Golden Princess in October - Advice please

[mringenoldus]

I am in the process of booking the Golden in mid-October. I have done a couple of other routes in the area but not Grenada, Kitts and Nevis, Cararcas, and Aruba. I would appreciate feedback on these ports.
We are the type of people who just like to go exploring on an island (not huge into lying on the beach or shopping fanatics)
Thanks!

CCL Holiday 2000
CCL Elation 2001
CCL Pride 2002
CCL Ecstacy 2003
RCL AOS 2003
Sun Princess May 14 2004!!

[mringenoldus]

I know there are a lot of very experienced cruisers on this board. If you have been to the ports given above - I'd really appreciate your input. Thanks!!

CCL Holiday 2000
CCL Elation 2001
CCL Pride 2002
CCL Ecstacy 2003
RCL AOS 2003
Sun Princess May 14 2004!!

[JanetMarie]

Caracas??? I thought they stopped docking there. Oh, well.

Aruba - one of our fav islands. Very beautiful and tropical around the resort areas, but arid and dry for the rest of the island. Be sure to go to the Atlantic side where the ocean is really rough and take the cave excursion. Very interesting. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif There are some casinos on the island, although we don't gamble. If time permits, dine at "The Mill." It's literally a windmill that has been on the island since 1988. Excellent food and nice owners. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif

http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=FFA000&cdt=2005;04;02;17;00;00&timezone=GMT-0500
OUR NEXT ONWARD JOURNEY!

[mringenoldus]

JanetMarie
Thanks for the reply! The ship actually stops in La Guaira, Venezuela. I believe it's near Caracas.

Aruba sounds very interesting. I love casinos and my husband loves caves - perfect match!

I just got my booking confirmation number so I'm now officially allowed to get excited - but I'm about 2 weeks from my next trip so I better hold off a bit!!

CCL Holiday 2000
CCL Elation 2001
CCL Pride 2002
CCL Ecstacy 2003
RCL AOS 2003
Sun Princess May 14 2004!!

[AcworthBill]

Mary & I are taking this same cruise in 12 days. It will be our first ever cruise, so we don't have any advice for you yet. Will post when we return.

We were originally scheduled to go into La Guaira too, but they changed it about a month before departure to La Magarita Island (as everyone had predicted) because of the political unrest in Venezuela. Check Princess.com frequently.

For our excursions we chose:

St Thomas: Champagne Cat & Snorkeling
St Kitts: Nevis Sailaway
Grenada: Some General Tour
La Magarita: nothing yet, may stay on boat
Aruba: 4 wheel drive Jeep excursion

Will let you know how it goes. Check back under Princess and we'll do some kind of review.

Good luck to you.

Bill

<FONT SIZE="5"><FONT COLOR="#000000">Bill & Mary</FONT></FONT>
<FONT SIZE="3"><FONT COLOR="#FF0000">Golden Princess: May 9, 2004</FONT></FONT>
(A 25th Anniversary First Cruise.... Everyone has to start Somewhere!)
Leaving ON:
<FONT SIZE="4"><span style="border:blue double 5px;"><span style="background-color:#000066;"><tt><FONT COLOR="#33CCFF">~ 5/9/04 at 11:00p.m. {No Countdown Clock: You Figure It Out} ~</span></span></FONT></FONT></tt></p>

[cruzfiend]

Are you taking the October 10, 2004 cruise? We are , so I thought I'd ask. Where is La Magarita Island? Anyone know? Thanks

Aweigh we go
http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=0000ff&cdt=2004;10;10;23;00;00&timezone=GMT-0500

[AcworthBill]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by cruzfiend:
Are you taking the October 10, 2004 cruise? We are , so I thought I'd ask. Where is La Magarita Island? Anyone know? Thanks<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Y'all ought to perhaps start a "Golden Princess October 10, 2004" Thread on the Roll Call Board. I looked over there and did not see one started yet.

I don't know much about La Magarita, but I know that on the thread for our cruise:
Golden Princess Southern Carribbean 5/9/04 (http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?q=Y&a=tpc&s=927093444&f=4763056957&m=9063085267&p=1), somebody listed links to sites about this island.

Good luck, and have fun with your pre-cruise planning and excitement.

