Puerto Rico & RCL Jewel 2-10 thru 2-20

Fri, Feb 10

 

Atlanta to San Juan

 

 

My wife & I and another couple flew from Atlanta, Ga to San Juan, PR. The 4 of us travel a lot together but our friends haven't ever cruised much. We picked RCL & Southern Caribbean because it is our favorite cruise line & love these destinations. Our age range is 62-69 but we are all very active. By active I mean we like to travel, eat & drink.

 

 

Atlanta to SJU

Easy 3 1/2 hrs flight.

Taxi for 4 people in San Juan from the airport to the hotel was $30 including tip. We stayed at the LaConcha Renaissance Marriott, right on the ocean. We had an Oceanview room on the 11th floor. The cocktails in lobby bar were great. We had Mojitos $12pp. The bartender Manuel did a great job. Dinner was at Orozco. Great food, great service $15 pp appetizers empanadas, croquettes, dinner was pork, pigeon peas & plantain and the Mofongo (mashed plantains stuffed with various items was good but heavy.

 

 

Sat. Feb 11

 

 

Old San Juan

 

 

Sightseeing in Old San Juan. Uber to Old Town $8 including tip. (You can't catch Uber at the airport or major hotels. Put the Uber app on your phone and before you ask for a pick up walk a block away and then call for service...very easy & much cheaper)

We had breakfast at Cafeteria Mallorca $7pp w cafe con leche. Have the Mallorcas for breakfast. (Look it up because I can't explain it but they are delicious) We walked to both forts, churches, downtown and the Presidents Palace. We ate lunch at Rum Taste $20pp with drinks. Uber back to hotel was $10 w tip. We had a lazy afternoon with drinks around the pool. We had dinner at the hotel. It was the 1st night reopening. The waiter Carlos did a great job but had trouble with his English. The food was very tasty with wine & cocktails $100 per + tip

 

 

Sunday, Feb. 12

 

Breakfast Sunday in San Juan

Across street from our hotel was Cafe Del Angel...

Do not eat here...we waited 1 hour for pancakes & bacon & eggs

We had to ask for coffee several times before getting any..No they weren't busy...they said several times the manager was checking on it....Never saw him...other people who got there way after us got served...we left $10 & left with no breakfast

 

 

We ate Danish & muffins at the Renaissance...should have done that earlier😳😳😳

We left the hotel at noon by cab $22 + tip to the port...we were through with checking in and on the ship by 12:45....easiest check in ever...what to go RCL..

 

 

Onboard the ship

 

 

We had a good lunch in Windjammer and our cabins were ready by 1:30pm. Our cabin was 8550....starboard mid...great room...Bags were in our room by 3...except my wife's luggage...NOTE....we asked our steward Amila about my wife's bag. In a few minutes he came back and ask my wife did you have anything with an extension cord, she said yes a steamer to take wrinkles out...he said all items with an extension cord are red tagged and taken to deck 2. She had to take ID and go open the bag herself and show them what it was. They confiscated it until last day at sea....NOTE people with CPAP's take them on board in your carry on like I did...No problem

 

 

We purchased the 5 night speciality dining package and we went straight to deck 6 to Chops to square away the reservations for the week. Because of muster being at 8pm we opted for 6pm dinner on Sunday and then 7pm the other nights. We also bought one premium drink package. (Well worth the money in our opinion)

 

 

Dinner at Chops Steakhouse on Sunday was delicious. I had Veal Chop and the other 3 in our group had filets. They loved them. Our sides were garlic mashed potatoes, grilled asparagus, spinach & creamed spinach. Dessert were warm cookies (yummy), huckleberry cheesecake (yummy 2) & Red Velvet Cake....Our waitress is Tiffone Archer from Trinidad. It is pronounced Tif-phone. She is a delight and we highly recommend her if you eat in Chops.

 

 

Gambled after dinner...lost 😱😱😱....in bed by 11:30pm...slept like a log.

