Carnival Victory So. Caribbean 12/11-12/18

[DOUGLASH]

Just back from Southern Caribbean on Victory. Rather than full review I will list the Pros and Cons. The Pros- Great Weather and Ports, tours- Shasha Catamarans in Barbados, Spencer Ambrose Beach Break in St Lucia, Ride St Kitts (Mopeds), Karl with a K (Great Cruise Director), Good Food. Great Service, Good entertainment (both production shows and comedians). The Cons; Ship feels and looks tired and decor is pretty dated, long lines at the lido deck buffet, small crowded, and dirty pools, ( they had to close one pool during sea day with some unpleasant brown substance was found), groups of very loud locals who boarded ship in San Juan who rudely slammed their room doors and consistently yelling to each other at all hours of the nite and early morning which preempted the need for a wake up call. One morning I just opened up my door and screamed at the top of my lungs which quieted them for at least a few minutes. Oh well. Overall very good trip and great value. Any specifics, feel free to ask. Doug

[brensr41]

we are on the victory in april and were wondering what time you were able to leave the ship in the morning. we found a few flights at 11:30 think we could make it?

[DOUGLASH]

As I recall around 745 am they were announcing that those passengers who were carrying off all their bags (self disembarking) could leave the ship .If you are comfortable doing that you could conceivably be at San Juan airport at 845 which would give you enough time for an 1130am flight even though Carnival probably would discourage that.

[brensr41]

thank you

[gelo7]

Thanks for reviewing, your thoughts about leaving from San Juan are consistent with other reviewers.

[AryMay]

Just back from Southern Caribbean on Victory. Rather than full review I will list the Pros and Cons. The Pros- Great Weather and Ports, tours- Shasha Catamarans in Barbados, Spencer Ambrose Beach Break in St Lucia, Ride St Kitts (Mopeds), Karl with a K (Great Cruise Director), Good Food. Great Service, Good entertainment (both production shows and comedians). The Cons; Ship feels and looks tired and decor is pretty dated, long lines at the lido deck buffet, small crowded, and dirty pools, ( they had to close one pool during sea day with some unpleasant brown substance was found), groups of very loud locals who boarded ship in San Juan who rudely slammed their room doors and consistently yelling to each other at all hours of the nite and early morning which preempted the need for a wake up call. One morning I just opened up my door and screamed at the top of my lungs which quieted them for at least a few minutes. Oh well. Overall very good trip and great value. Any specifics, feel free to ask. Doug

 

We have a reservation with Shasa Catamaran in Barbados next month...care to share any more details about your day?

[cdamion]

we are on the victory in april and were wondering what time you were able to leave the ship in the morning. we found a few flights at 11:30 think we could make it?

 

I would strongly suggest against it. San Juan airport is a zoo on debarkation days. Also, you not only have to go through the security line, but the agricultural line as well, which most days is fine, but not when there are a couple thousand cruise ship passengers flying out.

 

You may be able to make it, but you could not afford a single delay with the ship arriving late, customs, or traffic to the airport. Too stressful. Think about spending an extra night in San Juan and flying out early the next morning.

[DOUGLASH]

We throughly enjoyed our day with Jason O'Neill and his company Shasa Catamarran. There were only four of us on the catammaran but it is large enough for 12. Jason is a local from Barbados, sort of on the quiet side, but very pleasant and his aim is to please. we first went to swim with the turtles which was great. He fed the turtles for us which brought at least a dozen to swim around us. He provided rum punch and other drinks continuously. We also went to an other site where there was a shipwreck (not too impressive) but here were loads of fish, which made for great snorkeling. We then docked in a beautiful bay and had a delicious lunch of chicken, three diffrent salads, mac and cheese, garlic bread, which were all excellent. We then sailed for around 45 minutes which was very enjoyable. You will have a great time.

[funinthesun1964]

Just back from Southern Caribbean on Victory. Rather than full review I will list the Pros and Cons. The Pros- Great Weather and Ports, tours- Shasha Catamarans in Barbados, Spencer Ambrose Beach Break in St Lucia, Ride St Kitts (Mopeds), Karl with a K (Great Cruise Director), Good Food. Great Service, Good entertainment (both production shows and comedians). The Cons; Ship feels and looks tired and decor is pretty dated, long lines at the lido deck buffet, small crowded, and dirty pools, ( they had to close one pool during sea day with some unpleasant brown substance was found), groups of very loud locals who boarded ship in San Juan who rudely slammed their room doors and consistently yelling to each other at all hours of the nite and early morning which preempted the need for a wake up call. One morning I just opened up my door and screamed at the top of my lungs which quieted them for at least a few minutes. Oh well. Overall very good trip and great value. Any specifics, feel free to ask. Doug

 

 

Hey Doug,

I'm going on the Victory at the end of February. Thanks for your review. We also are doing the Shasa catamaran and snorkel, but we opted for the 3-hour, which does not include lunch. Thanks for providing other information on that too.

