luv_crusing

51 minutes ago, olemissreb said:

Thank you @luv_crusing. This sounds great. How long was the excursion? Did I read correctly that you booked this thru the cruiseline? If so, which cruiseline? Still thinking this could be fun for my boyfriend and I.

This was booked on Royal Caribbean Shore Excursion Desk while on the ship.. The excursion was from 9am to about 2pm.. Around 5 hours total.. 

Just a quick feedback on the Segway Tour..

We ended up booking the Segway tour at the last minute since the tour we originally booked for Marigot Bay was cancelled..

After getting off the ship, you need to fill in and sign a disclaimer with the usual conditions that you accept the risk, etc... After that, you get on a small tour bus and get taken to the office of the tour company where the Segway tour starts.. Bus ride was about 20 minutes or so.. The tour group was pretty small at around 15 people..

The Segways provided are the X2 off-road versions with big knobbly tires instead of the normal ones you find in the cities.. They ride exactly the same, so you should get used to them quickly..

The off-road trail is about 2 miles long, from the office up to the top of a hill, then back down the trail and ends back at the office..  It took about an hour to do the Segway route, including stops for scenery and photos.. We feel that the Segway portion of the tour was a bit short, but it was still fun.. There were 3 guides making sure everyone was safe, so that was quite well done..

After the Segway tour, we were put back on the bus and taken on a tour of the nice part of Reduit Bay, with frequent stops by the guide to pick up various leaves, herbs and grasses from the side of the road for us to smell and telling us about the healing properties of each herb/leaves/grasses.. That took about 30 minutes or so, then the bus brought us to Reduit Beach..

At the beach, we had the option of using the yacht club indoors for free or to rent sun loungers with umbrella for US$20 for two people.. Reduit Beach was pretty crowded with sun loungers placed side by side on pretty much the entire beach.. You could order drinks and food from the restaurants that are on the beach.. Prices are pretty much tourist typical over priced, e.g. US$5 for a fresh coconut, US$15 for fresh coconut with rum, etc.. We were given 2 hours to spend on the beach before being taken back to the ship..

In summary, this tour cost us US$119 per person, bought on the cruise last minute, which I feel is on the high side for what you get, but it does include a fun ride on a Segway, so it is still a pretty unique tour..

13 minutes ago, Frogger22 said:

Did you end up doing this excursion? we are looking for feedback too!

No... We haven't gone on our cruise yet, but in any case, we've booked to go to Marigot Bay for St. Lucia instead...

After reading this post, we are kind of worried since we will also be on the Grandeur at the end of next month for a 10 night cruise..

While booking, we were well aware of the age of this ship, but we've been on quite a few RC ships, and they were all very well maintained. But then again, we have not cruised since 2015, so things may have changed quite a bit since Covid...

In any case, keep and open mind, and we are looking forward to your reading your feedback...

Found this on Etsy.. It's a 18k rose gold set with necklace, bracelet and earrings..

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1018605906/new-18k-rose-gold-filled-antique-style

Has anyone done the Four Seasons Day Pass on Nevis? It's US$75 per person now on resort pass... 

Should be possible if chartering a water taxi... XC$380 return... 

5 hours ago, olemissreb said:

This sounds like a lot of fun...except my sister is accident prone, so the Segway part may be a risk - heck she can do something else while my boyfriend and I maybe do this! 

 

I'm going to follow along and hope to see other responses soon.

Segways are unbelievably fun... We did an 8 hour Segway tour in Rome to see the ancient city earlier in the year... That was absolutely fantastic because most of the historic sites in Rome are walking tours, and we rode our Segways slowly within the crowds to see the sights, then quickly between the sites... It was expensive, but well worth the cost to see everything within a day..

13 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

I was able to read the article so it wasn't paywalled.  Interesting.  Hong Kong is one of my favorite cities.  I wish I could have flown into Kai Tak before it closed.  Sounds like it was quite an adventure.

