Preface: I'll preface my review by saying that my partner and I are both 29 and 33 respectively and we were some of the "younger" passengers. Albeit, I did read plenty of reviews before sailing and knew that Holland America (HAL) was geared towards a more mature crowd so we knew what we were booking. We planned our trip in May 2018 for an Eastern Caribbean itinerary when we first discovered HAL. I traveled on NCL, Carnival, and Disney previously. We were looking for a more refined and relaxed atmosphere (without the hairy chest and belly flop contests). This is a review for the 7 day journey: Ship 5/5: Beautiful ship from the moment you step on to the moment you disembark. Nieuw Amsterdam is one of their newer ships with modern amenities with millions of dollars worth of artwork throughout. I always found something new regardless of how many times I walked the same path. I felt like the ship had a great layout and I never had difficulty finding my way after day 2. It just made sense where points of interests were located. I also seen that this ship is under constant upkeep. I always see crew either painting or cleaning, always making sure the ship is looking new and in great condition. It was also a perfect size being not too large at only 2,000 guests. Sure I've seen the same people over and over again which I loved but I never wondered why is it so crowded as crowds didn't exist except for day 1 at embarkation at the buffet which is expected. Cabin 4.7/5: We stayed in an AFT verandah cabin which I absolutely LOVED! The room was very well appointed for two people and we never felt like we didn't have space either for clothes, belongings, or just two people living together. The room was a great size and the bed was super (and I mean overly) comfortable bed. We never had a problem sleeping at night which could be a combination of not having internet or just the full days we had. We had the perfect room stewards Marko and Suko. Both were so quick at making our room up and cleaning it (albeit we aren't messy people and I actually clean before I leave the room as I feel bad for the long days most workers work...more on that later) and always worked around our schedule. The only downside of the room is it did feel a little outdated. I would love to see the bathroom and a few things updated. Again, how often are you in the room?! Although they did have a plentiful on demand selection of movies to watch. Dining 4.5/5: No matter what restaurant we went to we always had a great meal. The one restaurant that really stood out was the Pinnacle Grill. You may hear a few things about this restaurant, and the positive you hear is true! The service and food was phenomenal. The Pinnacle Grill restaurant is not included and costs $35 per person BUT I will say that price is justified. I included some photos of how many crab legs were included with my meal. We also ate at Lido Buffet and the Main Restaurant in addition to the pizza and burger place and I can honestly say I never had a bad meal. All of the food was very good! I do wish they had more Asian dishes. Why I rated it a 4.5 out of 5 as the food was a 5/5 is because whenever you go to a restaurant they really want you to buy drinks because the person selling the drinks gets an 18 percent tip. So when you order a glass of wine they will try to upsell a bottle. It just got a little pushy sometimes as I get they are just trying to make money but I don't like to be second guessed when I make a choice as "why don't you want a bottle as it's only 23 dollars more?". Overall they will leave you alone if you say "I'm fine" but I just don't like the high treasure sales tactics when I am on vacation. Entertainment and Activities 4.9/5: Now hear me out...we are on a ship in the middle of the ocean, how entertained do you want to be? I won't be critical of the entertainment on ship as I know for a fact the entertainers really gave it their all every night for several months. So into the review...The entertainment on board for the nighttime mainstage ranged from Billboard dancing to Latin Night which I found very entertaining. They also had a comedian and magician. I missed the comedian so we went to the magician with very low expectations and my face hurt from laughing so much. He was hilarious. Throughout the day the had other entertainment for all such as Windows 10 classes, floral arrangements, towel animals, piano request entertainment, and more! I'll be honest there wasn't a time on the schedule where I looked and didn't see something going on that I could attend. I just chose not to go to somethings as I wanted to relax. To end the review there is something for everyone on board and especially during At Sea days. Service 5/5: I work professionally in hospitality where we always use the 10ft rule. If someone is within 10ft of you, you acknowledge them. HAL must use the 25ft rule. When they either see you coming or approach