Is the Getaway pool deck really that bad?

[zpdw484]

Hello. We are thinking about booking the getaway for this fall. It will be my wife and I and our 7 year old daughter. We typically cruise with Royal Caribbean and spend a lot of our time on deck around the pool. That is our favorite place to be. We are looking at the getaway because of the attractive rates and the waterslides and all look like something our daughter would love. Plus we are ready to change it up a bit and try something new. I have done some research and I see quiet a bit of complaints about the pool area being super small and almost impossible to find chairs. Is it really that bad?

[asdjl]

It's not great, what we did is find chairs further back and then I would sit at the edge of the pool when they were in. My kids were a little older, though, so they could swim on their own without constant supervision And we are not hang out at the pool all day types, so we weren't bothered by it

 

 

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[blackwing]

I think it's no different than most large cruise ships... if you want three chairs right by the pool and in the sun, be prepared to get up at 6 AM and attempt to hog.

 

We never had any issues finding chairs, but we didn't mind being not in the sun and often sat in the rows against the glass. If you really want sun, you could always go to one of the upper decks.

[cb at sea]

We don't WANT be right at pool's edge...that's the most crowded area. But, with kids, you will probably need to be close to watch them. You'll simply need to get there early (they won't need loungers...they'll be in the pool!) and get a chair for you. We like being further away, where you can get some space between your lounger and the next!

[Jezo]

I think it's no different than most large cruise ships... if you want three chairs right by the pool and in the sun, be prepared to get up at 6 AM and attempt to hog.

 

Or just show up whenever you want and toss the chair hogs stuff aside and claim yourself a nice chair.

[Mirrasi]

The adult area was significantly more crowded than the family pool. The total opposite of Disney.

 

There are no chairs nearvthe family pool that let you see. There is a bench area and I sat on that. Wasn't the most comfortable lol but we had fun

[TheManitoban]

I've never been on RCCL but my parents have and it sounds like they definitely have more pools. I would certainly say NCL lacks in that area. I've only been on the DAWN and it was fine. I dont think I even sat on a lounger but because Dawn has the bleacher type seating there were always plenty. I generally sat in the hot tub or pool. But the same size pool on one of the mega ships? I can see that being a big problem.

 

They should have included a full sized pool in Spice H20. In fact, here's an idea. Put a full sized pool right at the back of the ship in Spice and have the aft edge/wall of the pool be transparent.

[KarimaJ]

Hello. We are thinking about booking the getaway for this fall. It will be my wife and I and our 7 year old daughter. We typically cruise with Royal Caribbean and spend a lot of our time on deck around the pool. That is our favorite place to be. We are looking at the getaway because of the attractive rates and the waterslides and all look like something our daughter would love. Plus we are ready to change it up a bit and try something new. I have done some research and I see quiet a bit of complaints about the pool area being super small and almost impossible to find chairs. Is it really that bad?

 

I just booked and hope it isn't quite as bad as what I have read :o My daughter loves the pools, on Disney it sure was crowded but we could always find 2 chairs together somewhere on deck. We're giving it a try and if it is really that awful, we will go back to RC and Disney.

[Mirrasi]

My son loved the ship more the Disney. The family crowd on this is not as crowded as the adult pool it is the opposite of Disney. For the actual pool, just like Disney you cannot see it from a chair because it's down lower so you have to sit on the bench. You can see the splash area from the lounger chairs though.

[Mirrasi]

I found a small pic of the family pool online. Like I said, it's small but wasn't too crowded at all. But you can see the sort of bench things and that there are no chairs near by. Across from that splash area are chairs and you can see the splash area very well from them. But the pool is not visible unless you are right over top of it.

 

 

 

Edited March 11, 2016 by Mirrasi

[Biz64]

How deep is the kids pool on the Getaway? We were on the Escape and the kids pool was 5ft deep. I have to say the pool deck on that ship was terrible.

[sadiecat]

On our Getaway cruise non smokers came in and took the chairs from the smoking area and then there were no seats for the smokers. Staff would not do anything about it so the chairs are slim pickings around the pool area.

[SPB in da RVA]

Hello. We are thinking about booking the getaway for this fall. It will be my wife and I and our 7 year old daughter. We typically cruise with Royal Caribbean and spend a lot of our time on deck around the pool. That is our favorite place to be. We are looking at the getaway because of the attractive rates and the waterslides and all look like something our daughter would love. Plus we are ready to change it up a bit and try something new. I have done some research and I see quiet a bit of complaints about the pool area being super small and almost impossible to find chairs. Is it really that bad?

 

 

In September 2014 there were so many open chairs and loungers that the crew left a good portion of them stacked up and secured. The ship was almost 100% full.

[zpdw484]

Thanks for all the replies. I guess it's just gonna be a bit different. But change can be good. One more question. Does NCL still have the reggae bands playing by the pool?

[Kfamilycruise]

My son loved the ship more the Disney. The family crowd on this is not as crowded as the adult pool it is the opposite of Disney. For the actual pool, just like Disney you cannot see it from a chair because it's down lower so you have to sit on the bench. You can see the splash area from the lounger chairs though.

 

What Mirrasi said.

 

Seriously, because of the slides, your child will love this ship. The kids pool area is not nearly as crowded as the adult area. Even considering that, I always got a space near the adult pool, you just have to be willing to not be right in front of the pool -- which is more important to me anyway. With the way the kids pool is, if you aren't 100% certain about your child's ability to swim and even if you are, you will probably want to be over by the pool watching anyway and not from a lounge chair since they aren't right in front. HTH.

[cruising7]

Based on what you said Your 7 year old will love the getaway! The ship has so much to offer too besides the pool that she will love...mini golf ropes etc and the 2 smaller slides too! You have to be 100 pounds for the larger drop slide and I doubt your 7 year old qualifies 😊

 

I will say though the pool situation stinks for older kids and teens. We couldn't believe there was nowhere that we could swim with my 13 and 11 year old besides the sponge Bob pool lol. I guess NCL figures the slides are for that age but they like to swim too. Luckily they got lots of ocean time when in ports. That was our only complaint though otherwise we loved the getawayand are sailing again on her this year.

 

They had reggae band as well as others by the pool in April 2015...adult and kid pool are side by side with slides between...very loud as all pool decks are.

 

Hope you love it!

[nbsjcruiser]

Hello. We are thinking about booking the getaway for this fall. It will be my wife and I and our 7 year old daughter. We typically cruise with Royal Caribbean and spend a lot of our time on deck around the pool. That is our favorite place to be. We are looking at the getaway because of the attractive rates and the waterslides and all look like something our daughter would love. Plus we are ready to change it up a bit and try something new. I have done some research and I see quiet a bit of complaints about the pool area being super small and almost impossible to find chairs. Is it really that bad?

 

We are diamond on RCI and just came off the Getaway. Given that you like the pool area on RCI and spend a lot of time there, you will not be pleased with the Getaway pool area. Whomever designed such a small pool area for 4000 passengers needs to be forced to spend his or her own money and spend a week on that pool deck. I was blown away by how small it was. We had spa passes for the week so we were able to stay away from for most of the week but the few times I did go on deck for a swim, I eventually gave up and either went to the slides or tried to find a deck chair anywhere in the sun so I could lay out.

 

We had a very good cruise and I liked the food and the service but that pool deck is terribly designed and its always loud with blaring music. We probably would not book the Getaway again for this reason.

Edited March 11, 2016 by nbsjcruiser

[Giorgi-one]

There is no such thing as a pool that will accommodate 4000 passengers. I have been to all-inclusive resorts that have pools as large as a small lake and they cannot accommodate 4000 people. The pool on most cruise ships is really a novelty. The large RCL ships have more and larger pools but even they cannot come close to accommodating 4000 or more passengers.

[MikeBTN]

Hello. We are thinking about booking the getaway for this fall. It will be my wife and I and our 7 year old daughter. We typically cruise with Royal Caribbean and spend a lot of our time on deck around the pool. That is our favorite place to be. We are looking at the getaway because of the attractive rates and the waterslides and all look like something our daughter would love. Plus we are ready to change it up a bit and try something new. I have done some research and I see quiet a bit of complaints about the pool area being super small and almost impossible to find chairs. Is it really that bad?

 

We've done Disney with the kids, Royal without them (and loved it), and sailing Royal in May on FoS with the kids. We're doing a side-to-side with the Norwegian Escape in May just so the kids can experience different lines and see which they prefer. I think they modified the pool deck slightly for the Escape, but it still seems small. Our kids LOVE water slides, though. We'll see which pool deck they prefer and that will make the decision as to the cruise line we sail as a family.

 

As a couple we'll likely continue to choose Royal.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Hello. We are thinking about booking the getaway for this fall. It will be my wife and I and our 7 year old daughter. We typically cruise with Royal Caribbean and spend a lot of our time on deck around the pool. That is our favorite place to be. We are looking at the getaway because of the attractive rates and the waterslides and all look like something our daughter would love. Plus we are ready to change it up a bit and try something new. I have done some research and I see quiet a bit of complaints about the pool area being super small and almost impossible to find chairs. Is it really that bad?

 

We were on Getaway last month and loved the ship. That being said the pool deck is way too small for the amount of pax.

