snownow

Ok my daughter will love this! Are you able to sign up on the first day of boarding?

We have done many cruises with our daughter on several lines. RCCL, NCL, Disney, Princess, Holland and now at age 10 she has decided that NCL is her favorite line. I completely agree. Disney was fun for a while but now that the characters are not important to her I would not even consider DCL anymore. Too much money compared the the competition. And NCL has the Haven which is a must have for us now. Disney and most other lines do not have anything as nice as the Haven.

We are in the same boat... so to speak... Have done carnival, Disney and NCL. If your children are less than 6 Disney is amazing. If they are older, and have moved past loving the mouse.:evilsmile: We decided to try NCL last year on the newer boat they have. We were able to get 2 connecting rooms, for less than a standard room on Disney. At 10 and 14 they like the options NCL has over Disney.

Teens i doubt you will see them much.. Just saying... :confused:

My nine year old did spend quite of bit of time in the kid pool, or even in the kiddie play area. We normally were able to grab few chairs right above that area behind the bar area. It does block some of the sound from the main pool area, you can keep an good eye on them, its close to the slide stairs, and well the bar. Only negative is that bar is a smoking area so from time to time you do smell smoke.

To the OP. Main pool area is a horrid design. Get there early and camp, or get lucky. However, if you are looking for a quieter place to lounge there were always chairs on the decks above and in spice. You do miss the pool area shenanigans though.

How big of a struggle is it going to be on Sea Days to find 4 or 5 together for my husband, myself and our 3 kids? I don't care if it is right on the pool deck but I really hope we will be able to lounge around and relax a bit (a deck or two up would be nice) all together since we can escape to Spice H2O but our 3 kids (2 teens, 1 9 yr old) cannot.

 

I don't intend in spending much or any time in the small pools but will try the waterslides. Same with kids I imagine.

100% agree, the internet is horrid. Skip it, get the dining package. It really does add to the trip. We also tend to get the beverage package as well... but that is more of a personal choice.

I don't have personal experience yet because our trip is in June but I chose the excursions and dining partially because I heard the internet is slow. Plus, I sort of prefer to stay out of touch for a while on vacation, but that's just me. And seeing some of the specialty dining options had me intrigued. There's a lot to choose from. I figured that would add more to my vacation experience than internet anyways.

Okay too funny. Great video, your DH has a great sense of humor... from one dad to another

More than enough time. Also might try Jiffy Jeff ... lol that is his company name. He was cheap, super fast, Very on time , and small company with 2 Mercedes vans for pick up.

Thanks for the Tip on Native choice, great reviews on them.

So we are on a western cruise this summer and the Wife and kids want to head to a Mayan ruin. Any thoughts on what port to head out from? Any imput on the locations below would be great. We did visit Tulum.... 25 years ago (pre kids)

Costa Maya and go see Kohunlich and Dzibanche?

Chacchoben Mayan Ruins?

or

Tulum from Cozumel?

Yes, it will be horrible. Don't take them. JK

 

I agree... take me :)

While i can speak for the west coast boats, we did just get off the escape. My 10 year old never wanted to leave splash academy..... ever. She loved it, NCL has done a good job with our children both trips this year.

Tortola - did the Ultimate Adventure Jost Van Dyke this was so worth every penny! Took a small rapid inflatable boat (RIB) with 7 of us completely around Tortola. Stopped at Jost Van Dyke for an hour. Such an awesome beach.

 

Thanks for your review - we leave mid-December! Can you tell me more about your Tortola excursion? Was it private? Who'd you book through? Did you have to charter, or only purchase your tickets? How about time frame? the short day in Tortola scares me for doing too much. Appreciate your thoughts!

We did the Escape to Jost van dyke.... In going to agree, woth every penny. I love this place. It is less adventurous than the Adventure one but had more time on the island. I love this place... I wonder if one of the bars is for sale :)

The last two trips we have stayed at the airport Hilton. Its not amazing, but its close, has a nice pool bar. There is also a free shuttle from the airport every 15 minutes. For groups coming in at different times, or if you are looking for easy its a solid choice.

Getting to the port i believe they also have a for pay shuttle. Our group was large enough both times we used Jiffy Jeff... yep that is the actual the name of the company. Around a $100 bucks, and we had a nice Mercedes van take us.

If your looking for the beach we have also stayed at Fontainebleau... It was a very nice hotel. Great view, great pool, very nice service, much more expensive. Also a much younger vibe.

This summer we were in the same place you are now....

Background we have sailed on Disney twice and had great times. Food was good, service was great, Ship is very clean, our girls loved ship board activities and had a good time in Kids camp. We also love Castaway Cay.

