We have done 54 cruises this was maybe the worse and only cruise I would say I wish I never did.Cabin design well they only made one like this should have been a clue.sink,shower,toilet all separate and small..Our room was never cleaned at the right times we were always just returned to room be in shower or ready to go to bed for the night when he would show up to clean room,we tried different times even asked him what time he would nothing worked.Lines for everything long lines didnt seem to matter if you reserved or not.Food almost always cold if we were lucky it would be warm slow service in dining room,The specialty dining was better,we ended up eating there 5 times.Pools THE WORSE of any cruise I have ever been on.The weather was beautiful the pools were Very hot every day many people complained,a couple days the pool was as hot as the hot tubs,crew not real friendly officers no where.The ship was clean,and we had a drink card which apparently means you get your own drinks service slow.The more I think about cruise the bad things I remember so I will stop No more ncl for us back to Princess and Celebrity and Holland Read Less

We have sailed NCL four times prior to this 11-day Caribbean cruise, but never on a ship that carried this many passengers. You pretty much get the same amenities as the smaller ships, but have twice as many people trying to use them. If you like to wait in line for everything (yes, everything), this could be the ship for you. Food options were limited and food was mediocre with the clear exception of Moderno. We did like the availability of unique wine choices in the specialty restaurants. Cabins are not functional - not just the bathroom, the entire cabin. I am not a fan of crawling over the bed to get where I need to be. If you are able to snag a spot by the pool by 7am, great! If not, too bad for the other 3,000 passengers. I challenge the concept of Freestyle on this ship - not much is available to eat outside of the never-ending buffet (not my choice), or to do, prior to 5pm each day, including 'at sea' days. Why not offer some matinee shows during 'at sea' days? We found no space to relax or find some quiet. Even the library is situated next to the little ones daycare! Loved the idea of a cigar lounge but would not use it as it was filled with cigarette smokers. Sorry guys, cigarettes are not the same and you ruin the experience for cigar smokers who, by the way, have no other options. We did not enjoy the ice bar for the allocated 20 minutes since this, too, was subject to an additional fee. We listened to one port presentation but we did not learn anything helpful about the port. The highlights for us? Priscilla, Queen of the Desert - absolutely top drawer show. The Beatles - don't miss these guys. Bartender in Maltings - fun guy. Our room steward - always available to help. Excursions - both through NCL and those booked separately. Overall, this experience has left us wondering if we will choose to cruise ever again. Read Less

