Getaway 2/22 Cruise Thoughts

[gopherhockey]

This is my 8th cruise, 2nd on NCL (Previously was on EPIC a few years ago). We wanted to try out the new class of NCL boats and love water slides, plus one of our party had a ticket "deal" so we chose the Getaway this time around. Here are my thoughts, observations, and some tips mixed in:

 

- Getting on the boat was easy. They were taking photos before embarking, vs. during, which I think helped. We got on just before noon. When you arrive at the port you will be given a group number, and any kind of standing with the cruise line seems to make no difference.

- Once on the boat we immediately went to get Chef's Table tickets. They were sold out already... or so they said. After speaking with someone else, they had enough for all but one of our party. With some pleading, they gave us the extra seat. This was nice - HOWEVER - we were told we could not book these seats prior to the ship, but spoke to many at the table that night that had gotten theirs via telephone prior to the cruise. Inconsistencies was a big theme on this cruise.

- Our first night was supposed to feature 2 bottles of free house wine for 6 of us because we booked a specialty restaurant the first night. We were told when we ordered that we didn't qualify, even though we had verified this with NCL prior to sailing. More inconsistencies. They apparently revoked that deal just before our cruise. With some arguing we got one bottle... but it set a negative tone for the cruise.

- The staff were not very mixed and were mostly from one or two countries. (you'll know which ones right away) We are used to cruises being a real mix of people from all over the world (including Europe). I don't believe we met one person from Europe working on board.

- This cruise featured the least amount of friendly smiles and service, though there were a couple stand-outs at the water park.

- We didn't meet our cabin attendant until day 2. Since that time we saw her maybe 4 times. We often did not get the daily news, and weren't provided disembarking information or customs forms. The worst cabin service we have ever had.

- We had adjacent rooms, but they would not open the deck divider stating it was now policy not to do it. (so why build it with opening doors then?) We opened our own... all you need is the cruise free pen - jam it in the square hold and turn.

- Deck chairs were not hard to find and there were very few chair hogs. Wow, did I just say that? This is normally a major point of frustration. This ship has chairs everywhere.

- The running track was ridiculously small. (8 laps = 1 mile) I do a 10k so ran just over 50 laps each morning. The biggest frustration were pairs of walkers (this elderly female pair in particular that walked every morning around 7am) that refused to go single file. The way the track is, if you block the path the chairs make it difficult to get around. This meant I was running into the lady on the left each time around. We even spoke to them but there was no changing their minds. Selfishness and ignorance has no place on a cruise ship.

- Cheapest and least amount of work-out equipment on any boat I've been on. If you are a runner you will not be pleased.

- Food was sub-par compared to other lines we have been on. (Royal Caribbean, Celebrity)

- We constantly compared the boat to the Allure, which is one of our favorites.

- The water slides were SUPER FUN! (and I admit a bit scary) You can't wear jewelry on the drop slides so be prepared to leave all that stuff behind.

- Cagney's gave us the best meal and value, even considering we had the Chef's table. That was a bit of a bust, but it was fun to see the Heaven area...

- The comedians were good.

- Legally Blond started late so we didn't go, but others in our party said it was not good.

- I liked the french toast with caramelized banana sauce in the mornings. I'm paying for that now even running 10k every morning.

- Decent beer and wine selection. Seemed like less exotic drinks than others, and all served in cheap plastic glasses.

- We put wine in our checked bag and were notified it was confiscated and we had to pay $15 a bottle to get them back, but then could take them wherever we wanted (dinner, etc.) Not sure I like that policy, but a bottle we paid $12 + $15 corking fee was going for over $50 so I guess its a savings. They did not confiscate my Diet Mt. Dew :)

- The ropes course requires fully covered feet, so not even sandals that *mostly* cover your feet. If your heel or toes are exposed they won't let you on. Don't forget that the plank features a camera (front and side shoot simultaneously) so its worth the scare.

- Pictures were way too expensive, with no way to buy just digital ones... so we bought none. They were watching for people taking pictures of their pictures, so no sneaking shots that way. Have they learned nothing from the app market where a few $ per item will get you more sales?

