lauraodonnell86

Are you looking to Kayak in the ocean (open water) or in the mangroves? I believe Bonaire has some cool mangrove kayaking. As far as the other island, I'm sure you can just rent a kayak at many of the beaches and head out into the water. I've been to all of these islands except Antigua, and while you can kayak anyplace in the ocean, are you looking for something "special" to see?

I think we just decided to kayak in St. Maarten to Pinel Island! Thanks for your response!

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Breakng news.....both the blue and yellow slides were operating this afternoon.,

Thanks for the update skiiergirl!! Hope you are having an awesome cruise!! 36 days left for me! :D:D

The ship is fine! No...it isn't new and sparkling like the newer ships! Yes, the revitalization was not able to be completed due to the hurricane. Most of the cargo containers did not make it to the shipyard in time for completion. Some of the materials that were there already were damaged and not usable. The marine repairs/upgrades were completed. Some areas did get new carpet, reupholstered chairs/paint, new lighting, etc. Most of the items that did not get completed are cosmetic or revenue generating. Some of the best/most efficient/friendliest crew/staff in the fleet. Excellent itineraries. Yes...you will see worn carpet, stained sofas, a few areas that need paint touch up...so if you want a sparkling new ship then it is not for you....if you want a comfortable ship, great service, nice itinerary and can handle the "usual wear and tear of a hotel" (floating or land-based) then you will have a great time.

I love your positive attitude!! I get so frustrated with people who are so negative about everything. We've always had amazing service, food, and experiences on the Adventure of the Seas and can't wait to to be back in January, refurbished or not!

Hello fellow CC friends:

I have done quite a bit of research and haven't been able to find an answer so thought I would post a new question. We are headed to the following islands in January: St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia, Barbados, Bonaire, Aruba, and Curacao.

I would love to find the BEST place to kayak. We've never done it before but both have a desire to. We booked one last year and it got canceled because of rough seas in St. Lucia. Does anyone have any great experiences or ideas for us?

While I'm on here....we've never been the ABC islands. Any AWESOME beaches that we shouldn't miss? We love just relaxing on the beach and drinking a couple beers throughout the day. Preferably not too far from the port since we take taxis.

Give me your best ideas!!!! Thanks so much CC!! :D

Our anniversary is in January too! I was just nervous about getting to the port from the airport. What are the options for that? I am currently looking for a cruise in January and I cannot choose! Soooooo many options! I think I am going to pick RCCL. My girlfriend is only 20, will she be able to go to the clubs/dancing halls with me? What are some excursions you recommend? What are your favorite islands? Do you recommend any of the itineraries RCCL has offered for January ?

The cab ride from the airport is about 20 mins depending on traffic. We always go in a day early and stay at a hotel because we don't want to take the chance of missing the ship! You can also book a transfer through RCCL and they will take care of you coming in and leaving as well.

The Viking Crown Lounge is used as a dance club at night. I have never been "carded" to get in. The only over 21 place that I know of is Jesters which is going away with the current refurbishment.

There are so many great excursions to do! I think our #1 was in St. Lucia called the Treetop Adventure Park. It was ziplining and it was a BLAST! We also love doing the St. Maarten Beach Bum Combo (http://www.shoreecursioneer.com) and hitting 2 amazing beaches for a really great price. We love all of the islands really but I think Barbados and St. Maarten are our favorites. We also love to snorkel at all of the islands. They all have wonderful areas for that and Royal offers many excursions on their site. You can also go through Viator or the link that I put above for cheaper excursions.

Yes, I would totally recommend all of the itineraries for January! As you can see in my signature, we are going on 2 in January with Royal. We've never visited the ABC islands so we are excited to see those on our 2nd week! Hope this helps you out a little bit! I promise you wont be disappointed! :)

Just FYI, there is the Adventure and the Jewel going out of San Juan in January. Both are wonderful ships. Adventure is a little bigger and Jewel is a little more cozy but still huge! Can't go wrong, just depends on preference.

Hey guys and welcome to cruising! One you start, you'll never turn back!! We leave from San Juan because you can hit 6 different islands on a 7 night cruise!! We love getting off the ship every day and going to a beautiful beach. We cruise every January (our anniversary) and it's always right around 90 degrees. Perfect weather to escape the cooollllld Missouri winters! Our favorite ship is Adventure of the Seas but all of them are amazing! We are about your age and Royal Caribbean is perfect. Great entertainment and lots of other couples the same age. You will NOT be sorry if you leave from San Juan. It's the Southern route and it's gorgeous. Let me know if you have any other questions. I'm not a pro but this January will be our 7th and 8th (Back to Back) cruise out of San Juan! :D

Such a great review! We love AOS and are looking forward to another B2B on her in January for our anniversary! :) Enjoy your 2nd week!

Yes I'm 100% about it!!! We've done it SEVERAL times and it's been amazing every time! We normally don't do much outside of the ship tours because we're worried about stuff but this is awesome!

Oh goodness you are cracking me up!! Loving this review, your writing style and pics!! I was cracking up about what you said regarding Jesters. Totally agree with you. We LOVE Adventure though and will continue to sail her until (if) she leaves San Juan.

Following along!! :D

https://www.shoreexcursioneer.com/st-maarten/beach-bum-orient-maho.html

We have done this excursion twice and it is the BEST. You really can't beat the price. And drinks are included during the ride from the cruise port to the beaches. Like someone else said, Maho isn't the best beach to relax on but it's a once in a lifetime experience and with this excursion, you get to visit Orient Beach as well which is AMAZING!! You get about 2 hours at each beach. Amigo tours runs it. They are the best and they give you commentary the whole time while driving. Let me know if you have any questions!

Following along! I love all things Adventure!!

Just saw your comment on the Adventure of the Seas cruise review and had to check this out. What a great review this was!! We go out of San Juan most of the time (as you can see in my previous cruises) and absolutely love it!! The excitement that you shared in this review is exactly what I feel every year! Makes me happy to read other people feel this way! You should try Adventure of the Seas sometime! We have been on Celebrity once and loved it too! Hope you have another cruise booked to look forward too! :):)

Following along! I love everything Adventure of the Seas!

Great Review!

I was wondering about the ice show. Did you go to the ice show? And do you know if you can get tickets before you board? Thanks!

Was on this cruise in January and they do not issue tickets on AOS for the ice show. But arrive early because the good seats get filled quick. It is a fantastic show! We were on a B2B and went both weeks even though it was the same show! Hope this helps you out!

I haven't been on Harmony but we LOVE Adventure of the Seas!! I think it'll be even more marvelous after the dry dock!! You really can't beat the itinerary going out of San Juan. As you can see on my previous cruises, we love going out of San Juan and on AOS!! Spent more time with the kids on the islands and less time on a ship! Good luck whatever you decide!

I'm so excited for you guys!!!! You will have SUCH a great time!! Just did our first B2B in this past January on AOS and it was the most amazing vacation ever!!! We've decided to do it again next January! We love Adventure of the Seas and you will too. Can't wait to hear about your experiences and how you liked it!! Have a GREAT time!!!!! :D:)

Thank you so much for doing this!! I woke up every day excited to see your updates! You did a great job and I think all of us 30,000 viewers should pitch in a dollar for ya to take a few more cruises! You'd have to do reviews of course! What does everyone think?? ;);)

You're awesome! :)

Great review so far!!!! So detailed and I LOVE it!! We were on a B2B on Adventure in January with the same itineraries as you! We booked another B2B for January 2017 while aboard :D It will be our 5th/6th cruises on Adventure! We love the ship and all of the ports! Keep up the good work! You've had me laughing already! I really wanted to do a review but never got around to it! I feel like I'm back on the ship (2nd home) while reading yours!

My daughter will be 13 when we sail in August. She's not into video games so other than that, does anyone have any experience with this age group on Enchantment? Did your kids like it?

We took our 13 and 17 year old kids on Enchantment this past May. Our 13 year old son loved going to the teen area and spent most of the cruise there while we were on board! He had a great time! Our 17 year old was "too cool" for that kind of thing, lol, so she stayed with us most of the time. Hope this helps! Enchantment is a beautiful ship and we loved our cruise to the Bahamas!

265!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

Hi all - We are headed off to the Eastern Caribbean aboard the Allure in a couple months. Anyone have beach suggestions for St. Kitts? We are traveling with little kids, so safe and clean is important. Also need to know transportation options, distance, and cost. Many thanks!

We were in St. Kitts in January and weren't really sure what to do. We decided to take a taxi to a beach and originally got dropped off at South Friars Bay at Shipwreck Beach. There were signs everywhere to be careful of sea urchins and the beach was very small and not very pleasant. We decided to walk down and see what we could find and came across Carambola Beach Resort and it was AMAZING!!!! We decided to grab our things and go down there. They don't pressure you to buy a chair if you don't want and the water is clear and beautiful! No sea urchins! I think the taxi was about $12 each way for 2 people but I can't quite remember. Here is the link for Carambola http://www.carambolabeachclub.com/ We will be going back there next January! Enjoy!

