Just completed the May 26-Jun 3 sailing on Norwegian Getaway and overall, I thought NCL was very good. Some good and bad below
Good
Food was excellent. Many people complained about the buffet, but its a buffet. If you are expecting anything more than diner grade food, you have the wrong expectations. Complementary dining was good too. We did 2 nights in the Tropicana room and 2 nights at the Noodle Bar. Both were good, but Tropicana room made you feel like you were in a 1920's dining club. We did Cagney's, Moderno and Teppanaki. I'd pass on Moderno again, wasnt what I expected.
Shows were good. Burn the Floor isnt my thing, but it was good. Million Dollar Quartet was fantastic. The pop up shows were good too, especially on the last sea day where it rained most of the day.
Cabins were extremely quiet. I couldnt hear noise from other rooms or the hallway. And the cruise had plenty of kids running around
Embarktion was quick. We checked in around 10 and were on the ship by 11. It felt like we had a full day of vacation on the ship. Debarktion was a bit chaotic, but most seem to be that way. No one cares about customer service when people are leaving.
Not NCL related, but since we live near Port Canaveral, we got to drive to the ship, which was a bonus. This is our first cruise since moving to FL from NJ and was a great perk. We did self debark and were off the ship and home by 10am.
Not so Good
The sail away party wasnt much of a party. The cruise director didnt even bother to show up. It lasted about 20 min and wrapped up.
There is one (1!) pool for 4000 people and there was room for less than 30 sun loungers that could actually be in the sun. Also, for some reason, NCL decided to put 2 smoking areas directly adjacent to the pool, one on each side. Good luck finding somewhere near the pool where you didnt smell smoke. we decided to sit in the H2O area where there is a small plunge pool but only 30 people or so could be in there at one time. Most people found a place in the pool and never left. With two sea days and one port arrival at 1:30 in the afternoon, it was very disappointing not to be able to find a place to cool off after sitting in the sun.
Overall, it was a fun trip, because our group of 10 made it fun. I will sail on NCL again, but not on the Breakaway class. The pool situation turned me off and most of the time the ship felt crowded. Most of the activities were confined to the small atrium area with a few hundred or a thousand people trying to cram into a small area to watch a show, get a drink at the Atrium bar or Starbucks. With the guest services and shore excursion areas adjacent to the atrium, it was always packed with people. The entertainment staff were dull at best. The food was excellent and the best when compared to other lines I've sailed.