First of all. When we booked the cruise in April, we were assured that we would be getting the best possible pricing. WRONG. We noticed several price reductions. When we contacted our cruise rep we were given an upgrade to ocean view partially obstructed. More like lifeboat view, completely obstructed. The only time we could see the ocean was when the boats were being used as tenders. The flight over was booked through NCL at the same time. When we got our seating, all four of us were split up and given the worst seats on the plane. Fortunately the airline gave us a little better seats so it wasn't unbearable. Thank you Delta. The flight from NY to Barcelona was fine as was embarkation. Already mentioned the cabin. Other than the view it was fine and the stewards were top notch.The ship was very nice. The staff was adequate but not outstanding. It seemed that there was a lack of training in a lot of the staff. I asked for sour cream at breakfast and was pretty much told no! One of the managers in the main restaurant found out about it and got me a carton to keep in my stateroom. Very nice of him but shouldn't have been necessary. The restaurants were overcrowded and the food only average. The wait staff in the main restaurants were mostly good and the management was excellent. The shore excursions are extremely overpriced and not very good.In Cannes we just hired a taxi and were really pleased. We booked our own tours for Florence, Pisa and Rome and were very happy. Especially the Rome tour. We booked through the Internet with a company called across Rome. See acrossrome.com. They did a great job which I will detail in the port section.The crossing was very rough but nobody's fault there. The casino was the worst. They only had one poker table so a lot of people didn't get to play and the tournaments were a joke. 25% rake and unlimited re buys. Disembarkation was pretty smooth but when we got on the bus we were severely delayed because there was some unclaimed luggage beside our bus. Even so, everyone made their flight. In summary, I will never book through NCL again but will probably cruise with them again. Not what they used to be.