An Ice Rink?

[rsinj]

I totally agree. Having sailed RC before and not NCL I can tell you that the ice rink is the biggest waste of space. OK they do a very good ice show and a few people use it for skating but if I were RC I would do away with gimmicks like the ice rink and Royal Promenade and provide more eating, drinking and entertainment facilities for the passengers.

 

If your friends tried to get tickets for the ice show and couldn't, how is it the biggest waste of space? Because it doesn't match something that you personally like? And why is it a gimmick? It's an activity. A nice cool place to go and get out of the hot/brutal Caribbean sun. Is the rock wall a gimmick? 3 lane bowling alleys? How about casinos? These so-called "gimmicks" are entertainment. More eating and drinking? To tell you the truth, there are very few meals that I remember from any cruise (lobster night on RCL does stick with me - as does lobster night on NCL for the exact opposite reason), and it's not the reason we cruise. To dedicate more space to eating and drinking is wasted space in my mind.

 

I am personally not into the ice rink myself, however, on our RCL cruise, the ice show was filled at all shows and we only ended up getting tickets because we were in a suite and the concierge took care of it for us. We also had major difficulty getting my daughter off the ice during open skating - she had a blast.

 

So, it is a popular venue aboard - that makes it far from any kind of wasted space.

 

Now, on NCL, on our cruise, we noticed most of the restaurants which had a charge were essentially empty. Immediately it was clear that those were wasted space. Only open for dinner, and always empty.

 

Howard

[Tyron]

And if anyone really thinks that the Ice Rinks on RCI are a "waste of space", how would you describe this? Only saving grace is that given its size, the wasted space is limited.:)

 

it's funny how other cruise lines copy RCI's innovations and incorporate them onto their ships dating back to the Sovereign of the Seas (first ship with a mult level atrium).

 

advance theater/excursion system

cantilivered whirlpools

rock climbing walls

aqua park

trampoline

ice rink

[insidecabin]

The Epic Ice rink is in a dual purpose space within the covered sports deck area.

 

Easily put up/down so can adapt to the pax needs, strorage for the equipment is is dead space around the sports deck.

 

RCI also dual the ice rink with the cover so the space can be utilized for other things when not in use as ICE. both our RCI ic rinks cruises there have been enough shows, the trick is o find out when the extra VIP/Suite show is and turn up to that.

[bluesea777]

On the TA cruise my son and husband DID ice skate. It is true that it is on the sports deck, it breaks down and will only take about 1/2 of the sports court up at night (2 nights a week???). It was a last minute addition and they plan to set the rink up in the evenings to let people skate, they are still in the process of getting the"kinks" worked out. The material is a artificial ice (plastic-called superglide) and it uses a water based spray to make it glide better. The "plastic" ice has more friction, so it doesn't feel exactly like real ice but is a great cost alternative to "real ice." NCL has skates to borrow and you put them on and go. It was totally fun and my son and husband had a blast, just another option to do in the evenings.

The teen club was using it and many people tried for a half hour and then moved on, my son used it for almost 2 hours. It was one of the highlights of my son's trip-go figure...

But yes there is an "ice rink" under the stars.

 

That's good to hear :D I'm sure our DS will have fun! He has told us NOT to tell him of all the things EPIC has to offer as he wants to be surprised! He is so madly looking forward to next month's cruise.

[time2cruise1]

it's funny how other cruise lines copy RCI's innovations and incorporate them onto their ships dating back to the Sovereign of the Seas (first ship with a mult level atrium).

 

advance theater/excursion system

cantilivered whirlpools

rock climbing walls

aqua park

trampoline

ice rink

 

And even more funny how many more things RCI and the other lines copied from NCL's inovations.

[negc]

On the TA cruise my son and husband DID ice skate. It is true that it is on the sports deck, it breaks down and will only take about 1/2 of the sports court up at night (2 nights a week???). It was a last minute addition and they plan to set the rink up in the evenings to let people skate, they are still in the process of getting the"kinks" worked out. The material is a artificial ice (plastic-called superglide) and it uses a water based spray to make it glide better. The "plastic" ice has more friction, so it doesn't feel exactly like real ice but is a great cost alternative to "real ice." NCL has skates to borrow and you put them on and go. It was totally fun and my son and husband had a blast, just another option to do in the evenings.

The teen club was using it and many people tried for a half hour and then moved on, my son used it for almost 2 hours. It was one of the highlights of my son's trip-go figure...

But yes there is an "ice rink" under the stars.

Seems like everything on Epic has "kinks" that need to be worked out. :rolleyes:

Callling it a rink or comparing it to what RCI offers on its larger ships does seem to be a stretch.

[Tyron]

And even more funny how many more things RCI and the other lines copied from NCL's inovations.

 

Such as? :)

[twoshawns]

True, officially it is not an "ice rink." I have never been on RCI ships, but what I heard is that they have true rinks which sound great. The epic's rink is nothing like that no shows, no refrigeration, none of that.

However, I think this is a great option of something else to add to this ship, and think it was a great addition. Best part is that the upkeep/expense is very minimal (it is plastic puzzle pieces) that stack up and out of the way, the skates are stored in more extra space/bins. It is a cheap way to "have" a so called rink. It is pretty cool to be skating under the stars in the middle of the ocean. But, NCL should make it clear that this rink isn't true "ice."

And in my opinion, yes the epic has MANY kinks that need to be worked out:rolleyes: