MITSUGIRLY's ENCORE pictorial and extensive REVIEW

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

We just returned from our December 10-17th cruise on board the ENCORE and ready to get this extensive review started. I decided to post my review here instead of my travel blog/website since I had so many issues last time and still haven't worked everything out. But there will be a link to here from the blog so if you ever can't find it, you'll find it there. 🙂

We are a family of 3 (if you don't know and follow us already) that cruise and vacation regularly (with an extended family of my older kids that sometimes cruise). For those that are wondering, nope, Kendra and family did not come. I know...boo hiss.

So I do these reviews as a informative, yet humorous (at least some think so, so don't burst my bubble ya'll) review of our fun times during our travels. I LOVE LOVE LOVE photography and taking pictures. I've always said "A picture is worth a thousand words" and will always hold true with me. Sometimes I go over board... figuratively, not literally, with the pictures but I'm the type of person that needs a visual on things and visual is what you'll get with me. 😄

Our route this time will be:

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Yes, we have been to these ports, but I have a ton of Cruise Next certificates I need to use up (that I was peer pressured into purchasing just prior to COVID hitting by a smooth talking rep on the Joy) and I live in a Northern state which is COLD and needed an escape to the Caribbean. So, repeat ports it will be for us this time around.

I also needed a trip to clear my head (and nerves) because right before the cruise THIS HAPPENED:

For those of you that have followed us since Sakari was 3 years old...time to grasp just how quickly time has passed since I first started reviewing our cruising! Yea, let that sink in...I'm getting old super quick! Only a few years before she will get her Platinum status for herself with NCL...you're welcome daughter! Momma and dad did all the work for you, now you will reap the benefits soon!

So, on with the review...I hope you enjoy it and will stick around. I'll answer any questions I can along the way and have put my "actual review" in this beautiful bright blue color so that those only wanting to follow along with the review can spot it without having to read all the comments if they'd like.

vacation44 · December 22, 2023

Hoping you would start your review soon! We will also be on the Encore in February with the same itinerary so really looking forward to reading your thoughts. However, disappointed no Kendra and clan as it has been awhile since they have joined you.

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

We had a late (to us) flight out of Ohio (12:45pm) so there would be no rushing around bright and early in the morning...thank goodness. We did leave the house by 9:30am in order to stop and get breakfast so we wouldn't break the bank buying food at the airport before we ever made it to the ship. Have you all noticed just how expensive it is to buy anything at the airport? Especially these days! I swear things have doubled if not tripled over the last 2 years.

I also wasn't sure how crowded the airports would be since it's getting close to holiday travels and we were going on mid-day...which could potentially mean that things have gotten backed up. I'm a very punctual person in everything I do...even if it's hours before.

The airport was actually not busy at all and we were able to walk right up to check our luggage and get our boarding passes with no wait.

I overlooked the side-eye I was getting from my family about being there so early and then Sakari said "So what do we do now?" I'll tell ya what we can do to pass the time...and led her to this:

Sakari just started learning to play the piano at school but will listen to songs and figure out how to play them on her own. She loves it but was SUPER nervous about playing anything in the middle of the airport with people walking around. She was literally shaking while sitting there. I remember those feelings quite well. I used to take piano lessons when I was young and my parents would have me play at church and also for weddings. I was a nervous wreck as well so I felt her cold chills with sweaty palms in the moment.

It was time to board the plane and I always have to get that "stepping on the plane" picture from Sakari...although she's not as thrilled about it these days as she used to be. She's always said "mommy you must touch the plane for good luck before getting on" so I'm not about to have her break the tradition just because she thinks it's silly now.

This would be a 2 plane flight for us with a 3+ hour layover in Baltimore. Our flight was not full at all and it had me questioning if I should have purchased the Early Bird check in for our tickets now... for a whopping $75 extra dollars!

It was such a short flight that we didn't even get snacks or drinks this time around. I'm wanting to recoup some of my $75 somehow.

We arrived in Baltimore and I have to say, this airport has done some remodeling and is super nice...and by nice I'm definitely going to emphasize on the restrooms there. They are all ENCLOSED!! Like when I say enclosed, I mean your own stall that has walls from top to bottom and a ceiling. It's like a private stall. Pretty cool I think.

No, I wasn't using the bathroom when I took this but was sitting on the toilet (fully clothed) so that I could get an overview of the room. It's funny when you get excited about an airport bathroom that you have to take a video right?

Baltimore was all decked out in Christmas decorations and it was very pretty.

Three + hours had went by and we were off again...but this time on a FULL flight. Ok, I didn't feel as bad now about paying extra for our check-in.

We arrived in Miami and it was dark already. The lights over the city are always so pretty when flying.

On to our fiasco of getting to our hotel for the night...

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

When booking our hotel, I honestly was just looking for a somewhat decent place to lay our heads to rest for the night. We weren't looking for anything fancy with any amenities since we were coming in so late and wouldn't be able to use them. My only stipulation would be that there needed to be a place within walking distance to get food for dinner. It's also a plus if they offer free breakfast.

I ended up using Hotwire to book a place and knew, by the pictures, which one it was going to be ahead of time. It had mixed reviews but again...I'm only going there to sleep for the night.

We would be staying at La Quinta Inn by Wyndham Miami Airport North. The cost was $163/night but with taxes and fees it ended up being $202.20.

The fiasco started the minute we made contact with the hotel. We grabbed our luggage and I called the front desk. The man who answered the phone told me "Walk across the 3 streets to get to the hotel pick up area and call me right back. We will be there in 15 minutes to pick you up." Um ok, why not just leave now? Why do I need to call you back? I mean walking across the 3 incoming lanes at the airport only took me 30 seconds and I'm ringing him back.

I'm then told "I'm sorry mam, our shuttle stopped running at 9pm to pick up passengers (it was now 10pm). We won't be coming to get you". Wait a minute!!! You JUST told me to call you right back and the shuttle would be here in 15 minutes!!! We argued back and forth and I got nowhere with him. The hubby said "Let me try" and called them back only to be told "The shuttle is on the way".

When the shuttle arrived...more turmoil. We walked to the back of the shuttle to hand over our luggage and the driver says "I'm sorry we don't have any room for you and this is the last shuttle". The hubby told him how he just got off the phone with them and they said they were coming to pick us up. Words back and forth led to a family on the shuttle discovering that they were on the wrong shuttle and got off...which made room for us. However, another family of 4 did not have the same luck as us and didn't get a ride. She was furious as well and said "You will reimburse me when I make it to the hotel".

So note...if you are coming in on a flight after 9pm and use this hotel, you might not get a ride. They seemed super confused about everything with conflicting stories.

Now this hotel is situated with 5 different buildings. Some are not too close to the main building. Of course, we ended up stuck at one of the buildings in the back and was a bit of a walk to get to. It also didn't have an elevator so we would have to walk to the furthest building to catch the elevator and to across the catwalk.

It's also a hotel with the doors to the rooms on the outside of the building.

The rooms were "ok" and by ok I mean it served the purpose of having a place to dream about our big day tomorrow of getting on the ship.

They do have a pool there as well...although it was too late for us to use it and had no plans on doing so anyhow.

There was a McDonald's and Denny's directly in front of the hotel and we decided to just head over to McD's for a hamburger and bring it back to the room. We watched a couple scaling the privacy fence wall to get over there, as we walked out of our 3rd floor room with no elevator for that building that you had to walk to the building next door to get out of, and thought "Hmm, wonder why they are doing that?" We would soon find out there was no way to get over to the restaurants without walking all the way back to the front of the hotel to the street and back in to make it there. I'm getting my steps in before I ever make it to the ship I guess because the hubby gave me a look of...NO! You are not attempting that wall. 😄

It was an uneventful rest of the night and we were tired from traveling and headed to bed. Tomorrow was a big day and we were excited.

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

43 minutes ago, vacation44 said:

Hoping you would start your review soon! We will also be on the Encore in February with the same itinerary so really looking forward to reading your thoughts. However, disappointed no Kendra and clan as it has been awhile since they have joined you.

I'm going to try to at least get a few days of it started. Christmas has snuck up on me quick and need to do some last minute shopping today but gonna try to work on this as much as I can today.

I hope you have a great trip in February on the Encore!

