My Review of RCCL vs NCL ESCAPE (Dec 2016)

[Pedro2400]

I have sailed Freedom, Oasis, and Quantum Class with RCCL and Escape with NCL ( Dec 2016). So here is my view.

 

*** Disclaimer ***

(NCL and RCCL lovers, Please no bashing, it’s just only my point of view and I am not the best critic in the world).

 

First Impression: NCL really lacks on first impression. When you get on to ship on NCL, you would feel cramped while you enter in small galley next to the elevator. You don’t feel you are in the ship. Mostly on All RCCL ships, when you enter the ship you enter Royal promenade and it gives a Grand feeling. On Oasis Class Royal promenade is huge and you see the entire hustle bustle and ship is lively. On NCL the atrium is Ok but not that great use of activities. Royal Promenade with RCCL gives the wow for the first timers. Advantage RCCL

 

Ports on itinerary: This is where NCL have nailed it. On Port days when you come back to the ship, you are treated like kings. They offer you wet towels, water, and cold drinks. This doesn’t cost much but it shows to the other cruise line’s guests that NCL is worth trying. From our experience I can tell, this was what made us try NCL. In 2015 while we were on Oasis of the Seas ship and we were docked next to NCL Getaway and that’s when we saw NCL serving drinks and towels and we were like wow. Right away we said lets try NCL. RCCL must learn this from NCL. Advantage NCL

 

Ship Layout: There are both good and bad areas on NCL Escape vs RCCL newer ships. In my opinion, Deck 8 on Escape has the best layout. Nice loungers to have quite time on both sides and bars on both sides. However Running/Jogging track is a joke on Escape. First of all it’s very small and it is in the middle of all the traffic areas. It’s impossible to run/jog during the day on Escape.

Especially with RCCL on Oasis class, running/Jogging track is very well planned and no traffic. However, RCCL lacks (except Quantum class) outdoor quiet places like Escape on deck 8. Both tied.

 

 

Buffet/Food and Other Food Options: The biggest difference between the two lines is that on RCCL have buffet and pizza Sorrento’s other than main dinning any given time or late night or park café to some extent. (Complimentary options only)

With NCL you can eat at O’Sheehan’s at anytime. Wings and Chipotle chicken sandwich was the best. This venue is above the Atrium and open 24 hours. This place is very popular and it’s no wonder why. We had lunch here on a few occasions. It was nice having all the options. And we noticed food option in Garden Café (Buffet) is much better on NCL than Windjammer (Buffet) on RCCL. Advantage NCL

 

Main Dinning: This is a tough one to decide which one is better. I would say both are same, NCL little better, not by much though. The good part is freestyle dining with NCL, and RCCL have My time dinning.

 

Activities: Both NCL and RCCL have good choices for Activities. With Escape, there is always something happening on Deck 6 -Atrium. However it gets very crowded and sometimes hard to get a seat. RCCL, most of the activities are spread throughout the ships. Such as Love & Marriage show, Family Feud, Cooking Shows. With RCL all this happens in Main Theatre and in NCL it happens in Atrium. Advantage RCCL

 

Pools: On NCL ESCAPE has only 2 pools for a ship with around 4500 people that is way too less. You will find the pool area located mid-ship, on deck 16 and includes the main pool, the kids’ splash pool, and the family pool located next to the splash pool. There is no aft pool. In addition to that the layout of the top deck is not the most desirable one. The loungers are also very close to each other, leaving you with little space to walk around people. The main pool area features four hot tubs, two bars, and a bandstand. The kid’s pool is surrounded by two glass partitions, making almost impossible for parents to lounge while watching their kids in the pool. There is no such issue on RCCL ships that we had sailed. We were disappointed with the layout of the pool deck space on Escape. The area is small and cramped. There's no real space between the pool and the bandstand to dance or play games and there was no space between deck chairs on the sun decks. The running track intersects Margaritaville on deck 17; the track location is a major design flaw. It circles around the water slides and Margaritaville. Runners and walkers had to compete with other passengers for space, especially at the entrance to Margaritaville. As I mentoned earlier, a more suitable space to walk is the Waterfront area on deck 8 when the restaurants are closed. Advantage RCCL

 

Hot Tubs: On Escape there are only 6-8 hot on whole ship that have 4500 people and these hot tubs only hold 10-12 people at a time. We always had to wait for hot tubs to get in. Again, we never had an issue with RCCL. Advantage RCCL

 

Crew: Crewmembers are nice on both ships. Very Polite. Only big difference was when our cruise ended (disembarkation), all the senior management from NCL waited outside on deck 6 to say thank you and good bye to all passengers. This is really nice appreciation gesture. Advantage NCL

 

Internet and TV: Internet was really slow on NCL ESCAPE. It’s usually very good on RCCL Ships. Internet on NCL is about twice times the price and 2 times slower than RCCL. The TV channels on NCL are very limited. Only handful sports and other channels. On RCCL, There are lot more choices of TV channels. Advantage RCCL

 

