This was our first time cruising on Norwegian, and also our first time to the Mexican Riviera. We were excited to visit Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas.

Embarkation was fast. We easily got through the security and check-in lines, and were directed to sit in chairs until our embarkation group was called. We didn't have long to wait until we were called. Photographers took our embarkation picture just before we rode the escalator up to the ship. When we got onto the ship, we were in the Crystal Atrium, which is the main lobby area. This ship did not have the "wow" factor of other ships, however I found it to be very comfortable and easy to navigate.

We enjoyed the variety of dining choices available on this ship. There was always food available somewhere on the ship. We typically ate breakfast and lunch at the buffet, which offered a wide variety of options. We ate dinner at O'Sheehans during Sunday night football. The food was good but the service was slow. In their defense, it was the first night on the ship and it was very crowded for the football game. We didn't care about the slow service because we were there for the duration of the game anyway. On the other nights, we ate at Tsar's Palace and Azura. We thought Tsar's Palace was beautiful - this was our favorite restaurant. We only had to wait to be seated once (at Azura). We were given a pager and we sat in a lounge and listened to music until we were called - it only took about 10 minutes. The food in the restaurants was generally good, but the desserts in the dining rooms were disappointing. I much preferred the desserts in the buffet. Service in the dining rooms was always very good. Read more