1st NCL cruise 12/1 on Getaway--won't be our last!

[KKB]

We had booked an NCL cruise for spring break but an offer to buy this poker cruise (so included an entry into the poker challenge) was similarly priced so we leapt at the chance to take it as we are booth poker players. 

 

We had some trepidation about sailing NCL. Our son had taken this exact cruise over spring break a few yeas ago; DM has sailed NCL. They both say it is a tick below the other lines we have sailed (tho they would sail NCL again). We have sailed several cruises each on Princess, Celebrity & Royal plus one on Disney. By & large we find the lines more alike than different--and that opinion continues after this cruise. 

 

I will post based on topic to follow

 

(PS my first couple posts are a bit negative--but these were blips & by no means ruined our cruise!)

Edited December 15, 2019 by KKB

[KKB]

New Orleans--the fabulous (French Quarter) & the ugly (port)

 

We flew into New Orleans the day before. We stayed at the Hotel Old. No. 77 in the French Quarter & we HIGHLY recommend it. It has a cool urban coffee house vibe, and the fabulous restaurant has a cool European vibe. The room was cute, tho I was worried the VERY creaky floor would wake DH when I got up at night (it didn't). 

After wandering around a while, we spent quite a bit of time at Harrahs casino--non-smoking was a hit, and I was on fire!

 

We took a Lyft to the port about 9AM & we got in quickly. But New Orleans port is a MESS. For crying out loud, just have signs to designate where each boarding group is to sit, and a few people to direct passengers to these areas. NOPE. You get a boarding "pass" & then just go into a large room & sit anywhere. We were group 1 & eventually Group 1 people began to line up near the entrance NOT REALIZING that there are numerous groups BEFORE group 1. It was a true cluster ****. They called for the casino guests so we went with that group on assumption--BUT ANYONE COULD HAVE GONE IN THEN, as no one had documentation to show that. 

 

We have cruised out of LA, Fort Lauderdale, Miami & NJ; all were well organized. This was riduculous.

[KKB]

Poker tournament/casino

 

We have won poker cruises on Princess & RCCL before & found them to be well run.

This was HORRID. The most disorganized event I have ever played in. Half the time people didn't know the answers to my questions.

Most tournaments had HORRIBLE structure for the price so I simply didn't play.

The main tourney had a reasonable structure but I had a hyper aggressive table...and was getting strong cards with nothing to go with them, so my tourney life was short. 

My husband did win us a poker cruise for next year. It is on another ship so hopefully it will be run better (have heard last year was much better)

 

The casino was our least fav at sea. HORRIBLY smoky. Tightest machines I have encountered. We played nightly (video poker) & got very very little play for our investment). Due to the smoke & lack of play for our $ we didn't spend nearly as much time in this casino as we have on other lines.  (we hit Vegas2-4x/yr for 10-20 days/yr so I feel I have a guage for "tight" machines)

[KKB]

Room (10413--we joked it was in the bowels as you had to walk a hallway to an interior area to reach it)

We had an interior due to it being one of the poker rooms. They wanted to charge us $500pp to upgrade to balcony--the price to book a balcony online was only $500pp so I said NO THANKS!

We do prefer a balcony but honestly we aren't in our room much so we take the best value.

This was the smallest interior we have stayed in. But there was sufficient storage for everything. 

I love how dark it is--we slept well.

I wish it had a better layout (LIke Princess) so there is a true chair that can be used as opposed to a short stool.

But my biggest complaint is the room only had TWO outlets--HUH??? And NONE in the bathroom!
Seriously? This ship is less than 5 years old--we have phones, watched, iPad, computers, earbuds to charge daily not to mention hair appliances, razors, etc. 

And I have never had a ship tell me not to leave things plugged in when I am not there--which BTW is HILARIOUS because if you don't leave a key card in the light switch there is NO electricity running to your room anyway....

NCL, it's 2019, there should be numerous plugs as we had on the Quantum of the Seas last year (bathroom, 2 at desk plus 2 USB ports, plus 2 on each side of the bed)

Edited December 15, 2019 by KKB

[KKB]

Food

We have always been happy w/ MDRs on ships so we started there. I had heard the food wasn't good so we had discussed getting a dining plan if we found the food subpar. We NEVER felt this way--in fact, we thought the MDR food was some of the best we have had on any line.

 

Buffet

I agree with other posts that I have seen that it lacks variety. There are 4 or 5 stations with IDENTICAL offerings as you walk around the buffet. Not only that, there was VERY little change in offerings from day to day. I've never seen that on any line. It was odd. The food was fine, typical buffet fare. We ate once for breakfast & a few lunches.

 

OSheehans pub

This had gotten some rave reviews so my expectations my have been a bit high...we found the food & service to be very hit & miss. Someone had raved about the nachos (I love nachos!). We stopped for lunch on embarkation day. My nachos had about half as much cheese as they needed (the sauce was tasty!) & maybe 5 tiny pieces of bacon. DH did have a very good chicken sandwich. We found the breakfasts there to be very good (avoid scrambled eggs--they are powdered there too) & the menu the rest of the day to be very hit or miss.

 

MDR

We ate at the Tropicana every night. They had music nightly, including the production show dancers a couple nights which was a really neat addition. We enjoyed our meals EVERY night. The only serious misstep was powdered mashed potatoes--YUK. My fish was a bit dry the first night but the sauce fixed that. I am not a huge dessert person but I had it every night--DELISH. We had fish, chicken, steak, pasta; we tried several everyday dishes as well as those from the menu. VERY pleased with our meals.

 

[KKB]

Entertainment--WOW WOW WOW

THIS is truly why we want to sail NCL again (and particularly the Getaway!)

We had the BEST time!!

 

Our 2 very favorite things: the Waterfront & Syd Norman's Pour House.

 

The Waterfront--OMG, EVERY ship should have this!! Deck 8 bars & restaurants all open out onto the deck area. There is at least one bar open most of the day & a bar on each side open each evening. We spent many hours out here both day & night. LOVED IT!

 

Syd Pour's--they had the BEST house band we have ever heard on any ship! They have only been together a month  but they had such great chemistry & energy! All 5 nights they played we were there! (we thought they were even better than the Aerosmith tribute band--which was good!) They mostly do 80s covers so right in my wheelhouse. They had rock trivia several evenings, then sometimes the Aerosmith tribute band, other times karaoke--not our fav, but to get a seat, we were there! They said they have about 80 songs they pull from for their sets. 

 

Comedians--all pretty solid

 

Howl at the Moon dueling pianos--we popped in a for a bit a couple times & had  bit of fun. 

 

Trivia--lots of different topics; I liked that much of the offerings weren't as crazy hard as on other lines

 

Game shows--always a good time

 

Million Dollar Quartet--not really our music, but this was FANTASTIC.  Highly recommend!

(PS you generally do NOT need a reservation--they don't reserve all the seats, maybe only 1/3)

 

This was the best collection of entertainment on any ship we have sailed.

[KKB]

Service--a bit hit & miss. 

Only saw our room steward twice but he did a nice job.

Poker dealers were great.

Bartenders were great.

Everyone was lovely, but there was occasional lagging of service at MDR, O'Sheehans, wait service. 

 

[Lady Patriot]

I was on this cruise too. This was dh's and my first "big" ship, and to us it was just too big. I'll be the first to admit I need exercise, but everything seemed to be such a long walk. We dined in the Tropicana Room twice. One time I had to use the ladies' room. I had to walk through the entire length of the casino and then some and then walk all the way back. Normally I will walk up and down stairs as much as possible, but by day 3 I was taking the elevator from Deck 8 or Deck 10 to Deck 9 where our cabin was. Usually I will explore whichever ship we're on, but I was just too tired. 

As usual everybody was wonderful. I taught the ladies in the shops some American slang. They seemed to appreciate it. 

Unfortunately it seems like big is how ships are going anymore. Maybe if they could have a people mover of some kind. 

[smplybcause]

58 minutes ago, KKB said:

This ship is less than 5 years old--we have phones, watched, iPad, computers, earbuds to charge daily not to mention hair appliances, razors, etc. 

