children. As we traveled with ours.
Thanks for your quci overview of the ship. It looks interesting but I keep seeing common complaints that you did not mention. 1) CABIN - very poor sound insalation, storage and closet space - if your shorter very difficault to hang things up in the closet and women mention longer dresses can''t fully hang, also lack of storage 2) small venues -- have to get there very early to hopefully get a seat -- this is areas like the comedy club, etc. 3) insternat service is horrible -- including premium service. Since I am a major fan of NCL we are going on the VIVA in the med. Hopefully they can fine some solutions to there issues.
NCL is trying out Starlink on one ship. Hopefully that goes well and they will put it on all the ships. It’s still satellite based, but is supposed to be much better. I doubt internet service on the ocean will ever be as good as it is on land because there is no way to hard wire it. But even the lousy service is way better than it was when it first started out with dial up modems. 😂
I can see these items being an issue. Unfortunately, I was simply on a tour -- not an entire cruise. So there are some day-to-day issues that I wouldn't get to experience.
We just got back from our trip on 2/12 and overall, we had a good time, but we would not be going back on the Prima or any other ship within this class. We have sailed with NCL several times in the past. There were more items that had room for improvement versus the things that we enjoyed. While we truly enjoyed the 'newness' of the ship, the outdoor seating, larger bathrooms our biggest gripe was the dinner menus being the same every night. To try to offset that fact, they offered a specialty meal in the complimentary dining halls for an added cost. NCL has set a standard in the past that we've grown accustomed to. Having the same food options each night was a turn off. Also, there was an extreme lack of attention to detail. Our room never got vacuumed (I could tell by the sand that accumulated over the days that remained in the same spot from our shoes). While in the buffet, the waiters looked past you. Most times we found ourselves having to get up and find a bar just to get our drinks. Another gripe that blew our minds was the gratuities. We are completely aware of their purpose and do not negate them being in place. However, we NEVER pre-pay our gratuities. No specific reason why but also because there's no incentive in paying early- it's the same amount whether you pay early or on the ship. We booked our trip in June 2022 and during that booking through the day before embarkation, gratuities were listed as $224 on the website and app. Well, NCL tried to be sneaky and charged us $40/day per cabin- an increase of $8/day. Now we were never formally notified of any sort of increase. When we caught it and questioned it, we were given the excuse of "the rates have gone up in January, so everyone is paying $280 for 7-day cruises". I explained that i don't mind paying gratuities but I'm going to pay the amount that was stated online. Fast forward, through all of the back and forth, we signed an adjustment form for the gratuities and was told the gratuities are just a suggestion and you don't have to pay the pre-set amount. That was definitely news to us. After all of that, they refunded the full $280. Because of the new design within the Prima class, all of the venue spaces are much smaller. And because of this we were not able to make some of the shows or make reservations because everything was already booked- day 1 of the trip. There was overcrowding in the hot tubs and pool- big turn off...Especially or at sea days. I could go on, but I think I'll stop here. I am in the process of drafting a letter to their corporate office about our experience. We have decided to look into other cruise lines.
I still think that celebrity edge class ships are much better designed and offer a much more luxurious experience. The prima seems to be trying to hard to be everything at once and therefor missing some key points, while trying charge premium cruise line prices.
The three women climbing the stairs looked like they were struggling with their luggage. I never had to struggle with mine on other NCL ships. Their difficulties did not look very good for a luxurious ship
A few thoughts after sailing on it: The seating for dining was far too limited in EVERY restaurant. Its like they planned for the ship to be 50% full when they sized the restaurants. Weirdly people seem brainwashed about NCL. When i was on, the dining experience (not food) could not have been worse..and everyone i talked to agreed. You could literally NEVER just walk up to any restaurant and get a seat. I asked the host how to get a table "get here an hour early and juat wait" Does that sound like cruising??? Im not exagerating. My friend and i resorted to splitting up and just asking groups already sitting if they minded having a stranger bc there were no seats. Ever. Specialty dining was sold out for most restaurants before the sailing so it was just as bad. The free buffet is WAAAAAAAY smaller on this ship so either plan on taking your food with you and eating back in your room or take it to another deck with outdoor seating. The only thing we could imagine was this ship devotes what seems like a third of the ship to the Haven... so if you aint a high roller, you will feel packed in like sardines the entire time.
The ship is beautiful! However, one of the things I don’t like it the artwork in the cabins. When my husband was on Prima and he would FaceTime me, I always told him to turn around so I didn’t see the creepy face. I like the geode paintings but the weird faces I hate. We are currently on the Bliss and I absolutely love it. I think it’s like the third newest ship- not positive though. The food has been amazing as well as the crew. There is plenty to do and the shows are fantastic! I can’t wait for this ship to go back to Alaska.
