First off, a confession. I don’t like big ships and I cannot lie. Actually that’s a lie, at least a partial one. Let me try that again without the overused 90’s rap reference. I love all cruise ships, but I prefer the smaller, understated ones to the big, flashy ones. So why did I book the Norwegian Encore, you ask? Because I could walk to it from my apartment in downtown Seattle for one. And I had a bunch of NCL credit to use by the end of the year for two. And the prices were great, for three. And capacity was limited to around 60% for four. And I was eager to sail as a newly Platinum Latitudes member on NCL (well not so newly, but cruising shut down right after I turned Platinum in February 2019) for five.
But does one ever need a reason to book a cruise? Any cruise? On any ship, big or small?
If there’s one thing you should learn from this lecture, even if you have no interest in the Encore, it’s that it’s always a good time to book a cruise, any cruise on any line on any ship going to any port. Go ahead, tell your husband or wife or partner that Prof. Cruise made you do it. And if they push back, put your hand out and do a dramatic 180 degree turn as you threaten to take me with you instead of them. And then take me with you.
Now that we have that settled, read on if you actually came here with the intention of learning more about the Encore and didn’t accidentally land here after googling “horrible 90’s rap references you should never use in blog posts.”
This section is the equivalent of the CDC version: the facts as they exist today. Then we’ll move onto my opinion which is the equivalent of your cousin Chet swearing that 30 consecutive hours on the leg press machine sprint pumping the maximum weight, followed by a Clorox enema and a dinner of grass-fed beef and organic broccoli cured him of Covid.
The Encore, the fourth and last breakaway-plus class ship in Norwegian’s fleet, debuted in November 2019 just a few months before Covid hit and shut down the cruising industry for over a year. So those of us who sailed on her in 2021 were sailing on a practically new ship.
She has 20 floors with a guest capacity of 3,998 and a crew of 1,735. She is 1,094 feet long and weighs in at 196,116 gross tons (with all that dessert onboard, it’s no surprise). She currently sails from Miami to the Caribbean in the fall, winter, and spring and to Alaska from Seattle in the summer.
I spent more time in the Observation Lounge reading, working, snoring loudly in a lounger (sorry about that), and eating than in any other location on the ship. This beautiful and comfortable space offers everything you’ll need for a relaxing morning, afternoon, or evening at sea. There is a bar, a buffet that serves a small selection of items for breakfast and lunch, comfortable seating, and amazing views from huge windows at the front and sides of the ship.
Pro-tip #1: This is a perfect spot to watch sail-away or for scenic sailing days if it’s too hot or cold to sit outside. Get there early though – prime seats fill up fast!
Pro-tip #2: The desserts on the small buffet in the observation lounge are sometimes better than those in the regular buffet and often have an international twist.
Pro-Tip #3: If the Observation Lounge is too crowded, try the District Brew House. It’s rarely crowded and also offers some great views and comfortable seating.
NCL offers a large selection of both hot and cold and vegetarian and non-vegetarian Indian selections on the buffet. It’s authentic and flavorful and is my go-to lunch on every NCL cruise. You’ll be hard pressed to find better Indian food in major cities on land – that’s how good it is!
While the Indian selections were by far my favorite, a quick word about the food in the main dining rooms: It was typical cruise food – good, but not great (which is fine by me, I’m not picky). I also ate in two specialty restaurants which was a new and fun experience for me. You can read my review of Cagney’s Steakhouse here and Los Lobos here. And you can go here for all the restaurant menus on the Encore and here for all the bar menus.
The gym was large and well-equipped with posted hours from 6am-11pm (but was always open already when I arrived at 5:45am).
Due to limited capacity on our sailing there was a crew to passenger ratio of around 1:1, so one would expect service to be good. It was beyond good though – it was outstanding. On the last day, I passed out these cards* with an extra cash tip inside to crew members who had made my cruise extra special:
This was one of my favorite spots on the Bliss and the Breakaway and impressed me on the Encore as well. I love all the comfortable seating and outdoor bars and dining areas. If you’re worried about not having a balcony booked on the Encore, don’t – The Waterfront will serve as a wonderful alternative.
This ship is almost brand new and the furnishings reflect that.
The buffet includes hard ice cream you can have served in a cup or a cone. Standard flavors are available daily along with a number of rotating flavors like green tea, pistachio, rocky road, coconut, and butter pecan.
This was the best cruise ship production show I’ve ever seen at sea, including on other NCL ships. I loved the music, the story, the talented performers, and the set. Don’t miss it!
There was a wide variety of live music available at different venues every afternoon and evening. Performers were talented and entertaining.
The ship was spotlessly clean, with crew constantly clearing dishes, mopping, vacuuming, dusting, and disinfecting.
