We are frequent cruisers but this was our first NCL trip. We went with two other couples and none of us had any complaints. We all agreed that the Pearl is a perfect ship. Embarkation was a breeze as was disembarkation. We had an aft mini-suite which was ideal; plenty of room to store all of our unused clothes. My suggestion would be to pack lighter than for any other cruise; free-style dining allows for much less clothing, and the warm southern Caribbean means you will not need any "northern" clothes. When we go again, we will carry only a few things in case of cool weather, one dressy outfit and the rest just casual attire. With the express check-out, a pull-on suitcase would have been ideal. Our friends did this; eliminating the need to pack up the night before and wait for a color to be called to disembark.

The ports of call were all interesting; I will not list each one and what we did since that is on everyone's review and, honestly, each island begins to look alike after awhile. We took advantage of all the entertainment: the Jean Ann Ryan troupe, the fantastic acrobats, the very talented ventriloquist, the clever magician, various shows in the Spinnaker, the pool, the casino (I left some money in the Mr. Cashman machines.)

By having nine nights, we were able to sample most all the restaurants. We live in a small town so we have no places such as "Le Bistro", "Teppanyaki", "Cagney's"; we were quite willing to pay the nominal fee, usually taking advantage of the early half-price special. We never had any problems with reservations; on the few times there was a short wait, we were given a beeper and waited in a lounge,sipped a cocktail, chatted and listened to a piano. Quite pleasant. Since this is a "critic" column I will list our only complaint: wine prices are quite high. The best special was this: order five beers and you get a bucket of 6; doing this at two-for-the-price-of-one was a bargain. We are ready to go again!