EPIC was.. well, EPIC!

One of the greatest experiences of my life, and best cruise EVER! I would absolutely recommend Norwegian's Epic over and over and over. Wanted to do a review, but no time when I had to come back to reality.

Don't miss:

FABBA at Spice H20

White Hot Party

Dancing into the early hours at Bliss

The Svedka Ice Bar (Make sure to bring jeans and close-toed shoes)

Le Bistro (service and food were awesome and well-worth cover charge)

Moderno (again - service and food were awesome and well-worth cover charge)

Gedde (super nice - works at Spice H20)

Murat (works at the jewelry store - great guy)

Taste (food was great, but a little loud)

Manhattan Room (good atmosphere and good food)

We didn't book shore excursions and chose to do Nassau/St. Thomas/St. Maarten on our own. At St. Thomas, we had someone approach us offering tours for $25. We chose to go with them (guy's name was Webster) and it was a great tour. They stopped at several places for great views, pictures, and drinks. Back for more later!

Welcome home, and glad to hear you had a great time!

glad you had fun were looking to do the epic next year

Yes, welcome back. I will be waiting to hear more!

Love it! Short and to the point.

I'm so glad you had a great time:D

So sorry that there's no organization to this thread. The trip was fantastic. Getting back to reality has been less than fantastic. ;)

In short.. we found the crew to be amazing. Plenty of smiles, excellent service, and great memories.

This was our first spring break cruise, and we were a little nervous about what to expect. To be honest, we ran into several groups of teenagers our first night and thought "Oh great." We were pleasantly surprised to find a lot of well behaved kids! We never had issues with noise, bad behavior, or anything similar.

We were in 11313, our very first ever aft-facing balcony. We are... IN LOVE. This is the way to go! Yes, there was some vibration here and there, but the views and serenity more than made up for it. We greatly enjoyed spending a lot of time on the balcony, watching the wake behind us. It was so incredibly relaxing, and we look forward to more aft-facing balconies in our future! We had two chairs, a small table, and a lounge chair waiting for us. Our room steward, Patrick, was fantastic. He had such a great attitude, and he had such a passion for his work. I know the crew has it rough, and they do a job most of us would never want to do. You would never know it from talking to him. When I would ask how his day was, I'd often get an answer of "If I'm alive and on this ship, it's a great day" or something of the sort. :)

The food? I can't say enough great things about it. We ate at O'Sheehan's pretty much every day. Breakfast was great there. Lunch was awesome, but never had dinner there! Fish and chips.. yes, please! We had this nearly every day. Our favorite. They also serve wings, mozz. sticks, an amazing breakfast, and other "bar food".

$5 pizza? Do it! Nothing like having a lazy day and having a big pizza delivered to your room.

Le Bistro and Moderno were both unlike anything I've ever experienced. If you're looking for a true formal dinner, check out Le Bistro. We were honestly treated VIP throughout the cruise without having to pay for a VIP experience. Le Bistro really captured the formal spirit. Black napkin for me, whole 9 yards. ;)

Adults looking for some adult time? Two recommendations.. Spice H20 and the freestyle deck! We started hanging out at Spice on our first day, and that's where we met Gedde. We all learned each other's names quickly! :) We had the same table and umbrella almost every day, so it was great to have a place to go, somebody to know your name, all of that good stuff. When we had our first sea day and walked and walked and walked and, well.. walked some more and couldn't find a chair, we found ourselves checking out the freestyle deck. Every chair was empty! I'll be honest. If nudity offends you, skip it. There were people who participated in the spirit of "freestyle" and it wasn't a problem for us. If you think this will be an issue, I encourage you to check out other decks. Sidenote: We did see yellow dots being placed on chairs at Spice H20 that were being "held" for a long time.

Shows: We did Blue Man Group. Highly recommend! Definitely a great time and unlike anything I've ever seen. We also checked out "Behind Blue Man Group" where they did a Q/A with BMG. It was interesting and funny. Unfortunately, we missed Howl at the Moon and Fat Cats. There was simply too much to do to do everything on this cruise!