Monday, Feb 13

 

St. Thomas

 

 

My wife was up at 6:45am and she went to Windjammer for coffee and to read for a bit. Note if you are a Splenda user like us you will have to hunt the dining areas for it. I was up at 7:30am and we joined our friends for a sit down breakfast at Tides at 9:00am. We all enjoyed Eggs Benedict, bacon & eggs, pancakes & Mimosas...love the premium drink package...off the ship a little before 10:00am for a day of beach time and very little shopping...😜😳

If you do not do the RCL excursions then cabs can get you anywhere on the island. There are signs with the rates for trips as you exit the ship...just follow the signs. We were going to Megan's Bay but it was $20pp round trip + $5pp entry fee at Megan's Bay. We had been to Megan's Bay so we opted for Emerald Bay and it did not disappoint. $8pp round trip and less than a 10 minute ride. Beautiful clear water and a great expansive beach. The cabs drop you off at Emerald Bay Resort Hotel. You walk down to the beach and rent beach lounges for $7 each for the day. Clean bathrooms, bar & restaurants are on premises for your use. There are cabs there all day to take you to town or the ship, so no worries of getting back on time.

 

 

We headed back to the ship about 2pm, shopped in a few shops by the pier and we were back on the Jewel in time to eat lunch and enjoy a lazy afternoon.

 

 

Lunch in the Windjammer was good. Burgers, salads, taco bar, desserts. You would go pick up your beverage at several drink stations. Wait staffed would bring more drinks & clean up dishes. Easy Peasy. Windjammer serves lunch everyday 11:30-2:30.

 

 

Took it easy until dinner at 7:00pm. Dinner was at Giovanni's and it was 1st rate. The guys both had Osso Bocco & the ladies has grilled shrimp...excellent on all counts. Before dinner they bring out 3 types of bread with roasted garlic, seas salt, balsamic & olive oil...you could make a meal off of this. Appetizers were Buffalo Mozzarella, Caprese salads. Desserts we had were olive oil cake with lemon ice cream, cannolis & tiramisu. The tiramisu was the best...after dinner the show was ok.

 

 

More gambling, less losing but no winning yet.

 

 

Tuesday, Feb 14 Valentines Day

 

 

St. Kitts

 

This is the only island on this trip we had not visited before. We loved it. People are friendly, the island is very clean. Beautiful island the people take pride in. We had decided to go to the Marriott at Frigate Bay. $4 pp each way & about a 10 minute ride. Ask the cabbies for Eustace Williams at 869-669-7534. He took us over & came back at 3:00pm to pick us up. Very nice guy with lots of local knowledge. The Marriott charges $59 per person for 2 towels each, lounge chairs and access to a great pool & stunning beach. Clean bathrooms also. If you have snorkeling gear bring it. Lots of good comments from guests about the many fish. Great bar & restaurant at the Marriott, pricey but good food. Try the fried plantains and the homemade potato chips. Eustace picked us up at 3:00pm and dropped us off in "town" for some shopping. We were back on the ship by 4:00pm...

 

 

We opted for the Valentines Dinner at Chops. It was $65 pp and includes dry aged steaks, lobster, champagne & much more. It was a great meal and Tiffone our server did her usual great job.

 

 

More gambling, more losing but fun. In bed by 11:00pm.

 

 

Wednesday, Feb. 15

 

 

Antigua

 

 

Up and about and around the ship by 7:30am. Very light breakfast in the Windjammer of Danish and coffee. We are all still full from dinner the night before.

 

 

We are off the ship by 9:30am as we are doing more beach time today. Four ships are in port & beaching is the main activity on the island. We opted for Valley Church beach. Twenty five minute cab ride. Ask for Rowan at the taxi kiosk. $8pp cab ride + tip. He came back at our designated time which was 1pm today as the all aboard is 3:30pm. The beach & water are amazing. The shades of blue & green were awesome. This facility has chairs, umbrellas, bathrooms, bar, restaurant, security guards & life guards. It was $20 for 2 beach lounge chairs & the umbrella. The negatives are it gets busy so go early & there are lots of vendors. They aren't pushy and you say no & they go away...

