7/1 - 7/8 Escape Cruise to Bermuda

[bkrickles1]

Sailed with wife, daughter (18), 2 nieces (19 & 22) and cousin.

The cruise was great. We had so much fun. Weather was perfect every day except for the last day and we were a little sunned out by then anyway so we watched the World Cup most of the day in the Skyline bar. Would definitely recommend the cruise but of course nothing is perfect.

Embarkation was easy and fast once it started.

We got there pretty early and we have no priority so we were group 7 and I think we were on board by 11:15.

Went directly to O'Sheehans and had lunch. Wings are great and most everything else is ok. Don't get the nachos.

We toured the ship and it's beautiful like any of these massive vessels. We've cruised almost exclusively RCL so we noticed the many differences in design. Some good and some not so good but nothing that was a dealbreaker.

The smell of smoke is there, like many have mentioned, because of the location and layout of the casino.

It's not a separate entity and it spreads out onto both sides of the Atrium so you smell the smoke in quite a few places.

It's definitely a design flaw and I'm sure it bothers some more than others. It is annoying though.

The pool area for adults is just too small. If you want to have a chair by the pool, it will be very difficult. Chair hogs are abundant. I saw chairs reserved at 6am as I was going to the gym.

With that being said, there are plenty of places to lounge and be very comfortable.

We hung out the first couple of days on deck 19 right outside the Vibe and it was great. There's a great bar that is never crowded and a couple of hot tubs. There's also a "mister" that's good for cooling off. It's very nice up there but you won't be part of the party by the pool and you can't really hear the music either.

There's also Spice H2O which we only visited to go in the "Grotto" to cool off and we went in the hot tub there too.

Very nice adult only area that also gets super crowded on sea days. They also have dance parties there almost every night, including the glow (white) party. Very nice area on the back of the ship on deck 17.

For those wondering why the pool area is so small, it's simply a design choice by ncl.

They have a massive area dedicated to outside activities. Water slides and a huge (terrifying) ropes course dominate the area. It's all fun and pretty impressive.

Since we've been to Bermuda many times, we chose to stay on board the first day there and did all the activities many times over. We love staying on board when everyone gets off and the first day at a port is always the best one to choose.

We basically had the ship to ourselves, which meant we got to really enjoy the pool area too.

2nd day in Bermuda went to Horseshoe Bay as we do on every visit and had a great day. It was a little windy and they had riptide warnings but still fun. Last time we were there the water was smooth as a pool but this time there were some big waves. They started to close part of the water off as the day wore on, but it was great anyway.

Moving on.

Food was good to very good in all 3 main dining rooms. We ate dinner the most in the Manhattan room which was fun with the music and dance floor. They do take some long breaks though so sometimes you might not hear much music.

Didn't do specialty dining this cruise so can't comment there. We liked the buffet for breakfast too. Excellent waffles. From 3-5 in the afternoon, they had a small section set up for afternoon snacks and if you like chicken salad, don't miss it. Food was definitely as good or better than RCL in the free venues.

Production shows in the theater were just ok. This is the only area that Royal definitely was a clear winner. Just bigger and better. Everyone in the shows were very talented but it was a step down. We didn't stay long for After Midnight. It just wasn't that engaging for us. We enjoyed the Brat Pack but it wasn't anything special.

The smaller venues on board were where the Escape shined.

Howl at the Moon dueling pianos was great! So much fun that we went almost every time they had it. The 2 guys and the girl are super talented and because it ran for 4 hours, you could come early or late and there was constant turnover of guests so you could get seats pretty easily. After 11pm the show does get a little dirty so just be aware if you're a sensitive person. We aren't.

Same venue was used for comedy shows and we enjoyed those too.

The highlight for us with entertainment was the show "The Choir of Man".

We got to see it with the original cast and creators (they are leaving the end of this week and will be replaced by actors cast by ncl). It was just a great show and since it was my wifes bday, I was able to let them know that and there's a part of the show where a woman is brought up on stage to be serenaded to and they chose her. Very fun moment.

We really loved this show. It probably was the best thing we've seen on a cruise ship. I think my daughter and nieces fell in love with half the cast (good looking guys) and were blushing when we met them afterwards for pics.

Also, game shows in the Atrium were great too. So funny. Seating can be tough at times so we got there early when we could and didn't have a problem.

Finishing up as I don't want to bore anyone.

Alvin, the cruise director was good. One of my nieces just thought he was so cute. And I guess he was. Lmao.

His staff and the rest of the crew were great. Lots of smiles and hellos and everything that you'd want from a crew.

Absolutely no complaints there.

We did self disembarkation for the first time and we'll never do it any other way again.

It was fast and simple. Customs was a breeze and you don't have to go searching for your bags. I highly recommend it.

The Escape was great and you'll have as much fun as you want to have.

Most of the complaints I read about were just not seen by me or my group.

The elevators are fine. At peak times you might wait a little but I didn't even wait that long on disembarkation so it's just not bad at all. Most of the time they were fast and easy.

Certainly there were lots of kids but it didn't affect anything.

The only complaint that was true was the smoke from the casino and ncl should figure out a way to address that.

Finally....

No straws. No problem. We knew about it and brought our own. Supposedly they are getting paper straws in the future.

