First Time Cruiser Review - Norwegian Epic

[slsmith374]

Like some others, I was getting worried about my trip after reading so many negative comments on the board. I was on the 5/20 sailing out of Rome and have nothing but good things to say about the Epic!

 

Room: We had an inside cabin for two people. They made the best use of the space. The bed and pillows were extremely comfortable and I loved that the room was always dark. Plenty of storage space and a reading light if I wanted to stay up and DH didn't.

 

Dining: We did not buy the UDP. Most meals we ate were at the buffet and Shanghai. 2 out of 3 meals at Shanghai were great, the last one not so much. I did not care for O'Sheehan's - although the wings were decent, the spinach artichoke dip was tasteless. We ate at Taste once just because we did not find the menu that appealing. Special thanks to the posters that called out the crepes at the buffet and the chocolate volcano at Taste! We also waited about 30 min for snacks from Spice H2O. They were very good, but the thirty minute wait was ridiculous for how little we ordered. Lastly, we had one meal at Teppenyaki and that was the best hibachi experience I've ever had. The food was great (except dessert) and our chef could not have been more entertaining.

 

As far as the taking food away from the buffet, I saw a few people take some plates without being stopped. I eat so much at the buffet that the last thing I want to do is take more with me, so I didn't try it myself.

 

Drinking: We also did not get the UBP. DH and I probably drank 1-2 cocktails per day. Our favorite drinking events were the Wine Tasting and the Martini Tasting. At $15 pp for the tasting events, they are a steal! The staff that hosted were all very knowledgeable. The 6 wine tastings also come with a selection of cheese and are nice pours. For the martinis, you get six mini martinis - all very strong, but delicious. Highly recommend both of these events.

 

Entertainment: Burn the Floor was incredible. Ballroom dancing with a twist. The performers received a standing ovation at the end of it. Graffiti Classics, a string quartet, was okay to good in my opinion. Legends in Concert were Sting, Gloria Estefan, and Rod Stewart. They were good, just not my favorite singers. The Beatles tribute band had a packed house and did a great job. My favorite though had to be the Howl at the Moon. I wish I could have seen them more than one night.

 

Tours: We did the Cinque Terre and the Mt. Vesuvius/Pompeii tours with the cruise. Would highly recommend them both. The Cinque Terre requires quite a bit of bus and travel time. And if you're not familiar with european train transport, you may be uncomfortable. Please brush up on train etiquette if you go on this tour!

 

Misc: The fitness center was great. Brand new and had more equipment than my local gym. It's a pain to get to if you're not on that end of the ship, but I needed all the walking I could get so it wasn't too bad. The casino area is not as smoky as some people say IMO. I had also read comments about how the ship is in desperate need of the docking this Fall. I thought it looked great! All I noticed was some minor carpet fraying.

 

I also had my birthday during our cruise. I'm not sure how the ship found out as I didn't call it out anywhere unless they pulled it from my passport. When we got to my room I had a birthday card and birthday cupcake along with a coupon to take to wherever we dined that night. They gave me a happy birthday cake at the restaurant, sang happy birthday, and I think they comped my sodas. I was really impressed with these little touches.

 

Service: All staff were friendly and accommodating. We only had one issue. A lot of people from our Mt. Vesuvius tour brought back volcanic rock. Ours was confiscated when we boarded back at port. Neither US Customs nor the ship say anything about rock from what we could tell - all that was mentioned was no bringing back soil, flowers, etc. Does anyone have any more info on this?

 

Transportation: Getting to and from port was a breeze. We used both Bob's Limos Shuttle Service as well as Rome Shuttle Service. Would recommend them both.

 

Embarkation/Disembarkation: Embarking took about 10 minutes out of Civitavecchia. Disembarking maybe took 15. The only wait is the elevator. We did self-embarkation since our flight left at 11:55am. We left our room at 7:30 and we were off the ship by 7:45. Very easy process.

 

Honestly, the only thing I didn't like were the people who don't know how to queue at the buffet and those that can't let people off the elevator before they try to get on. Neither are faults of Norwegian!

 

I can't thank you enough to all the posters on this board! Being relatively new to cruising, this site has been a godsend. Thank you!! I am already looking forward to our next cruise!!

[rochelle_s]

Thanks for your review. Glad you had a wonderful time!

 

 

Rochelle

[NLH Arizona]

Thanks so much for your review. It is always such a pleasure to read a review from a first time cruiser, because it really puts things into perspective.

[1island2go]

Thanks for the positive review, I too was becoming a little nervous as we are about to do this cruise soon and it is our first cruise ever. We are scheduled with Bobs Shuttle service. How did that go for you and what time did you arrive at port? Was there a lot of stopping at other hotels for passengers?

Edited May 29, 2015 by 1island2go

[smartpeach]

Thank you for your review. I'm sailing this same itinerary in August and would love to get a full complete set of dailies. Would it be okay if you post the dailies, please?

