This was my 13th cruise, 6th on NCL and found it too crowded and not as enjoyable as my previous 12 cruises. So disappointed in this cruise we canceled an upcoming cruise on this ship in October 2023.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
Very good.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Did not care for the buffet. Very surprised NCL was not encouraging people to use the washing stations before entering the Garden Buffet. The complimentary restaurants were very good, especially The Manhattan Room.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
While there were a lot of activities the ship was so crowded they were not accessible.
Entertainment
2 out of 5
Disappointing. Plus most needed reservations which filled up quickly.
Children's Programs
No kids
Service and Staff
2 out of 5
Waiters in dining rooms were very good. Staff in Garden Buffet were not friendly and seemed unhappy in general. The cabin stewards were not friendly or happy due to being overwhelmed by the amount of cabins they were responsible for.
Ship Quality
2 out of 5
The ship was in need of a good cleanin. Due to the the large capacity of the ship, the Escape, 4266 passengers, it was understaffed by an overwhelmed crew.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
Could use a good cleaning. Suze was average but adequate. The balcony table was so small it could not hold the room service tray.
Ship tip
Try a smaller ship. Long wait for elevators and need reservations for just about everything. Not a relaxing vacation.
On Stirup Cay, you did not have to pay for everything. They did say that food was going to be available at a certain time. If you had to pay for anything it would have been for souvenirs and other things not affiliated with NCL. They also had signs that said that the ship was a full capacity and I know that emails were sent out to notify everyone to reserve your spots for entertainment and for dinings.
Thanks for the heads up, we sail March 25……we are avoiding the buffet ….and sticking go sit down restaurant instead. It seems to be a hit & miss with this ship ….I thought the drinks and food package transfers over from the ship to stirrup cay, according to what others are saying.
Totally agree. We just got of Wonder and have been on the Escspe which at the time was great. On Wonder the staff was downright misersble esp the bar staff. No one seemed happy to be there. Dining room and buffet food was just fair with plated portions literally cut in half. My husband ordered the steak and it was so thin and said it tasted like shoe leather disguised in a brown sauce. I have read many comments that post Covid quality of service and food has gone down hill. Good to know about Stirrup Cay, have not been there. Coco Cay on the other hand was great! We did pay extra for the Beach Club with private cabana. Totally worth it! I hope the cruise lines see these reviews esp take seriously the one they sent thru email or alot of people might take a few less cruises.
It’s hard to believe that NCL Escape went down the hill that much, and I can’t imagine “everything” is an extra charge on Stirrup Key. We did sailed on Breakaway at full capacity and I agree wasn’t fun, but we enjoyed the best we could. I have a feeling cruise lines are just racking up cash before the economic downturn. They know the slowdown is coming. Plus until all generous FCC credits are used up don’t expect the prices to come down anytime soon. We still love NCL at the most , but booked RCI for this summer. Hoping for slightly better experience. Happy cruising.
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