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Royal Clipper Christmas Cruise 12/17/2016 - 12/27/2016


websailor
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We are going on our first Star Clippers cruise! Yeah!!!!!!!!!

 

We're excited to experience what the Royal Clipper will be like. We've cruised a fair bit on Princess and Royal Caribbean ships to a few destinations. But the smallest ship we've been on had ~600 passengers, so the Royal Clipper will be quite different.

 

We really like meeting people and talking with them, so I think we'll really like that aspect of Royal Clipper.

 

As I sailor, I know that I'll enjoy all the sailing related parts - I hope we have some good winds!

 

I found this link that had some great pictures that show more parts of the ship than I've seen before. Enjoy.... http://experience.usatoday.com/cruise/story/cruise-lines/star-clippers/2016/01/20/cruise-ship-tours-royal-clipper/78353986/

 

I hope to hear from others that will be on this cruise....though these boards seem to be very slow....oh well, maybe we'll have the whole ship for ourselves. ;)

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Hi this is Websailor's other half.

This will be an adventure for sure. Must remember to bring my Bonine and Zofran :D

 

In the meantime we have been listening to the Vangelis Conquest of Paradise CD. Looking forwards to hearing it as they hoist the sails when we embark on my first cruise on the Royal Clipper

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Not many people who go on star clippers post here, although you will get good tips on the ports of call on these boards. It is a fantastic ship, great ports of call. The sailing is great. There is a great camaraderie between officers, crew and passengers. And they make a great effort for Christmas.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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You'll have a great time aboard the RC - we've done numerous cruises aboard her and the Star Clipper in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean. Most recently we spent three weeks last July and August aboard Star sailing the Grecian and Turkish itineraries - wonderful experience and the time passed too quickly. Enjoy your voyage and the warmth of the islands!

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For shore excursions this link is useful - you need to look at Royal clipper windward and star clipper treasure islands to get as full a picture as possible. http://www.starclippers.com/eu/shore-excursions-pdfs.html

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Thanks, the yacht races look interesting. Back in 2005 we actually raced on US-55 Dennis Connor's Stars and Stripes boat in St. Maarten and beat the other boat. I was the time keeper while dear hubby was one of the grinders.

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Time is moving so slowly it seems. I'm really looking forwards to this cruise!

 

Thanks for all the comments so far. This is our 1st time on the Star Clippers Line, so we have a lot to learn about them.

 

We are from San Francisco area and the airplane flights look like quite a few of them make some long stops at multiple airports. Does anyone else get a relatively inexpensive flight to the East Coast and then use the Star Clippers air from there? What airport is the best to go to to get to Barbados in your experience?

 

How is Star Clippers at arranging flights?

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Can't speak about SC cruise air - we arrange our own travel. Most of the time we've had a plane change in Miami for the final leg to Barbados but we're East Coast folks.

 

Given the recent historic East Coast blizzard and thousands of cancelled flights, SC told us today that if we don't like their flights to Miami, we can get ourselves there with a non-stop flight from San Francisco on our own, and then take their air to Barbados.

 

Also looking into a 2 night pre-cruise stay at a hotel in Barbados.

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This is Virgin Atlantic's video guide to Barbados. It is 25 minutes long and is mostly advertising but also shows a lot of views of Barbados and has some ideas of things to do. This is where our cruise starts and it looks like a fun place!

 

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  • 3 months later...

New have sailed the Christmas Caribbean cruise on Royal clipper.

We had a great time.Christmas is celebrated on Christmas Eve,when Santa comes to visit.special sweeties and fruit for all.our evening meal was chateaubriand or lobster...our American friends ordered both,so did my husband.

Christmas lunch we had suckling pig...

It is such a fun cruise.We absolutely loved it...

Enjoy.

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That sounds fantastic! I've been on other vacations where Christmas was celebrated and it was always very enjoyable. I'm looking forwards to it!

 

Thanks for posting this, you made my day!

Edited by websailor
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  • 5 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...
...and did you enjoy it?

 

YES, it was fantastic! There is something magical when the Royal Clipper puts up her sails. The ship comes alive and leaps forward to her next destination.

 

Being a small ship, you get to know people on board. It was fun talking with people from other countries. Another wonderful thing is that all the crew are very approachable. We had meals/snacks with most of the senior officers (including the Captain) and the owner. It was so nice talking with them.

 

We enjoyed the food which is quite plentiful and always well prepared. We also liked all the things to eat other than at mealtime. The 24/7 coffee/tea pot was great also.

 

I have some of my pictures posted - there is a link in my signature. I have a lot more to edit and post.

 

If you have any specific questions, I can try to answer them.

