Mitsugirlys graduation getaway cruise

I just started doing research for Maho beach and found this review! Yay, another Mitsugirly review! We switched over to RCCL because Norweigian doesn't sail out of places that are an easy drive (or not a horrible drive) during the months that we can sail now. Ft Lauderdale is far and Miami would just push it over the edge. I really wish Norwegian did summer cruises out of New Orleans, but oh, well.

 

I was wondering what beach to hit after Maho (we are in port from 10-7 so I figured we'd hit Maho first, then go hang somewhere else). Loved your review on Mullet Beach, and nice to know we can walk there, I was wondering about that. Sounds like that's what we'll do when we're in St Maartan. Although it's not until July so it's going to be a looooong wait!!

 

Now I need to read your entire review, I just skipped to the St Maartan stuff.

 

Michelle

Glad you found the review and were able to kinda make plans for the day at St Maarten. We had a wonderful time there and loved Mullet.

I would love to sail with Royal, but every time I search for any cruise, it's just so darn expensive compared to NCL that I just go back to searching for one on NCL. Some day I'll make it to RCL and hopefully the Oasis or Allure to start out with a bang! :D

Wow! Been reading like a banshee every night this week! Thank you for a wonderful review and sharing your eventful and entertaining story with us! You certainly do make the best of things, not sure I would have handled some of those situations as well! My husband and I board the Getaway tomorrow, sans kids for the first time in years. They're visiting my parents in NY.

I hope all works out with your ring and wishing you well with your nursing career! Look forward to reading another one of your reviews in the future, I believe you have another adventure next month? Love your pictures too, btw!!

Best to you and your family !

T

Wow! Been reading like a banshee every night this week! Thank you for a wonderful review and sharing your eventful and entertaining story with us! You certainly do make the best of things, not sure I would have handled some of those situations as well! My husband and I board the Getaway tomorrow, sans kids for the first time in years. They're visiting my parents in NY.

 

I hope all works out with your ring and wishing you well with your nursing career! Look forward to reading another one of your reviews in the future, I believe you have another adventure next month? Love your pictures too, btw!!

 

Best to you and your family !

T

Aww, thanks so much for the compliments and I'm glad you enjoyed the review. They are so much fun doing and I enjoy them.

My ring is still holding up believe it or not. I haven't lost the big diamond in it yet. :p

I so excited to get my nursing career started. I'm hoping something comes up shortly (AFTER I return from my cruise). :D

Yep, another TWO :eek: adventures next month. 29 days, 12 hours, 28 minutes and 38 seconds from now we'll board the Sun and the week after that, the Sky. I can't wait. I feel like I need this extended vacation more than ever right now.

I hope you have a WONDERFUL vacation on the Getaway! She's a beauty. :)

Loving you review! Hate the issues you had to deal with, but absolutely love your positive attitude. I know people that could learn a lot from you. :rolleyes:

 

Anyway, did you notice anyone renting snorkel equipment at Coki? We too plan to go to Coki but I don't want to have to bring snorkel equipment.

You can rent snorkel gear at Coki Dive Center at the top of the stairs. It is where the people are going scuba diving from. :D

hi, i just finished reading this review and as usual i have to read end to end so its really late. congrats on graduating and good luck with the testing :) so um i know you are really busy but im wanting to take my daughter son in law and 2 granddaughters on a cruise and i was really hoping for some questions about traveling with small ones. if you ever find the time to chat and answer some questions i can give you my email or lol maybe you can figure out how to get it on this site i know there is a way just havent found it yet .

again thank you for all your reviews i use them on many of my cruises and yes go on the breeze it was awesomeeeeeeeeeeee i switched a cruise just cuz of gambee .

hi, i just finished reading this review and as usual i have to read end to end so its really late. congrats on graduating and good luck with the testing :) so um i know you are really busy but im wanting to take my daughter son in law and 2 granddaughters on a cruise and i was really hoping for some questions about traveling with small ones. if you ever find the time to chat and answer some questions i can give you my email or lol maybe you can figure out how to get it on this site i know there is a way just havent found it yet .