I mentioned shore excursions earlier, and how we chose not to book ahead of time. St. Thomas, we did on our own. We hooked up with someone offering tours and were not disappointed. We got breathtaking views, a great history lesson, and great drinks. Can't argue with that. At St. Maarten, we again decided to do it on our own. We grabbed a cab and headed to Orient Beach, as we enjoyed this beach on our last St. Maarten trip. We found a guy offering beach chairs for around $20 for two chairs and an umbrella. Pretty sure a rum punch was included. Colin, I think, was his name. There's a bar right there by the chairs that has really good drinks. I had one called "All Over Tan". I can't tell you enough that you should order this drink. Good, good stuff.

Nassau - again, we did on our own. We made a good hike to check out the post office, as our new tradition is sending post cards to our little one. We hit the post office on every island, bought an extra stamp, and sent one off to our little man. (FYI: A little over two weeks since we have gotten back, and we've already received the post cards from St. Thomas and St. Maarten. Nassau is still MIA.)

One of my favorite moments? I mentioned already that we had an aft-facing balcony. As we were warned about ahead of time, there's a significant amount of vibration in the aft-facing balconies when you reach the turning basin at Port of Miami. Although this would annoy some, it was a great wake-up call. I jumped out of bed and watched from the balcony. I got a great view of Miami all lit up! I also got to see ships already in port and other ships coming in. It was so quiet, so serene. I highly recommend being awake to enjoy this moment!

So glad to hear you loved the Epic. We do too!

Thanks for your review. We saw the Norwegian Epic in Nassau and it was huge. :):)

Hey - thanks so much for your enthusiastic review. I have been slightly concerned that we wont have a suite and might miss it. We have 15 nights B2B booked in an ordinary balcony. For us, this cruise is about fun adult time with much needed winter sunshine - and lots of vibe and choice. The cost on top of our air fare from scotland, pre cruise hotels, and 15 nights was adding up, and to take a suite - is not justified. We are used to being in a suite so Ive been a tad concerned. When I read your review, thought, yea, this is very much "us" - H20 was a big deciding factor. I looked at the Posh area, and for us, it might be a bit too sedate - not sure. We have reached conclusion though if we find first week we are missing some "quiet" space, we will buy a posh pass on the second leg (being that we are on the ship changeover day and shouldnt have a problem getting one).

Hopefully - we have made the right choice for our Jan cruise, been a long time since we did NCL - and love the big ship big choices - so fingers Xd

Thanks for your review..any pics to follow?

Thanks for your review! Sounds like you had a great time! I do appreciate the Epic reviews, as it helps me bide the time till my turn in November. Thanks again.:)

I wish I knew how to post pics!!

We've never had a suite, so I have nothing to compare it to. The crew was so great though, I felt like we had our own personal wait staff, sales associate, and butler. We were well taken care of, and it's great to know that you don't have to pay extra for that. ;)

We joked about having our own private deck for the week as well, because we only saw two other couples the whole week on the freestyle deck.

We also had the same table waiting for us (so it seemed) everyday at Spice H20. The ship and its crew became so familiar so quickly. I absolutely see what everyone means about one week not being long enough. We're in the early planning stages for our next cruise and will be bringing the little one along next time. We scoped out some of the kids' activities and even had a good time as spectators.

So many question the staterooms and their design. You either like it, don't, or feel indifferent. I enjoyed the shower and toilet being in separate areas, but the sink is still a little strange to me at the foot of the bed. Certainly not a deal-breaker. Even it ended up being nice being on its own.

I said it before and I'll say it again... FABBA. I had SO much fun at that party, I can't even begin to tell you. The ship's entertainment was so great. We really enjoyed the cruise director and his staff.

Any questions? On a scale of 1-10, this was easily 100. ;)

Thanks for your review. We saw the Norwegian Epic in Nassau and it was huge. :):)

 

Was this taken the week I was aboard?? If so, I see our neighbor! :)

Nevermind - I see you were there a couple of weeks before us. I do see our fantastic room though! Yay for 11313!

One more note! We went to Moderno our very first night aboard the Epic. There were only two other people dining when we went (maybe 8:00 or so). We were taken directly over to the corner by a window with a gorgeous view! So.. one of my tips: Try Moderno on the first night. ;)

Yay.....welcome back! So glad you had an amazing time!

And you've become Aft-junkies.......just like us.......we LOVED it for exactly the same reasons as you said, DESPITE the vibrations! ;)

I hope you manage to post some pictures......I'd really love to see them!

