BBowCruiser

4 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

 Just off mariner. I hadn’t taken the time to read the welcome letter. I asked the concierge if I could get a voucher drink in the dining room. He told me no problem. Went to the dining room asked the waiter about the drinks and again no problem. Later that night i went back to read the welcome letter and sure enough it states that the drink vouchers are NOT allowable in the dining room Windjammer or specialty restaurants. 

 

So still not sure about Mariner. 

M

We were on Mariner's Jan. 30th 5 day and used ours in the MDR.

We were just there a week ago.  A taxi was $25 one way to Palancar.

Thanks!

Thanks for the info!  We return on a Monday, so Sunday closures aren't a problem.  I will check the rates at MIA vs. the port. 

Does anyone have a recommendation for a rental car agency near the Miami cruise port?  We will be needing a car for a few days post cruise.  We will return it to FLL.  Thanks!

Our Mariner cruise has cheaper balconies than OV too!

I buy a Yankee Candle paperboard Car Jar for the bathroom. There isn't an exhaust fan. I also bring battery powered tea lights to use as night lights. We just use large trash bags as a clothes hamper, if there are damp suits, etc. the last day, they won't get anything that's still clean all wet. We also like to take our Bose speaker, it's nice to have some music in our cabin. Several two gallon size ziptop bags are nice to pack liquids in.

It was 83 here yesterday, 66 today, and a blizzard warning beginning tomorrow afternoon with a low of 12 Saturday night. I need another cruise!!

There are shops offering some of the same items as the shops at the port. Most of the prices seemed to be very similar in all of the stores.

We were there Jan. 16th. Beers were $4, margarita was $6. We also got a free shot of tequila and a huge plate of chicken nachos (two of us couldn't finish it) for $12.

We were just at Junkanoo Sunday. We were at the Tiki area. Byron helped us. Tell him he was on cruisecritic.com, he was excited about that and gave us extra drinks! Ask for the VIP package with chairs, umbrellas, and drinks. He will make some for your kids. He had games for kids (and kids at heart) like the water balloon toss, hula hoop contest, and a relay. We took a Frisbee and played with some kids who were there with their families. It wasn't the most beautiful beach in the world, but it was within walking distance, had restrooms, and everything was reasonably priced.

We did the race in Cozumel. One person had to snorkel to find a clue.

We had my time dining every night at 6:15 two weeks ago and the only show we weren't able to make was the welcome aboard. Saturday Night Fever started at 9:00, I believe everything else was 8:30. The theater seating for the aerial show was full by 8:00.

For the first time in 12 cruises, we came into port four hours late today due to a medical emergency that caused us to turn back to Cozumel over three hours after leaving. You never know what might cause your ship to be late and make it impossible to make an early flight!

We were on Navigator in February and used Nativeway to see the rays, reef, and Rum Point and in June on the Navigator we used Captain Marvin's for just the reef and rays. Both were great excursions with plenty of time to see everything and do some shopping at the end.

In Feb. 2007 we took Rhapsody out of Galveston on the first cruise out of dry dock. We thought it would be good to have everything clean, refreshed, and refurbished, but it was a mess. The ship was late getting to Texas, so we didn't board until around 8:00. We were all given $25 per cabin shipboard credit. The Windjammer wasn't done, so they set up a lunch buffet around the pool and the dining room was jam packed because there was no evening buffet (they did allow shorts on even formal night because there was nowhere else to eat). The elevators weren't working and some people were stuck in one for over an hour.

We had a group of 24. Only our 23 year old son got the premium package. He got it on Tuesday (four days left). We bought $1 beers on Sunday at port, and our tour Monday included unlimited drinks so he decided to hold off on the drink package till after those days. He used the buy one get one free and 10% off drinks on his sea pass those first days too since the package basically negates those coupons. I would probably have him and our 21 year old get the package next time. My husband and I just drink a few each day and between the crown and anchor coupons and the wine we brought on board, the packages wouldn't have been worth it to us.

We had 24 in two vans. We just told a guy at the port we wanted to stop by Maho and see it, stop at a store for drinks, and go to Mullet and have him return for us in the afternoon. He said it would be $6 per person. I can't remember his name, I'll ask the others with us. If anyone knows, I'll post it!

We were just at Mullet July 12. We paid $6 per person each way to Mullet. We also had the driver stop at a small store on the way where we bought beers, ice, a cooler, and snacks. It was a lot cheaper than the drinks and food on the beach!

Spencer Ambrose Jalousie Beach tour takes you to the most beautiful beach on St. Lucia. We've taken this tour twice (the latest was July 15).

We booked Tangerine Tours online for $25 per person including rum punch, beer, Coke, and water. Our tour was about 4.5 hours including a beach stop. Our group of 24 had a great time!

When we were on Navigator in February, we had to move our clocks forward the first night and back again the last night. When we were on it in June (daylight savings time) we didn't have to change.

We booked 20 for Giovanni's at 6:30 on day 3 the day we boarded Adventure. We had two tables of 10 next to each other.

We took the Spencer Ambrose tour in 2011 and used our own gear. This time he had some, but had to go get it after he dropped us off at Jalousie. We had a large group using up most of his, so we just used our own because we knew everything fit us correctly. We also were able to start snorkeling right away while he was gone retrieving everything!

We did Mullet Bay (pretty good snorkeling by the rocks); no great snorkeling at Jolly Beach but it was beautiful, we just took frisbees and float mats; Boatyard at Barbados (found Mitch and Neville to take us out to the turtles); Spencer Ambrose tour with great snorkeling at St. Lucia; didn't do St. Croix this time but snorkeled at Rainbow when we were there a few years ago. Have fun!!