- Nickel and dime was how we felt wherever we went on the boat. Its like the Spirit Airlines of the cruise industry. Soon you will pay to go to the bathroom... I S#$()** you not :)

- SMOKING WAS TERRIBLE. Almost worse than our Princess cruise. They allow it not just on one side of the ship but at nearly every bar and of course in the casino, which ruins deck 7. They were out on the balconies as well polluting the air. I heard this comment from a lot of people, not just our party. For this reason alone we will not return to NCL.

- Look for the flights of drinks.. good value.

- Elevators were not set up well. There were often two separate sides, which meant everyone pressed both sides up/down button then only got in one... so lots of elevators stopping on floors with nobody getting in. Very poorly designed.

- Getting off the boat went fairly fast, though the front was let out before the back was so there were lines for those early walk-offs.

 

THE ROOM

 

Our aft balcony room was kind of a knock-off of the Allure of the Seas rooms, only cheaper. We had an aft cabin on deck 13. Decent room, but the cabins toward the middle have more (even if they appear not as wide, they are deeper because of how the ship is rounded).

- The glass on back gets full of salt and soot and they never once cleaned ours, though others seemed to get theirs cleaned only once. You can't see through them after the first day. Soot everywhere, worst we've experienced. The tan carpet was already getting destroyed by tracked in soot.. and this was like the 4th or 5th sailing. There was one lounge chair though.

- Plenty of storage, bed was ok, we kept tripping going into the bathroom because of the huge step up you had to make.

- The air conditioner kept shutting off on us until we realized NOT to press the air conditioner button as that means its just a one-time cool-down. Not very intuitive... just leave that button alone and you'll be fine.

- A lot of rocking motion on this ship. Odd compared to other boats we've been on.

- If you are on the aft, you will hear LOUD music late into the night coming from the aft deck above where they hold their nightly 70s, 80s or whatever else party. Take ear plugs and sleeping pills or you will not get to sleep until 2am or so. You have been warned.

- After this cruise, we are considering no more aft cabins. They just aren't worth the soot, loud noises etc.

- Smoke smell always present from other cabins around.

- Very little overhead protection on deck 13.

- Don't forget to set your cabin service/do not disturb lights correctly when you leave or you won't get your room serviced.

 

Here is your aft view through the crud.. good luck finding someone friendly and willing enough to clean it.

 

Edited March 8, 2014 by gopherhockey

[crimsnlady]

Sorry that your trip did not meet your expectations. We were also on the 2.22.14 sailing of the Getaway and we did not experience any of the issues you have listed. From the moment we stepped into the NCL terminal until the time we disembarked the ship every aspect of the Getaway experience was outstanding!!!

[cruisestan2]

Thank you for your honest opinion. It always helps to hear balanced reviews. We are considering this cruise next year.

[LrgPizza]

Thank you! Like all reviews, I learned new things, and I appreciate it. Sorry it wasn't a better trip for you.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[SissasMomE]

Wow ... was there anything that you did like about the ship or your trip?

[Medtech2]

I haven't even finished reading but I am impressed that you would run a 10K on a cruise every morning. However, I have to say that it might save you frustration from elderly ladies trying to exercise as best they can by maybe running on a treadmill. I have heard the gym was nicely equipped. I have also heard many complaints that the "track" is really small and subpar so the treadmill probablywould be a better choice for such a serious run....

[rockbock]

Sorry you had such a bad trip. I'll be on this ship on 3/29 and I'm still very excited about it. So far, your review is the only bad one that I've seen on this amazing new ship.

[cruisin07family]

I'm curious as to why this would be a negative or even a mention really....

 

"- The staff were not very mixed and were mostly from one or two countries. (you'll know which ones right away) We are used to cruises being a real mix of people from all over the world (including Europe). I don't believe we met one person from Europe working on board."

 

 

I will say that your statement is simply false. You may not have met anyone from Europe, but they are definitely there as my son is employed on the ship and he has talked about all the many different people from so many countries that he has met and befriended.

[Partyatsea]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise :)

[Demonyte]

Thanks for the review. As a side note, people being able to "book" Chef's Table in advance have most likely been suite passengers that can make requests (not confirmed reservations!) via the pre-cruise concierge desk before the cruise.

