Norwegian Epic Cruise Reviews - Reviews

This ship has some glaring weaknesses. It is a long (1086 feet) ship but there are elevators only near each end of the ship. There are no elevators in the center portion of the ship. This means you will get a lot of exercising as you go anywhere on the ship. Our cabin was midship. this meant if we were going to any activity that was also midship you had to walk to the forward or aft elevators and then back to where the activity was. Anyone that was handicapped was presented with this daunting obsticle. There were also no center stairway which meant you could not walk up or down either. Since this ship can haul 4000+ passengers at embarkation and debarkation you spend a great deal of time waiting for an elevator also sea days when everyone is on board. As another comment noted if you want a balcony cabin get a 10 or higher as deck 8 and 9 jutt out further than those above, which means you have no balcony above yours. This allows those above to look down on you, thus no privacy on your balcony. You also get debris thrown down on you from the balconies above. This was especially bad in Nassau when those above started to throw bread to the gulls. You get the bread debris and also wht comes out of the South end of a North flying gull! YUCH! And the extra charges! They charge extra for some of the entertainment, specialty resturants. and just about anything else they can think of! The cabins are small and lack an independant bathroom. The toilet is in a seperate alcove with a glass door enclosure the same for the shower and this design offers no privacy. One wall is curved, kind of an S shape but this actually reduces effective space and results in a short bed where in most cases your feet will be hanging over the end. The TV is located in such a way as you can only view it from the pillow or away end of the bed. Very akward! The room stewards need to get and use crevice tools on the vacuum as the corners were not clean! The food was slightly better than average with a good vararity in the buffet. The main dinning room did not score as well. The meats were poorly done and tasteless. We followed this cruise on an Carnival cruise and the food was just the opposite. The Blue Man Groupe was excellent but the rest of the entertainment was so-so. It is a shame that this ship falls below the mark in so many areas We have sailed Norwegian in the past and had great experiences. As an example I would sail on the Jewel or Pearl in a heartbeat but the Epic.....

Nice ship with great food and okay entertainment but not much WOW. I learned to appreciate the anytime dinning and had a relaxed time aboard. If you get a balcony go for deck 9 or above. Deck 8 has no covering and others get to look down on you there.

Very nice ship and crew. Special shows/entertainment. Food was good. Cabins are different with no separate bathroom. Sliding glass doors for shower and toilet so privacy is limited/we got used to this and decided it was not a cruise stopper. Overall a great time and we would definitely return.

Ship and staff were very professional and friendly, Waiter in the Italian restaurant was not attentative and service was very poor as well as the food

Food was good, ship was nice however there are quite a few cons. First, the rooms are tight. We had a balcony room and it was tough to move around. Hated that there wasn't an actual bathroom. The toilet was in its own vestibule where all noises (sorry!) we're heard loud and clear by your mate. Shower was separate (in another vestibule) and the sink was at the foot of the bed. Awkward! Bed was short. My husband is 6'2" and his feet were hanging off every night. The crew wasn't as friendly as you would expect. Lots of extra charges on the ship. We have only cruised with Norwegian and therefore we didn't initially realize this however we met lots of experienced cruisers who said it was their worst experience cruising because of all the extras. Cover charges for specialty restaurants, room service fees, charges for juices, etc. God forbid you could get a chair by the pool (which was tiny!). It's the first time I went on vacation to the Caribbean and didn't get much of a tan because I couldn't find one lounge chair to lay on. The final disembarkment was disorganized ad hectic.

Food and entertainment was amazing and what we enjoyed most. Our only complaint is we had a balcony room and we liked to keep the balcony door open but our room would get inundated with cigarette smoke from nearby rooms which totally ruined the balcony experience for us and we like to gamble but the smoke in the casino was irritating also.

