bucade

That sounds like a great plan to go to Margaritaville when you embark. I might just do that instead of getting annoyed at the Buffet.

 

Glad you had fun!

It was nice to just sit and not battle the crowds in OSheehans and the buffet.

Hi Bucade and thanks for the review. Just a few questions about the excursions. The Abi Beach?...Did y'all have to swim in or the ship lands on a dock? Cane Garden Beach crowded? Also Margaritaville was open when y'all just got on the ship? I assume only the buffet and maybe one MDR. I have the old UDP promo so it's supposed to be free but we will see in 3 weeks when I board. Thanks you for any replies!

 

 

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On Abi Beach they out us on a dingy from the ship and took us up to the beach. It was so fun! Cane Garden was a bit crowded but plenty of chairs. Of course they were $5 a piece but worth it. Yes Margaritaville was open when we got on the ship. The only time I saw it closed was dinner time. No it's not free anymore but it's pretty cheap and worth it

Just got off the Escape this past Sat and the Internet loaded fine and quickly for us except the last day at sea.

Quick review of our fun filled cruise on Escape last week... yes embarkation was a little hectic but nothing that we could handle. So here is the rundown:

Cabin

We were in a balcony cabin #13724 which was forward starboard.Plenty of space for us three gals that always bring more than we should. Loved the drawers beneath the couch. Beds were pretty hard but being so tired at the end of the night didn't keep us from sleeping alright.

Food

First stop was Margaritaville when we boarded for margaritas, burgers and fries...they were great. There was quite a few people in there for lunch and walking by all week, it was always a good crowd in there enjoying the food. Also had lunch there after our morning in Tortola and tried the nachos and quesadilla. Both were very good. Worth the ala carte pricing and cheaper then if the three of us went to lunch somewhere here at home. Had dinner the first night at La Cucina, no problem getting a reservation as soon as we got on board. Very nice place with great service. Tried a couple different pasta options and I was obsessed with the bread and dipping oil. Didn't try any other specialty restaurants. Had dinner at all three MDRs, the Manhattan being our favorite since it was fun to watch couples dancing. OSheehan's was good as well.

Ship Overall/Entertainment

The ship was beautiful. True the smoke smell was a little much on deck 7 but really couldn't smell it on other decks. Loved the Atrium and all the fun shows they did there. Howl at the Moon was awesome, the three piano players were great and mingled on deck with people during the day. Saw Million Dollar Quartet and After Midnight. Both were fantastic and the singers and dancers were great. Little cold in the theater so take a sweater if you go. ;) Spent most of our sea days in Spice H2O. Never had a problem getting a chair with plenty of sun as long as we were there before 9. After 9, they were hard to come by. Definitely need more deck room for chairs all around. Could feel the ship moving for sure but not so bad that it made us sick. Others weren't so lucky as the first day we found someone had gotten sick in one of the shops but the crew was quick to clean it up.

Ports

Had fun in all three ports. First up was St Thomas and we went on an excursion to Abi Beach. Set sail on a fantastic pirate looking ship "Bones" with a great crew! Was there for a few hours just soaking up the sun and having some drinks. Next was Tortola. Didn't purchase an excursion which was not a problem since as soon as you get off the ship you can catch a little bus to the beach for $8 a person and come back whenever you want. We chose to go to Cane Garden Beach...so much fun with tons of beach bars and the ride there and back offers some great picture ops. Last stop was Nassau. We decided to get the day pass for $30 to Meliu Resort. Weather wasn't great and only day it wasn't sunny. Sat on the beach for a bit and then had lunch...didn't bother to ask how much the buffet was and was a bit surprised when we got the bill and found it was $110 for the three of us...for a buffet! It was good but not worth $30 a person. Oh well, our fault for not even asking.

Overall was a great trip. Still have decided I personally like Royal Caribbean better where as my mom likes Celebrity better but this was not a bad ship or trip at all.

I was wondering if anyone could tell me any of the deals that may be offered in the duty free stores on liquor? Heading to Miami tomorrow to set sail on Saturday!

Thank for the link...we sail on the 1/30 and each port only has 4 ships each day! Perfect!

