Trip Report: Three fun days on the Norwegian Viva christening cruise
The Norwegian Viva is Norwegian Cruise Line’s (NCL) latest ship. It’s the sister to the Norwegian Prima, and she is very much like her sister, but different in subtle ways. (We sailed on Prima a year before.) We were invited to sail on a 3-day christening cruise out of Miami. She had been sailing for a few weeks in Europe before arriving in the states.
Day One: Arrival and Christening Ceremony
The ship terminal is really close to the Miami Marriott Biscayne Bay hotel they put us up at the night before. It’s a nice hotel with a great view and a good restaurant, plus coffee and snacks shops. There is even a small mall connected to it that has additional cute shops and dining options. We could even see our ship from our room’s balcony. It only took like less than 10 minutes to get to Norwegian’s terminal at Port Miami, so it’s an inexpensive Uber/Lyft ride.
The cruise check-in was easy. After going through security. We went to a short line at the check-in desk. We showed our passports, they took our picture, then handed us the keys to our cabin. We boarded and went right to our cabin.
Tip: The elevators by the gangway where you board are always more crowded. It’s best to walk to further ones if that’s an option.
Our standard balcony stateroom on the 9th floor was comfortable and had a lot of closet and storage space. We unpacked and then went to explore the ship. We ended up on deck 8 around lunch time. So we decided to eat at the Indulge Food Hall. The fun and inviting ambience of this complimentary dining option is a favorite among guests. You find a table, then order from a tablet at your table. With the large variety of foods on the menu, you can have a smorgasbord. We tried many different things. My personal favorite was the Tamara section of the menu. My husband Matt got a caesar salad and gnocchi pesto pasta. They also have a variety of delicious desserts. The Luna Bar is in the Indulge area and Soleil Bar is outside of Indulge.
There is a little bar on your way to Indulge called The Local Bar & Grill. It has complementary dining options 24 hours. So this is the one that is open all the time. We saw a few people looking for food after the other restaurants had closed. They were all getting sent to The Local. There are also two specialty restaurants on deck 8: Los Lobos is the premium Mexican restaurant that has indoor and outdoor seating, and Onda by Scarpetta is the Italian restaurant onboard. It also has indoor and outdoor seating. (During this short preview media cruise we weren’t able to try all the restaurants.)
While Matt went to the christening ceremony, I went on spa tour and ended up making a reservation to get my nails done. Jeane, my nail tech, was fabulous and the Fire and Ice manicure is totally worth every penny. The carpal tunnel in my hand wasn’t sore anymore, and my nails looked great.
We met for dinner at Hudson’s, the complementary main dinning room. We had an excellent dinner. I had steak and lobster for my entree and the chocolate mango dessert with a caramel drizzle. The presentation was amazing, and the taste was even better.
After dinner we attended a concert by Norwegian Viva’s Godfather, Luis Fonsi. He’s really popular in the Latin community, and best known for his song “Despacito”. The ship’s home port is Puerto Rico, but sailing out of Miami. Fonsi is from Puerto Rico, and now living in Miami, so he’s a fitting godfather!
Day Two: Exploring the Ship
Since our room was just above one of the music venues, it was a bit loud until after midnight. We have a white noise maker app on our phone that drowned out some of the noise, but the floor still vibrated a little. You may want to select a cabin on deck 10 or higher to avoid this issue. It’s best to always look at the cabin placement on the ship before selecting. We were not able to select our cabin on this media cruise, so we just took what we got and didn’t complain.
This particular sailing was full of media, travel agents, and NCL executives and PR representatives, which is fantastic if you are in the industry. But the average guest would most likely not care to sail on a shorter augmented cruise itinerary like this one. With a normal cruise itinerary, more fun activities are available. Also, new issues may arise on the first few cruises of a new ship. Everything may not be available, and some of the features might not work right. It’s best to wait a bit for them to iron out the kinks. I have to say though, this cruise only had a few very minor issues, most likely because of her cruises in Europe.
After grabbing a coffee and my favorite chai tea at the Starbucks onboard, we had a quick breakfast at Indulge and then set out to explore the ship a bit more. (Indulge offers a small buffet for breakfast instead of the tablet ordering.) Since we were at sea, all of the fun shops were open. The Pandora shop seemed to be the most popular, but I was looking for a T-shirt. I know, not exciting, but it’s my tradition.
