Recap of first-time-ever NCLer going on EPIC . . .

[DGP1111]

apmecruise: Your very kinds words above were a great way for me to begin my day today. Thanks SO much!! :)

.

.

 

I believe I am a positive person, but I probably would have happily taken the bottle of wine from the server at the pub!! :eek: I would convice myself that my accepting his offer would make HIM feel better and heck, I love a nice glass of wine with dinner!!

 

Aaaah, I fullly understand that thinking, but that day (like the rest before it) was just such a fun experience that I didn't want a single soul working on that ship thinking I was having anything less.

Also . . . it did work out for me to return to that same individual and request assistance on something, though not specifically for me. And that worked out quite nicely. :) Will 'splain that one before completing this recap.

 

. . . I am also amazed at how much you got done in a day!! Did you relax at all? You seem to go, go, go!!

 

I personally thought so - - that is, until I reviewed my own postings :eek: and realized just how much we all did on this amazing vessel. Sheesh!! :p

 

 

Thanks to you I am going to do a few things....I am going to stop reading the negative...it just breeds negative thoughts...then I am going to relax and believe that everyone will be happy on the cruise.

 

Wonderful way to look ahead, but I can also honestly say that I got a lot of good information reading a recap/review that was quite negative. Tom also forwarded me the same link, indicating he was fully checking it out as well. It got volatile enough that Cruise Critic eventually locked it.

Some of it contained details of truths, so that was a learning experience. And for some things it may have helped to lower a few expectations to the point that if I encountered the same, I'd not be totally disappointed . . . and if they turned out to be something I actually enjoyed, then Double Bonus!! :D

[DGP1111]

As Thursday night came to a close, it was time to see how well the wave movement and ship rocking would help or hinder my sleep.

 

The extremely comfy bed did its part for sure, and the motion was relaxing, but I did wake up several time during the night. Apparently the design of the Studios (and perhaps all cabins for that matter) has a lot of metal against metal, and plastic against plastic, design that will squeek and rattle with all the compression and expansion done during the ship rocking.

I've had this happen on other ships, but would eventually find the spot and jam a folded up piece of paper in the offending area and spot it completely. But I couldn't pinpoint one single area this time, and the noises seemed to shift around the room.

My solution . . . grab my iPod earbuds and use those to block any noise. It worked perfectly :), and I still got some great sleep, and woke up relaxed for my last full day on this ship.

Edited April 3, 2011 by DGP1111

[DGP1111]

Oh, by the way . . .

 

Earlier in the week there was a Water Aerobics class done in the pool that several passengers really seemed to enjoy. So if you are interested in that, I wanted to let ya know it is available.

 

 

.

.

Also, if you can be entertained by some fun (and quality) music throughout the week on the pook deck. Nice mix of tunes, and they even did some requests. Occasional additional vocalist to make it even better. :)

 

 

 

Or you can vacation on a Carnival ship and watch two gentlemen accompanied by a K-Mart karaoke machine warble through a rotational set of two dozen songs for the entire week.

Yeah, I know, it's a comparison too close to call. ;)

One enjoyable, and one bordering on totally sucking.

.

 

[ yo, Don, why don't you tell us what you really think? ] :p

.

.

[DGP1111]

Our scheduled arrival time in Nassau was 12:00 Noon, and I spent most of the morning up at Posh with a book and iPod, after yet another enjoyable breakfast at Garden Cafe.

 

As many times as I ate my morning meal at GC, I'm thinking I have a pretty good personal opionion on its offerings. You may recall in my initial start to this thread I commented I'd read quite a bit about the quality of NCL food, and some of those reviews were 'less than stellar'.

 

Never once did I overeat at breakfast time, and each time I got exactly what I desired in one trip, and only went back to grab more juice. Never once did I not clean my plate. Never once did I say, "Ewww" . . . and I can occasionally be the president of the Picky Eaters Society.. I enjoyed each and every meal I ate upstairs, and really hope that will be a repeated success on my future NCL sailings.

 

For me . . . Thumbs Up. :)

 

.

