Serenade 10/10/10-Southern-Review with Pics!

[bigque]

Day 6 – Saturday – St. Croix

 

 

On this day after the sunrise we decided that we wanted to eat breakfast in the Windjammer to get a bigger variety. We were not rushed on this day, because this was the only stop on the cruise that we did not plan an excursion. We did however about 9:30 leave the ship to go look around. There is not much at this port but there is a beach within walking distance down a side path which was in view of the ship. We were told that cruise ships had stopped coming there for a while and when that happened the shops there closed and moved to Christiansted which is the capitol. There are taxi’s that you can take a 30 minute ride to Christiansted right off the pier for $12.00. As we traveled there the taxi driver asked the 8 of us in the van if we wanted to go the direct route or the scenic route and we all chose scenic. The scenic route was really not that scenic. When we arrived in downtown Christiansted, we were very disappointed. There were a few small souvenir shops and a couple of jewelry stores. Most of it seem to be closed on this day. We only stayed there for about 35 or 40 minutes and then jumped in a taxi to go back. I did however purchase a watch that I saw in one of the jewelry stores that I got at a very good price that I didn’t see on any of the other islands. Back at the port we walked around the tent vendor’s area outside the gates of the pier. St. Croix is a US Virgin Island so the currency is the only stop that is in US currency. All the islands however took US currency and gave you change back in US currency as well as credit or debit cards. The largest denomination I used for cash on any island was $20.00. My DW bought something from one of the vendor’s and then we decided to go on back to the ship to hang out at the pool deck for a while and sip the drink of the day and a beer or two. Also a little later they had a Ice carving demonstration that was pretty neat. The guy made a big 200 pound block of ice into an angel fish in about 30 minutes.

 

St. Croix

 

 

 

 

In the Pool Deck Jacuzzi..... Please...Get A Room!

 

St. Croix was the least favorite of our stops on the cruise so I have to be objective here since we did not do an excursion or go to the beach. St. Croix (From the scenic route in Taxi) – D; Shopping – D (Not an F because I found a watch I wanted). We felt that they could replace this island with another or maybe an extra sea day!

 

 

 

Dinner in the MDR on this night was Italian night. It was good but was also our least favorite night for dinner all week. The wait staff, & chefs did the traditional farewell down the staircase during the dinner.

 

 

We had our envelopes with us with the pre-paid gratuities for the waiter, assistant waiter and head waiter that was left in our room earlier in the day, however we gave our waiter some extra cash as we thought he was awesome all week long. We also found our Stateroom attendant on the way back after dinner and gave him his envelope which we also added extra cash to the pre-paid gratuities. He was awesome also. We never had to ask for anything as he had us figured out after the 1st day and the daily towel animals were cool! We were going to go the Farewell Show in the theater after going to look in the onboard shops one last time to see how big the discounts were on the last night, but decided to go back and start packing instead as your luggage needed to be outside your room by 11:00pm. Earlier in the day there were also luggage tags left in the room for debarkation. We had also bought a small suitcase on St. Maarten as we knew we would be overweight flying back. We decided to do this because the charge by Delta for over weight is $90 vs. $32 for an extra bag. As we were packing they had already started showing the taping of the Farewell show on TV so we saw it anyway. It seems the 10 dumbest questions asked on the cruise of the Cruise Director is the same 10 questions asked on every cruise. They really do need some new material or at least comprise a list of 100’s of questions so that they are not always the same on every cruise. Did my final walk around the clubs and people watch for a little bit then came back to the room!

 

 

Up next – Day 7 –Debarkation

[bigque]

Day 7 – Sunday – Debarkation

 

We got up and packed the rest of our things in our carryon bags and then headed out for a breakfast in the Windjammer. Our waiting place for debarkation was in the Tropical theater on the 5th deck which was good due to the gangway for debarkation was right there. Our debarkation time was 9:20 and they were running about 10 minutes behind so we actual departed at 9:30 We did not mind this as we were staying overnight in San Juan, flying out Monday. They let all the early flight people off 1st. Debarkation was quick and simple. They sent you thru one of two lines (US Citizens or non US citizens). We got our bags and then got a porter to carry the bags. The porter took our customs form that we filled out on the ship and handed it to the customs agent and we were sent through with questions asked and didn’t even have to show our passports. W got a taxi and went back to the same hotel that we were in previously. On Monday we departed the hotel by taxi to the airport. ALERT ALERT: When you get to the airport you must take your bags to the USDA section for an agricultural inspection before you can check them in! I did not notice any signs directing you to do this but I learned about it from right here on good old Cruise Critics! After arriving at about 11:45, went through USDA Check in and security in about 30 minutes and that was with me having been randomly chosen by the airline for an extra security check. This consisted of emptying everything out of my pockets (Not just medal stuff), belt off, full body scan, get a wand check and a pat down. Monday was not a busy day for this airport. And this so ends my review for the week on Serenade of the Seas. As I started out saying, if you have any questions feel free to ask. I will making a separate thread soon with a video presentation for Youtube which I will provide a link to. I hoped you enjoyed and Happy Cruising!

