We just disembarked from Norwegian's Escape Sunday, July 31st. I am going to try help out a little with expectations. This is a brand new ship. The ship is beautifully designed, easy to navigate once you board.
Embarkation is easy. You can take your luggage on with you. At first I was told no by the port of Miami staff, but advised I had carried luggage on before and was permitted. The first thing I would do is head to the Box Office - Deck 7 Forward. NCL's website is not the greatest and many of the shows you cannot book prior to embarkation. This line will be long almost immediately so someone in your group should head to the Box Office. You will need each parties "CABIN number" to reserve seats.
Comedy shows were great especially "Lucas". The Franki Valli show was good, but the younger folks may not be into this genre. The other entertainment you will want to see is at the Manhattan Dining Room which also has a dance floor. The Manhattan quartet was fabulous and the latin music/dancers.
You'll love the spacious bathroom and shower was great!!!
The room works. It's narrow, but plenty of cabinets to put your clothing
apparel and shoes stowed properly. Our cabin steward was great.
Excellent service ...and just a vivacious guy!
Island Tour -- We booked with cruise ship. The tour was 4.5 hours at $75. We only received one hour at the beach. The other 3.5 hours were confined to an open air caravan going up and down windy windy roads...with no stops to actually step out and breath in the panoramic views or take photos. Not worth the time or the money.