Dining on the Epic - Part One Complimentary Options

One of the things my husband was most excited for was new dining experiences. We booked two specialty dining restaurants, Teppanyaki and Moderno. We planned to spend the rest of the meals in the complimentary dining venues. Neither of us are "foodies" but we love food. We're happy at a buffet, so we are usually pretty easy to please.

Our first night we went to The Manhattan Room, we had no wait, but it was pretty early, around 5:30pm. We were seated right away, near the musician in the center. We were too early to see any dancing, or a full band, but the music was nice. The floor to ceiling windows were also a nice touch. Our server seemed rushed right away. He did not tell us the specials, he did not offer us a drink other than water, he took our order and walked away. The food was ok. Nothing to write home about, the presentation was just alright and the food was just alright as well. We ate almost the entire bread basket because it took forever for the food to come. To paint a picture, the people next to us sat down right after we ordered our food. They were eating their meal (appetizers done) when we got our salads. They had a different server. The meal was not bad by any means, but it was not great either.

Most mornings and afternoons we visited the buffet for our meals. As I said, we're simple and easy to please and I found the buffet food perfectly fine. Sometimes it was hard to find a place to sit, but we always did. I did miss the opportunity to have a soda with lunch but the waters, teas and juices were very nice. The only issue we had with the buffet is that it never really changed. I noticed some days they had something special on the buffet but everything else was pretty much the same each day.

Chandelier over Taste

We visited Taste twice, once for lunch (very good service, good food) and once for dinner. This dinner was our next disappointment. First we noticed that the menu was the same as Manhattan a few days before. One side of the menu had Chef's specials but the waiter never stayed long enough to ask about them. When we were seated, they asked if we wanted to see the wine menu. When we said no, it was like they were done with us. They barely stayed long enough to take our order, again not asking if we wanted anything but water and not telling us about the specials. A table was seated behind us, they ordered wine and our server was all over them, explaining the specials while he opened and poured their wine, carrying on a conversation with them. We felt that since the server would not be getting an additional tip from us since we did not order alcoholic beverages they wrote us off and only gave us the most minimal of service. We thought maybe this could be our imagination, or maybe the service was just poor in the "free" restaurants until it happened again, at a specialty restaurant.

I know I sound hypercritical of the dining options but by no means were they bad. They were just alright. I do expect better service and I would like more options in the main dining restaurants but overall it was sufficient.

Time for Something New - The Norwegian Epic

Our first cruise was on the Disney Magic for our honeymoon in 1999. Our last cruise was also on the Magic in January. We knew it was time to give another line a try, but we were skeptical. I received a phone call from a personal cruise consultant from NCL telling me they were having great deals but I told him I was not interested at the time. A few days later I started playing around on the NCL website and boy was he right, their cruises were cheap in comparison to what we were used to paying for Disney. A few years ago we were docked beside the NCL Epic in Nassau and always thought it would be cool to sail on so we decided with the super cheap fares, it was worth a try.

I started reading the Cruise Critic boards immediately to learn all I could about the ship and to see pictures to get an idea of what we were in for. There were such mixed reviews on the ship that I was a little nervous, but I knew no matter what, we would have fun.

We booked as much of the entertainment and dining that we could up front as we learned that it could be hard to get into the shows once you were on board. We booked the Cirque Dreams show, Blue Man Group, Teppanyaki, Moderno and Second City in advance. We had trouble fitting the Legends show into our schedule, and ultimately missed it once on board. We also scheduled shore excursions through the cruise line for Jamaica (Dunn's River Falls and Mystic Mountain) and Costa Maya (Chachhoben).

We were super excited to try something new, new restaurants, new entertainment, new ship to explore. Even a new destination as we had never been to Jamaica. The hardest challenge we faced? Trying not to compare everything to Disney, after all, we have sailed Disney a dozen times, so it would be hard not to.