 

 

We were back on the ship by 2:00pm and had lunch at the Windjammer. Overall we have been impressed with the food in WJ. Very good variety of salads, main courses, hot dogs, burgers, tacos, desserts, etc. Nothing fancy but very tasty & filling.

 

 

Dinner tonight was in the MDR. It was our only dinner here and we were impressed. We had Mojo pork chops, horseradish coated salmon & baked Cod. All were very good. The service was good not great. The desserts were tasty too. If we had to do it again we would not buy the specialty dining package. Either wait and buy a few nights on the ship or buy a few nights package ahead of time. The five night package is too much as the menus do not change like the MDR does.

 

 

Finally won a few dollars at the casino so now I am even, unfortunately my wife isn't even.

 

 

Thursday, Feb. 16

 

 

Barbados

 

Today was a late docking day in Bridgetown. We docked at 10:00am so it was a relaxing morning. Casual coffee & breakfast in the Windjammer. Again the food is tasty & filling. There is an omelette & egg station + most anything else you want.

 

 

NOTEbecause it is a late docking and getting off the boat late. It took about 30 minutes to get off the ship. We were off the ship by about 10:45am. If you are doing an non RCL excursion keep this in mind.

 

 

We went to the Boatyard for the day. $5 pp for the taxi, 10 minute taxi ride. $20 pp at the Boatyard entrance gets you a lounge chair, umbrella, and a drink (SharkBite was excellent). This also gets you a free cab ride back to the ship. The Boatyard had clean bathrooms, bar (2 for 1) drinks for the morning & a nice grill. The beach is very nice with great views. We had a fun day laying around and enjoying the views. The water was choppy so no snorkeling.

 

 

We took the cab back about 3:30pm. When you are in the terminal (before reaching the ship) ask where the ice cream shop "Aha" is...It is delicious ice cream and fresh baked brownies. After a tough day in the sun it was a great way to end the day on shore..

 

 

Friends we met on the boat went to Accra Beach. They said it is the most beautiful beach they had seen. It had 15 umbrellas for rent. Boatyard had 250. Accra has a bar, grill, restrooms so I will put this on my list for next trip.

 

 

Dining package at Chop's again. Delicious as usual. My wife & I had petite filets, Caesar salad & baked potatoes. Our friends had Spicy Shrimp & Mushroom soup. No dessert for us...

 

 

Friday, Feb 17

 

 

Day at Sea

 

Why is it when you know there is nothing on the agenda and you can sleep, you don't? Up and out of the room by 7:00am...urgh...coffee & breakfast at Windjammer. We got our towels and took up residence by 8:30am in lounge chairs on the pool deck, port side by the windows. This was perfect for us. Very little sun directly on us, near the bar, bathrooms & Windjammer. Lunch in the WJ was tasty with burgers, etc. We were out by the pool until 4:00pm. We saw the belly flop competition, pool volleyball, aerobics & Caribbean band, so it was fun and relaxing.

 

 

Giovanni's was great again. Our server is Carmine Cruz. It is pronounced Car meenie. She was terrific. For dinner we had the Osso Bucco, 4 Cheese Ravioli, salads, shrimp & desserts.

 

 

Another fun day but getting near the end of the cruise. It has been a blast.

 

 

Saturday, Feb. 18

 

 

St. Maarten

 

Our last stop is Phillipsburg, St. Maarten. The island is 2 nations, Dutch & French. It has great beaches, great shopping & great food. After saying all that we took it easy today. (I think there is a pattern here). There were 6 cruise ships in port so we decided to avoid the crowds. The four of us had spent a week here a few years ago and we had a great time so today we just walked around downtown. We love Guava Berry so we walked to the Old Man Guava Berry shop. We had Guava Berry Coladas....very tasty. We bought a couple of bottles to bring home. We were back on the ship by 12:30pm. We hung out by the pool and headed back to the room about 4pm to start packing.

 

 

Dinner at Giovanni's again and again it was great. Ask for Carmine to be your server as she is a delight. Tell her Kim & Ginny said hello.

