Had a great time. NCL is definitely my go-to cruise line.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
Embarkation was relatively quick, however the staff was not doing a good job directing people to the correct line. They had it grouped by cabin deck, however people who had priority access, or status of platinum or above had special lines and they were not being told that. Fortunately I followed the signs and not where I was told to go and ended up in the right spot.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
The buffet was standard quality for breakfast and lunch, nothing special but good. Did breakfast about evenly between the buffet and MDR, which was definitely better if you have the time. Dinner was almost always in speciality restaurants as I had 6 dinners to use, all of which were very good.
Q Texas Smokehouse
4 out of 5
Food was decent and you get a good amount. Somewhat disappointed they only offer a single side of you are using the dining package. Probably my least favorite speciality restaurant. The other issue is if you happen to have your dinner while the live band is playing, it gets really loud. The band was great though.
Los Lobos
4 out of 5
Food is pretty good and you get plenty of it. The tortillas were lacking though, ended up not even eating them, they were falling apart.
Teppanyaki
5 out of 5
Always a favorite. The food is good, plenty of it, and a great show by the chefs.
La Cucina
5 out of 5
Food was very good. Just be forewarned if they say it’s spicy they mean it.
Cagney's Steakhouse
5 out of 5
Always a favorite. The steaks are cooked perfectly and the sides are tasty.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Attended a few game shows in the atrium. They are always a good time. Only issue is the atrium simply isn’t very large so seating is limited. They did try and fix this by adding extra folding chairs, not ideal but at least they tried.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Jersey Boys was a great show. Unfortunately Six was cancelled on this cruise. Also saw Titou the magician, his show was a lot of fun.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
As always, service by the crew was exceptional. I have never had a negative encounter. They truly do whatever they can to ensure you have a good trip.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
No issues with the cabin. It’s spacious and everything worked as it should.
Ship tip
Make sure you book shows as soon as you board. A lot of people didn’t and were stuck in the standby line. Pretty much everyone gets in, but those standing by end up with the leftover seats, so you may not even get to sit together.
Did an ATV excursion. It was a lot of fun, but it was quite a ways outside the city so we barely got to see it. It was advertised as having city highlights, but the driver didn’t give us any information. The ATV tour goes into the mountains and ends at the set where Predator was filmed.
Cool city. Did a tour that stopped at a glass blowing factory where to they did a demo which was really impressive. Followed by a visit to a restaurant with a great view (not a good use of time) and finally a drive to San Jose Del Cabo, where we had time to walk around the main square and explore on our own.
The city itself seemed fairly nice. However I did an excursion to the blowhole at La Bufadora, it was a tourist trap. The blowhole was ok, but you had to walk down basically an alley with dozens of shops where everyone hassled you to buy stuff. You then got the same thing the second time around.
Did a walking tour here. Covered much of the old city. The guide was very knowledgeable and it was enjoyable. The tour ended at a restaurant overlooking the ocean and included a drink along with chips and salsa. You could order more in your own if you wanted.
They have the process down pretty well. It was delayed quite a bit due to customs, but that’s not NCL’s fault. My main issue is they didn’t deliver my luggage tags (I have status), and as there is almost always a line at guest services it just wasn’t worth the effort to get the priority tags.
I'm glad you had a good time. I'm also glad disembarkation went smoothly. It seems most cruises I have taken are a chaotic mess when getting off the ship. It's not a fun way to end a cruise.
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