Have done this itinerary before on the NCL Encore , Bliss and Jewel. Last time on the Encore, in 2021, ship capacity was held down to about 60%. This time it was at 100% or more. I was expecting crowding, and that was certainly the case. The main choke points were at the elevators and in the buffet. If you are able to take the stairs, which we mostly were not, you can get where you are going with relative ease. In the likely event there are no tables in the Garden Cafe, there are some tables outside nearby with overhead heaters. Also, the Local on deck 8 is a free sit down place with quick service and great food. The specialty dining was wonderful, we had four for this seven day cruise. Honestly, we did not need that much fancy food. We did not try any of the main dining rooms this time. As noted by others, the Observation deck was filled with campers. Not so much an issue when it was foggy. There were a surprising number of children, considering this was the first week of school, but they were not causing any trouble. It was curious to note there were a number of possibly disabled folks who chose to rent "Scoot About" scooters only to abandon them in the isles where others were attempting to walk. Where did those disabled people go? A sudden cure? We did enjoy some live music, and there was an interesting girl fight on the pool deck. Big security response. Oh, and Alaska is breathtakingly beautiful. We will perhaps go again. Probably choose a smaller ship next time.