While the old adage, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” often holds true, Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) chose a different path in an effort to enhance its onboard guest experience.
Beginning in late August 2024, the cruise line initiated the rollout of a brand-new app across its fleet of 19 ships, meant to provide cabin access and reservation details, allow guests to upload travel documents and check-in online, and book entertainment, shore excursions, and dining reservations.
First introduced on Norwegian Sky’s August 30, 2024, voyage in the Caribbean, the initial rollout was received with positive reviews and the cruise line saying the app was part of its commitment “to being the easiest cruise line to work with.”
But just over a week into the New Year, the new app has guests singing a different tune.
On January 1, 2025, NCL officially shut down its older app and fully transitioned to its new creation. According to user reviews on the App Store, Google Play, and social media, technical difficulties have led to nothing but frustration for many guests.
“Why on earth would you shut down your old app when the new one is NOT working,” wrote one App Store user who gave the app a 1-star review. “When I was on the ship three weeks ago, I was able to get into both apps. The new app is prettier, but the old app was much easier to use.”
Wrote another user on Google Play who also left a 1-star review, “I really want to rate this app higher due to the improved design, but the performance is AWFUL. It takes forever to load, if it loads at all, and every tap results in staring at a blank wireframe screen while it reloads.”
In response, Norwegian Cruise Line responded to Cruise Hive and said, “Guest feedback is incredibly important to us. NCL is committed to delivering an exceptional experience that allows guests to vacation with ease.”
“Over the past few days there was a technical issue loading our new mobile app that has since been resolved,” said the cruise line.
While some passengers have reported deleting and reinstalling the app initially helped, they continued to experience trouble. NCL recommends guests continue to update the app, “as we are regularly deploying new features.”
“Now it opens in less than 3 second and you can move from page to page pretty effortlessly,” wrote one guest, following NCL’s advice and January 7 update.
NCL Efforts to Refine New App
Beyond the loading difficulties and blank screens, when the app works, passengers have mixed reviews on the features of the new app.
While some passengers have reported an inability to select and save activities into a personal calendar of events and others say reservations are missing, others feel the sleek, modern app functions better than the earlier version.
“Everything is well-organized, making it effortless to book excursions, manage dining, and keep track of activities,” said on Apple reviewer. “The real-time itinerary updates and easy access to shipboard accounts are fantastic, keeping you in the loop with just a few taps.”
Added a Google Play user, “Having port times listed in the itinerary is sooo helpful and I like the horizontal pre-cruise checklist section for easy access to the on-ship planning.”
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Introducing new technology often comes with initial hiccups, and Norwegian Cruise Line is actively addressing the performance issues and bugs being reported by its guests.
Passengers experiencing trouble with the app are finding the website a good alternative in the meantime.