Does NCL still have covid anything related? Like covid test, quarantine, mask, vaccine, blah blah blah. I hear on other cruise line, they do covid test, & if you test positive, you're quarantine in your room the entire trip. Which would be a bummer, to just sit in your room 24/7 & having food deliver to you.
It appears there are quite a few things to do on the ship that cost extra... Dart Throwing? Mini golf? really?? Seems like a money grab.. People pay a lot of money to go on these ships. Not everyone is wealthy.. Like myself. I just want to treat my family to a nice vacation.. Guess I can't afford to do it on Norwegian Cruise Lines.. That's too bad.
This ship just looks absolutely stunning. I do agree re: seating options - I think this is the biggest game-changer for me. I found the same on Valiant Lady - it was so lovely to have a comfy sofa to sit on outside in the sunshine, rather than just the usual paper thin lounger option!
Some Cruise Content Creators who have already been on the NCL Prima have addressed some of the "Negatives" about the ship. 1. The Buffet is small and does not have enough room for the amount of passengers ... that some people were actually standing up with their plates of food waiting for someone to get done to take the seat/table. 2. Lots of passengers were unable to get into the Theatre and Comedy shows, because all the reservations were taken and the venue could not hold more people. 3. That the 2 Main Dinning Rooms had the exact same Menus every night!! 4. That the Food Indulgence Hall was not frequented by the younger demographic, because of its uniqueness ... people just wanted fast and easy selections. 5. The lack of closet space for everyone particularly for women's clothing and dresses not hanging straight down. 6. Some passengers complained that the "Open Area" on the top deck no longer has the basketball or soccer areas, but instead has other "odd games" like the beer pong game. 7. Upcharge for the Putt-Putt. 8. Unreliable/slow Internet. 9. Many passengers complained that the ship seems too small for the amount of passengers being put on the ship ... that it seems like NCL crowded the same venues you would find on a regular/larger Breakaway or Breakaway Plus Class onto this smaller ship. 8. That one Live Band venue was so small that passengers were placing chairs next to the large plate glass window area so they could see and hear the music "outside" of the indoor space.
Got off yesterday, loved it!
This was so helpful, thank you! 🥰
I'm just off Prima. She's an amazing ship. A totally different vibe than other ships, all good . Going to the Indulge food truck area is a must... food is amazing especially the Indians! Saying that ALL food is amazing even the MDR's, go to Hudsons for the amazing view. Cabins are really spacious and the Spa is a must for those wanting to chill out.. a really indulgent feel.
Really nice👍👍👍
Jo, what is the “MDR”?
Thanks!
@@Goldmember66 main dining room
The best cruise ship video to date! Loved it and just what I've been hoping to see! Thanks.
We're going on this boat tomorrow I'm super excited 😆
How was it?
Apparently cozy is synonymous with only 10 people being able to use the pool at one time. Awesome
Thank you for the views. The NCL ships are nice. The Prima might be the next one on my list.
Really nice👍👍👍
Hubby and I are sailing on Prima in February 2023. This video has me even MORE psyched for the trip. Great info! Thank you!
same lol
We cruised October 2022 on Prima NY to Galveston. You WILL LOVE this ship!!
How do you like it compared with Norwegian Encore?
Did you all actually like it?
For me the ship was nice but the dining on a full cruise was atrocious. We waited an entire lunch period for a table and never got one. We couldn't even book a specialty after we had that experience with more than a couple of the complimentary venues.
I really would have liked it, but hot dang, it was like black Friday at the mall ALL the time at meal times no matter the restaurant. It's like they didn't expect the ship to be full...
All I can come up with is a third of the ship is for Haven High Rollers only...
@@4tdaz hi - it was … ok. We both agreed we won’t sail on Prima (or Prima class) again.
Thanks great to know the designs are super improving. Wish I could afford a cruise on Prima. Hope it is a tremendous success. I request you make another presentation on the design team, construction and engineering?
So excited to board this ship.. 18 days ❤ aboard her
It's very nice it kind of reminds me of a luxury spaceship
Would you recommend this ship. I just booked it instead of there other one?
This ship looks amazing
We just got off the Prima on a Norway fjords cruise from Iceland to Southampton. I've got lots to say about it, mostly not good.
First of all, do NOT book this ship for a cruise in the North Atlantic. The weather was horrible (as it usually is in the North Atlantic) and the inside areas were way overpacked because of how the ship is laid out. The ship would be fine if the outside areas were open, but they were not for most of the cruise. Even as we were leaving Geiranger, the weather wasn't great, but we wanted to eat outside in the Indulge Food Hall. We were told that they were closing the outside after we had already sat down. It was like pulling teeth to get them to accommodate our larger group outside. Even if we wanted to eat inside, the buffet was so overpacked that we had to use other nearby restaurants (Food Republic and Palomar) when they were closed as overflow seating. That being said, the Indulge Food Hall was the only bright spot on an otherwise dreary cruise.