First Impressions

After a three hour drive to Miami from Orlando we arrived at the cruise terminal and parked in the garage. Not the cheapest option, but for Miami newbies it was the best option for us. We walked into the terminal, dropped off our luggage with a porter and checked in. Check in was quick and painless and we were sent to the seating area to wait for our turn to board. Embarkation was...underwhelming. For those who have sailed Disney, you know how you enter into the beautiful atrium while the crew announces your name and everyone claps. On the Epic you enter into the casino, your first experience is a stale smelling, underwhelming casino.

Since our rooms would not be ready for a little while we decided to grab a bite to eat. I learned from Cruise Critic it was best to avoid the buffet on day 1 so we went to O'Sheehans. The service left a lot to be desired. While the restaurant was busy, it was not overly busy and there were plenty of servers but it took them forever to come take our order and then even longer to bring our food. The food was just ok, but pretty much what I had expected.

Once the rooms were ready we went to drop off our stuff and check out the room. I found the room to be very nicely decorated with plenty of storage and a pretty nice set-up. The bathrooms, which are a huge topic on the Cruise Critic boards were interesting to put it nicely. The shower was perfectly fine, no issues, but the toilet area made us feel very claustrophobic. The frosted glass doors, while a little awkward were not a big issue for us, but they would be if we were traveling with other people in our room, or if you ordered room service while one person was in the shower! We had a larger balcony than most and we were very happy with it, it got a lot of use on our sea days.

Once settled in we headed back out to explore the massive ship. We went back to the room for the "3:30" muster drill. Here was our first unpleasant experience on the Epic. The daily said the muster drill was at 3:30, the announcements said the muster drill was at 3:30. We've done 12 muster drills prior to this (albeit on Disney) and were familiar with the process. Imagine our surprise when at 3:20 the alarms start to sound. We went out to the hallway to see if people were heading to the drill but other people popped their heads out wondering the same thing. We all decided that it was only 3:20 so we would wait. About five minutes later they made an announcement that everyone should be at the muster drill. We ran out of the room. When we arrived in Bliss, our muster station, we were admonished for being "late". By my watch it was 3:29. If the muster drill is at 3:30, have the drill at 3:30, not 3:20 or change the time to 3:20.

We explored a little more until we were hungry then headed off to find some dinner. The freestyle dining concept intrigued us since we are used to a designated dining time and we were excited to try new menus and restaurants.

Going forward, instead of doing this day by day, I will give our thoughts by experiences, such as dining, entertainment, shore excursions, hits and misses, and our overall experience and comparison to Disney.

Where to next?

Memorial Day is the unofficial beginning of summer and here in Florida where it's already 100 degrees, it's been summer for a while. A few years ago I found this cartoon in a magazine; this is exactly what happens in my house once summer starts! :)

Summer Decor Idea

When I am not traveling, or planning my next trip, I love to decorate my home. Today I wanted to make a little summer inspired spot in my family room.

Most materials came from Pottery Barn, while the glass jars are from Old Time Pottery. The tray is also from Pottery Barn.

Materials:

• Glass jars
• Sand
• Candles
• Starfish

I cleaned the glass, filled with sand to the same height and added the candles and starfish. Ten minutes and some cute new summer decor!

Disney Magic - Final Thoughts

It had been over 14 years since we last sailed on the Disney Magic for our honeymoon. The ship was in great shape and the new additions were wonderful. We did notice that some areas could have stood a little more TLC. Many areas of the deck were covered in paint splatters that were very un-Disney-like and we noticed quite a bit of rust remaining on the decks and balconies that should have been eradicated during the re-painting. We also thought that our bathroom could have used some attention as the shower tiles and floor tiles were original and in desperate need of a re-grout.

This however did not take away from the amazing time we had whatsoever. The crew is as perfect as always, the food was delicious and the entertainment was excellent. We were especially happy to see Brent as the cruise director as we loved him on the Fantasy, such a class act!

Overall, the Disney Magic, as the first Disney ship we ever sailed on will always be our #1, but you can't go wrong on any Disney ship. The Fantasy, while much bigger, and much newer still leads the way for us as we really appreciate the addition of new adult areas.

