Disappointing NCL Epic built in France

Norwegian Epic Cruise Review to Europe - Western Mediterranean

palsab

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 60

Overall rating:

2.9 out of 5

Verified Review

7 Night Western Mediterranean (Barcelona Roundtrip)

Sail date: July 15, 2018

Ship: Norwegian Epic

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 14119

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

From the time you arrive (BCL) expect your whole trip to be waiting "in line" for everything. Bcl you wait in line as some passenagers did not print their tags so you have to wait for them - the loading staff have no idea as we all wait in a long line of 32'C in the sun. once you get on board the elevators expect the 7 days of waiting for them. The suite spa level 14 deck paid the higher price to expect something better.. what a disapointment. the toilet and shower are in your room. They saved all the space in the floor layout and to give you an oversized balcony. USELESS. Dinning package do not expect much for the up charge. No Lobster tails. staff and service fair and did not experience any outstanding service. Washi very limited menu for what you expect. Note they do Chef special orders but nobody tells you this. Ports of call - very disappointed how whort a stay they allow you. Naples - get off the ship and easy walk to town. this works Rome - the 1.5 hour drive port to city less the time you need to return to the ship cuts into the time you have in Rome. We only had about 5 hours to see the sights. VERY UPSET about this part. Florence - the same as Rome just did not have the time we needed to see the city. Cannes - the boat tender system very messed up. We did the TV sign up and only showed 730am and 12noon options we booked group17 only to hear over the PA that they started called it at 930am the lines on the return way too long with only 4 boats running on 2 gangways. Majorca way too little time and we should have had a later departure. Arrival in BCL in RAIN so this time as we left the terminal we got socked getting on the airport bus. again the logicist staff all need to be fired, not sure if they are 3rd party vendor to NCL but this was just uncalled. I want my $50 transfer fee back.

Embarkation

1 out of 5

expect to wait for others who did not get their color tags printed. Sun with no shade

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

meals okay but nothing much to be impressed about.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

there are lots of options to do stuff. Maybe a little too much to figure out.

Entertainment

5 out of 5

We did all the shows, Outstanding and great job.

Service and Staff

2 out of 5

the top managers very helpful, the staff very so so. there was not one person I would say did go out of their way.

Ship Quality

1 out of 5

expect to see the new french design, I paid for the best suite/spa/Meal/Drinks package what a disappointment.

Cabin / Stateroom

1 out of 5

Ship tip

Ship built in France, even NCL went back to Germany to build their boats, need I say more.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Barcelona, Spain

5 out of 5

Great city. Boarding was a mess, see comments below

Thumbs Up 6

Naples, Italy

4 out of 5

Naples Pizza Shopping good. Easy walk from the boat to the city.

Thumbs Up 2

Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy

5 out of 5

Rome is a city you need time to see. Based upon NCL arr/dept time traffic / transfer, NCL cuts this port too short.

Thumbs Up 1

Livorno (Florence & Pisa), Italy

3 out of 5

Like Rome limited time due to the double transfers traffic/transfers etc, Crowds in July, not the greatest time.

Thumbs Up 1

Cannes, France

4 out of 5

Surprised nice little town nd good trips to Nice etc Tender system to and from the boat could be increased. lines to get back way tooo long.

Thumbs Up 0

Palma De Mallorca, Balearic Islands

4 out of 5

too short a visit. nice city and easy to walk. Church was closed. NCL charge for bus transfer should be free.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

1 out of 5

6 Comments

Solito 6 years ago

I note you put rain in caps as if this too was bad arrangement on the part of the company... May I ask if you've cruised b4? It is a shame to spend so much - as I know you must have, and have a disappointing time.e, but with cruising it's important to do your research b4 booking. For example, Epic's quirky bathroom sink layout is well known, and not a big deal for some folks. Also, tenders that you mentioned on this cruise, are only necessary sometimes, so it can throw a wrench into the schedule if there's a sudden need to change, but that's one of the vagaries of cruising! I'd appreciate it if you could take the time to post again just with what things you really enjoyed.

Thumbs Up 2

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Solito 6 years ago

Was there anything at all that you liked?

Thumbs Up 1

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cruzenchic 6 years ago

I love the epic!

Thumbs Up 2

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Charlou 6 years ago

Did you do some research before booking this cruise? If you would’ve done some, you would’ve known about the cabin layout being different on the Epic. And you would’ve also found out that sometimes, the cruise port is far from the main city and popular attractions. Went on the Epic 1 1/2 year ago. going again next January. Can’t wait.

Thumbs Up 2

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onlysail 6 years ago

Never took us more than 1hr to get to rome. You must have known how far it was from the port when researching the cruise

Thumbs Up 0

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pbiondo28 6 years ago

We went on the Epic last year from Barcelona to those same ports, at ships full capacity and didn't have any issues with lines or limited time at ports. Not sure if you booked your excursions through the cruiseline and that's why you had limited time. We booked our excursions with private tour guides and had plenty of time at each port. It could have been a stroke of bad luck for you. Sorry you didn't get to enjoy the full experience.

Thumbs Up 1

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