Live on the Escape Nov 25-Dec 2

[www3traveler]

Have a wonderful cruise

 

When you can, could you please post a list of the current Officers?  There should be a picture board of all of the Officers near the bottom of the stairs leading into the lobby.

 

Thank you

[Chesneygirl]

10 minutes ago, CAKEisgood said:

Good morning almost afternoon. We are on the ship! 
 

Drive went smooth, traffic was light. We got to the parking garage just before 9 am and they didn’t open the garage until 10:30. There was no explanation for the wait and no one came out to tell us. Once we got parked and in the terminal it went smooth. We even said hello to Linda who always checked us in (just darn luck we go to her station each time) 

FYI Construction going on at the parking area 

Since we were last at Port Canaveral they have torn up the area where we used to drop off our luggage. They are building a new parking garage. 

We will be parking at the port as well for our cruise in January. Do you recall what the daily rate is? 

Really excited to follow along with your cruise this week! 

[D_And_K_gocruising]

15 minutes ago, Chesneygirl said:

We will be parking at the port as well for our cruise in January. Do you recall what the daily rate is? 

Really excited to follow along with your cruise this week! 

From their website.. 

 

Official Port Canaveral Parking

Official Port Canaveral Cruise Parking is available only directly adjacent to each of Port Canaveral’s Cruise Terminals.  The Port does not own or operate any off-Port parking facilities. Park at your cruise terminal's designated parking area and simply take a short walk to your ship; no need for shuttles. Oversize parking for RV's and buses is also available at each Cruise Terminal. 
 

Parking Rates 

Parking is $17.00 per day plus tax for vehicles & RVs, including day of arrival and day of departure. 

*Rates are subject to change without notice. Contact the Canaveral Port Authority at 321-783-7831 for the latest information.

Acceptable Payment Methods

•   No cash accepted
•   Major credit cards (American Express, Visa, MasterCard, and Discover)
•   Presently, EPASS and SunPass accepted ONLY at the Cruise Terminal 3 parking garage

[D_And_K_gocruising]

30 minutes ago, CAKEisgood said:

Good morning almost afternoon. We are on the ship! 
 

Drive went smooth, traffic was light. We got to the parking garage just before 9 am and they didn’t open the garage until 10:30. There was no explanation for the wait and no one came out to tell us. Once we got parked and in the terminal it went smooth. We even said hello to Linda who always checked us in (just darn luck we go to her station each time) 

FYI Construction going on at the parking area 

Since we were last at Port Canaveral they have torn up the area where we used to drop off our luggage. They are building a new parking garage. 

wonder if there were low spots and they wanted to clear out some spaces before??  Dunno.. interesting. 

[CAKEisgood]

Afternoon lunch at Savor ( Or Taste…they are the same restaurant across from each other on deck 6) I enjoyed a lettuce wedge with bacon and hard boiled egg with chicken noodle soup. My husband had the quiche and Cobb salad with Pinot Grigio   We shared his glass of wine. It smells very fruity - like honey- but doesn’t taste sweet. Nice light wine with light lunch. 
 

Stopped off at Elemis spa and they open at 4! 
 

At District Brewhouse enjoying a pint of Miami Weiss .  This is a cool bar. I enjoy the vibe and nice beers on tap. 

[CAKEisgood]

 

There were no spaces on the bottom 3 floors. We parked on level 4, which had plenty of parking. Looking over at the garage from the ship and it’s clear the garage is full. Highly recommend get here early if you plan to park 

1 hour ago, D_And_K_gocruising said:

wonder if there were low spots and they wanted to clear out some spaces before??  Dunno.. interesting. 

 

[CAKEisgood]

In our cabin. Todays Freestyle Daily 

[slavetoabunny]

On 11/19/2023 at 8:36 PM, haynesra said:

Following along, looking forward to your review. We hop onboard the Escape on the 16th! Countdown on.