While it was a little weird adjusting to a ship full of almost totally unmasked people after coming from a city with an indoor mask mandate, I was impressed with NCL’s Covid protocols requiring 100% vaccination and temperature checks and Covid testing at check-in (provided by NCL at their expense). The testing was very efficient and added an additional layer of reassurance with the Delta variant circulating so widely at the time of my sailing. Masking was also required in all ports and terminals and all crew members were masked at all times (except those performing on stage).
In addition, all passengers were required to wash their hands upon entering the buffet and hand sanitizer was widely available.
I love walking the Promenade deck on a cruise ship – listening to a book or podcast while I breath in the clean ocean air and watch for wildlife. My favorite ships have Promenade decks that wrap all the way around the ship. The Encore does not have such a deck. However, I mostly made do with a few alternatives:
I walked around on The Waterfront on deck 8 when the weather was good (passing through a brief inside area at the front of the ship to make the full loop) and I used deck 7 (where the life boats are located) when it was raining (as it’s fully covered). The public area of deck 7 does not wrap around either the front or back of the ship, so you’ll have to go out and back on either the port or starboard side.
The stateroom hallways on the Encore are extremely narrow. When cleaning carts are lined up along them and room stewards are working around them, passing can be tricky, especially for anyone with mobility issues.
Pro Tip: If you use a walker or scooter, have mobility issues, or have an infant or toddler in a stroller, book a cabin as close to elevators as possible.
I guess this was both a plus and a minus. Unfortunately, the walk from the elevator to my cabin was approximately 6 miles. On the plus side, I felt justified ordering that second dessert in the MDR each evening.
Cruise lines (and especially NCL) have a reputation for nickel and diming passengers once onboard. And the Encore is no exception. Those that point to this class of ship as great for families may forget to mention that much of the fun stuff your kids will love costs extra. Leave room in the budget for the Norwegian Speedway, the Galaxy Pavilion, and the arcade. If you have multiple children or a bored husband, these activities can get quite pricey.
As a veteran cruiser to Alaska, I was really disappointed that there wasn’t a naturalist onboard, offering lectures about Alaska and other programming. This is the first Alaska cruise I’ve been on without one (and I’ve been on a lot of Alaska cruises on every non-luxury line) and it really did affect the experience for me. We did have park rangers board the ship for our scenic cruising day through Glacier Bay National Park, but they were only onboard for that one day. And we did have some presentations about Alaska given by the CruiseNext department, but again, it didn’t compare with having a naturalist with years of professional training and experience.
And really, there was an overall lack of programming for us nerd types (except for trivia which I’m not really a fan of). No book club. No lectures by experts in various fields.
NCL has spent millions building new piers for their ships in Alaska. And let me tell you, from a passenger perspective, they suck. No way around it. They are further away from the action and require a bus or gondola ride, wasting valuable time you could be spending in port (and those buses and the gondola ride may eventually end up costing you extra money to ride – stay tuned). Honestly, I would no longer choose NCL for Alaska for this reason alone (unless the price and timing were too tempting – which I’m sure they will continue to be for me at times). If this is your one shot at Alaska and you don’t need all the bells and whistles of a mega ship, pick a different line. Holland America, Princess, and Celebrity all do Alaska so very well and you’ll avoid the hassle of these new NCL piers. It pains me to say this, I’m platinum on NCL and generally love the line, but alas…I want to always be candid and honest with you.
You can tour my balcony stateroom and read my full review HERE. It generally worked well for my mom and I, but I didn’t love the size and lack of storage.
Here are some of the questions I was asked most frequently while onboard the Encore:
Despite the things I didn’t love, my mom and I still had a wonderful cruise onboard the Encore. After not seeing each other for over a year during the pandemic, I treasured every second I got to spend with her and, as always, appreciated Mr. Cruise holding down the fort at home to make it possible.
And with that…
Class Dismissed.
Homework (10 points): Go here to check out all my posts related to the Encore and be sure to follow Prof. Cruise on social media:
Never purchase cruise insurance through a cruise line. You’ll pay more and get less than if you purchase it on your own. Use a site like TravelInsurance.com* to compare rates and plans and get exactly what you want for the least amount of money. Savings can be significant and mean more to spend onboard, at port, or on another cruise!
*I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you when you purchase items through links on my site. These commissions allow me to maintain profcruise.com. Thank you for your support!
The best Black Friday deals for cruisers in 2024!
Five things I'm looking forward to on my Holland America holiday cruise.
Carnival announced the return of midnight buffets to all ships. See the late night buffet…
Booked on or considering a cruise on NCL's Jewel? Read my full trip report and…
Looking for the December 2024 Carnival Dive-In movies? See all the movies coming to Carnival…