My name is Doug parker host of the cruise Radio podcast in this is
a tour of the brand new Norwegian Encore.
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All right on with that or let's start with the facts in a week an encore was launched in 2019.
She is the very last ship in their Breakaway Plus Class.
She is 1094 feet long weighs in at a hundred
and sixty-seven thousand eight hundred gross register tons and carries three.
1998 guests at Double occupancy.
So first off know that this is a big ship and we have a lot of ground to cover.
So let's get started with a tour will start on Deck number 5,
which is all staterooms and those rooms are either inside or Oceanview cabins.
The only other thing you'll find on Deck 5 is the various kids clubs
and those clubs are broken down into three different categories.
There's the Guppies from ages 6 months to under 3 years old.
Then you have the splash Academy from Three
to 12 and then within the splash Academy they kind of break it down
into subcategories three to five year olds.
They have six to nine and then preteens which is from 10 to 12.
And then for the teenagers, they have Entourage that's between 13 and 17 not surprisingly.
You'll also find a teen-friendly video arcade here on
Deck 5 as well up to that number six forward is where you'll find Q,
Texas Smokehouse. This is Norwegian Cruise Lines barbecue venue.
This was rolled out in early. Early 2018
when Norwegian Bliss came online one of the really cool things about this
space is that there's a stage in front of the restaurant
and most nights will be live music in here.
So while Q is a specialty restaurant meaning
for fee you do get dinner and a show, if you want to catch the show,
but not eat. There's also a bar in the back
and that's a perfect place just to hang out have a cocktail
and watch some live music will head towards the main Atrium now,
there's actually two ways to get there the first one just
walking past the forward Bank of The Vader's
the other way to go will take you past the library a few meeting rooms
and a photo studio.
This is where you can go if you want to set up a special photoshoot the atrium features a
large stage where there's almost always something going on
whether it's a game or a band something always happening in here.
There's plenty of comfortable seating in here as well as a Starbucks and internet cafe,
the guest services desk and the shore Excursion desk all within this space again a very big space
and very spread out lots of room down.
Down here in the main Atrium people often refer to the atrium as the heart of the ship,
but I think on Norwegian Breakaway and the Breakaway Plus Class ships.
It's actually six seven and eight Ocean Place which spans three decks,
of course, six seven and eight
as you might have guessed from the name on Encore like her sister ships.
The area is anchored by a chandelier that is constantly changing colors
and as much of a piece of art
as it is a light fixture really cool just to kind of watch it
transform from one color to another Now on one
side of this circular space we have the social comedy a nightclub.
You have the silent disco in here and all of them.
It's got multi-purpose venue where they host a variety of events really.
This is where the comedian performs the also do the show happy hour prohibition the
musical in here to across from the social club is Coco's which is a
for fee dessert shop just passed Coco's is Teppanyaki,
like on other ships and other lines. This is
a for fee restaurant where the chef puts on a show while he's making your dinner.
It's always fun, especially if you go Go with a group of people.
Next up is the art gallery and well, you know what to expect here.
I've never been tempted to buy a piece of art on the ship,
but it can be fun to go to the auctions. Just be careful a couple of glasses of champagne.
You might be walking out with a $10,000 Peter Max.
Peace. So just keep that in mind just past the gallery is the mix bar which sits
between two of these ships three main dining rooms taste
and Savor all the dining rooms serve the same menu which changes daily
and offers a pretty wide selection of dishes.
Is it's also worth checking out the main dining room for lunch on sea days.
Just make sure you check the freestyle daily for the hours moving up to deck number seven.
That's where the Manhattan dining room is going to be all the way in the back of the ship.
That is the third main dining room.
Now while it serves the same menu as taste and Savor this space feels a little more upscale.
They also have a stage in here
and a dance floor because most of the nights there's some live music going on in here.
We also have the really big beautiful windows at the the back of the restaurant which overlooked the
Wake Island all this feels more like a upscale specialty
restaurant despite it being included in your
cruise fare now coming out of the Manhattan dining room.
You're going to walk past the aft bank of elevators on the ship.
There are two Banks of elevators here. There's a forward
bank and an apt bank and that takes us into the casino
as you enter the casino you'll see the skyline bar on your left.
