First NCL cruise for RCCL fans

[danglish]

We've just booked our first cruise with NCL, saling on the Epic from Barcelona this October for a week. It will be a multi generational cruise, ranging from my 84 year old Grandmother to my 2 year old daughter.

 

We've all cruised RC several times and love it but the Epic schedule and price was just to perfect to ignore. I'm actually quite excited about trying a different cruise line and these boards are as always a great source of information but my mum is still a bit skeptical so I'd love to start working on managing her expectations, what things are we going to miss compared to RC and conversely, what does NCL do better?

 

The more she knows in advance, the less she'll moan on board, or at least I hope so anyway ;)

 

We always do My Time dining on RC anyway so aren't used to fixed dining times.

[getupgo]

I don't know about Epic but I was shocked the first time I saw the buffet on Dawn that there were no food islands but cafeteria style where you stand in line. I'm used to it now but still don't like it.

Edited August 25, 2014 by getupgo

[bonniboo1]

I have sailed R I 3 Times and NCL 4 times including 2 European Cruises. While I thoroughly enjoyed Royal C I am more comfortable with NCL.

 

The entertainment on Ncl is wonderful in my opinion. The crew is generally very nice. I always pay extra for a few dinners in the Speciality Restaurants. I enjoy the main dining rooms however I enjoy the quieter atmosphere of the Specialities. The buffets are very good however I generally don't go, again I prefer to be served.there are a lot of small free eateries and places to get coffee. Check ahead of time so you know.

 

Join your roll call. That's the best way to get info. Are you going to spend a day or two in Barcelona? It's a fantastic city.

 

There is no free ice skating on NCL, but plenty to do. Again, most of the entertainment is top notch. Get there a little early.

 

Have a wonderful time.

 

Bonni

[bonniboo1]

What type of cabins are you booked in ?

[nbsjcruiser]

I posted this on another thread yesterday where the OP asked a similar question.

 

Like you, we're big RCI fans and you can tell by my sig I've got a few more booked. We did sail on the Pearl a few years ago and were quite happy and impressed and we've got the Sky booked for this fall. On the Pearl, food was good, service was excellent and in fact I think it was a bit better than RCI. They have the anytime dining concept down to a science and their specialty restaurants are as good as anything you'll see on RCI. Also, the ship is well maintained and you'll feel like you're on an RCI ship in truth. They do a great job at sailaway with the BBQ, they have great shows and headliner shows. In short, if you told me I could pick any line to cruise on except RCI it would be NCL, hands down.

 

You'll enjoy NCL.

[Zhane's mum]

We have sailed both lines in Europe and although we favour NCL it's a very close call for us. As you already do my time dining I would say you will find more similarities than differences.

[Zhane's mum]

How old are the children you are travelling with? My children who are now 15 & 11 prefer The Epic for the kids clubs and the water slides

[Veslefrikk]

My wife and myself have tried NCL one time before, and RCI five times. Honestly, we prefer RCI but the difference is very small, and I am sure your mother will have a good cruise! We are soon leaving for a NCL cruise again. For us the destinations are most important. Most of the ships have good service and standard.

[PokerDave]

As you can see from my signature I am about to go on my 7th NCL cruise in a row. I do this primarily because I like to drink/gamble and NCL gives me a "free" room and free drinks for being willing to lose the price of those and probably a little more in the casino on average. I figure that's better than paying for a room and drinks and also losing in the casino on the other lines... :D

 

I've also read a million reviews of NCL ships/cruises. Were you to have a cruise you felt went poorly on NCL the very common themes I see from people moving to NCL from RCCL, Princess, Holland, etc, are:

 

1 - Food/Service in main dining room not up to par. I think the main dining room experience on ALL the non-luxury cruise lines isn't what it was 20 years ago. In particular on NCL I think when you have 5 or more specialty restaurants to chose from when someone has a slow, cold over/under cooked meal or poor service in the main/free dining room then they immediately gravitate to "they are trying to push you into the fee restaurants"! There may be a tiny ring of truth to that but I've mostly had great meals in the main dining room. When you serve 2,000 people dinner not everyone gets fantastic service and perfect food.

 

2 - I didn't like the Freestyle dining thing. This is primarily people with either large parties or who choose the busiest times to try to eat in the main dining room. When they get hammered there are usually people lining up to get in and they give you a "buzzer". Of perhaps 20 times in the main dining room I think I've gotten buzzers twice and only waited a few minutes each time. I have certainly read reviews where people said they waited 45 minutes but I have never experience that myself.

 

Those are probably the two I hear most. So what would I suggest to help with those?

 

1 - Eat a few times in the specialty restaurants. They cost a little but are well worth it in my opinion. For me Le Bistro is my favorite, followed by Moderno. Cagney's is always great, Teppanyaki is fun if not much different than doing a Benihana at home, The Asian restaurant is always good and never crowded. We usually make a Teppanyaki reservation immediately on getting on the ship (tables are limited and this always sells out first) and probably Le Bistro too. Then we wing it other nights and look at the menu in the main dining room and go from there.

 

2 - Don't show up with a sizable group to the main dining room between 6:30 and 7:00 and expect to waltz right in. Also if you go to the early show and leave that and head to the dining room you won't be the only people doing that...

 

For my wife and I personally we LOVE NCL for reasons others might not. It's much more casual. There are no real Formal nights. I haven't brought the tux in many cruises. I truly enjoyed some of my earlier cruising with set dining times and formal nights but now for us it's "been there, done that" and I really enjoy not having to do that any more. I'm not a social butterfly so we like not having a set dining time with another group. Some love to cruise to meet people and make new friends, but that's not me. You certainly CAN on NCL and you can request shared tables, etc, but you don't have to which works for us.

 

On the Epic in particular, if you are in a balcony room, read up on the bathroom situation. Worked VERY well for my wife and I and can be a real issue for some situations/people.

 

Do the circus/dinner show. Don't miss Blue Man group. Lot's of great entertainment options on the Epic.

[danglish]

Thanks all, it is very reassuring, I'm sure we'll enjoying, which I why I lobbied for this option, I just know if my mum isn't happy it will be my fault!

 

We have a mixture of family inside and balcony cabins. Off to research the bathroom situation.

 

The children in our group are all under 5, so not too demanding.

 

We'll definitely be trying Teppenyaki, my husband And I were in Japan a few years ago and love this style of cooking, thanks for the tip about booking in advance. We'll probably do another of the speciality restaurants on another night and stick to the main restaurants the rest of the time.

 

Our group tends to do our own thing during the day but enjoy meeting for dinner so we will be conscious of the challenges of turning up in a big group. Can you make reservations for the main dining room?

[PokerDave]

Can you make reservations for the main dining room?

 

I'll let someone else confirm but I seem to remember someone who had a bad experience the first day speaking with the Maitre D and getting agreement on a 7pm table for 10 every night or something and it went more smoothly after that.

 

Anyone else have experience here?

[Cruise_More_Often]

We've cruised on both lines multiple times. We've had great experiences on RCI, but our favorite line is NCL. Entertainment on NCL is terrific throughout the ships, the ships' staffs are friendlier and we've enjoyed cruising with the type of people who choose NCL.

[fshagan]

The MDR differences usually cited are that NCL is slower, with meals taking longer to finish than on other lines. I think that's because the serving is not "all at the same time" with 450 desserts coming out at about the same time.

 

The Epic has two huge negatives for us, but they don't bother other people. And one minor one, for us, that could be major for other people.

 

The "bathroom situation" exists in all cabins, including interior cabins. The toilet and shower are "in the room" next to the door, with curved sliding glass doors that are translucent. The sink is also "in the room". Con: you can see your loved one sitting on the toilet, sort of, and noises are much more noticeable. Smell is not a problem; they have very good ventilation. Pro: the sink "in the room" allows one person to be occupying the toilet station while the other is using the sink. There is a curtain to provide some privacy from the "bathroom in the room" from the rest of the cabin.

 

The other problem is probably not a problem for 80% of the people on a cruise ship. I like to see the water. Deck 7, the traditional deck with a covered outdoor walkway where you can walk and see the ocean, has lifeboats in the way of the view. The lifeboats on the Epic are not nestled above you while you're on this deck, they are positioned outside, blocking the view. Unlike some other ships, this area does not go all the way forward or aft (many ships have a way to walk around the ship, one of our favorite "quiet spots" for walking after dinner). Even on the highest decks, you can't walk around the boat and be outside. But that quibble doesn't matter to the majority of people.

 

The minor problem for us, that may be major for some people, is that the public decks where restaurants and shows are funnel you through the casino. Are you Aft where the Blue Man Group is and want to walk forward to a dining room? When you get midship, you go up a floor into the casino, walk through it, and then go back down a floor. The solution, if you're smoke sensitive, is to go up to one of the decks with cabins, go all the way forward and then down to deck 5. We just walked through the casino, and they do a good job with the ventilation system to make the smoke go away, but others could be more sensitive. One of the MDR is located right below the casino, and should be avoided if you are smoke sensitive (well, not really smoke, but you can smell the smoking above you).

 

Those are the negatives. For us, the bathroom and lack of sea view is the reason we wouldn't choose the Epic again. But the ship does have great staff, the buffet is very nice, the MDR food was certainly as good as on any other NCL ship we've been on, and the entertainment offerings are fantastic (we saw the Blue Man Group three times).

[Cruise_More_Often]

I don't know about Epic but I was shocked the first time I saw the buffet on Dawn that there were no food islands but cafeteria style where you stand in line. I'm used to it now but still don't like it.

All the newer ships, from the Jewel-class forward, have multiple serving stations in the buffet, which is a very good thing.

[fergusonvt]

I've never been on the Epic but we took our first RCI cruise this year on the Independence of the Seas. I think you will find the lines are pretty comparable. Of course you can't beat the ice show on RCI but as far as dining I didn't notice a huge difference. I think you'll have a great time, enjoy!