Help thinking about epic..what are pros and cons

:D:D We are having difficulty picking cruise for Feb school vacation week...not a bad problem...My wife and I are experinced cruisers and will also be on Oasis of the Seas in Nov.....we don't mind kids and families,but what are some of the highlights and downsides to Epic..we like to enjoy outside areas of ship as well as inside options..thanks, all response will be greatly appreciated:cool::cool:

We won't be sailing the Epic until December, but from all the reviews and comments here, the two biggest complaints ( that are being corrected with the design of the Breakaway ) had to be the cabin design regarding the bathrooms and the lack of access to the sea from the public areas and deck.

The strong points to me are the entertainment choices, Blue Man, Fat Cats, Legends, Cirque and the variety in dining choices from several free venues to many with a cover charge as well. We don't mind paying extra for something special in food or atmosphere just like we do on land. To us, a $20 cover charge for Moderno is like a small excursion:)

Pro: Blue Man Group, Howl at the Moon, Spice H2O, Noodle Bar.

Con: No promenade that wraps around the ship. Waits for elevator at busy times.

Pro: Blue Man Group, Howl at the Moon, Spice H2O, Noodle Bar.

 

Con: No promenade that wraps around the ship. Waits for elevator at busy times.

I dont think you can count waits for elevator a con, I havent been on a ship yet, when there isnt a wait at busy times... Just my opinion.

Pros: Food options, entertainment, bliss, Moderno

Cons: some people complain about the room design (I loved it), small pools

I dont think you can count waits for elevator a con, I havent been on a ship yet, when there isnt a wait at busy times... Just my opinion.

Ok, so only one item in the con line ;-). I could add one; seven days isn't long enough!

I dont think you can count waits for elevator a con, I havent been on a ship yet, when there isnt a wait at busy times... Just my opinion.

after all the food served on a cruise a good brisk climb of the stairs can be very healthy.:D

Pro: Entertainment, restaurants, water slides

Con: Lots of upcharges, small pools, cabin issues

Pros: Food options, entertainment, bliss, Moderno

 

Cons: some people complain about the room design (I loved it), small pools

For what it's worth I agree, the cabin layout really worked well and I liked it. I think it's unfortunate that they didn't carry it to the new builds, perhaps with solid rather than opaque doors.

We cruised on the Epic two year's ago and loved the entertainment, O'Sheehans, the Ice Bar.

I didn't like the cabin layout, especially the sink in the cabin & the shower & toilet being open. Luckily it was just my dh & I but even so am not a fan. I also missed a promenade of some kind. We had an inside cabin so didn't have as much option to see as others may have. There are only inside & balcony so there's no outside option unless you go for the balcony. In retrospect I wish we'd done that.

I'm happy that they are taking the good from the Epic when making the Breakaway (our next cruise). It really has some good qualities.

Pros: decor; entertainment; cabin layout; O'Sheehans; big band in the Manhattan Room ( do they still have that?); food in general.

Cons: noisy; no promenade deck; worst chair hog situation I have ever seen

Love the Epic. Pros: Entertainment is more current. Easy to find your way around the ship. I actually like the central casino layout. Studio/ solo rooms. Cons: No promenade deck. Pool area seems tight/ small. BAthroom layout. The bathroom layout is fine but if I was travelling with a friend or male relative they would be uncomfortable. I have sailed the epic twice and have one planned for next year.

:D:D We are having difficulty picking cruise for Feb school vacation week...not a bad problem...My wife and I are experinced cruisers and will also be on Oasis of the Seas in Nov.....we don't mind kids and families,but what are some of the highlights and downsides to Epic..we like to enjoy outside areas of ship as well as inside options..thanks, all response will be greatly appreciated:cool::cool:

Hey Bostonfred!

We recently did our Feb school break on the Epic and had an Epic time. This was our first cruise so I have nothing to compare it to:)

We all stayed in one cabin - count it... 4 of us. DW, and two teen age (14 and 16) boys. We dont stay in the room long so who really cares about being really tight. Its a cruise ship cabin after all, right?

Really cool how the 4th bed comes down from the top.

We did have a balcony which gave us added space and was excellent.

On our break, its opposite from others and there were only 150 teens aged 13-17. The week before we sailed there were over 300!

So, depending on what week you go there may be less kids and families.

Room layout: worked well for us. Separate toilet and shower and sink. The trick with the sink is you should stand facing the faucet to have more bowl space for water to land! With four of us we never had an issue with the layout. A curtain is there to make some privacy. So, dont be discouraged by peoples rooms comments.

There are plenty of spaces for being outside you just need to find them. I will admit that there was a great deal of chair saving going on. The trick: Take the elevator just outside the outdoor buffet to the 18th floor. There are a number of chairs with peace and quite. Waiters will be around to bring you cocktails and spritz you with water! There is no pool up there but if you want to hang out, it is the place to go. The very front of the ship even has some padded loungers!

There is even an "Adult only" section one more flight of stairs up. My guess is there was a little less clothed people up there.

Pools are small but enough to dip in and out. You wont be doing laps but the on-board exercise facility is awesome. Go rock climbing, shoot hoops, play soccer, shuffleboard, giant chess ALL outside.

There are so many inside options that you would not possibly be able to do them all. All types of entertainment and hanging out areas. If you like a good cigar, the cigar bar was really relaxing. Music venues for all tastes. Quite sections of lounges are to be had as well.

