Amazing Alaska Cruise!
Norwegian Encore Cruise Review to Alaska - Inside Passage
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 28
7 Night Alaska: Glacier Bay Skagway & Juneau (Seattle Roundtrip)
Sail date: July 02, 2023
Ship: Norwegian Encore
Cabin type: Suite
Cabin number: 14780
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 1 year ago
Review summary
Amazing experience! Service was amazing, food was great, the crew was friendly, and there's a lot of activities and shows! I highly recommend the Norwegian Encore to Alaska! The Encore does tend to get crowded, including the Observation Lounge, and you need to walk or take shuttles to the towns at the ports, but in general we had a great experience!Embarkation
Embarkation was fast and simple! When we arrived we checked in our luggage and the person at that station was very kind and welcoming. There were a lot of crew members guiding us to where to go to check in, they were also very kind and welcoming. There was a long line at check in but it was fast and we didn't have to wait a lot, since there were a lot of attendants at the desks. I suggest checking in your big luggage, that way it's easier to explore the Encore once on board after check in. They deliver your luggage to your room later in the day. Our room was ready a few hours after check in, so it made a difference to check in our luggage instead of carrying it. As you wait for your room to be ready there is plenty to do, including exploring the Encore and having snacks at the Observation Lounge or lunch at the Garden Café.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
I was very impressed by the quality of the food. I had expected the food to be just okay but the quality of the food went above my expectations! The Garden Café, which is the buffet, had a lot of decent food and they would add different food items every day. They have a lot of different stations, which was great. It did tend to be very crowded though, both when getting food and the tables were mostly always occupied. It's great for a quick meal though.
In my opinion the Specialty restaurants had the best food. We were really impressed by the service of the waiters. We had three course meals and there were a lot of dishes that were delicious! All of the dishes also had a good presentation! My favorite Specialty restaurant was Le Bistro. I suggest getting a Specialty Dining Package if dining at the Specialty restaurants. It is much cheaper! I also suggest making reservations for Specialty restaurants online at their website in advance.
There are also about five complimentary restaurants with table service, including the Manhattan restaurant. They have a menu that they changed daily. We really enjoyed the food and the service was outstanding! We preferred these complimentary restaurants and the Specialty restaurants instead of the buffet, since the quality of the food was a lot better than the buffet and it was calmer. With a three course meal service can be on the longer side, but we really enjoyed this pace and we even had many dinners at tables next to the window, so we got to enjoy beautiful scenery during our meals!
Onboard Activities
There are so many activities to do on the Encore! Each day they provide you with a schedule of all of the activities and there are so many! This includes, but is not limited to, trivia games, game shows, music in the lounge/deck, comedy shows, a magic show, the Beatles show, and The Choir of Man. All of these are complimentary! We enjoyed all of them and we always had something to do! Yo do need to pay to do Go Karts and Laser Tag, but it's worth it and really fun! There's also a Galaxy Pavilion with really cool virtual reality games. Some of the activities were at the Atrium, which is on the smaller side so sometimes there were no seats available and there are a lot of people walking by so it was usually loud. The theater also seems to be on the smaller side and you need to arrive at least thirty minutes early to ensure that you get seats.
Entertainment
The shows were really fun! Their main shows include a magic show, comedy shows, the Beatles show, and the Choir of Man. I suggest making reservations for these shows at the Kiosks, located next to the elevators, as soon as you embark since they do get sold out. It's much faster to make reservations for shows at the kiosks, since there is a long line to make reservations at the Social Comedy Club during embarkation. I also suggest to arrive to the shows at least thirty minutes before to ensure you get spots. Even with reservations they do not guarantee spots at the shows and there are standby lines if you have no reservations. Some of the shows don't have reservations, so also make sure to arrive early to get a spot. The Kiosks have information of which shows require reservations and which don't need reservations. We were able to attend all of the shows that we wanted to go to and we enjoyed all of them! There's also musicians playing onboard daily through out the day, which is very nice.
Service and Staff
The crew always went above and beyond and are hardworking. They are very kind and welcoming, always greeting us throughout the day. Our room steward was very kind and made sure we got everything we needed. The waiters also did a fantastic job! We were impressed with how fast and efficient they were, considering how crowded it can get.
Ship Quality
The Encore is really clean, the crew does an amazing job to ensure that everything is always clean!
Cabin / Stateroom
I really enjoyed our stateroom! I highly recommend getting a balcony, since the views are spectacular! The balcony had two chairs and a table and it was spacious enough to relax and enjoy the nice views. The room was narrow but very spacious and clean. It had a lot of cabinets and a comfortable couch. The decor in the room was modern and nice. The Club Balcony Suite has a bigger bathroom, including a double sink and a bigger shower.
Do note that there is an additional daily service charge per room per person, which they charge all rooms during the trip.
Ship tip
Check in your luggage during embarkation. Your luggage is sent to your room and that allows you to explore the Encore until your room is ready. If you are going to the Specialty restaurants, purchase a Specialty Dining package since it is cheaper. Make reservations to restaurants and excursions online at their website in advance, since there are long lines at the excursions desk to make reservations onboard. Reserve shows at the kiosks during embarkation. Arrive at least thirty minutes before shows to ensure you get a spot.
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Ports of call
We arrived an hour thirty minutes later than scheduled. The town itself is okay and I suggest booking excursions for this port. There is a long line for the shuttle that takes you to town, but it's also a fifteen minute walk to town that many people do and it's enjoyable instead of waiting for the shuttle. I was very impressed with the promptness in which the shuttles to town and the shuttles for excursions arrived at all ports as soon as the Encore docked at the ports.
An amazing port! The Visitor Center has a lot of interesting information about the history of the town. Make sure to do the train ride excursion, it's amazing!
Absolutely amazing! The observation lounge does get crowded, but there are so many other areas outside on other decks that are not as crowded, have seating, and you get amazing views! They also bring in a ranger that provides information about Glacier Bay.
We got up early and got on one of the first shuttles to Ketchikan and there was no line. It's a twenty minute shuttle to town, so do account for that. Since we arrived early to town it was a lot less crowded, which was great. There are multiple cruise ships docked at all ports, so the towns at all the ports can get very crowded.
We walked around the town. It's a thirty minute walk to town, but you can also take a taxi.
Disembarkation
There are different categories for disembarkation. The first category is for anyone carrying their own luggage, which is the one we did and the one I suggest to do. After that they call the other categories, this includes individuals that prefer to have their luggage transported by crew and to be picked up outside at the port. I'm not sure what disembarkation was like for the other groups. Disembarkation in general was delayed by about forty five minutes, so disembarkation started at 8am instead of 7am. There were already a lot of people on the deck waiting to disembark and the elevators can be slow. There was a long line since you can only exit through one door, instead of multiple exits like at the ports. However, there were crew members that guide people to the line and even though the line was long it was fast and we were only in line for about ten minutes.