No so Epic Cruise...

[Phaedrus78]

19 hours ago, Vyhanek said:

But a lower price drives a whole different clientele.   A group of customers not typical on other NCL ships.   

 

The price for a 10 day vacation is the primary reason I booked the Epic for my first NCL cruise.  

 

Hopefully I'm good enough to meet those lofty NCL standards should I choose to book a second cruise on a different ship.

[CruisingNole]

4 minutes ago, Phaedrus78 said:

 

The price for a 10 day vacation is the primary reason I booked the Epic for my first NCL cruise.  

 

 

My Epic TA is not going to be my first NCL cruise, but it will be my first on Epic. I have the bar set incredibly low and expect mediocrity all around. But for the price, I've decided that's OK with me. We're paying $1800 for 15 nights (interior) including drink package, associated gratuities, and DSC. Leaving from Florida, stopping at 6 ports before arriving in Barcelona. Find me a ship on any cruise line that 2 people can cruise with drink package and all gratuities paid for $120 total per night (booking prior to final payment). Or even come anywhere near it. I can't, which is why I'm all in for Epic. LOL.

[dd likes to cruise]

“I think you hit on something about why the Epic can compete.   It's the price.    The ONLY way I think the Epic can compete is because of the price.   I think the whole design of the ship is so very inferior they have to lower the price.    But a lower price drives a whole different clientele.   A group of customers not typical on other NCL ships.”

 

I really don’t believe this comment. Having been on her twice, there were many, many repeat NCL customers, including high level NCL customers. If Epic was that much worse than other NCL ships, they would not be Wasting their time and money. It did not feel like the Walmart of cruising as someone else wrote.  Please cruise on her and see for yourselves. 

[GUEST71919]

@vyhanek

 

Ok wow, your commentary is mega insulting. We have cruised in a lot of Havens and this will be our first Epic. You are suggesting that those sailing on the Epic are inferior to other NCL passsengers?!? Wow. It happens that this cruise from a place we wanted and at a time we needed - to suggest we are a pathetic and lesser lot is idiotic.  I would likely lose all privileges here if I typed out what I would really like to say to you. To make a comment like that speaks volumes about you even if you don’t realize it. 

Edited December 20, 2018 by 2Beeze

[dd likes to cruise]

20 minutes ago, 2Beeze said:

@vyhanek

 

Ok wow, your commentary is mega insulting. We have cruised in a lot of Havens and this will be our first Epic. You are suggesting that those sailing on the Epic are inferior to other NCL passsengers?!? Wow. It happens that this cruise from a place we wanted and at a time we needed - to suggest we are a pathetic and lesser lot is idiotic.  I would likely lose all privileges here if I typed out what I would really like to say to you. To make a comment like that speaks volumes about you even if you don’t realize it. 

It was someone else that said the 1st paragraph. Tried to quote it. See quote marks.  I agree with you. Second paragrath is my thoughts.

[GUEST71919]

29 minutes ago, dd likes to cruise said:

It was someone else that said the 1st paragraph. Tried to quote it. See quote marks.  I agree with you. Second paragrath is my thoughts.

I realized that pretty quickly and I edited it immediately to show the author’s user name and not yours. I guess it wasn’t fast enough to keep it from notifying you! Sorry for the brief confusion on that. 🙂

[STARFISH*4]

Just off the Epic last Saturday didn’t care for the ship but the service was fine other than a few wait times at the bars but it wasn’t a deal breaker-running out of Mt Dew at times was.  Lol

i liked when we could bring our own-days of yesteryear!

Our Stewart was just fine never a problem always filled the ice bucket-always attentive with a request for something-extra towels lotion etc

the embarkation was horrible 5 December never gotten on the ship 15 minutes before the muster drill-that was chaotic!

Service in dining room or speciality was just fine 

we were asked many times if there were time issues-show reservations etc.

The two shows-Burn the Floor and Pricilla of the Desert were entertaining-get reservations as soon as you board-don’t miss those!

