New Ship Smell

We arrived at the dock a bit before 11:00 a,m., boarding started at noon. There was plenty of space to relax, and some light refreshments were available. Boarding went smoothly once it started.

The Hudson main dining room was as nice as many of the specialty dining rooms I've seen. The lights were nicely designed with crystals set in shiny gold colored leaves. The lights themselves were in the ceiling. I don't know if it was designed this way, but the vibration of the ship caused the leaves to vibrate and the light shining through the crystals gave a shimmering effect. Hudson's is at the very aft of the ship and has tall windows, giving a nice view. The food was always well prepared and tasty. While I've always had great service on NCL ships, this one was even better. the Commodore room has the same menu as Hudson's, but not quite as elegant a room. We didn't eat much in the buffet, just picked up a few snacks, but it looked good and we liked what we did have. The Local was good for a casual meal. One side is more of a bar, but food could be ordered. The other side is set up for dining. The Indulge Food Hall is a wonderful concept. There are several venues, Indian, BBQ, salads, desserts and more. There are tablets on the tables, you order on the tablets and the food is brought to you. It is all included except for Starbucks and the specialty desserts. It was popular, and we loved it. The main dining rooms have the same menu every day. There is one meal from a specialty restaurant that changes each night and is $15. While others may disagree, I liked the menu being the same each day. It is extensive enough that even on a 12 day cruise I didn't repeat any of the dinners. If you have any food preferences or restrictions, you can find the menus on line and plan ahead. With the menu not changing, if there's something you like you're not restricted to having it just once. Cagney's Steakhouse is excellent as always, there's not much to add to the many reviews. Onda by Scarpetta was new to me, with excellent Italian food. Palomar is a Mediterranean seafood restaurant, and also new to me and to NCL. I need to repeat the word excellent again. I do have a couple complaints about the dining. First, the rooms are too small. The ship was about 60% capacity and at peak times, we sometimes found the venues full. I believe the ship was designed for warm weather cruises, and the weather was cold and windy, it remains to be seen if the situation improves when outdoor dining is used. We did have to wait for lunch at The Local one day, the do have buzzers to let you know when a table is ready, and we only waited about 10 or 15 minutes. Make sure to reserve specialty dining the minute reservations are available or you may not get them at all. My second complaint is there is no more "washy washy happy happy." If you've never been on an NCL ship, there are employees outside the dining venues with spray bottles of alcohol to disinfect your hands, and they always chant "washy washy happy happy." If it was needed before covid, it's especially needed now.

We started each day with a trivia game. It was fun, and there were mostly the same participants so we got to know several other passengers. The racetrack and dry slides were fun. The weather was very cold and windy, so I can't comment on the pools. The dry slide is not as scary as it looks, give it a try. The mini golf was not yet fully functional, so it was free, and the only reason I knocked off one star. The casino had the usual tight slots and video poker. Craps, blackjack and roulette were $10 minimum. Craps had 3-4-5x odds, and the stingy 2x on the 12 in the field. The $10 blackjack table paid 6:5, so you're better off going to the $15 table to get the full 3:2 payout. Ultimate Texas Hold 'em, Three Card Poker, Mississippi Stud and Let it Ride were $5 minimum. Baccarat was $25 minimum.

Summer: The Donna Summer Musical is a do not miss. It's a musical about Donna Summer's life and career, with three actresses playing her at different stages of her life, often at the same time. The Price is Right was lots of fun. Like dining, the theater is too small, make sure to make reservations the minute reservations are available. I was unable to see Noise Boys and one or two other shows I wanted to see. This is the only reason I knocked one star off. There are plenty of good musicians playing around the ship. There are other games around the ship. I won on "Stop the Bus" (ship) game, got an NCL bottle opener (Yay!)

While I've always received good service on NCL, this ship carries it to a new level. The crew is always friendly and greets you.

The ship is spotless, although being a new ship, that's to be expected. The common areas are kept clean. I found the layout to be confusing, it took several days to figure out where I was going. Again, the venues are too small, I hope this gets corrected on future Leonardo class ships. NCL promised that there will be more room in the common areas, but they didn't use that extra space for the theater or dining venues.

The cabins, as promised, are good size. I'm average height, but on my last cruise if I stretched out on the bed my feet hung off the end. This one, I could stretch out and still have several inches to spare. The bathroom and shower are huge by cruise ship standards. Cruise ships are known for never having enough electrical outlets. My cabin had three US electrical outlets, one European outlet, three USB and three USB-C outlets. Thanks NCL! There are three closets across from the bathroom, plenty of storage space. The closets have lights on motion detectors.

Disembarkation went smoothly, no complaints.