Nightlife on the Escape - any info? :)

[gforce112]

Hi there, thanks for reading!

 

Quick question, can anyone give me some inside info about nightlife on the escape?

I'm going with my gf, we're mid 20s and we do enjoy partying so it's kind of important to us. I think there's no actual club and most parties are held in the outdoor venue Spice, correct? Anyone who has been there have any info on it? Do a lot of people show up? Is it a good time overall? And what happens if it rains?

 

Also, besides Spice and the casino, is there anything really to do at night? I've heard the ship almost shuts down around 11ish and it kind of worries me, lol. We are kind of night owls!

 

Thanks so much! I've cruised on RCL Oasis twice and while the nightclub wasn't amazing, it was still pretty decent and I'm worried about a lack of one here as it's my gf's first cruise ever. Oasis is quite a bit more though but it may be worth it if there's a big difference in nightlife. If not, would definitely love to save the extra $$$!

 

Would love perspective from anyone but especially people around 19-35 as well! THANKS!!

[rbelfi]

Unfortunately the nightlife on NCL has really gone down in respect to nightclub atmosphere. On the Gem and Epic, Bliss would be full of energy until all hours of the night. Breakaway it was almost non-existent. Bliss went from a huge multipurpose room to a small underused place. I went there almost every night around midnight and the place was dead.

 

Considering they eliminated the nightclub all together I wouldn't have high hopes for Escape. Coming from someone around the same age it really disappointing. Hopefully I'm wrong.

[calgaryhhr]

The only nightlife onboard is the Glow party at Spice H2O. I was surprised that there was no club and I was talking to one guy at District who was really disappointed that there was no place to party on the boat. The Glow party is all ages and there are a lot of kids.

 

I'm not a seasoned cruiser and don't have experience on a vast number of ships and cruise lines but the NCL Escape was not a fun/party ship. There were lots of places to drink but no partying. I think NCL and the Escape is trying to be more geared towards luxury.

[TeamPants]

I was on the Escape last week. It seemed like they were making an effort to make the Skyline Bar near the casino into more of a night club venue. Several nights the cruise ship staff was there trying to get things started, dancing/ect but it didn't seem to stick after they left. The only night it was really busy was after the glow party, a lot of people came down after and stayed until the early morning hours. I think NCL needs to promote it more as a night club venue, it seemed to work after the glow party but I don't think enough people knew it was there before that.

[LrgPizza]

Howl at The Moon is a fun nightlife spot to hang out late night. I thought I'd throw that out there since you didn't specifically ask about nightclubs/dancing.

[gforce112]

Thanks so much for your replies, seems pretty disappointing but much appreciated!

No good news on Escape nightlife at all then? Haha..

 

No adults only nightlife area, ahh!! Seems like something that should be there especially on a mega ship but maybe it's just me. Sucks even more cause Oasis price went up and it's almost double Escape now, damn! Haha thanks!!

[LrgPizza]

Thanks so much for your replies, seems pretty disappointing but much appreciated!

No good news on Escape nightlife at all then? Haha..

 

No adults only nightlife area, ahh!! Seems like something that should be there especially on a mega ship but maybe it's just me. Sucks even more cause Oasis price went up and it's almost double Escape now, damn! Haha thanks!!

I guess it depends what you are looking for. Howl is adults only after 11pm, and generally loud, packed, and a lot of fun with dancing, group shots, etc. The District is adults only all the time, but more laid back. Personally, I never went to bed before about 1:30am, and had a blast every night. I thought there was a ton of nightlife.

[gforce112]

Hi LrgPizza thank you so much for that!!

Would you say there's anywhere with like a kind of club atmosphere?

Like drinking, dancing and like top 40/hip hop/dance music?

Is howl at the moon mainly rock and roll/piano type music all night?

 

Thanks!!

[weltek]

Howl at The Moon is a fun nightlife spot to hang out late night. I thought I'd throw that out there since you didn't specifically ask about nightclubs/dancing.

 

Ditto that. On our Getaway cruise, there was a large group of us that hung out at Howl until at least 1 a.m. many nights. Not the place to dance, but lively and fun.

Edited December 21, 2015 by weltek

[champagne lover]

We loved Howl at the Moon, wish we had discovered it earlier in the week, 3 fabulous guys who performed such a selection of music for all tastes - and so funny. Great entertainment!

[Driberif1]

We are going on Escape April 2, and if it is anything like our last 2 Norwegian cruises I don't think you'll have any issues staying entertained. We went on the Epic a few months ago and we went on the 2nd sailing of the Getaway prior and we like the same sort of music you are talking about. Everyone keeps talking about the Glow party but there was the club atmosphere every night on the back of both the last Norwegian cruises. Each night they did a theme like 70's music, then 80's, then 90's etc... but after an hour or two of the themed party they just played regular club style music with music videos playing on the big screen. Each night we would try to plan something like a show/comedy show and after we would go to the back of the boat like 10 or 11 and it was always pretty crowded. Normally around 2AM it seemed to die down a bit but then we would go inside and Osheehans seemed to keep things going until 3 or 4, On the Epic and Getaway there was actual clubs but they were a total hit or miss anyway. The great thing about the Escape is the beverage package for us, there is 3 of us and we do a good job at drinking, our last two cruises we went on during spring break and Norwegian would not offer the package on those dates so on the Getaway we built up a $2,900 bill and on the Epic we built up a $3,500 bill on alcohol alone (although we did order bottles at meals and bottle service all night long).

[Dave85]

Hi LrgPizza thank you so much for that!!

Would you say there's anywhere with like a kind of club atmosphere?