And I have never had a ship tell me not to leave things plugged in when I am not there--which BTW is HILARIOUS because if you don't leave a key card in the light switch there is NO electricity running to your room anyway....

 

It's actually just over 5 years as Getaway had its 5 year dry dock at the beginning of the year. So it was built right before everything and anything had to be charged. Though a little shocked at two plugs - the studios on getaway had two plugs under the TV and two in the shelves next to the sink. Based on the studios USB plugs weren't added until Bliss. 

 

NCL asks you to do that on an energy saving basis. A lot of people just stick another card in so things can charge while you're away. But doing that turns on the light that says you're in your cabin so there's a chance your room won't get serviced by your room steward if you do that as they might think you're in there asleep. 

[Sand and Seas]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us!   We love the entertainment on NCL especially the larger ships.  You might want to look at cruising on the Bliss to see Jersey Boys and enjoy their smoke-free casino.  (Smokers have a smaller glass-enclosed casino on Bliss & Encore.)   I'm looking forward to seeing Choir of Man on Encore after the holidays.

 

We love cruising out of New Orleans too and always start our cruises by staying at Harrahs.  They have a beautiful hotel and it's an easy walk over to the port.    

 

[zebrazeb]

thanks for posting.  we are sailing out of new orleans on Dec 22.  will be interesting to see how "busy" it is getting on ship.  not looking forward to that past.  the first day is always a bit trying, getting used to everything on biard.  but usually whne we get up for day two, we are so ready to just enjoy!!

[KKB]

12 hours ago, smplybcause said:

 

It's actually just over 5 years as Getaway had its 5 year dry dock at the beginning of the year. So it was built right before everything and anything had to be charged. Though a little shocked at two plugs - the studios on getaway had two plugs under the TV and two in the shelves next to the sink. Based on the studios USB plugs weren't added until Bliss. 

 

NCL asks you to do that on an energy saving basis. A lot of people just stick another card in so things can charge while you're away. But doing that turns on the light that says you're in your cabin so there's a chance your room won't get serviced by your room steward if you do that as they might think you're in there asleep. 

 I have had a cell phone, laptop & IPad (well, Kindle at first) for 10 years. So with 2 people in the room, 2 plugs was not enough just for electronic device alone. The Quantum of the Seas was also built in 2014 & our room had numerous plugs plus USB ports.

 

I have NO problems saving electricity--do it at home & anywhere else. But to get everything charged with only 2 plugs forced us to put a key card in the light switch, put the do not disturb light on so that the steward did not unplug our devices. Yes, it meant our room did not always get serviced. Not ideal, but no other choice to get things charged!

 

The "Please do not leave things plugged in to avoid fire" is ridiculous. I have NEVER heard this on another line. And when you pull your card the electricity is cut so it would be impossible for it to cause a fire! A note about unplugging devices to save energy would be appropriate, much like the notes to hang towels to save energy. 

Edited December 15, 2019 by KKB

[KKB]

12 hours ago, Lady Patriot said:

I was on this cruise too. This was dh's and my first "big" ship, and to us it was just too big. I'll be the first to admit I need exercise, but everything seemed to be such a long walk. We dined in the Tropicana Room twice. One time I had to use the ladies' room. I had to walk through the entire length of the casino and then some and then walk all the way back. Normally I will walk up and down stairs as much as possible, but by day 3 I was taking the elevator from Deck 8 or Deck 10 to Deck 9 where our cabin was. Usually I will explore whichever ship we're on, but I was just too tired. 

As usual everybody was wonderful. I taught the ladies in the shops some American slang. They seemed to appreciate it. 

Unfortunately it seems like big is how ships are going anymore. Maybe if they could have a people mover of some kind. 

We love big ships--we loved the Allure & the Quantum. Sometimes on smaller ships there aren't enough activities for us--we like to be busy ALL DAY LONG. But I could see the size being off-putting. Luckily we noticed the crowds only at muster, as on other big ships; people spread themselves throughout the ship.

 

I will say the day my cold hit me hard the thought of going up to the buffet was about more than I could muster! Our room was on deck 10 so we took the stairs about everywhere (that's how I excuse myself from working out on a ship!), but I insisted on the elevator that day!