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We had Cabin 312 on the Royal Clipper. I've posted a batch of pictures of it - see the Pictures link in my signature.

 

We really liked this room. We were not sure about the tender overhead, but that turned out to be quite nice. It's fun to watch it being launched and recovered. It also shades you from the sun and rain while not getting in the way of your view.

 

This cabin is right next to the swinging doors, so it is easy to leave you room to go elsewhere on the ship. You also do not have to go outside to get to dinner.

 

Our cabin steward was fantastic also!

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Glad you had a good time.Some friends of ours had a bad time in November on Royal clipper. It was sailing from Martinique to start the Caribbean itineraries.The weather was poor too, which didn't help.So you have returned my faith in the ship.

I have forgotten about drinking water.Do we pay for the water or are bottles free?

Where did you have the beach bbq?

Who served the best cocktails?.😀

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Glad you had a good time.Some friends of ours had a bad time in November on Royal clipper. It was sailing from Martinique to start the Caribbean itineraries.The weather was poor too, which didn't help.So you have returned my faith in the ship.

I have forgotten about drinking water.Do we pay for the water or are bottles free?

Where did you have the beach bbq?

Who served the best cocktails?.😀

 

I'm afraid I might not be much help because of the way we do things. ;-)

 

We had two free bottles of water in our cabin when we boarded. After that if you wanted a bottle I think you would have to pay. But I don't really know because we just use the tap water and refill the bottles.

 

Our Beach BBQ was at Falmouth Harbor, Antigua but I think it might vary locations. We went to it for a short time. The food was okay (I don't think they really know how to BBQ) and well suited for me (In comparison the lunches on board were too fancy). I had a hot dog with all the extras and greatly enjoyed it. The swimming looked good also, but I don't think the snorkeling was good at the beach location.

 

LOL, cocktails - I have no clue! We had only 2 drinks on board - we are not drinkers!!! That said, the Tropical Bar on the Main Deck was THE social gathering place on board. The bar there was also serving drinks and people had a great time there. It was covered, so you (usually) did not get rained on and when the wind was up, they'd put up a side canvas wall to block it. I think they had 3 bartenders and I suspect they are all very good. From my limited experience I'd say the drink prices are quite reasonable.

 

Hope this helps.

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First two days were extremely rocky leaving Barbados. Good that the tub had two grab bars to hold while showering. Also a seat that I used, otherwise could have been tossed around. Didn't find out from the room steward on the third day that there are boards at the sides of the bed that could be raised so one doesn't roll out of bed. :D

 

But I was prepared and took my Meclizine and Zofran (anit-nausea). Dear hubby aka Mr. Sealegs and sailor of a J-24 sailboat, did vomit, but they had barf bags placed in strategic places around the ship.

 

We had a wonderful cruise, service was excellent, food was delicious (gained 5 pounds), and friendly passengers and crew. It felt like a family, especially with the Christmas Gift Exchange, and caroling in English and German.

 

I would cruise them again if we can find somewhere we want to go.

Edited by cflutist
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I'm afraid I might not be much help because of the way we do things. ;-)

 

We had two free bottles of water in our cabin when we boarded. After that if you wanted a bottle I think you would have to pay. But I don't really know because we just use the tap water and refill the bottles.

 

Our Beach BBQ was at Falmouth Harbor, Antigua but I think it might vary locations. We went to it for a short time. The food was okay (I don't think they really know how to BBQ) and well suited for me (In comparison the lunches on board were too fancy). I had a hot dog with all the extras and greatly enjoyed it. The swimming looked good also, but I don't think the snorkeling was good at the beach location.

 

LOL, cocktails - I have no clue! We had only 2 drinks on board - we are not drinkers!!! That said, the Tropical Bar on the Main Deck was THE social gathering place on board. The bar there was also serving drinks and people had a great time there. It was covered, so you (usually) did not get rained on and when the wind was up, they'd put up a side canvas wall to block it. I think they had 3 bartenders and I suspect they are all very good. From my limited experience I'd say the drink prices are quite reasonable.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Thank you.on our previous trip we had a bbq at Antigua and it was a bit hit and miss. My husband did the sailing excursion and by the time they finished,nearly all the food had gone. We also fill bottles with tap water.!

I had forgotten a few of these things from our last trip.

Again,thank you.

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Glad you had a good time.Some friends of ours had a bad time in November on Royal clipper. It was sailing from Martinique to start the Caribbean itineraries.The weather was poor too, which didn't help.So you have returned my faith in the ship.

 

Why did your friends have a bad time? We're thinking of booking another Star Clippers cruise, so it'd be good to know what was wrong.

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