What do you like about the Epic?

[bradleyk]

My wife and I just booked the Epic for 2018 and I know that some people are not very fond of the ships design. We sailed on the Getaway last year and loved it. The food and service were great. We loved the Vibe area and also enjoyed the waterfront for a pre/post dinner drink.

I was wondering for those of you that have sailed the Epic and one of the Away class ships, how do they compare? What did you like about each?

TIA

[KeithJenner]

I will just point out that if you particularly liked the Waterfront then you should be aware that there is nothing like that on the Epic. It has a walking area but it is very enclosed and not at all appealing as a place to be.

 

That's the biggest negative compared to the Away ships in my opinion.

[bradleyk]

I will just point out that if you particularly liked the Waterfront then you should be aware that there is nothing like that on the Epic. It has a walking area but it is very enclosed and not at all appealing as a place to be.

 

That's the biggest negative compared to the Away ships in my opinion.

 

Thank you and we are aware that there is not a waterfront area on the Epic. We know this is a negative. But we are interested in what others have liked about the epic?

[ainecaine]

I love the epic and have been on it 5 times. The pool area is great. It is spacious and open. There are plenty of sunbeds all over the different levels. I don't mind the bathroom setup. We are comfortable with knowing what happens in the bathroom happens. The balconys are slightly bigger than the away class shops and we try to get rooms on the hump so to get a slightly bigger balcony

 

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[bradleyk]

I love the epic and have been on it 5 times. The pool area is great. It is spacious and open. There are plenty of sunbeds all over the different levels. I don't mind the bathroom setup. We are comfortable with knowing what happens in the bathroom happens. The balconys are slightly bigger than the away class shops and we try to get rooms on the hump so to get a slightly bigger balcony

 

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Thank you! We booked a B6 largebalcony since it was inly $20 more. Have you sailed one of the Away class ships before?

[Tutontow]

My favorite thing about the Epic is the fact that I will be on her in four months :)

[Red-Sol]

The Waterfront is a huge plus for the Breakaway class ships....but Spice H2O and the General Pool area on Epic are also much nicer than on the "Aways"

 

May seem like a small detail but I can say with certainty that my butt appreciates the theater seating on Epic way more than the Aways as well! :)

 

Be back aboard Epic in a few weeks and really looking foward to it.

 

Edited to add that the layout of the buffet area is also much nicer IMHO on Epic as well.

Edited October 16, 2016 by Red-Sol

[bradleyk]

My favorite thing about the Epic is the fact that I will be on her in four months :)

Sounds even better 😊

[Quilting_Cruiser]

The Epic is the only mega ship I've sailed. I was apprehensive about sailing on a ship that size, but loved it! I've booked her again for next September. I haven't been on one of the Away ships, but the waterfront looks great. If they'd move one of those to the Med, I'd be very happy! :D

 

I found the Epic easy to get around and it didn't take too long to orient myself. I love the variety of things to do, the entertainment (which I don't usually go to) was really good, and the spa was the best I've experienced so far. I cruised solo and loved the studio cabin as it was really well designed and having the lounge nearby was a great perk.

 

I hope you have a great cruise!

[Lido_Deck]

My wife and I just booked the Epic for 2018 and I know that some people are not very fond of the ships design. We sailed on the Getaway last year and loved it. The food and service were great. We loved the Vibe area and also enjoyed the waterfront for a pre/post dinner drink.

I was wondering for those of you that have sailed the Epic and one of the Away class ships, how do they compare? What did you like about each?

TIA

 

I've sailed on the Epic 3 times, one of which was a 13 Day Transatlantic, and I hate the Epic. The only thing good I can say about the Epic is they have the upgraded production shows like the 'Away ships do. Otherwise, it's an enclosed luxury prison ship. In my opinion it is one grand abomination. A mistake. Why else do you think it's in a one of a kind class?

 

If you are expecting something similar to the Getaway you are going to be sorely disappointed.

[CruisinMaterial]

I was wondering for those of you that have sailed the Epic and one of the Away class ships, how do they compare? What did you like about each?

TIA

 

The Bliss Lounge on Epic is FAR more spacious than on the Breakaway class ships. The design of the Bliss is far superior on the Epic. Now that they've taken out the bowling alley and turned it into a seating area... there's plenty of room for the place to be open when it needs to be. An expanded dance floor would have been nice in the last dry dock but in comparison to the Bliss on Breakaway - Epic's is HUGE!!!

 

I liked the pooping dog. However, someone stole it's poop since I've sailed. It was just so random but amusing at the same time! :D

 

The entertainment now on the Epic is the best in the fleet IMHO. The Cavern Club was a great addition (not a fan of Jazz). They finally ditched the Blue Man Group! That show has been running since I was a kid in Boston. Now they have Priscilla and Burn the Floor. Both are great shows!! Breakaway class shows in general are good!

 

The Spice H2O is larger on the Epic than the Breakaway class ships and is tiered so you can see the screen better and keep people from forming large groups in that area with loungers. I like the Epic's design much better.

 

That's about all I have! Hope you enjoy the Epic! :D

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I've sailed on the Epic 3 times, one of which was a 13 Day Transatlantic, and I hate the Epic. The only thing good I can say about the Epic is they have the upgraded production shows like the 'Away ships do. Otherwise, it's an enclosed luxury prison ship. In my opinion it is one grand abomination. A mistake. Why else do you think it's in a one of a kind class?

