NCL Epic Mediterranean Cruise out of ROME - Well - it was EPIC!

 This was our 2nd cruise on NCL, yet 1st NCL cruise in Europe. Our party of 4 adults (2 rooms) was very pleased with the NCL Epic for our sail out of Rome (Rome to Florence to Cannes to Palma Majorca to Barcelona to day at sea to Naples and back to Rome) area on 5/3-5/10/17. We arrived a few hours ahead of departure and had no problems with embarking, quickly grabbing a couple of Prosecco's in the bar for a toast.

After about an hour, our balcony rooms were ready (11175 & 11179), which was nice. My initial thought was the room was very nice and I didn't see any issue with the bathroom toilet/shower arrangement. However, I did have an issue with the very tiny sink/sink area and the limited and dim lighting, which took some time to figure out which switch controlled what. The bed was comfortable but the curvature at the foot of the bed was tolerable. I was very impressed with the significant amount of storage space (2 large closets, 3 large drawers, hidden storage behind the sofa and other areas, medicine cabinet space and large area under the bed to stow away empty luggage). HINT - the electrical outlet is hidden away under the middle mirror area beneath the counter (as is the hair dryer). Look for the hole in the counter top to fish your electrical cord.

We were told the ship was full, which I didn't believe as at no such time did it ever feel as if it was. Maybe the only time would have been during breakfast time when the buffet got very crowded. HINT - get your breakfast and head down to La Cucina. We had the UBP and UDP and we were very pleased with our cocktail and dining choices (Teppanyaki was fantastic, as was Moderno, but the best was Le Bistro where the food was outstanding and the service was even better (thank you Ronie and April Joy!). Since we had a busy day on excursions (we booked ourselves and not via the cruise line - & saved significant $) at each port. We only had 1 day at sea where we just chilled and hung out at Spice H2O for the majority of the day where food and drink were available. We really enjoyed Howl at the Moon, where we spent quite a few hours during the week. We also enjoyed Burn the Floor but were so so on Priscilla Queen of the Dessert show.  We were looking forward to dancing a bit more at the Glow party and other dance areas (Bliss) but there was too much techno beat music, which just didn't quite fit the age demographic of most travelers that I saw. Needed more 70s-present era music. 

All in all, it was a fantastic cruise, great weather, calm seas, wonderful ports (although Palma Majorca was very so so), friendly staff, great customer service, and plenty of things to do. HINT - please don't believe all of the negative reviews that many people post as we thoroughly enjoyed our cruise on the NCL Epic.