Empress 1/17/05 review

I will try to put this in some order, hope I can remember it all! :)

We flew 3 days early into San Juan. We stayed at Canario By The Sea, in the Condado area. It is a very modest B&B, clean and good location. But, too small for 3 nights, one maybe! Also the view was of the neighboring building and alley, plus the walls were thin and we could hear all we didn't want to from both sides! :rolleyes: I wouldn't really recommend this place, unless it was for one night.

In San Juan, we took the bus, for 25 cents, to Old Town. We did a walking tour, a different route from our other trips there. Lots of history there, and I love Old San Juan! We also took the bus to the big mall. It's easy to do, and we got some bargains. In the evenings we went to the Marriott nearby to gamble. I won for 2 nights, so ended up a bit ahead for both of us for the 3 nights.

We got to the pier at 11:30 and had to wait until noon to get on. We waited in a line, they took our luggage, and check-in was a breeze! One lucky snaffu was from a paper given to us while in line. It said dinner the first night was at 7:15 for main seating, just the first day only. I kind of noticed it said 6:00 pm in the daily, but ignored that! :o So, we arrived at 7:10 for dinner, saw everyone was on the main course or dessert. We still got seated, made our apologies and had the main course and desseert only. We were at a table for 10, all nice people. The next night we were first, and after sitting at that table, asked if it was table 18. The waiter said no, it was 16, the next one was 18! I wanted to stay, as the people were nice, and fun! Lucky us, as we later got a letter to go to the med center, as we were in contact with someone that was sick. It turns out it was folks at table 18! Whew, lucky for the mistake!

Anyway, we had an informal M&M at 10 pm that night at the pool bar. We had a few of the CCers show up and we got acquainted a bit. It was especially nice to meet the ones we were touring with! The official M&M was later in the week. It was nice, also, with snacks and juice or coffee.

Day one was Sint Maarten. We'd been a few times, so took a taxi to Dawn Beach. It was a nice beach, about $12 fare each way. "Virgin Mary", our driver, agreed to pick us back up at a certain time. She suggested we go to Pinel Island (???) next time there!

Day two was St Barts. We just got off and found a taxi van for an island tour and drop-off at St Jean Beach. I don't remember the price, but we also had to pay another taxi $12 to get back to the pier. But, St Jean Beach is very pretty, and the airport is right by it. Fun to watch the planes come and go! We met another ship couple and visited with them at the beach. But I refused to rent the chairs with the umbrellas. It was $27 for two chairs and the umbrella! There were also shops along the road and we got a few souvenirs. Things aren't cheap on this island! When we got ready to go, we decided to get a Sprite to go. There was a beach bar and restaurant, and they wanted 5 euros, $7 for a can of pop! We weren't that thirsty! We went back and ate a late lunch on the ship! That night we weren't hungry at 6:00, so ate later in the buffet. The food was pretty good! We also spent most evenings in the casino for awhile. Lost our money mostly, but finally won some near the end!

We only watched a few shows, just didn't get to them all. The first two comedians were good, but missed the 3rd one, and heard he wasn't good. The dancers were quite good, and the Tango show was very good!

to be cont.

Day three was at St Kitts. We had arranged a tour via email with Ilva Wallace for an island tour and drop-off at a beach. We had enough to have 2 vans, so our guide was "King William"! He was very good, talked well and was easy to understand. The others liked Ilva real well, too. We went to Caribelle Batik, and watched a demonstration of how they color the fabric. We bought some pretty items there. We then went to the Brimstone Hill Fortress. It was quite interesting and impressive! We went along a rugged coastline, then on to Frigate Bay Beach. It was nice there, and the water was good for cooling off in! The tour was a good price, at $30 pp, and they came back to take us to the pier!

Day four, our adventure day at St Lucia! We didn't arrive until 10:30, and were to meet a water taxi at 11:15 to go to TiKaye Village Resort. This was arranged by email, also. At 11:45 I got the info booth lady to call them. She sent the water taxi, and he got there in 15 minutes! We were going with CCers Jennifer and Al. It was a 1/2 hour bumpy, wet ride! But, we laughed and had a good time! Then when we got there, we had to get off on the beach! I got carried by a local guy on the beach! :o The others got off on their own! It was an okay beach, but not overly pretty. Chairs were included in the $25 pp day fee. The water looked a bit rough, but Al went in, so Gary and I did too. I got knocked under by a small undertow. So, I got right out. Gary and Al stayed in, until Gary got caught by a wave, went down, and lost his prescription glasses! The locals on the beach came out, and one guy dived and retrieved them! We asked what we owed him, and he said $20! I thought it was a lot, until I considered he didn't bring another pair, so it was a bargain! He got a free necklace! :rolleyes: We then had lunch at the beach bar. It was something like 140 steps to the resort, so we didn't even go see it! Lunch was okay, for $17 per couple. When it was time to go, we had to get back on the water taxi from the beach. I was picked up and carried by a local again! :rolleyes: :D Jennifer tried next, and got knocked in the water by a wave. We had (well I did!) a good laugh, then she tried again, and landed on the boat floor! I was still laughing! The driver had the nerve to ask her to take a proper seat! What a hoot! Another very bumpy ride back. It was our worst excursion, but we still had a great time! Mainly due to the good company of Jennifer and Al! Thanks for the laughs, guys! :D

BTW, the amount on my cc bill was wrong for this place. The eastern Caribbean dollar amount came through as US dollars, way higher! I have been in email contact with TiKaye, and I believe it will be worked out. Just a reminder to check your statements!

to be continued later!

