Cruise Ship Review: Norwegian Getaway

The Getaway Has Got It All

Norwegian Cruise Line brought their A-game with the Getaway, which I enjoyed a fun filled week on two weeks ago.  The Norwegian Getaway is an example of everything that is right with cruising and in my opinion the direction most cruise ship construction will be heading in the next few years.  As my third Norwegian cruise and second this year, I am finding this line giving my other favorite a run for its money.  

The massive Norwegian Getaway has a massive mermaid mural on the bow to match.

The Getaway has so many features that make cruising more enjoyable I spent much of my time on the ships wondering why these features have not been added before.  The first example I pose is The Waterfront.  The Waterfront is an out door deck which encircles the entirety of deck 8.  Along the water front are two bars (the Mojitos and Sunset bars) and two specialty restaurants (don't remember which).  These eateries and drinkeries have a portion of their floor space outside as well as in.   The Mojito Bar quickly became my favorite of the ship because it offered an outdoor view without the craziness of the pool deck.  

Another feature that left me scratching my head as to why no one thought of it before is the lighting system above the cabin door frames.  In the cabin a key card must be inserted into a specified slot to turn on electricity in the cabin.  When the key card is in the slot a small white light come on above the cabin door on the hallway side, indicating to the room steward the cabin is occupied and not to enter.  Two switches inside the cabin turn on a red light, which signals do not disturb, and a green light signally the room needs service.  Never again would I have to blindly reach outside my door to hang a do not disturb placard since I am not appropriately dressed to open the door fully, nor will a room steward accidentally come in while I am sleeping because I forgot to put out the do not disturb placard.  I hope every cruise ship gets this feature ASAP.

The Mojito Bar on the Waterfront, a balcony encircling deck 8 with outside areas for bars and restaurants, which can also be enjoyed indoors.

Another benefit of the Getaway is its slew of complimentary restaurants, including some very cuisine specific restaurants.  The Getaway has three main dinning rooms which all serve the same menu.  We ate in each of them once, just to try each one.  The food was fine, just out competed by other restaurants of the ship.  My favorites were Shanghai's Noodle Bar and The Flamingo Grill.  Writing this post my mouth is watering just thinking about them.  Shanghai's offers a variety of noodles dishes either served in broth (soup) or stir fried in a wok.  A few rice dishes and dim sum appetizers round out the menu.  The only negative of Shanghai's is that it is only open for dinner.  We liked it so much we ate their twice out of our seven dinners on ship.  One tip is that while not on the menu, sake is available on request.

My second favorite, The Flamingo Grill serves Latin American cuisine for breakfast and lunch.  Sweet fried plantains, beans and rice, croquettas, guava pastries, and empanadas were served daily and oh so delicious.  I love Latin American cuisine and could have eaten here every day for lunch if my compatriot in cruising let me.  The only problem with the Flamingo is that it was never open for dinner. 

The Shanghia's Noodle Bar, newly complimentary on Getaway serving noodle soups, wok noodles, and rice dishes.

O'Sheenan's Pub and Grill, serving bar food like chicken wings and burgers, and the Garden Cafe with your typical miss mash of cruise food round out the complimentary food options.   I've talked about these options before on the Norweigan Epic as they are pretty much the same on that ship.  I will reiterate here that veggie burgers in O'Sheenan's are available on request and the nightly crepe station in the buffet is not to be missed.  On its website Norwegian says that room service is also complimentary, but on ship the menu says there is a $7.95 service charge for all orders.  So complimentary I think not.  I didn't go to any of the specialty restaurants so I have no opinion of them.  

Getaway's mini golf course, frustratingly filled with obstacles which can land a ball next to the cup or in the rough.

One of the major reasons we booked this cruise was because of all the awesome activities the Getaway has to offer.  There is a mini golf course brutal enough to make a par golfer cry, a ropes course, and a water park.  I was pretty excited about the ropes course.  I'm afraid of heights, but generally don't let that slow me down.  I snowboard down slopes I would have to repel down in the summer.  The ropes course presented a challenge though. 

