Excited but a little nervous about Getaway

[mayesq]

My family will be sailing the Getaway on June 7. We are a family of four, with two boys aged 12 and 9. We just took our kids on their first cruise last August on the Disney Dream and we all loved it. Please ease my mind that all of us will have a ball on this ship. It sounds great, but I'm a little concerned about freestyle dining and long waits for a table with two hungry boys.

 

Just wanted to say that my husband and I are keeping an open mind. We know that Disney and NCL are two different lines and we are not coming into this expecting Disney. However, I think Disney set the bar pretty high and I'm hoping we aren't disappointed.

 

Help me NCL lovers.

[dexddd]

My family will be sailing the Getaway on June 7. We are a family of four, with two boys aged 12 and 9. We just took our kids on their first cruise last August on the Disney Dream and we all loved it. Please ease my mind that all of us will have a ball on this ship. It sounds great, but I'm a little concerned about freestyle dining and long waits for a table with two hungry boys.

 

Just wanted to say that my husband and I are keeping an open mind. We know that Disney and NCL are two different lines and we are not coming into this expecting Disney. However, I think Disney set the bar pretty high and I'm hoping we aren't disappointed.

 

Help me NCL lovers.

 

We just got off BA and had a great time - our son is 11 and daughter is 15. They both had great times. We've sailed DCL many times including the Dream. You are correct in not expecting DCL and don't try to compare - take them each for what they are.

 

The BA was great and the GA is getting even better feedback as a whole. The food was good everywhere - we didn't eat at any of the MDR but quite a few of the other venues. I was surprised by the fast response at O'Sheehans - we got our food in 7 minutes flat on one occasion and of the four times we went all were under 10 and no problems getting a seat. They served Prime Rib a couple nights, they had a chicken dinner night, and a spare ribs night so that is a great option other than the MDR. Plus you have a regular menu there.

[Jenjer]

We have done Disney, NCL and RCCL with kids.

 

They are all different animals. My Kids love the water slides that NCL offers. They got bored with Disney. I was also disappointed with the pool options on Disney.

 

Now Disney's service is above and beyond but we have never had any issues on other lines. In fact it surprise's me that crew learn our names and say HI regularly. When my DD had a chemical burn on her face the crew stopped us regularly and asked if she needed any help. The ship Doc even stopped and talked to us at the pool. She was fine super sensitive skin we know how to handle it. I was amazed at their concern.

 

2 big things you will notice is dinner and shows. On Disney it was dinner at 5:00 and show at 7:00 every night (can not remember the times) we moved in mass from our assigned dinning room to the show. On NCL you get to pick when and where you eat, want to pay lots of amazing options want a free dinner lots of great places to pick from. Kids are welcomed in specialty restaurants and are 1/2 price if under 12. yeah!!

 

Getaway has 2 production shows Legally Blonde and Burn the floor. They also offer the comedy group, howl at the moon, the Illusionarium (you pay for that) There are lots of choices depending on what you want to do.

 

 

I loved the basically always open kids hours of Disney but my kids have enjoyed the kids club as much on other lines. We enjoy some grown up time while the kids make friends a few hours a day. You can have the kids stay at meal time on NCL but there is a extra charge its small like $5. We have never done that we enjoy eating as a family but thats us.

 

I know my first time I was intimidated with the reservations for everything. Booking kids into the specialty restaurants required we do it on ship. Never did we have a problem getting the time we wanted. Never did we miss a show we wanted to see. But we eat early so I am sure that helps.

 

 

We are on Getaway the week before you. Remember the cost difference from Disney to NCL its HUGE.

 

If you go in with a open mind you will have a great time. If you are looking for issues you can always find some. Kids splashing, busy elevators, rude people ect. all lines, all cruises have that. Relax its a vacation.

[beachmonkey]

The electronic boards on every floor make finding a restaurant easy. It lets you know how busy they currently are and where the wait, if any, would be short. We never had to wait very long.

[Va. Plumber]

Can't speak to Getaway, but we found Epic service to be very prompt.

 

We had to wait about 15 minutes for a table one night in MDR. No big deal. I am sure you have waited longer at home.

 

As to Osheehan's, we were amazed at how fast the food was delivered.

Never a long wiat and well done. The nightly specials were excellent.

[sixesandeights]

My family will be sailing the Getaway on June 7. We are a family of four, with two boys aged 12 and 9. We just took our kids on their first cruise last August on the Disney Dream and we all loved it. Please ease my mind that all of us will have a ball on this ship. It sounds great, but I'm a little concerned about freestyle dining and long waits for a table with two hungry boys.

 

Just wanted to say that my husband and I are keeping an open mind. We know that Disney and NCL are two different lines and we are not coming into this expecting Disney. However, I think Disney set the bar pretty high and I'm hoping we aren't disappointed.

 

Help me NCL lovers.

 

I would go expecting to wait for dinner in MDR's. I was on the Epic beginning of March. The boat was not full (they said we were about 800 people low) and there was ALWAYS a wait for the Dining room. The wait was typically 30 minutes, and one night they NEVER called my pager.

 

Now, I realize that because this post is not 100% glowing review of NCL it will get bashed, but it is what it is. That said we enjoyed the food in the Buffet very much and made that our go too. We ate in Cagney's and it was VERY good. We had a reservation at Moderno, but after sitting at a table for 20 minutes and no one greeting us we got up and asked for a refund. We ate a the hibachi place, and it was ok but they rushed our table because 2 people had a show (even though we specifically asked for a table with no rush) and they seemed to just stop the show portion and simply cooked the food as fast as possible....

 

Overall the food situation was very different then we are used to, but it was never hard to find something delicious to eat.

