Gemsy10

Hi, has anybody ever used the Florida express bus from Miami port? I am travelling to Tampa after my cruise in August & not sure which company to use. This one can pick me up from the port but the reviews I have seen don't look great. Any help would be appreciated :D

Hi, not sure if this is of any help but I noticed on the Diadema (not sure if Deliziosa is the same) that the classic balconies were on the lower decks & had more of an enclosed balcony where as the premium ones were higher up with s much nicer open balcony. So may be worth paying the little bit extra for the premium one with the other added extras too :)

Gem

Once onboard, you can buy the UBP just for yourself. I'm glad your 12 year old isn't drinking yet...;)

Is this the same on the epic too? We sail in December but only one of us wants the drinks package.....

Yes that's a good point, I forgot about the extra if u buy 2. I will definitely need the onboard credit at Xmas as I don't have the drinks package this time! Thank you :)

You can buy 2 deposits at Christmas, no problem. When you get back, call NCL and ask them to apply one of them to your Escape booking. (They normally only allow one deposit per stateroom, so if you have two cabins booked, you can apply both deposits.) I have done this a couple of times, so I know it has been possible in the very recent past. If they absolutely won't let you do it, or if they say you have to cancel and rebook and you don't want to do that, you can ask for the deposits to be refunded within 30 days of purchase. But I think your plan will work fine.

They are refundable if you ask within 30 days of purchasing them. After that, as aubreyc1988 explained, it's use it or lose it, or transfer to someone else who can use it.

Oh that's great to know, thank you very much for the info! I think I will buy at least one either way as I know I will use it eventually even if they won't let me use it for the escape. Would be a bonus if they did though! Fingers crossed. Thanks again :)

I know this may sound like a silly question but this is all so confusing......I have already booked for the escape next summer but am going on the epic at Xmas. If I bought 2 certificates whilst onboard can I use them to pay towards my cruise on the escape & get my onboard credit for Xmas? Or do u actually have to use the certificates when u book? Which in my case would be too late....

Thank u :) fingers crossed we dock early enough!

I am on this cruise & hoping to get off by 7am to visit a friend on the Diadema which is also in port that day. Disembarkation from 6am would be perfect. From previous cruises it looks like the epic reaches Barcelona at 3am?

Hi,

We sailed on the Diadema the first week in September & I loved it! I have no idea where the bad reviews come from....either people are too fussy or are just expecting something totally different? but if you read up on the ship beforehand you should know what to expect. It is a really lovely ship & I couldn't fault anything. Us British are in the minority but that just makes it more fun in my eyes! I have been on NCL & Royal Caribbean in the past, loved both & the Diadema is definitely just as good from my experience :) Loved it that much we are going again for Xmas :D if you have any questions about anything in particular let me know.

Gem

As long as u go to the solo meet up the first night in the lounge u will be absolutely fine :) the rest just kinda flows from there! We always had about 20 for dinner each night wherever we decided to eat. Eating alone was the one thing I was worried about & I needn't have worried one little bit :) have a great time!

Hi,

 

Thanks for the info, i'm really looking forward to my trip....got the first week on my own, and a little nervous about the first meet with the other singles(almost feels like first day at school), then on the 2nd week 3 of my mates join me so should be totally different to my first week!!

 

 

Roll on the 30th!!

Ah it will be amazing! I had so much more fun going solo than i ever dreamt i would! and met so many lovely people :) haha it was a bit like the first day at school but you soon get over that, i would do it all over again in a heartbeat!! have a great time :D

Thanks for the info.I'm also going Solo in a few weeks on a back-back and getting a pass is pretty high up on my list. What time did you board and how easy was it t get your pass?

