B2B on Carnival Dream Western & Carnival Victory Southern Caribbean! Review w/Pics!

[Bribrittmom]

Thank-you so much for the great review.It made me even more excited for my upcoming cruise.Less than three weeks.Woo-hoo!

[brilliantseas]

Can you rent a cabana??

 

Yes, the cabanas at Mahogany Bay are available for rent for $225.95 for the day. You can reserve at the shore excursion desk (do it early because two ships typically share the the availability, and there aren't that many cabanas) or online at carnival.com's shore excursion section.

 

Have a great trip!

[Minn.cruisers]

Thanks so much for writing this very informative review. Not only informative, but very pleasant to read, kept me sitting here through the entire thing. :) We are sailing in a few days and I have now decided to see Brimstone Hill, what a beautiful fort and the views are to die for. Will take the larger travel vehicles up there. I hope I get as beautiful photos as you did (what camera did you use?) I have a Canon Rebel XTi with a couple glass, and we have a point and shoot and water cameras we are bringing along. My dtr is a photographer, I wish I had her talent. We cant wait to go, been waiting and planning for 3 years (our 20th anniversary cruise holiday). I found your thread through a group that will be sailing with us, this is their 1st cruise. Planning Orient bay, a sail by the Pitons, and not sure what else. We didnt plan any excursions this cruise, which is unusual for us, we usually go with a larger CC group and plan things together over a year conversing on CC, but this time its different, but ok too, being our anniversary we want to spend time together and just relax as much as we can on this port intensive itinerary. I dont know if I have any questions or not, everything was so informative as it is. Glad you had a nice time on the Victory, sounds like the Dream was your 'dream' week though, I was sort of hoping the Serenity area wuld have been more 'elegant or serene", more liek a RCCL adult only space, but we are looking forward to going so much we are totally excited !!! Thank you for this great review. :)

[brilliantseas]

You should be able to get even better pictures than I did. I was using a Nikon point and shoot and a Fujifilm XP10 waterproof camera. Nothing special; the weather and the scenery were just that beautiful.

 

Spencer Ambrose might be a good place to start looking for your Pitons cruise. He does 4 or 5 different tours, including a land and sea package that takes you past the Pitons, or the West Coast tour that includes a boat ride between the Pitons to Jalouise Beach. I didn't get to go, but my friend loved Spencer and his staff.

 

In regards to the Serenity Deck, while it is different than what Royal Caribbean offers, it is still a unique experience with the day beds, padded wicker couches, hammocks, etc. The Serenity area is a little different on each ship, but I'm sure you'll find it a relaxing area to spend some time no matter which ship you're on.

[Minn.cruisers]

Thx, will check into a few excursions, might be a good idea, sounds like there isnt much to see or do close to the ports, will have to jump on a tour bus, I think I will do a little research on each island, I did a few yesrs ago, but have to refresh the memory. Your review was really a good insight on what to expect though,:)

[brilliantseas]

Thx, will check into a few excursions, might be a good idea, sounds like there isnt much to see or do close to the ports, will have to jump on a tour bus, I think I will do a little research on each island, I did a few yesrs ago, but have to refresh the memory. Your review was really a good insight on what to expect though,:)

 

St. Maarten is about the only port where there is a beach within walking distance of the port, although St. Thomas has two beaches that are just a 15 minute cab ride ($8 per person, one way) away.

 

You're going to want to book tours in Barbados and St. Lucia and plan on either a tour or an expensive cab ride (to Brimstone Hill or Frigate Bay Beach) in St. Kitts.

 

Have a great trip and be sure to bring back some pictures (and stories) to share!

[cruisingcouple2008]

ST KITTS ROSE and JIMS Taxi and Tours They Are wonderful

[Minn.cruisers]

Hi, well researched St Kitts and decided to go with Liz P. for a tour/beach (full island tour for $40.US pp) which will go to Brimstone as I requested we go to, Cockleshell beach, stops in capital city, and villages, a Batik place, lunch somewhere (not incl. in price), she has excellent reviews, sounds like a full day seeing the entire island. There will be another couple booked with us, so we'll be a small group. Thx for encouragement to check places out. :) Now to check out a few more island private tours. :)

[Adam185]

Fantastic review. We are on the Victory July 1st. We chose the ship based mainly on the itinerary (3 new ports for us). We did AOS out of San Juan 3 years ago so I'm familiar with the English vs Spanish. Can't wait to get on board.

[brilliantseas]

Fantastic review. We are on the Victory July 1st. We chose the ship based mainly on the itinerary (3 new ports for us). We did AOS out of San Juan 3 years ago so I'm familiar with the English vs Spanish. Can't wait to get on board.

 

What ports did AOS visit?

[Adam185]

What ports did AOS visit?

 

Our AOS itinerary in 2008 was Aruba, Curacao, St Thomas, and St Maarteen. It was a great cruise.

 

Looking forward to St Kitts, St Lucia and Barbados.

[brilliantseas]

What did you think of Curacao and Aruba? I'm planning on doing both ports on the Carnival Breeze next year.

[brilliantseas]

Our AOS itinerary in 2008 was Aruba, Curacao, St Thomas, and St Maarteen. It was a great cruise.

 

Looking forward to St Kitts, St Lucia and Barbados.

 

Going to Aruba and Curacao next April. Any recommendations? What did you think?

 

Also, any recommendations for new/different things to do in St. Thomas and St. Maarten? Visiting St. Thomas and St. Maarten again in October on the Allure of the Seas.

[ibcnusoon]

Hi, well researched St Kitts and decided to go with Liz P. for a tour/beach (full island tour for $40.US pp) which will go to Brimstone as I requested we go to, Cockleshell beach, stops in capital city, and villages, a Batik place, lunch somewhere (not incl. in price), she has excellent reviews, sounds like a full day seeing the entire island. There will be another couple booked with us, so we'll be a small group. Thx for encouragement to check places out. :) Now to check out a few more island private tours. :)

 

I think we will be using Liz too. She has a varied assortment of tours and only heard lovely things about her and her tours.

[leesy007]

I am so jealous of your itinerary! I would love to do a southern caribbean cruise! I am so glad you had a great time!!!!!

[brilliantseas]

I am so jealous of your itinerary! I would love to do a southern caribbean cruise! I am so glad you had a great time!!!!!

 

5 ports with only one sea day was definitely an experience. It is completely different than most cruises as there are almost no daytime activities on the ship since most people are in port. The ship is a ghost town during the day.

 

I really wish I could do St. Maarten and St. Kitts together on the same itinerary again (doing St. Thomas and St. Maarten on the Allure of the Seas next fall), but Barbados (the port I was looking forward to the most) was a disappointment, and St. Lucia requires getting out of the city to enjoy the island.