Quick thoughts on 12/31 Epic sailing

[Chigirlcruzin]

This was my 15th cruise, 2nd on Epic. I'm a 35 year old single woman that travels overseas frequently for business. Overall I had a great time, but I don't know if I will sail at this time of year again.

 

NYE on the ship was great, but I expected more hoopla...things like ice sculptures, buffets, etc. There were parties all over the ship, and overall, it was a great time. I was impressed with the number of people dressed to the nines.

 

For the second time, I was in a studio cabin. When I sailed in April, Natalie led the nightly happy hours in the lounge. Natalie is on a different ship now, and I (and other repeat solos) really missed her. The atmosphere just wasn't there. Natalie made us all want to get to know each other, and she was really involved. Sol seemed like she was phoning it in (though she did get me a cake for my bday, which was very nice).

 

The ship had 4700 pax. In April, it was only 4000. The difference was very noticeable. It was difficult to get specialty reservations, chair hogs were out in full force. There were tons of kids on board, but they were well behaved. There were just too many people on board. I expected a more crowded ship, but I didn't think it would be this noticeable.

[Chigirlcruzin]

I skipped Blue Man Group and Cirque Dreams as I saw both on my last Epic cruise. I saw Legends with Steven Tyler, Lady Gaga, and Elvis. It was fantastic! Steven Tyler and Lady Gaga were fantastic. Elvis was good, but he looked scared while performing. Second City was hilarious, and I loved Slam Allen in Fat Cats and Scott at Maltings.

 

The food was noticeably better than in April, in the specialty restaurants, buffet, and MDRs. I ate at Cagney's, Moderno, and Le Bistro. I would do all again. I was really impressed with the food in Taste and Manhattan; much improved since April.

 

Posh was not available on this cruise...they said they hadn't been selling the passes the past several cruises. Not sure if it's permanent or just because the ship had so many pax.

 

All in all, great cruise. My complaints stem from too many people on board, so I will cruise at a different time going forward.

[NengEuis]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Glad to hear the food has improved since your sailing in April. :)

[Chigirlcruzin]

For all you sports lovers, they had the major bowl games playing on the big screens in the atrium and at Spice H2O. Nothing cooler than watching your team at sailaway on a lounge chair on deck with a Rebellious Fish :)