The ship was nice although as is the case with any "pack em in tight" cruise these days it was very crowded. I was happy with our cabin size (inside cabin) and our bathroom/shower was larger than I expected. The ship has a number of nice features but I didn't utilize many of them due to the constant crowd using each feature.
I hadn't sailed with NCL before and had assumed they were a higher tier cruise line, but alas now that I've experienced them I would say they are in the same league as Carnival.
The embarkation and disembarkation process was well organized and relatively painless considering the fact that they have to get 2000 people and their luggage on board and off again in a short amount of time.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
The food and service in the two main restaurants (Windows and Garden) was VERY inconsistent. OUr first meal in Windows was excellent but it went downhill from there. One night my wife and daughter both had fish entrees but had to send them back, we didn't have time for a replacement because it took so long for the food to arrive the first time and we wanted to get to a show before the venue filled up.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
We attended a few shows that were quite entertaining but if you didn't arrive at the theater 20 - 30 minutes ahead of show time it was unlikely you'd get a seat.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Housekeeping staff looking after the stateroom were consistently high quality and very friendly. Other staff however (front desk/reception, restaurant wait staff and front desk) were usually quite poor with a few exceptions. One night we waited an incredibly long time for our food to arrive only to have to send it back because it wasn't prepared properly. Another night we were waiting for a table in the waiting area only to notice that several couples that arrived a long time after us were being seated ahead of us. When I pointed this out to the front desk staff there was no apology only a terse reply. If I hadn't insisted they seat us next I'm really not confident they would have dealt with the issue at all.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
The ship was in good condition overall. Things worked. I would say everything was pretty clean and well maintained although some furnishings in the more heavily used lounge/bar areas are showing their wear.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
As mentioned above, the stateroom was a reasonable size and well equipped. I was pleasantly surprised at the sound insulation (only heard our neighbors a few times) and the bathroom was a nice size. Considering we purchased the cheapest stateroom (interior) I think it was comfortable.
This was a great base location. Easy access to the bus and ferry service (buy the transport pass) and we never had to wait very long for transport. There's a nice tourist shopping area and a couple of restaurants. There's a museum but we didn't make time to go see it. It was a nice area to explore in the evenings after having visited Hamilton or St. George.
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