 

Most loungers on the pool deck are under an overhang so if you want sun you'll have to go up a deck.

 

The best place i saw for sun was spice h20 but that's adults only and no pool.

 

I think I was spoiled on the Oasis of the Seas with all the pools they have.

 

Bill

[nbsjcruiser]

There is no such thing as a pool that will accommodate 4000 passengers. I have been to all-inclusive resorts that have pools as large as a small lake and they cannot accommodate 4000 people. The pool on most cruise ships is really a novelty. The large RCL ships have more and larger pools but even they cannot come close to accommodating 4000 or more passengers.

 

If you ever cruised on any RCI ship you'd know that the pool deck is well laid out with lots of room. You can actually enjoy a flop around the pool on a nice day. That rinky dink pool on the Getaway would be a good sized pool for a ship with maybe 1500 passengers but 4000? Its not even remotely large enough to accommodate the people on that ship and to make matters worse, there's never a time when there isn't loud blaring music and if they decide to do some sort of thing at the pool (volleyball, sexy legs etc) then you can forget about getting some time in the pool.

 

I'm sorry but that design of the pool deck on the Getaway is terrible. Mind you, its my only complaint for the week but it is significant enough to make me think twice about booking the Getaway again. On top of all that, they've got all the outside deck areas chopped up and compartmentalized like crazy. They simply did a poor job designing the pool deck on that ship. One of my complaints about Carnival has always been that it seems like they designed their lido deck areas and at the very last minute someone said "Holy cow guys, we forgot to put a pool in - lets put one here". I have the same feeling about the Getaway.

Edited March 12, 2016 by nbsjcruiser

[purpletequila]

If you ever cruised on any RCI ship you'd know that the pool deck is well laid out with lots of room. You can actually enjoy a flop around the pool on a nice day. That rinky dink pool on the Getaway would be a good sized pool for a ship with maybe 1500 passengers but 4000? Its not even remotely large enough to accommodate the people on that ship and to make matters worse, there's never a time when there isn't loud blaring music and if they decide to do some sort of thing at the pool (volleyball, sexy legs etc) then you can forget about getting some time in the pool.

 

I'm sorry but that design of the pool deck on the Getaway is terrible. Mind you, its my only complaint for the week but it is significant enough to make me think twice about booking the Getaway again. On top of all that, they've got all the outside deck areas chopped up and compartmentalized like crazy. They simply did a poor job designing the pool deck on that ship. One of my complaints about Carnival has always been that it seems like they designed their lido deck areas and at the very last minute someone said "Holy cow guys, we forgot to put a pool in - lets put one here". I have the same feeling about the Getaway.

 

I bet the designer got a bonus. It was probably designed to limit how many can or can tolerate the pool deck in the hopes it will drive them insane and off to other areas of the ship where they will spend.

[maxtygar]

Aside from crowded pool areas I read some really bad reviews about slides and other activities on Getaway. Some say they had to wait in line for an hour to get on a slide or trampoline, etc. Wondering if this is the typical experience on Getaway?

[Giorgi-one]

If you ever cruised on any RCI ship you'd know that the pool deck is well laid out with lots of room. You can actually enjoy a flop around the pool on a nice day. That rinky dink pool on the Getaway would be a good sized pool for a ship with maybe 1500 passengers but 4000? Its not even remotely large enough to accommodate the people on that ship and to make matters worse, there's never a time when there isn't loud blaring music and if they decide to do some sort of thing at the pool (volleyball, sexy legs etc) then you can forget about getting some time in the pool.

 

I'm sorry but that design of the pool deck on the Getaway is terrible. Mind you, its my only complaint for the week but it is significant enough to make me think twice about booking the Getaway again. On top of all that, they've got all the outside deck areas chopped up and compartmentalized like crazy. They simply did a poor job designing the pool deck on that ship. One of my complaints about Carnival has always been that it seems like they designed their lido deck areas and at the very last minute someone said "Holy cow guys, we forgot to put a pool in - lets put one here". I have the same feeling about the Getaway.

 

I've been on Freedom class ships and Allure on RCL. Definitely more pool areas. That said, I am not a pool person. My wife prefers to stay on our balcony and read. I usually look for a quiet area if I want to get some sun. ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY HATE THE LOUD MUSIC AROUND THE POOL. Can't talk or take a nap. Wouldn't bother me if there was no pool but I understand it is important for people with children.

[Mirrasi]

Aside from crowded pool areas I read some really bad reviews about slides and other activities on Getaway. Some say they had to wait in line for an hour to get on a slide or trampoline, etc. Wondering if this is the typical experience on Getaway?

 

 

 

Never had a problem with slides. The trampoline definitely backs up but we found sometimes when there was little wait.