SS Norway
Reviewed by: Neil McMahon
email: aandnmc@blueyonder.co.uk
I have just returned in December 2000 from a weeks cruise around the
Caribbean on the SS Norway. It is the first time we have sailed with
Norwegian Cruise Line & we have read mixed reviews about this "grand old
ship".
What we found was the ship is not kept in good shape. Far from it, I
realise this is an old ship which is well past her best, but surely the
cleanliness of the cabins and certain areas on the ship could be kept up
to a better standard than they are. Of the several cabins I viewed,
they all badly needed a good clean. Our friends had to enquire at the
pursers desk as they were not sure whether they had to hoover the carpets
themselves. Our toilet area had been wiped over but certainly not
"cleaned". On deck, many of the boxes containing lifejackets were in dire
need of a clean & clearly had not seen a coat of paint for who knows how
long! The blue matting on the upper decks were in horrendous condition.
It was becoming unstuck, ripped all over the place & starting to gather
folds everywhere, surely a hazard to not only the elderly but anyone
who walked on deck!
One of the reviews I had previously read prior to going on holiday was
the someone commented on the carpets in a couple of stairways were
coming undone & no-one seemed to do anything about this. Now I'm not sure
which stair tower they were taking about but we too discovered several
carpets coming away from the stairs & they were not repaired at all
that week!
What I can say is the food & staff were spot on, they were excellent.
Also the entertainment (what there was of it) was indeed excellent. What
we did find, being early seating and on the white card scheme for the
shows, our first two nights shows were at 10.30pm with very little to do
from 8.00pm until showtime. Many, many people missed these excellent
shows simply because they were on far too late for them. The show
lounges are far too cramped with no room at all to move around once you are
seated! 2000+ people trying to fit into a 500 seater room doesn't go!
With the "Norway" being the size she is, tenders have to be used at all
ports as she does not fit into the docks. The Norway's scheme for
tender tickets were laughable. It's announced they will be issued at a
certain time, only to find out they started handing them out 30 minutes
earlier. It transpires many people didn't even bother to get tickets, they
just turned up & walked on.
One other gripe was the price they tried to charge for photographs on
board. How they can get away with charging $25 for one photograph is
beyond me!!! Of all the cruises se have done before, $15 to $20 seem
about the norm.
Although we enjoyed our holiday, I wouldn't rush back to the Norway, I
have been on many cruises & several different cruise lines & the Norway
must unfortunately rank as the worst.