 

I agree that the situation with two bottles of wine should have been handled better, if it was me, I'd have contacted the Hotel Director about it and they would surely have fixed the situation as good as it can be fixed afterwards.

[Cruzn Bills Fan]

There's always one that no matter what is not happy.

Edited March 8, 2014 by Batman's Skivvies

[gopherhockey]

Wow ... was there anything that you did like about the ship or your trip?

 

My cruise notes tend to come off negative because its easy to remember those things. After all that, to be honest, we had a good time. No cruise is perfect.

 

I mentioned a few things we did like. Deck chair availability was one of them. The normal chair hog issues really weren't present. I mean I saw many abusing the reserving of chairs, but because there were so many I think it was less of an issue.

 

Also, getting on and off was easy. I think when these ships use two locations to get passengers on and off it really helps things along.

 

We had a good meal at Cagney's. Great steaks, great value. This is a place that will continue to feed you until you explode with no question. I find steak places on most ships a good value, might have to start hitting them twice.

 

I mentioned the water slides and can't say enough how fun they are. The rope course was fun too - especially hanging out over a moving ship in the wind on the plank (and getting your photo if you pull down on the rope at the end of the plank)

 

I mentioned the drink flights. Relatively good value, and if you can find a seat out on the side of the boat on the boardwalk area where people aren't smoking it can be a really nice relaxing place for an afternoon drink.

 

I didn't mention we did Temppanyaki the last night and that was fun - they were all entertaining and you could witness other tables and how their chefs were different.

 

We don't feel like we had a *bad* trip nor that it was a waste of money even with my list of small issues. We just feel other ships and cruise lines offer more/better experiences in the areas important to us, like food quality. NCL isn't known for their food and we knew that going in. I'm surprised ships haven't matured more in the smoking category.. hopefully in time.

 

If you read my notes and are thinking of going on this boat don't let all that stop you.. I'd bet some of the issues will be ironed out by then. Even if you sail other lines regularly its fun to try out something new and different - its an exciting time in the cruise industry with so many new ships coming out. I have to believe they can't keep this up forever.

 

I just wanted to list out some things to expect... to look for, and look out for. Of course your experience will vary...

 

There's always one that no matter what is not happy.

 

 

Again, I didn't say I hated my time on the boat (despite the list).. but don't be so naive as to think only a small percentage have the same thoughts that I did. I've seen them here, in the reviews area, and had my ears open on the boat. I wanted to leave my remarks for others to take into consideration. I'm not one of those that feels the need to take negative remarks personally (do you own NCL?) nor do I expect everyone to have the same experience I did (positive or negative).

 

Though buried in the list, things like the water slides easily overcame a dozen or so other small frustrations. Maybe I should have made those bold. If you sail this ship and skip the drop slides, shame on you! Just be ready for it... 3....2....1... aaaahhhhhhhhhhh splash.

 

I wish I could be one of those people who "LOVES!" everything they do in life... I really do. I'd be wary of those reviews though... they are probably the same people on Yelp giving McDonalds 5 stars for the best meal ever. ;)

Edited March 8, 2014 by gopherhockey

[meatball_nyc]

Thanks for your thoughts and notes.

Glad you had a nice time on a nice ship.

 

We will be certain to try out the slides when we sail this summer!

 

Happy Cruising!

 

 

 

~Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

[thephillykid]

What I find to be incredible is that this review of the GA is the only partially negative review I have seen so far. NOT A BAD REVIEW TO BE HAD EXCEPT THIS ONE. I understand that you are a non smoker, as are my wife and myself, and that fact really magnified your aversion to smoke, so you let this negatively affect your experience. I have been to Las Vegas many times, we realize if we want to gamble in their casinos (for the most part) we have put up with smoking, so we deal with it.

All I can say, YMMV.

[AdrenalineRush]

Thanks for the review.

We really can't expect everyone to react to things the same way we would. Think how boring life would be if we all were alike.

 

I dont look at reviews as positive or negative..to me details are the important factor.

