This was a 25th anniversary cruise for my wife and I. I liked the itinerary of this cruise. The ports were all great. They were all walkable and safe. The excursions were fun. We both had a great cruise.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
I read complaints about embarkation in San Juan, so we decided to hang out at the hotel pool until the afternoon before heading over to the ship. It worked out great. A little past 1pm, my wife and I caught an Uber from The DoubleTree and were driven right up to luggage drop off. There was no traffic. We were processed through the terminal quickly and were on the Norwegian Epic in about 20 minutes.
Looking at the facilities, I can understand why it gets so congested at times. The access road is only one lane in each direction. The people disembarking are using the very same floor space that is needed for embarkation, so the embarkation process can not start until all guests have left the ship.
I'd recommend going later, like I did, too avoid connect and stress.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
I enjoyed all the food on the ship. I am not a foodie, but I found plenty of variety, and I liked how everyone tasted.
O'Sheehans Neighborhood Bar and Grill
5 out of 5
This venue is a staple on Norwegian ships. This particular venue was very large. One side of the restaurant was a sit-down style area, while the other side of the restaurant was more like a pub with high-top tables and a big bar. The food is typical pub-style fare, nothing fancy. There are lots of TVs, some arcade games, pool, darts, and even a bowling alley. We got to watch the NFC and AFC Championship games.
Maltings Whiskey Bar
5 out of 5
My favorite bar on any Norwegian shop is the Maltings Whiskey Bar. Initially, I thought I wasn't going to like this bar because it was right on the main thoroughfare on Deck 7 aft. The first day or two it was a mob scene, but as people settled into their routines, it took its rightful place as my favorite shop bar.The bartenders were great. They added a little flair to their mixology.There was a seating area and some large high-top tables. They also had live music each night. Aside from sitting at the bar, there were plenty of other comfort seats. There were at least two servers taking care of seating areas. We went to this bar every night as a starting point for nightly activities.
Shaker's Martini Bar
5 out of 5
This was a fun bar right by the Midship stairs on Deck 7. There were about ten seats at the bar as well as a seating area with waiter service. The drinks were great. I'm not really into Martinis, but I really like the Rum Cake. My wife loved the French Raspberry.There was live music each night.
Teppanyaki
5 out of 5
I really like these kinds of restaurants. The chefs are always very entertaining. We ate here on Monday, a sea day. I got the steak and chicken combo while my wife ordered the shrimp. The food was cooked to order and tasted great. My only complaint would be the "staleness" of the cooking show itself. Every table got the same show, so you kind of knew what was coming based on watching the other tables sat before yours. Also, I was on the Joy in October, and both ships perform the same routines. I think I'll just skip Teppanyaki on my next cruise and try one of the other specialty restaurants.
Atrium Bar
3 out of 5
I didn't like the Atrium Bar location on the Epic. They put a Starbucks where the bar is on other ships, like the Breakaway Class. The Atrium bar on Epic is pretty small because of Starbucks. There aren't many seats at the bar, and the bar does not face the Atrium area. You can't watch any of the Atrium activity from the Atrium Bar.The bar itself is good, just not the design and location.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We only really used the pool. They were OK, but pretty small. There was also a pool in Spice H20 that was nice, especially since it was adults only until 6 pm. The lifeguards were hit or miss on whether you could have a drink near the pool.
The hot tubs were pretty full for the most part. It was a bit annoying to see the same grandmother and grandkids take over a hot tub every day. The kids would jump around and splash like they were at the public pool. I'm sure they deterred people from using the hot tubs. It was funny to see a group of adults just take over the hot tub from the kids one day. They simply walked in and sat down. The kids had no option other than leave.
The rock climbing wall looked fun, but I did not try to climb. It did seem fairly popular when it was open.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Burn the Floor was good. There was no Broadway show, and the Beatles shows were canceled. I could not get into the Howl at the Moon show. It's always the same request from the crowd. The comedians were funny. The live music was good.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
The ship was pretty much full capacity but reportedly 70% staffed. They worked their trails off. It was evident they were short-handed, though. There wasn't one thing I could point out that was bad, but it just seemed service was slower than on my previous cruises. It was not the fault of the staff though, it was just that there wasn't enough of them.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
I had heard stories that people either loved or hated the Epic. I did not love it, but I certainly did not hate it. Yes, the toilet is across the hall from the shower, and the sink is out in the open. Those things didn't bother me.
I didn't like that the shower was a bathtub as opposed to a walk-in shower.
On the pool deck, I didn't like how the dance floor and Waves bar occupied the same space. If everyone was dancing, it could be tough to get to the bar.
I liked the layout of H2O. It seemed a bit more organized because of how it steps up.
The bridge viewing room, Deck 13 Forward Starboard was really cool.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
I really liked this cabin on Deck 8. I liked that it was close to the nighttime action. The room is just off the aft elevator lobby. It was quiet too. My only complaint was the unreliability of the toilet the last two days of the trip. Apparently, it was a problem in other cabins too, not just mine.
We bought a day pass to the Marriott Beach Resort through Resort for a Day. The place was beautiful and had plenty of loungers and umbrellas. You could even borrow snorkeling equipment for one hour blocks. The day pass fee included a $65 food and beverage credit. They also provided free Wi-Fi. The bus picked us up right outside the ship and was waiting for us at the resort when it was time to leave.
I went a Scuba diving with Dive Aruba. It was great. Clive and Greg were awesome hosts. The meet-up was a short walk from the dock, and their boat was in sight of the ship.
We went on the NCL Beach Horseback riding excursion. The pier was complete mayhem after we docked. It seemed every guest on the ship was taking some sort of an excursion, and they were all staging just off the gangway. Once things got sorted out, we loaded onto a bus for a 40-minute ride to the stable. The hosts were great. I was surprised at how much traffic there was.
We disembarking at 0930 and it could not have been easier. I let NCL grab my luggage the night before. We had a nice breakfast and relaxed until our cold was called.
Our luggage was easy to find in the terminal, and our airport shuttle was waiting outside.
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