Norwegian Epic

The check in process for embarkation was extremely easy. There were no long lines and we came aboard the ship very quickly. The first thing I notice was how very beautiful the ship is with a crystal chandelier that is about 3 or 4 stories high.

The cabins were not ready yet, so you were offered to check your hand luggage so that you didn't have to drag it around. I thought this was a great feature as it gives you an opportunity to check out the ship without dragging everything with you. They had a lunch buffet but it you wanted to be served, you can eat in the restaurant called Taste. We choose Taste as we wanted to be served instead of doing the buffet, and I ordered a portabella mushroom with goat cheese served on a light tomato sauce, and Rich had the fried calamari served with a light tartar sauce. They were the appetizers and our main courses were shrimp and salmon sandwich on a soft 5 grain roll and a BLT Turkey club sandwich. All prepared and served beautifully.

The staff on board has been extremely friendly and they all seem happy to be aboard. This makes you feel very welcomed.

The designs of the cabins are the only complaint that some of the guests have, as the toilet is on one side of the room and the shower is on the other side. Both are enclosed with a frosted sliding glass door and there is a curtain that you can pull across to keep the bathroom separated from the rest of the room, but personally I don't like that fact that even my shadow can be seen inside. Some things need to be private.

Our cabin is a D2 category, cabin 12082, which is a larger balcony cabin and has a bathtub with beautiful contemporary faucets. The sink is actually inside the room but again is very contemporary looking. The stateroom is decorated in a walnut colored wood and lots of mirrors, with a large flat panel TV. You can preorder shore excursions, dining reservations, books shows, room service, all from your stateroom.

On the first night we decided to check out the "Ice Bar' which is kept at 17 degrees. We were given faux fur lined parkas and gloves. The staff escorts 25 people into the bar at one time. More than that will cause the ice to melt. It is $20 per person and includes 2 drinks from a limited menu. I had the "Caribbean dream" which had vodka with a lemony mix. It was excellent. Rich had the "Northern Lights" which was also a vodka and Blue liquor drink. The glass is made of real glass, but inside the glass is ice in the form of the glass. Your drink is poured inside the ice glass which keeps the drink freezing cold. The interior of the ice bar is of course, ice but has blue, pink and purple colored lights, giving everything a beautiful glow. They had ice sculptures in there and benches made of ice with a fur pillows. You are only allowed to stay in there about 25 minutes and at first you think that that certainly won't be enough time. However, about 15 minutes into it, you realize that it is freezing in there. It reminded me of the I love Lucy episode where Lucy got stuck in the meat locker, and had icicles hanging from her. I went in there with sandals and no socks and by the time I was ready to come out, I was shivering and my teeth were chattering. I wouldn't miss this it. It was really fun. Take a lot of pictures as the lighting makes everyone look beautiful.

One evening we ate at the specialty restaurant called Moderno's. It is a Brazilian type specialty restaurant where they keep bringing food out. We were served small rolls and we looked around for butter but didn't see any. We took a bite of the roll and realized that it had the moistest cheesy center. They were delectable. I had to restrain myself from having more than two. The meal is served with the salad bar which had everything. Large shrimps, Brie, blue cheese, olives, pasta, prosciutto ham, macaroni, etc. Once you finish with the salad bar, you are given a card that is green on one side and red on the other. When you are ready for food, you keep the green card faced up and they start bringing out the meat. Beef, Chicken, pork, rib chops, barb-qued- beef. If you need a break from eating, you show the red card. Too much food. All for a price of $20 per person.

Our first port was Costa Maya and having been there before, there is really not too much there that we haven't done. My recommendation to anyone visiting is to get off the ship and go to the pool/beach club that is set up at the pier. You should wear your bathing suit, bring a towel from the ship and enjoy the pool which has a swim up bar. As far as shopping, there are no bargains and the shop owners were not really looking to negotiate prices. They didn't run after you and didn't seem to be selling much.

We ate in the Manhattan club after our day in Costa Maya and this is one of the regular restaurants that does not have a surcharge. The food was good, although my steak was a little tough as I compared it to the steak I had in Moderno's. They have a band during dinner and each night they have one or two of the performers from the Legends show. Our night had performances by Rod Stewart and Britney Spears. The performers must look like the personality and they do not lip sync and sound exactly like the artist they are imitating.

So far the trip and the ship have been amazing. Today we are in Roatan, Honduras and did an Island tour. The beaches are very beautiful, the weather is hot and humid. The people are very friendly. There is not too much near the ports. A few stores and of course a Diamonds International with high prices. I didn't buy anything there, but there was another store that a local girl was carving cameos right on the premises. She had one that was an anchor so I bought it. It cost about $80 and I really appreciated the fact that she was carving the stones right in front of us. We didn't take the ships tour, and just walked off the ship and grabbed one of the local tour companies, and for $25.00 per person, we had our own private tour. One of the highlights was the Iguana sanctuary where the iguanas are all over the place and you literally have to step over them. We were able to feed them and they were huge. They had some other animals as well, such as monkeys, parrots, and a few others that I didn't remember the names.

The food on the ship is great and for lunch we ate a restaurant called O'Sheehan's Irish pub. It has flat panel televisions’ all over and a 3 lane bowling alley, as well as a pool table, dart board, and various video games. It is right in the middle of the ship and a great place to people watch. It is opened for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks so it is pretty much open 24/7 and no additional charge.

The ship has pizza at no additional charge at the buffet area, however you can get it delivered anywhere on the ship for a $5.00 charge. That is for the people who are too lazy to get up.

One night we ate at Circ which was a fantastic Circ Du Soleil type show. You have a choice of premium seating for a charge of $30 per person or standard seating at a charge of $20 per person. The standard seating is up higher but truthfully you probably get a better view at the standard seating. We opted for the premium seating and Rich’s had to constantly turn is back around to get a view. The food is fixed and they give you delicious jumbo shrimps and fillet mignon.

The day that our ship was docked in Cozumel, the top 200 hundred Agents were offered the opportunity to have lunch aboard the Oasis of the Seas. We were treated like royalty. From the minute we got on the ship, we were handed Champagne, Mimosas ‘, strawberry Daiquiris’ or Pina Collatas’. Royal Caribbean provided us with a special parade of the Royal Promenade and an exclusive show in the Aqua Theater. Vicki Freed, sure knows how to treat her Travel Partners, and we were definitely made to feel very special.

One night we ate in Teppanaki which is a traditional style Japanese restaurant where a production is made out of preparing the food. There is a surcharge for this restaurant but well worth it. They make the most delicious garlic fried rice and I helped myself to two bowls. The meat, lobster, shrimp and scallops were all incredible.

The last day of the sailing we found out that our next year’s conference will be aboard Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas and to say that 823 agents sailing aboard the epic were happy is an undersatement. The audience let out a scream and everyone was cheering a clapping. That evening Royal Caribbean hosted the Cocktail party and the drinks and food were flowing.

For our last evening we ate at Cagney’s Steakhouse which is a steakhouse that is similar to any fine steakhouse such as Morton’s or Ruth Chris. The steak and side dished were all excellent and again well worth the additional charge. To get this quality food and service for $25 to $35 per person is a bargain compared to paying $200+ on shore.

In closing, I want to say that this experience completely changed my opinion of Norwegian Cruise Line. The food, service, and entertainment excellent and I would not hesitate to recommend this ship.