Host Faith

First off..I just noticed this review today...Great review!!! (I know it's a little late) Lovely family! Your little one is sooo cute and in the picture of you holding him right in front of you on the beach..in Cozumel..he looks just like you!

Now for my question..I did not realize that C&A acknowledged a change in status while on a cruise..On our next Oasis cruise in August we will become Platinum too (only 1 point to go!) Should we be looking for a pin and notification too? Thanks for your help.

PS..I loved your dress in Cozumel..do you remember where you bought it? Thanks again!

 

Haha! Thank you so much! I didn't realize I would receive a Platinum pin either. From what I read, I thought it would come in the mail when I got home. I think you should expect to receive it after the cruise. That way, you'll be pleasantly surprised if they do give it to you when you're onboard.

 

Thank you! I love that dress. Got it a few years ago at Forever 21. I haven't seen anything like it since.

So, um...yeah. Today I booked the Liberty for April 06, 2015. It'll be a bunch of firsts for my Sebastian. This trip will be part girls trip (w/babies) and part bridal shower for my cousin, who'll be bringing her little one as well. I'M SO EXCITED. Chrystal, I may be reaching out to pick your brain from time to time. ;-)

 

What a beautiful name! I love the name Sabastian. He's a lucky little guy to be cruising so young. Feel free to reach out with questions, I'm happy to help you plan! :D

We love St. Kitts. So excited to return next year! It's a beautiful, lush island.

 

We did a tour with Thenford Grey. If you Google him, his tour company will come up. Our favorite spot was the Brimstone Hill Fortress. The fortress sits high on top of a mountain. Incredible views from up there. Breathtaking.

Oh...and how is the littlle dude doing!?? I know he is getting big! :cool:

 

Yes, he is! Thank you for asking. He's a bundle of energy, walking (trying to run) around the house, hiding objects (remote controls, pacifiers, keys), chasing the dog around, etc. A typical toddler, lol. He's very opinionated and curious about everything going on around him. It's so much fun watching him grow up. :)

Hey Mike! You know me...I think photos are helpful in describing what it's really like. :) Here are a few photos from our balcony on the Adventure. We enjoyed the balcony. You can see that I'm sitting down in the second photo. It felt a little cozier than those on the Radiance and Freedom classes. I think we had cabin 7312, on the hump. The last photo gives you a good idea of the height of the glass:

 

 

 

 

 

We stayed at the IC a couple years ago and enjoyed it. We were there for one night after our cruise. Nice hotel, pretty beach, and good service. We enjoyed going to Metropol down the street for dinner. Excellent food!

 

Here is my review of the hotel, with some photos (scroll down to post #198): http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1500108&page=10

Thanks Host Faith for your comment.

Did you enjoy San Gervasio ? Will it be interesting for kids ?

 

We did enjoy San Gervasio. It's a nice size, and the history of the site is interesting. If you can get a guide to show you around, that would be helpful. Ask for one of their best guides. Our guide wasn't the best, and they warned us of that. We got there so early that their best guide wasn't available yet. I think spending about an hour there is plenty of time to see everything, and keep your kids' attention.

I like the longer itineraries and wish Royal Caribbean would offer longer cruises on larger ships like Quantum. I don't mind sea days and think those are the ultimate relaxation days on a cruise.

 

I like the longer itineraries on the Quantum, too. We like sea days and are looking forward to having a few back to back. We also like the Southern Caribbean. Not a fan of the Bahamas. That's why we chose the 12-night cruise in April. We cruise for both the ship and the ports.

We did something similar a few years ago for our first time in Cozumel. We hired a driver for the day: http://www.toursplaza.com/eng/hiring-driver.cfm Fantastic tour guides.

 

Our driver, Alberto, took us to the San Gervasio ruins and the tequila factory before dropping us off at Mr. Sancho's for the rest of the day. We got a taxi back to the ship after that. We got the best of both worlds: some history about the island, as well as some fun on the beach. I'm sure they could do something similar for you.

 

Here's my photo review from that day, it may be helpful (scroll down and start at post #260: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1593651&page=13

This looks like fun too: http://sailingdreamspr.com/sailing/index.php/tours-offered-daily/dreamed-daytime-sailing-tours

We kept walking on our little trail until we arrived at our 'change room' cabana. There were two, one for males, another for females. I entered with my own key to a locker. This room was gorgeous. In this locker there were hairnets, slippers, ‘disposables’ & the fluffiest robe I had ever had my hands on. At first I felt silly but decided to go ahead & play ‘let’s me a celebrity’. I could only imagine DH’s face when I walked out – but i was prepared for the never ending jokes - much to my surprise he was dressed as I was! We both had silly grins ear to ear.

We followed our masseuse in our private cabana where there was the other waiting.

This was it

 

 

 

They introduced themselves, gave us the options of oils (went with coconut – yum!) & gave us some privacy whilst we undressed & lay in the most comfortable beds ever. What proceeded was amazing. One hour of pure bliss. This was, hands down, the BEST massage we have both received. Muscles we didn’t know we had were massaged. Words cannot describe how luxurious we felt. But the experience didn’t there. The ‘back doors’ were opened into our own private, natural, watsu pool. It was hot. Relaxing. Amazing.

The aftermath (apologies - should really have taken a pic of what it looked like BEFORE the massage) - you can see the 'back door' on right hand side - it was closed during our treatment darkening the room.

 

 

 

 

This was 'our' pool

 

 

They did ask that we rinse off in the double outdoor shower first, which was fine by us ;) Once we were done we made our way back to the ‘change room’ cabana (took our time) & headed back down to the beach.

 

Some more pics of the cabana maze.

 

Oh my goodness, what a fantastic idea!!!! You just totally sold me on what we'll do the next time we're in St. Lucia. :D

 

Congratulations on your marriage and enjoy! You guys are off to a fantastic start with this honeymoon. We've sailed the Southern Caribbean three times (on Royal), but we're sailing the Summit next year and can't wait. You really gave us some new ideas for our time post-cruise. Thank you so much for sharing :)

We really enjoyed Izumi on the Allure. The food was great, and the hot rocks entrees were a fun way to enjoy dinner.

 

We went early in the evening, in case we didn't like it or the food wasn't filling enough. That afforded us some time to get to the MDR (My Time Dining) if that was the case.

 

Our experience (scroll down and start at post #416): http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1722941&page=21

I spent almost my whole day floating in the water at Labadee in October 2012 (such a long time ago, it's been too long! LOL). We were on Barefoot Beach, and had a cabana. Nice soft sand on the beach, and there are a few pebbles and shells as you enter the water. The water was the perfect temperature, and I didn't see any jellyfish. I have photos and a description starting here (scroll down and start at post #329): http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1722941&page=17

We got a passport for our (then) 10-month old for our cruise in January. Mostly for ease of travel and peace of mind. If you think you might cruise or travel with her a bit over the next 5 years, I think it's worth it.

Don't forget us non-ladies[emoji4]

 

Oops! :o I'm so sorry! Great job to the fellas, too! I'll say congrats to everyone from now on :)

Great job ladies! I'm down 7 lbs so far (as of last week). I hate being bloated...I gain about 2 lbs of water weight when I'm bloated. :( I know I should just subtract 2 lbs from the number on the scale, but there's something about weighing in heavier than the week before that psychs me out. Learned that lesson the last time I did WW a few years ago. I'll track and exercise this week and look at the scale next week.

Thank you all for your responses. Let me just say that I would NEVER leave my child on the ship while at a port like Cozumel for instance, and go on some excursion. I would be anxious and worried the entire time. Even an older kid can get into trouble while left unattended on the ship. I just recently heard some horror stories that involved rape happening to a 13 year old on a cruise ship. I have a hard time leaving the kids alone while I run to the post office.

 

I just thought, having been to Lebadee and feeling like I know the island a bit and where we would be in the cabana, if she wanted to stay in the kid's program I would consider it. I would NEVER just allow her (or my son for that matter) to have free run of the ship even while on Lebadee.

 

No judgement towards anyone who would (except maybe the parents that left the younger kids on the boat unattended...who does that?!), it's just not something I would ever do.

 

For what it's worth, I spoke with her about it today and she said...after asking if there were fish in the water ;) "Can't I just sit in the cabana and read all day?" Yes, yes baby girl you can. Love that girl!

 

I cannot imagine how I would feel if I missed the boat and my kids were on board. Seems kind of irresponsible to put yourself in that position in the first place. I would be going crazy!!

 

Actually....that sounds like an awesome way to spend the day, lol! Enjoy :)

 

DH and I are sailing the Quantum next year and bringing our toddler. It's a 12-night cruise. Both grandmothers are coming, as well as some family members.

 

DH and I want to take an excursion in St. Martin together, and it lasts 3 hours. We're spending the morning with our son, and taking a quick 'date' by ourselves. We're leaving our son with his grandmother, who watches him every day while we're at work. AND, the excursion is run through the cruise line. We'll all have our phones (international plans) so we can reach one another, if needed.

 

Out of the six islands we're visiting, we're taking 3 hours of our time to be alone and have some fun. Quality time as a couple is important to us. And travel with our son is very important to us. At this point in time, that's the only way we feel comfortable leaving our little guy on the ship. Staying with Mom, while we're on a ship excursion.

