Norwegian Epic Review

4.5 / 5.0
4,412 reviews

Great trip

Review for the Western Mediterranean Cruise on Norwegian Epic
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10+ Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Aug 2017
Cabin: Mini-Suite with Balcony

I was a little concerned as I had read some less than flattering reviews, but I needn't have worried. We travelled to Barcelona and after a couple of nights in a hotel we joined the ship. We were in 2 parties of 2. My husband & I had a mini-suite & our friends had an assisted (disabled) inside stateroom. She was assisted onboard by a lovely guy Alfredo, who also worked in the Whisky bar. The ship is HUGE. We have travelled on many ships including the Anthem of the Seas which is slightly larger, but the Epic felt much bigger.

I am usually pretty quick to have a look around, but this time (partly due to the health of 2 of my fellow travellers) I was much more relaxed about things. I didn't get to see the gym or spa, ice-room, library or games room. In a week and especially with an itinery which included only one full day at sea I did quite well to enjoy the rest of the ship. There is an adults only sunbathing area with a small dip pool & 2 hot-tubs. There is a bar and a screen which showed movies in the evening (though it was difficult to hear) but also showed pictures of exotic locations such as the Bahamas with little boats bobbing on the water, which was relaxing and pretty to watch!

We only ate in the inclusive dining, so Manhattan, Taste, O'Sheehans (for breakfast) & the Garden room (unusual for us but as previously mentioned due to ill health one of the party didn't have much of an appetite). I am pescatarian so the choice in the dining room was a little restricted for me but the Garden Café always catered well with lots of huge prawns!

Cabin Review

Mini-Suite with Balcony

Cabin MX

We chose a guaranteed mini suite as our travel agent asked why would we want to pay more just so we could choose one? I then saw someone had put a comment about the balcony's on Deck 8 being right above the lifeboats & that they couldn't see the sea. Rubbish! Yes the life boats are on the deck below but unless you normally hang over the side to look straight down into the water, you have a perfectly good view just sitting looking out. The balcony was covered which was a bonus when it was so hot. In the inaugral year we went on the P&O Ventura and the balcony wasn't covered, so it was hot & all the other balcony's looked down on each other, so zero privacy.

The bathroom facilities as well documented are unique. However I quite liked having a seperate loo & a big shower. Lock the room door if you don't want the steward walking in, simple. There is a curtain you can pull across to offer more privacy from the rest of the room, and I found that this gave lots of space to dry & dress, much more than if it was the usual combined bathroom. Only slight niggle was the small washbasin which is in the bedroom, but this didn't cause a major problem & certainly didn't flood the carpet as some would have you believe. Tons of storage. The room is fairly narrow but we didn't find it an issue as having so much storage compensated for the slight lack of floor space. You are given all your water allowance at the beginning, so we had 14 litres of water to store. Not a problem as loads of cupboard space. Just decanted them into the fridge as required.Bed was comfortable and not as short as some would have you believe. I'm 5'8'' & my husband almost 6' and neither of us had our feet sticking out over the end of the bed! Cabin steward was very good, unobtrusive but helpful. I didn't bother ironing clothes before I travelled as they always end up creased, I just rang house-keeping & and asked for an iron & board, hung it all up (lots of wardrobe space) and the job was done.

Port Reviews

Rome (Civitavecchia)

We had a wander around the coast. Much nicer than I expected. Lots of places to eat and a nice beach.

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