[KY Deb]

Great job! Thank you so much for sharing your vacation with us. I'm really looking forward to our Serenade cruise in February.

[bigque]

Great job! Thank you so much for sharing your vacation with us. I'm really looking forward to our Serenade cruise in February.

 

Glad you enjoyed it! There is so much to see on these islands, They are so beautiful! Of course I couldn't post all the pictures as I took almost 500 of them. Be it a beach person or a tour person, you are going to love this cruise! Happy Sailing!

[bigque]

Looks like it Peri! Someone posted something about that....Cannot remember which post I saw it in but it was about re-using them. No real way to stop that unless they change the bags/colors or add some type of sticker/punch system.

 

They might have someway of pulling it up in the computer to show that you paid for it the initial purchase!

[bigque]

Great Review! Thanks for sharing, I enjoyed the pictures, they are a nice addition to the review.

 

Thanks! It takes a lot longer to do with adding pictures!

[BarbaraSails]

More St. Maarten - This was our favorite Island!

 

We really enjoyed St. Maartin and thought it was the best island that we went to during the week. We enjoyed it so much that we said we wouldn’t even mind living there or having a vacation home there!

Total Tour Time – 9:45 – 2:30; Barnard Tours – A+, Tour Guide - A+, St Maartin – A+. Guavaberry Rum (Unique to St. Maartin) A+

 

Hey bigque! :DYour review is INCREDIBLE! Thanks so much for all the great details and the pics make it come to life. I'm so glad you and your DW had such a good cruise!

And, it's neat to see you share our love of St. Maarten too! DH and I often say we are going to retire in St. Maarten. :D Didn't I tell ya John was the best??!! Seems you had a good time on the tour with him.

Hopefully, we'll get to cruise together one day! I'm really wanting to do Oasis or Allure :eek:

[bigque]

Hey bigque! :DYour review is INCREDIBLE! Thanks so much for all the great details and the pics make it come to life. I'm so glad you and your DW had such a good cruise!

 

And, it's neat to see you share our love of St. Maarten too! DH and I often say we are going to retire in St. Maarten. :D Didn't I tell ya John was the best??!! Seems you had a good time on the tour with him.

 

Hopefully, we'll get to cruise together one day! I'm really wanting to do Oasis or Allure :eek:

 

Hey! Yes we had a great time as I am sure you did on your cruise! We fell totally in love with St. Maarten! John was cool... We sang some Bob Marley together that he was playing in the van! :D Maybe one day our paths will cross on a cruise, especially on the Oasis or Allure!

[funbythedozen]

Thanks for the great review. I was trying to decide what cruise to do next year and I think you've made my mind up ..lol Thanks again !

[onyourtoes]

The offerings in the Windjammer were as good as anything I have eaten in any buffet restaurant so we had no complaints

 

This young lady was one of the highlights of my cruise. She was always pleasant, always had a smile on her face and always greeted me, and everyone else, with enthusiasm. I didn't get her name, but she was (and I am sure still is) extremely pleasant. If anyone is going on Serenade and she is still there, be sure and say a big hello to her. She is very sweet.

[bigque]

This young lady was one of the highlights of my cruise. She was always pleasant, always had a smile on her face and always greeted me, and everyone else, with enthusiasm. I didn't get her name, but she was (and I am sure still is) extremely pleasant. If anyone is going on Serenade and she is still there, be sure and say a big hello to her. She is very sweet.

 

Her name was Coleen!

[Mommy2mo26]

They might have someway of pulling it up in the computer to show that you paid for it the initial purchase!

 

 

I am sure this is entirely possible.. I did doubt that they would offer such a deal and then not have a way to prevent this exact thing from happening lol! Either way, no harm in trying!

[bigque]

I am sure this is entirely possible.. I did doubt that they would offer such a deal and then not have a way to prevent this exact thing from happening lol! Either way, no harm in trying!

 

Did you gor thru the rest of the review???

[Happy to set sail]

Great Review Mike!! Thanks for taking the time to post - kept you out of Eileen's hair didn't it? ;)

 

The cruise seems like it was just a dream now.... I'd love to start planning a next cruise - maybe that would make the winter (and today is surely cold enough in MA to bring on thoughts of WINTER) a little more bearable.

 

Thanks again!