Thanks for the review :)

Really enjoyed reading your thread. We have booked an aft cabin (12314)on the Epic TA in November. I was concerned after reading so many negative reviews concerning the noise and vibrations but after reading your positive comments, I feel reassured that we made the right decision. I can't wait to sit out on the balcony and watch the world go by, possibly with a glass of wine in hand. ;)

Megan, I'm so glad you enjoyed your cruise. I can't believe I never saw you again after the meet and greet. We never found open chairs after 3 trips to Spice H20, and I wasn't brave enough to check out the freestyle deck, although we did hang out on the deck below it.

Hey - thanks so much for your enthusiastic review. I have been slightly concerned that we wont have a suite and might miss it. We have 15 nights B2B booked in an ordinary balcony. For us, this cruise is about fun adult time with much needed winter sunshine - and lots of vibe and choice. The cost on top of our air fare from scotland, pre cruise hotels, and 15 nights was adding up, and to take a suite - is not justified. We are used to being in a suite so Ive been a tad concerned. When I read your review, thought, yea, this is very much "us" - H20 was a big deciding factor. I looked at the Posh area, and for us, it might be a bit too sedate - not sure. We have reached conclusion though if we find first week we are missing some "quiet" space, we will buy a posh pass on the second leg (being that we are on the ship changeover day and shouldnt have a problem getting one).

Hopefully - we have made the right choice for our Jan cruise, been a long time since we did NCL - and love the big ship big choices - so fingers Xd

Thanks for your review..any pics to follow?

Are you on our 8 day Epic cruise in January? I am so jealous about your B2B! If you haven't already, come join our Roll Call. :)

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1732031

Carol

Thanks for the review! I am so glad to hear that you had a great time on the Epic. We sailed on her for our first cruise last year and we are booked for her 8 day cruise in January. Reading reviews like yours gets me so excited! :D

Carol

Megan, I'm so glad you enjoyed your cruise. I can't believe I never saw you again after the meet and greet. We never found open chairs after 3 trips to Spice H20, and I wasn't brave enough to check out the freestyle deck, although we did hang out on the deck below it.

I was so glad to meet you in person! I did see you (I think) at one of the shows.. I think it was Legends and you were sitting with Ruffy, but we were a few rows away (too far to yell). What an absolutely amazing week. We can't wait for Epic again!

Regarding noise, yes, we had to get used to the sound of the water and we did have to sit close to talk to each other while on the balcony, but it had its benefits. It drowned everything else out, so it really felt like we were back there by ourselves. It was funny when we were in port though, because we were used to having to talk so loud to hear each other while sailing. We caught some beautiful sunsets back there, and I loved the light show on the Intercontinental Hotel in Miami on Saturday morning. :) I need to figure out how to post pics.

Really enjoyed reading your thread. We have booked an aft cabin (12314)on the Epic TA in November. I was concerned after reading so many negative reviews concerning the noise and vibrations but after reading your positive comments, I feel reassured that we made the right decision. I can't wait to sit out on the balcony and watch the world go by, possibly with a glass of wine in hand. ;)

I was in 11314 two years in a row, and honesty, it never was an issue. Now, if you want to sleep late on port days, then it may be an issue for you, but I always used the vibration from pulling into port as an alarm clock!

Is the vibration in the aft on the Epic as bad as everyone says it is? I have an aft room 12318 booked on the Epic for Feb 2014. I've stayed in an aft Penthouse room on the Jewel and didn't really notice any vibrations. I love the aft views and location since there's no foot traffic by the room.

Is the vibration in the aft on the Epic as bad as everyone says it is? I have an aft room 12318 booked on the Epic for Feb 2014. I've stayed in an aft Penthouse room on the Jewel and didn't really notice any vibrations. I love the aft views and location since there's no foot traffic by the room.

It is noticeable when pulling into port. I did not notice it at all any other time.

It is noticeable when pulling into port. I did not notice it at all any other time.

Not bad to the point where you would never book an aft room again right? :confused:

Not bad to the point where you would never book an aft room again right? :confused:

Oh no! I love the aft-facing balcony cabins! IMO, nothing compares!

Oh no! I love the aft-facing balcony cabins! IMO, nothing compares!

Your right!! Nothing compares to that aft view and the sound of the wake and the private feeling being in the back of the ship. The room I booked has Haven access and I was on the fence whether to book the Penthouse in the courtyard but the downside of that is giving up the aft view and privacy.