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The Escape From the Captain to the CD Tyler Gray to the entire crew and staff, thus far being on the Escape has been our best experience and we have cruised a lot! The Escape had the best of both worlds with free styling yet the opportunity to go out to luxury dinners to the finest in entertainment. The Ship was set up nicely, very beautiful and elegant yet had that nice party flavor when it was time to party. Rooms was exceptional clean and the entire staff was courteous and the two that stood out was our server LEO on the H20 Deck at AFT of the Ship and Maythu a server in the Savor Restaurant, if you go Escape look for these two individuals, you want regret it! The overall experience was the best yet! You want bang for your bucks go NCL and especially the Escape! Cheers! #thatsmyword Read Less

My wife and I decided on a quick escape to the Bahamas. Left work at 1pm picked her up at 2 and headed to the Port of Miami at 3. Made it on time no traffic, no waiting...no photograph...straight to the Lido deck for a late lunch. Great start. We had a pleasant relax time all along. Great interior cabin on the 9th deck AFT. Dinner was good...evening show were excellent; great talents on display. Port of Nassau....was dirty with construction and odors....stayed 10 minutes and back on the ship. Been there before. Chose not to get off next day to Styrrup Cay. Enjoyed the peace on the ship. Got off the ship on Monday at 9am and made it to work at 10. We will do this again and again in the future....on Sky Read Less

Beautiful ship. Many of the comments elsewhere about mediocre food, poor or non-existent service, long waits and an awful embarkation and disembarkation process we also experienced. My main comment is don't take the base price of this cruise as meaningful as the add on are endless, food, sauna, quiet places, etc are all at additional (substantial) cost. My wife who loves to relax in the sauna was shocked that the sauna is $199 for a seven day cruise. I found the charges for the "specialty" restaurants exorbitant ($15 to $39 per head) considering the offerings. The staff, especially the officer class are rarely seen, and when they are it is fleeting. When I asked to see a senior member of staff, a restaurant host was summoned. A poor showing Norwegian. Read Less

if you want to cruise on this ship - make sure you stay in the "haven" - that is the only way to go - otherwise you are on a ship with 4,000 people - and believe me, it is no treat - they have 2 SMALL pools - one for the kids, one for the adults - try squeezing 4,000 people in either of these pools - ugh!!!!!!!! - but I think most people realize what they are going to get when you cram all these people together - the food was very good, th entertainment was ok too - but the real star of this ship is the "haven" - private access, private pool, private lounge, and private restaurant - all with the best accomodations and the best help anywhere on a ship - it was a joy - and the only way we would ever cruise on a Norwegian ship again would be with "haven" accomodations - the pay restaurants were very good - except the "ocean blue" - very expensive and the food wasn't that good at all - a big disappointment - for $39.00 per person, we expected much more - never again there! Read Less

To say I was disappointed in this cruise experience would be an understatement. My husband and I SORELY NEEDED a relaxing vacation away from work, volunteer responsibilities, and life in general, somewhere to unwind, turn off the cell phones, and just chill out. We are kicking ourselves for choosing this cruise line. My fault - we really only chose this cruise because I’m terrified of flying, so leaving from NYC which was only a 4 hour drive from our home in upstate NY was super convenient. The cost was also decent, even with having to park our vehicle for a week in NYC. Maybe I'm biased after thoroughly enjoying a beautiful 3-day Bahamas cruise and an amazing 7-day Alaskan cruise with another cruise line, but even if I hadn't, I believe I STILL would not have been satisfied with this ship. I realize my review will make me sound picky and spoiled, but my husband and I both work 2 jobs, are very dedicated to our volunteer fire department, and have 2 kids to raise, so we work very hard to enjoy a decent vacation every couple of years. Food: Less than satisfying. The first day lunch buffet was crowded and disorganized, dinner was the same. We walked for a full 10 minutes back and forth trying to find a place to sit, and finally ended up going back to our room to eat our now cold food. This situation did not improve much during the week. The buffet dining rooms were very crowded - tables close to each