Live From Escape: 5/20-5/27

To those faithfully following along, allow me to apologize. It seems my phone may have met at least a partial demise in Josh Van Dyke yesterday, wading back to the boat from Soggy Dollar. The backpack I was carrying over my head ended up getting a partial saltwater bath, and the only true victim seems to be my phone's ability to charge.

 

I'm still taking photos and will update when I can, but it's hard to be live when it takes my phone two days to get to a 60% charge. I'm hoping another day of drying out helps...

 

 

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To those faithfully following along, allow me to apologize. It seems my phone may have met at least a partial demise in Josh Van Dyke yesterday, wading back to the boat from Soggy Dollar. The backpack I was carrying over my head ended up getting a partial saltwater bath, and the only true victim seems to be my phone's ability to charge.

 

I'm still taking photos and will update when I can, but it's hard to be live when it takes my phone two days to get to a 60% charge. I'm hoping another day of drying out helps...

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I'm one of your faithful followers and so sorry to hear about your phone.

I can tell you when my ds was in HS, we were on a trip to Disney with his baseball team.

One of his teammates phone was dropped in the toilet at Tappenaki (Habbachi Steakhouse).

He asked the restaurant for rice (I was sitting right there) and they gave him a large zip lock of it (uncooked).

He kept his phone in it for two days and I promise it was working. The rice absorbed the water.

Maybe you can ask Guest Services if you can get uncooked rice from somewhere. It can't hurt.

Good luck and LOVE your review!

I'm one of your faithful followers and so sorry to hear about your phone.

I can tell you when my ds was in HS, we were on a trip to Disney with his baseball team.

One of his teammates phone was dropped in the toilet at Tappenaki (Habbachi Steakhouse).

He asked the restaurant for rice (I was sitting right there) and they gave him a large zip lock of it (uncooked).

He kept his phone in it for two days and I promise it was working. The rice absorbed the water.

Maybe you can ask Guest Services if you can get uncooked rice from somewhere. It can't hurt.

Good luck and LOVE your review!

 

My son dove in our pool last summer with his phone in his pocket. It was a quick dip but was fully submerged. We put it in a jar of rice for a day and it was as good as new. Heres' hoping?

I'm still here too!!! Thanks for even taking time out of your vacation to do this. So us faithful followers appreciate you!

I hope your phone gets fixed!

I'm still here too!!! Thanks for even taking time out of your vacation to do this. So us faithful followers appreciate you!

I hope your phone gets fixed!

 

Hopefully its sitting in a bag of rice right now healing LOL

Oh no for your phone!! I hope everything is OK... I am enjoying this review way too much! We board the Escape on June 24 for the western and can't wait! I'll be looking for more of your review!!!

Thanks for taking us along this week! Hope your phone dried out and you have continued to have a blast! We look forward to returning to the Escape in March, we love her too! Safe travels home...

Following. I'm on the July 15th cruise.

Us too! July 15th

This was our first “American “ cruise, tough we had tried NCL before in the Mediterranean.

 

It was a good cruise but there were a lot of little things that were also a first experience and not a so good one.

 

 

First the good things :

 

pretty ship

 

great shows ( After Midnight, Company Men, Brat Pack,... )

 

very good food with lots of variety

 

nice staff

 

nice itinerary

 

freestyle dining should be the rule everywhere

 

cold milk easily available all day - love it

 

 

Now the not so good stuff:

 

2 hours to get on board ( new record for us) and we got to pier 4h30m before sail and exactly on time with the chosen slot with NCL

 

On check in they couldn't register my credit card ( had used it fine until that morning around Miami since we arrived in US 2 days before) but let me in anyway ( even after I told them I only had a couple hundred dollars cash with me) and they quickly registered it on Guest Services after I boarded

 

On registering the credit card , I associated my wife’s key and ghosted my daughter's - signed some paper for that; next day we got a letter suspending my wife's signing rights as she was cashless in her account ; another trip to guest services to find out they hadn’t associated my wife’s key to my CC but did it with my daughter's and this one was fully functional - at least they were quick

 

On 2nd sea day I went to mini-golf for about 20-30 minutes; when got back to my chair, though my backpack with book and sun blocker was there, someone just had taken my towel ( first ever anywhere in the world for me)

 

Why is every entertainment activity almost done like it was intended to be heard on the other side of the planet?!

 

last night of the cruise we found out the watch my wife bought the day before wasn't working; went to the shop and hence it was a dead battery ; as they hadn’t a replace the decided they would give us an extra $10 discount - so far so good; when I got up at 7 AM to disembark and got the final statement on the cabin door, instead of giving me the credit, they had just charged another $80… nothing like a last rush to guest services before the 8:15 disembarkation tour for waking up!

 

 

Was it a good cruise? YES

 

Did we have fun? YES

 

Will I repeat NCL in a near future? Probably NOT

So you got Vibe, but your traveling companions didn't. Can you share Vibe? I know technically the answer is no, but if you alternated one couple in there using the key cards and wrist bands in the morning and the other couple in there using the key cards and wrist bands in the afternoon, couldn't that work?

