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We Escaped! Best Cruise - review with pictures

jbetten1

By jbetten1,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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jbetten1

jbetten1

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We returned this past weekend from a glorious trip aboard the Escape. This ship has it all – loads of fun activities, great entertainment, abundant delicious food and drink choices, amazing service by everyone we encountered, waterfront area for quiet spots to grab a drink or read a good book, and cruise director and staff that kept the parties and fun going!

 

Only negative review I have is that we had to get off the ship – 7 days isn’t long enough to enjoy everything she has to offer! Kids keep asking when we can cruise her again – yep, I’ve already looked into booking another trip.

 

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A little background about us. Myself, DH, DS (turned 15 today), DD (13) and DS (11) traveled from the frozen tundra, aka Minnesota, to Florida for our very first Norwegian cruise. We had cruised prior to kids several times on RCCL (our first was our honeymoon 23 years ago!) and took the kids on their first cruise to Alaska this past August on the Radiance of the Seas. We like to have fun, try new things, and make the best out of our time together.

 

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Youngest DS has a severe food allergy and the staff always made sure the food he ordered was safe for him to eat. Beyond impressed by their detail to his food safety.

 

I’ll give you the highlights/cons (for those that like short and sweet reviews) and post a longer review with pictures later (for those that like all the details)

 

HIGHLIGHTS:

Activities: The ship is jammed packed with things to do for both adults and kids alike. There is no way to be bored, unless you choose to be. What did we do – ropes course (be brave - try it!), aqua racer, kids slide, pools, splash pad, mini golf, lounge in the sun, trivia contests, bingo, watched the Mr. Sexy Legs & Ms. Norwegian contest (darn funny!). Don’t miss the 80’s party or the Glow Party – best dance parties we have been to in 20 years.

 

Entertainment: Don’t miss the Brat Pack, Howl at the Moon (kids are still singing Rolling on the River) and the comedy show. We went to the family friendly 9pm show and everyone was laughing (there’s an adult one at 11pm that we had reservations for but missed). DH and oldest DS went to After Midnight and both loved it. Vocal Overdrive - was just ok. I was expecting something a little more up beat. With so many other options, this is one you could definitely skip.

 

Food: Food Republic – went twice, should have gone more often. Everything we ordered was amazingly good and well worth the extra charge. La Cucina and Teppanyaki also are must tries. Grab an ice cream cone and crepe from the Garden Café. Had to remind DD that neither of those choices counted as having “lunch”. Order a vanilla macaroon and salted caramel gelato from the bakery on the waterfront – also well worth the extra charge. Have breakfast in Taste or Savor at least once – French toast & waffles both delicious. O’Sheehan’s great for a quick lunch or breakfast. Dine in the Manhattan Dining Room – best service of the entire cruise (shout out to Merishad) and what’s not to enjoy about dining and dancing.

 

Drinks: I’ll be honest, I didn’t get to try all the drinks and beers I wanted to, but the ones I did try I really enjoyed! Never a wait for service. Bars not to miss District Brew House (aka “home”), Surgarcane Mojito Bar & 5 O’Clock Somewhere Bar on the waterfront.

 

Thermal Suite: By far the best place to unwind and relax at the end of the day. The therapy pool, hot tub, sauna, steam room, salt room and snow room (not as cold as January in Minnesota, but make sure to wear sandals) were all wonderful. Best part – the heated lounge chairs facing the ocean – stunning view and best place to take a nap! You can get a pass for the week online for $199 per person. Well worth the investment.

 

Entourage/Dolphin Kids Club: According to my 15-year old, Entourage and the kids he met there were definitely the highlight of the cruise experience for him. After the first day, we saw him as he was heading to breakfast sometime around mid-morning, at dinner (yes, he had to eat dinner with the family), and again at night as he knocked on our cabin door to let us know he was back. We kept tabs on him using the iConcierge app and did meet a few of the kids he was hanging out with. He made a ton of friends and is still texting and emailing all of them. DD refused to go, even when her brother said he would introduce her to his friends. She did end up hanging out with a girl we met at the boarding area, so it worked out for her.

 

My youngest DS went to the kids club one night, but he thought there were too many kids there and they were just doing circle games when he went. After an hour, he checked himself out.

 

Ports: We booked our own excursions. Highlight of the trip was definitely the all-day sail on the Jester in St. Thomas. Spent the morning swimming and stand up paddle boarding at Cane Garden Bay in Tortola – beautiful beach, clear blue water and lots of bars, restaurants and things to do. Beautiful island with stunning views. Last stop was Nassua, where we did a 4-hour fishing charter with Chubasco V. Youngest DS reeled in 3 of the biggest fish we caught. He refused help and did it all by himself – proud mama moment.

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Embarkation and Debarkation: The easiest and fastest we have ever experienced. We were off the boat and through customs in 20 minutes – ok, can we turn around and get back on.

 

CONS:

These aren’t really cons, but more like things to be aware of.

 

You can definitely smell the lingering cigarette smoke in the casino area and in the open areas of the 678 Ocean Place. But you really can’t smell it anywhere else, even though most of the restaurants and bars flow from that area. It didn’t really bother me, but the kids always mentioned it as we walked through that area. If this is something that will bother you and you want to eat at Le Bistro, then I would recommend getting a table inside the restaurant versus on the patio.

