COME SAIL AWAY... FINALLY! Live Review of NCL Encore Alaska 8/21-8/28

[njcate]

Thank you for the review! We are on the Sept 28th sailing so finding a pioneer to help us navigate will be invaluable!!!

Have a great trip! I look forward to reading about your experience!

[SenatorsFan]

I hope you have a wonderful cruise and enjoy Alaska! 

[Cruiser021421]

18 minutes ago, zerooveride said:

Interesting, we had our test at the Marriott 

if you take a look at the whole thread, you’ll see where they found out that they were testing in two locations today.

[Wink87]

21 hours ago, drumexpert510 said:

Hey everyone, I am so excited to be doing this LIVE REVIEW! I have wanted to do one for so long and hey what better time then now. The return to cruising after nearly 18 months and all the changes leaves everyone (including myself) with a lot of questions of what to expect. We will be on the NCL Encore out of Seattle this week heading up to Alaska.

I hope you all got a chance to read "TheBirds" Live review last week for their cruise. It was amazing and if you didn't read it, you can find it below. BUT with that being the first cruise back, there was a lot of pomp and circumstance, big brass on board and what we all can only assume to be a dog and pony show. Well, I am here to show you what things look like three weeks in, what we can come to expect from a "regular" new normal cruise. 

 

This live review will only be as good as you help me make it, if you have ANY questions, please ask and I will do my best to find out. I will bring you pictures, menus, my personal experiences, and any answers I can get for you.

 

Thank you all again, and the LIVE REVIEW starts tomorrow with the testing process and boarding! Any questions you want to ask, go ahead and I will get started ASAP tomorrow! 

 

Thanks again and Let's Cruise!!!

 

I am beyond jazzed that you are doing this! Ty ty ty! I have followed the other 2 sailings as well and love all the info. We r cruising late in the season on the 25th. Looking forward to your posts.

 

 

 

[Wink87]

19 hours ago, poly3503 said:

Can't wait to follow along. Interested in the testing,now that the location has changed. We're at the Edgewater  ( sailing on 9/25)

Hi Polly! Sailing with you on the 25th!

[Seany527]

3 hours ago, cruiservictor said:

Hi - we sailed with Deepak as the GM 4 times on the Escape in 2018.  He remembered us each time and took great care of us, as did his team.  It is always nice to see familiar faces on NCL cruises, and somehow they remember us from prior cruises, which is amazing considering they deal with thousands of people a week.  We always try to be nice, which probably helps.  Anyway, we hope he is still on next month.  Deepak is on the far right in this picture. 

There’s Mandy 😁. She’s one of my absolute favorite Cruise Directors. 

[Seany527]

 Very nice...Enjoy your cruise and I cant wait to follow along! 
 

Thank you for posting and the more pictures you upload, the better!

[davencl]

4 hours ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

I read that too.  I doubt that is how they are supposed to do it, but that passenger may have just encountered the "new guy" technician.

Yes that is how they do it. We were given a choice.. I swabbed myself.

Edited August 21, 2021 by davencl

[lepidoptera]

Following along with this. I will be on ship in a few weeks ( sept 19-25). If you think of it, could you see if Starbucks is selling any tea latte? I am not a huge fan of ncl's regular selection of tea 

[ChiefMateJRK]

7 minutes ago, davencl said:

Yes that is how they do it. We were given a choice.. I swabbed myself.

Yep.  I saw that report.  I guess I guessed wrong!  

[zerooveride]

Sitting in 678 Ocean Place listening to Alexa (not that Alexa) on Piano 

[Cruiser021421]

21 minutes ago, zerooveride said:

Sitting in 678 Ocean Place listening to Alexa (not that Alexa) on Piano 

What time were staterooms made available to you?

[zerooveride]

Just now, Cruiser021421 said:

What time were staterooms made available to you?

The ones on my floor (Deck 8 Forward even # rooms) were available by noon but they just made the announcement that the full ship was done and we just came back to our luggage 

[Cruiser021421]

13 minutes ago, zerooveride said:

The ones on my floor (Deck 8 Forward even # rooms) were available by noon but they just made the announcement that the full ship was done and we just came back to our luggage 

Nice! We will be deck 8 forward also.

[zerooveride]

32 minutes ago, Cruiser021421 said:

Nice! We will be deck 8 forward also.

Which cabin?

[Cruiser021421]

7 minutes ago, zerooveride said:

Which cabin?

8118 You?

[drumexpert510]

Tonight we will be in Onda and will be bringing you a live review from this Italian restaurant on board. I was always hit or miss with La Cucina in the past so let’s see how this stacks up! 
 

We also have the Thermal Spa access for the week and are busy gathering vital information on that currently for everyone! 😉
*Pictures to come* 

[odie1024]

4 minutes ago, drumexpert510 said:

We also have the Thermal Spa access for the week and are busy gathering vital information on that currently for everyone! 😉
*Pictures to come* 

Look forward to your review on the Thermal Spa as we are doing NY to Bermuda on the Breakaway in October and have  the spa for the week. Have never done the spa so will be interested in the feedback. Have fun!

[OrcaGirl]

15 minutes ago, drumexpert510 said:

We also have the Thermal Spa access for the week and are busy gathering vital information on that currently for everyone! 😉
*Pictures to come* 

 

Exciting! I'm *thisclose* to booking the thermal spa passes for our October cruise on the Encore; we loved it on the Epic and I hear this one is bigger and better. Were you able to book online or did you have to call? Or book once on board?

 

In Bird's live from thread, the dailies mentioned a Deluxe Thermal Spa Pass but the description didn't specify what made it 'deluxe' or worth the extra $$ - if you see/hear anything about that, can you let us know?

[SeaTacMike]

3 hours ago, lepidoptera said:

Following along with this. I will be on ship in a few weeks ( sept 19-25). If you think of it, could you see if Starbucks is selling any tea latte? I am not a huge fan of ncl's regular selection of tea 

 

[zerooveride]

2 hours ago, Cruiser021421 said:

8118 You?

8136

[SeaTacMike]

Greetings Brad, I found you!  Happy sailing and thanks for this live review.
One of OUR personal interests revolves around the CDC page that has Encore still in orange status.
We've heard no mention from previous sailings if any infections were announced on board, nor do we know if those announcements are even made.  So I kindly ask, if any info regarding this becomes available, could you please report it.  We thought for sure that Encore would go green today, but nope.

[Sand and Seas]

58 minutes ago, drumexpert510 said:

Tonight we will be in Onda and will be bringing you a live review from this Italian restaurant on board. I was always hit or miss with La Cucina in the past so let’s see how this stacks up! 
 

We also have the Thermal Spa access for the week and are busy gathering vital information on that currently for everyone! 😉
*Pictures to come* 

Onda was our favorite on Encore.  Pictures of their food please!

 

Thanks for sharing with us,  I hope you enjoy!

[libtrek]

40 minutes ago, zerooveride said:

8136

Please let us know how those 8th deck rooms are. We are in 8158 in mid September.

[HDtraveler]

Do the two Covid-19 testing locations administer the same test? It seems like the World Trade Center uses at home Binax test and the Marriott uses the Eurofin Covid-19 test. Is one of these more accurate than the other?

Edited August 22, 2021 by HDtraveler