NCL Escape 4/2-4/9 Review

[Hawks LOB]

We recently returned from our cruise on the Escape and I wanted to provide some thoughts since reading other people's reviews was so helpful before our cruise. Our family of 4 (2 adults 40's and 50's and 2 boys 12 & 16) cruised in a balcony stateroom on deck 10. This was our first NCL cruise (not counting my very first cruise 30 years ago which was on NCL), we have previously sailed Princess and Carnival as a family. We love the sun, water and being active so I looked for a ship that provided a lot of outdoor activities like water slides and ropes course. After reading the initial poor reviews of the Escape, I almost cancelled before our final payment was due. I'm so glad we didn't cancel because this turned our to be our favorite cruise!

 

We flew in to Fort Lauderdale on Friday and stayed at the Hyatt Place near the airport. Our transportation got us to the Port of Miami by 10:00am Saturday morning. Check in was very easy, we were in group 4 and on the ship quickly. Our room was not ready when we boarded so we went up to the pool deck, changed into our bathing suits and rode the water slides several times. There was no line because everyone was busy eating and checking out the ship. We had lunch at the Garden Cafe and even though it was crowded there were no lines and we easily found a table. We also made our reservations for the comedy shows on one of the digital screens on the ship which was super easy.

 

Our stateroom was nice and it was great having a balcony. Our cabin was close to the aft elevators on floor 10 and very quiet.

 

We ate all meals in the complimentary restaurants (Manhattan, Taste, Savor and Garden Cafe). The music in the Manhattan was nice, but too loud to have a conversation while eating, and we weren't super close to the band. Food and service was good in each of the dining rooms and we never had a wait. This was our first time cruising "freestyle" and I did miss having the same waiter in the dining room for dinner that got to know you and could make suggestions on what to order. What was great was dinning whenever you wanted and not having formal nights!

 

Our boys went to Splash Academy and Entourage and met other kids their ages. They didn't spend a lot of time there, but it was a nice way to make friends for the cruise.

 

We had beautiful weather the entire week and enjoyed all the outside activities the ship offered on the sea days. The drop slides, Aqua Racer and ropes course were our favorites! Thursday was quite windy and there were swells so you could feel the ship move. Nothing worse then I've felt on other cruises, but we're not prone to sea sickness. The pool decks were crowded, but we were always able to find a couple lounge chairs one level above the main pool so we could see the entertainment and hear the music. I loved the Golden Octaves band that played by the pool! We had the UBP and bar service was always excellent. Our boys loved all of the virgin blended tropical drinks!

 

The entertainment we went to was great! We loved the comedians and saw 3 comedy shows throughout the week. After Midnight was also great, the performers were excellent! The game shows in the Atrium were fun (and funny). Silas, the cruise director did a great job hosting. We didn't see Vocal Overdrive since I'd read it wasn't very good and we didn't want to waste our time. The entertainment will be even better when they move the Brat Pack to the Theater.

 

The nighttime 80s Party and Glow Party in Spice H2O were excellent! The music was fun and hundreds of people were out there dancing. My youngest got to decorate a white t-shirt with glow paint to wear for the glow party.

 

The smell of smoke was noticeable near the casino, especially for our youngest son who is very sensitive to smoke. It didn't ruin anything for us, but it's too bad they couldn't wall in the casino with glass to contain the smell on such a beautiful new ship.

 

We did all of our shore excursions on our own.

 

In St. Thomas we took the ferry over to St. John to Trunk Bay for snorkeling. The beach is beautiful and not too crowded.

 

On Tortola we went to a relatively unknown beautiful beach called Josiah's Bay to go surfing and boogie boarding. Our oldest son really wanted to surf on this vacation so I researched ahead of time and found this hidden jewel. We took a taxi from the ship and arranged a pickup time with the driver for our return. This beach is about a 20 minute ride over on the north side of the island. When we arrived there were literally only a couple people there (in addition to the chickens and kitties) and it never got crowded. The waves were about 4-6 feet which was a bit challenging for us beginners but we all had a blast. There is a surf shack on the beach that rents surf boards for $10/hr. and boogie boards for $5/hr. You could also take surfing lessons which I believe were $60/hr.

 

In Nassau we took the #10 city bus to Cable Beach for some parasailing. We used JR Action Watersports in front of the Melia Resort. They took us around the beautiful bay and it was a lot of fun.

