Epic review, 9-11-9-18

[LSauls7537]

6 in our group, ages 45-73. Two couples seasoned travelers, one not. This review will be a bit different than the others as our friends had the Deluxe Owners Suite, cabin 17032 and they were gracious enough to share their suite the entire week with us. Oh....if there is a way to do that, it is an incredible experience. I won't say more about that as I know Susan will be posting a review. The use of a concierge, butler, private pool, restaurants and bars and in suite perks....priceless!

 

Living in St. Cloud, Fl, we drove to Miami on Friday and stayed at the Hampton Inn on 57th avenue, Blue Lagoon. I have posted about that so won't repeat, but bottom line...best ever we've stayed in Miami. Cost was $119 including breakfast, shuttle to port AND parking for the week.

 

We left the hotel at 11 AM, boarding for our friends was thru a special area for owners and VIP's. On this cruise, there were a lot of Harrahs's VIP's, all staying in suites. We were onboard by noon. EASY embarkation. It was HOT. Suggest: bring a small bottle of water with you, even waiting in line is warm) The lounge area at embarkation does have water, juice and coffee for you.

 

We headed (at the CC suggestion) to H20 for lunch. Not crowded, we chose a shaded area with umbrella. Perfect place to go while waiting for the cabins to be finished at 2 PM promptly. We went to our friends suite, then the other couples deluxe suite, then to our balcony cabin. We were in 8079. It IS a small cabin, you must step out of each others way to pass, not room for 2 to pass, but we knew they were small and it became more of a comedy dance thru-out the week. We pack heavy because there are no wright restrictions and we still had PLENTY of room never used for storage. The storage above the bed became our dirty clothes area...just dumped it all into our suitcase for return trip home.

 

Food in the garden cafe was really good. We ate breakfast there and 1 dinner. I laughed when I saw someone say they had the same stuff for breakfast....ya think? When you have EVERYTHING....how can you add something? We would get our breakfast then walk toward the pool where the area for serving was closed and ate there. Never once the entire cruise did we wait...for ANYTHING..No lines, lots of tables.

 

Best friendly bar (note it's a smoking bar) is Waves. Each bartender was nicer than the other, all characters! Second would be the Martini bar, don't know why these two had such great bartenders...but they did.

 

Good deals on board. Last day of cruise, hats and nice quality tee shirts, Epic logo at 2-$20. Martini tasting, 4 different martinis....ah, that's my lost afternoon....can't drink with the big kids anymore! The CC slot pull, lots of fun for $10! and we all ended up making a few $. Free movies on a huge screen in the Atrium, free Wi Fi, seemed kids and adults alike had fun.

 

O'Sheehans, we tried everything and were disappointed by nothing. I really liked the pot pie cause" the vegetables weren't mushy and the sauce was not that thick goop you usually find. Yes and it's true, the apply crumble is to die for!

 

We at at Le Bistro, La Cucina, Moderna, Cirque, Taste, simply no bad food. The shrimp they serve are HUGE. Favorites in the group went from the Fettucine with proscuitto, the loamb, steaks and fillets very good all week in multiple venues. Enough of that, bottom line...no bad food and was better than we've had on Princess, Celebrity, Costa, RCCL and Carnival...enough said.

 

Underused: Free pasteries in the Atrium, great coffee. Deck 18, Spice H20 area,. for the athletic...full court basketball, bunji jumping, a thing they call the spider that's 2 stories high and you get in it and try to climb to the top, rock climbing, bowling. "freestyle" sundeck 19.

 

The spa is the best we've seen in all our cruises. I'll leave it to the others that used it to write their reviews, but will say the other couples signed up for the spa passes at $199 for 2 for the week and enjoyed using the facilities. Also spoke to some B2B that did the active stuff on first week and "lived" in the spa the next week relaxing.

 

Best tips....early bird massages at 8:00 and 8:30 AM for $99.00 for 50 min. Another tip is if you are going to pay over $300 for your picture CD, then make sure you have your picture taken all over the ship to make it worth your while. Bring or buy a langyard, so much easier to hang your key around your neck and not schlep a purse or searching for your card. Do go to the CC meet and greet, the Captain has a great sense of humor and all of the officers came around and introduced themselves. They made the CC group feel special and most welcome. If it's hot when you hit port, look for the trams, they all use them and are $1.00 if it's hot or one of your party may have difficulty walking. On the Eastern, all are a bit of a walk from ship to shore/shopping.

