Seasoned Cruiser-My View July 24th Epic Sailing

[rolloman]

July 24 to July 31 Epic Review

Check in was smooth and boarding started at 1145 A.M.

Check out- EXTREMELY smooth, 20 minutes from room to car after walking off at 9 AM.

First impression -gave the wow factor as in wow this is going to be fun, lots of venues and restaurants. The chandelier in the center of the ship is stunning. Negative-Too many visitors before sail away, this really gave an impression of being crowded when in fact once they left, the ship never felt crowded again during the entire cruise.

Cabin-I had a BA aft balcony, looking straight at the wake. I always book this cabin on ships and the view was incredible. I still do not know why it stood out compared to other ships but I can assure you everyone loved the view while in my cabin. There is no way around it though, the cabin is small and cramped. The sink was fine unless you have claws for hands. Negative-Lots of storage but the overhead cabinets were impossible to open, maybe after a few sailings and broken finger nails the hinges will loosen up. If NCL decides to put handles on these it will make them easier to open and also help people realize this extra storage space exists. I can't tell you how many times I heard people say there was no storage.

Pool area was spacious, some small pockets but several wide open areas. I think it is one of the best pool decks I have been on. The adult area was quiet and never crowded, kid area had a huge splash zone. Garden Cafe (buffet) was well laid out and actually pleasant. Negative-TOO many chairs though, why they put 6 chairs at 4 top tables is beyond me. During crowded times like the first day, it was a mess.

Restaurants- Taste and Manhattan were good, limited menus though. O-Sheehan's, fun, noisy, good lunch spot, open 24 hours. Teppenyake, too expensive, my chef seemed to be more about show than cooking the food. He made lots of mistakes, gave everyone the wrong order, overcooked the food, had to order more food to recook. It was neat the first time I tried it on the Pearl but at 25.00 pp, it is just not worth it. Give me 25 dollars and I will flip a shrimp in my hat for you. Modern- nice location, food was good but not outstanding. I enjoyed the buffet part more than the meat. Shang Hei- great experience, loved everything I ordered. Priced right, highly recommend. One question though, where is the Won Ton soup? Cagney and Le Bistro I did not go to this cruise, been there done that many times before.

Entertainment- Outstanding, BlueMan I have seen 4 times and it was great once again. Sound Quality superb. Legends was fun, better than I thought it would be. I heard Brittany Spears was next, I would like to see her versus Elvis. Circe of Dreams- Was just ok for me but the family loved it. Oddly enough, It is not for kids though too many sexual overtones and I saw a few parents cringe a couple of times. Fat Cats, good music but sparse crowd attendance. Nick breakfast, fun, kind of early start time and the breakfast was the worst one I had all cruise, Sadly I paid 15.00 per person extra for it.

Room Service- One of the best at sea, big selection compared to most lines. Used it every day for the little one.

Casino- I think NCL has the best casinos at sea, and the Epic does not disappoint, lots of perks, new and different slots . Make sure to sign up in the casino when you board. I was fortunate enough to come out ahead this sailing. The hot machines seem to be the Wheel of Fortune dollar slots. Lots of big payouts. Roulette was great fun and often crowded. Numbers 32,34, 15, 18 were hot.

Kids club- what a wonderful surprise. The absolute best experience to date for my little 2 yr old. She loved it and they took such great care of her. While other lines like Carnival look to disqualify your child for crying upon check in, EPIC staff said no problem and catered to the child. I saw one 8 year old who wanted to leave because he was shy and felt like he did not fit in and one of the staff members took him under her wing to get him acclimated into the group activity. I have nothing but praise for the team. Go to the family board for my detailed review.

Staff- Friendly, helpful, one of the best crew I have ever encountered. They truly wanted to make sure you were having a good time. Klaus, the hotel director was everywhere, either that or he has a twin brother on board. His extension is 8888 and he means it when he says call me if you have any issues.

Overall- Beautiful ship, world class officers and staff, great food, lots of fun, well worth the money and I highly recommend. Extremely important you make sure your cabin selection fits your needs prior to booking. Keep in mind this ship is set up for you to spend onboard dollars, if you have the idea of going onboard and escaping with a zero final bill, your cruise experience will be greatly diminished. I am not saying someone could not pull it off, what I am saying though is pick another ship if you are focused on saving just enough to board this ship.

[PACRUISINNANA]

Thank You for the wonderful review. I will also be in aft balcony on our 1/1/2011 cruise. This will be my first aft balcony can't wait. We will have two of my grandchildren going also with their parents. One is 2 and the other one is 5 he is also a shy one so your review make me fell so much better. We tried my 2 year old in the kids club on the Pearl last year and had a bad experience with one of the staff in fact she still talks about it.

[rolloman]

I forgot to include Ports of Call- Since this was the first visit to the Western Ports a couple of neat things occured. Honduras had the president on the island, I was told this by our tour guide after we passed a police led motorcade. The port area had a lot of press and a tv camera or too for the event. Cozumel we actually got to port downtown at Puerto Langusta in San Miguel. This is the best pier and I doubt the Epic will pier there again anytime soon. Costa Maya, well we did a drive by and that was about it. Seas were slightly rough, the captain had said we would get 50 mph gusts but, I never felt that, it actually turned out to be an overcast humid type day. We hung out off the coast for awhile before leaving. I would say if it were any other ship, we probably would have ported but the Epic does not need anymore bad press so why risk it. Good decision by the Captain not to mention more revenue in Casino and onboard purchases for NCL.

