In July, we boarded the beautiful Norwegian Epic for the inaugural sailing. Touted as “Vegas at Sea”, this ship is definitely worth seeing!
Stepping onto the ship is a little like walking into a trendy boutique hotel. I was impressed that the décor was less glitz and more contemporary retro. Picture a lot of what was popular in the ‘70s with a very hip twist.
We spent the first three hours onboard taking part in a fun scavenger hunt set up for travel agents to get familiar with the ship. We visited several different categories of staterooms, many of the specialty restaurants, the amazing spa, the water park, one of the two bowling alleys onboard and just about every other major “wow” feature on the ship.
While the ship is currently the second largest cruise ship in the world, the experience of walking onboard is somewhat cozy. The ships’ design creates such an intimate feeling within each area or restaurant you encounter, it is easy to forget that the ship is equivalent to three football fields in length.
The room we stayed in was a New Wave balcony stateroom, made to accommodate up to 3 people. While it was certainly a beautiful room, it is the focus of my only concern with the ship: a shower, sink and toilet that are essentially inside the stateroom. Yes, you read that correctly.
As soon as you enter the room, there are two smoky-glassed areas on either side, one is the shower and one is the toilet. Step a few more feet into the room and you’ll reach the bathroom sink right before the closet begins. While there is a privacy curtain you can pull closed to separate the room from these areas, it does not keep out light and sound. There is little opportunity for getting ready in the morning without waking your cabin mates, or even to retain any sense of modesty while you do so.
If I were to go on the Epic again, I would definitely consider one of the Villas – a suite complex that includes a variety of rooms on two private decks at the top of the ship. This area is only accessible by private elevator and has a courtyard with pool, two hot tubs, gym, saunas, sundeck and a restaurant and bar. Guests in this area also get a butler and a concierge to cater to their every need. What a great way to enjoy all the benefits of a large ship with the ability to retreat to the equivalent of a boutique hotel.
If I were traveling solo, I would also consider the Epic for the Studio Complex – an area with 128 “studios” or 100 sq. ft. rooms that don’t require you to pay a single supplement. The rooms are well thought out and could easily accommodate a single traveler (or two who know each other well) for a lengthy stay. As with the Villas, these rooms have private key card access to the Studios Lounge: a private place to meet friends, have coffee and mingle with others.
Even though our cabin wasn’t stellar, the dining options were. With NCL’s freestyle cruising, you can eat when you want and where you want. Although they do have 2 dining rooms, there are also over 20 restaurants with various cuisines to dine in. (Some of these charge a service fee.) We ate in both main dining rooms (The Manhattan Room and Taste), where the food was excellent and the atmosphere was much less dining room and much more upscale restaurant. In addition, we ate at Teppanyaki (Japanese Hibachi), which I think we translated to “delicious”, and the Garden Café (indoor grill), which had a great selection and quality for a buffet.
At night, we were faced with so many choices, it was hard to decide what to do. While a few of the entertainment venues charge a service fee, many do not. We ended up going to Howl at the Moon the first night and having so much fun, we didn’t realize it was 1:30 am until we left. On the second night, we saw Blue Man Group, which is certainly worth the price of admission!
If you are worried about being bored on a cruise ship, think again. The Epic not only has an aqua park onboard, but also the first bowling alley at sea. If these aren’t to your taste, you can take a swing in the batting cage, try your footing on the climbing wall or the climbing cage (called the Spider Web), or maybe do something really wild like sit and read a book by the pool.
Whatever your interests are, if you enjoy cruising, this is a ship to experience. Families and groups would work well and be well entertained, but the Epic would make for a nice honeymoon, too. To learn more about the Epic, visit http://www.epic.ncl.com/. Just be prepared to say, “Wow!”