I have cruised on Carnival, Dolphin (went out of business in early 1990s), Celebrity, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean ... Royal Caribbean is SOOOO much better than any of the others. I was not thrilled with my first Norwegian cruise (Norwegian Sun to Mexican Riviera, 2006) and was not any happier on this cruise. Never again for Norwegian. With that said, here are the details of our cruise ...

Spent 2 days in Seattle before cruise departed. Weather was fabulous; had a great time. Stayed at the Seattle Renaissance (downtown); great location; walking distance to everything in downtown area (unlike most Americans, we like to walk!) like Space Needle and Pike Place Market. Ate at Lowells inside Pike Place Market (based on reviews) - don't waste your money - everything was bland. Dinner the second night was at a little dive of an Italian restaurant (Luigi something - corner of 1st and Cherry) - Fantastic!!! Don't let the look of the place fool you. Took tour of Boeing Factory (largest building in the world (considering footprint)); impressive. Went to the top of the Space Needle; nice weather made for nice views. Took the Seattle Underground tour - hysterically funny and interesting.

Cruise Info - the good (some things), the bad (some things) and the average (most things) ... Read more