Grand Princess 10-Day Mexican Riviera Cruise - Photo Review - Jan 9-19th, 2016

[snow bunny]

Thank you, I think this will be what I miss most from our last Celebrity cruise! Had the escargot every night as my appetizer!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[snow bunny]

Was really hoping this review would be done before we left on our cruise. WinksCruises, where are you? Certainly hope all is well health wise!

 

snow bunny

[WinksCruises]

 

That and trying to keep up with all the Anthem of the Seas cruise-from-hell drama!

 

Working on next entry... Thanks for you patience! Back soon!

Edited February 18, 2016 by WinksCruises

[Mrs. Winks]

Can't wait to hear how the rest of our voyage turned out!! Let's go, Winkie!! ;)

[west coast cruiser]

 

That and trying to keep up with all the Anthem of the Seas cruise-from-hell drama!

 

Working on next entry... Thanks for you patience! Back soon!

 

Glady you are OK. We were getting worried about you.

[WinksCruises]

 

 

The next morning, despite having lost yet another hour’s precious sleep to a time-zone change, we miraculously managed to rise in time to witness the Grand’s 8 am arrival at our third port-of-call, Mazatlan. We even hauled our weary, ship-lagged corpses all the way up to the top-deck to get a 360 view as the ship passed by the El Faro lighthouse, pulled into the harbor and eased into its mooring.

 

But that’s when we observed what appeared to be band of angry dock workers picketing on the pier. Oh boy. Had we just landed in the middle of some Mexican labor dispute? Populated by incensed longshoremen? Thirsty for American blood, our kidneys, or minimally, an opportunity to turn away the cruise ship as a show of union force? - as had happened recently at Royal Caribbean’s private Labadee Island, a stop that their ships were now by-passing because of angry demonstrations on shore.

 

Fortunately a friendly face, our ambitious specialty coffee-card waiter/salesman Gustavo, was up on deck, doing a brisk business pedaling his caffeine punch-cards to fellow top-deck sleep-deprived early-risers, so, in between sales, I asked him what was going on. He explained that there was no cause for alarm. The band of inflamed stevedores we saw below on the pier were in reality an army of volunteers working with the Mazatlan tourism board in a bid to ease passenger’s fears about visiting the port. Turns out for a few years cruise ships had stopped docking in Mazatlan because it was deemed too dangerous. At least by Mickey Mouse's standards. Thanks Disney. So the city father’s stepped up efforts to win back the industry’s favor and now makes a very showy effort to assure cruise passengers the gang wars and tourist kidnappings are attractions exclusive to seedy Manzanillo – and not new-and-improved, very penitent, Mazatlan, now Mexico’s friendliest city.

 

To their credit, the tourism board’s efforts, while frequently over-the-top, seem to be working. Affable, mostly American and Canadian expatriates, greet you as you leave the ship and shepherd you onto waiting tram caravans that weave you through a maze of metal shipping containers to drop you off at an attractive shopping terminal designed specifically for cruise passengers. Once inside the terminal, you’re greeted by a barrage of overzealous trinket vendors and time-share salesmen - before you can find shelter at a cab stand outside or take a walk along the famous “blue line” that leads you into town. (Just don’t veer off it “if you value your life, gringo” one snide cigar peddler warned me after I turned down an offer to sample one of his Cuban Montecristo’s).

 

Since we’d managed to successfully stay alive (and intact with all our organs) in Manzanillo, Mrs. Winks declared our valiant effort needed to be rewarded with a day-pass at a beach resort. I had heard about the El Cid - and just been accosted by one of their time-share agents in the terminal - so when we were tossed into a cab by one of the friendly Mazatlan tourism volunteers, I uttered out El Cid resort to the driver, and away we flew.

 

The El Cid resort is massive. Like endless acres of tract housing massive. Just for ha-ha’s when we got back home, I transposed a scale map of Rhode Island over the El Cid property map and, yes, it nearly covered one of the golf courses! The resort is a mixture of residential housing, condos, hotel rooms, time-share vehicles and ocean-access marina space. And it takes up miles of the city’s gold coast.

 

 

 

Our cab driver, thinking he had a pair of live ones (and hungry for a commission), dropped us off at the time-share entrance of the El Cid, where we were greeted like royalty and whisked off to a waiting concierge who offered us free premium Tequila samples from silver-glazed shot glasses and asked us where we were from and how often we travelled.

 

When we explained that we were just a couple of peso-less schlepps merely looking for a pair of loungers under an over-sized umbrella on a beach with decent bar service, and not interested at all in purchasing a condo, taking a tour, drinking their tequila or attending their special orientation lecture, they quickly dropped all pretense of active engagement and pawned us off on a sweaty bellhop who was wheeling an over-packed cart of luggage through the lobby – who then stoically guided us along several linear miles of musty smelling corridors over to the “standard” hotel high-rise where we were told, by very gruff front desk staff, that we could purchase a day-pass for a steep $80 each – and for which Wi-Fi access was not included and would require an additional $10 charge (per device). Ouch!

 

And of course my pleading eyes, screamed out to Mrs. Winks “You’re kidding me right? We got off a cruise ship, sitting under the same sun as this resort, that also provides us with similar amenities and bar service, just to be treated like this???” It went unacknowledged. A swipe of the Am Ex card (at a price uncomfortably close to the cost of one of our transcontinental airfares) and we were reluctantly set up with a pair of wristbands, identifying us as cruise ship vermin, and pointed with disdain towards the direction of the beach.

 

The beach front was beautiful, don’t get me wrong…

 

 

But it was plagued, as it seems all Mexican Riviera beaches are, by aggressive vendors pushing their overpriced wares. It totally takes away from what little serenity you might enjoy here on the narrow strip of sand that you’re already forced to share with several hundred other tourists, each with their own agendas, family members and volume levels. I kept envisioning how peaceful the ship's aft pool deck would have been right then, when some sombrero wearing street urchin asked me if I wanted to see his 40:1 scale wood-sculpted replica of the El Cid resort he had whittled himself, with a paring knife, over the course of 5-years, which he had propped up over the span of several flatbed trailers he’d lined up in the parking lot above the beach. It would make a great souvenir, he insisted, so that we’d never forget out time at the Cid.

 

After subjecting ourselves to this type of sales abuse for only a few hours, Mrs. Winks finally suggested it was time to re-locate to the pool area, where we take in some new scenery and scope out the lunch buffet that was included in our day pass.

 

 

The pool area was no less crowded or peaceful than the beach front, but at least it was a safe-haven from the trinket peddlers. We wrangled a couple of loungers and nursed mediocre drinks while sharing my phone to check emails and catch up on our social media news-feeds before heading inside to a cafeteria style luncheon buffet that managed to make the Horizon Court offerings look attractive!

 

After a lackluster lunch, we spent another hour or so sitting by the El Cid pool, trying to nonchalantly hide our status-revealing wristbands - which had solicited several nasty looks from passing hotel patrons. During this time, I tried to spot any nuances that might differentiate this experience from that of being at the ship’s pool (there were none), while Mrs. Winks desperately clung to a dreamy vision that there somehow magically were.

 

As the afternoon slipped away, we eventually packed-up our day bags (and telltale Princess blue towels) and caught an open-air cab which took us back along the beautiful ocean-front malecon (the longest in the world) on our way to the cruise pier.

 

 

Now, finally inebriated from the watered-down all-inclusive drinks, we had fun taking selfies, and making faces at the people walking along the promenade and at other vehicles, motorized and pedal-powered, that we passed - as our cab darted in-and-out of the sunny afternoon traffic.

 

Back at the dock, we hung out for a little while in the makeshift shopping square, browsing for souvenirs and watching a traditionally garbed senor and senorita perform an ensemble of showy Mexican dances before an endless of parade of incoming returning guests. We also watched, with envy, as other passengers, those obviously not facing flights when they returned to California, bringing back large objects - like hammocks and oversized sombreros, something, if you were flying, one of the ship’s comedians joked, you’d be wearing on the plane - because it wasn’t going to fit in your luggage. And then suddenly it wouldn’t seem as cool as when you bought it!

 

After some people watching, it was back on the tram for the 2-minute ride across the pier to the ship, which was dwarfed by the mountain of shipping containers piled high in front of it. And it occurred to me, Mazatlan appeared to be a much more active port than Manzanillo, which claims to be Mexico’s busiest.

 

Overall, it was a bit of a wasted day. The resort was okay, but really not worth the money. Apparently there are cheaper day-pass properties that give you similar accommodations with less attitude!

 

 

Coming Up Next: Cabo San Lucas, signs along the way, and random ship notes.

 

Edited February 19, 2016 by WinksCruises

[Keith1010]

Enjoyed your review.

Keith

[rocklinmom]

OMG you kill me. That was well worth the wait! Can't wait for your next post, I need my morning laugh-fest. You really should be a comedian! :)

[Lee_1962]

We are taking this cruise May 1. I would like to hear about the shows, we really enjoy them. then about the ports visited. Your review has been great for both knowledge and a great read. Very well written.

Thanks!

[west coast cruiser]

Welcome back!!!

[Mrs. Winks]

OMG you kill me. That was well worth the wait! Can't wait for your next post, I need my morning laugh-fest. You really should be a comedian! :)

 

Oh yeah...he's a laugh riot! But then again you don't have to live with him!!:eek:

[WinksCruises]

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, I totally forgot to mention that in Manzanillo, of all places, we had a pier running incident. Well, not actually a pier runner incident. More like a pier ambler incident! Involving an entire family of Johnny-come-latelies who didn’t manifest an ounce of urgency when they made their stroll of shame down the quay a full 15 minutes after our scheduled departure time! Here’s the story:

 

Whenever we’re in port, I’ve come to make it a habit of walking the promenade deck just before sail away. I carry my camera with me and every lap around the ship, I poke my head over the side to check for late arrivals - those passengers who've lost track of the time for one reason or another and are late for the ship’s all-aboard deadline. Always hoping I’ll be able to record the comedy gold that is someone running for the ship in a desperate race to board the vessel before the gangplank is hauled in.

 

In Manzanillo, which has a pretty long wharf, the stars aligned themselves as I noticed below me a harried older couple frantically pleading with one of the ship’s officers - who was busy conferring with the bridge via walkie-talkie. It was painfully apparent; members of their party were running late, really late.

 

Moments later… plodding along the pier without a care in the world… came the tardy passengers, pretty much separately. Each got a “talking to” from the officer as they sauntered onto the ship. One, as you can see in the picture below, had a dock-worker (one of those friendly Manzanillo volunteers we hear so much about) carrying a case of bottle water for her!

 

 

It's probably only because the voyage from Manzanillo to Mazatlan is a short one that the ship didn't abandon them there!

 

During our adventures, both on the ship and off, we ran into some interesting signage. These didn’t really fit into the body of the trip report, but we think they’re worth a look at - so we made some room for them here:

 

On our way back from the beach in Puerto Vallarta, Mrs. Winks stuck her camera out the cab window and snapped this provocative storefront sign. Maybe they get away with it because it’s in English? (Love the unnecessary apostrophe, too!)

 

 

One morning after breakfast we returned to the cabin to find this flyer - and its declarative banner headline - sticking out of the mail slot next to stateroom door. Who knew the spa was offering a Man’s Package?

 

 

Back on shore, we found cheap pharmaceuticals were available everywhere in Mexico. Not just from the Manzanillo drug dealers but from the pharmacies as well. And then there was this little fellow…

 

 

One sign I found particularly useful on the ship was this chalk board one that was positioned outside the lower level exit of the Princess Theater. No matter function you were there attending, you ran smack dab into this ad for an upcoming event. I particularly liked the frequency at which it was changed and the use of a traditional medium like chalk.

 

 

Finally, while this isn’t technically a sign, it was a very useful tool that we ended up using several times over the course of the cruise whenever we wanted to check the remaining balance of our onboard credit. There were two of these kiosks in the Piazza - and they let you by-pass the line at the Passenger Services desk. We helped several people use it but it’s really simple; just slide your cruise card and it spits out a paper copy of your current statement.

 

 

Okay, coming up… Cabo San Lucas and our sea days headed back to San

Fran.

Edited February 21, 2016 by WinksCruises

[Jysly]

Thanks for the great reviews. We will be on the May 1st sailing with the same itinerary.

[Purdue-IL&TX]

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, I totally forgot to mention that in Manzanillo, of all places, we had a pier running incident. Well, not actually a pier runner incident. More like a pier ambler incident! Involving an entire family of Johnny-come-latelies who didn’t manifest an ounce of urgency when they made their stroll of shame down the quay a full 15 minutes after our scheduled departure time! Here’s the story:

 

Whenever we’re in port, I’ve come to make it a habit of walking the promenade deck just before sail away. I carry my camera with me and every lap around the ship, I poke my head over the side to check for late arrivals - those passengers who've lost track of the time for one reason or another and are late for the ship’s all-aboard deadline. Always hoping I’ll be able to record the comedy gold that is someone running for the ship in a desperate race to board the vessel before the gangplank is hauled in.

 

In Manzanillo, which has a pretty long wharf, the stars aligned themselves as I noticed below me a harried older couple frantically pleading with one of the ship’s officers - who was busy conferring with the bridge via walkie-talkie. It was painfully apparent; members of their party were running late, really late.

 

Moments later… plodding along the pier without a care in the world… came the tardy passengers, pretty much separately. Each got a “talking to” from the officer as they sauntered onto the ship. One, as you can see in the picture below, had a dock-worker (one of those friendly Manzanillo volunteers we hear so much about) carrying a case of bottle water for her!

 

 

It's probably only because the voyage from Manzanillo to Mazatlan is a short one that the ship didn't abandon them there!

 

During our adventures, both on the ship and off, we ran into some interesting signage. These didn’t really fit into the body of the trip report, but we think they’re worth a look at - so we made some room for them here:

 

On our way back from the beach in Puerto Vallarta, Mrs. Winks stuck her camera out the cab window and snapped this provocative storefront sign. Maybe they get away with it because it’s in English? (Love the unnecessary apostrophe, too!)

 

 

One morning after breakfast we returned to the cabin to find this flyer - and its declarative banner headline - sticking out of the mail slot next to stateroom door. Who knew the spa was offering a Man’s Package?

