Escape, Escape - Two Times the Escape. Live Review B2B NCL Escape, Dec 9-16 & Dec 16-23

[Stealthdog]

One of the NCL excursions was late.  But, we still got to see 2 pier runners, though I think they were doing it for show for our entertainment.  2 others started to speed walk, then jog briefly before walking again.  Because they have little shuttle carts that transport people up and down the pier, I think we got cheated of some good runners!  Best place to watch pier runners at Taino Bay is Spice H2O or aft at the waterfront.

Edited December 11, 2023 by Stealthdog

[Stealthdog]

Day 3 daily.

[Stealthdog]

Last Day 2 post - Meet and Mingle.  Special thanks to @GuelphCruisers for organizing it.  The meet and mingle was the best organized and attended I’ve seen on a cruise in the last 5 years!  We had the district brewhouse completely reserved, many of the ship management were there, and it was a great opportunity to meet fellow cruise critic people and put faces to usernames.  If you have an opportunity to attend yours, do it!

[Stealthdog]

21 hours ago, slavetoabunny said:

Sweet!  By the time I get on board on the 16th, it should be decorated.

I’ll start taking pictures of the decorations to post - was waiting for them to get everything out.  They already have some trees, wreaths, and other decorations across the ship.  They have one menorah at guest services for Hanukkah.  The atrium is the most decorated area, and some of the restaurants look nice as well. 

[Stealthdog]

14 hours ago, slavetoabunny said:

We have the paid tour booked for our sailing.  It was a bit pricey, but my husband is a captain (on much smaller vessels) and it's something I know he would enjoy.

it’s worth it.  I would have had no problem paying for it - it’s great that it’s free for platinum and above.  You will have a great time and it will be an opportunity for him to ask alot of questions since he is so knowledgeable

 

One thing about the tour - alot of people ask for photos of the current ship officers.  We haven’t seen a photo board in any of the public places on the ship.  You will see a photo board in the ship tour - I don’t remember exactly where it was. It may have been on I-95 or near the crew bar.  They don’t allow us to take pictures during the tour (they claim security reasons), so I wasn’t able to capture that for people.  

[Stealthdog]

Docking into Puerto Plata (Day 3) was awesome!  There was already the NCL Pearl and a RCL ship in port when we got there.  We backed all the way in which was impressive.  As someone who watches Below Deck, next time I hear one of those Captains brag about how hard it was to back their yacht into a port, I’ll probably snicker. 🤭 

 

 

[Stealthdog]

Taino Bay is really nice.  Note - we move ahead one hour so be aware of the time change.  It was a little confusing because the time on the navigation channel on the cabin tv didn’t change, so it was difficult to tell what time it really was - our iPhones didn’t change until we got off the ship Wi-Fi and onto regular internet service in Dominican Republic.

 

Because we are T-Mobile customers, we have cell service in DR.  Even from our cabin while docked and throughout most of the ship, we had reliable internet service while in Taino Bay - so we were off airplane mode and ship Wi-Fi all day yesterday.  Check with your provider to see if you have free data in other countries.  
 

Taino Bay is really nice. You can leave the ship and stay in the port area with tons to do without ever leaving the security bubble.  In port, they have a couple restaurants and bars, beach access, pools, and a lazy river.  There is also a long row of shops where you can get your typical gifts (tshirts, magnets, mugs, etc).  Immediately past the duty free shop is an area with parrots and other birds.  The port area has the same feel as a private island and you can easily spend your whole day there. 
 

We got off the ship for about an hour for an obligatory walk around port.  We did see some lockers near the lazy river, but there didn’t seem to be many.  All you need to leave the ship is your NCL card and a photo ID.  The port provides little shuttles for people to go up and down the pier area, so if you have mobility issues you can avoid walking the long pier and use the free shuttles.  The shuttles being present were disappointing for watching for pier runners because many who may have been running to the ship were in the shuttles instead.  We did get lucky to see a few runners (I don’t post actual runners). 

Edited December 12, 2023 by Stealthdog

[Stealthdog]

This is what the pier and shuttles look like. You can get the shuttle at the end of the pier. 

[Stealthdog]

Last night (Day 3) we ate at  Cagneys. We liked Le Bistro much better.  I got the onion soup and Eric got the oysters.  The Cagneys version of the soup had alot of bread in it and the cheese was more chunkier than Bistro.  If you like that type, you will prefer Cagneys.  I like the simpler version.  Cagneys was not overly salted - so both versions didn’t have an overwhelming salt taste.  We both got the Ceasar salad.  I liked it, but Eric didn’t because it comes out with heavy dressing. For those who like anchovies, they put a big piece on each plate.  I promptly removed it and put it off to the side.  😂

 

For the main, Eric got the lamb and I got the filet.  One of Eric’s lamb chops was overcooked (probably between medium-well and well) and portions of my filet was overcooked. The filet comes out with a nice char, but it was a little rough once cutting into it.  
 

For sides we had grilled zucchini, potato au gratin, mushrooms, and fries.  The potato au gratin was great - it’s really rich, so if you don’t like rich foods you may not like it.  The zucchini and mushrooms were pretty good too.  The French fries come out as little string fries and after about 15-20 minutes they cool quick.  So if you get the fries, eat them right away.

 

For desert, we got the OMG cheesecake and the crème brûlée.  The deserts were the star of the dining for us - both of them were great. 
 

Overall, the food was disappointing in Cagneys, but the service was very good and ambiance nice.  We will definitely prioritize going to Le Bistro on the 2nd cruise.  At the end of this first leg, I’ll do a rollup summary and rank all the speciality restaurants. 