Kendra was recently talking about another cruise. It's been forever since they've went. You won't believe how big Brayden is now...like he towers over all of us and has for a few years. Although she is considering RC and wanted to do the Taylor Swift cruise (not sure if there's anything left for it)...but at least she's talking about cruising again. I need my sidekick back.

JoeTec · December 22, 2023

I always love all of your reviews plus have read your land vacations on your website.

We are on the Encore in Jan so it makes this review even more exciting!

Merry Christmas to you & your family

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

I had set the alarm for 7:30am but was up by 7am. This is considering sleeping in for me. I'm usually up by 5am every day so the added rest was welcomed.

We got dressed and we all headed over to the main hotel to see what they had for breakfast. When we checked in the night before, they handed us 3 breakfast coupons to use. It was considered a continental breakfast and we weren't thrilled with the options: french toast, cereal, yogurt, muffins, oranges and 1 (yes I said 1) apple. We mutually agreed that we would just head back over to McD's for a breakfast sandwich. I mean we didn't need anything big because we were about to indulge in a week long journey of food coma's with every option you could think of. We just needed something to tie us over with for now.

Our assigned boarding times were...me 11-11:30am and the hubby and Sakari 11:30-12 noon. Um...ok. Weird. I called NCL to ask about the boarding times and also ask about us having priority boarding since we are Platinum. She said they would probably start boarding around noon and we all could arrive at 11am if we wanted. So, we had some time to just hang out in the hotel for awhile after breakfast.

I turned on the tv and started packing the few items we pulled out for the night. It was 8:30am and there was a knock at the door..."Housekeeping". We told them we weren't leaving yet. They didn't understand (only spoke Spanish). Then again at 9:10am...another knock on the door..."Housekeeping". Again, we are not checking out yet. I ask "What time is check out" and pointed at my watch...although this person spoke a little English, they said 10am. After the third knock about another 15 minutes later...well, it was getting irritating. Check out wasn't until 11am per the website. Pretty annoying.

We decided to head out at 10am and summoned for an Uber to pick us up. We have learned within the last few years that to avoid the hassle of some small car pulling up and not being able to fit 3 people and 3 luggage in it to just order Uber XL. For those that are wondering what something like this will run you, it all depends on the time of day and what the demand of needing a ride is...but ours was $31.39, which included a fee for using the "dolphin express" and a booking fee. Our Uber arrived within 2 minutes of ordering it.

It's always exciting when you start to see the ships lined up on the right side. I promise I was taking a photo of the ships...but the Lamborghini passing by was a nice touch.

When you pass under the water in the tunnel the excitement builds...

Then you pop back up and the ships are on the left side and we were seeing the NCL terminal in port.

For those that have never cruised out of Miami, this is a 4,200 foot tunnel that goes underneath Biscayne Bay and is 120 feet underwater! You are literally driving under the water to get over to the port.

We pulled up to the porters, they took our bags, then we headed over to the terminal. I didn't see any lines but there were plenty of people standing around. I wasn't really sure what to do so we headed over to the side doors and they motioned us into the building. Say what?!? There's no line? Alrighty then.

We headed into the building and up the escalators at 10:40am and upstairs there wasn't a line in the priority check in and we walked right up to the counter. It felt like royalty! 🙂 But yet, not royal enough to score an upgrade to the Haven or anything like that after my measly low bid for giggles...just to see. I mean a girl can hold out hope right? Maybe some day.

After checking in we were given a "Group 11 Boarding Card", which meant absolutely nothing since we are Platinum and would get to board earlier than that. I'm not even sure why they bother handing these cards out to the priority members but they always do for some reason.

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

2 minutes ago, JoeTec said:

I always love all of your reviews plus have read your land vacations on your website.

We are on the Encore in Jan so it makes this review even more exciting!

Merry Christmas to you & your family

Thank you and Merry Christmas to you and your family as well. I hope you have a wonderful cruise in January!

Daruma · December 22, 2023

2 hours ago, mitsugirly said:

...you're welcome daughter! Momma and dad did all the work for you, now you will reap the benefits soon! ...

LOL, ain't dat always da way? 🤣😂

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

As we sat around waiting I got the notion to wander around. You know me, I can't stay still for very long...that's just me. I've been somewhat immobile for 3 years with my injury and now that I can walk again...that makes me want to move around even more.

