Need Epic info - entertainment, food and kids

[tikcho]

We are considering going on the Epic this spring but I am a little concerned about it beeing too freestyle for me. Several things I need more info on -

1) Entertainment. We have a 3-year old so I'm not interested in the Blue Man Group, Cirque or the big productions. We do love the trivia games, karaoke and other activities (Newlywed game, etc) that many other cruise lines have in the evenings. Does the Epic have any of those or is it only activities that require tickets/reservations?

 

2) Food - I have no interest in booking all of our dinner si advance or waiting in long lines for a restaurant so we'd be eating in the buffet for most meals. Is the buffet open 24 hours or does it only open at certain times of the day/night?

 

3) Kid's Center (for 3-5 year olds) - for those that have had your kids attend, did they like it and enjoy it? Did they have a lot of activites planned? Did it seem that the staff cared? We love the fact that we can usually leave our son there for a few hours a day ot get a break so this is very important when planning a vacation.

 

I'd appreciate a quick answer since we have to make a decision between two cruises in the next few days. Thx!

[sdmike]

We are considering going on the Epic this spring but I am a little concerned about it beeing too freestyle for me. Several things I need more info on -

1) Entertainment. We have a 3-year old so I'm not interested in the Blue Man Group, Cirque or the big productions. We do love the trivia games, karaoke and other activities (Newlywed game, etc) that many other cruise lines have in the evenings. Does the Epic have any of those or is it only activities that require tickets/reservations?

 

2) Food - I have no interest in booking all of our dinner si advance or waiting in long lines for a restaurant so we'd be eating in the buffet for most meals. Is the buffet open 24 hours or does it only open at certain times of the day/night?

 

3) Kid's Center (for 3-5 year olds) - for those that have had your kids attend, did they like it and enjoy it? Did they have a lot of activites planned? Did it seem that the staff cared? We love the fact that we can usually leave our son there for a few hours a day ot get a break so this is very important when planning a vacation.

 

I'd appreciate a quick answer since we have to make a decision between two cruises in the next few days. Thx!

 

Only a small portion of the entertainment requires reservations. You will find all of the trivia, bingo, etc. that you do on any other ship. You will also find events related to "Nick" where your little one can meet Sponge Bob and the crew too.

 

The buffet is open from early to late, but not 24 hours. Room service and O'Sheehans are open 24/7 and have great food and selections. There are outstanding places you can eat beyond the buffet that don't reqire reservations or payment. Taste, Manhattan, O'Sheehans are just a few. Spice H2O has great outdoor dining, as does "the Great Outdoors" for snacks. The noodle bar will fill you to the gills with wonderful, fresh asian food for a few dollars. Walk up, no reservations.

 

The kids club is huge. Lots to do. My daughter's only complaint is that there was more structured time than free time. WIth all the fun stuff she just wanted to play, but they limited that to specific periods of time. That bothered her and as such didn't spend a ton of time there. She's a very mature 9.

[victoriasmommy]

1) entertainment. my 3 yo loved cirque. she sat through half of blue man. it was a bit loud but I think my 4 yo nephew would love it. We also went to the dueling pianos for a bit, which she enjoyed as well as legends.

 

2) we never waited in line at a restaurant. The buffet was open whenever we wanted to go. However no pizza til like 10.30. Also O'sheehans is open very late hours.

 

3) my 3 year old has never been to daycare... she was a bit nervous but everytime wanted to go, would skip her dessert to run off there, they must have alotta fun! sometimes she would come home with a construction paper pirate hat & sword, or a princess crown, or tell of a treasure hunt. They have a lil jungle gym too. She is a bit shy so sometimes a staff member would take her lil hand & lead her to the other kids her age & sit with her if they preferred her (she doesn't like men so much)

 

There are also some "family activites' in dif venues like dora's dance party & diego's story time that she really enjoyed.

[tikcho]

I understand that Cirque and Blue man maybe be OK for a 3 year old but I have seen them both on land and not interested in seeing again. I just wanted to confirm that the Epiuc has all the other Cruise Director staff activities like trivia games, etc that most other cruises have. Thx!

[victoriasmommy]

you can check out my dailies from nov 27th I posted awhile back. some things might have changed but will give you a general idea

[cmdchiefthom]

I've taken my two grandsons on several cruises, the first when the youngest was three, and the oldest was five. The staff was absolutely fantastic, and the kids loved them. If either of them were bad, all we had to do was to threaten them with banishment from the Kid's Club, and they would straighten up and promise to be good for the rest of their lives. ;)

[sdmike]

I understand that Cirque and Blue man maybe be OK for a 3 year old but I have seen them both on land and not interested in seeing again. I just wanted to confirm that the Epiuc has all the other Cruise Director staff activities like trivia games, etc that most other cruises have. Thx!

 

confirmed

[sdmike]

I've taken my two grandsons on several cruises, the first when the youngest was three, and the oldest was five. The staff was absolutely fantastic, and the kids loved them. If either of them were bad, all we had to do was to threaten them with banishment from the Kid's Club, and they would straighten up and promise to be good for the rest of their lives. ;)

 

On our DCL cruise it was like punishment to my kids when we picked them up for dinner. I know what you're talking about.