Missed GSC 2nd time now-always a possibility last time we went to Nassau but Harvest Cay was nice

We heard EPIC is a ship you love or hate and we definitely didn’t love it-good thing there’s only one. Was my first time on one of NCLs bigger ships we do prefer the smaller, but booked JOY in September to Alaska so we will give the bigger ship a chance but NOT the EPIC again.

A cruise on any ship or for that matter a vacation is what you make of it no matter what happens or doesn’t.

Edited December 22, 2018 by STARFISH*4

[MCC retired]

Been cruising Lots a ships  since 1979 Just off first time on the Epic this morning .

I can now understand the love it , hate it opinions .

We found good and bad this cruise .

Entertainment very good .

5 Dining rooms that we tried , very good .

Too many lines for venues without reservations . We felt crowded  At every turn by the # of guests onboard .

Bar service , long waits due to those with the Free drinks.

In cabin tv choices , horrible unless you purchased movies .

Crew very good and challenged by the number of guests onboard.

Garden buffets , Luke warm hot items , every breakfast/lunch.

Ship layout poorly designed ,such as funneling guests thru an always Smokey casino ,one main pool ? 

All said and done , Epic never again for us . 

 

 

 

[20165]

Definitely some interesting responses to this post and i do agree with some of the comments that people tend to post more negative review than positive, but thats for a reason. I never expect perfection from a cruise, but we've been cruising long enough to know what to expect and have and idea of what the baseline service should be which the Epic failed in most areas.  That being said, even through this was a less expensive cruise, we still spent well over $8k for the 2 balcony cabins, air,  on board account charges,  pre hotel, etc and felt that we did not get our moneys worth and thats why i think you get more negative reviews vs. positive.  $8k isn't a trivial amount of money. If you were to purchase a new car and it was a lemon, would you go out and purchase the same car or even purchase from the same car company?  And you would probably tell other people what a bad car it is.  Same concept here...

[fabnfortysomething]

we've been on Epic 3 times-mainly for itinerary

last cruise was TA Florida to Barcelona-would love to repeat

the layout is odd and still cant figure forward to aft on public areas-better signage needed!

 

as Platinum plus we took advantage of dine with officer who happened to be human resources manager

interesting conversation that she relayed her being told by ships engineer that Epic is very stable in rough seas-very surprising given its top heavy appearance  

[GUEST71919]

4 hours ago, 20165 said:

Definitely some interesting responses to this post and i do agree with some of the comments that people tend to post more negative review than positive, but thats for a reason. I never expect perfection from a cruise, but we've been cruising long enough to know what to expect and have and idea of what the baseline service should be which the Epic failed in most areas.  That being said, even through this was a less expensive cruise, we still spent well over $8k for the 2 balcony cabins, air,  on board account charges,  pre hotel, etc and felt that we did not get our moneys worth and thats why i think you get more negative reviews vs. positive.  $8k isn't a trivial amount of money. If you were to purchase a new car and it was a lemon, would you go out and purchase the same car or even purchase from the same car company?  And you would probably tell other people what a bad car it is.  Same concept here...

 Certainly both things can be true, you are more likely to get negative comments than positive ones anywhere (the positive end is going about their business on whatever issue is at hand). But then it can also be the ship/experience is low on the value scale. Both can be true and may be true. It's a little like we say in my line of work, a hypochondriac can have a genuine illness!

[JP4GA]

We were on the Epic for 7 days and could not wait to get off.  By far the worst cruise we have ever taken.  We have cruised NCL in the past and hope to cruise with them again, but we want to be sure the issues we ran into were only a ship issue and not a change in NCL management or customer service. 

 

We went to customer service to talk with them about issues and they dismissed us and said the hotel director would be in touch.  We got off the ship on Saturday and NEVER heard from them.  I will be writing a review soon, but am contacting NCL first to try to get some answers as to why the service was so bad, and why we were dismissed when going to customer service.  We normally do not complain and make the best of things, but with this trip every time something nice happened something unacceptable followed.  It was one big mess up after another. 