[hscruiser]

Thanks for your review. I would be curious to hear your thoughts regarding the comparison between Getaway and Allure. We were on Allure last summer and will be cruising Getaway this summer, and I'm curious to hear how you felt the ships themselves compared.

 

(By the way, it's a ship, not a boat. ;))

[LrgPizza]

What I find to be incredible is that this review of the GA is the only partially negative review I have seen so far. NOT A BAD REVIEW TO BE HAD EXCEPT THIS ONE. .

That is completely untrue. The vast majority I've seen are positive, but this certainly isn't the only negative one. If you simply look in the review section of Cruise Critic you can find a 1 star review.

 

This reviewer provided an extremely informative, thorough review that I am happy he shared. It doesn't sour my opinion of this boat in the least.

 

Life would really be boring if we all had the exact same opinions about everything. I embrace the negative reviews as much as the positive because I can think, "hmmm... would that bother me?" and it helps me really make a good decision about a cruise. If everything is sunshine and roses all the time, I'm even more wary about a cruise because I figure people are just lying.

Edited March 8, 2014 by LrgPizza

[punkincc]

Thanks for the review. We were on this sailing as well. We were on deck 8 forward and also had some soot on the balcony one morning, so beware going out there without checking or your clothes will be stained. It was a very greasy substance and very hard to remove from any surface. The deck was washed the same day however and and it never occurred again. Your glass was terrible! Never had that issue with ours and never heard a sound from outside the cabin and no smoke noted either. Great location!

 

I am surprised you had no knowledge of NCL's Wine Policy. Common knowledge here. Some people carry on several bottles or even cases. Just declare and pay the corkage upon boarding. I agree with you, the list of drinks needs some serious work. Much too generic and sparse. Of course you can ask for and get anything you want, but I would have probably ordered way more drinks with a good menu. The tastings were great fun and a good value.

 

Glad to see someone else found the "Bananas Foster" French toast. I had a side of it daily! The food in general we found to be very good, with Cagney's a standout.

 

We found no issue with the elevators. I believe once an "up" elevator arrives, it cancels the call on all the others, unless late comers or those who couldn't fit hit the button again, so no unnecessary stops unless someone is actively waiting. You seldom see anyone complain about too many elevators.:)

 

Our biggest difference in opinion would be in regard to "the least amount of friendly smiles and service ". We have sailed NCL several times as well as several times on RCCL, Princess, Celebrity, etc., and thought the service on this cruise was outstanding and the crew to be very engaging. Great service and smiles everywhere we went. The smoking was a minor annoyance.

 

We were able to purchase a USB Flash Drive of the pictures we purchased as we wanted some additional copies and sizes of the ones we bought. But, probably not available without a purchase. It is really cute! The case is a miniature NCL cruise ship!

[Beth 2001]

Glad to see someone else found the "Bananas Foster" French toast. I had a side of it daily! The food in general we found to be very good, with Cagney's a standout.

 

Where can I find the bananas foster French toast? It sounds delicious!

[Beth 2001]

- The glass on back gets full of salt and soot and they never once cleaned ours, though others seemed to get theirs cleaned only once. You can't see through them after the first day. Soot everywhere, worst we've experienced. The tan carpet was already getting destroyed by tracked in soot.. and this was like the 4th or 5th sailing. There was one lounge chair though.

 

- After this cruise, we are considering no more aft cabins. They just aren't worth the soot, loud noises etc.

 

We have two Deck 11 aft balconies booked on the Getaway April 12th, so I hate to hear (and see) that the balconies are so dirty! We're to spend a lot of time on ours. We will put a towel down by the door so we don't track soot all over the carpet (and will bring wipes to clean our chairs before we sit on them). We experienced a similar issue on the Oasis of the Seas at the Aquatheater, where the chairs were also sooty. I ruined one of my favorite pairs of white shorts there :(

 

Re: noise, I'm hoping that our deck will be quieter than Deck 13, since you were closer to Spice H20. I will bring earplugs just in case!

