littleengine

Thanks everyone, those are some great tips! I will definitely have to study where things are on each deck and do some exploring when I get on board.

Thanks everyone. I'm on the Epic in a few weeks and people on the Roll Call were talking about doing the one the ship organizes (vs a cabin crawl).

I've booked a studio cabin so I won't be able to take any photos from the cabin when the ship is entering/leaving the ports. I have a general idea what time we're allowed to disembark, but what time does the ship actually arrive in each of them (St. Maarten, St. Thomas, Nassau), and where on the ship would be the best place to go to get some good shots? Is it as simple as "anywhere at the front of the ship for arrivals and anywhere at the back work for departures", or are some spots better than others?

Hi... I'm having trouble finding information about these on NCL's website. Can someone who has been on the Epic let me know how the pub crawls work?

i.e. are they like the martini tastings, where you pay an amount up front and get a certain number of drinks for that set price, or is it all "a la carte", where you get however many drinks you want, charged individually?

Hi oct696... I'm also on the Epic on January 11, booked into one of the studio cabins. It's my first cruise, can't wait!

I was looking at the 25th as well but I couldn't bring myself to pay $300 extra for just 1 extra day. I can't wait to hear about it... It might be my next one!

Hi Dreamr.. Thanks very much! I'm on the January 11 sailing, If you're going earlier, can you let me know what it's like? If you're on a later one, I'll let you know.

Great, thanks very much everyone!

I tried to find reviews of my specific cabin (or the area around it) but couldn't find one. I know they're all about the same (size, anyway), but I'm curious about what's around me. I booked 11521 because it was not connected to another cabin, wasn't too far from the lounge and elevators, and had 'white space' on the other side, between me an 55519. I thought that might make it on the quieter side. Across the hall from me there's also a pretty big 'white space' between 11520 and 11518. Now I'm curious what these "white spaces" on the deck plan are... anyone know what's there?

Thanks!

Hi everyone... I'm taking my first cruise in January on the Epic. I've booked a studio cabin and would like to pre book a few of the specialty restaurants and shows, and I have a few questions about it.

1 - Since I'm in a studio and traveling solo, when I book the restaurants I'll have to put '1' for the number of people. When I show up at the restaurant, do I literally get a table for 1, or do they put people together at larger tables?

2 - If, after I get on board and meet the other studio cabin travelers (or others at cc meet & greets), and find I'd rather dine with some of them, how easy is it to change my dining for '1' to dining with that specific group? And, how easy is it to change nights if it turns out they're interested in going to the same restaurant, just on a different night than I'd pre-booked? I just want to make sure the process to make this change (if seats are available on the new night/time) is fairly easy. I'm assuming the staff working in the studio lounge would be able to help me make these changes, or would I have to go to the Customer Service desk?

Finally, a few questions re: dining in general...

How do the staff know who's ordered what? Do they swipe your card before you order, or just take your order and enter it into a terminal and bring you a 'bill' at the end of the meal and swipe your card like you would a credit card at a regular restaurant?

If things get added that you didn't order (i.e. bottle of wine someone else at your table ordered got added to your bill instead of theirs), is this something you can see and have corrected right away, or it has to be handled at the end of the cruise once the final tally is done?

Do you have to swipe your card for every single thing you get from every restaurant, even the buffet?

What types of snacks are offered on the Epic? If you're watching a movie or relaxing, sometimes you don't necessarily want french fries or a slice of pizza or a serving of dessert... Do any restaurants offer 'real' snacks like chips, candy, etc?

Thanks!

Also, another question re: how the final bill is settled at the end of the cruise...

If I understand correctly, any on board credits you've accumulated (from booking promos or from purchasing in advanced, etc), get deducted first, and then the remainder is charged to your card of choice.

Does anyone know if you buy credits in advance, does this lower the amount of a hold they put onto your card?

Following up on the issue of the hold the cruise line puts on your credit/debit card, does anyone know how they handle Visa debit cards - as if it was a credit card or as if it was a regular debit card? I have a regular cc but it doesn't have a huge limit and I'd like to keep it freed up for other purchases throughout the trip, hotel in Miami, etc.

For the cruise (my first) I was thinking I could transfer money into the chequing account linked to the Visa debit card and use that for charges on the ship. That account isn't my primary bank account (different bank, even) so apart from being annoying if they held more of it than they needed for longer than they needed to, it wouldn't really cause too much trouble. I've never used it as a 'Visa' before, though, so I'm curious how they might treat it.

Thanks. I knew I could arrange a 'bar' set up, just wasn't sure how to keep the mixers and garnishes fresh since my cabin doesn't have a mini fridge. Will have to check with NCL to make sure I can get small amounts of each as I need them vs. getting them all at once when the bottle is delivered.

I would really recommend doing something in Belize! I've been there 3 times (travelling solo, not on cruises) and while many areas of the country don't have great beaches (think crushed coral from the reef just offshore vs. fine powder sand), I've already really enjoyed all my excursions there.

I've stayed both inland (Mayan ruins) and on San Pedro, and my absolute favorite thing to do is spend a few hours at Hol Chan doing a 'Shark Ray Alley" snorkel. The fish on the reef are amazing, but you get to swim - up close and personal - with nurse sharks and sting rays. I've probably done variations of this excursion (organized tour and from knowing someone on the island with a boat) 5 or 6 times, and I've also seen manatees, turtles and eagle rays! I've been a few years since my last trip there, but this is kind of the 'snorkelling standard' for me and I can't wait to do it again!

Hi... I'm going on my first cruise in January. I've read you can order bottles of alcohol for your cabin, which would include mixers and garnishes. How does this work for studio cabins that aren't equipped with mini fridges? I know we can get buckets of ice, but that doesn't seem sufficient to keep some of the garnishes fresh over the course of a week. Does this mean the Bon Voyage option isn't available for studio cabins, or that it would have to be ordered for delivery only on a day I'd know there might be enough people around to use it all (cabin crawl, etc)?