shaneandpamela

Look at Advancecheckin dot com.  We've used them a number of times to move our luggage from the cruise ship terminal to the airport while we spend the day in NOLA.  Just get to the airport in time to pick up your luggage and check it with the airline prior to your flight.

Money Bar.
Closer to the dock.
Great food and drinks.
Snorkeling is pretty good right off their little pier.

To get any quality time at all at JVD, you are going to need to book a private charter that can meet you as soon as you get off of the boat in St. Thomas.  You are going to have to pass customs both ways (into BVI and then back into USVI) and this can take a lot of time.  Also, leaving the BVI now will cost you some good $$$ too on their "departure tax."

Restaurants:

Ruby Slipper or Toast for breakfast
The Joint (in Bywater) for lunch - best BBQ I've ever had.

GW Fins (French Quarter) or Adolfo's (Frenchman Street) for a spectacular dinner.  You will need reservations.
Domenica has a great happy hour - bar and real pizzas

Bars:
Erin Rose - frozen Irish coffee - need I say more?
Carousel Bar in Hotel Monteleone - do whatever it takes to get a set AT THE BAR

Beignets:

Cafe du Monde for the ambience and experience

Cafe Beignet for better beignets

 

14 hours ago, JohninDC said:

We also like Money Bar, but not sure it is a good suggestion for two kids ages 6 & 7.

I see kids there all the time.  Not sure what would keep them from not having fun there.  Enough sandy area away from the main restuarant to play in.  If the kids are swimmers, the pier is fun...  But you do you.

Look at Money Bar.  It has become our go-to for spending time on the water.   Great snorkeling from the pier (rocky beach) with great food and drinks.

Playa Palancar is our favorite sandy beach.  It's a haul out there.  Food and drinks were good.  

Casa Denis or La Choza.  Can't go wrong with either.
If you are adventurous, grab a cab and ask to go to Asadero El Billy.  It's a little local outdoor Mexican barbecue joint up in town.

Sunset dinner on the patio at Buccanos. You will probably need reservations.  Ate there twice on our 10 day trip down in 2018.

We were just in NOLA Dec 26-29 prior to a week on the Glory.  Beignets are fine if you want donuts.  If you want maybe the best breakfast you've ever had, go to one of the Ruby Slipper locations.  We ate there the morning of Dec 27 and it was so good we went back Dec 28.  I know there are a couple of locations within walking distance (15-20 minutes) of the Carnival port.

Just got off of the Glory 1/5/20.  We did not buy Cheers.  Our total bar bill for two adults including both alcoholic drinks and coffee shop drinks was $425.90.  We are not "big" drinkers but on ship will grab a drink whenever we feel like it.  We always seem to start the cruise with a drink in our hands thinking "We should have bought Cheers," but by day 5 or 6, we may only have one or two a day.  In 13 cruises we've never come close to the break even for buying Cheers.

Just got off of the Carnival Glory on January 5, 2020.  We were looking for something to do in GC other than just go out to Royal Palms and bake :).  I was cruising these forums and saw a thread asking about jet ski tours in GC.  In that thread, someone mentioned they had previously used Grand Cayman Cruise Excursions (https://grandcaymancruiseexcursions.com/) for their jet ski tour.  Their website says they specialize in small groups, and we were only a week away from the cruise, so I was worried we would not be able to get a couple of spots.   I reached out and we were able to book with them for a 9am local excursion time.  The process of getting reservations was painless.  We had a couple of SeaDoos back in the day so we were really looking forward to this.

