Cruisin KLS

Just got off the phone with the Casablanca which thank goodness we found thru FB. Our 2 rooms are ready and waiting for us. We arrive tomorrow. So happy and not scary at all. [emoji16]

 

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Looking forward to hearing about how things go. Enjoy your cruise!

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Just got off the phone with the Casablanca which thank goodness we found thru FB. Our 2 rooms are ready and waiting for us. We arrive tomorrow. So happy and not scary at all. [emoji16]

 

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Looking forward to hearing about how things go. Enjoy your cruise!

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Thanks Dan!!

 

Have you seen the hotel thread in the SJ ports of call forum? If not, they want to hear from people who have actually stayed in SJ since the hurricane.

 

 

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I took the liberty of posting the information you had reported back about Casablanca on this threat. We are staying there 12/06 through 12/10 and were happy to read about your stay r the things that were open in OSJ.

-Kristi

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This was posted on another thread also....

Cruise finished - Disembark

Following the instructions that Royal gave us on the last night, we had our bags out in the hall by 11PM. In the morning, you have to be out of the room by 8:00AM. Our assigned waiting area was the Main Dining Room, with an approximate disembark call at 8:00. That time is different for every group. We ate breakfast, cleared the room, and got to the MDR by just before 8:00. Shortly (maybe 5-10 min) the call came for us to Disembark. We left the ship. In the cruise terminal, you enter the luggage hall. There were a handful (maybe 10 or so) porters in the hall just as you entered. I had read on these boards that if you have one of them help, it expedites the customs process. In this case, I also figured they would be glad to have the work and a tip. So, I engaged one of the porters. The bags were spread out in the room well and it only took a few minutes to find ours. He grabbed them. There was a separate customs line for porters and nobody was in it. The "help yourself" line was about 20 feet long, still not bad. Customs was another few minutes, and almost before you knew it we were heading outside. The whole process was as quick and painless as it gets. Thanks Royal. There were a bunch of taxis outside and the taxi agent lined us up with one. Off we go! About 10minutes to Old San Juan.

Casablanca Hotel

We checked in. I guess that I was a little surprised to see lights on inside. What, electricity? The porter helped with the bags. Four floors of stairs

At the room, we received the big surprise as he informed us they are running on generator power and the AC is "kinda off and on". But the great salesmanship kicked in, when he said "luckily you guys have a balcony room - just open the doors". The room was beautifully decorated. Everything worked, including wifi, water, toilet (don't laugh), shower, and satellite TV. We went out to explore Old San Juan for the day. When we got back, the AC was on in the lobby, but not in our room. We slept with the balcony doors open. It was pretty muggy, but otherwise all was good.

Dan

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This was posted on another thread also....

Cruise finished - Disembark

Following the instructions that Royal gave us on the last night, we had our bags out in the hall by 11PM. In the morning, you have to be out of the room by 8:00AM. Our assigned waiting area was the Main Dining Room, with an approximate disembark call at 8:00. That time is different for every group. We ate breakfast, cleared the room, and got to the MDR by just before 8:00. Shortly (maybe 5-10 min) the call came for us to Disembark. We left the ship. In the cruise terminal, you enter the luggage hall. There were a handful (maybe 10 or so) porters in the hall just as you entered. I had read on these boards that if you have one of them help, it expedites the customs process. In this case, I also figured they would be glad to have the work and a tip. So, I engaged one of the porters. The bags were spread out in the room well and it only took a few minutes to find ours. He grabbed them. There was a separate customs line for porters and nobody was in it. The "help yourself" line was about 20 feet long, still not bad. Customs was another few minutes, and almost before you knew it we were heading outside. The whole process was as quick and painless as it gets. Thanks Royal. There were a bunch of taxis outside and the taxi agent lined us up with one. Off we go! About 10minutes to Old San Juan.

Casablanca Hotel

We checked in. I guess that I was a little surprised to see lights on inside. What, electricity? The porter helped with the bags. Four floors of stairs

At the room, we received the big surprise as he informed us they are running on generator power and the AC is "kinda off and on". But the great salesmanship kicked in, when he said "luckily you guys have a balcony room - just open the doors". The room was beautifully decorated. Everything worked, including wifi, water, toilet (don't laugh), shower, and satellite TV. We went out to explore Old San Juan for the day. When we got back, the AC was on in the lobby, but not in our room. We slept with the balcony doors open. It was pretty muggy, but otherwise all was good.