[KKB]

11 hours ago, Sand and Seas said:

Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us!   We love the entertainment on NCL especially the larger ships.  You might want to look at cruising on the Bliss to see Jersey Boys and enjoy their smoke-free casino.  (Smokers have a smaller glass-enclosed casino on Bliss & Encore.)   I'm looking forward to seeing Choir of Man on Encore after the holidays.

 

We love cruising out of New Orleans too and always start our cruises by staying at Harrahs.  They have a beautiful hotel and it's an easy walk over to the port.    

 

Saw Jersey Boys in Vegas & loved it.

 

Would LOVE a smoke free casino--Harrahs New Orleans proves that it can work fine! Now if we could only convince Vegas casinos...

 

We had hoped Harrahs would comp us a room but even joining our accounts the room was over $300! That ended up being a blessing at it lead us to Hotel Old. No. 7 which we LOVED. ($175 plus taxes/fees so $200)

[KKB]

47 minutes ago, zebrazeb said:

thanks for posting.  we are sailing out of new orleans on Dec 22.  will be interesting to see how "busy" it is getting on ship.  not looking forward to that past.  the first day is always a bit trying, getting used to everything on biard.  but usually whne we get up for day two, we are so ready to just enjoy!!

Oh, once we DID get onboard, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! Grabbed lunch & a cocktail, got a lay of the land. 

 

This is the first cruise that our luggage showed up before Muster; we had just gotten to our room to check it out after they announced rooms were ready, opened the door to leave & the bags were there. YEAH! We were unpacked before Muster! Really wonderful since no real activities at that time. We were able to be at dinner promptly at 5--which got us a window. Though it did seem the Trop wasn't quite ready for diners at 5...but we were fine with a cocktail & a view.

[Ilikebigboats]

Thanks so much for your review! Your enthusiasm is contagious.

We will be sailing on her in May. Did you notice long waits at the bar for drinks? This is one of my pet peeves with NCL, with practically everyone with the drink package, bar service seems to suffer. 

[smplybcause]

2 hours ago, KKB said:

 I have had a cell phone, laptop & IPad (well, Kindle at first) for 10 years. So with 2 people in the room, 2 plugs was not enough just for electronic device alone. The Quantum of the Seas was also built in 2014 & our room had numerous plugs plus USB ports.

 

I have NO problems saving electricity--do it at home & anywhere else. But to get everything charged with only 2 plugs forced us to put a key card in the light switch, put the do not disturb light on so that the steward did not unplug our devices. Yes, it meant our room did not always get serviced. Not ideal, but no other choice to get things charged!

 

The "Please do not leave things plugged in to avoid fire" is ridiculous. I have NEVER heard this on another line. And when you pull your card the electricity is cut so it would be impossible for it to cause a fire! A note about unplugging devices to save energy would be appropriate, much like the notes to hang towels to save energy. 

 

I was wrong on my dates. Getaway started construction in 2011 and was launched in 2013. Quantum was started in 2013 and launched in 2014. There was a big jump in charged personal electronics between 2011 and 2013. Heck in 2016 I only had my smart phone, kindle, and mp3 player that needed charging while my last cruise has phone, kindle, tablet, headphones, speaker, and battery pack (and my Alaska cruise added my dslr stuff). Also most don't bring a laptop on a cruise and kindles don't need to be charged every day. 

 

Are you sure you just didn't see other plugs? I'm still not sure how a studio that holds one on getaway has 4 plugs but you're saying an inside only has 2. But two of them were a bit hidden in the room. 

[KKB]

41 minutes ago, smplybcause said:

 

I was wrong on my dates. Getaway started construction in 2011 and was launched in 2013. Quantum was started in 2013 and launched in 2014. There was a big jump in charged personal electronics between 2011 and 2013. Heck in 2016 I only had my smart phone, kindle, and mp3 player that needed charging while my last cruise has phone, kindle, tablet, headphones, speaker, and battery pack (and my Alaska cruise added my dslr stuff). Also most don't bring a laptop on a cruise and kindles don't need to be charged every day. 

 

Are you sure you just didn't see other plugs? I'm still not sure how a studio that holds one on getaway has 4 plugs but you're saying an inside only has 2. But two of them were a bit hidden in the room. 

