As a cruise travel agent one of my favourite times of the year has to be the beginning. This is when the cruise lines offer certain travel agencies a couple of nights visit on one of their ships to help their staff become familiar with the product. They're called familiarisation or 'fam' trips, (I know, I know it's a hard job but someone has to do it).
As you can imagine these trips are few and far between so it's always nice to know you've been selected. This year I've been lucky enough to be picked for a visit onboard the NCL Epic and to say I'm excited is a massive understatement.
NCL only offered out a few places onboard their ship the Epic this year and the criteria was stringent to say the least. To even be considered for selection you had to of completed their online training course showing excellent knowledge of the NCL product. Despite the tough selection process I'm pleased to say that both me and my colleague David were selected though.
Anyone who's followed my blog or had a browse through the ships I've been on section, (top of this page), will know that I'm a massive Cunard fan and NCL are at the complete opposite end of the spectrum to them so although I'm really excited about going I don't really have anything to compare them against.
NCLs tagline of free style cruising says it all.
There's no set dining times, no set dress codes, (although I've been told I wont be allowed to wear my mankini in any of the restaurants), and dozens of different dining venues.
And that's not even scratching the surface of what else is available onboard. Here's a quick run down of some of the stuff I'm most excited about seeing..........
The Epic Plunge - This water slide looks awesome! And it's on a cruise ship!!!!
A bowling alley at sea! It's self righting so you can even play when sailing and it will remain stable!
Moderno Churrascaria - I love Brazilian cooking!
The Blue man group - I can't wait to see if they're as great as I've heard.
And I'm really hoping I get a chance to eat in Spiegels
I'd be interested in hearing back from any of my readers who have saild with NCL. Is it as great as it looks? Is there anything I should keep a look out for? What did you think of them as a cruise line?
Happy cruising
You will LOVE it!! She is a fantastic ship with something or nothing to do. We are booked for the transatlantic crossing in April as our second time on the EPIC and this time we are taking our two boys, who will love it too (most likely will not see much of them with the kids club). You must visit Fat Cats and see Slam Allen, a must for anyone!
ReplyDeleteBrilliant ship but quite expensive on the drinks front.
ReplyDeleteThanks guys, (or gals)
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