other so you had to be a contortionist to get in and out of your seat, bumping the person behind you, and hurrying to beat others to an open table you were eying from across the room. The Italian restaurant was WONDERFUL - food, service and atmosphere for the most part were great, aside from the loud noise from the basketball court directly above us. This was mentioned to management that if/when they ever remodel the ship, they may want to put their "fine dining" restaurants in a location AWAY from children/recreation areas. I understand it's convenient for them because I believe their kitchen was shared with the buffet kitchen, but when guests are paying extra for a special anniversary dinner on a cruise, they would hope for an atmosphere that's a little more serene. The famous "Cagney's Steakhouse" was not good, it just wasn't. Ordered steak medium well - it came out VERY WELL. Was tough and chewy, the waiter was anything but personable - dropped our food off on the table and never checked on us again until throwing dessert menus in our face 20-25 minutes later. Brochures promised a "Chocolate Buffet" night - nope, that didn't happen. They had a chocolate dessert night with maybe 5-6 different chocolate options on the regular buffet and a couple options in the other dining rooms. Was VERY disappointed with that as had heard from other cruisers what an awesome display it was. Overall the food quality and flavor were subpar, with a few surprise tasty items here and there. Room: Rooms were not ready when we arrived - no big deal, we ate lunch crammed in like sardines and waited patiently. Got to our room - was dusty with dirt on the floors. I realize they're in a time crunch preparing rooms between cruises that morning, but items left in the room from the previous cruisers? Really?? We had a balcony which was a first for us when cruising, but the neighbors had children that would slam their balcony door open and closed at all hours of the day and night, the cigarette smoke from the above deck and neighbors also wafted over our way, and being allergic to smoke made me have to hibernate in the room, so being able to enjoy the balcony was very sporadic. Entertainment: The magician Chip Romero was fantastic. Sat in front row for one show and he was funny and his skills are amazing. The comedian was ok but some jokes were just long and painful - many people got up and left halfway through the show. We didn't go to the "live" shows put on by the dancers/singers other than the opening night - they were ok and they tried hard, but not something we were super excited about seeing again. The last night's "crew talent show" was ok - a couple of really good singers and **spoiler alert**--- their skit "Fountains" was hysterical! You can actually see some past shows on YouTube if you search "Norwegian cruise Fountains" - they must do it on most of their cruises by the looks of it. Trivia was fun - Milo and Mandy were very nice. Again, brochures promised entertainment like "Blue Man Group" - didn't find out they were on another ship until we were already on our way sailing. Excursions: We stayed on the ship for Port Canaveral day as the prices for excursions were very high, so we got in the (only) pool for the first (and only) time as it wasn't packed full as it was the rest of the time. Great Stirrup Cay was beautiful, but having to get a ticket to get on the tender to take to the island was a long, drawn out process - never made it off the ship until almost noon. We did walk quite a ways down the beach and found our own little secluded area away from the crowd, so that was nice. Nassau was, well, Nassau. Been there once, you've been there a thousand times. Staff: I’d say as far as being friendly and helpful, it was about half and half. If you were sitting at one of the bars drinking alcoholic drinks, you were served much faster than someone trying to refill their mug with soda, and treated much better. There were a handful of people who were always a delight to see - the greeter at the buffet – “Washy washy, happy happy, smiley smiley”! Most of the staff looked bored and annoyed when asked for assistance, like it was beneath them to help you. Just the general overall feeling you got from the majority of the staff was that they didn’t like their jobs, didn’t want to be there, and helping you was just adding to their misery. Co-cruisers: I was raised with manners – wait your turn in line, say “excuse me” when needing to get past someone, say “please” and “thank you” when appropriate, talk quietly when others are trying to sleep, SHARE, etc. I didn’t see much of this on this cruise. I have never seen so many pushy, rude, obnoxious, loud, and inconsiderate people gathered in one location since Black