We had a good experience aboard the Nor. Jade. Very good shows every night (professional quality). The shows in Vegas would have cost us hundreds of dollars. The food was good in the buffet with very friendly staff (washy, washy- happy, happy). The 3 restaurants compt. were very good, especially the French restaurant which I thought would be my least favorite but was my favorite. And last but not least, the Casino and casino bar. I play poker and they had live poker and some tournaments (not a video table). Also live blackjack. I also would like to add accolades to Carol Luchi and Joyce Samar our bartenders. Said they hadn't seen a Royal Flush on the video poker but I did hit one for a thousand dollars. They were great bartenders and friends to us. They called us by our first names after the second day of our cruise. They are now family to us. All in all, a great experience. Read Less

A sea of thousands of bra straps, singlets, tattoos and baseball caps worn back to front. Photographers flashing at you all the time. Music blaring in every public room all day long and even outside the ship. Swirly garish patterned carpets everwhere, orange, purple, blue, fluorescent colours and plastic decorations and flowers assailing you.  Embarkation involved lots of queuing in the sun and carrying our own suitcases, until very nearly there at the ship, when they were removed and you had to wait for them to be delivered. YOU HAD TO PRINT YOUR OWN LUGGAGE LABELS AT HOME. Disembarkation meant another very long walk, queuing for coaches in the heat, and it took 40 minutes from ship exit to boarding the coach. The English of the woman who was announcing who in turn should disembark was so heavily accented as to be incomprehensible. The fares are relatively cheap, but, like Ryanair, once tempted by the low cost, the extras are exorbitant. Extra for fresh fruit juice in the morning, extra for any coffee except "regular", (which is not made plain on the menus, which give the impression that you have to pay for all coffees), extra for the specialty restaurants. We went to two of them, Jasmine Garden (Chinese)(extra $15 a head) and Cagneys,(extra $30 a head) and they were good, indeed very good, but really the rest of the food should have been more up to standard.   The main dining rooms - there was always a long queue to get in, in part because each group had to wait at the reception desk to show their cards and then for a waiter to seat them, instead of being able to walk into what was sometimes an empty restaurant. This created the impression that there were simply not enough dining spaces for the more than 2000 people aboard. If you went for dinner at 7.30, IT TOOK 45 MINUTES FOR THE FIRST COURSE TO BE SERVED AND WINE TO BE OFFERED, AND you would not emerge in time for the 9.30 show. The food was average. The steaks and fish were good, but the desserts were very artificial looking. The cheesecake tasted of nothing, the cheese likewise, and the sliced cheese on the buffet was warm and sweaty and unidentifiable. The menu in the main dining rooms, Grand Pacific and Alazar, was almost the same every night. Some variation on chicken, beef and lamb, and the dessert menu did seem to be identical every night.   Worst of all was the Garden Cafe, a giant buffet on the 12th floor, with all the atmosphere of a works canteen - those who were acquainted with works canteens told me that was not doing those canteens justice! A crowded scramble for the different dishes on display. Pushing and shoving around the coffee and tea machines; the coffee dispenser was frequently empty or out of order. The machine juice was watery. The patterned formica tables all displayed big plastic bottles of ketchup and mustard, and bottles of vinegar. There were no trays to serve yourself, so you had to take one plate at a time. If you were sitting on your own, you would then have to go back to the buffet for the next course and lose your place and cutlery. I surmised that trays were withheld in order to stop diners taking too much food. The breakfast pancakes were always hard and cold from having been left out too long before serving. Bottled water was $5.95, although you could buy it on shore for ABOUT $1. The first bottle was sitting in the cabin, not IN the MINIBAR, so I thought it was complimentary, but it wasn't.   The excursions were good but very pricy. For example, one could go to the Olympia site on one's own for about a 10 euro fare on the local bus WHILE the ship charged 22 euros FOR THE SAME TRIP. At one stop we were told that there were no taxis at the port and the only way into town was the ship shuttle at $12 a head - not so, there were lots of taxis at every port, and to be fair they did refund the $24 when I pointed this out. Because the ship appeared to be trying to get passengers to pay extras, and passengers were trying to avoid this, it felt like constant skirmish. $12 per head per day was added as a "discretionary" gratuity - in other words, jacking up the fare, but you could ask to have it removed, which involved paperwork and saying why. Long queues at reception most days; they could have done with more staff there.   Laundry - there was no self serve launderette, so one had to use the ship laundry: again, expensive and when I used it the clothes came back folded, not ironed, one pair of socks missing and a hole in a polo shirt (they did repair it when pointed out). I saw no ironing facilities, but one could get items ironed for an extra charge. THE CABINS WERE COMFORTABLE BUT SMALL; NO TOILETRIES OR CHOCOLATES ON THE PILLOW AT NIGHT!   Internet service was very intermittent and slow (maybe not the ship's fault, but I have had better on more faraway cruises), and it cost $100 for about 250 minutes. Entertainment - slot machines, casino etc., and many films, but they all seemed to be aimed at teenagers and were about sci-fi or future horror. Lots of towel folding demonstrations and karaoke. No lectures that I was aware of, not even port information lectures. Luckily I had printed off ample port information for each stop, otherwise it would have been sparse. The ship singers AND DANCERS were very good, so were the acrobats and their shows were worth going to, but most nights there was rather disjointed magic, crooning, clowning and so on, rather boring. ONE SHOW INVOLVED FOUR PRESUMED CLASSICALLY TRAINED MUSICIANS WHO HAD TO FOOL AROUND A LOT RATHER THAN JUST PLAY. Again, hardly enough places for the audience in the Stardust Theatre unless you got there early, and many people stood at the back. The library was small and the bookcases not unlocked that often. The shops were expensive - the usual Colombian emeralds and polyester pareos.   The sunloungers were hard, no cushions, just plastic or mesh seats and backs. The area round the pools was crowded but there were areas where they could have put more seats, for example on the deck 7 promenade. Smokers were out there. It was hard to find a quiet spot: no sooner had I settled down in a bar or lounge than bingo or line dancing would start.   Safety had me worried. When the usual drill was announced, my husband was asleep and slept right through - nobody checked, and when I mentioned this they said they would make him do the drill at the second opportunity the following day, but did not. Drill was carried out without us bringing our life jackets, so no chance to rehearse putting them on; nor were we passengers led to the lifeboat stations.   The staff were very willing to do whatever they could, and the ship was very clean. The ports of call were lovely but for a proper indulgent cruise experience, I would not go Norwegian Jade again.  The staff were very willing to do whatever they could, and the ship was very clean. The ports of call were lovely but for a proper indulgent cruise experience, I would not go Norwegian Jade again. Read Less

