catzcrazy

We are doing our 1st NCL cruise and I also am interested in the answers to your questions.

thanks.

I do agree with you that the Epic, more so than any other NCL ship has uncontained smoke. It's a lot more smoke than I want to be smelling and it's not contained in the casino. I remember walking in to Le Bistro and smelling smoke! I remember waiting in line to get into the various theaters, standing in line 15 fish minutes and smelling smoke. I do agree with you that it's unacceptable.

 

But the other posters are right. The smoke isn't everywhere. It's easy to get away from the smoke, its just that there are parts of the ship, if you want to enjoy them, you're going to have to deal with smoke. If you want to see a show in headlines, you probably will have to stand in line and smell smoke. You can eat at le Bistro smoke free but getting there will be a small issue.

 

You've gotta be able to tolerate some level of smoke to enjoy the Epic.

Just food for thought - I wonder if in the line what you were smelling was not the actual smoke, but the smell that permeates the clothes, hair, etc of smokers - that is not a pleasant smell either, but we are booked and will do our best to not be in any areas that are smoke filled - thanks for the tip to avoid Le Bistro.

Funny; you must have missed a good part of the ship.

I was on the Epic in January and did not experience this at all, only in certain places which were well marked as smoking sections.

No, I am not a smoker.

 

Hope your next cruise is better for you. :cool::cool:

Prior to the cruise is there a way to find out where the smoking sections? Are the cabins non-smoking. My husband had a heart transplant 5 years ago and one of the main things he is to avoid is the smell of smoke. This is the first time I have read about Epic being bad about smoke. Most ships we have been on (see list in signature) allow smoking and it has never bothered us as long as we avoid the casino.

No I was told by people on the boards here that you pay upfront.

 

 

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Interesting - we have been cruising since 1998 and it was that you used to not have to pay up front, but since I started reserving our excursions online, I have to pay for them up front. I wonder if I call to reserve them if I know do not have to pay up front. We are new to NCL and when I look online (cannot reserve until August 8 - cruise is in December) it shows that I will have to pay for them up front - which I would prefer to do - will check on 8/8 just out of curiosity.

Thanks.

We visited the fitness center on deck 14, I thought walking on a treadmill while looking out would be great, it turns out vertigo doesn’t like motion in 2 directions at the same time. The center was however, very nice. There seemed to be just about any kind of exercise device that you could possibly need. There was a kettle bell class going on and sign ups for person coaches. That was enough working out for me.

Our CC Meet and Greet was at 11 in the Cavern Club (thanks once again PJ Morrissey). There were about 40 people in attendance, there were snacks and juice. Several officers showed up and spoke. Nelson the Hotel Director talked for a while about the recent negativity on CC about the short spring break cruises advertised at college campuses. He explained that it was an experiment that was very hard on the crew. Turning 4,100 @ double occupancy ever 7 days was really a challenge, but doing it twice in one week where a lot of rooms were full was extremely difficult. He also explained that after their European run the Epic would not be returning to Port Canaveral. He said that port just wasn’t big enough to handle the number of people. She will be porting in Puerto Rico starting in November.

Very interesting!!! We are booked on the Epic out of Port Canaveral on Dec 5 for 10 nights - hope we don’t have to change - this port is good for us - metro Atlanta area.

I’ll be about 100 miles west from the port. Hopefully car fire free? I’m definitely using the Waze ap. It’s real time traffic info that gives the best routes including alternatives around car fires and the like.

Love Waze!!!!!

Loving your review - we too have been on many cruises - most of them via Carnival - have just booked us on the Epic for the 10 night on December 5, 2018 and have a lot of questions! Will wait to see if you answer them in your review prior to asking. Thanks!!

Loving your posts!!

I bought a cameo for $80, it is not set in gold, just a silver loop to hang by. I love it! I can now add mine to my collection. I have my Grandmothers, Mothers, and Aunts. Something I can pass on to my daughter. BTW, we want to go back to Roatan and stay a week. We fell in love with the island.

Thanks for the info. Do you know how low the prices are on unset cameos?

catzcrazy: Be sure to look at "Gem Carving Int'l" in the Mahogany Bay shopping area, too.....there were some nice things there too, as well as at the studio/showroom/Cameo Factory. The website has been down for a couple years, so I don't think it worked out for them to have up. They were very easy to bargain with for multiple purchases, too! Enjoy your cruise! :D

Thank you so much for the info. My DH and I will check out both!

we were just there in sept and it was open even though their website is down. I'm sure they're still operating. Its a nice little store with a few long cases of items. I did a little damage there. ;)

 

I'll tell you, the cameos are GORGEOUS but the settings are only so so. I bought 2 bracelets (one very nice quality, the other just for fun) and 2 very nice pendants and I'll probably have one of the bracelets (the nicer one) and one of the pendants reset. If you make jewelry you'd probably enjoy seeing a bit of the carving process as its interesting. The artist who was there the day we were was a lovely young deaf and mute woman.