.

A ship could be seen in the distance, and I immediately knew what it was - - Carnival Sensation. I've been on that ship numerous times (really enjoying most), and knew that it hits Nassau every Friday at Noon. I looked at it through my camera with zoom on, and could tell it was definitely catching some waves on its approach. Since it is a dramatically smaller ship, I was very certain they'd had a rough night. :eek:

 

As we got closer to Nassau, Sensation got closer to us.

 

 

We we nearing the lighthouse when the Captain started veering EPIC to the starboard side, and I assumed we were going to either hang there or perhaps loop to let Sensation get in first (possibly a medical emergency or something??). We continued the turn, and shortly thereafter the Captain came on the horn to advise us the winds were far in excess of the knots allowed for docking in Nassau. I was not at all surprised, but was a little disappointed that I wouldn't see a couple of things this trip that would have been unique.

 

I've been to Nassau many many times, and on occasion I don't even get off the ship. A bit earlier while on Sensation, I never left the dock area, and only got off to take pictures of EPIC while that ship was also there. :)

But I wanted to see the comparison of size between EPIC and Disney Dream, which would be parked side by side, as well as check out the downtown damage from the recent unfortunate fire. I also like to visit a new coffee shop that I've come to really enjoy since it opened a year and a half ago.

 

But that wasn't meant to be. So it's another sea day for EPIC.

 

I was not aware the this ship had a recent history of missing Nassau, so the onboard staff was more than prepared for the adjustments needed. A new/revised Freestyle Daily was put out, and some announcement were being made about all the alternate offerings throughout the day. They were also quick to relax anyone's fears about their pre-apid shore excursions, saying that would show as an immediate credit on their statements.

[pabi]

Oh, by the way . . .

 

 

.

.

A

 

 

 

 

 

Or you can vacation on a Carnival ship and watch two gentlemen accompanied by a K-Mart karaoke machine warble through a rotational set of two dozen songs for the entire week.

Yeah, I know, it's a comparison too close to call. ;)

One enjoyable, and one bordering on totally sucking.

.

 

[ yo, Don, why don't you tell us what you really think? ] :p

.

.

Well, you are only being honest ! That was funny ...your posts are quite enjoyable reading...thanks:D

[apmecruise]

I loved hearing about the touch screen "locating yourself" boards. My last cruise was on a smaller RCCL ship and I never knew if I was coming or going. I ALWAYS exited my room going the wrong direction then had to-sheepishly- double back.

 

My biggest concern is getting lost. I can see myself walking in circles on deck 8 thinking its deck 14 or forgetting what deck my room is on (8...8...8...8 I keep reminding myself now!!).

 

 

Lovin' the posts!

[kitsapgal]

And don't forget the free drinks :):)

[DGP1111]

I think it's already been established that this ship has a lot of offerings to keep you busy while onboard. So those passengers who chose to not make it a relax-by-the-pool afternoon, would certainly have other entertainment options.

 

The trio decided that a rocking ship would now be the absolute perfect place to utilize the slightly unsteady platform to check out our athletic skills at . . . . Bowling!!! :D :D

 

We headed back to Bliss Lounge, grabbed a brew, and wanted to see if we can compenstate for those those gravity and inertia things we learned back in school. It was fun! :) We'd already planned earlier in the week that we'd do this, but today it was just going to be a bit more challenging. I wish I could blame my performance totally on the blinking neon lights, and the ever-changing surface plane, but honestly I just simply sucked on that first game, but still enjoyed. We signed up for a second game, and enjoyed that as well. I can certainly recommend attempting this activity while on a ship - - 'tis quite different than being back home at your local alley.

 

.

.

.

Speaking of bowling locations on this ship, most would say there are two - but they would be wrong.

There are actually three. :)

 

 

Wii Bowling was rather popular down in the Lobby area during the sailing.

[DGP1111]

Of course they added some Bingo to this afternoon -

 

 

Also a ping pong tournament, arts & crafts, Nickelodeon things, a Second City improve workshop, and more.

[Kssafrg]

There has to be more..... Did you eat in Taste or the Manhatten Room?

We are loving it! Best review ever! Leaving on the Trans-Atlantic in 4 weeks... Thanks for getting us all really excited...

[DGP1111]

At some point during this day I was going to need to consider the reality of packing for the return home (:(), but I didn't recall seeing anything concerning the process of labeling luggage to put outside the cabin that evening, and I didn't remember hearing any announcements, so I eventually inquired at Guest Services. They asked if I'd enjoyed my cruise . . . and I know the big grin on my face answered that one. :D

 

They pointed to the neighboring wall, and said to check the instructions for debarkation and take the color that suited me.

 

Say what??!! :confused:

 

Yep, pretty much in the style of Disney Cruise Line, they allow you to have control of how/when you leave the ship. Apparently it works, because the next morning was ultra-smooth. Apparently if you tell someone they can't be the first ones off, they'll probably want that ("you can't tell me what to do"), and if tell someone they are scheduled for early debarkation that might not be desired either ("hey, I wanted to sleep a bit and eat breakfast"). So . . . the process currently used seems to satisfy all or, at least, most. :) Nice job, NCL!

[DGP1111]

There has to be more..... Did you eat in Taste or the Manhatten Room?

 

Actually, no, never once.

By choice,we all ate at a different upgrade dining location each and every evening. We went into Manhattan Room once to check on an Excursion Shopping presentation, but that was it.

I can say that I'd have personally preferred eating in Manhattan Room over Taste, just because of that whole overlook thing surrounding the chandelier. I don't think I'd have fully enjoyed people looking down on me while I was enjoying dinner.

But I never once heard anyone onboard saying their personal experience in those two dning venues was not enjoyed.

[ColinIllinois]

Don, this is probably the best review I've ever seen on this forum. I felt like I was back on the ship again. Question though: Did you enjoy the Studio experience enough that you would do that again?

[DGP1111]

[ Going back in time ]

 

It's probably another of those "You had to be there" stories that won't appeal to anyone, but I'll share it anyway, because I found it personally funny:

 

On Thursday night after Legends in Concert, I dropped by Shakers to have Aramando whip me up something different for the evening. His eventualy choice was a Mangopolitan, which was wonderful. :)

 

I left there with intentions to go play a bit of Video Poker at the Cascades Bar, which I'd done several times during the week. Nice place to play.

 

 

 

 

Anywho . . .

Despite having been navigating my way around this ship for a full week, I headed the wrong direction, and ended up going toward Bliss Lounge. I shall blame it on Armando rather than myself. :o Time to do a u-turn, but noticed quite a few of crew members (obvious by name tags) heading into Bliss.

 

According to the "fog marquee" it was going to be the VIP All Access Show . . .

 

[DGP1111]

Question though: Did you enjoy the Studio experience enough that you would do that again?

 

Yes - - and Yes :D

I've already looked a particular distant date when 12516 is available again, and I would repeat that exact studio. :)

[Sauer-kraut]

Don

I see you'll be on the SUN. I hope you won't be disappointed in her, she's got a lot going for her but she has NO bells and whistles. What she had when we were on her was great music venues, great band, great piano guy, great guitarist, great activities crew, very friendly casino staff (although I did only play electronic games and never walked away with extra money in my pocket) and a lovely, peaceful atmosphere where one could just chill. We were on her for 14 days on a transatlantic and I enjoyed myself. I hope you will have a nice (quiet) time on her as well. ;)

Edited April 3, 2011 by Sauer-kraut
Casino addition!

[DGP1111]

Inside Bliss was another marquee, reminding what was upcoming:

 

 

Cruise Director made one pre-announcement, and part of the description sounded a bit odd. Once again, I'll blame my off-center thinking on the Mangopolitan, but I think he said male strippers. :confused:

 

A nice couple standing next to me was one I'd met a few times during the sailing, and she asked me what was going on. I admitted I'd not checked it on on the Freestyle Daily, and the screen just gave a name, but that it kinda sounded like "a wiener show". Her face dropped, and then she started laughing. The entertainment crew member standing to our right obviously heard and wasn't amused.

"No, it's not a weiner show!!".

 

:o OK

 

The countdown clock told us how many minutes, seconds, and miliseconds we had until showtime.

 

.

.

A few of the gorgeous female dancers took to the stage for the intro.

 

 

The couple next to me probably figured I'd lost my mind earlier.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Don, your review was totally entertaining and quite reassuring. We are going in June and everything I was reading was making me apprehensive. So thanks!!!!! I would love to hear more from TnC aboutm the courtyard area, as that is where we will be.

Thanks again, Roz

 

I will try to add in little details as I think of them. Just got off a cruise this morning... and trying to catch up on lots of things! This was the FIRST cruise where I could not get a wireless connection for my laptop. They even refunded my package plan that I had purchased!

 

Hello, all!! Yes, I'm still alive. :) Sorry for the unplanned pause in posting. It's been a wild last two days fer sure.

 

If you recently observed the national weather for Florida, you probably saw some central areas having two days of very severe thunderstorms with extremely high winds (some gusts of 80-100 mph), several areas losing power, and some also experiencing property damage.

That would be me, me, and me. :(

 

Luckily, when it was over - it was over. Whew!

Beautiful weather today for the roof/shingle people to do their magic getting everything back to normal.

 

So now back to attempting some more of my recap of the wonderful EPIC sailing.

 

Don - for our Thursday departure, it was the WORST embarkation weather I have ever encountered (Port Canaveral). We were in/out of strong thunderstorms till after midnight. Made for some wild views from the balcony (lots of lightning)!

 

 

Tom

Edited April 3, 2011 by Tom-n-Cheryl

[DGP1111]

Don

I see you'll be on the SUN. I hope you won't be disappointed in her, she's got a lot going for her but she has NO bells and whistles.

 

Thanks!! Quite often I don't desire bells and whistles, but just a good, calm, relaxing vacation at sea to take my mind off work. I'm doing a comfortable balcony on her in October.

I'd been reading about Sun in order to make my choices (as well as it being less than an hour drive from my condo) :)

Sounds like a few things from her recent face-lift are meeting with approval.

[DGP1111]

I do not know for sure, and I certainly wasn't going to ask crew members later onboard, but it is my personal 'hunch' that this VIP All Access show is actually part of an onboard ritual for introducing select new crew members (not unlike a fraternity house) to Norwegian EPIC.

 

I was standing just inside the entry doors, on the opposite side of the main bar, so everything I was seeing was via the overhead TV screens, but the first of the performers was eventually not wearing much. I looked quickly at the earlier entertainment crew member, and she didn't smile back.

 

The second performer to appear onstage was given the moniker "Boner The Clown". I look over yet again, and the reply back to me was immediate: "Don't say it!"

 

So I didn't.

 

I left. The couple next to me commented, "Wow, you were right after all".

 

I still think it's a weiner show. :rolleyes:

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

...

I probably should let someone else tell this tale, because I'm really hoping the experience has gotten better, but . . . right during that horrific weather systen we were having here in Florida, my great friends T-n-C were boarding in Port Canaveral for a quick weekend get-away. They've clearly posted online how much they enjoyed EPIC, and how quickly they jumped to re-book. To say the least, they were not having that "warm and fuzzy" feeling when received a few text messages later. :(

 

...

.

.

 

ALMOST caught up with your post-a-thon!!! :D

 

Tom

[DGP1111]

Don - for our Thursday departure, it was the WORST embarkation weather I have ever encountered (Port Canaveral). We were in/out of strong thunderstorms till after midnight. Made for some wild views from the balcony (lots of lightning)!

 

Glad you're all back safely!! :) :)

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

I do not know for sure, and I certainly wasn't going to ask crew members later onboard, but it is my personal 'hunch' that this VIP All Access show is actually part of an onboard ritual for introducing select new crew members (not unlike a fraternity house) to Norwegian EPIC.

 

I was standing just inside the entry doors, on the opposite side of the main bar, so everything I was seeing was via the overhead TV screens, but the first of the performers was eventually not wearing much. I looked quickly at the earlier entertainment crew member, and she didn't smile back.

 

The second performer to appear onstage was given the moniker "Boner The Clown". I look over yet again, and the reply back to me was immediate: "Don't say it!"

 

So I didn't.

 

I left. The couple next to me commented, "Wow, you were right after all".

 

I still think it's a weiner show. :rolleyes:

 

 

Don --- you continue to have a knack for being in the right (wrong?) place at the right time. TOO FUNNY!

 

Tom

[DGP1111]

So, here we go - - Friday night dinner.

 

I'm going to keep this rather brief on purpose.

 

La Cucina (Italian dining)

 

Several pictures of the entrance and main room were posted earlier when I was telling about the superb breakfast experience I had during the week.

 

Got to the bottom of the stairs and waited by the podium for assistance to arrive.

Since I've mentioned earlier I'm all about the simple theming aspect of places to get you started in the right mood, it might have been nice to hear an Italian greeting (no matter what nationality delivering it) with "Welcome to La Cucina", or perhaps the common and easily recognized "Buongiorno". It's commonly used more during the day, but most already know the word.

 

Gave my name, heard "Come this way", and was taken to a small table for two located by one of the walls with the faux library book design. Quite attractive place in the evening, but probably even more so for those near/under the lighted tree. Lots of empty tables.

 

Was browsing the menu (also available on your cabin TV) to double-check my previous selection, when I overheard the server at the next table. She's been asked for a wine pairing suggestion. "I'll check with someone else. All I know is when I go back there, the warm bottles are red wine, and the cold bottles are white."

Oh, dear.

 

Received a basket of nice breads, and ordered a selected glass of wine.

 

When you are dining alone you have time to really pay attention to the things around you. The closest thing to me was a floor to ceiling shelf of fake books that initially looked really cool. Kinda like I'm in an Italian library, or the study in someone's fancy Venice home.

 

Wait . . . all of the bindings are in English, and a select few are French. Certainly there's some in Italian, right?? I casually stand up and check out the entire 'shelf' of books and see none, so curiosity killed the cat and I checked another wall (since those tables were empty).

Nope. :(

 

Ugh - how hard can it be to design an Italian restaurant and try to make the entire theme Italian from the get-go?

.

 

 

 

I didn't finish the pasta entree' I ordered, but the bread/wine were a nice touch. The dessert, mentioned earlier, was not memorable at all. Better than the eclairs at Murder Mystery lunch, but not that much better.

 

It is totally possible that I was bummed about this being the last meal and last night onboard this faboo ship, and any location would have had to overcome that mood for the evening . . . but I just personally feel this particular location is substandard when compared to all the excellent others. I can't personally recommend this venue on my own experience, but I hope everyone who does go will have a totally wonderful time there. :)

Edited April 3, 2011 by DGP1111

[DGP1111]

I think most can agree that a lot of passengers (people in general) are more prone to ask for, and fill out, a comment card if there was an issue, or if there is something that can come back to them by putting out the effort.

 

NCL has an onboard comment card program, in addition to the post-cruise survey you receive when back home.

 

The onboard program is called S.T.Y.L.E., and everyone receives one card in their cabin during the sailing. Mine looked a little beat up, so it had possibly been there for a while. I was going to walk down to Guest Services to grab three more when I notived that Natalie was in the Living Room taking with a few Studio peeps. I asked if there were any even closer, and she smiled and said, "Yes". She opened up a cabinet below the coffee machine and grabbed me a few. OK, that wouldn't have been in my first ten guesses of locations. :)

I took my now five cards, and spread them out like a dealer and said, "Pick a card -- Any card". She did, and that's when I advised I'd use that one for her. Oooooo, I got a big hug. :D

 

Went back to the studio, filled them all out, and took them down to Guest Services.

 

I'm going to encourage as many of you as posisble to do the same when you see something that needs to be rewarded, as well as when something needs a fixin'