So like most of you I read a lot of reviews for the Getaway claiming poor, inattentive service, and at this point I am convinced 90% of those are competing cruise lines trying to sandbag. I am a very picky traveler and have little patience for poor service, so I want to start this by saying I was completely satisfied in fact impressed by the service on this cruise. This was spring break so we knew that it would be crowded and worse, lots of kids, but despite that we had a great time, good service, and overall while not perfect a great experience.

Now the devil in the details. We booked early like most people and were irritated as the prices dropped going up to the cruise date. They were trying to fill in as much of the ship as possible so our balcony room got cheaper in the last few weeks, and they began offering 2 freebies (drinks, dining, internet or $50 daily credit). This prompted me and many others to repeatedly call their customer support to see what we can get. In the end, I was able to get room upgraded nicely, the free drink package, and maintain my onboard credit I initially got. I should have at least gotten one other package, and still was a couple hundred more than if I waited till the last minute, but that is just luck. Had I waited and they were already booked, I could have paid substantially more for less. Not a big issue, but one that NCL should look into to improve customer satisfaction and repeat business.

That said, we got to eat and drink unlimited and gained about 10 lbs from the delicious sugary drinks, garden buffet, and did 4 specialty restaurants. Moderno is a must, always like Cagneys, and tried Teppanyaka which was good. Wassabi is great for a sushi snack. Their Taste and Savor dining rooms made our other dinners, saved O'sheanans and the garden and Flamingo buffets for breakfast and lunch. Never disappointed in a meal. We eat early so service was never an issue. Tried the wine tasting one day, that was mediocre. Would have preferred an open tasting of just the red premium (bottle only) wines and I might have bought more bottles (got one, 20% discount), instead just opting for the free wines by glass (the have about 3 that are great reds). I seriously don't think I would do another cruise without the liquor package, but it needs to be included in the price. Paid extra for the meal 3 pack, would have liked that included. Read more