I am so glad i got the posh pass, it was so nice to be able to lay up there on the comfy loungers with a bar so close by & on port days there literally only a handful of people up there so it was like having your own private waiter :D

I was on board by 1pm, it took about half an hour from getting to the port & onto the ship. I went straight to guest services on deck 5 & there was no problem getting a pass. One of the other solo's got on at 3pm & she managed to get one too :)

I think that might be why they were never fixed as nobody seemed to know they existed & even the staff didn't know they were there! I just happened to meet a couple on the cruise who said it worked the first time they were on board a few years ago but hasn't since. and i had seen it mentioned on cruise critic before so thought i would post this to let people know :) definitely makes a difference!

For anyone that is thinking of getting a posh pass for their cruise or has already experienced posh and noticed they weren't working......the water sprays that run along the back wall are now FIXED!!! it is heaven :D I think they got fed up of us moaning how hot we were whilst we were on board as there was a heatwave!! haha. It took the maintenance guys a couple of days but it happened :) Apparently this hasn't been working for about 3 or 4 years. enjoy!!!

I was on the epic in July too & Shanghai's was included. we were a table of 8 and had the family style menu which was great! :) There 3 starters included which were large enough to share & you could order more if needed (we ordered extra calamari), then 9 mains to choose from so we ordered one of each & shared everything. One of the best meals i had on the ship :)

I'm just back from the Epic & had a B6 balcony cabin, when I arrived there were 4 chairs & a small table. I guess I could have swapped 2 chairs for a lounger if I preferred but I spent most of the time up on the deck so didn't need to. I would say plenty of room for 4:)

1 day to go & so excited! Sailing out on the Epic tomorrow - first solo cruise :D:D:D

I have just had a little look & found a studio on the harmony on June 7th for the 5 night sailing! Very tempted :)

I am sure once I get back from the Epic I will have the cruise bug again & want to book for next year! Will have a look at September too.....thanks for the info! :)

Ooohhhh I didn't realise the harmony had solo cabins! Which date are you sailing? I had an email through for her maiden voyage, so tempted!

I am going on my first solo cruise next Sunday so if I get hooked maybe I will look at the harmony for next year!! Exciting :)))))

Many thanks for the kind comment. I hope to sail again on Epic in 2016 out of Barcelona. It's got me thinking about how it compares to Getaway. Off the top of my head here are the areas where, for me, it wins:

 

Studio lighting; main pool deck; Spice H2O; Garden Café, especially outdoor area; Moderno and Cagney's; Le Bistro; Teppanyaki; Bliss; Library and the best entertainment at sea.

 

 

 

Overall, Getaway still wins in my book because of Deck 8, including the innovative Waterfront; and the Vibe Beach Club.

 

 

 

Kind regards

 

megacruiser

I really want to try the getaway next year hopefully as the deck 8 waterfront looks so cool :) and vibe beach does sound better than posh.

I haven't done any speciality restaurants on the epic so hoping to try one or 2 this time, hopefully with some new solo friends!!

Has anyone used the hair salon on the epic? If so what is it like & what are the prices like? I am going in July & was thinking of treating myself to a hair up one night! :)

Hey!

I have booked my first solo cruise for July & can't wait! I think if you are tempted you just have to go for it. From what I have read on here once you have done it once there is no going back! :)

NCL seem to do the best prices for solo cabins & they have the studio lounge which is just for solo's so you get to meet lots of others hopefully! I am booked on the epic :) good luck whatever you decide :)

I hope! REALLY excited! :D

Hi!

Have booked the Epic on the 19th July, sailing out of Barcelona! So far i am the only one on the roll call!......really hoping it doesn't stay that way! Going solo for the first time so hoping to meet up with some others in the studio lounge :D anyone else on this cruise???

following! I'm booked in a studio for the December 7th Caribbean cruise. I hope my cabin isn't one of the ones you said to avoid :eek: it is cabin 12523

Hi there,

I am booked in cabin 12523 on the Epic in July.....how did you find it? i was hoping it would be close to the studio lounge but not so close to be noisy!

Megacruiser your review is awesome :):):) can't wait for my cruise now! i have been on the Epic before but never on my own! :D