Our Opinion of the NCL Bliss
In the Spring of 2023 we boarded the Norwegian Bliss for a 5-day reposition cruise from Los Angeles to Vancouver to get ready for the summer Alaska season.
This was one of the largest ships we have sailed on, so we were very interested to see what the differences would be and if we would notice the amount of people.
Table of Contents
Overall Experience
This ship was originally built in 2018 and refurbished in 2021. You can see the modernization throughout the entire ship, which honestly does look very good. Not super trendy, but not outdated either.
If you want a big ship, the NCL Bliss definitely fits that bill. With just over 4,000 passengers and 1,700 crew. There are more complimentary and specialty dining options than you would see on other older and smaller shifts. Plus there are activities you wouldn’t find elsewhere like the go-cart racing, mini-golf, water slides and more.
Unfortunately, for Nathan and I the big ship appeal is lost on us. We don’t care for the extra activities, and the additional people just add to lines and congestion when we want to sit and relax.
However, we will always be happy to have additional food options that come along with the ship size.
Also, our goal when choosing a cruise is itinerary focused, and we know that you get what you get when it comes to the ship.
All in all, the NCL Bliss was a good ship, with a few minor inconveniences.
Based on our scoring model. The NCL Bliss rated at 59%, which is actually one of the lowest scores a ship has gotten. I believe the primary factor of lowering the score is the low focus on technology, including TV and Internet. We will likely focus on Celebrity a little more going forward until NCL ups their tech experience.
*This only reflects our personal experiences and preferences. You may have very different objectives when traveling, and I highly recommend choosing the right cruise line and ship to fit your needs
Room Tour
For this trip, the balcony prices were very reasonable so we happily took the additional space.
Overall the room was very similar to any other balcony room. I assume the recent upgrades get the credit for adding additional outlets in the room so there were 3 American and 1 European at the desk. Plus a USB port on each side of the bed, in the lamps.
The bed and couch were standard and comfortable. They even had a seat/coffee table that nested easily under the desk for easier storage.
The lighting system throughout the room is partially updated with multiple lamps, making it easy to customize the light throughout. However, it is still based on the key system, where you must have a key in the slot for any power to work in your room. They provide a ‘permanent’ key that you just slide up a little when you leave to conserve energy.
The closet wasn’t in an ideal location and because we were only onboard for 5 days this time, we opted to leave everything in our suitcases on the couch.
The TV was a little sad. It was positioned mid-room for couch or bed access but it only turned to the right or left a few inches so you had to sit on the far left of the couch or right side of bed to see the TV.
Similar to other NCL experiences, the TV show and movie options are limited. Movies are available to rent for about $10 a movie, and only very basic channels were available for the TV. Definitely an area we wish NCL would improve like Celebrity and Princess have done.
Moving onto the bathroom, it was a nice modern design and very similar to other bathrooms. Excellent counter and shelving space for all of your toiletries. The shower was actually enclosed in glass with a door.
Also, the bathroom light is located outside the bathroom. Meaning, there is no way to go to the restroom in the middle of the night without blinding everyone when you open the door. We have seen Celebrity use nightlights in this case, which would have been nice.
Last is the balcony, which is very standard. Two chairs and a small table to use. We do miss our extended balcony and loungers on the Celebrity Reflection.
Ship Tour
We didn’t really get many pictures of the entire ship, but it was huge with plenty of family activities like go-carts, laser-tag, etc.
One of our favorite additions was the actual Starbucks onboard. Normally there is a nice specialty coffee shop and sometimes they have Starbucks coffee brewing. This place was unlike that at all, feeling exactly like a Starbucks at home, with crazy long lines to match ;).
Food and Beverage
Last, (our favorite topic!) is the food! We stuck to the Buffet this trip, and it was a classic NCL buffet. Plenty of variety, and all of it tasted great! We went over Easter, so it was fun to see the extra touches of decoration and treats for the holiday.
We do wish we would have tried to go to the dining room just to mix things up, but since it was a short 5-day trip we really didn’t have much time.
Instead, we did visit one of the specialty dining, which is almost rarer for us than going to the dining room! You can check out the full details here in the main trip article ‘Repositioning Cruise to Canada’.
If you would like to read more about our adventures on this ship and the stops we made along the way, here are some quick links for you!
