Jewel OTS, San Juan 12/4

[maxs mom]

• 
  

Hello! We are also on this cruise.....as well as last week and next week. Everything is great. I have found the food in the MDR to be very good. My husband orders off the children's menu and has had Mac and cheese just about every night with different things. He is happy! We have eaten in Chops twice and will go again tomorrow night. It was excellent. Our friends ate in Giovanni's last night and loved it.

 

We have been in two cabins so far. The first week we were in a JS and it was fabulous. We moved down to an E cat. Balcony for the next two weeks and that was quite an adjustment, but we are managing. I like the new firm mattresses. I can't sleep on a soft one.

 

The B2B turn around was quite hectic last week and there were some very rude passengers pitching fits!! Apparently they have never done an B2B before and didn't know you have to be flexible. At least we didn't have to get off the ship. It DID take longer than normal, but they are just getting started with the Caribbean season down here and I'm sure they will work the kinks out. We don't have nearly as many for the upcomiing turn around. The luncheon was excellent.

 

We have had wonderful weather and just had three perfect beach days in a row. We have had smooth sailing and Capt. Lis is the best!!

[davekathy]

• 
  

Hello! We are also on this cruise.....as well as last week and next week. Everything is great. I have found the food in the MDR to be very good. My husband orders off the children's menu and has had Mac and cheese just about every night with different things. He is happy! We have eaten in Chops twice and will go again tomorrow night. It was excellent. Our friends ate in Giovanni's last night and loved it.

 

We have been in two cabins so far. The first week we were in a JS and it was fabulous. We moved down to an E cat. Balcony for the next two weeks and that was quite an adjustment' date=' but we are managing. I like the new firm mattresses. I can't sleep on a soft one.

 

The B2B turn around was quite hectic last week and there were some very rude passengers pitching fits!! Apparently they have never done an B2B before and didn't know you have to be flexible. At least we didn't have to get off the ship. It DID take longer than normal, but they are just getting started with the Caribbean season down here and I'm sure they will work the kinks out. We don't have nearly as many for the upcomiing turn around. The luncheon was excellent.

 

We have had wonderful weather and just had three perfect beach days in a row. We have had smooth sailing and Capt. Lis is the best!![/size']

 

Sounds like you're having fun. Enjoy the rest of your Cruise.

[akcruz]

• 
  

Hello! We are also on this cruise.....as well as last week and next week. Everything is great. I have found the food in the MDR to be very good. My husband orders off the children's menu and has had Mac and cheese just about every night with different things. He is happy! We have eaten in Chops twice and will go again tomorrow night. It was excellent. Our friends ate in Giovanni's last night and loved it.

 

We have been in two cabins so far. The first week we were in a JS and it was fabulous. We moved down to an E cat. Balcony for the next two weeks and that was quite an adjustment' date=' but we are managing. I like the new firm mattresses. I can't sleep on a soft one.

 

The B2B turn around was quite hectic last week and there were some very rude passengers pitching fits!! Apparently they have never done an B2B before and didn't know you have to be flexible. At least we didn't have to get off the ship. It DID take longer than normal, but they are just getting started with the Caribbean season down here and I'm sure they will work the kinks out. We don't have nearly as many for the upcomiing turn around. The luncheon was excellent.

 

We have had wonderful weather and just had three perfect beach days in a row. We have had smooth sailing and Capt. Lis is the best!![/size']

We are doing the same trip you did last week. From your previous reviews I know you find some really good beach spots. We haven't finalized our days yet and hoping to do a more relaxed sailing this time. Would you be willing to recommend/share where you spent, or are spending your days in port?

 

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[maxs mom]

We are doing the same trip you did last week. From your previous reviews I know you find some really good beach spots. We haven't finalized our days yet and hoping to do a more relaxed sailing this time. Would you be willing to recommend/share where you spent, or are spending your days in port?

 

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Sure! Just to be sure.....you are going on the St, Croix, St. Maarten, Dominica, Barbados, and Grenada route?

[elleluv]

Thanks for the review and comments, folks. Looking forward to joining you Sunday. :)

[akcruz]

Sure! Just to be sure.....you are going on the St' date=' Croix, St. Maarten, Dominica, Barbados, and Grenada route?[/size']

Yes, thank you!!

 

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[maxs mom]

Yes, thank you!!

 

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ok....

So...St. Croix.....two options.....there is Rainbow Beach....pretty much at the end of the pier. Never been there, but friends have. I think you can find someone at the end of the pier and that can hook you up. Also.... at the end of the pier.....to your right.....you can get shuttle tickets to the Sancastle resort. $3 pp. for $25. You get two chairs and an umbrella plus a wonderful rum punch. The beach is rocky, but interesting. I like it a lot. There is a small pool. Good food.

 

St. Maarten......my absolute favorite of all. Get a taxi to Orient Beach......BUT.... ask to go to Palm Beach at the far end. The taxi driver should come back for you. Here.....the chairs and umbrellas are free.....as long as you eat in their restaurant for lunch. Fabulous French food! You can also get a hamburger if you want. It is not crowded and very few cruise ship people go there. I absolutely love this place!

 

Dominica.....no beaches here. If you like to snorkel....Champagne reef is good. You can also hire a taxi to take you around to different places. Shouldn't be more than $30 pp. go to Trafalgar Falls or Emerald Pool. That is the best.

Locall beer is good here. Also Titou Gorge, if you are strong swimmers. The taxi driver can take you all over and show you a lot of things. Great island and rain forest. All taxi drivers are good here.

 

Barbados......as soon as you come out of the building.....look for the private taxi drivers. The regular taxi line has too much drama! You will wait forever for the taxi to fill up. Anyway...,.,I like Accra Beach here.,,,.la place called The Tiki Bar. You pay $30 for two chairs and an umbrella but you will get that money back to spend on food and drinks. Good deal. Beautiful beach. Can be crowded this time of year...,.lget there early. Very quiet and nice. Taxi drivers will come back for you.

 

In Grenada.....DO NOT take the water taxi to Grand Anse and go to the beach there. Horrible idea! Beach is crowded and vendors will hound you to death. A nice alternative is to take a taxi to the Raddisson and get a day pass. $40 pp.....wonderful property......beautiful beach....nobody there and also beautiful pool area. It is down just a ways on Grand Anse Beach....much better area. But whatever you do.....don''t go to that area of the beach where the water taxis let you off.

 

Hope this helps.

Edited December 8, 2016 by max'smom

[jacruisers]

Thank you Steve and Jane for the updates. We will joining you on this ship this Sunday.

Edited December 8, 2016 by jacruisers

[racerxspeedy]

ok....

So...St. Croix.....two options.....there is Rainbow Beach....pretty much at the end of the pier. Never been there' date=' but friends have. I think you can find someone at the end of the pier and that can hook you up. Also.... at the end of the pier.....to your right.....you can get shuttle tickets to the Sancastle resort. $3 pp. for $25. You get two chairs and an umbrella plus a wonderful rum punch. The beach is rocky, but interesting. I like it a lot. There is a small pool. Good food.

 

St. Maarten......my absolute favorite of all. Get a taxi to Orient Beach......BUT.... ask to go to Palm Beach at the far end. The taxi driver should come back for you. Here.....the chairs and umbrellas are free.....as long as you eat in their restaurant for lunch. Fabulous French food! You can also get a hamburger if you want. It is not crowded and very few cruise ship people go there. I absolutely love this place!

 

Dominica.....no beaches here. If you like to snorkel....Champagne reef is good. You can also hire a taxi to take you around to different places. Shouldn't be more than $30 pp. go to Trafalgar Falls or Emerald Pool. That is the best.

Locall beer is good here. Also Titou Gorge, if you are strong swimmers. The taxi driver can take you all over and show you a lot of things. Great island and rain forest. All taxi drivers are good here.

 

Barbados......as soon as you come out of the building.....look for the private taxi drivers. The regular taxi line has too much drama! You will wait forever for the taxi to fill up. Anyway...,.,I like Accra Beach here.,,,.la place called The Tiki Bar. You pay $30 for two chairs and an umbrella but you will get that money back to spend on food and drinks. Good deal. Beautiful beach. Can be crowded this time of year...,.lget there early. Very quiet and nice. Taxi drivers will come back for you.

 

In Grenada.....DO NOT take the water taxi to Grand Anse and go to the beach there. Horrible idea! Beach is crowded and vendors will hound you to death. A nice alternative is to take a taxi to the Raddisson and get a day pass. $40 pp.....wonderful property......beautiful beach....nobody there and also beautiful pool area. It is down just a ways on Grand Anse Beach....much better area. But whatever you do.....don''t go to that area of the beach where the water taxis let you off.

 

Hope this helps.[/size']

 

Hello - we just did the Dominica/Grenada cruise last week.

A couple observations.

It's only a one mile walk to the beach (boatyard) in Barbados. The beaches are free and very nice in Barbados. Accra is further and requires a cab

 

We have been to the beach twice in Grenada and walked past all of the vendors and enjoyed it very much - see pics. We ate at the local food truck next to Umbrellas bar for $4 each. You can grab the local bus #1 for $1pp each way for even more local flavor (no AC). The vendors have never been an issue for us.

Edited December 8, 2016 by racerxspeedy

[racerxspeedy]

More pics from Grenada and Dominica last week.

[racerxspeedy]

$4 jerk chicken from "Cummin UP" food truck on the beach in Grenada: This entire beach day cost me $10

Edited December 8, 2016 by racerxspeedy

[racerxspeedy]

You can walk up the steps to the Fort near the ship in Grenada:

Good way to earn that extra dessert!

[akcruz]

Thanks Jane and racer. Now to figure it out. Sorry for taking this thread off track slightly.

 

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[theorbo]

ok....

Barbados......as soon as you come out of the building.....look for the private taxi drivers. The regular taxi line has too much drama! You will wait forever for the taxi to fill up. Anyway...' date='.,I like Accra Beach here.,,,.la place called The Tiki Bar. You pay $30 for two chairs and an umbrella but you will get that money back to spend on food and drinks. Good deal. Beautiful beach. Can be crowded this time of year...,.lget there early. Very quiet and nice. Taxi drivers will come back for you.

 

Hope this helps.[/size']

 

Hi, this is really helpful information. We are doing one of the other itineraries in February. Would you guys be able to recommend anything specific for St Kitts, Antigua, Saint Thomas, and St. Lucia? I hiked the Pitons last time and will NOT be doing that again!

 

Thank you for sharing your experiences.

[steveru621]

Thanks for the review and comments, folks. Looking forward to joining you Sunday. :)

 

Thank you Steve and Jane for the updates. We will joining you on this ship this Sunday.

 

Wish I could do more. But everything is going pretty good.

 

Day 5, Thursday.

 

Meet and mingle yesterday (day 4 @ 5pm) afternoon in the pit stop had maybe 10 people. Nothing special happened although he did have 3 prize bottles of wine.

 

Internet is the kinda slow 3.91 Mbps download, .24 Mbps upload. I paid the little extra ($13.99) to use our final coupon, and upgraded to Surf and Stream. It's Thursday and the final D+ coupon gets you 4 days in the package. I will say it is noticeably faster than just the surf option.

 

Wash and fold was available Wednesday, so we used our free bag. Nothing back today, I expect to get it back on Friday.

 

Top tier event today @ 4:45 Deck 6 forward on the helipad. Unusual spot! Dinner is casual, but as usual top tier is smart casual.

 

The ship is in beautiful shape. New carpeting just about everywhere and all freshly painted. The green stairway is still in the centrum. Huge hanging sculpture so no aerial shows on Jewel. Solarium Pool has been warm salt water, but the roof remains closed. The hanging gardens are green not blue! It's very hard to tell if all of the plants are real.

 

Drink specials today; House cocktail specials $7 at the Pit Stop 5-7pm; Martini evening, house $7 5-8pm; and a DRINK CARD 10 drinks for $55; $64.90 with the tip, great deal any drink under $12.

Edited December 8, 2016 by steveru621

[maxs mom]

In St. Thomas......we went to Emerald Beach since we dock at Crown Bay now. NEver been there before and I loved it. Short cab ride...$4pp......walk through either the Best Western or the Island Beachcomber and you can rent chairs there for $7. Good food, great beach......loved it! Very convenient.

 

We always go to the Marriott in St, Kitts and get a day pass. Have probably been there around 30 times and have never been disappointed. Day passes are $35 pp......just go to the desk. Great cabanas on the beach and a spectacular pool area. Great food. We've tried all the beach areas here and this is by far my favorite option,

 

Antigua.....have gone to Valley Church Beach for 20 years, but decided to give Jolly Beach a try yesterday. Maybe just a little more upscale than. VC! But both are very similar. They are both fairly crowded these days, but we had a wonderful day there yesterday. Great water and beautiful beach......will go back there for Sure!

 

Getting ready to go to the Top Tier party. We will have our Pinnacle celebration here today. yay!! Not excited about the helipad, but what can you do!!? I've been to several on the helipad and they were fun. I just hope it isn't too windy.

 

Better get going!!

[davekathy]

Wish I could do more. But everything is going pretty good.

 

Day 5, Thursday.

 

Meet and mingle yesterday (day 4 @ 5pm) afternoon in the pit stop had maybe 10 people. Nothing special happened although he did have 3 prize bottles of wine.

 

Internet is the kinda slow 3.91 Mbps download, .24 Mbps upload. I paid the little extra ($13.99) to use our final coupon, and upgraded to Surf and Stream. It's Thursday and the final D+ coupon gets you 4 days in the package. I will say it is noticeably faster than just the surf option.

 

Wash and fold was available Wednesday, so we used our free bag. Nothing back today, I expect to get it back on Friday.

 

Top tier event today @ 4:45 Deck 6 forward on the helipad. Unusual spot! Dinner is casual, but as usual top tier is smart casual.

 

The ship is in beautiful shape. New carpeting just about everywhere and all freshly painted. The green stairway is still in the centrum. Huge hanging sculpture so no aerial shows on Jewel. Solarium Pool has been warm salt water, but the roof remains closed. The hanging gardens are green not blue! It's very hard to tell if all of the plants are real.

 

Drink specials today; House cocktail specials $7 at the Pit Stop 5-7pm; Martini evening, house $7 5-8pm; and a DRINK CARD 10 drinks for $55; $64.90 with the tip, great deal any drink under $12.

 

I've never heard of the Drink Card. Is it offered at the beginning of the Cruise or a few days in to the Cruise?

[RoyalFan2011]

For the Marriott in St Kitts, do you need to take a taxi or is it walking distance?

 

 

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[maxs mom]

For the Marriott in St Kitts, do you need to take a taxi or is it walking distance?

 

 

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Taxi ride is a short distance.....$12 for the whole cab. The taxis are right at the end of the pier.....just to the right. And you do not need reservations for the Marriott.

[Janedoe2012]

I am on the Jewel now as well. For St Kitts, check out Palm Court Gardens which is approximately a 5 minute cab ride from the pier. $12 per person. They have a large beautiful infinity pool overlooking the harbour, great food and drinks at a reasonable price.

 

 

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[Janedoe2012]

The 10 drink card became available this morning (Thursday). Available at any bar to purchase and there was lots of advertising on ship. They also have a bucket of beer special (5 for price of 4) which isn't advertised that was available since the cruise began.

 

 

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[davekathy]

The 10 drink card became available this morning (Thursday). Available at any bar to purchase and there was lots of advertising on ship. They also have a bucket of beer special (5 for price of 4) which isn't advertised that was available since the cruise began.

 

 

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So on day 5. Enjoy your Cruise. Thank you.

Edited December 9, 2016 by davekathy

[Clarea]

The 10 drink card became available this morning (Thursday). Available at any bar to purchase and there was lots of advertising on ship. They also have a bucket of beer special (5 for price of 4) which isn't advertised that was available since the cruise began.

What was the price of the 10 drink card?

[70SS350]

Bob a previous post said it was 10 for $55.00 ($64.90 w/ tip)

[Clarea]

Bob a previous post said it was 10 for $55.00 ($64.90 w/ tip)

Thank-you.