This was sixth cruise on Norwegian and until this one, had never considered any other cruise line. Always enjoy the freestyle dining, beverage package, entertainment, ports and considered it to be a good value. This one got off to a bad start which soured the first couple of days. Here's what went wrong:

1. Pre-paid shuttle service from airport to ship was terrible and cost more than twice what a cab would have. Trouble finding NCL rep in the airport. Shuttle dropped us and our bags in the middle of a bumpy parking lot. Had to shlep bags about 50 yards to NCL porter who was waving a handful of ones at me as I approached with the bags. His focus was obviously tips rather than helping me. Usually with NCL, when you get off the plane and find the NCL rep, you know you are home free and your bags will end up at your stateroom. Not the case with this trip.

2. NCL quietly discontinued inclusion of my favorite premium scotch from their beverage package since my previous cruise about 6 months ago. Caused some disappointment when the bar tender informed me about it on the first day. Now have to pay extra making the beverage package not the deal it used to be. Read more