ransrider

16 hours ago, burlybear said:

Hi All,

We are heading to Aruba in April on Freedom of the Seas and have a relatively long day in port from 8am to 10 pm. I was looking into booking a UTV tour (for the husband and I) and have it narrowed down to either the Around Aruba company or ABC Tours, though reading on these boards some people seem to recommend renting a UTV and going at it on our own with maps (I am so paranoid about getting lost or stuck somewhere with the UTV though). Has anyone used either of these companies or have any suggestions?

 

Thanks in advance for your help!!

 

We have been to Aruba twice now while cruising. The first time we toured with Aruba Trikes and it was awesome. The second time with ABC Tours Jeeps, also great. I don't remember seeing many doing the off-roading on their own. If you are very adventurous, you probably could do it but we prefered to let those that know the island best do the driving. No matter what you do, you will love Aruba. Good luck!

On 12/8/2019 at 1:15 PM, GMoney said:

You'll dock at Crown Bay. It's a 3 mile walk to the Skyride.

Looks to me like Celebrity docks at Havensight.

13 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

Anyone know which of the Carlisle Bay beach clubs Norwegian Cruise Line currently uses for its 'Barbados Beach Break' excursion?

 

Thanks,

 

Hi OrcaGirl. We were just at Carlisle Bay with Celebrity. We walked from port to the bay, about 15-20 minutes. Picked Joe's Bar which was a set of about 12 like green umbrellas. They charged $20 for 2 chairs and umbrella. Very nice. The beach areas you get through the ship excursions usually pack you in many deep. Also check the Boatyard, a very popular choice here on CC. Good luck. 

I have been to Aruba twice and both times taken a tour. You won't see much of Aruba if you don't take a tour. Get into the hills where all the beautiful sights are. There are many good tours to choose from. We did Aruba Trikes one year and ABC Tours just a few weeks ago. Both were excellent. We are both 60 years old. Have fun! 

3 minutes ago, jdechter said:

Is there construction going on at this hotel?

Yes, there is. I think all but the tower rooms are being renovated. 

13 hours ago, voljeep said:

OK, stayed at Hilton Marina on 12/3 for that night only

 

Had High Tower - Balcony Water View - room 1126 … view was looking over the cruise port (saw our ship SKY Princess come into the port on Wednesday 12/4 at around 6:00 am … way cool

 

also view was of the draw bridge , water taxi stand 

 

additionally, this view was also looking down at a construction staging area where they kept construction materials and dumpsters for the ongoing renovation ...

 

our room was totally renovated and very nice indeed

 

second time in a tower room - last May room 926 - decided next time we might try a high tower Marina view corner room if available … but the corner rooms "may" have 2 doubles and not a King, which we prefer

 

did NOT do any bars or restaurants at the Hilton

 

Questions ?

 

 

QQ

 

Does a High Tower-Balcony Water View translate to an Intercoastal Balcony?

14 hours ago, Horizon2021 said:

Hi, if you've been to Bonaire, especially more than once, what are your favorite excursions/tours you've embarked upon? 

Any really great tours of the entire island? Thank you!

Bonaire Cruisers golf cart rental will be my choice for a second visit to Bonaire in January. They're the best. Good luck and have a great cruise. 

2 minutes ago, music said:

I am booked at the Hilton, my reservations says Marina, I guess I'm not sure what or where the room is. Should I call to request a specific room? The reservation isn't till March

Sounds like the only rooms available during the renovation are the tower rooms so you should be fine. Enjoy your trip!

I do have an Intercoastal room and called to ask about the view. I was told I would have a view of the cruise ships. You either have a view of the pool or of the cruise ships in the towers is what I was told. This can be so confusing!

13 minutes ago, gfkcruiser said:

We check in on Nov 30 for one night.  Will report back after our stay.

That would be great. Have a safe trip. 

28 minutes ago, Djsmrs said:

I've got this hotel booked for a night next month before our cruise - and have been very nervous after reading all the negative reviews.  So I called to see if I could confirm a tower room and the agent told me they will be closing the non tower rooms for renovations and we will be in a tower room.  Seems like they've heard the feedback and are actively working to upgrade the older non-tower rooms.

Phew!  Fingers crossed..

Please keep us posted here. I have a tower room booked for May 2020. 

On 11/19/2019 at 7:15 PM, WallyNDiane said:

We are sailing out of Ft Lauderdale on Super Bowl Sunday on Princess. We couldn't get reasonable Hotel and air to come in early for the cruise. So we are flying in the day of the cruise.

 

Assuming no air delays, we are scheduled to land at 11:30 am and our ship leaves at 4 pm. There are 4 of us cruising and we had planned to catch a taxi from the airport to the Princess dock, I have flown into Lauderdale on two previous cruises but we took the ship transfer as the ship was departing from Miami.

 

So, what is the lowest cost way to get 4 people from the Ft Lauderdale airport to the Fort Lauderdale Princess cruise terminal?

 

What time would you estimate for the can ride to the terminal?

 

Lastly, if our flight is delayed and we need to get to the cruise port ASAP, is a taxi still the best way to get us there.

 

We always go in early on cruises to avoid a mad dash to the ship, but the Miami Super Bowl prohibited us from doing that.

 

Thanks all.