 

The other aspect of freestyle that we LOVED and did not anticipate was the casual dress at all times of day. I am usually a person that loves to dress up each night on a cruise, but on NCL that is not required at all. In fact the one night I wore a tie I felt very out of place so on or next trip (NCL Getaway) I will not bring any suits or ties.

 

My wife has done Disney cruises in the past and talked about how magical they were. You will not get that same exact feeling, but there will be plenty to do on Getaway.

 

As with anything in life it will be what you make of it. Dont try to compare to past cruises until after. Try to enjoy every moment and just enjoy being on a beautiful boat in a beautiful location.

 

Best of luck on your trip.

 

6&8

Edited April 1, 2014 by sixesandeights

[mayesq]

Thanks everybody. We are very excited and I'm sure we'll have fun.

 

The price difference between NCL and Disney is huge. More than twice as much to sail a 7 day on Disney. I just can't justify that difference, no matter how much soda we drink ;)

 

You all have made me feel much better about our choice. I know that on this trip, the food will not be an event.....and that's fine with me. I'm sure the boys will be much happier that way as well.

[Jenjer]

I agree its 10K on Disney for what we can pay 4K on Getaway. Thats a lot of soda :-)

 

I would highly recommend booking some specialty dinners. On Epic we could not book until we were on ship and that freaked me out but I never had a problem and I even changed our reservation without issues.

 

On Epic we only ate in the MDR once. On Getaway we don't plan on ever eating there just to many options.

 

From what I have read Lobster night is Sunday at the buffet. I know its not a big a deal but to my DS (10) who can eat his weight in lobster its a HUGE deal. Since on all other ships it has been served in the main dinning room my son will sit down and order 3 tails. The waiter says "I will bring 1 and you eat that first." The kid has always eaten 3 or 4 tails shocking everyone. We cut him off at 4.

 

O'sheehans is another option Not sure if this is 100% correct some said

 

Sat Prime Rib

Sun Ribs

Mon. Prime Rib

Tue Chicken Fry

Wed Spare Ribs

Thur Prime Rib

Fri Chicken Fry

[BeesandLadybug]

My family and I (DH, myself, our daughter, three grandkids, 17, 13, 12) just got back from the Getaway and everyone had a great time. We never had to wait in line for any of the MDRs, with the Tropicana being our favorite, but Taste and Savor were also great, and with 4,000 passengers, we never had to wait for breakfast, lunch or dinner. We were almost always at the restaurant by 6:30 p.m., and there may have been 2-3 couples ahead of us, but they moved quickly. We also ate at La Cucina because it was the cheapest ($15 pp, and with 6 people it quickly adds up). Our 12-year old grandson ate from the restaurant menu and they only charged $7.50 for him. I had prepaid our dinner and we were credited the $7.50 to our account. The Splash Academy was great fun for our 12-year old, and both our 13-year granddaughter and our 17-year old grandson, made friends at the Entourage. One word of advice: make sure your children attend the first day at the kids' clubs so they get to meet and greet other kids their age. If you wait until later on, everybody will have made their cliques, and unless your children are super sociable, they may get bored and feel out of place. For real savings, wait until the last day of the cruise for shopping onboard. They have great sales. The kids loved the water slides, the rope course and the zip line which is how you return from the rope course. Lots of activities and not enough time to fully get to see and do everything that's offered. Throughout the cruise, they offer you $100 OBC if you book a future cruise with a $250 deposit. The cruise would need to be 6 or more days and you have up to four years to take it, however, in the meantime, you have an extra $100 to spend onboard. When the NCL Escape gets to Miami in October of 2015, it will take over the GA's itinerary, but instead of St. Maarten, it will be Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands. The Getaway will then do the Western Caribbean. We all loved St. Maarten and I'm hoping they change their minds and not remove it from the itinerary. Have a wonderful time!! You will absolutely love the Getaway!!

[Cruiser Who Knows Nothing]

My family and I (DH, myself, our daughter, three grandkids, 17, 13, 12) just got back from the Getaway and everyone had a great time. We never had to wait in line for any of the MDRs, with the Tropicana being our favorite, but Taste and Savor were also great, and with 4,000 passengers, we never had to wait for breakfast, lunch or dinner. We were almost always at the restaurant by 6:30 p.m., and there may have been 2-3 couples ahead of us, but they moved quickly. We also ate at La Cucina because it was the cheapest ($15 pp, and with 6 people it quickly adds up). Our 12-year old grandson ate from the restaurant menu and they only charged $7.50 for him. I had prepaid our dinner and we were credited the $7.50 to our account. The Splash Academy was great fun for our 12-year old, and both our 13-year granddaughter and our 17-year old grandson, made friends at the Entourage. One word of advice: make sure your children attend the first day at the kids' clubs so they get to meet and greet other kids their age. If you wait until later on, everybody will have made their cliques, and unless your children are super sociable, they may get bored and feel out of place. For real savings, wait until the last day of the cruise for shopping onboard. They have great sales. The kids loved the water slides, the rope course and the zip line which is how you return from the rope course. Lots of activities and not enough time to fully get to see and do everything that's offered. Throughout the cruise, they offer you $100 OBC if you book a future cruise with a $250 deposit. The cruise would need to be 6 or more days and you have up to four years to take it, however, in the meantime, you have an extra $100 to spend onboard. When the NCL Escape gets to Miami in October of 2015, it will take over the GA's itinerary, but instead of St. Maarten, it will be Tortola, in the British Virgin Islands. The Getaway will then do the Western Caribbean. We all loved St. Maarten and I'm hoping they change their minds and not remove it from the itinerary. Have a wonderful time!! You will absolutely love the Getaway!!

 

 

Great post. Since my kids have to be in separate clubs, I will make sure they both attend on the first day. Thanks for the tip :)

 

 

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