Spontaneously booked this evening on Brilliance of the Seas for 10 people (5 cabins).

 

I am not new to cruising but after sailing on the same line so long, you get used to things you like and I am sorta compiling a list of what is available.

 

I am pretty internet savvy but I have to say, the RC website needs major help in my opinion. It is not easy to navigate or find the info I need as a newbie to their brand.

 

So with that said - I just had a few questions that maybe you can help with.

 

1) Pool Towels - Does RC leave them in their cabin so you have them for port days? Or do I have to go check them out ahead of time? I don't plan on bringing my own

2) Is there is a grill by the pool for Burgers and casual food?

3) Is there a Ben and Jerry's onboard? I see info on google images but not on RC's website

4) Is there Bingo on board? I have a mom and grandmother who enjoy it!

5) Is there live music daily outside at the pool? Is it mostly all day? Love this if so!!

6) Is there a link online anywhere for cocktail prices?

7) Does the English Pub serve food or just drinks? Was curious if there was fish n chips or nibbles in there?

 

I think that's it for now! Thanks in advance! I adore the planning part of the trip. Helps the clock tick by.

I will answer what I know for sure! I'm sure others will help you out where I cannot.

1. You do not need to bring your own towels. You can check them out at the pool to take ashore with you and most of the time, they have a towel station as you are walking off the ship or actually on the platform walking off the ship. It's very convenient.

2. I'm not sure on this one, depends on the ship and I haven't been on Brilliance.

3. There is one for sure on Adventure of the Seas but I'm not sure about BOS.

4. There was Bingo on our last cruise and everyone seemed to really enjoy it!

5. On days at sea and in the late afternoon, there is a caribbean band playing music and then dance music. Especially around sail away time!

6. Not sure about a link to the prices but from what I've seen, they range from $8-$14 depending on what you get.

7. We LOVE the English Pub (Duck and Dog). They do not have any food though, just drinks. Wish they did because that would be awesome!

I hope you have a great time on your first RC cruise! We love Royal!

Great review! We were on this cruise in January and loved it! Book another 2 of them for Jan 2017!

Our sailing is a ways off, but I am quite an OCD planner, so I am thinking of things already. Never did a sailing that wasn't CONUS, so I am wondering....

 

1. We'll be coming into San Juan the day before. Where is the best place to stay? I know everyone has there favs, so there is no bad answer. For our group of 6, we would likely prefer first, the best location for getting to the pier. Second would be convenience for a touring day.

 

2. The ship leaves port later than we are used to...830PM. When is the best time to board? Does it make sense to do any tourist things on the day of sailing, or better to get to the ship at the earliest possible time?

 

3. If you had one tourist thing to do in San Juan (and have never been there before) what would you do? We'll have most of the day before sailing available.

 

4. If you have ever done the AOTS Southern Caribbean itinerary before....What are your one or two must do excursions/activities? In St. Maarten, I kind of want to go to the beach at the end of the airport runway. That looks cool.

 

Our group last sailed n Adventures sister ship, Navigator, so we are very familiar with the ship. We all have balcony rooms next to each other n Deck 7. We are also hoping that the November drydock for Adventure is awesome.

 

In advance, I thank all of you for inputs. I love this site for planning and reviews.

ABSOLUTE BEST excursion that you can do in St. Maarten: https://www.shoreexcursioneer.com/st-maarten/beach-bum-orient-maho.html

We've done it 3 times and have been MORE than blown away (literally at Maho) each time!! We love Orient and decided we wanted to see Maho a few years ago and chose this. The drinks are unlimited and included in the price. You get about 2 hours on each beach which is plenty of time and the drive is beautiful.

As far as San Juan goes, we did the Old/New San Juan excursion a few years ago and it was really great. This last January we stayed at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Casino and it was VERY nice. There were several restaurants in the hotel and they have a food and drink reception each night for free. The walk to the beach is only about 3-5 mins and the beach is GREAT! It is right by the airport and about 20 mins from the pier. Taxis are very expensive in San Juan so be prepared for that.

We will be going on Adventure for the 5th (and 6th) time January 2017 on a back to back southern Caribbean cruise! I hope this is helpful info and if there are any Adventure specific questions, I can try to answer them and if I cant, I know Bob can! :D