Help me find new favorites on Indy

[California kitty]

So we are not experienced cruisers but loved cruising on the allure in September in the meditarranean. We are trying again with a 4 day cruise on the Indy in February. Our favorite allure spots were...lunch in the park cafe...I loved the roast beef sandwiches and my dh the create your salad station. We loved breakfast here also..grits rocked when we didn't do room service. I know there is not park cafe on the Indy...what's your suggestion for us?

We enjoyed the mdr..I loved the cold fruit soups and my dh loved the shrimp cocktails...available on Indy. We loved vintages for an after dinner glass of wine.

Help me plan the perfect cruise on this smaller ship!

[cruiserking]

We really enjoyed Cafe Promenade on the Royal Promenade. We often enjoyed lunch here especially on embarkation day, when we boarded a bit later than normal figured Windjammer would be jammed. Great sandwiches and snacks at the Cafe Promenade.

 

Are you a baker, my wife adored her cupcake decorating class. You'll need to purchase that in advance.

 

The Pyramid Lounge is a really lovely spot to relax, it's popular for trivia and other events at night, but, often quiet in the day time.

 

Have a great cruise on the Indy.

 

Jonathan

[California kitty]

We really enjoyed Cafe Promenade on the Royal Promenade. We often enjoyed lunch here especially on embarkation day, when we boarded a bit later than normal figured Windjammer would be jammed. Great sandwiches and snacks at the Cafe Promenade.

 

Are you a baker, my wife adored her cupcake decorating class. You'll need to purchase that in advance.

 

The Pyramid Lounge is a really lovely spot to relax, it's popular for trivia and other events at night, but, often quiet in the day time.

 

Have a great cruise on the Indy.

 

Jonathan

Thanks for the tips. We wanted to do the cupcake class on allure but it was so port extensive there wasn't time! Will pre book it!

Edited January 13, 2016 by California kitty

[karmacats]

My favorite thing about freedom-class ships is that you can go on the helipad. We spend sailaway there, and last liberty cruise watched a meteor shower from there one night. (i'm on the same cruise as you in feb, so i'll see you at sailaway if you decide to head there :D ).

 

i agree the cupcake decorating class is really fun. the ice show on indy is also supposed to be very good.

[California kitty]

My favorite thing about freedom-class ships is that you can go on the helipad. We spend sailaway there, and last liberty cruise watched a meteor shower from there one night. (i'm on the same cruise as you in feb, so i'll see you at sailaway if you decide to head there :D ).

 

i agree the cupcake decorating class is really fun. the ice show on indy is also supposed to be very good.

 

Can't wait...can anyone get up to the helipad? We will head there for sail away. Look forward to meeting you

[alexkrn46]

We will be on this cruise, second time on the IOS, lunch in main dining on sea days. Walking around the promenade deck.

[karmacats]

Can't wait...can anyone get up to the helipad? We will head there for sail away. Look forward to meeting you

 

yep, anyone can go up there.

 

there are a couple of ways to get there. the easiest for your first time finding it, as long as you can do stairs, is to go all the way forward on the outside walkway around deck four (either port or starboard is fine), until the walkway ends in a long staircase near the front of the ship. go up that staircase, and there will be a flat area, then another 5 or 6 steps that take you up to the helipad.

 

on liberty, you could also go through the sphinx lounge (called the pyramid lounge on indy) on deck 5 forward. there were metal doors on the sides of the lounge which let you out at the top of the staircase, so you only had to go up the last small set of a few stairs. these doors are not marked and don't really look like passenger-accessible doors, but they are fine to use. on liberty, DH and i went up the stairs the first time we went to the helipad, but came back through the doors in the sphinx so that we'd know what they looked like; after that, we went out through the sphinx. i'm not sure if the doors are also there on indy.

 

keep an eye out for DH's long hair - it's halfway down his back - that's how everyone recognizes us. :p it's actually pretty amusing during sailaway - it can get kind of windy up on the helipad if you go near the front, and he kind of looks like Cousin It.