Epic in the Med--First-timer impressions

[quercus alba]

Day 6--Sea Day—Slept in again, exercised again. No dolphins, but enjoyed watching the coast of Sardinia slip by. Brunched by myself in the Garden Café as DW was wanting to run the track—she put in 5 miles on that back & forth loop! I was watching for Chair Hogs, saw a few large blocks of chairs that appeared to have been “pre-reserved”, but there were plenty of openings as well. Had an interesting occurance related to this—had taken my plate to the Great Outdoors to eat, and after finishing my food went off in search of another cup of coffee. The beverage area outdoors was out of cups, so I had to go inside. In the five minutes I was gone, the efficient buffet staff had cleared my plate, and other diners had taken my (now apparently empty) table AND turned in my shoulder bag to the staff! I’m convinced there was no malice or selfishness involved—just hyperefficient bus staff, followed by fellow cruisers trying to be helpful with a “lost” bag! So efficient and helpful, that by the time I figured out what had happened and had enlisted a staff member to help, she reported back that my bag had already been sent to Guest Services! Well, Deck 5 had been my planned next destination anyway so I could put down a deposit on a future cruise. For the afternoon, she napped, I read, and time slipped by. Nothing looked too interesting in the Daily, except…the Martini Clinic was calling me again for 4:00. Met friends there this time, and had DW along for reinforcement—which was a good thing, since Armando gave us the bonus martini #5—his patented “Chocolate Luuvvv”. We were in excellent spirits, as well as full of excellent spirits by that time. I don’t usually have 5 martinis in a YEAR, and here I was sucking down five in an hour. We weren’t hungry, so it was my turn for a nap…finally got going again around 8 and decided that we’d do the buffet if the salad offerings looked good—I thought we did pretty well with our portion control (well, except the martinis…) and choosing healthy foods throughout the trip. Even this late there were many good choices, and we enjoyed the quieter atmosphere of the buffet that night.

 

Day 7—Palma, Mallorca. In my thinking about this cruise this port always seemed like a bonus—a place I’d never really thought about going, but which sounded kind of neat. We looked over the excursions, but nothing seemed more inviting than just brunching then catching the shuttle (NCL provided a bus to the cathedral area for $12 pp RT, about 2 miles) and wandering. The cathedral was nice, the old city was like Barcelona on a bit smaller scale. I really wanted to visit the Bellver castle, and though the HOHO bus goes there, the 15 Euros/pp seemed steep and we felt healthy enough to walk the mile & a half or so uphill. We were rewarded with gorgeous views and a refreshing breeze. We could also see that we were closer to the Epic than to the cathedral at that point, so we forfeited our return bus trip and walked down the hill to the port. It was relatively early, so we went up to Spice H2O and found some loungers and ordered up a mojito and a pina colada. We had a 2:1 deal at La Cucina that night, and I timed it to be there for our sail away from the port—definitely worth it. Palma was the prettiest port by far, and La Cucina’s forward facing windows made it a meal to remember. Food & wine was fine, too. We finished the evening with the Spanish Ballet performance, which was short, but colorful. It was the final night, so we took a quick look at the onboard stores and didn’t buy anything. We DID decide we should out down a second deposit, though! By then, NCL had rearranged their atrium entertainment to get the European Cup finals up on the big screen, and we enjoyed being part of that action, though would hardly call ourselves fans. Finally, it was time to get up to the cabin and organize our packing. We decided to do the “do it yourself” departure so we could have a leisurely breakfast and leave at the last possible minute in the morning. Wasn't looking forward to that--but at least I'd have another day in Barcelona to look forward to!

[Emmaizzy]

This review is great - thanks for taking the time to post.

 

We are going on our first ever cruise on this ship in August so it was great to read your first time cruise review.

 

Emma

[quercus alba]

Day 8—Back in Barcelona, and then home.