Then we move into the casino itself,
which is massive. One thing. I love about this ship is that the casino has it in clothes smoking.
An area so and don't worry smokers. It's not some small dark space with a few machines.
It's actually got a ton of slot machines as well as gaming tables in here on like Breakaway.
The casino smoking area wasn't in close
and this became a problem
since six seven eight Ocean Place is the whole concept
involves it being an open Central Area this meant
that all the smoke from the casino on Deck seven was falling down into deck
6 and rising up into deck number 8,
so it really made the whole ship kind of smelled now exiting the see
know you'll find the local on other NCL ships.
This is known as though she hands the name has changed
as well as the CEO but it's still the same venue and it's open 24 hours.
This means that it's very very popular with a late-night crowd around 3 a.m.
It can get pretty Rowdy in here people usually take full advantage of their drink package
and then take full advantage of the local sports bar with some
chicken wings a salad a hot dog on that pretzel bun
so good now the local overlooks The Atrium and there are seats all the way.
Around the edge. So if you want to grab a bite to eat
while playing Deal or No Deal or listening to the band,
this is pretty convenient and that brings us to the front of deck 7,
which is the level of The Encore Theater.
It's really the second level
because there is an entrance on Deck number six with the most used one is right here on
Deck number 7 at the entrance you'll find the box office,
which is where you'll want to head shortly after you board the ship in order to make reservations
for any of the shows.
You might want to catch so you might want to check this out first.
First and also the dining
as soon as you board up to deck number 8 after is going to be Cagney's Steakhouse
and Los Lobos Cagney's is their Specialty Steak House in Los Lobos is Mexican Tex-Mex type food,
really good empanadas at Los Lobos
and amazing steaks over at Cagney's both of these venues Overlook the Manhattan room,
which we just spoke about a few moments ago. That is the main dining room in the back of the ship.
And then also you could dine outside up here because NCL has any water.
Front on this class of ship
so you could dine inside or outside
and the Waterfront basically extends from the very back
of the ship all the way forward on both the
port and starboard side.
So it's really nice out here.
And you know, we had a chance to grab a drink leaving Great Stirrup key one night on our cruise
and it was just yeah,
its words can't describe the connection to the water these days a
lot of cruise ships take that connection away
and cl bring it back with the Waterfront one thing you might miss easily if
you aren't looking forward down this little side.
A halt when you're walking out to the Waterfront is the bakeshop
and just outside and around the corner from the bake shop is the gelato stand.
In fact, I did miss it as well back inside.
You'll find more duty-free shops. You have trade winds,
which is the Norwegian duty-free shop little tip.
If you're looking to buy some souvenirs don't wait
until the last day the place is a madhouse plus if you're wanting to buy
something like a Norwegian branded sweatshirt,
maybe a ship they can run out and not restock until they get back to the Home Port.
So by what you want early on in the cruise. I've learned that the Away,
so many times ocean blue is also here.
You might remember when Norwegian Cruise Line first opened this seafood restaurant.
It was part of a partnership with Iron Chef Geoffrey Zakarian.
Well, he's gone with the restaurant
lives on and like most other venues on decade ocean blue has seating available on the waterfront
as well.
And what could be better than enjoying high-end Seafood on the ocean.
Yeah. I can't think of anything better moving on. We have the
sugarcane mojito bar which like a lot of other
venues on this deck has a great outdoor area the An Club is also in this
area for all you Beatles fans out there.
There's live music usually a Beatles cover band in here
and they have a karaoke nights
and other events inside this bar also has a great space out on the waterfront.
If you'd rather hang outside there just past the cavern Club.
There is the maltings whiskey bar. I'll let you in on a little secret.
They serve pretty much every kind of liquor not just whiskey I rolled in there
and ask for a vodka soda.
Someone next to me said They don't serve vodka here. The bartender said no problem
and handed me a Tito's and soda,
so Get whatever you want here. Not just whisk a you also have sellers wine bar here.
And then you have own Dubai Scarpetta.
This is a high-end Italian Eatery that replaces La Cucina.
That's found on the other Norwegian Cruise Line ships.
This is a four feet venue also available for Waterfront seating as well.
