We are a young professional couple with no children. We enjoy cruising at least one to two times a year. This was our first time on NCL. We chose it because of the price...but soon learned all of the perks behind freestyle cruising.

Embarkation: We flew in the same day into MIA and took a cab for $24 into the port. We arrived at noon, went through x-ray, walk straight up to the counter, got our paper ticket, and was on our way upstairs. The gentleman who took care of this was so nice. Once we got up stairs we were give our key cards, orange juice & cookies and told to sit and wait. I thought we were going to wait there for at least a half hour or so considering how many people were there...five minutes later we were getting online to board the ship! The WHOLE process took us 20 minutes. We were up on the pool deck at 12:20pm. The rooms were not ready so, we got some fresh pineapples and waited.

Stateroom: Well this stateroom was a surprise for my husband. He knew we were going on the cruise, but I allowed him to believe that we were in an ocean view cabin. I left him on the pool deck to check out the room. It was great. It was pretty roomy. The balcony was wonderful. I was afraid the chairs would be uncomfortable, as many have stated on their reviews...but I did not find it that way. I actually spent LOADS of time out there as did my hubby. The bathroom is efficient. The shower is not made for two. :) The hair dryer is not good for my hair (thick and curly) SO GLAD I HAD MY OWN!!! I imagine it would work ok for short and/or thinner hair. There are only three 110 outlets: One at the desk and two in the bathroom (sink / hairdryer). If you have a lot of plug-ins at night you may do better bringing a surge protector power strip. The ones in the bathroom don't work if the light is off. There is a lot of storage space. We put our bags under the bed. The safe it good because it allows you to create your own password. Just don't forget what it is! Read more