Overall, we had a great time on our birthday cruise. We enjoyed the ship and it's offerings and was just right for a 7 day cruise. Any longer in that cabin category and that size of ship would have been too much.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
Considering the ship was at capacity, it went fairly fast.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
NCL is very consistent in the quality and variety of their offerings. Love the decor of the specialty restaurants on the Breakaway class of ships, i.e. Le Bisto, La Cucina, Cagney's. It seems like the decor in the specialty dining venues of the newer and recently refurbished ships is very blah. You could move a few pictures from one to another and it would look like you're in the same venue. However, the food and the service was awesome!
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
We enjoyed the pool area even though it was the most crowded we've ever experienced. Bar staff was very short-handed but they did their best to keep up. And WHEN are they going to start enforcing the ADULTS ONLY rule for the hot tubs? Signs are in clear view at the entrance to each yet every time we wanted to go in they were full of kids and their parents. Not going in a hot tub after a family of 5 with 3 kids under the age of 6!
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Only rated OK because we were seldom able to get a seat to enjoy one. Atrium shows were always packed with people that came first thing in the morning and they parked it there all day. Never could get a seat.
Children's Programs
No kids
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
We received some excellent service and we received some very mediocre service so my rating is good.
Again, the ship was packed and staff was doing their best to keep up.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
We do like the ship's overall design. Not a big fan of the Spice H2O area on this ship. The area feels boxed in unlike the open fantail area of some of the older ships. The ship was very clean and the staff was doing a great job of keeping the public bathrooms clean. I do feel that the ship is ready for a drydock soon.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
We felt a little cramped in our cabin and the balcony was very small. You have to move the balcony chairs out of the way to get in or out the sliding door. Bed was comfortable and the cabin was quiet. Back to my point about the ship being ready for drydock....red stains on the carpet, peeling surface on shower floor, rubber backing on drapes starting to disintegrate. Our cabin steward did a good job of keeping our cabin tidy.
Ship tip
Allow a lot of time for dining. Be mindful of this when making reservations for shows.
The port itself was very nice. Our shore excursion to see a Mayan ruin was late getting us back and my husband and I were literally the last 2 people on board the ship 20 minutes AFTER the all aboard. The pier is very long and we felt like NCL should have had some type of golf carts or something to transport our group back to the ship instead of watching many of us, some with mobility issues, hurrying in a panic down the long pier. Many unhappy folks.
Are you sure you saw signs saying “Adults Only” for hot tubs? This is NCL’s policy for hot tubs “Under age 16 must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian. Guests must be fully toilet trained to enter the pools or hot tubs. Therefore, guests in diapers, pull-ups or swimmers may not use the pools or hot tubs, even if accompanied by a parent or adult guardian.”… Unless you were in the adult only deck area Spice, then kids are allowed in hot tubs.
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