Honeymoon Discussions

Cruise to Bermuda in August - NCL or Celebrity?

My fiancee and I are looking to book a honeymoon cruise to Bermuda for a week in August. (It's just too expensive to fly and stay at the hotels we were looking at, and we like the luxury of ease that comes with the cruise). Plus we get three days to moped around Bermuda and check everything out.

Our two options at the NCL Breakaway and the Celebrity Summit. I've tried scouring the reviews online, though it was tough to find reviews tailored to our needs, so I figured I'd ask here.

I know the Breakaway is brand-new, but maybe someone has some insight. We are looking at rooms with balconies, and I can get a two-category upgrade through AmEx on the Summit which may sway us that way. I know both ships will likely have lots of kids running around, but it seems to be easy enough to avoid them.

Does anybody have any insight to help us choose between the two ships? The itineraries are essentially identical.

Thanks!

Re: Cruise to Bermuda in August - NCL or Celebrity?

  • We are both 26. We plan on being mostly laid back on the cruise but will probably still be sending some time in the gym areas. We do like to dress up, which is a point for Celebrity, and we both like to drink.
  • I've traveled with NCL twice - once to Bermuda, once to the Bahamas. One thing both my mother and I noticed was that the kids were practically invisible - they must have an amazing kids/teen center, because you rarely see them other than at breakfast with their parents, and then heading to bed after the evening entertainment.

    As far as Bermuda, a note of caution. Our cruise director advised everyone to NOT rent the mopeds, and said that you would see at least 1 person in a cast from a moped accident by the time you got back on the ship. Sure enough, there were about 3 people with casts - and Bermuda doesn't accept our insurance, so it probably cost a pretty penny, too.

    My mom and I travelled the whole island by bus - you can buy a 4 day pass for $27 that's good on all of the busses and ferries on the island.
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  • We did the Celebrity Summit to Bermuda last year for our honeymoon, and had a great time.  We were actually docked next to the NCL boat, so it was nice to be able to compare.  Honestly, if you wants tons of different food options and fun 'frills' on the boat, I'd go with the NCL.  If you want something just a tiny bit quieter, I would go with Celebrity.

    The boat was just redone in 2011-2012, and they did a great job.  I am sad that the food is not what it used to be on Celebrity, but it is still much better than most other lines.  We also booked through Amex, and got their travel insurance, as well.  One of our favorite parts of the boat was the indoor heated pool and saunas, with tons of healthy food options - it was just a nice area of the boat that had very few kids in it.
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  • kks4471kks4471 member
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    Can't help you with the cruises, but our HM was in Bermuda and we loved it!  We purchased the bus passes for unlimited access up and down the island.  There's a bus stop very close to the cruise boats in the dockyard.  We did not rent a moped, because our resort shuttle driver said not to and we didn't feel like getting hurt lol.  Our favorite beaches were Horseshoe Bay and Elbow beach.  Have fun!
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  • actually some insurance does cover you outside of the US. my emergency surgery and subsequent 4 days of hospitalization in mexico this past december was covered. you cannot assume that you are or are not covered-you need to check with your provider. quite a few companies DO cover internationally you just have to find out.

    i cruised on the summit last month and a coworker just cruised on it to bermuda last week. on our caribbean cruise there was a fair mix of ages-we're mid 30ss and there were plenty of people our age-not many kids. it wasn't during school vacation time either though. your cruise is.

    as for the ship-meh-it's older but not OLD if that makes sense. it was nice that it was a bit smaller than others ive been on and did have some very nice touches however i noticed a lot of things lacking as well. for example: our balcony door was never washed. the outlet station in our stateroom was half falling into the wall. the anytime dining was a PITA for reservations. you really do need to just show up. i felt the stateroom was cramped compared to other lines i've sailed on.  there were a few areas of the ship where puddles seemed to appear-like in the carpets. odd. the sunset bar (back of deck 10) consistantly had the slowest service i've ever seen.  the main dining room food was pretty good, the buffet food was some of the best I've seen on ships, the specialty restaurant qsine was pretty tasty but i'm a huge foodie. to me deconstructing dishes and calling it 'forward' is meh-a little like the entertainment=somewhat behind in trends. but the food was good. the sommelier was a pain-he was just hanging about and didn't know when to take a hint and leave the table. the waiter was ok. the manager was very nice. the normandie was very nice but imo, tried too hard to be more upscale than it was. we also took advantage of chefts table dinner but it was in the galley during dinner service (they also have a regular chefs table dinner). it was very nice.  the casino was a HUGE disappoinment as i'm a huge slots girl. to my huge disappointment they were limited to penny video slots. i came home only 20 lighter (and that's only because I participated in the slots tourney) .  i did enjoy the solarium pool a lot though. btu after 230 they closed the water/iced tea/tea/coffee station so if i was thirsty it was all the way to the other end of the other pool-a long walk. there was no waiter service in the solarium pool.

    overall it was a good cruise, I can't really complain. I did feel that it was really bouncy compared to others (my coworker has also agreed) and the others on teh caribbean agree. it's alsmost like the stabilizers weren't working properly. the staff was nice. I can't rave about anything though.......

     

  • itzMSitzMS member
    First Answer First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment
    edited May 2013
    DH and I were 27 last year when we cruised NCL to Bermuda in August. We loved it. So relaxing. We loved the open dining (eat whenever you want) and found the drinks to not be terribly expensive.

    Absolutely buy a bus/ferry pass on the island at the desk when you exit the ship and explore the island yourself that way. Everyone is so poilte, so you'll never get lost. We got to see 10 times the things than if we would've taken excursions.

    Feel free to PM me if you want specific suggestions of beaches, etc.

    ETA: I want to second/third/whatever the people who said DO NOT MOPED. DH & I are both trained and licensed motorcyclists and we wouldn't have dared moped on the streets of Bermuda.
  • i would highly advise princess or celebrity, never never NCL.
    ive been on over 10 cruises (dragged by my mom and grandma)
    and i really think cruises are not my cup of tea ( its a class thing for me)
    but if had to go on one i would for sure choose celeb hands down.
    its the only ok line still around.

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