NCL Sky Full Review (2024): What We Loved, Didn’t Love, and Hated

[@7Scottye]

Thank you for your candor.

[@thiscruiselife]

@@7Scottye you’re quite welcome! We always believe in telling the whole story, even if it isn’t all positive.

[@angies6pack]

We sailed on Sky back when they still sailed to Cuba. It was before they did the refurb and her age really showed. It was only a 4 day cruise, so it sufficed but it didn't leave us in a hurry to get back to Norwegian. The food and drinks were just ok and I definitely agree with your comments about the entertainment. Thanks for the review!

[@thiscruiselife]

Thanks for watching - and sharing your experience. I can’t imagine how different the ship had to look pre-refurbishment considering just how much of the ship they clearly retrofit! Agree with your comment about not feeling the need to rush back to Norwegian. With that said, we’ve booked a much newer ship for Rocky to experience next year to get a new first (second) impression. Fingers crossed the newer ship better delivers on the experience! Thanks, again, for watching and sharing your similar experience! -Mark

[@BarbaraDaw-l2k]

Thank you guys

[@thiscruiselife]

@@BarbaraDaw-l2k you’re quite welcome!

[@karencalderwood9058]

Thank you for your Honest opinions!! 👍 I’m tired of watching cruise reviews that are more like advertisements.🤨

[@thiscruiselife]

Absolutely! We always lead with the positive as we believe every cruise has something to celebrate. :) But we’re always 100% honest in our opinions and thoughts as we want people to have the true full picture. Some of the things we love - or don’t love - won’t impact or matter to other cruisers, but it’s important to share the full picture. Thanks for watching and joining our little cruise community! -Mark

[@BrianBeery-y4z]

I like the smaller ships. Never been on the Sky, but I was on the NCL Sun three times in 2019. All in the Caribbean, and all three included a port day in Key West (always went for the IH day pass). Completely enjoyed every cruise, but I get it, experiences can change cruise by cruise, ship by ship.

[@thiscruiselife]

@@BrianBeery-y4z absolutely true! We do enjoy the smaller ships, but there’s so many things that can impact your sailing experience. We’re glad to hear that you enjoyed your sailings on the Sun!

[@mkatal8329]

Thanks for posting. I've been worried about the Sky because of its age, but it was the perfect Mediteranean itinerary for us next Fall. I think because we are retired and are really low key, plus no sea days, it will actually be fine for us based on your reviews and the other videos you posted. The only other NCL cruise we've been on was the Bliss and we will definitely miss the Broadway shows and the Beatles cover band we saw there. I'm also not looking forward to having to go past the elevators to reach the stairwell when we get back on the ship! We're stair people, but that sounds like a nightmare for both the stair and elevator set.

[@thiscruiselife]

@@mkatal8329 we’re certain you’ll manage to have an enjoyable time on that itinerary. It’s similar to our experience where the itinerary is what put us on the ship. Hopefully you have a great cruise! Thanks for watching our video and commenting.

[@thiscruiselife]

PS- thank you for reiterating something we always say: We share all of our thoughts knowing that some stuff will absolutely matter to folks, and other stuff, may not matter at all! We're pretty low-key and can find a good time anywhere, so the fact that there weren't waterslides, ropes courses, etc. didn't really impact our time all that much because we loved the ports (which I know you're going to on your cruise!). Like you, I missed several features from the Encore, and so I'm excited to get back on some of the newer ships again in 2025!! -mark

[@johnd.9]

My first and only experience with Cagney's was on a different Norwegian ship in 2022. It was my oldest sister's birthday, and our family's expectations were high.. There was only one other table being served in the restaurant, yet our service was merely adequate. (Service elsewhere on the ship was superb!) I expected the food quality to be comparable to The Keg at the very least. The food was merely adequate. I love the other specialty dining restaurants, especially Tapanyaki and Moderno. I am cruising 3 more times in the next 12 months (Lisbon, Iceland/Norway, and Japan, each one on NCL. I will not even consider Cagney's as an option, even for a second chance. Ho hum.

[@thiscruiselife]

Thank you for sharing your experience - and confirming we are not alone. While many praise the venue, both service and food did not meet expectations on either of my visits. Like you, I have no plans on giving it another chance - there are just too many other great options that outshine Cagney’s! Love that you’re cruising so much in the next 12 months! It’s a small cruise world out there; hope we cross paths!! -mark

[@atzi2093]

Thanks for your honest review. Great video. I’m sailing on the Sky next year for the itinerary Hopefully I have a better experience. Quick question - does the Sky have magnetized walls like the newer ships?

[@thiscruiselife]

We hope you have a great cruise! We are happy to report that the walls are definitely magnetized. We used all of our magnetic hooks to help us with the storage challenges.

[@marycoberley8132]

Thanks for sharing this, guess I will stick with carnival and Royal Caribbean

[@thiscruiselife]

@@marycoberley8132 as we say, your mileage may vary. You might enjoy one of NCL’s larger ships that offer more amenities and activities! Stay tuned to the channel as we’ll be sailing on 4 different Norwegian ships in 2025!

[@buckeyehc]

Too bad this one was a bust. I'm shocked by the corkage fee before u board! How tacky! And thanks for the review. I love your reviews.

[@thiscruiselife]

Thank you for always watching! :) And, yes, while this one was a bust, we’re going to try again on NCL to hopefully give Rocky a better first impression. Agree: tacky is a great word to describe the corkage fee. Once they found out we paid for their drinks on board, then it was fine for us to bring our own booze. They’re probably like, “Sure! Drink your own booze instead of ours that you paid for!” 😂 Thanks for the comment. -Mark

[@cindyt987]

I’m not sure what this says about me, but based on your review, it looks like a ship I would really like. 🤔

[@thiscruiselife]

That is PERFECT actually! We always say that there is a cruise line and cruise ship for everyone out there. We try to be detailed in our reviews so that our followers can determine what is most important to them and whether or not it might be a good fit. I'm soooo glad you took that away; it actually makes me feel better as I felt a little guilty about the harsh grade as we love to cruise. We just probably wouldn't do that same ship again. In fact, we've already rebooked a couple newer NCL ships in 2025 so Rocky can get a new first (second?) impression. :) Thanks for watching and for sharing. -Mark

[@Michael-np4ns]

You are on a diesel powered ship and worried about the plastic cups?

[@thiscruiselife]

Hey there! Thanks for watching and for sharing your perspective. Overall, NCL has been a leader in protecting the oceans and improving fleet efficiency. You can read more about their efforts here: www.nclhltd.com/sustainability Which is why the plastic cup situation is odd and why we call it out. Adding more waste as you strive toward cleaner cruising doesn’t make sense. We are happy to see all of the major operators continue to invest in sustainable cruising and are excited for innovations yet to come! -mark

[@andrewbrown574]

The corkage fee before you board has convinced me to never sail with NCL. I don’t even CARE about bringing wine/champagne aboard, but I find that policy so offensive that it has turned me off completely to the cruise line!

[@thiscruiselife]

It definitely did not create a great feeling for us. Ironically, we weren’t even planning to bring wine or champagne since we had Free at Sea, but Rocky was gifted a bottle on his prior sailing (he got off one ship and walked down to meet me for NCL Sky). Had we not had FAS, that free gifted bottle of champagne would have cost us $15 - just because! Unfortunately, this isn’t the only time you feel nickel and dimed - or even a little deceived - by the line. The $50 shore excursion credit they tout? Well, you can’t use that on equipment rentals or a variety of other excursions - and it sure seems to me that the $50 credit is just priced into the cost of the excursions with them! Every sailing I’ve just skipped using this “perk” and just booked my own things. Still lots we enjoy, but definitely some turn offs that we want folks to know about as they make their decisions for their perfect cruise holiday! Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts with us! -Mark

[@andrewbrown574]

I realize that every single cruise line is looking to maximize profits. However, I don’t see any of the others doing so in a way as gross as Norwegian. It just totally turns me off the company! A shame, too, because I absolutely love what I’ve seen of the Prima class ships. I would love to sail them IF they were owned by any other cruise line!

