Escape

Never been a Norwegian Fan. The ships seem to big. The Free Style Cruising gives me fears of long lines and wait times. However, been looking at the Escape and I think I might give it a try again. Any one cruised on her. I am intrigued by many things.

Taste and Savor and The Manhattan Room intrigue me the booth look beautiful and the menu seems great.

The entertainment is the one great thing on Noreweigen so looking forward to that especially the Jazz show.

How is the pool situation... Norwegian to me always seems limited on pool space compared to other lines. Is it overcrowded on a 4,000 + Passanger ship. I enjoy my pool and lounge time. What is it like on this ship?

Just a few questions and anything you would like to add let me know!

To alleviate you fears, just make reservations.(y)

As for the pools, there is a family (all ages) pool and an adult-only pool. There isn't much chance of a lounger right by the pool but there are plenty of other loungers further from the pool.

The spa (added cost) is another option for an adult-only, exclusive, lounger/pool experience.

Hardly a wait ever for MDR...pool is busy, but I hung out at H2O during the day...or did the slides...

Never been a Norwegian Fan. The ships seem to big. The Free Style Cruising gives me fears of long lines and wait times. However, been looking at the Escape and I think I might give it a try again. Any one cruised on her. I am intrigued by many things.

 

Taste and Savor and The Manhattan Room intrigue me the booth look beautiful and the menu seems great.

 

The entertainment is the one great thing on Noreweigen so looking forward to that especially the Jazz show.

 

How is the pool situation... Norwegian to me always seems limited on pool space compared to other lines. Is it overcrowded on a 4,000 + Passanger ship. I enjoy my pool and lounge time. What is it like on this ship?

 

Just a few questions and anything you would like to add let me know!

I would follow your instinct and book something else. The entertainment/shows on Escape are subpar. The jazz show, After Midnight, is a low budget lounge show that they stuck on the main stage. Lots of people were walking out and they couldn't even fill the theater.

If you like Pool/Lounge time, then Escape is quite possibly the worst mass market ship sailing today. I had never seen anything so horribly designed. It's BAD, like really, really overcrowded and a total disaster. There is one main pool. That's it. Walls around it, no loungers, no space. Then you have Spice H20 which is the aft pool without a pool, lol. It's just a sun deck with a bar full of smokers. Oh, and good luck getting a lounger there, either. Not happening.

This picture is exactly what the pool area is like. And that's the only pool area.... for 4,000+ people.

There are some positives to Escape. I didn't notice any real lines at the main dining rooms and the waterfront is super cool if you plan on dining outside. If you don't mind being inside for your lounge/pool time, the spa is unbeatable on Escape and a true game changer. The water slides are also outstanding.

I don't see any reason, based on your concerns, why you would sail Escape. You will hate it.

If you are looking for a ship with lots of space to lounge and enjoy pools and great entertainment without lines or crowds, you should be considering Royal's Oasis class. Seems a better fit for you.

It's a great ship, but the Escape pool is the most crowded in the fleet IMO. Never experienced any long lines to get drinks, problems getting seated at restaurants, etc. Haven worth every penny on that ship though.

The Escape is an awesome ship. The MDRs are nice venues for dinner with Manhattan having the dance floor. I make reservations 90 days out. No waiting in lines. However I have also just walked up and been seated quickly. This ship has the District Brew House if you or a friend enjoy craft beers. The spa is a great place to relax and get away from crowds. So much to do on this ship. There is a great place to sun and a hot tub right outside the vibe area. The waterfront is a great place to get away or walk down close to the water. Also outside dining options on the waterfront. Pool areas are crazy busy. We choose to find less crowded areas on the ship. I will be on the Getaway in 17 days and then Breakaway next May. I have considered trying RCL ships but so far they just don’t appeal as much to my style. They seem too big and busy for me personally. I believe you can find your spot and enjoy yourself on the Escape.

There are several places you can go and not encounter another person or very few. Escape is a great ship.

This picture is exactly what the pool area is like. And that's the only pool area.... for 4,000+ people.

There is another pool that isn't in that picture.

There is another pool that isn't in that picture.

 

That's true. Sandwiched in the middle is the KIDS pool. I'm sure that's what OP is looking for!

^^ That's not Escape

^^ That's not Escape

I know, but it's similar. Get's the point across.

