Epic Adult Vacation Review

[Shayhooper]

can't wait for more. Especially postings of the dailies.

 

Were you still going to send copies of the dailies to all those who posted their email addresses on the other thread? I will on the Epic at the end of March, and would love to be able to do some head start night time planning by viewing the dailies ahead of time.

 

I have felt horribly guilty about not getting the dailies sent out. My only excuse is that life has been busy. Today I finally scanned them and uploaded them to a dropbox account so after I am done tonight I'll send out emails. In the meanwhile, please see the link below to go to the folder. Sorry about the delay everyone!

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ubh2n7ldyzp5f7h/AAAStHR712S7nVqyYHmv0d9Ia?dl=0

[Shayhooper]

Can you tell me which nights Howl at the Moon was scheduled? We're trying to pre-book shows but want to schedule them around Howl at the Moon nights since that was our favorite evening entertainment the last time we were on Epic.

 

All of the Howl at the Moon shows were scheduled on nights when Second City was not performing. I'm not sure which nights exactly but you can check out the dailies at the link below.

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ubh2n7ldyzp5f7h/AAAStHR712S7nVqyYHmv0d9Ia?dl=0

[Shayhooper]

Hey all - I just posted all the dailies from that cruise as a separate thread for anyone who wants them. If you want anything specific I didn't post (ie shopping specials or something like that), let me know. Link to thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2174108

 

WOOOHOO! Thank you for getting those out to people! Seriously I have been feeling guilty about procrastinating.

[Shayhooper]

I posted this in the Dailies link above as well...

 

In the Day 1 entry, just above "A Night to Remember", at 5:45pm-8pm it says get your souvenir charm at the port shopping desk.

 

Does anyone know what the charm is?

 

No idea. I would be interested in seeing as well.

[Shayhooper]

Just sharing the link to my pics that I finally got up:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=45766047&postcount=70

 

Thank you for sharing and helping. BTW I enjoyed your review!

[Shayhooper]

Just trying something out here - bear with me for a minute. If this picture shows up, can someone please tell me what this is? We found it in a paper wrapper with the coffee condiments.

 

Edited February 28, 2015 by Shayhooper

[Shayhooper]

Before I get into day 2, just a few more pictures from my husband's phone.

 

The first night while we were sitting at the bar over looking the atrium Diego came out and danced for a minute. It was the only time that we saw the Nick characters out and about the ship.

 

 

My daughter would have been thrilled.

 

 

Just like this review - still in Miami. :)

 

 

People putting on their protective plastic covers in preparation for Blue Man Group.

 

[Shayhooper]

Day Two:

 

 

 

 

 

Brian and I both assumed that coming from the west coast we would be waking up early however we consistently slept in late starting with this day. It was about 9:00 AM before we got out of bed in search of some food. On the way out we passed a very cheerful Melanie who wished us a good morning.

 

This morning we opted for the buffet which was of course very crowded. There were tons of different options including perfectly cooked bacon, fruit, eggs, cereal, ect. Brian opted for the scrambled eggs and I went with the fried eggs. After getting our food, some juice, and coffee we moved downstairs to the Italian restaurant where tables were more readily available. Brian didn't enjoy his scrambled eggs saying that they were the powdered type. My fried egg was just fine. Coffee was, at best, OK. At home we are incredibly spoiled with both a Keurig and a coffee maker that grinds beans for us. In comparison we simply were not impressed with the free coffee offered on board.

 

After we had breakfast we ventured down to deck 7 to get the daily Sudoku and crossword puzzles and brought them back to the room. It was a bit surprising that our room hadn't been made up so we decided to give Melanie a bit more time.

 

Brian went up to the sports court for a pick up game of basketball while I hit the gym. During the tour we had been warned that the gym is very crowded the first few days which was absolutely true. Luckily I was able to grab an elliptical by the front window. The touch screen controls of the machine was not very responsive and it was several frustrating minutes later before I finally got it programmed with the correct time and work out. During the 50 minute workout I did notice that the room was warmer that I was accustomed to at the local gym so I quickly realized that I forgot to grab a gym towel. Once done with my cardio I left my water bottle and cell phone on the machine so I could grab a towel (gone less than a minute) and when I came back some guy had taken my machine! He said, while still on the machine, that he thought I was done and wanted to work out next to his sister. I explained that I still needed to do my cool down and of course wipe the machine down but he said he didn't mind that it was messy. Not only did he not get off, he allowed me to wipe down the machine while he was still on it!! I had to actually reach over him to get my water bottle and cell phone. Luckily a treadmill was open so I did a quick 5 minute jog and then my cool down.