I've been on over 30 cruises and the Norwegian Epic was among the top five. The variety of entertainment was unmatched. We thoroughly enjoyed most of it--Blue Man Group, Legends in Concert, Howl and the Moon and the comic-magician. The cirque show in the Spiegel tent was good, however the dining experience was not (quite a few tables were overcrowded and too close the others...food was so-so, too). The Second City troop we saw was OK, but it might be much better with other performers. The food was very good in the Taste Dining room, Cafe, O'Sheehan's and Moderno Churrascaria (the only specialty restaurant we went to other than the Speigel tent). If I go again, I will do Moderno again and try some of the other specialty restaurants instead of the Speigel shows. The cabin was good overall, but I didn't like the bathrooms. The toilet area is too small and it is enclosed by opaque glass (as is the shower stall). This is separated by the rest of the cabin by only a curtain. It was ok for my spouse and I, but I wouldn't like it if I was rooming with my grandchildren or friends. There was quite a variety of actiivities daily...bingo, games, contests and dance lessons, among others. They had a lot of activities for children, too. There was Nickelodeon events happening throughout the day, not to mentions all the pool and sport activities. There's something to do from small children up to grandparents. The casino is huge but can get smoky when it's crowded. It had a lot of 1 and 2 cent slots. I also saw quite a few dollar slots but only a few 25 cent slots. Of course, quite a few table games, too. I didn't see many big winners, though. I found the ship easy to navigate. It seemed like the majority of the activities I enjoyed were forward to midship. They had electronic maps in various spots on the decks, but I would have appreciated having a nice compact map to keep like they usually give out on other ships. I believe for the price you pay (they even have very good prices and rooms for single cruisers) is a good value for the quality of entertainment, food and cruise experience and would not hesitate to recommend it.

My wife and I enjoyed this trip greatly. Everything ran smoothly from our flights, transfers, embarkation, the food, shows and the job that your entire staff did to make our vacation all the more relaxing. We tremendously enjoyed our days at sea maybe just a bit more than the actual ports. My only complaint was maybe the adult pool could be a bit larger.

To begin with, Bunny Zinkerman has provided us numerous times with the best reservation service. Her suggestions are superb. Cruising from Miami on Norwegian is an easy way to enoy seven days at sea. The EPIC is a very well run ship, all personnel are friendly and knowledgeable, ready to help with any request. The mini suite with large balcony provided pleasant accommodations and food was varied and delicious. The Captain hosted a lovely Latitudes party and the entertainment added to the enjoyment.

We loved this ship and especially the Entertainment Staff. Special props to George, Gustov, Vicki and Nacho. Loved Blue Man Group, Cirque Dreams and Murder Mystery Lunch. Second City was a lot of fun too. The shower in the stateroom was the best of any ship we've sailed. The only suggestion we have for improvement in the stateroom is that the lighting is pretty bad. Putting on makeup or shaving is a bit difficult. The public areas of the ship were great. Our only suggestions there some of the really popular activities are held in the Atrium which is not large enough to accomodate the people who want to attend. Even after arriving early, we sometime left events because there was no place to sit. Our only real complaint was with the Bliss Lounge. Really outdated, tacky and uncomfortable. Though you might be shooting for a retro look, it was just kind of nasty.

The cabin, although a balcony, was smaller than previous NCL cruises. There is no separate bathroom. The venues were too crowded, the lines too lone, the extra fees outrageous, the disembarking horrendous, and the thoroughfares too narrow for passing. We booked the Epic for increased size, better shows, and different experiences. We missed the good shows every night, the chocolate experience, and freedom to move about the ship without constant chaos and pre-booking activities. The NCL staff is by far the finest I've seen, but the size and disorganization will cause me never to travel on the Epic again.

Never wanted to sail on large ship but decided to try the Epic since it was so different.Great experience.Everything was above normal except for the size of stateroom but I'd happily give up the extra space for the contoured walls.I loved it!Would take the same trip again just to be on this ship.They do need to offer a MUCH Better job of offering wine tasting.Selection was poor so didn't try it compared to Princess that has 100+ people to attend their wine tastings.

I didn't find this cruise as enjoyable as past ones. I do not think bigger is better. The lounge areas, piano bars, etc. are built to accompany multitudes. They invite stroll thrus and interruptions and lack any chance of intimacy with other people. The food was predictably fine, but this time the service was slow and the attitude indifferrent. We couldn't find any vacancy or chaise lounges availalbe on the open decks. I wish there had been some effort made to provide Catholic Mass for many of us who regularly attend weekene church services. I certainly like the Free Style Cruising. This is aout my 15th NCL cruise. I'd prefer a smaller, friendlier ship..