 

 

Our bags were packed and outside our room by 10:30pm. We headed to the bar & casino for a last night. It has been a great trip.

 

 

Sunday, Feb 19

 

Disembark, Hotel & Dining

 

 

Since we were spending the night in San Juan we were zone 21 but we had to be out of our room by 8:30am. We ate in the MDR about 7:00am and we were back at the room by 8:00 for last minute duties.

 

 

It took a while to get called off the shop. There were 5 customs agents for all the passengers, so it was slow. We found our bags easily then got in line. It took 20+ minutes which isn't bad. We easily caught a cab to the Marriott Courtyard on Ponce De Leon drive. $22 + tip and about a 15 minute ride. Our travel mates and us are both Marriott reward members & have hotel pre check in, which is good because when we arrived at 11:00am the lobby of the hotel was packed. When we got to the check in we were told our rooms would be priority since we had done pre check in on Saturday in St. Maarten. Our rooms would be ready by 1:00pm, and they were. We asked about places to eat and they guided to a fabulous Puerto Rican restaurant.

 

 

We ate lunch at Casita Miramar . This was our favorite meals on this trip and believe me we ate a lot of good meals. This restaurant is located an easy 10 minute walk from the hotel in a nice neighborhood. It is on the 2nd floor of a neat old house/hotel. Amanda the hostess was at the door to meet us. Alejandro was our waiter. We ordered a pitcher of white sangria which was delicious. They start you off with a complimentary bowl of plantain & chicken broth soup and fried cod cakes. These were both delicious and full of flavor. The menus are shown to you on big wooden menu boards with many offerings. We chose two appetizers to share, fried local cheeses & taro root, sausage mixture fried & served with a local sweet sauce. There were also many entrees to choose from. Their menu changes often as the Chef likes to try different combinations. We ordered Mahi Mahi served in a creole sauce, BBQ ribs slow smoked over coffee wood & pimento wood served with a homemade guava BBQ sauce, and pork chops with a local sauce, black beans & rice, plantains, fried breadfruit and yellow rice. The bill came to $120 with tip. We ere stuffed and knew we would not have dinner. However, we did come back Sunday night for dessert & cafe con leche...boy are we glad we did.

 

 

We had Tres Leches cake, Coconut Creme Brûlée & Nutella Flan. Not a bad dinner for sure. It was a great way to end a great trip.

 

 

This Marriott Courtyard was nice, clean and easy access to the port & airport. It is in a residential are so there lots of small shops & restaurants. This was a Sunday stay and Monday was a holiday so we were lucky the restaurant was open.

 

 

Monday, Feb 20

 

 

SJU to Atlanta, Comments

 

After a great night sleep we were packed or repacked for our flight home. We didn't have to leave the hotel until 12:30pm so we had a leisurely breakfast at La Palma right down the street from the hotel. French toast, pancakes, Spanish omelet, bacon, toast and more Cafe con Leche. Our flight was on time so off to Atlanta we head.

 

 

Final Thoughts

 

We thought the Jewel was a great ship. Everything was easily accessible and the food was good to very good,some bordering on excellent. The ports were fun and had fun things to do. The service was good even though some of the bar staff seemed to not like the drink packages as their tip is included. The few who were smart knew to be nice as we give a few dollars extra as tips for good friendly service. I know not all people do but if you are nice you never know. The staff was very good about cleanliness of washing hands and keeping common areas very clean.

 

 

I would like to see the return of at least one midnight buffet ( not that we need to eat more) and lobster night. Some nuts or munchies at the bar would be a nice touch. Also, as Gold RCL cruisers we had always been invited to a welcome aboard cocktail party but never heard or saw one.

 

 

Overall we give the Jewel an 8 out of 10 on our cruise meter..

great report,thanks - we leave for the Jewel on April 9!

Thank you for a very detailed review. Much appreciated.

Glad you had a blast :D

vidalia1...thanks for taking us along on your cruise. (y)

Great review! Thanks!

Thanks for the report. I appreciate the info on San Juan dining.:)