LIVE - Encore, Alaska - May 15-22

[sprez33]

Hello!  First time cruiser here going to Alaska on the Encore.  Have been very much looking forward to this cruise.  First time cruiser but very experienced traveler.  I've used TripAdvisor extensively and find the trip reports and reviews and very helpful and enjoyable so will do my best to give the day by day reports.  Hopefully this will be helpful to first timers (and experienced cruisers as well).  Feel free to forward questions and I'll do my best to answer. 

 

Some background.  Father-son cruise with my 20 y/o.  He's also a first time cruiser also.  We're staying in the Haven.  It will be interesting to balance our interests. I'm a total foodie (gourmet food, good wine, craft beer, third wave coffee) and he's a 'pizza and burgers' kinda guy and a teetotaller.    We have plans for a glacier helitour, Skagway train ride and a float plane into the fjords.  

 

Day -1

 

Got our act together in terms of completing the ArriveCAN app and printing copies of all of the important documents.

 

We both took the rapid antigen test using the eMed system.  I'd used this a couple of times before to return from overseas and found it simple and efficient.  I took the test and my son observed.  He took it when I was done.  Both went quickly and efficiently.

 

Ready to go from a test and documents perspective.  Yay!

 

Day 0

 

Flew from San Diego to Seattle on Alaska Airlines. I had some credit from a cancelled flight and was able to convert it to two really cheap tickets to get both of us to Seattle.  Flight was about 20 minutes late but otherwise uneventful.  Easy to Uber from the airport to the hotel on a Saturday evening, no traffic.  

Chose to stay at the Seattle Waterfront Marriott.  I have quite a bit of points in Marriott Bonvoy and was able to get a room with points (50,000) fairly easily.  This is likely the most convenient hotel one could stay in for an NCL cruise as the cruise terminal is just across the street from the hotel.  The hotel itself is fairly nice.  Modern with spacious rooms. If you have the privilege, the M Club lounge is very nice. Overlooks the cruise ship just across the street.  

 

Tip:  The area surrounding Marriott and cruise port has a lot of good restaurants.  It's a very popular area and we found it essentially impossible to get a reservation at a restaurant close by at the last minute.  If you want to get a good meal, make a reservation ahead of time.  We wound up eating at the hotel restaurant, which was not bad.  Of course, there will be no shortage of good food over the next week, lol. 

 

 

[njkate]

All though I will sail on The Bliss in July looking forward to your posts 

[trivimp]

Hey!  We looked for you last night at the hotel lounge, but we may have given up early & gone to bed 💤 it had been a long day of travel.  We're taking advantage of late checkout & are just having a lazy morning at the hotel, and will cross the street once the lines thin out a bit.  See you aboard!  

[FM]

Very nice room at the Marriott.  Looking forward to hearing more as your holiday progresses.

[sprez33]

21 hours ago, trivimp said:

Hey!  We looked for you last night at the hotel lounge, but we may have given up early & gone to bed 💤 it had been a long day of travel.  We're taking advantage of late checkout & are just having a lazy morning at the hotel, and will cross the street once the lines thin out a bit.  See you aboard!  

 

We had dinner there and decided to turn in early.  See you at the Meet and Greet.

 

[disneylover89]

Really looking forward to your live review.  We sail on her in July and also are staying at the Marriot.  Have a wonderful time!!

[Dlb723]

Following along - we are on the Encore Alaska cruise leaving 6/12 (and flying Alaskan Airlines, staying at the Marriott).  Living vicariously through you and learning along the way!  Thanks for sharing your experience.

[Jason82]

We will be doing this sailing later next month. Looking forward to your posts. I'm also curious how your experience with embark went. 

[sprez33]

Day 1- Embarkation

 

Woke up to the sight of the Encore just across the street at the cruise terminal.  It's a huge ship!! We checked out of the hotel  about 10:00 and walked the short distance to the pier.   It was raining off and on all morning so the short walk was welcome.   Baggage dropoff, initial document check and security was fast and efficient and took only about 10 minutes total.   Walked upstairs to the Haven check-in lounge.  The lounge was small and overcrowded. All of the seats were taken when we got there. There was a decent spread of coffee, juice and pastries, etc.  Not the impression of luxury that I was expecting.  A woman took our name and called us about 15 minutes later for a full check in and document check.  We were able to work off of electronic documents on our cell phones but had printed backup for everything. Check-in was efficient and we were given our cards.  

