There are a lot of very negative reviews of Getaway?

[happytravellers2]

We have a cruise booked on Getaway for March next year and have recently been looking at the reviews posted on CC - and the majority are very negative, mostly regarding overcrowding and difficulty in accessing the facilities. 

We cruised last year on NCL (Epic western Mediterranean) and had a very enjoyable time - to the extent that we took advantage of the future cruise discount. 

I would welcome some feedback from the forum as to recent experiences and if the negative reviews are warranted. 

[Steff79]

i liked the getaway in May, the bad things at my cruise was:

- included restaurants were always full. didn´t get a table for one person without waiting time ( between 6-8 pm)

- and i hate the bigger vibe, no front view and less space to walk around at the top deck

 

 

[rhapsodybluezz]

I just got off the Getaway a week ago. I loved the ship - didn't have any issues with overcrowding with the exception of disembarkation in St Petersburg. The atrium got a little crowded at times but we were always able to find seats.  Because it was a Baltic cruise we didn't use the pool deck so can't really comment on that, although we did eat outside a few times when the weather was nice. We never had problems finding a table when we ate at the buffet. Not sure where the negative reviews are coming from. I would sail on the Getaway again.

[Steff79]

8 minutes ago, rhapsodybluezz said:

I just got off the Getaway a week ago. I loved the ship - didn't have any issues with overcrowding with the exception of disembarkation in St Petersburg. The atrium got a little crowded at times but we were always able to find seats.  Because it was a Baltic cruise we didn't use the pool deck so can't really comment on that, although we did eat outside a few times when the weather was nice. We never had problems finding a table when we ate at the buffet. Not sure where the negative reviews are coming from. I would sail on the Getaway again.

sorry, little off topic, can you tell me how NCL handled it in St. Petersburg. still like tendertickets, registration for a number to leave the ship? meeting point theatre for all, and then leave when they call your number and were you sitting. how long did you need to leave the ship? thanks

Edited August 25, 2019 by Steff79

[rhapsodybluezz]

Our itinerary was a little different than most. We only had Monday night and Tuesday in St Petersburg.  On Saturday afternoon after returning from our Mecklenburg tour in Germany I went to Guest Services and was assigned group 2 for leaving the ship. However, there was nothing given to me to show we were in group 2 so when the time came it didn't matter what group you were in - everyone wanted to get off at once. The ship arrived in St Petersburg around 6 PM on Monday and our tour was at 8.  People on the ship excursions were meeting in the theater.  So around 6:30 we found 2 chairs at O'Sheehans closest to the elevators and the theater. We sat there for about 45 minutes when one of the cruise staff  came by and announced that anyone on independent tours could proceed to the theater. We went in and were seated in the second row. About 15 minutes later they lead us to the Gangway.  We were among the first to get to our tour group that night.

 

The next day we were supposed to meet our tour group at 0830 so we proceeded from breakfast at Moderno down the stairs one level to deck 7 around 0800 thinking we would be able to walk off without a problem. When we came to the mid ship staircase area people were already lined up and the line wrapped around the whole area. They finally announced that groups 1 and 2 could disembark and everyone no matter the group number started pushing through to get to the stairs and get off. It was a mess, but we did finally get off and join our tour group about 30 minutes late. 

 

Edited August 25, 2019 by rhapsodybluezz

[newmexicoNita]

If you read too many reviews you will always find negatives. It is easier to gripe than to be positive. I will just add one thing: if you are cruising in March and it sounds like you are, makes no difference what line or ship you cruise it will probably be crowded, especially if the weather happens to be bad: Spring break has always been one of the worst times in the year to cruise 

[NayRN]

Loved the Getaway the three times I sailed on her! I stopped reading reviews because some people are just never happy and I can make up my own mind! If you board with a negative attitude, you’re destined to have a bad cruise.

[KeithJenner]

Whenever I read through reviews on Cruise Critic, I can only conclude that NCL lay on two or three special cruises each year where the staff all smile, people can get a drink without waiting ages, the food is edible and there are rarely (if ever) queues, and by total chance those are the two or three cruises that I happen to book.

[SouthLyonCruiser]

I read as many reviews as possible and look for common complaints or compliments. One reviewer spending all of his or her review complaining get tossed. If there is a common complaint I take that into consideration. Sometimes the common complaint may be about something I could not care about one way or the other.

Something Cruise Critic needs to go back to on it's review section is the ability to click on the reviewers #of reviews and see how consistent they are with their reviews.

[mugtech]

As long as you don't schedule a TA going into dry dock the Getaway should meet your needs.

[deliver42]

You have to take into account one thing. People complain more than give positives. Just human nature. A lot of the complaints are about thins they should have known by doing a little research before the cruise. Some people look at one thing, and blow it out of proportion, saying it ruined the whole cruise.

[mismal]

mugtech

curious of the drydock comment...do you know something I don't know?  I am booked on the TA in April

 

re the topic

was on the getaway a few yrs ago, my biggest complaint we had marginal customer service from the room steward and in some restaurants but was convinced to sail again with Norwegian and they redeemed themselves the next time.  Agree that folks will complain vs rave about their trip

[KeithJenner]

1 minute ago, mismal said:

mugtech

curious of the drydock comment...do you know something I don't know?  I am booked on the TA in April

NCL made a complete mess of the scheduling for the Getaways dry dock right after the TA this year. The itinerary was changed very close to the sailing and then adjusted again due to complaints.

 

It has understandably left a very sour taste with the people who were affected, but I think that this has now lead to something of a belief that such cruses are certain to be a complete mess.

