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Everything... Norwegian ENCORE! Launch Nov 2019

TheDougOut

By TheDougOut,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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worktocruise610

worktocruise610

Posted
Posted
42 minutes ago, Beardface said:

Took me a day but I think I am calming down a bit from this.

 

In reality, my wife and I don't spend much time at all near the pools.  We were attracted to this ship because of some of the other things associated with it (go karts, laser tag, galaxy pavilion, Waterfront) and especially because it was one of the few or possibly only itineraries that went on a 7 night cruise to Bermuda out of NYC on the time we were looking to go.  If we want to go to the pool, we'll hop in, enjoy ourselves, hop out and move on.  Sunbathing does nothing for us, it never has nor ever will, and if we want relaxation, we'll just head to the Thermal Spa.

 

All in all, we're still very much looking forward to our trip.  I hope you are still looking forward to yours as well.

Your post is making me feel better about booking this cruise! It definitely has me calming down also, we don't spend time near the pools & were looking for a cruise from NYC at that time of year & this is it. You make good points & I am looking forward to this cruise now more than before 😉 As another poster said, we just need to wait & see what happens. Either way, I'm on vacation, on a cruise, in Bermuda, with no worries for a week. I will have a great time regardless & if not my favorite, I know not to book it again. Thanks for the post

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FreestyleNovice

FreestyleNovice

Posted
Posted
2 minutes ago, newmexicoNita said:

Here we go again: so many all already complaining about this and that on the ship and it is months before she even sails. Would it be better to just play it by ear and wait until after sailing to decide what is better and what is not. Only time will tell how much of the new will work for most cruisers. 

 

Part of the fun is also how a new ship is received by the public, before and after she sails. Discussing possibilities or the lack of them, excitement and disappointment; sharing that (reasonably and respectfully) has a legit place in an Everything thread and perhaps is a tradition I think. But as most posters on here are like-minded we have less fanboys and bashing as found in other threads. 

Or perhaps I like to romanticize the Everything threads LOL. :classic_biggrin:

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First_Time_Cruiser85

First_Time_Cruiser85

Posted
Posted

Lol at all the people complaining about how there won’t be enough space for everyone to sunbathe.

I’m sorry but if your sole purpose to cruise is to sunbathe and complain about lack of Space to do so on this ship then I suggest cancelling your cruise and go book a 2 week beach vacation where you can sunbathe 10 hours a day with no distractions!

All cruise ship pools and sun loungers are always crazy busy, just like hotels, it’s a first come first serve basis when reserving your lounger.

There are over 4000 people on Encore, did you seriously expect sea days to be quiet around the pool area?

 

 

 

 

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js

js

Posted
Posted (edited)
31 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

To my knowledge, none of the Breakaway Plus class ships allow smoking anywhere outside on Deck 8 (Waterfront). Though I only have personal experience with the Escape and Bliss thus far.

 

Hi. We sailed Escape two years ago and I thought there  was smoking on, I believe, either side of 5 OClock Bar, outside.  I don't smoke but I thought I remembered this but I can't remember what I wore to work yesterday so I guess take that with a grain of salt LOL

 

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LrgPizza

LrgPizza

Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, First_Time_Cruiser85 said:

Lol at all the people complaining about how there won’t be enough space for everyone to sunbathe.

I’m sorry but if your sole purpose to cruise is to sunbathe and complain about lack of Space to do so on this ship then I suggest cancelling your cruise and go book a 2 week beach vacation where you can sunbathe 10 hours a day with no distractions!

All cruise ship pools and sun loungers are always crazy busy, just like hotels, it’s a first come first serve basis when reserving your lounger.

There are over 4000 people on Encore, did you seriously expect sea days to be quiet around the pool area?

 

 

 

 

 

My head nearly exploded at how much you misunderstand what is happening here.

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JaysMom2

JaysMom2

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, First_Time_Cruiser85 said:

Lol at all the people complaining about how there won’t be enough space for everyone to sunbathe.

I’m sorry but if your sole purpose to cruise is to sunbathe and complain about lack of Space to do so on this ship then I suggest cancelling your cruise and go book a 2 week beach vacation where you can sunbathe 10 hours a day with no distractions!

All cruise ship pools and sun loungers are always crazy busy, just like hotels, it’s a first come first serve basis when reserving your lounger.

There are over 4000 people on Encore, did you seriously expect sea days to be quiet around the pool area?

 

 

 

 

I agree. I can lounge on my patio or at the HOA pool and sunbathe for free. I cruise for the entertainment, awesome food, camaraderie, and seeing new locations. The chair hogs can keep their loungers...I'll be somewhere else!

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First_Time_Cruiser85

First_Time_Cruiser85

Posted
Posted

Jaysmom2 EXACTLY!

Cruising is all about entertainment, great restaurants and food and doing shore excursions to new amazing places.

Like you said if I want to sunbathe all the time I’ll do it on my patio or go on a beach holiday, and if I want to do any of my cruise I’ll wait till one my shore excursions when I visit spectacular quiet beaches and islands.

 

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Beardface

Beardface

Posted
Posted
10 minutes ago, LrgPizza said:

 

My head nearly exploded at how much you misunderstand what is happening here.

 

I mean, not that I disagree with the missed point, but outside of the reduced public space up top, what is NCL doing that the other entry-level cruise lines (Carnival, Royal) aren't?  They all nickel and dime you, they all heavily push their unlimited drink plans, they all have surcharges for activities and restaurants that operate outside the 'complimentary norm'.

 

I mean sure, MSC, Princess, Celebrity, Disney etc all have a different experience where you aren't getting nickel and dimed left and right nearly as bad as the other 3, but those lines are for different clientele, and they market themselves to them.  Maybe charge a higher price up front just so they don't have to play the games to get your money later.