 

After a short wait we were escorted onto the ship and to the Haven observation deck for a short orientation and meeting with the cruise director.   Our rooms and luggage were not ready but we were told we could begin wandering about the ship.   We tour the Haven and it is gorgeous as advertised.  We then  checked in at our muster area (you need only show your card by 30 minutes before departure) and toured the public areas with the exception of the upper decks due to the rain. It's really an beautiful ship and has a very new feel.  I'd compare it to a five star hotel.  

 

American Diner - The American Diner specialty dining option was open complimentary for Haven guests so we stop by for lunch, hungry from walking the stairs and length of the ship multiple times.  The  Diner is off the lido deck and indoor/outdoor.  Has replicas of 50s American cars built into the seats.  Being semi-outdoor the diner has heat lamps which are turned up way too high so I find a place by a window to cool.  They ultimately get the temperature right.  The food is what you'd expect for diner food and pretty good quality.  

 

We head back to the room and it's ready along with our luggage being delivered.  We unpack and decide how to spend the afternoon.  Still raining pretty steadily so my son decides to go to the Haven observation deck to chill (i.e. hang out with his online friends).  I take a book and head to the District Brewhouse.  

 

District Brewhouse - A very comfortable space on deck 8 right on the exterior of the ship with nice views.   A good number of beers on tap and in cans/bottles.  The beers on tap are expertly served (glasses rinsed, good head, proper temperature, etc).  A fair number of beers are unavailable because the ship is being loaded. The bartender assures us  this will be remedied and also that we'll pick up some Alaskan special beers in Juneau.  I alternate between reading and conversing with other guests and Rodolfo (Rod as he likes to be called) the server.  I'm ultimately enrolled in a contest to see who will have the greatest variety of beers during the cruise. Not sure I want to go all out to win this contest, lol!

 

Haven Dining Room - Dinner at the Haven dining room was very, very good.  Also, the service is very attentive and professional.  See the copy of the dinner menu, which apparently does not change all week. Seems to be enough to keep me happy without going to the specialty dining restaurants more that the two times that's included in our package.  There's a decent wine list in the Haven though almost every wine by the glass is over $15, which is the limit for the premium drink package, so you'll pay the difference.  The dining room itself is beautiful with a good number of seats right against the large picture windows.  The weather is clear tonight and we have great views.  Of course the sun doesn't set until near 9:00.

 

With the weather clear my son wants to check out the race track and laser tag.  I want to see the Beatles Invasion show in the Encore theatre.  I grab a 'to go' mojito from the Sugarcane Bar (don't want to risk the scurvy on this long voyage!!) and catch the 45 minute show.  Both the mojito and the show are excellent.  Neither the race track nor laser tag is open so my son catches the second half of the Beatles show with me.  

 

Internet - We purchased the premium internet package for both of us.  You get about 2 Mbps and  each person can only use one device at a time, though you can switch devices.   I've swithched between my cell phone, iPad and laptop without issue.  The speed was sufficient to watch streaming videos.  You can also purchase ($9.95 per person) a texting package through NCL that only works on the ship.  Useful for keeping in touch.  

 

That's it for today.  It's too cold/windyattachments (1).zip to sit on the balcony so we call it a night.  

[Steam]

On 5/15/2022 at 11:29 AM, sprez33 said:

 

Chose to stay at the Seattle Waterfront Marriott.  I have quite a bit of points in Marriott Bonvoy and was able to get a room with points (50,000) fairly easily.  This is likely the most convenient hotel one could stay in for an NCL cruise as the cruise terminal is just across the street from the hotel.  The hotel itself is fairly nice.  Modern with spacious rooms. If you have the privilege, the M Club lounge is very nice. Overlooks the cruise ship just across the street.  

 

Definitely agree with you on the Marriott. There can't be an easier hotel at embarkation than the Seattle Waterfront Marriott. I am a big fan of Cafe Opla, right across the hotel's porte cochere for breakfast and a coffee on embarkation day. 

 

Enjoy your cruise. Starting in the Haven for a first cruise is a great way to understand cruise life at its finest. Go big or go home!

 

BTW, both the Pork Tomahawk and the Lamb Ribeye are excellent in the Haven Restaurant.

Edited May 16, 2022 by Steam

[Montanagirlalways]

thanks for starting this blog. I have a friend on the cruise so its nice seeing updates on whats happening on the ship. Enjoy!!!!! And I would pay the upcharge for the wines. Well worth it!  I paid like 1.18 for Malbec.  

[vacation44]

Thank you for taking the time to share your vacation with us.

 

Wonderful start and have a great sailing with your young adult son.

[Sand and Seas]

Thanks for sharing your observations and pictures with us! 

Love that you and your son are taking this cruise together.

