My NCL Escape Review 8/6/ to 8/14/16

[firegal2539]

The first comment I want to make is many reviewers complained about the massive size of the Escape. I have taken over 20 cruises, most being between 1,900 to 2,800 passengers plus crew. The Escape has 4,248 passengers and 1,738 crew. The Escape is enormous and was almost completely sold out. I never felt that it was crowded or passengers were pushing or shoving, no long waits for elevators, restaurants or shows. The only wait was for Guest Services, Shore Excursions and Restaurant Reservations.

 

I found the Escape to be easily navigable. Everything was centrally located with most things located at 678 Ocean Place, including restaurants, stores, bars/lounges, casino, art gallery, internet café, all guest service offices, library, meeting rooms, and theaters. Deck 16 had the pool, hot tubs, water slides, The Market Place (cool souvenir place) and the Garden Café (buffet). Deck 17 has the Haven, Margaritaville and a well-hidden secret, H20 adult only pool. I never had any problem finding anything and the crew was ever present to ask directions, advice or suggestions from.

 

During the day a great place to seek peace, quiet and to relax is the Waterfront on Deck 8. The inside restaurants have outside tables where you can sit and eat. Chaise loungers are scattered around the whole deck for passengers to read, eat or just watch the ocean. I truly loved this spot.

 

Deck 8 has the shops. I have been on so many cruises where they have the watch and jewelry sales and the cruise line sets up folding tables in the hallway and block them, strollers, walkers, scooters, and passengers who use canes, can’t get through because it is so congested. The Escape built counters from the walls of the shops where 2 employees and a cash register fit. This does not cause the hallways to become so congested and passengers can get through.

 

A small hint, look at the carpeting and see which way the fish are swimming. The fish always swim to the Bow (front) of the ship. This helps you from going in the wrong direction.

[firegal2539]

Embarkation and disembarkation was the easiest I have ever done. From the time I arrived at the Fort Lauderdale airport, took an NCL shuttle to the Port of Miami and got to my cabin, was approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. The return was about the same. The only problem I had was the port porters asking for tips. All the porter does is take your bag and throw it on a cart. It takes them 30 seconds and they expect a $5 tip. Sorry, not from this woman!!

 

My steward, Sharon, was wonderful, and kept the cabin clean and neat. As soon as I arrived I asked for ice twice a day and immediately received it without a problem. Clean towels and sheets provided when needed.

 

Savor, Taste and the Manhattan Room are the Main Dining Rooms (MDR). The menu is the same for all 3 MDRs. The Manhattan Room has a live band and dancing while eating. I am not a fan of Free Style Dining, I want a set time and the same table, table mates and wait staff. The food in the MDRs was good, some nights it was great. I bought a specialty dinner package of 3 meals and ate all in Cagney’s. I just say enough about Cagney’s. It is wonderful, the steak melts in my mouth, the Parmesan Truffle Fries are the most amazing food I've eaten and the Crème Brulee is to die for. I didn’t care for Moderno, meat was tough and dry, Teppanyaki’s is great, the chefs put on a great show, Le Bistro was just ok.

 

Another favorite spot of mine was O’Sheehan’s Pub. Open 24 hours, great food and service, the prime rib was great. It was a good breakfast spot, not crowded, could get seated right away. The Garden Café (buffet) was terrible. I went one time put 1 piece of meat on my plate, looked at it, laid it on a table and walked out and never went back, it had a greenish tinge to it.

 

Margaritaville is a la carte dining, hamburger type foods. I tried 1 time, sat at a table, but no waiter approached me or asked what I needed so after 15 minutes I left.

 

Another small hint, early in the morning you can go to O’Sheehan’s and sit at a table and ask for a basket of their breakfast pastries and coffee. Pick it up and take it to your room, save the room service charge. I sat on my balcony and ate breakfast two mornings this way.

[firegal2539]

I had read many reviews on CC about the Escape. Many reviewers mentioned the casino as being smoky and the smoke carrying to Deck 6 and 8. There is a non-smoking area, clearly marked, in the casino and it was great. I didn’t have a problem with the smoke until the day before the cruise ended, it started to get a very heavy smoke smell. I didn’t smell the smoke carrying to other decks. I like that any time the casino is closed (port days) you can’t smoke in it, it is prohibited.