Like drinking, dancing and like top 40/hip hop/dance music?

Is howl at the moon mainly rock and roll/piano type music all night?

 

Thanks!!

 

Howl is a lively piano bar / singing type experience with multiple performers. It's not a club with a DJ or place to dance. The latter is what we look for at night, and we only lasted in Howl on Breakaway for about an hour because we were bored.

 

One of the things that made my switch my Escape cruise back to Breakaway was the lack of appealing (to me) nightlife options. We loved hanging out at Fat Cats Jazz & Blues Club on the Breakaway, and then going dancing in Bliss late night. Both are missing from Escape. Yes, Bliss is small on Breakaway, but the DJ was great on my Breakaway cruise and it was packed every night -- which was undoubtedly easier to accomplish given its small size haha.

Edited December 21, 2015 by Dave85

[cb at sea]

"Nightlife" is very dependent on the passenger mix....if you have a bunch of "early to bed" passengers...nightlife will disappoint you. If there are younger "night owls" aboard, you'll have a blast. They will keep stuff open as long as there is an audience for it....

[blondie1746]

We were on Escape Dec 5th. Our 28 yr old son was out til 5:30 am one morning. And most nights he was out til 2 or later.. I woke up a couple of nights around 3:30am and was curious how many people would still be up. Was so surprised. Lots of people eating in O'Sheehans, in the casino and at Skyline Bar/Lounge. Howl at the Moon is always busy and entertaining. The last night in there we saw the bartenders pouring booze into the mouths of a group laying backwards on the bar. They seemed like regulars in that venue.

 

Beau Tahana was the entertainer at The District. He was there either 8-12 or 9-1 most nights. Very funny. We only went to Spice the night of the Glow party. Not sure what the other nights were like. But Glow was fun. Dancing would be at Spice or Skyline. Trust me, my son never had trouble finding the night life.

[gforce112]

Thanks so much again for all your replies, it really helps!

 

Can anyone give me a review of the Glow party or nightly Spice H20 parties who has been? Lots of kids, is it fun? Ppl are drinking/dancing?

 

Other than that it seems there's no real venue to drink/dance to a DJ, correct?

 

 

Thanks!!!

[LrgPizza]

Thanks so much again for all your replies, it really helps!

 

Can anyone give me a review of the Glow party or nightly Spice H20 parties who has been? Lots of kids, is it fun? Ppl are drinking/dancing?

 

Other than that it seems there's no real venue to drink/dance to a DJ, correct?

 

 

Thanks!!!

I always describe those parties as the cruise staff screaming incessantly into microphones things like, "Are you ready to party?!!!" and "Everybody get up and dance!!" and "Somebody scream!!!" over and over and over again, until I want to jump overboard.

[DavyB]

Thanks so much again for all your replies, it really helps!

 

Can anyone give me a review of the Glow party or nightly Spice H20 parties who has been? Lots of kids, is it fun? Ppl are drinking/dancing?

 

Other than that it seems there's no real venue to drink/dance to a DJ, correct?

 

 

Thanks!!!

 

I had fun at all the parties held at Spice H2O but I was with a group of people I went with and some that I had met on the ship. I was out until at least 2 most nights with plenty to do. Some nights there was dancing going on at the Skyline bar.

 

I think you will be fine with the night life. You may have to search for it but I don't think it'll be hard to find.

 

Have a blast!!

[gforce112]

Thank you both for your responses, very helpful!

 

Davy, could I ask you what you think the approx age range or average age there since you were there several nights? What kind of music did they play? And was there a good mix of guys/girls and people dancing?

 

Sorry for all the questions, probably booking today and still can't completely decide!!

[Driberif1]

It also will depend on the dates you go I am sure, we always travel March/April which is also spring break times and it is packed with a college party crowd, if you are going in Jan./Feb. I am sure it will be a different crowd.

[GoAndHaveFun]

Skyline Bar (took the place of Bliss Lounge) would be the spot for nightlife but I only went there 3 times and I thought the environment was aite. I actually had the most fun at the 80s Party as they had it in the Atrium since it was raining that night. I wished they had a 70's Night Dance Party but instead, they had a Latin dance party that drew an ok number of people.

[mslayer_99]

I was on the Escape Nov. 28th and had an absolute blast. I'm 28, love to party and dance, so did just that all over the ship and people would just join in. (Almost) daily pool deck parties were started by a group of us in the afternoon (DJ playing songs that can range from 80s to Top 40).

Nightly themed parties at Spice which can be hit or miss - Glow is fun (and plays the best club songs) but too family oriented so it gets kinda weird when all you see is kids dancing.

They used Skyline as the nightclub every night and there was usually a crowd until 3-4 every night. The DJs usually played hip hop/R&B/club songs, a good mix of current (and not as current) hits. I would say the average age group was mid thirties.

My experience with cruising though is it depends on the passengers going with you. I like to bring the party out in people so I always feel like I get a good entourage. Or maybe I just luck out every time as I seem to book my cruises with party people :p

[DavyB]

Thank you both for your responses, very helpful!

 

Davy, could I ask you what you think the approx age range or average age there since you were there several nights? What kind of music did they play? And was there a good mix of guys/girls and people dancing?

 

Sorry for all the questions, probably booking today and still can't completely decide!!

 

There was a good mix of people at the parties at Spice, guys/girls, all ages, etc... They play current popular dance mixes of top 40 songs. There were people dancing and drinking all night long The average age was probably late 30's.

 

I always seemed to end up at the Skyline bar. It was not that crowded the first couple nights but after that it seemed like the place to be late at night.

 

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

 

David