I have been on many cruises over the past 35-40 years. Although, this wasn't the worst cruise, it was certainly not amongst the best either. Free Style Cruising is awful. We oftentimes waited up to 2 1/2 hours to get through our meals because the service was so incredibly slow. The food was average at best, and the desserts were generally tasteless. The cream cheese at breakfast looked and tasted like whipped topping. I actually thought it was at first. We once waited 45 minutes just to get a glass of orange juice. Since you can have dinner any time you like, you'd better make sure that you go early to the regular dining rooms because you will miss the shows. If you begin dinner in Versailles at 7:00, it's doubtful as to whether or not you'll make a 9:45 show. That's how slow the service is. Additionally, the portions were miniscule.

The ship is threadbare. The carpet on the steps to Versailles is worn away in parts. There are mirrors that have lights that are broken and glass that is cracked. The light in our closet never worked. The public bathrooms, especially around the teeny, tiny pool were frequently clogged and over-flowing. If I had to hear the "Norwegian" song one more time (it played endlessly about how we're all family), I thought I would be ill.It rained a great deal the first full day at sea. The Cruise Director did absolutely nothing to add things to do to the daily agenda. Couldn't they have played a movie or done something else? Aren't there any contingency plans for inclement weather? I guess not. I did attend, though, the discussion that rainy day about Bermuda. That is, I thought it was about Bermuda. Mostly (about 50 minutes or so) it was a description of "wonderful" things to buy on the ship and all of the great stores in Bermuda. Buy...buy...buy..enough. Oh, he did speak about Bermuda for about 5 minutes. I basically wasted 50 minutes listening to his spiel about where to buy a Rolex watch, etc. Next fun event was the "Pub Crawl" on Tuesday. I have gone pub crawling in Ireland. This was no pub crawl. Firstly, most of the drinks that were served were absolutely awful. Only at the last bar was any beer served. I was disgusted with the nature of the entire event. At every stop the person in charge had various participants simulate sex acts with such things as beer bottles. I'm no prude,but many of us felt that if this pub crawl was going to be all about sex, perhaps it should be so described in the daily agenda. The jogging track is barely wide enough for one person to jog on. The TV played MSNBC, CNN, Fox News, some movies, and an enless loop of the E channel. I hate the Kardashians, but even that family began to look good.

So, save your money and find a nicer, more accommodating ship. I will say that the staff were generally extremely cordial and accommodating. I especially liked Shannon and (I think it was Neal) who ran the athletic center. They really give great classes and know their stuff. Oh, skip the pool area, there's no room anyway to swim, and finding a chaise lounge past an early hour is nearly impossible. I have no clue where the owners of the ship expect the people to sit. They don't have enough chaise lounges and/or chairs. Forget swimming. There is a lovely spa and indoor pool inside the spa area, but it costs about $100 extra just to sit there. So, in conclusion, it you want to go to Bermuda, fly there.