beachlover827

We were quickly met my woman selling chair rentals,chairs were 5.00 and the umbrella only 3.00 great deal.The beach and water again awesome,a tad better then St. Thomas in my opinion.Here they had all kinds of water sport rentals including paddleboard rentals.It got a little crowed as time passed,but nothing bad.We had a good lunch at the little hotel that was on the beach outside.There are bars on the beach selling drinks and beer with specials.We had a really good time and stayed till 2:30.The only bad thing about cruises,you are limited on time at the beach! We really Hated to pick up and go! By 3pm the beach was empty and we were on our way back to the ship=http://s282.photobucket.com/user/vanny777/media/162.jpg.html][/url]

We stopped at a local store on the walk back to the ship and picked up some Cuban cigars and some other things.On the way back on the ship the staff greeted us again with fresh beach towels,cold towels,and water and punch.

Aqua blue water at the dock...

Day 5 Tortola! Was up and out by 830am.

Ship pulling into port.

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Port under construction.

The new Dock!

Here there is about a ten minute walk to the taxi,there is contruction going on as they build more shops around the dock area.We decided to head to Cane Gardens Bay for more beach fun.It is the same 8pp each way to the beach.They again wait for the truck to fill up before taking off.this time we had a airconditioned van.Totola is hilly so we climbed up the mountain and then desended.There is some great shots when the driver stops.

We arrived to this...

MJ even made a appearance!

More towel art to end our nite!

Up next! Tortola and Cane Gardens Bay,Dinner at Teppanyaki!

Some things I forgot to mention,they had a snack bar to get food at Megens bay,We had the hambuger which was ok,the chicken sand which was really dry,and the pizza which the little one said was good.Nothing comes with fries,,soda is 3.00 a can,the burger and chicken was around 9.00!

Smokers you can bring back up to 5 cartons of smokes if purchased in St. Thomas! We found a shop near the port that had marboro for 24.00 a carton.

Bring a power strip for the cabin,only two outlets in the room.None in the bathroom! This worked out nicely as we plugged all our gagets in at the end of the nite.

Back to our nite,after returning back to the ship,we grabbed a quick bite at the buffet,then headed up to the cabin to rest up for dinner,made a quick stop at the bar for some drinks to bring back to the room.

Dinner at Moderno!

Huge Salad bar!

I did not take any photos of the meat(sorry) but basically they give to a red and a grren card,green means bring more food,red means stop.They come around with steak,filet,chicken,sausage,pork,2 seafood dishes,and roasted pinapple at the end(yummy)! some picks of desert!

Service was excellent,some of the meat dry,some good.You can have as much as you please.All and all pretty good!

After dinner it was off to the Awesome 80's party and Fireworks at Spice H2O!

I gotta say this was my favorite night and time on the whole cruise.We got up there a little after 10pm and all the seats were taken,so it was standing room only as people continued pouring in.The big screen was alive and kicking with all our favorite videos and music of the 80's.Tyler was the host and put on a great party.Fireworks were set off off around 10:45 to the music.It was just a great time! Don't miss it!

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Thanks! Love the pictorial and your descriptions :) Interesting to learn that you didn't witness enforcement of the takeaway (buffet, I should say) food policy on your trip. I've been following the developments and I'm curious to hear how the changes will continue to be ironed out.

Never had a problem taking food out.Most of all the people with kids were feeding them at pool side.

We arrived to this!!!

Taxi(safari trucks)

There is a 3 dollar admission to get on the beach.The beach and water was incredible,dead calm shallow water,no seaweed,unreal! We put our towels down near a tree that had shade,we did not rent chairs here,but that was a mistake,because it was rather breezy and the wind was blowing sand on us and the towels,so I would advise to rent some chairs.We set up a return time of 330 with the driver to pick us and another group up.The driver never showed up,but there were plenty other trucks to jump on.We were back on the ship by 430 and headed to the buffet which was still open to grab some food.The buffet is always serving something,even though they list certain times.

Day 4 St.Thomas pulling into port!