 

On Saturday we got up and had breakfast in the Garden Cafe and carried our own luggage off the ship. We weren't in a hurry since we weren't flying out until Sunday. Getting through customs was quick and we easily found transportation to our hotel in Fort Lauderdale. We stayed at the Hyatt Pier 66 which is on the intercoastal and near the beach and the airport.

 

All in all we had an excellent cruise on the NCL Escape! We chose this ship based on all of the activities that were available to entertain our family and the ship certainly did that!

[patsfantb12goat]

Nice review! Thanks!

[Cruzinbabe06]

Nice review.

 

Thank you for taking the time to post.:)

[Sand and Seas]

Thanks for the great review! We loved the Escape and as soon as we returned we booked another cruise on her:D

[TheDougOut]

Great review! Thanks for taking the time to share your experience.

[OneWord]

Delightful.

[BosReq]

Thank you! So glad to hear you had a great time! My daughter (14) and I are looking forward to our cruise starting on Saturday (not counting the hours... really....) so fabulous to hear your highlights.

 

You touched on a couple of things I have wondered about - I have the UDP and as a result, DD had to take the soda package. She doesn't actually drink soda but loves the virgin cocktails - were those included in the package?

 

Also good to hear that that they enjoyed use of the slides on embarkation day. I am expecting to get yanked into doing them so would rather do it when I don't have to wait in lines.... :-) Saturday might be the day! Will definitely pack swimsuits in the carry - on.

 

Thanks for the tips on St. Johns too...

[Aussiegrlfl]

Thank you for taking the time to write this review....I do have a question...I also want to take the ferry to St. John but my hubby is a bit worried about time etc, did you take the ferry right from Charlotte Amalie or did you taxi to Red Hook and once on St. John which beach did you go to.....and then which ferry time back and did you have any time issues.......this is something I really want to do....I want to go to Cinnamon bay.....and any advice you can give me would be wonderful.....thankyou in advance.

[Hawks LOB]

Hi BosReq,

My husband and I both had the UBP and our kids didn't have any plan because we were all in the same cabin. All of the bartenders let us order virgin drinks or sodas for our boys using our card. Sometimes they would put 2 drinks at one time on a card and sometimes they would have to swipe the card twice but we never had any problems ordering drinks for our kids. The dining room waiters would also bring the boys Shirley Temples at dinner.

Yes, doing the slides when you board the ship is great because there is no lines. Also, if you stay on the ship during a port day I heard the lines where short.

Have a great cruise, I'm sure you're excited!

[Hawks LOB]

Hi Aussiegrlfl,

We took the ferry from Red Hook (taxi to the ferry dock). I believe the ferries ran every hour. We did just miss one at Red Hook and had to wait for the next one on the way to St. John. On the way back we got to the ferry in time and our return was much quicker. We went to Trunk Bay which was very nice. I think Cinnamon Bay is just a little past Trunk Bay. It was an easy taxi ride from the ferry dock, maybe 15 minutes. I heard later that there is some sort of transportation from about a mile from the pier in St. Thomas to St. John, but I don't have any details on that.

[Clarea]

Very enjoyable review, thank-you.

[Jenjer]

Great review thanks

[BosReq]

hi bosreq,

my husband and i both had the ubp and our kids didn't have any plan because we were all in the same cabin. All of the bartenders let us order virgin drinks or sodas for our boys using our card. Sometimes they would put 2 drinks at one time on a card and sometimes they would have to swipe the card twice but we never had any problems ordering drinks for our kids. The dining room waiters would also bring the boys shirley temples at dinner.

Yes, doing the slides when you board the ship is great because there is no lines. Also, if you stay on the ship during a port day i heard the lines where short.

Have a great cruise, i'm sure you're excited!

 

thank you!

[NeurosurgeryNP]

Great review. Thanks. Sailing the Escape in 9 days! Can't wait.

[breezer]

Nice review and thanks for posting. I have a question. What transportation did you use to get to port in Miami and back to FLL. I'll be in the same situation when I go on Escape.

[kayleighbayleigh]

There is a surf shack on the beach that rents surf boards for $10/hr. and boogie boards for $5/hr. You could also take surfing lessons which I believe were $60/hr.

 

Was this $60 for lessons per person or could a couple get away with paying a flat $60 for the both of them? Did you take these lessons? Thanks in advance :)

[bigblue82]

Nice review and thanks for posting. I have a question. What transportation did you use to get to port in Miami and back to FLL. I'll be in the same situation when I go on Escape.

