Norwegian Epic Review
Rating by category
Additional details
Background Information
I live in the Middle East, and my family lives in South Florida. About a year ago (April 2011), I remembered how much I enjoy cruises, and I decided to combine a family visit with an eastbound transatlantic cruise, thus alleviating jet lag on the return. I originally booked on Royal Caribbean's Liberty of the Seas, based on sailing date, ship features, and price. However, when my father decided to join me, I saw that the prices for the Liberty had jumped significantly. A little bit of searching turned up the Norwegian Epic at better rates, albeit giving up a few days of cruising and a few ports of call.
I enjoy sitting and watching -- the sea, the sun, the sky, people passing by -- for hours, even days, at a time, so it was perfectly OK for me to have 10 days at sea and only one port of call.
Cabin Review
Balcony
My spacious (for one) balcony was so pleasant that I thoroughly enjoyed spending all of Days 9 and 10 in it due to a cold. I chose a stateroom with the bed closer to the balcony door. The ship has incorporated a pioneering method to maximize the overall use of space: mirrored room designs with curved walls, so that half of all balcony cabins have the bed close to the balcony door. The bed is closer to the sink, bathroom, and shower in the other half. Even if I had a room with the bed closer to the sink, I don't think it would have made much difference, as I had no issue with water splashing or spilling. Nonetheless, it was nice to sleep right next to the balcony doors, which happens to be quite similar to my home situation.
There was plenty of storage, again for one, even on an 11-night cruise, and lighting and other furnishings were well laid-out. Hint: You can turn off the display on the phone, which otherwise serves as a sort of night light.
The shower was more than roomy enough for one. The bathroom was fine for me (5' 8", 200 lbs), but larger persons could find it tight.
All of the materials in the room appeared to be of high quality and durable.