Review of 12 Day Getaway Halloween Cruise!

Hi All,

I was on the Getaway 12 day Southern Caribbean sailing from October 31st-November 12th. This was my tenth cruise overall, and eighth with NCL. It also pushes me into platinum status due to double latitude points equaling 24 nights!

It was a fantastic trip. That said, there are always areas where there can be some improvement. Though I love NCL, I am not a “cheerleader” and don't believe they can “do no wrong”. I hope that the information below can be helpful to some people in a fair and balanced way!

The most important thing to know about this cruise is that I was for all purposes “solo” but not in the studio complex. I did have two friends onboard but believe it or not only saw them 3 times in 12 days! I had a wonderful time meeting so many great solo travelers. The majority of us were not in studios, but in insides or studios. A group of us had dinner most nights, and there was a regular crowd that was at the meetup most nights in the Sunset Bar. Paul was the solos host and he was friendly and accommodating to all.

Another important thing to know is that I managed to sprain my ankle on night two! It made for a less than desirable vacation as far as impacting my movement. However, I'm pleased to say the medical center provided a fairly straightforward service with Xrays for a total of around $400. I was even more pleased the next day when I returned to my stateroom to find chocolate covered strawberries and haven slippers with a get well soon note from NCL. Very nice touch.

Stateroom:

My room was 9419, quite a bit forward. Having been on the Getaway before and the Breakaway a month before, it was “Familiar” and I knew exactly what I was getting. My only major complaints would be that the beds just don't seem as comfortable as they used to, and the temperature fluctuations in the shower were extreme. It would go from lukewarm to scalding hot and back again without touching the knobs at all. Overall the room was perfectly fine and the stateroom steward kept things clean and well stocked, and there was adequate storage space. The steward (Oliver) impressed me by filling the ice and a ziplock baggie with ice knowing I had injured myself. He did not impress me by taking until day 11 to learn my name was Chris and not Richard :)

Dining and Drinks:

I had the UBP for the first time since it was “included” for $140 in gratuities. I'm not sure I could ever live without it again!

Almost every dinner was consumed in the MDRs. They were all similar, but service was quicker in Taste and Savor. Tropicana was a bit slower, but it also usually centered around 10-16 of us eating together so some delay was expected. One meal did take 2 ½ hours in Tropicana. Im a fairly picky eater, so I stuck to the meat lasagna most nights. I didnt have any “Bad” meals. Others in our group were not at all satisfied with the food that was being served, night after night. I heard a lot of complaints about taste and temperature.

I ate lunch in the Flamingo bar a couple times, mostly for the fried plantains and cold rice pudding. I also utilized the buffet for several lunches – nothing outstanding, but nothing to complain about.

Many meals were consumed in O'Sheehans. I have such a love-hate relationship with this place. It is so easy and accessible that it makes for a quick bite. I adore the mozzarella sticks and the meatloaf isnt bad. My major issues are the service and the “overnight” menu. The waitstaff rarely smiles, always seem rushed, and are not around for things like refilling beverages, etc. For those that are not aware, the overnight menu at O's is a joke. They offer a hamburger, hot dog, pot pie, and a couple other things. No desserts. We got into a discussion with the host at one point and he pretty emphatically said that we were in the minority and that most people wanted “a quick meal” after 11 oclock. Incredulous, I informed him that most people want a piece of pie or cake, maybe a cup of soup or something small. The last thing most people want is a hamburger and fries at 11:30! With the elimination of some of the menu items I usually eat on the Escape and later fleetwide, I probably wont spend as much time here. We'll see.

Only specialty restaurants this trip were the free Noodles and all all inclusive for $19.99 La Cucina. 8 of us had dinner together at Noodles and not a single one thought it was good. I enjoyed La Cucina a lot as I always do. I think its a great value and some of the best bruschetta around.

Recreational:

Despite the sprained ankle, I was stupid enough to do the ropes course plank and zipline. Enjoyed it as usual, but it didnt help the swelling!

Used the 3 “Regular” waterslides but won't go near the “drop” slides. The red twisty slide is VERY fast!

Also used the adults pool. I agree its not huge, but it was certainly big enough to fit plenty of people and it always seemed busy enough.

Did not do mini golf, boring, or use the arcade etc.

Entertainment:

This is where I will probably be hardest on NCL during this review.

Saw Legally Blonde for the second time and it's still good fun and a way to kill 90 minutes. I did not see Burn the Floor because I didn't like it last year. They had Frankie Valli tribute singers “Oh What a Night” onboard for two shows. Great eye candy but I honestly didnt think they were fantastic singers.

Spent quite a few nights in Headliners for Howl at the Moon. I love this on all the ships, and they were great here. The problem was the passengers! The tip jars were basically empty the whole time, people didnt make requests (or if they did, didnt include even a buck) and people just did not get into it.