You are on the same sailing as I am,

[CAKEisgood]

SpaceX rocket on the landing ship   very cool to see that. It looks crispy 🔥

[D_And_K_gocruising]

4 minutes ago, CAKEisgood said:

SpaceX rocket on the landing ship   very cool to see that. It looks crispy 🔥

Ok, that's bada$$

[kittymamma]

7 hours ago, CAKEisgood said:

Good morning almost afternoon. We are on the ship! 
 

Drive went smooth, traffic was light. We got to the parking garage just before 9 am and they didn’t open the garage until 10:30. There was no explanation for the wait and no one came out to tell us. Once we got parked and in the terminal it went smooth. We even said hello to Linda who always checked us in (just darn luck we go to her station each time) 

FYI Construction going on at the parking area 

Since we were last at Port Canaveral they have torn up the area where we used to drop off our luggage. They are building a new parking garage. 

Were you still able to drop off your luggage somewhere prior to entering the garage? Does the terminal usually open around 9 a.m. ?

[CAKEisgood]

8 minutes ago, kittymamma said:

Were you still able to drop off your luggage somewhere prior to entering the garage? Does the terminal usually open around 9 a.m. ?

The luggage drop off is at front of the terminal and closer to where we enter the terminal. It’s easy to find.  You could drop off your luggage before entering the garage. With the construction, it might be challenging getting back around to enter the garage. 

and we have been able to arrive around 9 am each time and park with no problems. I asked if this was a new process and I got a blank stare. 

[CAKEisgood]

Internet speed got up to 1.6 mbps. We purchased the premium, unlimited wi fi. It seems to be working faster than on previous trips. My husband said it’s because they are using star link. I also found the process to connect to the Wi-Fi was simplified 

I can easily send texts with pics, stream video on YouTube, stream music. Pretty much all that I normally do, but it can slow down at times. Well worth the price to us so we can stay in touch the pet sitter and family. 

[CAKEisgood]

On 11/20/2023 at 1:52 PM, tqdrivenws6 said:

Are the hashbrowns back?

Good morning. We searched for hash browns and found none. There are fried potatoes that looked good. 
 

breakfast in the “chow hall” (that’s what my husband former Air Force calls the Garden cafe). We got there just before 7 am to enjoy the view at the back of the ship and saw a beautiful double rainbow. I enjoyed French toast with a caramel banana apple syrup. OMG it’s was delicious. grilled tomatoes and a hard boiled eggs for breakfast are a nice, light addition. My husband had grits, pork sausage and the grilled tomatoes. There is pretty much anything you want at the garden cafe. 
 

I enjoy espresso and so I was hesitant to try the drip coffee in the Garden Cafe. It was good. taste like pour coffee.  Stronger than normal drip but not espresso. They have a package for Starbucks and, in my opinion, it’s too much for one week. 

 

 

[CAKEisgood]

Dinner last night was Bayamo, seafood restaurant. This is a lovely, small dining room next to the Sugarcane Mojito bar and Pincho’s tapas. Highly recommend for those that enjoy seafood. My husband started with beautiful shrimp cocktail, then the cod ( nicely done. Flaky and light butter seasoning) with asparagus. La Crema Chardonnay. Normally Chardonnay and asparagus don’t pair well together, but he said the hollandaise sauce cut through the acidity in the asparagus and was a nice pairing with the wine. 
 

my plate was filet mignon with rice and asparagus. I’m seafood allergic so this was a dinner for him. The wait staff looked at me like I was nuts having dinner at Bayamo. My husband jokes they  must think I’m a crazy HR lady trying to get them fired (I do work in HR). I do feel bad because they had to prepare my food in a separate kitchen and we have to wait longer because of this, but we don’t mind. We’re on vacation and the view is to die for. 
 

we had a cheesecake in a jar and I paired it with lemon cello neat. The cheese cake was a layer of raspberries and cheese with graham cracker crust broken up into small chunks. It was delicious and I’m going to try and make it at home. It takes skill to layer this dish and I was impressed. 

[CAKEisgood]

Day 2 Freestyle Daily. SEA DAY! 