 

The few shows I saw were The Brat Pack, fabulous, Headliners Comedy Club, Dueling Pianos, fabulous, Levity Entertainment Group (comedians), good. Tyler Gray, Cruise Director, was wonderful. I have to agree with other reviews, he says, “Let’s make some noise every other sentence”, but that is his job, to get the passengers moving, yelling, clapping and involved and he did that. I got to meet him at our Meet & Greet and he is a very interesting young man who truly believes he is living his dream of being the CD on the Escape. His staff was wonderful too!

 

The pool area on Deck 16 was very crowded. I have never seen so many people crammed in a pool at one time. All deck chairs had towels on them, with very few people sitting on them. Children were everywhere on the ship, running up and down hallways, banging on doors, yelling and screaming, on the elevators pushing every button. There were many great kids and the few who ruin it for other passengers.

 

I don’t like when someone writes a review and complains about having to wait for restaurant, excursion or show reservations. All of these can be done before you leave for your cruise. Excursions can be booked at least 90 days before your cruise, which gives you time to pay for them and guarantees you have a spot on the excursions. Most excursions have reviews written about them on Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor, which gives you a good idea about it, to help you make up your mind if it is right excursion for you. Dining can be booked 60 days before sailing, this includes the MDRs and the specialty restaurants. If you book before you cruise you pay less for the specialty restaurants then if you book on the ship, same with the excursions. Entertainment can be booked 60 days before sailing and is necessary if you don’t want to wait in line to see if you can even get a seat at the venue. The cruise lines have made everything so simple about cruising, if the passengers will just take the time to do a few easy things to make their cruise better.

 

Of my 20 to 30 cruises I have taken, I would rank NCL Escape in the top 5. It was a wonderful cruise, great crew members, good food and a relaxing time.

[firegal2539]

Ports:

 

Phillipsburg, Sint Maarten, I will never return. I had an excursion but it didn’t start until 3 hours after we docked, so I decided to walk to downtown, Front St. My spidey senses were going off as soon as I turned onto Front St. It was dark, dirty, dank smelling and I was totally uncomfortable being a woman alone there. Unless you do an excursion, Phillipsburg is a pointless port.

 

St. Thomas, USVI, it rained as soon as we docked, which made the temperature reach around 100 and was very humid. I had purchased the Coral World excursion which should be removed from the choice of excursions for St. Thomas. 90% of the coral is dead. It was terrible to see it. It was so hot I couldn’t breathe in the building. Total waste of my time and money. Havensight Mall, at the port is a great place to do duty-free shopping, many stores to browse through.

 

Tortola, BVI, Tortola is the most beautiful island I have seen. The water was at least 10 different shades of blue. It was clean, but poverty was everywhere. I took the Tortola by Land and Sea excursion. The sea part was riding a boat, either air conditioned or you could sit outside in the heat, and see all of the islands the pirates had landed on. To me this was a waste of time, you couldn’t get off the boat, or get close enough to really see the islands, so we just rode by them and the guide would say, “To your left is Treasure Chest Island, after that in the background is St. John’s, next to that is the private island Sir Richard Branson owns”. This was a waste of time and my money. This tour was $99 and could have the sea part cut out and just do the land tour for $50, which would have made more sense. The land part was on an open air bus. Tortola Island is all mountains and I really thought I was going to die on the roads. Locals drive crazy on this island. The highest point we reached was 1800 feet, way up, it took about an hour and 30 minutes to get to the top and it only took the guide 15 minutes to get down the mountain. Hairpin and double S turns everywhere. There were many passengers who enjoyed it but were scared senseless by the height and the ride. If you are scared of heights you might want to forget this tour.

 

Nassau, the Bahamas. Nassau is one of my favorite islands. When we docked we were one of six ships in port. The port area was very crowded. When I am in Nassau I always take a taxi to Atlantis. Taxis are regulated and can only charge $4 for a ride, but ask passengers to round up to $5. I love Atlantis because of the designer shops and the casino.

[firegal2539]

I had very few problems on this cruise. The cabin next door had a very large family staying in it, they had 7 pieces of luggage. When luggage was dropped at our cabin doors, they blocked my door with their luggage, (the doors swings out, not in), so I couldn’t get out of my cabin and had to call to have someone come and move their luggage.

