Epic Review 2/16/13 Pics and Dailies

[rnrcruzin]

This posting is so good and has brought back many good memories. We took the Epic on a Western Med cruise. We loved the ship except for two things. Our room was configured with the bed up near the stateroom door. The sink was at the foot of the bed and it was imposible to pass if someone was using the sink at the time. We ate at Le Bistro, but our experience was not as nice as yours.

 

I'm a bit of a teckie and one sea day we saw one of the sound guys in Fat Cats. He took great pride in showing us around. The sound system in Fat Cats cost $3 million. I could believe it. Also the open question interview with the Blue Man Group, sans makeup, was great.

 

Thanks.

[SFO-F/A]

Did you sit in a booth in Cirque? Was the viewing ok from there? I was thinking for 4 of us, it would be a great place to sit, lean back and watch the show. :D

 

Great family picture at the White Hot Party!

Edited March 8, 2013 by SFO-F/A

[Cruzface]

Did you sit in a booth in Cirque? Was the viewing ok from there? I was thinking for 4 of us, it would be a great place to sit, lean back and watch the show. :D

 

Great family picture at the White Hot Party!

 

Yes we had a booth and the PIC of the champagne glass was our view. Keep in mind if you sit close to the center, you may become part of the show.

[Lvnmylife85]

I've been reading your entire review for the past hour and just want to say THANK YOU!!! Extremely sorry for your family's loss of Tito. This review has made me more at ease knowing I'll have a ton of things to do when I sail in December. I'll be a solo on the Breakaway but I see there are endless options as long as I remain outgoing and not afraid to seek out a lounger all to myself! lol:D

[Cruzface]

I've been reading your entire review for the past hour and just want to say THANK YOU!!! Extremely sorry for your family's loss of Tito. This review has made me more at ease knowing I'll have a ton of things to do when I sail in December. I'll be a solo on the Breakaway but I see there are endless options as long as I remain outgoing and not afraid to seek out a lounger all to myself! lol:D

 

Thank you. You may want to use the search tool for a review by "solo fashionista." She has some great insights for a solo cruiser.

[Lvnmylife85]

Thank you. You may want to use the search tool for a review by "solo fashionista." She has some great insights for a solo cruiser.

 

Awesome! Will do!

[crackycruiser]

[This being our first balcony, we had nothing to compare it too. But we loved it nonetheless. Loved the storage, that the balcony door was slider, that it had a real hair dryer (wife), that it had a nice flat screen TV and most important an in room coffee maker!

 

 

I LOVED HAVING THE COFFEE MAKER IN THE ROOM. I SAILED ON THE EPIC THE WEEK AFTER YOU!! LOVE IT ALSO.

[crackycruiser]

I'll start with the coolest, literally, bar on Epic. I was a little skeptical at first, but we loved it. A few things. It's 17 degrees in there. It is an ICE bar. Wear some freaking clothes! And shoes! Not flip flops. As we were going in an older couple was coming out bragging that they lasted 45 minutes. So of course my wife declared we have to last at least 46 minutes. We did. We also met some really fun people in there, even though they were all Red Sox and Patriots fans.

 

We didn't do the ice bar because we figured it's so cold here in New England why bother. Guess we missed out. Red Sox and Patriots fans are usually everwhere you go!!:D

[Cruzface]

Pop quiz:

 

Where is this? Youngestof9 is not allowed to guess.

 

[jdvmd]

Pop quiz:

 

Where is this? Youngestof9 is not allowed to guess.

 

St. John?

[Cruzface]

That was quick. Do you know the beach?

[david_sobe]

That was quick. Do you know the beach?

Trunk Bay?

[jdvmd]

That was quick. Do you know the beach?

Was that correct?

[jdvmd]

That was quick. Do you know the beach?

Cinnamon Bay?

[Cruzface]

Yes. Trunk Bay in St. John. You guys are good.

[david_sobe]

Yes. Trunk Bay in St. John. You guys are good.

Dont mess with us Epic veterans :)

[Jotravelnut21]

 

The elevators themselves were a big problem. Very, very, very slow. You could wait 15 -20 minutes for an elevator. Many times we just walked. This is why it is a good idea to get a mid deck location. Being in 11 it was only 4 flights up to the buffet and pool deck and only 4 flights down to deck 7 where the restaurants and nightlife begin. I really think the extra walking helped keep the pounds off.

 

Click internet lounge. Unfortunately, I had to use the internet to stay in touch with an online class I teach. There are different plans. By the minute at .75 per minute. 1 hour at $55 etc. It was pretty slow, not dial up slow, but not like at home. One hint, Tuesday is half price day. This means you only get charged for half of your minutes actually used. ....

 

Thanks for info about the elevators (or as we say...Lifts) and internet access. We are definitely walkers. Hubby also needs this to teach online class and loves to plan as we go (trips etc) so internet is must.

Now I'm not technically minded but he is taking his Phone with new European sim and Nexus which works out at £2 per day... hope that's right!

Tell me, how many shows/entertainment would you say is free? I've heard a recent cruiser say NCL charges for much more entertainment than RC.... don't know how true that is.

Jo

[Cruzface]

St. Maarten:

 

 

We have been to St. Maarten before and at that time we went to Orient Beach. We always try to do something different. We had actually planned to go to Loterie Farm and zipline, but you could not make a reservation and with all the ships in port I was afraid we would make the journey there and be shut out. That would really suck. So we adjusted our plans and went to Maho Beach. I've seen the videos of the planes landing, but it's not the same unless you actually experience it. Awesome when a big plane lands.

