weltek

Based on ship alone? For us, personally (40s, no kids), Escape would be my choice because I really like Spice H20 for a warm weather itinerary. The observation lounge on the Encore would be a winner for Alaska. Factoring in the 17 year old, I'd just ask them to pick which ship they like better, based on things like go carts vs. ropes course. I also found big differences in homeports for winter 2022. I have not sailed out of Port Canaveral, and we fly in, so after reading about the port the Escape was leaving from, it seemed a bit inconvenient for us. That made the decision for me to stick to Miami and sailing the Encore.

@Lunesse Agree with everything you said (including the self-lecture), except I feel like the jewelry shopping crowd is a minority thing. They definitely exist, though!

If you are being serious, I did a little historical Cruise Critic reading just now, and it sounds like they work in pairs, and it ranged from around 20-35 per pair back in 2010-2013. Maybe someone has asked recently, or could make a point of asking on their next cruise.

The good news is that while you are in Bermuda for what, 3 days(?), you can find reliable free wifi and/or he can ask his cell carrier about any additional costs for using data and calling in Bermuda. And FYI, often the best ship-based access is in the internet cafe in the early morning and late at night. He should ask the internet cafe manager for tips about where the best wifi reception is.

@marktwothousand I think this gives a very nice picture of your balcony. http://www.depping-design.de/test/albums/2015_09_escape_conveyance/1500K3__0861.jpg Have a good trip!

Wow! Well, I'd be excited about the addition of San Juan! Usually on a U.S. homeport sailing, it will cost you a little more to book an itinerary going there. And while I know some people don't love St. Thomas, hopefully you do! I'd personally take it over Costa Maya, Belize and Cozumel anyway, though really, almost any port is a good port to me. And yeah, you're probably safe catching the Mayan ruins another time. 🙂

I'm also noodling over what to do. We've been to most cruise ports in the Caribbean, but Puerto Plata is new to us. We've done all the forts, cigar factories, rum tours, etc. in the Caribbean, so nothing is particularly "exciting" to us. But, we want to get out and see the area, so are going to hire a driver or just taxi. I'm trying to come up with a list that makes it worthwhile. My list of possibilities that suit our interests: Brewery near Sousa Beach Chocolate factory Macorix rum factory Good lunch restaurant Teleferico Mundo King Art Museum Might just ask to be taken to the Chocolate Factory, and then drop us at Mundo King and we'll walk down to Sousa Beach area for the rest of the day. Other options I'm looking at: Doing Chocal chocolate factory and the Damajagua waterfalls.

Just adding that people need to pay attention to the times listed in the daily. Don't wait to long if you want to hit the MDR because it's only open til 1:30 (or whatever time is listed in your daily). I've been cruising for years and still end up being surprised at my limited options when I lunch late. Even the buffet begins to neck down to fewer selection. And afternoon noshing is hard. 3:00 is usually when I'm hungry for a snack, and there are few good options. Pretty much some lame stuff in one area of the buffet, The Local and Observation Lounge (curious to see what they have). Or ice cream. The one time I really value the buffet concept is for an afternoon snack (especially when I'm hanging by the pool), and there's not great snack stuff there in my experience. But it's been a few years. Speaking of...do any NCL ships still do a poolside BBQ for lunch on sea days? Loved the grilled chicken and it's the one time I felt like my burger was fresh! But I think that's a relic of the past.

I agree that you are HIGHLY likely to get a cabin assignment before sailing. For those that say BA is best, there's a slight caveat to that, given there aren't many differences in the rooms themselves. If you spend more time on lower decks, BAs are on higher decks and might not be as desirable to YOU. And some of the "secret" slightly bigger (angled) balconies are BFs, and I find that far more desirable than any regular (non-angled) BA.

My experience on the Escape in the Manhattan Room is that there were multiple sets of music. So while one poster said 8, there's probably an earlier set. I know we often heard music and saw dancing, and we were always done with dinner by 8:00. 6:00-7:00 is our usual dining arrival time. You might want to do a search here for recent Bliss dailies to answer a lot of your questions. It usually has times and costs for activities.

Yes that's high, but that's been the trend with new ships. Let it die down for a year, and book on the Escape, Encore, Bliss or Joy instead for much cheaper in the meantime. I remember when I was just getting back into cruising and the Gem was the newest ship, and the other Jewel-class ships were also pretty high. I couldn't afford her, so I sailed on the Spirit, Sky, Star and Dawn until I got a raise and I could splurge a little more on the newer ships. By then we were on to the -away class ships!

Honestly, they are going to love either if it's their first cruise. 8 days is probably less disruptive than 10 days, unless you are homeschooling. That aside: The Gem's itinerary is much, much better. Are your kids be very happy with a nice pool, basketball court and kids club? If so, I'd vote Gem. Until the mega-mega ships, it was considered a large, modern ship not that long ago. If your kids tend to get bored easily, or have a case of constantly needing new entertainment options, then Getaway.

This is awesome news that they aren't charging bev package holders for corkage fees. Makes sense. Definitely bringing a few bottles of wine to have in our stateroom for convenience.

On my last Escape cruise (2018) I drank enough Cava to nearly float away. I cannot confirm current state on any ships, though.

Controversial opinion: A standard balcony isn't worth it, unless you can get a corner one that has a little more space. If the price difference is substantial, I'd rather pay for an oceanview and use the money for VIBE passes. Large balconies are worth it.

Or ask on your roll call to see if there's someone with a Club Balcony Suite you could look at. Maybe you could easily connect prior to sailaway with text messages still easy to get (and the room is still clean!).

So for Specialty Dining, you'll have these choices: Moderno or La Cucina Le Bistro or Cagneys One other If you do Teppenyaki for your free night, book it first, as when you reserve it online, it will use your one free dining credit and you'll have $0 due. As Platinum, you probably don't need advice on the best restaurants, but If it were me in your shoes (simple steak and potatoes people), I would book Moderno, Cagneys and Le Bistro. Don't be intimidated by fancy names on the Le Bistro menu. Lots of good items for simple eaters and very romantic! Just study the menu ahead so you can look things up online, ask questions of your waiter if you need to (and point when you can't pronouce!), and enjoy.

The ones with large balconies are the only I'd consider "worth" more than a regular balcony. The larger shower and sink are nice on the newer ships, but not at all a must for us. The minimal "perks" and bathroom alone aren't worth enough to us to pay more.

My rationale four our four nights of specialty dining: 1) Sea Days are a priority, as I like to treat it as a romantic night out that I have time to properly get ready for, and go have a pre-dinner cocktail somewhere while dressed up, etc. I choose the "fanciest" restaurants for those nights. 2) Look at planned excursions activities and departure times for all port days. Early departure (e.g., 3:00)? If it's a heavy beach/water day, I usually want a nap in the air conditioning when I get back on board and will be happy to just use the MDRs those nights. If it's a late departure (e.g., 5 pm), I'll want more flexibility when I get back on board and just use the MDRs those nights.

I think as long as one of you is using each coupon, you can take the random person you meet at karaoke if you want to. 🙂

Nevermind. Found a decent view and it seems to have the same small, but existent, overhang as the M6s.

Sorry to resurrect this thread, but I was grateful someone cancelled this weekend and we were able to snag 8136 (the oddball deck 8 MC before the M6s)! Is there any overhang from above on these staterooms? We had a M6 previously and loved that there was some overhang for a bit of shade and privacy. But a photo I saw made me question if this MC has any more than a sliver of an overhang. Note to self: take a good video of these specific staterooms for future cruisers.

Yes, always ask the bartenders! I remember drinking one cruise out of Celebrator Dopplebock that was on its last supply and it wasn't listed anywhere.

Stayed in the mini-suite with large balcony area on deck 8 of the Escape. I sleep with ear plugs, but my husband does not and he had no noise problems at all. We love staying in that area. Not a busy hall and close to the District, and all the other deck 8 venues. Booked the same area for our upcoming Encore cruise.

That stinks. I've felt bad for all the Hawaii-bound people this keeps happening to. I'd for sure give up on trying to cruise Hawaii for now. And I'm very curious to know how they are deciding who to cancel. Everything has been speculation.