The Cruise Explorer

The new Norwegian Epic is going to be very cool. So cool that it even has the very first ice bar at sea!

Wrap yourself in faux fur and step into the room that’s kept at 17°F! Inspired by the original ice hotels in Scandinavia, The Ice Bar is one of only 14 in the world and the only true ice bar at sea. Enter a glistening, frozen, fantasyland where the bar, the walls, the tables, the stools, even the life-size sculptures are made out of ice. If you get chilly, another vodka may help

There’s lots more on the Norwegian Epic in terms of entertainment, though. You’d have to travel the world to experience all of the unique hotspots aboard her. Enjoy exclusive bottle service and dancing under the stars at an open-air nightclub. Party alongside the pool on white-cushioned daybeds. From French Riviera chic and Ibiza style to Miami trendy and Vegas flair, the nightlife aboard Norwegian Epic has it all. During the day, the exhilarating Aqua Park features multiple slides with multiple thrills. Play Wii on a two-story screen or bowl on one of the ship’s six alleys. Or take on a challenge at the sports complex and rock-climbing wall. The fun never ends!

How many of you have ever been to an Ice Bar at sea? Or seen improv like The Second City off St. Thomas? What about going bowling off Cozumel? Or a two-story-tall Wii wall? On board NCL’s new Norwegian Epic, you’ll have one new experience after another, from the Aqua Park and the largest bowl slide at sea (the Epic Plunge) to the 24-foot-high climbing cage (the Spider Web). You’ll also see staterooms like you’ve never seen before – on land or sea (check out the photo of the Penthouse at the bottom of this post!). She’s 1,080 feet long and can carry 4,200 passengers and 1,730 crew members to some of the most exciting destinations on earth. Welcome to the next generation of Freestyle Cruising!

Norwegian Epic will be alternately sailing the eastern and western Caribbean from Miami starting in summer 2010 (the first Eastern Caribbean sailing is scheduled for July 17, 2010). Sailings have opened for sale for Latitudes members with an exclusive offer. Through the end of August, Latitudes members will receive up to a 3-category upgrade with additional savings of up to $100 per person, or if booking a Suite they’ll receive up to $500 per stateroom to spend on board. Rates for Latitudes members start at only $599.

See the exciting new Norwegian Epic Web site for much more information about the ship.

1966: Norwegian shipping magnate Knut Kloster purchases M/S Sunward to expand his company’s growing ferry operation. Kloster teams up with Ted Arison to offer first-ever weekly cruises from Miami to Nassau. Called the “Newest, Most Beautiful Cruise Liner,” Sunward established the cruise industry as we know it today. In an instant, gone were the days of a ship simply as a means of transportation. From here on out, NCL transformed ships into floating vacation destinations. It was a paradigm shift of the first order. And it established Miami as the center of the international cruise market.

1977: NCL purchases Great Stirrup Cay in the Bahamas, becoming the first cruise line to offer a private “out-island” experience.

1979: NCL buys S/S France and spends $100 million to convert her for Caribbean cruising. Sailing as S/S Norway, she ushers in a new era of mega cruise ships.

1980: NCL is the first cruise line to offer a kid’s program at sea (on the Norway).

1995: NCL goes high tech by launching the industry’s very first website.

1998: NCL initiates the first-ever Honolulu cruise on a non-U.S.-flagged cruise ship, Norwegian Dynasty.

1999: This was the year when some 1,200 NCL team members participated in the world’s first all-employee christening (Norwegian Sky). The event also set a Guinness World Record for the largest ship christening.

2000: Norwegian Sky pioneers the industry’s first Internet Café at sea, finally enabling guests to communicate with friends and family easily and reasonably, almost always starting with “You won’t believe where I’m emailing you from…”

2000: NCL launches Freestyle Cruising, giving guests more choices on everything from restaurants to accommodations than ever before. Every other cruise line tries to figure out how to deal with this bold move. They can’t.

2001: NCL introduces its Homeland Cruising program, offering more round-trip cruises from U.S. and Canadian ports than any other cruise line. It proves to be hugely successful by opening more “close-to-home” markets like New Orleans, Charleston, Baltimore and Los Angeles. And by adding more itineraries from New York than any other cruise line, NCL creates a new demographic for cruising.

2002: Another high-tech industry first: NCL introduces remote wireless Internet access (WiFi) for guests fleet-wide.

2003: NCL becomes the largest cruise line to sail to Bermuda and the only one to offer Bermuda sailings out of Boston, New York and Philadelphia.

2005: NCL makes maritime history with the christening of Pride of America – the largest and first U.S.-flagged cruise ship in nearly 50 years. Today, Pride of America still offers the only year-round, 7-day, inter-island Hawai’i cruises (of all major cruise lines).

2006: NCL introduces the first bowling alley at sea with the launch of Norwegian Pearl.

2007: NCL launches Norwegian Gem, making its fleet the youngest in the cruise industry. Also that year, NCL announces Freestyle 2.0, the company’s fleet-wide initiative to further improve the guest experience, and Partnership 2.0, a company-wide initiative to strengthen its relationships with travel partners.