 

Happy shopping!

Thank you so much for your response. I hope to be able to pick up 2 or 3 loose cameos and then build rings, a necklace or what ever around them. I am really looking forward to this stop, but wish they would get the website back up and running. :(

My DH and I will be on the Carnival Legend the week of 12/5/2010 - soon!!!!

We should be in Roatan that Friday. Does anyone know if the Cameo Factory is still open? Their website is down and this is the one place I really want to go as I also make jewelry.

Thanks.

The adult deck/pool/bar is aft on deck 9. There is a pool and hot tub(s), bar and covered area with tables/chairs and the open deck. Very relaxing out there and well enforced re: kids. I believe there was either ice cream right there or at the next pool area. Soft serve and the strawberry was yummy!

 

Enjoy your cruise and happy almost birthday!!

 

Gina

Thank you so much. That area is where we will most likely hang out. I am glad you had a happy birthday, and that balcony was incredible.

First Sea Day (Monday): I'm starting to think I should have made notes along the way because I lost track of exactly what we did and on what day! We went to some of the late night adult comedy shows and enjoyed them. We checked out Karaoke one night and I decided that we would come back on my birthday (Friday) and do some singing (more on that later).

 

The first night at sea I slept like a rock! I lug my full-size body pillow, known as Big Blue, on all of my trips and that really makes for a good nights sleep. I slept sooooo well that I was late to our roll-call meet-n-greet, oops! I really enjoyed meeting those that were still there when I rolled in 20 minutes late!

 

After the roll-call I singed up for the slot tournament ($20 fee) in the casino. Hung around until it was time to play. Made it into the finals but didn't win. Got a t-shirt out of it and a 30% off voucher for the spa, which went unused. Witnessed my first hairy chest contest...pretty lame.

 

Found some of the girls soaking up sun on the adult deck so I joined them for a bit. Our first sea day FLEW by! I took a nice nap. This was our first elegant night so we all got spruced up and went to the Big Easy show before dinner. I really enjoyed the show and left more impressed than I had been the night before.

 

We stopped for some formal photos after the show and then made our way to dinner. One word: lobster. YUM!!! I have dined on lobster on all 7 of my cruises and this was by far the best that I have had. Cooked perfectly and melted in your mouth. After dinner we checked out the club. Not much happening that night...or any night for that matter. The 2 story split lay-out is awkward and doesn't really promote dancing, mingling or fun. And who came up with the idea of a rotating door and a spiral staircase on a moving ship in an area where alcohol is being served??? That's one sick sense of humor.

 

Hit the hay because Grand Cayman would come very early for our West Coast body clocks.

 

Grand Cayman: Surprisingly I woke up early. Popped out on the balcony and was tickled to see some new neighbors pulling in.

 

The new Celebrity Solstice. Beautiful ship!

 

We had ordered room service breakfast the night before and dined on that while getting ready. Note: room service arrived 15 to 30 minutes early every time and caught us sound to sleep a few times.

 

This was one of two tender ports. We made our way down to deck 1 all the way forward just before 8:00 and walked right onto the tender.

 

View of a tender boat from my balcony.

 

I booked stingray city independently thru MobyDick tours. We took a short walk to the meeting point and checked in. A few minutes later we were on a bus heading for the marina. Not going to lie when I say that driving on the wrong side of the street stressed me out a bit!

 

Our driver pointed out sites along the way and in less than 15 minutes we were at the marina. We boarded the boat, met our crew, got a stingray anatomy lesson and were off. Very nice ride out to the sandbar. When we approached the bar our captain decided that there were too many boats already there so he reversed our order and we went snorkeling on the reef first.

 

I have attempted snorkeling several times over the past 25 years and have failed miserably. It's a mind over matter thing but as soon as my face hits the water, I panic. I know this but can't overcome it. I put on a mask and snorkel and swim vest (optional...well, not for me!) and made my way into the water. Floated/bobbed/swam a bit. Eventually I did put my face in the water long enough to see some really pretty fish near the boat but never ventured to the reef. One of our guides dove down and found and eel and you could watch him feed it.

 

After about 30 minutes we climbed aboard and found our spot on the sandbar. I could not get over how beautiful the water was! Sorry, but Chrissy had the waterproof camera (more on that later) and was in charge of photos so I don't have any to post at this time.

 

The rays were GINORMOUS and I was slightly freaked out by them. As long as I could see them at all times, it was fine but when they would sneak up and brush against my leg I screamed like a girl. I did pet/touch them but didn't feed them. I even gave one a kiss for 7 years of good luck. Our guides were great and we had tons of hands on time with the rays. Amazing creatures and stunning location. We had to drag Maggie out of the water! She bonded with one ray and held her for at least 15 minutes and was in love. I am 5 feet 3 inches and the ocean was chest high or lower on me.

