Cruise of a lifetime

Our bucket list cruise did turn out to be a "Cruise of a lifetime", but, not in the way we hoped.

Arrived 3 days early in Amsterdam and had a wonderful time exploring that city. Embarkation was a breeze and we were delighted with the cabin (11134), initially. Evenings were interrupted by folks playing basketball dspite the sign stating activities were to end at 5 PM. So easy to fix, just put the balls away!

Dinner the first evening in the Summer Palace proved to be on par with an Applebee's. Formality of service proved to be nonexistent, quality of food was mediocre. Exploration of other options proved more fruitful, specifically, Indigo and Cagney's with formally trained servers.

The entertainment, overall, was quite good. There wa an acrobat male and female team that were incredible. The ships crew of singers and dancers were on par with other cruises. Their "Legends" show was outstanding. Activities were spotty, poorly timed and some never happened.

Service was subpar compared to other cruise experiences. Having numerous mishaps it appears that communication is their biggest pitfall. All mishaps (but one) were rectified, but, only after having to be (begrudgingly) a squeaky wheel.

This was a repositioning cruise that came up short as one of the ships engines experienced problems that were not rectified. Our cruise ended 2 ports early and missed another enroute.

This was my first Norwegian cruise and will be my last. Poor communication, training and management failing to manage seems to be the primary problem.

Yes, a cruise of a lifetime and one that will never be forgotten.

Really liked the layout and size. Cabin 11134 is below the basketball court and Norwegians failure to enforce court use time can significantly affect your peaceful enjoyment. Bring earplugs!