Disembarking was smooth enough. We ate in the Garden Café, then rolled our own luggage off at the last call. Short line for taxis went quickly, and we were quickly deposited back at the Regencia Colon. Room wasn’t ready (we weren’t expecting it at 9am) so we stored luggage and headed out for the Starbucks down the street. Finally had some free wifi to take advantage of! It was funny how comfortable we were now feeling—it was like, “we’ve been here before—this is our neighborhood!”

We took the Metro up to Sagrada Familia. It’s definitely deserving of its reputation—worth the ~ 20 minute wait in line to get inside. We could have taken the Metro back, but decided to walk—headed through a nice neighborhood and soon found ourselves at the Citadel Park. There was a parade and some sort of family fair event with lots of kids and families enjoying the day. Made our way back to the cathedral square easily and got checked in, then spent the rest of the day wandering. As I mentioned above, a highlight of this was getting caught up in the football team’s victory parade, but we also found some paella, crema catalana, tapas, and sangria before the day was done. We returned to the hotel, repacked, and sadly got ready to leave Barcelona.

We had a pretty nice return flight with Air France, and the best airplane meal I’ve ever had—but vacation buzzkill set in big with having to clear customs & security TWICE in the Montreal airport—once to enter Canada, and again to leave for the US! Add in the jet lag, and it’s kind of sad that that’s my final memory of vacation! Guess I need to get to work on the pictures and videos to restore my positive vibes!

[housepeepers]

Day 8—Back in Barcelona, and then home.

Disembarking was smooth enough. We ate in the Garden Café, then rolled our own luggage off at the last call. Short line for taxis went quickly, and we were quickly deposited back at the Regencia Colon. Room wasn’t ready (we weren’t expecting it at 9am) so we stored luggage and headed out for the Starbucks down the street. Finally had some free wifi to take advantage of! It was funny how comfortable we were now feeling—it was like, “we’ve been here before—this is our neighborhood!”

We took the Metro up to Sagrada Familia. It’s definitely deserving of its reputation—worth the ~ 20 minute wait in line to get inside. We could have taken the Metro back, but decided to walk—headed through a nice neighborhood and soon found ourselves at the Citadel Park. There was a parade and some sort of family fair event with lots of kids and families enjoying the day. Made our way back to the cathedral square easily and got checked in, then spent the rest of the day wandering. As I mentioned above, a highlight of this was getting caught up in the football team’s victory parade, but we also found some paella, crema catalana, tapas, and sangria before the day was done. We returned to the hotel, repacked, and sadly got ready to leave Barcelona.

We had a pretty nice return flight with Air France, and the best airplane meal I’ve ever had—but vacation buzzkill set in big with having to clear customs & security TWICE in the Montreal airport—once to enter Canada, and again to leave for the US! Add in the jet lag, and it’s kind of sad that that’s my final memory of vacation! Guess I need to get to work on the pictures and videos to restore my positive vibes!

 

 

So sorry it is over...that feeling is just the worst :( I loved the Hotel Colon neighborhood as well, so easy to get around and feel like you belonged in Barcelona. Did you get to the Boqueria, the huge public market off Las Ramblas? Terrific fruit, food stalls, hanging legs of Jamon etc. We are hoping to do the Med cruise again in 2013 ( fingers crossed).

[pinksuit]

A bit about us, so you get the flavor of where we’re coming from. We’re Midwesterners and this was our big 25th anniversary getaway. We’ve done very little travel without the kids the past 19 years. She said "let's go to Europe", but we weren’t confident to make our own arrangements entirely. This was a first cruise ever for both of us, my first trip to southern Europe, her first trip to Europe. I found this itinerary, and chose it based on it being places we wanted to see. Our main interests when we travel, with this trip especially, are more about history & culture than fun, games, or shopping—so YMMV.

I had Two MAJOR Disappointments on this cruise: the first when we had to leave the ship in Barcelona, and the second the next day, leaving Barcelona to fly home. :(

But other than this, it was a great vacation for us—one we’ve waited a long time for, and hopefully won’t be putting off as long again.

