NCL Escape Dec 9-16 Quick Review

[BeeeJay]

Fantastic week aboard the Escape on modified itin—Falmouth, Cayman, Cozumel, Great Stirrup Cay.

 

Weather started out rough, enjoyed the wavy seas but cost us a day or so if sun and port was closed in Falmouth.

 

Enjoyed a day at Royal Palms in Cayman. Did the cheaper non-inclusive NCL excursion to Playa Mia in Cozumel, it was just ok. Not awful, Beach not as nice as Cayman or Stirrup. Great Stirrup Cay was best day of cruise, great weather and family loved the beach and island.

 

First time traveling with teenage son with severe and numerous food allergies, packed an entire suitcase of snack for him just in case but NCL NAILED IT with the allergy food special meals and made it a fantastic cruise for us!!! Big thanks to buffet maitre d for taking great care of us!!

 

Made 4 trips to casino, each time I sat down at video poker bar, bartenders were beyond AWFUL, however it worked out as each time I got a nice quick four of a kind and bailed to another bar for a drink with my winnings.

 

Otherwise service was quite efficient and friendly. Cruise seemed a little less “full” than same ship last year, less crowds and quick service at bars outside the one casino video poker bar.

 

Ate mostly at buffet as kids required but one dinner at Carney’s, steak was tasty but very thin. Sides were small and/or cold. Baked potato soup and shrimp cocktail were stars of the show. Girls loved their creme brûlée.

 

Stayed in mini suite with large balcony for 3rd straight year and it was really great. Played a lot of mini golf and sports deck and enjoyed those. And basketball in O Sheehan’s.

 

Overall a fantastic cruise, and great value on Casino at Seas comp, albeit with some upgrade charges and fees. This was 4th year in a row cruising. May switch to an island visit next year instead to focus on more time at a better, less crowded beach. Casino service was a major turnoff. But really hard to beat the value for a family.

 

A couple pics....

 

 

 

 

 

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[Clarea]

Nice photos, thanks for the feedback!

[jermeg]

Thanks for the review! We are staying in a large balcony on the Escape in a few weeks! Really looking forward to it!

 

 

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[easyboy]

Glad you had a fantastic cruise. My grandson also has peanut allergies. The Maitre ‘d and the Headwaiter handled all his dietary needs.

 

 

 

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[BeeeJay]

Glad you had a fantastic cruise. My grandson also has peanut allergies. The Maitre ‘d and the Headwaiter handled all his dietary needs.

 

 

 

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Allergies are tough, especially with those $600 EpiPens, my son is especially difficult as he is allergic to:

 

peanuts

tree nuts

wheat

eggs

chicken

turkey

lamb

sesame

cranberry

 

He is 15 and has a big appetite now. He ate two NY Strips with two orders of fries for dinner every night of the cruise. We could order to any restaurant. We would go to buffet, sit down and order and play cards until they came with his food (usually 30 min), then get our food. It worked out great, he loved it, and no issues all week!

[BeeeJay]

These allergies are a GREAT diet, no

Worries about the “cruise weight gain” for that kid. The rest of us however.....well.....let’s just say we “got our money’s worth”[emoji12]

 

 

 

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[Keith1010]

I enjoyed the report as well as the photos.

 

Keith

[Mechman1971]

What was the new show at the dinner theatre now that the Mersey boys are gone?

 

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[Mistizoom]

Thanks for the review! Can you tell me more about Royal Palms on Grand Cayman? How did you get there? Was there any snorkeling? Costs? Food?

[LD Silver]

Thanks for the review! Can you tell me more about Royal Palms on Grand Cayman? How did you get there? Was there any snorkeling? Costs? Food?

 

 

This is from my review of the November 11, 2017 Escape cruise:

We took a taxi to Royal Palm Beach Club on 7 Mile Beach. Thankfully it was a short ride as we were packed like sardines in the van. It is $4 per person each way. The ride to to Royal Palm took 10 minutes but the ride back to the ship was 25 minutes due to traffic. Grand Cayman is one of the more expensive ports.

