My View: Trading the Landscape for the Seascape

[APDMOM]

Good night for now.  I will catch up on day 3 (Nassau) sometime tomorrow while we are at sea.  I will also hunt for some answers to the questions posted here. 

 

Thanks for ‘cruising’ along.  🙂

[Fla Mike]

Great review, thanks for taking time out to post.

[APDMOM]

@blueslily

It seems like MSC ships follow the same pattern as most other cruise lines regarding ‘beds by the balcony’.  One has bed by the balcony, neighbor has bed by the closet.  So alternating pattern.  If you want adjoining cabins, they will not both have the bed by the balcony.

 

 I will do walking tours and peek on the last day to see if I can get more details.  So far, I have noticed the following cabins with beds by the balcony:

10189

10149

10125 (mine)

9258

11108

11052

 

The following had bed by the closet:

11012

10129 (DS is in this one)

 

[APDMOM]

@Sthrncrusr

There is a whole room of arcade games.  It was too busy for me to take pictures when I walked through but I will make time to go there on a port day to take pictures when it is not so busy.  

 

I will ask today about the diamond perk.

 

TIP:  If you have specific requests for dining, you can stop by the dining room on boarding day to make that request.  We are at a table for 4.  

[Sthrncrusr]

@APDMOM can’t thank you enough! The rep over the phone said our fun pass covers Arcade games. We shall see in a couple weeks! 🤞😅

[APDMOM]

My View: Day 3 - Nassau, Bahamas

 

[APDMOM]

Our arrival was in the dark, as the first ship in port.  Taking a walk around the ship for some ‘exercise’.  As usual, my camera got the most exercise…

 

 

[APDMOM]

Colorful Nassau Views:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arrival of Wonder of the Seas:

 

 

[APDMOM]

Our Excursion:  Nassau Panoramic Tour

 

Since this is my friend’s first cruise, including first time to Nassau, we decided to book the panoramic tour.  I did this one time before with my parents and family, so I knew it had some quick-stop highlights for those who just want to see the main sights without a day at the beach.

 

TIP: On MSC you cannot book specific times for your excursion.  Since our bookings had different numbers, we ended up on different tour buses.  I would recommend calling MSC to book excursions if you have different bookings, or check directly with the excursion staff as soon as you board.  The tour operator did accommodate us on the pier, since only one person had to be switched to a different bus.  It is not guaranteed that you can be on the same tour with different bookings, since MSC does not operate the tours.

 

This is one area MSC can improve - let people book times for excursions and add booking numbers from other guests. Thankfully, we had the same tour time, as this excursion had two times  with multiple buses (8:30 and 10:30).  

 

On to the tour…

[APDMOM]

First stop:  Rum Cake Factory

 

TIP: You can pay in US dollars at most places in Nassau.  Bring small bills ($1’s and $5’s.  The Rum Cake Factory took credit cards, but cash is always better in most Caribbean ports that take the US $.  Drinks at the Rum Cake Factory were $11 for Rum cocktails.

 

For that price, I would rather have my $9 Pina Colada on the ship… Plus it was too early in the day with no food.  LOL!

 

 

Next Stop:  Atlantis

 

We had limited access to Atlantis since you need a room key or day pass to access most areas.  You can access the shops, restaurants and casino.  We only had about 20 minutes at this stop - definitely adequate to look around but not enough to eat here.

 

Crossing the Sidney Poitier Bridge to Atlantis with a view of the ships:

 

 

 

A few Views at Atlantis:

 

Our other trip stopped at the check-in space where we could walk to the aquarium.  This one stopped at a different spot with fewer great views of Atlantis.

 

 

In the Casino:

 

 

Yachts and Palm Trees:

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 22, 2023 by APDMOM
Clarify

[APDMOM]

Third Stop: Queen’s Staircase and the Fort

 

We were dropped off at the bottom of the staircase and we met our tour bus at the top, by the fort.  We had about 25 minutes at this stop.

 

APDMOMFriend and APDMOM (For as much as the ‘internet’ still allows ‘anonymity’… 😜)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Views from the Fort:

 

 

 

 

Edited March 22, 2023 by APDMOM
typo… and is it Queen Anne? :)

[APDMOM]

On the way to John Watling’s Distillery:

 

John Watling’s Distillery:

 

This was a bitter-sweet stop.  The last time I was here in 2019, my dad had such a keen interest in the tour -asking questions of the tour guide.  I could tell he really enjoyed this - probably because my brother-in-law has a very small scale, barely off the ground, non-alcoholic gin distillery in South Africa.  My dad passed away since that trip and it was a reminder of the beautiful memories we created together.