I have also heard that the chair hogs are in full force...I say as with other cruises I've been on, if you are saving a chair with a towel and no one is around, throw that towel off and take the chair. Let them try and get me to move! ;)

Do you have to make a reservation to attend pretty much every show there is? I know you do for the comedy show but what about Howl at the Moon?

iConcierge is the way to go so I've been told...while in the terminal or as soon as you get on board.

Don't know if our cruise isn't full or what but we leave Jan 30th and I just looked and there were a ton of reservations for all restaurants available...maybe not each night but plenty of available times and dates. Even the elusive 5:30-8:00 time slot! I'm wondering if they opened up more slots. :rolleyes:

We leave in 18 days and I have seen that lounge chairs around the pool are hard to get if not "reserved" early in the morning...was wondering if this was the same at Spice H2O? Anyone have trouble over in that area too with getting a lounge chair?

Great! Thanks! Just wanted to make sure that if we wanted to just walk up we could.

Ok, maybe I'm slow or just not getting this but someone please help! Do we have to make reservations for dining in even the complementary venues? I was on ncl.com today and saw Manhattan Room listed and then under it said complementary. That doesn't seem very freestyle if we do?:confused:

I understand the frustration of the bait and switch and that is basically what this is. Will NCL change it again after all the uproar? Maybe, maybe not but I personally am not going to let a simple $6.99 hamburger charge ruin my vacation. Its cheaper than most sit down restaurants: ie Red Robin, Applebee's, even land Margaritaville's. This does NOT make me a food elitist as I saw one person say on here. Let's not forget that not too terribly long ago on cruises, you had two options for all meals, the MDR and the buffet. If you want the real Margaritaville experience, go visit it on Nassau. The ship venue is a Margaritaville in name only. As for those saying that the buffet burger is better...its the same burger.

Sorry if this has been answered but don't have time to go searching the thread for it...can we not book a spa treatment until we get onboard? I was looking at ncl.com after logging in and can't seem to find where or if you can book before boarding. Thanks if advance!

Stop replying to him...that's what he wants. ;)

"I truly don't see it. But it appears many took this place into grave consideration when booking their cruise. That's what was puzzling to me. Again, it may just be me"

Have you ever been to one of the real Margaritaville's? I think that is what people were expecting but being that this is a small venue on a cruise ship, I never thought it was going to be like the true restaurant. On Escape they are serving a few selections that are on the true menu but at way lower prices than the standard prices that you would pay on dry land. Yes, I too am disappointed in NCL for changing to ala carte so quickly but I was planning on going for the drinks anyway with my UBP, and that's what Margaritaville is truly known for...their drinks!

Am I missing something when it comes to balconies? I've seen a lot of questions, complaints and comments about them and I guess I didn't realize that they were that big of an importance. We have a balcony cabin booked for Feb and truth be told we've rarely even gone out on them on past cruises. The ship to us is one big balcony. Not being a smart you know what, I really am wondering what I'm missing?

Do you get a souvenir cup with the UBP?

I am assuming that you can get a souvenir cup as long as the total is below $15. At least that was the way it was on Celebrity a few years back. They had daily drink specials in a souvenir cup.

Can anyone on board post the prices of the gelato at dulce? Have not seen any info on this place. Thanks.

 

6&8

Also of the Bake Shop please?

I understand that having a Haven cabin gets you certain perks and seeing as how you paid a hefty price, you should but I don't think it would be right for Haven cruise mates to get special priority in a "complementary" venue. IMO

We are staying at the Hotel Pullman Miami Airport...free shuttle to the terminal and very comfy beds...we booked through NCL.

We sail out on Jan 30th, hopefully all the kinks will be worked out by then...I do find it a little entertaining that people expect everything to be perfect from the get go regardless if staff came from another ship or not. Let's not forget that this is a brand new ship and I expect for there to be issues for the first few cruises until they hit their stride. Looking forward to a relaxing vacation and if I have to pay $5 cover for the ambiance of Margaritaville, which we don't have here in Kansas...so be it. :D

That was my questions too...do you just hitch a ride to the resort and buy the pass? And where at the resort do you buy them?

I was wondering the same thing. Seems like you get more for your money at Melia.