I have a new favorite ship, the Getaway. I have been a bit apprehensive about booking an NCL cruise before because of some of the reviews I have read, but my travel agent said I should give them a chance and I did-WOW!!

It all started with the check in process which seems to take forever. We went from the curb to our stateroom in 35 minutes!! We couldn’t believe it. My first impression of our stateroom was a bit smaller than usual, especially the balcony, but it ended up having plenty of storage, just in different places. The bathroom was a bit larger than most cruise ships I have been on and I appreciated the shower door rather than a shower curtain. One bit of a downer; we did not meet our room steward until the third day when we had to find him for a special request.

The ship is fantastic; the freestyle dining is something that all ships should have. I booked all my restaurants ahead of time, and then when I got on board, I changed several of my reservations, no problem, I did it with a phone call and they answered on the first or second ring. The restaurants were great, one of the no upcharge restaurants, the Tropicana is a throw back in time to the 1930’s and 40’s when the night clubs had dinner and dancing. The Brazilian and the Japanese steak houses were every bit as good as the best ones in the US. One of the unique things about these restaurants was that you could request outside seating. Read more