The Escape is the best ship I. The NCL fleet. Highly recommended. Here’s some pics from our cruise last week https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2624246

Haven't been on the Escape yet, but I have been on the slightly smaller Breakaway 4 times, and enjoy it very much. That said, I will agree that the pool deck is one of the worst designed and overcrowded of any ship I have sailed on, but since I am not a "pool-person", that is of little concern to me.

Since you live in Pittsburgh, which is on the outer edge of the "driving range" area, you might consider RCI's Anthem OTS, out of Bayonne, NJ. IMHO, it has one of the best designs of any ship I have been on... They have an outdoor pool, an indoor pool, and an adult only indoor 'Serenity' pool. The latter two are great for cold weather departures....:)

I’ll add that the water feature at H2O is nice for cooling off, and I never smelled smoke unless I was sitting at the bar, no issue with loungers either, for the most part...4-7 sailing. Waiters out there kept me in drinks...

Entertainment at The District was great...another adults only venue, which is nice. My Wife really enjoyed Burn the Floor, so YMMV.

I know, but it's similar. Get's the point across.

It gets a false point across.

The Escape is a very nice ship. Food and service have been great on all our trips. The entertainment we have seen has been very good.

We love everything about it ... other than three things. The pool design is horrid, overcrowded main pool and the kid pool has 0 seating. Atrium shows are packed and way too full for the space. Lastly smoke, Open casino with out proper air handling. It is not designed well.

If you can get past those three little things you have a great trip.

Had no problem with the Escape. In fact, liked it so much, we are booked on the Encore.2 pools, one adult only. Lounges around the pool are hard to find on any ship. The hogs at work. The entertainment, IMHO, was first rate. Never had to wait more than 2 minutes for the MDR's. The only time we had to wait was at O'Sheehan's.

I always traveled Carnival before but tried the Escape. Now I will not go back to Carnival. Never had any lines for anything we wanted. Always found a seat at the bars.

The pools were very busy however my kids had no issues with it. We did not spend a lot of time at the pool because of all of the activities on the ship.

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I would follow your instinct and book something else. The entertainment/shows on Escape are subpar. The jazz show, After Midnight, is a low budget lounge show that they stuck on the main stage. Lots of people were walking out and they couldn't even fill the theater.

 

If you like Pool/Lounge time, then Escape is quite possibly the worst mass market ship sailing today. I had never seen anything so horribly designed. It's BAD, like really, really overcrowded and a total disaster. There is one main pool. That's it. Walls around it, no loungers, no space. Then you have Spice H20 which is the aft pool without a pool, lol. It's just a sun deck with a bar full of smokers. Oh, and good luck getting a lounger there, either. Not happening.

 

This picture is exactly what the pool area is like. And that's the only pool area.... for 4,000+ people.

 

 

 

There are some positives to Escape. I didn't notice any real lines at the main dining rooms and the waterfront is super cool if you plan on dining outside. If you don't mind being inside for your lounge/pool time, the spa is unbeatable on Escape and a true game changer. The water slides are also outstanding.

 

I don't see any reason, based on your concerns, why you would sail Escape. You will hate it.

 

If you are looking for a ship with lots of space to lounge and enjoy pools and great entertainment without lines or crowds, you should be considering Royal's Oasis class. Seems a better fit for you.

We haven’t seen the Escape version yet, but After Midnight was a real Broadway show that we actually saw in a packed theater on Broadway. It may not have the name recognition of shows like Rock of Ages or Jersey Boys, but it was not just a lounge act.

I was wary of going on a bigger ship as well (I'm used to the Jewel-class size ships). But I really enjoyed my recent trip on the Escape. I thought the After Midnight show was *fabulous* - in fact, my friends & I all went back to see it a second time the next night. (Our first time at the show we had reservations, and I can't remember if we made reservations again the second night, or if we just walked in - sorry.)

We had dinner in the Manhattan Room every night, and once or twice had to wait for maybe 15 minutes or so - but there were six of us and we always asked for a table at least somewhat near the dance floor. So I imagine normal wait times are usually quite a bit shorter. We had breakfasts and sometimes lunch in Taste & Savor, and sometimes there was a wait, but not long. We would always just pick the one that was emptier or had the shorter line. There were a few issues with slow service in all the dining rooms, and not every dish was great, but overall, the food was very good and we had good experiences.