Pretty bad planning by ncl

The Waterfront is awesome. Nice and quiet. Outside restaurant seating (Specialty) and the 5 O'clock Somewhere bar.

They also had a very nice July 4th celebration on the pool deck which was a pleasant surprise. Well done by NCL.

Anyway, I'm sure I could go on but I'm tired now.

Any questions and I'll try and answer

[cruisekitty22]

Great review. We are on the Escape in November. Hoping for not too many kids. Any low tops on the waterfront? Do the hot tubs have water that bubbles or just sits there near vibe? Do all the restaurants usually have high tops? Its a big concern for us as we are older and need "low tops" Cant wait for our cruise! We are looking forward to seeing "After Midnight", curious to why it wasn't to your liking?

[CruisingSince1982]

Thanks for the review!

[JamieLogical]

Thanks for the review! We are doing this cruise in October. We are dragging my parents along with us for their first cruise. I will show them this review to give them a bit of an idea of what to expect! Also, hoping to convince my dad that Choir of Man will be worth the extra $20 per person for them to join us for that.

[bkrickles1]

The Waterfront has lots of comfy couches and chairs. I assume by low tops you mean tables and if so the restaurants on the Waterfront had low tops. I actually don't remember any high top tables there, but I could be mistaken.

The one hot tub by the bar outside Vibe was just sitting water, which was strange to me. I never walked down to the other so I'm not sure. The ones by the pool were real whirlpools as was the one in Spice H2O.

As for "After Midnight" it was twofold. For one, the production quality was noticeably less than what I was used to on all my Royal cruises. I mean it wasn't a school play but it was a step lower. Secondly, it had been a long day of sun and fun and it was the 10pm show and we were tired. We probably didn't give it enough of a chance and I wouldn't want to discourage anyone from seeing it as it may be right up your alley.

Hope that helps

 

 

Great review. We are on the Escape in November. Hoping for not too many kids. Any low tops on the waterfront? Do the hot tubs have water that bubbles or just sits there near vibe? Do all the restaurants usually have high tops? Its a big concern for us as we are older and need "low tops" Cant wait for our cruise! We are looking forward to seeing "After Midnight", curious to why it wasn't to your liking?

[bkrickles1]

There were adults of all ages at The Choir of Man (we're in our early 50's shhhhh) and everyone we saw fully enjoyed the show. In fact, we made friends on line before the show with a couple, 80 and 85 from Philly, and they said they had fun.

Hope you have a great cruise!

 

 

Thanks for the review! We are doing this cruise in October. We are dragging my parents along with us for their first cruise. I will show them this review to give them a bit of an idea of what to expect! Also, hoping to convince my dad that Choir of Man will be worth the extra $20 per person for them to join us for that.

[tokidoki]

Enjoyed your review! We sail in October. When I cruise, I prefer carrying my own bags onboard, do u know which room was set up for cruisers to drop bags to pick up later after lunch? Thx :cool:

[bkrickles01]

I'm sorry. Don't know that one. We had carry on bags but kept them with us.

Enjoyed your review! We sail in October. When I cruise, I prefer carrying my own bags onboard, do u know which room was set up for cruisers to drop bags to pick up later after lunch? Thx :cool:

 

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[Gershep]

Great review!

[johnrich]

Great review! We sail on the Escape in 60 days.

How was the food at Choir of Man? Not sure if DW and DM will enjoy bangers and mashed.

Thanks again for the great review. I appreciate you taking the time to do it.

 

 

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[bkrickles1]

The food at the show was just ok, but I wouldn't base a decision on going by the food.

The bangers and mash were perfectly ok if you like that sort of thing. I do.

My wife got chicken tenders and fries and they were fine.

My niece got pasta but we're from NY and a little spoiled.

My cousin got the salmon and that was also ok.

The show was so much fun and I was busy drinking the beer that was constantly handed out that the food was not so important. Besides, food is pretty abundant everywhere else and can be gotten virtually anytime.

Hope you have a great cruise!!

 

Great review! We sail on the Escape in 60 days.

How was the food at Choir of Man? Not sure if DW and DM will enjoy bangers and mashed.

Thanks again for the great review. I appreciate you taking the time to do it.

 

 

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[johnrich]

The food at the show was just ok, but I wouldn't base a decision on going by the food.

 

The bangers and mash were perfectly ok if you like that sort of thing. I do.

 

My wife got chicken tenders and fries and they were fine.

 

My niece got pasta but we're from NY and a little spoiled.

 

My cousin got the salmon and that was also ok.

 

The show was so much fun and I was busy drinking the beer that was constantly handed out that the food was not so important. Besides, food is pretty abundant everywhere else and can be gotten virtually anytime.

 

Hope you have a great cruise!!

 

 

 

Thanks! We thought that you had to get the bangers and mashed. Glad to know my wife and mother can get something in its place.

 

 

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[JCGolfer86]

Who was the Cruise Director on your cruise?

[bkrickles01]

Alvin. My daughter and nieces loved him. He did a great job.

Who was the Cruise Director on your cruise?

 

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[skynyrd]

Thanks for your review. I will be on the ship in 31 days and can't wait!

[bkrickles1]

A little over a week since our "Escape" to Bermuda and missing it just a little.

Just read over my review and I pretty much still stand by everything I wrote.

Really fun time on a beautiful ship with good service and food.

Gonna start planning the next one......