mendicant98
January 6th, 2009, 06:10 PM
Another thread by ekerr19 (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=900034&highlight=) left a largely poor impression of the 12-day holiday cruise on the Rotterdam. We had a decidedly different experience, and I would like to relate some of it to you.
We were/are a group of ten people: my 80 year-old father, two families of four, and bachelor brother. We were celebrating my father’s 80th birthday, and brother’s 50th birthday. The four grandkids are 24, 21, 20, and 19, two boys and two girls. We’ve been reuniting in this fashion every five years for the past fifteen: DisneyWorld, Hawaii cruise (on the old Independence), Virgin Islands windjammer cruise (on the Legacy), and this time on the Rotterdam.
We had five consecutive rooms on the forward starboard outboard side of the Main Deck. The rooms were neatly appointed, and except for a brief struggle one day with one shower valve (quickly repaired), everything worked to perfection. There was ample storage. Temperature and bed comfortable.
The stewards worked as a team of two. I have to say, that our service was excellent. Sometimes Kekut and his partner hovered too much. But by and large, everything was cleaned and made up and straightened, several times each day. Clothing left strewn was folded and organized. Not quite every evening, towels were folded in a variety of clever ways: elephant, crab, penguin, crane, and so forth. I’d call the room service 9 out of 10.
Communications and Internet: Satellite TV was very good, when TV-watching was wanted (rarely). However, the satellite link required too much bandwidth during sports events, which slowed Internet access dramatically, til it was virtually useless. And, you’re paying 50 to 75 cents per minute, regardless of the actual data transfer rate. My advice: forget using the Internet, unless absolutely necessary. For instance, we did use it to get our son’s Southwest boarding pass, which was helpful.
In terms of cleanliness and health, except for one bad day for my wife (overcome by one dose of Cipro), no one had any problems with health. And, as you’ll read, we did some more adventurous tours, mostly self-organized.
After boarding the first day, we too took the run of the ship. I have to say, that except for one or two occasions, I never had a feeling of ‘crowds’, even though the ship was fully booked. We were always able to find a spot with privacy and quiet. Except for one or two moments, we were not bothered by smokers. We don’t gamble (although one of my brothers tried his hand a couple of times.)
In terms of food and the dining service: we did not try the Pinnacle Grill at all. We had Table 309 for the Main Seating, and used it each and every night – since we have four young adults with us, with minds very much their own, dinner became a very nice touchstone each day. Our head waiter, Daud Eram, did an outstanding job. And I say this as having waited tables at the Breakers, and in Glacier National Park, during my college years. Others in our party have waited tables, and were also impressed. Except for the first night, when the service was slow, Daud and his busboy were impressive in their timing and precision. With a four-course meal for ten people for twelve nights, I could only count twice when Daud did not deliver exactly what was ordered to the person who ordered it. He also expressed friendly disapproval at certain menu selections, and was it seemed always right. We brought our own wine onboard, as the wine selection was not very good, and overpriced at that. (We live in California, and as a consequence have done a lot of winetasting and purchasing.) The corkage fee of $15 was worth the expense. Even so, our wine steward Sonny was friendly, punctual, and helpful on the several occasions when we did order wine from the wine list. By cruise’s end, we were on very friendly terms, and had enjoyed talking with Daud and Sonny about their respective homelands (Indonesia and the Phillipines). Both were going to be onboard for the Rotterdam’s upcoming 131-day world cruise – a very long time to be aboard! I’d call the service 9+ out of 10.
The dining room food quality was largely very good to excellent, perhaps 8 out of ten. Some exceptions were: tomatoes (‘heirloom’ tomatoes were in fact hothouse winter tomatoes, not particularly tasty); NY strip steak (several times, ordered medium rare or medium, but brought to the table almost bloody – sent back, no problem, always fine the 2nd time); some lettuce was dry, chopped iceberg lettuce, especially as garnish for, say, a shrimp cocktail; mahi mahi (overcooked; might’ve been OK for early seating); soups (sorry, I make a better soup, almost uniformly). But, those were exceptions. As I said, basically our table saw nearly 500 course-servings on this trip, and probably fewer than 5% fell short of excellent.
