Norwegian Escape

I was lucky enough to be invited on board the brand new Norwegian Escape recently and was more than impressed.
The décor was lovely, very tasteful and contemporary in design and with lots of large open spaces. In particular the reception area was huge with lots of different seating areas, a lovely bar and a coffee shop with delicious looking cakes and pastries. It made a nice change to have this lovely space without having to battle with crowds and congestion if you need to visit reception or shore excursions etc.

We had an inside cabin which was small but fully equipped and the bathroom was a pleasant surprise as this was a decent size with a large glass door shower.


The only negative comment I would have about the cabin was the wardrobe/storage space. If I had booked this cabin for my family of 4 we would have really struggled.

There was one average size wardrobe with a few shelves inside, definitely not enough for 4 of us especially 3 of us being female !!
Having said that I am sure we would manage and if I do book this for myself I think a cabin upgrade would be in order.
Now anyone who knows me will tell you how much I love my food so I am always keen to try as many different venues as possible.
Being on there for just 1 night does mean we can only try a few restaurants but the choices were endless.
Yes some of the restaurants do incur a cover charge but they are well worth the extra.
The main dining rooms were lovely too. They were small and had a very relaxed and intimate feel to them. I loved the Manhattan room which had a dance floor and band.

There were 2 other main dining rooms included in the price if you prefer to dine in a quieter setting.
The menu sounded really good and I almost wished I hadn’t booked a speciality restaurant, that was until I got there and I was not disappointed !!
We had booked into Cagney’s which is a beautiful restaurant offering individually priced items from the menu. I ordered the Pork Belly followed by a Fillet Mignon which melted in my mouth, followed by Raspberry Brulee.
The service here was very good and not in the slightest but rushed.

I would have liked to see the Rat Pack show in the theatre but we had not finished dinner in time.
Instead we sampled a few bars and ended up in the Headliners to see the Howl at the Moon act. This was a lady and gentleman on the piano singing anything from the latest chart music to old classics. You can make your requests if there is anything you would like to hear. It was a lively venue and I can imagine will be very popular as it has been on their other newer class of ships.
The Mojito bar is worth a visit with lots of different combinations of Mojitos to try although the bar service was a little slow.
I also had lunch in the buffet which had a huge choice of food and was set out in such a way that everyone was not lining up in one area so was a lot more civilised than some other ships I have been on. There was also free juice and still lemonade in the self service area and free ice-cream including whippy ice-cream in a cone which I am sure will be popular with families.
In the middle of the buffet area there was also a nice bar serving a good choice of drinks. Much better than having to try and grab the attention of a waiter.
Finally we ate in the main dining room for breakfast. Service was slow but it was nice not to feel rushed. I like the main dining room for breakfast as everything is cooked fresh and brought to you with no hassle of trying to get your food and then hot drinks whilst trying to find a table.
We also took the opportunity to have a good look around the spa.
This was huge with lots of treatment rooms.

I was looking forward to seeing the snow room which is an industry first but have to say was very disappointed with this.
It took ages to find it because it is so small and tucked away inside the spa and we eventually asked a staff member where to find it. The room was so tiny I can’t imagine why anyone would want to use this. They would have been better having an extra treatment room.

The ropes looked terrifying and unfortunately I am not brave enough to try this. It involved a small zip wire across the width of the ship and there was a plank which is 8 foot over the side of the ship. Not for the faint hearted !!
The waterslides looked great fun with 2 slides that you can race each other, I don’t think I would see my kids if we went on this ship they would spend their whole time on there.

Overall I would recommend this ship , there is something for everyone and if you aren’t travelling with children there are plenty of quieter areas where you can avoid them.
The food and entertainment was fantastic and the relaxed informal atmosphere made a refreshing change.
Be warned though drinks are very expensive and I would be taking the drinks package. The prices do not seem too high until they add the service charge and VAT. I felt that $26 for 2 glasses of wine was over the top.