Our very first cruise back in the 80's was on Norwegian when it was just starting up. Very small ship by today's standards and probably scrap metal now but it was a fun time. We've been on Carnival, Disney, and last year RCL for the first time. Carnival wasn't bad, the Breeze was our favorite. Disney, we went on 2 of their cruises and it was nice. Last year we tried RCL's Allure and were terribly disappointed. Too crowded, too big, and very snobby staff. This year we did NCL Escape out of Miami. Pleasantly surprised and delighted. The ship is beautiful, it's big but not hard to get around in. The public areas were always busy with people but not crowded. The food was excellent from the Garden Cafe to the specialty restaurants. The service was outstanding, friendly, polite and always with a smile, hello, good-bye, have a nice day...every day. We did the Spa Mini-Suite and loved the shower. No small stall or curtain wrestling or closing the hatch, a real standup shower with jets coming out everywhere..it's like a car wash... We were originally scheduled for the eastern Caribbean but the damage by Irma was too extensive so we got switched over to the Western Caribbean. We really hope the folks in the Eastern side recover quickly and safely so we can go back some time. So back to the Escape, beautiful ship. Got familiar with the layout as quickly as we could. They have some interesting venues, 24 hour restaurant and bars, there are several. RCL herds you by the clock, NCL calls it Freestyle for a reason and they live by it. Never rushed any where or any time. Our only con for the entire ship is the lack of umbrellas/covered areas on the deck for cruise day. There is the Spice H2O adult only area that has a few but there are the usual cruisers who get up a dawn and throw their towels on all the chairs and don't show up to Noon or 1:00. Someday, the cruise line will follow their policy and have someone collect towels after the 20 minute timer is up.. The is a Vibe Beach club we knew nothing about. It's a special area that has nicer sunning areas and more covered areas but it's a subscription that you sign up for $99 per person and first come first serve. We got on board before 1 and it was sold out. If you get there by 11 you may have a chance. Then there is the Haven. It looks and sounds good but at twice the price not sure of the value. Maybe some day we'll give it a try. You get specialty dining and ultimate drink package with the room in the Haven but not the Spa. We would rather the Spa...it is well worth it on that ship.. The ship itself is awesome and well laid out, elevators were busy but you could at least catch a ride. The ship at sea is very smooth and quiet even in rain storms. We had a great lightening show at dinner one of the nights. One show not to miss is the Wine Tasting lunch show. The show is great, the food is good and plenty of wine to try. We're already looking at next Summer, but the Escape is moving to New York and the Getaway is coming back to Miami. We'll try the Bliss at some point but not sure how long it will be on the Alaskan routes... Big Thumbs Up for NCL.