Norwegian Getaway Review with 107 photos & 9 videos!

[clayb]

Hello, tapcrazy.

 

You mentioned that you "lucked out" and booked a Haven suite.

What does that mean? Did you win the lottery?

Not trying to get into your personal affairs, just curious that someone else also mention luck regarding getting a Haven suite.

[clayb]

Spaniel Lover:

 

Thanks so much for posting this very comprehensive review of the Getaway. We will be sailing her in October. Can't wait!

 

In regards to your camera, I have an EOS Rebel 3 but struggle with available light on indoor shots. What settings did you commonly use? High ISO? Very fast lens? Tripod?

Any tricks that you care to share would be appreciated. I just don't seem to have as much success on my indoor shots.

 

Thanks in advance.

Clay

[Utas2]

This is seriously one of the best threads and report ever on this forum, it is informative, full of useful advices, loads of very good quality images, and a personal touch.

 

Congratulations!

 

It not only brought back the memories of the wonderful time that we spent on the NCL Getaway in May this year, but it is really professionally written and well thought through.

 

I wish I could do another cruise on the Getaway....

[Cliodhna112]

The inflatable slides in nassau, blue lagoon beach day... Are they up everyday and also what price to use them??

Great review by the way!

[Cruiser Bruiser]

Julie is on the Breakaway and i agree with you she is the best ever, I have been on 8 NCL cruises and she is great, i will be back on the BA 2 more times in NOv and Feb and i hope she always will be there, i know the chances of that happen are small but i only can hope.

 

Thanks for the update re Julie! :) I'm glad you're a fan of Breakaway, too. I'm threatening to do the 12-night southern Caribbean if it's still offered in late 2016. It's funny to me that Breakaway got beat up so badly when she debuted, but Getaway has been beloved from the get-go. I wonder if Getaway had been the first in the class if the feelings would have been reversed?

 

Anyway, thanks again, OP, for the awesome review of Getaway, and the chance to see the exclusive Haven. I might not ever get to see it otherwise! :p

[Steph27]

Great review of Getaway. Love the format and photos. You also kept the descriptions down to a minimum yet the narrative was still excellent. How did you get the photos to post to the same size? I posted a review of the Ocean Princess but some photos went across the entire page. Couldn't figure out how to size them. Lastly, what kind of Spaniels do you have?

[Spaniel Lover]

Was the internet on the ship charged by the minutes online or usage (mB) ?

 

It was sold in packages by the minute.

[Spaniel Lover]

You may have mentioned this, but what's the "real deal" with the Lawry's Seasoned Salt? LOL!!! :D:D

 

I find that sprinkling some on top makes eggs and potatoes taste better. It improves the taste of an omelet and potatoes at breakfast, for example... or french fries at lunch. I bring along a small shaker.

[Spaniel Lover]

In regards to your camera, I have an EOS Rebel 3 but struggle with available light on indoor shots. What settings did you commonly use? High ISO? Very fast lens? Tripod?

Any tricks that you care to share would be appreciated. I just don't seem to have as much success on my indoor shots.

 

As you can probably tell, I'm serious about photography during a vacation. So, I always bring along a tripod. Very useful not only for "selfies", but also especially useful for taking low light shots of things that aren't moving. For example, a picture of the spa at night, without people in it. Because nothing is moving, you can do a very long exposure using a low iso setting like 400 or 800. If you were to do that shot handheld, you would have to go way up on the iso, which would make for a very grainy picture.

 

For your Digital Rebel, pay particular attention to the iso setting. For handheld shots, set it to auto iso. For tripod shots, set the iso down as low as you can get away with.

 

Also, on low light handheld shots, it helps to put the camera in shutter priority mode... setting the shutter to the lowest shutter speed you think you can get away with without the shakiness of your hands blurring the picture. So, for example, on a handheld shot I might set the camera on auto iso and put the shutter at 1/40th of a second... and let the camera choose the rest of the settings.

 

When there's lots of light, the camera usually does very well in fully automatic mode.

 

[Spaniel Lover]

The inflatable slides in nassau, blue lagoon beach day... Are they up everyday and also what price to use them??

Great review by the way!

 

As far as I know, there's always up. It's normally $15 per person to use them. The week we were there, the were offering a hurricane-season discount... pricing the water park ticket at $13 per person.

[Spaniel Lover]

How did you get the photos to post to the same size? I posted a review of the Ocean Princess but some photos went across the entire page. Couldn't figure out how to size them. Lastly, what kind of Spaniels do you have?

