Worst Norwegian ship?

[Sailing12Away]

3 hours ago, The Traveling Man said:

Now I'm a bit confused.  When we visited with you in your Aft Penthouse during the cabin crawl on our Encore cruise, your favorable review of your room made me rethink my upgrade bids on a couple of future cruises.  I got the impression that you thought the vibration was minimal and barely noticeable.

It depended on the day. The first sea days were the worst at night, it woke both of us up. The noise wasn't horrible, but the vibration was just odd as we weren't expecting it. We got used to it by the end of the trip, but it was the only cruise we actually felt the ship that much. 

If you enjoy spending a lot of time on your balcony, or even just that view in the morning with your coffee and at night looking at the stars with your wine - then it's probably fine if you're not a light sleeper. I loved just standing out there looking at the beautiful scenery. I think the bigger issue for us was the distance from where we were to the Haven lounge/bar area. If we were just a few steps from the lounge we would have been there multiple times a day. 

 

So it's probably the overall impression of everything that is clouding my opinion. We enjoyed the trip tremendously, but if we sail Haven again we will not pick aft as our first choice. Others love it and swear by it, which is fine because they can have it and leave me extra choices closer up front.

[The Traveling Man]

2 hours ago, Sailing12Away said:

It depended on the day. The first sea days were the worst at night, it woke both of us up. The noise wasn't horrible, but the vibration was just odd as we weren't expecting it. We got used to it by the end of the trip, but it was the only cruise we actually felt the ship that much. 

If you enjoy spending a lot of time on your balcony, or even just that view in the morning with your coffee and at night looking at the stars with your wine - then it's probably fine if you're not a light sleeper. I loved just standing out there looking at the beautiful scenery. I think the bigger issue for us was the distance from where we were to the Haven lounge/bar area. If we were just a few steps from the lounge we would have been there multiple times a day. 

 

So it's probably the overall impression of everything that is clouding my opinion. We enjoyed the trip tremendously, but if we sail Haven again we will not pick aft as our first choice. Others love it and swear by it, which is fine because they can have it and leave me extra choices closer up front.

Thanks.  That makes sense.

[montecarloss]

IMHO, Star was great, Epic, never again.

[Oakman58]

2 hours ago, montecarloss said:

IMHO, Star was great, Epic, never again.

 

I agree with montecarloss, I loved the Star.  We did two 14 day Panama Canal cruises on her and loved the ship and the crew was excellent.

 

My wife and I did a second cruise on the Epic but only because of the ports she visited (ABC islands) and the cruise was port intensive.  I'm not a fan of the Epic.

In my opinion, one of the many flaws of the Epic is the fact that only the forward elevators go down to deck 5 where Guest Services, Shore Excursions Deck, etc. are located.  Yet the wheelchair accessible cabins are located at the back of the ship.  And my real pet peeve with the Epic is the stupid wave wall in the balcony cabins.  It really makes the cabin feel small.

 

[The Traveling Man]

8 hours ago, montecarloss said:

IMHO, Star was great, Epic, never again.

We have sailed on the Star four times, and on its sister ship, the Dawn, another four times.  We love the design of the ships, the locations of the venues, the lounges, and just about everything else about them.  Those last two cruises on the Star, though, not so much.  Missing ports of call because your ship is traveling at half-speed on just one propeller, or dead in the water for a couple of days when both Azipods fail, is not my idea of a fun time. 

 

I don't really care that much for the Epic, for many of the same reasons that others have pointed out on this thread, but we do have a cruise on her scheduled for next month.  Given the itinerary and the available sailing dates, it just made more sense than any other NCL ship in trying to get a cruise to dovetail with our land package tour of Italy.

[Krydstosser]

On 9/13/2021 at 5:46 PM, roxette said:

Just off the Epic for the second time.

It is a terrible ship. Good service, Good Good. Bad ship.

 

Didn't mind the cabin, club balcony suite, so that was not issue.

 

Only thing that was not too bad was spice h2O. 

 

I would pick any ship, any line before Epic again. 

 

Have been on pretty much all ships in the NCL fleet. From the Sky to the Bliss. In all continents except Africa. I have loved them all. Except Epic.

 

If this would have been my first cruise, it would have been my last, as well.

 

 

 

I totally respect your opinion, but we had a great cruise on Epic (5th. sep. 2021). I would prefer Breakaway thats the only other NCL ship we have been on. That said we  had a great time, I would choose another NCL ship next time but thats because of the weird cabin layout. Its an old ship but not so bad in my opinion 🙂 

[_Mr.G_]

I've read the entire thread and there is a clear tendency or "negative" winner, which seems to be the Epic.

 

We just got of the Epic last week. It was my first sailing with her, we had a great cruise and I would definetly not say "worst" ship. However, if I can choose I would choose another NCL ship, especially the Jewel-class/sized ships in the first place.

 

We had a balcony cabin on Deck 11 with the bed near the balcony. I really liked the design and the curved walls! The much discussed bathrom design is clearly no favorite, but in reality it wasn't a big deal either. We really missed electric sockets or USB ports near the bed to charge our phones overnight. This was only possible at the sideboards on the other side of the room/foot end.

 

The overall ship design is really quirky. There is no use of the "promenade" deck with the life boats in front of it and nearly no ocean view. The top level decks are really badly built. There is no "front to back way", you always have to take stairs or curves around things. High windows obstruct the ocean views. It took us 3 days to discover the "quiet zone" sun deck in front of the ship 😉

 

What we really did not like was the sound quality in Spice H2O at parties.  The sound was loud, which is OK for a party, but the sound quality was really really poor with crackling noises and cut off higher notes. You didn't need to be audiophile to feel physical pain because of the sound quality.  We constantly wondered how any sound engineer or "DJ" or entertainment team would provide/accept such a terribly sound quality.

 

We did not understand why the entire spacious atrium on deck 5/6/7 with the big screen was not used at all. Instead the big screen showed NCL feature trailers 24hrs repeatedly one week long. The piano music in the Shakers bar was excellent and people were close together in that limited space area. The piano player would have been easily capable of providing entertainment for the entire atrium in front of the big screen across all decks.

 

The entire ship is build with an inside focus. All inside activities are arranged along decks 5, 6 and 7 - which is easy to understand. There is always traffic around you when you sit in Shakers, O'sheehan's, Maltings or the Casino. There is only very limited day light by the Guest Services. Mostly all windows were completely covered and everything on those decks is dark (nearly depressing). The 'darkest' room was the Blizz Lounge. You enter the room and it's hard to understand the room, because everything is black and you barely can see who is sitting and watching from the corners.

 

Oh god - did I miss the Spinacker Lounges with the great front ocean views! I look forward to the new Leonardo/Prima class ships with the Ocean First approach, I'm on a ship to see and enjoy the oceon feeling. Otherwise I could be in any hotel or mall.

 

Apart from the architectural ship design, the "Norwegian experience", the staff, the entertainment, the food quality and the bars were excellent and we greatly enjoyed our first cruise after 2 years break. The Covid-Situation was no big game-changer either, everything on the ship was coordinated perfectly. 

 

 

[disneylover89]

Norwegian Crown..... horrible and have not sailed on NCL since.  Decided to try again and had Alaska booked for 2020 but that was a no go.  Going to try the Encore next summer.

[tombli]

Been on the Epic twice, once in Mini-suite (now Club Balcony Suite) and once in Haven (this year, post-refurb).  Lot not to like about the Epic, and I did not care for the mini-suite, but the Haven was a dream. 

 

The capacity limits also helped with the horrible traffic flow in public areas.

 

Have also sailed on the Spirit (2019) on an itinerary to Iceland that had a LOT of port changes and some plumbing issues. It's not a bad ship, but showing its age and I'm in no hurry to try it again. 

[MoCruiseFan]

On 8/31/2021 at 1:37 PM, craig01020 said:

I've never sailed on Norwegian before (but I'm trying!).  I have read many brutal reviews of some of NCL's ships, but I thought I'd ask the experts: Have you sailed on any of NCL's ships that you would now avoid at all costs? Thanks.

 

Asking which is the worst NCL ship is like asking who is your least favorite child.

