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Escape 1/21 - 1/28 Quick Review

Cruising575

By Cruising575,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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Cruising575

Cruising575

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Just got off the Escape 1/21-1/28 and wanted to post some information and answer any questions. This was our third NCL cruise (previously on the Sky and Joy) and overall we really enjoyed it. We stayed in a club balcony suite 10800.

 

Embarkation was a breeze. We arrived to the pier around 9:15 and walked onto the ship by 11. Disembarkation was a lot slower. We carried our luggage off and left around 9:30, but it took 40 minutes to make it through the line of people picking up their luggage and actually get to our shuttle. Haven't had that problem on other cruises, so not sure if it was a Port Canaveral problem, but we would have left earlier in the morning had we known.

 

The ship itself was great. The ropes course and waterslides were a ton of fun. There was actually a lot of space on the sun decks and there were several hot tubs and two decent sized pools. This was a full cruise and the interior spaces were always crowded. Didn't use the elevators much since they were so slow and busy. Muster was unfortunately back to an in-person gathering. The only complaint I have about the ship is the smoking casino - the beautiful 678 Ocean Place atrium absolutely stunk of smoke and I couldn't spend any time in the surrounding venues because of it.

 

Food: we tend to eat lunch in the buffet and dinners in MDR. I'm vegetarian and always found plenty of options. The food and service were always good. The buffet shut down early compared to past cruises, so no more late night snacks. The appetizers in MDR seemed smaller than in the past, but the entrees and desserts are huge. We order 1 app, entree and dessert and couldn't finish our plates most nights. We used our specialty dining at Cagney's and La Cucina and that food was some of the best food we've ever eaten. They even let us take dessert back to our rooms.

 

Ports/Excursions:

Puerto Plata: We stoped at Taino Bay, not Amber Cove, and even got a bit of a refund on our port fees because of it. The port area was absolutely beautiful and has a large complimentary pool and loungers.

Damajagua waterfalls:

This was about a 45 minute bus ride from the pier. At the falls there are restrooms and lockers (for an extra $8), and they provide lifejackets, helmets, and a water bottle. It’s advertised as the full waterfall experience, but we only did the first 7 falls. You do have to jump the first one (about 12 feet). The other falls all had a slide option. You should be in decent physical shape to book this excursion as it is an uphill hike with lots of stairs. The area was beautiful but since it is such a popular destination they rushed us through the excursion and we didn't have any time to stop and look around and enjoy the scenery.

 

St. Thomas: We did the Drake’s Seat, Magen’s Bay, and Skyride excursion. We spent 5-10 minutes on the scenic overlook for pictures and two hours at the beach. They leave you at the skyride (about a mile from the pier?), so you can spend as much time there as you want. We were happy with the excursion, but would skip the ship tour and just take a taxi next time. We had AT&T and Verizon coverage throughout the island which was a pleasant surprise.

 

We didn't do an excursion in Tortola since there was so little time there and GSC was unfortunately cancelled due to winds. We did get a refund for missing GSC.

 

Entertainment: reservations were highly recommended and most shows were booked quickly. We got into plenty of shows on standby, but almost all the shows were standing room only. There was a magician, two comedians, Legacy in Concert and Choir of Man in the main theater, and we also enjoyed Howl at the Moon and some of the smaller bands in the other venues. Supper Club also has some smaller shows - there's a complimentary dinner or you can sit in back for just the show. We also enjoyed Bamboozled, an escape room styled game.

 

 

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Cruising575

Cruising575

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For main theater: nights 1 and 5 were Legacy in Concert with two different music shows, nights 2 and 7 were a magician with two different shows, nights 3 and 6 were Choir of Man, and night 4 was the two comedians. The comedians were also in the comedy club on four other nights.

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IrwinandCheryl

IrwinandCheryl

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What kind of music did they play?

40 minutes ago, Cruising575 said:

For main theater: nights 1 and 5 were Legacy in Concert with two different music shows, nights 2 and 7 were a magician with two different shows, nights 3 and 6 were Choir of Man, and night 4 was the two comedians. The comedians were also in the comedy club on four other nights.

What kind of music did they play?

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beyer4

beyer4

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We were on this cruise as well, we enjoyed it a lot! We did Alaska last July on the Sun and although the scenery was beautiful, they lacked on entertainment and "party" type stuff around the pool. I've never played cards as much as we did on that cruise, just to occupy time. We wondered if it was an Alaska thing or a post covid thing. After being on the Escape, we realized it must be an Alaska thing. This was our 11th cruise, all on NCL. They know how to do cruising, probably won't ever stray.

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Cruising575

Cruising575

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On 2/2/2023 at 4:28 PM, Green4me said:

Hello,

 

Looking for the nights for White out and Glow parties please.

 

Thanks

The White Hot party is now called the Glow party. That was on Wednesday

 

On 2/3/2023 at 6:49 AM, LadyCBelle said:

Great review! I thought there was one pool for main and one in Haven? Also were all elevators slow due to crowds or just a certain bank? Thank you

Haven has their own, but there are actually two main pools. One is adults only and the other is family friendly and located by the kids aqua park. Both were at least 5 feet deep and felt large compared to our last cruise on the Joy, which only had 1 tiny pool. The adult pool also has large shallow areas with seats which was really nice.

 

Both elevator banks felt equally slow.

 

On 2/3/2023 at 9:49 PM, INKY19 said:

New SWIFT service was listed on daily where you can order cocktails to be sent to your room is there a charge for this???

I believe the $9.95 room service charge applies.

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