We are a retired couple seeking exciting travel destinations. The Eastern Mediterranean 12- day Jade cruise beginning in Athens was a great choice for us. The many ports of call, coupled with the October (nearly off-season) date was very attractive. Having never been in Athens before, we chose to arrive four days before sailing. This gave us time to see the Acropolis, Parthenon, the Acropolis Museum, Plaka, Monastiraki Flea Market, Athens Archaeological Museum, Syntagma Metro Archaeological exhibit, and many views of other architectural sights within the city. We enjoyed using public transport and walking to see shops, people, and culture up close. We had booked an overnight outing to ancient Delphi and the monasteries of Meteora as well. This bus ride into Greece's central region gave us a view of life outside the city, including beautiful mountains, farmland, and a brief stop at the site of the Battle of Thermopylae. The site at Delphi was partially closed to tourists because of recent landslide activity. Despite this, it was an area full of wonders for anyone interested in history. We were able to tour two 15th century monasteries perched on the cliffs at Meteora, and this was breathtaking. We boarded the Jade Oct. 21, about 1:00 p.m., with no problems to embark. Immediately we were able to enjoy lunch in the Garden Cafe, and within the hour, cabins were ready for guests. We took a ship tour, on our own, beginning at the top & working our way down, to familiarize ourselves with the ship. We were guests on the Gem in the past, and this ship is very similar in layout. we chose an inside cabin, as we spend little time actually in the cabin and have found this to be adequate for our needs. Throughout our cruise, we found great attention to cleanliness, public areas are sparkling, and our cabin was always well attended. The disinfectant provided at all entries to dining venues is very much appreciated. The freestanding disinfectant dispenser in the elevators was constantly stepped on, in the way of passengers, and not working well, if one did try to use it. One of the joys of cruising should be the food service. The Jade has an abundance of offerings for meals. The Garden Cafe is available most of the day and has a great variety of buffet style food at "stations". There is no limit of choices and surely there is something for every taste. The Grand Pacific Dining Room and The Alizar are also free choices for dining and we were patrons at each several times. We did not care to pay extra at other dining restaurants and did not try these. The menu at the main dining rooms is somewhat repetitive-- choose chicken, steak, fish, pork. Tomorrow choose pork, steak, chicken. How about stir-fried steak, pork medallions, shrimp, the next. The portions are small and we noticed many people ordered 3 appetizers and 2 entrees. Shrimp cocktail is not jumbo shrimp, but miniature(microscopic) shrimp drowning in a large glass. Caesar salad is obviously prepared way ahead, as it is soggy, lifeless, and flavorless. But since there's so little of it, I ate it anyway. My husband ordered seafood over pasta, and requested "doubles" on the seafood. He was brought 2 complete pasta platters with a total of 2 shrimp, 2 mussels, 2 scallops, and a couple bites of fish. I ordered a soy-glazed duck dish one evening and received a large bone from some strange duck with no meat at all. It was totally inedible. Luckily, I had also ordered another entree, tortellini Alfredo, so I had something to eat. I am a small person and I never went away feeling full. The desserts tended toward whipped gelatin, variously named Bavarian, mousse, and napoleon. There was no fine pastry or elegant chef specials. Several times "flourless cake" was offered. Is that on the menu to appeal to the low carb crowd, I wondered? Entertainment on board was good. There was a show each evening, ranging from Broadway tunes, magic & illusion, retrospective music, a violinist, Spanish dancing, etc. There were late night games, parties, and comedy. The casino provided entertainment for many. There was a long list of Bingo games, fitness, spa specials, art auctions, trivia, etc., going on day & night. The main reason we took this cruise is for the ports of call it offered. This did not disappoint. Nafplion- We tendered to this port. It is a lovely city if you simply stay in port. We chose to take a city bus to the ruins of Mycenae, 45 minutes away. The "beehive" tombs of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra were exciting to see! Katakolon- Fun to walk through the souvenir shopping district. Then boarded a local train to go to the ruins of Olympia, 45 minute ride with a couple stops. Thrilling to imagine where Olympic sports began, mostly level walking over a large area. Alexandria, day 1- Boarded a bus for an independent tour with 17 guests, a licensed guide, and an armed guard. Rode through Alexandria to access the desert road to Cairo. After a 3-hour ride, arrived at Cairo. It is sad that a city with such a rich heritage has no pride and allows garbage to lay on the streets, accumulating into large fetid piles. The poor are clearly evident and it is not a place for tourists. However, the impressive view of the Pyramids is an unbelievable sight! At the Giza Plateau, got off the bus at two different pyramids and the Sphinx. Ever aware of the vulnerability of tourists, we hustled along, never straying from our guide and guard. Had lunch on a floating Nile boat, cautious regarding food & beverage. Went to the Egyptian Museum and saw King Tut's collection, truly amazing. Three hours drive, to return to the Jade for the night. Alexandria, day 2- Met the same bus again for part two of our tour, highlights of Alexandria. Saw the Roman catacombs, Pompey's Pillar, new Alexandria Library, Montazah Palace, Corniche, Qaitbay Fort, and a visit to a mosque. Had a little time for souvenir shopping at the dock. Crete- At Iraklion, rode the local bus to the ancient site of Knossos, about 20 minutes away. We did a self-guided tour of the remnants of the Minoan civilization, impressed by the paintings, frescoes, and architecture. In town, went to the temporary exhibit of Minoan treasures, while the large museum is being renovated. Santorini- Tendered to the land, took cable car to the city of Fira. While Fira is scenic, we took the local bus to the next town of Oia and were not sorry. A new vista unfolds around every corner, as you walk and see the whitewashed stucco structures, blue-domed roofs, and perfect blue water & sky. A picture taker's dream, including sunset from an overlook in Fira. Mykonos- Narrow stone paths wind through the small city, up & around the picturesque port. Option to go by boat to ancient Delos vetoed due to strong winds. Fishermen, pelicans, antique windmills, white stucco, friendly cats, surf-washed cafes, picture postcard perfect. Izmer- Met our independent tour operator for travel to Ephesus, 1 hour away by minibus. Ancient Ephesus is a huge city, loaded with tourists, and plenty of walking over uneven ground, but every step worth it. Each monument is special and the terrace houses are a treasure. Saw the museum, St. John's Basilica, Temple of Artemis, and Mary's House, as well as lunch at a carpet shop complete with apple tea and sales pitch. Istanbul- Arrived on the Jade at 12:30, giving us half a day to tour, followed by disembarkation the next day. We chose to stay at a hotel 2 additional nights. Took the 10 minute tram ride from the ship dock to the Sultanahmet and saw Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque the first afternoon. After a smooth disembarkation about 9 a.m., we continued touring on our own and saw the Grand Bazaar, Topkapi Palace, Spice Bazaar, Galata Tower, Galata Bridge, Basilica Cistern, and many other wonderful city sites over two days. I would take this trip just for Istanbul, it's a vibrant exciting city. We have been on four cruises now, on three different lines. Norwegian is tops for this itinerary. It is fine for amenities, services, and "Freestyle" choices. The food service comes in last, in my opinion, below Princess and Holland America. However, if the itinerary warranted it, I'm sure I would take Norwegian again in the future. Read Less

