Just got back from Century Western Caribbean

Great cruise...If you have any questions, ask away.

Hope you had a great cruise. I'm sailing the eastern route a week from Saturday. Can't wait. What type of room did you have? We are in a sky suite on the sports deck. Any suggestions on the menus?

So glad you had a good time!

How was the service?

We were on the Vista deck #9. The Sky Suite is somewhat larger. We had the best food. No matter what we chose in the Grand Dining Room, it was excellent. Of course, our waiter, Richard, was very helpful and made our eating experience even better. The portions are average, so don't be afraid to ask for seconds, or ask for two helpings. They are very accomodating. The dining service and our room steward were great. We can't wait to take another cruise on the Century.

I'm glad to hear you had such a good time. We still have a few months to go before our Century cruise.

Terri

Skyward - 1989

Carnivale - 1991

Holiday - 1994

Fantasy - 1998

Century - 2002

Century - 2003

Inspiration - 7/04

Century - 9/04

Coral Princess 3/05

jjasam, Was Richard your waiter from the Czech Republic? amd his assistant Jesso? We had Richard and Jesso in February on Western Caribbean. They were wonderful, we had so much fun with them and such good sports they were.

Rosie

NCL SS Norway 6/1989

RCCL Majesty 1/1998

NCL Sea 11/02

Celebrity Century 2/04

Celebrity Mercury 10/04

Where was your favorite hangout on the ship, and why? What was your favorite port activity? Going in less than 3 weeks....woo hoo!!!!

Celebrity Century 5/8/04 -Western Caribbean

Carnival Ecstasy 2/04 - Baja

Tahitian Princess 2/03- French Polynesia

Sea Princess 7/02 - Alaska

Carnival Ecstasy 5/02 - Baja

Royal Caribbean Monarch 10/00 - Southern Caribbean

Carnival Elation 10/99 - Mexican Riviera

Royal Caribbean Monarch 1/97 - Southern Caribbean

Jjasam,

We are going to be sailing Century-W. Caribbean in June.....glad to hear you had a great cruise. What did you do at each port?

First cruise ever!! Century.....Western Caribbean!

Oh good! Was hoping someone from your cruise would post. Could you tell me if you changed ship's time to local time in Grand Cayman and Cozumel? Or did you stay on Eastern time the entire cruise?

Hope you had a marvelous cruise!

<font face="Imprint MT Shadow" size="5" color="#FFCC00">Amber</font>

<font size="4" face="Berlin Sans FB">Cruise Resource

BiddingFun and BiddingHELP</font>

Bunny, we went back 1 hour on Sunday evening(sea day) before we got to Ochos Rios and set it forward on Wednesday night (after our day in Cozumel). Hope this helps.

What should we be sure to do, see, eat...etc. any recommendations you might have would be wonderful. What did you do in port?

We just returned from Century w. Caribbean. Here's what we did:

Jamaica - we did not get off the ship, we instead enjoyed the open space around the pool and had a couple's massage at the spa - highly recommended. We spoke to lots of people who left the ship only to return shortly. They did not like Jamaica, and it did not interest us either.

Grand Cayman - took the tender and did 7 mile beach on our own. We went to the old Holiday Inn beach (now courtyard suites, I think) Although I have read that this is the nicest part of 7MB, we were not overly impressed. Compared to other beaches I have seen in the caribbean, it is not the nicest. We then took a cab to the shopping area, Cardinal Ave, to look at jewelery. It ws very crowded as there were other ships in port that day. The prices were sky high..know your prices before you go as there are no bargains in GC! There were lots of stores and chain eateries and did not have a caribbean feel. We ate at Paradise, which is on the beach not far from the tender. The food was ok, and the service was terrible

Overall, we were disappointed with GC and was more like the Jersey Shore or Florida.

Cozumel - We took a cab to one of the beaches (I forget which one) and had a good time. Lots of Margaritas and a great lunch and relaxed in a chair. I think the chairs were $6 each. Took a cab back to downtown, where the boat was docked (not the norm for the Century we were told) and went shopping. It is a huge outdoor mall area. We found the prices for jewelery to be a better bargain here than GC, so if you are in the market for something special, go to Cozumel, Heritage Jewelers had better prices than GC. I found a rare and sold out David Yurman piece there. I have been looking for 2 years and could not find one, and there it was and much less than the original price. Also my DH bought a very nice watch and saved a lot of $$, the same watch was more $$ in GC! Again, know your prices if you are interested in that kind of thing. Cozumel is very touristy, and very CLEAN! but again, it as nice but did not feel like the caribbean as I know it. We had a nice time there.

Key West - The best port, IMHO - we had the best time here. We went out on our own and it was very easy to take it all in with the time allowed. Just walk around and take one of the train or trolly tours, lots of fun!

