About the worst cruise we have ever had, and we won;t consider NCL again.
Embarkation
1 out of 5
Apparently the ship was flagged for three inspections on docking in NYC, but no one told the waiting passengers about the cause of the delay. In our case, after a grueling day travelling on a NCL booked air package, miscommunications about our arrival time at the terminal, the shttle and having to travel in the shuttle with our carry-on bags in our laps, the delay at the terminal almost made us say "I want to go home".
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
2 out of 5
Besides being hard to find, the main restaurants were marginal. They were noisy, service was spotty and the hot food was occasionally served cold. The Buffet was also noisy, crowded and it was difficult to find specific items. Scrambled eggs tasted powdered. Some items (ice cream, crepes, cookies) were available only at certain times of day. Staff were generally helpful.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
The fitness center was very well equipped, clean and quiet. Other activities seemed to be limited to game shows and trivia. The only "quiet place" we found was the library, which was small, and had chairs which were uncomfortable for short people.
Entertainment
2 out of 5
All entertainment we went to was LOUD, and most was marginal, at best. There were no port lectures that we saw on the daily schedule, and the one lecturer on Iceland/Greenland was a terrible presenter.
Children's Programs
No kids. Although we saw lists of kids running around and yelling.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
The staff were generally good, and our room was usuall made up by about 3 pm.
Ship Quality
2 out of 5
The layout and design of the ship were terrible. You could not get to some locations without back-tracking for long distances. Common areas were clean and seemed well maintained, although the stateroom showers could use some work.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
The cabin was so small that there was not room for a bedside table on either side when in double bed format. In order to accomodiate 2 CPAP machines, wh had to use the twin bed format with only one table.
Sounds like you missed some important research like studying the deck plans. This ship layout is the same as the Dawn and the 4 Jewel ships. Deck 6 between the 2 MDRs is not passable due to the Main Kitchen being located there. Aft MDR is accessed on Deck 7 via the aft elevators not hidden at all. If you can't do the steps, one of the aft elevators goes down to deck 6 for Wheelchairs. Go to Deck 7 aft elevator bank and press the down button. Except for Deck 6 I don't recall any decks requiring a roundabout way to get around. I recommend the behind the scenes tour for everyone so they understand the layout and visit the kitchen and laundry. Also, spend some time studying the deck plans pre cruise so you know where everything is located.
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