So, off I went to explore. NCL has a really nice, new building (the only gripe I would have with our last 2 cruises out of here is that they really need more seating for people and more restrooms) and I headed down to the other end of the building to see what was on a wall that caught my eye. They had a listing of all of their ships and a time line of when they came out.

Yep, been on that one, that one, that one and this, this, this, this...I've pretty much been on all of them since they started having "class ships" except the Gem and POA and the new Prima Class...which honestly I have not kept up with things and didn't even realize there was a new class until this cruise. Oops!

Scrolling down toward the bottom I found my very first cruise taken on the Seaward back in 1989!

Would you look at that "Guest Occupancy"??? I remember thinking how massive this ship was when we went on it. I would have never thought the ships would grow to what they are today.

They also had 3 large replica ships: Norway, Pearl and Prima...yep, that is when it really sank in there was a new ship on the block.

As I made my way down toward the end there was a VERY large ship on a prop: Arcturus New York. I'm not really sure what they purpose/meaning of this was and what it has to do with NCL? But it was interesting to see how they had little windows to "see inside" of it.

Also, there is a single bathroom, with lines out the kazoo, as you first walk into the waiting area upstairs. However, down at the end of the terminal (where this boat is) you will find an actual bathroom with several stalls and each time I used it (twice) there were no lines at all. So just make note.

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

16 minutes ago, Daruma said:

LOL, ain't dat always da way? 🤣😂

I know right? 😆

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

It was a little before noon and they started calling priority boarding...Haven and then Ambassador and Diamond...then it was our turn with Sapphire and Platinum. WOO HOO!

They did make announcements prior to this that they were running late with boarding due to Port Authority Clearance. They also made everyone get away from the entrance as well. I remember the last cruise everyone was all standing in the way trying to get on even though it was not their time and it made it so hard for the groups being called to make it to the entrance. This was a different and more positive experience this time around.

At 12:04pm we were walking down the corridor and heading to the gangway!

There she is in all her beauty!

Our first step onto the ship was at 12:07pm...which tells you that the line kept moving the entire time with no delays.

One thing I did want to mention is that (on our previous cruise) they had the photographers in the building taking your pictures but this time they did not. I thought that was strange and never had a cruise where they didn't take your first cruise picture before you boarded. Did something change somehow? Are others experiencing this? I guess that's one less picture for me to buy and less money they will get out of me. 😞

So for those of you asking about the safety drill: When you do your online check-in you are forced to watch the video of the safety drill before NCL will let you finish your check-in process and get your boarding passes. Yes, each and every person going has to do this. When you get onto the ship, they are immediately looking at your key card and telling you where to go for the safety drill. Wait, what? Again? Yes, but no not really. They direct you to your station, scan your card and the guy ask everyone there "Did you watch the safety video?" (Like we had an option or something) and then said "This will be where you come in case of an emergency" and then we were released. Simple.

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

We were free to explore, eat or any other freestyle we wanted to do...except go to our rooms. No rooms for you!

We explored for a little bit and noticed just how similar this ship was to her sister Joy. There are some differences (which I have to say I didn't like, mostly because there was no H20 on the back of the ship) but for the most part they are the same.

The ship was decorated with all the Christmas goodies everywhere and one of the things I love about cruising during Christmas is all the decorations they have out.

We also headed to customer service to purchase our soda package since I didn't do that prior to getting on the ship.

As we explored, we passed by The Local (which is the name of the old O'Sheehans 24 hour restaurant) and seen some people eating there. After making our way upstairs to the buffet area, I really wished we would have stopped at The Local to eat lunch instead. The buffet was mad crazy, as it is on the very first day of every cruise, with lines a mile long and absolutely no place to sit. You would think I would have learned my lesson about this by now right?

We headed out to the pool deck and found a lounger around the pool. This would be our new dining table for the time being. Hey, I guess you have to improvise right? Food is food no matter where you eat it.

Now most people that follow me know we have been on a Keto diet for the last year. I forewarned my hubby that this was going out the window on this cruise and I thoroughly expected not to be scorned by him the entire cruise for what my eating habits would be for this week. After a year of keto (and we've both lost 59 pounds each), our bodies have become adaptive and we can (and do) cheat sometimes without consequence of gaining or feeling sick after high carbs or sugar intake. I wasn't really sure how a full week of this behavior was going to pan out but I was willing to take my chances at it is all I'm saying. 🤣 The hubby followed my lead and went off his strict keto diet for the week as well. You know, for purposes not to make me feel alone in this journey...right?