 

Hope you have a wonderful cruise🚢

[redwave]

have fun. can you please stop by splash academy to see if they are offering supervised kids activities and if yes day and evening? ty so much

[mrsturkelton]

Thank you for sharing your trip.  We'll be on the Encore in June and I'm excited to read the reviews of the Alaskan cruises this year.

[Travelbug321]

Thank you for the updates! We’re sailing 5/29 and I’m so nervous/excited - nervous about the COVID test (we’re very COVID conscious and have been careful, but things happen) and excited to finally sail again! 
 

Do you have access to the thermal spa? I’d love any feedback on it 🙂

 

 

[drumming cruisers]

We are staying at the Marriot Waterfront in a few weeks. What is the restaurant in the hotel? Does it serve full meals? Website only mentions Hook and Plow which only serves breakfast. 

A few snacks in the bar. 

DH can't eat fish, so can't eat at all those restaurants 

TIA

[sprez33]

21 hours ago, redwave said:

have fun. can you please stop by splash academy to see if they are offering supervised kids activities and if yes day and evening? ty so much

 

Thanks!  I did walk by the Splash Academy and while it was 'on' in the sense that water was flowing over all of the features, it was far too cold/windy to go in the water.  Same for the pools.  I was wearing a warm jacket, hat and gloves to watch my son on the speedway.  There were some brave souls using the hot tubs on the lido deck.

[sprez33]

9 hours ago, drumming cruisers said:

We are staying at the Marriot Waterfront in a few weeks. What is the restaurant in the hotel? Does it serve full meals? Website only mentions Hook and Plow which only serves breakfast. 

A few snacks in the bar. 

DH can't eat fish, so can't eat at all those restaurants 

TIA

 

The Hook and Plow restaurant was closed when we were there.  In it's place they offered 'counter service' for the same menu at the lobby bar.  Not sure when it's slated to reopen.  Maybe give them a call.

 

The menu sure had full meals.  I had the king salmon but my son had a burger that he was pretty impressed with.

[FM]

Any idea as to whether the Haven is near capacity? Was it busy during dinner in the Haven restaurant?

[sprez33]

7 minutes ago, FM said:

Any idea as to whether the Haven is near capacity? Was it busy during dinner in the Haven restaurant?

 

It doesn't seem so.  I can ask.  But I've never seen the restaurant more than say 2/3rds full nor the observation lounge anywhere near capacity.

[sprez33]

Day 2 – Day at Sea

 

“The sea was angry that day, my friends!  Like an old man trying to return soup at a delicatessen.”

-       George Costanza, Seinfeld

 

Woke up to a sunny day.  The seas were somewhat rough with a lot of wind. You can feel it in the ship’s movements.  The captain (whom I met later in the day) said that the seas were particularly rough that day.  But the ship has stabilizers and it’s not uncomfortable to me.  YMMV.   Hung out in the Haven observation lounge catching up on email, social media and reading.

 

With moving out of the dorms, preparing for our cruise, flying, etc. it’s likely it’s my son’s first relaxing day since finals and he sleeps to almost 11:00AM.  Even that took a bit of me banging around the room to roust him, lol. We determine that the Local Bar and Grill is the only place to get breakfast at this late hour.  We double time it down to the Local.

 

Local Bar and Grill – This is the one place that is open 24 hours and is complimentary for everyone.  It has pretty much a standard breakfast menu.  The quality of the food is good, though not spectacular.  The service is friendly, professional and attentive, as it is everywhere on the ship.  Breakfast is quick and I head over to the Meet and Greet while my son goes to make reservations for the Encore Speedway. 

 

Cruise Critic Meet and Greet – Big thanks to Kay (trivimp on CC) for organizing the meet and greet for CC and it appears an analogous FaceBook group.  It’s held at the District BrewHouse. The cruise personnel put out a nice spread of coffee, tea and light snacks.  And of course being the brewhouse there’s plenty of beer.  The heads of all of the ship’s departments attend (cruise director (DanDan), heads of housekeeping, F&B, etc) and introduce themselves.  They are also formally introduced by DanDan.  Uniformly, they are all friendly, professional and encourage us to reach out if they can help make our cruise better in any way.  Several of them hand out their business cards.   Next, Kay says some very nice words about the cruise staff and encourages us to reach out to staff if they can be of help rather than waiting until after the cruise to complain on social media.  True words from an experienced cruiser!  Kay then details the various celebrations and life milestones of the group!  Finally, she raffles off a couple of very nice NCL lanyards, though it’s not my lucky day.  We mingle until we are kicked out for a beer tasting event.  This was a very nice way to kick off the cruise and could, with the beer flowing, easily been a 2 hour event. 