 

Our trip was Saturday December 22 - Saturday December 29.  

[totalee]

I got off the epic on the 15th In addition to the service issues when I arrived home I discovered that I had been billed for a gratuity on top of the previous bill which had a gratutuity added for spa services. So I paid and 18% gratuity on the original bill of $90 then the added another 18% on top of the $116  for a total of charge of 1

$138 for a service that I was supposed receive a 30% platinum discount on.  I called 2 weeks ago they said they would call me back and I still have not heard from them. I had a billing issue in the past and they solved it and credited my money back within a day.

     I think they have just written off everyone not in the haven or who does not want to pay an extra $300 to receive a decent level of service. It is pretty obvious NCL doesn't want cruisers who expect decent service as part of the base fare.   If other folks had such  great service We have to wonder why they picked out a few of us to receive horrible service.  

[Pattakins]

On 11/25/2018 at 7:07 AM, 20165 said:

We were on the Epic western Caribbean cruise last week

Im happy to answer any questions and would like to hear from someone else on Epic last week to hear their experience.

I'm sorry you had such a bad time. The first time Hubby and I cruised on Norwegian, we didn't know about the reservation system, so we never got to see any shows, nor did we get to use all of our specialty dining, because what was left was not compatible with our other schedules. We still had fun though...and have booked a cruise on Norwegian every year since. However, this will be our first time on the Epic. We love the parties they hold in Spice H2O, so I'm wondering if you could answer a question for me. Did they hold the 80's dance party on the Epic, and if so, on what night was it? We don't want to miss it, so we want to make sure we don't book anything else that will conflict with that party. It also takes us a long time to get ready for it (we go in full regalia), so nothing can be booked for hours before hand. By the way, we are on the same cruise, so the days should be the same. Thank you.

[GUEST71919]

1 hour ago, Pattakins said:

I'm sorry you had such a bad time. The first time Hubby and I cruised on Norwegian, we didn't know about the reservation system, so we never got to see any shows, nor did we get to use all of our specialty dining, because what was left was not compatible with our other schedules. We still had fun though...and have booked a cruise on Norwegian every year since. However, this will be our first time on the Epic. We love the parties they hold in Spice H2O, so I'm wondering if you could answer a question for me. Did they hold the 80's dance party on the Epic, and if so, on what night was it? We don't want to miss it, so we want to make sure we don't book anything else that will conflict with that party. It also takes us a long time to get ready for it (we go in full regalia), so nothing can be booked for hours before hand. By the way, we are on the same cruise, so the days should be the same. Thank you.

Hi - which date are you sailing? I can help some of it’s 1/23rd 10 day.

[Barb Nahoumi]

On 11/25/2018 at 10:25 AM, Itchy&Scratchy said:

that's why we bring an ipad for the kiddo (he is 7) into MDR. Once he is done eating, he is on the pad, while we roll our eyes at the excruciatingly slow service. It was way over 2 hours on Jade to get a full meal served. Pretty ridiculous, I must say.

 

We also had the very first bad cabin attendant on NCL. This was our first NCL cruise. She also left us 2 towels for 3 people and it took forever to get another towel! And lotion. And body wash...  My mom's cabin attendant was great, though.

At least your cruise ship didn't break down on day 3 and had to evacuate everybody. So, yay!

When the service carts are in the corridors, just grab an extra towel or two.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

1 hour ago, Barb Nahoumi said:

When the service carts are in the corridors, just grab an extra towel or two.

there weren't ANY carts in the hallway that night, and we really needed a shower after a long day of traveling... believe me, if there were any carts with towels, I wouldn't have had this problem. :)

Our cabin attendant on Getaway last week was a lot better, but, once again, mom's attendant was superb. 

[Jerseygich]

On 11/26/2018 at 3:00 PM, Abm234b said:

Sailing the EPIC in March. We're nervous!

