Captain-John

I called it out on these boards a few years ago - and some people defended the condition of the Epic at the time/were happy to accept the condition and suggested I was being overly critical. Others shared my surprise and disappointment. Based on the video and recollection of my own experience, Epic is really poorly maintained which is a shame as have never seen this with any other ship in the NCL fleet (including much older ships). It's almost like they have given up. Too many things to cover but it's not a good advert for the ship. But, for as long as people are willing to pay to go on Epic, NCL don't have any incentive to do anything about it.

Day passes are offered subject to availability. They tend to be expensive. Best to go to the spa recepton in person to enquire. Not sure of current prices I'm afraid and think it will vary by ship and itinerary.

I submitted the electronic form but received this with the 'paper' form attached: "Thank you for contacting Norwegian Cruise Line. In order to process your request, please fill out the attached form and respond to this email." The e-mail makes no reference to the online form I filled in or any issue with the information in it, so I've gone back to them to say I've already completed it electronically, as I dislike repeating myself especially if there's no good reason given.

Or charge it to the group. The group are the one causing the inconvenience, spread the compensation cost amongst them all.

Hi Bea, nice to see you on these boards. We are following you to Princess next March (Pacific Coast), so be interesting to hear your thoughts after you have sailed. It will be our first time with them too. I think the last time we spoke was on the X boards. Suffice to say our first experience with them was not the best, although the itinerary was fantastic (Japan). Happy cruising!

I'm waiting on this too. I wish they would give the region a newer/Jewel class ship.

Thanks also for highlighting this, it does make a big difference - just watched a YouTube video. I misread the deck plans and assumed it was the same as Joy. I revise my Haven hot tub count from 4 to 3 on that basis!

Thanks, the Viva area does look much nicer. By spa, I meant the thermal suite. From what I understand, Viva's is enclosed. Additionally, I like the thalassotherapy pool from the Breakaway/Breakaway + range.

Lucky you! Do you have any more information about this offer? I assume it's not for everyone and may be loyalty tier or based on residence etc... but still seems like a good deal to randomly pop up.

Thanks very much for your review. The disembarkation time is a real kicker. On MSC we were able to stay in the Yacht Club (not the room but the public areas) until 2pm when we returned to Barcelona last year. The Yacht Club lounge on MSC is a much more social space with entertainment in the evening etc. - I found the forward facing lounge to be a waste of real estate on the Joy Haven. This thread is timely though as I have a bit of a dilemma. Considering either the Escape or Viva in Haven. Escape looks closer to the Joy experience we had which was great. Pro and con list is lengthy. Some Pros I have for Escape vs Viva (this is for end of the Med season): + Enclosed pool/sunbed area. Larger Haven pool? Hard to tell from photos. + 4x hot tubs instead of 2x on Viva. + Smaller number of Haven cabins overall. + Bath and shower combo (need to look at H5+ to get this on Viva). + Better spa + Bar area smaller (in a good way - better atmosphere) Personal Pros for Viva + Indulge Food Hall + Los Lobos + New ship design (never sailed Prima class before) + 2x extra nights for the same price as Escape + More varied itinerary ____________ My gut upfront was 'try the new ship' but the more I get into the detail, I am not so sure. If the Escape was the same price pro-rata as Viva I think I might pivot that way.

Grapes, I believe. I had a double serving - a large glass of the red variety as well as what was on the plate. Even a big glug of wine couldn't overcome the processed and plastic taste of the sliced cheese (look at the shine!). The camembert was OK though.

My request for a 'cheese plate' (off menu, but still) instead of a sweet dessert on Joy in Haven last year was most disappointing. MSC cheese carts are the best selection I've come across at sea

Yes, I believe you will get a refund if you cancel the passes. Last year I had Vibe booked well in advance of sailing but had an upgrade bid to Haven accepted at the last minute, so cancelled with the concierge while onboard. A cancellation prior to sailing should result in a refund, unless something drastic has changed in the last few months, but would expect more noise about it on here if something had changed!