they immediately focus on you and say hello and stop what they are doing. It was totally unexpected but something very small that made a huge difference. I felt like royalty on this ship. I still remember even the smallest request where we asked our room steward can we have ice on the first day for drinks. In the morning and at night they always made sure to refill our ice. Sure, I don't know if they did this for everyone but it was appreciated. Also we always order the same drinks when we go to the Billboard On Board bar and the staff always ask if they can get us the same drink. It was this that out of 2000 passengers made us feel like we were the only ones. Ports and Shore Excursions: I will review each port with a very small snippet review Grand Turk: 3.7/5 Maybe it was the excursion we picked or I don't know but I feel like when I wasn't on the tropical island that was raved about. Instead I felt like we were on a small private island that was commercialized. I would recommend snorkeling!! Puerto Rico: 4.8/5 Such a nice island! I been hear many times and even coming back multiple times there is just so much to do. This is a location where you don't need to book an excursion and just walk around if you are able. St. Thomas: 4.9/5 This island was my ultimate favorite on this entire itinerary! The island is just beautiful every way you look at it. What I would recommend is booking a Jeep or car and exploring the island yourself. There is so much to see and do but with a car you can do what you want to do. Why I took off such a small amount is because I been planning for us to dock at a certain port (Havensight) for months and constantly checked daily and even the ports calendar said we would dock at a certain location. Up until the moment we arrived we docked at Crown Bay which took quite a bit of logistical planning to get to Havensight for our Jeep. I would definitely book come back here. Half Moon Cay: 2.7/5 Sigh...and breathe. Now that I got that over with let me write my review. Let me say that this port had my biggest expectation which may have swayed my review. When we arrived we were made aware that the Koningsdam and us were the two ships that were docked at this port this day. Side information is that Half Moon Cay is owned by Carnival as their private island. The Konsingsdam holds a good amount of passengers and our ship holds a good amount of passengers. The island just felt very overwhelming and I didn't find it relaxing at all. We booked a Clam Shell three months in advanced which is an umbrella with two chairs. Since our ship was delayed by an hour for a medical emergency (no fault to anyone, things happen) we found it very difficult to find a chair. Every person we went to told us to go somewhere else. Finally we found a clamshell in front of a very loud family. We just head back to the ship after being on the island for 2 hours. The food on the island was very good and the staff that pulled the meal off was very good! Other: The crew is what makes the ship a solid 10/10 as they work such long days and are always looking for ways to make you happy. We booked a Retreat Cabana for the At Sea days and Korn and Raymond work such long days but always had a smile. I would say the crew is what makes Nieuw Amsterdam the ship that it is. My very minor (is he really complaining about theses things?) complaint section: Some very minor things that didn't change my trip at all but I thought I could always add it below. - I found the bathrooms to be adequate size but the toilet seats to be very small. I am by no means a big guy being 5'7 and 145 pounds but they just seemed small. - There was no midnight buffets or late night dining options past 11:30pm except for room service. I wish they had a buffet at midnight or maybe a specialty snack station. But knowing the demographics of the ship maybe midnight really is too late. Read Less

We have been using NCL for almost a decade, even had our wedding on Breakaway in 2015, but Escape is same class ship tuned down on interior design. Ship is simple design with no personally, practical floating hotel. We stayed in balcony room with a baby and toddler and it was OK, steward was OK, always busy and barely have time to anyone to talk. Management of the ship was an amazing crew, and anyone under was complete mess. Waiters in restaurants don't know what they doing and would screw up any simple order. Food in restaurants was OK, but buffet food is awful, minimum choices, a lot of cheap meat, no seafood or even NCL signature Norwegian lox. Specialties restaurant's food was amazing, and pricey and will make your wallet cry! In 14 days cruise we had only 2 free show After Midnight, Brat Pack, second one did not made any sense. Choir of Man show, is paid show with prefix dinner setting, was OK. We had one stop cancel due to 2 heliocopter lifts from the ship first two days with no explanation, and remaining stops were simple beach destinations. We end up spending more time on the ship due to cancelled stop, and there is nothing to do there. Kids sevice is ok for 3+ and for baby you have to pay $20 for 1 hour 50 min selected slot time. Overall experience of this cruise, is that NCL is cutting their cost by taking quality out of scope in any possible way they can. NCL becoming low class, no frills cruise line. Based off our last 14 day cruise, we are not coming back with NCL to cruise and will be looking for more classy company to cruise with. Read Less

Having last sailed the TransAtlantic crossing on the Old Girl the QE2 in 1993, our trip to Europe from NYC coincided with the QM2's early November sailing date, so we decided to take the ship instead of flying. The Old Girl was just so amazing, and she was missed. And we decided that the only way to go was the Queen's Grill, as we had done before on our last Cunard cruise in 2008 just before the Old Girl went out of service and was packed off to Dubai. It mystifies me that the QM2 was designed with the lifeboats hanging from Deck 8, just below the Queens's Grill Deck 9 suites. So all the views from the most spacious and consequently expensive cabins on the ship have partially obstructed views of the ocean below from their windows and balconies. Not so bad in the winter when the balconies are too cold to be used, but for a sailing the rest of the year, this is just nuts. Partially obstructed cabins usually go for a large discount. Apparently Cunard learned from this huge design mistake, and the later built Victoria and Elizabeth do not have this problem for the Queens Grill cabins, nor for the QG or Princess Grill Dining Room, as discussed in the next paragraph.. Furthermore, the Queens Grill Dining Room is on Deck 7. The outdoor walking track that goes all round the ship is on the perimeter of Deck 7. So all day long the Queens's Grill diners, and the Princess Grill on the other side, get the pleasure of a constant stream of walkers and runners by, looking in often on the diners, and distracting to the fine dining experience. My wife and I found this most disconcerting. Again, why did they design the ship this way? The QG food is way above average, with caviar and foie gras on request at dinner all the time, with a little notice, plus special orders, but one does get tired of the featured standards like Orange Duckling, Beef Wellington, Tenderloin steak, Broiled Lobster and Dover Sole. More variation would be good. Appetizers need more creativity. Vegan selections boring. Sandwiches at lunch few and boring. Waiting staff excellent. Lunch menu choices could use a little sprucing up. The Maitre De takes very good care of his precious guests. Nice wine offerings. Staterooms in the Queens Grill category other than the view problem are very nice. Large bathrooms, although I would have preferred a stall shower rather than this tub/shower. Better in rocky seas for safety and just leaning against the shower walls when necessary for stability . Beds very comfortable. Large walk in closets and lots of storage space. At over 500 sq ft the Queens Grill stateroom is very nice and comfortable indeed. The last of the Ocean Liners is large at over 125,000 tons and sails very steady and mostly smoothly, even in strong winds and bad seas, but when strong winds slice across the ship's path, it is going to get rough, as for any ship. So it was on one day of the seven days crossing the pond from NYC to Southampton and a night or two. I am not a great sailor, not like my wife, but most days the rolling I can take. It is the combination of the rolling and pitching in the North Atlantic that does me in. As this one bad day proved, once again. The ship is large - 2600 passengers, although today there are the many 4,000- 5,000 passenger behemoths that have destroyed European ports such as Venice and most of the Caribbean Islands. We prefer the small Seabourn size ships, of 450 passengers and took this cruise mostly out of convenience to get to Europe. Three formal nights out of seven is just excessive to our way of thinking, but most of the Brits on board loved it that way. A really big dress deal for both men and women. Not at all the casual dress style growing so fashionable on so many other smaller ships today, such as Oceania, Seabourn, Silversea and Regent. Dress standards are very important to maintain, but so many other cruise lines have dropped standards and let people take advantage these days. It has gone in the other direction. No tuxedos for me however, so it was dark suit and tie these formal nights. Other nights it was a pleasure to wear a sports coat and tie, as were all the other gentlemen for the most part in the Grill dining rooms. A handsome crowd of men and women, elegantly attired. The main Theater has very bad seating, whereby people crowd in next to each other on long couch type seats. Not too many rows of seats have a