Norwegian Escape Cruise Reviews - Reviews

From the moment I got on I started to remember why I never travel with Norwegian. I tried to get some things taken care of from the moment I got on the ship and nothing was resolved the ENTIRE cruise. Also I ate at the pathetic excuse for fine dining restaurants and I am not a food snob but these people couldn't cook fish for their lives. The swordfish tasted like a lemon, grouper was dry and tasted fishy. (I'm from Florida eat grouper quite often it is not supposed to taste fishy) the 3 nights I had steak I asked for rare and they always came out well done and I sent it back every time but no one seemed to care or had a sense that the cooks messed up. I even decided to pay out of pocket for a meal and I had to send it back because they cooked the lamb well done!! They gave me rotten strawberries dipped in chocolate in my room. No one on this cruise on the staff had any care about you unless you gave them money under the table. You would wait 20 minutes with your card out waiting for a drink. The night clubs aren't even night clubs as I've been on many cruises and the 2 night clubs are pathetic for a ship this size. The comedians on the ship did the same exact show 3 times in a week and people told me the Broadway shows sucked and don't even waste my time!! I created my own fun and still had an awesome times with my friends. Don't waste your time with Norwegian. The only time where it might be worth it if you have all drinks, and food and excursions taken care of but even then that's iffy due to the quality of the staff. I think the only staff member who rocked was my room steward. 

Too big for our taste.

People got up at 6 am in order to to reserve a deck chair, by leaving a towel or a book on it. 

Impossible to move sometimes on the deck.

Pool was much too small for that amount of people.

Infants, toddlers, children and adults all in the hot tubs together. Disgusting.

Lines to get food.

Lines to get drinks.

Buffet food average.

Attendant leaning over my plate as I was eating in order to replenish cutlery container.

Slowwwww, elevators.

Itinary showed reservation that was for the previous night.

Sat for almost two hours in holding pen to get on the ship.

Discovered on Thursday that there was, for $100 a week, a private area away from the crowds and noise. This would have made all the difference.

Woke up by tables and chairs being moved around very late at night. We were on 15th floor.

At one point, checked flights home, just to get off this ship.

The ship itself was awesome and had tons of different things to do. The entertainment is quite dated, I mean the shows were probably good if you are 95 but this is meant to be a family ship and not one of the shows was good for family really. Really wish they had something similar to blue man group like the Epic. The comedians were really good though we saw them 3-4 times and were really happy. I would give the ship a better rating if it wasn't for the the customer service. Getting a drink without yelling and running a waiter down or waiting at the bar for a while was nearly impossible. One of the times we checked in at osheehans at sat at the counter overlooking the atrium, 55 minutes later we still had not had a waiter come to us not once. My wife finally went up because  we were hungry and they apologized and ran over and served us quick. But even if we hadn't checked in I feel like in 55 minutes we should have been checked on.Only once in the week we were on the ship was our glass refilled. Every other time we had to request a drink. My guess is the big ship doesn't have nearly enough servers for the amount of people onboard, so its hard to blame the people themselves but it definitely needs fixed. Also the disembarkation was terrible. They called people way too early and had people standing in lines for over an hour.

This was my first cruise and the first day I wanted to jump ship. After we checked in where we had to wait for about 1/2 hour because we were told the system was down, we boarded. First there was the search for a seat at the Garden Cafe and then the sad realization that already there was no where to sit in the pool area. I was also bombarded with all the extra fees. Even though I had purchased a beverage package, a simple bottle of water was a charge. Complimentary entertainment was ver limited. I will say the food was good ( we paid for the dining pkg) and our balcony room was very comfortable and well maintained. I would rather go to an all inclusive resort like the Riu where everything is included and there are not money puzzles to figure out.

We recently returned from a 7 night Caribbean Cruise on the Norwegian Escape Mega ship.  This was our first cruise on such a large ship and decided there are good and not so good cruising on a mega ship.

GOOD

1.The entertainment options are wonderful.  The escape theater have to stellar shows, The Million Dollar Quartet and After Midnight, but travelers beware you need to make a reservation for the top shows if you hope to get in.  No cost but if you don't have a reservation you may not get in.  No standing allowed. They had a great comedy show (also need reservations) and we loved the H2O outdoor bar area for dancing and socializing.  We were there till 2 or 3:00 AM 3 nights.

