TRIP REPORT: NCL Prima~Northern Europe

Most Recently Updated January 28, 2026

Originally Published April 8, 2024

This trip is wildly different from my usual trips as my main priority was ensuring that the trip went as smoothly as a multi-generational trip for 15 people can go. And to boot, it was to celebrate my parents’ milestone anniversary so lots of pressure to deliver even as I was in the midst of another crazy year with my knee.

In that light, this trip report is also an outlier: I am not sharing full financial details for this trip as I do for my own trips since most of the spending wasn’t mine plus honestly I didn’t keep track of all my spending. BUT as normal, I am sharing lots of tools and travel hacks that I used to save us loads of money that you can apply to any cruise/trip.

Note that this is also a combined trip overview so all of the itinerary info can be found in this post as well (along with links to cruise port guides + overviews of our port days + reviews of tours/activities) Plus sharing all of the info that I learned that may be helpful for those embarking on this sailing, ship and/or cruising with Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL).

This isn't to say that there wasn't any travel hacking involved because that would be antithetical to who I am amirte?! I used this as an incredible opportunity to earn an INSANE amount of points - over a million to be exact. Not sure what travel hacking is?: start here with my intro to travel hacking and my 8 top tips for travel hacking. And then you read how: I put the 8 travel hacking tips in action to obtain those million miles + points from this trip and for good measure, some FAQs that came up when discussing this

_{Please note: this post contains affiliate links which means if you buy something following a link on this page, I may get a small commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This is absolutely free for you/does not cost you anything extra! There’s no sponsored content nor do I run ads here so this helps so much in reducing the ever-increasing costs of keeping this site active.Thanks! Rosemary}

SAVINGS BREAKDOWN

We booked in September 2021 which was almost two years out from the sailing date so we were able to get really good pricing and NCL’s More at Sea add-ons. More on what the More at Sea cost us and the realized/actual savings in the respective categories (I am not using cash costs for this posts unless miles/points were used as a basis of comparison)

FLIGHTS

Beautiful tip: DO NOT fly in the day of your cruise ESPECIALLY if it is international – in this day and age of things going wrong, saving a little bit of money could cost you your entire vacation as many times you would not be permitted to embark at the next port!

Savings: $500/person from NCL More at Sea BOGO Airfare deal

• We did use NCL to book our flights as it allowed us to take advantage of the free airfare for half of the group
• PROS:
  • Pricing was hard to beat as it was $999 BOGO for the entire party. $500/person for round trip tickets to Europe in the middle of peak tourist season/summer on a multi-city itinerary (when you fly into one city and out of another) was quite frankly a steal
  • NCL did keep everyone on the same flights (some flew in two days early and some flew in the day before and everyone but me flew home the day of disembarkment) *but not sure if this is typical
  • Ability to add 1 or 2 day(s) deviation to cruise (AKA you can fly in early/stay later up to 2 days before/after your cruise) for no additional charges
• CONS:
  • You have absolutely NO control over the flights (ie choice of airlines/# of stops/etc) and I was told that they are not booked until 35-45 days out! Luckily that was not the case for our cruise as we got our confirmations on 5/22/23 (even more annoying was that the flights were booked mid-April and they waited for a month to give us the info!) This is not a lot of lead time for planning the other logisitcs which I am sure is quite strategic with NCL betting that the majority of people will go through them for hotels + transport when using NCL for flights.
  • Your ticket is booked through NCL Air which is considered a third party booking by the airlines which is problematic when you want to make changes (we had super short connections in JFK so I wanted to switch to a longer one to give us more leeway) and NCL Air was not willing to help us.
  • The airfare is one of the lowest fare classes booked so miles earning is accordingly impacted (ofc I care about that!) and may also impact if you have to pay for baggage and seat assignments. FYI for our flights: those that checked bags did not have fees nor did we have to pay for seats
  • NOTE: NCL has since changed this Free Add-on as BOGO for the 1&2 guests, guests 3-8 on a reservation will pay full airfare amount

LODGING

Savings: over $3,000 USD We did not use NCL to book our hotels as the rate that they were charging was insane (something along the lines of $300/person/night!)

Hampton by Hilton London Waterloo

It was pretty stressful with the timing of when NCL Air sends flight info so I preemptively reserved rooms at multiple hotels (big unknowns were: when would the flights arrive ie if the flights was in the evening, it might make more sense to stay at a hotel near the airport and which airport would we land at!) since we had to book so many rooms + most being family rooms!