 

Not trying to be picky, but what big leap occurred in electronics from 1/11 to 8/13? 

Again, I had smart phone, kindle, MP3, & laptop in 2009...again, if 2 people had all these...and with watches, ear buds & external chargers of the last few years, it compounds it. BTW, I have seen many many people with laptops on cruises...I think you might be surprised how many of us do bring laptops...

 

I did look around as we have had outlets in odd places on other ships. 

 

Again, not a deal breaker by any means; but we did get pretty spoiled on the Quantum last year with multiple outlets plus USB ports.

[KKB]

3 hours ago, KKB said:

Oh, once we DID get onboard, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! Grabbed lunch & a cocktail, got a lay of the land. 

 

This is the first cruise that our luggage showed up before Muster; we had just gotten to our room to check it out after they announced rooms were ready, opened the door to leave & the bags were there. YEAH! We were unpacked before Muster! Really wonderful since no real activities at that time. We were able to be at dinner promptly at 5--which got us a window. Though it did seem the Trop wasn't quite ready for diners at 5...but we were fine with a cocktail & a view.

By & large, no. Pool bar was always nuts. Other bars we didn't notice any long waits at all.

[smplybcause]

30 minutes ago, KKB said:

 

Not trying to be picky, but what big leap occurred in electronics from 1/11 to 8/13? 

Again, I had smart phone, kindle, MP3, & laptop in 2009...again, if 2 people had all these...and with watches, ear buds & external chargers of the last few years, it compounds it. BTW, I have seen many many people with laptops on cruises...I think you might be surprised how many of us do bring laptops...

 

I did look around as we have had outlets in odd places on other ships. 

 

Again, not a deal breaker by any means; but we did get pretty spoiled on the Quantum last year with multiple outlets plus USB ports.

 

Because it wasn't ubiquitous then. Things were more expensive, it was the early adopters that had all those things. I knew plenty of people, and was one of them, that didn't have all those things in 2009. Heck I know plenty that didn't have a smartphone. I didn't get my first one until half way through 2010 and I still knew plenty that didn't have one yet. (I was on a royal ship shortly after getting my smartphone and it stayed turned off in the safe - I don't even think the ship had wifi yet, you had to go to the internet room and use their computers.) The early 2010s was when all this went from the cool new (expensive) thing to everyone had it. 

 

From googling only 35% of people has a smart phone when getaway started construction but the number was almost 60% by the time quantum started construction - that's a big jump. Tablet ownership went from around 5% to almost 40% in the same time frame. Ereaders went from around 10% to over 30%. Those are huge jumps in ownership in a few years that then needed outlets to charge them. 

Edited December 15, 2019 by smplybcause

[Blitzburggirl]

Thank you for your review, as it made me smile. :)

 

We were also on this sailing. It was our second time on NCL, and second time on Getaway (also sailed April 2019.)

 

I have to admit.. there are some quirks, but I LOVE this ship! 

 

I don't get the O'sheehans love some people have. The bar itself is really nice, but too crowed (for me) til late at night (then I love it.) The food/service were both reliably crappy both in April (teen boys liked the late night wings) and this past week. The nachos were nothing special and the apple pie/ ice cream wasn't worth the calories by any means. But the steak fajitas.. I can get behind those!!

 

Bars... Love all the bars and all the bartenders. Syd's was new for us on this sailing and we had much much better weather this time (spring was out of NYC) so we loved the waterfront as well :) Always love the howl at the moon (I think I spent two full evenings in there- poker widow!) the Million Dollar Quartet is FANTASTIC and we really just have to say Vincent the cruise director is fun. Sea ya when I see ya!

 

I don't like that there is only one pool and the location stinks. UGH. 

 

We are non smokers and it took us almost 3 days to find Spice H2O in the spring. Glad to know about it from the beginning this time!! 

 

Mojito bar gets much love!! But boy are they slow and only one bartender much of the time???? Those drinks take foreverrrrr.