 

again thank you for all your reviews i use them on many of my cruises and yes go on the breeze it was awesomeeeeeeeeeeee i switched a cruise just cuz of gambee .

Better late than never I always say. :D

Thanks for the congrats, and I already passed my boards and I'm a registered nurse already. :)

You are welcome to post your email. I would be happy to talk with you.

I loved gambee's review of the Breeze and it's definitely one that I would like to do. I have 2 cruises coming up in a little over 2 weeks, then a Bermuda cruise in May. So maybe some time after that, I'll get back to trying another Carnival...or maybe a RCL. :p So much cruising to do and too little time.

We went to Bermuda on the Breakaway summer of 2013. Liked the Epic much more than the Breakaway. What I love about cruising to Bermuda is you get the best of both worlds. 4 days to have fun on the ship and 3 days to explore in more depth. My father-in-law died when we were on the Breakaway so my husband had to fly back to Richmond after one day. We are going to bermuda on carnival splendor in October 2015. I can't wait to get back and show him what he missed and explore new things. I think you will love this combo!

We went to Bermuda on the Breakaway summer of 2013. Liked the Epic much more than the Breakaway. What I love about cruising to Bermuda is you get the best of both worlds. 4 days to have fun on the ship and 3 days to explore in more depth. My father-in-law died when we were on the Breakaway so my husband had to fly back to Richmond after one day. We are going to bermuda on carnival splendor in October 2015. I can't wait to get back and show him what he missed and explore new things. I think you will love this combo!

I felt like I liked the Epic better than the Getaway too even though the Getaway had a lot nicer water area and the sports deck. There's just something about the Epic and it still remains my favorite ship.

I can't wait to do Bermuda. The thought of being able to "park" and come and go as you please....it's just going to be great!

So sorry to hear about your father-in-law. How tragic. :( Glad to hear you'll make it back though.

Mitsugirly,

Thank you for the wonderfully detailed review and photos. My husband and I will be in Nassau on the MSC Davina next weekend from 8 to 5. We are in our 70s and can't walk too much.

Can you tell me how far it is from the Blue Lagoon dock to where the dolphin and sea lion are ? I heard they can be seen without having to pay to go inside and see the shows.

Did you book through NCL for this excursion, or on your own? Please tell me how to go about booking your own if that's what you did.

Thank you so much!

Mitsugirly,

Thank you for the wonderfully detailed review and photos. My husband and I will be in Nassau on the MSC Davina next weekend from 8 to 5. We are in our 70s and can't walk too much.

 

Can you tell me how far it is from the Blue Lagoon dock to where the dolphin and sea lion are ? I heard they can be seen without having to pay to go inside and see the shows.

 

Did you book through NCL for this excursion, or on your own? Please tell me how to go about booking your own if that's what you did.

 

Thank you so much!

You are very welcome. I'm glad the review of Blue Lagoon could help.

When you get off the boat that brings you over, the dolphins are RIGHT THERE. You are walking along a pier and they are right beside you. At least that's where they were swimming and one of the trainers were working with them when we got off. Now I can't for sure say that this is the exact same area that they do the swims or the shows (but I have read other reviews that stated that you could watch the swims from there).

I didn't see the sea lions, so I'm not sure what area they may be in. Of course we didn't hang around for long and wanted to go claim our spot by the lagoon.

We booked using the cruise ship. We just felt it would be easier after doing research on how to catch a cab over to Paradise, then have to get on the boat to get over to Blue Lagoon and then vice versa. It just seemed like too much of a hassle with the amount of people we had going with us and didn't want to bother with it. We wanted to make the most of our time there. The only difference was that the ship price didn't include the water toys out in the water and we had to pay extra for that, but then again, only some of us did the water toys, so I was ok with it. :)

This is the pier you walk down once you get off the boat that brings you over. The dolphins were over to the right of it:

One of the trainers working with the dolphin as we were walking by:

Once you step off of the pier, you are on a beachy area:

The dolphins come right up to the edge of the beach

Hi,

I love your reviews! Such detail and all the pictures! I had a question about the dining plan you mentioned in your review. Did you purchase the dining plan for your daughter? I have 4 kids and only one is a good eater and I don't think I would get my money's worth for the kids. It also seemed from your review that the splash academy has different hours during the day that they are open, do they have dallies just for the splash academy activities? Thank you!