 Thirty feet above the main deck and even higher over some of the others I had a hard time trusting the harness would catch me if I slipped on the twenty feet of balance beam I needed to traverse.  The ropes course accounts for differences in fear and skill level though.  There isn't a set path, allowing climbers to go forwards backwards, or side ways to avoid slower climbers.  This also means there was almost never a line to get on the ropes course since traffic moved along quite well on the course. One challenge I attempted and failed was the walk the plank challenge.  Climbers walk out over the side of the ship over a hundred feet above the water six feet from the ship on a tiny skinny piece of steel.  I got one foot on the beam and tried desperately to step the gap from the platform to the beam with my other foot.  It wouldn't move.  Nope, maybe it was all the wind, the rocking and rolling of the ship, or just my own insecurity but I was not getting out there.  Looking back now I have no regrets of not walking the plank, because I still remember how terrifying it was.  

The Getaway's rope course and zip line, over the deck and the side of the ship.

The Getaway also has a pretty impressive water park sporting five slides.  The Free Fall slide is the most marketed of the park.  On the Free Fall riders stand on a platform and are locked into a capsule while a machine counts down to zero.  At zero the floor drops out from beneath the rider sending them straight down, then upside down, before quickly decelerating at the end of the slide.  The one time I made up the will to get on the slide I was turned away for wearing stud earrings.  I had plenty of fun on the corkscrew slides and fifth smaller slide to make up for my lack of riding Free Fall.  

The ropes course is vast featuring obstacles of many difficulties, testing the courage and balance of passengers.

Continuing on the activities vein the Getaway has some fairly unique shows.  To accent its Latin-themed restaurant The Flamingo the Getaway has a Latin music themed dance show Burn the Floor.  Burn the Floor was our first show of the cruise, and I thought it was just okay.  Only consisting of dancing and music (no plot) an hour was a bit too long to sit through the repetitious show.  I wasn't alone as I saw the theater hemorrhaging a fifth of the audience between the thirty minute mark and the end of the show.  I would say the Grammy Experience was on par with Burn the Floor.  The Grammy Experience was hosted in its own dedicated lounge and features a Grammy-nominated artist.  When we were onboard the featured artist was a jazz singer I have never heard of.  After four songs I gave up thinking I would like any of the music and we left.  It's a matter of taste, which makes the Grammy Experience less appealing to a broader audience.

The free fall, a pair of slides in which the floor drops out from the rider sending them on a crazy track that includes an inversion.

I did like Legally Blonde the Musical which was featured later in the cruise in the theatre.  A musical adaptation of the Resse Witherspoon film, it was funny and witty and just generally a good show.  I did see some people leave during the song Gay or European, which I am guessing is due to offense.  Personally that was my favorite song of the show.  Also on the recommended show list were the comedy shows and Howl at the Moon.  The comedy shows feature standup comedians while Howl at the Moon is a dueling piano bar franchise contracted by Norwegian.  Both shows take place in the Headliners Theater on the lowest non-stateroom deck.  

The more tame corkscrew shaped slides on the Getaway.

I want to end on a couple of random notes about the Getaway.  My boyfriend and I were always cold. I don't understand why the ship's temperature was kept so low when everyone on the cruise was dressed for a Caribbean vacation.  I didn't have a jacket or pair of long pants with me, which sent me running to my stateroom or outside pretty much anytime I stepped into a common area of the ship.  Also, the Getaway had great welcome back parties on the pier, with cold wash cloths, fun music, and a lot of energy from the crew.  It felt nice to come back to a boisterous welcoming group after a long day in port.

The awesome welcome back to the Getaway included a giant wacky wavy inflatable arm man.

Norwegian has announced four new ships will be coming out in the next four years.  With what I have seen on the Getaway which has only been at sea for a year, I look forward to what Norwegian has to offer in the future.