This would probably have to be the most unique cruise I have ever been on.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
This was our first time sailing out of San Juan, and our experience getting on the ship was rather good. It was a rather quick boarding process which we liked.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
The food that I had in the buffet and main dining rooms was very good. There was never a meal throughout the cruise that I didn’t enjoy.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
I never felt bored throughout the cruise. There was always something I wanted to do. One of my personal favorites was the slides on deck. I did go down the toilet bowl slide many times. We did the morning trivia in the center atrium in the mornings. I did enjoy a round of bingo in the lounge area, and much more.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
The service we received throughout the cruise was very good. Our room steward(Ryan) was a very decent guy. Every time we walked by him he always said “Hello” and “Good Morning”. He even mentioned ideas on how to ease motion sickness at times I wasn’t feeling so hot. This specific cruise was very interesting when it came to the buffet because due to the virus they had to put the food on the plate instead of us getting it, which is a good precaution. Staff making sure we used the soap when entering dining areas which was good.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The ship itself was well maintained from what I saw. I found the layout of the ship quite interesting. It’s not an bad layout, but it’s definitely different. If you are sitting at the Taste dining room and you are in the area that is under the big center chandelier, if you look up the next floor above you is the casino and then the shopping on the next floor, so if you are around the casino area, you can look down and see the Taste dining room.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
We had an aft cabin on this cruise which was AMAZING! The cabin itself was clean and I did sleep well on the couch. The walls in the cabins on the Epic are wave like, so the couch did bump out a bit but it didn’t bug me at all. The balcony was bigger than the other balconies that I have experienced on other ships. I do have to say that one weird factor of the cabins on the Epic are the bathrooms. This is because the bathrooms were separate but instead of them being in their own separate room like area, they were pretty much out there. Instead of a wall, it was fogged glass for the toilet and the shower and pretty much separating this from the rest of the room is a curtain, so if one person is showering that area of the cabin—which is right by the door— is closed off till that person is done. Besides that our cabin was really good.
We’ve been to San Juan twice before this for port of calls on other cruises, and we love San Juan. Old San Juan is quite a nice sight with the forts and narrow streets, and colorful buildings.
We did have an excursion to go up to the Pitons, but we cancelled just before because of reasons and we regretted it after that. Instead we decided to walk into town. Throughout the time we were in town there was always someone or some people trying to get us to buy something or take a taxi somewhere. I know they need the tourism but when they are walking with us constantly trying to persuade us with something, it doesn’t make it easy for us. After about 2 hours on land we just decided to go back to the ship because it was just to much. I’m sure the island of St. Lucia is an amazing place, and next time we’ll stick with an excursion.
We went with a private tour outside of the cruise line called ‘Barry’s Taxi’ which was a very nice tour. The island of Antigua was a very scenic place with nice beach views and historical areas. Barry was a great tour guide throughout the entire time with his facts about the island and these little trivia questions he would ask us about certain things. It was also a memorable tour for my family and I because our tour van actually broke down and he had to call his wife to come pick him up so he could go get another van. But all in all we loved Antigua and we loved our experience with ‘Barry’s Taxi’.
St.Thomas has never disappointed us before and still hasn’t. We decided to take a taxi to drop us off near the base of stair case to Blackbeard’s castle which had a great view as you progressed upward. Unfortunately it was closed when we got up there. In recent trips to St. Thomas, we really liked the warehouses which included stores and restaurants in ally ways. After that we walked back to the ship along the water which never disappoints.
In Tortola, we decided last second to do another private tour around the island. Our driver unfortunately wasn’t as cheerful and as talkative as Barry. Besides that the tour was AMAZING and quite thrilling because the sites and views were just beautiful. It was thrilling because we were going up thin mountain roads at relatively high speeds which was fun for me but others less so. All in all Tortola was a very nice place.
So, Our situation for disembarking was quite interesting because we were supposed to get off in San Juan, but instead we were redirected to Port Canaveral, Florida because I believe Puerto Rico gained a few cases throughout the time of our cruise, and we would have had to spend a 3 day quarantine in San Juan. Our captain had to choose between the 3 days or the Sea days. When we got the announcement that morning that we got redirected with the 2 day extension, ooo I never been happier. But back to the nitty gritty. Our disembarkation in Canaveral was alright. The crew were giving everyone in line little cups of water to compensate for the long line to disembark which was really nice of them to do so. We found the buses to take us to a rent a car station to drive home.
Thank you for sharing, your very detailed review is helping me decide between two different cruises. I appreciate the tip about St. Lucia, I will do am excursion.
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