Over all the ports were nice but as far as the NCL portion, it was grossly lacking. The cruise directer was bad (never saw him or heard announcements) and they oversold the internet and it didn't work. $350 for 2 internet pkgs and you couldn't get anything to load. The internet manager admitted to overselling and really didn't care (and continued to sell minute packages). Speeds of 73mbps were all you get. And they "Streaming Internet" is no faster, it only unlocks streaming sites they block. But it was so slow it would take 3-5 min to log in and out only to find out you can't even open e-mail because it was so slow. I skipped excursions to work from places on shore that had internet...for a fee.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
This was the quickest Embarkation we've ever had. Worst access to the port though.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
2 out of 5
They were consistent all 7 days...consistently bad. The food was missing flavor and I wish it tasted as good as it looked. The main dining rooms were very slow and OK on flavor. The specialty dining was better, but still very slow on service.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
They closed everything early and for what appears to be no reason.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
The shows in the Epic Theater were good but Howl at the moon wasn't the best.
Service and Staff
2 out of 5
Our room steward was great and he was the only one on the ship that was. Bar tenders seemed put out if you ordered more then a beer. I would order 2 of the same drinks and they would make it a double...not what I ordered. They are using a very low quality ginger beer on the gun rather then the name brand ginger geer as they list in the bar menu. It was discusting and I left more then one on the bar if thats how it was made.
Ship Quality
1 out of 5
The state rooms on the Epic are the WORST. The shower and bathroom with the sink in the main area is just flat out STUPID. Overall it was clean but poor design.
Cabin / Stateroom
2 out of 5
This cabin is in a terrible location. You have to go down the opposite side of the ship then cut through a U shaped hallway to get to this room. And it is at a dead-end, so your going back the same way you came every time. The only good thing is this room has a larger balcony.
Ship tip
Find a different ship. NCL has lots of them and the Epic is the worst of them all.
All the "tours" took you to an average view of what ever, but they always had a buddy vender there selling the same junk the last one was selling. Kinda pushy.
USE CAUTION AT THIS PORT. There is a sum ball with 3 monkeys and if you stop for a moment he tosses them on to who ever and demands $10 for the experience. I told him to F off and we ended up having to the the local police involved. No sign so be warned. I will never get off the ship if this is a stop on a future cruise.
Very nice but the cab drivers are scammers. They don't take credit cards but will take you to a buddy's place with an ATM that is very high on service fees. And who know if they don't keep you number. Don't trust them at all....very pushy. We rode the tram and had a lovely view of the island.
I was just on the NYE cruise on the Epic. I’ve been on 15 cruises and think this was one of the few I didn’t buy an internet package. The connection was so overloaded that I couldn’t even load NCL’s free website. Royal Caribbean seems to have mastered quick internet at sea so not sure why NCL can’t install the same tech.
Agree in regards to your comment about Clay as well. My girlfriend and I had him on both our Breakaway and Epic cruises this year and he seems to be worn out. Overall we find the cruise directors on Carnival to be much more engaging and funny.
Sounds like cruising isn’t for you with all of those issues. Most people love it, but it’s not for everyone. Internet access is slow and spotty on most cruise lines. It’s a good time to disconnect and unplug. If you must have constant access to the internet for whatever reason, cruises aren’t the travel option to use.
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