Mitsugirlys FASCINATION with San Juan-review & pictorial

For all the time and effort you put into this review. I really enjoyed your pictures and like others have said, now I'm thinking about doing this cruise next year. I was thinking Magic out of Port Canaveral but this itinerary has the same stops plus 2 as the other sailing. I hope school goes well for you and I can't wait for your next review next year.

Thanks so much and definitely consider this itinerary. It's amazing. I think one of the best times I have ever had.

(BTW, my next review will be sooner than next year ;) :D)

I'm guessing Carnival understands that in order to stay ahead of the game, they need to keep prices low on this ship since PR only has 3.8 Million (and decreasing..) residents and one other year-round ship, RCCL's Adventure of the seas with a similar itinerary. They also understand that they have to also contend with THREE other seasonal ships, another from RCCL, one from NCL and one from Celebrity and the fact that out-of-town cruisers need to fly in which can sometimes be even more expensive than the cruise itself. They also have a smaller, older ship compared to all others. But even so, prices for the Fascination have been more expensive than they were for the Valor or Liberty before it. Less rooms, same amount of travelers=artificial demand and higher prices. Still, they are lower than average for Carnival and those of the competition. We booked our cruise early Feb. 2016 and with the exception of a small price drop a few weeks after, our room (ocean view) prices have gone nowhere but up since then.

True, but I was still shocked that the price was that low during Spring Break. I have been cruising Spring Break with Carnival for the last 3 years and this is 1/2 the price of the other cruises I've paid for. I'm seriously considering this again.

Kim, Simba the jaguar is back on LFK. I found the info in a thread on the RCI board. Since you had mentioned the whole situation on LFK in one of your other reviews, I thought you might be interested. Not sure if you already know.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2403500

Hmmm, I'm not sure if I believe this or not. The owner has not said anything, nor has the staff, about him returning yet and they usually keep us posted. Someone close to the family is checking on it for me. If I don't hear back from them, I will ask the owner. They have gave detailed information every step of the way. I can't imagine him being returned and them not making the announcement (along with details if he was abused or not knowing them anymore). They have other jaguars there, including a jaguars/lion mix. Maybe she was confused or someone there didn't know what she was talking about. It's always so hard to tell. But I'll definitely find out. :)

As always... amazing! Thanks for taking the time to do this and every other review!!

You are very welcome. Thanks for commenting and taking the time to read it.

Loved your review! You and family always have so much fun (even when things go awry), love that. I also love San Juan, and would love to some day see more of Puerto Rico, but love Old San Juan, and remember walking around some of the same corners, roadways that I saw in your pics. I also love all the islands you were at, especially Barbados (did many land vacations there in the past), but have not been to St Kitts. Thanks again for posting a most entertaining review:)

Thanks for coming along and enjoying the review. I appreciate it. :)

I just looked up this same ship/itinerary for next year for Sakari's spring break...and the price is STILL THE SAME as this time. I don't understand why it's so cheap, but I'm not complaining.

 

I may have to do this again next year...or, my other option I'm considering is the Conquest out of FLL to Grand Turk and 3 new ports for us...Aruba, Curacao, and La Romana! Hmmm :)

We have been to Aruba and Curaçao twice and love those ports; however, Bonaire was our favorite port. We did an awesome snorkeling excursion with Woodwind. The longer one takes you to 2 different places to snorkel. It is about a 10-15 minute walk from the port to where you get on the catamaran. We have ported out of SJ 3 times. One time was the second leg of a repo which visited less common ports such as Grenada, Dominica, and Martinique.

I always enjoy reading your reviews. Your pictures are awesome.

NANCY...just personally heard from the owner...SIMBA is NOT BACK. They are very close to getting him back, but not yet. I knew this couldn't be true. They would have let everyone know if he was and his condition. :)

I HAVE TO MENTION...Yes, I was complaining about the hot weather...when I say hot...IT WAS HOT...as in 101 degrees!!!!!!

Wow, 101 that is hot even by San Antonio, Texas standards. Don't let anyone tell you that you get used to it because that is just too hot. Glad you enjoyed Old San Juan. I haven't decided if we are going to do that before or after our cruise.

