Everything... Norwegian ENCORE! Launch Nov 2019

[tallnthensome]

7 hours ago, UFMOM said:

Glad I am on the New Years Cruise. Long enough to get the T’s  crossed and the I’s dotted, but not so long that you lose that new car smell.😁

 

Mary Ann

That is true . No way I’d ever book an inaugural cruise for any ship. I don’t see the appeal at all with all the risk of an incomplete ship and a staff that isn’t well trained nor having experience working together with their new team. So much safer to be on a sailing at least 30-60 days after the initial sailing. I would never pony up the money just to say I was first .  

[CazV]

9 hours ago, SailBreakaway said:

Is that the BrewHouse? Thats no bueno kids. Bremerhaven to Southampton sailing is only less than 3 weeks away... Maybe they pull it all together at the end... I Hope! 

The comments along with the photos suggested they were from Onda and Food Republic.

[podgeandrodge]

1 hour ago, tallnthensome said:

That is true . No way I’d ever book an inaugural cruise for any ship. I don’t see the appeal at all with all the risk of an incomplete ship and a staff that isn’t well trained nor having experience working together with their new team. So much safer to be on a sailing at least 30-60 days after the initial sailing. I would never pony up the money just to say I was first .  

A couple of thousand people disagree with you though,  and actually enjoy the 'risk' of going. 

As for "so much safer", that's just nonsense! 

[tallnthensome]

1 minute ago, podgeandrodge said:

A couple of thousand people disagree with you though,  and actually enjoy the 'risk' of going. 

As for "so much safer", that's just nonsense! 

That’s not personal safety wise, guy. That’s overall cruise satisfaction and avoiding issues of disappointment .....

[podgeandrodge]

11 minutes ago, tallnthensome said:

That’s not personal safety wise, guy. That’s overall cruise satisfaction and avoiding issues of disappointment .....

As I said, a couple of thousand people believe this voyage will represent cruise satisfaction. 

Maybe some people are just less easily disappointed.

In which case you are probably right to wait until you're sure you will be satisfied. I do see your point.

 

[bkrickles1]

9 hours ago, UFMOM said:

Glad I am on the New Years Cruise. Long enough to get the T’s  crossed and the I’s dotted, but not so long that you lose that new car smell.😁

 

Mary Ann

Agreed.

We're booked for January 19th and getting pretty excited.

We always used to pick cruises on brand new ships, but haven't done that in a few years.

There's always a little more excitement being on a new ship and, we believe the cruise lines typically put their best people on the new ships to get off to a good start and help with all the initial reviews done by various experts/so-called experts.

This is what we were always told by rccl when we used to sail their new ships.

Anyway, it will be a super fun experience because it's vacation and we'll be on a beautiful cruise ship.

[FreestyleNovice]

Stowaway FreestyleNovice here..

[podgeandrodge]

12 minutes ago, FreestyleNovice said:

Stowaway FreestyleNovice here..

Already posted though. 

[FreestyleNovice]

1 minute ago, podgeandrodge said:

Already posted though. 

 

Argh..! 

[LrgPizza]

2 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

That is true . No way I’d ever book an inaugural cruise for any ship. I don’t see the appeal at all with all the risk of an incomplete ship and a staff that isn’t well trained nor having experience working together with their new team. So much safer to be on a sailing at least 30-60 days after the initial sailing. I would never pony up the money just to say I was first .  

In reality, the cruise line brings in its top #1 staff to open up new ships. It's the best service I've ever had on a cruise in my life. Since you haven't done it, I can forgive you your inaccurate assumptions. 

Edited October 10, 2019 by LrgPizza

[TSUmom]

My bucket list now includes and inaugural cruise....I think it would be so much fun to be one of the first passengers to experience a new ship!

[SailBreakaway]

2 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

That is true . No way I’d ever book an inaugural cruise for any ship. I don’t see the appeal at all with all the risk of an incomplete ship and a staff that isn’t well trained nor having experience working together with their new team. So much safer to be on a sailing at least 30-60 days after the initial sailing. I would never pony up the money just to say I was first .  

 

I thoughy about this and have to weigh in, mainly so other members don’t have a false understanding of safety at sea. I’m not going to touch the hotel side of this post, just the operational safety side, the hotel side of this discussion is to each their own. 

 

1.  “All the risk of an incomplete ship”: So hotel side again not-withstanding, as we speak the ship is undergoing sea trials and rigorous safety testing and exercises to ensure the vessel itself id absolutely 100% and the customer’s procedures and training in simulators and classroom prior  becomes a consolidation of knowledge and skills in this time.  The ship will be 100% safe and operationally capable and tested and proven so extensively. There is no unacceptable risk or unmitigated  risk that exists when the vessel begins revenue service with the operator. Period. 

 

2.”All the risk of a staff that isn’t well trained nor having experience working together with their new team”. The crew, officers, and staff that are on board are fully trained, highly experienced, and are usually the most senior and best performing in the operation. Going from any Breakaway or BA+ class to Encore is only a matter of learning small differences otherwise it is like showing up at the same place to work. The crews are aboard for sea trials and also undergo safety drills training and evaluation. Bottom line they are fully trained and very experienced. As for not having worked together with their new team, every day crew come and go beginning  and ending their contracts aboard the ship. They are used to working with different team players all the time. It is a normal way of life.  Crewmembers follow very strict standard procedures and standardization training is a big piece in the training, especially for officers, engineering staff, bridge crew, and safety sensitive maritime operations positions. By training standard operating procedures and stressing standardization any one crew member can work along side any other and still be 100% effective. There is again, no unmitigated safety risk or unacceptable risk in this operation. 

 

Now to make a parallel to another area of commercial passenger transportation I know maybe a little about: Every day you, and millions board jets around the world with flight crew and cabin crew that have never met before, and every day in America and around the world millions of people depart and arrive safely at their destination. They haven’t worked together with their team... They are trained (and evaluated) and undergo strict standardization so this effectively happens. Like wise, every day passengers board a brand new jet, that has been teated and found airworthy, the air carrier has undergone “sea trials” with the new make/model of jet in rigorous Proving and Validation exercises and evaluations to prove their ability to safely operate the new jet to their respective Federal Aviation regulatory agencies. This is the exact same situation as what’s happening with Encore today, and people do it every day in aviation.  

 

So I took the time to put this differing view together to ensure our fellow CC members do not walk away thinking cruise ships operate with unmitigated risk or are unsafe when a ship is put into service, quite the contrary folks, the vessel and her crew is probably as good as they ever will be coming out of those sea trials and training and rigorous experience. Hotel staff are eager to make a great impression and corporate standards and expectations of them are highest of their careers at that point, for a highly marketed new product for customers, so Hotel staff as well are at their best game. 

 

Thx for allowing me to share a differing perspective. 

 

[podgeandrodge]

7 minutes ago, SailBreakaway said:

 

I thoughy about this and have to weigh in, mainly so other members don’t have a false understanding of safety at sea. I’m not going to touch the hotel side of this post, just the operational safety side, the hotel side of this discussion is to each their own. 

 

1.  “All the risk of an incomplete ship”: So hotel side again not-withstanding, as we speak the ship is undergoing sea trials and rigorous safety testing and exercises to ensure the vessel itself id absolutely 100% and the customer’s procedures and training in simulators and classroom prior  becomes a consolidation of knowledge and skills in this time.  The ship will be 100% safe and operationally capable and tested and proven so extensively. There is no unacceptable risk or unmitigated  risk that exists when the vessel begins revenue service with the operator. Period. 

 

2.”All the risk of a staff that isn’t well trained nor having experience working together with their new team”. The crew, officers, and staff that are on board are fully trained, highly experienced, and are usually the most senior and best performing in the operation. Going from any Breakaway or BA+ class to Encore is only a matter of learning small differences otherwise it is like showing up at the same place to work. The crews are aboard for sea trials and also undergo safety drills training and evaluation. Bottom line they are fully trained and very experienced. As for not having worked together with their new team, every day crew come and go beginning  and ending their contracts aboard the ship. They are used to working with different team players all the time. It is a normal way of life.  Crewmembers follow very strict standard procedures and standardization training is a big piece in the training, especially for officers, engineering staff, bridge crew, and safety sensitive maritime operations positions. By training standard operating procedures and stressing standardization any one crew member can work along side any other and still be 100% effective. There is again, no unmitigated safety risk or unacceptable risk in this operation. 

 

Now to make a parallel to another area of commercial passenger transportation I know maybe a little about: Every day you, and millions board jets around the world with flight crew and cabin crew that have never met before, and every day in America and around the world millions of people depart and arrive safely at their destination. They haven’t worked together with their team... They are trained (and evaluated) and undergo strict standardization so this effectively happens. Like wise, every day passengers board a brand new jet, that has been teated and found airworthy, the air carrier has undergone “sea trials” with the new make/model of jet in rigorous Proving and Validation exercises and evaluations to prove their ability to safely operate the new jet to their respective Federal Aviation regulatory agencies. This is the exact same situation as what’s happening with Encore today, and people do it every day in aviation.  

 

So I took the time to put this differing view together to ensure our fellow CC members do not walk away thinking cruise ships operate with unmitigated risk or are unsafe when a ship is put into service, quite the contrary folks, the vessel and her crew is probably as good as they ever will be coming out of those sea trials and training and rigorous experience. Hotel staff are eager to make a great impression and corporate standards and expectations of them are highest of their careers at that point, for a highly marketed new product for customers, so Hotel staff as well are at their best game. 

 

Thx for allowing me to share a differing perspective. 

 

Thanks for putting this so well. People throwing uneducated views around helps no-one. Sure, there can be little teething problems,  which generally are acknowledged by NCL on an inaugural cruise. But nothing to worry anyone other than a few disappointment sensitive souls.

Edited October 10, 2019 by podgeandrodge

[GA Dave]

13 minutes ago, SailBreakaway said:

 

I thoughy about this and have to weigh in, mainly so other members don’t have a false understanding of safety at sea. I’m not going to touch the hotel side of this post, just the operational safety side, the hotel side of this discussion is to each their own. 

 

1.  “All the risk of an incomplete ship”: So hotel side again not-withstanding, as we speak the ship is undergoing sea trials and rigorous safety testing and exercises to ensure the vessel itself id absolutely 100% and the customer’s procedures and training in simulators and classroom prior  becomes a consolidation of knowledge and skills in this time.  The ship will be 100% safe and operationally capable and tested and proven so extensively. There is no unacceptable risk or unmitigated  risk that exists when the vessel begins revenue service with the operator. Period. 

 

2.”All the risk of a staff that isn’t well trained nor having experience working together with their new team”. The crew, officers, and staff that are on board are fully trained, highly experienced, and are usually the most senior and best performing in the operation. Going from any Breakaway or BA+ class to Encore is only a matter of learning small differences otherwise it is like showing up at the same place to work. The crews are aboard for sea trials and also undergo safety drills training and evaluation. Bottom line they are fully trained and very experienced. As for not having worked together with their new team, every day crew come and go beginning  and ending their contracts aboard the ship. They are used to working with different team players all the time. It is a normal way of life.  Crewmembers follow very strict standard procedures and standardization training is a big piece in the training, especially for officers, engineering staff, bridge crew, and safety sensitive maritime operations positions. By training standard operating procedures and stressing standardization any one crew member can work along side any other and still be 100% effective. There is again, no unmitigated safety risk or unacceptable risk in this operation. 

 

Now to make a parallel to another area of commercial passenger transportation I know maybe a little about: Every day you, and millions board jets around the world with flight crew and cabin crew that have never met before, and every day in America and around the world millions of people depart and arrive safely at their destination. They haven’t worked together with their team... They are trained (and evaluated) and undergo strict standardization so this effectively happens. Like wise, every day passengers board a brand new jet, that has been teated and found airworthy, the air carrier has undergone “sea trials” with the new make/model of jet in rigorous Proving and Validation exercises and evaluations to prove their ability to safely operate the new jet to their respective Federal Aviation regulatory agencies. This is the exact same situation as what’s happening with Encore today, and people do it every day in aviation.  

 

So I took the time to put this differing view together to ensure our fellow CC members do not walk away thinking cruise ships operate with unmitigated risk or are unsafe when a ship is put into service, quite the contrary folks, the vessel and her crew is probably as good as they ever will be coming out of those sea trials and training and rigorous experience. Hotel staff are eager to make a great impression and corporate standards and expectations of them are highest of their careers at that point, for a highly marketed new product for customers, so Hotel staff as well are at their best game. 

 

Thx for allowing me to share a differing perspective. 

 

Excellent post!  I am also involved in the aerospace field.  My employer recently certified and put into service a brand new model of aircraft.  Before being certified, we had a test program that included flying nearly 100,000 hours in our company labs and more than 3,200 flight hours on multiple test aircraft.  Those test pilots put the aircraft through every type of situation imaginable, and the test labs put the aircraft through several times its normal life on pretty much every component.  I am sure that Meyer Werft and NCL are doing pretty much the same type of thing with the Encore.

