Zuiderdam Nov. 06-13 eastern carribean

[tommy75]

:) hi everyone

we'll be going to our first cruise on the HAL zuiderdam in november.

would be thankful for any tips, do's & dont's or anything important to know about the ship/prts of call/excursions.

:cool:on HMC i think we'll have a relaxed day on the beach

st. thomas we want to rent a car and explore the island on our own
(did anybody do this? been there any probs?:confused:)

tortola we'll do a sail to virgin gorda & the bath with patouche, because i've read some really nice posts about them.:D

no plans for nassau at the moment. maybe we get some nice suggestions!


also would be nice to know if there are some more couples in our age on board this week( we are in our 20's)

thanks in advance for tips and help

tommy75

[Sierrachik]

Tommy, in Nassau you might try the dolphin swim, or the dolphin encounter. You can find more info at www.dolphinencounters.com (http://www.dolphinencounters.com/). We have signed up for the dolphin swim on our October 9th sailing. The dolphin encounter is available through HAL's shore excursions as well, it is (as of the last time I checked) $119 through HAL and $85 if you book it direct. The swim is not offered as a HAL excursion. I know that by booking direct we have to leave from the Paradise Island ferry terminal rather than leaving directly from dockside, but I don't think the taxi will cost that much. Congratulations on your cruise, this is our first cruise as well, we're very excited! :)

[tommy75]

sierrachick,

thanks for that great tip...i think my girlfriend would love to to the dolphin encounter and it's always cool to save some bucks!:cool:

have a great cruise in october!!!

[Sierrachik]

Tommy, where you're new to CC (welcome!) you may not be familiar with the roll call board. I checked and a roll call for your sail date has been started, you'll find it here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=48800. It's a great way to interact with other cruisers from your sailing, often times Cruise Critic meetings are set up so everyone gets to know each other.

Time for me to be off, have to deliver wedding flowers to an island off the coast of Portland. This is a tiny vessel, holds 6 passengers, but a great way to begin the day, especially when I know we sail on the Zuiderdam in two weeks!

[stever]

Tommy, We have rented cars on both St Thomas and St John. We will be on the same cruise the following week. Since the time in port is until 11:00, we are taking the ferry over to St John and renting a car. The beaches and scenery is better on St John. Easier to drive, and more to explore. If you decide to stay on St Thomas, go to saphire beach, great views, parasailing, close to Red Hook to have lunch. Steve

[tommy75]

steve,
thanks for your post. do you know if it's only a passenger ferry to st john or can you go there with a car.
we've already reserved our car at st thomas.
do you also know the transfer time to st john?

heiko

[MandyGirl]

Tommy, We have rented cars on both St Thomas and St John.
Steve - Who did you end up renting through on St John for a one-day rental? I'm running into roadblocks. Even the company I rented through on a previous land vacation has emailed me back to suggest doing it as a walk-up the day of the cruise. I'm skeptical to rent on St Thomas and chance the car barge - I've read on various other boards how it can fill up. (Plus we are meeting a chef on St John at 9:20 to pick up a recreation of our wedding cake... assuming we make it on the 9:00 passenger ferry from Red Hook)

Tommy - We've booked with Patouche as well on our Thanksgiving Z cruise. Have definitely been pleased with their communication and reviews!:)

Sierrachik - I'm interested in how your dolphin swim goes! We, too, signed up for that (not the encounter) but hubby is going just as an observer. Have fun with it!!

[Sierrachik]

Sierrachik - I'm interested in how your dolphin swim goes! We, too, signed up for that (not the encounter) but hubby is going just as an observer. Have fun with it!!
Aside from being on the cruise itself, this is the most exciting part of our vacation to me, for now anyway! :)

[kelelmel]

We are also on this cruise. No big plans for HMC, although this is my SO's 30th
b-day, any suggestions? I am trying to reserve time with Godfrey in St. Thomas, no response yet. Also planning on doing the 'baths' in Tortola. No idea what to do in Nassau, recommendations?

[stever]

go to usvi.net
there is all the info you need
I would rent the car on St John, instead on renting on St Thomas and taking the car ferry over.
Also try C&C car rental.
Good Luck

[OCruisers]

At a sales meeting in Tortola ... Patoache was used for our excursion to The Baths. What a wonderful day! Certainly, the easiest way to see the Baths of Virgin Gorda ... via water! There is a thread in the ports section with a site for a GREAT map of The Baths: Baths of Virgin Gorda Map & Info (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=55426)

Happy Sailing! OCruisers :)

[MandyGirl]

No big plans for HMC, although this is my SO's 30th
b-day, any suggestions? I am trying to reserve time with Godfrey in St. Thomas, no response yet. Also planning on doing the 'baths' in Tortola. No idea what to do in Nassau, recommendations?
HMC = relax on the beach - and to celebrate the big 3-0, order some beachy drinks! :) Or a massage on the beach (I think they do that on HAL - or maybe I'm remembering NCL)
St Thomas = we used Godfrey before (after our wedding - for our entire group) and he definitely gets two thumbs up from everyone in our group (pics in links of my signature) Definitely give him a few days to get back to you - he's worth it. Try emailing him again if no response after several days.
Nassau = first time there, we did an island tour for about $25 each. Cab driver negotiated with us after we stepped off the ship. Straw market, sights, Atlantis, and something with steps (can't remember). Oh - and a tower of some sort that had good views. We're opting for the dolphins this time

[kelelmel]

Mandy,
Massages on the beach, wouldn't that be nice!

[kelelmel]

Uh Oh, I heard back from Godfrey, he is all booked :( Any other suggestions. So disappointed, I shouldn't have procrastinated.