Already booked flights in anticipation of a November NCL cruise. Do not intend to book the cruise until around a month or less prior to sailing - that's fairly last minute for me although I appreciate not the question. Will be past final payment date so cabin inventory will be known and may attract better pricing, especially as off-season in the Med. I would not take a gamble on a guarantee though unless I could see what was still available. Flights refundable so little downside if inventory is not available in desired category - a 'bonus' cruise that may or may not happen but I'm fine with that.

Crikey, some crossed wires in this thread. Thanks very much for the detailed review OP, really useful account of your experience. I took the Juneau comment to mean - yes you left the ship, but it was on a boat tour of the glacier and you didn't go into town (city?!), but still had a good time. MCT = Manhattan Cruise Terminal, in reference to another thread with bad vibes. Will do an Alaska itinerary one day but too far for just the week so will hold out for something longer but thanks again for the review.

News to me... one of the roles that impact me the least whilst onboard, apart from when I want to buy CN certificates. Didn't think you had to be a marketing genius to push a pre-recorded call to a stateroom voicemail, and in my experience they seem very limited in what they can do, and interested in very little other than selling certificates or booking future cruises. Surprised this warrants officer status. Am I missing the full scope of their role?

Really want to sail on Sun's Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia itineraries in 2026 - I do wish they would put more modern/refurbished ships on the more interesting routes though. The age of Sun and the cabin design/decor will be a hurdle to overcome in what would otherwise be an easy 'yes' for the itinerary alone. I presume, no major refurbishments indicated before then per other responses here, which is a shame.

Thanks for your report and glad to here Summit is still in good condition.

Really looking forward to this. We are on the 05/27 sailing in just a few weeks. Safe travels and have a fantastic time.

Crikey, I did not think a mass-market cruise ship would be favoured by a centimillionaire. Makes me feel even better about my choice to sail Discovery next year. Thanks everyone for relaying your experience on the ship, great insight. Interesting O'Malley's is being installed. Also keen to try the UBD.

Quite annoyed. Reset my password and was able to log in. Get halfway through the check in process at the photo upload stage and the website does not let me progress. Tried multiple times, on multiple browsers. Hope I can still get my pick of check-in time when it's resolved.

I do have a slight prejudice against older ships myself, but find myself booked for 12 nights on Millenium and 10 on Summit in the next 18 months, so hope my preconceptions and some comments on this thread do not come to fruition. I was on a 13 year old NCL ship that was maintained appallingly, rust, dirty decks, battered cabin, mouldy grouting etc. The Revolution of Millenium and Summit is welcome, but I am expecting if I look in the corners the age and condition of the ships will be more evident.

Sorry to hijack the original question, but I have a cruise-only booking (it was a great price), and will want to add a drinks package between now and sailing (11/25). Does an outright purchase of a package also go into the sale, or is it only the upgrade? I too caught the $6.99 upgrade for a different cruise but wasn't looking at buying the package outright at the time. Don't think I can justify it at full cost, but if it ever goes into a flash sale I'll keep an eye out.

Hi Bea! Hope all is well. Perhaps like you, we are branching out from MSC and our mainstay NCL. We are sailing X twice and Princess once in the next 18 months, both new lines to us. On drinks packages, we secured an upgrade from Classic to Premium for c. £6.50 pp. p.d for our upcoming Millenium cruise . We booked through a US agent initially so pricing was in USD. We got a 53% discount during a flash sale last year (also upgraded to Premium WiFi, got a dining package and rebooked multiple tours at the same time). Hoping they repeat the sale sometime this year so we can add packages to our Summit cruise booked for late next year, as we got a cruise only fare for a steal in a Concierge veranda.

Thank you and agreed! Hopefully, there are a few sales between now and sailing to secure a drinks and/or dining package to complete the cruise. We upgraded to Premium on our upcoming Millenium sailing during a flash sale last year for a great price. Should we be so lucky again, this cruise will be by far the best value for money seen for a long time. Plenty of time to plan!