We were on the Jade in November for ten days and did too many things and tired out, so the solution was to do a 7-day on the Star out of Tampa and just purposely "vegetate" and relax.
Having been on the Star before, we knew and liked the layout of the ship. As Platinum members of Lattitudes we knew we had access to the ship's concierge. But after trying 3 phone calls over two days and never getting ahold of her, nor having her call back, we gave up on using that perk. The food was generally as good as it has always been, in both the regular and the added-charge restaurants. The only exception was that "lobster night" was the first evening and the small 3 ounce tails were so over-cooked as to not taste like anything. On the other side, the Ginza, or oriental restaurant was wonderful as was Le Bistro.
Service and attentiveness in the main two dining rooms was not to the level it normally is on NCL. Refills on water and iced tea were slow as was getting the server back for ordering. Casino was normal - gave some money the first night and then tightened up the rest of the week. When not in a mini-suite, we have always done an AFT balcony to enjoy the view. UNFORTUNATELY we have noted that NCL has elected to take financial advantage of those aft cabins and now gouge for the privilege of requesting an aft cabin. That is a shame they need to squeeze a couple hundred extra dollars for a balcony.
One of the two "standard" balconies on the aft of the ship on deck 8. Great views, always seem quieter than side balconies.