[@abrahamclott5604]

Strange: After watching what you liked, didn't like and hated, I wasn’t prepared for the strong negativity at the end. Great Indian food, lots of other good food, a nice room, lots of music, easy embarkation and disembarkation, great private island, and great itinerary. I get some frustration with internet, a few minutes of crowding when getting back on, and one meal with shitty service. But as i was watching I thought you were leading up to a 3 or 3.5 out of5-not the greatest ever and a few too many issues for a solid 4, but a perfectly enjoyable trip.

[@thiscruiselife]

Thanks for watching - and sharing your own perspective. For me, personally, it was a frustrating experience overall. I get that not everyone needs the internet, so we try not to dock too much for that (though we do recognize/reward those ships that have it figured out). While I loved the Indian food, the buffet was such a fight - whether breakfast, lunch, or dinner - that it got to the point where we didn't even want to try to get into the Garden Café. Instead, we'd cut through La Cucina if we needed to get to the back of the ship and we'd just grab some of that food or we'd eat Lunch in La Cucina and then dinner in the dining room or at The Local. This area of the ship and experience was a complaint we heard from several other cruisers as well. In terms of the entertainment, none of it was bad. It just lacked the variety we're used to cruising. Other older, smaller ships have engaging stage shows, multiple comedians, magicians that perform magic, silent discos, and more. For the price point, we expected more and that had an impact on my rating. The final meal at Cagney's was a disaster and certainly had an impact on my overall feeling about the experience. But, you're right, there was a lot that we enjoyed about our time. The room was awesome, the ship design is fantastic for a 25-year-old ship, the fellow cruisers we met were amazing, most of the service was great. And while my score was low, likely other cruisers will have a different experience. It's part of why we're so detailed in our reviews; we hope that others will make note of the things that matter to them and skip what doesn't. Sorry! That ended up way longer of a response than I intended. We LOVE talking about this stuff (obviously! lol) and could go on for another couple paragraphs. ;) Thank you, again, for watching - and for sharing your own perspective. Definitely appreciate input like this as we continue to share our love of cruising and details of the ships we experience! -Mark

[@abrahamclott5604]

@thiscruiselife thanks for taking the time for a long answer. Details make all the difference. I had suspected that price and value for the $ was a factor. I've never been on NCL. I've had 3 on Princess (one with my husband and 2 solo) and one solo on P coming up. Wished my husband loved travel but he really doesn't. I have stuck with Princess because I enjoy so much of what they offer, find the value for the $ excellent, and find that the more I go with them the better I can structure my time around what I know I like and what I've found I dislike or even hate.

[@markolwick2223]

Wow. So much hatred and negativity. First and last time I’ve watched your channel. And no, you’re not “keeping it real”. You’re haters who expected a mega ship.

[@thiscruiselife]

Hey there! Sorry that our work and words didn't resonate with you. But I do want to point out that the entire first half of the video is positive stuff about NCL Sky. ;) You can check out our older, smaller ship reviews if you think we have a bias toward mega-ships as that's certainly not the case. From the beginning of this channel, we've always led with the positive. However, we've promised our followers we'd be forever honest. Some of the things that don't resonate with us may not be a concern for other cruisers - our goal is never to dissuade someone from going on a ship or a cruise line, but rather, help them understand each component of our experience so they can make an informed choice. We help people book dream vacations - if we sugarcoat or are not completely honest with someone, it only does a disservice to making sure they can make the best and most informed decision. As mentioned, feel free to check out any of our older, smaller ship reviews. Like NCL Sky, you'll see there's a lot we love, but some things that we didn't love, and even a few that we hated. -Mark