My husband and I - who are seasoned cruisers -sailed on the NCL Jade departing October 21, 2009 from Athens, Greece for 12 nights with stops in 5 Greek Islands, Alexandira/Cairo, (Egypt), Izmir and disembarking in Istanbul, Turkey. I have taken my time in submitting a review as I wanted to be sure that I submit a clear and accurate one because we had chosen this ship for its itinerary only and not for the ship itself as we were very aware of the cruise line category. This ship is not for passengers expecting higher-end service at all. Embarkation in Athens (Pireaus) was surprisingly fast and easy - I could easily say it was a breeze! Our passports were "confiscated" upon check in order for the ship to obtain visas to Egpyt and Turkey. These were given back to us prior to disembarking in each of these ports. The ship does charge a $15.00pp surcharge in addition to the $20USD pp Visa fee for Turkey. The convenience is worth it. Because we only booked this ship for the ports, we decided on an inside cabin #10051 which was small as most inside cabins without a sofa. The bathroom was very roomy and the shower was quite large and comfortable with clear doors. This is where the good part ends. Although everyone is aware that liquor bottles are not to be brought onboard cruise ships, we always carry one on with us for our room on other higher-end cruiselines with no problem. Our usual "bar tab" - including bottled wine - on cruise ships reaches $900 so one bottle does not affect the ship's revenues and apparently other cruiselines recognize that. Our bottle was confiscated. Luggage is scrutinized and x rayed - not for weapons or other threatening objects - but strictly for liquor. The Jade has a designated room and permanent sign that directs passengers where to go if your luggage has been "halted" for liquor inspection. The sign reads that NCL has a Zero Tolerance for alcohol. Amazing! We were treated like criminals but that was ok. We did not spend one dime on liquor on this ship on purpose. We purchased drinks at each port daily and would bring in some in water bottles in my purse from each port. Although we were booked as "Mr. & Mrs." and requested our beds to be placed together prior to embarking, they were not. When we finally found our room steward - Joseph - we asked him to correct this. He replied if we could wait until tomorrow because he had no assistance for the evening. We frowned and let it go since we knew what to expect from NCL. However, the steward returned a few hours later and told us that he would put the beds together for us that same evening after all because he didn't want us to start on bad terms. So he found assistance and corrected the bed arrangement. His service during the remaining 11 nights was very poor. Our tissue box, amenities, toilet paper, glasses, ice and such were never replaced when emptied - days would go by and we would have to remind him. Our room did not have the usual binder with the room service menu, morning breakfast tags and other ship offerings so we called to request one on the third day. The front desk insisted we had one and ignored our request. Hours later we called our room steward and the front desk again regarding the binder with no results. A 1:00am - interrupting our sleep- the front desk called to advise us that someone will be sent to our cabin in a few minutes with the binder. This was unacceptable. Things like this continued during our cruise but we were more interested in the amazing itinerary than dealing with incompetent staff. Keep in mind that gratituities are automatically charged to your shipboard account and you have the option to adjust them at the end of the cuise. The food in the regular dining rooms was of very poor quality. I think they do this on purpose so you have to dine at their specialty restaurants - 11 of them - and spend more money. We refused to return to the main Alizar Dining room so we mostly ordered room service and ate at the Blue Lagoon. I recommend the Blue Lagoon for a quiet and cozy meal. Service there is excellent and is opened 24 hours. The Garden Cafe (buffet)was good but again the staff needs training in servicing their passengers. We dined in the Japanese Steakhouse ($25USDpp)one time which was very good. We also tried the Italian Restaurant ($15pp)once and the French Bistro twice($25pp). The food at the Italian was not good at all as it had no Italian taste. We let the server and manger know our concerns. We ordered the Chicken Parmigiana. The French Bistro is better but make sure you know "their" steak temperatures when ordering. We went twice and twice they got the temp wrong. The Jade has internet service available in each room via ethernet cable. If you forget yours they loan you one but remember to return it otherwise you will be charged $100USD. Internet packages are the usual 250Min for $100USD. The Jade's decor is mostly Hawaiian as it was originally Pride of Hawaii. The psychedelic decor throughout the ship may drive you crazy. The lounges have chairs shaped like man-eating flowers. The main corridors have gigantic multicolor acrylic flowers overhead. Very poor decor overall. Sanitizing is mandatory and you are required to use hand sanitizers whenever it is offered to you especially upon returning from a port or entering a dining area. They take good prevention against viruses. We attended only three shows - 2 of which we left before the end - cheesey productions on board. Only saw the illusionist show. The pool area is very bare and decorated in circus flag themes. Quite a sight! The ports were the best thing on this cruise. Our stops were Nafplion, Katakolon/Olympia, Crete, overnight in Cairo, Mykonos, Santorini, Izmir and overnight in beautiful Istanbul! (We stayed 4 more days in Istanbul after the cruise.) This itinerary had a minimum of 9 hours at each port- most were 10-12 with Cairo 48hours! This gave enough time to explore each port vigorously. Went on only two ship excursions, Izmir and the first day in Istanbul. The ship staff is well organized for this and those went well. For all other ports, we either went on our own or booked private tours which I highly recommend - especially in Cairo. The ship has a slogan that you can disembark on the final day whenever you please so you can sleep in, excercise, watch a movie, etc. - well the last disembark hour is 9:00am as most other ships. That doesn't give much time to participate in the suggested activities. Would I recommend NCL or the Jade?? - only if your interest is in the ports it will visit and you are willing to adhere to poor quality and service, otherwise, definitely another cruiseline. Read Less

Sept. 29 to Oct. 9 was our 14th cruise with NCL. At first, we were not planning to do this cruise since we were going on the cruise that goes to Alexander, Egypt but our friend, whose pin name is "Heinbloed" on cc told us that the Black Sea cruise would be better. And it was one of the best cruises we took because of the itinerary, meeting cc members from our roll call, the excursions and seeing crew members from our other cruises. Such as Mahmut Atar at the Le Bistro restaurant that we knew from the Star and also from the Star, Angelito Te. Was surprised to see Jose at the front desk who now has a "star" pin on his lapel. He was on the Spirit. We were also fortunate to have in our company, friends of "Heinbloed's" with us. Before going on this cruise, I went through our travel magazines and found 3 articles that interested me. First was about Regenburg, Germany. The 2nd about Sergo Tsakapora, a tour guide/historian in Yalta and 3rd Patrick who also is a guide but in Varna, Bulgaria. Before we met the Jade, we flew to Germany to visit Bad Tolz, Regensburg, Bamberg and Nuremberg. Then flew to Athens. To get to the Pireaus port, we used Andreas Kambas (a.kambas@taxidrives.gr) who is known in Germany as a taxi driver that does not cheat. He charged us 15 euros for 4 of us from the Athens Hilton. We had also used him while we were in Athens besides walking and using the metro. The day we were in Athens, the Acropolis and many other places were free. But we couldn't see everything that was free so we paid to see what we missed the following day. The one thing that I didn't like about the meal on the Jade, was the salad. When our green salad came, my first thought was "what". It was a disappointment because on the other NCL ships, we had beautiful fresh salad greens including cucumbers and tomatoes. Plus, this time, the serving was smaller. At first, we were going to Le Bistro only once because of Mahmut but then he asked us if we are coming again. How can we refuse him after he being so nice to us. Our favorite is the mushroom soup in the bread bowl which we order whenever we go to Le Bistro. A short summary of what we did at the ports: Rhodes: a couple invited us to join them on a private tour which included the old town, Lindos and we walked up to the Acropolis. We also stopped at various places. Our driver and guide was Nicholas from www.rhodesprivatetours.com Crete: we went to Knossos by public bus with others from our ship. At first we were on the wrong ticket line. Fortunately, someone from our ship could read Greek and told us where to go. Izmir: we were in Ephesus before the Terrace House was opened, therefore; wanted to see it. We had a group of 14. Yelda from Kagan (kosagan@hotmail.com) was our guide. She is a very knowledgeable person. I found out about Yelda and