What we paid: $110 US each as single riders on two jet skis (two riders on one jet ski is $75 per rider)

What we got:  Maybe the best cruise excursion experience we've had in our 13 cruises

Email directions led us to walk over to Captain Marvin's Watersports just next to the big Diamond's International to meet our tour guide and tour group and transfer to the excursion starting point.  Turns out our tour group was a group of TWO 🙂 which was amazing.  We took a quick van ride out to the Yacht Club north and east of 7 Mile Beach.  Met up with our actual tour guide Garth at the marina and took off slowly looking around the marina and homes there, and then sped off to "Stingray City" across the bay.  The jet skis were in great shape and the two seater ski that I rode was faster than my old GSX ever was - wow.  We stopped at Stingray City for about 30 minutes.  Our guide had a bag of squid that he used to bring the rays up.  In all the times we had been to GC we've never been out here so this was a real treat.

From Stingray City we "played" our way over to a really great snorkeling area.  By "played" I mean we played on the skis.  Spins, dunks, jumps, pretty much everything we used to do with our old skis.  Garth was really easy on letting us ride since he knew we had a lot of experience on them.  The snorkel was great.  Again, the bag of squid helped out, pulling in hundreds of fish and rays.  We snorkeled for about 30 minutes and then played our way back to the marina.

Total time of the excursion was just under three hours, with two hours of riding.  You cannot get that much saddle time anywhere else for that little bit of money.  If this had just been a jet ski ride I would still be a fan.  The stops made this experience over the top.  After the excursion, we had the option to return back to town and the ships, or be dropped off anywhere along 7 Mile.

Give these guys a chance if you have a small group looking for a great jet ski excursion.  We will be using them again.

Wife and I have been in NOLA since Thursday Dec 26.  Go eat at The Pelican Club and GW Finns if at all possible when you are in town.

Left the Canal Marriott at 1045am this morning.  Port at 1055am.  On the ship at 1105am (we are Platinum but Diamond, Plat, and FTTF had already boarded when we got to the terminal) .  Passing out all the champagne you care to drink.

We did get moved to anytime.  Fine with us.  We usually only eat in the MDR a couple times a week.

Have heard from two different staffers that a short stop in Freeport is in the near future.  Both said 3 days, but they haven't been told which week it will happen yet.  If I didnt know about the collision i wouldn't know anything at all was wrong.

HNY everyone.

5 minutes ago, topofE said:

This post is stressing me out with all the experts who KNOW that it will be cancelled and then the experts who KNOW that it will keep sailing.  

There is one guy in this thread whose comments I take seriously - @chengkp75 - and his comments so far have been directly on point.  The rest are noise.  Choose not to be stressed.  

My son-in-law texted me with the first twitter video a few minutes after the collision happened asking "Isn't the Glory the ship you are on for NYE?"  Yes, Duck, we are on the Glory for NYE.

I want/need a vacation, so I went ahead and found a room in NOLA for the duration just in case.  I can cancel the reservervation up to 12/29 with no penalty, so I have a backup.  Yes, it is a VERY expensive backup plan, but we love NOLA so spending a few extra days there won't hurt us much.

You have time to put together a pretty good Plan B.  Put it together, and be ready to pull the plug on it just before you get on the boat 🙂

On 8/20/2019 at 4:09 PM, CaptainR said:

I have twice used Island Marketing to book a jet ski excursion to stingray city and both times it was looks of fun and well run.  As it is a small group your tour guide gives a great experience at stingray city.  Here is link to their website for Grand Cayman:

 

https://grandcaymancruiseexcursions.com/

 

It was a short walk to the transportation pickup point from the cruise terminal.  The excursion departs from a hotel and at the hotel they have a place to leave items such as towels or other clothing.  The beach where you mount the jet ski is rather rocky so be sure to wear a pair of sandals or water shoes which you can take off and put in one of the storage compartments.  Also bring some money to buy a drink at Rum Point where you stop for an hour or so.

 

One recommendation is to book individual jet skis instead of booking double riders.  Yes, it is more expensive but riding single provides a better overall experience.

 

And I thought you did put your post in the port forum.

 

Thanks for sharing this.  Was just cruising thru the forums, saw this, and booked it for Jan 2. 