[BBlake43]

The last issue was because of a fire in one of the engines and being down on power.. Azipods weren't the problem

 

[The Traveling Man]

On 10/10/2021 at 12:29 AM, BBlake43 said:

The last issue was because of a fire in one of the engines and being down on power.. Azipods weren't the problem

 

Simply one more reason to avoid the Star, as if the Azipod problems weren’t enough.

[The Traveling Man]

On 10/9/2021 at 8:23 AM, tombli said:

Been on the Epic twice, once in Mini-suite (now Club Balcony Suite) and once in Haven (this year, post-refurb).  Lot not to like about the Epic, and I did not care for the mini-suite, but the Haven was a dream. 

 

The capacity limits also helped with the horrible traffic flow in public areas.

 

Have also sailed on the Spirit (2019) on an itinerary to Iceland that had a LOT of port changes and some plumbing issues. It's not a bad ship, but showing its age and I'm in no hurry to try it again. 

The Spirit has had a major refurb since then.  We have sailed on her twice before and really were looking forward to seeing her all shiny and new in March 2020.  That one was canceled by COVID.

[firstimecruiseronncl]

On 9/1/2021 at 3:27 AM, hernando52 said:

The Star, but for different reasons than propulsion problems.  On Day 5 of a 7 day cruise a few years back, the toilets in many places stopped working.  Inconvenient and after a while, pretty stinky.

Yes! The Star was my first experience with cruising in 2012 and it stunk! I swore I would never cruise again but they gave us a credit and we had a "free" cruise from the casino so I did sail again on the Breakaway and I haven't stopped sailing since! 

[CruizinKittie40]

Just got off the Epic.  Had a Club Balcony Suite and I would NEVER sail on the Epic again.  We had a bathtub and the controls were so hard to use.  You basically just turned the knob until you got lucky enough to find a temperature and water pressure you could tolerate.  Let's not even go into the layout.  This was our first sailing with NCL and not impressed.  We have another booking with them for Mexico in December.  We will see if we like the Escape more and if not we will try another cruise line. 

[Oakman58]

30 minutes ago, CruizinKittie40 said:

Just got off the Epic.  Had a Club Balcony Suite and I would NEVER sail on the Epic again.  We had a bathtub and the controls were so hard to use.  You basically just turned the knob until you got lucky enough to find a temperature and water pressure you could tolerate.  Let's not even go into the layout.  This was our first sailing with NCL and not impressed.  We have another booking with them for Mexico in December.  We will see if we like the Escape more and if not we will try another cruise line. 

 

The Epic is the only ship with that design.  I'm sure you will enjoy the Escape much more.

[The Traveling Man]

14 hours ago, CruizinKittie40 said:

Just got off the Epic.  Had a Club Balcony Suite and I would NEVER sail on the Epic again.  We had a bathtub and the controls were so hard to use.  You basically just turned the knob until you got lucky enough to find a temperature and water pressure you could tolerate.  Let's not even go into the layout.  This was our first sailing with NCL and not impressed.  We have another booking with them for Mexico in December.  We will see if we like the Escape more and if not we will try another cruise line. 

We are still on the Epic, having boarded on Wednesday In Civitavecchia, so we overlapped with your cruise four days.  Yes, the bathroom arrangement on the Epic is strange, but none of the other NCL ships have the same room design.  As for the shower controls, the handle on the left controls water flow, while the one on the right sets the mix of hot and cold.  Just set that one once and then don’t touch it again.  Just use the left handle to turn the water on and off.  Yes, it will start out cold then warm up to your selected temperature.  Enjoy your cruise on the Escape.  It’s a really fun ship with lots of different dining, drinking, and entertainment venues.  In warm weather like you probably will have in Mexico, the Waterfront on Deck 8 is a great place to hang out and to enjoy dinner al fresco in one of the specialty restaurants.

[sprint180]

Have been on the Star, Pearl, and one other.  All have been great ships.  Wouldn't think twice about booking another cruise, in fact I think it's my favorite line.