 

:)

[slsmith374]

Thanks for the positive review, I too was becoming a little nervous as we are about to do this cruise soon and it is our first cruise ever. We are scheduled with Bobs Shuttle service. How did that go for you and what time did you arrive at port? Was there a lot of stopping at other hotels for passengers?

 

We got lucky because while we scheduled the shuttle, we were the only ones on it so didn't end up stopping at any other hotels on the way to the port. Our driver arrived at 10:20 and we were told to be ready for pickup by 10:30 so he was ultra punctual. I would plan on roughly 2 hours to get to port. I think we got there right around 12:15. Maybe someone else will chime in that's shared the shuttle - it seems like a lot of people have used them on this board.

 

You will have a blast! Enjoy!

[slsmith374]

Thank you for your review. I'm sailing this same itinerary in August and would love to get a full complete set of dailies. Would it be okay if you post the dailies, please?

 

:)

 

I think I have most of them. Be on the lookout tomorrow! :)

[CruisingGs]

I am even more excited for our cruise on the 24th!! It is the same itinerary.

[1island2go]

We got lucky because while we scheduled the shuttle, we were the only ones on it so didn't end up stopping at any other hotels on the way to the port. Our driver arrived at 10:20 and we were told to be ready for pickup by 10:30 so he was ultra punctual. I would plan on roughly 2 hours to get to port. I think we got there right around 12:15. Maybe someone else will chime in that's shared the shuttle - it seems like a lot of people have used them on this board.

 

You will have a blast! Enjoy!

 

 

Thanks for the info. We have them scheduled for private car upon arrival but for shuttle from Rome to port and port to airport hotel. I am hoping all goes ok with transfers. Upon arrival how long before you could board the ship? Was that part pretty easy? How long before you got your bags at your room?

[slsmith374]

Thanks for the info. We have them scheduled for private car upon arrival but for shuttle from Rome to port and port to airport hotel. I am hoping all goes ok with transfers. Upon arrival how long before you could board the ship? Was that part pretty easy? How long before you got your bags at your room?

 

We boarded the ship right away after checking in at the port. There was not a line to check in either which was nice. I think the bags were in our room around 3 or 4pm.

 

I would note that if you are into the cruise photos they take, make sure that they take your room number down correctly when you take your embarkation photo. I would have liked to see ours but it never ended up in our photo folder.

[dolita22]

Thanks for your review of the Epic! We've sailed twice on that ship, and it's one of our favorites. We also thought the ship was in good shape when sailing in January of this year, save for a few rust spots on our balcony. No big deal. Love the Epic.

 

Glad you had a great first cruise!

[warriorking]

Great review, glad you had a wonderful time...

Looking forward to Epic in March 2016 for her 12day Med sailing..

Its quickly approaching...

[1island2go]

We boarded the ship right away after checking in at the port. There was not a line to check in either which was nice. I think the bags were in our room around 3 or 4pm.

 

I would note that if you are into the cruise photos they take, make sure that they take your room number down correctly when you take your embarkation photo. I would have liked to see ours but it never ended up in our photo folder.

 

Thanks never sailed before so no idea about pictures, etc. All new experience. So did they drop you off right at the ship or in a terminal and then you walk to the ship?

[slsmith374]

They drop you off at the terminal, but it's right in front of the ship. Maybe a five minute walk between the terminal and ship.

Edited May 29, 2015 by slsmith374

[slsmith374]

 

No Mallorca or Naples, but hope these help!

 

Doesnt seem like above came through clear enough on my phone - will try again tonight. Let me know if you can see them clearly though - might be user error on my end :)

Edited May 29, 2015 by slsmith374

[slsmith374]

[slsmith374]

[slsmith374]

[slsmith374]

[slsmith374]

[ppstateofmind]

Thanks for posting the daily activities, looks like a lot of fun!!

[insanemagnet]

Honestly, the only thing I didn't like were the people who don't know how to queue at the buffet and those that can't let people off the elevator before they try to get on.

 

Totally agree with you about getting out of the lifts, but the queuing at the buffet seems to be a difference in approach between Americans and Europeans.

 

Americans seem to stand in a long line and work their way down the whole selection of dishes on the buffet, taking a bit of this and a bit of that.

 

Europeans work out what they want and just go and take some from that dish, and then move on elsewhere on the buffet to take some from a different dish.

Edited May 30, 2015 by insanemagnet

[FreestyleNovice]

Thanks for your review.

 

The wait for the appetizers at Spice has always been so long, not sure why.

[motleyfan]

Thanks for the positive review, I too was becoming a little nervous as we are about to do this cruise soon and it is our first cruise ever. We are scheduled with Bobs Shuttle service. How did that go for you and what time did you arrive at port? Was there a lot of stopping at other hotels for passengers?

 

Don't let the negative Nancys get you nervous, you will have a lot of fun.

[Ginger biscuit]

I'm going August from Barcelona really looking forward to my first time NCL

My studio room looks fab. Thanks for your review it was very informative