We chose this cruise because it had NCL's private island (Great Stirrup Cay) as a port. This was are 3rd time on the EPIC (we have cruised with NCL 25 times) We knew to expect a lot of people and wait times but this time it was ridiculous. My son and his new wife were along with us also. We both had the Beverage and Dining package. We made our dining and show reservations prior to the cruise hoping to avoid some of the hassle. On the 6th night of the cruise my son had dining reservations for 9pm at Moderno. (these were made 3 weeks prior) He and his new wife dressed for the occasion and headed to the restaurant. Once there , they were told that they did not have a reservation. In fact the lady at the desk was pretty rude about it. My son explained to her that the reservation had been made online. She said "well I don't have it!" My son said he felt that the staff thought he was lying to them. After a little more hassle and making my sons wife cry they final put them at a back table in the restaurant that was basically empty to begin with. It turned out to be quite a horrible experience for them.

I don't know what has changed but usually NCL service is top drawer- hopefully this is not the direction their service standard is going to.

The other issue we experienced was with the Shanghai restaurant. They tell you reservations are recommended. We found that out the first night we tried to get in so we made reservations for the following night for 5:45. We arrived at the restaurant at 5:20 and had to get in a LONG line. By the time we got thru the line to the hostess desk our reservation had been given away because NCL only gives you a "15" min window. Read more