Sailed on EPIC last March and was a little concerned after reading the reviews and comments. There were complaints about the room setup, specifically the bathroom, but it was fine. Elevator waits were not bad. Dinner never took longer than an hour, maybe because we had 5:30 seating. Pool bars were a little crowded but never had to wait overly long to get drinks. I was worried for no reason.

 

[Abm234b]

3 hours ago, Jerseygich said:

Sailed on EPIC last March and was a little concerned after reading the reviews and comments. There were complaints about the room setup, specifically the bathroom, but it was fine. Elevator waits were not bad. Dinner never took longer than an hour, maybe because we had 5:30 seating. Pool bars were a little crowded but never had to wait overly long to get drinks. I was worried for no reason.

 

Really reassuring to hear this news! Thanks for sharing!

[Hap]

On 11/26/2018 at 3:00 PM, Abm234b said:

Sailing the EPIC in March. We're nervous!

So are we. These Epic reviews are making me wish we stayed with RCCL and Celebrity. We last sailed NCL in 1996 and left them for some of the same reasons here. I thought we would give them another try. I guess we can just cross our fingers and hope for the best.

[SeaTheW0rld]

7 minutes ago, Hap said:

So are we. These Epic reviews are making me wish we stayed with RCCL and Celebrity. We last sailed NCL in 1996 and left them for some of the same reasons here. I thought we would give them another try. I guess we can just cross our fingers and hope for the best.

Even with all my "observations", I'm still on a cruise. I just won't use NCL again. Live and learn. 

Edited January 30, 2019 by SeaTheW0rld
Autoc

[Seany527]

On 11/26/2018 at 3:00 PM, Abm234b said:

Sailing the EPIC in March. We're nervous!

I wouldn't be nervous. I'm sure you will have a great time.  

 

I will say though, I was on the Epic in January and it was by far the worse cruise I have ever been on, as far as service is concerned.  

Even with dinner reservations, lines at both the specialty and main dining room had standing in line wait times of 15 minutes. I would say the average dinner time was 90 minutes, with some as fast as an hour and others up to 2 hours. 

20+ mins to get a drink (usually during the day or when the ship was leaving port).

The staff around the ship were by far the rudest of any ship I have ever sailed and would compare the service to that of a one star hotel on land. 

Freestyle daily said one activity but when you arrived the staff were apologizing for the misprint or the unexpected cancelation.  

 

I did have a great cruise and if I had to do it again, I would book private excursions and beat to my own drum, avoiding any NCL activity at all costs.  It's worth noting, the Epic just got a new cruise director on the 1/10 sailing so maybe things will turn around for the ship. 🙂 

 

[totalee]

 If you are willing to spend teh extra bucks to stay in the haven, eat specialty every night, pay to see the cirque show,  Epic is OK  from what I have heard. However if you expect the level of service that most cruisers get with a basic fare you will not find that on the Epic.  I had fun on all 3 of my Epic Cruises. However the December cruise I definatly felt like a second class cruiser. I have also had an issue with a $12 charge added to my bill sometime the last morning of the cruise NCL said they would look into it and thay have not returned my calls which they said they would. In the past any issues with billing or ships service were resolved promptly with a letter to the hotel manager or a call to NCL the next day.e  My Epic cruise in Dec nothing was fixed and I have been totaly ignored. I have some cruise next credits that I will probably sell. Yes I had 12 great cruises on NCL and one so so, but my Epic Journey made me realiize that NCL doesn't give one hoot about keeping me as a customer.

 

[SeaTheW0rld]

On 12/19/2018 at 3:21 PM, Vyhanek said:

...

 

I think you hit on something about why the Epic can compete.   It's the price.    The ONLY way I think the Epic can compete is because of the price.   I think the whole design of the ship is so very inferior they have to lower the price.    But a lower price drives a whole different clientele.   A group of customers not typical on other NCL ships.   

Hey! I resemble that remark 😜

[SeaTheW0rld]

At dinner, I was usually in and out in about an hour. 3 to 5 courses. I generally went around 615p.