Dan

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We are on Adventure now. I was wondering why there are so many kids on the ship in late October and then I read this on our roll call:

 

Jumping over from the October 14 the cruise. We are about to disembark, our cruise was full, approximately 70 percent of original passengers canceled and Royal Carribean opened up the cruise to residents of Puerto Rico for $500.00 fee, children free, so our cruise was 70 % PR residents. They did not offer any upgrades first to any of the original passengers who did not cancel. Cruise was crowded and full. We did have a good time, but we were a group of 6 couples. Have fun.

 

It feels like half the families in PR yanked their kids out of school to cruise. If you choose to book in the Fall to avoid kids you will not be a happy camper.

 

Other observations so far: 1. Things seemed disorganized in general yesterday. 2. Seems they are cutting back on staffing in Windjammer. 3. Just went up to Viking to relax and read. They are blasting the most god-awful music everywhere so you can’t hear yourself think.

 

YMMV.

 

Kathy

Pretty sure that the families did not "yank their kids out of school". From all of my reading it is my understanding most schools have not yet reopened after Maria. Perhaps their families thought it might be a nice getaway for everyone to escape and enjoy some time making happy memories together. Take a break from what they have been dealing with before they need to return to the task of rebuilding.

Our cruise out of PR is over a month away but we are very much looking forward to it and our 4 days precruise in Old San Juan. We cruise during this time of year to avoid lots of kids too. Under the circumstances I like to think I would be more understanding.

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Nightline did a story yesterday about Dominica that had great coverage. They had a reporter on the ground and decent footage of the damage. The devastation there is so wide spread but the attitude of the people is positive. I hope they all get the help they need.

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Thank you. I have been watching that site for a few weeks and thought I was okay. I decided I had better call directly to the hotel today and was told no reservation. So that website is not accurate. very frustrating. Anyone booked at a hotel that has confirmed? Dates: Dec 2nd

We are booked at Hotel Casablanca in Old San Juan for 12/06 - 12/10 and have confirmed. Someone on the recent Adventure cruise stayed there at the end of the cruise and although they are currently running on generator power there was AC and WiFi.

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My BF just called Casablanca and supposedly they are open and he has a confirmation number. No working elevator but generator to run everything else. Crossing fingers as we knock on the door come Saturday.....

Please report back after your stay. We are due to stay with them in December.

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Princesa Gastropub. On Paeso de la Princesa. Nice walk near the water. Outdoor dining. Fantastic mojitos.

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hi! I have been booking excursions for our cruise in March. So far, we have had great luck and very good communication with the vendors. Barbados is different. Both vendors I have contacted have been extremely slow (weeks in between requiring multiple reminders) which makes me worry if they will remember the get us. Both seem to have good reviews (Glory Tours and Ocean Echo Stables). I understand I am WAY early, but all we have everything set with the other ports Is this more of a cultural island thing or should I try others? Thanks!!

I can't speak to the specific companies that you are trying to contact but when we have planned things in Barbados in the past, we have gotten responses right away. We are super early planners too. Both Calabaza and Island Safari were very responsive. I hope that others can help you with the specific companies that you are trying to contact.

-Kristi

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Calabaza cruises in Barbados...2 snorkeling spots, swimming with turtles, amazing crew, food and drink...fantastic day out!

Definitely Calabaza for snorkeling in Barbados. Pampered all day long!

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http://www.princesapr.com/index.php

Princesa Gastropub is Puerto Rican fusion. DH and I have been staying in OSJ precruise for 5-6 years. This was the best meal we ever had. Not sure if the prices are what you were looking for. Great mojitos and outside dining. The whole package!

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We will be in Port mid September. We have been here before, and have done some of the sights and would like to plan a bar/pub crawl for our group. We are in port from 1pm to 8pm. I found this link for these top 15 attracations.

 

https://foursquare.com/top-places/san-jaun/best-places-cocktails

 

Does anyone have any input for us to help plan our own crawl? We are trying to map it out and plan ahead if time. Some locations are not open until later in the day. Appreciate any input.

#9 being in Condado is outside of walking from OSJ. Definitely hit Carli's. Best mojitos ever! And the way they are prepared is like watching a dance routine!

Drinks are Punto de Vista are good. It is on the roof top of the Hotel Milano so the view is great. Good place for apps too.