Great review Kim...love all those gorgeous pictures and your family....so I might have missed it but when is your next cruise and on what ship... want to make sure I don't miss the review and pictures... :)

Lorna

I have so much to do today but it had to wait until I finished reading your review. The housework can wait cause it's sure as heck not going anywhere and will be there waiting. :D

I really enjoyed your review and am so glad you did this itinerary because this itinerary out of San Juan is our all time favorite and you really captured the beauty of it with your pictures. I also love your writing style and all the details you add. It's funny, but a year ago, and right at this moment (believe it or not), we were on our flight to San Juan for our cruise on Liberty to do the same itinerary.

I really loved Lindquist Beach in St. Thomas!!! Our plans were to go back to Trunk Bay in St. John (on our own, to have more time) next time, but I'm thinking Lindquist Beach. I had never seen any other pictures or read any other reviews where they had gone there for the day. It's beautiful. Hubby and I LOVE beaches, so beaches are a must and that is why I love your reviews. So glad you got to Jalousie in St. Lucia and Pinel Island (another of our favorites). Your pictures posing with the presidents statues in San Juan were not offensive...I busted a gut laughing out loud at those. I need to look for them next time. :p

Again, thank you for taking the time to do such an awesome review of an awesome, and my favorite, itinerary!

Kim, you have really sparked my interest in Pinel Island. We were planning to go to Orient Beach when we cruise to St, Martin but now I'm curious about Pinel.

Is the only way to get there by kayak or can we just take a cab? How far is it from where the ships dock? Also, any particular section of the island you'd recommend? We like a place with chairs, umbrellas, bathrooms and food. Thanks again for all your expertise!

I'm chiming in REAL late on the bioluminescent bay, but we used to go to the extreme southwest part of the island (not necessarily a road trip you would make on this sort of adventure) to La Parguera, which at the time, at least, seemed to be the best one. HOWEVER, you were always at the mercy of Mother Nature- recent rain or not, tides, brightness of the moon, winds, seasons, temperature swings- all affected the quality of the nighttime boat experience, and it was a crap shoot.

The only thing we could really avoid was not going during a full-ish moon. In three trips we had one astounding trip, one average, and one meh.

When going to any phosphorescent bay, you have to take a good attitude and best wishes- which you did!

Kim,

Thank you so much for sharing. I appreciate the love and effort you put into your cruise logs. It is a huge task!

Best of luck with the diving lessons Sweet Sakari!:D

Already looking forward to the next one!:D

Great review, I'm dying to go to St. Lucia and Barbados, I'm always looking to see if they offer those islands on a cruise that sails from Miami or Ft. Laud since we live so close. But I might just have to spring for airfare to San Juan and cruise out of there if nothing shows up soon. ;) The countdown you mentioned answering another poster is similar to mine for our next cruise... what ship are you on? We're going on Allure 11/13!!! :):)

Kim I forgot to mention:

Your review of the hotel encouraged me to switch my reservation to El Conquistador. I told the hubby that it is "Mitsugirly Certified"!!!:D:D

We are doing the repo on the Celebrity Summit in April from San Juan to New Jersey.

Great review, I'm dying to go to St. Lucia and Barbados, I'm always looking to see if they offer those islands on a cruise that sails from Miami or Ft. Laud since we live so close. But I might just have to spring for airfare to San Juan and cruise out of there if nothing shows up soon. ;) The countdown you mentioned answering another poster is similar to mine for our next cruise... what ship are you on? We're going on Allure 11/13!!! :):)

Not sure if you're limiting yourself to a specific cruise line or only looking at summer months, but there are tons of cruises from Florida that go to St. Lucia and Barbados. None of them are only 7 days, of course, because of how far south they are. There are always sea days at the beginning and end so are usually 10+ day cruises.

If you're not interested in a slightly longer cruise, then I think you'll have no choice but to sail from San Juan on a 7 day cruise to get to those two islands. Either way, they're definitely worth it. San Juan is a great embarkation port, so that's an awesome option also. The cruises from San Juan can sometimes be cheaper as the airfare is usually higher for most to get there vs. Florida ports.