We did not do any excursions, as we were not interested in doing the sting ray thing. I have read the that the speed boat trip to passion island in Cozumel is fun, but we were not interested in that either - just wanted to explore on our own. We are kinda boring that way, but we are not accoustomed to doing things in "groups". We are more of the night time social people

I found we enjoyed the ship much more than the ports, with the exception of Key West. I have learned that we will never do another Caribbean cruise again, as we like to stay on the less touristy islands where there are no cruise ships, but that is just our taste. The ship, however was wonderful. We met lovely people and really enjoyed our trip. We loved taking advantage of the empty ship when in port so we always came back early!

I am curious what your ages are....

Celebrity Century 5/8/04 -Western Caribbean

Carnival Ecstasy 2/04 - Baja

Tahitian Princess 2/03- French Polynesia

Sea Princess 7/02 - Alaska

Carnival Ecstasy 5/02 - Baja

Royal Caribbean Monarch 10/00 - Southern Caribbean

Carnival Elation 10/99 - Mexican Riviera

Royal Caribbean Monarch 1/97 - Southern Caribbean

why....

I wouldn't miss climbing the falls in Ocho Rios!!!! It was the most fun our family has had on an excursion! Even more fun than Hawaii (and let's face it, that was FUN!!!). We took the one where you get on a boat right at the ship's dock and you get to see the Jamaican coast line. After about a 20 min. cruise, you arrive at the falls. The water in the falls was refreshing and the climb was great exercise! The return cruise included some GREAT rum punch. We then walked to Margaritaville where everyone swam and had a great time. ALL ages were there having a blast! Don't miss Jamaica!

...until our August 28, 2004 Splendour of the Seas

Kathleen,

Just wondering if you were in my age group..just curious...

Celebrity Century 5/8/04 -Western Caribbean

Carnival Ecstasy 2/04 - Baja

Tahitian Princess 2/03- French Polynesia

Sea Princess 7/02 - Alaska

Carnival Ecstasy 5/02 - Baja

Royal Caribbean Monarch 10/00 - Southern Caribbean

Carnival Elation 10/99 - Mexican Riviera

Royal Caribbean Monarch 1/97 - Southern Caribbean

We are 40

My itinerary on this cruise was as follows:

Jamaica: My wife was not interested in Dunn River Falls, so we got off of the ship and went to the Island Village. This is an area with shops, food and bars, with the highlight bar being Margaritaville. Prices here were quite good. I own a Rolex that I purchased last year, I could have gotten it at a ship recommended jeweler for $1000 less with no tax, than I did on the main land. Not bragging about the Rolex, just making note that the prices on expensive jewelry especially watches (Other makes were much lower than in the States)were a good value. We shopped at various places and went to Margaritaville. A very cool little bar with a live DJ, swimming pool, water slide, alcohol and food. Nice atmosphere and laid back. Behind the bar there is a small beach with nice sand and the ocean. You can go there for free if you have been to Margaritaville, otherwise it is $3 admission. We went to the beach got some loungers ($5) and hung out for a few hours. There were some peddlers in the water with beads and other trinkets. If one just smiles and says no thanks firmly they pretty much leave you alone. There was the Celebrity ship and a Russian (I believe, The Maxim Gorkiy) in port. The beach was 50% cruisers and 50% locals. No hastles, enjoyed some time in the sun, shopping and a few beers at Margaritaville. Some of the people on the ship said they were approached in other areas but again a smile and firm no thanks seems to work although depending on your patience level, the onslaught in some areas could have been anoying. All in all we enjoyed our stay.

Grand Cayman: We had been here 7 years earlier. On that trip we swam with the sting rays and It was incredible, if you have not done this and like the water and are a little adventureous, this is an excursion I highly recommend. As we had done that before, we opted to take a tour to a historical house (where democracy began in Cayman) in the island, a visit to the rum cake center, coupled with a semi submersible tour of hamburger reef and some ship wrecks. The first part was informative and nice, the bus driver took us by some of the more extravagant homes on the island. After about 1 1/2 hours of tour we were able to sample and purchase various rum cakes (fantastic). We then went to our Nautalis semi-submersible for a tour of hamburger reef. This was a very nice tour. We got to see turtles, rays, lobsters and many varieties of fish in there natural habitat. A half hour in, the captain dropped anchor jumped in and fed the fish, he brought them right up to the window, so we could get some great photos. After that a tour of some old wrecks, the guide on the ship was very interesting and informative. Once back to shore we walked around the harbor front shopping area, I did not really price much here so I can not comment on how they compare with the U.S. This is a modern area so it does not have the same caribbean feel right there in the shopping district as other islands but I enjoy the Cayman's alot.

Cozumel: We have been here before also 7 years ago. Boy have they cleaned up the area since we were here last. They now have malls (although they have alot of the shops we have in the states) as well as areas with a more local flavor. We went on the same excursion as we did 7 years ago as we enjoyed it so much, the Fury Catamaran, sail, snorkel, and beach excursion. You get on a catamaran, sail for a while, then stop, where they let you go snorkeling off of the coast. Now hardcore or anybody who snorkels frequently, might find this a little lacking as it is not like diving the reefs at Grand Caymen or Key West, but as I only snorkel once in a while it was nice. Fish of various colors, and some vegitation and other thinks on the bottom. I found it fun. You are in the water if you want for 30 to 40 minutes. After that more sailing. After a while you come to a private beach. This is alot of fun in my opinion, plenty of room to put your towel down and sun, beach volleyball, free beer and margaritas, some small huts selling beads and silver items, as will as a hut selling burgers and the like. There were hammocks there to lie in, and tables with umbrellas as well. We sat in the sun for a while, had some beers, bought my wife a toe ring, I played beach volleyball, all in all a fantastic time. You are there for a little over an hour. We then get back on the catamaran for the sail back to the docks. The crew turns up the music serves you free beer and margaritas and starts up dancing on the front of the boat. Macarena, YMCA, some dance music and the like. My wife loves to dance so this was alot of fun for us also. The crew is very friendly and funny. They did a great job and we will probably always do this excursion while visiting Cozumel.

Key West: We took the Conch Train Tour in this port. Although informative, it is about an hour and hits major highlights and historical places (Hemmingway House, etc.) but does not really afford you the luxury of taking pictures as the train keeps moving. The guide is very informative and gives a nice history of the island. I do not think we would do this one again as it was not really our thing. After getting off of the train, we went to the aquarium. I like aquariums so this was nice for me. Got to see them feed sharks as well as I got to pet one. After leaving the aquarium, we went to Duval Street. Many bars and shops here. Went to Sloppy Joes ( a famous one on the island), Billies, and the Hard Rock Cafe. Key West is a beautiful place to wander around have some drinks and explore.

Well, that is my mini review of what we did and the islands themselves. For reference both my wife and I are 38 years old.

Dave

We were on the same trip mid-March. We had 2 teenagers with us.

Jamaica- The falls were great. Not to be missed! In fact, my kids thought it was the best part of the trip. We used Phil as our tour guide. Fantastic.

GC-Stingray City is interesting. But crowded. The snorkeling was fun. The trip lasted about 2-2.5 hrs. We had lunch at Hard Rock. Be careful of the prices. The menu looked expensive. When we got the check, we saw it was even more when you converted to US $$. Appr. $75 for HB, 2 clubs & potato skins!!

Cozumel-Paradise Beach. A great place. Swim, sit in the sun & enjoy. The town was very crowded then. 8 cruise ships in port.

Key West-Parasailed, walked the town. Great place.

I booked all excursions through the internet not the cruise line & was very impressed. We had tour guides meeting us as we got off the boat. It saves alot of $$$.

Just thought I would add a perspective of the W. Carribbean from mid-40's with teeenagers!!

David - thank you, yes that does help

<font face="Imprint MT Shadow" size="5" color="#FFCC00">Amber</font>

<font size="4" face="Berlin Sans FB">Cruise Resource

BiddingFun and BiddingHELP</font>

Richard from the Czech Republic was our waiter and Armando was the assistant. They were great!

Richard's famous saying when he displayed the dessert tray was "It's showtime".

Dave, the itinerary says the Century gets into port at 10am in Cozumel. Do you know if that is local time? I'm trying to book an excursion with Eagle Ray but I can't figure out what time to tell them we will arive. Would really appreciate the help. Glad you had such a good time.

Our favorite hangout on the ship was the poooooooooooooool with the great drinks.

In Jamaica, we went to Dunn River Falls and river tubing, which was great fun. We used Phil Lafayette Tours and he was great. His website is www.phil-lafayette-tours.com.

In Grand Cayman, we used Captain Marvin tours for Stingray City and Coral Reef snorkeling. Well worth it, except for all the people. Lots of fun. We held the stingrays and saw beautiful fish while snorkeling.

In Cozumel, we rented a jeep from Hertz (reserved several weeks prior) and drove around the Island. We stopped at a Chen Rio to have lunch (great fish) and a beautiful beach for snorkeling. Highly recommend.

In Key West, we just walked around. Several friends we met on ship rented jet skis and they loved it.

All of you have a great time. We did.

Clocks went back 1 hour in Grand Cayman and Cozumel.

Shaco: Cozumel is on Central Time, that is the time you use.

Shaco, local time in the time zone you are in is what is used so make sure you change your watch accordingly. They remind you in the Century Today's that they leave in your room every evening.