Live EPIC Mediterannean 11-Day Cruise from Marseille, France October 2, 2023-with pics!

[graphicguy]

And. we’re sailing the Mediterannean…I love this view while showering….

 

 

[graphicguy]

Sea Day Lunch…

[graphicguy]

Had a great Meet & Greet…

[graphicguy]

Spirited Q&A….covering many topics discussed here…

 

-4,200 guests, 1,700 crew 

-NCL is sailing at or near capacity on all ships

-Epic was NCL’s first “Mega”

ship.  It laid the groundwork in many waysfor Breakaway and B plus ships. it is unique in NCL’s fleet!

-EPIC refurbished Haven will be joined by the rest of the ship in 2025

-Main pool can not be expanded due to ship construction, but “around pool” areas will be expanded!

-EU enacted VAT changes on Sept 25.  Some cruise lines added it to their drink packages/fares.  NCL decided to show it as a line item.  They are not happy about the changes (particularly Spain) and will be actively looking for different EU origination ports as a result!  The VAT tax rate is based on where the ship’s origination port is.  The good news is having originating in France, our VAT is “only” 10%.  If the cruise originated is Spain, it would be 20%.

-Some big shows will be ending soon….some because their contract is up, some because they weren’t as popular as anticipated.  Cruise Director mentioned “Priscilla” specifically as not being popular.  These will be replaced by big Broadway/Vegas style productions, which he said he could not divulge!

-Epic is headed to Canaveral in April

Edited October 6, 2023 by graphicguy

[Phoenixon]

4 hours ago, graphicguy said:

-EU enacted VAT changes on Sept 25.  Some cruise lines added it to their drink packages/fares.  NCL decided to show it as a line item.  They are not happy about the changes (particularly Spain) and will be actively looking for different EU origination ports as a result!  The VAT tax rate is based on where the ship’s origination port is.  The good news is having originating in France, our VAT is “only” 10%.  If the cruise originated is Spain, it would be 20%.

-Epic is headed to Canaveral in April

 

Interesting....thanks for sharing. Did they specify whether these changes only apply to closed loop (EU only) sailings? 

 

Surprised they said Epic is headed to Canaveral in April since there's a TA sailing to Port Canaveral on December 1st. 

[graphicguy]

2 minutes ago, Phoenixon said:

 

Interesting....thanks for sharing. Did they specify whether these changes only apply to closed loop (EU only) sailings? 

 

Surprised they said Epic is headed to Canaveral in April since there's a TA sailing to Port Canaveral on December 1st. 

Epic is changing itineraries to more warm water sailings.

 

Don’t know about the Europe VAT charges in other ports on a closed loop sailing!

 

NCL is aware of the issue and our GM said they were as unhappy about the changes that started 9/25 as the guests are.  That’s why  NCL is looking for other “cruise friendly” European ports.

 

To me, this is a case of Spain cutting off their nose to spite their face.  Whatever they gain in VAT revenue they’ll lose more in lost tourism!

Edited October 6, 2023 by graphicguy

[Phoenixon]

Just now, graphicguy said:

Epic is changing itineraries to more warm water sailings.

 

Don’t know about the Europe VAT charges in other ports on a closed loop sailing!

 

Good to know, thanks! Appreciate the report. 🙂 

[graphicguy]

Just received clarification…Dec 1 Epic goes to Caribbean….April back to Europe 

[schmoopie17]

1 hour ago, graphicguy said:

 

NCL is aware of the issue and our GM said they were as unhappy about the changes that started 9/25 as the guests are.  That’s why  NCL is looking for other “cruise friendly” European ports.

 

That sounds nice, but cruise schedules are already out into 2025. Unless they do some major retooling of schedules, nothing will be done for a couple of years. 

 

Looks like we're going to be coughing up an additional 20% for drinks on our September, 2024  Mediterranean cruise.

[www3traveler]

7 hours ago, graphicguy said:

Had a great Meet & Greet…

Thank You  Do you know who the Bridge Officers are?

[graphicguy]

 

Yeah..we mentioned that during the Meet and Greet.

Got the impression they are pivoting as quickly as they can from Spain.  But, current schedules are what they are

 

I wouldn’t be surprised to see deviations from 2024-2025 sailings!

[graphicguy]

3 minutes ago, www3traveler said:

Thank You  Do you know who the Bridge Officers are?

I think I posted a picture of officers earlier in the thread.  Those are the only officers I’m aware of aside for those who were at our Meet and Greet.

[graphicguy]

Captain’s Reception….

[graphicguy]

BURN THE FLOOR….

 

Holy Cow….how did I miss this show over all the NCL cruises I’ve taken.

 

The only ballroom dancing I’ve ever seen is on old, old movies.

 

This ain’t that!

 

Great show!

[www3traveler]

17 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Captain’s Reception….

Thank You  I have a couple of friends on board as Senior Officers

[benel204]

On 10/5/2023 at 12:39 AM, graphicguy said:

You’ll get a notice to bid for an upgrade via email.  Keep an eye on the Haven prices.  Sometimes you can pay to upgrade your cabin without bidding at a decent rate!

Thanks for the reply.  How close to the embarkation date would I get a notice to bid for an upgrade?  We have a deposit on the cruise now, final due end of December.  And if we booked through Costco, would we still receive the notice from NCL?

[Russiamomm]

35 minutes ago, benel204 said:

Thanks for the reply.  How close to the embarkation date would I get a notice to bid for an upgrade?  We have a deposit on the cruise now, final due end of December.  And if we booked through Costco, would we still receive the notice from NCL?

The email usually comes right around final payment date.  A word of warning, though. Not all travel agents participate in the program.  It’s my understanding that yours is one of them.  (We’re not supposed to mention travel agents on this site.)

[ready2cruzagain]

8 hours ago, graphicguy said:

 

-Epic is headed to Canaveral in April

 

Better be headed there before April considering I have 3 Epic cruises booked in January.

[graphicguy]

[graphicguy]

and….Sorremto!

[graphicguy]

[graphicguy]

[mking8288]

Good afternoon to you, beautiful weather & sunny skies - morning here & another tropical storm sliding north toward NE-Canada again, via Bermuda but not looking bad like last Friday here in NY.  How was that pizza place ??  Beautiful pictures, wandering around town on your own or doing one of the NCL walking tours, using that shorex credit plus Latitudes discount ... "incredible" 🙄 😳 😬 prices for joining a selfie tour in town on where best to take scenic pix, LOL.  

 

Have you checked out Spice H2O outdoors on the back of the ship, it was pretty quiet during our TA and undiscovered by many in steerage, thus quiet & tucked away ... without all that extra gimmicks like race tracks and virtual 3D gaming, etc.   Empty loungers, chairs & places to sit back, relax & read, etc. 

[graphicguy]

32 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

Good afternoon to you, beautiful weather & sunny skies - morning here & another tropical storm sliding north toward NE-Canada again, via Bermuda but not looking bad like last Friday here in NY.  How was that pizza place ??  Beautiful pictures, wandering around town on your own or doing one of the NCL walking tours, using that shorex credit plus Latitudes discount ... "incredible" 🙄 😳 😬 prices for joining a selfie tour in town on where best to take scenic pix, LOL.  

 

Have you checked out Spice H2O outdoors on the back of the ship, it was pretty quiet during our TA and undiscovered by many in steerage, thus quiet & tucked away ... without all that extra gimmicks like race tracks and virtual 3D gaming, etc.   Empty loungers, chairs & places to sit back, relax & read, etc. 

Was at Spice H20 a couple of days ago.  Not crowded but also a port day!

[graphicguy]