We had never been on NCL before and chose this ship for the itinerary and the timing and price were right for a last minute decision. We've been on 3 previous cruises and if this had been our first we may have decided cruising was not for us. It was a New Years cruise so we expected crowds but we spent the entire first day trying to book on board entertainment and dining which we've never had to do on our previous cruises. By the time we figured this out many of the shows were booked so we were unable to attend all the shows or try all the restaurants we would have tried otherwise. Two of our previous cruises had also been holiday cruises and we had no issues with crowding (Disney and Celebrity) but this ship was larger and NCL.

Never gain, at least not on a 4000 passenger ship for the holidays.