 

If you are on the Getaway TA next year then you have nothing to fear as there won't be a dry dock then.

 

 

[Redsky5292]

We sailed the Getaway a month ago and loved it. Yes, there are crowds but having sailed the Breakaway (its sister ship) we knew how to avoid the crowds. We spent a lot of time on the waterfront (deck 8), it was pretty quiet down there. The pool was never very crowded but we were on a Baltic Cruise so the weather was not very warm. We stayed away from the buffet as much as possible and didn’t hang out in the atrium. We loved our trip and would boom the Getaway again!

[GA Dave]

Our cruise on the Getaway was so awesome last year that we immediately booked the same cabin for a 10-day cruise next year.  Yes, there were a couple of minor issues (bad food in the MDR on one night, chair hogs at the Haven pool). But there were many more positives that far outweighed the minor stuff.

[gmbhardy]

We’ve sailed on the Getaway five times and the Epic twice. If you liked the Epic you’ll like the Getaway.

[BirdTravels]

Last August was our 4th cruise on the Getaway and we loved every minute. Yeah,,,, you can write a whole thread about the waiter for forgot a cup of coffee (tragedy). But that kind of thing is way down in the noise compared to the wonderful memories of a great cruise. 

Edited August 25, 2019 by BirdTravels

[ppcox]

Sailed the Getaway 3 times. Twice in the Caribbean and once on the Baltic route. beautiful ship you will have a great cruise. We just do a few sensible things to avoid the crowded places.

• Eat in the restaurant for lunch on Embark day avoid the buffet at all costs,.
• Take swimsuits in carry on and enjoy the hot tubs and pool ,slides on first afternoon. ( obviously not on a Baltic cruise)
• avoid the elevators on Embark day we take it to the top work our way down as we explore. 
• Book restaurants for every night at MyNCL online before you go at I think the 90 day mark ( as soon as you are able to )  I think 30% of the possible reservations are available at this time but we always do this its so less stressful to work it out before hand. If we need to change one we do it once onboard.
• If its an early start for an excursion then again avoid the buffet  I order room service breakfast or we go to the local for breakfast. ( much better quality /temp than the buffet)

We have had a few times when its felt crowded none more so than getting off at St Petersburg. But did that spoil anything no it didn’t. I remember the fabulous Faberge eggs , palaces and the Hermitage  not the wait to get off the ship. 

I have come to the conclusion some people think you have to write a review of just negatives without perspective or any positives.

So you can make some choices to avoid some of the crowds but part of the reason you will be on such an exciting , fully loaded cruise ship is she has a capacity of 3,900 + Enjoy

[mugtech]

3 hours ago, mismal said:

mugtech

curious of the drydock comment...do you know something I don't know?  I am booked on the TA in April

 

I would not book a ship on the last cruise before a dry dock nor on the first cruise after a dry dock.  This is true for any cruise line.  I have had two cruises cancelled by the cruise lines because of this. For the Getaway you need not be concerned until 2024.  

[Montanagirlalways]

4 hours ago, mugtech said:

As long as you don't schedule a TA going into dry dock the Getaway should meet your needs.

Isn’t that the truth. Lesson learned. Check what the plans are for the next couple cruisesafter yours. Don’t schedule a cruise before the ship go s into drydock. 

[MN'smom]

We got off the Getaway last week and loved it! I was also nervous after reading the negative reviews. I think  knowing what to expect helped. I found that a lot of great advice on these boards helped us to avoid the common complaints. Yes, the Atrium got crowded so we got there early and always got seats. While waiting, we enjoyed meeting the people sitting around us. On embarkation day we went to O'Sheehans for lunch rather than the buffet. For breakfast on port days, we went to the buffet at Moderno's. Selection was slightly less (no made to order omelets) but certainly had more than enough choices. We got to the shows about 20 minutes early and got good seats.

The only time the size of the ship really bothered us was getting on and off the ship in St.Petersburg.

I might have felt differently if it had been a warm weather cruise, because the pool did seem quite small.

[cebee123]

It also seems to me that people who have a less than awesome trip will join CC just to complain and never show back up on CC again. I don’t pay too much attention to those. People who have an enjoyable trip rarely post reviews unless there is something really special to say. (True of reviews of anything, actually) I’ve read reviews (not NCL) where one woman complains about having to go to the muster drill, when she had just lay down for a nap. Others where people were upset that they were not able to use certain amenities because it rained. People who give a poor review for a shore excursion because it was canceled due to weather. Just go with an expectation that it will be wonderful. Laugh off any inconveniences. 

[spanishguy1970]

I read the reviews of a ship and take the negative comments with a grain of salt. We have a 19 day cruise coming up on the Getaway and we will make our own judgments on how the cruise is. Is been our experience that people will complain no matter what.

 

 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

We loved the Getaway, in fact it was one of our favorite cruises!  I’d say the only ship we liked better was the RC Oasis of the Seas. We had Vibe passes and spend a lot of time there, which I’m sure added quite a bit to our experience. I don’t recall waiting in long lines. We would sail her again!

[cruisinmeme]

After we booked on the Breakaway i saw tons of negative reviews. Well low and behold out of over 20 cruises, this was the best.  I seriously worried about on two elevator sections rather than normal three. Wait time was never an issue. We were so impressed with the ship layout we booked the getaway (close port for us) for December 2019 and march 2020. Then Breakaway will come to New Orleans so we booked that for December 2020. 

Now we may end up with some of those complaints hitting us in the face but hopefully not. A lot of the complaints probably happen because of departure port. Some areas of the country have a shorter fuse.