We had lunch at Hudson’s. I loved the moussaka. We shared a chocolate lava cake for dessert. Then we went to tour some of the different cabin options. I was excited to see The Haven area. The Haven features the most luxurious staterooms as well as 24-hour butler service, concierge service and private sundeck. It’s exquisite. They advertise it as a ship in a ship, and it is a whole separate area, hidden at the top of the ship. Haven guest can also enjoy a separate dining area, indoor and outdoor lounge areas, and a gorgeous pool and pool deck with plush lounge chairs. They also have a butler to cater to their every need. Yes, it’s extremely expensive. But the cabins have a lot of space for large families. It might be worth the splurge.
We explored some of the areas we didn’t the day before. The Galaxy Pavilion with a bunch of fun VR games is a favorite. Also, the upper deck area is so much fun. I really enjoyed The Bull’s Eye, an interactive dart game and Tee Time, an interactive putt-putt golf. Matt loves the three-level go-kart Speedway. There is a viewing area on the upper level for spectators to shoot a laser at the go-karts going by. If you hit the target on the kart, it can give the drivers a boost, but it didn’t seem to be working during his drive.
We got ready for dinner after playing on the ship. We ate at the Italian restaurant, Onda (wave in Italian). It was so good, but I have to say my favorite thing was the bread service. It was so fresh and the dipping sauces were fun to combine to find your perfect one.
Day Two: Great Stirrup Key and Beetlejuice
We ate breakfast upstairs at the Surfside Café buffet. I had a made-to-order omelet and some ham, accompanied by a blueberry muffin and fruit. The only thing I was disappointed about was that I didn’t see any smoked salmon. I love smoked salmon for breakfast, but I had a hard time finding it onboard.
After breakfast, I headed to the Mandara Spa for my massage appointment. I also booked some time in the thermal spa area. Tip: It’s less crowded and more relaxing on port days. It’s also great way to get the most out of your spa experience. They have wet and dry saunas, a cold room, salt room and a red light room. The spa also has both salt and fresh water pools. The specialty treatment rooms and tables are impressive. But I opted to go for my usual hot stone massage. I find that one works best for me personally. It melts away the stubborn knots in my neck and shoulders.
We decided to have lunch at Surfside Café as well. We loved their pasta and pizza selections. They had some interesting combinations like a pizza pretzel, which was pizza sauce, cheese, ham and pineapple on a large soft pretzel. It looked better than it tasted, but the other regular pizza options were great. After lunch we explored the ship for a bit and Matt went down The Drop, a 10-story dry drop slide. Matt loved it. He dropped down it twice. I was a bit too chicken. Watch his drop here:
Next we decided to take the tender to Great Stirrup Cay, their private island. There’s snorkeling, paddle boarding, zipping lining, and a lot of other fun activities and excursions on available. Some have an extra cost. We took it easy this trip and just walked around, and I found a T-shirt I liked at one of the Island’s stores. We had a snack at The Local when we got back on the ship. I had spinach and artichoke dip with chips, and Matt had an ice cream sundae!
After the bit of exercise and food, it was time for a short nap before getting ready for dinner at Cagney’s Steakhouse, one of many specialty restaurants. Matt got a filet mignon and I got a petite fillet. The chimichurri sauce was delicious. We had to get dessert – just because. Matt got the cheesecake and I got the apple pie a la mode! Both were delicious.
We went to the theater after dinner to catch the stage version of Beetlejuice. I laughed so much. But be warned: It is not family friendly! It’s a great musical. We were watching it with someone who had never seen the Beetlejuice movie (believe it or not) and she loved it too!
Photo Gallery
Day 3: Breakfast and Disembarkation
We packed up early and got breakfast at Hudson’s. I finally found my salmon and capers on the menu. The view from Hudson’s is amazing, especially while at port. The beautiful Miami skyline behind passing yachts made for a beautiful morning view!
Disembarkation was simple. But I will say we had an issue with our AT&T cell connection when we got off the ship, which made it hard to call an Uber. Matt had to walked closer to the ship to get back on the ship’s Wi-Fi to call an Uber to the Brightline train station.
All and all, the Norwegian Viva is a great ship and we had a great trip. We recommend Viva and her sister ship, Prima, as a fun option to for your next cruise.
Head to NorwegianCruises.com for more information on the Viva. We recommend MEI Travel for a free quote and help with your next cruise vacation.