 

Just curious - you were talking about mopeds at St. Kitts? Where did you rent those? We have rented ATVs at St. Martin through Ras, but do not have any plans for St. Kitts yet.

 

Also, what did you do at St. Thomas? We are undecided there.

 

Thanks for any other info...

 

[DOUGLASH]

I would recommend the 5 hour trip with Shasha Catamarran (the lunch is great and the ride is so beautiful and relaxing) unless you are looking to do something else the rest of the day in Barbados although i doubt you will have much time as you need to be back on ship no latter than 430p. In St Kitts, we booked scooters with ride St kitts (ridestkitts.com) which wa a few blocks walk from ship. The owners are very knowledegeable and will help you plan a great day.In St Thomas, we took the $ 2 bus from the stop near Kmart to Sapphire Beach which is absolutely beautiful and quiet with good snorkeling. Then we went back to Kmart for liquor shopping ( best prices in the Caribbean) and walked back to ship (15 minutes). Note while the ship will match any prices of liquor you find on shore, they do not have the variety you will find on shore. If you never been to St John, I would recommend that too . However If you choose to go there the only downside is it takes 3 hours roundtrip and once again you need to back in board by 430p. You may be able to save some traveling time to St John by trying a ship's excursion. Hope this info helps. doug

[AryMay]

We throughly enjoyed our day with Jason O'Neill and his company Shasa Catamarran. There were only four of us on the catammaran but it is large enough for 12. Jason is a local from Barbados, sort of on the quiet side, but very pleasant and his aim is to please. we first went to swim with the turtles which was great. He fed the turtles for us which brought at least a dozen to swim around us. He provided rum punch and other drinks continuously. We also went to an other site where there was a shipwreck (not too impressive) but here were loads of fish, which made for great snorkeling. We then docked in a beautiful bay and had a delicious lunch of chicken, three diffrent salads, mac and cheese, garlic bread, which were all excellent. We then sailed for around 45 minutes which was very enjoyable. You will have a great time.

 

Sounds like a wonderful day in store for us! Thanks for the details.

[funinthesun1964]

I would recommend the 5 hour trip with Shasha Catamarran (the lunch is great and the ride is so beautiful and relaxing) unless you are looking to do something else the rest of the day in Barbados although i doubt you will have much time as you need to be back on ship no latter than 430p. In St Kitts, we booked scooters with ride St kitts (ridestkitts.com) which wa a few blocks walk from ship. The owners are very knowledegeable and will help you plan a great day.In St Thomas, we took the $ 2 bus from the stop near Kmart to Sapphire Beach which is absolutely beautiful and quiet with good snorkeling. Then we went back to Kmart for liquor shopping ( best prices in the Caribbean) and walked back to ship (15 minutes). Note while the ship will match any prices of liquor you find on shore, they do not have the variety you will find on shore. If you never been to St John, I would recommend that too . However If you choose to go there the only downside is it takes 3 hours roundtrip and once again you need to back in board by 430p. You may be able to save some traveling time to St John by trying a ship's excursion. Hope this info helps. doug

 

Thanks for sharing your information!!

[Sunseeker11]

I was just on this cruise, have not done my review yet.

 

Just thought I would tell you about my experience at the airport after the cruise. We had a late flight - 5:30. I had heard the airport was a zoo so we arrived at 2:30 leaving plenty of time for line ups, well there weren't any! the agriculture inspection was empty and so where the American Airlines check in! I have never seen a quieter airport in my life! We did get pulled aside for a thorough inspection at customs though (body scan, pat down and bags checked) that was our longest wait, 10-15 minutes for someone to escort us through - so for those of you thinking we were getting preferential treatment going to the front of the line, we weren't!. When booking a flight home, this seemed to be a good time. We found a nice courtyard outside and hung out there for 2 hours. There are few fast food places to eat at and they didn't have lineups either. We ate at Barrachina's beforehand so we could avoid the airport lineups.

[DOUGLASH]

you missed the rush at the airport. We had a 130p flight and the airport was a zoo. but we got off the ship at 1030 and were at the airport at 1130 as it took a while to get our luggage and get through customs. One tip- if you plan on eating in the airport before flight , there is a Wendy's which is much cheaper and tastier than than the $11.oo mediocre sandwhiches in the terminal

[frito58]

we are on the victory in april and were wondering what time you were able to leave the ship in the morning. we found a few flights at 11:30 think we could make it?