They do usually have some good no sugar sweets and the strawberry cake and NS vanilla ice cream is my absolute favorite so we're starting off my sweet tooth on a positive note...well, so far at least.

RustyScupper65 · December 22, 2023

Will you be posting the daylies? Will be on the ship end of Feb. Thanks

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

I will show you around the ship now...at least the pictures I did get during the cruise. I always end up taking multiple pictures of the same place and forgetting others so sorry in advance about this.

I'm going to start with Deck 5:

We didn't even come down here until late in the cruise and had no idea where they stuck all the kids at on this ship since I hadn't even seen Splash anywhere. I feel like previous cruises (when Sakari actually went) they were always located on a high deck. I was also thinking the Joy had their teen club up by the galaxy games as well. Not on this ship. Stick the kids in the basement this time around.

Guppies

Splash

I was unable to get a picture of the teens Entourage because the minute that we peeked in, a counselor came to the door "May I help you?". He obviously did not want us peeking in and invading the privacy of the teens. I tried hard to convince Sakari to sign up and pointed at the air hockey table (which she loves) and she was having no part of it. None at all. Even the counselor tried and she just kept walking away saying "nope, nope, nope, mom stop". Sigh. The only way I'm ever going to get her back into one of these is if she has someone come with her on a cruise.

The Video Arcade is also down here on floor five.

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

5 minutes ago, RustyScupper65 said:

Will you be posting the daylies? Will be on the ship end of Feb. Thanks

Yes. I took pictures of the front page and the back page with the times and events going on.

Daruma · December 22, 2023

4 minutes ago, mitsugirly said:

We were free to explore, eat or any other freestyle we wanted to do...except go to our rooms. No rooms for you!

We explored for a little bit and noticed just how similar this ship was to her sister Joy. There are some differences (which I have to say I didn't like, mostly because there was no H20 on the back of the ship) but for the most part they are the same.

The ship was decorated with all the Christmas goodies everywhere and one of the things I love about cruising during Christmas is all the decorations they have out.

We also headed to customer service to purchase our soda package since I didn't do that prior to getting on the ship.

As we explored, we passed by The Local (which is the name of the old O'Sheehans 24 hour restaurant) and seen some people eating there. After making our way upstairs to the buffet area, I really wished we would have stopped at The Local to eat lunch instead. The buffet was mad crazy, as it is on the very first day of every cruise, with lines a mile long and absolutely no place to sit. You would think I would have learned my lesson about this by now right?

We headed out to the pool deck and found a lounger around the pool. This would be our new dining table for the time being. Hey, I guess you have to improvise right? Food is food no matter where you eat it.

Now most people that follow me know we have been on a Keto diet for the last year. I forewarned my hubby that this was going out the window on this cruise and I thoroughly expected not to be scorned by him the entire cruise for what my eating habits would be for this week. After a year of keto (and we've both lost 59 pounds each), our bodies have become adaptive and we can (and do) cheat sometimes without consequence of gaining or feeling sick after high carbs or sugar intake. I wasn't really sure how a full week of this behavior was going to pan out but I was willing to take my chances at it is all I'm saying. 🤣 The hubby followed my lead and went off his strict keto diet for the week as well. You know, for purposes not to make me feel alone in this journey...right?

They do usually have some good no sugar sweets and the strawberry cake and NS vanilla ice cream is my absolute favorite so we're starting off my sweet tooth on a positive note...well, so far at least.

Just in case you've never dabbled in it... cycling Keto on/off has shown greater overall health benefits than staying on keto for more than 3 months at a time.

I eat keto for 12 weeks, then a week of moderate carbs to bring me out of keto, then back into it for another 12 weeks... lather, rinse, repeat, (I also water only fast for 2 weeks twice per year, and a 30 day fast once per year), and I only eat one, (biggish), meal every 48 hours when Iam eating. It took time, a lot of it, for my body to adapt... but I feel soooooo much better.