We were up and off the boat by 830am,all you need is your key card and id(driver license,Passport. We decided on Magens bay for a day at the beach.A quick walk thru some shops and the taxis are about a 10 minute walk from the ship.We gathered up some water at a local shop,and headed into a line for people going to magens bay.The taxis are safari trucks that seat about 20-25.No regular taxi.You have to wait to they fill it up before they leave,in our case it was 5 minutes.It is 8.00 per person each way.With traffic I think the ride was about 20-25 minutes.Some nice shots of the ship as you wind up and down thru town.

:DThanks for the Great review and the pictures! I have a question if you can telll me? The small coffee machine in the balcony room, do you think I can bring my own coffee Krueger cups? Is that a regular size machine?

Thanks

Ladytee:)

Thank you...The machine only takes the pouches.

Some other notes the room had storage under the bed for your suitcases,all 3 fit under there,the couch bed had 2 larger drawers below it,plus the closet,and more storage under the desk,there was a small safe in the closet,it held a small camera,our wallets and some other things.Really small though!

Up Next St.Thomas and Magens bay.

Day 3 was sunning,doing the slides,playing in the pool,the weather was great all week,go up to deck 16 for the nice breeze.No seats by the pool again,towel game in full force each day.Good music playing by the pool.

Lunch was at the flaming grill,a deck above the main pool.Lots of shade up there to relax out of the sun.The bar was right next to the buffet.We ordered up some mango margaritas where were excellent.The buffet had pulled pork,empandas,plantains,chicken,rice n beans,fries,salad.It was ok not great.

Dinner tonite was La Lucina Italian!

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We also had Chicken parm and a fish Dish! Sorry no pics...

Some towel art,they dropped off the dallies for the next day and freshend up the room around 8 each night.Never saw our cabin steward the whole cruise.

After dinner we made our way to the atrium,while the little one made his way to Entourage.Tonite was the Bob Marley Tribute with Groove International.If you like reggae and marley this show is not to be missed.It was a great performance and they had us all up and dancing.

Some notes on the evening entertainment,every night from 830-930 at the atrium,there is some kind of show,family feud,newlywed show,dancing with the stars.Seating is limited so arrive a half hour early to get a good seat,you can view it from O'sheenans also,but that fills up quickly too.Usually Grove international plays tribute music afterwards.They are a great band and not to be missed! There is live music at the sugarcane bar also during the week.

We had 10:15 reservations to burn the floor.We arrived about 10pm to a almost filled up theater.We got seats in the back on the side.The view was still good.The best bet is to arrive 30-45 mins early if you want to sit close.The show was pretty good,not great.

Other things I forgot to mention,never made it to spice H20 during the day,the spa was pretty crowded each time we visited.I had a hard time getting a heated lounger always full.We did the heated pool,the saltroom,sauna...

The spa was ok,but don't think I would miss it next time.

We inrolled my girlfriends son in the teen club Entourage when we boarded the ship,quick and easy.They are free to come and go as they please.He loved it there,made a lot of new friends and gave us a few hours to ourselves each night.They would often all hang out till 1am.

O'sheenans the 24 hour pub was great,we did lunch,and often late at night after the shows.The lunch menu was burgers,wings,pot pie,tuna salad,hot dogs,cornbeef.The late night menu was limited to wings,tuna,potpie,and burger.No mozzarella sticks at night which was disappointing.Service was always quick and good.

Thanks for your critique. Would you please label the pictures of the foods as to what they are? Some I can figure out but some are a mystery to me.

 

Thanks!

Sure!

Can you tell me about the shower products (shower gel, shampoo/conditioner)? The spa rooms are supposed to have "upgraded" products from the Elemis Spa line. I'm trying to figure out if I need to pack my own stuff or if I will be happy with what's provided. Thanks :)

The room did have the upgraded products,shampoo,conditioner,body lotion,it also had a dispenser with body gel and shampoo,i used the elemis and was fine with it,my other half brought her own products,as she has color treated hair.

Sunset to end our dinner!

