EMPRESS REVIEW 12-4 to 12-15 2006 long

[va boy]

we sailed on Empress from the 4th to 15 Dec. 2006 . as this was only our second cruise I do not have alot to compare it to , but will give it a shot .

 

traveled to San Juan a day early to see some of PR before the cruise . hotel was the Sheraton in Old San Juan . nice hotel and close to shopping and cruse port .

 

left to go to cruise port at 12pm and embarkation was a snap we were on the ship by 12:45 and eating lunch at the windjammer by 1pm . the rooms are not ready until 2pm on this ship , but was not a problem as we were walking around the ship looking for where everything was located onboard .

 

we went to cabin and checked it out , we were in js 9610 . room was a little on the small side , but nice . met our cabin steward Nigel and went exploring somemore . located our dining room table and booked a spa treatment for wife for first seaday , also booked the murder mystery dinner at portofinos .

 

attended muster at 5:45 and went to the first seating for dinner . ship sails at 8pm just finished dinner for sailaway .

 

day 1 St . Maarten had breakfast delivered to the room , it came ontime and with call to tell us it was on the way. we had booked the zipline excersion through the ship and it started at 12:45 so went into town to shop for a couple of hours . we came back to ship and went on the excersion , it was fantastic and is the highlight on our cruise . we had about 35 obsticales to cross and it was a blast to do . back on the ship about 3:30 went for a soak in the hot tube after our workout . this night is the first of two formal night on the cruise .

 

day 2 Antigua booked a tour with Lawrence for the day . we had a great time and would recomend him to anyone that is going to Antigua . we saw alot of the island , the tour is almost four hours for 35$ each and you can't beat it . his bus is a nice new 25 passenger model and the AC will freeze you . if you have a smaller group he has a 12 passenger van available also .

 

day 3 St Kitts booked through the ship tour was plantations off the beaten path . nice tour with a local guide named Greg saw alot of offroad areas of the island . this included fresh fruit and drinks for a snack and was a fun way too see island and would do it again anytime .

 

day 4 St Lucia booked with Fabian for just the wife and me . nice day Fabian was fantastic , he took very good care of us . he showed us so much of the island it was a very nice day . he bought fresh cassava bread form a bakery , some spicey codfish cooked on a grill , and cookies from some local venders , he also had a cooler with drinks , local beer , water ,and rum punch for the day if we wanted it . yes we did sample the piton beer & punch before the day was over . this was very nice and would use him again . his van is new and very comfortable .

 

day 5 Barbados booked with Cameron Reid for tour just the two of us . we had a great time with Cameron and he showed us all around the island . I told him to show us the island as the way he sees it on an everyday basis . nice tour and great person , we loved talking with him one on one about his family and life on the island in general . his car is a toyota camery and very nice . this was a nice day and very relaxing tour .

 

day 6 seaday we just relaxed had breakfast delivered to the room again . my wife had a hot rock massage and she was in a great mood when she got back from the spa . she also said there was no sales pitch for any products at all . the rest of the day was spent at the pool and hottubs . this was the second formal night of the cruise .

 

more later fingers tired

[du4mch]

what is murder mystery dinner? have never heard of this, was it fun?

[va boy]

the mystery dinner theater started off in Boleroes withan appatizer & a glassof champagne . some of the crew/actors started with the who done it skit in the lounge . we moved to portofino to continue there . this is a blast and include a four course dinne with wine . it was worth every penny and made for a fun night for us .

[va boy]

day 7 Margarita Island we booked with Steve & Marcella of cruise-n-style this was a nice tour of the island . they both are great people and it was nice to meet them and spend a day with them .I got to sample some local beer & rum . my wife bought some pearls at a store they took us to . back on the ship this was the murder mystery dinner theater night in portofino. we had a fantastic time at dinner , I will do this on every cruise from now on . dinner was subperb and the actors were a blast . we ate with some other CC members and it sure made for a fun evening .:)

 

day 8 Curacao we went into the town to shop for a couple of hour before our excersuion . they have some good shopping close to the ship . we had booked the aloe & ostrich farm tour with RCI . the ostrich farm was fun I fed three grown birds from a pan with the birds reaching over my shoulders to eat . my wife held a baby bird in one hand for a picture . this was fun to do and we enjoyed this tour .

 

day 9 Aruba we took a 4x4 tour where you drive the jeep yourself . this was a nice tour we saw alot of the island during the 4x4 ride portion from the lighthouse to where the natural bridge location is . then we went to a private island owned by the tour company to eat lunch and snorkle for the afternoon . we met a honeymoon couple on this and rode with them for the day . we had a good time and would do it again sometime .

 

day 10 sea day spent most of it at the pool . we packed our bags to go home and had our last dinner with our new friends & tablemates .

 

day 11 Back to San Juan got off the ship at 9:15 went back to the Sheraton to stay for another couple of nights . hotel booked us for a tour of the Bacardi plant & San Juan . we had a great guide named Angel , he knew alot about the area and this was fun day

 

OK all in all this was a fun trip for us , we had a fantastic time . the ship though small has alot to offer . the crew seemed very happy and were nice . I would sail on her again anytime . the food was good I really liked the stirfry bar they had in windjammer and the barbacues on the seadays .

 

our head waiter was Oljay from turkey and she was fantastic . waiter was Margarita and assistant was Attilla , but we just called him Joe because he looked like Joe Demaggieo (sp) the baseball player .

 

Had great tablemates with Jan & Hollis , and Monty & Linda we laughed and joked every night . it was a pleasure to meet them .

 

this cruise had a few snags and not everything was perfect ,like the AC on day they got it fixed the sameday I called . we went to relax and enjoy our experience not nit pick every little thing . your on vacation have fun meet new people .

[Cruising89143]

Glad that it all worked out and that you enjoyed yourself. We were docked with you in St. Maarten and Antigua while on the Jewel of the Seas. Also watched your ship sail out of San Juan on the 4th while we were docked there.

[iowagal64]

Thanks for your review, I am on this cruise with my mom 1/29. I am trying to figure out what to do it each port. I am now impatiently waiting for my docs. Last winter I went on the Zip line tour in St Martin and loved it too. Thanks again for the input.

[albertiger]

Glad to know "MY" Empress is still a happy ship!:) I will be aboard for her repo on April 20th and just can't wait!!! Love this ship!:D

[kingsgirl]

To the original poster...I was wondering if there was any groups of people that got sick on your cruise? My friend was on her honeymoon cruise with you, and her husband got very sick while on board, and is STILL sick now. I was just curious if anyone else, that you knew of, came down with anything.

 

Thanks!

[Spanky My]

I enjoyed your review. We are about a month away ourselves from the same trip. Just curious how do you book the Mystery portofino thing and what is the cost to do it? Thanks for taking the time to post a review and a response to my question....SpankyMy.....

[wolfcathorse]

Do you remember who your captain was?

[va boy]

to book the mystery dinner theater go to portofino on the first day of the cruise . they also have a number you can call onboard to book it , cost was 49.50 each I think . this was well worth it

 

wolfcathorse I will look in the cruise compass for the capts name . ship changed capts on our first day and the name ecapes me right now .

[Spanky My]

for the reply. I may consider soing the murder mystery. Again I enjoyed your review as well. Thanks.....Spanky My

[va boy]

Capt as of 4 dec 2006 is Capt Gunner Todal

[TryingCruising]

Thanks for the review! I am looking into this cruise. Did the seas bother you at all? I am a little worried about room size since there is no JS available for the date I am looking at. Thanks for sharing your experience! :)

[va boy]

wife had a problem at night , she would take two pills about 5 pm each day . me no problem at all , I have saltwater for blood .

 

one thing the JS are on deck 9 , we should have booked a room on a lower deck to help with the rolling while at sea.

 

rooms are very small , but how much time will you spend in it ?

[EggDropErin]

Thanks for the review! I'll be doing one of my own very soon! :D

[RareBird]

to book the mystery dinner theater go to portofino on the first day of the cruise . they also have a number you can call onboard to book it , cost was 49.50 each I think . this was well worth it

 

wolfcathorse I will look in the cruise compass for the capts name . ship changed capts on our first day and the name ecapes me right now .

 

we cruised the empress twice and second time it was after portofino's was added. We ate there once and found it stuffy and mostly empty - very dull. The service was exceptional, but maybe too orchestrated? We did think about the murder mystery, but actually thought we'd be the only ones there and declined.