NCL Epic or Symphony of the Seas?

[SpadesOfGlory]

Currently looking to book a Mediterranean cruise for myself and DH and are looking at both these ships as they do the exact same route pretty much!

We've never done a cruise before so it's all a bit of a minefield! From what I can see Royal Caribbean is a lot more expensive with less included in the overall price? The deal we're looking at included the drinks package if we book before 5th March. NCL include a lot more as standard but is a slightly older ship?

We don't mind paying extra if RC is worth it, but at the minute it's a good £500 more expensive and I have no idea how much extra we would need to add on top for gratuities etc. Anyone any experience of either of these ships who could help me out?!

Bump for the night owls?

It depends what you want from a ship. The Symphony of the Seas has more gimmicks/activities, such as the flowrider, minigolf, ice rink, bionic bar etc. If you think they are worth the extra money for you, then I'd choose that. The extra gratuities will set you back about an additional £150 for the two of you for a week.

However, the Epic is a lovely ship, and was refurbished a couple of years ago, so still feels new. It still has a mega ship feel, and it has plenty to do, with some amazing shows (we really loved the Cavern Club in the evening - Beatles tribute band and a fantastic covers band). It also had Priscilla Queen of the Dessert when we were on.

Personally, as the Med tends to be quite port intensive, and this is your first cruise, I'd go on the Epic, and use the money saved to buy Spa passes (fantastic spa with hot tubs, heated loungers, sauna with amazing views though a glass wall), or speciality dining for a few nights.

For cruises with more sea days, then the Symphony would be tempting to me.

Thanks so much @budgiegirl, that was such a helpful reply!

To be honest I was edging towards the Epic for the reasons you've given. I thought SoTS was charging a premium for being very new and glitzy and Americanised (DH was very drawn in by the lights and design on website pictures lol). I think we would only have 1 day at sea so will only really be on the ship in the evenings. I'd rather save the £££ to spend on excursions etc!

What did you decide on? We're going on the Symphony in July, our first cruise so nothing to compare it against.

We booked the Epic in the end, for May! Looking forward to it...we have nothing to compare to either so hopefully we will love it!

I've been reading about the Epic and it does look really good too...hope you enjoy it. Would love to hear feedback after you've been.

Thanks! I'll try and remember to come back and update this thread