Joan

[bigque]

Great Review Mike!! Thanks for taking the time to post - kept you out of Eileen's hair didn't it? ;)

 

The cruise seems like it was just a dream now.... I'd love to start planning a next cruise - maybe that would make the winter (and today is surely cold enough in MA to bring on thoughts of WINTER) a little more bearable.

 

Thanks again!

Joan

 

Hey Joan! Yes it seems so long ago now! :( Maybe we will see each other on the high seas again one day! :)

[bigque]

To all Serenade cruisers..... Great Cruise!

[laedw]

Thanks, Mike J for the review and the pics. I have several questions. What kind of camera did you use? We took the same route on 10/24 and I agree with your review about St. Croix. I think RCCL should do another sea day instead. I liked St. Lucia and may return for their Jazz Festival in May. Do you recall who was the piano player in the Schooner Bar?

 

Did you get much rain on either of the islands? I know we were sailing during Hurricane season. We got scattered showers on some of the islands but in St. Croix we got heavy rains due to Tropical Storm Tomas.

[meltnatty]

Thanks so much for your review! We are going on this cruise on the 21st!! Can't wait!

 

I noticed that you did not like St. Croix...my DH and I have been to St. Croix 3 times to stay for a week each time. We love it so much we want to retire there! Unfortunately, because the ship docks in Fredericksted, you don't really get to see the best part of the island unless you know to go there: North Shore.

The beach is Cane Bay is awesome and if you dive, it is a wonderful place to dive.. "the Wall" is there and it is amazing. Cane Bay also has the best beach bar ever...Off the Wall! There is also a rainforest, botanical gardens, the Cruzan Rum factory, great other beaches to see on this island.

 

You may never choose to go there, but there actually are great things on St. Croix that you missed! I sound like a rep for the island I guess, but we just love it so much I felt like I needed to let you know that it really is a great stop for the ship!

 

Thanks again for your review, I really enjoyed and it makes me that much more excited to go in two weeks!

[bigque]

Thanks so much for your review! We are going on this cruise on the 21st!! Can't wait!

 

I noticed that you did not like St. Croix...my DH and I have been to St. Croix 3 times to stay for a week each time. We love it so much we want to retire there! Unfortunately, because the ship docks in Fredericksted, you don't really get to see the best part of the island unless you know to go there: North Shore.

The beach is Cane Bay is awesome and if you dive, it is a wonderful place to dive.. "the Wall" is there and it is amazing. Cane Bay also has the best beach bar ever...Off the Wall! There is also a rainforest, botanical gardens, the Cruzan Rum factory, great other beaches to see on this island.

 

You may never choose to go there, but there actually are great things on St. Croix that you missed! I sound like a rep for the island I guess, but we just love it so much I felt like I needed to let you know that it really is a great stop for the ship!

 

Thanks again for your review, I really enjoyed and it makes me that much more excited to go in two weeks!

 

You are probably right as we did not do an excursion there! If I ever go again maybe I will do so to see if there trully is more to that island! The island we would like to retire on or have a vacation home on is St. Maarten!

[bigque]

Thanks, Mike J for the review and the pics. I have several questions. What kind of camera did you use? We took the same route on 10/24 and I agree with your review about St. Croix. I think RCCL should do another sea day instead. I liked St. Lucia and may return for their Jazz Festival in May. Do you recall who was the piano player in the Schooner Bar?

 

Did you get much rain on either of the islands? I know we were sailing during Hurricane season. We got scattered showers on some of the islands but in St. Croix we got heavy rains due to Tropical Storm Tomas.

 

I have a Fujifilm Finepix S5700. The only time we had rain the entire cruise was a light shower as we were pulling into Antigua. It had stopped by the time we were ready to get off the ship for the excursion. I do not remember the piano player..sorry!

[5521544]

Thank you for the awesome review and pics!!! My Hubby and I are debating on taking the same cruise or a Western on Allure. Do you have any pics of the inside of your stateroom? After being on Freedom we are afraid we will be disappointed in the room. (i.e. no flat screens, updated decor, etc) If you have any pics to show of the interior that would be great.

 

Thanks

[aggie1]

Loved your review. We were on the same cruise. Did a B2B starting 10/3. Loved every minute of it.

[bigque]

Loved your review. We were on the same cruise. Did a B2B starting 10/3. Loved every minute of it.

 

Of course! Our Meet & Mingle co-ordinator! :)

[bunny]

My friends and I are thinking of taking this cruise next fall with our children for fall break. I am concerned, though, that there doesn't appear to be any children on this cruise from your photos. Were there?

[pbakken]

My friends and I are thinking of taking this cruise next fall with our children for fall break. I am concerned, though, that there doesn't appear to be any children on this cruise from your photos. Were there?

 

I don't recall seeing very many kids on our cruise. Might have been because it wasn't during a school break time period...10-10-10. Fall break for alot of kids fell on the week after.