• Once I saw that all flights had morning arrivals, I decided on this hotel for the following reasons
  • Hotel had rooms that could accommodate four (see beautiful tip above which definitely came into play for London hotels)
  • Location! For most of our party, this would be their first visit to London so this was a great spot to be based from. While London public transport is really easy to use, it is also nice to be able to walk around where you are staying and see some iconic London landmarks especially post overnight flights. Bonus is that we were also within walking distance to the Waterloo train station
  • Free brekkie: I had read the reviews and I would agree that the breakfast spread was really wonderful – not a deal breaker/maker but it was a nice addition and money saver for a party this large.
  • Status + points earning: the hotel was great about recognizing my Diamond elite status and gave me F &B credit for everyone! (ha! if you are surprised by this, then you are either new to the site or haven’t been paying attention!)

Hilton Reykjavík Nordica

I stayed an extra two nights and decided on this hotel as I was unsure if I wanted to use points or pay cash. Iceland is PRICEY and it was really nice to have breakfast and executive lounge access with my status to help save on food costs.

NCL CRUISE

Cruise Details: Norwegian Cruise Line Prima 11 Nights Northern Europe

Savings: $1350 + My Cruise fare! AMEX Offers: at the end of 2022, $350 & In 2023, AMEX had another offer $250 off $1K but this was on multiple peoples' cards so we were able to use 4 offers! Booking direct with NCL group reservation team, I was designated as group leader so that why my cruise fare was refunded back.

NOTE: I was so focused on the logistics and shepherding people that I honestly do not know if I remember enough to do a full review on NCL and/or the Prima. For the time being, observations and such will be added to the itinerary section. Also within that section, you will find linked pertinent posts for ports/activities.

FOOD & DRINKS

Savings: SIGNIFICANT We had booked so far in advance that the Free at Sea was a phenomenal deal for those that added it! We had FOUR specialty dining meals and while the beverage menu was changed a few months before our sailing, we only had to pay gratuities $217.80 for the beverage + $22.80 for the specialty dining!

TRANSPORTATION

NCL was charging $75/person for transportation but would only add on if we were also booking accommodations through them but we saved money and it was really easy to take care for both London and Reykjavík (more information about transportation can be found in the itinerary and port posts-lol as they are written and linked!)

For the party that came in the day before, I booked a van that took them directly to the hotel from Heathrow through Viator for $311.04 ($34.74/person). The company was great to work with and I was able to give them my dad and SIL’s info for who would be at LHR that morning. They were very responsive the morning of with having to make late changes since unfortunately the flight had been delayed.

ACTIVITIES

_{Beautiful tip: You can book through Rakuten for additional cash back and if you have never used this shopping portal, learn all about it here and also sign up using my link for an additional $30!}

Savings: SIGNIFICANT This is where we saved the most money as we didn’t book through NCL for any of the excursions and instead booked via Viator and GetYourGuide. Here’s the reviews and how to for each: Viator / GetYourGuide. More information on the activities will be covered in the respective port posts!

MISCELLANEOUS

My spend is always for the same items here with my souvenirs being magnets + cash (bills) to have as keepsakes. One way to save money if you also like to have physical bills as mementos is to ask when purchasing items (ie magnets) if you could also have the smallest bills as cashback: probably 50% of the time I have been successful with this. Otherwise I use either my Fidelity or Schwab debit cards which have ATM rebated to me (my second choice because you don’t typically get a choice in denominations)

ITINERARY / TRIP OVERVIEW

NCL opens check-in 21 days before sailing and we were able to reserve tickets for some of the shows at that time as well (Price is Right and Donna Summers)

Days 1-2: London, UK

ALERT: Don’t forget that the UK has now implemented their electronic travel authorization requirement! Note that the EU has announced that they will implement their version beginning last quarter of 2026.

Day 3: London, UK – Travel to Southampton Port: Embark NCL Prima

_{Beautiful tip: but also A HOT TAKE: I think it’s worth it to spend more time in the city than get on the ship early PLUS is you board closer to the end of embarkment time, the lines are SIGNIFICANTLY shorter which is also a huge plus.}

LONDON -> SOUTHAMPTON

Of the three options to get to the Southampton port from London, we opted for the train since the hotel was so close to Waterloo. (Other options would be to take a motor coach bus or book private transportation).

Cost: $172.48/£137.95 (£12.10x 10 adults + £5.65 x 3 children) as we were able to get a large group advanced purchase discount. A lovely representative from South Western Railway arranged a call to charge my credit card and also gave me a number of pointers/tips as listed below

The journey was direct from the Waterloo station to Southampton station and took 1 hour and 25 minutes but the train was delayed nearly 40 minutes! Do not rely on the ETA listed if your train is delayed, luckily I was familiar with trains and tried to have the family near to the platform as it did arrive earlier than posted and left shortly after! It was a MAD dash to get on with a group this size with a couple people almost missing the train completely!

