2Feathers

We just came out onto the beach just north of Port Everglades and saw Mariner and wondered what was going on. We knew there were no arrivals or departures schedules today at PE. There appears to be a Coast Guard ship heading that way now.  Praying for the person affected🙏. 

We went to Brewer's in October from the Havensight pier and had an absolutely wonderful day! YES,  there were lots of turtles! The water was calm and clear, not crowded at all, and there was a food truck that had really good pates for lunch. If memory serves, we just arranged the return trip with our taxi driver, telling him what time we wanted to be picked up and taken back to the ship. On the way over, the driver told us this is where he takes his family for beach days. I think I also remember seeing a  BUS STOP in front of the University, which was about a quarter of a mile over a hill from the beach, so public transportation may be an option. We've been to St. Thomas a number of times on cruises, and visited Magens, Sapphire, Lindqvist, Emerald, Secret Harbor, and Morningstar, but Brewer's is now our favorite! 

Craigtompkins we will be on the Magic with you and had plans to taxi to Lindqvist, but we’re concerned about the sargassum problem. We’ve been watching YouTube videos showing lots of the stuff in the water and piled up on the beach! We’ve been to Lindqvist a couple of other times and it’s beautiful, so we’re pretty bummed and will probably look at another beach. Sapphire also seems to have a lot of seaweed right now. Coki didn’t seem to have as much though. 
 

Blue Water do you have any updates on the sargassum problem? We have similar opinions  as you on Magens Bay… Secret Harbor looks pretty clear of seaweed in recent videos. Brewers has also drawn our interest and seems clear. Any thoughts there? How much would a taxi for two cost from Havensight?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated!!

We were in the spa balcony cabin on the Magic in February and agree with all the previous posters, you will love the spa cabins. There was a private elevator I remember to get to the spa and I really loved the heated loungers, so relaxing. Also, had my hair done a couple to times and the hair products they use and sell were wonderful. Just enjoy your cruise and take advantage of all the wonderful perks of a spa cabin.

We're on the Magic in 2 days in a spa cabin... Can you tell me what time the thermal suite area opens on embarkation day? We had a spa cabin on the Dream a few years ago, and it seems like they may have had those things closed until after they had done all their first day spa tours. Thanks!

We always buy travel insurance for any trip outside the country. When comparing policies on one website for an upcoming cruise, I noticed a couple of policies offered by Nationwide that specifically referenced "cruise insurance." They included some itinerary/port of call change benefits, and reimbursement for shore excursions in the event of itinerary changes (which, I imagine, would be reimbursed by the cruise line if you purchased the excursion through them), and a few other things, but not much else that seemed particularly beneficial or cruise-specific... Are there other insurers out there that may include more useful coverage for cruisers?

Any recommendations from those who cruise often and purchase travel insurance? Thanks!

Thanks!

We're considering a Cloud 9 Spa cabin for an upcoming Magic sailing... There will be 3 of us in the cabin. We booked a Cloud 9 cabin on the Dream about 5 years ago, but it only included free access to the spa facilities for 2 passengers per cabin, so we had to purchase a spa package for our son. Does anyone know if this "free spa for the first 2 passengers per cabin only" rule for Cloud 9 cabins is still the case? Thanks!

We went to Jan Thiel by local bus back in June while on our Sunshine cruise. We stopped at the information booth at the pier and a couple we had met on the ship had just finished talking to the lady there who recommended Jan Thiel, so we hooked up with them. The bus system didn't seem as easy to follow as on some other islands, but we got to the beach and paid about $7 USD for two beach chairs. As Hank said it is touristy and commercial with a bar/restaurant. It got a little crowded later in the day, but was never that bad. There is a decent reef off shore, and a sunken sailboat. It was overcast and windy the day we were there, with some rough seas that made snorkeling the reef uncomfortable, but we had a nice day. We misunderstood the bus schedule and waited a while for a bus to pick us up to return to the ship, but going on memory the drive took about 20-30 minutes. Does that sound about right Hank?

We prefer quieter, less touristy beaches... This was our first time to Curacao, so we have no other beaches to compare Jan Thiel to, but if I were going back, I'd probably try a different beach. However, if you want decent snorkeling and need the food/drink/chair/bathroom amenities, this is a good choice.

That's why I was hesitating!!I booked the Cove because I wanted it, price wasn't the issue. OBC is WAAAAAAAY better!!:)

That is a great deal, and a great decision. Enjoy the Cove and use the OBC to buy the spa pass if you want to use the spa!

We've done both a Cove balcony and a deck 12 Spa balcony on the Dream, and to me this would be a tough decision... The rooms themselves are identical, as Brighton mentioned. We loved the privacy and being close to the water in the Cove, but used the spa rooms and especially the thalasso pool much more than we expected when we booked the Spa balcony. On the Dream, the deck 12 balconies had no roof, and people on the Serenity deck could lean over and see down on you if they wanted. The deck 11 balconies had a roof. There are very few cabins on these decks, and it was very quiet. However, we spoke to someone who had one of the cabins at the end of the hall on deck 12 that goes outside to the water slides, and they said those rooms were noisy due to the doors slamming, and kids running around outside.

You might want to make sure the spa passes are included with your upgrade before choosing that option. Seems to me that I've heard where some upgrades to spa cabins don't include the use of the spa, and you had to pay the $250/cabin (for 2 people) for the week to use the spa. If I had a choice and the price was same, I'd go for the spa cabin, assuming the use of the spa is included.

Yeah, they put a sticker on your S&S card.

The spa cabins include access to the thalassotherapy pool, tepididarium, and steam rooms for the first two people in your cabin. If there are more than two in the cabin, the others would have to purchase a spa pass. We (myself, wife, and son) were on the Dream in March in a spa balcony cabin, and had to buy the package for our son at $149 for the week. We were told they only sell 50 of the weekly spa passes per sailing, and you can NOT prebook them, so you have to get to the spa early in the cruise to buy the passes if you want them. They also sell some daily passes, but I can't remember how much they were, or how many of those they sell. Also note that you have to be 18 or older to use the spa facilities.

We loved both the cabin and the spa, and used the spa every day. We also used the showers there, as they were never crowded, they're larger than the showers in the cabins, and they were just around the corner from our deck 12 cabin on the Dream. Looks like those things are on deck 14 on the Breeze... We highly recommend the spa cabins/package!

Hi all, I'm back to answer my own question, in case others need to know... We were on board by around noon and went straight to the Cloud 9 Spa desk and bought the weeklong package for our son at $149. We took the spa tour later in the afternoon, and the guide said they limit the weeklong passes to 50 per cruise. We later spoke to a lady who had bought a pass on the second day of the cruise, and she was told she got the next-to-last pass, so they don't last long.

The three of us used the spa every day, and it was never crowded. The most people we ever found in the thalassopool was maybe 6 people, and a few times the chairs in the Tepiderium or the cool down room were full, but people came and went regularly, so chairs would free up momentarily. All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed the spa!

So, we're all excited that our Dream cruise sets sail this Saturday! March 8... DAYLIGHT SAVINGS day! I just realized that someone (the U.S. government? Mother Nature?) is robbing me of ONE FULL HOUR of Fun Ship Fun!!

Seriously though, this is the Eastern Caribbean itinerary, so I'm assuming that after the time change we'll be back on the same time as the islands, who don't typically do the whole "Spring Up/Fall Back" thing... Is that correct? I get confused with the whole "ship's time vs. island time" anyway, so maybe this will help keep me straight... But I still think Carnival should offer some sort of compensation ;)

Does FTTF reduce your wait time if you have Your Time Dining?

FTTF had been sold out for some time for our March 8 Dream cruise... I've been checking daily, too, and they had just opened up 8 FTTF packages today, so we grabbed one!

We were in 2250, the next cabin forward from 2252, last October, and it was quiet. It's underneath the shore excursion desk, so what little noise that may have come from upstairs would have been during the day while the desk was open. Any noise we noticed, and it wasn't much, came from the hallway. We loved our cabin, and wouldn't hesitate to book another one in that area again!

Looks like 2273 and 2281 are on the opposite side of the ship and underneath the Guest Services desk, so I would expect it's pretty quiet as well.

Does anyone know how many weeklong spa passes they sell on this ship?

When we booked a spa cabin for three through Carnival, we were originally told we could sign up our 3rd passenger for the spa in advance through the Carnival website like other spa treatments, but when we didn't see an option for that we called back and were told that wasn't true! We have to go to the spa after embarkation to book those weekly passes... Does anyone know how many they sell for each sailing? We'd be extremely bummed if our 3rd passenger missed out on this.

We've only had the filet in the steak house, and it was delicious! How are the other steaks?

We're considering a Cloud 9 Spa balcony cabin on the Dream for three of us. I've seen the notes about the cabin cost including the spa amenities for the 1st and 2nd passengers only, but the 3rd or 4th passengers not being entitled to those amenities. I even asked the personal planner at Carnival, who seemed pretty unsure on a lot of my questions, but she said that 3rd person cannot access the spa, not even for an additional fee. Is that possible? Surely there is a way to get our 18-year-old son access, even if we have to pay a little extra. Does anyone here have any experience with more than 2 people in a Cloud 9 Spa cabin?

Momma... There is a little shack on the beach at Cinnamon that rents snorkel gear, as well as water toys. Check out this link:

http://www.cinnamonbay.com

Have fun!

Jane... We've rented dinghies from Noah's twice, and I've posted about that before. Both times we rented for the full day and the first time was great! We were able to visit many of the North Shore beaches, as well as make it out to Waterlemon Cay, which is probably the best snorkel spot on the island, but is rarely visited by cruise passengers because its so remote. (You have to either hike or boat to get there...) We had such a blast that we decided to do the same thing on a later visit. However, the seas were very rough that day and the winds were up, and we tossed around for a few hours before turning the dinghy in early. We didn't make it to Waterlemon because it was just too rough, but we did get to Frances and a few of the more sheltered bays. It was still fun, but we were a little disappointed... not to mention tired of being tossed around by the waves and having sea water spray blown into our faces!

I guess my advice would be to try and gauge the conditions as you're coming across the channel in the ferry from St. Thomas. If the ferry ride is rough and you see a lot of white caps and feel strong winds, its probably better to just rent a car (which is also fun) or hire a taxi.

Noah's gives you a map and instructions about which beaches you can drive onto, which ones you can only anchor at or tie up to a mooring ball and swim in to, and where the reefs and coral are that you have to avoid. Its really very simple... even for me, who had only "captained" a paddle boat in our local lake before taking command of the dinghy and sailing the Virgin Islands.

As for getting back into the dinghy... Well, that is a bit awkward. You only have to worry about this when you have to anchor or tie onto a mooring ball and swim in to the beach. (If you beach the dinghy, you simply have to push it back into the water and hop in.) There is no ladder, and no really good place to put your feet to use for leverage in order to step up into the dinghy. And remember, the water will be over your head, so you can't push up from the floor... So you basically have to grab hold of the handles on the sides and yank yourself over and in. The sides are pretty high, and actually sit probably two feet or more out of the water. We never really figured out any special technique to doing this, other than simply trying to build a little momentum, pulling as hard as you can with your arms, and then swinging a leg up and over the side. Not the easiest (nor the most dignified) task when your, um, "center of gravity" is as heavily weighted to the rear as mine. If one person of your group actually manages to pull him/herself back into the thing, that person can help pull the others in with little problem, and you'll all have an extra funny memory of the adventure.

All in all, renting a dinghy is a great way to spend the day, and I highly recommend it, AS LONG AS THE CONDITIONS ARE CALM. Have a great time!!

Sorry, OCruisers... I don't remember if that excursion was offered or not. I kind of doubt it, though. We typically look at the beach & snorkeling type excursions first, and that sounds like one that would have at least stirred our interest. Then again, that was a few years back, and I don't even remember what I had for breakfast this morning.

We had a day in Guadeloupe back in 1998 aboard the Carnival Inspiration, and had a wonderful day. The island is butterfly shaped, and very scenic. We took the ship's excursion to a remote waterfall - can't remember the name right off, but it was a pretty long drive and was near a volcano. We got out and hiked about 30-45 minutes to the bottom of a group of waterfalls that were probably 100 feet or more high each. There was a very "refreshing" (read "FREEZING COLD") pool at the bottom of the falls that the bravehearted (or simply clumsy, as my wife found out) could swim in if they so chose. The spray from the falls alone was enough to cool you off quite nicely! I can't remember what other excursions were offered there, but this was one of the more memorable days of the cruise! I think you'll enjoy Guadeloupe.