Overall Very Good

Item: Norwegian Escape
Rating: 4.5
Author: glk3verizon

Norwegian Escape Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

glk3verizon

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 4-6 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 27

Overall rating:

4.5 out of 5

Verified Review

7 Night Caribbean: Great Stirrup Cay & Dominican Republic (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 21, 2023

Ship: Norwegian Escape

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 9876

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

It was a nice cruise on a beautiful ship. NCL needed a lot more staff to care for the number of passengers on the ship and better bartender training. Fortunately, we purchased the drink package so we didn't have to pay for the bad drinks. It was just annoying to wait 15 minutes for a drink and get something that was undrinkable. If you want complimentary dining, book it the day you get on the ship... the same as if you are booking the specialty dining. Book your shows as soon as you get on the ship as well or you may not get in to see them.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Simple and easy embarkation

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

We stayed with the complimentary fare on this cruise and some of the food was exceptional and some was marginal. i was disappointed in the limited options for the included dining. The buffet had some tasty options, but was totally overwhelming and constantly swamped. It was so huge that your food would be cold by the time you could get back to your table. It would be so much more pleasant to have 5 or 6 small spots to get a bite (burger bar, pizza, tacos, whatever), rather than dealing with that chaos. The MDR required reservations if you wanted to eat before 9pm. The food was fine, the entrees were too big, the service was ok, but slow. O'Sheehan's was the final option for complimentary fare. The food was fine, but limited, service was ok.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

There were a lot of interesting activities offered onboard. They had painting in the casino, and just about anything else you could expect. The only reason to be bored was if you weren't looking. The pool area was an absolute zoo. Every chair was taken by 730 and NCL did not remove towels on unused chairs. The bar was overwhelmed and I only say 2 servers on one side of the ship. Service was slow and drinks were hit or miss. Some were great, others were totally undrinkable at all the bars.

Entertainment

3 out of 5

There was a good variety of shows and music all over the ship. It was never easy finding seats or getting drinks due to lack of staffing.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Very impressed with the staff. Everyone I interacted with was helpful, pleasant and very, very nice.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

This is a beautiful ship and the staff does a great job keeping it clean. The only negative is the location of the casino where people smoke. You have to walk through this area and it is open to the level above and below so smoke permeates 3 levels of ship.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Beautiful! I loved this cabin. Very comfortable, it had everything I needed and plenty of storage. Our steward "Wen" was fantastic. I loved having a coffee maker in the room.

Ship tip

This ship is huge, but if full, it is CROWDED! Our sailing wasn't completely full and I spent a good amount of time in my room to get away from the crowds.

Thumbs up