Entertainment: Entertainment is the biggest difference, I feel like - RCI entertainment is substantially better than NCL. I am comparing complimentary shows on RCCL and NCL. The quality on NCL escape was below par. Even the décor in Main Theatre was below par. RCCL hands down have best Broadway shows, Mama Mia, Grease, Chicago and Ice shows, Aqua Shows ( Oasis Class only) on all RCCL ships. Advantage RCCL

 

Overall: We are family of 4. Typically we pay on RCL cruise about 30% more than NCL. On NCL we paid 30% less and plus we got bonus UBP. NCL is by far value for money. I think RCCL is 30% more costly. Would I sail NCL again, Yes for sure if they are still 30% cheaper. But if there price goes up or there is not much difference. Then RCCL is much better in my opinion. But it always good to try all cruise lines and you know all the good and bad and then you appreciate the good.

[PattiRedRabbit]

Great comparison! Thank you. I had always wanted to sail on Oasis and finally did in October 2016. We loved it so much I doubt we would sail on any other class ship unless we take a European river boat cruise. Glad to know the differences with NCL.

 

 

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[Stevie17]

I appreciated the thoughtful review and comparison. Our last cruise was on Oasis, and I'm eager to sail Escape in March. I think both lines are really good, but it may be hard to top the Oasis. It truly was an amazing ship.

 

 

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[Two Wheels Only]

Thank you for the unbiased review.

 

If RCCL had a "ship within a ship" feature like NCL's Haven or MSC's Yacht Club, RCCL would be my favorite.

[easyboy]

Thank you for your comparative review.

 

 

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[BostonGal35]

i have often questioned whether we made the mistake to go NCL vs RCCL ( we really wanted to be loyal to a brand). this review made me feel good that we made the right choice. NCL has been very good to us, and we are now enjoying some benefits of status (platinum).

[drb116]

Good comparison and I would agree with much of what you said (although I liked the entertainment on NCL better).

 

The one place you didn't compare is the kids clubs (probably because you don't have kids). In our experience after cruising both lines several times, NCL is hands down a better kids club. It is the only time our kids ask to go and never want to leave (including all of our Disney cruises).

 

Overall, my wife and I prefer RCCL, but the kids prefer NCL.

[Pedro2400]

Yes, I agree NCL does have very Nice Kids club. But My Son likes RCCL kids club better. Mind you he is 12 years old.

[JAMESCC]

Great review, I think very balanced and fair. The only thing I would disagree is ship layout. I think it's light years better on RCCL.

I just gotta say one thing, and this is no offense to those that sail in Haven, but thank God RCCL didn't have this feature. It cuts off a huge portion of the ship and in my opinion at the expense of a few ruins the experience of the rest. I know it's awesome to those that can afford it but I think it overall kills the layout of the ship, kills passenger flow because such a large portion of the ship is off limits. Again I mean no disrespect, or offence, just my take aftr sailing both lines, now going back to RCCL.

 

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[Two Wheels Only]

No offense taken.:cool:

 

I think both groups can be happy. Better "flow" to prevent passenger bottleneck is always a good thing. I noted in my Escape review that people tended to gather in certain spots that couldn't handle the crowd while other parts of the ship were empty.

 

There are many ways to get from point A to point B on Escape but nearly everyone tries to go the same way.

 

As for the Haven, I don't think that it takes away from other passengers. Bliss' sundeck forward (19) seems to, however.

Edited January 17, 2017 by Two Wheels Only

[cincicruisers]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.

[Pedro2400]

Great review, I think very balanced and fair. The only thing I would disagree is ship layout. I think it's light years better on RCCL.

I just gotta say one thing, and this is no offense to those that sail in Haven, but thank God RCCL didn't have this feature. It cuts off a huge portion of the ship and in my opinion at the expense of a few ruins the experience of the rest. I know it's awesome to those that can afford it but I think it overall kills the layout of the ship, kills passenger flow because such a large portion of the ship is off limits. Again I mean no disrespect, or offence, just my take aftr sailing both lines, now going back to RCCL.

 

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I agree with you for your Haven point of view. It takes all the space .

[JAMESCC]

I agree with you for your Haven point of view. It takes all the space .

Thanks, it's not a hate thing, or anything against those that are in those rooms, just talking about what it does to the experience to the rest of the passengers.

 

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[Pedro2400]

Thanks, it's not a hate thing, or anything against those that are in those rooms, just talking about what it does to the experience to the rest of the passengers.

 

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I would say staterooms on Escape were really nice as well as

Food Republic, District Brewhouse, etc that I did not mentioned in my comparison

[Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin]

Thanks for your review. We sail both lines. Right now, we lean towards NCL, but that is because we use the Haven (love it, love it, love it!) Haven't sailed on the larger ships yet for either line, but have the Escape coming up in March and a RCCL one scheduled for next year. I agree that NCL needs to improve the jogging track...my hubby runs every morning, and I usually meet him as I walk....too many rotations on NCL. RCCL usually has the running/jogging/walking area traverse the entire ship. Yay!