Regal or NCL Epic

[camper49]

Has anyone cruised on both of these ships and how did they compare?  We cruised on the Epic in February. 

Edited August 21, 2019 by camper49

[Tapi]

Haven’t cruised on either, but I don’t even consider the Epic because of the bathroom design. No privacy

 

 

[MCC retired]

Cruised both .

Regal hands down .

Epic poor layout ,  crowded  (especially bars),  weird cabin bathrooms , 

reservations for shows .

Like Princess and NCL for their different Cruise experiences but not the Epic .

After they built the Epic , NCL , thankfully , broke the mold . 👍

 

 

[Qcruise]

Apples and Oranges here IMO......the Epic is geared way more for families with children......personally I don't go on a cruise anymore to climb rock walls,  ice scate,  ride go carts,  waterparks......until we have grandchildren I'll take a Princess cruise.....it depends on what you need in your cruise.

[modes]

Hands down Regal.

[Griller]

Been on both ships a few times, if you like great entertainment then Epic has great shows and if you like a varied diet then Epic has many restaurants of different types with great food, and the  Epic MDR food is at least as good as Regal these days.

If you want the drinks package then Epic can be much cheaper than Regal if you get the right deal and the bartenders are exceptionally generous unlike Princess ones. 

If you want a quieter time then Regal wins hands down. Epic is very energetic. You might need a vacation after the cruise to calm down and get some rest.

[PurpleHays]

I hated the Epic layout, but enjoyed the activities. The food was good (in my opinion, but I was getting over food poisoning). The circus dinner was amazing (rude fellow passengers excepted). The ice bar was an interesting experience. They had those "wave" cabins with weird curved couches and useless closet/drawer space.  Again, horrible ship layout, decent food and entertainment. I haven't been on another NCL since then.

Regal is typical Princess in terms of amenities.

[SargassoPirate]

1 hour ago, PurpleHays said:

I hated the Epic layout, but enjoyed the activities. The food was good (in my opinion, but I was getting over food poisoning). The circus dinner was amazing (rude fellow passengers excepted). The ice bar was an interesting experience. They had those "wave" cabins with weird curved couches and useless closet/drawer space.  Again, horrible ship layout, decent food and entertainment. I haven't been on another NCL since then.

Regal is typical Princess in terms of amenities.

 

We were unfortunate enough to spend 7 nights on the prison ship Epic Mistake. The only time in over 40 cruises that we wanted to jump ship halfway through the cruise. People who designed the Wave cabins should be forced to cruise in them for 30 days.  Also no promenade, indifferent servers in the MDR, smoky casino right in the middle of the ship that spread smoke into the MDR.

 

Other than that, it was a great cruise.🤪🤪🤪

 

[PurpleHays]

22 minutes ago, SargassoPirate said:

 

We were unfortunate enough to spend 7 nights on the prison ship Epic Mistake. The only time in over 40 cruises that we wanted to jump ship halfway through the cruise. People who designed the Wave cabins should be forced to cruise in them for 30 days.  Also no promenade, indifferent servers in the MDR, smoky casino right in the middle of the ship that spread smoke into the MDR.

 

Other than that, it was a great cruise.🤪🤪🤪

 

I forgot to mention the smoky smelly casino open to most of the middle of the ship. Nasty.

[HOTROD1]

Everyone has their own preference.  We have sailed on both.  I thought Epic was very organized and easy to get embark and disembark.  We traveled at holiday times so lots of kids.  There were 13 of us and the kids had a great time.  We've only been  on 7 cruises.  By far Epic had the BEST entertainment.  Cirque du soleil type performance, blue man group, 2 comedians and I even went rock climbing.  

 

If you choose BOOK the shows and specialty restaurants BEFORE as soon as you can.  We had to due to our large group size. I heard  folks getting on board the first day asking about going to the shows and were told the shows were sold out.   Good luck and have fun which ever you choose.

