drumming cruisers Posted July 26 #176 Share Posted July 26 I like to see pictures of everything. Cabins, anywhere on the ship, food, your family, excursions, towns. We usually go to Alaska end of May beginning of June. Lots of snow, more ice, very seldom rains. Went in August once, was very hot and lots of bugs, and rained in Juneau and Ketchikan. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drumming cruisers Posted July 26 #177 Share Posted July 26 I like to see pictures of everything. Cabins, anywhere on the ship, food, your family, excursions, towns. We usually go to Alaska end of May beginning of June. Lots of snow, more ice, very seldom rains. Went in August once, was very hot and lots of bugs, and rained in Juneau and Ketchikan. BUT, not may whales yet. Still coming up from Mexico and Hawaii. No salmon yet either. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare graphicguy Posted July 26 #178 Share Posted July 26 20 hours ago, medicalma'am said: Wow. Towels on chairs in OL????? I would not 'honor' but watch for several minutes in case someone reserving that seat was in the restroom. I would then just move the towel and take my seat. Yeah...first giveaway was using towels in the OL, where there's no pool. They aren't coming back any time, soon. I would give their "stuff" to one of the staff and use that chair/couch. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
23Coach23 Posted July 26 #179 Share Posted July 26 Just found your excellent live posts. On the Encore 2 weeks from Sunday for the same itinerary with my Mom who will turn 86 during our cruise. Thank you for taking the time to do this and hope your cruise continues well. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicgal Posted July 26 #180 Share Posted July 26 Three of my grandkids are on the boat with y'all. Looks like fun! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 26 Author #181 Share Posted July 26 (edited) We had dinner last night at Cagney's Steakhouse. Although my wife is a vegetarian, my kids and I love a good steak so we do the steakhouse on every cruise. Our reservation was for 5:45pm and we arrived at 5:35pm to find a long line of people waiting to be seated. One thing I've noticed is that although they say most of the restaurants open at 5:30pm, at multiple places we've noticed they don't actually seat anybody until 5:45pm so if you like to book the early reservations like we do, you're probably going to be seated with a large wave of other guests all at the same time. The food at Cagney's was only okay, but I'm learning that seems to be par for the course when it comes to dining on Norwegian. We are 5 days into the cruise and we've dined at nearly every specialty restaurant on the ship and we've yet to have a great meal (and we're not overly critical eaters, we are typically pretty easy to please). We aren't going hungry by any means, but the food is only average across the board from what we've experienced so far. To their credit, all of our steaks were prepared a perfect medium rare. The primary concern at Cagney's though wasn't the food, it was the service as it took well over an hour before we received our entrees. (I'm sure this was because they seated such a big wave of people all at the same time) We aren't the type to complain but I did ask if it was a busy night and they do said it wasn't 🤷♂️ --- Entering the Space where Cagney's is (in addition to the A-List Bar + Los Lobos). --- Crowded from the Moment They Opened: --- A Look at the Kitchen Prep Area: --- The Entrees Took over an Hour, but the Service was still Very Friendly and Professional: --- We Rate All of Our Dishes on a Scale from Yummy > Very Good > Good > Bad > Very Bad, and this Lobster Bisque is the first Very Bad I've ever given (runny and much more fishy tasting than a Lobster Bisque usually is): --- Our Steaks were all Very Good and a Perfect Medium Rare: Prime Rib: Ribeye: --- The Kids Were Happy! --- Desserts were a mixed bag. - My daughter loved her Chocolate Cake (my son i got the Vanilla Ice Cream that came with it): - My wife had a few bites of her Butterscotch Cheesecake but didn't love it (she didn't like that it was served warm): - As I've mentioned, I love a good creme brulee, but unfortunately the raspberry creme brulee at Cafe was too sweet for my taste: Edited July 26 by FamilyAtSea.travel 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 26 Author #182 Share Posted July 26 We arrived in Ketchikan today for our last Alaskan port and I'm happy to report that our excursion was only partially cancelled this time around! We booked a flightseeing tour on a float plane with Island Wings at the recommendation of somebody else from CC and we got to do the tour! I say partially cancelled because we were supposed to be visiting Misty Fjords but the weather was too rainy so they flew us somewhere else instead. Michelle, the owner and our pilot/guide, was excellent. She has a wealth of knowledge about both flying and Alaska and she was great with our kids! Further information about the port and excursion can be found with the pictures to follow. It's disappointing