 

Looking at your pics is so easy on the EPIC, put in your seapass card, touch the screen and presto...you can look at and order your pics. Prices are

$9.95 for 6X8 and $19.95 for 8X10, they also have some specials. Never crowded as on other ships with everyone trying to "find" themselves :)

 

Any negatives? sure, service needs some work, but it's a new ship and foreign to all the crew. Do think the staff as a whole (with exceptions mentioned above) was more friendly on the Jewel. Some staffers just didn't seem to be happy which we found unusual.

 

Disembarkation is hit or miss, depends on when you are departing. If you leave with the first throng after your color tag is called, then it takes longer, for us about 40 min.

 

For those of you wanting a comparison with the Epic vs the Oasis, I will post that here as well. We leave on the Oasis on Oct 23.

 

If there are any specific questions, just ask.

 

Linda

[sdmike]

Thanks for sharing, Linda! Sounds like you had a great time. Too funny on the "lost afternoon". :p

[MeandHer1968]

Thanks for your review. Cant wait till our turn on her!!!!!

48 days and counting :D

[Tightwallet]

6 in our group, ages 45-73. Two couples seasoned travelers, one not. This review will be a bit different than the others as our friends had the Deluxe Owners Suite, cabin 17032 and they were gracious enough to share their suite the entire week with us. Oh....if there is a way to do that, it is an incredible experience. I won't say more about that as I know Susan will be posting a review. The use of a concierge, butler, private pool, restaurants and bars and in suite perks....priceless!

 

Living in St. Cloud, Fl, we drove to Miami on Friday and stayed at the Hampton Inn on 57th avenue, Blue Lagoon. I have posted about that so won't repeat, but bottom line...best ever we've stayed in Miami. Cost was $119 including breakfast, shuttle to port AND parking for the week.

 

We left the hotel at 11 AM, boarding for our friends was thru a special area for owners and VIP's. On this cruise, there were a lot of Harrahs's VIP's, all staying in suites. We were onboard by noon. EASY embarkation. It was HOT. Suggest: bring a small bottle of water with you, even waiting in line is warm) The lounge area at embarkation does have water, juice and coffee for you.

 

We headed (at the CC suggestion) to H20 for lunch. Not crowded, we chose a shaded area with umbrella. Perfect place to go while waiting for the cabins to be finished at 2 PM promptly. We went to our friends suite, then the other couples deluxe suite, then to our balcony cabin. We were in 8079. It IS a small cabin, you must step out of each others way to pass, not room for 2 to pass, but we knew they were small and it became more of a comedy dance thru-out the week. We pack heavy because there are no wright restrictions and we still had PLENTY of room never used for storage. The storage above the bed became our dirty clothes area...just dumped it all into our suitcase for return trip home.

 

Food in the garden cafe was really good. We ate breakfast there and 1 dinner. I laughed when I saw someone say they had the same stuff for breakfast....ya think? When you have EVERYTHING....how can you add something? We would get our breakfast then walk toward the pool where the area for serving was closed and ate there. Never once the entire cruise did we wait...for ANYTHING..No lines, lots of tables.

 

Best friendly bar (note it's a smoking bar) is Waves. Each bartender was nicer than the other, all characters! Second would be the Martini bar, don't know why these two had such great bartenders...but they did.

 

Good deals on board. Last day of cruise, hats and nice quality tee shirts, Epic logo at 2-$20. Martini tasting, 4 different martinis....ah, that's my lost afternoon....can't drink with the big kids anymore! The CC slot pull, lots of fun for $10! and we all ended up making a few $. Free movies on a huge screen in the Atrium, free Wi Fi, seemed kids and adults alike had fun.

 

O'Sheehans, we tried everything and were disappointed by nothing. I really liked the pot pie cause" the vegetables weren't mushy and the sauce was not that thick goop you usually find. Yes and it's true, the apply crumble is to die for!

 

We at at Le Bistro, La Cucina, Moderna, Cirque, Taste, simply no bad food. The shrimp they serve are HUGE. Favorites in the group went from the Fettucine with proscuitto, the loamb, steaks and fillets very good all week in multiple venues. Enough of that, bottom line...no bad food and was better than we've had on Princess, Celebrity, Costa, RCCL and Carnival...enough said.

 

Underused: Free pasteries in the Atrium, great coffee. Deck 18, Spice H20 area,. for the athletic...full court basketball, bunji jumping, a thing they call the spider that's 2 stories high and you get in it and try to climb to the top, rock climbing, bowling. "freestyle" sundeck 19.