Days at Sea: Welcome respites, for sunning and reading and walking the very nice Promenade deck. Lectures on Panama by Michael Millwood (exceptionally good). Entertainment (so-so, although Judy Kolba kind of grew on us, and the singers were largely excellent. The trumpet player was often out of tune, and needs to go.) Q&A with senior staff and captain were informative. Fitness room well-equipped. I tried the vibrating pod; interesting at the introductory price of $25, but wouldn’t do it again.
Excursions: By and large, we set up our own excursions. Clearly, however, HAL doesn’t like this, and seeks to arrange the situations so that captive excursions are used as much as possible. In particular, for Half Moon Cay and Panama, passengers must use HAL-sanctioned excursions, if they wish to leave the ship at all. That said, the excursion staff were nonetheless friendly and free in their advice regarding self-guided shore tours. Do not presume the excursion staff will push HAL tours exclusively.
Half Moon Cay: We rented the Yellow Cabana. The thought was that, given sunny and hot weather, having a shady spot with an air conditioner would be very beneficial. The weather pretty much sucked the whole day, however, in terms of being rainy. So, the cabana instead provided an unanticipated but hugely welcome cover from the rain. The fruit and chips and dips and drinks provided were merely OK. We did a lot of beach walking. We tried to snorkel. But, swimming beyond the swimming area boundary brought swift response from a lifeguard in a kayak. Trying to snorkel at the north end of the beach was a fine and secluded walk, but the waves were really too much. The horseback riders looked like they might be having fun, but we wondered about the effect of the horse dung littering the beach: yes, the waves would remove it over time, but there must be a lingering effect. We would have liked to have rented kayaks or bicycles for some self-exploration, but this was forbidden: only guided tours were available. This situation needs correction, if anyone from HAL is reading this. If bike paths need to be paved, then do it, but don’t *require* a guide just to ride a bike. We walked over and observed the stingray snorkel area, which looked like fun (but had a much better experience on our own later, see below). The food was good onshore (provided by the ship). In sum: I had expected to be able to explore the whole 3000 acre island. Instead, we were rather deliberately confined to the developed 45 acres. This was a big disappointment.
Aruba: We were in-port from about 1 pm to 10 pm. My brother contacted a fellow, who set us up on an ATV tour. This was spectacular!! Everybody, including my 80 year-old father, did this. The tour was basically on the north and east (windward, and undeveloped) side of the island. After a slow start, in terms of the bus ride, paperwork, machine checkout, and drive on the pavement, things took off. We took a number of scenic breaks, including a short climb to a high point, at the ‘natural bridge’ (destroyed by the remnants of Hurricane Ivan), at several spectacular places along the shoreline, at a very scenic, small Catholic church, and finally near sunset at the California Lighthouse on the north end of the island. Much mud and water splashing, which frankly all enjoyed (so don’t go, if you can’t get into either mud and water, or dust and dirt, depending upon recent precipitation). A family from New York, in the morning tour, couldn’t wait to get out of the ATV rental place, they had had such a bad time (which, IMO, was much more bad attitude than bad time). My advice: if you’re flexible and adventurous, do this. But, if a breakdown here or there, or mud or dirt, aren’t OK for you, then don’t. Note: although right in the middle of all the hotels, the beaches north of Oranjestad toward California Lighthouse had several long public areas, with palabas shading a picnic table, which looked delightful, and are supposed to have good snorkeling.
