I wasn't sure what to expect, I have read many bad reviews of the Norwegian Sky on this site. But honestly after getting on the ship and the first evening, I thought ~ were those people writing the bad reviews on a different ship? We just came back on Monday the 31st, sailing out on the 28th. From the moment we got out of our car and walked easily onto the boat everyone who works for NCL was amazing. We got on the ship easily and went right to our cabin. And yes it was one of the "dreaded" cabins by the elevators and stairs. 0053. We did not have any problems with noise the whole cruise, so if you get that cabin don't worry about it. It is a balcony cabin, the room was pristine as far a cleanliness. The desk had a small worn area on it but other then that the room was in great shape. The balcony made all the difference. It was my husband birthday and he spent a lot of time out there just enjoying the ocean. No problems with other people on the balconies, no issues with smokers. Also we had heard that the Sky may be replaced soon with a newer ship. Just know that the Sky may be an older ship, but it is beautiful and the crew does a great job maintaining it. Very clean and well maintained. The cruise director and his staff were great. They worked really hard to keep everyone entertained. We did the Bingo and a game show, saw a Vegas show, A great comedian, and they had an amazing band - VIP from Columbia. The Hot White Party on Saturday was great. There was so much to do. We also hit the Casino and won and lost a little money. The shore excursion to Stirrup Cay was fun. The tenders were a little rocky, but I have been told by other that I'm a chicken, so that is probably true. The food was great on the island, a lot of variety and plentiful. On the ship we ate at all the "free" places and never ate the same thing twice. The Palace & Crossing's had a good selection and the service was the best. The multiple bars throughout the ship were good too, quick service and very friendly. We did not get the alcohol or soft drink package and it was not a problem. There were plenty of other things to drink besides soft drinks. And we each had at least 3 mixed drinks a day and our tab was less then 150. Nassau was fun and very easy. We did notice one funny thing, a Royal Caribbean boat was next to us in the port of Nassau and if they made one screeching intercom announcement they made twenty in about 4 hours. We did not realize how annoying that was because you don't hear that on NCL. We decided right then that we would never sail on RC. Nassau was fun and interesting. Getting off the ship the next day could not have been easier, we took our own luggage and just walked off, customs was a breeze. We will definitely be cruising with NCL again.