I had one minor disappointment: the quality of the everyday coffee on the ship just isn’t up to my home standards. We also experienced one “glitch” with the ship that was inconvenient, and took almost two days to resolve—a malfunctioning phone in our room. This prevented us from getting a wakeup call on an excursion morning, prevented friends from contacting us, and also prevented room service from contacting us prior to bringing breakfast. NCL’s staff was reasonably responsive, even lending out a spare portable phone, but we had some anxious moments because of it.

As far as topics usually addressed here--In general food was great (except the coffee). Quality was better than we expected, with good variety and quality even in Taste and Garden café. It was especially nice to be able to order more than one appetizer apiece! For the specialty restaurants, the quality of Le Bistro befitted a special night out, and La Cuchina was much like our local Italian establishments in service and food quality as well.

“Nickel and diming”—we were well prepared to pay the extra cover charges for the food, drink and treat options we chose, as well as the daily service charges and automatic gratuities. But here’s one we weren’t expecting—Spanish VAT (value added tax). (“No one expects the Spanish Inquisition”?) Although one can get refunds for this on items purchased on board over a certain amount (~$90 for you big jewelry shoppers), be prepared for yet another additional 8% on drinks and restaurant charges over the above. I expect to hear more outcry on this forum about this issue, as it kind of appeared out of nowhere to us. But I wouldn’t say it slowed us down or changed our plans. We didn’t buy any spa services, nor do we gamble, so that wasn’t an issue.

Layout—a true open air jogging track would be nice, and I think we would have enjoyed a true promenade deck in the late evenings if it existed. Hopefully that will be fixed on the new ships in process. We had minor problems keeping aware of our location at times—we got the port and starboard thing thanks to the color codes, but we had the dangedest time remembering what features were fore and aft sometimes! Somehow I got it stuck in my head the first day that Garden Café was in the back, and I was screwed up the rest of the week!

Smoking—honestly we were more bothered by this on the streets of Barcelona than on the ship, and we’re pretty sensitive to it. Occasionally we’d catch a whiff of someone smoking below or forward of us on our balcony, but nothing more than a whiff. Even walking through the casino, it would be briefly noticeable, but gone once we moved on.

Entertainment—as I said, we usually aren’t big on the song and dance. We did take in Blue Man, which was a fun diversion, enjoyed a set of Slam Allen, and occasionally stopped to listen in on other live music around the ship. We also took in the short ~45 min performance of the Spanish Ballet, which was colorful and energetic, but seemed poorly suited for the Headliners space. We passed on Cirque, Legends, and Stephen Sorrentino, and unfortunately didn’t manage to get to a Howl at the Moon engagement.

Itinerary and ports—other than Palma, there’s not much to be said for the immediate ports of call—Livorno, Civitavecchia, and Naples are all huge industrial ports. Interesting to watch, but mostly something to get away from as quickly as possible. One thing we noticed, especially in Rome, was how overwhelmingly crowded these places get with 3-4 cruise ships in port at once. In Italy we docked next to Carnival Magic every day, and their 4000 guests seemed to want to be in all the same places as our 4000 guests. Might have been nice if there was some effort to stagger their timetables, but that might be collusion or something.

All in all we loved the ship, and especially loved Barcelona as a home port. The final night of our cruise was the big Manchester United vs. Barcelona European Cup match, which NCL valiantly worked to get up on the big screens in Spice H2O and the Atrium. Even with a choppy signal, it was exciting—and Mrs. Quercus and I got a special bonus! Hanging out in Barcelona the next afternoon, we noticed streams of people headed for one of the main avenues near our hotel. We followed the sea of fans wearing the familiar red and blue stripes and were lucky enough to get caught up in the Victory Parade as the team came through town in a pair of tourist buses. What a great spectacle! I just enjoyed taking pictures of all the kids who had turned up in team colors to worship their heroes. It really summed up the energy and vitality of that city. More about Barcelona in my daily chronicles—but it was a great experience.

Enough for one post...just got home, need to unpack, and oh yeah…back to work tomorrow…

 

First, Congrats on your 25th Anniversay. Very lovely and direct review of your experience. We trust that you will have many more opportunities to travel in the near future.