 

The spa is the best we've seen in all our cruises. I'll leave it to the others that used it to write their reviews, but will say the other couples signed up for the spa passes at $199 for 2 for the week and enjoyed using the facilities. Also spoke to some B2B that did the active stuff on first week and "lived" in the spa the next week relaxing.

 

Best tips....early bird massages at 8:00 and 8:30 AM for $99.00 for 50 min. Another tip is if you are going to pay over $300 for your picture CD, then make sure you have your picture taken all over the ship to make it worth your while. Bring or buy a langyard, so much easier to hang your key around your neck and not schlep a purse or searching for your card. Do go to the CC meet and greet, the Captain has a great sense of humor and all of the officers came around and introduced themselves. They made the CC group feel special and most welcome. If it's hot when you hit port, look for the trams, they all use them and are $1.00 if it's hot or one of your party may have difficulty walking. On the Eastern, all are a bit of a walk from ship to shore/shopping.

 

Looking at your pics is so easy on the EPIC, put in your seapass card, touch the screen and presto...you can look at and order your pics. Prices are

$9.95 for 6X8 and $19.95 for 8X10, they also have some specials. Never crowded as on other ships with everyone trying to "find" themselves :)

 

Any negatives? sure, service needs some work, but it's a new ship and foreign to all the crew. Do think the staff as a whole (with exceptions mentioned above) was more friendly on the Jewel. Some staffers just didn't seem to be happy which we found unusual.

 

Disembarkation is hit or miss, depends on when you are departing. If you leave with the first throng after your color tag is called, then it takes longer, for us about 40 min.

 

For those of you wanting a comparison with the Epic vs the Oasis, I will post that here as well. We leave on the Oasis on Oct 23.

 

If there are any specific questions, just ask.

 

Linda

 

Thanks for taking the time to do a review.

 

Can you tell me what deck and location (aft/forward)the Wave bar is located? I cant seem to find it on deck plans.

[ColinIllinois]

Nice review. Glad you had a good time. Just one comment though.

 

"Any negatives? sure, service needs some work, but it's a new ship and foreign to all the crew"

 

The ship has been sailing for around four months now. One would think that would be plenty of time for the staff to have their jobs and procedures down pat. Just a minor thought.

 

Again, glad you enjoyed yourself. It's a great ship.

[LSauls7537]

Waves Bar is Deck 16, mid ship, just outside of the garden cafe

 

Linda

[dos equis]

Free WiFi? Come again?

[AustinOO]

Free WiFi? Come again?

 

I assumed she meant Wii.

[Flying Solo]

Just to correct an apparent typo. Waves Pool Bar is on Deck 15 between the Garden Cafe and the pools.

[suzieqmia]

6 in our group, ages 45-73. Two couples seasoned travelers, one not. This review will be a bit different than the others as our friends had the Deluxe Owners Suite, cabin 17032 and they were gracious enough to share their suite the entire week with us. Oh....if there is a way to do that, it is an incredible experience. I won't say more about that as I know Susan will be posting a review. The use of a concierge, butler, private pool, restaurants and bars and in suite perks....priceless!

 

Living in St. Cloud, Fl, we drove to Miami on Friday and stayed at the Hampton Inn on 57th avenue, Blue Lagoon. I have posted about that so won't repeat, but bottom line...best ever we've stayed in Miami. Cost was $119 including breakfast, shuttle to port AND parking for the week.

 

We left the hotel at 11 AM, boarding for our friends was thru a special area for owners and VIP's. On this cruise, there were a lot of Harrahs's VIP's, all staying in suites. We were onboard by noon. EASY embarkation. It was HOT. Suggest: bring a small bottle of water with you, even waiting in line is warm) The lounge area at embarkation does have water, juice and coffee for you.

 

We headed (at the CC suggestion) to H20 for lunch. Not crowded, we chose a shaded area with umbrella. Perfect place to go while waiting for the cabins to be finished at 2 PM promptly. We went to our friends suite, then the other couples deluxe suite, then to our balcony cabin. We were in 8079. It IS a small cabin, you must step out of each others way to pass, not room for 2 to pass, but we knew they were small and it became more of a comedy dance thru-out the week. We pack heavy because there are no wright restrictions and we still had PLENTY of room never used for storage. The storage above the bed became our dirty clothes area...just dumped it all into our suitcase for return trip home.

 

Food in the garden cafe was really good. We ate breakfast there and 1 dinner. I laughed when I saw someone say they had the same stuff for breakfast....ya think? When you have EVERYTHING....how can you add something? We would get our breakfast then walk toward the pool where the area for serving was closed and ate there. Never once the entire cruise did we wait...for ANYTHING..No lines, lots of tables.

