Vista March 4th - 10th review

Enjoying your review!

Enjoying your review!

Thanks

Thanks for the review going to be on the Vista in Nov.

Thanks for the review going to be on the Vista in Nov.

No problem, I'm sure you will enjoy the ship.

Should have more posted later today, the real world has got in the way over the last few days.

Following. Great pics.

Following. Great pics.

Thanks

Tuesday - Ocho Rios

Today was the first stop and it was the only port we have never visited and to be perfectly honest with you we've never cared. I have never had a desire to visit Jamaica and my wife was on the fence. I know there are people that love Jamaica but it just never held any appeal for us.

During our planning we did look at various excursions - Dunn's River Falls, the Blue Hole, the Jamaican Bobsleigh excursion or maybe just a beach visit. In the end we had decided on a beach but them some bad reviews,mostly about cabs taking you places you didn't ask to go, and the fact that we weren't all that enthused in the first place we simply decided to look around the port area for a bit and then get back on board and see what the ship offered.

We were the only cruise ship in port in this day and I think that is pretty normal. The port area is pretty disappointing compared to all the other ports we visited and I think having 2 ships here would really push the limits. We did arrive to a bit of rain we did get a bit wet a couple of times during our stroll through the port area. It was a colourful area but it did seem to be in need of a bit of work.

After walking around a bit we came across a contortionist just outside Margaritaville.

You can also see him in action at near the end of this video that shows a bit of the port area.

Our only real activity in the port other than walking around was stopping at Margaritaville for some refreshments. It is quite small and it was fairly busy with just the Vista in port. If there was another ship it would be packed. While we were there we went down to their small beach and there were a few people swimming but there was what appeared to be fish guts floating in the water. And that is exactly what it was! Just around the corner, fishermen were cleaning their catch and letting everything float back out into the bay. While this certainly is a good idea environmentally, it didn't do much for the beach.

I'll post the rest of the day later tonight.

Did you feel it was safe at the pier in Ocho Rios? We are thinking of staying on the ship! We have the same itinerary in July we have also been on the Glory!

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Did you feel it was safe at the pier in Ocho Rios? We are thinking of staying on the ship! We have the same itinerary in July we have also been on the Glory!

 

 

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We did. The shopping area is outside the security gate for the pier but it was all good there. Inside the security checkpoint there were lots of vendors selling the same thing. Looked like this:

We liked the Glory and the ports on that cruise - Amber Cove, San Juan, St Thomas and Grand Turk.

yep all sounds very familiar (my review in my signature)

Read your review and enjoyed it. It was partly your experience with the taxi that made up our minds to stay close to the ship.

Leaving on this same cruise in 67 days!

Following :)

Leaving on this same cruise in 67 days!

You will have a great time.

Following :)

Welcome.

The rest of the day.

We made our way back to the ship in the early afternoon.

Back on board, the Boys and I hit up Guy's while my wife decided to sit and read on the balcony for a bit. After eating we decided to try out the water slides and then lounged around for a bit. Here are a couple of water slide videos.

https://gopro.com/v/W4wEpWkrPR2n

You move along pretty good on the Twister but the Kaleid-o-slide was fun but pretty tame.

After getting some sun I decided to change and try to ride the Sky Ride. I stood in line for about 15 minutes and got to a point where it said it would be another 45. The Boys showed up and said it took them about an hour from that point in the sea day so I opted to get out of line because we would be pushing our dinner reservation time. We did decided to do the rope course though. Now I'm not big on this type of thing but it didn't look all that difficult so away we went. My son loves this stuff and pretty much ran through it. His buddy Colby wasn't as fast as Declan but stayed ahead of me. It was fun but I'm not sure I would want to do it on a windy sea day.

Tonight was the first night we actually ate at our assigned table in the Horizon Dining Room. We were on the upper level on the outside. Our waitstaff were Jaya, Aubrey and Katut and they were fantastic. They did wonder why it was the third night and this was the first time we had been to the table.

After dinner we made our way to the Hasbro Game Show. On our last cruise Declan was chosen to play and we tried to get him and Colby to go for it in the first round. They did try but weren't picked. When they started the second round my wife jumped up before Declan could and Matt the Cruise Director picked here to come up and play. They ended up playing Simon and won the game. I have video evidence but I was threatened that it should never be made public. I did find someone else's video of the game on YouTube though. She didn't win the big prize though, I think it had something to do with here being a Manchester United fan and the CD wasn't. ;) I know there are people who don't like this entertainment but we think it is a lot of fun and great for the kids.

After the show we split up. The Boys ended up at a movie while Tanya and I headed for the Red Frog Pub for our free beer. They had a steel drum player that night and she was really good. Even the drunk guy who wouldn't shut up and kept requesting Drake.