[Us2inFL]

Cozumel we actually got to port downtown at Puerto Langusta in San Miguel. This is the best pier and I doubt the Epic will pier there again anytime soon.

 

Would you elaborate on this please?

[fsuhockette]

Thanks for your review. We are staying in an aft balcony (for the 1st time) in September. These reviews really amp up my excitement!

[rolloman]

Would you elaborate on this please?

This is not the normal Pier for NCL. They let us park downtown to show off the ship since it was its first visit.

[sdmike]

Amen to what you posted in your review. The reason we didn't go into Costa Maya was that the 10 ft waves in the area were also at the dock because it's unprotected. The captain didn't want to beat his new $1.5b ship on the pier all day. :) There WERE 50mph winds this day (45kts), but you really didn't feel them because they were coming from directly behind us. In fact, the ship did nearly 20 kts on one screw because of the tail wind. :)

 

We had a great time too! I agree on the knobs for the storage areas up by the ceiling (in the AC ductwork). Took us a while to get those suckers open the first. time.

[sdmike]

This is not the normal Pier for NCL. They let us park downtown to show off the ship since it was its first visit.

 

I didn't know that. It was perfect though. Carlos & Charlies was right there. :) What did you think of that little 270 degree maneuver backing out?

[missygirl1]

Thanks for the review! We are also staying in an aft cabin, 11314, in Nov. We are in an end cabin next to the stairwell. Is there much foot traffic up and down that stairwell that we will hear?? Also, do you think we could sneak a lounge chair up those stairs and put on our balcony?:rolleyes: Thanks!!

[time2cruise1]

This is not the normal Pier for NCL. They let us park downtown to show off the ship since it was its first visit.

 

It is the normal pier for NCL ships for years. :cool:

[rolloman]

It is the normal pier for NCL ships for years. :cool:

 

Yeah years ago when it was the only pier in Cozumel :rolleyes:

[rolloman]

Thanks for the review! We are also staying in an aft cabin, 11314, in Nov. We are in an end cabin next to the stairwell. Is there much foot traffic up and down that stairwell that we will hear?? Also, do you think we could sneak a lounge chair up those stairs and put on our balcony?:rolleyes: Thanks!!

You are in a good spot. My in laws were in 11302 and really liked it. I saw a couple loungers making there way to balconys. A little tip to your room steward goes a long way. The elevators are super quiet, in fact too quiet. One concern is you can never tell when an elevator has arrived as the "ding" is set to a whisper. Never was there an issue waiting on an elevator or an elevator being to full. It was amazing.

[sdmike]

those aft stairwells are a hidden treasure. You won't get any foot traffic there.

[time2cruise1]

Yeah years ago when it was the only pier in Cozumel :rolleyes:

 

We will see next week. :rolleyes:

[wack001]

Excellant, Bravo..

 

How about a little more info on the dining rooms, ie menu and food.

 

bob

[rolloman]

Excellant, Bravo..

 

How about a little more info on the dining rooms, ie menu and food.

 

bob

The free Dining rooms Taste and Manhatten also O'SHeehans were all nice and I did not eat anything I did not enjoy. Room Service is fast and has quite a few items to choose from. What I do not care for is the menu stays the same everyday except they add the Captains Choice entree each day in Taste and Manhatten Club. It sends the message that if you like variation you need to pay extra. I am not sure what you enjoy the most but whatever it is , one of the places will have it for you. The menus are posted outside all restaurants for all to view.

 

One other cool thing they did, they will check your carry on bags in the Headliners Club (you go by it as soon as you board) until your room is ready. I did not need it, but I think it is great. Also your pictures go into a folder with your room number on it down on deck 5. Now that is cool to have a folder to put your photos in. I do not know how many times in the past we have found a picture we liked but waited to buy it, then had to do an easter egg hunt all over again to find it.

[muttley]

Negative-Too many visitors before sail away, this really gave an impression of being crowded when in fact once they left, the ship never felt crowded again during the entire cruise.

 

this is from the ncl faq

Are visitors allowed on board?

Due to security reasons, unfortunately, no

[rolloman]

Negative-Too many visitors before sail away, this really gave an impression of being crowded when in fact once they left, the ship never felt crowded again during the entire cruise.

 

this is from the ncl faq

Are visitors allowed on board?

Due to security reasons, unfortunately, no

Ok know it all, visitors as in guided tours, travel agents and so forth, hence the large stickers on their shirts that said visitors... run along now and go nit pick some other thread.

[CaliforniaDreamer]

Ok know it all, visitors as in guided tours, travel agents and so forth, hence the large stickers on their shirts that said visitors... run along now and go nit pick some other thread.

 

The was a local travel agent here in L.A. who took groups of customers on tours of ship for free and the cruiselines provided us a nice group lunch... this happened on the NCL Star and RCL Visions of the Seas.