 

If you are expecting something similar to the Getaway you are going to be sorely disappointed.

 

If you hate it so much and consider it a prison, why have you repeatedly sailed on her? Just curious as I wouldn't book another cruise on a ship I hated. :eek:

[Red-Sol]

 

I liked the pooping dog. However, someone stole it's poop since I've sailed. It was just so random but amusing at the same time! :D

 

 

Say it ain't so! What is a pooping dog without it's poop! :D

 

Haven't seen it yet but did see pictures..right outside cavern club isn't it?

 

Hopefully NCL can order some fresh from Amazon and have it drone delivered. :)

[Lido_Deck]

If you hate it so much and consider it a prison, why have you repeatedly sailed on her? Just curious as I wouldn't book another cruise on a ship I hated. :eek:

 

The first cruise was a learning experience and the next two were cheap, cheap, cheap, because so many people avoid the Epic and NCL has had great difficulty filling cabins. I got the 13 Day Transatlantic for $399...solo inside cabin. Cheap cruising is cheap cruising.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

The first cruise was a learning experience and the next two were cheap, cheap, cheap, because so many people avoid the Epic and NCL has had great difficulty filling cabins. I got the 13 Day Transatlantic for $399...solo inside cabin. Cheap cruising is cheap cruising.

 

 

Okay, fair enough. Personally I wouldn't book it if I hated the ship though.

[Manbo]

We sailed on the Epic last month and loved it.

The only thing we were disappointed with was the specialty restaurants.

If you have a positive attitude, you will have a blast!

[Lido_Deck]

We sailed on the Epic last month and loved it.

The only thing we were disappointed with was the specialty restaurants.

If you have a positive attitude, you will have a blast!

 

Everyone has their likes and dislikes as well as what is more important to them.

 

Me...I like open decks and being able to lean on the rail and look into the ocean feel the breeze on my face and watch the flying fish and sometimes dolphins or even a whale (on Transatlantics). Good luck doing that on the Epic.

 

The Gem and the Pearl (which you have sailed on) are at the top of my list of favorite ships of the 40+ I've sailed on. Besides their open decks, their Garden Café is the best designed buffet in the entire cruise industry. I spent 30+ years in the restaurant industry and promise you those two ships are probably the only ships in the cruise industry that their buffet was actually designed by restaurant professionals and not the architect. It has a natural flow of traffic, space and it's not massive cluster**** of people going everywhich direction, kitchen staff carrying hot food crossing through the crowd as well as bussers carrying dirty dishes through the crowd like you find on the Epic.

 

And then from the Garden Café you can go right out to the Great Outdoors. What a wonderful part of the ship to sit as you are sailing out of a port in the evening. On the Epic they call a few tables next to the pool area The Great Outdoors. What a joke.

 

And then there are the bathrooms...Or in the case of the Epic, the nonexistent bathroom. There's just something about standing in the middle of the cabin trying to shave from a tiny sink as water splashes everywhere including onto the desk/vanity. I guess it's a man thing women don't quite comprehend.

[Love.II.Cruise]

Now that they've taken out the bowling alley and turned it into a seating area... there's plenty of room for the place to be open when it needs to be. An expanded dance floor would have been nice in the last dry dock but in comparison to the Bliss on Breakaway - Epic's is HUGE!!!

 

 

What? They took out the bowling alley?!? It is in our brochure and we are sailing in 15 days.

[Até]

What? They took out the bowling alley?!? It is in our brochure and we are sailing in 15 days.

 

The "Get to know your ship" brochure link they emailed me last week touted Nickelodeon.

[Cafedumonde]

Never been on the epic but going in two months and I am so excited! we think it looks great.

[Trickster999]

I love the epic and have been on it 5 times. The pool area is great. It is spacious and open. There are plenty of sunbeds all over the different levels. I don't mind the bathroom setup. We are comfortable with knowing what happens in the bathroom happens. The balconys are slightly bigger than the away class shops and we try to get rooms on the hump so to get a slightly bigger balcony

 

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What is The Hump please?

 

My Missus gets one when I missbehave

[NCLfamily]

We have just booked The Epic for the fourth time, we love it. There is no one particular thing I can pinpoint about it.

 

 

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[NCLfamily]

What? They took out the bowling alley?!? It is in our brochure and we are sailing in 15 days.

 

 

There is a bowling alley in O'Sheehans

 

 

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[SquishTheWhale]

I don't have anything to compare her to but we loved the Epic. Yes there are good points and points but I'm sure that's the case for any ship.

 

Things we liked:

The bathrooms- yes please to splitting the shower and toilet. Means you don't end up dying for a wee hammering on the door while your partner is taking the worlds longest shower. Actually not looking forward to it being a traditional set up on the Escape!

The food: excellent everywhere, both free and specialiity.

H20: lovely area to chill out with a drink watching movies on the big screen or sitting in the hot tubs for sail away!

Bliss: as mentioned before this is huge on the Epic

Entertainment: Burn the Floor and Priscilla are so hood we saw them both twice.

[bradleyk]

Thanks everyone for all your feedback. I know we will miss the waterfront, but we probably only used it for 20 minutes a day. And the Epic pool deck does seem vastly superior.