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Thanks, but "price is definitely a consideration", and $300 per night is not worth considering. That's several shore excursions!

 

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Depending on when you will be there, you can get the Sheraton Old San Juan on Hotwire for around $150 a night. We have stayed at Casablanca and El Convento on OSJ before. Enjoyed both. Never tried to walk to OSJ from the Condado area. Don't think that I am that adventurous.

- Kristi

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DH and I are in our 40's with no kids. Having cruised both Summit and Breakaway our preference is definitely Summit.

Shows on the Breakaway - They have a few more modern, better produced, big name productions that we enjoyed. Shows on Summit are pretty basic - comedian, magician, Broadway dance numbers.

Most bars on Breakaway are in the interior of the ship. On our Caribbean cruises, we like to spend as much time enjoying the outdoors. On Summit we spend a lot of evenings in the Sunset bar listening to the live music and enjoying the sea breeze.

Service and food on Summit were a step up from Breakaway in our opinion. We ate dinner on our most recent Summit cruise most nights in the buffet. Grill selections of steak, chicken and salmon cooked on demand are a great option. Then you can choose to eat indoor or outdoor. Breakaway was nice in that DH did not have to wear pants to dinner every night in the dining venues. This was the only plus for us.

We don't cruise for the water slides and rope courses. We cruise mostly for live entertainment and outdoor seating venues. Summit covers that for us.

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We got together with a few other couples on our roll call, disembarked and negotiated with a taxi driver at the pier. $15pp round trip. We were a group of 6. Our driver waited for us at the spa. We stayed for 2 hours. Great relaxing day. This was in January 2016.

Don't be afraid to get prices from a few different drivers. The cost to enter the spa was $20pp.

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I wish it was available or I would have totally grabbed it.

Not sure if it is too late but we were in 9138 again this past week and the set up is the same as the above cabin. Guess that we remembered it wrong!

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Thanks for all your tips on avoiding the Bayonne Bridge. Two GPS's (maps on my iPhone, and DH's Garmin) sent us that route every time we have driven to this port. The only reason we ended up taking the Goethals Bridge this time, was because we ended up turned around and far out of our way, when the detour signs got us confused. And yes we ended up using Waze, and will always use that going forward. Hopefully next trip here will be easier, thanks to everyone's suggestions. :)

 

Anyway, the live music on this ship has been fantastic. The piano player/singer is the best we've ever heard on any sailing. And, there is a string duo, two women who play cello and violin, and they are incredible. The music is so beautiful and tranquil, and it is not so loud that you can't hear each other talk. Those two women are extremely talented. There is a female singer in one of the lounges and she is very good also. Highly trained professionals on this ship; not an amateur among them. Celebrity tends to have high quality talent on its ships in our experience. Much better than RCI as we've seen it.

 

We don't smoke but we have noticed that smoking is almost nil on this ship. In the past people could smoke on their balconies, I forget if it was port or starboard as recently as a couple of years ago, and we always ended up with smokers on either sides, and one time with a neighbor who smoked cigars out there every day. We never complained though as it was their right to smoke on their balconies at that time. As far as we can tell, smoking is only allowed on Summit in very limited areas outside on deck now. There is no indoor smoking including in the casino. Last year we were on Grandeur of the Seas (RCI) and just walking through the casino to get to the other end of the ship nearly required a gas mask due to the heavy smoke in there.

 

We noticed a lot of passengers lighting up as soon as they got off Summit in Bermuda. Also people were smoking at Horseshoe Bay, so I guess that's allowed, though a lot of US beaches no longer permit smoking.

 

Our cabin steward has been fantastic. He learned the first morning that we like to sleep in, and never bothered us after that. Even though we left the room in late morning, he had our room ready for us as soon as we got back from lunch. We asked for ice the first day and gave him a small cash tip, and he has provided us with fresh ice in the bucket twice daily ever since. :)

 

Even though our balcony does not have a lounger, I found a way to push the two chairs together, recline them, and make a lounger of my own, which worked perfectly. DH does not sunbathe, so he napped in the AC while I worked on my tan.

 

There is a brand new store which just had its grand opening in Kings Wharf. It is a branch of Diamonds International. It is just next to the little mall there. It is a LARGE store. We didn't buy anything there but it was very well staffed and had many beautiful (and presumably very expensive) pieces there. Hubby bought me a Pandora bracelet and five charms at the Crisson shop in the mall at Kings Wharf, and the young female clerk there could not have been more helpful, patient and pleasant. :) It was a lovely experience buying at that store. (Anniversary gift; next weekend is our wedding anniversary).