[TheDougOut]

1 hour ago, LrgPizza said:

In reality, the cruise line brings in its top #1 staff to open up new ships. It's the best service I've ever had on a cruise in my life. 

 

Agree.  

 

I’ll also add... it’s a rare opportunity to experience the classic concept of “Freestyle” cruising on a large ship.  The fact NCL undersells these sailings, you can pretty much go and do what you want without being turned away.  

[RedwingHockeyFan]

I don't think that "personal safety" was what was meant when they said "safe", I think they meant "personal satisfaction".  An Inaugural cruise can appear to some to be like a Beta Test, and I can see that.  Just because the crew has trained for all situations doesn't mean that some people won't achieve 100% personal satisfaction on a cruise.  This is Cruise Critic after all

[steamboats]

13 hours ago, SailBreakaway said:

Is that the BrewHouse? Thats no bueno kids. Bremerhaven to Southampton sailing is only less than 3 weeks away... Maybe they pull it all together at the end... I Hope! 

 

Don´t worry, they are in time...

 

I´ve been on a couple of pre inaugural cruises (meaning those for media, travel agents and invited guests). Some ships are less, some are more finished. Mostly the first ones of a class do have a lot of kinks. But the further ones are usually more finished. Of course - even with experienced crew - the crew is new to the ship and has to find the ways... Some things might take more time than usual but you mainly experience the best of the best crewwise.

 

steamboats

[UFMOM]

I have no problem with being on the first cruise,  but I’m aware that there may be minor problems to be ironed out.  We have been on both the Bliss and the Celebrity Edge within their first 50 days and enjoyed both immensely. I look forward to those first reviews to get a sense of how everything is going and any tips first cruisers have to share. With the controversy about the pool deck I will like to hear how that is working out. Wish I could find a menu for Onda. We have it booked but would like to see what they have. Hopefully someone from the inaugural cruise will post it.

 

Mary Ann

[CazV]

2 minutes ago, UFMOM said:

 With the controversy about the pool deck I will like to hear how that is working out.

I'm on the first Caribbean sailing out of Miami for paying passengers... ie probably the first fully booked sailing in the sun. I will post photos.

[Steff79]

The  Blue ship at the + is the getaway at the moment.  But the getaway is going to Kopenhagen and then doing the last 9 day Baltic cruise. If the ta start tomorrow they would cross their way. But the ta starts 20 October. We will see what encore is doing these days. 

Nclh Carrera wrote at Facebook that know 1700 crew members arriving in Bremerhaven with some pics. 

Little sad that I didn’t booked the ta and didn’t won the 2 day cruise. 

Maybe book the first Leonardo cruise 🙂

[tallnthensome]

6 hours ago, RedwingHockeyFan said:

I don't think that "personal safety" was what was meant when they said "safe", I think they meant "personal satisfaction".  An Inaugural cruise can appear to some to be like a Beta Test, and I can see that.  Just because the crew has trained for all situations doesn't mean that some people won't achieve 100% personal satisfaction on a cruise.  This is Cruise Critic after all

This is exactly what I meant and has nothing to with personal safety and the safety or build with the ship itself. Many inaugurals have had situations where the ship was still not complete with workers still aboard and staff not up to speed yet. Of course people can choose what they like and also choose to take a “wait a bit and iron out the wrinkles” approach .... it may work out perfect for many to be on the first sailing. I’ve been on the Escape and Bliss and have a cruise on the Encore coming as well but If I remember correctly the Escape inaugural had a lot of issues a few years back.

 

[CazV]

From NCL on Social Media

 

" In the next several weeks, over 1,700 crew will arrive in #Bremerhaven to put the finishing touches on #NorwegianEncore before her departure from the shipyard and the multi-city inaugural festivities get underway...!"

 

 

[LrgPizza]

17 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

... but If I remember correctly the Escape inaugural had a lot of issues a few years back.

 

 

I was on that cruise, and there wasn't a single issue on that ship. It was the best cruise I've ever taken! 

[TheDougOut]

30 minutes ago, LrgPizza said:

I was on that cruise, and there wasn't a single issue on that ship. It was the best cruise I've ever taken! 

 

I’ve seen similar gripes about the Bliss crossing - ridiculous.  I’ve never seen a more pristine ship, a friendlier crew, or a better-run operation.  Absolutely the best.

[rjw103]

Doug:

I was on the inaugural sailings  for the Getaway, the Escape and the Bliss.  I couldn't agree more about the readiness of the ship and the outstanding crew. Really looking forward to this crossing as well.