Norwegian Escape Cruise Reviews - Reviews

We have been on over 10 cruises and this cruise had the worst service. We tried several of the main dinning rooms and experienced the same horrible service. Half of the time, we did not even know who our waiter was. The wait staff never checked up on us to see how our food tasted. They would constantly forget to give us steak knives. Once, we waited over 12 minutes for them to clear our appetizer plates. Then, we had to wait an additional 20 minutes to receive our entree. To top it off, the entree was cold. Also, the "washy washy" song is VERY annoying in the buffet area.

Our room steward was not very good. She never introduced herself as all of the room stewards have on our previous ships. Then, one day we had the "make up room" sign and she put a note on our door saying that she did not clean out room because the do not disturb sign was on. I had to call and complain in order to get her to clean our room.

The entertainment was very good! We enjoyed seeing a show in the supper club - it's a dinner and a show which was fun. The singers and dancers were great. By far, our favorite part was Howl at the Moon, the dueling pianos. They were hilarious and knew so many great songs! I would suggest not to go to more than one comedy show with the same comedian. One comedian literally said the same jokes, word for word. 

We also enjoyed spending time on the top of the boat on the ropes course and the water slides. The best part is being able to zip-line over the edge of the ship.

We had a great time!!!  the ship was beautiful, the service was great and our Cabin Steward was amazing!!!  everyone was super helpful with helping us figure out what to do and how and when to do it.  we were traveling with 4 teenagers who had their own Cabin and we never saw them unless it was time to get off in a port.  There was always something to do, the drinks were yummy (and not lacking any alcohol)  food was wonderful and plentiful, if you were ever hungry on this ship it was your fault!!!  We booked 2 more cruises while on board I hope that all on the NCL Ships and crew are as amazing as the ones on the Escape.  The only down fall would be the small pools and lack there of them but in the evenings they were pretty cleared out as well as the pre -recorded performance of after Midnight we did not care for(only our opinions ) many others seemed to really enjoy it. but the kids loved the Brat pack.  and the Comedy club was always a big hit.

did an exceptional job with our booking , we got everything for free that they promised us,after speaking with other people on the cruise with the same cabin type our price from was approx. $200.00 cheaper with more free stuff and on board credit

My best friend bought me a Anniversary package never received most of the items, not even a letter to let you know that someone had given you a gift, I found out after getting back to Miami....... It was though very relaxing and enjoyable got to take napes during the day, in order to get going in the evening to dinner and shows. Specialty restaurant were amazing, Not much Spanish music played on the ship and I really enjoy boleros on Royal Caribbean so I missed the salsa,meringue,bachata etc. We had it one night in the atrium and everyone was there.  H20 pool had no music the same videos on all day everyday.. Garden Cafe was good, food always moving so it was fresh.  

the first cruise my husband, children and I took with Norwegian was in July of 2000.  That was an amazing cruise with fabulous shows, scrumptious meals in the dining room and awesome staff all around. 

This cruise, unfortunately, did not measure up to the same standards. I found I am not so much a fan of freestyle cruising. I missed not having the same table with the same dining room staff. We enjoyed having the same waiters and getting to know them. This time the only consistent person in attendance was the hostess. We had a different table and different staff every meal.

To me, the main dining room menu had limited variety.  I guess lobster night is a thing of the past. We did not have any meals in specialty restaurants so I cannot share experiences there. 

Having only 2 production shows was also a letdown. Making reservations for even the smallest venues limited any thoughts of spontaneity. That's the price for accommodating such a large number of passengers.  

But out our biggest point of contention had nothing to do with Norwegian. My husband had a scooter in order for him to be able to navigate such a large ship. I have never in my life seen such rude and obnoxious people as those waiting for elevators on that ship. There were many times we were not successful in fending off "line jumpers."  I don't know how feasible it would be, but it would be great if there were one elevator in each bank that was accessible by programmed key cards. Each person with special needs could have the access programmed into their Seapass card. It wouldn't prevent others from jumping onboard but at least those with special needs would know exactly WHICH elevator to line up for. 

We we are definitely not finished cruising, this just taught us to look for smaller ships. 

We had a wonderful time.  The balcony mini suite was very nice.  Lots of storage,  comfortable king bed a large shower. The ship was a bit large for our taste and we'll probably try to stick with smaller ships.  I wouldn't pay the extra for the speciality dining package. We had a great time in St. Thomas,  Tortola and Nassau also. 

Incredible time.  We had the ultimate drink package, which served all of us very well!  It was my first cruise and I was really worried about being on a ship with so many people, but honestly, it was not as crazy as I thought it would be.  I never felt trapped our claustrophobic.  Just had a ton of fun in the super hot sun.  Yes, it was extremely humid, which for someone like myself got to be pretty brutal since I sweat so much and can feel embarrassed. Regardless, the staff was phenomenal, the drinks were flowing, and all of my friends enjoyed ourselves to the fullest.  I really have no regrets.  Spent a week on the cruise, and I really did not get tired of being on the ocean.  There is so much to do on the ship.  You can party, relax, party, see shows, party, eat a ton of food, party, have quiet time in your cabin watching the ocean, party, exercise and play games, did I mention party?  It was a blast.  I especially loved the fact that I could just wear resort casual to all the restaurants if I wanted to and did not feel like a heel for doing so.  That was huge for me.  I enjoy being comfortable on vacation and not having to stick to a schedule. 

I have cruised on Carnival and Royal Caribbean and thought I'd try Norwegian to see what cruise line I preferred. After our Thanksgiving cruise (7 night) last week on the Norwegian Escape, I will never go back to Norwegian again. Royal Caribbean cruise line has been the best cruise line for me for lots of reasons!

1) Norwegian Escape has the MAIN pool for ADULTS ONLY every day, all day until 5pm!! Of course, they let the kids swim after 5pm because no kids are around then. The parents are done for the day and everyone is taking showers and getting ready for dinner. So if you have kids, this is NOT the cruise ship for you!

2) The kids can go to the "kiddy" pool for those ages of "infant" to "18 years of age" and the pool is VERY small. The kiddy slides block the pool so there is hardly any sun in the pool and if you have kids that are between 8-18, forget it! Those age kids don't want to be in this small pool, with screaming kids and their parents!

3) The main deck where the pool is and the daytime activity is all on one level. This was a HUGE mistake that Norwegian made! If you don't have elevated seating, it's really hard to see or participate in what activity is taking place. Sometimes (not always!), they would display the activity on the 2 smaller screens but if you are not in the 1st row of seats, it's real difficult to even see what they are doing!

4) The back of the ship has a huge screen where they show movies and they also have a grouto (yep, for adults only!). This is a huge area that Norwegian has wasted space with! Most of the time, YEP, you guessed it! It's ADULT ONLY!! There is plenty of room to put a pool in under the big screen and have that area for ADULTS only all the time, NOT AT THE MAIN POOL AREA!

5) Norwegian staff were very rude! I can name 3 people on the entire ship that I could give a "thank you" too! All the bartenders and buffet staff had NO personality and weren't not helpful at all!

The list could go on and on....I am not a picky person but I was really disappointed in this cruise line/ship!

We had a great time and LOVED JOE HOLLYWOOD!!  The food was excellent, the employees were friendly and the ship was very clean.  Wish the entertainment was first come first serve with no reservation needed as we didn't know this at the begininning and were blocked out of EVERY in the main theatre and comedy clubs.  Thank goodness for Joe Hollywood as he was so entertaining that he made the trip because we went to wherever he was performing in the ship the entire week.

Flex Dinner was easy to use and flexible enough to change and rotate among the 3 restaurants. Needed to keep the kids composed at the Garden cafe.. too many kids were running rampant at the cafe without parental supervision. 

Very enjoyable experience. Will repeat in the future.We may take crusises to other destinations like Alaska, Burmuda triangle etc.We will also be interested in getting free gratuity , free drinks type of packages to reduce spending.

I cruise NCL every Thanksgiving and this time I decided to give NCL Escape another chance. This time I took my daughter, son in law and grandson who's 1 years old. This proved to exceed my expectations. Mushroom from the Guppies area was a GEM with my grandson. Since, this was his first time cruising, I was very nervous about him going but she went above and beyond to make sure he had fun. He interacted with other kids, went to the free play dates almost everyday and even loved Glow Party Night. As far as us adults are concerned, we had a blast, from the drinks, food to the entertainment; nothing was off putting or out of place. We never waited for food or Drinks. Chocolate Cowboy is the BEST bartender at sea (outside in 5 o'clock). He even made colorful drinks for the grandson while he was in his stroller. Oh what a night is a great show, if you don't want the $$ dinner show, they do a one night only show in the Escape theater for free and For the Record is by far one of the Best Shows at Sea if you love old 80's movies! The Glow Party is still my favorite night at Sea.

Bottom line, they completely made up the crap we went thru last year by 100%. Thank NCL for making us have a Great Thanksgiving

The onboard entertainment was great. But I didnt like how you had to schedule every activity.  When your on vacation, you want to be able to go to some events and not have to miss out because you didn't schedule it before everyone else. I felt like i was often on a time crunch.  