The Local Bar and Grill was nice, but beware that they don't serve the same food in both. Most of the food that is available in the Grill side aren't available on the Bar side, even though they are right next to each other.
The ship is probably good for Caribbean or nice weather cruises, but for our cruise that went out of Reykjavik and ended in Southampton, we saw only two full days of sunshine on a 10-day cruise. All of the outside areas were closed which meant no slides, no pools, no raceways, no minigolf. Nothing. Just overpacked inside areas.
They utilized Syd Norman's for trivia, which didn't work well because the drums on the stage blocked the video screen. The trivia host's attitude about this was "oh, well. Deal with it".
The central Penrose Atrium area is horribly designed. It is split up into smaller areas, but when they have something going on there, most of the seats are obstructed or cordoned off so you don't feel like you're really part of the action. This is such a downgrade from what is available on their smaller/older ships like the Joy or Breakaway.
We REALLY wanted to like this ship after seeing so many positive reviews on TH-cam, but it really didn't live up to the hype. Especially on this particular weather-cursed sailing.
In February my 11 year old son went on the prima!
That one girl dragging her bag up the atrium stairs was hilarious
As I'm reading your comment..... There goes the girl, dragging her bag up the stairs! 😂 I just had to comment!
Love all of the outdoor seating options. I was on freedom of the seas and the seating sucked mostly low uncomfortable loungers.
Great video! Thank you!
I love this review💛!!
We will be in the Deluxe Owners Suite next April (2024).
We went on this ship and I was not impressed compared to some of their other ships. For one there is only one pool and it is not very big for all the guess and can get over crowded fast. They call it free sailing, yet everything on this ship you had to reserve or schedule out. Want to go to one of the main shows, you have to reserve a seat, want to go to eat at one of the nicer facilities, you better schedule a time as soon as your feet hit the deck of the boat, even the go karts where based on schedule, even if you showed up and no one was there or no line. The tube slides are ok they use a carpet like what you see at local and state fair rides, its not as fast as you think. They have a area to play table tennis, foosball, feet soccer, and pickle ball. Pickle ball court was fun and the foot soccer, the other items either were missing the balls or paddles were broke. They had mini golf that was a fun little course but broken the entire time as it had some virtual features to it. They have darts, but you have to pay to play. They also have a virtual game area, every game they charge you and it depends on what you play. There was a couple of neat things, great staff, I did like the pub they had that you could get food all night. They also had a really neat area to drop off kids and let them hang so parents could see some of the more adult comedy shows. I would just say for all the hype and I spoke to folks who have done multiple trips and live in Florida that this ship did not live up to the great expectations. I would give it a 5 out of 10.
There is more than one pool!
@Allison Taylor your correct I forgot the infinity pools. The Haven has one also but that is a special area. I should and meant really only one pool for children. As we traveled with ours.
Thanks for your quci overview of the ship. It looks interesting but I keep seeing common complaints that you did not mention. 1) CABIN - very poor sound insalation, storage and closet space - if your shorter very difficault to hang things up in the closet and women mention longer dresses can''t fully hang, also lack of storage 2) small venues -- have to get there very early to hopefully get a seat -- this is areas like the comedy club, etc. 3) insternat service is horrible -- including premium service. Since I am a major fan of NCL we are going on the VIVA in the med. Hopefully they can fine some solutions to there issues.
NCL is trying out Starlink on one ship. Hopefully that goes well and they will put it on all the ships. It’s still satellite based, but is supposed to be much better. I doubt internet service on the ocean will ever be as good as it is on land because there is no way to hard wire it. But even the lousy service is way better than it was when it first started out with dial up modems. 😂
I can see these items being an issue. Unfortunately, I was simply on a tour -- not an entire cruise. So there are some day-to-day issues that I wouldn't get to experience.