Cheers,

Pinkie

[labmonkeys]

UK kids are off school all this week and then go back until mid/end of July for those who may be interested. The July holiday is 6 weeks until early September.

 

What mypleasure meant to say is that English/Welsh school holidays are usually the 6 weeks mid July-early September. Scottish schools stop right at the end of June, or sometimes a little earlier for 6 weeks - so the whole UK school holiday period runs from mid/late June to mid September. A long time with kids around...

 

Spanish tax - NCL isn't the only line to do this as it's Spanish law - we encountered it on Royal Caribbean last September - if you buy a $10 cocktail, expect 15% gratuity and also 8% tax (although I can't remember if the gratuity is calculated before or after Spanish tax from memory). Makes that $10 purchase quite a bit more than $10.

 

Thanks for the review - we're off on the Epic in September.

[Emmaizzy]

When you get around to uploading pics and videos please post the link!

 

Can I ask - did you have to disembark at 9am! What is the latest you can disembark - we are staying in Barcelona for a week after our cruise and want to leave it as late as possible.

 

Thanks

Emma

[quercus alba]

When you get around to uploading pics and videos please post the link!

 

Can I ask - did you have to disembark at 9am! What is the latest you can disembark - we are staying in Barcelona for a week after our cruise and want to leave it as late as possible.

 

Thanks

Emma

 

Then you should want to leave as early as possible, imho! :) Barcelona is amazing!

 

They were pretty explicit that "last call" was 9 am. Look at it as a way to get a jump on the rest of your vacation...

[tiyana4]

I don't have a question but I would like to make a comment. I am really impressed by the amount of research you did before you took this cruise. It is very evident that you have been gathering info. You mentioned some obvious items that have created quite a buzz on these boards (smoke near casino, the cabin layout, etc.). Had I not read the part that this was your first cruise, I would have sworn you were a seasoned cruiser.

 

We won't sail the Epic until next year but the reviews seem to just get better and better. Thank you for taking time to share your trip with us.

[SteveH2508]

A very well-balanced, thoughtful review. It is clear from it that you:

1. Did your research before you went.

2. Went in with the right attitude (When in Rome etc.)

3. 'Went with the flow' and did not get stressed about the silly, pointless little things that seem to clutter up these boards.

4. Found the Martini tastings and the Future Cruise Credits (probably the best 2 deals on the ship!)

[Why Knot Me]

We stayed at the Hotel Colon on our pre-cruise night in Barcelona and were also upgraded to the fancier digs on the night we returned from the cruise. I thought the location was fantastic, the Cathedral is gorgeous and the proximity to so much food and fun was superb. I am still thinking about a bakery down the street behind the Cathedral :)

 

I remember that bakery very well. We too loved Hotel Colon!

[quercus alba]

I remember that bakery very well. We too loved Hotel Colon!

 

I know what bakery you're talking about. We avoided it, but I can tell you about a great little gelato shop over on Carrer de Jaume I... :D

[quercus alba]

I don't have a question but I would like to make a comment. I am really impressed by the amount of research you did before you took this cruise. It is very evident that you have been gathering info. You mentioned some obvious items that have created quite a buzz on these boards (smoke near casino, the cabin layout, etc.). Had I not read the part that this was your first cruise, I would have sworn you were a seasoned cruiser.

 

We won't sail the Epic until next year but the reviews seem to just get better and better. Thank you for taking time to share your trip with us.

 

Nice of you (and SteveH) to say so. I enjoyed learning from this board and our Roll Call.

Now I need to find a new obsess...er...hobby to keep me occupied for the rest of the year. :o

[shawn&angie]

This has been great reading! We are not going until Sept. 2012 but we enjoy reading about everything until our trip...makes for a longer, better experience. This will be our first Norwegian Cruise and first trip in Europe. I think we did see the Epic in the Caribbean once and she is beautiful.

