RC Liberty of the Sea Vs NCL Epic

[Yankee123]

Hello All,

 

It's time for us to plan our next cruise and we are debating between RC Liberty of the Sea and NCL Epic. We are planning to do the Mediterranean cruise this year. The itineraries are slightly different, with the edge towards RC. The problem is that we are NCL fans, and have sailed NCL only so far, and do not know how the other lines are. I am sure that we will not find out how RC's ships are until we try them but we are a bit hesitant because they do not have freestyle dining. Technically we could skip the main dining room completely and eat at their buffet or specialty restaurants and not have to worry about assigned times to eat.

 

I don't know if it makes a difference but we (my DW and I) are in our thirties and have a four year old who enjoys cruising also (or so we think, the way he is running around).

 

Besides the dining program, I would like to ask all those who have said RC and NCL, what else is different in the two cruise lines?

 

For those who have sailed these two ships in particular, which one will we like more. I do understand that it is a personal preference, so I should ask, which one did you like more.

 

Thanks in advance.

[sunrise&set]

I have not cruised on Epic yet, but recently returned from RCCL Freedom of the Seas which is similar to Liberty. We LOVED FOS!! So much to do and such a beautiful ship. They have an awesome kids water play area. My son just turned 4 and he had a great time. They have a rock climbing wall, flowrider, mini golf and an Ice Rink. We didn't skate but I was pleasantly surprised at how good the Ice Show was. Great pools too! Johnny Rockets, Ben & Jerry's and a beautiful Promenade with parades.

 

RCCL also has anytime dining so you are not stuck with a set dining time. I'm not sure exactly how this works because we did not use this option. On FOS, the dining room took up 3 floors and there was a separate entrance for the Anytime dining guests. So if you're leaning towards RCCL because of itinerary, then I would choose that ship. Your son will love it too!

 

We have only cruised on NCL Dawn but enjoyed that cruise too. We typically look for the best deal to the itinerary we want. We are looking at booking Epic or Oasis of the Seas next year. For us, cost is the big factor :rolleyes: I also like that NCL has Nickelodeon, but RCCL also has Dreamworks.

[gooselover]

We were on Liberty back last October. Our first RCL cruise and we loved Liberty too. Our previous cruises were with Carnival and we loved Carnival. There are some things better on both.

 

However, we are booked on our first NCL cruise next year and are looking forward to seeing what NCL is all about.

[DavyB]

Out of the 7 cruises I've been on, the Liberty of the Seas has been my families favorite ship. Plenty to do for kids and adults. I wish I could compare but I won't be on the Epic for another month. Good Luck!:D

[CruisinWithFamily]

I did the Liberty two years ago and have not done the Epic. We cruised with another couple. While the ship is beautiful and the food is good, I think it was my least favorite cruise. I just found the group of people that was on that ship to be different then the smaller cheaper boats or even Carnival. We are in our 30's and have to children. We are not partyers by any means but like to have a good time. I just felt there was something lacking on the ship. This is one of the reason why we have chosen the Epic this time around over RCC Oasis.

[Yankee123]

Thank you for your responses. Do you know if in anytime dining, do we have to share a table, or does each family / party sit separately?

 

Thank you

[2boyzmom]

We just got off the LOS in February and were extremely disappointed with the dining options at lunch. 4300 people on board and choices are very limited - pizza parlor (taste like frozen boxed pizza to us), lousy buffet or a burger at Johnny Rockets. The main dining room was not open everyday. I miss the poolside grill on NCL, tapas, and the 24 hour blue lagoon. Be prepared for huge lines at the buffet- there is just not enough choices for a ship this large- or perhaps I realize I am just a big NCL fan:) It's a nice ship if you like a shopping mall at sea atmosphere. Just my opinion...

[ColinIllinois]

I don't have much desire to sail on a ship that has franchised fast food places on board that charge you extra. Sure, I don't have to eat at those places but it just strikes me as odd. What's next? Subway? Burger King?

 

Give me O'Sheehans any day.

[coffeebean]

From one Yankee to another Yankee...

 

I have cruised on both Liberty OTS and Epic. Epic is on a whole other level of cruising than Liberty. Don't get me wrong...I love RCCL. In fact, DH and I are Diamond members on RCCL. We love their ships for their decor, their adults only solariums and the ice shows on the Voyager and Freedom class ships. Liberty, being a Voyager class ship, has all the amenities I love about RCCL.

 

RCCL does have a form of Freestyle dining with their "My Time Dining". It works the same way as NCL's Freestyle dining in their main dining rooms. Liberfty has part of one of their main dining rooms set aside for the "My Time Dining" and you can show up to dine anytime you prefer. If you enjoy specialty restaurants as DH and I do, Epic has many more to choose from than Liberty.

 

Given these twio ships to choose from, Epic is my choice. The entertainment on Epic blows away the entertainment on Liberty. The only ships in RCCL's fleet to compare to Epic's entertainment is the Oasis and Allure. How can you go wrong with Blue Man Group, Legends in Concert and a Cirque show with performers who perform amazing feats of acrobatics?