Hi WallyNDiane,

We noticed the same problem with inflated flight and hotel prices for our Embarkation of Jan 31 on Celebrity Reflection. We decided to fly into Orlando the day before, rent a car and drive to Melbourne, FL for a night stay at the Hampton Inn (HH members with points for a free night) and then drive on to FLL the next morning, return car and get onboard. We will then fly out of FLL on Monday, Feb 10, long after the SB frenzy is over. This way was much cheaper than a round-trip flight for us. Good luck and enjoy your cruise!

If you would like to see a wonderful Vlog on YouTube regarding Go Port Canaveral, check out Cruise Tips TV. Sherry recently did a review of the program. Not sure the cost but am sure you can goggle that information. Good luck and have a great cruise.

2 hours ago, ryndam said:

Hilton Ft. Lauderdale Marina

 

Stay November 15-17, 2019

 

Room: King Corner Suite 1101

 

 

 

General Observations:

 

· Tower rooms are substantially renovated. Upper floors substantially complete. Work continues on lower floors.

 

· East villa rooms (3000-series room numbers) are completely closed and under renovation.

 

· West villa rooms (2000-series room numbers) are partially closed and under renovation.

 

· Lobbies and public areas are renovated.

 

· Tower elevators are renovated.

 

· Restaurant is a work-in-progress.

 

 

 

Pro’s:

 

· Location, location, location. Walking distance to retail, restaurants, shops.

 

· Pool area is very attractive. (Unfortunately, the weather this weekend did not cooperate to use the pool.)

 

· Renovated tower rooms are done very nicely. Very comfortable beds, great A/C, lots of hot water, really nice rain shower. Corridors very tastefully renovated.

 

· Two huge flat screen TV’s in the corner suites.

 

· Staff are incredible. Everyone was so personable, friendly, hospitable. They have all been trained very well in the fine art of hospitality.

 

· This property does not add a daily resort fee. Most beachfront properties on A1A add a daily resort fee.

 

 

 

Con’s:

 

· The renovations are still a work-in-progress. The property will be up to appropriate Hilton standards and expectations once renovations are completed. Until the East & West villa wings are completed, one should specifically request a renovated tower room.

 

· Room entry doors appear to be originals. There are noticeable gaps at the threshold. We had to use a towel to block out the corridor light streaming under the door.

 

· The new draperies are very attractive, but we have stayed in hotels where the drapes provide a true black-out. These black-out drapes do allow light penetration once the sun starts to rise.

 

· Acoustical soundproofing between rooms may be original. Fortunately, we had quiet neighbors during our stay. There was noticeably more audible sound transmission than we have experienced in newer properties.

 

 

 

Other Comments:

 

· The two huge flat screen TV’s would have been great. Unfortunately, neither TV worked during our stay. (Newly installed programming issues.) They tried. They did not succeed in correcting the problem.

 

· Our suite was missing furniture. No side chairs, no tables, no towel racks. I believe that we may have been the first guests to occupy this suite since the renovation.

 

· Hotel management was very accommodating to the situation and significantly adjusted our room rate and provided full breakfast for both days, as compensation for the incomplete fixtures in our room. We felt that we were adequately compensated for our inconvenience. We very much appreciated management’s pro-active resolution to our concerns.

 

· We would certainly stay at this property in the future, once all renovations are completed. For the next few months, we would only stay in the renovated tower rooms.

 

· Some photos of the tower corridor, lobby and the king corner suite are attached.

 

 

 

Rob

 

 

 

Hi Rob. Your post really puts me at ease. We have an Intercoastal balcony view double bed tower room booked for May 2020. I actually emailed the hotel staff that wrote comments to negative reviews on TripAdvisor. I asked him if we should be looking elsewhere. He did reply that they are working on improvements and he suggested we keep our reservation. Great photos!

7 minutes ago, JohninDC said:

Harbor Lights, Lobster Alive and Pirates Cove are all often suggested on this board. I have only been to the Boatyard.

Thanks. 

18 hours ago, JohninDC said:

Earlier is better for your best choice of lounge chairs. Arriving late and you may not get chairs together.  Lots of other beach clubs if Boatyard is full.

What others would you recommend? 

On 11/6/2019 at 12:08 PM, ryndam said:

We've reserved a tower corner suite and are staying there next weekend, 11/15-11/17. Will report back after our stay.

We also have an intercoastal tower room booked for Jan. Would be very interested in your review. 

Cruise Tips TV just did a review on a transportation service they recently used. Check it out on YouTube. Not sure of the cost but sure sounded stress-free. 

Am booked here for may 2020 in an intercoastal tower room. Location is great for cruising out of PE. 

Bonaire Cruisers is the company we go through to book a golf cart for the day. They are a wonderful company to work with and very organized. They do sell out as they are very popular. We are renting from them again in January 2020. Good luck.

55 minutes ago, atush said:

Yes there is a link to his page on page one here.  Click it and look at the other videos.

Thanks

I've only seen one video showing the cabin. Are there more that I am missing? 

We have this tour booked for January. Never been but has great reviews. 

We really liked Aruba Trikes when we were there in April. Recently booked ABC Jeep Tours for our upcoming January cruise but haven't any experience with them yet, just read good reviews. Good luck. 

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Don’t forget that only cruises into April and 1 or 2 in May of 2021 are available to book.  The next set of itineraries will be released starting in November 

Good point. I am only interested in April but guess more itineraries could be added.