 

Thanks for your review. I appreciate that you shared both the positive and negative aspects of your trip. We are Diamond on Royal Caribbean but love NCL and freestyle cruising as well. We tried Celebrity for our honeymoon last year and adored it, but feel our teens would be bored without water slides or Flow Riders. Thankfully there are options available for everyone!

[countess5]

It's good to read all opinions. I don't think that anyone who has booked or will be booking will change their minds.

We sailed the Oasis this past January for the second time and I have to tell you the new smoking policy has caused issues. I am not a smoker, so now that you can't smoke on your balcony the port side of deck 16 and 15 is full of smokers, did not remember that on the first cruise and the casino you couldn't walk through. It became a smoking lounge even if you were not gambling! :(

 

Would that make me not sail on Oasis again, NO! I love the ship and all the positives it provides.

 

Thanks for the info on the aft, we have a Penthouse with large balcony 12th deck, hopefully the side corners are spared the smoke!:)

[mloca]

Always appreciate each review. We also were on that sailing and big fans of the Allure. I cautioned our kids and my husband not to compare the two ships as they are very different. I didn't think we would enjoy the cruise if we did that. As far as running, my husband was training for the Boston marathon on board and had to run every morning sometimes on the track and other times on the treadmill. The track is very small and he did have to navigate around others but it didn't seem to bother him, neither did the gym. The elevators were never a problem and I thought were quite efficient. It's always so interesting reading what another family thought, the exact same week. I guess that is why reviews should be read with an open mind or we get to many preconceived notions. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the Getaway.

[Espresso Martini]

Thanks for the review. We were on this sailing as well. We were on deck 8 forward and also had some soot on the balcony one morning, so beware going out there without checking or your clothes will be stained. It was a very greasy substance and very hard to remove from any surface. The deck was washed the same day however and and it never occurred again. Your glass was terrible! Never had that issue with ours and never heard a sound from outside the cabin and no smoke noted either. Great location!

 

I am surprised you had no knowledge of NCL's Wine Policy. Common knowledge here. Some people carry on several bottles or even cases. Just declare and pay the corkage upon boarding. I agree with you, the list of drinks needs some serious work. Much too generic and sparse. Of course you can ask for and get anything you want, but I would have probably ordered way more drinks with a good menu. The tastings were great fun and a good value.

 

Glad to see someone else found the "Bananas Foster" French toast. I had a side of it daily! The food in general we found to be very good, with Cagney's a standout.

 

We found no issue with the elevators. I believe once an "up" elevator arrives, it cancels the call on all the others, unless late comers or those who couldn't fit hit the button again, so no unnecessary stops unless someone is actively waiting. You seldom see anyone complain about too many elevators.:)

 

Our biggest difference in opinion would be in regard to "the least amount of friendly smiles and service ". We have sailed NCL several times as well as several times on RCCL, Princess, Celebrity, etc., and thought the service on this cruise was outstanding and the crew to be very engaging. Great service and smiles everywhere we went. The smoking was a minor annoyance.

 

We were able to purchase a USB Flash Drive of the pictures we purchased as we wanted some additional copies and sizes of the ones we bought. But, probably not available without a purchase. It is really cute! The case is a miniature NCL cruise ship!

 

 

I am very interested in hearing more about the USB Flash Drive of the pictures you purchased and how this works? We did a 14 day cruise out of South Hampton on the Celebrity Princess a few years ago and ended up buying this package they had available and ended up with beautiful pictures all 8 x 10 and a cd of them all. Anything like this on the Getaway?

[SissasMomE]

Gopherhockey - I'm curious about the soot and mess all over your balcony. Do you think it's a design flaw? I ask because we have had aft facing balcony cabins on the Epic twice now and never had that issue. I wonder why that happened on the Getaway.

[SissasMomE]

I am very interested in hearing more about the USB Flash Drive of the pictures you purchased and how this works? We did a 14 day cruise out of South Hampton on the Celebrity Princess a few years ago and ended up buying this package they had available and ended up with beautiful pictures all 8 x 10 and a cd of them all. Anything like this on the Getaway?

 

I bought a DVD a few years ago on the Epic for $200 or $250, that contained all of our pictures, along with a release so we could print any that we wanted. Perhaps now they replaced that with a USB.