Just got off the Epic... What the Heck?!

[pollux]

Love, love ,love the Epic saile 23 days last April TA and Moroc b2b.

Now booked 45 days 5 b2b from Oct 21 till 5 Dec.

Great crew

[Sunkissed Mommy]

The Epic had some funky reviews when it first came out. We loved it! We like when things are a little different. We're sailing on the Epic in a year from now, and I didn't hesitate for a second when I saw the ship doing the itinerary that we wanted.

[chloemonkey]

Thanks for the input, Patty and Kayla! I was thinking of skipping excursions in Cannes and Palma Mallorca actually but I guess we will see. I’ve got lots of time to change my mind several more time! :)

 

We have done this trip three times....most recently this past May where we did it B2B...in order that we have more "leisurely" days and not have to do everything in each port the first time around. Well, THAT idea went out the window! As we kept saying to ourselves...."we are here in these wonderful ports/cities and should get off of the ship and see more!"

 

But please do NOT skip Palma de Majorca...the cathedral there is SO great ( I prefer it to Sagrada Familia!) and the area next to has amazing shops and restaurants. If I would skip any, it may be Cannes....although last year we took tours to Monte Carlo and Monaco...this year was smack dab in the middle of the Cannes Film Festival the first week and the Grand Prix the second week. We took a tour north? Cannot remember the name but it was basically a waste of time.....beautiful scenery along the coast on our way back but I can see a marina 25 minutes from my own home...and that was the "highlight" of this tour.

 

So look at the shore excursions AND the private ones and then decide...just keep Palma on your list for now! And prepare to WALK! As we clocked 5-6 miles per day! LOVED Florence too....second week we just walked into town in Naples for authentic pizza....first week (and last year) we did the Sorrento, Positano and Pompei tour. There IS so much to see and do on this itinerary that it makes it hard to relax....we agree!

[david_sobe]

The Epic is my favorite NCL ship. I wish she would come back to Miami :hearteyes:

[mami703]

i leave friday for a sunday departure. Where would you advise going while in Cannes?

[riclop]

Thanks for the report.

[Stealthdog]

Just got off the Epic and had a great time. The food was much better than the other NCL ship I've been on. We did Cagney's twice, Modeno once, and Le Bistro once. Bistro was our least favorite. Main dining was also surprisingly good. Not quite as good as Celebrity, but definitely at the top of the rest of the dining experiences. Entertainment was also great. Tons of choices and quirky things that made the ship really unique. We enjoyed the Cirque Show and Howl at the Moon dueling pianists the most. The others were fun. The amount of things to do can be overwhelming, but I would rather have a ship offer too much than too little entertainment because you can always choose not to go. We went into every port - we might have liked another sea day. But, overall we found very little to complain about with the Epic.

[ChellaWill]

THANK YOU for your positive review. I have a cruise booked on Epic in March, and have been really nervous with the many negative reviews I have seen. You just made my night, and I so appreciate you for that, and for everyone who has posted follow up replies that are positive.

[chloemonkey]

Thank you sure does. Now all I have to do is wait (and save) for my trip.

 

Thanks again

 

We did a B2B out of Barcelona this past May....and as it was pouring rain the morning of embarkation, we elected to wait until later to board. The lines were EMPTY at around 1:30 or so and we sailed through. Now I must admit that our first time out of Barcelona was last year and we arrived early and it was a nightmare! But sometimes the cruise ending on your embarkation day has delays with their process so it is always possible for delays....hard to give you exact wait times for sure.

 

But as we had such a great experience this past trip....we are now of the mindset to board a bit LATER rather than earlier. Just my two cents! And the port for NCL at Barcelona at least has a bar and snack bar.....so you can purchase snacks and drinks. They also have a few souvenir shops to kill the time if you have a longer line/delay.

[bluesea777]

We did a B2B out of Barcelona this past May....and as it was pouring rain the morning of embarkation, we elected to wait until later to board. The lines were EMPTY at around 1:30 or so and we sailed through. Now I must admit that our first time out of Barcelona was last year and we arrived early and it was a nightmare! But sometimes the cruise ending on your embarkation day has delays with their process so it is always possible for delays....hard to give you exact wait times for sure.

 

But as we had such a great experience this past trip....we are now of the mindset to board a bit LATER rather than earlier. Just my two cents! And the port for NCL at Barcelona at least has a bar and snack bar.....so you can purchase snacks and drinks. They also have a few souvenir shops to kill the time if you have a longer line/delay.

 

We have been on 20 NCL cruises, many of them longer than 7 days, so we tend to go to embarkation port later after lunch when the queues are at their minimum. We are no longer the first-cruisers-excited-to-get-on-ship-early-to-explore-and-get-buzzed-by-muster. :D:cool:;p:')

[buzzybuzzbuzz]

I enjoyed my recent cruise on Epic but there are some issues, a Casino with smoking (which stinks if you don't smoke) directly above and open to the main dining room below is not good planning, no central elevator means if you are aft you will need to walk the length of the ship very often...so pick your cabin carefully, the shows are pretty much booked out before you get on board...however if you just turn up at the theatre you will get in as those who book seldom turn up. Tendering was poorly organised as well.

 

It was our 1st NCL cruise having been Celebrity before, it was quite different to what we are used to which I was ok with but my wife won't do NCL again.

[kinghenry57]

We have done this trip three times....most recently this past May where we did it B2B...in order that we have more "leisurely" days and not have to do everything in each port the first time around. Well, THAT idea went out the window! As we kept saying to ourselves...."we are here in these wonderful ports/cities and should get off of the ship and see more!"

 

But please do NOT skip Palma de Majorca...the cathedral there is SO great ( I prefer it to Sagrada Familia!) and the area next to has amazing shops and restaurants. If I would skip any, it may be Cannes....although last year we took tours to Monte Carlo and Monaco...this year was smack dab in the middle of the Cannes Film Festival the first week and the Grand Prix the second week. We took a tour north? Cannot remember the name but it was basically a waste of time.....beautiful scenery along the coast on our way back but I can see a marina 25 minutes from my own home...and that was the "highlight" of this tour.

 

So look at the shore excursions AND the private ones and then decide...just keep Palma on your list for now! And prepare to WALK! As we clocked 5-6 miles per day! LOVED Florence too....second week we just walked into town in Naples for authentic pizza....first week (and last year) we did the Sorrento, Positano and Pompei tour. There IS so much to see and do on this itinerary that it makes it hard to relax....we agree!

 

Thank you for all your insight - sounds great. We are cruising end of September and wondering what is the most inexpensive way to get into Rome?? We want to do a tour of the colliseum.

We have booked a tour for Sorrento, Positano and Amalfi. And will now keep Palma on the list and Florence/Naples.

Edited July 24, 2018 by kinghenry57
wrong area

[kinghenry57]

Thank you for all your insight - sounds great. We are cruising end of September and wondering what is the most inexpensive way to get into Rome?? We want to do a tour of the colliseum.

We have booked a tour for Sorrento, Positano and Amalfi. And will now keep Palma on the list and Florence/Naples.

[Niffernay]

We LOVED the Epic last year. Going on the Getaway in December.

[Susandt]

Tell us more about the speciality restaurant, sailing in march

 

 

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[Oceansaway17]

I took the Epic in 2011 and loved it. Been on Dawn, Escape, and recently the Bliss. Was disappointed in Bliss but loved the others.

 

I just booked B2B on Epic for Oct 2019 in same room. I am looking forward to seeing Europe again as well as Epic.

 

I loved the buffet in front of ship and location of gym with side views.

[DJSODAL]

thanks for posting we are going on the Epic in Jan 2020 was a little nervous about the size!! there is one thing I do know is you can't make everyone happy no matter how hard you try!!!! :D:D:D:D

[Linda the Book Lover]

Thanks for the input, Patty and Kayla! I was thinking of skipping excursions in Cannes and Palma Mallorca actually but I guess we will see. I’ve got lots of time to change my mind several more time! :)

We booked Cannes Shore Excursion: Small-group Monaco and Eze half-day tour through Viator. It was fabulous with a fantastic knowledgeable guide and plenty of time to see everything without feeling rushed. Palma Mallorca, we did on our own and enjoyed the walking about and even the gelato we purchased when we walked through a mall area. We cabbed it back to the ship. We are both seniors and though we got off the ship on excursions every day we still enjoyed the ship. We booked private excursions.

