Norwegian Escape Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Been on around 6 NCL cruises & always trying the new ones that set sail but was disappointed with The Escape , food was cold , never tasted one hot meal in 7 days ,Evening Entertainment was dreadful & pool area so small & crammed , was on the Getaway last year & loved it ! Plus never got to visit St Maarten & went to Tortola instead which was rubbish .

WE love the entertainment on crusies, often seeing the same show twice.

NCL"s ESCAPE provided one such show with its AFTER MIDNITE production show set in the Harlem Cotton Club which featured fantastic singing & dancing.

The band INNOVATION performed nearly each night in the atrium & provided great dancing music.

Additional music was featured in the main dining room, aptly called THE MANHATTAN CLUB, where one could also dance in between courses. That venue was the site of a cabaret event featuring singers from the After Midnite show. Two individual performers from that show headlined a special cabaret show which included dancing & singing in the SUPPER CLUB.

In addition, the Jersey Boys singers also performed in the Supper Club where the meal was included.

The Superbowl was shown in many venues on huge screens & captured the excitement of the game for many fans.

The places to eat were numerous with several of them being complimentary.

Two specialty restaurants we enjoyed were Cagneys where we had delicious filet mignon & the Brazilian restaurant with its unique "salad" bar followed by generous helpings of various meat offerings capped by a tasty Brazilian dessert.

The itinerary, the food and the facilities were excellent. If I must mention something to be improved, I would add a little more variation to the menu of the restaurants included in the price prepaid (except for the buffet, which was extraordinary).

Overall the cruise was great.  The staff are sincerely friendly and officers are visible and speak with passengers.  Wheelchairs need to be available in the parking lot to take clients thru the embarkation. We took my elderly parents with us. We had been told there are wheelchairs at the entrance but you have to stand in line then go thru security before you can acess a wheelchair. the one we rented could only be delivered to the cabin. There needs to be modified rooms that have wider doors to allow walkers. The accessible cabins have lower toilets and sinks but these do not work well for partially mobile clients. It would be better to have an acessible doorway and accessible bathroom with an elevated toilet. The ship is extremely clean. Adherence to adult only area age limits needs to be enforced. Cagney's steakhouse is terrific and worth the upgrade. Other passengers raved about the other upgraded restaurants. We were disppointed with the Bistro as the lobster option was not available. The bakeshop is too out of the way and after a big meal, not many want a cupcake or gelato. The entertainment was very good and had a variety of choices. The cruise director is fabulous. The outside sitting areas are comfortable but some of the the cub chairs are very deep. I would definitely sail again on the Escape.

The dining and drink options were always fantastic as was the staff who really went all the way to insure you had a fantastic time. You always got eye contact and a smile from every crew member you happened upon. A real happy ship! Everything on the ship was sparkling clean and nothing looked worn or old.The ship is only a couple of years old but with all the service it's been through I'm sure it takes a lot of work to keep it looking brand new.

The cruise was wonderful. BJ,S travel usually very efficient but we had to call because we only received partial credit on gift card upon return. We also didn't receive any credit for referrals that booked after us. We will not be booking or referring in the future. Many travel agents willing to book you a trip. We were told today after several calls the trip was not coded correctly, so now waiting for additional gift cards, another 2 weeks. 

Perfect for family that have kids top restaurant and bars kids club al for family.

if you want to party this is not the one for you thay have party but the people are old and they dont have disco.

Love the Escape and its crew...I have sailed on Escape a few times now...

I can say I feel like part of the Norwegian Family!!!....I feel likes its going home to visit family rather than being a guest .

I find if you introduce yopurself to the crew  ,they remember you...Also THANK YOU goes a long way.....

The check in process was the WORST of any cruise I have ever taken - slow, disorganized, and disruptive. Rest of the cruise was fine. My XBOX music with 20 albums on my tablet did not work at all and yet it worked fine on the GETAWAY ship.It was blocked by the ship and required no internet access but did not work.

I would only take the GETAWAY in the future.

We loved the luxurious feel of this ship, the food and dining options, the amenities and programs.   The beverage package was WELL worth the cost.  Go immediately to the ticket office and get tickets to all the shows you want to see.    Skip the "BRAT Pack" (tasteless and boring) but be sure to see the "WINE SHOW" ; it was great.   If you want a spot by the pool get out there early and claim a space - it is VERY crowded around the pool area.   The  transport from ship to Miami airport ($16) was awful; long lines, time consuming and dropped us off FAR away from our check in.   Take a taxi.    

Overall experience on the Escape was great. 

The Good:

The ship is beautiful and well laid out. Navigating the decks was easy and there were plenty of elevators to get to the higher decks.  They really have the buffet logistics figure out. Plenty of food stations and seating.  Never had to wait in any lines at the buffet and the food/choices were top notch.

Getting a chair near the pool can be difficult unless you get up early.  But there are plenty of spots if you don't need to be near the pool area which is crazy busy anyway.  We did notice that the worker are trying to keep an eye out for people that put stuff on chairs and disappear for hours.  They would put stickers on the chairs with times and if the people didn't come back in a set time then they would remove their stuff.

The drink package option was great and at most bars the workers really hustled to get you your drinks.  There was a lot of waiting for drinks but now most people on the ship have the same drink package.  I will say an extra buck or two cash tip goes a long way to get better service here.

The entertainment on this ship was ridiculously good! Enough said!

The not so good:

The service in the main dining rooms was poor.  My impression is that there are to few wait staff for the number of tables they manage so you don't get good personalized service.  For example, the first night we ate in the Taste dining room, we were only able to get one glass of wine in over 1.5 hours of dining time.  The next night when we ate there again I would get up and walk out of the restaurant to the bar and get my drinks there and bring them back to the table.

