Ellis1138

It's why I always went for the free scooped hard ice cream in the buffet. I'm not a soft serve person, even when it's real cream.

I found this extremely helpful. Thank you so much.

I gave to correct the above post. There is free ice cream, both hard and soft, on the Escape. You can order a bowl of ice cream at the MDR as dessert, there were 2 hard-scoop ice cream stations at the Buffet (each side had a few different flavors from the other) and there was the soft serve ice cream in the Buffet in one section. These were all complimentary.

I hope you'll see my post to you in time to save the rest of your steaks. Or that someone else going on NCL will see it and avoid the leather steak problem. I had this issue on the Escape; the sirloin medallions the first night, which I had asked for "medium rare" came out very well done. I told my waiter, in a polite way, that I couldn't eat it when it was cooked like this. So, it was sent back and after a second attempt, the medallions came to me as medium rare and delicious. This also happened with the sirloin on another night. Sent it back and got better steak. I don't make a Karen-style fuss about it. I just ask nicely. So hopefully this could help someone else to know that you don't have to accept the unacceptable well done steaks.

If you don't have too much luggage, you could do what I did and go to Penn Station and catch the NJ Transit trains. I had a backpack, crossbody bag, cpap bag, fanny pack and a 25" spinner and was able to maneuver them through Penn and onto the Northeast Corridor. But I don't know where in NJ you're going.

It's odd that they suspend it in the spring/summer, which I would think would be the busier season. But I'm thankful that our nonstops will probably still be there in February.

NCL is my favorite because I'm fairly casual and I don't dress up. I want to eat at the time I want and not have to be beholden to seating times. So far, NCL has had the absolute best response to my health and allergy issues. I do fill out the form and contact the Access Desk, and when I get on board, I'm taken care of. NCL goes beyond, at least they have for me. Like, on Royal Caribbean or any land restaurant, they will let me know what food does or doesn't have my allergens in it and let me choose from the ones that don't. On NCL, I choose the night before from the menus and if I want a dish that would normally have allergens in it, they will make me a version that doesn't have them! (MDR only. The Buffet is still "here is what you can and can't have.") That said, I haven't been on all the different lines. I can't afford most of them.

I liked both the Jade and the Sun and can't pick from the two. The Sun has a warm spot in my heart because it was the first cruise ship we ever went on.

A Code Alpha on embarkation day before even sailing away? Wow, what terrible luck for someone. It's a medical emergency.

I was on the Escape in September for the New England/Canada cruise and the channel that showed the ship heading and speed and location was channel 21. I just clicked it in on the remote because it wasn't listed.

I was really confused at first, because the Escape was in New England/Canada and doesn't have Los Lobos on it, but then I saw your photo with the Encore, which is a sister ship to the Escape. I'm glad you gave freestyle a try and hope you wound up liking it. Also glad your parents chipped in for the thermal suite. So very worth it, IMO. I'm looking forward to more!

Your post title asks if this is a legitimate beef. IMO, it is not. Unless you were on a specific sports cruise, there's no guarantee of specific sports being shown anywhere on the ship.

Our nonstop United flights from EWR to HNL (round trip) are still showing up as valid. They did stop the route for a while in the summer, but then restarted it. I've been checking weekly, because I'm worried.

I walked across 12th to the taxi stand, which was very chaotic. But I noticed a young couple next to me and asked if they were also going to Penn Station. They were, and we split the cab. It seemed to be a Yellow Cab and all that was offered was metered. It was about $18 from the MCT to Penn.

I was Latitudes Bronze (lowest tier) in a Studio cabin (cheap) and the crew on the Escape treated me like royalty. I filled out something like 8 Hero Cards. I also take nametag pictures so I have the spelling and their position.

I believe it was Cagney's for lunch.

Anywhere from Deck 10 to deck 14 should be optimal on the Escape. (deck 9 is above the Waterfront and noisy things, the pool deck is deck 16.)

I was allowed this one. It runs all night on a charge but also runs plugged in via USB. It has a lot of power and I love it because it fits in the front pocket of my ResMed Airsense 10 CPAP bag. It's the JOSTRY Mini Desk Fan on Amazon and it's 7" x 5". I had it hanging from the closet door in a Studio cabin.

I was on the Escape in September and the MDR Tiramisu was excellent. I broke my low carb diet whenever I saw it on the menu. I was so excited that I took a bite before realizing I wanted to take the photo. Hence, the fork tracks.

In your account on NCL.com, to the right of Account Overview there is a section under Latitudes Rewards that has cruise history and will show those points.

I just did the Sept 17-24th New England/Canada cruise on the Escape. I was used to smaller ships like the Sun and the Jade, so I worried that the Escape would be too crowded for me. I was in the Studio cabins, so it was a non-child space that I could go back to. Spice H2O was fine in the day time and I stayed on the non-smoking side. The Casino got smoky and crowded and, for some reason, people crowded up for the MDRs as soon as they opened. And sometimes there were waits for the elevators, but all told, it wasn't that bad. This was a cool weather cruise with some 60 degree rainy days, so the pools and pool deck weren't that crowded for my sailing. I did find a bunch of indoor and outdoor quiet places to chill, though. I had an amazing time on the Escape. The food allergy staff were great and made sure I was happy with my food. I especially loved the broth/ramen station at the buffet.

I never went on the Epic, but was on the Escape in September. The Escape had tons of outdoor spaces that I loved and I found it easy to get wherever I was going. The crew all treated me so well and I enjoyed the food. I would definitely recommend the Escape. Prior to that, I was on the smaller ones; The Sun and Jade.

I was on the NCL Escape Sept 17 to 24th, so like a month ago. It was a New England and Canada cruise with a deck temperature in the 60s Farenheit. I often went up to Deck 19 and 20 as part of my daily walk and there was almost no one in the Vibe. So whoever paid for the Vibe, they didn't really get their money's worth. The bartenders were there, but I never saw many people using Vibe the whole week and definitely not on the two rain days. If you're like me and even 30 degree weather or rain won't stop you from being outside, go for the Vibe. Otherwise, just go to Spice H2O (if your ship has one) for free and stay on the opposite side of the smoking section. Or for the same price almost, if your ship has a spa Thermal suite with hot tub and pool, go for that, since it's usable in all weather.

I'm so sorry you had a bad time on the Jade (or are currently having a bad time.) As others mentioned, NCL is the same level as Carnival and Royal Caribbean, a mostly cheap and affordable line. NCLH's upper line is Oceania, I think. Never been on that line, since I can't afford it. If the food isn't to your liking, you can ask them to make it right. (If you can do so pleasantly.) I can't attest to room cleaning, because once I get all my allergy stuff set up on my room, no one else is supposed to touch it and I clean my own cabin. Maybe things will get better before your cruise ends.

It's the reverse. You have to go to NCL.com and look at the 'past guest offers' to see which cruises offer the extra latitude points.