Satellite Falls on the Disney Fantasy

I don't know when our next Disney cruise will be, as for the first time in years we do not have one booked for the future, but I do know it will not be another 14 years before we sail on the Magic again!

Disney Magic Day 3 Part 2 - Superbowl on the High Seas

Tonight the Super Bowl would be playing all over the ship. The Disney Magic set up seating and screens all over the ship as well as different types of food buffets. We checked out O'Gills and the Promenade Lounge but ultimately decided on watching the game from deck 9 on the Aerial Vision jumbo screen. They had tables set up all around and a buffet with hot dogs, wings and other fun snacks.

The only difference when watching the game on the ship is they do not show the commercials which is sad for those of us who's team didn't quite make the Super Bowl this year (Go Pats!). We did spend the evening with our table mates from dinner, enjoying the game and getting to know them better.

Watching the game on the high seas is very fun and I would love to spend Super Bowl weekend on a Disney cruise every year!

Disney Magic Day 3 Part 1 - Castaway Cay

My favorite place on earth is Castaway Cay. We visited for the first time on our honeymoon and it will always hold a special place in my heart.

Our only plan today was to ride bikes on Castaway Cay. We had a quick breakfast in Cabanas (love the updates) and headed ashore. We rented bikes at the beach and headed off on the trail. It was a perfect day for a bike ride.

After our ride we had some lunch at Serenity Bay and then walked along the water. The water is much too cold for us Floridians in January for swimming, but we did see a manta ray in the water.

We headed back to the ship just as it started to lightly rain. Once on board we stopped at the spa and scheduled some treatments to use our 20% discount. While I sat by the pool Greg rode the Aqua Dunk. He loved it so much he got right back in line. Though there was really no line since most people were still ashore.

Aqua Dunk from below

For the first time in our experience there were little tiny no-see-ums at the beach and in the air once back on board. They were so annoying we chose to go inside.

Greg enjoyed a shave and facial while I enjoyed the spa taster of a facial, foot massage and neck and shoulder massage. We got lucky and they put us together in the room and we had two awesome people who spent the entire time telling us funny stories about living on a ship.

After our relaxing time in the spa we went to our room to shower and change and get ready for dinner. Dinner would be quick tonight as the Super Bowl would be starting soon and we didn't want to miss the experience of watching at sea!

Disney Magic - Day 2 - Palo Brunch

Our first full day was a sea day. We chose this itinerary for the sea day so that we could enjoy Palo brunch.

We had an appointment at the spa early in the morning to do the Exotic Rasul. We spent about a half hour in the Rainforest before our appointment and then went to the Rasul room. It was very hot in there, too hot. We lasted barely long enough to use all the masks and mud and I had to get out of there into the cooler air. I had to rest in the locker room for a while, I think I was getting heat stroke. The spa manager felt bad and offered us 20% off anything else which we used the next day.

Strawberry Soup

Palo Brunch was as amazing as always. We had a nice window seat and a wonderful server. We also noticed that our last server from The Fantasy was now on the Magic and he stopped by to say hi.

We enjoyed the offerings from the buffet and had a few hot options, like the Chicken Parmesan with Risotto. We also had our absolute favorite, the Strawberry Soup. The soup is worth the price alone, but thankfully, as Platinum cruises we receive a free trip to Palo on each cruise.

We spent the rest of the day exploring the ship, playing Bingo and being lazy. Dinner was in Carioca's, I like the new setting but the menu was a little too adventurous for my tastes. This would be the night I would plan Palo dinner on a future cruise, but I'm glad I had the chance to experience it.

After some 80's music trivia in O'Gills we headed up to the Pirate Party and Fireworks. The party was fun but it was very different from the Dream and Fantasy. There were less dancer's and I missed the cool animated Jolly Roger on the main screen. After the party we visited the buffet for some tacos and desert then headed back down to Fathoms for another fun night.

Tomorrow is Castaway Cay!