Kagan through cc. Yalta: we had wanted 10 cruisers to come with us so we can go to Yusupov palace with Sergo (sergo22yalta@gmail.com). We also visited other points of interest such as Livadia and Alupka palaces. At first hardly anyone was interested and a couple weeks 3 before we were leaving, it grew to 36 with 2 18 passenger vehicles. Odessa: We did a walking tour with our friends. Be sure to see the many love locks on the overpass. One had several locks. A Ukranian lady that was there told us that that person was divorced that many times. Varna: with a couple friends that we met through cc, we took a tour with Patrick (bulgariaprivateguide@gmail.com). We were very fortunate because he took us to a place were the ship excursions do not go to...the Romanian Queen Palace in Balchik. We also had a walking tour of Varna with him. Constanta: went by shuttle into Constanta and later on went by taxi to Mamaia resort. It was not what we expected. I would have preferred an extra day in Yalta, Odessa or Varna. Istanbul: to make it short, our friends and us went to the island of Buyukada by ferry. The dock is not very far from where our ship docked. For transportation once there, one must either walk, ride a bike or go by horse carriage. We used the horse carriage. A very unique place to visit. This is one of the best cruises we ever had but I must confess that all cruises were wonderful. The Jade is a wonderful ship mainly because of the crew who were all nice to us. We appreciate them very much. They have been most helpful to us. That includes our 2 room stewarts. Read Less

Embarkation: Quick and Easy. Champagne and Orange Juice was a nice touch. Cabin: Nice layout. Lots of storage. Large bathroom. (Balcony on deck 9) Ship: Overall while very nice, there is no wow factor. The Hawaiian decor was a disappointment, as it celebrated an area that had nothing to do with our itinerary. The ship was well cared for and extremely clean and in good repair. Staff: Our cabin attendants did a first rate job. As for many of the food servers, they seemed to be indifferently polite. This was the biggest disappoint on the ship. This was my 10th cruise and I am a very easy going person, not demanding, etc., and I couldn't quite put my finger on why the staff seemed somewhat cold. I had a feeling that either a lot of the staff were new and inexperienced, or that perhaps there was something going on that was upsetting the moral. Entertainment: Hmm. The 1st night was a talk show format with the "Master of Ceremonies" crew member ( not the cruise director, who by the way has some new title/role, and who I never saw in person), featuring interviews with the upcoming entertainers. Embarrassingly bad. The singers were ok, but no dancers. They really built up the show "Smokey Joe's Cafe"....and it was just songs with no story line. I didn't get it. There was a comedian whose name I don't recall, who used to write for the Benny Hill show. I thought it would be lame but he was funny! Food: I thought the food was very good. The Garden Cafe was actually one of the best I have had....except the seating was sometimes an issue. There were some waiting times for the Grand Pacific. I ate at 4 specialty restaurants and all were very good, especially Cagney's and Le Bistro. Room service was great. The Blue Lagoon by the way, was a great spot to get 24 hour sit down service, especially when you just miss the breakfast hours at the regular restaurants. Internet Cafe: Oh my. Good luck every getting a computer! There were only a few computers and everytime I tried to get one I was met with a long line of frustrated people. Perhaps they want us to rent laptops? I really felt for the girl who worked there, who by the way was very pleasant. Casino: I went quite often and the slots are very very tight. I only saw one person win anything the whole cruise. Good luck getting someone to bring you a drink. They do have a snack table in the evening that was very nice, and the servers were pleasant there. And bring a sweater as it was always freezing. Latitude members event at the Galleria: Don't arrive late at this One hour event as the champagne is gone in 15 minutes, and you are expected to mill around shopping until the hour is up for the chance to win a "prize". Spa: I didn't use any services but I did buy a one-day pass($20) to use the heated beds, whirlpools, sauna, etc. It was the best $20 I have ever spent on a ship. My friend and I practically had the place to ourselves and it was incredibly peaceful and relaxing. Fitness Center: Open 24 hours. Well used but never crowded. Ship Tours: I have to tell all of you who hate ship tours that the crew here did an amazing job getting people off the ship to the buses in a timely, orderly fashion. ( Cairo, Alexandria, Izmir and Istanbul). Ship board activities: Not very impressive. I recall being on the Norwegian Sun and there were too many to choose from. Disembarkation: A breeze. General impression: Good for 1st time cruisers who want to experience lots of variety in restaurants and who embrace the freestyle theme. Read Less

Ship: the ship is beautiful. Everything seems new and is well maintained and spotless. For the most part, even though a little "loud", the colors and designs work very well. A few places are just too "Hawaiian" and I would have changed that design if I were NCL (ex, statue of famous Hawaiian warrior/leader in Grand Pacific), pictures on the walls in main staircases, all Aloha/Hawaii themed. The Grand Pacific dining room was amongst the prettiest I have seen on any ship. Cagney's, Le Bistro and Alizar were also stunning dining rooms. Pool decks were very nice as were the deck chairs. I think another pool is needed. Most ships I have been on have three (one usually covered)- this ship had two. It worked fine for this ship because the "kid's pool" only had about 2 kids in it at any given time so both pools were able to be fully used by adults. I liked the areas on either end of the pool where there is shallow water that you can just lie in on hot days. I think the ship itself was prettier than the Princess ships I have been on and the dining rooms were much more attractive. I thought the pool areas were slightly better on Princess. The sailing of the ship itself was very smooth and the seas were very calm for most of the trip. Ship Rating: 8/10 Spa/Health Club: The spa area was very big and nice. Lots of open space and glorious views from the lounging areas of the spa. They charge to use the spa area even if you have a treatment $10) which I think is wrong. If I have a treatment scheduled, I should have free use of the spa area during that time, IMO. I tried it the days I had a spa treatment, paying the $10 for those two visits. The use of the spa area was $150 for the 12 nt cruise. I personally did not think it was worth it. While nice, it was basically a hot tub, a sauna, a steam room and a few hot loungers. I had 4 treatments in total and for the most part, they were very good. My first one was a massage with someone who just seemed very inexperienced & bored. Then I had my hair done twice and the girl (Jade) was GREAT. I went back for a facial and massage and the therapist for those services was very good. I found the "specials" prices to be comparable with what we pay around here in NY/NJ area. If you go for one service, they will send you specials for another and they also offer daily specials which made the prices reasonable. My advice is to wait for the special pricing offers. I think the spa area, pricing and the services themselves were better on NCL than on my previous Princess cruises. Spa Rating: 7/10. Food: This is one if tough because it is subjective and also my reactions to it were so varied. Let's pick it apart piece by piece, in terms of the taste of the food, I would say it was very good. In terms of presentation, I would also say very good. In terms of selection and variety, I would say "fair". I had trouble finding things I liked on a few nights because of lack of selection. There were typically 5-6 "appetizers" in the main dining room. 3 of them were soup, 1 was usually a fruit and 1 was a salad. That left 1-2 offerings of a hot appetizer. Then there were usually 4-5 dinner choices. 2 were always meat (almost always a pork and/or veal) , one was a fish and the other vegetarian. The fish offering was usually very "cheap" (cod or tilapia). In terms of quality of the ingredients, I would also rate "fair". I found that cuts of meat/fish were usually very "cheap". Everything seemed to be designed to feed on a stringent budget. Lobster night was not really lobster tail night -they offered a ½ of a tail in a pasta dish and wouldn't serve just the lobster. Service in the common dining rooms was usually fine and occasionally very good. Willingness to accommodate special requests: I think again I'd say less than fair here. It always seemed a hassle whether a simple request (leave sauce off a steak or sandwich, extra order of fries) or a slightly more unusual request (order something off the kid's menu or get an appetizer from Blue Lagoon). Comparing dining on NCL to my other Princess cruises, I think Princess has the slighter edge on everything except the taste and presentation where I thin NCL had the edge. They were very close in all respects, though. Overall rating: 7/10. • Main Dining Room: We typically ate in the Grand Pacific main dining room and tried Alizar twice. Grand Pacific is a beautiful room; service was so-so. Alizar was pretty also and the service was much better here. Food from either was typically good with a range of fair - very good depending on the entrEe. Rating: 7/10 • Buffet: I found the food on the buffet to be very tasty and god. Great variety at breakfast, less so for lunch. Service was good. To keep germ-free, they don't let you touch anything. I understand why they do this but it got annoying having someone apply your ketchup to your burger or dressing to your salad ? Rating 7/10 • Cagney's: Excellent food & service. I found the food comparable to a Ruth's Chris. Presentation, service, taste of the food was all top notch here both for breakfast, lunch & dinner. Rating: 9/10 • Blue Lagoon: Had some snacks & a lunch here a few times. Food was good, service was quick, decent variety. Rating : 7/10 • Room Service: Often arrived cold, late and all the items were brought at the same time (even ice cream). However, having breakfast in the room on an itinerary like this was invaluable and saved a lot of time. Rating: 6/10 Casino: The casino was very big, new and had lots of the more up-to-date Atlantic City & Vegas games I like (for example, wheel of fortune slots, Cleopatra slots). They had a few fun slot, black jack & poker tournaments. However, I think the slots were VERY tight, the casinos at sea program VERY weak (it took forever to earn 1 point) and the overall manager was a jerk (not Adrian who was the visible presence- he was actually very nice. His boss was the jerk). One night, they advertised free house liquor, beer & wine at the casino. When we got there, we were told it was a "misprint". No apology and no attempt to make it right by passing out champagne or punch or something. I was shocked to find the casino so "stingy" when it is now part owned by a casino chain we frequent and have always had high praise for- Harrahs. Harrahs needs to extend its great land service to the casino. NCL wins for size of casino and variety of games but Princess wins for looseness of the slots & service in the casino. Casino Rating: 6/10 Crew: This was a very nice crew. All the way up the chain, these were the friendliest, most helpful crew members I have ever experienced on ANY cruise. Always a smile, always a friendly hello. The captain and his officers were warm and mingled with the guests and you could tell they loved their jobs & the people that worked for them. The majority of the crew is from the Philippines but there was a wide variety of nationalities represented including US and many parts of Europe. Some seemed a little "green" especially in the dining areas but they were almost always friendly and helpful. NCL wins over Princess here. Rating: 9/10 Entertainment: Paul was the master of ceremonies and he was a great, funny, nice guy. One show was very good: Shout was excellent. One or two other shows were decent: Smoky Joe's Cafe & the American Idol type show. Other than that, entertainment was a flop. Nighttime shows were weak and the daytime entertainment was non-existent. They had the same guitar player (he was good) over and over again, every day at the pool- playing the same boring songs over & over. The lounge acts were not great. The male piano player was good, the female one with the crazy hat was a decent piano player but a horrible singer and the female singer typically in Medusa also wasn't very good. The Stardust entertainment was weak and no one really went there. Karaoke one night was somewhat entertaining. Princess beats NCL in this area by a landslide. NCL U was a joke- the programs were the same over & over and involved basically trying to sell something (example: one on botox/restalin, one on camera equipment, all followed by sales pitches) etc Overall rating : 4/10 Room: We had an AB suite which was a wonderful room. Bedding and towels were great, layout of the room worked well for us, nice flat screen tvs, good bath amenities. The room was well serviced by our cabin steward, Roberto. The deck (11 forward) was great- very quiet up towards the bridge, not too many people walking by that way. Cabin seemed very sound proof- we rarely heard anything. We peeked in regular and mini-suite rooms and they all looked very nice and comparable to Princess rooms. We also had a chance to tour the Garden Villa which was truly an amazing, stunning room. The private courtyard area was also beautiful. Concierge & Butler Service: Concierge was great. We had Monika and she was a model of efficiency, professionalism & helpfulness. We had no problems making dining reservations for every night (even in main dining rooms). She answered every question immediately and nothing was too much of a bother. Our butler however was less than stellar. While a sweet man, he was utterly useless in his role. Everything we asked, he didn't know the answer to. All he did for us was bring food. To me, a waste of a position, just let room service bring the food! It was nice to be invited to the VIP parties (2 of them) and the escort to our room was nice. Disembark was fine and simple but not a private escort at any time as was promised. We also didn't receive some other perks that were advertised such as hors d'oeuvres or hot cookies last night. Not a big deal but don't advertise them if you aren't going to give them. Misc: Internet service was mixed. Some days it was great, others painfully slow. The internet manager was great and was always willing to credit your minutes if it was really slow or help you in any way she could. Alcohol. Drinks were good but I found them to be rather expensive on this cruise compared to other lines. Martinis were $9.50 plus a 15% tip, beers were $4.50 + tip, wines around $6 per glass. Not a huge difference but seemed slightly more expensive than on other lines. They were strict with the bringing on of alcohol but we had no issues with a box of wine and they never checked inside our cooler either when we boarded or at each port. They did not check our carry on bags. If you are bringing it on, I'd recommend carrying it rather than putting it in checked luggage. They did immediately spot wine at each port in the x-ray scanners & take it from you. Shops had a very limited selection and weren't anywhere you'd go back to browse in. Overall: I was worried about how NCL would stack up to Princess. No worried now at all. The lines are very comparable in every way. There were some things I liked better on each and the only area that I think was dramatically different was in service where NCL was significantly better and in entertainment where Princess was much better. We had a great time on this cruise and would not hesitate to book NCL again. I'd rate the overall cruise a 7 or 8 out of 10. Crew: This was a very nice crew. All the way up the chain, these were the friendliest, most helpful crew members I have ever experienced on ANY cruise. Always a smile, always a friendly hello. The captain and his officers were warm and mingled with the guests and you could tell they loved their jobs & the people that worked for them. The majority of the crew is from the Philippines but there was a wide variety of nationalities represented including US and many parts of Europe. Some seemed a little "green" especially in the dining areas but they were almost always friendly and helpful. NCL wins over Princess here. Rating: 9/10 Entertainment: Paul was the master of ceremonies and he was a great, funny, nice guy. One show was very good: Shout was excellent. One or two other shows were decent: Smoky Joe's Cafe & the American Idol type show. Other than that, entertainment was a flop. Nighttime shows were weak and the daytime entertainment was non-existent. They had the same guitar player (he was good) over and over again, every day at the pool- playing the same boring songs over & over. The lounge acts were not great. The male piano player was good, the female one with the crazy hat was a decent piano player but a horrible singer and the female singer typically in Medusa also wasn't very good. The Stardust entertainment was weak and no one really went there. Karaoke one night was somewhat entertaining. Princess beats NCL in this area by a landslide. NCL U was a joke- the programs were the same over & over and involved basically trying to sell something (example: one on botox/restalin, one on camera equipment, all followed by sales pitches) etc Overall rating : 4/10 Room: We had an AB suite which was a wonderful room. Bedding and towels were great, layout of the room worked well for us, nice flat screen tvs, good bath amenities. The room was well serviced by our cabin steward, Roberto. The deck (11 forward) was great- very quiet up towards the bridge, not too many people walking by that way. Cabin seemed very sound proof- we rarely heard anything. We peeked in regular and mini-suite rooms and they all looked very nice and comparable to Princess rooms. We also had a chance to tour the Garden Villa which was truly an amazing, stunning room. The private courtyard area was also beautiful. Concierge & Butler Service: Concierge was great. We had Monika and she was a model of efficiency, professionalism & helpfulness. We had no problems making dining reservations for every night (even in main dining rooms). She answered every question immediately and nothing was too much of a bother. Our butler however was less than stellar. While a sweet man, he was utterly useless in his role. Everything we asked, he didn't know the answer to. All he did for us was bring food. To me, a waste of a position, just let room service bring the food! It was nice to be invited to the VIP parties (2 of them) and the escort to our room was nice. Disembark was fine and simple but not a private escort at any time as was promised. We also didn't receive some other perks that were advertised such as hors d'oeuvres or hot cookies last night. Not a big deal but don't advertise them if you aren't going to give them. Misc: Internet service was mixed. Some days it was great, others painfully slow. The internet manager was great and was always willing to credit your minutes if it was really slow or help you in any way she could. Alcohol. Drinks were good but I found them to be rather expensive on this cruise compared to other lines. Martinis were $9.50 plus a 15% tip, beers were $4.50 + tip, wines around $6 per glass. Not a huge difference but seemed slightly more expensive than on other lines. They were strict with the bringing on of alcohol but we had no issues with a box of wine and they never checked inside our cooler either when we boarded or at each port. They did not check our carry on bags. If you are bringing it on, I'd recommend carrying it rather than putting it in checked luggage. They did immediately spot wine at each port in the x-ray scanners & take it from you. Shops had a very limited selection and weren't anywhere you'd go back to browse in. Overall: I was worried about how NCL would stack up to Princess. No worried now at all. The lines are very comparable in every way. There were some things I liked better on each and the only area that I think was dramatically different was in service where NCL was significantly better and in entertainment where Princess was much better. We had a great time on this cruise and would not hesitate to book NCL again. I'd rate the overall cruise a 7 or 8 out of 10. Ports/Itinerary: I will do a separate detailed review of each port in the right sections of cc but overall I thought this was a fantastic itinerary. Here's a little on each: • Katakolon/Olympia, Greece: Easy to rent a car here. We picked up our car right in town and it was basically one road the whole way there. Olympia was a very interesting site. Much bigger than I thought it would be and very moving to be where the first Olympics were held. We also stopped at a small beach. It was a simple and nice day. • Corfu, Greece: A beautiful little town to walk around. No need to do a tour or rent a car. City is entirely walkable. Take the #2 bus from the port or a taxi (10E) and then just walk around. • Alexandria, Egypt: No such a great place to walk around on your own or take a cab on your own. People were friendly but very aggressive. It was chaotic and dirty. We took a cab to the fort which was nice and then to a shopping street which was also okay but I wasn't 100% comfortable in that city. Either do a tour or be prepared to be sort of uncomfortable. I wasn't scared but more uneasy. Police presence is strong so good in a way but also unnerving to see all of the machine guns. • Cairo, Egypt: Definitely do this with a guided tour. Cairo was loud, chaotic and almost as unnerving as Alexandria (and dirtier). We did a private tour and it was great. I would not do Cairo on my own. Pyramids were amazing , everything they are supposed to be but are near ruined by the aggressive vendors and the swarms of tourists. We visited saqqarra which was a bit outside Cairo and it was great- very empty, few vendors and a great way to see the smaller pyramids and a few tombs. The museum was amazing- we did a quick 90 min there but you could easily spent the whole day. We also visited Khan el Khalil market which was really great. • Crete, Greece: beautiful island with wonderful beaches. We rented a car and drove to Agios Giordos which was a wonderful seaside town about on hour's drive east of the port. Many beautiful beaches to choose from. Iraklion town wasn't that pretty IMO- you are better off getting out of the city here. • Santorini: Heaven on earth. A magical place. Take the cable car (not so bad even for us people afraid of heights) or walk up. Be careful on timing of your return- could be lots of ship in port and you could get stuck on a long cable car line (1 hr +). At the port (before you go up the cable car), you can go on short boat excursions. We took a 2 hr tour to the volcano and a hot spring- this was very interesting and was around 22E pp). No need to book in advance. IMO, no need for a tour here. Just walk and use the local bus to get to Oia for the view. • Mykonos: A very easy town to do on your own. Beaches are easy to get to with a cheap public bus of taxi ride. Platis Yialis is my favorite and it is about 15 min away from downtown (6E for a cab or 1.40E for a bus). You can also easily walk from port to the town. Also no need for a tour here - just stroll around and enjoy the shops. If you do want to do a tour- Delos is a great tour to do. • Izmir, Turkey: Ephesus is a MUST DO! I was unsure because we saw so many ruins but this is the best example of what an actual Roman style town was like. It is huge and definitely warrants a guide. We used About Ephesus tours here and it was wonderful. After the site, we went to Selcuk town for a few hours which was a charming town. We were lucky enough to be there on Saturday- market day and it was amazing to see all the people with their fruits, vegetables, spices an cheeses. People were friendly to us and it was a great way to see real local life. We also visited the Virgin mary house which was very beautiful and very moving. • Istanbul, Turkey: Another great city. We just did this one on foot on our own using the trams (walk left out of the port, look for Jeten booth and buy ticket 1.2 YTL). We went inside the Blue Mosque which was amazing (and free!), Tokapi Palace (awesome- Harem worth every penny!) and the underground cistern (very eery but interesting and looked at Hagia Sophia from outside. The next day we went to the Grand Bazaar which was disappointing to me- it was all neat and commercial with prices quoted about 5-10x higher than we saw the day before at the local market in Selcuk. It wasn't the fun, chaotic atmosphere we were hoping for. Overall, Istanbul is a very nice , clean , cool city. 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Embarkation: Got to pier at noon, fastest ever experienced with tons of windows open and fast, fast, fast processing. They keep your passport at the counter. Didn't get pushy about taking boarding photograph. Met with glass of champagne, found my cabin and went on usual exploration of ship. Ship: Being designed and decorated for sailing in Hawaii it still work OK for this market cause the decor is very tasteful and not tacky Hawaii, nice staircase murals-artwork, all decor in all areas work except the Altizar dining room is a total blah. No decor or theme, just nice tables and chairs. Public rooms all pleasant and tasteful, was impressed how the Hawaiian theme worked just fine. Food: Buffet very extensive with lots of specialty dishes and even a stir-fry and crepe section. Not enough places to sit when buffet gets busy which is quite often, I suspect this is because the two free fancy sit down restaurants are pretty skimpy on portions, whereas you can have your servers load you up at the buffet and selection is much more at the buffet than the menu restaurants. Food quality is OK, varies from dish to dish depending on how well a selection can be prepared or left sitting without getting soggy or goopy, salads where always great but some of the pre-made stir fry got really soggy quick. Everything is served up for you because of sanitation concerns which is just and proper. You do have to ask for a spoon tho when given your plate, and silver wrapped in a napkin. The Italian pay restaurant serves as overflow for the buffet for breakfast and lunch and is a very quiet place to seek out across the ship from the general seating area, but sometimes you have to walk a great distance to snag a table. Entertainment: The show lounge is beautiful but the entertainment is strictly third class. No real sets or costumes like broadway shows, just reviews with singers moseying the stage and then some magicians, etc doing third rate stuff and a comedian who is really funny, but overall its pretty embarrassingly amateurish. Attended about 4 shows, some I would just walk in and stand in back then walk out and rather just go watch TV. Cabin: I had an outside on the lowest deck which was great. Tons and tons of shelf and drawer space. Large shower and sink area, plenty of seating, small TV with cruddy channel selection (Fox News, UGH) and an oldies TCM channel that played the same 5-6 movies the entire trip. Tours: Didn't take any of the ship tours, arranged for more personal and private ones in which I was not part of a group of 40, but instead a group of one in Cairo and 3 in Izmir, Turkey. Ship tours are agonizing. Did not have to make one single stop to buy junk from ship tour vendors. Internet: Nine stations for over 2,000 people. Hey NCL, it's 2008, not 1988. Hilarious. This is a too big ship but its very intimately designed and if you didn't have to walk several miles from one end of it to the other, then you wouldn't know its so loooooooooong. Pool Area: Wouldn't know, never went there except to get from one one end of the ship to the top decks which were much better and private but it's lined on either side with plastic palm trees covered in xmas rope lights that actually look nice. And a curvy water slide. Two pools. All in all you'd think I'm bad mouthing the ship and the cruise but for a twelve dayer that started in Athens, hit Egypt, Greek Islands and ended in Istanbul on a very tastefully and immaculately clean vessel, I really have no business complaining. Recommended. Read Less

We were a little hesitant about booking a cruise with NCL, considering some negative reviews, but we were pleasantly surprised. This was our first time with freestyle cruising. As we are easy going travelers, we focused on the positive. Read on.. We flew from Montreal Canada on KML to Athens via Amsterdam. Great service, good food, complimentary drinks, left and arrived on time. All in all, wonderful airline. Upon arrival in Athens, at door 4, you get in line for an assigned taxi. Cost was 30euros from airport to downtown hotel. Stayed at 3*Hotel Crystal City. Very clean, modern quaint hotel situated 2 minutes from metro (3 stops to Acropolis)(3euros all day all transportation). Day one in Athens, visited the Acropolis (12 euros) and ecological sites nearby and the Plaka area (shopping and restaurants). All very worth the visit. A five hour walk. Day 2 went up to Mount Lycabytus. Walked up (many steps)Ploutarchou Street to take the tram ( 6 euros) up the mount. Wonderful view and soooo peaceful...Returned to the hotel by Athinas street(Athens market) and the Syntagma square. Day of cruise: took a cab to the Piraeus pier. Make sure you get dropped at your designated cruise gate. The port is huge. Embarkation: We arrived at NCL gate at 11:30. Wonderful, warm, efficient welcome/embarkation with welcome champagne. 15 minutes later, we had changed and were in the hot tub. An amazing lunch buffet was already set. Staterooms were ready by 2 pm. Quick and painless muster drill at 4:30 At 5pm, had an informal meet and greet with cruise critic mates. It was nice meeting cruisemates and organizing tours together. The ship: It is beautiful, elegant and very clean. Bright colors, still a few Hawaiian decors. Lots to explore on our first day. Stateroom: 11086 (minisuite)on deck 11 aft. This is by far the best stateroom we have had. It was spacious, spotless and functional. The washroom, complete with tub was very spacious, lots of storage, quality hairdryer, make-up mirror, coffee maker, robes, the most comfortable bed and crisp linen. The patio was also spacious with comfortable chairs. We felt spoiled. We met our room steward only the next day. We were always out when he tended to our room. Every evening upon returning to our room, there was always a surprise: a towel animal, chocolate, free bingo cards, cookies etc...Our room was always well cleaned...You may want to consider an upgrade to a minisuite. Well worth it.  Note: there is a sign by the stateroom door where you indicate if you want your room cleaned or not. Food: We ate most of our meals in the Grand Pacific dining room. We found it elegant and cozy. We asked for a table for 2 and were always accommodated. A couple of times, we waited 15 minutes and used their beeper. We found the menu to have an adequate variety of appetizers, entrees and desserts ( best soufflEs ever). The food was tasty for the most part and well presented. Portions were adequate for us.My DH was disappointed about lobster night when he received half a lobster tail with other fish. Let's bring back the full lobster!! The dining staff was attentive, courteous (some staff were a little impersonal at first but talking and joking a bit tended to warm them up.) They made our dining experience very positive. We ate a couple of evenings at the buffet and were pleased with the variety of hot and cold foods. The crepes were delicious. We usually went for breakfast at the aft section of the Garden Cafe and ate outdoors-way more relaxing and not so hectic. There was even a cappuccino machine-yummy!! Cannot comment on the specialty restaurants. We especially enjoyed the freestyle experience. Eat when you want....much more relaxing than the usual formal setting. Also, we noted that guests mostly wore nice casual wear and very few men wore jackets to dinner.(Note: there is much emphasis on hand cleansing- at every restaurant entrance and at the gangway upon returning to the ship). After our visit to Egypt, the staff served everything for a few days.( So much work for them.) We would cut it down to two days. Entertainment: Fair We particularly enjoyed Showdown, Smokey Joe's Cafe and the music of singer/guitarist Eugene Villarino.There were no dance production shows. You be the judge of other shows venues....Show themes need updating to this millennium. People and things we appreciated and enjoyed: The staff: they are hard-working, courteous and friendly people who deserve nothing less than much respect and praise. And they DO appreciate praise. If we had to prepare omelets 7 days a week for 10 months, maybe we would find it difficult to smile and smile...Congratulations to all for work well done and for helping make our vacation fabulous.  The visibility/availability of the captain: He greeted us twice daily on the intercom, had a question/answer session and even attended our formal cruise critic meet and greet along with a few heads of department. Thank you, captain and your staff for doing your job so well and providing us with a beautiful ship and safe voyage. The jacuzzi opened till 10pm.This allows quiet relaxing time at the end of the day.  The pool area. Loved the return your towel policy. There was always somewhere to lounge quietly and the pools and the jacuzzis were warm and clean. Great!!! A well stocked library which I used. A very smooth ship cruise. The ocean was mostly calm- this was by far the smoothest cruise. Cannot comment on the casino, the spa and the various bars. Also, we did not do any of the ship's tours. We organized tours on our own. Ports: (THESE ARE OUR OPINIONS) Katakolon: A small port center. We walked around for a bit and returned to the ship. Corfu: We walked around this beautiful sea side city surrounded by castles- large squares and shopping boulevards. Really enjoyed this port. Cairo: huge city of 25 millions, crowded and dirty. We took a two day tour of Cairo and Alexandria with DeCastro-two days without overnight. Good experience. Tours are the only way to visit these ports- congested traffic, language, long distance between attractions. We would not have felt safe visiting this city on our own. We visited Sakkarra (the step pyramid) the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, the archaeological museum. 13 hours long Note: About the camel ride: Get your guide to arrange a price before climbing up and think twice about handing out your camera to have pictures taken.... All in all, a wonderful learning experience. Totally happy to have visited here. Alexandria: Again, a huge bustling crowded city with beautiful beaches and large town squares. Again, it is well worth to take a tour of this city The library was amazingly grand and beautiful. We visited: Quiat bay fort, Montazah Palace,Catacomb of Kom El Shokafa, Pompeii's pillar. Iraklion (Crete):We walked around and appreciated the beautiful venetian buildings( churches castles and fountains).Interesting port. Santorini:The view of Fira up the cliffs of Santorini is fabulous. This is a tendered port, arrived early to use funicular up to the city. Once there, we took a local bus to Oia. What a delightful traditional village perched on the top of impressive cliffs. We walked around quite a bit and took in the local flavor. We advise you take a cab back to Fira as buses don't run very often We were enchanted with Fira as well. Lots of maze-like streets, great shopping and panoramic restaurants. Very clean village.We walked down the donkey trail ( thought it would be quicker than the queue at the funicular. (Think twice about doing this- it was long, slippery and smelly). We wouldn't advise it- unless you're in very good physical shape. Mykonos: This was one of our favorite ports. We walked up to the windmills and then through the winding streets to end downtown and stop for a drink in one of the many seaside restaurants. A beautiful setting. The ship provided a shuttle to the entrance of the town. We understand why celebrities would want to vacation here. It is beautiful, and the weather was perfect. Izmir: The third largest city in Istanbul and its port is second only to Istanbul. We thoroughly enjoyed this port. We took an Ephesus tour with travel@kusadasihotels.biz. Great tour. The visit to the ancient city of Ephesus and the terrace houses(a must to see), the temple of Artemis, the House of Virgin Mary and St John Basilica including lunch was one of the highlights of our vacation. Istanbul: We disembarked in this large city/port. Efficient disembarkation. Try to bargain a taxi price to your hotel(around 10$), some drivers can be brutal with the prices.We had booked a hotel for 3 days, so we went directly to our hotel, registered and then took off to visit the sights. The blue Mosque, Haga Sophia and the Grand Bazaar.(4000 shops of carpets, jewelry, leather and souvenirs. We had enough after an hour.) Day 2. We visited the Basilica Cisterns and the Topkapi Palace and walked along the seaside promenade. Here again, the street are all cobblestones and winding not to mention climbing... perfect to keep in shape. All the sights are worthwhile visiting. We enjoyed Istanbul and all that we saw and learned. For the most part, the areas in the old city were adequately clean and safe. The call to prayer begins at 5:30 am and is repeated all of 5 times a day. We did get asked to buy carpets quite a lot. You need liras to purchase most items in this city. We stayed at Hotel Azyiade, a charming 4* old city hotel 10 minutes walk to the tram and all the sights. Good value for the price. Check it out. This was a fabulous vacation, full of history and incredible sights. We walked so much, I do believe we lost weight even with the great food on board. And the weather was perfect during the entire vacation. We returned home with Air France via Paris (again a wonderful airline with superb service).While travelers tend to compare services offered on various cruise ships, we feel that they vary according to cruise lines. We enjoyed some new perks on this cruise and tried not to compare. We will not hesitate traveling with NCL again and we do recommend this cruiseline to future travelers. Read Less

The Norwegian Jade, October 25, 2008 Piraeus to Istanbul, 12 nights We were thrilled to have scored an aft cabin. I poured over previous cruisers' reviews of the spacious balcony, the enduring sunsets ... but they all forgot to mention the food dropping onto our heads from the 12th floor aft food area. We were on deck 10 and with a popular eating area just 2 floors above and our having the spacious deck that protruded below - caution became the rule. Our first night out of port, we sat enjoying the departure, leaning on the balcony rail when I felt something in my hair. It was a Splenda packet. A few minutes later my husband was brushing chocolate chip cookies off his shirt. I think the crowning blow was the next morning when we sat in our chairs and had goopy oatmeal (I think ... I hope ... eww!) plop onto our feet. SERVICE: Slow. At the risk of sounding like a chronic complainer here's my shower tale. I wear glasses. Nearsighted is an understatement. Close to legally blind is more accurate. After checking into our room, I decided to shower. Nice shower, room enough ... I grabbed a towel from the rack, opened it and FREAKED! There was something black and about 2 inches across smack dab in the center of the towel. Thinking it was a cockroach, I calmly shrieked and grabbed my glasses. Turned out to be a giant hairball that had somehow been laundered into the fresh towels. Happens I guess. Calling room service didn't yield much results. Calling the reception desk did. And while we're on the subject - the fresh fruit card I filled out never got acknowledged until I mentioned it to our steward in the hallway in front of other people. Overall, it seemed that the staff throughout the ship in all areas was a bit new to the service industry, i.e. not too quick with helping and seemingly confused that they should be. DINING: The included restaurants (Magenta and the Grand Pacific especially) were quite good. The buffet started out great and slipped as time went on (mummy tummy I was told). It is almost always crowded and chaotic and it was frustrating to stand in a line (that seemed to shift with the attitudes of the patrons) and wait for a server to plop some food onto your plate. The pay restaurants were good and the portions were gigantic (Cagney's). I was surprised at how good the Italian restaurant was - we had been on the Gem previously and it was average (of course there was no fee on the Gem for it either). ENTERTAINMENT: Did not do much of it as it seemed to conflict with our natural eating time (shows at 7:30 and 9:30). There was a new port every day and if you planned on getting up and out, early rising was mandatory (especially if you were to fight your way into a breakfast buffet line). The few we saw were certainly not Broadway caliber, but thankfully there was no charge for it. PORTS: The great ports of call were why we chose this ship. Things went smoothly and remarkably close to on time in each port. The only negative would be that time is so limited it's tough to see much, especially if you've done your homework and have a long list of must-see's in each port. More like a tasting menu of the eastern Mediterranean. KUDOS: A big kudos to the medical staff. My husband needed their services and they were top notch. That is something I never thought about in the past and it is comforting to know that someone in management has. OVERALL: A great cruise for seemingly not so much money. The price shockers in the end are the internet, drinks (with service charge and tax added on), the mandatory service charge (hey, Norwegian Jade - train your crew better!), and those expensive tours. They are great for older folks, but ... if you have the ability - make your own land itinerary. Read Less