The biggest negative on the ship is that they allow smoking in the casino which is in-between several common area decks.  The smell is almost unbearable throughout this entire connected space.  The thing I noticed is that only a very small percentage of gamblers were smoking (less than 10%) but this is a huge inconvenience for all the rest that can't stand the smell.

Over all the experience on the Escape was very positive and would highly recommend it.

The food was great!  A big improvement would be to hire more help.  The workers worked their butts off and seemed overwhelmed.  There were to many people on the ship for the number of staff hired.  The bartenders did a great job but there was not enough of them behind the counter.  I would have given this review 5 stars had there been more help. The staff seemed to be working long hard days, understaffed.  The help in the restraunats and bars didn't seem happy, they looked worn out.

The entertainment by the pool could be better.  Not enough dance space and pool is to small for the number of people that your trying to cram in that space.  Very crowded pool and decks.

We were surprised to see how many kids were on the ship.  The reason the pool area is so small is because so much space was devoted to the kids water area, slides, golf course, etc.  I will make sure when taking another cruise to look for a ship that has more than 1 small pool and dance area.  

Good times with a great group of people 10 of us sailing together!

Too many changes that really disappointed us. Too many dining areas that you now have to pay extra. All dining that is supposed to be included never should have anything on menus that are being an additional charge. SCAM! especially when we cannot see so well... Service is not even close to what it use to be! The dining waiters don't act or pay attention to pretty much anything you ask for or order. They don't care and act as if you are a nuisance. prepaid gratuities or auto gratuity is also bad. It use to be after the cruise we would do the tipping directly that way you definitely get the service. We never even seen our cabin Stewart one time! everyday I had to leave a note asking for something seriously everyday ,coffee new cups,blanket, even NO and I mean NO towels were being put in our balcony cabin seriously ridiculous these ships are getting way too big and obviously working the crew so much they don't give a rip thinking their getting tipped anyways. I wish we Never went what a waste and we never should  have recommended the 4 other couples Norweign we should have went with carnival again! VERY DISAPPOINTED  

This was our 20th cruise with our dear friends.  We always go with the intention of having a great time and not letting anything get in our way of having a good time. Yes, the ship and pool area is crowded, but that's to be expected. Yes, the food has been better for us on previous cruises, but it was plentiful and not terrible. We don't do excursions anymore, so I can't comment on those. Overall, the cruise was fantastic, the weather was fantastic and the entire cruise experience was beyond fantastic. 

Here are the things which I really liked about cruising with NCL:

1) I found the staff very friendly and helpful

2) The free beverage package is actually FREE--on Celebrity we were limited to 6 drinks per person.  You just can't beat this deal.  I am not even certain how they make money on this program because you call any drink under $15 and it is included. 

3) I enjoyed the dinners at Manhatten. It is nice atmosphere and comes off like fine dining with white table clothes and entertainment.  I thought the food quality and service were very good as well.  The other two choices, Taste and Savor,  I for reason didn't enjoy as much. I guess the food is the same, but it was just more enjoyable at Manhatten. 

4) Speciality dining --Tapanyaki was outstanding.  You get a ton of food for the money.  The chefs were all really good show men and the food was high quality.  The steakhouse I also enjoyed.  The food was really good and we had very good service.  The french restaurant I would skip and here is why: A) the food took a long time to come out B) the bread was marginal (something I think a french restaurant should be good at)  C) the servers were very nice, but they lacked the professionalism of fine dining.  My wine glass went empty for a long time and when it was finally served, the waiter said "and here is your Sauvignon Blank"  D) the food itself wasn't worth the money extra paid for 

5) I enjoyed the breakfast selections, but lunch was another story.  I found it surprising that they did not offer rice everyday (given the Asian travelers). I also would have enjoyed a better all around selection at lunch time.  We ended up eating at Taste or Savor which has the same lunch menu all week long. 

6) the blow dryers...although balcony staterooms do not have robes.  I had to ask my steward to get me one. 

7) the showers seem a tad bit larger then other ships. 

All in all, I enjoyed NCL.  We had a so so experience on the Epic a couple of years ago, but they seem to have worked out the issues.  Celebrity is still my favorite because the staterooms are nicer, the food is slightly better, they have afternoon sushi, and the other guests are my demographic (mid aged, couples, experienced cruisers).   The other reason I like Celebrity is the layout of the ship.  The Escape is very cut up and has many dead ends.  The walking track is joke--it is a very small circle and it is on the main deck for sunbathing, which means by 9:30am, it is impassable for anyone to get through. Deck 8 was the hidden gem on Escape.  It has bars and cafes with outside seating and was never crowded. 

too many people at pools, walking path too crowded, took 4 trys to get error on bill taken off

Really enjoyed this ship.  I am an avid cruiser and love the new ship! State of the art amenities but pricey to use the spa.  I recommend this cruise to anyone.  Must try Food Republic specialty restaurant.  Food was amazing.  The staff is also wonderful!

I would recommend the trip. There is a lot to do on the boat.  St. Thomas and Tortola are nice to visit. The food and drinks were very good. So was the service. But be prepared to pay for extras like the adult deck, specialty dining, room service, etc.  And don't count on getting a lounge chair on deck. 

The entertainment and waterpark was really geared to younger people. All chairs on the pool decks were unavailable because towels were left on chairs to reserve even though no one was there.

The food was excellent in all resturants. The staff was friendly.

Too many people on this huge boat. I would prefer a smaller boat, less people.

We had a balcony room and it was very nicely appointed.

The food was great, the complimentary dining opportunities were great. We also had a drink package which was great but unfortunately they ran out of our preferred selections of beer on Wednesday and Thursday. Not so good.

Also people grab the deck chairs very early and keep them reserved whether they are actually using or not.