 

Best friendly bar (note it's a smoking bar) is Waves. Each bartender was nicer than the other, all characters! Second would be the Martini bar, don't know why these two had such great bartenders...but they did.

 

Good deals on board. Last day of cruise, hats and nice quality tee shirts, Epic logo at 2-$20. Martini tasting, 4 different martinis....ah, that's my lost afternoon....can't drink with the big kids anymore! The CC slot pull, lots of fun for $10! and we all ended up making a few $. Free movies on a huge screen in the Atrium, free Wi Fi, seemed kids and adults alike had fun.

 

O'Sheehans, we tried everything and were disappointed by nothing. I really liked the pot pie cause" the vegetables weren't mushy and the sauce was not that thick goop you usually find. Yes and it's true, the apply crumble is to die for!

 

We at at Le Bistro, La Cucina, Moderna, Cirque, Taste, simply no bad food. The shrimp they serve are HUGE. Favorites in the group went from the Fettucine with proscuitto, the loamb, steaks and fillets very good all week in multiple venues. Enough of that, bottom line...no bad food and was better than we've had on Princess, Celebrity, Costa, RCCL and Carnival...enough said.

 

Underused: Free pasteries in the Atrium, great coffee. Deck 18, Spice H20 area,. for the athletic...full court basketball, bunji jumping, a thing they call the spider that's 2 stories high and you get in it and try to climb to the top, rock climbing, bowling. "freestyle" sundeck 19.

 

The spa is the best we've seen in all our cruises. I'll leave it to the others that used it to write their reviews, but will say the other couples signed up for the spa passes at $199 for 2 for the week and enjoyed using the facilities. Also spoke to some B2B that did the active stuff on first week and "lived" in the spa the next week relaxing.

 

Best tips....early bird massages at 8:00 and 8:30 AM for $99.00 for 50 min. Another tip is if you are going to pay over $300 for your picture CD, then make sure you have your picture taken all over the ship to make it worth your while. Bring or buy a langyard, so much easier to hang your key around your neck and not schlep a purse or searching for your card. Do go to the CC meet and greet, the Captain has a great sense of humor and all of the officers came around and introduced themselves. They made the CC group feel special and most welcome. If it's hot when you hit port, look for the trams, they all use them and are $1.00 if it's hot or one of your party may have difficulty walking. On the Eastern, all are a bit of a walk from ship to shore/shopping.

 

Looking at your pics is so easy on the EPIC, put in your seapass card, touch the screen and presto...you can look at and order your pics. Prices are

$9.95 for 6X8 and $19.95 for 8X10, they also have some specials. Never crowded as on other ships with everyone trying to "find" themselves :)

 

Any negatives? sure, service needs some work, but it's a new ship and foreign to all the crew. Do think the staff as a whole (with exceptions mentioned above) was more friendly on the Jewel. Some staffers just didn't seem to be happy which we found unusual.

 

Disembarkation is hit or miss, depends on when you are departing. If you leave with the first throng after your color tag is called, then it takes longer, for us about 40 min.

 

For those of you wanting a comparison with the Epic vs the Oasis, I will post that here as well. We leave on the Oasis on Oct 23.

 

If there are any specific questions, just ask.

 

Linda

Good review! I have to disagree with you on the staff though. I sailed 9/4 and everyone for maybe the hostess at Le Bistro was super friendly, nice and helpful! We had a guy in Moderno and it was his 3rd day in that restaurant. He was soooo nervous cutting the meat affraid it would go flying into our laps. He did a great job and we even complimented him to his supervisor.

 

All in all looks like you had a great time! I agree with you, the food was AWESOME!!!! Still trying to shed those extra pounds I put on!

[UK_Cruiser]

Good review! I have to disagree with you on the staff though. I sailed 9/4 and everyone for maybe the hostess at Le Bistro was super friendly, nice and helpful! We had a guy in Moderno and it was his 3rd day in that restaurant. He was soooo nervous cutting the meat affraid it would go flying into our laps. He did a great job and we even complimented him to his supervisor.

 

All in all looks like you had a great time! I agree with you, the food was AWESOME!!!! Still trying to shed those extra pounds I put on!

 

 

I was on 9/4 and 9/11 and thought staff were amazing. SOME of the passengers were disgracefully rude however. MOST were nice though so that's all that matters.