separate seat for one person. Too many bodies get crammed in this way, but not to my liking. Just when one thinks he or she is settled in, along comes another person or two and they just push their way in. Very tight, and with coughing and sneezing, not good. The other large entertainment and lecturing room Illuminations, has very nice separate seating and is much more comfortable. Lectures and performances almost non stop all day long. Most very good. Whether about the Cold War and submarines in WW2, being kept captive in Lebanon or piano performances. The only planetarium at sea has some fantastic shows. The QM performers team put on at least one extraordinary production number. Fourteen dancers and singers, with many costume changes, and a fine orchestra. We enjoyed immensely the large collection of Hollywood and Broadway passenger celebrity photos on the old QM and QE displayed in many areas throughout the ship, and many photos of the old fleet itself. It will be a while before we take another Cunard cruise, and I do not think it will be on the QM2, although we enjoyed this one very much despite its shortcomings in QM category cabin and DR placement. Read Less

I have cruised before, but my wife had not, and she was looking for "an over the top" experience". So I began searching for big ships doing the Mediterranean in November. MSC had a lot of ships and the Meraviglia is one of the top 10 largest ships afloat, very new, and the video was amazing. The reviews however, were anything but amazing. Like lukewarm and even negative reviews about our favorite restaurants, I have learned that most negative reviews are more about missed/too lofty expectations than reality. The biggest gripes about the Meraviglia seemed to be food and staff. Since the boat is so high tech and wondrously equipped, no one really complained about the ship. Sure enough, even our tablemates as well as others on board echoed the Cruise Critic complaints. They ranged from now having butter and iced tea (both free, readily available) to non English speaking staff who were "unfriendly". If your attitude is "I am the guest and I expect to be served", you will be disappointed. If you engage the staff with your own smile and understand they work 11 hours a day, even my first time cruising wife was amazed at how every waiter and staff person smiled back.....even when they had to say "no" (like when we were late for dinner and the gatekeeping waiter apologized saying he was not allowed to let anyone in past 7:45, so I asked him to ask for his captain, which he did, and of course, the captain, his boss, let us in). MSC offers the lowest prices afloat for the most interesting itineraries and the newest boats.....but unless you are traveling Yacht Club, you just cant expect white glove service--but you can expect politeness and cleanliness and entertainment and "service". And we got all of this and more. Dinner. We only ate at the standard Waves Restaurant. Three sittings, We were the second. The appetizers and desserts were great, the entrees, though varied were not as good and need improvement. Not to worry though because the astonishing buffet, open 20 hours a day, had stupendous selections of excellent food from simple salads, to homemade pizza, Halal and ethnic specialties, rotisserie *the roast veal carved to order was smashing), plus an on board mozzarella factory (you could see it being made) that ensured great caprese salads and more. And they changed the offerings every day! Housekeeping. In a word, perfect. No goofy doorknob hangers telling staff to clean up the room. Just press a button. Spotless. The Room. We opted for an admidships deck 12 interior cabin because my wife was worried about seasickness. The cabin was huge, with a queen plus bed, great pillows, lighting, etc And the bathroom has the best shower afloat in my experience with infinite hot water! And a blow dryer!. Staff. What a great group of waiters and support staff rom Central America to Ukraine and Africa. Just knocked themselves out to please! It surely helped that we engaged them instead of treating them like servants. Prices: For 5Euros we got any two items delivered free to our room. Drinks were 6Euros. The best ice cream and chocolate (made on the boat) were $1-3Euros. The coffee, water, tea, ice tea, etc. were all free at the buffet. So no complaints about the "extras" The experience: 32 elevators, four pools, an arcade full of shops, sky bars, full size basketball court, full size bowling alleys and a water slide that went OVER the edge of the ship, outstanding singing and dancing "Broadway" type shows and Swarovski glass staircases made onboard life hugely satisfying. The guests. Where were all the seniors? This was the first cruise I have ever been on where there were so many families, disabled people, young honeymooners, babies, kids, etc. from so many different countries. A true multi-cultural experience. Our table mates were from the Dominican Republic (an MD and his wife), honeymooners from Colombia, and a couple from Florida. A great itinerary and all of the above for $1300 for 7 nights? Yup, and we cant wait to go again! Read Less

Booked two Suite cabins #11117 and #11116 - Cabin was ok but a little dated - clean and reasonable size - bed was comfortable, but pillows cheap and hard. Cabin attendants were really good. When you book a suite with P&O you have no recognition or any worthwhile benefits at all and certainly don't feel like a VIP. They need to take note of what Royal Caribbean do for guests who book suite's. We were suppose to have priority boarding, but apparently there was a wedding party that they decided had priority above suite guests. It started to rain and only when bitterly complaining (as i had my mother in a wheel chair outside) that they finally allowed us in to register and board. The common areas were over crowded at all times (except when we docked at Airlie Beach) and you could never get seats around the pool. Dining areas were also way overcrowded (what i would refer to as a pig trough) and constantly bumping into people and queuing for meals. It would take nearly 20 minutes or more to get a meal then line up to get a drink at the bar - by then my food was cold. Food on the whole was really average and in some cases disgusting. The main restaurant was really old, boring and nothing more than a Coles cafeteria. If your disabled and in a wheelchair then forget it as it's so not wheelchair friendly. Had so much trouble pushing the wheelchair around and doors that were constantly closed made it impossible. Even corridors that seemed blocked all the time, which meant i had to go all the way back and around the ship. Lifts were a real pain and spent so much time waiting to get to different levels on the ship. Entertainment and activities were just average. I would never step foot on another P&O cruise ship. Read Less

This cruise was basically the third change we had to make to our vacation plans thanks to work schedule. We originally booked our cruise with Allure of the Seas, but watching too many videos of that ship I had the impression that the Oasis-class ships are nothing but mere floating malls in the ocean - no theme, no character. We wanted a cruise that was going to be memorable before I head to a long deployment. After much deliberation, we went back to the Dream as our last cruise with them three years was exactly just that - it was magical. This cruise went out exactly the same way as we had it three years ago. We got our transportation arranged from the airport, and the whole embarkation process was smooth like before. Once on the ship, we had our cabin on the tenth deck, middle, just below the pool deck. I found our location to be very convenient to wherever we needed to go. We had access to two nearby elevators, and the pool deck are just a deck up. We also noted that our balcony is directly below the pool deck, so like an awning, it was well protected from the elements which I found nice. The room itself had shown some age to it. I'm not sure when and if the ship have ever been refurbished, but with my OCD, I quickly found scuff and wear marks on the light switches and fixture parts that have been heavily touched through the years. Expecting a premium product for this price, it was hard for me to see past that glare of the wear. Our embarkation lunch at Cabanas were not too pleasant. It was way too crowded, open tables were hard to find, and I found some of the servers unwelcoming. Once we got our seats, we did find the food less desirable than the last time we were on the ship. We brought these issues to management and were given immediate answers to our concerns. Over the following days, we experienced the same magical moments that we had the first time we cruised with these ship. Public spaces were clean and looked just as ornate as before. For those that haven't cruised on this ship, Disney did not spare on the small details in creating their theme on the ship. Their shows were of Broadway caliber, especially beauty and the beast. Their character meet and greets were always a hit with the kids, if you don't mind waiting up to a half hour. And because this was a holiday themed cruise, they went over the top for showcasing Santa. As well, their pirate show fireworks on the top deck was an extravaganza. Hands down it was the coolest experience I've ever had at Sea. Our day at Castaway Cay was just Divine. I still can't forget how beautiful and perfect the island looked. It didn't feel over crowded and there were ample opportunities to just unwind and take it all in. Buffet services followed us there and it was great. No complaints. Food was something that this ship have to at least revamp. It was almost the same menu we had three years ago, so we were not as excited this time. Also, we were not served lobster