[quote name='purplethorn']Thank you so much for this wonderful and very informative review
We will be on the Liberty in four days with our pesky toddler LOL. we've cruised with her before but first on RCCL

Did you find it hard to give Isaac a bath without a bathtub?

You mentioned that you went to Sorrentos for lunch on embarkation day - is it free? I heard some specialty restaurants are free on embark day? or is this not really a specialty restaurant? lol

Did you use the nursery or the tot program? Can you tell more about it please

I had one more question but forgot ... i might bug u again when I remember lol
Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app[/quote]

Hi Purplethorn!
Actually, I found bathing Isaac to be pretty easy. We used Clorox wipes to clean the surface of the shower area and gave it a good, hot rinse. Then we took a towel and spread it on the bottom of the shower, and sat him down. Soaped him up, used the handheld to rinse him off. Easy, and he had fun, lol.

Sorrento's is included in your cruise fare. It's not really considered a specialty restaurant...more of a complimentary venue. Enjoy!

Sorry, we didn't use the nursery. I found a couple threads about the program. These should help:


[URL="http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1982628"][B]Babies and Tots Nursery Question[/B][/URL]

[URL="http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1868107"][B]Royal tots and babies nursery, liberty of the seas[/B][/URL]

[URL="http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1909065"][B]Royal Nursery[/B][/URL]

Feel free to ask questions, I'm happy to help. I envy you with just four days to go! :)

After seeing Host Faith's cruise pics, we decided to order room service breakfast on our Liberty cruise a few weeks ago. We moved the table from the cabin onto the balcony, and between the small round table, and the room table, there was plenty of room for all of the trays. We ordered eggs, bacon, hasbrowns, and some pastries and fruit. The warm food was still nice and warm.

 

We ate on our laps - but I agree with one of the other posters - the view was unbeatable.

 

Will certainly do this more often.

 

So glad you gave it a try and enjoyed it! You can't beat the view while at sea.

 

That is one beautiful and happy baby! :)

 

I love room service, one of the joys of travel.

 

Thank you Jeannie! Same here, no cooking and I don't have to get the food myself. Love it :)

In 2009 we cruised out of San Juan on Serenade of the Seas and with a late flight out we decided to do the OSJ then the airport tour. I fell in love with what I saw and have anticipated going back to see more. We are sailing out of San Juan again in September on the Jewel of the Seas and I am looking forward to the 3 pre-cruise days in OSJ. Here are a few pictures from the first visit and I will post more when we return in September.

 

 

 

Dome Ceiling in Capitol Building

 

 

 

I love your photos, especially the one above! I've never been inside the Capitol Building. Another thing to add to the list :)

cb at sea, not everyone wants "fine dining" at breakfast. ;)

 

Some ships have tables that are actually not bad - Jewel had a lovely table on the balcony, taller and a bit larger, but Serenade had the smaller one.

 

Faith, your baby is PRECIOUS! :D:D:D

 

.

 

Thank you so much! :) He keeps us busy and we love it!

Breakfast on our balcony is a tradition when DH and I cruise. We make it work. It might be cramped for some, but it's been nice for us. Here's our setup ;):

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=41378958&postcount=124

[quote name='Prairie_Gal']I'm so glad I decided to click on your review and read it. I loved it! Your little Isaac is so adorable, and you guys just seem so chilled out.

Glad you had a great vacation.[/quote]


Thank you Judy! We did get to relax. It was nice being able to enjoy naptime with Isaac since we're usually at work when he's napping. A much more leisurely pace than at home. I'm missing the ship now. I think that's why we booked a 12-nighter for our next cruise, lol.

[quote name='iriegirl']OMGoodness, I'm so glad to have stumbled upon another fabulous review by you, Chrystal. Congratulations on your beautiful blessing. He's absolutely adorable. I'm glad that I found the review--I've also had a baby since your last review and had been thinking I wouldn't cruise until he was much older. This shows me that it's completely doable with a little one! I'm totally taking pages from your book, and making note of all of the helpful hints. It looks like you guys had a PERFECT vacation. Thanks for taking the time to share your tips. ;)[/quote]

Congratulations on your little one, iriegirl!!! How exciting :D

I'm glad the review is helpful as you plan cruising with your little guy. It's certainly a different type of vacation. It was nice not having to cook or clean (well, except for cleaning up after Isaac, lol). We could relax and completely focus on our boy. I think he could sense that mommy was much more relaxed. It's worth it to us, wouldn't trade the memories for anything. Happy cruising!!

Excellent so far, caneguy! Thank you so much for sharing. Can't wait to read more :)