 

Entrance Fee - $2 per person

2 beach chairs and umbrella -$39 (they were in very good condition)

Bucket of Beers (5) $30(Caybrew, a local brew that tastes like Heineken)

Chicken Parm Sandwich withfries - $15 (it is delicious and enough for 2 people)

Note: 15% service fee is included in the above food and drink prices so there is no need for an additional tip.

 

The club itself is very nice with large well maintained bathroom/changing area. There is also a pool and restaurant deck seating.

[BeeeJay]

Didn’t see what was playing in the dinner theatre.

 

We did a beach cabana which was $125 total so for our group it was about the same as chair rentals would have been. We paid $6 per person for cab from tender spot a ways north of normal docking port. Took over half an hour to get to Royal Palms in heavy traffic. But quick getting back. I had expected to dock at port, not Tender Scott’s Bay.

 

Had the bucket of Caybrew as well, around $30 with tip for 5 beers. Food was good.

 

I would do this place every time

 

 

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[17cruisesnsl]

Thank you for your review- enjoyed it and the photos. Unfortunately, we had to cancel this sailing at the last minute (Dec 7th) and were very disappointed so I've looked forward to the reviews from those aboard.

After 20 cruises, I still get seasick -- help ease my disappointment- how bad were the seas? I was also planning to buy coffee in Jamaica but it sounds like that port was canceled.

This would have been our first cruise with my mom having to follow a special diet (no sodium) - that was a concern for us and thank you for alleviating that concern for when we reschedule.

Glad you had a great cruise!

[BeeeJay]

Thank you for your review- enjoyed it and the photos. Unfortunately, we had to cancel this sailing at the last minute (Dec 7th) and were very disappointed so I've looked forward to the reviews from those aboard.

After 20 cruises, I still get seasick -- help ease my disappointment- how bad were the seas? I was also planning to buy coffee in Jamaica but it sounds like that port was canceled.

This would have been our first cruise with my mom having to follow a special diet (no sodium) - that was a concern for us and thank you for alleviating that concern for when we reschedule.

Glad you had a great cruise!

 

The seas were VERY rough, lot of movement those first couple days. I totally enjoyed it but saw many not. I'm lucky no one in my family has an issue.

 

Yes, Jamaica was canceled. We were actually happy they closed the port because the weather was going to be awful, and I had scheduled an all-inclusive 3rd party day pass with Resorts for a Day for Hilton Rose Hall, which I did not want to pay approx $500 for if it was going to be rainy. If the port stop is canceled Resorts for a Day will refund. We had prepaid $211, and were to pay $245 at the Hilton. After a few calls to get thru, Resorts for a Day was very friendly in processing the refund. Port taxes of $19/person were refunded as well as a refundable credit by NCL. Seemed a little light as 1/4 of the $131 we paid, and it took them 2-3 days to get the amount calculated and credited.

[brookie848]

Didn’t see what was playing in the dinner theatre.

 

We did a beach cabana which was $125 total so for our group it was about the same as chair rentals would have been. We paid $6 per person for cab from tender spot a ways north of normal docking port. Took over half an hour to get to Royal Palms in heavy traffic. But quick getting back. I had expected to dock at port, not Tender Scott’s Bay.

 

Had the bucket of Caybrew as well, around $30 with tip for 5 beers. Food was good.

 

I would do this place every time

 

 

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I'm confused about this -- all ships tender in George Town (unless you are on a tiny ship). You didn't tender into town like all the other ships?

 

I'm really having a difficult time deciding what to do in the ports for this trip. I was initially planning on just doing some shopping in Grand Cayman, but the information posted here is giving me second thoughts.

[amuth1130]

We were on this sailing, too. Traveled with my mom, husband and two kids ages 3 and 1. The seas were ROUGH for me personally for about a day and a half. No one else in my group seemed to be bothered and thankfully after Monday it was all fine for me. We did a beach day at Calico Jack’s in Grand Cayman and loved it. Clean area and beautiful beach. Cozumel we did a beach day at Paradise Beach. Loved this, too. Great service and clean and reasonably priced.