The entertainment on board is best on the seas. "After Midnight" and "The Brat Pack" were innovative and well cast with top talent from Europe, LA and NY. Excellent!

Pre-paid gratuities with no envelope in the room limits the personal connection with cabin steward - needs a better solution. All was kept clean, but we had limited, almost zero, connection with our steward.

Garden Cafe and restaurant reservation staffs are working like crazy to server 5,000 passengers. The congestion in the Garden Cafe after 9am is too much to bear - and tables are hard to find. Get up early and eat b'fast before 8am.

The ROPES COURSE is amazing! So is the "Grotto" Adult-only area and deck at the stern. A happy refuge!

We did feel "nickled and dimed" that so many entrees in Taste and Savor required additional fees. Similarly, too many restaurants requiring additional cost. But the choices are amazing. We didn't get to try Food Republic but it looks amazing and we were given the tour. Next time.

The ports of call - St. Thomas, Tortola, Nassau made this a great 7-day cruise overall. I would recommend but must point out that 5,000 passengers make this a challenge in terms of personal space. 

Finally..... WASHY WASHY!!! That guy in the Garden Cafe is a hoot and kept our spririts high each morning. 

This is our 3rd Thanksgiving on an NCL cruise and just as awesome as the first. Our family of 19.. ages 5 to 88 had an amazing trip. Tons to do for the kids, great spa for the adults. Food was always on point whether in the specialty restaurants or the regular dining rooms (Don't miss the teppenaki...best meal on the cruise!) Food Republic and Brew Company a must visit as well. Favorite night time activity is definitely Dueling Pianos ... those guys were awesome!

Great time had by all... 3 days back and my 12 year old is still suffering from PCD...post cruise depression! : )

The cruise was a wonderful experience all around.  We had excellent food, entertainment, and the staff were professional, fun, and helpful.  The ship is amazing, filled with a variety of activities, places to relax and unwind.  I would highly recommend this cruise to anyone considering a trip to the Eastern Caribean. You will not be disappointed!

My favorite part of the cruise was seeing NCL improving accommodations throughout the ship (Escape). Although very large and crowded, this newer vessel offers greater variety of restaurants and venues, and the rooms are modern and a little more spacious. This cruise is great for families with young adults. There are many fun amenities (i.e., water slides, sports complex with zip lining, mini-golf, etc.). The only thing I would recommend NCL to modify is the number of stops. The cruise stopped in St. Thomas (USVI), Tortola (BVI), and Nassau (Bahamas). The sea days (4) is one too many. I would suggest a stop in St. Croix (USVI) and/or San Juan (PR). And, if you are a Latitudes member you get embarking and disembarking preference, which proved to be very advantageous (the ship was sold out, 4,000+ and we still managed to get out in less than 35 minutes including customs!).

we have cruised on numerous cruise lines and We will not be cruising on any NCL ship in the future. Although relatively new, this cruise will disappoint for sure.  Public areas such as rest rooms untidy and at times dirty. The food was at best ordinary with the exception of Cagneys... Excellent!  When at the customer service desk it was impossible to speak with the employees as there was always extremely loud music or other activities.  It was so bad that a kid about 12 yrs old left the area and remarked they needed to tone it down as he covered his ears. When approaching the employees when entering a dining room, there was no looking up or greetings as they were busy with the computer. Ncl must need cash as the up charges were crazy.  No one in the buffet came around with coffee at breakfast like other cruise lines do.  This was an ordinary cruise where no one did anything to make the cruise special. Never again for us...RCL from now on

We thoroughly enjoyed our Thanksgiving week on the Escape.  The NCL staff is terrific (except for Stateroom Attendant.)  The fun and entertainment is non stop.  And the ship is terrific with some really nice upgrades over the getaway - notably: Food Republic is a terrific addition with great food.  The District Brewery is a great adults only bar with a fun vibe.  the Aqua Loop is a great slide -- 2 people can go at a time - they allow cameras and selfie sticks and it makes for a great photo op.  the Ropes course is phenomenal.  Highly Recommend this ship as it provides a really nice balance of activities, food venues and entertainment for all ages. My only 'con' if you could call it that,  I would prefer a better itinerary -- I've been to St Thomas and Nassau many times, enjoyed Tortal and Virgin Gorda.

Main dining room was loud and took a long time to sit us.  Food was cold and very disappointing, we returned several dishes.  I've done more than 25 cruises and this one was one of the worst food wise.  Paid for the Bayamo restaurant, ordered lobster and it was tasteless. The ship is very beautiful and has lots of activities for the younger crowd.