However, This year they are 9 and 13 and pretty much over the mouse fascination. We went with the Escape, and feel it was well worth it. From the kids view, they loved the specialty restaurants and did not feel smothered by the wait staff. Our older girl liked the teen camp, and the younger liked kids camp the same if not more than Disney. Added bonuses are the faster slides, and the ropes course. They both wanted to go back for thanksgiving.

From the parent point of view we got two rooms, for less than all of us cramming in an single Disney room. For the parents out there let me repeat... we got our own room!!!! :D (connected to the kids). That plus the beverage package were the deciding factor. Service on the Escape was very good, and nearly comparable to Disney. The wife felt the food was better on the Escape. It is a new ship, still super clean and has the best staff NCL has to offer.

If you do end up on the Escape... go see the Chocolate Cowboy, Awesome dude.

A stack of ones... service gets soooo much better with a stack of ones and UBP. :)

Extra water bottles, not trying to start a debate with the new policy. Just a good idea.

Our trip, 1 zip line was closed the entire week. Staff member said it had been closed for a very long time. The other two were off and on, depending on weather, and them breaking down a bunch. Third level was only open in port. The course itself was open every day, and a ton of fun. Even with the zips being closed.

They opened ours in June, no issue.

No,

We do bring water on board, the wife and kids like to have it in the room. It will end up just buying it on board for 10x the price, that is a bummer. But not a deal breaker :)

So instead of people trying to smuggle alcohol on board now, there may be underground water smuggling. Lol... Way to create problems for themselves.

Me too. I'm going in November and have been looking every day.

Same here, i even emailed the company to see if they were running with NCL in November... I have not heard back from them as of yet.

UOTE=MarkE;50308922]We will be going with our son and his wife and two boys on the Escape on the 8 day July 23 cruise. This will be their first time on this ship and mine also been on the Getaway which is quite similar. We booked just the other day so pre booking specialty dining is limited times.

Can you once on board book other times for dining at Specialty venues? Party of 6

We did, the same day we got on. we had to re-arrange some plans. It was no issue.

My son is interested in good shore excursions for the family like snorkeling or other fun things rather than shopping and riding on a bus. Any suggestions on NCL or private tours?

Is equipment provided or do you have to rent?

We did twice as nice, nice ride out, two places to snorkel then a nice sail back. Staff was awesome. As stated in some of the other comments, they have gear. But we also brought our own. The kids wanted the new full face masks vs traditional gear. It worked out very well for them.

Can you wear nice shorts to the dining room?

People were wearing them, in all of them.

My son wants to be active with his family so any suggestions would be great.

Ropes course, ropes course, ropes course oh and dodge ball!.

Is bottled water included in the premium beverage package?

The luggage tag and bring your own works best. We brought two cases on board, they delivered it to our room.

thanks for any help.

Once you experience it, you will wonder why Cruise ships didn't have them years ago.

 

 

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We just got off the ship, and it was my favorite place on board. Pool area is crazy, waterfront is the place to be if you just want to relax and see the ocean go by. Nice relaxing couches and chairs. Plus a must visit is the 5o'clock somewhere outside bar. They "Chocolate Cowboy" is the best bartender on the ship.

The Escape will have a few more things to do,,, but if you just got off the Escape, maybe something new (Getaway) is the way to go. The ships are cousins. We have sailed on the Escape, Getaway, and Breakaway twice each,,, and wouldn't hesitate to book any of them.

 

Right now, our favorite is the Escape because of the variety of (gotta-pay-more) specialty restaurants.

We ate at four of them (gotta-pay-More), and they are doing it right as far quality. Loved all four... Having three on a package was nice.

The Escape even with the number of people on board never felt super crowded (other than the pool :confused:). How does the getaway compare?

Modernos:

Grilled pineapples (also served at outdoor BBQ sometimes)

Fried bananas - NOT the plantains

 

Le Bistro:

Mushroom soup

Steak

Second the pineapple at Modernos... :)

We are fresh of the Escape (and loved it), and are now looking at booking a Thanksgiving cruise. For those that have sailed on the Escape and the Getaway, any suggestions or preference of ship?

We would be a party of ten ranging from 65 to 7 with 4 kids. We have also been to all the ports on both cruises, minus the cay.

Thanks...I am a legendary over tipper.

After reading some reviews here i took a $100 in ones, and tipped when i could. I will say service was good with out tipping, and Very good when I did.

They will open them. We just got off today, our attendant opened it immediately without question. From looking around, there were several in our area of the ship open as well.

Same for us, works out well with the kids :)

For us, November *Thanksgiving week* and June.

 

Thanksgiving week is great for the kids -- they only miss 1 1/2 days and they usually aren't productive days.

 

Or in June just after school ends.