The Avid Cruiser

When he was but a nine-year-old boy, my son Alex reached into the Windex-blue waters on a sandy Bahamian beach and quickly withdrew his hand to proclaim, “Dad, I touched a stingray.” He furrowed his tender brow and added thoughtfully, “They’re nice.”

In doing so, he had ascribed a sweet, if somewhat inaccurate, characteristic to the stingray. Yes, the stingray was nice indeed, particularly with its barb blunted for safety. None of tragedy that befell animal lover Steve Irwin here. Off the coast of Australia, a ray’s barb had pierced his heart and stunned the world.

Alex, my daughter and I were in a friendlier place, a paradise really, free of danger and removed from the real world, an idyllic island created for us by a cruise line.

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With a hull that features brightly colored pearls, NCL’s newest ship is fun and festive. Pearl’s faux palm trees on the pool deck and cheerful interior colors (turquoise cabana style stateroom doors and carpet with design patterns featuring tropical fish - at least on deck 11 where I stayed), Pearl feels like a Caribbean ship. Those bright features may be a bit jolting in Alaska, but at least Pearl provides an option for cruisers who want Freestyle in their visits to The Great Land.

As the ninth big new ship in the NCL fleet since 2000, Pearl continues the trend of Freestyle Cruising ‘Nonconformist, free-spirited; we hope those are the words that will be associated with our brand,’ Andy Stuart told The Avid Cruiser on our inaugural visit in December. ‘We’re looking to appeal to a mindset … people who see themselves standing out of line ‘¦ swimming against the tide.’

Ship: Norwegian Pearl

Entered Service: November 28, 2006

Where I Saw Her: Miami, on a two-night ‘cruise to nowhere.’

Sister Act: Sister ship to Norwegian Star, Norwegian Dawn, Norwegian Jewel and Pride of Hawaii, the 2,400-passenger Norwegian Pearl was to be an identical twin to Jewel, but top brass decided on additional features, such as an industry-first bowling alley; and two NCL firsts — a rock-climbing wall and two Deluxe Owner’s Suites. Continue Reading »