Norwegian Epic’s Ice Bar at Sea

My Observations of the Ice Bar at Sea

Norwegian Cruise Line has the first Ice Bar at sea, aboard the new Norwegian Epic that set sail a few weeks ago. There has been an abundance of opinions as to how long this new trend is going to last.

Since the area that is being used for the Ice Bar is only about the size of a stateroom, and not very large, if this is something that doesn’t take off well for NCL, they can always transfer the space into something else, very easily.

The Ice Bar holds 20 – 25 people at a time, and for $20.00 a person, you will get entry into the bar, and 2 drinks. There are not many drinks to choose from, as you can see in the menu that I included at the top right corner. The average time spent in the 17 degree bar, can last from 30 – 45 minutes. After 30 minutes, you’ll probably be ready to leave.

Before entering the Ice Bar, you will be asked to put on gloves, and a jacket that resembles a rain coat sort of poncho, with a hood that has fur around the face portion.

If you’ve never been in an ice bar before, considering there’s only about 14 of them in the world, in which one is on this cruise ship, I’ve been told it’s a grand experience. We chose not to attend the ice bar fun, as I only brought flip-flops with me and one pair of dress shoes. Okay, I’m fibbing. I didn’t attend, because I did not want to pay the $20.00 cover charge per person.

While eating dinner one night, we were delighted to have the company of a couple from New Jersey that happened to visit the Ice Bar, the night before. They were kind enough to share some of the experience they had with us.

When you go inside the Ice Bar, you will see a bar made completely of ice, along with the stools you sit on, and the table you sit at. Some of the stools would cause you to lean a little, due to the warm rear-end of the person that sat there before you did.

Going from the Caribbean heat to 17 degrees is not fun, however, some say they’re not bothered by it. I’m not quite sure why someone would even want to do this to begin with. Maybe it’s just so they can say they did.

If you are interested in booking this first ice bar at sea, then as soon as you get on the ship, make sure you go and book it as soon as you can, otherwise, you’re taking the chance of not being able to book later, due to all the reservations being full.

Children are allowed in the ice bar too, however, since their drinks are non-alcoholic, they will freeze. The children seem to find this rather amusing though. What I would find amusing is to think that one couple with a child, would hand out $60.00 for one mixed drink, and two non-alcoholic drinks, to sit on some ice for 45 minutes.

There are two non-alcoholic beverages that are available. One is the Creamsickle, which is made from orange juice, vanilla ice cream, and milk. The other is the Strawberry Eskimo Kiss, which is made from strawberry puree, pineapple juice, and lemon juice.

Some people have found that they cannot withstand the entire 45 minutes, so about 30 minutes later they are offering their 2nd drink ticket to someone else that’s still in the ice bar, or they just lay the ticket on the table for someone else to use. So if you like to drink, you might benefit by staying longer.

Talking among fellow cruisers, some people didn’t feel that the Ice Bar should be open at night for children, and that only adults should be allowed in at night time, or after a certain hour.

As you sit or stand in your poncho jacket with hood, you can converse with others, and admire the ice sculptures that are up against the walls, as the colors change in the room from a blue, to a purple, pink, and aqua haze.

For those that can afford it, I would certainly give it a try, just because I could. But with this economy, I’ll pass this time.

Source: Personal Experience