I recently had the opportunity to sail on NCL’s newest super-mega ship, the Norwegian Epic (Images) with a double occupancy capacity of 4200 and a gross tonnage of 153,000. The ship was originally slated to be the first of three identically designed vessels but in the end NCL canceled the contracts on the next two leaving Epic as the sole ship in this class for the line.

The ship, like the parent company, is innovative. NCL has never been shy at trying new things and the Epic is a testament to that. Some of the innovations are great and others not so much. So, what’s the verdict? Will start with the positives:

1. Entertainment – NCL Epic easily featured the best entertainment I have seen at sea. With truly branded shows versus knock off concepts, the Epic has an entertainment value that easily would cost guests $400 to see on land. The Blue Man Group, Cirque Dreams and Dinner Theatre, Legends at Sea, The Second City, and Howl at the Moon are all onboard NCL Epic and with the exception of the dinner theatre are included at no additional cost.

2. The Courtyard Villas – This complex is the largest suite complex at sea set on two private decks at the forward top of the ship. There are 46 courtyard villas which accommodate up to 6 guests and 6 courtyard penthouses for in the villa complex. There are an additional 7 penthouses on the aft of the ship that get access to the villa complex exclusives. The Villa complex is accessible by private elevator and features a private pool, two hot tubs, gym, saunas, sundeck, indoor/outdoor dining and a bar/nightclub.

3. Food/Dining – The dining choices and food on NCL Epic were very good. I was impressed with the quality and service received on our short trip and also the variety and options available. The ship’s two main restaurants are the Manhattan Room and Taste. The Manhattan Room is a two level dining room set on the aft of the ship and features a bandstand and dance floor and is home to the Legends at Sea performances. Taste is located at the base of the ship’s atrium. Both feature a set menu available every day as well as by the day special menus.

4. The Garden Café is the indoor/outdoor buffet restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late night fare and was very good. Various food stations enhanced the standard buffet layout. O’Sheehan’s Neighborhood Bar and Grill is open 24 hours and offers a sit down breakfast as well. Spice H2O is an outdoor area that features nightly “club” type entertainment and serves snacks.

5. For guests in the Courtyard Villas, there is the Epic Club for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the Courtyard Grill for food throughout the day. There is also the Studio Lounge which is dedicated to guests in the studio cabins.

6. So all of that and I haven’t even gotten to the upcharge “specialty” restaurant which are reservation or walk up and carry a surcharge of $10 - $35 depending on restaurant and lunch or dinner. These include Cagney’s Steakhouse, the South American inspired Moderno Churrascaria, Le Bistro French Restaurant, Teppanyaki/Wasabi , Shanghai Chinese Restaurant and Noodle Bar and the before mentioned dinner theatre, Cirque Dreams & Dinner.

So all of that food and fun are definitely selling points to groups on Epic. With that said there were a few things that I will classify as neutral or not positive:

1. Staterooms – NCL’s “New Wave” stateroom concept is different. Unique to the Epic and ships in general is the curved wall stateroom. Rather than your standard square stateroom, the Epic rooms are curved. This is interesting to look at but the functionality of the room is compromised in my opinion. The sitting area on the balcony staterooms (note: all outside staterooms have balconies on the Epic) is relegated to a half circle curved couch. I found it difficult to truly be comfortable sitting on this couch. Also strange and very different are the in stateroom bathrooms. Rather than a separate bathroom with a door, NCL Epic features in stateroom bathrooms which are the toilet and shower on either side of your entrance enclosed in smoked glass half moons which are ok but the real challenge was the sink which is located on the vanity that stretches along the length of the stateroom. I found it difficult to not get water splashed everywhere with this sink, even when being very careful for it. Also another result of the in stateroom bathroom concept is that your cabin entrance also serves as your shower exit – meaning that often times you will have a wet carpet down or water in general on the floor.

2. Am I at sea? – The Epic layout is much like that of a Las Vegas hotel. The main thoroughfare deck features the largest casino at sea and many of the alternate restaurants, the hyped Ice Bar where guests where a parka and gloves to enter the 17 degree novelty, cigar bar, and entertainment venues. What is lacking in my opinion are open views to the ocean. Unlike RCCL’s universally well received Oasis class, there are few areas on Epic where you actually feel like you’re on a ship.

As far as meetings go, most of the lounges and theatres can be used for meeting set ups during the day and there are ample lounge options for cocktail parties but I would assume you have to start early as all of the venues get going by the dinner hours.

In summary, the Epic is unique. For guests that are looking for varied entertainment and many choices overall the ship works. The staterooms are probably the biggest thing to overcome and some people may enjoy the differences. For our market specifically, the added value of named entertainment should not be discounted. These are the for real performances of Blue Man Group, Legends, The Second City, etc. and the hard dollar value is a big plus for incentives. For those with enough budget to look at the Villa Complex, it can be completely bought out which basically would give you all of the perks of the Epic with a small private high end delivery in stateroom and countless exclusivity options within. For groups booking within the standard allotment of balcony staterooms and suites, I would again suggest offering dine around (if group size permits) to take full advantage of the dining choices.

The Norwegian Epic is currently deployed in Miami for 7 night cruises to the Eastern and Western Caribbean. The ship will then reposition to Barcelona for 7 night Western Mediterranean itineraries from April 2011 through October 2011 then back to Miami.