Almost Live: Escape NYC RT Bermuda 10/22-10/29/23 1st Time NCL Cruisers

[Meachjg1963]

6 minutes ago, D_And_K_gocruising said:

Thanks, that make a lot of sense!   So the vibe isnt bad, but compared to the HAL it's not nearly as full service it sounds like?  

 

Yes exactly. You feel pampered in The Retreat. We don’t have that same vibe in The Vibe.

 

(I couldn’t resist)

[Meachjg1963]

8 minutes ago, Andoria said:

I love your review. It's well-written and amusing. I've never heard of peanut butter whiskey and will have to try it when I board the Escape on Sunday.

 

Thank you we appreciate that. It is a team effort.

 

The only place I’ve found it so far is Tobacco Road and The Vibe. I may or may not be sipping on one now as I type these responses in The Vibe.  🙄

[cat shepard]

Thank you for your very informative thread! Have you done any wine tastings?

[Meachjg1963]

1 hour ago, cat shepard said:

Thank you for your very informative thread! Have you done any wine tastings?

🙄 I have tasted plenty of wine. 🙄 Just haven’t done a formal, organized tasting. 

 

We’ve discovered the La Crema Chardonnay that we really like. Disappointed with the limited Rose selection. My husband sticks to whites and I like big, bold red blends, cabs and Malbecs but haven’t had any yet. My remaining two days I will be dedicate to tasting those.

[Meachjg1963]

Thanks to a tip from Assistant Maitre’d Aida last night in The Manhattan Dining Room, we’ve discovered pistachio martini’s in the Prime Meridian bar. We can affirm quite tasty.

 

A quick google search will let you know that expresso martini’s are a thing of the past and this is the break away cocktail of 2023. 
 

 

[Meachjg1963]

Day 5…I think.

 

First full sea day. Used our in cabin coffee set up. Not bad.

 

Breakfast and lunch were in the Garden Cafe. We both ate relatively balanced meals and light as we knew we were dining in Cagney’s. We like the variety and quality of the offerings in the buffet. 
 

All outdoor decks above 16 were closed due to the wind. So an inside morning planned on the fly.
 

We split up and I made another small donation to the casino and then about 30 mins later reconnected in the atrium where we stayed for two trivia sessions and creating an origami fox. 
 

After lunch (all decks reopened as we are moving at just 8 knots) we made our way up to Vibe and spent the next 4 hours in the sun, reading, napping and drinking.

 

Back in the cabin we caught up on the days events with BBC World News as we showered and dressed.

 

Back to Prime Meridian where we had that pistachio martini and then our reservations at Cagneys. 

We each ordered an app, salad, main and desert. I started with oysters Rockefeller. The first was tasty. The second one I started to chew and hit shells. Discreetly tried to get them out but they just seemed to keep coming and I had to spit the whole thing out into the napkin. Trying to get someone’s attention to get a napkin was much more difficult than it should have been. Finally one of the suits slowed down his walk to hear my complaint. Took my old napkin, brought me new and took the remaining oyster. No attempt at any service recovery. Shells happen, I accept that, him making me feel like I was bothering him with something trivial, I do not accept. 
 

The rest of meal had a different feel though the salad and steak were very good. I ordered the caramel cheesecake and the DH the 7-layer chocolate cake. We finished each others deserts. 😂. 
 

We signed our check and left around 815p and the line into the place was almost back to the stair/elevator lobby. 
 

Again there was no entertainment that intrigued us so back to the cabin for some TV and reading.

 

Thoughts…

Really missing the decline of entertainment on cruise lines.

Cagney’s is so busy, loud and crowded it feels more like an Outback Steakhouse than a fine dining experience. I’m not sure I would return if there are future cruises on NCL.

There are many more kids than we are accustomed to and quite honestly, they are all so well behaved we have enjoyed watching them enjoying themselves. We are pleasantly surprised. The multigenerational experience for them is amazing. It really does take a village.🌬️

[Meachjg1963]

Day 5 —Supplemental post

 

I’ve realized I’ve left out some key things in my posts after rereading them.

 

I mentioned the swan display. Monday was our 2nd wedding anniversary and we had brought small things to exchange and cards. On Tuesday when we returned to our cabin at some point, and the cabin attendant had made a towel swan display on our bed. Two swans and their heads and necks in the shape of a heart and he had arranged our cards all around them. Love his effort and it will not go unnoticed. ❤️

 

Tuesday afternoon when we returned from our stroll around the dockyard, our toilet wouldn’t flush. A quick call to guest services to learn this little snafu was affecting the entire ship! While we were watching for pier runners, someone must’ve flipped the switch back to on, as it had flushed itself when we came back in.

 

More and more crew members are remembering us and all seem more engaged than the first couple of days. Not sure what has changed in them or us?

 

We sent our free bag of laundry out yesterday. That husband of mine is a master at filling a bag. Not a tear and we got EVERYTHING into it.

 

And finally, those extra charges everywhere. Delivery fee for room service. Cupcakes in the coffee shop. Room charge for the casino, service fee. On Holland America, there is no additional fee for all three of these things. I waffle on the daily service charge of $20. Just my meandering thoughts.

[breadandbutter]

What I'd the coffee set up? Can you describe please?

[Meachjg1963]

41 minutes ago, breadandbutter said:

What I'd the coffee set up? Can you describe please?

Of course. Think of those coffee machines in hotel rooms. Single cup at a time and it has the little coffeemate creamers and sugar and sugar substitute packets. He gave us enough for six cups of coffee I think. 

[Meachjg1963]

Day 6 

 

Our 2nd sea day back started the same as our first. Coffee in the room. Breakfast in the garden cafe where I tried the Indian offering and really enjoyed it. Though if I had it prior to my eggs, bangers and fruit, I might’ve eaten more of it. 😏

 

We again split up and I made a slightly larger donation in the casino to help the Norwegian shareholders. You’re welcome. And then we reconnected in Vibe and spent 90 mins soaking up warmth and sun while we can.

 

Back in the room our laundry had arrived and no complaints with it. We feel the folks in the laundry are unsung heroes on cruise ships. We always ensure an extra gratuity gets to them to let them know how much we appreciate them. 

 

Lunch was in Taste with the couple we had met earlier in the cruise and passed two hours talking and laughing. DH ordered the BLT and it looked like he was being served canapés instead of a sandwich. I had the roasted Cuban chicken which was good.

 

Back in Vibe for 3 hours and then went and cleaned up for dinner which was back in The Manhattan dining room. I really enjoyed the paella and the beau customized two entrees to make one very nice one and the kitchen did it no problem. Our server Randy was really fun, 2nd time we’ve had him. He knows how to read his customers.

 

Again nothing of real interest for us so back to the room and watched Mrs Doubtfire. 
 

We are sleeping so well on board.

 

I forgot to mention somewhere this past week we got our two plates of treats. One was assorted deserts and the other cookies. Eh…

[D_And_K_gocruising]

This is how I'm sure our cruise will feel lol.. Seems like just yesterday I saw your first post and here we are on day 6!!!  Goes too fast!  Unless you are waiting for it to start 🙂

[Nunswithknives]

Hi there, how did you book the Vibe Beach Club? We were on the Bliss a few years and had to run to get it after embarkation, but I saw that a few people said they booked it online.  That would be much easier.

 

Hope you enjoy the rest of the cruise, loving your updates!

[brookie848]

1 hour ago, Nunswithknives said:

Hi there, how did you book the Vibe Beach Club? We were on the Bliss a few years and had to run to get it after embarkation, but I saw that a few people said they booked it online.  That would be much easier.

 

Hope you enjoy the rest of the cruise, loving your updates!

Vibe is now available to book before you sail. In fact, I'm assuming that's just about the only way to book it now.

[Meachjg1963]

14 hours ago, Nunswithknives said:

Hi there, how did you book the Vibe Beach Club? We were on the Bliss a few years and had to run to get it after embarkation, but I saw that a few people said they booked it online.  That would be much easier.

 

Hope you enjoy the rest of the cruise, loving your updates!

Thank you.

 

We booked everything online ahead of time, including Vibe. I used the app for everything. You can find it under entertainment.