2.  They have an amazing zip line and rope climbing course right on the ship.  I did the course twice and loved it.

3.  A wonderful water play area for kids and a kids pool and a small water slide for the young ones.  For the older kids and adults (including Me) they have a large fun water slide and a more daring vertical drop slide.  The kids water play area was full everyday and this is February so probably at spring break or the summer it will be packed. 

4.  Great fitness center on the ship with every kind of equipment you could want.  Great treadmills with walking views you can select.  Kept me on the treadmill a lot longer.  Note though early in the morning all the treadmills can be full when you come in.

5.  Great teen game room with all kinds of fun stuff for the teenagers.

6.  Minigolf!  Can get crowded though.

7.  Cleanliness - the ship was extremely clean all the time as well as the dining areas despite over 4,000 guests.

8.  Bathrooms in the balcony staterooms were more spacious.

9.  Stateroom was comfy, bed was comfy.

10.  Considering they turn this ship around with a whole new group of 4,000 or so guests every saturday and have to clean it get it stocked and people off the ship and the next ones on the ship they do an amazing job.  4,000 off the ship by 10:00 AM, 4,000 new guests on the ship by 4:00 - with all that luggage on and off not to mention all the staterooms to clean and food service areas to clean and stock.  That part is amazing.

NOT SO GOOD

1.  The food in the main dining room(s) was not the best.  I don't think I had one meal there that was stellar and the selections became boring.  I have had much better on other Norwegian ships.

2.  The variety of food in the Garden Cafe also became boring and in the afternoon and evening some selections were not very good.  Very limited fruit in the morning breakfast and usually only one type of yogurt was put out.  Bacon was frequently under cooked and greasy.  They only had one toaster at each serving line so there would be a big backup waiting for people to get their toast.

3.  Being a mega ship it is very crowded.  Getting a drink at some of the popular bars was a challenge.  Getting on an elevator say at floor 6 going to 17 you could wait for 3 or 4 elevators to pass you that were full.  One thing, you got tired of waiting and got exercise walking the stairs. 

4.  We found the crew on other Norwegian ships to be more friendly but I think it is because the folks that work this ship are incredibly busy and don't have much time for small talk.  They literally work their butts off! 

5.  They have an outdoor jogging track but God Bless you if you can't get on there before about 7:30 AM.  It is on the same deck as water slide access and stairs to other activities so you if want to run it is an obstacle course during most of the day.

6.  Burger in Paradise - Margaritaville.  You now have to pay for this??  Used to be a no extra charge eatery I heard.  Now you pay for your burger and fries there.  No wonder it was so empty when you have all the other food venues on board that don't have an extra charge.  Although I don't recall seeing burgers on the menu anywhere else on the ship.  

7.  For the size of the ship the adult or all person swimming pool is quite small.  I was surprised.

I highly recommend this ship & cruise line.    It met all of our expections & exceeded some.    Smooth sailing, pampered by the crew, ate like "kings", SPlash Club was awesome for our six year old grandson.    We will use Norwegian again in the future.

I will never go on Norwegian again. The service was horrible, there are just so many passengers they can't accommodate them all and still be happy. After working all day the staff then works all night and they are especially miserable at night. Never in my 9 cruises have I had to leave the dining room without dessert because no one ever came back to take our order, and this happened twice!!!! They give everyone the free drink pkg and then only have 2 bartenders on the busiest bar on the ship (pool bar). No one walking around taking drink orders. We bought the restaurant pkg as well and couldn't even get in to try one of the restaurants because there was never any reservations. If you wanna see a show you have to make a reservation, if you want to see a comedian you have to make a reservation and if you want to see a show thats not in the theater you need to go an hr early or you won't get a seat. They have shows that everyone loves in the small atrium. Make sure you go for breakfast before everyone wakes up or you won't get a seat. The food was good, and the casino was huge! Other than that not worth any of the aggravation. The service is what did us in and all the poor attitudes. 

We had a blast!  We enjoyed the great customer service received from our  cabin stewart, waitress and greeter!  Most of all we were able to meet and enjoy time with the best  Cruise Director  Silas!!! Omg we became celebrities for a week!  Excellent time!

While there are more cabins and more people on the Escape, the venues are about the same size as smaller ships so expect to stand in long lines for every onboard activity.  And, also expect all that goes with standing in long lines -  disgruntled fellow passengers, those unwilling to wait their turn, unavailability of decent seating choices, etc.