 

We made an 11:50 flight ,piece of cake . Did self disembark in Oct was at the airport by 8 ish had time to kill. :)

Heck there was someone on our rollcall that made an 8:45 flight they were going to the West coast and wanted to get home I told them they would never make it , but they were up and waiting by the elevators first off , told me they were at the airport by 7:30 flew through check in and had time to spare.

 

Now thats a bit gutsy to me but there are LOTS of people making noon flights .

[cdamion]

We made an 11:50 flight ,piece of cake . Did self disembark in Oct was at the airport by 8 ish had time to kill. :)

Heck there was someone on our rollcall that made an 8:45 flight they were going to the West coast and wanted to get home I told them they would never make it , but they were up and waiting by the elevators first off , told me they were at the airport by 7:30 flew through check in and had time to spare.

 

Now thats a bit gutsy to me but there are LOTS of people making noon flights .

 

Im sure plenty of people do make their flights. What I am saying is that your chances of missing a flight out of San Juan on a cruise ship day are higher. Also, IMHO it isn't worth it to have the stress of hoping that every single thing goes well to make sure you catch the flight. I would rather have the cushion of a late or next day flight, than have to stress out over whether I will make it to the airport in time.

[frito58]

Im sure plenty of people do make their flights. What I am saying is that your chances of missing a flight out of San Juan on a cruise ship day are higher. Also, IMHO it isn't worth it to have the stress of hoping that every single thing goes well to make sure you catch the flight. I would rather have the cushion of a late or next day flight, than have to stress out over whether I will make it to the airport in time.

 

All I am saying is the later the day gets the worse that airport gets , yes there is that off chance you cant get off the ship , But after 4 cruises in San Juan , thats one airport I will risk an early flight. That airport is a cluster but if you can get there early is a breeze , so why not IMHO . All they ask what is is possible . And I am not even sure every single thing would have to go right for a noon flight. I watched debarkation as we were staying at the Sheraton before we boarded , they let you off really early the locals were heading out by 7 or before , the next week the hardest thing for us was an elevator and if we had been thinking we would have sent our luggage with one person and ran the stairs and met them at the bottom while they waited.

[cheeseheads1]

So it sounds as if mid day is the worst at the airport. Kind of glad we have a 430 pm flight. Thanks also about the Wendys tip. A good burger might be good after the restaurant food for the week:D.

[legalwife]

Posted somewhere else but maybe one of you will know.

 

Did the Victory have the $2.99 to call home on board? There would have been a notice by the phone in your cabin.

 

Thanks!

[airhead22]

We got to the airport around 9, and there was a long line for security. Our original 11:30 flight would not have been doable. There are 2 places to eat on the concourse, and the one with the tall chairs stinks. In the oppisite direction, there is a very nice place and not nearly as crowded. I can't remember the names. Our flight was at 3 and I would consider that a perfect time.

[nae418]

Great. I'll be on her in August, can't wait... wooohooo!!! I had heard Victory went to dry dock, wonder why she still looked dated?

 

Happy Sailing.

[lettienets]

At the airport, what lines do you do first? Checkin, agriculture, and security??? I am flying USAirways and am hoping to find all these lines up easy enough. Are they easy to find?

I have a Carnival transfer to the airport. I sure hope there is plenty of time to get a 1:55 pm flight.

 

I think the crowds are bad at mid afternoon because that seems to be when many flights are arriving from the US and then turning around. Rather than evening.

[frito58]

At the airport, what lines do you do first? Checkin, agriculture, and security??? I am flying USAirways and am hoping to find all these lines up easy enough. Are they easy to find?

I have a Carnival transfer to the airport. I sure hope there is plenty of time to get a 1:55 pm flight.

 

I think the crowds are bad at mid afternoon because that seems to be when many flights are arriving from the US and then turning around. Rather than evening.

 

Ag is first thing you do and if you dont pay attention you will walk right by it . Its right in the front tucked away. There are signs but its a little hidden then check in if you have to at your airline , then security. 2 pm is no problem as long as you dont hang on the ship to late the longer you wait the worse it gets .

[lettienets]

Ag is first thing you do and if you dont pay attention you will walk right by it . Its right in the front tucked away. There are signs but its a little hidden then check in if you have to at your airline , then security. 2 pm is no problem as long as you dont hang on the ship to late the longer you wait the worse it gets .

What do they do at the agriculture place and do they give you a paper or something to show elsewhere? Is the sign big?

[legalwife]

Posted somewhere else but maybe one of you will know.

 

Did the Victory have the $2.99 to call home on board? There would have been a notice by the phone in your cabin.

 

Thanks!

 

Frito:

 

Can you answer this question?