 

 

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[17cruisesnsl]

Thank you for your response. Strongly considering Resorts for a day on my next trip.

[Vinegarjoe10]

These allergies are a GREAT diet, no

Worries about the “cruise weight gain” for that kid. The rest of us however.....well.....let’s just say we “got our money’s worth”[emoji12]

 

 

 

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Are you the legendary beejay that hails from the Windy City and has posted all of those epic Las Vegas trip reports ??

[BeeeJay]

Are you the legendary beejay that hails from the Windy City and has posted all of those epic Las Vegas trip reports ??

 

Perhaps......:cool:;p;p;p;p;p

[BeeeJay]

I'm confused about this -- all ships tender in George Town (unless you are on a tiny ship). You didn't tender into town like all the other ships?

 

I'm really having a difficult time deciding what to do in the ports for this trip. I was initially planning on just doing some shopping in Grand Cayman, but the information posted here is giving me second thoughts.

 

You are probably right, I couldn't recall how we did it 2 years ago, but I know we were much closer to 7-mile-beach. Guess that was just a closer tender, not a dock.

[Vinegarjoe10]

I'm confused about this -- all ships tender in George Town (unless you are on a tiny ship). You didn't tender into town like all the other ships?

 

I'm really having a difficult time deciding what to do in the ports for this trip. I was initially planning on just doing some shopping in Grand Cayman, but the information posted here is giving me second thoughts.

 

Brookie848,

 

We were on the Epic 12/9-12/16. When we arrived at Grand Cayman, the Cruise Director advised that we were not tendering in Georgetown, but rather, at Spott's Bay Pier, located east of Georgetown.

 

Spott's Pier is a small Pier that can only accommodate 2 tender boats at a time (1 on each side). There was a Carnival Ship also tendering, so each cruise line only had one side of the small pier to utilize.

 

We were told that high winds and rough seas caused the change of venue.

 

We ended up taking a cab to Georgetown.

 

FYI

 

Vinegarjoe

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[Sand and Seas]

Thanks for sharing! Loved your pictures and info on the ports.

[brookie848]

Thanks for these confirmations. We have five ships due in Grand Cayman (including us) on our day, so it's good to know that we might end up somewhere else.

[JC Booze Cruise]

Are you the legendary beejay that hails from the Windy City and has posted all of those epic Las Vegas trip reports ??

 

Now these I need to read... which site? TA?

[BeeeJay]

A couple additional review comments and pics:

 

Wife said soda from gun tastes awful.

 

On Great Stirrup Cay some stuff is free some isn’t. Free drinks I think we’re Bahama Mama, Margarita, Oina Colada. We thought soda was free with UBP, but we got two 0.82 cent charges. On the last day we spent our remaining balance on my wife’s room credit (we had 5 people so had to reserve a Studio for the 5th) in the gift shop and thought we left about $1 in credit. Ended up we owed $0.47 and had to wait in line the last morning to pay it. Major pain in the ass. Next time we would just put a credit card down but didn’t this time since not really charging to that room.

 

Some more pics:

 

Miami AirBnB was fantastic, a bit dated but right on Beach:

 

 

UberXL barely fit all our stuff and people. 3/4 rides were around $30, but the short ride to the cruise ship was $105!!!! Total ripoff on that one due to art week surge maybe? Or cruise boarding surge? Not sure but didn’t have any options at that point. Will install Lyft as an option for next time.

 

 

Miami is well stocked with Corona:

 

 

I got a free pizza from Papa Johns for complaining that some pieces had no toppings, the replacement they sent did not improve on the per piece allocation, I almost had to go all DeNiro Casino Blueberry Muffin in their ass:

 

 

 

We locked all the cell phones (except mine for pics) up for the entire week and the family actually spent time as humans interacting!!:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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