The Norwegian Epic was last refurbished in 2015, has a Gross Register Tonnage (GRT) of 155,873… this is how cruise ships register there size… this is a BIG ship! The ship’s guest capacity is 4,100 (not including the staff). It boasts a wide variety of dining, plenty of activities and a full range of entertainment. Here is a quick video, courtesy of NCL.com.
Picture courtesy of NCL.com
We recently sailed on the Norwegian Epic and have an opportunity to share our thoughts about our experience. On a 5-star scale, with 5 stars being the best, I give this ship 4 stars. I will break it down into 2 categories: Quality and Service.
Quality –
Let’s get right to it… The cabin was tighter than what we are accustomed. It was relatively clean. There were exceptions: balled up paper under the bed — I hate when there’s access under the bed for this reason. The carpet was vacuumed, but could have used shampooing. The glass doors to our balcony and its glass partition were not cleaned and clouded with salt-water spray. The bed was a little short, I am just over 6-feet tall and my feet were hanging over the edge. Still, the bed was very comfortable and we slept well. The bathroom configuration was odd, but not all bad. The shower, toilet and sink are separate with the sink seemingly out of place – in the middle of the cabin – and in the way. We had to swap positions to maneuver around the sink so one of us could pass, which was inconvenient. However, it was nice for one of us to shower while the other still had access to the “private” toilet (private enough). The cabin had plenty of storage and with a little creativity we were able put everything in its place.
The food was great! We enjoyed all of our dining options, from the hot dogs and hamburgers at the buffet to the wings at the pub to the top-notch food at the free specialty dining restaurants. We love the fact that in addition to your dining room there are a few of the specialty restaurants you can enjoy without an extra cost. The food was fresh, varied and accessible. I am a french fry connoisseur and their fries were VERY good! As far as the drinks, we chose to prepay for the adult beverage package with the beverage gratuities (separate from the standard sailing gratuities per person per day) and enjoyed the convenience of ordering drinks at a whim throughout the entire cruise. Once you try different drinks and engage the bartenders on what you like or don’t like (know yourself), they will take care of you. I got to know a few by name and made good conversation; the rest took care of itself — in the way of great drinks. The main bar at the upper deck was always crowded since it is a popular spot, so we found other locations that were not so busy. The only thing is that the package did not include bottled water, so we had to order that separately.
The entertainment was enjoyable. It was not anything special, just mildly entertaining. There were some shows that looked interesting, but they cost extra. There was a ‘deal or no deal’ game that was fun to watch, but the seating was scarce and many had to stand. It would have been better at a larger venue. The comedy show that was funny and funnier after a few drinks. There was no shortage of entertainment or activities. You could play billiards, gamble at the casino, there are a few bowling lanes to reserve and enjoy, basketball court, well-equipped fitness center and water slides. The pools were small and the hot tubs were crowded. When you wanted to entertain yourself with a good book or a nap, there were quiet spots in the adult-only section of the upper deck and a library.
The internet WiFi signal was weak in the cabin which is common on cruise ships. It worked great in the public areas. Since we operate our travel agency while traveling, we settled in comfortably at the library and handled business without a hiccup.
Service –
Simply put, the overall service is what kept our rating at 4 out of 5 stars. The highlights were the servers at the specialty dining locations who paid very close attention to detail, the bartenders who are willing to converse and have fun with you despite dealing with large crowds of revelers, store attendants who took the time to answer questions showing a genuine interest in us, the staff at the buffet and lounge areas who were constantly cleaning and organizing the area to keep the tables available and the food fresh. These individuals made our experience enjoyable and relaxing.
When we had questions or issues the staff at guest services were slow to respond. Ultimately, our issues were resolved, but it was the lack of urgency that concerned us. One example was when we asked to have our balcony door and partition cleaned, we ended up cleaning it ourselves. Another was paying for bottled water and arranging delivery to our cabin that didn’t arrive until 3 days later. We were later credited the charge. We are avid and frequent cruisers who realize that these negatives are isolated issues that did not adversely affect our experience.
All-in-all we recommend this ship and the cruise line, as a whole!