I embarked on this cruise as it had an excellent bucket-list itinerary and indeed, NCL picked one for the ages. This was my seventh cruise and of all of them it had the best ports of call. That being said, once I approached it on departure day, I could tell it had its issues with age and upkeep.

Stepping aboard in the lower corridors it became instantly apparent that this ship has a lot of miles under its belt. Despite the so-called 2017 renovation, there were technical issues galore and outdated decor throughout. Still, there were beautiful aspects, including the mural near the bow and the six-deck atrium midship.

I was in a balcony stateroom with interior interconnecting doors, traveling with a large family group. This interconnectivity definitely improved things, but are nowadays pretty much all cruise ships have numerous cabins with this feature. The decor was outdated, the furniture was worn, and the rooms were small and cramped. This was a letdown compared with the balcony rooms on the NCL Jewel we had in 2011. However the beds were very comfortable and it was easy to get a good night's sleep. Read more