Overall, I felt like cattle being herded in many areas of the ship and nickel and dimed to death. Ship – The pool setup was a joke! On a ship that size with that many people and only have 2+1 (adult only) very small pools you could only stand in. Why even have a pool? One day, a day at sea - one of the pools was closed ALL DAY! The pool area was also under construction so not all the features were available. In the cabin - aft balcony - you should put something on the shower floor as it is very slippery and dangerous. The plexiglass on the balcony should be cleaned regularly. It was filthy and never cleaned. While sitting on the balcony you had to look through the dirt and grime at the beautiful view. The carpets could use a cleaning too. I found the smoking areas very few, very small and crowded. The deck on the 7th floor for smoking didn't even offer a place to sit and relax. The bathrooms were always clean and well stocked until the last couple days. The ship was all done up pretty and for the volume of people and cruises, it was clean. Elevators – excursion days/shows times/dinner times were ugly. What’s the deal with the Haven folks locking up multiple elevators at one time? Guest Services - We went to Guest Services a few times and they were never friendly nor helpful. We tried to put a report in for a lost phone but was told they did not do that and we would have to check back every day and stand in the line and wait for one of the 2-3 people working the desk to get to me. On the last night, again only 3 people working the desk on the busiest day, I stood in line for over an hour and half with everyone trying to settle/correct their accounts, so I could pay a .99 balance. No, I did not have a card on file - I've heard to many horror stories of people being charged incorrectly, fighting the charges and not being credited. Staff/Service - A large majority of the staff were moving like robots, focused more on making things look nice instead of interacting with the customers on a personal level. When it came time to place our food order the servers sounded as though they were working from a script and not interested in what I was ordering. There were a few times I had to point to the choice on the menu because they did not know what I was asking for, like they did not know what was on the menu. They are not relaxed, friendly or “there”. I felt like the rush they showed made me feel rushed. I think the staff are overworked and tired. They are pressured to make it all a pretty picture, and it was but the content got lost in the wrapping. Food/Dining - The food was all subpar except for couple of the specialty dining. Without the dining package the food would have failed totally. Cagney's was the best of all of them. They offered to package our leftovers and dessert, and have it sent to our room. On the other hand, the service and food was awful at the Italian restaurant and they would not package and send our “makeup” dish to the room. The Teppanyaki food was good but the chef got a really slow start like he didn’t know how to start the presentation. Then he spoke to fast and was hard to understand. The buffet always had a line to get to what you wanted so by the time you got your food and found a seat the food was cold. Entertainment - The volume of the mics was way too loud as was the music on the pool deck. Playing bingo and deal or no deal was painfully loud. Some venues were way too small to accommodate the shows where reservations were not needed. We were not able to see most of the comic shows because of this. If it is anything not included in your package it was VERY expensive i.e. Bingo/Deal or No Deal/bowling. Shopping – I found the shop with alcohol was reasonably priced, but the shops of clothing, jewelry and accessories was way overpriced. All the ports offered the same shops and you can’t just browse without being pressured to buy – Diamonds International, Cariloha, Del Sol, Effy and Crown of Light. Ports – When I travel, I do so to see how people in other countries/locations live and to visit their people/history and infrastructure. I do not want to go to industry owned islands that offer nothing but more of what I can get onboard for a price. For ports where tenders were used – what a mess. Anyone that had early excursions, not booked through NCL got very late starts and lost time on these islands. There needs to be a better plan for unloading/loading 4000 people that want to go ashore. The Art Auction/Park West Gallery - it is a scam. They tried to rope me into a purchase saying I was the winning bidder. I was first bidder – not the high bidder. They had me at a bid higher than what I had bid and when others outbid me on the piece. I have been to many auctions and high bidder wins the bid - not the first bidder. They also advertise a drawing for $500. Then find out it is $500 off the purchase of a piece of art! Deceiving and wrong! When I got home I checked their reviews and I and now convinced they are crooked. NCL Website - The info on the website concerning the service charge, gratuities and the 20% added to the UBP and dining package needs work. I still don't know when I should have tipped or not (except if the service was bad in any area). Since service was so robot like and not personable it made my decision a bit easier. I am also very upset about the UBP. It was one of my perks. I was traveling with my daughter who is 20 so I called NCL to verify she would be able to drink on board. I was told that she would be allowed beer and wine if I signed a waiver. I signed the waiver and they gave her a new card. Then to find out that this UBP card she had would not allow her free "unlimited" beer and wine and that we would have to pay for her drinks. This is wrong on so many levels and needs to be corrected. Read Less

Chose the cruise as it had good itinery of stops and the price was reaonable. Did not like our stateroom as it was tight to move around and the bathroom setup was poorly designed. The staff and room stewart were excellant. Food was very good and dining staff were freindly. This was a 4300 passenger ship and we prefer the 2400 size of ship as this one was too crowded. Long waits for the elevator. Theatre seated 800 passenagers same size as on the smaller ships. Did not like the crowded pool area on the upper deck- too crowded not eneough lounge chairs. The enteratinemnt was for the most part was mjust OK. We have experienced better entertainment on the smaller ships in the past. We traveled with 2 other couples and like to play cards but the small games room was always full, smae size room as on the 2400 passenager ship size. Will not cruise on the EPIC in the future. Read Less

We took this cruise because of the extras offered by NCL. I think there were 17 bars and many restaurants. I was ready to be disappointed because of the number of passengers 4100 thinking that service would be slow. Not! The bartenders were already making the drinks before we were seated. The dining was not up to par, seemed the staff were overwhelmed and not enough help. The Matradee was very helpful on several occasions to solve any issues at the table. We always joined others who we did not know and some were more fussy than others. The food was very average but way to much on the plates. I don't need 10 pieces of bacon with two eggs. The steak house was the best. The filet 8 oz just fell apart, no knife needed. Bar service was instant and servers were always around. Room was the smallest we ever had, balcony was good size but needed two tables as one 12 inch was insufficient for two people. Room service was quick but after 10 AM you had to pay $8 for each order (a first for us). We had the drink package included but was not allowed to have canned soda's in our room. I would have brought my own but your not allowed to even bring water on the boat. Not good! If your over 200 lbs you might have trouble fitting in toilet area. Smallest on any cruise ship in industry. Couch very uncomfortable, back is curved out not in. Used it for storage. You should get this cruise for less than twelve hundred per person with drink package, balcony, four specialty restaurants and internet minutes included. One last thing there are only 8 elevators on each end of the ship. None in middle of ship. Usually two are out of service. This ship is over 1000 feet long so book at one end or the other. Read Less

Good Point: Emarkation Port close to our home city, Atlanta, Georgia Bad Points: 1. Ship needs dry dock and soon! 2. Tile floors near restaurants are cracked and broken, carpets are dirty, lights malfunctioning in elevators, I had to fix the "plug in" for the coffee maker, the ship is OLD, only 10 years old, and it shows it... 3. We were in a AFT balcony and the vibration when pulling in and out of ports was horrendous, so bad the cabinets over the head of the bed vibrated like they were going to fall. The glass windows on the BALCONY were never cleaned the whole cruise, the crew cleaned some but never finished and the rust is showing real bad... 4. Staff was not trained, for instance the line at the help desk was so long that the people would just walk up in front of the line and there was no one to "police" the line. When ship was releasing from port in Cozomuel, the crew while releasing ropes started pulling the wrong rope in, people were throwing chicken bones off the back of the ship into the water, and no staff to stop them. It was so cold in the TASTE restaurant we had to carry our beach towel with us to stay warm...And to top it off we got back into port at Canaveral on December 5, there were only 2 (TWO) Custom's Agents at the port trying to disembark over 4000 guest, IT WAS A TOTAL CLUSTER in the baggage claim area, almost missed our flight back home. 5. We did not buy the beverage package, my wife is "non-drinker"... A beer was $10 and a "double" drink was $22 (a single shot was $12). The ship no longer gives plastic straws, only paper and you have to ask the bar folks for them. It took 20 minutes just to get Sugar Free jelly and the tables were always out of the yellow package sweetener. The food on the dinner menus have become sub-standard. 6. We are Platinum Plus and never got a invite or a notice of any Captians Party for the previous guest, had to ask for our bottles of water...NCL has lost their management policies. 7. I rated Entertainment HIGH (VERY GOOD) that is because of "BURN THE FOOR" and "The Beatles Mania" shows were GREAT! Read Less

Cabin - was fine plenty of storage - yes bed is not long enough but not terrible for people under 5' 6". Food - food in specialty restaurants was good. Service a little slow - seems like not enough servers. Japanese restaurant was my favorite - was fun and the food was very good. Though again it is really dragged out. O'Sheehans -hit or miss - most of the time they did not bring out the right food or brought out some of it and the rest a good 30 minutes later. Service terribly slow on the bar side - not sure what the difference is why it was so slow on that side. The quality of the food was not that great either - but my husband loved the wings so we had to go a few times!! Entertainment - shows were pretty good. Sadly I didn't stay up for most of the entertainment that was after 10pm. Wish some of the dancing things started early. Didn't like where they did the 'entertainment' in the main pool area. If you wanted to watch what was going on you had to stand around the area and it was three deep or more most of the time. Didn't like this layout for that area at all. The Dawn and the Breakaway were much better for this type of entertainment. Embarking - confusing when getting off the shuttle - too many others trying to crowd to get on the shuttle back to the AVIS rental - terrible traffic so shuttle to and from Avis was really bad. Person loading luggage on the 'carts' to bring to the ship was an old guy that we didn't trust to ensure the bags got on. We had some that was trying to leave on the shuttle we just got off of try to take one of our bags!! Was such a mess. But once we got into the terminal it was fine - plenty of seats for everyone to wait. disembarking is always a pain - was painful at Port Canaveral since they only had 2 customs people for the over 4000 leaving the ship. Plus the way the lines are mixed into where you have to search for your luggage made it confusing and terribly disorganized. I do not recommend the 11 day cruise for people 16 thru 25. There were very few teens to early 20's on the cruise. There were lots of walkers and scooters and people with canes! Also I just don't recommend the EPIC - too big - not enough seating for everyone - didn't like the pool setups at all in either the main pool area or the H20 pool -terrible ladder to get into the H2O pool and the water was way too warm. Read Less

This was a distinctive cruise with great perks. The entertainment was great! Pricilla, Queen of the Desert was the best production show I have experienced on a cruise and Burn the Floor was very good also. The Circus experience was very unique for a cruise ship as was the bowling. Some staff were great, some trying hard and others, well..... Lorenzo De Leon, Jr. and Novemar Peroja at Shakers were two of the best bartenders I had experienced. The washy/washy ladies were fun as was the cruise entertainment director. The Hotel Director was also engaging. The cabin and lack of sufficient elevators made the cruise less than it should have been. The bathroom, if you could call it that, was awful! Three seperate areas in the room, a frosted glass toilet enclosure, a frosted glass shower enclosure and a tiny sink at the foot of the bad. The room almost ruied our cruise. Read Less

Went on family vacation to celebrate parents anniversary. Group of 12 including 2 teenage kids. Ship is huge, told it was sold to capacity ~4500 +1700 staff Service is decent for the most part. They add extra service $$ charge per person daily depending on your room type. It is supposed to cover tips, but frequently were told that money gets siphoned by NCL (not sure how true that is), so we did give extra tips to some of the staff. Food large buffet type restaurant on top deck, other sit down places that are free as well, and Specialty dining- good luck trying to get a reservation at a decent time with a ship thats sold to capacity....so some of our dining vouchers went to waste. Eating at the buffet more that we really wanted to made it not so enjoyable. When you are on vacation, you would like to sit down for at least dinner. Were able to do that 1/2 the nights due to the crowding on the ship. Entertainment was good, went to see Priscilla queen of the desert- great performance. Saw magic show and comedy that was decent. Also went to Cirque dream 45min show that was quite good, but not sure why we had to pay 45$ pp extra for it??? Guess thats how they drain your on board credit. Amenities- Pools were mostly all tied to water slide, so essentially unusable for adults. OVERALL: Ship is OK, to many people for my liking. Think it would have been much more enjoyable with less people on board...so perhaps dont go over a major holiday? Hearsay, but many people we overheard say boat was way too crowded. Which made getting to shows and dinner a challenge/race every night...something you dont want to have to do on vacation. Would I go again on this cruise- NO. Read Less

Boyfriend’s mom booked cruise barely a week before we set sail. From booking to disembarkation, everything was out of this world! Food was phenomenal, customer service was outstanding! Not a single thing I could complain about and the family agrees! Staff was knowledgeable and friendly. The food was consistently delicious and always different. Never had an issue with too many children although it was kid friendly. They had their own section as did the adults so crossing paths was never overwhelming or distracting. The on board shows were super entertaining and the main attraction cirque de solel precormanxe was insane! Unbelievable talent and poise from the performers with just the right amount of comic relief. Throw in a little audience participation and one of the best prepared meals we had on board and you have a night for success. Needless to say, we are planning next years Norwegian adventure already! Read Less