 

I spent alot of time whining that the beverage package allows all the Grey Goose one can drink for a week straight.. but not bottled water..  but then it hit me on the way off the ship.... I saw sooo many abandoned drinks over the course of two cruises. I'm glad they aren't handing out bottle water (like I would have wanted) I can imagine a zillion bottles with 3 sips taken out of them abandoned every day or tossed so people don't have to carry them. 

 

Food. The MDR's were great. We had the dining package both trips and I am quite miffed we couldn't get any decent reservations this time, last time it was no problem, so I didn't stress about it til we were on board. The buffet was beyond boring. Seriously sad.

 

Poker tourney was poorly run. Enough on that. Luckily the casino took the liberty of making me a casino rewards card. LOL I don't gamble, but I guess they figured since my guy does they should make me one. It was great for keeping the lights on and devices charging. 

 

I used the fitness center every day. I filled out a Cruise Hero card for the cleaner guy every single day. He truly was my cruise hero (especially in the noro season!)

 

Why was my cabin sink water perpetually scalding? I couldn't imagine a child trying to wash their hands with that sink. 

 

Speaking of cabins.. We also only saw our steward twice. And I was careful to not leave the do not disturb light on. Didn't really see him messing with other folks cabins either. And he forgot towels for our cabin (did everything else) TWICE!?

 

Speaking of towels- pool towels.. I love not having them in the room. I like this new check out thing. FYI... You don't have to run up to the Lido before your excursions to grab some, they check them out right as you exit the ship, and you can sign them back in as your reboard the ship. LOVE THIS CHANGE!!!

 

I'm sorry to hijack your thread @kbb but our experience greatly echoed yours :)

 

 

 

 

[Blitzburggirl]

1 minute ago, Blitzburggirl said:

Thank you for your review, as it made me smile. :)

 

We were also on this sailing. It was our second time on NCL, and second time on Getaway (also sailed April 2019.)

 

I have to admit.. there are some quirks, but I LOVE this ship! 

 

I don't get the O'sheehans love some people have. The bar itself is really nice, but too crowed (for me) til late at night (then I love it.) The food/service were both reliably crappy both in April (teen boys liked the late night wings) and this past week. The nachos were nothing special and the apple pie/ ice cream wasn't worth the calories by any means. But the steak fajitas.. I can get behind those!!

 

Bars... Love all the bars and all the bartenders. Syd's was new for us on this sailing and we had much much better weather this time (spring was out of NYC) so we loved the waterfront as well :) Always love the howl at the moon (I think I spent two full evenings in there- poker widow!) the Million Dollar Quartet is FANTASTIC and we really just have to say Vincent the cruise director is fun. Sea ya when I see ya!

 

I don't like that there is only one pool and the location stinks. UGH. 

 

We are non smokers and it took us almost 3 days to find Spice H2O in the spring. Glad to know about it from the beginning this time!! 

 

Mojito bar gets much love!! But boy are they slow and only one bartender much of the time???? Those drinks take foreverrrrr.

 

I spent alot of time whining that the beverage package allows all the Grey Goose one can drink for a week straight.. but not bottled water..  but then it hit me on the way off the ship.... I saw sooo many abandoned drinks over the course of two cruises. I'm glad they aren't handing out bottle water (like I would have wanted) I can imagine a zillion bottles with 3 sips taken out of them abandoned every day or tossed so people don't have to carry them. 

 

Food. The MDR's were great. We had the dining package both trips and I am quite miffed we couldn't get any decent reservations this time, last time it was no problem, so I didn't stress about it til we were on board. The buffet was beyond boring. Seriously sad.

 

Poker tourney was poorly run. Enough on that. Luckily the casino took the liberty of making me a casino rewards card. LOL I don't gamble, but I guess they figured since my guy does they should make me one. It was great for keeping the lights on and devices charging. 

 

I used the fitness center every day. I filled out a Cruise Hero card for the cleaner guy every single day. He truly was my cruise hero (especially in the noro season!)

 

Why was my cabin sink water perpetually scalding? I couldn't imagine a child trying to wash their hands with that sink. 

 

Speaking of cabins.. We also only saw our steward twice. And I was careful to not leave the do not disturb light on. Didn't really see him messing with other folks cabins either. And he forgot towels for our cabin (did everything else) TWICE!?

 

Speaking of towels- pool towels.. I love not having them in the room. I like this new check out thing. FYI... You don't have to run up to the Lido before your excursions to grab some, they check them out right as you exit the ship, and you can sign them back in as your reboard the ship. LOVE THIS CHANGE!!!

 

I'm sorry to hijack your thread @kbb but our experience greatly echoed yours :)

 

 

 

 

OH!! But RE: the bottled water...

WHY is the ship selling refillable water bottles without a SINGLE place that you are "allowed" to fill them!? Most airports/malls/campus's/hospitals/gyms/work environments have water bottle filling stations. How irritating to have to wait for the "rule breakers" to fill their water bottles at the water dispensers! 

[KKB]

On 12/16/2019 at 3:59 PM, Blitzburggirl said:

 

 

I don't like that there is only one pool and the location stinks. UGH. 

Actually there are 2 pools--one near the stage & one right by the kids water area.

 

Mojito bar gets much love!! But boy are they slow and only one bartender much of the time???? Those drinks take foreverrrrr.

Funny--we NEVER felt they were slow at all, and this was our go to bar! Mojitos are a bit more labor intensive, even with the pre-mixes, but there was never more than a couple in front of us!

 

Why was my cabin sink water perpetually scalding? I couldn't imagine a child trying to wash their hands with that sink.

Huh--never noticed this! 

 

Speaking of towels- pool towels.. I love not having them in the room. I like this new check out thing. FYI... You don't have to run up to the Lido before your excursions to grab some, they check them out right as you exit the ship, and you can sign them back in as your reboard the ship. LOVE THIS CHANGE!!!

Yeah, I'm NOT a fan of this. I like the towels in my room & the steward leaving me new ones after a day at the pool or beach. To each his own.

 

Ah...miss being on this ship!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Mike_DeA]

On 12/14/2019 at 8:54 PM, KKB said:

Poker tournament/casino

 

We have won poker cruises on Princess & RCCL before & found them to be well run.

This was HORRID. The most disorganized event I have ever played in. Half the time people didn't know the answers to my questions.

Most tournaments had HORRIBLE structure for the price so I simply didn't play.

The main tourney had a reasonable structure but I had a hyper aggressive table...and was getting strong cards with nothing to go with them, so my tourney life was short. 

My husband did win us a poker cruise for next year. It is on another ship so hopefully it will be run better (have heard last year was much better)

 

The casino was our least fav at sea. HORRIBLY smoky. Tightest machines I have encountered. We played nightly (video poker) & got very very little play for our investment). Due to the smoke & lack of play for our $ we didn't spend nearly as much time in this casino as we have on other lines.  (we hit Vegas2-4x/yr for 10-20 days/yr so I feel I have a guage for "tight" machines)

 

This was my third consecutive Poker Challenge cruise, and I wish I could say the others were run better.  They've all been similar, so I don't expect next year's to be different.  The 2017 one on the Epic took place entirely in the Bliss Lounge, which was better in that there was less background noise and lower foot traffic flow, but with the growth of the field and the required tables (29 tables this year vs. 20 in 2017), there isn't a venue on any current ship that can house the "poker room" entirely, as far as I know.  The Joy in 2020 has a similar setup as the Getaway so I expect a similar table configuration.

 

That being said, I'll likely try to be on that trip as well.

Edited December 20, 2019 by Mike_DeA

[KKB]

On 12/20/2019 at 9:55 AM, Mike_DeA said:

 

This was my third consecutive Poker Challenge cruise, and I wish I could say the others were run better.  They've all been similar, so I don't expect next year's to be different.  The 2017 one on the Epic took place entirely in the Bliss Lounge, which was better in that there was less background noise and lower foot traffic flow, but with the growth of the field and the required tables (29 tables this year vs. 20 in 2017), there isn't a venue on any current ship that can house the "poker room" entirely, as far as I know.  The Joy in 2020 has a similar setup as the Getaway so I expect a similar table configuration.

 

That being said, I'll likely try to be on that trip as well.

Ah, well, that saves me wasting $ on other events...

If the casino is as smoky that will save us $ too!