I was most looking forward to getting on this new ship, the escape first set sail around October 2015.  I was hoping for that new ship smell.  I had already cruised 2x with NCL, and enjoyed the UBB aka free drinks both times, although they are still working out the kinks.  This time UBB process was much better and less hassle than the last 2 trips.  Either way definitely worth the extra fun and no huge bill at the end. 

No new boat smell, although the ship is beautiful.  I prefer the EPIC, similar size, way better shows and less sea motion overall.  Both trips had pretty calm seas, but on the epic you couldn't even tell you were on a ship.  The ESCAPE is taller and skinnier which I think must be the reason for the swaying.

A few shows were great, I'd recommend paying the extra 30 or 40pp and do the dinner shows - the Rat Pack, they are always worth it.  I was initially on the fence about this one but am glad we went, it was really well done.

I also like the comedy shows and dueling pianos and the million dollar quartet, that being said the big shows were just a bit better on the EPIC.

Lovely ship, but too big, too crowded and too many kids.  Hard to find a quiet space for a drink with friends.  Spent too much time trying to work out dining reservations -- mainly because we were a large group, but nonetheless.  The embarkation and disembarkation were great.  Staff was exceedingly efficient and pleasant.  Couldn't get at the mini putt to play a game -- too many kids using it.  Did manage to use the Shuffleboard.  The Japanese restaurant was a real experience and worth doing.  Had a great time.  La Cachina was a disappointment.  Food was a bit cold when it came and we had to request more sauce for the lasagna.  Although we enjoyed the Ardastra Zoo and Gardens in Nassau, I was surprised at how small and "need of help" it was.  I was expecting something a little more with a botanical garden feel.  The Dolphin Experience in Tortola was great!  The Shopping Workshop was well worth taking and certainly helped us in St. Thomas where we had planned a day of shopping.

All in all, we had a good time.  However, for our next cruise we will definitely be looking for one that is smaller and maybe doesn't cater as much to children.  Would like to have been able to relax on the sun deck.

Norwegian Escape is new ship but not very luxurious......bland colors and small atrium area.  2 production shows were outstanding.....very entertaining and professional.  Food was good and plentiful but not offering much variety......wait service was poor and waits for food and service was long in all complimentary restaurants.  The Manhattan Room was very noisy with banging water storage cabinets....need door "softeners".  Dance floor very small and not accessible except to those seated close to band.  Casino was "generous" compared to most ship casinos. A good getaway cruise but lots of "nickel and diming" during the cruise for services such as room service and add-on's for fitness classes.  Good cruise director.  Very limited pool space and lounge space.  Helpful and courteous staff outside of restaurants.  Good on-board offer for future cruises.  Disembarkation was very lo-o-ong....a one hour wait in line meandering  thru the restaurant for those disembarking with their own luggage......not caused by customs.  Could not discern the cause of the long delay.  Overall, an enjoyable cruise that could be an awesome cruise with just a little effort on the part of NCL,

I vacation every year over my birthday to get away from the Midwest winter weather.  We delayed our trip by one week this year in order to get our chosen cabin.  It was worth the wait!  We had a forward suite in the Haven and it was exceptional!  Our cabin was available as soon as we boarded the ship around 11AM.  Check in was flawless!  The suite was beautiful with the best "front porch" a girl could ask for during a week at sea.  I was worried that it would be very windy while sailing, but this was not the case at all.  We enjoyed breakfast on the balcony most mornings!  The Haven was lovely as always.  I will say that I prefer the sun deck on the Epic, but the solarium was lovely.  The dining room was awesome, with a nice outdoor option as well.  The food was all excellent!  We did not try the main dining rooms, but did eat at Le Bistro, The Food Republic, Cagney's, and Pincho's Tapas Bar.  These were all very good! We did have the dining package, but still had to pay discounted ala carte fees at the Food Republic and Pincho's.  It was worth it.  We also tried Margaritaville and this was the only disappointment.  The margarita was terrible and the nachos were "OK".   I don't know, maybe this was disappointing after all the other gourmet food and drink we had been enjoying. Tours in St. Thomas (Tree Limin Zip Line) and Tortola ( sail to Jost Van Dyke) were awesome.  I made these reservations on the NCL website before sailing. We also did the beach break to Atlantis in Nassau.  We hit a cloudy day, so we did not stay at the beach long, but there is plenty more to see and do at this resort.  I was disappointed that there was no bar near the beach to get a drink and there are all kinds of people trying to sell you this, that, and something else on the beach.  The casino on the ship was pretty decent and we also did a wine and chocolate pairing at the wine bar.  The After Midnight show was excellent.  We also saw the Brat Pack and the Wine Tasting luncheon show.  The Brat Pack was OK and the food was a little "weird".  The Wine show was fun with an excellent lunch.  Overall, the ship was great.  We did not spend much time in the main pool area, but it was always busy.  If you have not tried the Haven and want to splurge, this is the place to be!  This was my 9th cruise and the 3rd experience in the Haven.  There is no turning back!!!