Friday at Wal-Mart. The pushing and cutting in line got really old by Day 3. A lady actually told my husband to just “jump in front of people” and “push your way through” at the buffet line or he’d never get anything. Really? I had little kids stepping in front of me like I wasn’t there. I’m a 6’0” tall woman – am I really that hard to notice? Are you people who have been eating 5-6 meals a day and laying around by the pool like slugs with a mixed drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other for the last 5 days really STARVING to the point where you have to knock people over to get to the bacon??! And speaking of smokers – they’re kind of like cats: they can always tell the people that don’t like them, so they tend to get as close to those people as possible, every chance they get. Aaack! Sorry – hairball (with a touch of lung cancer). Oh yes, can’t forget to mention the little darlings on the ship. I think it was the first time some of them had been out of their own homes – wow. I just don’t even know where to begin. Everywhere we went they were running (literally running) through the hallways, dining rooms, stores, going up and down the elevators and pushing all the buttons just for fun, throwing food everywhere, wreaking havoc on everything and everyone they could find. We even decided to check out the non-smoking lounge with the bowling alley and slot machines to find a teenage girl practicing her “Miley Cyrus at the VMA’s” routine to a couple of really happy looking teenage boys in what my husband termed, “The Caligula Room”. Really?? And where were their parents exactly?? I can’t imagine letting my children act like that in my own home, let alone in public. Overall, like I said, we won’t be going on a Norwegian cruise again. With 14 ships on the sea, you’d think they’d have it figured out by now that customer service is the key to keeping people happy and coming back for more. My husband has written to them several times with requests for even a partial refund or at least a refund of the pre-paid tips, but all they have offered us is credit towards our next cruise they know we'll never take with them. For a company that makes close to $1 billion per year and can't refund less than $200 in tips says a lot about their values and customer service, or lack thereof. From now on, our future cruises will again be with the company that takes you to “The Happiest Place on Earth”, or in this case, on water.   Read Less

This was our fifth cruise. Our second on NCL. I'm not sure what has happened with NCL, as we traveled the epic ship 2 yrs ago and loved our experience. Our only complaint on epic was the set up of the bathrooms. Breakaway is just plain awful for numerous reasons. First the staff are all philapinne and very hard to understand. I don't think they understand us either as I had asked for drinks and they just shook head and got someone else for me to tell. One of the most pleasurable things when we cruise is to interact with the help on ships and speak to them about their countries and culture . On this cruise it's impossible as they lack the ability to communicate with us. The help seemed very overworked and not as friendly and chatty as the other ships we have been on. We did not feel comfortable with the staff. The service was very cut and dry. Their was no country diversity as they mostly all were from the same country it seemed. Next, ship was built very narrow as the hallways you had to walk single file. The pools were a joke as they too were small, crowded and jam packed. We did not use the pool or hotubs as you could not even move or you banged into the person next to you. The food was awful in the buffet. The specialty restaurants were a bit better and the manhattan room was a joke. Again the waiters were non speaking English and it took forever to be served. Room service had 3 items you could order and to find something to eat after 11 was impossible... Entertainment was okay, rock of ages (play) had a strange buzzing or feedback noise that they never fixed for the entire 105 mins of play. Burn the floor was good but after you saw that what else was left for the rest of week. On the epic there was so much to see and do, we never had a problem? Our cabin was smaller then most, we had a balcony cabin. The tv was awful. Not sure who they put in charge of that but the same movies played over and over on the 3 channels we had. Ironman, rock of ages and the mentalist. Room service took hours to arrive and that too was a joke. Breakfast was only a continental. No pancakes, eggs or French toast. Only cereal and muffins coffee. Once again the only items you could get 24 hrs was salad, turkey sand, chicken soup and blt....again not sure who created this lousy