So important notes and good to know re our journey on the train:

• WATERLOO station:~
  • Note that tickets are collected at the station and you must bring the credit card that was charged – you can obtain your tickets at any time from a kiosk (I picked them up the first day we were in London to make sure that there weren’t any issues)
  • As suggested by the employee who helped me book our group discounted tickets, we used the handicap accessible gates w/ luggage + w/the 3 year old not having a ticket (not required due to age)
• TRAIN
  • There are no assigned seats on train
  • There are large luggage storage at exits (but you may have to keep under feet) While it wasn’t currently busy when tickets were purchased, it was nearly fully when we made the journey
  • IMPORTANT NOTE: Often the train will split along the way, it will be announced beforehand so pay attention to what cars you should be in!
• SOUTHAMPTON station:
  • I had read that a cab was the best way to get to the port (£6-10? 10 mins) or walk (30 mins 1.5 miles) to dock – HORIZON CRUISE TERMINAL (berth 102) but with construction, it was impossible to flag one down. We ended up walking and it was a 10 minute walk to that specific berth. On my subsequent cruise, it was very easy to get a taxi from the station

Itinerary Change =(

NCL: I get that itinerary changes can happen especially when sailing the Nordics but NCL should have informed passengers earlier re this change!

Beautiful Tip: Facebook groups continue to be the top place for info esp with cruises. We had these letters in our staterooms upon embarking but luckily had already known from the Prima group that the three sailings before us had not docked here. Accordingly, I booked our whale watching tour for when we were in Akureyri

Days 4: Zeebrugge, Brussels

_{Beautiful tip: I still have not found a better source of information than Facebook groups: for the specific ship and sailings. I was able to find the most up to date information and also some tips such the mid cruise laundry service for $29. Between the 15 of us, we had 5 different attendants and all of them honored the price even as we all took advantage of the deal at different points during the trip.}

Day 5: Amsterdam, Netherlands

PRIMA: It was a recurring theme for the cruise that finding seating/space was a struggle – not only for the large group but even when I ventured around the ship by myself especially in the observation lounge and eating spaces.  

Day 6: at Sea

PRIMA: On sea days unless you were up at the observation deck early, it was nearly impossible to find seating from 7 AM to 9 PM but it was a really lovely area. On two of the three sea days, two of the slides were not in operation due to weather/temps and the others were fun but not something we opted to do more than once.

Day 7: Bergen, Norway

See how we embraced our inner kids in Bergen (and ignored the rain whilst having fun because it is gonna rain in Bergen!)

Day 8: Geiranger, Norway

Day 9: Ålesund, Norway

PRIMA: A few of the group booked massages and everyone reported that they had good experiences.

Day 10: at Sea

PRIMA: Internet was fine (caveat no one worked during the cruise) ~ we had 250 mins/cabin with teenagers getting unlimited internet and most of us had iPhones that we were able to use without connecting officially to the wifi

Day 11: Akureyri, Iceland

PRIMA: The entertainment was mixed: Magic show was okay, Price is Right was a ball, Donna Summers show had mixed reviews from us but the dancing afterwards and the cast was really fun. We went to many of the theme nights + family karaoke + saw many of the live music acts so most of us still managed to have a lot of fun at night. 

Day 12: Ísafjörður, Iceland -> Akureyri, Iceland

PRIMA/NCL: Only because of Facebook groups was I prepared that the ship wouldn’t be docking here (and we were not notified by NCL until we were on the ship) – so I made sure to book a whale watching tour in Akureyri.

If you are docking here, here’s what I did on a stop aboard a different cruise + my cruise port guide

Day 13: Reykjavík, Iceland: Overnight

We spent our port day doing the Golden Circle with Kerid Stop . One thing I wish I would have done was book excursions earlier. This way, we would have done the Golden Circle-Kerid with the Blue Lagoon admission. That would have allowed the whole family to go to the Perlan the next day before the flights in the late afternoon!

Day 14: Reykjavík, Iceland: Disembark NCL Prima

Iceland is the land of fire and ice (volcanoes and glaciers respectively) and one of the best ways to experience the former is by visiting one of the numerous geothermal heated lagoons so here’s our day at the Blue Lagoon. One thing that works out really well if you book this excursion is that it includes transportation including to Keflavik airport if desired!

Note that the travel guide does have some options for where to stay including if you want to book a hotel room on points!

Days 15-16: Reykjavík, Iceland

I added two days on after the cruise ended (no fee with NCL Air) + booked the Hilton Reykjavík Nordica (not with NCL). Highlights were the Perlan: fun and immersive museum to begin with but then there’s the view and you also get yummy (and reasonably priced) food, drink AND ice cream, snorkeling Silfra (being able to touch two tectonic plates at once) and doing an over the top flying dress photo shoot +South Coast road trip.