 

[ScottStacey]

Regal hands down - one of our favorite ships so far - we gave NCL another try this past november and pretty well done with NCL in general - ship was beautiful but everything else didn't compare to the 4 other lines we like.   first sailed in NCL in 1989 - and 2 times after that before trying other lines and gave them one last shot because the transatlantic was ports we wanted for the price . . so sad

Go Regal and love it

[nini]

We have only cruised 8  times and the Regal is our favorite ship! Lovely design and great service. 

We love it so much that we have  booked her again for next year.

[AAAAmerican]

Regal Princess.

 

FYI: On NCL ( The Nickle and Dime Line) once aboard they even charge you Tax and Tips on the so called FREE stuff.

 

 

[Ron the Rev]

Epic thumbs down ! NCL with their "Free" drinks package has become a booze cruise line, very rowdy and as others have said funny cabins We will not sail NCL again. We have not sailed the Regal, prefering the Princess Grand class of ships.

[MixerDave]

12 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

 

We were unfortunate enough to spend 7 nights on the prison ship Epic Mistake. The only time in over 40 cruises that we wanted to jump ship halfway through the cruise. People who designed the Wave cabins should be forced to cruise in them for 30 days.  Also no promenade, indifferent servers in the MDR, smoky casino right in the middle of the ship that spread smoke into the MDR.

 

Other than that, it was a great cruise.🤪🤪🤪

 

 

You considered jumping ship in the middle of the cruise?  My wife and 3 friends were booked in a "family balcony".  3 of the women wanted to jump ship before sailing.  

[Lady Arwen]

I would sail on any Princess ship before I would sail on Epic again.  We also tried Breakaway.  Both were awful and never, ever again on NCL.  Royal and Regal are really nice ships and we are booked on newest sister ship, Enchanted Princess for 2021.

[SargassoPirate]

1 hour ago, MixerDave said:

 

You considered jumping ship in the middle of the cruise?  My wife and 3 friends were booked in a "family balcony".  3 of the women wanted to jump ship before sailing.  

 

Wish we had thought of that. We learned to navigate without going through the casino, but there was no getting around that poor cabin design.  The headboard of the bed 2 feet from the frosted glass-enclosed toilet?  Who thought that was a good idea?

 

Yep, life on the Epic Mistake.

[Ombud]

14 hours ago, HOTROD1 said:

If you choose BOOK the shows and specialty restaurants BEFORE as soon as you can.  We had to due to our large group size. I heard  folks getting on board the first day asking about going to the shows and were told the shows were sold out. 

Can you elaborate? Aren't the shows included with all cruises? Is it pre-assigned seating only like on land? If I can't get the shows on NCL, I won't bother looking at them

Edited August 26, 2019 by Ombud

[Lady Arwen]

1 hour ago, Ombud said:

Can you elaborate? Aren't the shows included with all cruises? Is it pre-assigned seating only like on land? If I can't get the shows on NCL, I won't bother looking at them

Prebooked reservations are a must.  You can do this online before your cruise.  If you do not do this, you will most likely not get to see that show.   Another thing I hate about NCL!

[MCC retired]

15 hours ago, PurpleHays said:

I forgot to mention the smoky smelly casino open to most of the middle of the ship. Nasty.

The placement of the casino on the Epic , contaminates the entire deck and your clothing just passing thru ,with that smoke smell 

Edited August 26, 2019 by MCC retired

[Ombud]

30 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

Prebooked reservations are a must.  You can do this online before your cruise.  If you do not do this, you will most likely not get to see that show.   Another thing I hate about NCL!

😳

I can't, I just can't. Sometimes I can't decide to go or not until dinner time and I have NO intention of stressing over what's supposed to be relaxing

Edited August 26, 2019 by Ombud

[MixerDave]

2 hours ago, Ombud said:

Can you elaborate? Aren't the shows included with all cruises? Is it pre-assigned seating only like on land? If I can't get the shows on NCL, I won't bother looking at them

 

My wife was on Epic - the Blues Brothers show as well as Cirq de soleil were an additional charge.,