Hi,

 

I love your reviews! Such detail and all the pictures! I had a question about the dining plan you mentioned in your review. Did you purchase the dining plan for your daughter? I have 4 kids and only one is a good eater and I don't think I would get my money's worth for the kids. It also seemed from your review that the splash academy has different hours during the day that they are open, do they have dallies just for the splash academy activities? Thank you!

Hi and thank you for liking the reviews.

We actually didn't purchase the dining plan. It was a "freebie" for when we booked the cruise. I would normally never purchase something like this because we don't do the specialty dining very often, so it wouldn't be cost worthy to us. The "package" was only good for the first 2 people (being my husband and myself). So, when we went, we ended up feeding our munchkin prior to going and sending her off to the kids club.

Usually Splash Academy is closed during sea days from 12-2pm and 5-7pm. They started enforcing this a year or so ago because people were dropping their children off in the morning and not picking them up all day to feed them. :eek: :mad: I can't imagine, but that's the "word" about it. So they enforced the rule of 4 hours a day that they are closed for this.

Yes, they do have dailies for just the Splash Academy with the activities going on for your age group. They will give you the sheet when you sign them up. :)

 

 

Did this use to be a pier or something (Kayrsa???). I would be interested in knowing the history of what they used this for since there were tons of rectangle stones there. It had to be used for something once.

 

 

 

 

 

Kolin and Courtney climbed over to the other side for a picture opportunity.

 

 

 

 

Another one of my favorites. I now have this as my background on my computer. hehe

 

 

 

 

The birds came back.

 

 

 

 

Thank you for your review/pics.Looking to cruise on breeze in december 2015 and hit this port.

Loved the review. It was great reading about your experience, although you had many rough patches along the way. Just a few questions to bug you with if you don't mind.

-Overall, would you say you recommend the Getaway?

-With the slides and Nick characters about the boat, would you say this is a boat geared towards kids more than other cruises? Did the mix at the main "adult pool" seem to be typically of other cruises? I have read that the pool is small and cramped, but I read the same about the Dawn and didn't see any issues?

-Did you happen to notice if there was "Let it Ride" (table game) in the casino?

-Were the rock climbing, zip line, slides all included or an extra cost?

-Is the Ice Bar an extra charge?

I apologize for the random set of questions, just trying to get some answers of things as they come to mind!

Thanks again for taking the time to post your adventures!!

Thank you for your review/pics.Looking to cruise on breeze in december 2015 and hit this port.

You are very welcome and thanks for taking the time to check it out. :)

Loved the review. It was great reading about your experience, although you had many rough patches along the way. Just a few questions to bug you with if you don't mind.

 

-Overall, would you say you recommend the Getaway?

-With the slides and Nick characters about the boat, would you say this is a boat geared towards kids more than other cruises? Did the mix at the main "adult pool" seem to be typically of other cruises? I have read that the pool is small and cramped, but I read the same about the Dawn and didn't see any issues?

-Did you happen to notice if there was "Let it Ride" (table game) in the casino?

-Were the rock climbing, zip line, slides all included or an extra cost?

-Is the Ice Bar an extra charge?

 

I apologize for the random set of questions, just trying to get some answers of things as they come to mind!

 

Thanks again for taking the time to post your adventures!!

Rough patches never stop me from having fun. :D

*Yes, I would recommend the Getaway. It's a super nice ship with so many things to do.

*I wouldn't say it was (more) geared toward kids. Everything they had on there were enjoyed by a lot adults...including myself and 1/2 the ship. :D It's a lot of fun for everyone...trust me. I didn't notice this being any different than any other ship. However, if you have kids, it's definitely a great ship to be on.

*The mix at the main pool is pretty much the same as any pool. I find that ALL the pools on the ships are small in comparison to the amount of people on a ship. That's just the way it is.

*I only play slots at the casino...so I don't know what "Let it Ride" is? Is that a slot machine or a card table?

*Yep, the rock climbing, zip lining, ropes course, putt putt and everything else is free to use.