We were then off to watch the Love and Marriage show. This was the first time we actually went to watch this show live and I don't think we will miss it again. Hilariously entertaining but there is no way I would want to be on the stage. We finished off the night at the White Party which is held in the Atrium on this ship. It made for a pretty intimate venue but people were having a great time.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/kMk9X6niBJlTctbB2

So that was it for the first port day of the cruise. Next up is one or our favourite places, Grand Cayman.

following your review....

following your review....

Welcome.

I hope to have some more posted later tomorrow or Sunday.

What is in in the secure area as soon as you get off of the ship?? thanks!

What is in in the secure area as soon as you get off of the ship?? thanks!

It was a large area with 3 airport -style luggage carousels and then you lined up for customs. The line was quite long because they only had 3 agents working.

It was a large area with 3 airport -style luggage carousels and then you lined up for customs. The line was quite long because they only had 3 agents working.

I was asking about Ocho Rios? Just wondering if we should stay on the ship as we didn’t like Montego Bay thanks

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I was asking about Ocho Rios? Just wondering if we should stay on the ship as we didn’t like Montego Bay thanks

 

 

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There wasn't a lot inside the secure area that we saw. Lots of vendor all selling souvenirs and I thing there as a small shop selling drinks that had WiFi. Once you go through the security gate you enter the area with shops and restaurants.

Enjoying the review!

Enjoying the review!

Thanks.

Grand Cayman

This was the stop we were most looking forward to, well my wife and I were anyway. We've been here once before and loved it. We had reserved a beach cabana at the Royal Palms so we planned to head directly there and then walk around the town when we returned to the port area.

We woke up to a beautiful morning and headed to breakfast in the Market Place. The omelette stations are great in this ship, they were able to prepare 5 or 6 at a time so the wait was always minimal. We didn't rush because with FTTF we had access to the priority tenders up until 10 am.

Around 9:30 we headed to the Red Frog Pub which was the meeting spot for the priority tenders and we were promptly lead to a reserved elevator for the ride down to Deck 0. This took us right to the front of the tender line and we were on the boat and away within a couple of minutes. When we got to shore we headed right out to the taxi area and got one that was leaving right away. All but the four of us were headed to the public beach and the driver was talking so he missed the driveway for Royal Palms but we said just keep going and he could drop us after going to what turned out to be Calico Jacks.

The drive along 7 mile beach is very nice and there are lots of resorts as well as the governor's mansion.

One of the churches along the way.

Interesting spot for a cemetery, pretty much right on the beach.

The entrance to Calico Jacks public beach

7 mile beach is in the top two beaches we have ever visited (the other was Horseshoe Bay Beach in Bermuda) and Royal Palms is in a great spot. The views in both directions are gorgeous.

The beach cabana was a great investment as it offered a chance to get out of the sun. It included 4 loungers in front of the cabana as well as a table and 4 chairs inside the cabana. They were all inside a roped off area on the beach. The cost of the beach cabana is $125 for the day. They also have poolside cabanas that are cheaper but the pool is an adults-only area. One thing to note about the Royal Palms is that the prices to get in and to do the activities are in US$ but the food and bar prices are in Cayman$ and they charge you $1.25 US for every 1 Cayman $.

We stayed at the beach until 1:30 or so before deciding to head for the taxi stand to go back. On the way out I ran into someone from home who was also cruising on the Vista. I hadn't seen him on the ship but after meeting him on the beach I saw him a few times on-board. Their is a taxi stand at the Royal Palms so the only waiting you do is until they fill up the vehicle. The cost is $4 per person each way. If you are considering the Royal Palms for a beach stop they charge $2 to get in and you can also rent beach chairs and umbrellas for the day or you can just throw a towel down on the sand.

The taxi lets you off across the street from the port entrance. We headed for the crosswalk (they frown on jaywalkers) to get back to the tenders. Our son was too tired to look around town so we opted to head back to the ship. He was looking for a huge candy store inside the port shopping area that we found on our last trip but it seemed to be gone. We were able to walk right on to the tender but we waited about 10 minutes for it to fill up before heading back.

The rest of the afternoon was spent just relaxing and napping.

Continued in next post.

We were minus one for dinner that night, I guess our son was pretty tired and he opted to sleep instead of coming to the dinning room. The waitstaff asked why he wasn't with us and hoped that he would be back with us the next night. Service was once again fantastic and we all enjoyed our meals. After dinner we headed back to the cabin to check on Declan and he had just got back from the buffet so I guess food won out in the end.

Tonight's Playlist Production was Flick and we had heard good things about it. The preshow started at 7:15 so we headed down around 7 because we wanted to be on the main floor instead of in the balcony. We ended up in pretty good seats about 4 rows from the front. I have to say that this show doesn't disappoint. It was probably one of the best shows we have seen at sea! And there is one of the male dancers that is fantastic. He is the central character in the production and is on stage continuously for the better part of 60 minutes. Given the fact that they have about 60 minutes between shows he must be in phenomenal shape. The singing, dancing and lighting in this show is very good and I recommend you see it if you get the chance. Here are some pictures and video from the show. Please excuse the heads that sometime get in the shot.

This is the guy that never left the stage.