Bill

<FONT SIZE="5"><FONT COLOR="#000000">Bill & Mary</FONT></FONT>
<FONT SIZE="3"><FONT COLOR="#FF0000">Golden Princess: May 9, 2004</FONT></FONT>
(A 25th Anniversary First Cruise.... Everyone has to start Somewhere!)
Leaving ON:
<FONT SIZE="4"><span style="border:blue double 5px;"><span style="background-color:#000066;"><tt><FONT COLOR="#33CCFF">~ 5/9/04 at 11:00p.m. {No Countdown Clock: You Figure It Out} ~</span></span></FONT></FONT></tt></p>

[mringenoldus]

If this is the same as Isla de Margarita - and I suspect it is - it is just north of the Venzuela coast. I wouldn't say it's a premium stop. I know on my RCI timeshare search, you can exclude it and the Dominican Republic when searching the Caribbean. I wish they would substitute Curacau instead.

CCL Holiday 2000
CCL Elation 2001
CCL Pride 2002
CCL Ecstacy 2003
RCL AOS 2003
Sun Princess May 14 2004!!

[cruisinmarg]

Have read that LaGuaira has been substituted with Isla Margarita. I called Princess and they said LaGuaira is still on the 10/10/04 itinerary. Decided not to book a private excursion either place just in case the stop is canceled.
Too Long To Wait!

[005flyer]

Just did that cruise last week. Very nice - did a full review on it and it should be on the board somewhere - sorry, don't know how to post the link. The title of it is "Golden 6/20-6/27."

Let me know if you have any questions...

[MauiLuvr]

I did this Southern Carib Explorer itinerary in early May and also did a review.

Aruba was my favorite stop by far, with Grenada coming in second. My least favorite stop was Isla Margarita and St. Kitts was a surprising disappointment to me. It wasn't awful by any means...just not at all what I was expecting.

A few of my pix can be see here:
http://members.aol.com/hopphutch/pictures2004.htm

[mringenoldus]

I've been in touch with Greg's Safaris for St. Kitts. He received good reviews in Conde Nast. I have to get 2 more people to go along to book however. Did you hear if anyone used Greg's?

What did you do on Grenada? I'm interested in the spices and my husband likes anything with history.

What about Isla Margarita?? I have heard both good and bad about the port.
Thanks!

[PeabodyNVL]

Have read that LaGuaira has been substituted with Isla Margarita. I called Princess and they said LaGuaira is still on the 10/10/04 itinerary. Decided not to book a private excursion either place just in case the stop is canceled.
Too Long To Wait!They will leave La Guaira/Caracas on the itinerary probably until you are inside 2 months of the sailing date. Regardless, no ships have gone there for about a year, due to political unrest. You are wise not to book a private excursion. Unless the situation gets noticeably better and the US State Department lifts it's warning, the ship will not stop there.

[MauiLuvr]

We did the Princess excursion "Grenada's Highlights" on Grenada. It's an excellent (but long) trek in a nice air-conditioned van around the island to various tourist stops...Fort Frederick, Grand Etang Lake and Annandale Falls. In between, there are stops by the side of the road to identify native flora and fauna, including being able to touch and smell a cinnamon tree, a cocoa pod and a nutmeg pod with the mace still on it. Quite educational. Lots of driving though...so be mindful of restroom availability when you do stop! ;)

You can pick up spices cheap at any or all of these stops. I got my nutmeg (whole) and my cinnamon (whole bark) for a buck a bag for a good-size bag at the Grand Etang Lake stop. Be aware that saffron is not the same thing there...so when you see a bag of saffron for a buck, it won't be what YOU think of as saffron. Whether the flavor is similar, I'm not sure.

As I said, Isla Margarita was my least favorite stop. I didn't care for the excursion we did there (Day at the Dunes) and I didn't even care for the drive there (the roads, which were in great shape, were strewn with trash). If I was to go there again, I'd probably stay on the ship.

Don't recall anyone mentioning Greg's Safari's in St. Kitts. We always do ship excursions because, while they may be a bit more expensive than going it on your own, you always know the ship is going to be there when you get back, even if the bus blows a tire or you get caught in traffic.

[mringenoldus]

The Greneda tour sounds very interesting. I appreciate your point about ship tours- my husband almost got left behind in Barbados!