 

I do love Liberty's adult's only solarium much better than Epic's Spice H20 adults only pool area. With a four year old child, it doesn't look like you would be spending much if any time in all in an adults only area.

 

Epic also caters to the little ones with character shows with Dora and group. Your son would enjoy that.

 

Liberty OTS has a great Royal Promenade with shops and such. Epic does not have this type of space but does have an atrium area with a huge screen for viewing all sorts of things such as sporting events, movies, wii games, etc.

 

I'm sure no matter which ship you choose, you will have a wonderful time. Happy cruising.

[coffeebean]

Thank you for your responses. Do you know if in anytime dining, do we have to share a table, or does each family / party sit separately?

 

Thank you

You can get a table just for your party...just like on NCL.

[emilymad]

We are considering these two cruises as well. We usually sail RCL and have never been on NCL. We have never sailed on Liberty but have done the Voyager class and Oasis so we know what to expect. I have to agree that the dining options seem way more limited on Liberty than what I am reading about on NCL.

 

A note about My Time Dining, there are only so many spots available to this so at the time of booking it might not be available. We did MTD on the Oasis and loved it. What is drawing us to the Epic is the ability to dine anytime and also not have to worry about dressing up. We felt that people still dressed up to eat in the MDR even though they had MTD. It seems that the ports in the Mediterranean will be exhausting and I am doubting we will feel like getting dressed up when we return to the ship.

 

Our main concern with the Epic is the bathroom situation. We are doing lots of research to help us decide but DH is not too pleased. Epic is running about $500 cheaper for the two of us than Liberty with Epic being a balcony vs an inside on Liberty.

 

After all that I don't think I am much help! :)

[Yankee123]

Thank you guys,

 

Your insights have really helped. We were leaning towards the LOS but after calling our TA and comparing the prices, NCL came out close to $550 cheaper for each adult, and over $200 cheaper for our son. Our TA really wanted us to try LOS and she tried hard to continue selling it to us. Hopefully we can try both ships some time. We wanted to visit the two additional ports in France that NCL is not going to, but the cost doesn't add up.

 

Thank you all for the additional information. At least we can say that we are sold on trying the RCCL Oasis Class and Freedom Class ships, but may be on a cheaper itinerary.

 

We can always count on this website for all the info needed.

[lasik1]

Sounds like NCL won it for you- congrats and enjoy. We cruised on LOS last July w/ our 4 and 6 year old boys and we are doing the Allure this year. The clincher for us was one feature which kept our boys delighted,entertained and exhausted them every single day- the H2O Zone. They could not wait to get there every morning and go round and round in the circular pool and play with the other kids. The endless soft serve was a real treat as well. Dining at the specialty restaurants was very good and worth the money. We considered LOS or Epic this year, but my wife and I typically take an adult trip every year and we will explore Spain in September. Friends of ours are taking the Epic in late July and I have heard good things about it.

[K&M2009]

How is the Epic that much cheaper? I'm looking at prices online for LOS vs. Epic out of Barcelona during the same time period and it seems like Epic is actually more expensive..

[mejo]

We have sailed on both ships for spring break. LOS last year and we just got off the Epic.

 

We actually had LOS booked for this summer out of Barcelona, but changed to Epic. It was cheaper and the suite area is much nicer than LOS. My parents travel with us and they have been to all of the ports so the nicer suite area is a big decision for us since my parents might spend a lot more time on the ship.

 

Also, Epic is going to Mallorca which is port we all want to go to.

 

Both ships are a lot of fun and what you make of the trip is a big part of the "fun factor".

 

There are a lot of great reviews on both boards, but I am sure you will have a great time on either.

[Mommy oooo]

I have sailed many time o RCCL and a few times on NCL. Although I really enjoyed NCL, if I had a choice I would choose RCCL any day of the week, especially the Liberty. Probably my favorite RCCL ship class, with the Radiance CLass a very close 2nd. We have done NCL lately and will do NCL for our next cruise, only because we couldn't compete with their prices compared to RCCL and the itinerary is fantastic.

[chris209]

We have been on both and prefer Epic (although part of that may be because we were in the Owners suite- suites on NCL definitely way ahead of RCCL). Entertainment and dining options better on Epic. However our teen much preferred RCCL- met more kids and felt there was more organized for teens in particular on RCCL. We prefer anytime dining- going on Celebrity next year though so will have to see what we prefer after that!

[akupupule]

It sounds like you made a good choice...but they both are awesome ships. Sailed Freedom in 2009 and Epic in 2010. Lots to like on both. dining is good on both with Epic a big edge there. Entertainment Epic wins hands down. Kids really do love the ice show on Freedom. I probably like the layout on Freedom better...just seems to "flow" better and not being forced to navigate a smokey casino. But the adults only are on the stern of Epic is really nice, vs the solarium on Freedom. I like the pool band better on RCL ships than Epic's band. You picked a great ship, but give RCL a shot, Freedom class or larger, sometime.