Overall we had a good time. We found we prefer the fixed dining times of other cruise lines to the Freestyle dining offered by NCL.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Very quick and smooth process
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Was travelling with a large group (28 in all) and found the process of getting together for dinner in the main dining rooms to be a bit hectic, even though we had reservations in advance. No big advantage to Freestyle dining for us in that we ate at roughly the same time each evening anyway. Breakfast and lunch in the buffet was nice, with some interesting options rotated in and out through the week. Never made it to a specialty dining restaurant for the three in my family. Was surprised to find that with only one or two exceptions, none of the specialty places were open for lunch. This being the first time on NCL we didn't have a favorite we really wanted to get back to, so we didn't make advanced reservations. Found that there were some walk up openings available late, but only for parties of two.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
enjoyed the rope course, wine tastings, origami classes, the pools and water slides, and trivia games.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Did not see Burn the Floor in the main theater. Caught two performances in the Manhattan dining room which were overwhelmed literally by the bright daylight coming from the windows at the back of the room's dance floor, and the overly loud music which was played. Could only see the silhouettes of the dancers, and if there was any dialog between them it was totally lost. The Manhattan needs some curtains which can be drawn across the windows at the back to cut down the light there.
Children's Programs
5 out of 5
My daughter had fun in the Splash Academy
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
The room size was comparable to other balcony rooms we've had. The flow in the room could have been better. I was not as fond of the position of the main closet directly alongside the bed as I thought I might be. The balcony itself seemed a little smaller than others we've had. There was limited space to maneuver between the outer wall and the table and chairs. The view from the balcony was very good.
Ship tip
If you want to see a performance in the Manhattan room, try to get a table along the sides of the stage which don't directly face the windows at the back.
We did the Damajaguas Nature Walk and Cultural Experience. The guides at Damajaguas were great, and the coffee, chocolate, rum, and lunch were all excellent. All the guides were informative and we had a great time. We just wish we had a little more time at each place to do some more sightseeing/shopping.
It was a beautiful beach and we had a great time swimming in the water and snorkeling. The lunch was excellent as well. The tendering system was a little confusing- I had been told that open tender would be available but didn't realize how late open tender would be. Also one of the boats tendering did not have a roof on the top and that was very uncomfortable towards the end of the day.
Great review!! And the Ship Tip is on point!! I have dined @ The Manhattan room several times, and your well detailed review brought right back there!! Glad you had a good cruise & thank you for sharing. Happy cruising
😎⚓️🤩❣️‼️
We find freestyle dining works well for us, especially when we have a port intensive itinerary.
We had a group of 12 on a cruise line with fixed dining (not ncl). we had the same dining times, but they put us at 2 tables of 6 on different levels. I think on any cruise line, large groups are difficult to sit.
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