Having never cruised before we were very apprehensive as to what we would experience and I must admit we were pleasantly surprised.We flew from Manchester to Venice and as soon as we had departed baggage reclaim there were staff with NCL boards advising you where to go and what to do. We eventually boarded the coach and were transferred to the dock. TIP - my label had come off my case in transit so carry a spare with you.We had to fill in a health questionnaire and check our baggage in here. They also took an imprint of your Debit/Credit card and a photo of you and issued you with ID cards which you carried at all times and used to pay for anything on board except the casino, they also use this to monitor when you go off or on the ship.When we boarded it was like walking into a Mardi Gras - people in costume, music blaring and hundreds of lost soles in the foyer. We got a drink and started to explore. We got in to our cabins about 3.30pm and the baggage arrived a few hours later but can be any time up to 8pm so worth wearing an outfit where you can lose layers.Cabin - although compact it had everything you needed. Comfy bed, good storage space, safe, fridge - although stocked as a mini bar still room for a small bottle of water etc, T.V, coffee machine (a must for any coffee lovers as the coffee at the restaurants was dire)hairdryer. Balcony is a must in my opinion giving you somewhere to escape to it has 2 chairs and a table. We were using 2 pin plugs as we would do anywhere else in the med.Food - you really could eat 24hours per day if you wanted to. We tended to stay with the Garden Buffet however at popular times you would not get seated here so we started to eat early. The choice of food was amazing - there were stations doing pizza, pasta, curry, stir fry, soup, bread, salad and then one doing hot food which generally had a carvery of chicken and one other meat on it. Could not fault choice.Pool- although there are two pools - one adults only they were so crowded that I only managed to use them twice on a day where we had docked but we stayed on board.Sun loungers - on a day at sea there are not enough of these so get up early to grab your space and be prepared to stay there all day as you will be unable to move into the shade later in the day. It was so congested people were laying there towels on the deck and laying there as no loungers available. The bar staff are very good at going round these areas taking drinks orders. Drinks - we signed up for the adults soda packages when we boarded which meant you could drink as much soda for the cost of about $50 per person as you wanted this was invaluable as a single drink would have cost you $2.10. We also bought a water package but we need not have done this as we later discovered that you can use the tap in your room for water for your kettle (if you brought one) or coffee machine. There is also water stations inside the garden buffet restaurant which you can access 24/7. I bought a glass of wine one night but to be honest the time it took to arrange this in the buffet restaurant and the cost almost $9 put me off doing so again. We ended up having spirits and mixers later in the evening at one of the many lounges/bars and a round for my partner and I was only $13 so a better solution than the wine.Entertainment - the theatre is magnificent and we attended 3 shows, an illusionist - very good, a comedian - not so good and the 'Elements' show which was fantastic - be aware these fill up early on so get in early to get your seat. They have a waiter service in there for drinks. I also attended a Japanese cooking demo, talk on other cruises available with NCL and a talk by our cruise director about his animal charity all of which were great.Ports - we docked at 4 ports and got off at 3Dubrovnik - we were tendered (shipped ashore in lifeboats, you have to acquire tickets to allow you to do this although they do not cost you will have to be there early to get them we got group 6 and 7 when we tendered but I heard they went up to 16) ashore here right into the centre of the old harbour. From here we walked to the cable car where we got some fantastic photos then back down to walk the walls. It is a lovely old city with lots of small side streets and a fair amount of cats tooIzmir - we had already pre arranged with Ephesus Shuttle to do a private tour of Ephesus here. We were collected as requested at 8.30am and went to Ephesus where we had a very informative tour from Hussein we had also chosen to pay the extra to enter the terrace houses which are restored houses from the era and this was worth the extra. At the end of our tour here we went to see a traditional Turkish village which allowed us to see a little more of our surroundings. Split - again we were tendered ashore here. The shore side of Split is like a very modern boulevard and nice to walk along however if you go straight ahead from where you are docked you will enter the old city which is nice to wander around and had a huge market on the day we visited so great for picking up small gifts for home.Last night - on the last night our mini bar was locked about 6pm (make sure you take anything of yours out)& our cases had to be outside our rooms by 11pm Our bill was automatically settled during the night and a copy left outside your room the following morning. NB as I used a debit card they still have authorisation on some of my funds and we have been home a week now. We then disembarked depending on the colour of labels we had been given - as we were yellow we were off in the first batch. Into the arrivals hall where we claimed our luggage put in the small amount of toiletries we had kept on board over night and then proceeded by coach to the airport where NCL dropped you off. NB - anybody travelling with Jet2 you will have to go down a floor to arrivals and go to the right hand side of the building to check in, then back up stairs to go through security into the departure lounges - NCL did not make us aware of this so we had some confusion at the airport.All in all a great holiday a little over crowded compared to our normal but that was why we chose a balcony room. I would certainly do another cruise with NCL and would not hesitate to recommend to any body else.Any 1st timers out there I have tried to cover all points if you still have queries feel free to ask.