 

Today the sea is a bit choppy. It's cloudy and spitting rain with a very brisk wind. I like the motion but DH has taken to the bed. I'm going to go to the Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Living on a Ship talk at 11 a.m., hosted by the Cruise Director Eddy, and a few other employees.

 

Packing up later this afternoon; how time flies! :( Already thinking of which cruise to take next.

Do you know the name of the guitar player? We have enjoyed Nestor on the Summit before and hope that he will be there in December.

In November 2017. I know it's probably crazy to worry about it this far in advance, but the sweet 16 cabins are still available. I'm way too much of a planner for my own good :D

Planning is always good especially when you want a good cabin. We are brooke on RCCL for December 2017 because of the cabin that we wanted.

I can only speak to cabin 9138. The bed is on the right side of the cabin. If you are facing the head of the bed the left side is next to the balcony doors. Unfortunately Celebrity deck plans do not show bed placement like Norwegians do. We are on the summit again in December and can try to get more info then. A TA may have more info about specific layouts. When are you looking at the Summit?

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I haven't been on Orient beach lately, but follow another message board about SXM and often, there are posts about the progress of the new structures. I believe Aloha and Sun Beach are open and Orange Fever is slated to be open soon, if not already. Most are renting chairs/serving drinks/food.

We were there the last week in January. Got dropped off near Pedro's. Still construction in process. Orange Fever was not open yet. Seems like some of the locals that used to be there before may not be able to afford the rent being charged at the new structures.

-Kristi

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Thanks! I don't mind Bacardi, but I do like Mount Gay rum, so it's definitely something I'll need to consider. I'm also a bit intrigued by the craft beers on the premium package. Good thing I have a while to decide :)

Hi Christine! Hope that you guys enjoy Celebrity as much as we do. Will patiently await your review when you get back. We have always upgraded from the classic to the premium package. I really enjoy the coffees and not having to think about what I am drinking. Like others said, you can always upgrade on board. Not sure your other half would need the upgrade.

Sea Day - 01/30/2016

Last day on the Breakaway. Headed to the buffet in the morning for breakfast where finding a table was challenging. It was cold outside so no one was sitting out there and there seemed to be a lot of people camped out at tables reading and playing cards while you circled trying to find someplace to sit and eat.

Packed up the rest of our things early in the day so that we could spend the rest of the day just relaxing. We had lunch again at O'Sheehan's. I had the black and bleu burger with bacon and DH had the corned beef reuben.

Dinner was our last time at the Noodle Bar. I ordered the shrimp spring rolls again and instead I got the pork dumplings. We tried to tell the waitress that they weren't right but she told us that they ran out of some of the ingredients for the shrimp rolls and this is what they made instead. Strange!

We ended the evening at Maltings with one last Elder Fashion for me. Said our goodbyes to Leslie and wished her a safe trip home. Then it was back to the cabin to turn in early.

Sea Day - 01/29/2016

Woke up to cooler air today so no coffee on the balcony :( Decided to head to Taste for breakfast. I had the peaches and blueberries and croque madame again and DH had the eggs benedict. Headed back to the cabin for some packing and just a relaxing day of reading, napping and watching t.v..

For lunch we headed to O'Sheehan's for more wings and fries. We shared all of the flavors; Thai Chili, Jerk, BBQ and Buffalo. The Thai Chili and Jerk were our favorites. Had to get some sweet so we headed up to the buffet for ice cream.

Met up with friends for drinks at Shaker's then Mixx Bar. Dinner tonight was at Taste. I had the steamed clams :) , spring rolls :( , and sirloin strip (that is always on the menu). It comes with onion rings and potato wedges and I really ordered it mostly for the sides. Dessert was a very delicious black cherry tart. DH had the onion soup, caesar salad, spaghetti bolognese and tia maria cake. He enjoyed everything except the dessert.

Most of the day and into the night we had pretty rough seas. 15-19 ft. waves and a pretty good wind. Made for a lot of rocking, bumping and creaking in our cabin later that night. No one on the ship could walk in a straight line and getting up in the middle of the night was challenging. We ended our day by closing down Mixx Bar and then had some late night sweets at the buffet.

Next up...last sea day 01/30/2016