Background: I'm a college student who traveled with my older siblings and parents aboard the Jan 1st sailing of the Norwegian Epic. This was my 11th cruise, most of which have been with Norwegian, although I have been on the occasional Royal Caribbean and Princess. I assume most people who write reviews are quite a bit older, so here's to hoping this offers a different perspective.

After poring over reviews on the new Epic, I was slightly skeptical but knew that a cruise is what you make it, and thus I warned my family to go into it optimistically and open to change. And boy, was there change! The Epic departs from the typical NCL ship in both good and bad ways.

I found the general layout of the ship to be satisfactory, with the main action centered on decks 5-7. We definitely lamented the lack of a true atrium. The Epic's is basically just a two-story high TV screen (which shows inaudible movies, picturesque scenes, and football games - a godsend for the men in my family) with some scattered seating. There's also a coffee bar right there which is very reasonably priced...if you have 15 minutes to wait. Read more