[Meachjg1963]

Day 7 - Final Full Day at Sea

 

(as I write this we are comfortably waiting in our cabin for our group to be called to disembark)

 

Day 7 started the same a previous days. In room coffee, b’fast in the garden cafe and a leisurely stroll thru the shops to see if anything needed to go home with us. Not today.

 

DH (he asked me today what DH means. I told him dysfunctional husband. 🤫) headed up to Vibe and I went to make my final and largest donation to NCL’s bottom line in the casino. Trust me, I’m sure there are people who place more in a single bet in that private room than I lost the entire cruise. I then joined him in the Vibe for 2 hours in the sun. We’ve made a slow northerly turn as the air is not as warm as it has been but still very comfortable.

 

Lunch was back in the Garden Cafe. Then we walked around some more and ended up back in Vibe for the afternoon. At 4ish we said our goodbyes and went down to shower, dress and pack. 15 mins start to finish to pack.

 

At about 515p we headed down to deck 6 as we had 630p Le Bistro reservations and we wanted a cruise pic on the stairs. No photographer yet so we grabbed 2 seats in Mixx and each had two cocktails each. That Chopin potato vodka is really smooth.

 

Pics snapped we walked the 10 feet to Le Bistro where we were seated promptly. I ordered the escargots, goat cheese salad, Dover sole and the cheese plate with a port to top it all off. The La Crema was our wine. DH had the onion soup, endive salad, Dover sole and the warm poached pear chocolate thing. Dinner was very very enjoyable. But again, for a specialty restaurant, busy and noisy.

 

A final walk around the public areas and back to our cabins to put out bags and chill. The clocks turned back an hour overnight. The first restless night sleep onboard. 
 

Once onboard the train, i will wrap up with how disembarkation went and some final overall thoughts.

 

Cheers.

[Meachjg1963]

Is it true you must vacate your cabin by 830A and wait in one of the limited open public spaces? Is this how NCL does it? 

[mking8288]

@Meachjg1963 Welcome back to NY and safe journey heading back to Beantown. Enjoyed reading your trip report.  Glad to know that despite the modified itinerary & shortened stay, less than ideal weather in Bermuda, that you made the best & most out of it, going with the flow.  The Escape seemed to run into all sorts of itinerary surprises on this Fall's port of calls with mother nature calling.  

 

It has been NCL's policies, procedures & protocol to ask all guests to vacate their cabin on disembarkation morning by 8 to 8:30 AM, allowing the housekeeping team to do a through cleaning & preparation for the next group of embarking pax.  Typically, you will find 1/4 to 1/3 of the pax in a hurry to do the express self walk-off as soon as it's announced that gangways are open & ship has been cleared, etc. Scattered places all over the ship to wait if not in a hurry, getting into those elevators is another story ... eventually, the crowd thinning out as they aim to reach the "zero" or 0 count by around 10'ish so that Haven & priority, early boarding after 10:30 - 10:45'ish, perhaps 11'ish  - not easy with 2 gangways handling upwards of 4,500 pax (plus luggage) in that short span of time.

 

You mentioned none of the shows were of interest ... what was "on" in the main theater ?  I know we booked ours on the Escape a few weeks ago, not exactly thrilled (was it Choir of Men ??) & we didn't bother going either.  

[Meachjg1963]

We are safely on our Amtrak train in CT already so just some final thoughts.

 

The embarkation and disembarkation process were very different and less passenger friendly than what we are used to. I say this fully recognizing HAL ships carry far fewer passengers.

 

From when they called our color (last off the ship) to when we got into a taxi…20-25 mins. The arrivals hall with facial recognition (everyone has global entry!) was WOW! We approve! Earlier colors did not fair as well I assume based on the lines and having to stop the process due to congestion

 

There is one thing I have been hesitant to say as I’m not sure how I want to say it but here goes. We’re gay and we did not hold hands, kiss goodbye when we split up like couples do or dance together which we have freely done on Celebrity and Holland America. I was never uncomfortable or felt threatened. I just felt like we had to be more aware. My husband said he never felt anything other than acceptance when we talked and when I explained he said he understood my feelings.

 

Overall a solid product. We very much enjoyed ourselves and that’s a good thing because on August 14, 2024 we will be re-boarding the NCL Escape in Civitavecchia Italy for a 7 day Mediterranean cruise, which was booked four months ago. Whew! We are doing a private group tour so it will be a different experience yet again. 
 