So you got Vibe, but your traveling companions didn't. Can you share Vibe? I know technically the answer is no, but if you alternated one couple in there using the key cards and wrist bands in the morning and the other couple in there using the key cards and wrist bands in the afternoon, couldn't that work?

If you wish to consume alcohol that would be impossible because they swipe your card and keep it until you leave. When they swipe it, a flag would be raised if the card did not match up with a vibe pass owner. And you would also have to wear the band real loose in order to get it over your hand to put it on another person. Besides, the purpose of Vibe is to also socialize and meet new acquaintances and enjoy shot o'clock. Not possible with your scenario unless the rightful purchasers used it in the afternoon.

The next time you cruise with another couple, why not go on Carnival and the four of you can share Havana passes.

Loving your review. I will be on the Escape on July 22. I was wondering how much you had to pay for the Red Bull with having the UBP. Thanks and keep up the review. Loving it!!!

So you got Vibe, but your traveling companions didn't. Can you share Vibe? I know technically the answer is no, but if you alternated one couple in there using the key cards and wrist bands in the morning and the other couple in there using the key cards and wrist bands in the afternoon, couldn't that work?

 

 

The bartenders in Vibe know your name in about six minutes of your first visit. I have seen them politely ask people to leave if you don't have the pass, despite being with others who are Vibe pass bearers. No joke. The pass is enforced.

 

 

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If you wish to consume alcohol that would be impossible because they swipe your card and keep it until you leave. When they swipe it, a flag would be raised if the card did not match up with a vibe pass owner. And you would also have to wear the band real loose in order to get it over your hand to put it on another person. Besides, the purpose of Vibe is to also socialize and meet new acquaintances and enjoy shot o'clock. Not possible with your scenario unless the rightful purchasers used it in the afternoon.

The next time you cruise with another couple, why not go on Carnival and the four of you can share Havana passes.

 

Havana passes? I thought the only way you could get into Havana cabana area was with booking one of the rooms.

Havana passes? I thought the only way you could get into Havana cabana area was with booking one of the rooms.

Yes, but after booking one of the Havana area cabins, you get a wristband pass to gain entrance into the area. They are also now color coded with multiple color options after some were found being sold on ebay. It was originally a brown and a cream color, but supposedly more colors are being added to eliminate the possibility of those not belonging in the area gaining access. Besides the wristband, there is a sticker on your key card as well. We're looking forward to this area on the Horizon over Labor day next year out of NYC and again over Valentines Day in 2019 doing the southern caribbean out of Miami.

Hey Chris.....so after the phone situation.....what happened??????

Hey Chris.....so after the phone situation.....what happened??????

One week since last post and home for four days now with no update.....talk about a pregnant pause. There's always the current Ashley Madison Loyal Royal cheater thread.

One week since last post and home for four days now with no update.....talk about a pregnant pause. There's always the current Ashley Madison Loyal Royal cheater thread.

 

Oh yea...enjoying Rick's escapades!! :')

The bartenders in Vibe know your name in about six minutes of your first visit. I have seen them politely ask people to leave if you don't have the pass, despite being with others who are Vibe pass bearers. No joke. The pass is enforced.

We had Vibe on Breakaway, we never ordered drinks in the bar there, always brought some with us from other places somehow! And the bartenders did NOT know our names. Even after a week. They only know the names of the ones who frequent the bar, not every guest who walks in Vibe. Please understand I'm not trying to "steal" Vibe passes here. I was just thinking it could be possible to split the cost and share the pass with another couple as long as you never used your card at the bar...

AKA : Chris & Meg,,

 

Fantastic review, love reading and seeing all your updates, would love to see the island of st Thomas, however, am handicap use a scooter all the time, so looking for something.. OMG , love the shrimp scampi dish you had Meg, looked Yummy

 

Chris, your review has made me look so forward to this cruise, was not crazy at all about the pool, vs the vibe area,, however really want the spa area pkg, so maybe between that and my deck and that area you mentioned, good enough. I understand when you are in wheelchair , they wheel u to a waiting area until room ready, so don't see how will make to headliners to get pass anyway :). Oh well..

 

Look forward to any future writings.. Thanks Again

Please understand I'm not trying to "steal" Vibe passes here. I was just thinking it could be possible to split the cost and share the pass with another couple as long as you never used your card at the bar...

That's not how it is supposed to work and you probably know that. :rolleyes:

 

 

What you are suggesting would be the same as a Haven couple letting a non-Haven couple use the Haven courtyard while the Haven couple was somewhere else.

That's not how it is supposed to work and you probably know that. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

 

 

What you are suggesting would be the same as a Haven couple letting a non-Haven couple use the Haven courtyard while the Haven couple was somewhere else.

 

 

Agreed. I don't troll posts, but I do believe in playing by the rules. You get the pass, you get the Vibe. No pass, you don't get to make up rules that work for you.

 

 

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That's not how it is supposed to work and you probably know that. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

 

 

What you are suggesting would be the same as a Haven couple letting a non-Haven couple use the Haven courtyard while the Haven couple was somewhere else.

 

 

 

Nope, it's such a small area and they get to know you by name by the first day. Later in the week I saw the bartenders asking newbies for bands and cards and also saw them escort some out who weren't supposed to be there. This was meant for one plus twins