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Royal Princess live, Brooklyn to FLL

Carolyn R

By Carolyn R,
in Princess Cruises

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Loonbeam

Loonbeam

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Chef Lisner is probably the second best EC we have encountered. Chef Bolis is still my favorite..

 

Day 4: Room service breakfast on the balcony this morning. The breakfast sandwich now comes in a foil packet to keep it warm. I wrote in an omelet and berries and they both arrived.

 

I had a cronut in the IC today. Delicious!

 

For three sea days in a row they have had the Pub lunch. We went today. The bangers and mash were good. I especially enjoyed the onion gravy and the mash. The bread and butter pudding was very good too.

 

As you can see our days have been occupied with eating, drinking wine, and sitting on the balcony, sometimes all three at once! After a light meal at Alfredo's I am back in our cabin for the night. Cathy is goiing rogue and going down to the Vista Lounge for the Latin Dance party.

 

Tomorrow we have our first port, St. Thomas. I have been here many times before and since we are docking at Havensight I think I might go to Secret Harbor. I usually go to Water Island but that is more convenient when we dock at Crown Bay. Cathy is doing the Princess excursion where you ride a scooter under water. Hahaha! I will let you know how that goes.

 

I wanted to mention that I thought the food on our Royal TA last year was very good, a step above my other Princess cruises in my opinion. This cruise has even surpassed that one. The executive chef is Jozef Lisner from the Netherlands. As usual, the crew is exceptional, always smiling and friendly.

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johnmik1

johnmik1

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Deluxe balcony cabins that have the sofa, have no drawers in the desk area and are missing one nightstand. Regular balcony cabins have those drawers, and therefore have more storage.In Deluxe, Sofa on opposite wall. Wall with desk has the refrig and cabinet on same wall so it is very tight, therefore the no drawers and nightstand.

 

I am on the Royal in L104 and there are 2 night stands.

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HRPro

HRPro

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Carolyn, enjoying your live from the Royal. Sounds like a great cruise so far--it's nice to have one for just relaxing and taking it easy. We loved the Royal on on last year's TA and look forward to sailing on her twice in 2015. She's a beautiful ship. Glad to know that the food continues to be great.

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cubfan63

cubfan63

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I am on the Royal in L104 and there are 2 night stands.

 

 

My Emerald deck Deluxe Balcony also has 2 night stands.

 

Carolyn, it was lovely to meet you and Cathy the other night at dinner. I was at the table by the window. When I started reading the Live, I realized it who you are.

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Carolyn R

Carolyn R

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We did not purchase the Enclave package. We have been too busy eating, sleeping, relaxing on the balcony and repeating.

 

Pia, I got a chance to see Sam tonight and I gave her your regards.

 

Day 5: Today we sailed into St. Thomas and docked in Havensight at 7 am. I know I am in the minority but I prefer Crown Bay. I like to go to Water Island and it is much more convenient from Crown Bay. Cathy left for her underwater scooter adventure and I ventured on my own via crazy St. Thomas open air taxi to Secret Harbor. I had never been there before and really wanted to go to a "secret" beach because there were five ships in port today, one of which was the Allure I think. I soon realized I had made a good choice, not many people at all, nice white sand, tree shade, chairs for rent, and the water was warm and clear. I had a great day! I happened upon three couples from Scotland who were so kind, seeing I was there alone, and ended up adopting me. We had a few tropical cocktails sitting in the warm water and chatting and they made sure I got back to the ship safely via their air conditioned van. Tomorrow is Antigua and I invited the Scots to join us at Valley Church Beach. Cathy said the underwater scooter excursion was a big disappointment but she did it and I am proud of her, not knowing how to swim or a beach/water person at all.

 

When we left NY the captain was unable to play the Love Boat on the ship's horns because of noise regulations in the harbor. Today he played it twice as we were leaving St. Thomas.

 

We had a nice dinner in the Symphony dining room and are back in the cabin, sitting on the balcony, drinking wine, and listening to Johnny Mathis. We are really not participating in the evening activities at all.

 

Goodnight all.

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RMM34667

RMM34667

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My Sister lived on St. Thomas for 20 years. Cruise before last when we were stopping there we let her pick. Normally it was just meet you at Megan's Bay. She selected Secret Harbor. We had a great day on the beach and a nice lunch at the restaurant.

