I went on my first solo cruise to the Caribbean and worried about getting bored on the ship. I ended up having more fun than expected.

I'm a very restless person by nature, so I find just lying around a pool extremely unsatisfying.

From my only other NCL cruise way back in 2014, I knew most of the main activities were at night, but I couldn't recall if I enjoyed the sea days' events.

I've traveled solo on backpacking trips through Europe, Asia, and South America — though I typically stayed in hostels where meeting people tends to be easier than what I was anticiapting on the boat.

Technically, my Norwegian trip was the first solo sailing I've taken on a large vessel with all of the bells and whistles of what people think of when they hear "cruise" — like a casino, fancy pools, and multiple dining rooms.

Before that, I went alone on a 200-person expedition ship to Antarctica. It was a physically tough experience, and I wouldn't equate that to a relaxing ride to the Caribbean.

There were several at-sea days of sailing between Argentina and Antarctica — four of which were across the Drake Passage, where waves constantly rocked the boat.

I mostly entertained myself by watching downloaded movies, going to science lectures, or playing board games with other passengers, but there were definitely spans of time where I felt time passing way too slowly.

The 12-deck Norwegian Sky is the company's second-oldest and second-smallest ship.

I have been on only a few cruises, so I don't really have much to compare the Sky to — yet. But I can imagine cruise fanatics would care a lot about the boat.

My cruise departed on Friday, January 26. I selected a 9:30 a.m. check-in so I could board as quickly as possible, and I ended up in Group 1 and was on the boat by noon — meaning I still had a day's worth of time to fill.

And, to my surprise, the safety briefing was just going to my assembly station to get a yellow sticker on my room key. That saved time.

Games like Bingo, Wheel-of-Fortune, and Deal-or-no-Deal cost extra. These seemed fun but not worth the money.

There were other themed trivia throughout the weekend, like car logos and "airlines of the world."

I go to a lot of pub trivia at home, and there are never any aviation-themed questions — so I was thrilled to see airlines.

My one-way cruise to the Dominican Republic was a repositioning sailing to get the Sky to La Romana in order to situate the ship for a proper 11-day trip island-hopping around the Caribbean.

Some people, like me, got off in La Romana, but a lot of passengers were booked to stay the entire 14 days.

The first show was a sing-off style performance, while the other was a series of rock song covers.

I'm no theater expert, but I personally thought the singers were incredible, as well as the dancers — and the cruise director, Will, dancing along with the crew was quite entertaining, too.

The NCL Sky is small, so the lounges and social spaces are not as grandiose as other ships.

The lobby on the Sky is particularly tiny, which is the only area I found annoyingly crowded.

My sailing was apparently close to full, but I was surprised by the crowd control even though there were up to 2,000 guests onboard.

There was always an open chair outside, and getting an elevator was typically easy.

All of these are an additional cost, though Starbucks can be included in the drink package.

Personally, I skipped the package because there's no way I could consume enough coffee and alcohol to justify the $200+ price, though I know plenty of people who could.

I'm extremely busy at home when I'm not traveling, so I don't have a lot of time for sit-down meals or cooking and end up eating a lot of takeout — so the restaurant-grade food was a nice change.

The specialty restaurants cost extra, while the dining rooms have rotating menus, and you can order as many appetizers, entrées, and desserts as your heart desires.

The buffet and restaurants have set hours, while the pub has food available nearly all night, opening at 6 p.m. and closing at 3 a.m.

The main dining rooms were only available during breakfast, lunch, and dinner hours, but I could still eat in between because the buffet and pizza bar were open between noon and 4 p.m.

That may make me sound like a slob, but part of the fun of vacation is guilt-free eating.

The sushi option was one of the cheaper specialty meals available, and I tried it just for fun.

While the food was good, it wasn't worth the money when there were plenty of free meals all around the ship.

I'm not sure if slow service is common on cruise ships, but my food took 45 minutes on two separate occasions.

I personally didn't mind, I enjoyed being in the restaurant and able to look out at the water. I regularly got a window table, which was nice.

Other cruise lines with scheduled dining will sometimes put solo travelers at the same table as strangers in the dining rooms, which is not something I'd be comfortable with.

I like NCL's freestyle dining because I could go to the restaurant anytime I wanted, not at a set time. This meant I could get my own table and not have to navigate any social situations.

I walked around the pool deck when I wanted some fresh air or to read, but I've never been a pool person. And I don't consider myself a party animal or a big drinker.

And that's all fine. There was plenty of other stuff that interested me.

Cruise ships have to cater to people of all ages, genders, and personalities, and I think Norwegian did a good job despite having less living space to work with on the Sky.

The one-way cruise left Miami on Friday, had an at-sea day on Saturday, was in port most of Sunday, and disembarked on Monday morning.

The port had pools, a beach, restaurants, a bar, shopping, and even a lazy river, all a short walk from the boat.

It all looked really nice, actually, and I wish I had time to explore this area more.

Booking an excursion with the cruise line will ensure you get back to the boat on time. If you go out and about on your own, make sure to watch the clock, or the ship could leave without you.

The tour took me into the mountainous area of the island, which is more my style since I love hiking and adventurous activities.

My group was about 25 people, so I was kind of forced to chat. I'm glad I did, though.

And I loved meeting the locals, who were great tour guides.

Part of the reason I love solo traveling, in general, is all of the interesting people I meet. And I'm happy the cruise was no different.

NCL puts a daily solo meetup on the schedule. I went the first night, but it was awkward, with no clear indication of who was solo or any type of icebreaker game.

This may have just been my experience, though. My new friend said she had a great time at a solo meetup on a previous NCL cruise to Alaska.

I personally like cruising because of the opportunity to explore the boat and go to the shows and events. The concept just allures me.

I definitely needed to keep up with my morning workout, given how much I was eating. The gym was a good size and overlooked the water.

When I travel alone, I love that I don't have to compromise with anyone on what to do or where to eat. Simply, there's no drama.

The comedy headliner was named A-Train, and I saw his first act on Friday evening.

He was truly hilarious, and I was a little bummed I missed his adult comedy on Saturday night — but it was playing at 11 p.m., and that was just too late for me.

The inside cabin was the cheapest option, and for the short trip, I didn't want to spend another few hundred to upgrade.

I was happy I didn't because I slept so well, and I'll keep booking an inside cabin on future cruises.

The all-inclusive aspect is the biggest difference between solo cruising and hostel-hopping in places like Eastern Europe, which is where I spent my early 20s.

I liked that everything — food, excursions, and hotel — was already paid for when I boarded, minus the few beers I ended up buying.

We docked next to a giant Royal Caribbean ship with slides and other amenities poking out of its deck.

A large number of passengers stayed for the full 14 days, though I don't think the Sky is amenity-heavy enough for me to commit to a two-week voyage.

Business Insider's Brittany Chang sailed on the billion-dollar Norwegian Prima in 2022 with 18 decks, a 10-story slide, and a three-level go-kart track.

These amenities take cruising to the next level, and experiencing a longer sailing on an even bigger ship is next on my bucket list.