This is my review of our May 2015 7-day cruise on the Norwegian Getaway out of Miami. This was our second NCL cruise of 2015, the first being in January on the NCL Jewel out of Houston. (see my review titled, A Slightly Tarnished Jewel) This was the 18th cruise that my wife and I have done over an approximate span of 25 years. We have sailed on Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Disney. Let me say up front that we have always had a special feeling for NCL since our very first cruise all those years ago was on the SS Norway, a truly grand ship. At the start of this year we decided to go back to NCL after several years of sailing with others, and our January trip aboard the Jewel was made with high hopes and expectations of our fond memories of our past NCL cruises on wonderful ships like the Norway and Seaward. As my earlier review makes clear we were very disappointed in the Jewel, but were willing to chalk up the Jewel's shortcomings to the ship, not the line. Therefore, we went aboard the Getaway with renewed hopes of rekindling our allegiance to NCL. It was not to be. If anything the Getaway proved a bigger disappointment than the Jewel, and, more importantly, convinced me that the problems are endemic to the cruise line, and not just to its individual ships.

NCL is apparently in the midst of a major cost-cutting program, and it shows in many ways on their vessels. Their new CEO seems bound and determined to cut back as much as possible to sweeten their bottom line. I understand business, and have no problem with cost management, however, any new charges or changes in policy that directly affect the customer should be made clear and rolled into the cost of the cruise, not hidden, disguised, or forced upon people after the fact. Lack of staff, nickel and diming customers, new charges for room service, arbitrary and unstated rules about taking food out of dining areas, lack of concern for customer complaints, and a seemingly deliberate attempt to lower the quality and selection of food at the free (included in fare) dining venues in order to "steer" customers toward the more expensive "premium" extra cost options. Unfortunately this seems to be the new Norwegian.

The Getaway is a new ship and it shows. The ship for the most part is clean and well ordered. It sails well, and seems well run. However, it is built in a fashion that makes one wonder about some design features. It is a big ship with small venues. Everything is crowded. All venues have to pack people in like sardines, and reservations are required for most venues. We attended a magic show/dinner at the Illusionarium which is extra cost. While the show was good enough, the seating was ridiculous. We were seated at long tables packed so closely that in order to cut your steak you had to have the cooperation of your neighbor. His or her arm had to move so that yours could be used to cut your steak. Good luck if you are right handed and your neighbor was left handed. It was clearly an attempt to squeeze every last nickel at the expense of the guests. The buffet or Garden Cafe on Deck 15 was simply the worst buffet that I have ever encountered at sea. Lack of selection and poor quality food was the norm. The buffet line was unorganized and difficult to utilize. Individual kiosks for food is much more efficient than this traditional "conga line." Seating was never a problem, as most people were looking for food elsewhere. This seems to be a purposeful attempt to "steer" diners to the more expensive pay options onboard. The one acceptable place to eat was O'Sheehans on deck 7. Here the service is generally slow, but the food is pretty good. The actually have one of the best hamburgers around, although consistency can be a problem. On one occasion without explanation our two burgers were served without the lettuce and tomato while previous ones had been fully dressed. This is par for the course on the new Norwegian. We also paid to dine at La Cucina, the Italian venue, and found both the service and the food to be very good. We also heard from several other passengers that the food at most of the extra cost venues had been subpar, although I can't attest to that personally. Read more