service but trust me NCL it stinks.... This particular cruise was loaded with kids that ran around, screamed and slid into you when you walked anywhere. They slid down railings, ran into elevators and pushed multiple buttons to be funny and then hopped off. Parents seemed unaffected by any of this.... The bathrooms in a few sections were gross. Toilets not even flushed. Yuck. Also where the sinks are with paper towels prior to going into buffet the water was left running and paper towel were empty. Nothing was serviced. The ship was ran very poorly and I was shocked more and more each day... The gym, a complete joke. Most treadmills are placed by the windows so when you jog you see the ocean. This gym was extremely small and the weights and lifting another joke. By far, this was the worst cruise of my life and we could not wait to come home. I actually brought extra money to pre book another cruise but after one days on the ship decided royal carribiaan is much nicer for the money and cruising experience. NCL if you were trying to cut corners without anyone noticing, WE NOTICED.....it shows in the small hallways, the pool shrunk, the food quality and quantity and the staff help.   Read Less

From the start, I was not thrilled with the ports this ship was docking at, but I was anticipating a great ship considering it is NCLs newest and largest. Large ship - yes! The complimentary dinning rooms are broken down into Savor, Taste and Manhattan Room (or up on the 15h Deck is the Garden Cafe - buffet). Although with freestyle you can dine and time you choose, Savor and Taste were small dinning rooms, very un-cruise-like for a main dinning room. Their food was satisfactory at best. The Manhattan Room was large, had a piano player and dance floor which made it a more enjoyable atmosphere. The food in the Manhattan Room was much better than the other two (Savor and Taste) whole-in-the-wall 'main' dinning rooms. Whichever dinning room you choose, you still have to wait a substantial period of time (like 30-40 minutes). They incorrectly use the term 'atrium' on this ship. There is no atrium. You can look down from deck 7 to deck 6 and that is it! The main lobby's main attraction is a huge screen where they show movies. If you go on a cruise to sit in an easy chair, watch a movie while falling asleep - then you'll love this. Otherwise, the main lobby is a bust! Night life is sorely lacking. I caught Rock of Ages which I thought was very good, and Cirque was okay. I had no desire to see the other shows. I sat in Burn the Floor for five minutes and left. On other cruises I liked hanging out in the disco at night and into the wee hours. The 'disco' (a very loose use of the term) on this ship is a dark, small room, box. When I walk into a disco I want lights flashing (like the John Travolta dance floor), disco balls hanging from the ceiling, etc. This one was a total bust and not conducive to shaking your thing. After walking into the potential night spots, I wound up spending most nights in Fat Cats. Slam Allen was wonderful, but you sat on your azz listening to his great music. I'd much rather be dancing, shaking and moving than sitting. The ship was way to boxed off into small restaurants, entertainment areas, etc. The staff was satisfactory to a bit below par. Don't forget you do not HAVE TO pay the $12 per person per day they automatically tack onto you tab. You can alter this when you review your final bill. There is a switch on the wall outside the bathroom for privacy, or to have your room cleaned. Unfortunately I forgot to flip the switch often so I'd come back to my cabin 6 hours later to find my dirty towels still on the bathroom floor and my bed unmade and I didn't get my cute towel animals often. Oh, but the cabin steward was quick to know my name if I passed him in the hallway! The hot tubs were luke warm tubs and if you wanted one without 5 and 6 years olds in it you had to go way up to Spice H2O. Although there were signs on half of the hot tubs on the main pool level "18 and over" it didn't seem to mean a thing. All-in-all I was not impressed with NCL nor was I impressed with the Breakaway. Oh, the casino is the main attraction in the middle of (I think) deck 7. Major problem!!! It is a walk through on the deck with casino on the left and on the right. KIDS were walking through the casino all day long. Last I heard kids are not allowed in casinos. Very, very poor planning. At the main deck in the lobby I looked and a looked for a daily. There were flyers for upcoming cruises, for joining their frequent sailing club - not no daily. When I asked someone behind the counter he had to give me one from the cabinet. Now why oh why isn't the daily easy to access in the main lobby? Read Less