Norwegian Epic Review

4.5 / 5.0
4,409 reviews

Manage your expectations, and you will have an excellent time!

Review for the Western Mediterranean Cruise on Norwegian Epic
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Thor17
2-5 Cruises • Age 50s

Rating by category

Cabin
Value for Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Entertainment
Fitness & Recreation
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Additional details

Sail Date: Mar 2016
Cabin: Mid-Ship Balcony
The Epic in Cartagena.
Roman ruins in Cartagena.
Seafood buffet.
32 oz porterhouse at Cagney's.
View of Sardinia/Cagliari.
Palermo.
The volcanic island of Stromboli.
Pompeii.
Lobster at Le Bistro.
Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Church in Pisa
The Entertainment.
Pool area of the ship.
Palma de Mallorca
Palma de Mallorca.
The Epic in Palma de Mallorca.
Our last sunset!

Just got off the Epic after departing Barcelona on 16 March (and returning 28 March). I have cruised with Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Holland America, but never on Norwegian. I booked this cruise because of the destinations (Palma Mallorca, Cagliari, Cartagena, Palermo, Naples, Rome, Pisa/Livorno and Barcelona), the incredible price, and the fact that I could get holidays at this time of year.

I was a little worried by the fact that the ship is huge and carries 4000+ passengers, as I thought that the quality of the food and service would suffer, and I was concerned given the mixed reviews that I read leading up to the cruise. However, both of those fears were quickly put to rest after a few hours on the ship.

The service in all areas (bars, restaurants, casino, pool area etc) was exceptional. The staff were friendly, smiley, and were quick to help as required. I was pleasantly surprised at how good the food was (as the extra weight that I put on is evidence of that). We ate at the Buffet restaurant, Irish pub, Noodle bar, Manhattan Room, Cagney's, Moderno and Le Bistro. All of the restaurants were fantastic!

Cabin Review

Mid-Ship Balcony

Cabin BB

The cabin (we had a balcony on 9th floor) was just fine. A little smaller than some other ships we have been on, but for the two of us it was ok as we did not spend too much time in the cabin as there was too much to do on the ship! The bed was super comfy and the shower, toilet and sink problem that people talked about was really not that big of a deal!

It was good that it was a balcony as we enjoyed watching the sunsets, but it was bad that it was a balcony because a lot of people smoked on their balconies, that "blew" onto ours (we are non-smokers).

Port Reviews

Barcelona

A must see. A tad expensive to climb the tower but we really enjoyed it!

Cartagena (Spain)

We walked the city on a self-guided tour. Not a big place, so it worked well. Good for a couple of hours to see some interesting sights.

Sardinia

We just walked the city here as well. It is an easy city to walk and there are a few interesting and historic sights to see.

Palermo (Sicily)

We booked the Free Walking tour and it was quite good. The guide was knowledgeable and we saw the major sights in a few hours.

Naples

This tour was excellent. Guided tour of Pompeii was interesting and we saw all of the major sites quickly. Afterwards we had a winery tour and typical Italian pasta lunch which was incredible. Absolutely loved this experience.

Rome (Civitavecchia)

We had been to Rome already, so we just decided to explore Civitavecchia. A few hours of walking around was sufficient - then back on the ship for afternoon cocktails!

Florence (Livorno)

Did Pisa on our own and climbed the tower. A great and easy city to walk around. We left the ship at 930 am and got back around 2 pm. A very fun day!

Palma de Mallorca (Majorca)

A bike tour is the perfect way of seeing this beautiful city. The bikes were waiting for us just outside the port and we spent the next four hours on a guided tour of various churches etc. Highly recommended!

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