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js

js

Posted
Posted
3 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

 

The allowed smoking areas have changed on Escape more than once. Right now, there is no smoking on Escape's Waterfront.


Thank you. I thought I was going crazy LOL I thought I specifically remembered there was smoking on maybe both sides of 5 OClock Bar since it determined where I would sit at the bar and we met others there every night but that was about two years ago.

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kayteecat

kayteecat

Posted
Posted
18 minutes ago, First_Time_Cruiser85 said:

Lol at all the people complaining about how there won’t be enough space for everyone to sunbathe.

I’m sorry but if your sole purpose to cruise is to sunbathe and complain about lack of Space to do so on this ship then I suggest cancelling your cruise and go book a 2 week beach vacation where you can sunbathe 10 hours a day with no distractions!

All cruise ship pools and sun loungers are always crazy busy, just like hotels, it’s a first come first serve basis when reserving your lounger.

There are over 4000 people on Encore, did you seriously expect sea days to be quiet around the pool area?

 

 

 

 

No I don't expect sea days to be quiet around the pool area. What I would appreciate are places where I can sit and read my book outside, getting a bit of sea air, and close to a bar to take advantage of my UBP. On my Escape cruise in January, I spent most of my outside time at either Spice H2O or decks 19 & 20 near Vibe. Because there was so much stair-climbing involved, I could almost always find a chair up there. Those areas have been taken over by Vibe on Encore, so I will have to pay to enjoy the same space or else try to find a space on the Waterfront where there will undoubtedly be more people seeking the same thing.

 

At this point I am not even sure we'll be able to take our June 2020 Encore cruise (we may be trying to coordinate with BIL and SIL) but it makes me think I'd be better off with one of the other BA/BA+ ships.

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Steff79

Steff79

Posted
Posted
23 minutes ago, Beardface said:

 

I mean, not that I disagree with the missed point, but outside of the reduced public space up top, what is NCL doing that the other entry-level cruise lines (Carnival, Royal) aren't?  They all nickel and dime you, they all heavily push their unlimited drink plans, they all have surcharges for activities and restaurants that operate outside the 'complimentary norm'.

 

I mean sure, MSC, Princess, Celebrity, Disney etc all have a different experience where you aren't getting nickel and dimed left and right nearly as bad as the other 3, but those lines are for different clientele, and they market themselves to them.  Maybe charge a higher price up front just so they don't have to play the games to get your money later.

what other clientel has MSC? i see them on a low Level like NCL?

is there a other cruise ship with less included deck space same size or bigger then Encore?

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Kingkonig

Kingkonig

Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, Steff79 said:

what other clientel has MSC? i see them on a low Level like NCL?

is there a other cruise ship with less included deck space same size or bigger then Encore?

 

Probably meant MSC Yacht Club, which does market similarly to NCL’s Haven.

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Beardface

Beardface

Posted
Posted
Just now, Kingkonig said:

 

Probably meant MSC Yacht Club, which does market similarly to NCL’s Haven.

 

Yep, and even though I haven't sailed on them, I see lots of reviews that shows regular MSC going through a lot of the same kind of nickel and diming, pushing for premium markups that the others do.

 

Its what all the entry level ships do.

 

3 minutes ago, Steff79 said:

is there a other cruise ship with less included deck space same size or bigger then Encore?

 

I've been on the Oasis of the Seas, and for the size of the ship, the amount of outside deck space to use was tiny compared to the sheer size of the ship itself.  No, none of it was premium, but quite a lot of it was low density.  The basketball court, putt-putt, flow-rider, on the back of the ship were all low density that forced everyone ahead of the Viking Crown.  The area directly in front of the Viking Crown was the Kid's Zone, but that was closed most of the trip because kids kept pooping in it, so you really had room at the main pools and Solarium (adult-only).  Well, because the Solarium was glass-enclosed, without wind, it becomes a bit of a sauna, and because we went in the middle of July to the Caribbean, we dealt with slack air with 100+ temps the entire trip, so that area was vacant.  So 6k people on the ship with really only the main pools to use.

 

But you know what?  It was perfectly fine, and we had a great time.  The only real difference between that experience and what we'll see on the Encore is that the areas that weren't used on the Oasis were free, and on the Encore you'll have to pay a bit.  But the crowds should be similar, and it really wasn't a big deal, to be honest.

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js

js

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, Kingkonig said:

 

Probably meant MSC Yacht Club, which does market similarly to NCL’s Haven.

 

I agree and can tell you that MSC has instituted the bidding process as well as prices creeping up.

 

We (my family and mom) sail Haven on NCL. My mom and I also sail together once a year. 

 

A couple of years ago, I was ready to book a February cruise for my mom and I and the prices, as all are aware, of the Haven started getting out of hand and I read about the YC on MSC and decided to give it a try. 

 

I can tell you the YC on Seaside on MSC, far surpasses the Haven in space as well as giving individual attention, although the bartenders need training.  The YC menu also changes daily.

 

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the Haven but for a couple/few thousand less, I can sail YC on MSC.  However, my family (and I) love the nightlife on NCL so I sail that with my family (and RCCL in balconies since they don't have a dedicated space like YC and Haven) but for couples looking to try something new, I would most certainly price out the YC vs Haven.

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rtkenmore

rtkenmore

Posted
Posted
22 minutes ago, First_Time_Cruiser85 said:

Kateekat there are many bars close to the sea, Sugarcane Mojito Bar and the Cavern Club to name a few that are included in your Premium Beverage Package.

And there are several jacuzzis for you to sit in and read a book.

 

 

 

 

There are going to 4 public hot tubs according to the deck plans.  That's it.  If they each hold 8-12 people, you're talking 32 to 48 people being accommodated in the hot tubs in public spaces...  On a ship with 4000 people.

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