*Yes, there is an extra charge for the ice bar. It includes 2 drinks with the price of admission.

You are welcome to ask any questions you'd like. If I can't help you, I'm sure someone else will be able to answer. That's what we're here for. :) Happy cruising.

Great review!!! Thank you for taking the time. :D

Great review!!! Thank you for taking the time. :D

Thank you for commenting and enjoying it. :)

I am looking forward to your review and take on Bermuda. We cruised there a few years back and thought it was fine. For us, it was odd to go on a cruise with a single destination with and extended stay. Plenty of people here cruise to Bermuda every year and think this is the finest destination there is. For us, we enjoyed our trip, thought the island was good but will likely never return.

You are a return visitor to many ports, it will be interesting to see if Bermuda eventually is one of them you return to or if a single visit is enough for a few years.

Until then, I may go back and read or re-read one of your first extensive reviews. It would be interesting to see if your review style has changed at all. I think each one gets longer and more complex but I may be wrong.

Can I ask what model camera your Olympus is? Your pictures turned out great! I have a Fuji and all of my underwater pics turn out very blue and dark. I'm also curious if your photos were straight out of camera or if you edited them before posting. Thanks so much!

 

When they are not being used, they have a ripple water look like a computer drawing you in to touch it. (Kinda like Windows with the bubbles screen saver...you just gotta wiggle the mouse every time you walk by just because)

 

 

 

LOL! That sounds like my (50+ year old) husband. Ever since they started putting the interactive screens in on RCI ships, he feels like it's his responsibility to embrace diversity and change the language every time we pass one!:rolleyes:

I am looking forward to your review and take on Bermuda. We cruised there a few years back and thought it was fine. For us, it was odd to go on a cruise with a single destination with and extended stay. Plenty of people here cruise to Bermuda every year and think this is the finest destination there is. For us, we enjoyed our trip, thought the island was good but will likely never return.

 

You are a return visitor to many ports, it will be interesting to see if Bermuda eventually is one of them you return to or if a single visit is enough for a few years.

 

Until then, I may go back and read or re-read one of your first extensive reviews. It would be interesting to see if your review style has changed at all. I think each one gets longer and more complex but I may be wrong.

Once again, my Bermuda cruise may have to be post-poned. We booked using the kids sail free and took the very last cruise available using that promo (which is May 1). I have been so worried about going on that date because I just know that the temps of the water are not going to be good and we love the water. Also since my daughter was already taken out of school for 2 weeks during our Sun/Sky cruise, I'm very hesitant to take her out for yet another week during this school year. So, I'm thinking I'm going to cancel and book something for her Spring Break in April. Maybe some day I'll get there.

I do LOVE the idea of being able to "park" and come and go as I please. That's the one thing that I was really looking forward to and know that it would probably be one of those places that I would probably return to over and over based on what I have seen and read. I have always said that I wished the ships would stay over night at the ports in the Caribbean (and can remember back in the day when I cruised, they use to stay until around midnight, which gave you plenty of time).

I'm sure my style has changed a little. I know they keep getting longer and longer with more details. I think the next one I'm going to try to shorten it a little. It just takes too long to do them and I know people get impatient waiting. I also decided next time that I won't actually start my review until I have all the pictures downloaded, hosted and ready to go. That way even if it's long, everything will be ready and people aren't waiting. :)

Can I ask what model camera your Olympus is? Your pictures turned out great! I have a Fuji and all of my underwater pics turn out very blue and dark. I'm also curious if your photos were straight out of camera or if you edited them before posting. Thanks so much!

I have a 620 and 830. I "save for web" which has a sharpen feature built in when getting ready to upload to my host.

lol! That sounds like my (50+ year old) husband. Ever since they started putting the interactive screens in on rci ships, he feels like it's his responsibility to embrace diversity and change the language every time we pass one!:rolleyes:

lol :d

Thanks for the detail. I think we might try this with our family. Did you look into booking it on your own or only through your cruise line? Do you remember the pricing at all? Thanks

Even when your cruise isn't ideal it's still super fun to read!!

May I ask, what type of underwater camera did you use? These pics are amazing!!!! T h x for sharing!:D