I don't cruise until April 13, 2025, and my plan of attack is to fast for two weeks before ending 3 days prior to my cruise, re-feed during those three days prior... then viciously attack any and all food I encounter on my cruise, lol 😅🤣😂 ... then fast the week after.

Congratulations on the weight loss.

vacation44 · December 22, 2023

11 minutes ago, mitsugirly said:

I will show you around the ship now...at least the pictures I did get during the cruise. I always end up taking multiple pictures of the same place and forgetting others so sorry in advance about this.

I'm going to start with Deck 5:

We didn't even come down here until late in the cruise and had no idea where they stuck all the kids at on this ship since I hadn't even seen Splash anywhere. I feel like previous cruises (when Sakari actually went) they were always located on a high deck. I was also thinking the Joy had their teen club up by the galaxy games as well. Not on this ship. Stick the kids in the basement this time around.

Guppies

Splash

I was unable to get a picture of the teens Entourage because the minute that we peeked in, a counselor came to the door "May I help you?". He obviously did not want us peeking in and invading the privacy of the teens. I tried hard to convince Sakari to sign up and pointed at the air hockey table (which she loves) and she was having no part of it. None at all. Even the counselor tried and she just kept walking away saying "nope, nope, nope, mom stop". Sigh. The only way I'm ever going to get her back into one of these is if she has someone come with her on a cruise.

The Video Arcade is also down here on floor five.

Seems like yesterday when Sakari loved the kid's club!

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

Deck 6:

The open area to 678:

When we first seen this chandelier Sakari was totally convinced that these were flowers and they were going to open. Sadly, she was wrong lol

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

14 minutes ago, Daruma said:

Just in case you've never dabbled in it... cycling Keto on/off has shown greater overall health benefits than staying on keto for more than 3 months at a time.

I eat keto for 12 weeks, then a week of moderate carbs to bring me out of keto, then back into it for another 12 weeks... lather, rinse, repeat, (I also water only fast for 2 weeks twice per year, and a 30 day fast once per year), and I only eat one, (biggish), meal every 48 hours when Iam eating. It took time, a lot of it, for my body to adapt... but I feel soooooo much better.

I don't cruise until April 13, 2025, and my plan of attack is to fast for two weeks before ending 3 days prior to my cruise, re-feed during those three days prior... then viciously attack any and all food I encounter on my cruise, lol 😅🤣😂 ... then fast the week after.

Congratulations on the weight loss.

Yes, we do dabble in the off and on here and there. I've discussed this with my doctor as well when she mentioned it. I go off mine a little more than the hubby does. We don't do any water only fasting though. I can't stand water but have learned to drink it here and there. As for the fasting, we do our fasting like a 12-14 hour fast and then eat (most of the time) but not for weeks. The closest thing I've come to fasting more than that was during a colonoscopy prep. 😅

Thanks on the congrats. I knew I had to do something after gaining so much after my accident. I feel healthier than ever now after keto. It has even corrected my cardiac issues I've had (12 extra beats per minute, which can be dangerous and had to take bp meds to control and reduce it) since I was in my 20's. I take absolutely no medications now and everything is normal, including my ekg, now after starting this journey. I only take supplements/vitamins now. We love keto...especially the non-stop energy, no carb crashing and other benefits we have gained doing it. 🙂

5 minutes ago, vacation44 said:

Seems like yesterday when Sakari loved the kid's club!

I know! She loved the kids club and I think she was going up to the point of us stopping cruising right at covid. Then she "grew up" over night and don't want to go. She hit that awkward, shy, embarrassed teenage stage and it was all over. Now she just clings to our side. 😄

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

The reason to cruise during Christmas...other than getting out of the cold for us northerners:

There's a video on the tv in the rooms that showed how they made all the items for this display and how they set it up and the amount of time it takes to do everything is unreal. They put so much into setting this up. So pretty!

valleyvillage · December 22, 2023

I loved seeing little glimpses of Coco's, one of my favorite spots!

mitsugirly · December 22, 2023

The Art Gallery area:

I love these pictures. They are 3D and reminds me of something my mom and I used to do when I was little. We would go to the store and buy wrapping paper and cut out each individual item printed on it...over and over and then glue the same item on top of each other using some type of glue that reminded me of rubber. This made it stand out and created a 3D picture. Every time I'm on a cruise and see these pictures makes me want to do it again.