Getaway or Bliss

[Great Canadian]

Travelling December 2018, with family (all 6 Adults -Ages 24-55), either itinerary doesn't matter for us.

Looking to book either 7 Day Western on the Getaway or 7 Day Eastern on the Bliss.  

Wondering which Ship would be best??

(FYI - we have done the Epic and loved it.)

[gambit57]

I thought the Bliss was a fabulous ship.  Plus, I'm not very fond of the Western Carib.

[MyTMo777]

Well, I'll be better able to answer this in a couple of weeks - I leave on the Bliss this Saturday. I was on the Getaway in 2015 with our family (DH & I plus 2 kids ages 21 & 23). We loved it! Lots for everyone to do, from the introverted bookworm to the bar-hopping 21-year-old who stayed out all night at all the nightclubs. I think Bliss would be the same because it's also such a big ship. We've done both the western and eastern Caribbean, and I prefer the western.

[PATRLR]

Having been on both in the last year, I think the ships are very similar and a real toss-up.  My choice would be on price first, itinerary second and then ship.  

That being said, if I had to choose one ship over the other it would be Getaway because it has the dueling pianos and Bliss does not.  (I know, a pretty inconsequential criteria to base my choice on, but, as I said, the ships are very, very similar)

 

[zqvol]

IMO the itinerary is more important than the ship. You won't find a lot of difference between the ships.

[BirdTravels]

If it were based on ship, would pick the Bliss because it is newer and bigger. If it were based on itinerary, we would pick the Getaway (although she is getting to her 5-year refirb point). 

[Great Canadian]

16 hours ago, zqvol said:

IMO the itinerary is more important than the ship. You won't find a lot of difference between the ships.

agreed, as for the Western itinerary, I have read that 2 of the stops are nothing to write home about: Costa Maya and Roaton??

I have don't Cozumel in the past, and Belize will be a first.

[Love Blue]

We were in Costa Maya in October.  It has been created for the cruise industry - shops, a big pool and bars.  We booked a private excursion to Maya Chan which was very nice, a lot of seagrass on the beach so the water wasn't clear, but they had kayaks, floating chairs and their hospitality is wonderful.  We were concerned when trying to get out of the port facility because two of the four exits that we tried had the doors zip-strapped shut.  We would probably skip this port in the future.

In Roatan, my husband went scuba diving on a ship's excursion and I did a snorkeling at Tabyana Beach.  There are several other excursions that you can check out in the "Ports of Call" forum that might be more ideal for your family.

We sailed on the Bliss from Vancouver to LA in Sept/Oct.  It is a beautiful ship, a lot to offer, Jersey Boys, Havana, Beatles tribute and numerous other acts.  The go-karts are a blast.  The Observation Lounge is a great place to relax day or night.  We can only imagine that the Bliss is even better in Caribbean weather! 

[zqvol]

2 hours ago, Great Canadian said:

agreed, as for the Western itinerary, I have read that 2 of the stops are nothing to write home about: Costa Maya and Roaton??

I have don't Cozumel in the past, and Belize will be a first.

 

Roatan is the best stop on the western itinerary. IMO Costa Maya is second, followed by Cozumel and then Harvest Caye.

[Nola26]

Getaway entertainment is broader so for me, better. Western may have more ports too.

[rtkenmore]

22 hours ago, PATRLR said:

Having been on both in the last year, I think the ships are very similar and a real toss-up.  My choice would be on price first, itinerary second and then ship.  

That being said, if I had to choose one ship over the other it would be Getaway because it has the dueling pianos and Bliss does not.  (I know, a pretty inconsequential criteria to base my choice on, but, as I said, the ships are very, very similar)

 

 

I would concur...  I love Howl at the Moon and make it a point to go every night they perform when they are on board. I would most likely choose Getaway if these two are my only choice for this very reason.  Unless price was a huge difference...

[kayjay76]

Ports are what you make of them and here's my view on each itinerary....

 

We found the western carb a much busier, party vibe with 4 cruise ports. And we spent more $$ because of excursions on the western. Eastern was a more relaxed vibe with 3 ports that are way more chilled than western. I also liked having 3 sea days for the eastern instead of 2 on western.

 

Both were great but 2 totally different experiences.  

 

Ships wise... Getaway was great. And I'll see the bliss in Feb! wohoo. 

[GoTravelLife]

On 11/1/2018 at 7:50 PM, PATRLR said:

Having been on both in the last year, I think the ships are very similar and a real toss-up.  My choice would be on price first, itinerary second and then ship.  

That being said, if I had to choose one ship over the other it would be Getaway because it has the dueling pianos and Bliss does not.  (I know, a pretty inconsequential criteria to base my choice on, but, as I said, the ships are very, very similar)

 

Oh my gosh we love Howl at the Moon.  I captured a short video here for those who haven’t done it. Just scroll to entertainment https://gotravellife.com/2018/01/03/about-us/#Ship_Common_Areas. We close it out almost every night they offer it- so much fun!!

[Sea saw 56]

Wondering what time they usually perform at "Howl at the Moon"?

[GoTravelLife]

 They usually do two shows, but it is not every night. The earlier show is considered family friendly and the show that’s after 9 PM is a bit more risqué  🙂

[Sea saw 56]

Thank you GTL.  Have never been on a ship, to date, with Howl at the Moon as an option.

We really enjoy dueling piano bars.

[JackB60]

Great to hear about the different shows. Thanks!

[Nola26]

The Bliss won't have a basketball/sports court, so if that is important to anyone make sure they are aware if you choose the Bliss.

 

We have sailed the Getaway and it was absolutely fabulous. We will sail the Bliss in February and I am sure it will be awesome, but I think they've missed the mark with the chosen entertainment. It isn't set for families or young adults (Beatles club, Prohibition and Jersey boys) all music that is over 5 decades old. They've also eliminated the dinner show concept in the Manhattan room. Hopefully there is a good and flexible band on board otherwise we'll be disappointed with that element of our cruise.

[amscene1]

BLISS 

 

Newer Ship 

New BBQ Joint 

District brew house (great entertainment that is better for me then dueling pianos)

New Mexican joint over mediocre Brazilian steakhouse 

Food republic! 

Carts and tag

[PATRLR]

12 hours ago, amscene1 said:

District brew house (great entertainment that is better for me then dueling pianos)

Probably worth pointing out, District Brew House is your typical upbeat single piano bar entertainment and Howl at the Moon is dueling pianos.

[dolita22]

Bliss! I just got off the Getaway yesterday and it seemed like it's getting to the point of needing the drydock (next year). It was a nice ship, and we LOVED Vibe, but the newer ship would appeal to me. We now sail for ships vs. itineraries, though, at least in the Caribbean.

[Floridastorm]

What is the full compliment of entertainment on both the Bliss and Getaway? Stage type shows and lounge/bar type entertainment? We don't do any of the Disneyland type things, that seem so prevalent on the ships these days. So, we need a ship that has good adult type venues.