[Stealthdog]

While Eric had his spa day (really spa afternoon) I went to the gym.  The gym isn’t the biggest I have seen on a ship, but it never seems busy.  Even on the Sea day it wasn’t packed.  The layout is nice with all the cardio machines outfacing with window views. There are a variety of machine weights and a free weight section across from the cardio machines.  It will have everything you need to keep up any workout routine you want to continue on board.  I saw some spin bikes, but didn’t check out that area.  I also haven’t seen any kind of class schedule (spin, yoga, etc) but will look again next time I am there. 

[Stealthdog]

I am mostly caught up, though there are probably a few things I forgot.  When I upload my photos to my laptop, I’ll probably see a few things I didn’t post.

 

Today is Day 4 - and we are enroute to St Thomas.  We don’t arrive until noon, so have some free time on the ship this morning. 

[CAKEisgood]

57 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

so have some free time on the ship this morning.

Sounds like you are having a super trip. Enjoy the cruise! 🚢 

[D_And_K_gocruising]

4 hours ago, Stealthdog said:

I’ll start taking pictures of the decorations to post - was waiting for them to get everything out.  They already have some trees, wreaths, and other decorations across the ship.  They have one menorah at guest services for Hanukkah.  The atrium is the most decorated area, and some of the restaurants look nice as well. 

It was funny, we were the cruise before yours 12/2-9 and it seemed like every time you walked the 678 there was something added for the holiday season... at first was just the tree at the bottom of the stairs where the chandelier is.  The garland along the stairs and the balcony areas, then trees in the atrium.. then.. it was kinda cool. 

[cat shepard]

5 hours ago, Stealthdog said:

While Eric had his spa day (really spa afternoon) I went to the gym.  The gym isn’t the biggest I have seen on a ship, but it never seems busy.  Even on the Sea day it wasn’t packed.  The layout is nice with all the cardio machines outfacing with window views. There are a variety of machine weights and a free weight section across from the cardio machines.  It will have everything you need to keep up any workout routine you want to continue on board.  I saw some spin bikes, but didn’t check out that area.  I also haven’t seen any kind of class schedule (spin, yoga, etc) but will look again next time I am there. 

 

Did you happen to notice any rowing machines?

[Stealthdog]

37 minutes ago, cat shepard said:

 

Did you happen to notice any rowing machines?

I’ll look tomorrow.  We decided to leave the ship this afternoon and walk to the downtown area for lunch, so probably won’t head to gym today.  

[D_And_K_gocruising]

ya'll rocking and rolling more than we did last week.. we were blessed with GLASS seas for about 90% of the cruise.. Even then was only about 6 footers (at worst) for last day or so.. 

 

[Stealthdog]

5 hours ago, CAKEisgood said:

Sounds like you are having a super trip. Enjoy the cruise! 🚢 

it’s been awesome!  Thanks!  We love the ship so far.  Some places feel packed, but overall the ship is designed well enough that it doesn’t feel crowded.  We don’t do the pool and every time we pass through, that area is really busy.  

[Stealthdog]

1 hour ago, D_And_K_gocruising said:

ya'll rocking and rolling more than we did last week.. we were blessed with GLASS seas for about 90% of the cruise.. Even then was only about 6 footers (at worst) for last day or so.. 

 

it’s been one of the rockier sailings we have been on.  Neither of us get motion sickness, so hasn’t been a problem, and laugh when people (including us) stumble like they are drunk.  😂

 

NCL has put vomit bags at each deck of the stairs.  I have never seen that before. If they are still there I will take a pic and post it. 

[Stealthdog]

Day 4 Daily.  In St Thomas today.  Docked in Havensight - not sure how many ships are docked at the other pier. 

[D_And_K_gocruising]

16 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

it’s been one of the rockier sailings we have been on.  Neither of us get motion sickness, so hasn’t been a problem, and laugh when people (including us) stumble like they are drunk.  😂

 

NCL has put vomit bags at each deck of the stairs.  I have never seen that before. If they are still there I will take a pic and post it. 

They had them out "some" last thursday... Not on all stairs all decks which was weird lol.. Or.. maybe they were already all used up.... I cant see that though.

[Stealthdog]

It’s 1 minute past all aboard and lots of people strolling towards the ship.  Come on runners!!!!

[wilmingtech]

4 hours ago, cat shepard said:

 

Did you happen to notice any rowing machines?

There are 2 rowing machines.  To the left of the 3 stationary bikes in the first picture.  Both are in good working shape.  My wife and daughter used them last night.

Edited December 12, 2023 by wilmingtech

[wilmingtech]

2 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

It’s 1 minute past all aboard and lots of people strolling towards the ship.  Come on runners!!!!

@Stealthdog All aboard is 6:30 for passengers and 5:30 for crew.  It was 5:35 when I typed this 😀

 

So still got a ways to go 😉

Edited December 12, 2023 by wilmingtech

[Stealthdog]

Just now, wilmingtech said:

@Stealthdog All aboard is 6:30 for passengers and 5:30 for crew.

 

So still got a ways to go 😉

I’m was so ready!  Just checked the daily and saw that 630 time. We have Ocean Blue reservations so I will be missing the potential fun tonight. 😂

[wilmingtech]

Just now, Stealthdog said:

I’m was so ready!  Just checked the daily and saw that 630 time. We have Ocean Blue reservations so I will be missing the potential fun tonight. 😂

Bayamo!   Haha.  Anywho....   we will be there 2 hours behind you.  Don't eat all the good appetizers.  Leave some for us!