First, many staff were unfriendly (e.g. shore excursions & guest services desk). There was really no one willing to take ownership of an issue, which left us feeling helpless and unheard while on board.

Second, we paid for the stingray city excursion in Grand Cayman and the bus was over 30 minutes late picking us up. When we actually did the excursion, it was cut short to make up for lost time so they could get us back to the boat on time. The unscrupulous excursion operator reported to NCL that they took us for 40 minutes, but by my nephew's timer, we had less than 20 minutes. We also paid for photos, which we never received. When we spoke to the Manager at the shore excursions desk and he was rude and helpless -- stating that whatever happened is between us and the excursion operator. An absolutely ridiculous position to take, given that we booked the excursion, while aboard NCL.

Third, the cruise director announcements in the mornings were frequent, excessive, and annoying. One day, there was an early morning announcement for a staff drill. Why couldn't they do this in the afternoon, or while the passengers are disembarked from the boat? That made no sense and was extremely inconvenient. Read more