Thank you for taking time out of your busy and hectic days to write that review. I was following along while at work to help the work day go faster. I too will be flying from Columbus to San Juan to sail on the Oct. 2nd fascination cruise. Was nice to see all your photos and tips on each of the islands. Just wanted to say thanks :)

mitsugirly your reviews are so awesome and fun. Thank-you so much for all the time and effort you take to put these together. Whether or not I agree or disagree with how you and your family do things, I always greatly appreciate your honesty, candor and openness with sharing your family and vacation with us. These type of reviews are so helpful for new cruisers, and such great entertainment for us more seasoned cruisers. Can't wait for the next one :)!

I may have to do this again next year...or, my other option I'm considering is the Conquest out of FLL to Grand Turk and 3 new ports for us...Aruba, Curacao, and La Romana! Hmmm :)

Great review as always, thank you for putting this together!

Looking forward to your EPIC review. Since you were last on the EPIC, you've cruised on plenty of other very nice ships and the EPIC is no longer a new ship. Your perspective on the EPIC will be very interesting.

Glad that you got to see some new ports and I would encourage a visit to Aruba and Curacao. Great places, both.

bruce...

Great review, Loved the pictures in Puerto Rico. Brings back memories when we were there for our 30th Anniversary.

If you get back to Old San Juan Puerto Rico again, Sakari may like this. There is a little restaurant called "Carthage Express" where they have a train deliver your food from the cooking area. We ate breakfast here one morning and thought it was pretty unique.

Thanks for a great review.

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Thanks for taking the time to do such an extensive review with pictures. We are getting ready to visit a couple of those islands in December and your information has been invaluable! (Plus it was just fun to read about your vacation!)

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This was great! You're family beautiful and fun and i love reading about your adventures! Especially when it's a cruise I'm waiting to take Hha. Looking forward to your next adventure :D:D:D

NANCY...just personally heard from the owner...SIMBA is NOT BACK. They are very close to getting him back, but not yet. I knew this couldn't be true. They would have let everyone know if he was and his condition. :)

I figured you would know about Simba. I hoped he really was back home, but I also hoped he was not as changed as the reviewer I linked you to was saying. Glad you have good contact with the owner, and hope they get Simba back soon.

Enjoyed reading your review for your cruise. This itinerary is under very heavy consideration for my cruise next year. San Juan is one of my favorite port cities. I stayed at the Sheraton in Old San Juan the last time I cruised from there.

Someone said to try Barrachina for Puerto Rican food & I agree with them. Their pina colada is the only one I have ever enjoyed. Also try Rosa de Triana. Their mofongo was excellent.

Also have been looking at the Conquest out of Ft. Lauderdale. Only been to Grand Turk & LaRomana. I was not sure what to do in LaRomana so I ended up booking an excursion through Carnival. Think it was called the country side experience. Many people on my cruise booked excursions through Seavis Tours in the Dominican Republic. Have not been to the other two ports on that itinerary.

Yea we have tried the yawning, gum, holding the nose and blowing, airplane ear plugs with the sound deadening head phones over top of that. Nothing works. :(

 

 

I know this sounds REALLY Really stupid but when we were young and flew my Mom always had us "drinking' on take off = it was easy when we could be having a bottle but maybe the cups with the straws may simulate the same swallowing action. Its a bit like the yawning but it is a more constant action.. not sure if may work but since i started following you I have been meaning to ask this! This is of course if the MD doesnt find anything wrong

 

Wow, 101 that is hot even by San Antonio, Texas standards. Don't let anyone tell you that you get used to it because that is just too hot. Glad you enjoyed Old San Juan. I haven't decided if we are going to do that before or after our cruise.

I just kept wondering if that was "normal" of PR or maybe it was normal for that time of year (and was thinking to myself that I need to come in a different month next time :p).

Great review Kim...love all those gorgeous pictures and your family....so I might have missed it but when is your next cruise and on what ship... want to make sure I don't miss the review and pictures... :)

 

Lorna

Next cruise...1 month, 22 days, 12 hours, 10 minutes, 44 seconds. :D NCL Epic (again) since that's the only ship we went on without Sakari...heaven forbid. I have never heard the end of it...now I will finally get her to put a lid on it. She's going this time. :p