myra711

I think that you can call NCL and ask your questions directly without committing to making the change.  Hopefully, you will get someone who knows the answers!

Nice!

On 4/3/2019 at 10:09 AM, mjkacmom said:

We bought a day pass there 10 years ago for $15. Out of the resorts we visited, the Hilton has the worst beach by far.

What resort would you say has the better beaches?

Wow!  I'll be in Mexico in July.  I have to see if there are still whales around.  That looks like a wonderful excursion!  Thanks for sharing.

We did it, and it was a fun way to spend some time with the young adults in the family.  As for how often it happens...I had the impression that they added times when the original times posted filled up.

Thanks, I was pretty sure that I didn't need to worry.  ColinIllinois, wouldn't that be great if it were true! 😁

I saw someone state recently that they wouldn't eat fish on a ship; presumably because it has been onboard for days before cooking.  I haven't ever even thought about this, and often choose fish for meals...now, not so sure.  Is it generally frozen, and therefore not "bad" when cooked?  Has anyone had bad experiences with fish on a ship? (I'm sure that SOMEONE has, but I can't imagine that it is a general thing, or else how could they offer it?!)  I'm pretty sure that I have no reason to worry, but I'd like to hear some other takes on the subject.

Thanks!

The Dawn seems to be moving around!  In two months we will be on her, leaving from NYC for the Bahamas.

I'm going to be the dissenting vote here.  I've been on the Breakaway (sister to the Getaway) and the Escape, and I much preferred the Breakaway.  I thought that the atmosphere on the Breakaway felt much less crowded.  I will say that the crew on the Escape was extremely service oriented, and that was a plus!

Congratulations on your marriage!  May you sail on together for many many years.

I think that the best way to have handled it would have been to present the bill with the $1 and then indicate that it was comped. This way

 you would know that they were doing something nice....then the $1 would engender positive feelings about NCL vs this sense of being unappreciated as a loyal customer.

Bon Voyage!  Have a wonderful trip!

I'm so glad to hear that you were able to get an earlier flight.  So when you get on board, in addition to looking for the Lady of the Harbor and watching for the bridge as you go under it, RELAX.  Whew!.  Maybe have a iced tea or hot tea, depending on weather, or your favorite alcoholic beverage.  That's it for my recommendations!

Hi.  We were on the Escape last summer, and my son slept on the couch in the balcony room.  It was hard, but we requested and got an "egg crate" topper, and it was fine after that.  I have no experience with pull-down or bunk beds in the cabins, so I can't compare.

Whether they require proof or not, how boorish and selfish of your neighbors to be so inconsiderate.  I know that sometimes people get placed in a handicapped room without asking, because that is what is available..I have no issue with that.  But to deliberately go out of your way to make it more difficult to some people who NEED that room to be able to cruise....not nice.

Only put up a Dollar Tree dry erase board on our cabin doors. Funny to read the comments that some people write on them.

We've done the same, and have also enjoyed the comments left. It is useful to keep everyone in our party aware of where we are.

We moseyed along, stopping at each beach to sun/swim/snorkel. I was told that the walk takes about 20 -30 minutes, but we did it in snatches so it is hard to say. We spent a bunch of hours, I would guess about 4, including travel, and got back in time to shower and change for the Hamilton ferry that left around 6 PM.

So far I have heard three reasons:

(1) Delayed fueling

(2) US Public Health Inspection-- time consuming

(3) Full Immigration Check for staff-- very time consuming

Public Health inspection was last Sunday; I was told that it happens every 6 months.

We just got off too...ac was good. Don't mean to hijack.

No worries! Yes, I agree, the a/c was fine.

is the "grotto" part of the spa or is it for anyone?

 

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The grotto is part of Spice H2O, open to anyone over the age of 18, I believe. It's nice to have a quieter area than the pool area. In addition to the Grotto, there are a couple of hot tubs and a bar.

There were a few areas that seemed cooler than others. I brought a light sweater, but rarely used it. It seemed that the Supper Club (Choir of Man) was one of the cooler places.

We usually do that as well, up and out early. But out of curiosity, what is generally the latest you can disembark? I wonder if the crowds die down by then...

 

 

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Just off the ship this morning, and that was our original plan. But you have to be out of the cabin by 9 AM, and they don't let you sit outside on any deck either. With the restaurants/bars/casinos closed by then, we ended up joining the line to disembark after sitting for awhile on deck 8 by the atrium area and watching the procession go by below us. It wasn't too bad; the line kept moving.

Cons: 1) Crowds! This ship felt more crowded than either of the other two cruises I've been on: Gem and Breakaway. Even when no one was around, seeing the array of lounge chairs abutting one another as far as the eye could see, made it feel a bit claustrophobic. the one day that I went on the regular decks to lay out there, even the higher sun decks were almost all full. After that, the times I sunned I went to Spice H2O. I found it also crowded, but since it is a smaller space and also more of a "nook and cranny" space (vs a field of lounges in rows) it felt much less crowded. Loved the grotto, and it was a pleasant and very effective way to cool off. I never even attempted to use the pool on the main deck; I know that DS enjoyed the hot tubs.

But other than the outside decks, I didn't feel too crowded. I never had to wait anywhere for food, whether it was a complimentary restaurant or specialty restaurant - there were a couple of instances where we just walked up and were seated (La Cucina and Le Bistro, both around 6PM).

2) Food. Particularly the main dining rooms. the specialties were good (we ate at Pinchos, in addition to the above mentioned), as were O'Sheehan's and the buffet. In comparison to my earlier cruises (about 2011 and 2014) the main dining rooms were nothing to get excited about. And one particular breakfast food was inedible (spinach and dill pancakes with smoked salmon. The pancakes were sweet, like regular pancakes, and not savory as I would have expected. I'm just warning you!).

One odd and end: Some people recommended using the over the door shoe hanger; others were concerned about destroying the bathroom door. I put gaffer's tape over the hooks to protect the door; since we were three to the cabin, we found it useful. There was shelf space in the bathroom, but I only kept the everyday essentials on those shelves.

In general, we had enough room for all our stuff, amazingly! No problems there.

Also: if you have someone sleeping on the couch, get the foam pad!!!

If I think of anything else (+ or -), I'll add.

I did forget to mention that I just got off the ship this morning. We sailed 8/12 - 8/19.

I hope this helps someone. I got a lot of help from this board prior to our trip!

We are: My husband (62), myself (62) and my son (25) sharing a balcony cabin.

Pros: 1) Lots of choices of activities! We didn't get to do so many things I would have liked to try, but we liked all the things we did! We went to the CC Meet and Greet, and enjoyed meeting people who we kept seeing in other places on the ship. We went to kareoke. We went to Howl at the Moon a couple of times. Saw the stand-up comics a couple of times. Gambled (I kept to the nonsmoking areas of the casino, and smoke wasn't too bad). Watched some of the games in the atrium. Enjoyed the UBP. Did the "Behind the Scenes" tour. Tube slides! DS participated in many of the games and activities.

2) Service was wonderful everywhere, and I was stopped at least twice daily by officers checking in with me to make sure that all was well. I received unexpected treats to the cabin 4 times after chatting with officers. FYI, one ShoreEx staff member told us that when the Escape launched, it achieved the highest ranking of the fleet in service or customer satisfaction or something along those lines, and that the crew is determined to stay in first place.

3) Destination! Bermuda was wonderful. It was our first visit there, and I barely skimmed the surface on activities there as well. On Day 1 we went to Warwick Beach and snorkeled, walking and swimming at the various beaches along the way to Horseshoe Beach. We took a cab there and back ($7/person), even though we had a 2-day transportation pass. In the evening we went to Hamilton for dinner (eh; we went to a place recommended by a cab driver, and it was very underwhelming) and to see the parade; Ferry both ways. On Day 2 we rented a Boston Whaler, and that was the highlight of the trip. Once we mastered the arts of motoring the boat and anchoring the boat, we had a blast, jumping off to snorkel among the reefs in the "sea gardens" in the ocean, and at the shipwreck, and in an area of sea turtles. It was wonderful! Did it through Somerset Water Sports. On Day 3we took it easy and stayed onboard.

4) Spa! We stayed in a spa balcony (15156) and had access to the spa. I would have used it more if the weather was poor; I wanted to be outside more than inside, but we did use the spa most days and enjoyed it as much as we had hoped. FYI, I was informed that they only have 120 passes to the spa, and so it is "the most exclusive area on the ship".

5) Solo travelers activities DS met up with a bunch of solo travelers, and it seemed like there were a whole mix of people of different ages/ethnicities all enjoying one another's company. I would definitely take advantage of this if I were traveling solo. He was welcomed as a solo person, even though he was not in the solo cabins.

I'm currently working on my review of a non haven room on the Getaway and one thing I realized, is from stalking these boards and the upgrade process (which we lost) I almost had it in my mind my vacation wouldn't be good/fun without it. That wasn't true!!!

So glad to hear that! And I'm glad that you had a good time!

Jamie, I remember reading their review when it came out. I'll reread it if I can. They had a lot of fun, and that certainly came through!