Getaway – April 17-26, 9 day Eastern - Farewell to NCL?

[sunkey1]

Let me first provide a little history. I have been cruising since 1979 - my first cruise was a four nighter on the MS Sunward (NCL when they were Norwegian Caribbean Line). I had such a great time that the next year I went on the maiden voyage of the SS Norway (also NCL). That started my cruising addiction, with a total now of 54 cruises. I also loved it so much that I worked as cruise staff for a time on NCL, a great time that I’ll never forget. For the longest time I was an NCL snob, thinking that no other line could match up. It took me 11 years and 12 cruises before I tried another line and even after that I would return to NCL to try out a different ship or run. That being said, I think I may be about done with NCL, at least for a good while, as much as it pains me to say that. I just hate to see them going downhill after being the standard in so many areas for so long. This is just MY personal opinion. Variety is the spice of life so to each his own!

 

Embarkation: What a zoo. Apparently the ship arrived a little later than planned. That was their excuse for herding us all into the terminal at one time, boarding appointments or platinum priority be damned. Suites/Haven were the only ones who received special treatment.

 

Ship: The ship itself was well maintained and had ok décor for the most part, although it was quite dark. The dining rooms were dark, elevators were dark, lounges were dark. The pool, without a doubt, is the worst layout and size of any I have encountered in the aforementioned 54 cruises. This includes the first cruise on the tiny Sunward. The Getaway pool is an absolute joke, tiny, and crammed in between a stage and hot tubs. Barely any room for chairs but they were crammed in nonetheless. This was the most sardine like pool/deck area I’ve ever seen. The saving grace for this cruise was that we had booked Vibe for the first time. It was like an oasis compared to the general deck area.

 

Cabin: We had a Club Balcony Suite which had a great bathroom (double sink and large glass door shower), plus a huge balcony that held two loungers plus a large table and two chairs. Great for eating breakfast each morning or playing cards. The lighting in the cabin left a lot to be desired, among the worst ever. Very limited tv stations or movies. We did request a coffee maker and were kept stocked with pods each day. Cabin steward, Paul, was fantastic.

 

Crew: Crew was, for the most part, amazing. We did have consistently slow service in the main dining room, but the bar staff and room steward were fantastic. Cruise Director was just painful. I have a hard time watching a grown man giggle constantly at things that weren't even funny.

 

Entertainment: This used to be all NCL, no one could even come close. Was really looking forward to Burn the Floor but we actually left early as it just seemed like the same number over and over, no real variety. We did see a different Burn the Floor on another ship and enjoyed it but this one was just too repetitive. Dancers were great, just didn't enjoy the show. Million Dollar Quartet was great talent, just not my personal cup of tea. Big area we thought was lacking was music around the ship. They had a few acts that performed short sets at a few places each evening, but mostly in the Atrium, which was always loud, crowded and crazy. We missed having places to go sit and just listen to the music.

 

Food: Contrary to many postings I’ve seen, we actually found the food to be quite good, from the main dining room to the specialty restaurants (we ate at Moderno, Cagney’s, Ocean Blue, La Cucina). One of the highlights for us is always eating on the waterfront while the sun is setting. We thought the portion sizes were more than generous, although we may eat less than some. The big disappointment is the variety of options. Unless you want to pay, you have the main dining room, buffet or O’Sheehans for breakfast and lunch and they do tend to get old.

 

Debarkation: Also a joke. We supposedly had priority debarkation for being platinum but if you do self assist then priority means nothing. Bunch that with the fact that half the ship does self assist and it was 45 minutes from when we saw movement in the crowd to when we actually walked off the ship. They had us walk half the circumference of the ship in order to space people out. Why not set up zones/tags for self assist if there are that many people? And it’s not due to the number of passengers or the port, the Carnival Mardi Gras had more passengers and we were off the ship at Canaveral both times in less than 10 minutes. For their platinum guests they set up a lounge with coffee and pastries and when the ship is cleared you are the first ones escorted off.

 

NCL App: Definitely needs some work. Why not provide menus so that people can decide where they want to eat each day? What about a map to Great Stirrup Cay, in the app, or printed with the daily news. Was never correct for dinner availability, at least in the main dining room. You had to go to a touchscreen or the dining room itself.

 

Again, these are just My thoughts/opinions. I still had a great time, it's just that NCL is not what it used to be and that pains me.

 

[cruiseny4life]

Thanks for sharing. I don't agree with most of what you wrote, but I do enjoy reading a thorough review of Getaway. It's my first NCL ship and I've cruised on her three times. 

 

Embarkation/debarkation has been a joke on almost all of my cruises. NCL seems to enjoy running a zoo for these systems. 

 

I do have a question: if you've cruised NCL so many times, why are you going to dismiss NCL after one poor cruise that had good food and an amazing staff?

[Suntanz]

Thanks for sharing.

[sunkey1]

2 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

Thanks for sharing. I don't agree with most of what you wrote, but I do enjoy reading a thorough review of Getaway. It's my first NCL ship and I've cruised on her three times. 

 

Embarkation/debarkation has been a joke on almost all of my cruises. NCL seems to enjoy running a zoo for these systems. 

 

I do have a question: if you've cruised NCL so many times, why are you going to dismiss NCL after one poor cruise that had good food and an amazing staff?

I'm not saying that I'll never cruise them again, I'm just saying that while I believe that their offerings have gone down in some ways, others have gone up. Our recent cruises on the Carnival Mardi Gras blew NCL out of the water. The entertainment was closer to what you used to see on NCL, great service, food variety was ridiculously abundant and the ship was beautiful - not the Carnival of old. That being said, we went on the Carnival Magic and the ship was in terrible shape so I do realize that things may vary from cruise to cruise. And as stated, our debark from the Mardi Gras at Port Canaveral was under 15 minutes both times, so it's not a ship or port issue, it's totally a cruise line issue. I think a big thing was that I felt my Platinum status on Carnival was valued way more than the same status on NCL (hubby concurred). Not a deal breaker at all but why be loyal if it's not going to recoup anything?

[cruiseny4life]

Just now, sunkey1 said:

I'm not saying that I'll never cruise them again, I'm just saying that while I believe that their offerings have gone down in some ways, others have gone up. Our recent cruises on the Carnival Mardi Gras blew NCL out of the water. The entertainment was closer to what you used to see on NCL, great service, food variety was ridiculously abundant and the ship was beautiful - not the Carnival of old. That being said, we went on the Carnival Magic and the ship was in terrible shape so I do realize that things may vary from cruise to cruise. And as stated, our debark from the Mardi Gras at Port Canaveral was under 15 minutes both times, so it's not a ship or port issue, it's totally a cruise line issue. I think a big thing was that I felt my Platinum status on Carnival was valued way more than the same status on NCL (hubby concurred). Not a deal breaker at all but why be loyal if it's not going to recoup anything?

Thanks! Just wanted a little context. I certainly appreciate your thoughts and opinions. I kind of want to try Carnival out, just for their included food. Guy's, Blue Iguana, etc. sound wonderful! 

[sunkey1]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

Thanks! Just wanted a little context. I certainly appreciate your thoughts and opinions. I kind of want to try Carnival out, just for their included food. Guy's, Blue Iguana, etc. sound wonderful! 

And that doesn't even start to list the options, at least on the Mardi Gras. Plus their beverage package is better, includes bottled water and specialty coffee. I will say that I plan to stick to newer ships (on all lines). They just seem to be more up my alley. But different strokes....