[wack001]

The free Dining rooms Taste and Manhatten also O'SHeehans were all nice and I did not eat anything I did not enjoy. Room Service is fast and has quite a few items to choose from. What I do not care for is the menu stays the same everyday except they add the Captains Choice entree each day in Taste and Manhatten Club. It sends the message that if you like variation you need to pay extra. I am not sure what you enjoy the most but whatever it is , one of the places will have it for you. The menus are posted outside all restaurants for all to view.

 

One other cool thing they did, they will check your carry on bags in the Headliners Club (you go by it as soon as you board) until your room is ready. I did not need it, but I think it is great. Also your pictures go into a folder with your room number on it down on deck 5. Now that is cool to have a folder to put your photos in. I do not know how many times in the past we have found a picture we liked but waited to buy it, then had to do an easter egg hunt all over again to find it.

 

Roolloman;

 

Once again great information, I was concerned as I usually eat ALL my meals in the MDR except for maybe one or two nights.. so you are correct they(NCL) want you to spend the extra money. I was wondering if someone had the menus, but you mentioned the captains choice that DID change so at least you have one item changed, am I correct?

Also on Thursday it is the lobster.

 

I am also taking a party of 11 all adults and all veteran cruisers except one couple and we plan on the same schedule you did, 1st night Blue moon and 2nd Cirq. did you do the advance tickets on line?

Thank you.

cruisinbob

[rolloman]

Roolloman;

 

Once again great information, I was concerned as I usually eat ALL my meals in the MDR except for maybe one or two nights.. so you are correct they(NCL) want you to spend the extra money. I was wondering if someone had the menus, but you mentioned the captains choice that DID change so at least you have one item changed, am I correct?

Also on Thursday it is the lobster.

 

I am also taking a party of 11 all adults and all veteran cruisers except one couple and we plan on the same schedule you did, 1st night Blue moon and 2nd Cirq. did you do the advance tickets on line?

Thank you.

cruisinbob

Yes I did the reservations online with no issues. On the first day you can stand in line and get confirmation for peace of mind. It was a long line and a waste of my time as my online entries were correct. I will say there is a lady who seems to be in charge named maria luca? Some lady in the long line did not think she was working fast enough and this resulted in security being called. I think it was a bit overboard by both parties but don't mess with her. She is really very good at her job or she needs to be replaced, I do not think there is an in between. I base this on the fact I asked her a simple question mid cruise and she came at me real strong, I assumed the fetal position and she took care of my issue.

You are correct.... Since I only ate at Manhatten twice I am not sure of the different menu change items, I only remember the last night the Captains Choice was Tom Turkey. Which makes me laugh because it seems every cruise I have been on the last night is turkey....what is up with that...it must have a greater meaning lol.

[RMS Olympic]

First...thank you for the review

Second....thanks for your service as a squid.

 

This grunt aka jarhead has a question....

In the specialty restaurants such as Cagneys steak house.....does the surcharge cover the meal or does it just get you in; then an ala carte menu resulting in pay as you go.

I read somewhere that the extra charge dinning rooms had additional charges (Not counting drinks)...is this true? I cannot find anything published by NCL stating this and do not want to find out the hard way once I get into the room. All the other lines I have sailed on did not have hidden extra charges.....I sure hope NCL isn't hiding...Need a reality check please.

Thanks and Semper Fi

Tom

[dshanesmom]

Went to Cagney's and yes, its 25 to get in and if you want surf and turf or alaskan crab legs, and maybe something else it was an additional 10 dollars. My son got the crab legs and while his entrance fee was 1/2 b/c he's a child, his crab legs were the whole 10 more.

I didn't see any surcharges on teppanyaki but maybe we had one for my lobster dinner at le bistro too.

[rolloman]

First...thank you for the review

Second....thanks for your service as a squid.

 

This grunt aka jarhead has a question....

In the specialty restaurants such as Cagneys steak house.....does the surcharge cover the meal or does it just get you in; then an ala carte menu resulting in pay as you go.

I read somewhere that the extra charge dinning rooms had additional charges (Not counting drinks)...is this true? I cannot find anything published by NCL stating this and do not want to find out the hard way once I get into the room. All the other lines I have sailed on did not have hidden extra charges.....I sure hope NCL isn't hiding...Need a reality check please.

Thanks and Semper Fi

Tom

Hey Grunt.... I have heard the extra surcharge is for the Lobster in Cagneys, I did not bother with it as I feel Cagneys is overrated. There is no upcharge in any other restaurant. Teppenyaki serves a Filet and lobster and you can eat all the meat you heart desires in Moderno. I will say that in Teppenyaki forget the menu as the menu puts combos together that in my mind dont make sense. You want surf and turf (lobster and filet) tell the waiteress and it is no problem. The food is good but be careful picking up the tab for your group, I was just looking at my charges on my sail pass and it added up quick..you might have to inlist again to pay for it.

 

P.S enjoy your sailing on the Eclipse...those ships are awesome too!!!

[Merc]

thanks for great review, we are staying in an aft cabin also 13278 were you able to put a lounger on your balcony?