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TorontoTL

TorontoTL

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Hi Carolyn, I'm really enjoying your live from thread. I too thought that the food on the Royal was the best ever when we sailed last winter. I believe Josef was the executive chef then as well. Thanks for posting and keep enjoying your cruise.

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Iamthesea

Iamthesea

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She selected Secret Harbor. We had a great day on the beach and a nice lunch at the restaurant.

 

Love Valley Church Beach. I wonder if my sister, Maureen, will be there as we went to Valley Church the last time we were in Antigua. Have you visited other beaches in Antigua? Such a beautiful island! Enjoy!

 

 

I have never heard of Secret Harbor. I looked it up and came up with a resort. Is this the same beach? Could someone tell me more...Do we need a Day Pass, cost, how to get there, etc.?

 

We went to St. Thomas for our honeymoon 35 years ago. :) Stayed at Frenchman's Reef on the point, now the Marriott. Been back many times by ship. So far our favorite beaches have been Morningside Beach (at Frenchman's Reef) and Sapphire Beach.

 

Also never heard of Valley Church Beach, although we have only been to Antigua once. I believe it was Dickenson Bay beach that we went to for the day.;)

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Carolyn R

Carolyn R

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Day 6: Today we were in Antigua. The secret is out on my favorite beach on Antigua. Cathy and I went with my new Scottish friends to Valley Church Beach. It is still a great beach but now much more busy than before. I did bring half the sand on the beach back to my cabin and uploaded it in the shower. The weather today continues to be beautiful. The locals said it rained all day yesterday.

 

I should mention that our TV has been on the blink for the past two days. It is fixed now I believe. The earth is still turning so I guess we haven't had anything catastrophic happen when we were newsless.

 

Of note, the forward and aft elevators are now coordinated. We have had no elevator issues whatsoever.

 

It is Italian night in the dining room, Eggplant pram here I come! Since I had no lunch I ran up to the buffet and got us some tasty snacks, cheese, olives, walnut bread, artichokes, and some chopped walnuts mixed with honey I think. OMG! Bring a jar on your next cruise and fill it with this walnut concoction. Haha!

 

I don't know if I mentioned it but we have had no problem keeping ourselves stocked with libations both before and during.

 

We are off to dinner. It is a sea day tomorrow, as well as Halloween, and we have the Winemakers's dinner tomorrow night. Stay tuned.

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WisCruiser2

WisCruiser2

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I have never heard of Secret Harbor. I looked it up and came up with a resort. Is this the same beach? Could someone tell me more...Do we need a Day Pass, cost, how to get there, etc.?

 

Sorry to hijack - yes, the resort is Secret Harbor -- no cost to get in, a lounger cost $5 in 2010. There's a bar/grill, and a nice quiet beach and bay, with decent snorkeling. Just grab a taxi outside the pier to get there, it's on the way to Red Hook.

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Carolyn R

Carolyn R

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A group of us took a cab to Valley Church Beach. The cost was $16 pp and you paid on return to the ship.

 

Day 7: Today was a relaxing day at sea. Through the day it has become more hot and humid as we travel south to Aruba. We handed in our requests for EZ check. I noted on the form the overweight charges are waived when you use this program. I didn't know that before.

 

The Winemaker's dinner was tonight. There were 12 people at a large table surrounded by walls of wine bottles in the Concerto dining room. I ate a little of each course. Everything was good but very rich. The wines were very nice, especially the white from Sicily. In the end I prefer the Crown Grill.

 

Today was Halloween and we saw quite a few people dressed in costumes. Remember Father Guido Sarducci? One of the Italian head waiters was dressed as a cardinal and looked just like him. There was a pumpkin carving contest and a party with costume judging in the Piazza.

 

Tomorrow we have a day sail booked. Should be fun!

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Pia1913

Pia1913

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Today was Halloween and we saw quite a few people dressed in costumes. Remember Father Guido Sarducci? One of the Italian head waiters was dressed as a cardinal and looked just like him.

 

!

 

Ah.........Guido Sarducci. :) I wonder...........is Don Novello still alive? Will research.

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