[Linda the Book Lover]

i leave friday for a sunday departure. Where would you advise going while in Cannes?

 

We booked Cannes Shore Excursion: Small-group Monaco and Eze half-day tour through Viator. It was fabulous with a fantastic knowledgeable guide and plenty of time to see everything without feeling rushed.

[Qartravel12]

Thanks for all the information. We did the British Isles on NCL Jade last year and have booked the Rome RT Epic for next June. The great responses to the Epic are encouraging. I would like some input on hotels if anyone did pre cruise in Rome and Naples Excusions that folks did either with NCL or a local. The Palma advise was great, thanks. We did the local bus in Scotland at a port and have the funniest stories from it, so doing as the locals is always memorable.

[Dorset Cruiser]

We enjoyed our cruise on Epic a couple of years ago but the odd room layout is a deal breaker for any future NCL cruises. Would gladly sail on any of their standard ships and in fact we are looking at a cruise on Spirit for next January.

 

 

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[glenarden]

Thank you for all your insight - sounds great. We are cruising end of September and wondering what is the most inexpensive way to get into Rome?? We want to do a tour of the colliseum.

We have booked a tour for Sorrento, Positano and Amalfi. And will now keep Palma on the list and Florence/Naples.

 

A few years ago we hired a car with six other passengers whom we met on the pier. There are always many people wanting to get into Rome by hired cars. There were plenty of cars waiting to be hired. Ours was a Mercedes mini van. Cost per person: 50 Euros and once in the car we voted for places we wanted to see. It worked perfectly; the driver drove us back plenty of time in advance of our departure.

[harz99]

DH and I recently finished our Western Med cruise on the Epic. Thoughts below...

 

I have no idea what people are complaining about with the Epic! I'll grant that this was my first cruise, but honestly, I had a fantastic time!

 

I did a crazy amount of research before we embarked and kept my eye out for all the things that everyone seems to complain about. I was fully expecting to feel crowded with so many people on board but I never did. The elevators were rarely a problem and I didn't miss having one in the middle of the ship. Every staff member I encountered was extremely nice and helpful! I felt very well taken care of.

 

The food was fantastic! DH and I had 5 meals at specialty restaurants so we mostly ate there, but even the buffet wasn't bad at all. I think a lot of people probably find it hard to understand just how difficult it is to cook for so many people in such a short span of time and that's where too high of expectations come from with the buffet. We ate at Le Bistro, Moderno, Cagney's, and Teppenyaki. We ate at Taste for the MDR but never ate at the Manhattan Room as the menu was the same as Taste.

 

The drinks were delicious! I'll admit that sometimes I had to wait awhile at the bar, but I was a bartender in college and I know how difficult it can be to keep up even when you're running your butt off. The bartenders were always as fast as they could be and never cut corners to put out a great drink. If the bar looked full, I simply walked the very short distance to the next nearest one where the bartenders weren't so swamped.

 

I never planned to write a full review but I just wanted to let anyone who is sailing the Epic soon and might be a little nervous (like I was) at the bad reviews, to not worry. As long as you're not expecting to be treated like you're sailing on your own private yacht, you'll be more than satisfied.

 

If anyone has any questions about the Epic or this sailing I can do my best to answer. Unfortunately, DH threw away the dailies before I had a chance to get pictures so I can't supply those. Happy sailing!

Just a small point, but I'm pretty sure most of the complaints stem from long cruises with a lot of sea days, I believe on port intensive shorter itineraries like the one you were on the ship facilities are far less used or important.

 

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[littlemeagain]

Thanks for all the information. We did the British Isles on NCL Jade last year and have booked the Rome RT Epic for next June. The great responses to the Epic are encouraging. I would like some input on hotels if anyone did pre cruise in Rome and Naples Excusions that folks did either with NCL or a local. The Palma advise was great, thanks. We did the local bus in Scotland at a port and have the funniest stories from it, so doing as the locals is always memorable.

 

We are sailing on the Epic on 8/29 R/T Rome. We rented an Airbnb apartment. It looks beautiful in the reviews and photos! I will let you know!

[Qartravel12]

I would love that! Thank you. I was looking at VRBO this morning as well.