on this cruise, not one time, which I found surprising. On the other hand, we were able to enjoy our previous favorites instead. I was about to write off Disney from our future cruise consideration after this trip, but what made us book another future cruise with them is the fact that our daughter had the best time of her life at their Kids club while the peace of mind it gave us allowed us parents to enjoy our own time at Sea. I don't think we even want to risk trying that out with other cruise lines and be disappointed. Another biggest factor that made us decide to book another future cruise with them is their customer service. They truly went above and beyond to ensure that, despite the issues we raised, we had a magical experience on this ship. Our guest manager was exemplary, and nothing short of commendable. When we disembarked, we felt highly satisfied that the cruise fulfilled our expectations. So much that we ended up cancelling our Royal Caribbean cruise for next year, and ended up prebooking our next Disney cruise with an even bigger family in tow. Disney cruises are not the cheapest out there, but the many repeat cruisers we had on board can't be wrong on going again for the Disney experience. With the amount of people already prebooking their cruise, we can't be wrong on making that decision either. It's simply the best cruise experience for families, and definitely something to strongly consider if you've never cruised with Disney cruises before. Read Less

Overall cruise experience was great! 6th time cruising and I have only cruised with RC. Food in windjammer was one of the best out of the 6 cruises I’ve taken. Entertainment was THE BEST out of the 6 cruises. MUST SEE – Saturday night fever and hyno-tainment! New to cruising – wait to shop on ship until end of cruise. They always run sales on clothing, bags, jewelry etc. Cabin -This is my 6th cruise, second time in an interior room and let’s just say I will not book an interior room again. Personal opinion, I felt like interior cabins got pushed under the rug - stains on towels & sheets. They didn't put a mattress pad on top of the two twins making a king, you had a valley where the beds met. Our lights in bathroom and desk area lost connection or breaker blew? Hair and dirt in drawers. Night before vacation was over - heard very loud noises coming from bathroom area – neighbors must have had an issue, couple of minutes later, our toilet overflowed/backed up causing water & other “things” everywhere which took over and hour and a half to get taken care & cleaned up around 10 PM night before getting off ship. On the bright side, everything was brought to staffs attention and every issue was taken care of immediately. Excursions - 1st stop - Roatan, Honduras - We booked last minute for the Gumbalima Park. HIGHLY RECOMMEND! such a cool experience. We already had a snorkel excursion planned and beach/speedboat excursion booked at the 2 other ports, so we thought to try something different. Bittersweet, again, excursion was awesome but knowing after the fact we weren’t able to snorkel at the other ports, I wish we would have went snorkeling. 2nd stop - Belize City, Belize - All water excursions were cancelled for Belize because of rough waters, luckily, we found out early morning the day before we were at port so we could rebook something else. We went to Kukumba Beach, it is a manmade beach which was pretty cool. The slide was awesome! There is a restaurant, bar and gift shop located at this beach. Tons of activities for all ages. I am also surprised they still tendered instead of skipping island because of the rough seas. The port is really nice, shops and bars! 3rd stop - Cozumel Mexico - always a great time in Cozumel! Again, water excursions were cancelled. Our excursion got cancelled but didn't find out until we were supposed to meet for our excursions at 10:15am, off the ship at 7:45am. We docked and were allowed off boat at 7:30am, RC made announcement at 8:30 am on the ship when more than half the boat was off that all water excursions were cancelled. When we finally were told our excursion was cancelled we had only 2 options to book, panoramic bus tour or dune buggies. We booked the dune buggies (4 people per buggy). Dune buggies was fun. It was called Dune buggies, beach and snorkel. Luckily since all water excursions were cancelled, we weren’t allowed to go snorkeling or to the beach. The beach is rocks…like big boulders covered in seaweed. The snorkeling…..doesn’t look great unless they take you away from the shoreline. Maybe it looks different if there weren’t rough seas but from what I saw, I am glad we didn’t “beach” and “snorkel”. The beach club you go to is ok. They have many mini stands (food, souvenir, essentials stand, bar and fish therapy). There is also a pool, but it looks like it’s just the ocean water. The beach club also shares an excursion with the captain your own speedboat. It might get busy there.. Food – We only ate in the windjammer and Sorrento’s. Some people say we miss out on the best part about cruising which is the MDR. However, it was so nice going to the windjammer every night on our time. Every night was a different theme, so you could get the same old thing (hot dog, burger etc) or mix it up every night. Dessert was always on point. Service was great. We have had no issues with breakfast lunch or dinner in the windjammer. The staff stayed on top of clearing tables during the busy time so everyone could sit. Read Less

We were originally scheduled to be on the Crystal Bach for a Rhine excursion from Frankfurt to Amsterdam. However, we were alerted a week beforehand that the cruise was being switched to another ship. We discovered a bit later in the cruise that the Bach had been hit by a barge and needed to be repaired. We were offered to switch to the Bach's sister ship, the Mahler. Also, the itinerary was drastically changed due to low water levels in the Rhine. Our point of embarkation was also changed from Frankfurt to Cologne. Crystal took care of transfer from Frankfurt Airport to Cologne. Although it wasn't the ship, nor the cruise for which we'd signed up, we had a wonderful time. The food was wonderful both in the Bistro and in the Waterside. The staff and crew were incredibly cordial and helpful. The excursions were great, especially considering that Crystal had to do some fast thinking to schedule them. Entertainer Neal Fullerton was a treat. He's incredibly talented and also knows how to get the passengers involved. Our cabin/suite was a luxurious, comfortable haven. As always, it was stocked with wonderful wines and the nightly turn-down chocolates. This cruise was relaxing and lovely. Regardless of the need to go to "Plan B," we decided to do an open booking for a future cruise. Read Less

Cheap and very good cruise, the buffet is very varied and in general cleanliness I give a 10. good attention to the customers. Comfortable beds and quite fun. recommended. I want to go back next year. My wife and I were an ocenview room. the theater show was phenomenal, tremendous dancers. Live music for all tastes willing to please you. I really want to go back next year. I took the excursion to Grand Lucaya. its a Beautiful place. Exceptional The saxophone show in the encore salon. the Game for couples stole laughter from everyone present. If you love to play, the casino is very well suited. Yellow Elder restaurant has excellent entrees included in the price and likewise additional dishes at a moderate price. the cleanliness is spectacular. the staff is concerned about constantly keeping everything clean and very organized. The area for jogging is excellent. I recommend this cruise 100%! ! ! Read Less

We booked a girls cruise and looked forward to a relaxing trip. The ports looked good on paper but when we stopped, it was usually a remote port built by NCL so you didn't get a good feel for the country. Even in Cozumel, we docked further away from the main port and had to walk a long way to get to the main shopping area. You prepay your tips for staff and as a result, the staff doesn't hustle or provide exceptional service. Main restaurant staff are slow, disinterested and don't always get orders correct. You feel like a bother asking for coffee and water. The exception was a great server we found in the Tropicana dining room. They offer music or dancers so book this room if you aren't doing specialty dining. Bar/ pool service is slow so if you have the unlimited drink package, order them in 2s to save time on long waits. There are a couple of exceptional bartenders but that is the exception. Room steward was efficient but our sheets were never changed. If you use any of the soap/lotion, don't expect any more put out. We had 2 bath towels for 2 people so you have to time your showers to ensure you have a dry towel to use later. They are very strict on the pool towels so don't misplace your towel (and hope your room steward doesn't pick it up) since they won't give you a replacement and threaten to charge you for it! Skip the spa. Everyone I talked to had the same experience where they waited 20-45 minutes past the scheduled time for a service. Staff couldn't remember where they "parked" a guest to wait. You aren't pampered while you wait with anything (nice music, cool cup of water or a fuzzy robe would be nice touches while you wait). Staff is trained to sell, sell, sell rather than provide a relaxing experience. Some would say to let guest services know when you are disappointed in something but they were so short staffed (lines waited up to an hour) and unfriendly so that wasn't worth it. Cirque show and Burn the Floor dancers were terrific! Overall I was very disappointed in NCL. The ship was pretty and it is nice that they refurbish them every 5 years but NCL doesn't deliver on service. Read Less