[slavetoabunny]

2 minutes ago, CAKEisgood said:

my plate was filet mignon with rice and asparagus. I’m seafood allergic so this was a dinner for him. The wait staff looked at me like I was nuts having dinner at Bayamo. My husband jokes they  must think I’m a crazy HR lady trying to get them fired (I do work in HR). I do feel bad because they had to prepare my food in a separate kitchen and we have to wait longer because of this, but we don’t mind. We’re on vacation and the view is to die for. 

Lol, I don't eat meat, but we have a reservation at Moderno for my carnivore hubby.  Last time we dined there, they kindly offered to serve me a piece of salmon.  I took advantage of their offer along with the fantastic salad bar and had a wonderful meal.

[CAKEisgood]

For those of you that have sailed on NCL before, you might know cruise director Jack. Well, he is on this ship and it’s a pleasure to hear his positive voice 😁. I have not met Jack, but I have seen him and he appears to be a wonderful person. I might try to say hello this trip. 
 

There are a lot of ship staff we have seen before and it’s wonderful to see them and to hear they and their families are doing good. 

[CAKEisgood]

1 minute ago, slavetoabunny said:

Last time we dined there, they kindly offered to serve me a piece of salmon. 

That’s sounds so much like the staff on the Escape. I’m so glad they were able to offer you something you enjoy. 

[CAKEisgood]

Looks like a lot of people are having internet issues. Long line at iConnect Internet cafe. 😫
 

same at Guest Services. 🤔

 

no line at the Shore Excursion desk. I walked right up and got my shore excursion tickets. ☺️

[Stealthdog]

Are the freestyle dailys being delivered to your cabin the night before, or do you have to request them or get them at guest services? 

[Panhandle Couple]

9 hours ago, CAKEisgood said:

For those of you that have sailed on NCL before, you might know cruise director Jack. Well, he is on this ship and it’s a pleasure to hear his positive voice 😁. I have not met Jack, but I have seen him and he appears to be a wonderful person. I might try to say hello this trip. 
 

There are a lot of ship staff we have seen before and it’s wonderful to see them and to hear they and their families are doing good. 

We sailed Escape in March, and really liked Jack as the cruise director.  We did get a chance to talk to him on embarkation day, not knowing he was the director.  The large reservation screens were acting up (the whole computer system was being rebooted) and we were all trying to figure out why nothing was working.  Eventually (5 minutes) it all was back to normal, but some good interaction with him.

 

[NJCruiser23]

Following along.  Thank you for the live reviews.  We will be on the Escape in less than two weeks! Our first with NCL.  Sounds like you are enjoying yourself so far! 

[CAKEisgood]

Last night we enjoyed a few glasses of wine before dinner in The Cellars Mondavi wine bar 

I enjoyed NCL’s new 66 brand - glass of Prosecco. Very nice. It is medium dry and light on the tongue. Nice glass before dinner. My husband had a glass of the Beribger White Zin. This was a glass to remind of us the days when we knew nothing about wine. It still tastes like it did 30 years ago 😆😜

[CAKEisgood]

Dinner was at La Cucina. We met a very nice couple waiting in line to get into the restaurant who also live in Florida. Their first NCL cruise. We told them La Cucina is under rated and when they left they stopped by our table to tell us we were correct and they enjoyed the food. 
 

we had the Pork Scaloppini with mushroom Marsala sauce. It was delicious, just a tad too much salt, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I started with a insalata with walnuts, sliced pears and gorgonzola cheese, olive oil for dressing.  
 

I paired my dinner with an Italian Chardonnay. It was fruity, but not too acidic   My husband had the Prosecco that I enjoyed before dinner. 
 

I had a lemon cheesecake with lemon cello neat for dessert. . Delicious. 
 

I can’t say enough kind words about the wait staff. Our waiter really went out of her way to make sure my food was prepared separately so no cross contact with seafood. Revi, the matri di, gave me her card and asked me to call her if I need anything specially prepared. This is was so sweet and really put me and my husband at ease. 
 

I can say of all the NCL cruises we have been on, this is by far the best staff we have experienced. All are so kind, always willing to say hello, good morning. NCL does a great job at hiring and retaining good people (spoken from a 30+ years HR professional).