 

TIP:  This is a more sentimental one… Live on a budget so that you can spend money on making memories with family.  My motto is:  Any material thing you buy is just waiting or moth and rust to destroy it.  That is why we live on a strict budget so that we had have family time.  If you want more information to live on a budget, I have a spreadsheet formula for that 🙂 - free from one cruise addict to another. Just send me an email and I will share it with you.  I will also post a link after the cruise so that you can download it from Google.

 

The Distillery and Beautiful Grounds:

 

They did have a small shack to buy food, but this is the second last stop before returning to the ship.  The beach stop is only about 15 minutes long.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

PS: Drinks at the Distillery were $12 and up.  We enjoyed a sample Pina Colada but I did not want to buy a drink without food 🙂

[APDMOM]

Our last stop: The Beach

 

TIP: Junkanoo beach is a close walk from the ship.  It has become quite busy.  If you keep walking less than half a mile, you will find a quiet beach, the one where we stopped.  Not sure if there is a fee - no loungers but a very quiet beach with views of the ship.

 

 

 

 

First time APDMOMFriend got her feet into these waters:

 

I am a fan of Lighthouses!

[APDMOM]

The short drive back to the ship - past Junkanoo Beach and Margaritaville:

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

Panoramic Tour Summary:

I think this was a good tour for anyone new to Nassau - especially if you are not looking for a beach day.  It was fun and well worth the $45 we paid for it.  Note of caution;

TIP:  The tour was closer to 3 hours than 2 hours and it took about 40 minutes from meeting at the pier to actually getting onto the tour bus.  Just be on ‘Caribbean’ time and enjoy!

 

[APDMOM]

Back on the ship, it was quite busy. DH brought me lunch on the balcony so that I could ‘put my feet up’ after the excursion.  

 

Look at that infinity hot tub - wonder what capacity is…

 

The Aft view from my balcony:

 

The Forward view from my balcony:

[APDMOM]

Sailing Away from Carnival Liberty and Nassau:

 

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

Dinner: Day 3 - Nassau, Bahamas

 

 

 

Eggplant - Very Good

 

Salmon appetizer - Very good - Wish I could have this more than one night this week!

 

Surf and Turf - Meat was a bit tough, but still an overall good meal:

 

Rack of Lamb: Too tough, so just okay tonight

 

Salmon - Very good

Tip: This is a small dish, so order two.  Our waiter informed us of this prior to ordering, so DH ordered 2.  It was another excellent dish we could have more than once.

 

 

Deserts - Both very good

 

 

[APDMOM]

The Show… Premiere - O Wow!!! 

Maybe someone at MSC is reading this review?  Just kidding, but almost everything that went wrong in the previous show was corrected in this one.  The sound engineers did an AMAZING job on tonight and it was a highly entertaining evening.  The singers performed the songs, rather than yelling to try to keep up with the loud backtracks.  The acting of the main character was engaging and he is just a very likable young man.  Unfortunately, this was his last night.  Maybe he will follow us to Seaside 🙂 

 

Singing in the Rain:

 

The Lead Character:

 

Ghost Busters!

 

Great Special Effects:

 

 

 A little Patrick Swayze and “Babe” thrown in the mix (loved these two singers):

 

 

 

 

This evening was a highlight of the cruise:

[APDMOM]

My View: End of Day 3 - Nassau, Bahamas (Rainy/Cloudy at Sunset, so a favorite view or two to end the day)

 

 

[APDMOM]

Daily program:  Day 3 - Nassau, Bahamas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

Well, I took quite a few ship pictures today. As you can see, I did not quite get as far as I wanted with posting.  So, still a day behind 🙂 

 

Tomorrow, I will be off the ship on a self-guided tour of San Juan with my friend.  Hope to post a bit before we leave.

 

Thanks for ‘cruising’ along.

[APDMOM]

TIP:  The bands are available on Seascape.  They can be purchased at the Hub (photo shop).  They are $10 each and you can use them to open your cabin door, pay for items onboard, and use the lockers in the Thermal Area of the spa.  These are very handy if you have the Thermal Area pass!

 

[APDMOM]

TIP: Forgot to mention.  It was also gala night with the Captain's Welcome at 7 PM.  They serve certain free drinks on decks 5, 6, 7, and 8 during this time.

 

Our Beautiful Cruise Director, Monica: