Review: Norwegian Getaway 03/27-04/03/2016

[zackarykeef]

Hey y'all,

 

We just returned two days ago from another amazing week on the Getaway. We were also on the Getaway this past August (2015) and loved it so much that we decided to book it again due to the new itinerary; we wanted to try the Escape, but it's now doing the same eastern route Getaway was on in August. I have been to all the ports before except GSC, but SO had not been...that made up our minds.

 

I didn't post a review for our August cruise, but honestly, I had a very similar experience and satisfaction level. I'll note the minor differences below...mainly the fact that we had the SDP this time and the difference in sailing during August/March. I’m also going to try and touch on some things people have asked about in the past, and feel free to post any questions!

 

I've seen so many people complain about NCL lately, including the Getaway, and I just don't see why. Maybe we've just gotten lucky, or maybe I'm a generally positive person that affords positivity around me. I'll let y'all decide that :) Everyone has his/her own opinions anyway...I've just become a big fan of NCL and wanted to share my review and positive energy to encourage others despite all of the negativity out there.

 

Just a quick blurb about us so you can understand where we are coming from while reading this review...we are both professionals (doctor and digital marketing), in our late 20s, and currently residing in Miami. We have both lived in the Caribbean before (Dominica and Trinidad) and enjoy traveling as much as we can. We are both big foodies and enjoy good drinks! I have cruised multiple times on Carnival and recently became a convert to NCL!

 

Sorry for the novel before the actual review! Let's get to it...

[tropical83]

I'll be following along! 48 days until I sail the Getaway :)

[zackarykeef]

Embarkation: Since we live 10 minutes from the port, I actually packed the morning of (I hate packing), and we got to the port around 12:15pm. (We weren’t in any rush to get Vibe passes since there were only two sea days on our itinerary). We were on the ship within 15 minutes, as there were no lines and everything was a breeze...they weren’t even assigning group numbers at that point, so we walked right on. No complaints at all here.

 

Room: 12216, mid-ship port side balcony. Booked as a guarantee balcony and assigned ~1 week after booking. We were also on deck 12 last cruise in a similar balcony, only slightly more aft and starboard side. Both had connecting doors, but they were not an issue. We did have two families on either side of us this time, both with little kids…the kids made a lot of noise at times, but nothing that prevented us from sleeping and definitely not because of the connecting door. Room was great, no issues. Our room steward Ronald was great as well, remembering our names and leaving us a nice handwritten note on the last day.

 

Cruisers: This was the main difference for us, which we were expecting with this sailing being spring break/Easter week. We sailed at capacity both sailings, but this time there were obviously MANY more families and kids. I heard that there were ~1400 (young) kids on board, or about ¼ of the passengers. Honestly, it was not much of an issue for us…it actually worked out better in some cases. Chairs were abundant in SpiceH2O because families couldn’t come in. The ship actually seemed LESS crowded after ~10pm because families went to bed. Yes, there were plenty of children running aimlessly and unsupervised, stomping up and down the halls. There were a lot of teenagers too…they seemed to be the main attendees to the late-night SpiceH20 parties. Downside to this was Bliss was never busy with people late compared to our August cruise with many more 20s/30s/40s cruisers. Overall, obviously I would prefer not to cruise on Spring Break, but nothing that would prevent me from booking during this time in the future (unless you’re some unpleasant person who hates children).

 

Activities: We went to several of the trivias and game shows, all which were fun and well-run. The “Perfect Couple” game show was a true riot, and should not be missed for those PG-13 and up. The late-night parties at SpiceH20 were always fun, with standouts/most crowded being the 80s Party and the Glow Party. They were a such a blast! Observed one of the Deal or No Deal games, but left because I was frustrated with the participants not making smart decisions and losing money (one of them being a 13-year old who clearly just wanted to slam the box shut and yell “NO DEAL!” :rolleyes:;) Oh, well...

 

Ropes course was fun…didn’t have to wait more than 10 minutes on a sea day. Make sure you have shoes with closed toe and heel and nothing in your pockets other than your key card. Waterslides were great as well, with no lines, although we did do them on a port day. I did see lines of children for the slides on sea days.

 

Entertainment: We actually did not go to any of the shows this time, as we had seen them all last cruise. I can only comment on those ones, even though the casts may have changed a little by now. Burn the Floor, Legally Blonde, and The Illusionarium were all great. We also had friends on board this time who direct music/theatre, and they said the shows were superb. I was a musically-inclined/theatre person growing up as well, and I can agree that the talent is excellent. Many people seem to give negative reviews, but the talent is there. It just may be that an hour of Latin dancing or a peppy/cheesy musical (which Legally Blonde is, even when it was on Broadway) are not your thing. I would take two solid longer shows over the simple variety acts that differ every night on other ships any time.

 

Casino: The smoke smell is not as bad as people say it is! I’m a doctor, and I am the first one to loudly cough to make a point next to someone smoking where they shouldn’t be. I hate it. There is obviously a slight odor in the casino, but I don’t think it permeates everywhere like people say. We played the slots a little each day since we had a $100 casino credit, but didn’t win anything. No surprise there.

 

Food: I thought the food was great last time and even better this time. Norwegian seems to be stepping it up, specifically in the Garden Café. We are not buffet people and usually only grab quick snacks there, but they were on point this time. I remember the pizza being ‘meh” and actually recently made a comment on here about how it wasn’t that great, but I was surprised how much better it was this time. The Caribbean shrimp burger was also a standout.

 

Definitely utilize the Flamingo Bar and Grill on deck 16! It’s definitely overshadowed by the Garden Café below, but it’s never crowded for this reason (even on embarkation day lunch) and the food is good! It’s Cuban food, and being from Miami, I love Cuban food. Breakfast is great here, too, to grab before heading out to port.

 

Since we had the SDP this time, we only at in the MDRs twice. We ate there almost every night last cruise, and I felt this food (with the new menus) was also improved from last time. I’m not a vegetarian, but I had a full vegetarian meal at Taste on the first night just because it sounded good, and the ricotta and leek cannelloni was divine. The Tropicana Room is great, and I would recommend eating all your MDR meals there, especially now that there is no dress code there any more. The service is the best of the 3, it feels elegant, and the music/dancing is fun and adds ambiance. I did, indeed, have the beef wellington everyone is talking about on Friday night, and it was delicious. I wish they served it differently so the puff pastry was slightly crispier, but no major complaints.

 

We had reservations for Le Bistro, but canceled last minute as we were too lazy to dress up (here and Ocean Blue require pants and collars for dinner). I have only ever heard good things about it though. Our cancelled reservation was switched to...

 

Teppanyaki was so good we ended up using two of our SDP there (to make up for Le Bistro). Get the Asuka…both the filet and lobster were relish. Do plan on about 1.5-2 hours for your meal, though, as it is basically a show as well.

 

Cagneys was divine as well. We both got filets, which were cooked slightly under what we ordered. I actually noticed the entire cruise that steaks seemed to be cooked slightly under, I guess in fear of overcooking from resting. I like my steak med-rare, but I am ok with a little less, so everything was great. (I had learned this by beef wellington night, so I ordered it medium…came out perfect med-rare!) The truffle mash was heavenly. We were so full by dessert that we had to order the 6-layer chocolate cake (GET IT) to go. Don’t forget you can get things to go and take them to your room! Don’t waste your SDP by not getting dessert!

 

Moderno was as good as last time…always way too much food and way too much meat. I actually skip the salad bar and the sides (usually) to save room for the meats. However, I did get the lobster bisque off the bar because I can’t pass it up, and the garlic mashed potatoes almost (maybe actually did) beat Cagneys. The grilled pineapple is always amazing. Get the banana merengue tarte…we weren’t going to until our server insisted he bring it anyway, and I’M SO GLAD HE DID. MIND BLOWN.

 

Both the noodle bar (Shanghai’s) and the sushi bar (Wasabi) don’t fill us up, so we combined those in one night. Both good as usual…especially the rock ‘n’ roll.

 

Bars: Everyone keeps saying “with everyone nowadays having the UBP,” but I surprisingly met and saw a lot of people without it. Don’t let the UBP promo worry you. Never had to wait more than ~2-3min for a drink, and that was at the upper pool bars on a sea day or a deck party. At bars on the promenades we were served almost instantly. I didn’t notice any ridiculously overly drunk people (maybe that was us?!:o). Plenty of servers walking around taking drink orders…this was a major improvement from last time. I was in a far corner in SpiceH2O and NEVER had to get up to get a drink…they would come by before I finished my first one. UBP covers anything you would want, unless you want a super fancy tequila/scotch/wine.

 

Staff: Every staff member was great. Not a single issue. I already mentioned our steward. Activity directors and crew were excellent this cruise! Bartenders were fun. Kenneth at the Sunset Bar (our “spot”) had our names and drinks memorized by day 2 and would be making them as we sat down. If we were empty, they were full as soon as we turned back around. Highlight of the trip was seeing our favorite bartender, Darwin, from our last cruise. We didn’t even have to say anything…as soon as we were walking up, he immediately remembered us and came around from the bar to say hello and catch up. He even went out of his way for us on GSC so we could avoid the bar lines. Being friendly and tipping really helps! :D

 

Ports: No issues getting on/off ship, even during tendering. I had heard people complain that tendering took a long time on the Getaway (no tender ports our last cruise) so we budgeted extra time, but we walked right on and right off the tenders every time. The Carnival line next to us in Grand Cayman had the most ridiculous line I had ever seen…took up the entire port. Not NCL! It made it even better walking by them in the hot sun with our music, free water, and free cool, eucalyptus-scented face cloths!

 

Ocho Rios is not my favorite port, but neither of us had climbed Dunn’s River Falls before, so we decided to do that. We didn’t want anything fancy with extra sites or lunch…just a quick climb and back to the ship. We booked the simple excursion via NCL once on board, as private ones I found were only several dollars cheaper. I cannot tell you how lucky we were…we were the first group out in the morning, and the Falls felt so private! Everything was smooth, and our guide was amazing, holding people’s phones in a waterproof bag and taking pictures for us along the way. By the time we got to the top, the place was horribly crowded like everyone says. We definitely lucked out and had an amazing time! Get there early!

 

Grand Cayman is one of my favorite ports…it has some of the bluest water in the Caribbean, and the island oozes with money. We booked an excursion through Island Marketing—Wave Runner Stingray City and Rum Point. It was 2 hours in the middle of the day, so we had time before and after to do whatever. The tour ended up being just the two of us and our guide, so it was basically private! I’d been to Stingray City several times before, but never by jetski…it was so awesome. Rum Point afterwards was beautiful as well. Definitely recommend this tour!

 

We were just going to beach it in Cozumel, but after some friends booked a ruins tour, we decided to join them. We booked via NCL and did the Ruins/Beach/Island Overview. We were drawn to this since it explored the San Gervasio ruins on Cozumel itself, therefore not having to take the ferry and waste so much time getting to Tulum. The ruins were ok…I have been to Chichen Itza, so this did not compare. Our guide, however, was very knowledgeable and entertaining. The excursion took us to a beach and restaurant on the western, untouched side of the island…that was the highlight of the excursion. Definitely make it to the less developed coast of Cozumel.

 

GSC was exactly what we wanted…a relaxing day on the beach. The island is beautiful, and NCL has made it into a true resort feel. The buffet was set up nicely, and the food was good. Definitely go past the first beach (way too crowded and not even the nicest beach) to the second or third beach…way less people and much nicer! A cruise isn't complete without some snorkeling IMO (it's my favorite), so I brought my gear. Snorkeling here was great…bring your own gear to avoid paying a ridiculous $30 for gear rental. There were also some friendly stingrays swimming around the beaches to say hello if you’re not brave enough to go out and snorkel!

 

My only complaint was about the people snorkeling here…it is self-guided snorkeling, and although (I think) NCL makes you read and sign something if you rent gear, I don’t think many people get it. So many people were stepping on and grabbing onto/touching the coral reef, and that just upset me. I’m not exactly sure how to prevent this from happening, but I have never seen that this much when I was on other guided/informed tours.

 

Debarkation: Again, since we live in Miami, we were in no rush. We grabbed blue debarkation tags, which was for the last time to debark at 9:55am. Put our luggage outside our door at ~10:45pm the night prior, as it has to be out by 11pm. Garden Café in the morning for a leisurely breakfast, and called to debark around 9:15am. Small line constantly moved to get off the ship, found our bags easily, and no line at C&I. Only negative here was while waiting to be picked up, seeing all the people arriving for this week’s cruise! :(

 

Sorry for the long-winded review! I just wanted to try and be as thorough/helpful as possible! Don’t hesitate with any questions! Heading out to Alaska on the Pearl in June, and I plan on reviewing that one as well. Happy cruising, y'all~ :cool:

 

Zack

[Jerseygirl1416]

Thanks Zack! Great report....you are a ray of sunshine on what's usually a cloudy forum😄

[Queendiva64]

Great review. We sail this Sunday and can't wait.

[Clarea]

Excellent review, thank-you.

[FSNA5861]

Exellent review. Glad to see that you had a great cruise.

[ejnsb]

Very nice review. Mirrored a lot of our onboard experiences in March. We are booked again in September and looking forward to the reviews of the new itinerary.

[lor74]

Thanks for the review. We share your thoughts and also rebooked her after a positive experience

[NCteacherlovescruising]

Thank you! Our first NCL cruise will be on the Getaway this summer so I love reading about the ship! How is the dining room food? We only had the beverage package included and have debated buying the SDP, although we aren't sure it's needed. We are also considering trying to get Vibe passes. Our only hesitation is we only have 2 sea days. I would be very disappointed if we couldn't find seats in the sun in Spice H2O. Our first sea day we have an 11:00 M&G followed by the wine tasting lunch/comedy show. I'm sure I will want to sunbathe afterwards.

[Mandy412]

Nice review, my experience on the Getaway was very positive like yours.

[danp2482]

Great review Zack! We sail on the Getaway in 40 days and can't wait. So many on CC with negative things to say about NCL and Getaway. Glad to hear about a great experience and hope ours is the same!

[zackarykeef]

Thank you! Our first NCL cruise will be on the Getaway this summer so I love reading about the ship! How is the dining room food? We only had the beverage package included and have debated buying the SDP, although we aren't sure it's needed. We are also considering trying to get Vibe passes. Our only hesitation is we only have 2 sea days. I would be very disappointed if we couldn't find seats in the sun in Spice H2O. Our first sea day we have an 11:00 M&G followed by the wine tasting lunch/comedy show. I'm sure I will want to sunbathe afterwards.

 

I spoke a little about the MDRs in my review, but not in depth as we only ate there for 2 nights. The Getaway has three MDRs that you can go to when you please, and reservations are rarely needed, save for the occasional large group. We didn't have a reservation for our group of eight Friday night and were seated right away, during prime dinner time.

 

The three MDRs are Taste, Savor, and The Tropicana Room. The same menu is served in all three, and the menus change nightly. If you don't plan on going to specialty restaurants, try each one the first three nights and decide which you like best. That's what we did our last cruise. It's really only the ambiance that is difference. As I mentioned, I definitely preferred the Tropicana, and thought the service had the edge there. Food was the same at each. It was definitely good, and we had friends on board that ate there every night (no SDP) and had no complaints.

 

I will say the food is definitely better in the specialty restaurants, but the MDRs are great as well. I enjoyed the SDP very much (we didn't have it last time and chose to pay extra for Wasabi and Moderno). If it comes as a perk, I would definitely get it. I think the MDRs are great though and would be fine eating there and paying a la carte maybe one or two nights for a specialty. Of note, some people complained/questioned about lobster upcharges...that's only in the MDRs. Lobster IS included with the SDP in Cagneys, Teppanyaki, and Le Bistro.

 

And you'll be fine finding chairs. Summer is slower, so it won't be as crowded. I've never had trouble finding any chairs, whether in Spice or around the pool. Plus, when you get there later in the afternoon, the people who have been there since early morning will be sunned out and leaving.

 

Your call on Vibe...like I said, we didn't feel it necessary with only two sea days, and I stand by that now, since Spice was hardly crowded.

Edited April 5, 2016 by zackarykeef

[Cruisermom2nick]

Awesome review! :) We are headed on our second Getaway trip in 3 weeks! :) We had Joel as our CD in May 2015- maybe you had him then too? Who was the CD this time? Were you happy with the staff and activities?

[NCteacherlovescruising]

I spoke a little about the MDRs in my review, but not in depth as we only ate there for 2 nights. The Getaway has three MDRs that you can go to when you please, and reservations are rarely needed, save for the occasional large group. We didn't have a reservation for our group of eight Friday night and were seated right away, during prime dinner time.

 

The three MDRs are Taste, Savor, and The Tropicana Room. The same menu is served in all three, and the menus change nightly. If you don't plan on going to specialty restaurants, try each one the first three nights and decide which you like best. That's what we did our last cruise. It's really only the ambiance that is difference. As I mentioned, I definitely preferred the Tropicana, and thought the service had the edge there. Food was the same at each. It was definitely good, and we had friends on board that ate there every night (no SDP) and had no complaints.

 

I will say the food is definitely better in the specialty restaurants, but the MDRs are great as well. I enjoyed the SDP very much (we didn't have it last time and chose to pay extra for Wasabi and Moderno). If it comes as a perk, I would definitely get it. I think the MDRs are great though and would be fine eating there and paying a la carte maybe one or two nights for a specialty. Of note, some people complained/questioned about lobster upcharges...that's only in the MDRs. Lobster IS included with the SDP in Cagneys, Teppanyaki, and Le Bistro.

 

And you'll be fine finding chairs. Summer is slower, so it won't be as crowded. I've never had trouble finding any chairs, whether in Spice or around the pool. Plus, when you get there later in the afternoon, the people who have been there since early morning will be sunned out and leaving.

 

Your call on Vibe...like I said, we didn't feel it necessary with only two sea days, and I stand by that now, since Spice was hardly crowded.

 

 

Thank you for all the details! We have to wear long pants in Tropicana, don't we? Cagneys and Modererno look best to me, as steak is my favorite and we try to limit red meat at home.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for your report.

[zackarykeef]

Awesome review! :) We are headed on our second Getaway trip in 3 weeks! :) We had Joel as our CD in May 2015- maybe you had him then too? Who was the CD this time? Were you happy with the staff and activities?

 

I THINK it was Joel at the time, but I honestly can't remember. This time it was Dan "The Man," and he was great. Very happy with the activities and the activity/entertainment staff.

[zackarykeef]

Thank you for all the details! We have to wear long pants in Tropicana, don't we? Cagneys and Modererno look best to me, as steak is my favorite and we try to limit red meat at home.

 

You can where whatever you choose to the Tropicana. The pants rule was still in effect last August, but it is gone now (I wore shorts). The dailies specifically say that pants are only required in Le Bistro and Ocean Blue after 6:00pm.

 

And we're the same...don't really eat red meat at home, but go crazy with steak on cruises! :D

[Keith1010]

Very nice review/report.

 

Keith

[Cruise-mom]

Great review, gets me excited for our Getaway cruise in June :)

 

Thank you.

[Taylor95]

Thank you for the great review. I'm excited to go on this ship in December! And I'm so envious of people that live close to port [emoji6]. I want to try an Alaska itinerary one of these days, so I will be watching for your review. Right now, I have a hard time choosing someplace cool in place of beautiful Caribbean beaches.

[zackarykeef]

I want to try an Alaska itinerary one of these days, so I will be watching for your review. Right now, I have a hard time choosing someplace cool in place of beautiful Caribbean beaches.

 

I'm with you there...that's exactly why I live in Miami. I grew up in the Midwest, and I hate the cold! Even with living in Miami, I still love sailing the Caribbean. This Alaska cruise is a family trip, so not on my dime ;)...I'm excited to go and see it...might as well do it once! Who knows if I'll ever want to pay to go back, but I'm sure it's going to amazing!

[supermax]

Great review. I was on the same cruise and had an excellent time.

[Cre8tivCruiser]

Thank you so much for the review! I haven't seen anything very positive and was getting a little concerned for our trip this summer.

[diskids2]

Loved your review! Planning on this cruise next summer. We are going to Alaska on the Pearl this August....can't wait to read your review for that one!