Island-hopping aboard the Norwegian Sky: busy itineraries are well suited to freestyle cruising - Product/Service Evaluation

Cruise Travel, May-June, 2003 by Laurence Miller

Island-hopping cruises, such as the weekly roundtrips from San Juan featured in the winter schedule of Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Sky, are something mainlanders tend to do after they have tried one or more of the Caribbean sailings from Florida. The incentive is to see a group of islands that can't be reached in one-week sailings from the Continental U.S. For Puerto Rican residents, these trips bring Caribbean cruise sailings to their front door. For cruise passengers seeking a more active vacation lifestyle, the activities available almost daily in the islands plus those onboard ship present a broader army of vacation possibilities.

To the cruise aficionado, the idea of arriving in a new Caribbean port every day and heading ashore may or may not be as appealing as the respite of a day or two at sea between destinations. But the key to enjoying these cruises is to explore the ports at your own pace. There is time enough to get your fix of shore attractions without making the cruise an endurance test. As a backdrop for life aboard ship, there is scenery that changes daily and, always, the prospect of exploring ashore at one's whim. The Caribbean destinations featured in these itineraries are beautiful and cater to a variety of activities that don't necessarily pale with repeat visits. These include diving in all its forms, the beach, golf, or shopping.

Many passengers spend a good part of the day relaxing aboard ship. On port days, the Norwegian Sky cruise director Rich Clesen organizes a morning chat from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.--a nice touch for those remaining onboard. Passengers returning after a couple of hours ashore find a quiet morning pace on the ship that extends well into the afternoon. A relaxing part of this can be a quiet dining-room lunch, which is available daily. Imaginative CookingLight menu choices plus more portion control than one might exercise in a buffet line make this not necessarily a diet-busting choice. However, buffets are available for those preferring not to change out of their bathing suits.

The 77,104-gross-register-ton Norwegian Sky was the first in a line of new ships that NCL has added in the past three years, and was the first to adopt "Freestyle Cruising." This involved a major staff increase to support this cruising style and its diversity of dining experiences. Although on our holiday sailing the ship carried 2,226 passengers (two-in-room capacity: 2002), there was never any difficulty getting into the specialty dining rooms in prime evening hours and only an occasional, and short, line for the main dining areas. Accompanied by a three-year-old whose dining habits have nothing to do with fixed dining-room seatings, Freestyle was just the ticket.

The style also suits port-intensive itineraries where special activities planned ashore have an impact--also having little to do with fixed shipboard schedules--on what one would like to do in the evening back onboard ship. A shore-excursion day could mean an earlier dinner and early to bed compared with a nighttime schedule that may follow a day of relaxing with a book.

The Norwegian Sky's accommodations and public rooms offer a cool respite from warm days ashore. The dominant color is medium to dark blue set against darker paneling. The ship seems Scandinavian in look and feel from the moment one steps onboard into an eight-story atrium. Cabins are pleasantly decorated but compact, with storage space on the tight side. Standard outside units measure 150 square feet. Of the 1001 total cabins, 257 have private balcony.

Veteran cruisers will be drawn to the Observation Lounge, high and forward, appropriately named with its floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides and direct access to an open observation deck just forward. This is a quiet venue for pre-dinner drinks, with live music contributing to the ambiance. However, most visitors are attracted to this space by special events in the mid-to-late evening, including karaoke.

The lounge is immediately forward of the primary lido containing two marbled pools. Typical of modern cruise ships, the Garden Cafe is aft of the lido, and just as typically, is often crowded. However, if one continues to the aft-most section, the Great Outdoor Cafe, which is partially shaded, affords the opportunity to enjoy one's food by the sea in a less populous setting. Also on this level are a Sports Bar and Ciao-Chow with its 24-hour pizza (the venue becomes a Pacific Rim specialty restaurant in the evening).

Most of the lounges and bars, as well as a full casino, are on International and Promenade decks. There is a shaded, walk-around promenade on the latter, and indoors such evening destinations as the Checkers Cabaret, which doubles as a disco; the Windjammer Bar, part of which serves as a Churchill's Cigar Bar; and spanning two decks at the stem, the Stardust Showroom, which presents good Jean Ann Ryan reviews and other professional entertainment that found general favor among those onboard. The International and Promenade decks also offer such areas as library, card room, shops, and other specialized areas normally found aboard a modern cruise liner.