 

I resize the photos to 1000 pixels wide. That seems to be the perfect size for Cruise Critic. Anything smaller and you don't get the full impact, anything larger and most people would have to scroll to see them.

 

We raised Cocker Spaniels (as just a hobby, not a business) for 15 years, and retired from that in 2010. We are down to just one very spoiled house dog now... a puppy we kept from one of our litters... and she is now 12 years old.

[willise]

Great review! Makes me even more excited for our Getaway B2B in April for our 20th anniversary!

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to write this review!

 

PS: Love the cocker spaniels - had one when I was a kid. Now we have 2 Bernese Mountain dogs - truly man's best friend!

[cruisecritiquer]

I'm cruising on the Getaway in about 32 days and I hope your wife doesn't mind but I love you. I really appreciate your review. I am just about to burst open with joy.

Edited September 23, 2014 by cruisecritiquer

[aquarianne11]

Amazing photos! Thanks for your review. Hoping to book a Getaway cruise for 2015.

[tjt52545]

Reading your comprehensive review made me so excited for my cruise this weekend. The points that you mentioned were exactly what I wanted to know. Thanks for sharing your experiences!!!

[buddyjo143]

Love, love, love your review. I am student teaching right now so it is hard for me to get excited for this cruise. Thanks for giving me a vicarious break today.

 

Can you tell me how late the spa is open? We upgraded to a spa balcony so we could have access.

 

Thanks.

[52marv]

Wow! Outstanding videos, review and pics!! I shared it with my family as 11 of us will be in the Haven in June. You made those who are reluctant to cruise NCL (we had a bad experience on the Gem) very happy.

 

Thanks!

[Spaniel Lover]

You made those who are reluctant to cruise NCL (we had a bad experience on the Gem) very happy.

 

Back in 2008, we had a not-so-great experience on the Norwegian Star. It compared very poorly to what we had experienced with Carnival. So, for six years after that, we never cruised with NCL again.

 

But I've been keeping my eyes on developments at NCL, starting with the introduction of The Haven, and more seriously with some interesting features on the Epic, and then some amazing improvements on the Breakaway. Didn't want to cruise out of New York, though, to experience them!

 

Once NCL introduced the Getaway and based it in Miami, it sure looked to me like things had improved substantially... and like it was time to give NCL another try. I'm really glad I did.

[kenrod]

Thank you for your excellent pictorial and narrative of your cruise Spaniel Lover. I enjoyed everything.

 

I may just have to book a cruise on the Getaway or the Breakaway, depending on the itinerary.

 

Thanks once again!

[Spaniel Lover]

Can you tell me how late the spa is open? We upgraded to a spa balcony so we could have access.

 

10 PM every night, except the very last night of the cruise... when it closes at 8 PM.

 

[Ismay1912]

Thank you for the thorough review of the Norwegian Getaway. We are staying in one of those "corner Aft Facing Penthouse Suites", and are certainly looking forward to spending time on that balcony. Your review only adds to that excitement, as now, we have a picture of it. You have given many delightful insights into the Norwegian Getaway and all she has to offer us.

We can't wait to experience the Haven on this vessel. Having experienced it aboard the Norwegian Epic, just recently, I can appreciate your wonderful comments in reference to the same.

Although NCL welcomes the "freestyle/casual" look for dining, there are still a few of us left who enjoy "dressing" for those dinners. Your review only adds to that experience for us.

We look forward to the extended dining experiences of the Speciality Restaurants, as we have enjoyed many of them on our past Norwegian Ships.

We have sailed some of the "other lines" on some of our past voyages, but always find ourselves back in the comfort of Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Out of 17 cruises so far, 12 have been with Norwegian.

When you find something good..........you never look back.

 

Again, thank you for the wonderful review.

 

It was a pleasure experiencing it.

 

 

 

Respectfully,

 

 

Steve.

 

 

(Mr. Ismay:D)

[mtns2sea]

WOW! Great review! I'll have to make some planning notes for my upcoming Getaway. Thanks for posting.

[Pkae]

Wow! I am truly amazed with the depth of this review. Sailing in 9 days on the Getaway. I feel as if I have a "leg up" on my shipmates....lol. We are in a forward facing Haven penthouse. The Haven is a new concept for us, but after reading your review......I am 100% confident this will be awesome! Thanks!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[xenagurl]

Great write up and photos!

[cruiserking]

Thank You for your terrific, interesting and comprehensive review of the NCL Getaway Jim. I have long been a fan of your reviews and enjoyed many of them over the years.

 

Your photographs are vivid and exciting and the videos are entertaining too.

 

Well Done.

 

Jonathan