 

The ship does move in a sort of side to side (not rolling) motion. Sometimes it’s more noticeable than others. But it’s not a movement that will make you seasick, more like a shimmy that reminds you that you are in the middle of an ocean. I didn’t think it was any worse than any of our other cruises. In fact, I thought the Radiance definitely moved more on our Alaska cruise.

 

If you are getting off in Nassua and don’t have a set time for an excursion, then I would recommend waiting a bit after the clear to leave the ship announcement. We, along with 4,000 other people, all decided to get off right after the announcement. Needless to say, the bottleneck of wall-to-wall people was winding up through the 9th floor stairwell (we got off on the 4th floor). It took about 30 minutes and lots of people were frazzled as they had excursion times at 12:15pm. This was the only time we experienced any kind of delay getting off at port. In both St. Thomas and Tortola we literally walked right up to scan our cards and were immediately off the ship.

 

SUMMARY:

All in all, I would have to say this was everyone’s favorite cruise thus far. We can’t wait to sail her again!

 

If you are at all on the fence about cruising on the Escape, book it. You won't regret it. If you already have a cruise on her booked - you will have a blast!

 

I’ll post more details and pictures this week.

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CP3o

CP3o

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Thanks for a great trip report! How much was the all day sail in st Thomas, did you join others or charter it for just your group? Any stress about getting back in time?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

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scrappinannie

scrappinannie

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Thanks for your review! Sounds like you all had an awesome time....we leave on Saturday for our Escape cruise and are so so excited! It's been raining, snowing, and crazy wind here for a week so we are ready for the warmth of the Caribbean!

 

Do you have any pictures to share? ;)

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jbetten1

jbetten1

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Thanks for a great trip report! How much was the all day sail in st Thomas, did you join others or charter it for just your group? Any stress about getting back in time?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

The all day sail with Jester Sailing Adventures was $150 per person, this included unlimited drinks for kids and adults - jester juice was really good - an amazing grilled chicken lunch with pasta and grilled corn (kids said it was even better than the food on the cruise ship), float mats and two stops for snorkeling. Captain Jim grilled up lunch while we snorkeled. We did the sail with just our family. We wanted a more relaxed trip and didn't want to get crammed in with 80 other people. The Jester can hold 6-7 people very comfortably.

 

The Jester sails out of Secret Harbour Resort - about a 20 minute cab ride from the port. We did set up the cab ride in advance from Captain Jim's recommendation. This worked out great. The sail was from 10-4pm and the ship was in port from 8am-6pm. We had no problem making it back in time. In fact we were back on the ship by 4:30pm.

 

Highly recommend sailing with Captain Jim!

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jbetten1

jbetten1

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Thanks for the review! Did you take your 11y/o to the Brat Pack? Wondering if it's appropriate to take mine. Thanks!

 

We didn't take our 11 year old to the Brat Pack, but did take the 13 year old and 15 year old. This was the night the youngest went to the kids club. It's listed as PG 16, but there were several younger kids in the audience the night we went - like 9-10 year olds. The decision to not take him was more based on the fact that I didn't think he would get what was going on - he's never seen any of the movies - and they served mostly shrimp and crab for the meal (both of which he's allergic too).

 

There were some swear words. The kids probably hear worse words on the bus. There was also a locker room scene with the girls in their bras & undies and the boys in their tidy whiteys. My DD was mortified (we were sitting right next to the stage so got a real close up view). So maybe get a table a little further back if you want to avoid a close up view.

 

After seeing the show, I would bring our 11 year old next time (after showing him all the movies!).

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CP3o

CP3o

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After seeing the show, I would bring our 11 year old next time (after showing him all the movies!).

 

My kids are older so I'm not worried about that but what movies recommend seeing or revisiting ahead of the show? Breakfast club I'd guess, what else?

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jbetten1

jbetten1

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My kids are older so I'm not worried about that but what movies recommend seeing or revisiting ahead of the show? Breakfast club I'd guess, what else?

 

The movies included in the show were Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Sixteen Candles, Weird Science, Pretty in Pink and Some Kind of Wonderful (had to look that one up, because I remembered watching it, but not the name).

 

Oddly enough, the were able to integrate all the movies into one story line that was easy to follow, especially if you were familiar with the movies. The actors/singers played multiple roles, but yet they all fit each of the roles perfectly. The musicians were amazing - especially the sax player! I caught myself singing along more than once - much to DD's dismay.

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CP3o

CP3o

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The movies included in the show were Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Sixteen Candles, Weird Science, Pretty in Pink and Some Kind of Wonderful (had to look that one up, because I remembered watching it, but not the name).

 

Oddly enough, the were able to integrate all the movies into one story line that was easy to follow, especially if you were familiar with the movies. The actors/singers played multiple roles, but yet they all fit each of the roles perfectly. The musicians were amazing - especially the sax player! I caught myself singing along more than once - much to DD's dismay.

 

Thanks! Hope I can get my teen boys to give some of them a whirl!

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