Bonaire: We took a water taxi located about 200 yds north of the pier, to Klein Bonaire. The taxi dropped us at the north side of Klein Bonaire. We had brought our snorkeling gear, and IMO it was well worth it, with much live coral, and many, many varieties of fish. Saw porpoise and flying fish on the trip over, which was neat. However, the steady and substantial winds out of the east made lying the beach a trial, with much blowing and stinging sand, which got into one digital camera, and rendered it useless for the remainder of the trip (wrong focal length due to the sand particle’s interference). Later in the day, my brother and I took a taxi to Sorobon, on the southeast side of Bonaire. We passed old slave quarters on the way, and saw many flamingos. Sorobon had a popular beach (but even so, not too crowded, mostly with Dutch visitors), a bar and grill, and above all a livery for windsurfers. Lac Bay, where Sorobon lies, is big, shallow, beautiful, and windy: perfect for windsurfers of all abilities. If I come back, I will absolutely come here to hang out the whole day. I loved the uncrowded size and pace of Bonaire.
Curacao: We woke up very early, in order to leave the ship and explore the fruit market in the scenic city of Willemstad. The vendors motor over from Venezuela. There were only three boats, but it was still worthwhile, in terms of the early morning light, the gorgeous buildings, the swinging Queen Emma bridge, the old forts, and the seat of government. Later, we took a two-hour or so bus tour, with Chino (a graduate engineering student [or so he said], working to make some holiday money so he could go back to grad school in Holland). Our party had many members who wanted to see Senior Curacao (the Landhuis Cholobolo, an old slave plantation, where the famous liqueur is made). We also went by a variety of very nice high viewpoints, and looked at several beaches, in the area south of Willenstad toward Santa Barbara Beach and Jan Thiel Beach. Note that SANTA BARBARA BEACH IS NO LONGER OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Some hotel has bought the property and privatized it. Jan Thiel beach was massively crowded (it was a Sunday), and very unattractive to me. If I had to do Curacao again, I’d rent a car or bicycle, and head for the north part of the island. Taxis were horribly expensive. My wife and I spent about 90 min in the afternoon, exploring the surprisingly excellent Kura Hulanda Museum on the Otrabanda side of the Curacao inlet (same side as the ship, which was important as departure time approached).
Note to HAL: Would you PLEASE get updated travel guides onboard the Rotterdam? The latest Caribbean guide is dated 2005.
Another note: Timing in the Dutch Antilles was unfortunate. Sunday in Curacao means everything closes by 1pm, and some things (e.g. car rental) never open. We would have benefited greatly by a car rental in Curacao. And, if I did it again, I’d rather rent a bicycle and ride to the northern part of the island. Also, it was Boxing Day in Aruba, so again almost everything was closed. IMO, these timings were somewhat intentional on HAL’s part, as they tend to force passengers to use HAL’s excursion services, which IMO are overpriced.
Panama: We awoke in the dark. The Gatun Locks transit was spectacular. I roamed the ship, taking probably hundreds of photos. Because the excursions are ‘captive’ (Gatun Lake is, like HMC and Grand Cayman, a tender put-off), some signed up with HAL to take the train to Panama City, one took the bus there, and five took the Embera Village excursion. Despite the resources (cash flow) provided by the Canal, Panama appears to be a poor country. Christobal is an ugly port city. The main road from Christobal to Panama City has huge traffic jams, is not scenic, has many people trying to cross the road on foot even when there are overhead walkways, who end of creating havoc. Once off the main road, the road surfaces deteriorate dramatically, and travel by bus is maybe 4 mph. HOWEVER: once we got to the Chagres River and onto the dugout canoes (with Evinrude motor), handled by the particular Embera tribe we were visiting, the subsequent 30-40 minute trip upriver was remote, rural to wild, wonderful and invigorating. The village was in a scenic setting, with children diving into the boat wake created by our arrival, and swinging into the river by rope swing. Many birds (esp. heron) along the way. The wares of the people were beautiful, esp. the basketry. The craftsmanship was superb, and they basically charge $1 per day of labor. Although they had the same things for sale on the ship pier, the prices weren’t substantially different. Bargaining could be done. Talapia and fried plantain were served by the tribe on banana leaves, along with (ugh) turkey and bologna sandwiches by the tour staff). Our guide, Nikolas, was funny and informative. All in all, I would do this tour again, but am not sure I’d visit Panama. OTOH, those in our party who visited Panama City were impressed, and would visit there again.
Costa Rica: We had set up a tour with Oscar Brown and his sister Carol (http://www.oscarbrowntours.com/), both wonderful people. For us, it was spectacular. We had alerted them ahead of time, that we were celebrating birthdays and an anniversary, so we were fortunate to have Oscar himself lead our group. (As in Aruba, my advice is: if you’re expecting limousines and kid gloves, then Oscar is not for you. If you want an impresario expert in the context of his homeland, who knows the local conditions, what to do first, second, and last, who’s the best for a particular activity, where is it safe and not safe, then Oscar is for you.) The van he brought was big enough for us all, stocked with beer and soft drinks. The road westward out of Limon is excellent. Police spotted at intervals along the way. Many banana plantations. Oscar stopped at a roadside stand, and bought small bananas, and guanabanas (soursop) for us to taste. Guanabanas are textured, green football-sized fruits with white fibrous flesh. Never had it before. VERY juicy; which would explain why most ‘net info says it’s used in juices and smoothies.
Oscar first drove us to Siquirres, then up a rougher road to the put-in for a morning whitewater rafting trip on the Reventazon River, Class III-IV this time of year. Water was a little low, as the dam operators had been ‘off’ the previous couple of days, and the dam releases were uncontrolled and low, so scouting was required (some dangerous holes). The trip was led by Alex and Alvaro and Jimmy. Jimmy was in the support kayak, while Alex and Alvaro captained the two six-person rafts. We’ve rafted the Class IV-V North Yuba River in California, and other lower class rivers, and I can tell you Alex Segura and Alvaro were OUTSTANDING rivermen. Alex is on the Costa Rican national whitewater rafting team (Alvaro may be, too). This was a HUGE blast, even for my 80 year-old father.
We then drove back toward Limon, then up into the hills, to Brisas de la Jungla, to do ziplining. It was great. Again, despite trepidation, my father did it, too. It was literally a rush for all, 19 to 80. The 17 to 18 year-old crew members were clean cut, friendly, helpful, and professional. We saw sloths. Lunch was included, as was a surprise treat supplied by Oscar’s sister Carol.
Oscar was terrific, start to finish. He delivered everything promised, and more. Highlight of the entire trip (although the ATV tour on Aruba was pretty neat, too!)
Grand Cayman: We chartered a sailboat, the Nautigal. Carol (a different Carol) provided transport to and from the harbor, which was excellent but IMO expensive. We motored out from Governor’s Harbor into North Sound, then sailed to three different virtually private snorkel spots, all in about 10-15 ft of water. The first stop had the chance to dive and snorkel with about 15-20 rays, all by ourselves. The second two spots offered spectacular snorkeling out on the reef, and around a more protected part of North Sound, where new reefs are forming. As many varieties, but fewer in number, of fish as compared to Klein Bonaire, but more and better corals. Very relaxing, and our guide was Irish, filled with entertaining stories and anecdotes. Returned in time to sample conch fritters and the local brew.
Embarkation/disembarkation: Really wasn’t much of a problem either way, although bringing our own wine was a burden (have to carry onboard yourself). Staying at Marriott North is too far away, and an expensive ride, although we found Blue Wave wasn’t too bad if you have 3-4+ people, comfy and roomy and funny and on-time (for those early morning flights). I’m not sure why there was such an ebb and flow to the disembarkation traffic. Some periods, esp. at 8:30am, were horribly crowded, but just 30 min later, there was no one.
Shopping, photos, auctions, jewelry, duty-free: Not really our thing. Our purchases were limited to Curacao liqueur, Embera basketry, and Costa Rican pottery (got two pieces for $20, which I’ve admired at 5X or more the cost in California).
