This cruise was booked to experience the NCL Getaway. I had cruised on the Epic and wanted to compare ships. The pricing was excellent. As a single traveler I booked a balcony for the price of a studio. I was somewhat disappointed when the rate dropped substantially that I was not upgraded or some concession made.

The ship was beautiful and had many improved features over the Epic. The one disappointing thing about NCL is the way they nickel and dime you with many of their offerings. I can understand the surcharge in specialty restaurants but this new ala carte pricing is totally off the mark. When I cruise I want to have a good idea of what my entire cost will be. Granted I can always eat in the comp restaurants and that is what I generally do when cruising. If I wanted to experience a specialty restaurant in the past I could easily budget the amount for those occasions. Now with the exception of three venues you have no idea of how much you will end up paying. The one thing I have always disliked about NCL was their methods of pricing amenities. Now it is ever worse with the ala carte dining requirement.

The ship itself was fantastic and surpassed my expectations. However I cannot say that about the service. This was possibly the most unfriendly ship I have experienced in my past 30 + cruises. Beverage service was slow and servers gave the impression that they were put upon to serve you. I found this throughout the ship. Food service was inconsistent. The first night in the Taste was fantastic. I dine alone and had a very attentive team which provided one of the best dining experiences I have had on a cruise ship. However after the first night it went downhill. By the final night my waiter brought me three appetizers before getting it correct. He never brought my salad. The entrée was delivered but I had no utensils to eat with. I simply sat in my seat and watched the parade of servers walk past my table. After about 10 minutes the head waiter stopped and asked me if all was ok. At that time I told him I had no knife or fork. He brought me one. Read more