Norwegian Pearl Review
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I first have to say that after our last experience on the Sky, we had lower expectations this time around. We completely avoided the spa as we found the pressure to purchase all the "extras" was irritating and didn't want to be bothered with the hassle this time around. We also knew of all the "upsell" opportunities, like the photos, jewelry "specials" and the like, so we mostly avoided those.
However, even with lower expectations, we really enjoyed the Pearl. Yes, the upsell stuff is still there, but it was our kids (18 and 15) first cruise, and they didn't know what to expect but ended up really enjoying it. The rougher sea days were a bit taxing, but they got through it.
Embarkation in Seattle is a piece of cake and found it better organized than Miami. We had a Mini-Suite this time with a balcony, and it was very nice, especially on the Alaska trip, as we had our own little private area to take pictures from at the glaciers and watching for whales, etc. And we did see whales and orcas and seals and other wildlife from our balcony. Well worth the extra cost for us. Our room steward was also excellent and knew our names all week after our first introduction. He was always smiling and very pleasant.
Cabin Review
Mid-Ship Mini-Suite with Balcony
By far, the nicest cabin we have been in, but of course, we haven't been on too many cruises. It was fairly big as far as cabins on cruise ships go, and the balcony was very nice. For the most part, it was quiet, even with neighbours with smaller children (children were well-behaved). Very clean and plenty of room for four people to put their things, though some of the drawers were harder (and noisier) to open than others. The tiny TV is hard to see anything from the bed, but you don't spend much time watching the very limited TV selections anyway.