 

 

Back on shore, we found cheap pharmaceuticals were available everywhere in Mexico. Not just from the Manzanillo drug dealers but from the pharmacies as well. And then there was this little fellow…

 

 

One sign I found particularly useful on the ship was this chalk board one that was positioned outside the lower level exit of the Princess Theater. No matter function you were there attending, you ran smack dab into this ad for an upcoming event. I particularly liked the frequency at which it was changed and the use of a traditional medium like chalk.

 

 

Finally, while this isn’t technically a sign, it was a very useful tool that we ended up using several times over the course of the cruise whenever we wanted to check the remaining balance of our onboard credit. There were two of these kiosks in the Piazza - and they let you by-pass the line at the Passenger Services desk. We helped several people use it but it’s really simple; just slide your cruise card and it spits out a paper copy of your current statement.

 

 

Okay, coming up… Cabo San Lucas and our sea days headed back to San

Fran.

So glad to get our "fix" of another fine story from the master story-teller! It's amazing how rude some folks can be. It's one thing to arrive late and be very apologetic, etc. which helps a little bit BUT the dim-wits who walk casually in no hurry deserve to be BOO'ed LOUDLY as they come onboard. And sent to bed with no supper.

 

Thank you for the fun photos, also, and pointing out the nifty chalkboard signs to be on the look-out for.

[damiross]

So glad to get our "fix" of another fine story from the master story-teller! It's amazing how rude some folks can be. It's one thing to arrive late and be very apologetic, etc. which helps a little bit BUT the dim-wits who walk casually in no hurry deserve to be BOO'ed LOUDLY as they come onboard. And sent to bed with no supper.

 

Thank you for the fun photos, also, and pointing out the nifty chalkboard signs to be on the look-out for.

Please, if you are going to quote a post with pictures in it be kind enough to remove the pictures. They take up a lot of space for such little commenting. Common courtesy, please.

[raider23]

Please, if you are going to quote a post with pictures in it be kind enough to remove the pictures. They take up a lot of space for such little commenting. Common courtesy, please.

 

Thank you

[SeasideMemories]

Loved the signs! Thanks for the AM laugh!

[fairsky1984]

Have I missed the continuation somehow? :(

[!David!]

Please, if you are going to quote a post with pictures in it be kind enough to remove the pictures. They take up a lot of space for such little commenting. Common courtesy, please.

 

 

 

Thanks for reposting pics. I enjoy seeing them again. I also don't have to find pics for reference. I missed some fun suitcase items the first time. Not evevyone uses cell phone to enjoy the posts.

 

:cool: :cool:

[Cruise Raider]

So glad to get our "fix" of another fine story from the master story-teller! It's amazing how rude some folks can be. It's one thing to arrive late and be very apologetic, etc. which helps a little bit BUT the dim-wits who walk casually in no hurry deserve to be BOO'ed LOUDLY as they come onboard. And sent to bed with no supper.

 

 

Not to hijack the thread but we were on a B2B once and had to all go into a holding area until everyone was off the ship. We waited for a few hours down there ... wondering what the hold up entailed.

Well, we were told there was a couple that refused to disembark ... yes, very rude. When they finally got the out, escorted by security, they looked as though they had a very rough night and just rolled out of bed after their stupor. It was after 1 PM so guess they really had a tough time getting them off the ship. All of us B2B passengers were greeted by this couple flipping us the birdie when they finally were escorted out. Talk about rude!! Wonder if they are allowed to book on that line ever again.

[damiross]

Thanks for reposting pics. I enjoy seeing them again. I also don't have to find pics for reference. I missed some fun suitcase items the first time. Not evevyone uses cell phone to enjoy the posts.

 

:cool: :cool:

You're going to hate my reply because, to be perfectly blunt, I think your statement just indicate plain laziness on your part. It takes, what, 10 seconds to scroll back to a picture?

 

And it is on cell phones that I especially hate the reposting of pictures.

Edited February 28, 2016 by damiross

[mamaw58]

Following

[RTV Man]

This has to b one of the worst reviews ever. Nothing like having to wait a week for the next day that happened back in January. Why even bother starting this if you aren't going to finish it?

[west coast cruiser]

This has to b one of the worst reviews ever. Nothing like having to wait a week for the next day that happened back in January. Why even bother starting this if you aren't going to finish it?

 

His reviews are worth waiting for. I am sure that now he is home, he is busy with work and other obligations. Please don"t make him mad. We want to see the rest of his reviews.

WCC

[rp23g7]

Great review and pictures, we will be on the Grand in Sept, doing the same cruise, you can only do the Caribbean so many times in a row.

 

How did you get from the Airport to your Hotel/then to the ship? Taxi, Uber, BART? We are from Seattle, my wife is from the Bay area, so we could have her sister pick us up from the airport, just curious.