Landing at Kai Tak airport was certainly exciting.. I'd always choose a window seat on the right side of the plane so I could look through the windows in the buildings next to the runway... The buildings seem so close that you could almost reach out and touch them...  

That last minute almost 90 degree right turn of the plane to line up with the runway just before touch down always had my heart pumping...  

In contrast, landing at Chek Lap Kok airport is very boring, but the nice big terminals make up for it.. Kai Tak airport was very old and worn down by the time they de-commissioned it... 

1 hour ago, bonsai3s said:

A few tips for those who choose to DIY:

 

* The gangway down to the Kai Tak cruise terminal is long. The cruise terminal is also large...part of the old Kai Tak airport. Just wanted to warn those with mobility issues.

 

* There's a currency exchange at the terminal...one window, one lady. Imagine the thousands of passengers wanting to exchange currency.

 

* There were queues for taxis and buses. The last time we were in Hong Kong, there was a free shuttle to the nearest MTR station...not this time.

 

* After a long queue, we took Bus 22R directly to the Kai Tak MTR station. Cost: 7.70 Hong Kong Dollar per person one way. Took about 10 minutes.

Note: The bus driver will not give you change...having the exact amount, (or close to it) is good.

 

* Once you are at the MTR station, you will have access to many of the sights in Hong Kong...it's all up to you how far or how close you want to go.

 

* Having visited HK a few times, all we wanted to do was go to the Tsim Sha Tsui area...walk along the ocean promenade (yes, even in the searing heat and humidity), shop inside the massive Harbour City Mall (wife's choice), and visit the statue of Bruce Lee (my choice 😅), located near the Avenue of Stars. MTR cost: 11.50 HKD roundtrip...that may include a senior discount, not sure.

 

* It was easy getting back to the Kai Tak MTR station...getting back to the nearby Kai Tak cruise terminal was an adventure.

 

We were informed to take Bus 22M (not the 22R in the morning) from the MTR station back to the cruise terminal. About 30 of us cruise passengers got on Bus 22M...we got suspicious because the bus was heading towards Kowloon...the opposite direction...oh my.

 

Just to confirm, the bus driver said "Yes, I'm going to the Kai Tak cruise terminal"...what we didn't know was the bus route included a loop around Kowloon. Our 10 minute ride turned into a 40 minute tour. 

 

* Bus 22M cost: 5.90 HKD (with the loop)...5.30 HKD directly back to the cruise terminal. Felt pretty stupid taking the CORRECT bus, but the WRONG route. 😁

 

* 

 

 

Yes... Transport from the Cruise terminal at Kai Tak is pretty bad at present... There hasn't been a cruise ship in Hong Kong for over 18 months... This stop by Spectrum is the first cruise to stop in Hong Kong since the cruise ship suspension.. 

Spectrum actually made the news on the SCMP... Read it here.  (maybe paywalled)

3 minutes ago, aussierangers said:

Would love to know if you can see the light show from the cruise terminal.  Looking forward to hearing about the overnight visit - its the main reason we chose RC for this cruise.

Kai Tak Cruise Terminal is quite a distance from Victoria Harbour where the nightly light show is shown... You can just about see the buildings on Victoria Harbour from the cruise terminal, but I doubt  very much you will be able to see the lights at all.. 

1 hour ago, bonsai3s said:

Sailing into Hong Kong this morning, Day 5...docking at 11am.

 

 

Welcome to Hong Kong!

That's what I intend to do.. At least if it's a name brand, I'll have more options to resolve any problems that may come up...

We are thinking of renting a car for the day to explore Antigua by ourselves instead of taking a tour.  

Has anyone else done this?  Where did you rent from?

Thanks for the replies and clarification... We will probably just go ahead and purchase individual meals at the specialty restaurant instead... The price difference isn't significant for 3 dinners....  We are not buying the Unlimited Dining Package since we want to avoid having to stuff ourselves everyday to justify the price of the UDP...