This was my first cruise, so I have nothing to compare it to, but I’ve found the reviews here so helpful I wanted to chime in as well. After making a reservation on a 7 day Western Caribbean cruise on the Epic from Port Canaveral, I checked the reviews and was worried it would be an utter disaster. It wasn’t, but the ship was sailing at full capacity (4,600?) and patience was the name of the game. I live in a city, so I’m used to it, but it was crowded. I think having a party of two (honeymoon!) was advantageous. We got seated faster, could slip around crowds faster, not get separated easily, etc. We didn’t take the elevator once (had to burn those unlimited beverage package calories somehow), showed up early to things to get a seat, and reserved the Manhattan Room and Taste (the free restaurants, which were great) long before the cruise. I only ran into great ship staff, but also, I was pleasant to them. I saw a lot of people being unpleasant, which might contribute to less stellar service.
We had an inside state room. I thought the room was nice, but I live in a tiny rowhome, so maybe I have low standards. It was big enough for the two of us, great storage, and it was nice not having the sun wake us up in the morning. The toilet/shower situation wasn’t terrible since it was my husband and I, but I can see where that could get awkward (we just would make the other watch television loudly when we had to go, lol).
Maybe it’s common, but I find it worth noting there’s a gym (with classes at an extra charge), a game room (I learned I suck at checkers), a daily “newspaper” with a schedule (very helpful), and espresso drinks are not included in the unlimited beverage package. When off the ship, we were advised to carry driver's license and the ship card and had no problems. We did NCL excursions since I was nervous about going at it alone and being left behind. There was also a lot of waiting, then rushing, in what we did (bike/snorkel in Grand Cayman and tube/beach in Jamaica), but ultimately they were fun experiences and it was nice not being anxious about being left behind. I wish I had brought cash to tip guides.
A lot of great storage room. We put the luggage in the closet, but it would have easily gone underneath the bed if needed.
Crowded.
We were at a different port than expected and got a little lost. Our fault though.
Beautiful water, great snorkeling.