Things About the Norwegian Epic that I Admire:

- She's unique - We've never seen a ship like her before and likely will never see a sister ship or clone. Epic is one-of-a-kind

- Nightlife that Passengers Anticipate - Few cruisers ever booked a ship because of its nightlife roster. Epic breaks that pattern with brand name, well-recognized shows that people repeatedly mention as one of the reasons they booked. I don't think most people would book a ship because of the standard "Broadway Dreams" feather and dance fare most lines offer. Epic is a game changer.

- Her Cabins Are Cool - Narrow maybe, controversial... yes. But after 40 years of the same rectangular cabin design, we finally have a ship brave enough to try something new

- More dining options than you can try on a seven day cruise . Some like fixed tables and seatings, but many younger cruisers relish the idea of French one night, Sushi the next, Brazilian steakhouse the next, supper club, Chinese... Dinner on Epic won't be the same old thing each night.

- Interior style - From what I've seen, Epic's interior is a nice blend of elegant and fun. Less gaudy than NCL's previous ships, but still with color and a contemporary style. The Manhattan Room looks stellar.

- Waterpark by Day - If you have kids, Epic's pool deck and slides win out over Flowriders, H2O Zones and Carnival serpentine slides. Show any kid under 18 the sketches of Epic's pool deck and they're sold.

- First big ship where all Outside cabins are verandahs. Very nice.

- First ship with a large number of single (Studio) cabins.

- Fun ideas like the poolside casino, gaming under the stars at POSH, Chinese take-out at Spice H2O, bowling, a raquetball court, a Sake bar, Epic Plunge, pizza delivery anywhere.

It’s a pity NCL had to cancel the second F3 – did we ever get the full story of what really happend there?

Also I think 'Seabourn Odyssey' should also get a mention as a fine example of a new luxury 'small ship'.

[ 06-17-2010: Message edited by: Malcolm @ cruisepage ]

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Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:
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Also I think 'Seabourn Odyssey' should also get a mention as a fin example of a new luxury 'small ship'.

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Originally posted by mike sa:
They should certainly be applauded for the provision of single cabins although to be honest this was almost by mistake as they were not originally intended for this purpose. And yes she is the ugliest lump of metal so.

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Yes Mike and no single supplement - unique in the industry, I believe.

However as you say the 'Studios' were originally designed for 'couples'. Strangely enough the fares were the same as standard inside cabins which are a lot bigger. I assume they 'Studios' were not selling?

One cruise web site commentated: "...announcing accommodations of this size (or lack thereof) is unprecedented in an era of bigger "everything" -- and particularly surprising in this case because Norwegian Epic will be the line's largest and most innovative new-build ever".

However, the change of cabin designation of course reduced Epic's passenger capacity by 128 and makes the 'Living room' twice as spacious, which can't be bad for the passengers.

Another funny aspects is highlighted in the original press release: Most hip of all is the cabin lighting, which guests can customise with a range of effects to reflect their mood or the time of day. There's even what NCL is calling a "love setting."

I wonder how much use the "love setting" will get now? I might be surprised! [/b]

It's got a good vibe... colorful in some rooms (Bliss, Spiegel Tent, Taste), muted in others (Lobby, Wasabi, Manhattan Room, Cabins).

The decor is youthful but elegant for the most part.

Solstice class is more unified across all rooms. Epic seems to transition passengers from vibrant to soothing as they move from room to room.

They just posted La Cucina and The Garden Cafe. La Cucina looks wonderful. It has a tree with lanterns that goes up through two levels and amazing views over the bow.

The Garden Cafe doesn't look like anything special, but it does have the "action stations" which many cruise lines are adopting these days. There is only so much you can do with a buffet restaurant. I remember when EPIC was first introduced, NCL touted how there would be no buffet restaurant. I guess they found out that was not feasible?

There is also a video of a Spa Suite. It looks nice but it's smaller than I imagined. This is the cabin that I booked for my EPIC cruise. There is no sitting area in the cabin itself, just the bed and jacuzzi tub. In the renderings it showed a cafe style table and chairs inside the room. Where do you eat room service? I guess on the balcony so long as the weather is decent. Well the good thing is this cabin gains access to the Spa and Courtyard. The round bed is interesting! LOL

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Originally posted by eroller:
I remember when EPIC was first introduced, NCL touted how there would be no buffet restaurant. I guess they found out that was not feasible?

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Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:

Orininal press relase: NCL president and CEO Colin Veitch tantalized the media at the recent Miami 'Seatrade' show with a few morsels of information about the F3. According to Veitch, the design will continue the most successful elements of Freestyle Cruising, including the exclusive Courtyard Villas, a concept that will be expanded. Otherwise, the ships will have no main dining room, no theatre, no Lido Café and be 'without a traditional cruise ship cabin,' he added.

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