I did not see the comedians in Headliners at all besides one special show they setup in the theater on the second Sunday. The overwhelming feeling around the ship is that they were horrible. Im sure others will disagree, but thats what I heard as I listened in on conversations.

The part where this cruise really feel a little flat is the nighttime parties and the lack of extra activities for a 12 day cruise. It's probably the right time to mention that the average age onboard this ship was 55 years old. The Spice H20 parties were sparsely attended. The only two that were fairly busy were the first night Halloween party and the Glow party. The other parties offered were 70s, 80s, a toga party, and two “Caribbean” parties. No, I still don't know what a Caribbean party is!

It just seemed, from my perspective, that no one put any real effort into planning 12 days of activities. It was most like 7 days stretched out in some areas. For example, they didn't even have a movie in the atrium every night. There were a couple nights with no shows, no movies, and maybe Howl at the Moon as the only real activity. I just would have liked to see a little more work put into creative ideas for a long cruise, and it didnt seem to happen here.

Service and Staff:

The majority of the staff was very friendly and helpful. As mentioned above, my stateroom steward was great. Medical center staff was mostly good. Dining staff was exceptional in most areas. Mas in the Casino bar was fantastic and learned my name and drinks right away.

As usual, there was one huge deficiency. The casino staff was a pretty difficult cup of tea to swallow. They were openly arguing with players and were extremely defensive. Some didnt smile at all. There were of course exceptions, but it was a lot more fun to play video poker alone than blackjack with most of the dealers.

Odds and Ends:

“All you can stuff into a bag” $19.95 laundry service was offered multiple nights in a row on this 12 day. I believe it was six, but I stopped counting.

There was a computer error with the UBP and ginger ale. Make sure to check your bills on future cruises and have guest services remove and $2.94 charges in case the computer makes a mistake.

Internet was spotty in anywhere but public areas. I did the $0.95 a minute thinking I wouldnt use it much...$120 later, I regretted not buying a plan! I had $100 OBC so mostly calling it a wash.

One really disheartening thing was the age old smoking issue. I usually wave off the complaints about 6-7-8 areas smelling like smoke, but it really was pretty bad this cruise. More upsetting was a conversation a woman had with a husband next to me. She told her husband that neighbors had complained about them smoking on the balcony. Guest services staff were sent to the room and the stateroom steward “covered for them” and disposed of the cigarette butts. They were delighted that they had pulled one over on the ship. I was disgusted with both them and the steward.

Lastly, the ports! I did VERY little off the ship despite six stops. Aruba was a big old desert. St Lucia was having torrential flooding rains (some excursions had to be “Rescued” by catamaran when the bridge back into town was washed out). Barbados had some pretty areas but seemed very urban. St Kitts was really nice, and I got some pictures with a monkey! Did not make it off the ship in Curacao as we were only there about 4 hours. St Thomas was as it usually is – this is the fourth time I've visited and had plans to go to St John, but a restless night before canceled it. Overall, despite always wanting to see some of these islands, I have a new appreciation for St Maarten and Bermuda, Most importantly, if I ever do them again I will book excursions. The majority of these port have zero activities without a guide or a taxi trip.

So thats it. I really enjoyed the Getaway, and it remains my favorite ship! Despite the fact that it is the Breakaway's twin, the service and crew are far superior. I look forward to sailing her a third time on the western itinerary in the near future!

I almost forgot!

There was a FUNNY response on the Newlywed show!

Couple married 60-odd years was asked how he knows when she is "in the mood".

She came out on stage and said "well, first I plug the vibrator in..."

DIED!

Good job! Love the newlywed game shows - funny stuff!

D'oh! Was filling out my post cruise survey and realized I forgot one more thing!

The staff were SERIOUSLY pushing vacation hero cards on this cruise. To the point where one of the waitresses brought one over in the dining room, spelled her name, and watched us fill it out. It was a lot of different people in different areas - almost like a memo went out and told them to push it as hard as possible.

Anyone else experience that lately?

D'oh! Was filling out my post cruise survey and realized I forgot one more thing!

 

The staff were SERIOUSLY pushing vacation hero cards on this cruise. To the point where one of the waitresses brought one over in the dining room, spelled her name, and watched us fill it out. It was a lot of different people in different areas - almost like a memo went out and told them to push it as hard as possible.

 

Anyone else experience that lately?

We were on the same cruise; and did not experience them pushing the vacation hero cards. But we only ate in specialty restaurants (had the UDP) so it was different servers each night... not sure if that makes a difference??? We did fill out one for the bartender at Headliners, but that was because she was fantastic and we wanted too.

Good, honest review, Chris! I've only gone so far as to make notes about it, but plan to post one about this cruise, too.

Here I just want to add on to your casino staff comment. We were disappointed in the attitudes of the executive casino host, Clarissa, and the handsome young male casino host.

At the moment I can only recall his name started with an A, but that's all right because names or introductions didn't seem important to them, even for regular CAS players.

Anyway, thanks for sharing your review!