Really bad reviews on Getaway

[luv2kroooz]

2 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

Rule # 1, don't trust bad reviews. I never do.

Interesting. Do you trust good reviews?

[Liljo22]

3 hours ago, The Med said:

Thank you for all the quick replies.

 

Although we’ve not sailed NCL for 4 years we have sailed with other cruise lines over the last few years, mostly Celebrity which up until recently we thought was a fairly good fit for us.

 

The last two cruises were on Celebrity Beyond, although that wasn’t sailing full, and then in February we went on the Celebrity Edge and it was this last cruise that we thought we’d give Celebrity a break for a while. We definitely noticed a difference in terms of food, service and entertainment.

We now realise though that it’s not just Celebrity that are cutting corners but apparently several cruise lines seem to be on a race to the bottom.

 

The cruise sails on January 2nd for 10 nights so I presume there will be lots of children on board? 
 

Anyway we have lots to think about, whether to go ahead and book or not.

All the cruise lines have a ton of debt on their books from the shutdown.  The mass market lines are cutting expenses so they can get the debt paid.  As long as they are saying full, the current status is going to be the new norm.  

[IAcruising]

5 minutes ago, luv2kroooz said:

Interesting. Do you trust good reviews?

 

Can't speak for DC, but I don't. Some of the glowing, everything was perfect, I wouldn't change a thing, reviews just defy reality.

 

[BirdTravels]

5 hours ago, The Med said:

We were looking at a cruise on The Getaway from New York leaving in January.

We only cruised NCL once before, on the Epic about 4 years ago so I thought that I’d read some reviews to get a feel of what’s what.

 

Oh, my goodness, the reviews are dreadful, I haven’t come across a good one yet.

 

The comments range from overcrowding everywhere, 45 minute queues to get on and off tenders, nowhere to sit in the buffet, all speciality restaurants booked up once you get onboard, all excursions booked if you happen to be a late booking, 45 minute queues to get into main restaurant with no queue separating those who have booked and those that haven’t.Also no quiet areas to sit and read, a screen on constantly in main atrium.Disorganised staff, people coughing all over the buffet, no sanitiser offered on entering restaurants.

 

Can anyone either confirm this or offer a more positive experience?

 

To be honest, it’s completely put us off booking.

 

 

 

First and foremost, don't believe everything you read on the Internet. It is mostly Fake News. And if you actually follow some of the biggest complainers, they have never been on the ship and haven't cruised in a while... but just like to complain to stir the pot. 

 

Nope. Most restaurants do *not* have sanitizer. If you want sanitizer, bring your own. The US CDC and the WHO have declared COVID over along with support for protocols used during the pandemic.

 

Yes. Adults openly cough and sneeze everywhere. Kids have been "trained" to cover their coughs.

 

45 minute waits, no. But if you go during peak dining hours, you will need to wait for a table. We never go during peak dining hours, so we never have this problem. 

 

 

 

 

[IAcruising]

4 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

And if you actually follow some of the biggest complainers, they have never been on the ship and haven't cruised in a while... but just like to complain to stir the pot.

 

Or, they've been on 658 cruises, so blah, blah, blah.

 

The 1-star reviews seem to be nothing more than entitled Karens without a clue. The same ones who are at Guest Services complaining that it's raining in Alaska, and they want a refund because their cruise is ruined!

 

[The Med]

The reviews were from people who had cruised, it was at the top of this board, under reviews. I searched for Norwegian, then the ship.

 

Some people had previously really enjoyed NCL but not recently and there seemed to be a theme.

 

I agree that some people whinge for no purpose but my point was that they can’t all be wrong. These were recent reviews too, from this month.

 

Although to be honest, I stopped reading after about 20, I didn’t read all 600 reviews. 

[IAcruising]

23 minutes ago, The Med said:

I agree that some people whinge for no purpose but my point was that they can’t all be wrong. These were recent reviews too, from this month.

 

 

No, they aren't all wrong. I read reviews to look for common threads and things to expect. I wouldn't change anything based on reviews, but just be prepared.

 

Breakaway does seem to be getting pounded lately. Personally, I choose the Breakaway Plus class ships, and would go for the smaller classes if I want something different.

 

[The Med]

15 minutes ago, IAcruising said:

 

Personally, I would go for the smaller classes if I want something different.

 

What we wanted was to fly to New York for New Years Eve, have a couple of days in NY before picking up a cruise for a duration of about 7 to 10 days.

 

There isn’t actually that much to choose from, and we won’t go on Carnival.

We saw the Getaway leaving on the 2nd Jan and thought it might be ok but we really don’t think it’s for us.

 

So it’s looking like it might be the Cunard Crossing.

We can’t see anything else that might work.

[IAcruising]

4 minutes ago, The Med said:

 

So it’s looking like it might be the Cunard Crossing.

 

We can’t see anything else that might work.

 

I'd love to try a Cunard TA someday, if I can find my jacket and tie...  🙃

 

[bluesea777]

1 hour ago, The Med said:

What we wanted was to fly to New York for New Years Eve, have a couple of days in NY before picking up a cruise for a duration of about 7 to 10 days.

 

There isn’t actually that much to choose from, and we won’t go on Carnival.

We saw the Getaway leaving on the 2nd Jan and thought it might be ok but we really don’t think it’s for us.

 

So it’s looking like it might be the Cunard Crossing.

We can’t see anything else that might work.

Just go on the Getaway on Jan 2! You’ll enjoy the cruise - in your way and style. 
 

We have been on 29 NCL cruises and have had lovely time in each of them, we prefer their product. We haven’t had a bad cruise. If things go wrong for us we compensate or say forget it. We receive excellent service and like the food on the ships. 
 

We’ve been on Getaway and loved it. Transatlantic from Copenhagen to Miami. 
 

I see the bad reviews with a grain of salt and must say that some of them are over the line and not believable. 
 

P.S. before booking the cruise I would check the hotels in NYC first …. It’s New Year’s Eve …. 
 

 

[InfrequentPNWCruiser]

Frankly , a lot of this is about attitude. Go with positive intent and don't let the little things bother you and you'll have a good time. My cruises on the Star, Prima, and Encore were all great and all of those ships had terrible reviews at the time. Some of the ones posted on same voyage later that I read,  I swear it seems like they were on a different one.

[The Med]

7 hours ago, bluesea777 said:

 

P.S. before booking the cruise I would check the hotels in NYC first …. It’s New Year’s Eve …. 
 

 

Yes, thank you. I put in a search for hotels near the cruise terminal and found a reasonably priced one, right on the harbour but on The Jersey side.

However I’ve only just realised that there are 2 cruise terminals and that both NCL and Cunard use different terminals.

 

 

[www3traveler]

2 hours ago, The Med said:

Yes, thank you. I put in a search for hotels near the cruise terminal and found a reasonably priced one, right on the harbour but on The Jersey side.

However I’ve only just realised that there are 2 cruise terminals and that both NCL and Cunard use different terminals.

 

 

NCL uses Pier 88 Terminal on the Hudson River in midtown Manhattan near W 48th.

[bluesea777]

2 hours ago, The Med said:

Yes, thank you. I put in a search for hotels near the cruise terminal and found a reasonably priced one, right on the harbour but on The Jersey side.

However I’ve only just realised that there are 2 cruise terminals and that both NCL and Cunard use different terminals.

 

 

You might want to order/book a taxi/Uber to take you from NJ to NY Manhattan as the NY yellow cabs do not go to NJ.

 

 

[sebas030]

16 hours ago, The Med said:

Does it vary depending where in America you are?
 

I see Butterfly said that Canada is different.

 

I would have thought that as the cruise leaves on 2nd for 10 nights that most children would have to be back during this period.

 

In the UK parents get fined for taking their children out during term time, not sure what the USA rules are.

 

Most of the kids in Quebec, Canada, are going back to school on January 8 or 9

 

[Laszlo]

3 hours ago, The Med said:

Yes, thank you. I put in a search for hotels near the cruise terminal and found a reasonably priced one, right on the harbour but on The Jersey side.

However I’ve only just realised that there are 2 cruise terminals and that both NCL and Cunard use different terminals.

 

 

NCL is in Midtown.... lots of hotel in the area. Cunard goes out of the Brooklyn terminal. For what you are going to pay for Cunard you can probably get a Haven Cabin

[CptBoatface]

Getaway is a decent ship, but horrible ble coffee

[cruiser2015]

4 hours ago, The Med said:

Yes, thank you. I put in a search for hotels near the cruise terminal and found a reasonably priced one, right on the harbour but on The Jersey side.

However I’ve only just realised that there are 2 cruise terminals and that both NCL and Cunard use different terminals.

 

 

There's another in NJ for RCCL & Celebrity.

[The Med]

1 hour ago, Laszlo said:

NCL is in Midtown.... lots of hotel in the area. Cunard goes out of the Brooklyn terminal. For what you are going to pay for Cunard you can probably get a Haven Cabin

On the contrary, there’s not much difference in the price for a balcony cabin.