 

Great cruise, Great Ship, Great Cruiseline (Firrst time NCLers)

[English Rose]

For those of you wanting a comparison with the Epic vs the Oasis, I will post that here as well. We leave on the Oasis on Oct 23.

 

Oh that's a shame. Will miss that before I leave for the Oasis on 16 October but will be boarding the Epic on the 23rd October. I'll have to do the same on my return.

 

I have a feeling our 23 October cruise may be busy because it's the UK school holidays and I think there are also some US schools that take that week off. Whatever, I can't wait and thanks for such a positive review!

[sjbdtz]

 

The ship has been sailing for around four months now. One would think that would be plenty of time for the staff to have their jobs and procedures down pat. Just a minor thought.

 

Again, glad you enjoyed yourself. It's a great ship.

 

 

In sales, the expected ramp-up time in a new territory is about 6 months. People take time to learn new tasks, and even those which they 'know', take about 6 months of repetition to develop proficiency at.

[ColinIllinois]

In sales, the expected ramp-up time in a new territory is about 6 months. People take time to learn new tasks, and even those which they 'know', take about 6 months of repetition to develop proficiency at.

 

 

I'm not talking about sales. I'm talking about servers and wait staff. It shouldn't take six months to "learn" how to be friendly and serve properly, should it?

 

It's not rocket science.

[suzieqmia]

I was on 9/4 and 9/11 and thought staff were amazing. SOME of the passengers were disgracefully rude however. MOST were nice though so that's all that matters.

 

Great cruise, Great Ship, Great Cruiseline (Firrst time NCLers)

It was more than SOME passengers that were rude....Glad it wasn't just us that noticed. LOUD and RUDE....

[NEW 2 CRUISIN]

Underused: Free pasteries in the Atrium, great coffee. Deck 18, Spice H20 area,. for the athletic...full court basketball, bunji jumping, a thing they call the spider that's 2 stories high and you get in it and try to climb to the top, rock climbing, bowling. "freestyle" sundeck 19.

Linda

 

 

Linda,

 

You had me at FREE PASTRIES! :D

 

I'll do my best to see they are NOT underused on my cruise! HAHA!

 

Thanks for sharing your experience here!

[NEW 2 CRUISIN]

It was more than SOME passengers that were rude....Glad it wasn't just us that noticed. LOUD and RUDE....

 

 

WOW! Hard to explain 2 mentions of this away today.... :eek:

 

Who are all these LOUD and RUDE folks...and why are they out cruising???

Moreso....why are they allowed to live and move amongst the rest of us???

 

That's just sad.

[JKR2007]

Just to add a few thoughts....we were 2 Grandmothers and one couple with a 4 year old. Grandmothers in adjoining singles, parents and child in balcony on 12 just above us. The folks in the balcony room were happy. The singles are quite adequate and comfy, but I must tell you that room 11515 (and probably similarly located singles) should be avoided. It is at the end of the corridor with several crew service doors next to and just across the hall with a service area behind it on two sides, a bank of service elevators and a stairwell. The noise can be considerable although the staff posted signs on the crew only doors to prevent slamming, had the carpenter adjust the door closing mechanics and sent me chocolate covered strawberries in apology. The noise did improve after 10p.m., but on the night before disembarkation, the sound of suitcases (had to be outside our doors by 1 a.m. being hoisted about prevented any sleep at all). Take a look at the deck layout and act accordingly.

The staff/crew were very friendly and accommodating at all times, food was good, entertainment was top-notch- loved the circus although the patter/chatter was overmuch, Blue Man was terrific, 2nd City very enjoyable, and the band in Manhatten was terrific. We enjoyed Manhatten more than Taste, La Cucina was fine, O'Sheehans was good, and Garden Cafe had something for everyone and nice seating in the forward most area with big windows.

A tip: You can buy spa passes while waiting to board the ship in the waiting area. There is a spa table there. We enjoyed the spa area, but it tended to be warm there and the 6/7 outdoor lounges while quiet and peaceful, were void of any breeze and hot.

We stayed on board during port days and it was great to have the pool deck free of crowds, noisy bands, and smokers. My family loved the slides and enjoyed that more than hot port jaunts. Spice H2O was nice for the adults and a good place to lounge and read quietly- not too many shady areas, tho.

 

We avoided the smoky casino area whenever possible by walking from one end of the ship to the other via decks other than 5-6-7.

Boarding was efficient and lunch was waiting at noon or so. Disembarkation was well organized and quick. Ship is lovely. We enjoyed our cruise. This is my second NCL cruise and I think they do a good job.