The level of service on this ship was not up to par with any other cruise lines or ships I have been on. In the dining room, you would have to ask for items multiple times, meals took over 2 hours and drinks were rarely refilled. They also would ask for your drink order first and a lot of times drinks wouldn't come until after the meal came. 3 nights my appetizer plates weren't cleared until dessert. The kids program also was disappointing. They would not take your child if they were crying (well i have a 2 year old - 2 year olds always cry during separating and they should have taken her back and distracted her). They also didn't seem to know where my 4 year old was. Twice I came to pick him up and they said he was with the staff at lunch and then I found out later, my husband had already picked him up and he was really with them. They also misinformed us about the schedule and on port days, keep 2-17 year olds together in the same room, when we thought it was separated by age group.

The Norwegian Epic is too big and designed horribly. I went down multiple dead ends on several occasions. The ship is also understaffed and the staff that are onboard are hit or miss. Several were incredible and extremely nice and helpful, but most employees that I encountered ignored me or were too busy talking amongst themselves to assist me. The food was HORRIBLE! Now, I refuse to pay extra for dining while on a cruise, so I guess that's where I went wrong, because the food that was included was no better than a high school cafeteria (coupled with poor service, left a bad taste in my mouth). The studio cabins were very swanky and well done. I very much enjoyed my room. Unfortunately, when I ordered room service, two of the three times if took OVER 90 minutes and I had to call and inquire/check on my order progress. The itinerary was quite enjoyable, I very much enjoyed exploring the ports of call. And the everglades tour I took the day of disembarkation was fabulous as well. For being a new and "magnificent" ship, it was definitely disappointing. The art throughout the ship was cheap and the carpets in the hallways was brown! One of the other major disappointments was there was no laundry facility onboard. I was very upset to have to hand wash my clothes in my tiny sink if I didn't want to pay $4.95 per t-shirt for them to clean it. Overall, I've learned from this cruise that Norwegian does not care about its customers at all. Profit is clearly their only bottom line. I've cruised over 10 times with various cruise lines and this was by far the most negative experience I've had.

I was soooo disappointed with this epic...I thought that because their largest, it will be WOW thing, BUT there is no wow...the atrium is not so grandeur, we've been with your Gem, pearl, pride of america and these ships were okay, atrium was good and appealing but your epic I was not empressed...I'd talked to a lot of your guest they felt the same. One more thing your casino, why is it that it was located on the hallway corridor...since we boarded, my husband and I had always runny nose and kept sneezing, we were so disappointed, both of us are allergic to smoke....wefelt terrible for 7 days...that's not the way to celebrate our 48th wedding anniversary (dec. 1) Our stay was not pleasant and I believe that this will be our last ncl cruise...the shows, you have to book, this was the only cruise we had that we didn't have shows after dinner, we were so disappointed, we wished that it should have ended right away...that's why on the last day we were ready to leave your ship at 6: am...can't wait to get out of your ship. My husband and I are not happy I can not deny when my friends will ask me how it was, I will tell them the same.

The ship was poorly designed. Most notably... the cabins not only were so narrow (we had a balcony) that there wasn't enough space for a coctail table, but the worst was that we had to (believe it or not) enter the cabin through the bathroom. Also, there was no door seperating the bathroom area from the rest of the cabin; only a thin curtain. If you were using the toilet or the shower, and someone (whether crew or friends) knocked on your door, your cabin mate couldn't open the doorithout disturbing your privacy! This was only one of many design flaws, of which there are too many to list now!

The ship is nice, and the casino is huge. Lots of choices for everyone.

The was too big , too many people, could not get a table at the buffet. The elevators were always crowed.Our room steward was the friendliest of the crew members.

This was the worst cruise I have ever went on. Only two elevator areas for 4500 people! There were mobs of people all of the time. I have never been treated so rudely either. I enjoyed the shows. Make sure you are comfortable with who you are going with as you will see them naked due to the bathroom having semi-cloudy glass walls. I will never sail with them again. It was just awful.