Norwegian Sea

Embarkation was delayed because of a rainstorm earlier that morning. The cruise line waited until the rain storm was over before starting disembarkation of the previous cruise. It was an understandable delay. However, it was HOT and muggy in Houston (nothing new there) and the facilities needed to be better air conditioned. However, since this cruise will not be offered after the end of December, I doubt if any improvements will be made. After about an hour wait we were able to board the ship.

We entered the ship on Deck 4 by the Crystal Court. Escorts were available to take you to your cabin. That is a nice touch

Crystal Court

We had a Inside cabin (category L) on the Biscayne (Deck 2) Deck. It was extremely small, especially for the 3 of us. Though I will say, that there was enough storage space. We had our cabin decorated in honor of our daughter's 16th birthday. There were signs, streamers, confetti on the floor and a birthday cake. Our cabin steward was the worst we have ever had. He never came to introduce himself. I had to go find him to get towels for our stateroom. The confetti was on the floor for 5 days before he vacuumed our stateroom. His tip reflected the service we received.

Our tiny, Inside cabin

After getting settled in our stateroom, we met our friends for lunch up at the Big Apple Cafe. Typical buffet food.

Big Apple Cafe

There are 2 dining rooms available: Four Season located midship and Seven Seas located aft. We were assigned the aft dining room. I had really expected a lot of vibration and noise, but was pleasantly surprised. Even though we hadn't requested any special service other than celebrating my daughter's birthday. Our head waiter came by our table every night and visited with us. Our waiter and busboy was also exceptional. The wine steward knew by the second evening what type of wine we enjoyed and had several good suggestions for us. The food was average, with the desserts being below average.

One evening we ate at the Le Bistro with our friends and without our teenagers. What a pleasant dining experience. The French Onion Soup was incredible, much better than what was served in the dining room.

This ship is scheduled to call at Cancun, Cozumel and Roatan Bay Islands, Honduras.

Cancun used to be one of our favorite vacation spots. However, it has become very commercialized and we now prefer Cozumel. It is a 45-minute tender ride from the ship to Cancun. The trip seemed a lot longer. We stayed at the dock area for a couple of hours. There was a fairly nice beach located there

We docked at the pier close to town in Cozumel, so it made it within walking distance (though it was a long walk). We did a morning sightseeing to the ruins and then stopped at a resort for snorkeling. The snorkeling was not as good as in the past as there had been a storm the day before and the water was a little on the murky side.

Roatan has the best snorkeling. We went out to Tabyana Beach for the day. If you are a snorkeler than skip the semi-submersible tour. It was very hot in there, though the viewing was excellent. Even saw a shark! Roatan is a poor country and to get to Tabyana (about 30 minute ride) you travel through the poorest sections of their main town. There is shopping available at the pier though I didn't check any of the items that were for sale

The quality of entertainment on this ship was outstanding. We really enjoyed the show, "Grease" and the musical reviews. There was a magician and a comedian that performed at several shows.

The casino was not paying as well as some ships we have cruised. At least I broke even!

For those people that can't get enough of the Internet and just have to check their email, there is an Internet Cafe. Prices are high: Basic- $0.75 per minute plus $3.50 for Email. The Internet Cafe is open 24 hours

One complaint that I did have is in regard to the Soft Drink card for kids to age 16. Instead of marking the boarding pass with an ID showing that a soft drink ticket has been paid for, they give the kids a lidded drink cup that they have to keep up with and carry around with them all of the time. What teenager do you know wants to be seen carrying a "kiddie cup?" This feature needs to revised.

If you like this itinerary and/or not having to fly to Miami, then you need to sail before the end of December. Norwegian Cruise Line is pulling this ship out of the Texas market and repositioning it to Miami.

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