Mjasp

I checked Viator but they don’t have it the first week of December. I think I have to reach out to them.

I've found several tours that include Grand Cayman Rum Distillery and Beer Brewery - and then a stop at a beach. We're not beach people.... is it possible to do these two spots on our own? Taxi or bus? Pros and Cons? Best time of day to avoid the crowds?

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

Which tours did you find? I am actually lookingfor the tours with the stop at the beach and can't seem to find any. Can you please share what you found. TIA

We're just back from Allure a week ago. We booked through Island Marketing or Jamaica activities that linked us to Island Marketing. Found out about it on this board somewhere. It was $98 per person for the day, plus $10pp to get there and back. Yet it was fun and I'd do it again. So yes, this seems to be the rate for this area. The resort was from the Falmouth port though, and it was not adults only, but there were very few children and they had their own area with a cool waterpark area.

Which resort did the excursion take you to?

We didn't pick an adult only as we had our 3 kids with us but we went to Sunscape Splash. Secrets is right across the street and looked really nice and was only about a 3 minute drive from the port.

Wait! You can walk to the hotel, if it's only a 3 minute drive it can't be more than a 5-10 minute walk.

Yes there is a Pandora dealer. I forgot the name but it is on the right hand side if you are backing the ship.

Thank you so much

It’s leased by RCI.

It’s also closed if their ships are not in port.

 

We’re on NCL currently, too, and wanted to go there.

But when I go to the Port of Falmouth website. They have it as an excursion I can buy at the port.

I know there is a Pandora store on Market St., but does anyone recall if any of the jewelers in the port area sell Pandora charms?

TIA

Is Red Stripe Beach private for Royal Caribbean cruisers only or can anyone go there? I am on NCL, how would I get there? Is there a shuttle?

We went to this all inclusive resort and really enjoyed the day there .. unlimited drinks, food and hey had kayaks too and other water toys we could use. https://jamaicacruiseexcursions.com/excursions/falmouth-resort-beach-break/

But which resort was it? It doesn't say.

How do you bid on an upgrade? I never heard of this before.

Izumi and Sabor (on Oasis class) are a la carte restaurants. Appetizer and dessert are included in the flat fee restaurants.

Thank you very much

The beverage package covers drinks in specialty restaurants.

 

With regard to food included, it depends. Some restaurants are a la carte, and in those you get a $30 credit. Chops is flat rate for the standard entrees plus some premium entrees are extra. The package includes only the standard entrees. One entree is included, extra entrees will cost more.

I hope I don't sound stupid, BUT, how do you know if you get a $30 credit or if all is included? Also is an appetizer and dessert included or extra?

When you purchase a 3 restaurant package or just do one, is all food included? appy, entree, dessert?

Also, if you have the unlimited drink package, are drinks included in the specialty restaurants?

Is there a store by the port that sells Pandora charms?

With our excursion, I'm not sure if I'll have enough of time to go to the Pandora store on Front Street.

Thanks

Yes, it's on the beach/boardwalk which is Front Street. Not sure about renting chairs and umbrellas from them but there are plenty of places near by or vendors on the beach to get these from. It's a short walk from the water taxi pier or a longer walk from the cruise ship pier. But not a difficult walk. I believe the Pandora shop is just a short way down the boardwalk from there, so easy to find. Don't know if there's an outlet in the pier shopping or not.

Thank you so much! Is it a nice beach? I don't go in far but just like a clean beach and not much sea weed ao I can see my feet lol.

Has anyone been here and if so...

1) Is it on the beach? if so, can you rent chairs and umbrellas and how much?

2) Can you walk from the pier?

3) Is it by Front Street where all the shopping is? and if not, can you walk to Front Street from the pier? also, is there shopping by the pier, specifically Pandora as I get a charm for each port I go to.

Thanks so much

We used to go to Orient but now we just use the beach area as we get off the water taxis

we normally pay $20 for 2 chairs and umbrella My wife likes to lay in the sun I like to move around this allows us to do this. We normally are in St. Martin 2 times a year. If you like beer they sells buckets of beer very inexpensive i think it was 5 beers for around $10. many places along the beach area to get lunch or a snack. This is our favorite location in the Caribbean.

Where is this beach (and the name) exactly and where do we get a water taxi?

Megans Bay is much nicer for kids. There are some rocks at Emerald Bay and drops off fairly fast. There is no pool or snorkeling at Emerald Bay. At Emerald Bay you can get a chair for $10 and there is 2 small bars that has WIFI. I have had to wait for a taxi for 30 minutes.

The reason we decided on going to Emerald Beach and not Sapphire beach is that I read there were drops at Sapphire Beach. I haven't read about any drops in Emerald so decided to go there, but now I see you wrote that it drops fairly fast. Oy, what to do?

If you walk to Emerald Beach and go to the Island Beachcomber hotel they too have chairs for rent. Alternatively, if you plan to have drinks or food, you could just go swim in the water and afterwards sit up at their beach bar. No charge for sitting in those chairs if you're buying something!

Thanks Geri. I assume just leave your "stuff" on the sand and go swim.

Do you know what they charge for their beach chairs?

Chairs are available for rent at Emerald Beach.

 

The taxis will drop you off at the public entrance to the beach.

Thank You!

You might also like Emerald Beach, which I believe is the closest beach to the cruise docks. I've walked from the Crown Bay dock to this beach many times with adults and teenagers, but never with a 13 month old. The walk with adults is an easy 20 minute walk along sidewalks. Of course if you're docking in at the West Indies dock you would not want to walk here as it would take over an hour.

Thanks for posting this, as I will be on Oasis and plan to go to Emerald. I do have a couple of questions though. Where do you ask the cab to drop you off and also will the Emerald Bay hotel rent you chairs?

Here are some of the positives we experienced on our Epic cruise.

 

 

Here are what I considered some of the negatives on our Dec 10th Epic cruise.

 

The bathroom in the balcony cabins isn’t in a separate enclosed area in the room. Instead the shower and toilet are exposed in the cabin and each is enclosed with frosted glass. Many people complain about the frosted glass of the shower area and the toilet area. While it wasn’t an issue for us we always made sure we threw the deadbolt on the cabin door when using the toilet and shower. We didn’t want a cabin steward to enter while using the bathroom.

 

The elevators were an issue for us. We were on a fully booked cruise and waiting for an elevator could be frustrating. This was even more pronounced on embarkation and debarkation days when passengers had luggage with them.

I am always amused when some CC members say the elevators weren’t an issue for them on the Epic because they took the stairs. To me that means the elevators really were an issue so to deal with it they used the stairs. I mean really, do these people always take the stairs when they stay for a week at a 12 story land-based hotel? I doubt it.

 

The lack of a promenade deck was a negative for us too. Even though we always have a balcony cabin, we always enjoyed walking the promenade deck for the ocean air and views on other cruises we’ve taken. For the most part, the lifeboats on the Epic block the views of the ocean on deck 7.

 

Walking through decks 5, 6, and 7 always gave me the feeling of walking through a land-based mall or Vegas casino rather than a cruise ship. Speaking of casino, on our cruise the Bliss Lounge was closed and used solely for the NCL sponsored Poker Challenge.

 

Keep in mind that my wife and I are senior citizens so our opinion might vary from others. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed our cruise but the Epic would be my last choice for going on another cruise.

 

I wrote a trip report of our December Eastern Caribbean cruise. Here’s the link if you care to read it. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2436056

We just booked this, and when I saw the room layout, I thought it was good to have a split bathroom, thought it was like the Disney split bathrooms. However, can you see the other person showering and using the bathroom through the frosted glass?

Thanks, I didn't think so

We have sailed on several of RCCL's ships and have purchased the drink package a few times. In the past we have had a couple options, a basic alcohol package and a premium alcohol package. Looking at RCCL's site for our upcoming cruise, we see only one option. Is this new or are there more options once you get on-board?

 

Also, the package price online is $46 per day but RCCL's site says that is a 20% discount. Does that mean the price increases when you get on-board? We were considering purchasing the drink package on day 2 since there are so many free drinks on day one, but if the price is 20% higher on-board, we'll purchase ahead of time.

Thank you for any insight you can provide!

What drinks are free on day 1?

No, it is not 'over the bridge'.

 

Orient is relatively close, and you should be there in 30 minutes from the Cruise Facility, and a similar trip back. There is rarely any major traffic problem between the two.

 

The bad news is that Orange Fever has raised their prices.

 

I think that they are up to $8 now.

 

gary

OUCH!!! Can't believe they went up one dollar in 3 years. lol So Orange Fever is on Orient Beach? To get to Divi do you need to go over the bridge? I've narrowed it down to those 2 beaches. So of the 2, Divi and orange fever bar on Orient, give me your opinion on both.

Seems you have been to St. Martin often, in all my cruises, this will only be my 2nd time

Thanks for answering my ?'s I appreciate it