 

The water was uncharacteristically rough. Now, we are used to big ocean waves because we spend a lot of time on the south shore ocean beaches in LI. These waves, however, were ridiculous. I will admit to being a little scared a couple of times.

 

 

The beach itself is not great. Very crowded and right on the road.

 

 

But you're not there for the beach. There is a nice bar/restaurant right on the beach where they list the arriving flight times. Once we saw enough planes and had enough abuse from the waves, we decided to find more tranquil waters.

 

So we took a cab back to Phillipsburg. What a nice little port town. No pushy sales people, quaint cobblestone streets and a great beach with restaurants right across the way.

 

 

[sheshe01]

St. Maarten:

 

 

We have been to St. Maarten before and at that time we went to Orient Beach. We always try to do something different. We had actually planned to go to Loterie Farm and zipline, but you could not make a reservation and with all the ships in port I was afraid we would make the journey there and be shut out. That would really suck. So we adjusted our plans and went to Maho Beach. I've seen the videos of the planes landing, but it's not the same unless you actually experience it. Awesome when a big plane lands.

 

The water was uncharacteristically rough. Now, we are used to big ocean waves because we spend a lot of time on the south shore ocean beaches in LI. These waves, however, were ridiculous. I will admit to being a little scared a couple of times.

 

 

The beach itself is not great. Very crowded and right on the road.

 

 

But you're not there for the beach. There is a nice bar/restaurant right on the beach where they list the arriving flight times. Once we saw enough planes and had enough abuse from the waves, we decided to find more tranquil waters.

 

So we took a cab back to Phillipsburg. What a nice little port town. No pushy sales people, quaint cobblestone streets and a great beach with restaurants right across the way.

 

 

I am from Calif and that is a small wave here. I do like the gentle waters as a change of pace, how is the water at the beach in Phillipsburg?

[Cruzface]

Great view of the ship's across the harbor:

 

 

The boys wanted to jet ski. $60 per jet ski for 1/2 hour. Not bad, bad but not great either. They loved it. Smooth water means fast driving. This is the first time our oldest was allowed to drive one without one of us with him. He was thrilled. We stayed on the beach and waited for them to return.

 

 

We lounged around a little in the beautiful water and then realized we were starving. So it's about 2:00, there are several nice looking restaurants about 10 feet away with decent prices, but I can see the ship and the buffet is waiting there for us for free! Back to the ship.

 

 

Tempting, tempting. There is a water taxi that takes you back to the ship, I think is $6 per ride or $8 for an unlimited day pass. We opted for a cab ride back. We did donate to the local economy by doing a little shopping. Apparently, I haggled a woman up to $15 for a wooden St. Maarten sign when she offered it for $10. Great job, Dave. I really thought she said $18. Oops. The kids made fun of me all day for that.

 

Edited March 9, 2013 by Cruzface

[Cruzface]

Thanks for info about the elevators (or as we say...Lifts) and internet access. We are definitely walkers. Hubby also needs this to teach online class and loves to plan as we go (trips etc) so internet is must.

Now I'm not technically minded but he is taking his Phone with new European sim and Nexus which works out at £2 per day... hope that's right!

Tell me, how many shows/entertainment would you say is free? I've heard a recent cruiser say NCL charges for much more entertainment than RC.... don't know how true that is.

Jo

 

There is only a charge for the Cirque show and a murder mystery lunch/dinner. Most of the entertainment is included.

[Cruzface]

St. Thomas. We have also been to St. Thomas twice before. Did Magen's Bay the first time and Sapphire Beach the second time. This time we wanted to surprise the boys and hit a new island. We decided to take the ferry to St. John.

 

There is nothing like watching as the ship comes into St. Thomas. Really breathtaking.

 

 

I knew it would be a long journey so we got up early and headed off the ship. When did the cost of a cab ride in St. Thomas go up to $10 per person? Two years ago it was $6. The ferry was only $7 per person each way.

 

The ferry runs every hour and We just made the 9:00 departure. The weather was not looking good. We we on the top deck of the ferry and watched a storm coming right at us from over St. John. We ran downstairs just in time. The water was very rough on the trip over which took about 15 minutes.

 

 

Once we got to St. John, the rain had stopped and we grabbed a cab. $6 to any beach.

 

 

[Cruzface]

We decided to head to Trunk Bay. I did a little research and the majority of people recommended this beach. So glad we chose it.

 

 

The boys saw this and said, we're going there? Wow. St. John is a beautiful island very pristine and not seedy like parts of St. Thomas. When we got to Trunk Bay we were greeted by a rooster crowing. A little late buddy. There is a charge for the beach, I think $4. As we walked down the path to the beach I had a feeling this was gonna be memorable.

 

 

 

I was right.

 

[gambee]

Oh wow, that beach looks amazing. Spending so much time around these boards, I can tell you I've seen lots of beaches. This beach tops them all.

 

 

You're also quite talented behind the lens.

Edited March 9, 2013 by gambee

[Cruzface]

 

 

There were signs all over that swimming was not advised because of rough surf. Unlike Maho Beach in St. Maarten, these waves were no big deal. As long as you knew what you were doing. We watched a family get wiped out because they clearly were not used to such waves.

 

By the way, there is a Maho Beach in St. John as well. Who knew. As we st on the beach with the powder like sand, I noticed large waves breaking out in the water. This is called Johnson's reef. Very cool to watch.

 

 

Facing the water, if you walk all the way to the left there is a little alcove where the waves break on the rocks. It was really awesome. We had our "From here to Eternity" moment.