 

I returned to the room (still not made up) at about 11:30 to enjoy some deck time. Brian returned shortly after saying that really enjoyed his pick up basketball game. Nice!! We sat on the balcony for a bit doing our puzzles and struggled with the decision about taking a shower. We didn't want to shower if Melanie was going to show up in the middle of it but we didn't really want to leave the room the sweaty messes that we we were. Ultimately we rolled the dice and both were able to grab a shower with no knock on the door.

 

Next was the monumental task of deciding what to do for lunch. Since we did the dining room the day before and the buffet for breakfast we weren't in the mood for either. Additionally we were still wanting to avoid crowds at all costs. Suddenly I remembered Don's raving review of the noodle bar so we decided to give that a shot. It was a great decision! When we arrived there were only two other couples sitting at the bar so absolutely no crowd. Not quite sure what to expect with portion sizes we both ordered dim sum, a noodle dish, and a rice dish. It was a treat to be able to watch most of it being cooked. After the dim sum and the noodle and rice dishes were brought out we realized that we ordered waaaaaaay to much food. All of it was so delicious that we absolutely gorged ourselves and still left a ton of food. Had we been at home we would have brought the leftovers back with us for an amazing late night feast.

 

We returned to our freshly made up cabin (yeah!) for some Cuba viewing, relaxation, and rest. It was a bit surprising that while on the balcony we could hear all of the pool deck activities but it was never bothersome. When music was playing or Jammroc was performing we actually enjoyed the background music. When we were in the cabin, you could not hear anything. I ended up taking a nap for a few hours while Brian explored the ship a bit more.

 

For the early evening portion of the night we prepared ourselves drinks in the large plastic cups we brought with us and made our way down to deck five for dinner at Taste. We were seated quickly at a table next to separate from a very nice couple from either Vancouver or Victoria Canada. The four of us chatted on and off during service while they enjoyed a few glasses of wine, we enjoyed the drinks we brought, and we all enjoyed the meal. Service appeared to have a nice flow and we never felt like we had to wait long between courses. From start to finish it took approximately 1 to 1-1/2 hours. The most memorable part of the meal was the chocolate volcano cake desert which was amazing!

 

The only odd part of the dining service came at the end of service when our server came over and expressed to us how rude the table behind us had been. According to her they had come in with a large group, weren't happy with the first table they were seated at, requested to be reseated, and then were displeased that only the entree portion of the service would be possible if they wanted to make their 7:00 PM show reservation. Neither Brian or I noticed anything amiss during the meal so it was a bit out of the blue to hear our server say anything. In my early 20's I was both a waitress and a bartender so I can relate with wanting to vent a bit about difficult customers. Typically though, you do not share your complaints about patrons with other patrons. I was a bit surprised to hear her complain to us about other passengers but also understood her frustration.

 

After dinner we headed to O'Sheehan's for another amazingly priced pitcher of beer. This time we opted for a lighter Heineken. We both enjoyed a glass when I noticed that Brian was appearing a bit tired. Since we had reservations for the 11:00 PM Second City show I suggested that he take a nap while I take the rest of the beer up to deck 15 for a cigarette. He napped while I met the first of many lovely people at one of the smoking locations. This particular time it was a late 20's woman who was on the ship with her mother in law while her husband was home with their 3 young children. We chatted a bit about our kids, how hard it was to be without them, and how difficult it was not being able to communicate with them while at sea. Like us, she wasn't worried but she was missing her kiddos.

 

Brian caught up with me while on deck 15 and helped me finish off the picture. We thought about the kids, briefly.

 

 

Then we remembered we were on vacation!

 

 

Before our 11:00 PM Second City reservation, we headed back to our cabin to make ourselves drinks to take along. We got to the venue at about 10:30, found great seats, finished our drinks and ordered a couple more. Right on time the very adult and very funny show started. I've been fortunate enough to see Second City in Chicago and this group was just as good. I had an aching stomach and tears running down my face from laughing so hard. The show was politically (very left slanted) and culturally raw so people with delicate tastes might not enjoy it. Those who enjoy a raunchier version of Jon Stewart and SNL will feel right at home.

 

After the show both Brian and I were feeling like we wanted something sweet to eat before going to bed. We hit the buffet and each took a few items but nothing really satisfied us. The buffet deserts were overall just bland. After our deserts, we headed back to our cabin and went to bed.

Edited February 28, 2015 by Shayhooper

[spoonet]

Thank you so much for your review. My hubby and I are booked on the Epic in September 2016. We are doing the Mediterranean cruise. Can't wait to read more of your review. Thanks again