Like so many of the previous reviewers, I find this episode to be among the best of any in the entire Trek franchise ... and more, simply one of the best episodes of any TV show, any genre, over time. And I'm frankly bewildered by the couple of negative reviewers who seem unable to empathize with the quiet power & beauty of this deeply moving father-son story.
If you're reading these reviews, you already know the basic plot: young Jake Sisko loses his father in a bizarre accident that strands Benjamin Sisko in a timeless limbo, from which he emerges for a brief moment every so often over Jake's lifetime. The plot mechanics of this are unimportant -- what matters is the human story of a son losing his father, yearning for his presence, never quite whole because of that loss, and struggling to cope with it & set it right.
I just watched it again last night, which makes it at least a dozen times since it first aired. My father was alive then; he died a few years later. So the wrenching emotional punch of this story has only grown over time for me ... and, I suspect, for the vast majority of those who have also watched it. Were there tears streaming down my face by the end, this time around? Oh, yes. Anyone who loved & lost their father understands.
Next Generation justly takes pride in "The Inner Light" -- but "The Visitor" is easily its equal, and in many ways even more meaningful & rich. I'll definitely be watching it many more times to come in the future.