 

We have used both SAS (ridesas.com) and MJS (gomjstrans.com) from FLL to POM. Both are $15/person/each way. Using MJS again in July.

[bigblue82]

Thank you for taking the time to write this review....I do have a question...I also want to take the ferry to St. John but my hubby is a bit worried about time etc, did you take the ferry right from Charlotte Amalie or did you taxi to Red Hook and once on St. John which beach did you go to.....and then which ferry time back and did you have any time issues.......this is something I really want to do....I want to go to Cinnamon bay.....and any advice you can give me would be wonderful.....thankyou in advance.

 

Aussie, just remember that the ferry leaves from each dock on the hour. Buy your return ticket at Red Hook. CBay is about a 20 min taxi ride from/to dock. Depending on number of ships in St Thomas, leave yourself plenty of time to get from Red Hook back to cruise port, there could be traffic. What are your port times?

[Sissaaaaaa]

Thanks for the review!

[Hawks LOB]

Was this $60 for lessons per person or could a couple get away with paying a flat $60 for the both of them? Did you take these lessons? Thanks in advance :)

 

I believe the $60 was per person for a surfing lesson. The surf shack is very small and laid back, they might negotiate the price of lessons? We didn't do the lesson, we just rented the boards. My husband and oldest son surfed and my youngest son and I boogie boarded. Check out the reviews of Josiah's Bay on Trip Advisor, that's where I found out about it!

[kayleighbayleigh]

I believe the $60 was per person for a surfing lesson. The surf shack is very small and laid back, they might negotiate the price of lessons? We didn't do the lesson, we just rented the boards. My husband and oldest son surfed and my youngest son and I boogie boarded. Check out the reviews of Josiah's Bay on Trip Advisor, that's where I found out about it!

Had your husband and son surfed before? We're planning on renting a car and driving to different beaches in Tortola and I figured stopping at Josiah's Bay to learn to surf would be fun as I have never done it before and I'd be too afraid to surf anywhere else because of sharks!

 

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[davidwar]

Great review! Thanks for taking the time to share your experience.

 

Doug, I just got through your 50+ page review. Really enjoyed it. Wish you were going to be on our 2 week cruise on the Escape in late July! I would really enjoy hanging out with you!

[Hawks LOB]

Had your husband and son surfed before? We're planning on renting a car and driving to different beaches in Tortola and I figured stopping at Josiah's Bay to learn to surf would be fun as I have never done it before and I'd be too afraid to surf anywhere else because of sharks!

 

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Yes, my husband and son had surfed before, but they are beginners. I watched the guys teaching lessons and everyone seemed to get up on the waves and looked like they were having fun (although some looked tired!).

 

Have you been to Tortola before? I would be very hesitant to rent a car and drive around the island! It is mountainous with very narrow roads, they drive on the left and the drivers are pretty crazy. Riding in a taxi is a bit like riding on a roller coaster, but at least I didn't have to do the driving! ;) You could probably hire a taxi for the time you are on the island and have him drive you to different beaches. Josiah's Bay is a very quiet beach so I would be sure to arrange a pickup time for your return to the ship since taxis don't just hang out there.

[kayleighbayleigh]

Yes, my husband and son had surfed before, but they are beginners. I watched the guys teaching lessons and everyone seemed to get up on the waves and looked like they were having fun (although some looked tired!).

 

Have you been to Tortola before? I would be very hesitant to rent a car and drive around the island! It is mountainous with very narrow roads, they drive on the left and the drivers are pretty crazy. Riding in a taxi is a bit like riding on a roller coaster, but at least I didn't have to do the driving! ;) You could probably hire a taxi for the time you are on the island and have him drive you to different beaches. Josiah's Bay is a very quiet beach so I would be sure to arrange a pickup time for your return to the ship since taxis don't just hang out there.

I haven't driven in Tortola but I have driven on the left side in tight, hilly areas of Fiji, New Zealand, etc. so I feel confident in renting a car there. It's part of the fun!

 

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[Hawks LOB]

I haven't driven in Tortola but I have driven on the left side in tight, hilly areas of Fiji, New Zealand, etc. so I feel confident in renting a car there. It's part of the fun!

 

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Sounds like you're experienced! :) I just wanted to make sure you knew what the roads were like in Tortola. You'll be able to plan a great island beach tour!