We made arrangements for flights to go along with our cruise thru Norwegian. We landed at Houston airport Sat morning the 3rd and it waqs a longggggg way from where the plane landed to where the buses would take us to the ship. It was not very well organized at that point and most of us were confused about where to catch the buses. This is the one area that really needs to be worked on by them. But,we got through it all and met some nice people while waiting for the buses. It was a nice ride to the port and I have to say..my wife and I thought it went very smooth once we got there. They got us on the boat and through the prelim stuff easily. by the way..before you go..we would strongly urge you to pre-register online. It makes it all go smoother. Once on,we were directed to the cabin by a crew member and they were very nice. Our luggage got there a little bit later and had no problem. The rooms....well,they are cruise ship rooms and they are not that big,rather small; but..you are not in the room that much. The rooms had plenty of storgae. The bathrooms; hey,they did their job. They are compact..but efficient.

This is not one of those huge new megaships,so you donot get a lot of luxurious amenities that they have. But, to use it was very enjoyable. You were able to mingle with more people and the crew seemed so much friendlier too. Always helpful,fast, and real friendly towards you. on our cruise we had the free style dining and it was wonderful! The serving staff was knowledgable, and again friendly and seemed happier to help you. at night, we either ate at the Seven Seas or the Four Seasons restaurants. The food was great ,the service was as good as we have received at any 5 star restaurants where we live(Cleveland Ohio). Personally, we do not think you have to go the the Le Bistro( the restaurant where you pay a small extra surcharge) for food and service. What we received at these couldnot be topped. Breakfast we usually did the Big Apple cafe and enjoyed the food and view from the dining room there. Plenty to offer in food. And also they served on the deck also at breakfast they made omelets and waffles outside,lunch they did the burgers and stuff, and early dinner they did burgers,ribs, and stuff like that also. And fruit..fruit all over the place. My wife and I scrfed down like it was no tomorrow on the fruit. Was good and fresh and cut nicely.
The drinks do add up. And those drink servers;G-d bless them!!! They really pitched them all the time. One smart thing to do which we did;if you want to buy a drink and make sure you get the right amount of liquor in them; go to the bar. Order directly at the bar for drinks amnd they will sometimes add extra liquor at no extra cost if you ask. Another smart thing to do is to buy that soft drink pass for $30. This gives you unlimited soft drinks for the entire cruise. May seem alot at first,but it will save you in the long run.

The casino was nice and the dealers were friendly and helpful. The shop on the ship was small but had some real good bargains. The liqour you bought there was cheaper then buying it on shore at any of the cruise stops. Lots to do with things always going on in the ship or you could just relax by the pool and enjoy the sun(okay..I admit we got lucky and had no rain and all sun during our cruise).The exercise room was small but adequate. It was never that crowded though and they did have a nice selection of machines.

Our first stop was Cozumel. We decided to not take a tour but shopped for jewelry and things along the main drag. You have never seem so many jewelry stores in your life. You learn to bargain real fast there and we picked up some fabuous buys there. Silver was the best buy there and cuban cigars. of course..you had to smoke them before you got back to the states because it is considered contaband. In Cozumel..it is a lot better to use dollars as oppesed to the peso. A wonderful stop and enjoyed it immensely.

Roatan Is land was our next stop. We took the Tabayan beach resort tour they had offerd. Was a long ride there but saw some wonderful scenery. It is a poorer area but some of the homes you saw were fabulous and spectacular views of the sea. The beach resort was nice,they served a nice lunch there and had a nice beach. The water was crystal clear and the sun was nice direct and hot. Relaxing and a nice respite.
In Belieze, we took one of the Mayan ruin tours. The one with the ruin and touring he Old belieze river. The bus ridew to the ruins was about an hour and a half and it was quite a trip. Very exciting,bumpy, and adventurous. The ruins was a sight that should not be missed. Amazing,simply amazing. The river tour back was a chance to see some of the jungle and animals that lived there. We cannot say enough about it. Not to be missed. And..with the hot day..the water spraying in your face when the boat put the pedal to the metal was refreshing.

Cancun had to be tendered to the dock. And there they start with the local vendors selling you junk. And it was junk on the boat. But they also provided comic relief when they sold out of something and miraculously pulled out the same thing again and again(was hilarious). We spent most of our time at the flea market called Coral Negro. We hightly recommend it.Great bargains (we bought some silver chains there)and extremely competitive among the vendors. By the way,you don't know what high pressure sales tactics are till you see there guys operate. it was a sight to sere and them go at us.One thing, in Cancun..it seems they prefer the peso as opposed to dollars.

Checkout went smooth and was nice to be back in the states.

A helpful hint by the way when you go on the cruise is to read that daily activity paper. Very informative and great for planning.
 
We would definitely go back on this cruise and the ship. We thought that most people who complained about this or in other reviews expected they were getting the Queen Mary and at this price you werenot. But, for the price we thought it was money well spent and a real bargain. The crew were nice,friendly,talkative,smiling, and genuinely happy to be serving us. The free style dining was a fantastic idea for Norwegian (you could go to eat very casual or dress up) . It was our best vacation since our honeymoon . A litt le P.S. before we go. At the captain's dinner..we had our picture taken with him. He looks an awful lot like Frazier Crane.