Instead we made the most of the duty free shops before taking the Paradise Point cable car to enjoy the view across the harbour, with burgers and cold beers. In Charlotte Amalie, capital of the US Virgin Island of St Thomas, we could have snorkelled with turtles or taken a thrill ride in a jet boat. Just the thing to take a drive to the notorious Maho Beach, where people line up against the airport fence for the dubious thrill of being blasted by jet engine exhaust.įrom there, a tour of the 20 square mile island took me to the French half and an encounter with an energetic and extremely loud Mardi Gras parade. It almost seems a shame to go ashore but who can resist the opportunity to explore? At the first port of call, the French/Dutch island of St Martin/St Maarten, I skipped the ship’s excursions and found a car hire firm in the terminal where, for under $100, I had an open-topped Ford Mustang for the day. Kids’ clubs are split into age groups, with Splash Academy for younger ones and Entourage for teens babies and tots have their own space, too. As well as waterslides and the ropes course, with its scary Walk the Plank feature, the upper decks include a nine-hole pirate-themed mini golf course and a SpongeBob SquarePants water park. The top-grade accommodation comes in The Haven – a gated community where the 42 suites on decks 15 and 16 surround a private pool and sun deck and – for a price – residents have exclusive access to their own bar and restaurant.Ĭhildren get especially well looked after. Solo passengers have their own enclave of 59 single cabins with a communal bar – a concept that should be followed by other cruise lines. The balconies themselves are not spacious. Standard balcony cabins, such as the one I shared, are roomy and have proper bathrooms (unlike the failed experiment on Norwegian Epic, where shower and toilet are split) and there’s plenty of wardrobe space. Quieter cocktails could be found at the Hemingway-themed Sunset Bar or the Sugarcane Mojito Bar – and for a proper chill-out experience, the Ice Bar, where fleece-lined ponchos are compulsory to avoid hypothermia.
Or a show in the first-of-a-kind Illusionarium, where the magic tricks are of far higher quality than the chicken dinner. And booked seats for the West End musical Legally Blonde in the 800-seat Getaway Theatre. If I had been organised, I could have made reservations at all the extra-fee restaurants online before boarding. For those who want to take casual to the extreme, a huge variety of freshly cooked options is laid out in the light and airy Garden Café or in the darker confines of O’Sheehan’s Neighbourhood Bar & Grill.
Like several venues, Ocean Blue has tables outside on The Waterfront – a broad, sweeping promenade deck. There’s the Shanghai Noodle Bar, a French bistro, the Italian La Cucina, and cooking as entertainment in the high-energy Teppanyaki restaurant – all of them available individually and as part of a discounted package.įor those who really want to push the boat out there is Ocean Blue, by US celebrity chef Geoffrey Zakarian, where top-of-the-range cover price is $49 a head. Local colour: Cool murals make for a fabulous Getaway Just time for a glance up to see the water slides and ropes course on the upper decks before passing through the efficient security and check-in. Getaway takes Norwegian’s brand of relaxed, Freestyle Cruising up a notch with spectacular entertainment and more restaurants than most High Streets.Ī first glimpse, at the furthest terminal on Miami’s Dodge Island, shows not only its massive size but also its affinity to Florida, with a painting by David Lebo Le Batard of a mermaid holding the sun covering the hull. On and off the ship, passengers are in for a lively time. The largest vessel sailing year-round from Miami, Getaway takes 4,000 passengers a week on an unchanging itinerary (if it’s Wednesday, it must be St Thomas), balancing three days at sea with three in port. What better – warmer and sunnier – choice than the Caribbean? And is it possible to make the journey in a more appropriate way than on the cruise ship Norwegian Getaway? It’s the time of year to make a getaway to the sun.
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