We just got back from our trip on 2/12 and overall, we had a good time, but we would not be going back on the Prima or any other ship within this class. We have sailed with NCL several times in the past. There were more items that had room for improvement versus the things that we enjoyed. While we truly enjoyed the 'newness' of the ship, the outdoor seating, larger bathrooms our biggest gripe was the dinner menus being the same every night. To try to offset that fact, they offered a specialty meal in the complimentary dining halls for an added cost. NCL has set a standard in the past that we've grown accustomed to. Having the same food options each night was a turn off. Also, there was an extreme lack of attention to detail. Our room never got vacuumed (I could tell by the sand that accumulated over the days that remained in the same spot from our shoes). While in the buffet, the waiters looked past you. Most times we found ourselves having to get up and find a bar just to get our drinks. Another gripe that blew our minds was the gratuities. We are completely aware of their purpose and do not negate them being in place. However, we NEVER pre-pay our gratuities. No specific reason why but also because there's no incentive in paying early- it's the same amount whether you pay early or on the ship. We booked our trip in June 2022 and during that booking through the day before embarkation, gratuities were listed as $224 on the website and app. Well, NCL tried to be sneaky and charged us $40/day per cabin- an increase of $8/day. Now we were never formally notified of any sort of increase. When we caught it and questioned it, we were given the excuse of "the rates have gone up in January, so everyone is paying $280 for 7-day cruises". I explained that i don't mind paying gratuities but I'm going to pay the amount that was stated online. Fast forward, through all of the back and forth, we signed an adjustment form for the gratuities and was told the gratuities are just a suggestion and you don't have to pay the pre-set amount. That was definitely news to us. After all of that, they refunded the full $280.
Because of the new design within the Prima class, all of the venue spaces are much smaller. And because of this we were not able to make some of the shows or make reservations because everything was already booked- day 1 of the trip. There was overcrowding in the hot tubs and pool- big turn off...Especially or at sea days. I could go on, but I think I'll stop here. I am in the process of drafting a letter to their corporate office about our experience. We have decided to look into other cruise lines.
Does is still have the glass floor?
I still think that celebrity edge class ships are much better designed and offer a much more luxurious experience.
The prima seems to be trying to hard to be everything at once and therefor missing some key points, while trying charge premium cruise line prices.
The three women climbing the stairs looked like they were struggling with their luggage. I never had to struggle with mine on other NCL ships. Their difficulties did not look very good for a luxurious ship
A few thoughts after sailing on it:
The seating for dining was far too limited in EVERY restaurant. Its like they planned for the ship to be 50% full when they sized the restaurants.
Weirdly people seem brainwashed about NCL. When i was on, the dining experience (not food) could not have been worse..and everyone i talked to agreed. You could literally NEVER just walk up to any restaurant and get a seat. I asked the host how to get a table "get here an hour early and juat wait"
Does that sound like cruising???
Im not exagerating. My friend and i resorted to splitting up and just asking groups already sitting if they minded having a stranger bc there were no seats. Ever.
Specialty dining was sold out for most restaurants before the sailing so it was just as bad.
The free buffet is WAAAAAAAY smaller on this ship so either plan on taking your food with you and eating back in your room or take it to another deck with outdoor seating.
The only thing we could imagine was this ship devotes what seems like a third of the ship to the Haven... so if you aint a high roller, you will feel packed in like sardines the entire time.
i will be on the ship very soon,do you know how is the situation with wi fi ?
How was it?
The ship is beautiful! However, one of the things I don’t like it the artwork in the cabins. When my husband was on Prima and he would FaceTime me, I always told him to turn around so I didn’t see the creepy face. I like the geode paintings but the weird faces I hate. We are currently on the Bliss and I absolutely love it. I think it’s like the third newest ship- not positive though. The food has been amazing as well as the crew. There is plenty to do and the shows are fantastic! I can’t wait for this ship to go back to Alaska.
Does NCL still have covid anything related? Like covid test, quarantine, mask, vaccine, blah blah blah. I hear on other cruise line, they do covid test, & if you test positive, you're quarantine in your room the entire trip. Which would be a bummer, to just sit in your room 24/7 & having food deliver to you.
Same out of port canervael
If you had tried the MSC Seaside you would’ve seen a similar boardwalk bringing you closer to the sea!!
cool
I agree it is not under 10
Friendly.
Who wants kids on a nice cruise? Not us.
I noticed it’s very beige..
On May 22 2025. Will have good but cold time
hi, ghastly looking ship. looks like a block of flats on the old kent rd in london. queen Mary 1 is far better even though its not operational
Nice commercial.
It appears there are quite a few things to do on the ship that cost extra... Dart Throwing? Mini golf? really?? Seems like a money grab.. People pay a lot of money to go on these ships. Not everyone is wealthy.. Like myself. I just want to treat my family to a nice vacation.. Guess I can't afford to do it on Norwegian Cruise Lines.. That's too bad.
go karts cost money? Putt-putt golf costs money? Not interested.
I think the go carts are worth it. I wouldn’t pay for the miniature golf though. I wonder if they did that because you can win prizes?
All cruise lines charge extra for these activities, have you cruised berore?
Mini golf is usually free
i don’t wanna your face i just wanna the cruise ship