Introduction: My wife and I sailed on the NCL Sky from Miami calling at Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay from October 30 through November 2, 2009. We had booked this cruise a long time ago as a low-cost weekend getaway from our busy lives. We knew that it would be a party atmosphere as it was not only a 3-night weekend Bahamas cruise from Miami but it was also Halloween weekend. However, we were counting on being able to ignore those activities and have the relaxing experience we wanted and needed.

We chose this cruise for the convenience and the price - it was only $129 per person, less than the similar Royal Caribbean and Carnival itineraries, and we had only a long weekend available. We liked that the itinerary included a private island - perfect for relaxing with no temptation to do anything in particular. We have sailed NCL twice before - both times on the Jewel and on longer itineraries - and find the flexibility of freestyle dining to our liking. We've never had any complaints with the service. To minimize costs, we planned to eat all our meals in the main dining rooms or buffets, avoiding the specialty restaurants. We know that the food in the main dining rooms and the buffets isn't the best quality, but we've always found it to be enjoyable and adequate. We weren't interested in the parties, casino, bingo, entertainment, shopping, spa services, shore excursions, art auctions, or other revenue enhancers, just in a quiet getaway at sea, with perhaps some opportunities for me to sail.

We both had enjoyable and relaxing experiences and no major complaints, especially given the low price. We were extremely glad that we took this cruise and would do it again under similar circumstances. But we did find several significant areas where NCL could - and should - improve at minimal or no cost, and these are noted at the end of this review. Read more