 

 

[mking8288]

20 hours ago, The Med said:

We were looking at a cruise on The Getaway from New York leaving in January.

We only cruised NCL once before, on the Epic about 4 years ago ... read some reviews to get a feel of what’s what ... Oh ... reviews are dreadful, I haven’t come across a good one yet ... Can anyone either confirm this or offer a more positive experience? ... it’s completely put us off booking.

My goodness, I am not going to challenge and/or dispute your impressions reading whatever reviews here and/or elsewhere - FWIW - the world as a whole is very different these days, to say the least.  Reviews will always run the spectrum across the scale, relative to the expectations and demands.  I / we aren't blind cheerleaders and criticize as appropriate to us ...

 

In all fairness, post C19, lots of changes ... the grass isn't necessary greener elsewhere with the other lines, another ship.  It's what you make of your cruise experience ... mindset.  We sailed the Getaway in 2022 when it was less than full and again at the beginning of 2023, the itinerary and ports probably quite similar - overall, we had a good time onboard, wasn't perfect - had skipped a port, replaced by another, and dealt with uncertainity about where the ship will dock.  Here's the review that you might've read already and if not, feel free to skim thru it ... we're on the Epic's TA in April, fine ship too and on the GA's larger Plus ship, the Escape (again, 3rd or 4th time)  

 

 

Case in point, you aren't sure if NCL ships are small enough for your comfort, then by all means - avoid Royal Caribbean and even Celebrity with their newer ships ... Cunard ships are faster on the crossing but they don't visit some of the ports other lines do, not on a frequent & regular basis and are priced accordingly, higher, as we did look at options.  

 

Good luck in your quest for that perfect cruise experience in 2024.  

[The Med]

7 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

My goodness, I am not going to challenge and/or dispute your impressions reading whatever reviews here and/or elsewhere - FWIW - the world as a whole is very different these days, to say the least.  Reviews will always run the spectrum across the scale, relative to the expectations and demands.  I / we aren't blind cheerleaders and criticize as appropriate to us ...

 

In all fairness, post C19, lots of changes ... the grass isn't necessary greener elsewhere with the other lines, another ship.  It's what you make of your cruise experience ... mindset.  We sailed the Getaway in 2022 when it was less than full and again at the beginning of 2023, the itinerary and ports probably quite similar - overall, we had a good time onboard, wasn't perfect - had skipped a port, replaced by another, and dealt with uncertainity about where the ship will dock.  Here's the review that you might've read already and if not, feel free to skim thru it ... we're on the Epic's TA in April, fine ship too and on the GA's larger Plus ship, the Escape (again, 3rd or 4th time)  

 

 

Case in point, you aren't sure if NCL ships are small enough for your comfort, then by all means - avoid Royal Caribbean.

 

... Cunard ships are faster on the crossing but they don't visit some of the ports other lines do.

 

 

We did Royal Caribbean once and never again. We wouldn’t do Norwegian Epic again either. We wouldn’t necessarily choose a ship this large but we just want to get away for New Year and it’s just a means to an end rather than a main vacation.

Re Cunard Crossings……they don’t actually visit ANY ports, it’s just 7 days at sea!

 

 

[JustAPilot]

New York is probably the worst port to embark from if you’re looking for a chill cruise experience and especially in the winter on a ship the size of Getaway. Ship will be packed, New York is driving distance for most of the passengers that will be onboard so expect a near capacity sailing.

 

its also going to be cold for the first 2 days of the cruise so all 4,000 passengers will be indoors. 

[The Med]

Thank you JustAPilot ….. (I used to be JustAStewardess back in the day)

 

Anyway that’s helpful.

 

We’re weighing up the pros and cons but it’s looking unlikely that we will book NCL.

 

Its similar to cruising out of Southampton, 2 days before you reach any sun.

[Laszlo]

18 minutes ago, The Med said:

Thank you JustAPilot ….. (I used to be JustAStewardess back in the day)

 

Anyway that’s helpful.

 

We’re weighing up the pros and cons but it’s looking unlikely that we will book NCL.

 

Its similar to cruising out of Southampton, 2 days before you reach any sun.

If you want a smaller ship the GEM is doing a 9 day out of Miami leaving January 2nd. The Gem is actually my favorite ship

[The Med]

33 minutes ago, Laszlo said:

If you want a smaller ship the GEM is doing a 9 day out of Miami leaving January 2nd. The Gem is actually my favorite ship

Thank you but for  logistics we wanted to cruise from New York.