In closing: If you want more info on prices and contact info for the private tours we arranged, post below and I will try to respond.
We were/are a group of ten people: my 80 year-old father, two families of four, and bachelor brother. We were celebrating my father’s 80th birthday, and brother’s 50th birthday. The four grandkids are 24, 21, 20, and 19, two boys and two girls. We’ve been reuniting in this fashion every five years for the past fifteen: DisneyWorld, Hawaii cruise (on the old Independence), Virgin Islands windjammer cruise (on the Legacy), and this time on the Rotterdam.
We had five consecutive rooms on the forward starboard outboard side of the Main Deck. The rooms were neatly appointed, and except for a brief struggle one day with one shower valve (quickly repaired), everything worked to perfection. There was ample storage. Temperature and bed comfortable.
The stewards worked as a team of two. I have to say, that our service was excellent. Sometimes Kekut and his partner hovered too much. But by and large, everything was cleaned and made up and straightened, several times each day. Clothing left strewn was folded and organized. Not quite every evening, towels were folded in a variety of clever ways: elephant, crab, penguin, crane, and so forth. I’d call the room service 9 out of 10.
Communications and Internet: Satellite TV was very good, when TV-watching was wanted (rarely). However, the satellite link required too much bandwidth during sports events, which slowed Internet access dramatically, til it was virtually useless. And, you’re paying 50 to 75 cents per minute, regardless of the actual data transfer rate. My advice: forget using the Internet, unless absolutely necessary. For instance, we did use it to get our son’s Southwest boarding pass, which was helpful.
In terms of cleanliness and health, except for one bad day for my wife (overcome by one dose of Cipro), no one had any problems with health. And, as you’ll read, we did some more adventurous tours, mostly self-organized.
After boarding the first day, we too took the run of the ship. I have to say, that except for one or two occasions, I never had a feeling of ‘crowds’, even though the ship was fully booked. We were always able to find a spot with privacy and quiet. Except for one or two moments, we were not bothered by smokers. We don’t gamble (although one of my brothers tried his hand a couple of times.)
In terms of food and the dining service: we did not try the Pinnacle Grill at all. We had Table 309 for the Main Seating, and used it each and every night – since we have four young adults with us, with minds very much their own, dinner became a very nice touchstone each day. Our head waiter, Daud Eram, did an outstanding job. And I say this as having waited tables at the Breakers, and in Glacier National Park, during my college years. Others in our party have waited tables, and were also impressed. Except for the first night, when the service was slow, Daud and his busboy were impressive in their timing and precision. With a four-course meal for ten people for twelve nights, I could only count twice when Daud did not deliver exactly what was ordered to the person who ordered it. He also expressed friendly disapproval at certain menu selections, and was it seemed always right. We brought our own wine onboard, as the wine selection was not very good, and overpriced at that. (We live in California, and as a consequence have done a lot of winetasting and purchasing.) The corkage fee of $15 was worth the expense. Even so, our wine steward Sonny was friendly, punctual, and helpful on the several occasions when we did order wine from the wine list. By cruise’s end, we were on very friendly terms, and had enjoyed talking with Daud and Sonny about their respective homelands (Indonesia and the Phillipines). Both were going to be onboard for the Rotterdam’s upcoming 131-day world cruise – a very long time to be aboard! I’d call the service 9+ out of 10.
The dining room food quality was largely very good to excellent, perhaps 8 out of ten. Some exceptions were: tomatoes (‘heirloom’ tomatoes were in fact hothouse winter tomatoes, not particularly tasty); NY strip steak (several times, ordered medium rare or medium, but brought to the table almost bloody – sent back, no problem, always fine the 2nd time); some lettuce was dry, chopped iceberg lettuce, especially as garnish for, say, a shrimp cocktail; mahi mahi (overcooked; might’ve been OK for early seating); soups (sorry, I make a better soup, almost uniformly). But, those were exceptions. As I said, basically our table saw nearly 500 course-servings on this trip, and probably fewer than 5% fell short of excellent.
