My Norwegian Encore Review

Great review and photos. Welcome home!

Great. Thanks for sharing.

Wow .. sounds great Sarah. Thanks for the review and all the cool pics.

Great stuff, enjoyed it all..thanks...one question..if you had to haul your luggage down 9 flights of stairs to get off, the elevators were stuffed (cruise ship normal condition on certain days and times) and the line was outrageous, how does that rate 4 stars? Ive noticed how bad embarkation can be, and learned to ignore it. Its the excitement of the cruise and all. Besides, we get on board early. Disembarcation is another story...the cruise is over, and its back to the real world. At least you can decide for yourself when to get off. Seems like more and more folks are opting for carrying their own luggage If they're able, and leaving very early, to drive or catch a plane. We do it all the time, every time. Last cruise couple of weeks ago, we lined up, were off the ship, cab to our car and actually headed home in a little over an hour. Trading that for a leisurely breakfast is no trade at all IMHO.

which kind of begs the question, why were you hauling luggage at all, if you opted to stay on board longer? I was always fascinated by the process by which your luggage disappears the nite before, and then you can go find it again in the am, along with a few thousand of your newest EX friends. So fascinated, I wont ever do it again. Thanks again for the review.. I always appreciate the commentary of savvy cruisers! Not to mention the time it takes to do it.

I guess I rated it four stars because I've usually had easier disembarkations compared to that. It would realistically probably be more like 4.5 stars for me I suppose. And as for putting suitcases outside your door the night before, NCL doesn't do that on inaugural voyages. There are no porters at the beginning or end, it was the same for NCL Joy US inaugural earlier this year. They even tell us to only bring a certain size of suitcase because we will be carrying everything we bring ourselves.

AH!! outstanding. . so how many people were on that inaugural cruise? ship full? must been a hoot with thousands of people hauling whatever they were permitted to bring. So Im assuming folks who don't want to (or can't) haul even limited luggage, don't take inaugural cruises? never been on one, would love to learn more about WHO is on board for one. Is that by invitation only?

Yes, most inaugural cruises like this are for media and travel agents only. Rarely are they opened to the public for booking. Sometimes big companies will work with a cruise line to have company getaways on inaugurals too, which I discovered on the Symphony of the Seas inaugural last year when I met some people who were not media or travel agents haha. But in general it's for local/travel/cruise media, influencers, and travel agents to explore the ship, form opinions on food, activities, etc, and then produce content about it.

I doubt the ship was completely full, but there are lots of people on these cruises. Sometimes they do just about feel the same as a normal cruise as far as crowds go. One nice thing is that kids generally aren't allowed on inaugurals either, so we can do our work and exploring easier. (Although sometimes you'll see a few that were somehow allowed on anyway).

I had another friend on that cruise. She had been my personal vacation planner (PVP) at Carnival and has since moved to do the same job at NCL. She sent us a note and picture, encouraging us to try NCL.

Live and learn. Didnt realize there were entire cruises for media and TA's and influencers and such. Folks who look at the ship thru different eyes than regular cruisers...newbies or even old hands..Last question, if the answer is "proprietary" I'd understand...did you pay for the cruise? full rate, discounted? free? liquor? specialty restaurants and so on? I'd love to know what Im missing hehehheh

And so you should .. don't know what your missing .. or not missing till you try