The trend in cruise lines to move away from production shows and do game shows and trivia is really disappointing. The movies shown were old and shown at odd times. You know my feeling about Vibe. Entertainment has taken a serious hit as they claw-back after the shut-down.

 

I want to thank you all that followed along and who’ve we interacted with. It was fun to do. And thus, another cruise comes to an end for us but don’t feel sad, because in 66 days we fly to San Diego for a couple of days and then board HAL’s Koningsdam for a 7 day Baja peninsula cruise. But who’s counting…

[Meachjg1963]

3 hours ago, mking8288 said:

You mentioned none of the shows were of interest ... what was "on" in the main theater ?  I know we booked ours on the Escape a few weeks ago, not exactly thrilled (was it Choir of Men ??) & we didn't bother going either.  

Thank you.
 

Choir of Man was on the main stage along with Company Man and Wheel of Fortune.

[shof515]

22 minutes ago, Meachjg1963 said:

 

The trend in cruise lines to move away from production shows and do game shows and trivia is really disappointing.

 

i was on this cruise and wheel on fortune is a huge disappointment for me. it sucks that is a main theater show and replacing something in the theater . atrium is a better venue for it

[vswan]

3 hours ago, Meachjg1963 said:

There is one thing I have been hesitant to say as I’m not sure how I want to say it but here goes. We’re gay and we did not hold hands, kiss goodbye when we split up like couples do or dance together which we have freely done on Celebrity and Holland America. I was never uncomfortable or felt threatened. I just felt like we had to be more aware. My husband said he never felt anything other than acceptance when we talked and when I explained he said he understood my feelings.

I am not gay, but have no negative feelings about same sex couples. One thing I've noticed on all of the ships that I've been on (from HAL, NCL, Royal, etc.) is that they are very accepting of same sex couples. Enjoy your vacation time and life as you wish.

[D_And_K_gocruising]

Thanks for a fun trip review.. Boarding in less than 5 weeks love hearing about the Escape!!   Cant wait to go on our first ever cruise!!!   

[cruiseny4life]

19 hours ago, Meachjg1963 said:

There is one thing I have been hesitant to say as I’m not sure how I want to say it but here goes. We’re gay and we did not hold hands, kiss goodbye when we split up like couples do or dance together which we have freely done on Celebrity and Holland America. I was never uncomfortable or felt threatened. I just felt like we had to be more aware. My husband said he never felt anything other than acceptance when we talked and when I explained he said he understood my feelings.

I sure won't discount your feelings. They are yours and it's how you felt, regardless of anyone else's experience.

 

My husband and I are...well, we're both guys so I guess that makes us gay too! Our fifth NCL cruise is coming up in 21 days. Eeeeek, the days are so slow right now!! Anyhow, we have never felt uncomfortable on any NCL cruise. We don't do the typical public PDA, other than hold hands/walk close...ya know, the normal. I'm sorry you felt not quite welcome. I hope you'll give NCL another chance. 

 

Our one time in Bermuda (we've tried to get there three times), not the most welcoming environment (at least law wise), we've felt nothing but welcomed by the locals. I can only really recall one time I felt uncomfortable and that was at a Costco in Salt Lake City where someone was having a bad day and called us the "f" word, because I demanded she say excuse me when she walked into me. I just yelled to her "I love you too" and we laughed about it, because you could just tell it was all her. Anyway!!

When we have sailed, we've actually felt like there are more couples like us than not on the cruise. That's what it has seemed like to us!

 

Much love and peace to you. Welcome home and I hope the positive memories eventually outweigh any feelings of discomfort you had! 

[cruiseny4life]

I should also say! I really enjoyed reading about your experiences. Thank you for sharing your cruise with all of us!

[Hilly38]

I made an account just to reply to this and thank you! My husband and I are going on my first ever cruise (he has been on plenty with his family) in 11 days! Leaving NYC to Bermuda on the Escape.
 

This thread has been like a teaser of what’s to come and I’ve been checking every day to catch up ! Thank you for the amazing details. I’m looking forward to experiencing it (and possibly a pistachio martini) for myself.