From the beginning to the end. Nothing but fantastic.Really liked the free style dining. No rushing, no eating with people you don't know. Just great food and staff

-Splash Academy was fantastic. We had to drag our kids out every night at 10:30 pm. From sun up to sun down, they wanted to be in Splash Academy!

-Million Dollar Quartet was the best show we have ever seen on a cruise. Absolutely brilliant! 

-Ropes course was a ton of fun! All ages enjoyed being above the ship. It is the best ropes course we have ever been on, and we enjoy ropes courses often when we travel. 

-Staff in main dining rooms, O'Sheehan's and the buffet were non cordial. The service was extremely slow, taking up to two hours for a meal. O'Sheenan's completely forgot our order one afternoon.

-Scheduling was awful during the day. Many times main events happened when kids were supposed to be picked up/dropped off to Splash Academy. Also, if you wanted lunch somewhere that would serve you, you had to do that between 12-1:30, sounds like a lot of time, but it isn't when you are trying to get kids picked up, fed, and dropped back off. On our anniversary we walked into Food Republic at 1:40 and they wouldn't serve us. So we went to O'Sheehans, where they forgot our order. Happy Anniversary to us!

-Entertainment, or lack there of, was extremely insufficient. Only having 2 shows in the theater was a let down. Only having 1 good show in the theater was also a disappointment. After Midnight was rated as "family" at the 7:00pm show. We took our 11 year old. After hearing the "F" word boldly sang and 3 songs about sex with showgirls coming on stage, we left. The bands and piano guys were ok, at best. Many times security came into the bars because of noise complaints from people in their rooms. One would think that wouldn't be a problem on a new ship. We watched the band in 5 o'clock get completely shut down due to noise one night with a crowd in 5 o'clock chanting "let them play." So much for freestyle!

-Service at/in bar areas was also awful. It was really hard to get someone to wait on you. Several times servers would pass us by when sitting in Brewhouse. We had empty glasses, and tried to flag them down, and talk to them and they would continually walk by. We would then go to the bar for service, where the same thing would occur. Very, very strange. We were not on the drink package and tipped well on the first drink, with the same results in being passed up. I asked for a cup of water in the theater before the kids circus. Although there were cups, ice and water right in front of the guy, he wouldn't give me a cup of water, because he was "closed". None of the bars served any drink, other than water, that was included in the cruise. If you wanted something else, you had to go to the buffet or wait up to 15 minutes in a dining room for a glass of Lemonade. 

-Our cabin attendant was not very attentive. Many times we went without ice, again, not getting a drink when we needed one, and it took a long time to get to our room. Most days it was well into the afternoon and late into the evening before we got our daily service. 

-Overall we were on a cruise, and that was fantastic. You can not beat the views on a ship. We made the best out of the time that we had. We booked private excursions and they were amazing. The customer service from was out of this world. They fought with Norwegian for over an hour, while I was on the cruse, because Norwegian messed up my package deal. We will cruise again, just not with Norwegian. We read all the bad reviews before going on the cruise and thought we would give it a chance anyway. I wish I would have booked a different cruise line for my parent's and children's first cruise! They will have something better to look forward to on the next cruise! Cabin was great. Bathroom was very roomy! Having joining room and balconies made the trip!

Cruise itself, once on board was great.  My husband and I enjoyed it very much.  Food was good, alcoholic beverages over priced but no wait time.  Lots of good entertainment and activities while on board ship.  Norwegian Escape crew was excellent, helpful and ready to accommodate any requests.

