Norwegian Epic Review
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Additional details
Had a cruise credit expiring in December so I took this cruise - for reference, it was my first cruise since 2019 and first on the Epic. I'm NCL Silver status have taken about 3 to 4 cruises so not too experienced but have taken NCL every time. This was my least favorite cruise. The day of embarkation - it was raining heavily in New York and I heard from the staff that the departure were delayed due to 900 passengers whose flight was delayed. The result was that the next two days - sea days - the ship was accelerating through rough seas which was not pleasant for those who had sea sickness.
However, the main issue was that over half the staffs were trainees on their first cruise - I heard that they were then rotating to the new Prima ships afterwards. The issue however was that the ship had over 4K passengers and not enough trained staffs.
In the bars this meant that only one server was serving most of the times which resulted in excessive wait times and frayed tempers. Plus on previous cruises the staffs would refuse to serve passengers who had one too many - not here, they kept serving people who were way past intoxicated and I don't think they checked for underage drinkers also - there were several school age people on board. The worst part was when a heavily intoxicated passenger nearly picked a fight with me while I was sitting at the bar - I was stunned but kept my cool (another gentleman in the bar commended my restraint the next day when we were both in the gym) but it was enough to keep me from the ships bars for the remainder of the trip and only have wine in the dining rooms after. I didnt pay for a vacation to end up in a fight or worse with a drunk - it was stunning to me because Im a pacifist at heart and NCL was the last place I expected this. I met several first timers on NCL who said that the all-inclusive drink package was one of the reasons they got on, and in hind-sight I don't think this is a good thing anymore as people seem more prone to extremes after the pandemic. I will state unequivocally that the overwhelming majority of cruisers on this ship were decent people who were polite and happy to converse.
Cabin Review
Mid-Ship Inside
Was in an Inside cabin on 12th floor. Picked 12th floor as I didnt want to be under the gym or pool. No noise complaints The bed was comfortable and there was generous drawer space. I detested the flushing power of the toilet. Literally nothing would be washed away. Plus the toilet, shower and sink were all separate. It would have been inconvenient if someone else was travelling with me.
Port Reviews
St. Maarten
Did the historical tour by bicycle - for reference it was my first bike ride in 25 plus years. The good news is I made it lol and realized how much I missed it - it was great cycling around in St Maarten, the weather was awesome!
St. Thomas
Did the Skyride which is a basically a cable car to the top. The views were great from the top but it was very hot in St Thomas. One downside in this port was that any beaches etc were at least 10 minutes away by a car or taxi. There is a shopping complex at the dock but thats about it along with the skyride.