This was my third cruise on a big ship. Overall, I was impressed with all aspects of this cruise. Service was very good, staff was very friendly, and both the food and service in the main dining room was better than on my 2 prior NCL cruises. I found my interior cabin to be very satisfactory, and kept very clean by house services. The cruise was originally destined for 3 days in Israel, however, this was cancelled at the last minute due to the hostilities there. This was a big disappointment, and Greek island stops were substituted. I had not been to any of the Greek islands, so was able to enjoy them -- especially on Santorini after joining an excursion organized through cruisecritic at the last minute.

I arranged my own shore excursion activities and travel transfers to and from the ship, so cannot comment on the ship's excursions or transfers. I easily hired a legal taxi at the Istanbul airport after asking for direction at the tourist info booth after exiting customs. The fare was very reasonable. Upon disembarking, I took the train from Civitavecchia to Rome Termini, then Rome to the Airport. This was very easy to do and very economical as compared with transfer costs.

I used the ship's gym facilities and can state that the cardio and weigh machines were new and in excellent condition. Read more