Norwegian needs much better customer relation/ service staff via calls prior to boarding. Multiple phone calls to try to figure out snow emergency procedures r/t boarding at different port, if Insurance guy didn't tell me what I could do, I would have missed the cruise.  Buy Insurance NEVER had this issue before & always question do I need to insure this trip.  It made the difference but that being said the blizzard was not my fault & I lost 3 days on cruise (not compensated) Headaches from hours spent on phone calls to re-organize this trip.  Neither Norwegian nor BJ's travel, made no effort to alleviate any issues or call to see if there was anything that they could do.  I think a storm that disrupt plans warrants a few follow up calls to help the customer feel wanted and appreciated for using their site and companies.  Nice to know that my business and future business is wanted and I don't feel like "part of the Norwegian Family", as we kept hearing those words aboard the Norwegian Escape. I feel bad writing this review because the crew of the Norwegian Escape is top notch and does its homework but the before and after needs a lot of improvement when a crisis arises!  ...& Nothing is refundable bought though Norwegian, port transfers missed days so glad I didn't get a package or pre order excursion!

FYI I have bought excursions in past prior to trips and have never lost a dime the company has always made good whether their fault or my own which is why I return knowing my vacation will be a VACATION. Good Luck to all future travelers!  Knowledge is powerful

We are a retired couple who cruised with our adult son and four 20 something grandchildren.  First cruise for the grands.  We and our son were in an M6 mini suite with large balcony on deck 8. This class of mini are all located forward on deck 8.   This is a great location near both Food Republic, the District Brew House and The Waterfront.  Very close to the aft stairs and elevators and the mid ship shops, casino, atrium and restaurants are a short walk away. The Waterfront is wonderful quiet place to relax with large padded couches and chairs with outside bars nearby.  We ate in outside restaurant seating twice here.  Our large balcony had two lounge chairs and two regular chairs and a round table.  A small overhang near the sliding door provides some shade while the remainder of the balcony is open.  The bathroom is very large in the M6 with a double sink and huge glassed shower with multiple body sprays and rain shower.  The only flaw with the cabin is that it is a tight squeeze to get into the hanging part of the closet due to the close proximity of the couch.  Plenty of shelving for storage.  We found it to be very quiet, with no noise from the adjoining cabins, waterfront areas or the Brew House which had evening entertainment.

We all had dining packages and ate at specialties 6 nights.  We found the food quality to be excellent, even in the buffet, which had carving stations and multiple stations with a large variety of food to fit any palate.  I could be completely happy just dining here.  Finding a seat by the window was never a problem.  Surprisingly, in Le Bistro, a favorite on other ships, our service was very poor and not at all what we had experienced in the past.  Otherwise, service was excellent.  Most of us had drinks packages as well, and we experienced no difficulty with service that some have complained of.

Biggest disappointment was that the dinner show, For the Record, the Brat Pack, was cancelled for the entire week due to an injury.  But because there is so much other entertainment going on in the theatre, Headliners with comedy, Howl at the Moon, live music in 5 O'Clock Somewhere Bar and the District, as well as deck parties at night, you would need to clone yourself to take it all in.  The theatre show  

For the Record, in my opinion is the best show I have ever seen on a cruise ship.  This show is currently touring nationally and is not a ship production.  You would pay well over $100 to see this in Vegas rather than $0.  The real dud in this ships entertainment is After Midnight.  If you had not read some background to learn it is based on Harlem's Cotton Club of the 30's, you would have no idea.  No story line, poor dancing, IMO.  There were many who made an early getaway, like ourselves, and this is something we have never done at a show.  They need to scrap this show.

  Will stick with the smaller size cruise ships with less people. We did and Alaska cruse a couple years ago and it was much more enjoyable and the staff seemed to be a lot more friendly.

The ship was beautiful but for a new ship but Norwegian keeps even there older ships in very nice condition.

Our first cruise! Was absolutely amazing! Great ports of call, and the timing of the excursions left us plenty of time to do the'tourist trap' stuff! Will definitely be booking another cruise!  :-D

Cannot say enough about the great experience we had. The food, the shows, the staterooms, all wonderful.  I had a handicap room to accommodate my electric scooter and it was state of the art!  The bathroom was so easy to function in. Very safe.

Can't wait to go again.