 

The cabin was the smallest balcony I have had on a cruise. I guess that is how 4,248 passengers fit on the ship.

 

NCL changed my dining time. I had chosen 5:30 p.m. on every night but NCL had changed me to 6:30 p.m. I went to restaurant reservations and after standing in line for an hour, the man making reservations said there was nothing he could do because they were already booked solid for 5:30, 6, 6:30 and 7 p.m. I showed him my confirmation with the date I reserved the times and dining rooms, but he didn’t care, he wouldn’t change me back to my time. When I went to Cagney’s that night, the restaurant manager changed me back to 5:30 on all of my reservations by calling each individual restaurant manager. I was so thrilled at his willingness to do this for me.

 

I was never nickeled and dimed while on the ship. I purchased everything online so I think that might have stopped some of that. I did buy a beverage package. I don’t drink alcohol, but I do drink soft drinks and juice, so for $60 I got unlimited water, soda, juice, coffee, tea. I always purchase the soft drink package online because it can go up in price when you get on the ship.

 

The beverage packages take some thought and are a personal preference. Do you believe you can drink 6 alcoholic drinks a day? Remember that several days you will be in port and only drink that night. Many friends have told me they love their wine and mixed drinks but from 6 pm until bedtime it is hard to finish 6 drinks. I do know premium liquor can cost from $10.95 to $15.95 a drink, then add tax and gratuities onto that. I have had friends who didn’t purchase a package and on the last day of the cruise found that their bar bill was over $1,000. All I can say is do the math. You can’t share the package with anyone, if you are caught sharing you will be cut off and your money won’t be refunded.

[firegal2539]

I was in Cabin 14854, Deck 14, a midship balcony. I was originally in an Ocean View, 13100, Deck 13, all the way at the aft (back) of the ship. I was upgraded to a balcony for a very small amount. I wish I had kept the Ocean View. The balcony cabin was comfortable but smaller than my original OV. The balcony itself, was only 30 feet with 2 small chairs and a tiny table. I had to push the chairs against the door to be able to cross or stretch my legs out.

 

The cabin had a queen size bed by the balcony door with a very comfortable mattress and 6 pillows. There was a sofa next to the bed that folded out to a small double bed that was very hard. Across from the sofa was a mirror and desk/bar. There were three outlets under the mirror which was more than enough for me. Underneath the desk was a stool, refrigerator and some more cabinets for storage. The television had 21 channels, 14 NCL, 1 sports (soccer), 4 news, 1 favorite t.v. shows and 1 favorite movies.

 

After the sofa was a large closet, one side for hanging clothes with a shelf above and the other side was 6 floor to ceiling shelves with a safe. It was more than enough closet space for me. The bathroom was a good size with a shower. The water pressure was great and the temperature was perfect. There were no outlets in the bathroom.

[WAHMto5]

Thank you for the review! Sounds like you had a great cruise. We are looking forward to going on the Escape!

[TheDougOut]

Did you really stand in a dining reservation line for an hour? Or did it just feel like an hour? I know it can be torture wasting time like this while on a cruise ship. My record is prob 30 minutes at the Internet help desk. Felt like forever.

 

Great review & perspective! Thanks for taking the time to share your experience.

[firegal2539]

Hi DougOut,

 

Absolutely stood in line for 1 hour. And to make it worse the Restaurant Reservationist was as rude as could be. He proceeded to tell me that anything I did online didn't count once you were on the ship. That was a very stupid comment, especially when NCL sends you an email and asks you to book online to save time and to get the shows, restaurants and times you want. There was an NCL employee at Guest Relations that asked what you needed and when I told him he directed me to RR. I stood for 30 minutes and flagged that guy down and asked if he remembered me, he said yes, and I asked was there anyone else that could help me, since I had been there 30 minutes already and he said no, even though there were 6 Guest Relations reps and no one at any of their stations, they were just standing there.

 

I loved my cruise on the Escape and would do it again, but I don't appreciate rudeness from a crew member.

[TheDougOut]

Ugh. My BP goes up just reading that. Although it's good to see you didn't let it impact your otherwise positive experience. :)

[Clarea]

Excellent, very detailed review. Good idea to prohibit smoking in the casino when it is closed.

