My husband and I sailed on the Epic September 25, 2010 out of Miami. We were nervous about booking our first cruise online, so we went through a travel agent. Now that we have done it, we know the next time will be easy to do on our own.Getting on and off the ship was simple - could not have been easier. The ship was like a luxury hotel, cabin was spacious and balcony was much larger than we expected. We had coffee and juice delivered by room service every morning and enjoyed it on the balcony. We saw and enjoyed every show offered, and we especially enjoyed the magic act. We didn't even know about it until a box office employee told us it was a must see! We also really enjoyed listening to Bernie Martini, sing and play the piano. There was a husband and wife musical duo Wildfire that played in the atrium and jazz club and Howling at the Moon was fun. There was always something going on. We made some reservations before the cruise, but could and did make others on board. All the staff was really helpful, pleasant and a good source of information. We really spent a lot of time at the spa and highly recommend buying the spa pass. You can enjoy the water and the view of the ocean without getting sunburned.The spa services-massage, facials, shave and scrubs were also great.We had read some negative reviews about the ship, but did not experience any of the problems reported. The bathroom situation was not a problem at all. We were told by a couple of passengers that the sinks were being retrofitted because of the complaints.The food at the buffet was just average, but they have everything you could possibly want for breakfast, so that's when we ate there. All of the other restaurants were really good. Our excursions were fun and we even saw a shark, up close and personal, while on the Turtle Cove snorkeling trip. It didn't come after us - but it was pretty amazing to see.
Bed was a little short for six footer, but otherwise comfortable. Tons of storage space, great balcony. Lots of hot water in the shower, toilets were loud but very efficient. Shower gel did not lather very well, but was okay. We did not notice cigarette smoke smell except in the casino and on the outside deck.