Norwegian Epic staterooms big on style and space
So I’ve finally made it aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines’ (NCL) latest ship, Epic, for the European launch and I have to say I’m way more impressed than I imagined I’d be. Strangely enough Epic isn’t about size – although it is NCL’s largest ship – but about delivering great design and cool venues in grand style.
The ship’s staterooms are generally spacious and feature a curvy design, known as New Wave, to allow for more room and also to add some design details. Here’s a video of the stateroom I stayed in:
One of the first things that strikes you when entering the room is the bathroom – there isn’t one. Instead you’ll find separate toilet and shower cubicle/bath with a shower either side of your entry door and a curtain to divide it off from the rest of the room. This is possibly one of the oddest features of the staterooms and one that few cruisers are likely to be entirely comfortable with. After all, a curtain can only shield you from so much, ultimately leaving you to share many of your bathroom ablutions with your family/friends. Two other things bothered me with the bathroom. There was no bath mat in mine (perhaps an oversight) but it was easy to make the floor wet and slippy when getting out of the shower and then there was the washbasin. Ships are investing heavily in design and fancy washbasin’s are de-riguer but they just don’t seem to consider function in this. The washbasin in my stateroom was outside of the curtained-off bathroom area and small, so even washing my hands had the power to soak the surround. I’d imagine it would be very tricky for men when shaving.
On the plus side though all the staterooms I saw (bar perhaps the solo-friendly studios) have heaps of storage space – more than I’ve ever seen at sea, attractive features and muted tones, while every outside stateroom has a balcony.
Here’s a few other stateroom highlights:
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All Aboard Norwegian Epic | Sarah Lee travels - the blog
6/30/2010
[...] with Epic. It’s a real step forward from other NCL ships I’ve been on in terms of staterooms, design and layout, and entertainment as I’ll be covering in other posts on this blog. In the [...]
steve
6/30/2010
Hi sarah gust wondering if you could tell me if your family stateroom is ok for my family of four two
girls of 6 and 8 menay thanks
steve and tina
Sarah Lee
6/30/2010
Hi Steve
I’d say so, yes. I didn’t really check out the sofa bed for size or comfort or to see how much space it took up in the room when it was down. But the family deluxe staterooms are really quite spacious with plenty of storage, so should work out well for a young family.
Sarah
Love to cruise
7/2/2010
Thank you for finally reporting back something useful and relevant about the Norwegian. Everybody seems fixated with the way she looks from the outside and are failing to comment on the features that make Epic one of the most innovative and stylish ships at sea. All ships look pretty much the same on the outside, and from the outside, they all do the same thing – sail on the water! It is what is on the inside that makes ships different, and different the Epic is! Food, style and entertainment are all out of this world, to name but a few things.
Sarah Lee
7/2/2010
Glad you found it useful. I can’t say I know what all the fuss is about Epic’s exterior either. It’s perhaps not the prettiest on the outside, with the villas giving the ship a very “heavy-browed look”, but who cares. Fact is it’s what’s inside that matters. You’re only ever going to see the exterior when on port excursions (and it will surely stand out from the other ships in port!). Epic is a great ship and as you say the interior design and entertainment are fantastic, making it a real step forward for Norwegian. More posts on it going up today…
gloriamc701
8/8/2010
Sarah Lee,
Thanks for the info. We have booked a deluxe family suite and just noticed that they are located across from the elevators. Did you find this a problem?
Gloria
Sarah Lee
8/8/2010
Hi Gloria
My stateroom was actually right next to the lift area and I didn’t have any problem at all with noise or anything. There’s actually a fair amount of space between the stateroom and the lifts so you shouldn’t hear them. Hope that helps and you have a great time!