[phillygirl63]

Hi, Quercus Alba, remember me? I am so glad that you enjoyed your cruise. I am especially glad that my recommendation of yourtourinitaly worked out well for your group. Sorry about Dominico's tardiness, but I guess sometimes that happens (but not often I'm sure). Wasn't the view from the restaurant in Positano just to die for?

[quercus alba]

Hi, Quercus Alba, remember me? I am so glad that you enjoyed your cruise. I am especially glad that my recommendation of yourtourinitaly worked out well for your group. Sorry about Dominico's tardiness, but I guess sometimes that happens (but not often I'm sure). Wasn't the view from the restaurant in Positano just to die for?

 

Dominico was definitely worth waiting for (and it was only a very few minutes--esp considering all the traffic around the port. He accidentally went to the wrong pier, where Magic was).

We had a GREAT time. Thanks for the recommendations!

[judee142]

Just wanted to add a couple of things to the great review given by quercus alba. Try to make reservations for Stephen Sorrentino before sailing. He puts on a great show in a very small venue and all of his shows were a sell-out. I think they even had to add a show to accomodate all who wanted to see him.

And we thought the food was excellent in the free restaurants. We ate mostly in the Manhattan room and enjoyed every meal.

[quercus alba]

I have posted sets of pictures on flickr if you wish to browse through them. I am still in the process of putting in labels and descriptions, but who needs a thousand words if you have a picture? :D

http://www.flickr.com/photos/quercus_alba/sets

[quercus alba]

<sigh> This was my breakfast one month ago today...

Would love to be back aboard! (Wimpy coffee and all!)

 

Was thinking about some comments on the ports--again, the immediate Italian ports are all huge, busy industrial ports. I've attached a few characteristic photos.

 

Livorno

 

Livorno

 

Livorno--tour buses lined up

 

Livorno--can you parallel park a ferry?

 

Civitavecchia

 

Civitavecchia

 

Vesuvius sunrise--my favorite picture of the trip, I think

 

Naples

 

Leaving Naples

 

Also--forgot to mention these mirrors in my review. We used the stairs a lot, and I was impressed by what a shiny, new ship Epic is. Already thinking about our next cruise...

[flcruiser3]

Thanks for the great review. I saw your port photos on the Italy board and hunted down your review. We sailed on the Epic's second voyage (Eastern Caribbean) and just loved it! We will be doing our first European trip in a few weeks (Ruby Princess) and found your port reviews helpful.

 

Just a thought: I wish more people would post their reviews on the member review section of this site, because if I had not come across your port photos, I would have missed a good and helpful review. I don't have time to check every cruise-lines boards to see if I can find anything relevant.

[quercus alba]

Thanks for the great review. I saw your port photos on the Italy board and hunted down your review. We sailed on the Epic's second voyage (Eastern Caribbean) and just loved it! We will be doing our first European trip in a few weeks (Ruby Princess) and found your port reviews helpful.

 

Just a thought: I wish more people would post their reviews on the member review section of this site, because if I had not come across your port photos, I would have missed a good and helpful review. I don't have time to check every cruise-lines boards to see if I can find anything relevant.

 

Thanks--glad it helped you that I was waxing nostalgic about my balcony breakfasts today! I really didn't include pix in my first pass review because I wasn't organized yet. So feel free to peruse my other sets: http://www.flickr.com/photos/quercus_alba/sets. They are organized by port, so you should find some applicable things.

 

BTW--I did post a Member's Review a few weeks ago. It's got to be hard, if not impossible to keep up with all of the lines doing this itinerary.

[wzhao6898]

Do they have internet service onboard? free or with a fee? Thanks!

 

David

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

 

David ~ yes there is internet for a fee. Usually the 1st day there'll be a discount on certain packages.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[willysgrandma]

Impressive review, you did a great job. I am doing the Epic Rome to Rome (but with different ports - 2 in France) in Oct. and this has been very helpful.

 

Just an FYI about the piers the ships dock in - most of the piers are in the ugliest areas, usually industrial, as that is where the piers are located. You will find this on just about any cruise.