Enjoy!

;);).thanks to all particularly the ambersfamily..we really like to take a lot of our meals at the buffet and eat outside also like high places with bar stools or chairs and tables to enjoy sailaways and sea days...keep the info coming THANKS!!:p:p

From what I understand, the 18th deck is POSH . . available only for Suite members or those who pay for POSH privileges. They may not have enforced this when Amber's Family went onboard, but I believe it is so.

Ok, so only one item in the con line ;-). I could add one; seven days isn't long enough!

Amen to that!! 7 days is to short.... One day, maybe one day I can do a 14 day....

From what I understand, the 18th deck is POSH . . available only for Suite members or those who pay for POSH privileges. They may not have enforced this when Amber's Family went onboard, but I believe it is so.

I might be wrong but i've heard from several sources that there is a small area on the same deck as Posh called the "freestyle sundeck" or something. Apparently clothing is optional. Not many people find it, and those that do wish they hadn't :eek:

Curiosity alone will lead me up there in August. Also the fact that it will be the first place to look when i lose sight of the hubby :D

Pro's: Like everyone else - the entertainment! Loved Howl at the Moon. I also found the food to be very good, in all of the venue's I tried. MDR's, plus LaCucino, Le Bistro and Tappanyaki. Le Bistro only con was that it was under the "circus" tent and it sounded as if we were under a bowling alley. Bad. The CC group was the best ever. I had a mini-suite, which was fine, but as I was a solo cruiser I really enjoyed the Studio Lounge every night at 5 p.m. I used the adult pool area at H2O and loved it. Never had trouble getting a chair.

Con's: disconnect from the ocean - without a balcony there would have been no where to "watch" the ocean. No Promenade deck. Felt more like a floating Las Vegas casino. The casino was extremely tight and smokey. One had to get people to move in order to get in to play some of the machines, esp. the video poker. Certainly kept my losses way down (so maybe that ought to be a pro:D). The crew seemed a little more overworked and overwhelmed than I have noticed on other NCL ships. They didn't seem to be having much fun. And I had a little more trouble than normal filling out my "hero" cards.

All-in-all, I enjoyed my cruise very much, although I would not choose the Epic (or any mega-ship) again. I think for younger people or families traveling with children this ship offers an enormous amount of value and things to do. For me, I enjoy the relaxation of cruising, so it wasn't quite my cup of tea. But hey - a cruise is a cruise is a cruise!!

Thanks for this thread -- so HELPFUL! :)

LuLu

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after all the food served on a cruise a good brisk climb of the stairs can be very healthy.:D

I just got off the Epic yesterday & I think if I heard one more person complain about the elevator wait I might have thrown myself overboard :p I don't remember people complaining so much last year.....and you are right a good walk up the stairs is good, I think I did the trek from the 5th to the 17th floor at least twice a day....the best was the complainers who got on the elevator & got off on the next floor :confused:

Pros - entertainment, food (LOVED Moderno!!), ice bar, outdoor movies, we liked the casino layout, fabulous chairs on the way into spice, rock wall, atrium cafe, staff

Cons - bathroom layout in room, disconnect from the sea, tight pool space

Pros: SOOOO much to do!!!!, best entertainment at sea!, not crowded at all given the size of the ship, lots of restaurants, beautifully decorated, decent food, super easy and fast embark and disembark, super easy to navigate (I've had trouble navigating much smaller ships because of confusing layouts)

Cons: agree with the previous poster about the chair hogs...it was HORRIBLE!!! (We don't spend much time around the pool so not a big deal for us), not many places to read a good book, HATED the cabin design with the bathroom, smokey casino in the way of everything, no wrap around promenade was a big bummer

Overall, a good trip for us. I would book the Epic again :)

No cons for me! I loved everything about it. Going back in 2014! I'm likely in the minority and so be it, but I feel like that is my ship!

Pro: Entertainment, restaurants, water slides

 

Con: Lots of upcharges, small pools, cabin issues

Will someone please explain to me what this means? I can't think of a single thing NCL upcharges for that is different from any other cruise line. The only difference I can tell is that there are more fee-based dining options than on other lines, but there certainly aren't fewer free dining options. Meaning, if you never pay extra for a meal you'd still have at least as many options as on other lines. In fact, I haven't counted so I could be wrong but it seems like there are more free dining options, PLUS the fee-based restaurants. Sushi was free on my last Carnival cruise whereas they charge for it on NCL, but then it was only available a couple of hours a day.

This isn't intended to be snarky at all. I honestly don't understand the sentiment.

Will someone please explain to me what this means? I can't think of a single thing NCL upcharges for that is different from any other cruise line. The only difference I can tell is that there are more fee-based dining options than on other lines, but there certainly aren't fewer free dining options. Meaning, if you never pay extra for a meal you'd still have at least as many options as on other lines. In fact, I haven't counted so I could be wrong but it seems like there are more free dining options, PLUS the fee-based restaurants. Sushi was free on my last Carnival cruise whereas they charge for it on NCL, but then it was only available a couple of hours a day.

 

This isn't intended to be snarky at all. I honestly don't understand the sentiment.

One other thing is that on the epic, you have to pay extra for the Posh area, whereas on Carnival, the Serenity deck is free.