 

Encore Speedway – I meet up with my son who has a 2:30 reservation (they go every half hour).  It’s sunny but windy and very cold.  I need a warm jacket, hat and gloves.  Even though it’s sunny we passed through a rain squall around 1:00 and we’re informed that the track needs a few hours of dry weather before being operational.  So he makes a 5:00 reservation.  Son hangs out while dad naps and we return just before 5:00.  Some apparent technical difficulties mean he doesn’t actually drive until just after 6:00.   He has a fabulous time driving in the cold sunshine while I take pics and videos. 

 

We head back to our room and quickly get ready for dinner. Back to the Haven restaurant.

 

Haven Restaurant – It’s not crowded at all at about 6:30 and we get the same table as the previous night just up against one of the large picture windows.   The porcini risotto appetizer is delicious as is the cippolini onion consommé.  On a CC recommendation, I go with the Pancetta Wrapped Lamb and it’s beautifully presented and delicious as well.  A nice glass of Torres de los Andes Malbec which at $20 requires a $5 upcharge.  Most of desserts look excellent but too rich after the big meal so we share a scoop of ice cream.  This was our second visit to the Haven restaurant and all of the staff we interact with know our names.  The service is truly top notch!

 

Party with the Captain - Being delayed at the racetrack, makes us a little late for dinner, which makes me late for the party with the Captain arranged for the Haven guests in the observation lounge.   Though it turns out to be lucky because as I walk into the lounge, the Captain, Niklas Persson, is there with one of his crew, Deepak, who introduces us.  It’s my luck that the Captain is unoccupied and I get about 10-15 minutes of one-on-one time with him.  We have a nice discussion about the cruise.  Pro-tip: Do NOT refer to the vessel as a ‘boat’.  Talk about getting testy about semantics!!  Just kidding, of course. (I do like the humor, lol.)  The Captain is a perfect gentleman and is very proud of his ship and crew, as he should be! He satisfies a number of my curiosities about the ship.  Top speed is 23.5 knots; we were currently cruising at 22 knots.  I mentioned that in the morning we seemed to easily overtake a Princess ship heading in the same direction and he’s very proud.  I feel blessed to have had such time with the Captain!!

 

We’re tired and there’s nothing of particular interest in the entertainment area so we head to our room to watch Netflix and sleep.  Thus far, using the ship wifi I’ve been able to stream video using YouTube or Netflix without buffering!!

 

One final event of note.  Our room steward drops by to see if everything is OK.  Most everything is just fine but I mention that the coffee cups in the room are quite small.  Takes about three of them to make a single decent sized cup. A few minutes later he returns with larger coffee cups.  Small request but shows the crew’s dedication to you having a great time on board.

[FM]

56 minutes ago, sprez33 said:

 

It doesn't seem so.  I can ask.  But I've never seen the restaurant more than say 2/3rds full nor the observation lounge anywhere near capacity.

 

Was just curious.  We're looking at a Haven Penthouse aboard the Bliss for this fall re: to Alaska so wanted to get a sense of how things are going as people start cursing again.

 

Noticed that you are from San Diego.  How are things down there in re: to the new COVID variant? Asking as San Diego Comic Con is now back on after having been postponed for the past two years.  SDCC has instituted a mandatory vaccination/mask policy for all attendees and participants in order to present a more safe and enjoyable Con. 

[sprez33]

21 hours ago, Travelbug321 said:

Thank you for the updates! We’re sailing 5/29 and I’m so nervous/excited - nervous about the COVID test (we’re very COVID conscious and have been careful, but things happen) and excited to finally sail again! 
 

Do you have access to the thermal spa? I’d love any feedback on it 🙂

 

 

 

Sorry!  Not really a spa person.  Haven't visited.

[sprez33]

27 minutes ago, FM said:

 

Was just curious.  We're looking at a Haven Penthouse aboard the Bliss for this fall re: to Alaska so wanted to get a sense of how things are going as people start cursing again.

 

Noticed that you are from San Diego.  How are things down there in re: to the new COVID variant? Asking as San Diego Comic Con is now back on after having been postponed for the past two years.  SDCC has instituted a mandatory vaccination/mask policy for all attendees and participants in order to present a more safe and enjoyable Con. 

 

I don't pay too close attention, but in general, SD has been doing pretty well with the pandemic.   I think cases are edging up but hospitalizations and deaths are very low lately.  There are no mask restrictions with maybe the exception of large indoor gatherings.  Of course, things could change by the fall.