Just a quick down and dirty on our NCL cruise. We walked away with the 'it was OK' feeling, nothing really to complain about but not the usual "wow" factor from our other 2 cruises this year.
Embarkation, while reasonably quick was more like cruises from many years ago. Herd you into areas and have you sit in chairs and bring you in by groups. Not the flow we are used to. Ship was certainly showing age but nothing major. Our mini suite was by far the largest room we have ever had. It was nice with a large bathroom and our cabin steward was excellent. Again, little things, towels were old and sometimes worn; the robes had lived a rough life.
Food in the buffet was OK but not impressive, same thing every day. They were really pushing the 6 specialty restaurants (for a fee ranging from $5-$25). We did not try any of them but we did talk to people who did and most were pleased with the food. In the main dining rooms (they had 2 and both were fairly small) the food was pretty good, not excellent. Same four things every night with a couple of specialties each evening. Breakfasts in main dining was very disappointing and did not measure up to other cruise lines. Dining service was OK but very slow.