Live from France: Epic Float Out!

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Hi everyone,
Cruise Critic's own Dan Askin is in France today for a tour of Norwegian Epic and to witness the float out -- a milestone in the shipbuilding process!

We'll whet your appetite here -- http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=3319 -- but stay tuned to our News section this afternoon for the full story. I'll be sure to post tidbits from Dan (who's checking in periodically throughout the busy, full day) here!

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Here are the first few pictures coming in from the shipyard -- what do you all think?

[ashley@cruisecritic]

Can I just say how excited I am for this ship? After the announcement about the Blue Men, I cannot WAIT to get onboard! If the atmosphere at the press event was any indication, it's going to be one high-energy vessel!

~Ashley

[Abear2]

I am so excited and can't wait ! I am going to be on the July 17th 2010 sailing and I am so excited.

[BTfan]

Interesting ship..but I personally find the exterior kind of...well..awkward. I'm sure the focus was on the interior.

[CruisinMaterial]

More pictures please! I was hoping they'd do a live broadcast of some kind for the float out but I haven't been able to keep up on the times because school is so intense this summer!

She's coming together really nicely though! Can't wait for January 2011!

PS... What is up with those red and green balls on top of the forward elevator banks for the Villa Courtyard guests?

[familyof4cruising]

Every step closer to it being finished is exciting!

Thanks for the pictures.

[Druke I]

I'm not a fan of large ships, and think Epic not only too big, but too unattractive for my tastes.

[jleq]

FYI: USA Today's Gene Sloan is 'blogging' from the event
http://blogs.usatoday.com/cruiselog/...gian-epic.html

[Host Michell]

Cool article and photos -- thanks for the updates, CC staff!

[melissa@cruisecritic]

As promised, here's a link to our full coverage of today's event in France: http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=3320

Pretty cool tidbit: Dan got to walk the perimeter of the ship in the same dock that will slowly fill up overnight with 96,000 gallons of water. Before heading to the airport tomorrow and returning to the States, he'll be swinging by the shipyard one last time to see Epic actually floating.

We'll post more pictures as soon as we have them! Also, make a note to check back on Monday, as we'll be publishing a slideshow of snapshots taken during our tour inside the under-construction ship.

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Dan's en route and out of touch at this very moment, but I'll ask him to stop by later to answer your question! More pictures are definitely coming

Originally Posted by CruisinMaterial

More pictures please! I was hoping they'd do a live broadcast of some kind for the float out but I haven't been able to keep up on the times because school is so intense this summer!

She's coming together really nicely though! Can't wait for January 2011!

PS... What is up with those red and green balls on top of the forward elevator banks for the Villa Courtyard guests?

[melissa@cruisecritic]

You are very welcome!

Originally Posted by MichellP

Cool article and photos -- thanks for the updates, CC staff!

[BikerAl]

Thanks Melissa and Dan for the pictures, and looking forward to Dan's report.

Al

[JohnIreland]

Originally Posted by CruisinMaterial

PS... What is up with those red and green balls on top of the forward elevator banks for the Villa Courtyard guests?

Those are navigation lights/markers.

A green and red light show which side of a boat you can see.

[HMK8273]

In the website pictures of the boat, those red and green balls are actually white - maybe they get painted at some point - probably part of navigation/radar or something?

[Captain Rhone]

They are actually the satellite radar balls, but they are covered by a tarp in navigation colors probably to show which side each was destined for when they used the crane to lift them all the way to the top. Eventually the covers will be taken off and you will see that the actual color is white.

[blueboro]

Holy C**p! This may be the ugliest ship EVER. Hope the inside is better looking than the outside. UGH!

[CruisinMaterial]

Originally Posted by Captain Rhone

They are actually the satellite radar balls, but they are covered by a tarp in navigation colors probably to show which side each was destined for when they used the crane to lift them all the way to the top. Eventually the covers will be taken off and you will see that the actual color is white.

It dawned on me last night that they were probably navigation or MTN satellite communication devices but the colors are what threw me off. If they are just covered with tarps then that's fine. If they leave them that color well then that might not be so fine!! Thanks for the reply!

Nice job CC on the coverage... keep the photos coming!!!!

[Dan Askin]

Missed my connection in CDG, so have a little time to post some photos. From left to right, it's the ice bar taking shape (small venue, 17 degrees, parkas doled out to roughly 30 max they tell us), Spice H20's movie screen (looking down from where you might sit -- or dance -- on the amphitheatre setup), and a shot of the pool deck. The stairs you see near the funnel will lead up to Epic's triple threat of waterslides. Slide installation (and testing for some lucky crewmembers) is still months away.

More to come on Monday.

Charles De Gaulle, powerful ruler, HORRIBLE airport.