Norwegian Escape Review

You get what you pay for but generally good

Review for the Bahamas Cruise on Norwegian Escape
User Avatar
andy6221
10+ Cruises • Age 70s

Rating by category

Cabin
Value for Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Entertainment
Fitness & Recreation
Service

Additional details

Sail Date: Oct 2019
Cabin: Balcony Stateroom

I wanted a low cost cruise and I got it. The Escape has obvious design flaws, pools are too small and not enough elevators, and 6 hot tubs for 4000 people is not enough, but beyond that was fun time. The entertainment was really excellent and a lot to do. After Midnight was great and so was Choir of Man. The "side" shows Fab 4, the comedians and Kid Ace (magic) were also great. The water slides and rope course (where else can you zipline on a ship) were also a blast. The ship felt a little understaffed. Food and service was good EXCEPT in the "luxurious" Manhattan Room where children were allowed to run on the dance floor and a baby in diapers was crawling around. YUK! The staff did nothing with these horrendous kids nor the parents who apparently thought their children's behavior was "cute". On previous Norwegian cruises they prohibited shorts in the Manhattan Room but apparently now anything goes. If you are expecting anything luxurious or classy probably Norwegian is not for you. Service was slow to non-existent in the Manhattan Room. The piano bar District Brewhouse was very fun although drinks pricey. Service in Taste and Savor restaurants was excellent! Another plus is never had a problem getting a table at the buffet which is another big plus. I love O'Sheens pub restaurant in atrium but sometimes it's noisy with the atrium activities. Tendering at Great Stirrup Cay was a nightmare and even though we were in tender group 2 (of 24) took almost 45 minutes to get off. Some waited 90 minutes to get a tender, There were two ships at the Island and the captain said it would be crowded and it was although they had plenty of chairs on beach if you walked a little. For some reason Norwegian chose NOT to use the ship tenders so waiting for the shore tenders (now split between two ships) was nothing short of a nightmare. They wanted $21 rent for an umbrella on beach, which seemed ridiculous. Water was warm and nice in Great Stirrup Cay. Another slight minus was the Port Canaveral stop was too late in the day to do much there. (got in at 1:30) I used Lyft to get to the Space Center (which BTW is much cheaper than the Norwegian Excursion) but had only about 3 hours at the space center which isn't enough time to see everything. (they close at 6) I'd suggest recruiting 3-4 people to go and getting one UBER or Lyft. Still I hadn't been to the space center in 30 years and was very fun to see. In conclusion I got a good deal on this cruise so I can't complain a lot.

Cabin Review

Balcony Stateroom

Room was good and convenient location. As stated before there are not enough elevators for as large as this ship is so waits were long. In the cruise lines never ending quest for cutting costs the towel animals in the room are not eliminated which was staple of cruising. Did like the sliding door to the balcony rather than standard swinging doors

Port Reviews

Nassau

Nassau is Nassau. In my opinion this isn't an exciting port, but did walk around and buy souvenirs. Had lunch at Senor Frogs and that was fun

Port Canaveral (Orlando)

Arrived too late in the day to do much. Went to the Space Center via Lyft but only had a little more than 3 hours there not enough time to see everything. ($60 RT to the space center via ride share) Lyft and UBER and readily available there. One driver said he though half the people in Puerto Rico came there and are driving for the ride shares. Nothing to do in the port there you need to leave port to see anything.

Great Stirrup Cay

The beach was great. Getting to and from the beach by tender was a nightmare. Norwegian just didn't have their act together. Although beach was nice. They charged $21 to rent an umbrella and $40 for a canopy. And villas or cabanas were also available for rent if you really want to break the bank.

New York (Manhattan)

Come a day early and explore Manhattan I always enjoy New York. The Intrepid Aircraft carrier is next to the beach although didn't have time to see.

1 Helpful Vote
previous reviewnext review

Find a Norwegian Escape Cruise from $499

Any Month

Get special cruise deals, expert advice, insider tips and more.By proceeding, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

© 1995—2024, The Independent Traveler, Inc.