Mini Encore review

[mduffy1834]

Just got off the Encore and, for the most part, it was a great cruise.  Mother Nature could have been better to us but we made do with what she gave us in each port.  Had an aft facing balcony stateroom on deck 15 and loved it - long walks to the Observation Lounge but so worth it.  Observation Lounge ended up being very nice, not as crowded as what I read to believe during the Alaskan cruises.  Comfy chairs, great bar, morning coffee and light breakfast, tea time at 3, beautiful views, good entertainer at night.  Food in all 3 main dining rooms was very good and service, albeit a bit slow, was great.  Had breakfast twice in the Local and lunch one day in the American Diner, both complimentary and very good.   Had 4 specialty dinners (Onda, Food Republic, Cagney's, and Le Bistro) - they were just ok and would not spend the money again for the specialties.  Saw Choir of Man and the Beatles tribute band in the theater - comfy seats and great shows.  Ship is pretty easy to navigate, plenty of elevators/stairs, beautifully decorated, clean and the crew was welcoming and friendly.

 

Now the bad................................

 

Pool area:  In the 40+ cruises we have taken (mostly with RCCL and Celebrity), the pool area is the worst designed of any.  You are literally in a sardine can between two small pools - one is adult only; other is for all with kiddie area right next to it.  Chairs (not loungers) are crammed into the area making it impossible to get to the pools.  Making it worse is that people have pushed the chairs right up to the pool bench surrounding the pool, putting their feet, towels, belongings on the bench so.......nowhere to sit at pool.  When someone did get up to get into water, we took over her space since it is public common space - she was not happy to have lost her space but she did have a chair right up against the bench too.  Lasted about 20 minutes then left.  Was able to finally get 2 lounge chairs in hallway leading to gym area - quiet and was able to look out at ocean.  Pools are sandwiched between Garden Cafe (buffet) and the Spa/Fitness Centers - such a small area for a large ship with a large passenger count.  Not a fan.  Deck 17 had some sun loungers (which were all taken) but again most of the space was for the Haven, the race cars, two restaurants, and the Galaxy Pavilion, a virtual reality place.  Decks 18 & 19 were more for the Haven and the Vibe Club (for a fee sun loungers and private bar).   Norwegian used the majority of space on 4 decks to attract a small segment of the passengers, in my opinion. 

 

Great Stirrup Cay:  As with other reviews, tendering to their private island was a nightmare.  Thought we could make tendering reservations on the kiosks throughout the ship, but a kind crew member steered us in the right direction - kiosk next to the dining reservation desk on deck 6 (I think).  Using that kiosk was easy, but we got tender #15.  We got into GSC at around 9 am, our tender was called at 10:45 and we got onto the island at 12:30......ugh!  When your number is called, you are led into the theater, where you sit for about 30 minutes and then you are led to the tenders.  Horrible system.  Once on the island, there was no signage as to where to go or what was where.  We walked for about 15 minutes to find loungers.  Some is our group stood in line at the bar.  After 30 minutes of waiting for a drink, we left and got back on the tender back to the ship.  Quick lunch (no lines), got drink (no lines), and got a pool chair (no crowds).  Our friends said it took over an hour to get back onto ship when they left island about an hour after us.  Sorry Norwegian - it is a very nice island, but it needs to be avoided until a dock is built.  And please, put up some sort of signs/maps to let people know where stuff is.

 

Besides the pool and the tendering, everything else was great.  Would I book with Norwegian again????  Probably, depending on the itinerary and the ship.  Have come to realize that bigger is not necessarily better - we don't need the race cars, slides, virtual reality stuff.  We would prefer larger pool areas and great entertainment and good food.  

 

Just my opinion - others may disagree.  Feel free to ask any questions and happy cruising!

[BirdTravels]

@mduffy1834 do you remember who the General Manager was?

[tokidoki]

Thx for your honest review, I sail in May and was wondering how u found the entertainment, did u enjoy it? 

[mduffy1834]

3 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

@mduffy1834 do you remember who the General Manager was?

general manager or cruise director?  The cruise director was virtually absent the entire week so I have no idea who it is

[mduffy1834]

1 hour ago, tokidoki said:

Thx for your honest review, I sail in May and was wondering how u found the entertainment, did u enjoy it? 

Choir of Man was fantastic - get there early if you enjoy beer.  They give it out for free before the show as part of a pre-show.  Very entertaining.  The Beatles show was also enjoyable - they did several different albums/time periods during the week, both in the main theater and in the Cavern Club.  Only saw one show in the theater.  You can get the Choir of Man reservations before you board; other than that, no reservations needed on other shows - first come, first serve.  Enjoy

[LloydJr]

15 minutes ago, mduffy1834 said:

Choir of Man was fantastic - get there early if you enjoy beer.  They give it out for free before the show as part of a pre-show. 

I've taken their beer, when they've come to where I'm sitting, but for anybody who has the drink package, it is a meaningless perk.  Just grab two beers on the way to the theatre and you're good to go.

[tokidoki]

20 minutes ago, mduffy1834 said:

Choir of Man was fantastic - get there early if you enjoy beer.  They give it out for free before the show as part of a pre-show.  Very entertaining.  The Beatles show was also enjoyable - they did several different albums/time periods during the week, both in the main theater and in the Cavern Club.  Only saw one show in the theater.  You can get the Choir of Man reservations before you board; other than that, no reservations needed on other shows - first come, first serve.  Enjoy

Thx😍

[swmichigan cruiser]

26 minutes ago, LloydJr said:

I've taken their beer, when they've come to where I'm sitting, but for anybody who has the drink package, it is a meaningless perk.  Just grab two beers on the way to the theatre and you're good to go.

It not always about the beer it is about being able to walk up to bar on the stage and get it and talk with some of the performers as you are walking by them. I've seen the Choir of Man 10 times on the Encore and one time I sat in the front row and was talking with the narrator and he went up on stage and brought me back one. Great show in my opinion. Obviously.

[LloydJr]

25 minutes ago, swmichigan cruiser said:

It not always about the beer it is about being able to walk up to bar on the stage and get it and talk with some of the performers as you are walking by them. I've seen the Choir of Man 10 times on the Encore and one time I sat in the front row and was talking with the narrator and he went up on stage and brought me back one. Great show in my opinion. Obviously.

Yeah, I get that, if you enjoy that sort of thing.  I really do like Choir of Man, but the "free beer" is just a fun gimmick.  The post I was responding to suggested that a person should get there early to get free beer.  For 98.3% of the adults sailing, the beer is already free everywhere on the ship.  It was just a logic thing. 🤣

[tonic8]

6 hours ago, mduffy1834 said:

Great Stirrup Cay:  As with other reviews, tendering to their private island was a nightmare.  Thought we could make tendering reservations on the kiosks throughout the ship, but a kind crew member steered us in the right direction - kiosk next to the dining reservation desk on deck 6 (I think).  Using that kiosk was easy, but we got tender #15. 

Quick question on when to make this reservation.. can you do it as soon as you board on the first day? Or does it only open up at a certain time?

[mduffy1834]

55 minutes ago, tonic8 said:

Quick question on when to make this reservation.. can you do it as soon as you board on the first day? Or does it only open up at a certain time?

We heard the announcement two days before - tried the kiosks around the ship but took until the next day to find the one that actually did it.  Hence the tender #15

[IAcruising]

Encore is our favorite ship, and we'll be taking the repo cruise in April. It is full. If you want to be close to the pool, forget it. If you just want a lounge chair in the sun, you'll find one. And then, there is the Vibe.

 

GSC is a crapshoot everytime. And if you end up getting there, getting back is a complete cluster.

 

Get a freaking dock.