Epic Sails for Rotterdam Tomorrow

Norwegian Epic conducting her last set of sea trials

in the Atlantic Ocean this weekend.

Photo courtesy of Norwegian Cruise Line

Tomorrow, Norwegian Cruise Line will officially take delivery of its latest baby: Norwegian Epic.  Having just completed a very satisfactory three days of sea trials in the Atlantic Ocean, the ship will sail from the STX France ship yard to Rotterdam, Netherlands for a two-day inaugural cruise.  Then it's off to Southampton for a sold-out seven-day transatlantic crossing to New York, arriving on July 1st, and christened the next day by Reba McEntire.  The ship will begin sailing her regular Caribbean itineraries from Miami on July 10, 2010.  

An Epic-ly different profile.

Photo courtesy of Norwegian Cruise Line 

As if to sweeten the deal, NCL is offering quite the deal for those looking to escape to the Caribbean this summer aboard Norwegian Epic: you can purchase airfare through the line for $99 from most East Coast cities, and $199 from most Midwest/West Coast departure points.  Is that a good deal?  For most, the answer is a resounding yes: a quick search on Air Canada shows it would cost $1,179.27 per person to fly from Vancouver to Miami for the July 10th sailing.  And that's with a two-stop connection.

While we're still not sold on the ships' overall appearance, we will say this: she looks a lot better in reality than the earlier 3D renderings suggested.   Viewed from the bow, her profile isn't all that different from many modern cruise ships, and the dark blue color of her upper decks helps to hide the top-heavy appearance of the superstructure somewhat.  

 The seldom-photographed aft end of Norwegian Epic.

Photo courtesy of Norwegian Cruise Line.

We're less enthusiastic about the completely squared-off stern, with its sharp angles and rather large ducktail.   In fact, from the aft end, she looks like an updated version of the old Viking Serenade.  More than a few posters to cruise message boards have even joked that the line's own Pride of America, famous for its somewhat ungainly appearance, can now feel good about herself.

But we're not knocking it: time will tell if the onboard experience matches some of the truly innovative and unique interior design features and onboard amenities we've heard so much about.  

Norwegian Cruise Line has never shied away from challenging passengers perceptions of what a cruise can and can't be: from the stretching and heavy refits of the Norwegian Wind and Norwegian Dream in 1998, to the introduction of the first internet cafe at sea aboard Norwegian Sky in 1999, to the creation  of Freestyle Cruising and features like the Norwegian Pearl's bowling alley, NCL has sought to redefine the cruise experience.

It seems the may be on track to do that yet again.

For more information, visit Norwegian Cruise Line's website.