Days at Sea: Welcome respites, for sunning and reading and walking the very nice Promenade deck. Lectures on Panama by Michael Millwood (exceptionally good). Entertainment (so-so, although Judy Kolba kind of grew on us, and the singers were largely excellent. The trumpet player was often out of tune, and needs to go.) Q&A with senior staff and captain were informative. Fitness room well-equipped. I tried the vibrating pod; interesting at the introductory price of $25, but wouldn’t do it again.
Excursions: By and large, we set up our own excursions. Clearly, however, HAL doesn’t like this, and seeks to arrange the situations so that captive excursions are used as much as possible. In particular, for Half Moon Cay and Panama, passengers must use HAL-sanctioned excursions, if they wish to leave the ship at all. That said, the excursion staff were nonetheless friendly and free in their advice regarding self-guided shore tours. Do not presume the excursion staff will push HAL tours exclusively.
Half Moon Cay: We rented the Yellow Cabana. The thought was that, given sunny and hot weather, having a shady spot with an air conditioner would be very beneficial. The weather pretty much sucked the whole day, however, in terms of being rainy. So, the cabana instead provided an unanticipated but hugely welcome cover from the rain. The fruit and chips and dips and drinks provided were merely OK. We did a lot of beach walking. We tried to snorkel. But, swimming beyond the swimming area boundary brought swift response from a lifeguard in a kayak. Trying to snorkel at the north end of the beach was a fine and secluded walk, but the waves were really too much. The horseback riders looked like they might be having fun, but we wondered about the effect of the horse dung littering the beach: yes, the waves would remove it over time, but there must be a lingering effect. We would have liked to have rented kayaks or bicycles for some self-exploration, but this was forbidden: only guided tours were available. This situation needs correction, if anyone from HAL is reading this. If bike paths need to be paved, then do it, but don’t *require* a guide just to ride a bike. We walked over and observed the stingray snorkel area, which looked like fun (but had a much better experience on our own later, see below). The food was good onshore (provided by the ship). In sum: I had expected to be able to explore the whole 3000 acre island. Instead, we were rather deliberately confined to the developed 45 acres. This was a big disappointment.
Aruba: We were in-port from about 1 pm to 10 pm. My brother contacted a fellow, who set us up on an ATV tour. This was spectacular!! Everybody, including my 80 year-old father, did this. The tour was basically on the north and east (windward, and undeveloped) side of the island. After a slow start, in terms of the bus ride, paperwork, machine checkout, and drive on the pavement, things took off. We took a number of scenic breaks, including a short climb to a high point, at the ‘natural bridge’ (destroyed by the remnants of Hurricane Ivan), at several spectacular places along the shoreline, at a very scenic, small Catholic church, and finally near sunset at the California Lighthouse on the north end of the island. Much mud and water splashing, which frankly all enjoyed (so don’t go, if you can’t get into either mud and water, or dust and dirt, depending upon recent precipitation). A family from New York, in the morning tour, couldn’t wait to get out of the ATV rental place, they had had such a bad time (which, IMO, was much more bad attitude than bad time). My advice: if you’re flexible and adventurous, do this. But, if a breakdown here or there, or mud or dirt, aren’t OK for you, then don’t. Note: although right in the middle of all the hotels, the beaches north of Oranjestad toward California Lighthouse had several long public areas, with palabas shading a picnic table, which looked delightful, and are supposed to have good snorkeling.
Bonaire: We took a water taxi located about 200 yds north of the pier, to Klein Bonaire. The taxi dropped us at the north side of Klein Bonaire. We had brought our snorkeling gear, and IMO it was well worth it, with much live coral, and many, many varieties of fish. Saw porpoise and flying fish on the trip over, which was neat. However, the steady and substantial winds out of the east made lying the beach a trial, with much blowing and stinging sand, which got into one digital camera, and rendered it useless for the remainder of the trip (wrong focal length due to the sand particle’s interference). Later in the day, my brother and I took a taxi to Sorobon, on the southeast side of Bonaire. We passed old slave quarters on the way, and saw many flamingos. Sorobon had a popular beach (but even so, not too crowded, mostly with Dutch visitors), a bar and grill, and above all a livery for windsurfers. Lac Bay, where Sorobon lies, is big, shallow, beautiful, and windy: perfect for windsurfers of all abilities. If I come back, I will absolutely come here to hang out the whole day. I loved the uncrowded size and pace of Bonaire.
Curacao: We woke up very early, in order to leave the ship and explore the fruit market in the scenic city of Willemstad. The vendors motor over from Venezuela. There were only three boats, but it was still worthwhile, in terms of the early morning light, the gorgeous buildings, the swinging Queen Emma bridge, the old forts, and the seat of government. Later, we took a two-hour or so bus tour, with Chino (a graduate engineering student [or so he said], working to make some holiday money so he could go back to grad school in Holland). Our party had many members who wanted to see Senior Curacao (the Landhuis Cholobolo, an old slave plantation, where the famous liqueur is made). We also went by a variety of very nice high viewpoints, and looked at several beaches, in the area south of Willenstad toward Santa Barbara Beach and Jan Thiel Beach. Note that SANTA BARBARA BEACH IS NO LONGER OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Some hotel has bought the property and privatized it. Jan Thiel beach was massively crowded (it was a Sunday), and very unattractive to me. If I had to do Curacao again, I’d rent a car or bicycle, and head for the north part of the island. Taxis were horribly expensive. My wife and I spent about 90 min in the afternoon, exploring the surprisingly excellent Kura Hulanda Museum on the Otrabanda side of the Curacao inlet (same side as the ship, which was important as departure time approached).
Note to HAL: Would you PLEASE get updated travel guides onboard the Rotterdam? The latest Caribbean guide is dated 2005.
Another note: Timing in the Dutch Antilles was unfortunate. Sunday in Curacao means everything closes by 1pm, and some things (e.g. car rental) never open. We would have benefited greatly by a car rental in Curacao. And, if I did it again, I’d rather rent a bicycle and ride to the northern part of the island. Also, it was Boxing Day in Aruba, so again almost everything was closed. IMO, these timings were somewhat intentional on HAL’s part, as they tend to force passengers to use HAL’s excursion services, which IMO are overpriced.
Panama: We awoke in the dark. The Gatun Locks transit was spectacular. I roamed the ship, taking probably hundreds of photos. Because the excursions are ‘captive’ (Gatun Lake is, like HMC and Grand Cayman, a tender put-off), some signed up with HAL to take the train to Panama City, one took the bus there, and five took the Embera Village excursion. Despite the resources (cash flow) provided by the Canal, Panama appears to be a poor country. Christobal is an ugly port city. The main road from Christobal to Panama City has huge traffic jams, is not scenic, has many people trying to cross the road on foot even when there are overhead walkways, who end of creating havoc. Once off the main road, the road surfaces deteriorate dramatically, and travel by bus is maybe 4 mph. HOWEVER: once we got to the Chagres River and onto the dugout canoes (with Evinrude motor), handled by the particular Embera tribe we were visiting, the subsequent 30-40 minute trip upriver was remote, rural to wild, wonderful and invigorating. The village was in a scenic setting, with children diving into the boat wake created by our arrival, and swinging into the river by rope swing. Many birds (esp. heron) along the way. The wares of the people were beautiful, esp. the basketry. The craftsmanship was superb, and they basically charge $1 per day of labor. Although they had the same things for sale on the ship pier, the prices weren’t substantially different. Bargaining could be done. Talapia and fried plantain were served by the tribe on banana leaves, along with (ugh) turkey and bologna sandwiches by the tour staff). Our guide, Nikolas, was funny and informative. All in all, I would do this tour again, but am not sure I’d visit Panama. OTOH, those in our party who visited Panama City were impressed, and would visit there again.
Costa Rica: We had set up a tour with Oscar Brown and his sister Carol (http://www.oscarbrowntours.com/), both wonderful people. For us, it was spectacular. We had alerted them ahead of time, that we were celebrating birthdays and an anniversary, so we were fortunate to have Oscar himself lead our group. (As in Aruba, my advice is: if you’re expecting limousines and kid gloves, then Oscar is not for you. If you want an impresario expert in the context of his homeland, who knows the local conditions, what to do first, second, and last, who’s the best for a particular activity, where is it safe and not safe, then Oscar is for you.) The van he brought was big enough for us all, stocked with beer and soft drinks. The road westward out of Limon is excellent. Police spotted at intervals along the way. Many banana plantations. Oscar stopped at a roadside stand, and bought small bananas, and guanabanas (soursop) for us to taste. Guanabanas are textured, green football-sized fruits with white fibrous flesh. Never had it before. VERY juicy; which would explain why most ‘net info says it’s used in juices and smoothies.
Oscar first drove us to Siquirres, then up a rougher road to the put-in for a morning whitewater rafting trip on the Reventazon River, Class III-IV this time of year. Water was a little low, as the dam operators had been ‘off’ the previous couple of days, and the dam releases were uncontrolled and low, so scouting was required (some dangerous holes). The trip was led by Alex and Alvaro and Jimmy. Jimmy was in the support kayak, while Alex and Alvaro captained the two six-person rafts. We’ve rafted the Class IV-V North Yuba River in California, and other lower class rivers, and I can tell you Alex Segura and Alvaro were OUTSTANDING rivermen. Alex is on the Costa Rican national whitewater rafting team (Alvaro may be, too). This was a HUGE blast, even for my 80 year-old father.
We then drove back toward Limon, then up into the hills, to Brisas de la Jungla, to do ziplining. It was great. Again, despite trepidation, my father did it, too. It was literally a rush for all, 19 to 80. The 17 to 18 year-old crew members were clean cut, friendly, helpful, and professional. We saw sloths. Lunch was included, as was a surprise treat supplied by Oscar’s sister Carol.
Oscar was terrific, start to finish. He delivered everything promised, and more. Highlight of the entire trip (although the ATV tour on Aruba was pretty neat, too!)
Grand Cayman: We chartered a sailboat, the Nautigal. Carol (a different Carol) provided transport to and from the harbor, which was excellent but IMO expensive. We motored out from Governor’s Harbor into North Sound, then sailed to three different virtually private snorkel spots, all in about 10-15 ft of water. The first stop had the chance to dive and snorkel with about 15-20 rays, all by ourselves. The second two spots offered spectacular snorkeling out on the reef, and around a more protected part of North Sound, where new reefs are forming. As many varieties, but fewer in number, of fish as compared to Klein Bonaire, but more and better corals. Very relaxing, and our guide was Irish, filled with entertaining stories and anecdotes. Returned in time to sample conch fritters and the local brew.
Embarkation/disembarkation: Really wasn’t much of a problem either way, although bringing our own wine was a burden (have to carry onboard yourself). Staying at Marriott North is too far away, and an expensive ride, although we found Blue Wave wasn’t too bad if you have 3-4+ people, comfy and roomy and funny and on-time (for those early morning flights). I’m not sure why there was such an ebb and flow to the disembarkation traffic. Some periods, esp. at 8:30am, were horribly crowded, but just 30 min later, there was no one.
Shopping, photos, auctions, jewelry, duty-free: Not really our thing. Our purchases were limited to Curacao liqueur, Embera basketry, and Costa Rican pottery (got two pieces for $20, which I’ve admired at 5X or more the cost in California).
In closing: If you want more info on prices and contact info for the private tours we arranged, post below and I will try to respond.