I love this experience!! Highlights: Dining in a good variety of restaurants, nice variety of activities & shipboard events, friendly staff, 4 awesome ports! Can use improvement: Main bars were very difficult to get a drink (it helps if you visibly tip in cash on top of the 18% built into your cruise). The only adult pool was closed for about 24 hours due to someone vomiting in it (should have been flushed out and running a lot sooner); I would have given the cruise 5 stars if it wasn't for those 2 problems. The staff - almost all of the staff seemed to love their jobs which made for a positive feeling all the way around. Shore excursions - Roatan, Honduras we went Scuba diving, and that was amazing. In Belize, we took the NCL tour of The Belize Zoo with the Holler Monkey experience, and that was ok, we wished there was a little more substance to the tour, for what we paid for. In Costa Maya (Mahahaul), we went to the Dzibanche Mayan Ruins which you can climb on many "pyramids" and ruins, and that was really informative and fun (it was worth taking a 2 hour drive each way to climb on and explore the ruins). In Cozumel, we went on the Dolphin adventure, which also included swimming with the manatee, a sea lion show, a lunch, unlimited beverages and transportation. We also snorkeled there for an extra charge for the equipment rentals. This day long adventure was my favorite! Downside: The shore excursions were maybe an hour or in some cases, 2 hours too short, so we always felt rushed. All in all, I would definitely recommend this cruise, we are already planning our next cruise!!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Nice variety of restaurants. There wasn't much of a difference in the upgraded restaurants, so we probably won't pay for that upgrade in the future.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Great variety, & very organized. Definitely try the comedy show!
Entertainment
5 out of 5
There was a great variety, and most of the entertainment was awesome. On the negative side, in the Illusionarium (where we paid an upcharge) we felt VERY rushed with our meals, we were starting our salad when our entrée was placed "in line" to eat next, therefore our surf and turf wasn't warm any longer. We weren't finished with our dinner and next thing you know our deserts are sitting "in line" to eat next. I asked for a coffee, but there was no cream or splenda on the table, so I had to wait for that as well. The show was good, but instead of an 8:45pm seating, maybe seating at 8:00/8:15, would help this situation. I just expected a little better service with that upcharge (we had the UDP & the UBP already).
Children's Programs
N/A
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
For the most part, service was outstanding. The ball was dropped in the main bars (here cash tipping is key to getting your drink in a timely manner). Our room steward "I Made" was a blessing, very tentative! In Le Bistro, "Melroy" was very sweet and really took pride in his job as well as taking care of us (we requested him a 2nd time for our anniversary dinner after we had such a nice experience with him the 1st time). In Bar 21, "Rodnie" took the time to remember our names, as well as what we drank, he always greeted us with a smile. The cruise director was extremely amazing! He remembered us after just 1 conversation in passing and on a couple of occasions stopped to ask us how our cruise was going...and his energy level was contagious!! There were also 2 young men that worked in the buffet dining room, and I wished we asked their names (we went back on our last day at the same time to where we had been sitting, but they were setting up for some kind of private buffet or party, I'm not sure what was going on), anyway, they were so nice, and accommodating to us.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
EXTREMELY CLEAN!! Friendly staff always visibly cleaning throughout the ship.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Our cabin was a lot better and roomier than expected. We loved all the extra storage spaces provided in the room.
Ship tip
A cash tip of $1.00 in the busier bars seems to get you a drink MUCH faster!! Also, make sure you make reservations for the shows and be sure to go to the front of the line when you do, (we almost missed a show not knowing this and waiting in the standby line).
Wished we could stay much longer! There's a lot to do there! We did the "all day, all-inclusive dolphin/manatee/sea lion tour"...make sure you haggle prices, especially on the photo CD of the dolphin swim (we paid a lot less than they originally asked).
Loved the Mayan ruins tour with "Native Choice Tours", it's a long day but worth it if you like history. If you don't want to go far, there is plenty to do without leaving the port, including a huge pool with restaurants , bars & shopping.
Happy to read that your first cruise was wonderful and that you'll be cruising again. I also enjoyed the Getaway when I cruised last year. Happy Anniversary.
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