Norwegian service not as expected

Norwegian Escape Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

jbrowning

Contributor Level: Deck Hand

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 0

Helpful Votes: 54

Overall rating:

2 out of 5

Verified Review

7 Night Eastern Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 19, 2015

Ship: Norwegian Escape

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: 11527

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 8 years ago

Review summary

I cruised with family and friends, in total 11 people and 4 cabins ranging from Studio, Inside, and Balcony. We all had the same complaint--cabins were smaller than expected. The NCL department heads who approved the design of the cabins should have lived in a prototype for a week, showering in the confines of the shower stall, and maneuvering around in the small space.

The children enjoyed the aqua park and the ropes course. I'm not exactly sure what the adults enjoyed as far as activities.

It was pretty impossible to speak to anyone from Restaurant Reservations. Calls kept rolling to Guest Services. The crew seemed understaffed.

I was so excited about cruising on this new ship, and it is beautiful from the outside to the inside, but disappointing in other areas. This was my 4th Norwegian cruise and probably my last.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5

The three dining rooms had the same menu. We were expecting more variety and were also disappointed that lobster night did not exist on this cruise. The A La Carte Food Republic was good; however, we could not get into any of the other A La Carte restaurants and were not interested in the service charge restaurants.

Service and Staff

1 out of 5

The service in the dining rooms was not the best. There were long waits for water refills, and the serving and removal of food needed to be refined/standardized.

Cabin / Stateroom

1 out of 5

Usually cabins are pretty easy to figure out, but I found myself looking around for light switches and wondering where my hair dryer, beach towel, and facial tissues were. These had to be requested along with hangers. I also had to request that the broken closet door be fixed and the TV reset. According to my family and friends, my phone was also going to voicemail. All this on the first day. After a shore excursion, my used beach towel was removed, but not replaced. My comment card resulted in a visit by the Housekeeping Supervisor, followed by the Executive Housekeeper and his Assistant on Thursday of the cruise. By then, all issues were no longer issues.

Ship tip

To make a reservation at the a la carte restaurants, go directly to the restaurant way in advance to make the reservation. Calling Restaurant Reservations is an exercise in frustration.

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