We booked this cruise because our other family members planned this trip. So I learned to suck it up, not complain but make mental notes that I would never book another NCL cruise.

I was very disappointed with the lack of service and overall experience on NCL. The ship was not very clean, over crowded in popular areas and hallways were always filled with dirty dishes from room service. Public bathrooms were very dirty - period!

The complimentary food was bland and poor quality. The Garden Cafe was crowded and was difficult to walk in. For breakfast, many other areas were open but served the same offerings. I was most surprised at the fresh fruit service. The fruit was not peeled yet the skin of the fruit touched the edible parts. Yikes, did they really WASH the pineapple skins? The passengers on the cruise were also troublesome. I got tired of adults reaching into platers without service utensils and just using their hands. NCL employees stood by and let it happen. While there is a staffer at each entrance to the Garden Cafe saying "washie washie", there is no enforcement of poor sanitary practices by passengers. The main dining room with complimentary food was easy to get seated, however service was slow. Dinner ran between 1.5 to 2 hrs for 3 courses. Free style has its drawbacks. Our waiters never got to know what we liked so I lean towards traditional cruising because I do enjoy having the same waiter. We purchased the drink card and had trouble getting a glass of wine in the two main dining areas, We were also shocked to find out coffee and soda was not included on our card - only bar drinks! Seemed strange to us but we went with the flow. Even with the drink card, you must sign for each and every beverage - and add additional tip if you so desire. This seemed crazy and not passenger friendly, It did help when I had to fix our bill - we were "charged" for several drinks which should have been included with the purchase of the card. Read more