that Norwegian stops in Ketchikan for less than 4 hours (before the last shuttle) and 90 minutes of that is spent in lines and being shuttled around). --- Note: Norwegian doesn't actually dock at Ketchikan, they dock 20 minutes away in Ward Cove (to save money on the terminal fees according to the locals). --- We were docked beside the Regent Seven Seas Explorer today: --- The terminal building in Ward Cove is very similar to a Bass Pro Shop inside: --- It's a 20-minute ride each way on a shuttle from Ward Cove to Ketchikan: --- The last shuttle departs Ketchikan to return to Ward Cove at 11am (and there are no guarantees of getting back, even with a Norwegian excursion based on the news from last week, so don't be late). But you'll still have plenty of time to shop in the terminal once you're back before boarding the ship: --- Pulling into Ketchikan (the Norwegian/Regent shuttle pickup area is in the pavilion on the right): --- Arriving at Island Wings and our First Look at Lady Esther, our plane for the morning! --- Some Views Inside the Plane: - My Son Taking the Controls: - The Controls of the 1959 De Havilland Beaver Airplane: --- Sights from Up Above (including a look at the Encore): --- We Landed Briefly to Take in the Scenery: --- Back Safely on the Ground: - The Kids Holding a Moon Jellyfish: - Watching Lady Esther Depart for Her Next Assignment: --- A 3D Map of the Region (including Glacier Bay on the far right): --- The Line to Get the Shuttle Back: 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Seas2mountains Posted July 26 #183 Share Posted July 26 33 minutes ago, FamilyAtSea.travel said: We aren't going hungry by any means, but the food is only average across the board from what we've experienced so far. Thank you for doing a live review. Would love to hear what other cruise lines and restaurants were better if you have time to share. We recently tried a short cruise on Celebrity and were impressed by the food and service in Luminae (Retreat) and Murano. We also found the food and service in MSC Yacht Club to be excellent. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 26 Author #184 Share Posted July 26 37 minutes ago, Seas2mountains said: Thank you for doing a live review. Would love to hear what other cruise lines and restaurants were better if you have time to share. We recently tried a short cruise on Celebrity and were impressed by the food and service in Luminae (Retreat) and Murano. We also found the food and service in MSC Yacht Club to be excellent. We just finished a 9-day sailing on the Celebrity Equinox in the Retreat and had a fantastic time. In addition to Luminae, we found the food at Blu and Tuscan (Italian steakhouse) to be much better than anything we've had on the Encore this week. We also had a fantastic dinner with the Chef's Table experience, something we haven't found an equivalent to on Norwegian. We also love the Yacht Club on MSC. We won't sail outside the YC on MSC but inside the YC is one of our favorite cruising experiences. Palo and Remy are also fantastic on Disney Cruise Line, but I know Disney isn't for everybody. I would also say Royal has better food than Norwegian. NCL does some things right that I'm sure I'll summarize at the end of this cruise so I don't intend to pile on Norwegian (they can't help the weather that cancelled two of our three excursions), but food is absolutely an area where they can make some big improvements. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zqvol Posted July 26 #185 Share Posted July 26 2 hours ago, FamilyAtSea.travel said: . . . The food at Cagney's was only okay, but I'm learning that seems to be par for the course when it comes to dining on Norwegian. We are 5 days into the cruise and we've dined at nearly every specialty restaurant on the ship and we've yet to have a great meal (and we're not overly critical eaters, we are typically pretty easy to please). . . . This seems to have become the standard on mass market lines. IMO the only way it is going to get better is to raise prices at least an additional $50/pp/pd. If they do that they should be able to get better quality, but what impact will that have on bookings. $350 more per week per person is a lot for a family of 4. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #186 Share Posted July 27 2 hours ago, zqvol said: This seems to have become the standard on mass market lines. IMO the only way it is going to get better is to raise prices at least an additional $50/pp/pd. If they do that they should be able to get better quality, but what impact will that have on bookings. $350 more per week per person is a lot for a family of 4. I know the mass market lines need to appeal to as many people as possible, which means keeping their costs down. But I feel like when I'm paying for a specialty dinner (which really is like paying for 2 meals since I'm not eating at the MDR where it's included) they should do better. I recognize we are in a unique (and privileged) place in life where money isn't the primary factor in our cruise selections, but with young kids we still need to primarily cruise the mass market ships to ensure the kids have plenty to do. --- We have a couple upcoming cruises on Disney that I'm very curious to see how things go given their premium pricing (7 days on the Treasure was $10k for an interior cabin). I'll miss having fun in the casinos (I'm not a degenerate gambler but it's a fun way to pass the time), but maybe it will be good to have to find some other ways to enjoy what the ships have to offer! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #187 Share Posted July 27 (edited) Calling it a day tonight but tomorrow I'll update you guys on Los Lobos, drinks at Sugarcane Mojito Bar + The District Brewhouse, and a comedy show at Social. Here's the Freestyle Daily from Day 6... One day left! free-style-daily.pdf Edited July 27 by FamilyAtSea.travel 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #188 Share Posted July 27 We grabbed lunch in the American Diner yesterday up on Deck 17. This has been a popular spot throughout the week that we've been wanting to try and were quickly running out of time. The food, both style and quality, was about what you'd expect for a diner. It's a nice, open space that is flanked by the water slides and is below the Encore Speedway go-karts, with classic Cadillac booths and milkshakes available for an upcharge. --- The Entrance: --- A Look at the Kitchen: --- Bar Seating to Grab a Drink or a Bite: --- Some of the Food We Enjoyed: - Classic Hamburger: - Grecian Salad: - Spaghetti and Meatballs: --- Milkshakes are Available for a $7 Upcharge: --- 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #189 Share Posted July 27 I took a stroll through the art auction in the Social Club on Deck 6. On other cruise lines I thought a lot of people go to these for the free champagne but with The majority of people having a drink package on Norwegian, I was surprised to see it was completely packed. Do you purchase art at these auctions when you cruise? --- The Entrance with Bid Registration: --- A Look at Some of the Art: --- Financing Options for Those Who Bid Big: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #190 Share Posted July 27 (edited) We wanted to check out The District Brewhouse on Deck 8 so we finally managed to yesterday. There was no live music while we visited unfortunately but we still enjoyed the space. On one side you have beautiful lounge seating with tons of natural light and on the other you have a large bar with lots of beer on tap. The space had a fair number of people but was not overcrowded and the service was sufficient. We enjoyed a couple cocktails ordered from the menu and found them to be pretty good. --- The Sign to Let you Know You've Arrived: --- The Main Bar: --- The Pumpkin Spice Guinness sounded good in theory, but the bartender must know that a lot of people don't like it because he asked me if I'd like a trial before I made me a full drink (which I accepted). It was a good thing he did, because it was actually pretty disgusting 😂 It was basically a Guinness mixed with eggnog and some pumpkin spice. --- The Cool as a Cucumber cocktail was much better and quite refreshing: --- The Lounge Seating Area with Tons of Natural Light (not the beer for frat boys): --- This is the leaderboard for the person who has consumed the most drinks in this bar during the week. As of yesterday afternoon, 5 days into the cruise, the person in the lead had consumed 43 😮🤮 I'm honestly a bit surprised they encourage this type of behavior (but we didn't see anybody out of hand drunk). I was joking with my wife about how proud our kids would be if we were up there, and just as we were we met the son of the guy in first place 😂 He was very proud indeed (and in his 30s, so not a young kid like ours). Edited July 27 by FamilyAtSea.travel 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #191 Share Posted July 27 If you happen to collect the scale model of the ships like I do, here's what the one for the Norwegian Encore looks like. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellis1138 Posted July 27 #192 Share Posted July 27 4 hours ago, FamilyAtSea.travel said: Milkshakes are Available for a $7 Upcharge: --- This is probably a difficult question for anyone for whom this doesn't matter, but do you know if the milkshakes are made with actual hard scooped ice cream or are they just soft-serve? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #193 Share Posted July 27 1 minute ago, Ellis1138 said: This is probably a difficult question for anyone for whom this doesn't matter, but do you know if the milkshakes are made with actual hard scooped ice cream or are they just soft-serve? I have no idea, but if I had to guess, I would guess soft serve. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellis1138 Posted July 27 #194 Share Posted July 27 Thanks. I'm not paying $7 to get soft serve in a cup, when I could go to the buffet, grab milk and soft serve for free and make it. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #195 Share Posted July 27 4 minutes ago, Ellis1138 said: Thanks. I'm not paying $7 to get soft serve in a cup, when I could go to the buffet, grab milk and soft serve for free and make it. I could definitely be wrong, but it was not thick at all so that's my guess. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 27 Author #196 Share Posted July 27 No family cruise is complete without spending some time in the k̶i̶d̶s̶'̶ ̶c̶a̶s̶i̶n̶o̶ arcade! At this point we are pretty seasoned cruise arcade afficiandos so I feel well-positioned to say NCL has done a good job with their arcade. Not only do they have a variety of games, they are in very good operational order unlike most cruise ships where 1/3 of the games don't even work. They actually have three arcades: - Galaxy Pavilion VR arcade up on Deck 17 (covered earlier this week) - Video Arcade down on Deck 5 between the Splash Academy and Teens Entourage clubs - A smaller arcade with pool and darts (plus video games) on Deck 7 by Local My kids had a blast and my wife and I were stressed trying by the end as we tried to get them to decide what to purchase with their arcade winnings 😂 --- Entrance: --- 3 Ski Ball Machines: --- Showing my son his old man still has him (for a little longer at least): --- Quick Draw Shooting Game + Racing Games: --- The Wheel of (paying) Fortunes: --- Claw Machines on the Left + Prize Vaults on the Right: --- 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drumming cruisers Posted July 28 #197 Share Posted July 28 On 7/26/2024 at 1:43 PM, FamilyAtSea.travel said: We had dinner last night at Cagney's Steakhouse. Although my wife is a vegetarian, my kids and I love a good steak so we do the steakhouse on every cruise. Our reservation was for 5:45pm and we arrived at 5:35pm to find a long line of people waiting to be seated. One thing I've noticed is that although they say most of the restaurants open at 5:30pm, at multiple places we've noticed they don't actually seat anybody until 5:45pm so if you like to book the early reservations like we do, you're probably going to be seated with a large wave of other guests all at the same time. The food at Cagney's was only okay, but I'm learning that seems to be par for the course when it comes to dining on Norwegian. We are 5 days into the cruise and we've dined at nearly every specialty restaurant on the ship and we've yet to have a great meal (and we're not overly critical eaters, we are typically pretty easy to please). We aren't going hungry by any means, but the food is only average across the board from what we've experienced so far. To their credit, all of our steaks were prepared a perfect medium rare. The primary concern at Cagney's though wasn't the food, it was the service as it took well over an hour before we received our entrees. (I'm sure this was because they seated such a big wave of people all at the same time) We aren't the type to complain but I did ask if it was a busy night and they do said it wasn't 🤷♂️ --- Entering the Space where Cagney's is (in addition to the A-List Bar + Los Lobos). --- Crowded from the Moment They Opened: --- A Look at the Kitchen Prep Area: --- The Entrees Took over an Hour, but the Service was still Very Friendly and Professional: --- We Rate All of Our Dishes on a Scale from Yummy > Very Good > Good > Bad > Very Bad, and this Lobster Bisque is the first Very Bad I've ever given (runny and much more fishy tasting than a Lobster Bisque usually is): --- Our Steaks were all Very Good and a Perfect Medium Rare: Prime Rib: Ribeye: --- The Kids Were Happy! --- Desserts were a mixed bag. - My daughter loved her Chocolate Cake (my son i got the Vanilla Ice Cream that came with it): - My wife had a few bites of her Butterscotch Cheesecake but didn't love it (she didn't like that it was served warm): - As I've mentioned, I love a good creme brulee, but unfortunately the raspberry creme brulee at Cafe was too sweet for my taste: DH refuses to go to Cagney's. Last time was 45 minutes before anyone took our order and another hour before we got our entrees. Service was terrible. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 28 Author #198 Share Posted July 28 1 minute ago, drumming cruisers said: DH refuses to go to Cagney's. Last time was 45 minutes before anyone took our order and another hour before we got our entrees. Service was terrible. When the Encore goes to dry dock in November, Cagney's will be expanding into what is now Los Lobos... Hopefully when they expand they can figure out how to improve service! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drumming cruisers Posted July 28 #199 Share Posted July 28 They are getting rid of Los Lobos? We would go there over Cagneys any day. Om all ships or just Encore? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare FamilyAtSea.travel Posted July 28 Author #200 Share Posted July 28 46 minutes ago, drumming cruisers said: They are getting rid of Los Lobos? We would go there over Cagneys any day. Om all ships or just Encore? I'm not sure if it's on all the ships but I had read about it on the Encore and I asked while we were there and the staff confirmed it is going away. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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