I only went in the pool once, and it wasn't crowded, although it was cloudy & windy that afternoon. (The ship was rocking a bit, and I enjoy the "wave pool" effect.) If you are OK with your lounge chair not being right by the pool, there always seemed to be plenty of chairs elsewhere, even when it was sunny. I'm not as much of a pool/lounging person as I used to be so YMMV, but that's what I noticed when I was paying attention. I hardly ever even made it out to the Spice H2O area, so not sure how crowded that was/wasn't. I did get a peek at the neat water grotto area back there and wanted to go back, but...just was busy doing other stuff!

I went on the Escape with the expectation that there would be giant mobs of people and that I just needed to get over that, but honestly, the only time the size of the crowds seemed truly nuts was for the muster drill. Not that there weren't other times & places where it seemed crowded (like trying to get a seat for trivia), but that was the only time it seemed ridiculous. Oh yeah, the buffet was a bit of a madhouse at peak lunchtime, but it's so huge it wasn't actually all that hard to get food and we could always (eventually) find a seat.

If you want a quiet place to sit & hang out, the seating areas on the Waterfront outside of the designated restaurant areas were always very quiet. Didn't usually have issues finding seats there, either.

I thought I was going to dislike a mega-ship, but the Waterfront, the shows (especially After Midnight), the music & dancing in the Manhattan Room, and the water slides and ropes course (both extremely fun!) all made me wind up really enjoying the Escape.

I haven't been on either the Breakaway or the Getaway, but from what I gather, the Escape has the same layout but it has just enough more open space to have less crowding issues than those ships. That is my impression - I will let people who have been on both ships speak to that.

We haven’t seen the Escape version yet, but After Midnight was a real Broadway show that we actually saw in a packed theater on Broadway. It may not have the name recognition of shows like Rock of Ages or Jersey Boys, but it was not just a lounge act.

Is it the same show on Escape? It was nothing more than a few people singing and dancing. No stage props, nothing. I expect a stage show to have more than just some talent singing and dancing on stage. But maybe that's just me. But they put absolutely nothing into this show. How about some set design to make it look like a club? ANYTHING. In fact, the only prop was a little set of stairs they pushed around the stage. I felt embarrassed for the entertainers. They were certainly talented, but it was awful. My wife LOVES this type of stuff and even she was just kind of ready to go after a half hour of it. Someone singing and a little dancing is what I expect to see at the casino bar, not their premium stage show in the main theater. It's possible I'm just spoiled by the outstanding entertainment on Oasis-class. After Midnight might be decent by "typical" standards and I'd agree it's better than anything Carnival has :)

I would follow your instinct and book something else. The entertainment/shows on Escape are subpar. The jazz show, After Midnight, is a low budget lounge show that they stuck on the main stage. Lots of people were walking out and they couldn't even fill the theater.

 

If you like Pool/Lounge time, then Escape is quite possibly the worst mass market ship sailing today. I had never seen anything so horribly designed. It's BAD, like really, really overcrowded and a total disaster. There is one main pool. That's it. Walls around it, no loungers, no space. Then you have Spice H20 which is the aft pool without a pool, lol. It's just a sun deck with a bar full of smokers. Oh, and good luck getting a lounger there, either. Not happening.

 

This picture is exactly what the pool area is like. And that's the only pool area.... for 4,000+ people.

 

 

 

There are some positives to Escape. I didn't notice any real lines at the main dining rooms and the waterfront is super cool if you plan on dining outside. If you don't mind being inside for your lounge/pool time, the spa is unbeatable on Escape and a true game changer. The water slides are also outstanding.

 

I don't see any reason, based on your concerns, why you would sail Escape. You will hate it.

 

If you are looking for a ship with lots of space to lounge and enjoy pools and great entertainment without lines or crowds, you should be considering Royal's Oasis class. Seems a better fit for you.

Is lurking on the NCL board your full-time occupation? Breathe deep, relax, move on.

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Is lurking on the NCL board your full-time occupation? Breathe deep, relax, move on.

 

 

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Thumbs up! LOL!

Is lurking on the NCL board your full-time occupation? Breathe deep, relax, move on.

 

 

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It appears so.