[BuckGood]

I was in Cabin 14854, Deck 14, a midship balcony. I was originally in an Ocean View, 13100, Deck 13, all the way at the aft (back) of the ship. I was upgraded to a balcony for a very small amount. I wish I had kept the Ocean View. The balcony cabin was comfortable but smaller than my original OV. The balcony itself, was only 30 feet with 2 small chairs and a tiny table. I had to push the chairs against the door to be able to cross or stretch my legs out.

 

The cabin had a queen size bed by the balcony door with a very comfortable mattress and 6 pillows. There was a sofa next to the bed that folded out to a small double bed that was very hard. Across from the sofa was a mirror and desk/bar. There were three outlets under the mirror which was more than enough for me. Underneath the desk was a stool, refrigerator and some more cabinets for storage. The television had 21 channels, 14 NCL, 1 sports (soccer), 4 news, 1 favorite t.v. shows and 1 favorite movies.

 

After the sofa was a large closet, one side for hanging clothes with a shelf above and the other side was 6 floor to ceiling shelves with a safe. It was more than enough closet space for me. The bathroom was a good size with a shower. The water pressure was great and the temperature was perfect. There were no outlets in the bathroom.

 

 

Thank you for this Extensive review. My partner and I are planning on doing this cruise next month and it will be our first cruise with NCL, we Really don't care for Huge ships but the price is Great!

[laedw]

Thank you so much for this review. My March cruise will be my first sailing on the ship. I am familiar with all of the ports with the exception of Tortola. I wanted to take a tour of the island and I know to skip the tour you described. Thanks for the heads up.:)

 

How was the entertainment/activities on the ship? Are there any must dos?

[cincicruisers]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. Like the idea of no smoking in casino when it's closed.

[helen haywood]

I thought there was no charge for room service for breakfast if you were just having coffee and pastries....am I wrong?

[Sand and Seas]

Enjoying your review! We love Tortola too and were so excited when NCL added this port. Thanks for sharing your cruise with us:D

[MrsPugwash]

Thanks for taking the time to write this detailed review, looking forward to our sailing in November 😎

[Brooklyn59]

Thank you so much for taking the time write your detailed review. I do have one question - you mentioned that your changed your cabin from oceanview to a balcony. Did you change your cabin prior to the cruise or did you ask for the relocation when you were on the Escape?

I am sailing on Escape in September and currently booked in oceanview cabin 14100 and thinking of changing cabins to a balcony ---- that is, if it is not too expensive to move. You mentioned that there was a nominal fee for the upgrade. Could you possibly provide me with the approximate cost for the move. If you are not comfortable with this request I will understand.

 

Thanks again for your help.

[Sunny G]

Thanks for the little tips, I am going on that ship in October

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[firegal2539]

If you like 80s music the Rat Pack. I enjoyed and loved Headliners Dueling Pianos. The comedians were ok. You need to book these before you get on the ship, people were waiting in line to see if there were any no shows.

 

Marie my Ocean View, 13100, was 1 deck above your cabin. Your cabin looks out over a promenade walkway but not many people walk on it. You have to remember to close the curtains. The OV was bigger than the balcony because the balcony footage is added into the OV.

 

There always a charge for room service, any time you use it.

[firegal2539]

Marie I forgot to tell that NCL has an upsell department. Before the cruise you can move up to a suite for a nominal cost. About two days before your cruise if there are any balconies you can get one. CC won't let you post telephone numbers. Sorry!

[easyboy]

Thanks for the review,

[Brooklyn59]

Marie I forgot to tell that NCL has an upsell department. Before the cruise you can move up to a suite for a nominal cost. About two days before your cruise if there are any balconies you can get one. CC won't let you post telephone numbers. Sorry!

 

Thanks for your quick response....

I called the Upsell department yesterday but they were only offering Haven accommodations at this time. As my cruise date approaches I will try my luck again as per your suggestion. I appreciate you guidance,

 

Thanks again.

[Brooklyn59]

Marie I forgot to tell that NCL has an upsell department. Before the cruise you can move up to a suite for a nominal cost. About two days before your cruise if there are any balconies you can get one. CC won't let you post telephone numbers. Sorry!

 

Thanks for your quick response....

I called the Upsell department yesterday but they were only offering Haven accommodations at this time. As my cruise date approaches I will try my luck again as per your suggestion. I appreciate your guidance.

 

Thanks again.