3 hours ago, Ellaleah said:

Who would want to go on this ship before it is seriously worked over and made whole?  

Me.  In 7 days.  I can do without 300+ square feet on two different levels and still have a wonderful cruise.  We only eat in the MDR maybe three nights a cruise anyway...

7.  On the Glory for NYE.  Just watched that slow motion collision and started making alternate plans.  Looks like we are sailing tho 🙂. 

We booked a spa balcony on the Dream last year for New Year's Eve.  The only reason I'd ever do it again is for access to the Thalassotherapy pool in the spa.  Think of it as a GIANT hot tub, but clean and not over-crowded.  Other than that, I'd rather have a balcony on Lido a few doors away from all the fun.

2 minutes ago, bm6pm5 said:

Good luck with getting hotels. The Sugar Bowl will be there Jan 1.

Already booked.  Thanks tho.  Hotel Monteleone.  There are a lot of rooms.  Baylor doesn't travel very well.  Not sure about Georgia.

We are on the 29th sailing.  I just got off the phone with a Carnival PVP and she said that they are planning on sailing the schedule and fixing the damage on the fly.  I guess we'll get to NOLA next week and see what happens.  At least I'm stuck in NOLA "with nothing to do" if the sailing cancels.

Wife and I are booked on the NYE cruise on Glory.  I'm expecting a cancellation email sometime tomorrow.  We will probably grab a room if we can and extend our NOLA visit.

Check out the BagBnB app.  Will be using them in NOLA on Jan 5 to hold our luggage.  There is a location right in the southwest corner of the French Quarter that will hold luggage.  Spend the day roaming the area, then grab a cab/uber from the location back to the airport.

Money Bar has great snorkeling off of their pier and a small beach area.  Great food and drinks.  They may draw a small crowd, but it's our favorite place to hang out for a few hours when in Cozumel.

Playa Palancar has a great beach but no snorkeling unless you jump in one of the little runners that take folks out to the reef.  Not sure of the cost.  Food was great there last year.   Be careful here - you don't want to pay for the Maya Palancar VIP right next to Playa Palancar.  Entry to Playa Palancar is free.

2 hours ago, blue_water said:

Great advice! Trunk is the most touted STJ beach with amenities and so the most visited. Trunk is a very nice beach, and we take day trips to STJ to experience the beauty of the North Shore. But there are several beautiful beaches, and we avoid Trunk because it is the most visited and developed. But a day on STJ with a tour of the north shore, a few hours on one of the less crowded beaches like Hawksnest or even Honeymoon, and lunch in Cruz is a very nice day...

 

Question to frequent visitors or residents -

Pre-Irma there was an outfit (or perhaps it was the Caneel Bay Resort?) that rented beach chairs and I think picnics for folks who went to Honeymoon Beach. Anyone know if that is still an option? Another nice beach for a few hours...

 

Having 12 hours in port is a real luxury and opens up so many more opportunities that a typical day visitor won’t have...

I believe there is a small shack at Honeymoon that has some rentals and snacks.  Not sure what the current situation is to get to Honeymoon from Caneel.  We always hike from the National Parks building in Cruz Bay to Salomon Beach and then swim around the point if we want to go to Honeymoon.  Salomon is/was our favorite spot on the island.  Always took my hammock to hang between the palms.  Sadly, Irma/Maria took them, along with most of the sand.  I think the beach has recovered, but the palms...  We haven't been back since 2016, but are planning on spending at least a month on island in 2021.

Don't lock yourself into Trunk Bay if you have 12 hours and are going over to STJ.  Our personal favorite along the north shore is Hawksnest, which is actually closer to Cruz Bay than Trunk.  If you are a swimmer, swim east (left) around the point and you will be on Oppenheimer/Gibney beach - one of the most beautiful and secluded beaches on the island.  Photo is Hawksnest.

Walk around in Cozumel.  Much to see in town.  Beach on GC.  We always go to Royal Palms.