We were usually up and headed to the breakfast buffet by 9am,as we passed the main pools most of all the seats in the sun were taken.The towel game was in full effect.Shaded spots were available,but not near the pool.The buffet was excellent with a wide variety of food,from made to order omlets,pancakes,waffels,french toast,ect...never waited more then a few minutes for my over easy eggs or omlet.the cooks were not friendly,rest of the staff were!Coffee was weak,tea was available,as well as oj,cranberry juice,mango juice.Buffet was crowed but always seats available.

It is now after 10 and all the seats on the lower pool deck are taken with towels and no people!Its up to deck 16! Here we find open lounge chairs and put our stuff down.No shade up here!There is waiter service,so no problems getting drinks,they come around rather frequent.That was the deal on our sea days.Our towels got stolen as we left for a twenty minute lunch,came back to people sitting in our chairs,and our stuff on the floor,they told us there was nothing on the chairs(Yeah right!) to avoid any conflict,we just grabbed new chairs.It is very windy on deck 16,so bring towel clips to keep your towels on your chairs.

The pools are tiny,the adult pool is full by 9am,nobody in the pool,but everybody hanging on the edge,never got a chance to enter,spent most of the time in the main pool(childrens) which was less crowded,but full of kids,which most of the time behaved nicely,even though left unattended.The 5 slides were fun,never a long line.

Lunch was at the buffet,again lots of choices,from burgers,hotdogs,seafood,asian,italian,ect...Lemonade,unsweet ice tea,water,mango at the self service machines,soft serve and hard ice cream.Never had a problem bringing back food from the buffet to our chairs,or to our rooms.Everybody was taking food to there chairs.

Entertainment included Grove international,which played live by the pool,then a DJ played top 40 to 80's and 90's which was good.Music very loud near the pool! 10 to 6 everyday.Always something going on around the pool,as the assistant cruise director tyler kept the party going.We normally stayed by the pool till around 530 everyday people watching,then headed to the room to get ready for dinner.

Before dinner we stopped at the sugar cane mojito bar for the raspberry mojito everybody talks about,my girlfriend thought it was to strong,i had the pinapple coconut which I thought was good but strong.On to cagney's.

Cagney's was our favorite restaurant,we eat there twice.Service and food was excellent.Being on the UDP we were able to order a second entrée with no charge.Everything was top notch!

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Was your 14 year old allowed to use the spa facilities?

We all went in to check it out the first day,and was never questioned,me myself walked in many times and was not even asked for my card,but he never used the spa.

Could you give your opinion of the balcony as far as being next to one of the angled balconies (14150)? I've never read an opinion from someone next to the "angled" ones.

 

Was privacy (theirs or yours) an issue?

On the balcony while sitting you cant see on either side,but while standing close and leaning over the rail,your neighbors are in plain view.Never had a problem with privacy.

great start

Thanks

Great start- Anxiously waiting to read more! We sail on June 6th in spa balcony room 14144- myself, Mom and my 18 yr. old son :)

Thanks

Great pics! Would love to hear how well you liked being on deck 14.

Thanks,deck 14 was awesome,right near the elevator,one deck below pool and buffet.

Off to a great start!! :) Can't wait to hear all about your week!! We sail in July on the Getaway and are very excited!! I love to see reviews with pictures :D Will you be talking about your excursions? We are on the fence about what to do in Tortola and St. Thomas.

Thanks,yes I will post some pics later in review.

Dinner and desert at La Bistro

La Bistro was our second fav restaurant on the ship,service was quick and the food great! Up next day 2 at sea,dinner at cagneys.

Stateroom #? (If you don't mind me asking) :o

14148 spa balcony room

Ater watching Miami sail away,we head to the pool bar to gather up a bud lime for myself and a Malibu bay breeze for the misses.Service was quick,we never waited more then 2 minutes the whole trip for a drink at any bar on the ship!

Our 630 reservation for La Bistro is approaching,so we head back to the cabin to get ready.On our way I snapped a few at the spa and on deck.

So after checking out the room we head up to deck 16 to get ready for the sail away! The horn blows its a little after 4pm and away we go!

Beautiful Miami and South beach on the way out to sea!