And then you'll pass the elevators and then all the way forward port and starboard side.
You have two venues on the port side.
You have the district Brew House lots of beers on tap here and also cans and bottles.
As well as more of a pub-type thing also an outside area
and then on the opposite side of this you're going to have food Republic another small Tapas
food type venue with a lot of finger foods you order off iPads,
very techie. Very good decks 9 through 14 are all staterooms a couple of spots though.
You might need to know the medical center is on Deck 13.
That's kind of odd Unlucky 13 Medical Center hand in hand in there.
You'll also find a solo Studio cabins and Studio Lounge in here.
The solo cabins were 99 square feet and I mean,
they're a solo Studio cabin.
Very basic very simple as you see from the footage here.
One thing I do love about this area is the studio Lounge though.
They serve snacks throughout the day. There's a coffee
machine in here juices cookies fruit all of that.
So kind of a place to for the single travelers to meet
and mingle and not feel the pressures of outside.
Not that you would feel the pressures of like being by yourself
but a place where like-minded people all to meet if that makes sense moving up to DEC
15 the back half of the ship is occupied by staterooms,
but the entire front half of DEC 15 is the observation Lounge,
which is hands-down my favorite spot on the ship.
The space is just gorgeous with floor-to-ceiling Windows tons of seating.
There's a bar towards the front of the space
and there's almost always some food set up here at these miniature Buffet stations,
which are perfect. If you're wanting a little bit to eat before you feel like going to a restaurant
or up to the buffet.
It's just pretty incredible how much Space NCL devoted to this area.
There's a similar space a few decks up which is exclusive
for the use of the Haven guest
but this space down here is a lot larger than the Haven area DEC 16 forward
is where you're going to find the Garden Cafe,
which is NLCS Buffet like the other ships in the class.
The buffet is given a lot of space with plenty of seating.
There's a wide variety of foods at various stations,
which are like the meat carving stations the salad station the pastries the breads Etc.
It's mirrored on Each side. So it's the same on the port and starboard side for the most part.
There's a soft-serve ice cream machine in here a beverage
station where you can get juices tea waters Etc.
Also a bar in this area and a Starbucks coffee dispenser and a wine dispenser.
Now these Starbucks coffee and the glasses of wine.
Those do cost extra and be aware that the wine dispensers are not covered
by your drink package outside on the pool deck.
There are two pools two bars the Aquapark for the kids and some Water slides.
There are also loungers both here.
And on the next deck up what there is not
for a ship of this size as a lot of space Here's the thing on other ships in this class.
They have a very large space called H2O,
which is an adults-only area with his own bars hot tubs big screen there.
It's a great place to get away from the crowds The Last Ship.
It was on was a Norwegian Bliss. But on this ship,
there is no spice H2O instead they've used that space
for Things like the Galaxy Pavilion and Laser Tag arena,
which we'll talk about in a minute.
So because of that, there will likely be more people fighting
for Prime real estate by the pool which will probably mean more chair Hogs than ever.
Anyway moving back be on the pool deck
and continuing our tour of deck 16 we head back into the pulse fitness center where
you can work off all those calories from eating all week.
And then you have the Mandara Spa you'll find plenty of beauty parlors in here
and for the men a barbershop and one of my favorite spots on the ship.
It's Back of DEC 16 the Mandara Spa,
of course, you can come and get a massage or acupuncture or any of the other treatments.
They offer in here for a fee. You can also purchase a thorough sweep past though,
which gives you access to these saunas the whirlpool The Salt Room Ace no room
for the whole week now,
I believe the prices will vary depending on the time of year and where the ship is sailing,
but she told me it was around 2 97 per guest for the thermal Suite pass for the 7-night cruise.
You can also buy a day pass if you'd like to do that as well.
They do have limited capacity in there
and they only sell a couple of hundred
so you want to get in early and by this pass as soon as you get on the ship on DEC 17,
the front area is occupied by the Havens version of the observation Lounge.
It's two stories with great views. But then again,
this is only available to those who are staying in the Haven
and then just a bit back from the Observation Lounge is the Haven Courtyard.
This is where you'll find a pool a hot tub places to relax The Haven also has Own bar
and lounge one deck up and a restaurant with both indoor and outdoor seating.
There's also a private Sundeck
for the guests and the Haven a lot of space dedicated to The Haven guests on Norwegian
Encore continuing to move toward the back of the ship on DEC 17.
This is where you'll find more of those loungers overlooking the pool below
as well as hot tubs on both sides of the ship a jogging track that Loops
through this area a quick suggestion that if you
want to get a run in without having to dodge people I'd recommend coming here.
Here really early or just go to the fitness center
and grab a treadmill because this kind of loops around the space where people are lounging
and getting drinks in the bar waiters were walking back and forth.
So keep that in mind if you're a runner on the
ship as we move back we come to the American Diner on several other NCL ships.
Margaritaville was located here,
but that really hasn't been a thing or been really that successful for them.
So it's not surprising to see something a little bit different here American Diner is a
for fee restaurant offering things like Burgers sea food baskets loaded nachos
and some desserts the prices are pretty reasonable,
but you couldn't get burger and fries at the buffet for free and not pay so it mean again,
it's just all about the experience right Lee Bistro is NLCS French restaurant,
which is a great place to head on firmware night,
but make reservations because everyone else is thinking the same thing.
It's a nice space. Although I will say it doesn't have the same intimate Ambience.
You'll find on The Bistro on smaller ships like Norwegian gym at the very back of that number.
17 is Galaxy Pavilion, which is a giant virtual reality playground.
You can put on some goggles jump in a Jeep and the next thing you know,
you're being chased by dinosaurs that kind of thing.
This is very cool. But it would also be really easy for your kids to rack up a Big Bill in here.
So make sure you keep an eye on that games will cost you like the escape room is around $15 a person
and you can play the games all the car or buy a week-long pass just check at the Galaxy Pavilion.
Once you get on board moving up to DEC 18,
the front part of the ship is taken up by the Havens.
As we mentioned before including the restaurant in a sun
deck and then in the back of the ship is where you're going to find
two e-ticket attractions The Encore Speedway
and the laser tag arena as you probably heard by now The Encore Speedway is the longest
and fastest at see the track actually extends over the side of the ship by 13
feet truth be told you don't really notice that
while you're zipping around the course,
it's not like the track is made out of plexiglass.
It's still fast and it's very fun to ride a ticket will set you back around.
And $15 or maybe just north of $15 per time-limited passes are also available
for this spot as well as well as the laser tag again.
You'll have to check for pricing. Once you get on board behind.
This space is the laser tag arena, which is very big and very cool.
By the way because on Norwegian joy and Bliss.
It really doesn't it's just a block laser tag course,
this is made of like mythical sea creatures I think is the theme is Journey to Atlantis.
This does cost extra you do have to make reservations one tip though.
Is better to play this space at night time than daytime
for obvious reasons DEC 19 is where you'll find the vibe Beach Club.
This is a for fee adults only area now on Encore this area is much much
bigger than on previous ships over the past year
or so Norwegian has more than double the original price they charge
for the access to Vibe and people have been willing to pay it.
So with Encore they're obviously betting on the fact that because there is no spice H2O,
which remember it was a free adults only. A space that there's going to be a higher demand
for access to the vibe Beach Club and that'll do it for our tour of Norwegian Encore.
My name is Doug Parker. I'm the host of the crews Radio podcast in the daily Cruz radio news briefs.
You can find both of those where you listen to your favorite podcasts just search Crews radio
or Cruise radio news some final thoughts on your weejun Encore.
This ship is perhaps the most beautiful one in the NCL Fleet the public spaces in general
and particularly the observation Lounge.
They're both designed to be comfortable. While delivering that wow factor,
which they definitely do if there's a downside it's how much of the top deck space
has been devoted to things like race tracks laser tags
and even the vibe Beach Club,
which is all revenue game, right you have to pay to use.
So other than that though just a beautiful ship.
It's going to spend some time in Miami. Also New York
and then Alaska so this shift is going to be all over and rightfully.
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Zup. What do you think of Norwegian Encore?
Have you sailed her. Are you looking at sailing her or are you booked?
Let me know in the comments below and thank you so much for watching.