 

We climbed aboard and made our way back to the marina and back on the bus. Our driver pointed out the iguanas that were sunning themselves. We had the option of being dropped off at 7 mile beach or being taken back to port. We opted for port as the intense sun and time in the water had zapped us.

The driver dropped us off at a restaurant named Rack Um (sp?) near port. By mentioning MobyDick tours we were given a discount. Open air seating on the water with stunning views of our ship. Excellent food...had my first conch fritters.

 

We strolled back to port and checked out some of the shops. I bought some small cans of pineapple juice to go with some of my contraband. Walked right on the tender and back to the ship.

 

I was exhausted and chose to shower and nap. Sorry about the lack of photos but my non-waterproof camera stayed on the ship in this port and I haven't seen anyone elses photos yet.

Could you tell me a bit more about the adult deck? My DH and I will be on the Legend for the 12/5/2010 sailing and that will be the area of choice for us as we do not have any kids. Where is it located on the ship? Pool? Hot tub? Are kids restricted from the entire area or just the pool and hot tub if there are ones there? Any shade? I heard there is an ice cream place close - my DH loves ice cream. Is this true. This will be my 59th Bday and I am so ready to go. Can't wait to hear about Roatan - only port we have not yet been to.

Loving your review. Please keep it coming.

Thanks.

Embarkation Day Continued: I just realized I have the wrong date in the title. The cruise didn't start until the 24th but the trip began on the 23rd, oop's.

 

We made our way on board and went straight to the guest services desk so that one of the gals could set up her onboard account. We got our first real dose of urns in the main atrium area. I rather liked them and after a day or two didn't even notice them anymore.

 

Chrissy in the atrium lobby.

 

We grabbed some pocket maps of the ship, hopped in the glass elevator and made our way to deck 9 for some grub. We sat by the pool and dined on the burgers from the grill by the pool. Some folks from our roll-call sat at the table behind us (I recognized the walking boot) so I introduced my group.

 

We explored the adult only pool/bar area and then made our way all the way to the front of the ship.

 

 

View of Tampa from aft and Ryndam in the background.

 

The water slide that we were so excited about but that not a single one of us made it down?! Do over!

 

We all made our last phone calls to family and headed off to find our cabins shortly after 1:15. Noelle and I had balcony 6232 and Chrissy, Maggie and Jennifer had inside cabin 6287. This was my very first balcony and thanks to my friends on CC I knew exactly which one to book!

 

 

Drum roll....TA DA!!! OMG!!! It was everything I thought it would be and more!

 

NOELLE IS THAT YOU WAAAAAAAY DOWN THERE???

 

I literally burst into tears. I was so excited. This day had finally come and the emotions overtook me. A dear friend of mine was not able to come on the cruise but she surprised me by ordering birthday room decorations and roses...more tears as I read the card from her. Photos in next post since only 6 images are allowed per post!

Wow - what a balcony!!!! Happy Belated Birthday. My DH and I will be on the Legend's 12/5/2010 sailing. My 59th birthday will be in day we are in Belize. I hope you had as great a time as we always do on our cruises.

We were at the cameo factory last month. It is a store where employees will be working on their craft. There will be a table outside where several people will be sorting sea shells and portions of sea shells. Then there is a table inside where one or two men will be working. My daughter bought a cameo charm for her charm bracelet for $25. She haggled with them (she is better at that than I am). At that point, they invited us into the inner sanctum. That's not what they called it, but they said we were VIP's and this was a rare opportunity to see more of the artist's work. I would recommend a stop here. We were fascinated, and thought it was beautiful. The cameos are very intricate. If you get the employees chatting, they will be happy to share their work with you and give you a nice tour. But if you go thinking that you will see a large factory with an organized tour, you may be disappointed.

How was the stock on unset pieces?

Thanks.

We walked to the Cameo factory from the Grand in early December, enjoying the children and their families along the way. Once there we did look through the inventory and watched several apprentices hard at work creating on-of-a kind cameo pieces. I don't know what people expect for prices, but a genuine cameo carved from shell is a painstaking work of art - unlike the plastic imitations that you can find in a lot of costume jewelry. We though many of the items in the store were fairly priced; the staff was also willing to negotiate.

 

After looking through the cases in the front of the store we met the owner, Franco, who is 4th generation and the only Cameo artist this side of Italy. He invited us back to his studio where we saw his amazing collection - some of which are priceless and not for sale. Yes, we did purchase one nice piece and are looking forward to getting it once the setting has been completed.

 

The Cameo Castle is neither a souvenir shop nor a "Diamonds International" of cameos, but is an artist's studio where you can select unique pieces in much the same manner as you would fine art that you hang on the wall. If you go with that expectation, you will not be disappointed.

Well said. I make my own jewelry to sell at Arts and Craft Shows and it is hard to sell something that is a part of me and every piece I design is just that. I am sure some people will think his cameos high, but they are hand carved and it is hard to put a price on the real value of that.