[deliver42]

To me the worst one goes way back to the Sunward 2. Small ship, hot water not working ship wide. Luckily only a 3 day cruise. Their Jewel Class and Breakaway Class are great until the Encore, with no deck space.

[CruizinKittie40]

On 10/25/2021 at 7:26 AM, The Traveling Man said:

We are still on the Epic, having boarded on Wednesday In Civitavecchia, so we overlapped with your cruise four days.  Yes, the bathroom arrangement on the Epic is strange, but none of the other NCL ships have the same room design.  As for the shower controls, the handle on the left controls water flow, while the one on the right sets the mix of hot and cold.  Just set that one once and then don’t touch it again.  Just use the left handle to turn the water on and off.  Yes, it will start out cold then warm up to your selected temperature.  Enjoy your cruise on the Escape.  It’s a really fun ship with lots of different dining, drinking, and entertainment venues.  In warm weather like you probably will have in Mexico, the Waterfront on Deck 8 is a great place to hang out and to enjoy dinner al fresco in one of the specialty restaurants.

thanks!

[complawyer]

ive commented on this before. i dont believe that anyone can categorize the ncl fleet by picking out the "worst" its just that some are better than others.

 

cruizinkittie40, while you may not have liked the bathroom setup, how were the other aspects of your cruise. we were on the epic a few years back and had an aft haven penthouse. we hated the layout, especially the bath, but  on the other hand, the rest of the cruise wasnt bad.

 

so, while i dont mean to minimalize your position, if the bath was the only thing wrong, then i wouldnt consider the epic the worst. what is crappy, is the round beds that take up almost the entire cabin, and one of you have to sit down so the other can pass by.

[chillyw]

I loved the Epic, it's the ship that got me into cruising.

 

Blue man group, Cirque, Legends in Concert, the ice bar, the awesome Spice H2O space, the great casino.

 

I'm a huge Vegas fan and it felt like Vegas on a boat to me. I've been 4 times, 3 for normal cruises and once for a chartered electronic music cruise. It's my favorite boat.

 

While I loved the cruise (it was a chartered comedy cruise), I'm not a fan of the Jewel. I like having great entertainment options, restaurants, bars, casino, shows, etc and it felt way too limited to me.

 

I enjoyed the Bliss, not to the level of the Epic, but it was solid. I'm sailing the Encore in December and excited to try it!

 

 

 

[tsipper]

Been on a number of NCL ships, enjoyed the Jade most consistently, did- and handled everything well, at least while I was aboard.

[Quincella]

I love these threads!  They totally highlight why cruise lines have different classes/designs of ships.  something for everyone.

 

I happen to love the Epic.  She's the only ship I've ever sailed on more than once, and I've been on her three times!  My absolute favorite ship, for sure, with the Bliss following close behind.

 

I don't really dislike any of the ships I've been on, but I wouldn't intentionally choose the Dawn or the Sky again.  I prefer the newer, larger ships, and found the Dawn to be a bit of a letdown.  I was on the Sky a million years ago when she was still the Pride of Aloha.  Nice ship and perfect for sailing the Hawaiian islands, but the ship itself was small and older and not my favorite.  

 

On the other hand, I really do like the Spirit, and it's small, and older, but....different.  

 

Anyway...three cheers for the Epic!  My husband has never cruised, but he'll be on his first ever on the Encore in January. We were previously booked on the Epic, which would have been my 4th time, but that's how much I love that ship.  I wanted to introduce my husband to cruising on her.  Sadly...covid...cancelations...blah blah blah....we all know the story.

[CruisinMaterial]

I don't see what all the fuss is about. I've had wonderful times on the Epic. I don't mind her at all. Yes, the top hat is quirky and needing to take a separate elevator to get up to the highest sun deck is a bit odd but nothing to hate her for.

 

What I didn't like for the Dawn / Star was the re-do of the forward Spinnakers Lounge in favor of putting in suites. They completely messed it up by doing that and put the nightclub directly beneath passenger cabins. As a result there's always noise complaints to turn the music down from people who don't pay attention to where they book on those two ships. As a result, both ships are not fun for someone who enjoys nightlife and now avoided. Thankfully NCL swapped out the Dawn out of Boston for the Gem.