Cannot wait to read the rest of you cruise review. It may take 2 more parts.. I really appreciate when folks take the time to tell the good and the bad so people who willl be sailing on an upcoming trip on the same itinerary can make smarter plans. Keep the review on the empress and it Itinerary coming......

Cannot wait to read the rest of you cruise review. It may take 2 more parts.. I really appreciate when folks take the time to tell the good and the bad so people who willl be sailing on an upcoming trip on the same itinerary can make smarter plans. Keep the review on the empress and it Itinerary coming......

I agree. This is great. Keep up the good work!

Thanks Spanky and AltoJoe!

Day five we were in Barbados. We arranged a private tour online and via email with Glory Tours. There were 8 of us, and we requested this tour to exclude Harrison Caves, as we'd been before. We were picked up promptly just outside the gate at the pier, just after 8 am. In hind sight, 8:30 would've been better, as some things don't open until 9 am. But, this way was rather good, as we beat the crowds to most of the sights! We ended up at Orchid World a bit early, but they kindly opened up for us! Oh, what beautiful orchids, and other flowers! We then went to Gun Hill Station, a 19th Century Signal station. We were given a tour that was interesting! From there we traveled along the east coast, stopping to take pics of the pretty Bathsheba coast. We then went to the Wildlife Reserve. We toured the reserve, seeing deer, turtles, peacocks, morrows (sp?) and other animals. Unfortunately, the green monkeys were to come back for feeding about 2 pm, and we were there until 1 pm. I was disappointed to not see wild monkeys. :( Oh well, it was still a good tour. We stopped for lunch at a nice little roadside cafe. Then we stopped at Folkstone Beach, wanting to spend time there, and to maybe snorkel. The water was quite rough, so we went on. We stopped and went in the St. James Catholic church, the oldest church on the island, It was very pretty and interesting. After that, we shopped a bit at a small town with some cute cottages with shops. When we got back to Bridgetown, we tried to vist the Synagogue, a very old one, in restoration. It was closed, so we headed back to the ship. This tour was $45 pp, including the entrance fees to the garden and wildlife reserve! Great tour for a good price!

Day six was at Grenada. We arranged a tour with Mandoo online. He is very good, and suggests you book with him well in advance! For $40 pp, we got a long day tour! Grenada, the Spice Isle, was very lush and beautiful. But, Mandoo said 90% of the roofs were damaged by the hurricanes last fall. I saw lots of destruction! A sports arena, only a couple of years old, was destroyed, in heaps. They are rebuilding it. The nicer houses had their roofs repaired already, meaning money talks everywhere! We toured the island, through the rain forrest, stopping at a waterfall. Divers will dive off the cliff, for a tip! We stopped at Dougaldson Spice Estate. It was a very old spice mill, with the family still working it! It was very interesting! Next we went to Grand Etang Lake. There I saw and fed monkeys! I was happy! :D They would come down the tree and take a mint out of my hand! They like candy, the guides said. When we had toured the island we went to the beach, but just for an hour. We had lunch there, and had just a few minutes on the beach and in the water. It was very pretty there. But, there was a hotel that was completely damaged on this beach, but it is also being rebuilt. Mandoo then took us back to the ship. We tried to buy things there, and tipped Mandoo well, and gave the little kids money, as they really need it there.

to be continued!

Day seven. Isla Margarita, Venezuela. We had been to Caracas on an earlier cruise. So, we decided to book a ship's tour here. We took the Discover Margarita tour, 4 1/2 hours. We went through Porlamar, the largest town. We had a fun stop at Playa Valdez, a sardine fishing spot. The small boats were very colorful, and they were unloading the fish while we were there. The pelicans were helping themselves, right from the boats! We next stopped at La Aldea, a small town with quaint shops. Freshwater pearls were supposed to be a good buy on Margarita, but I thought the prices were high here. We continued touring through the countryside and came to La Asuncion, the capital of Margarita. We stopped to see one of the oldest churches in Venezuela, Cathredal Nuestra Senora De La Asuncion. Next was a stop to tour Castillo de Santa Rosa, the fort. On to El Valle, and a tour of Basilica de la Virgen del Valle, a beautiful curch! We also toured a museum. Then back to the pier and lunch on the ship. After lunch, we went back to the shops on the pier. They had cheaper pearls and some nice gift items. There was also a very nice looking beach not too far from the pier. Lots of people just spent the day there. I thought the tour was a great way to see the island, and a great price of $26 pp!

Day eight, Curacao. This was our first time to Curacao and we loved it! Another CC couple, Cheryl and Kevin, shared a taxi with us. I had emailed ahead and we had Donald Martina, who was waiting for us with a sign. We had a 3 hour tour of the east part of the island. We crossed the Juliana Bridge, stopping to take pics of Willemstad. Such a colorful town! We toured the older part of town, with some beautiful buildings, and others still to be renovated. We also toured the Mikve Isreal-Emmanuel Synogogue, meeting by chance, our other CC friends there, Jodi, Ernie, and their family! Next we stopped for a bit to see the Seaquarium, and were lucky to watch a sea lion going by with his trainer! We went up a dirt road to a great lookout, where we could see the whole island! We also toured a home that was being built. We were let off at Mambo Beach for a couple of hours. It was $3 pp to get in, and $3 pp for a chair. We had lunch at the restaurant there. Donald took Cheryl and Kevin back to town to shop. He came back for us, for the $12 one way fee, and left us off by the floating bridge, to shop, then walk across back to the pier. It was $30 per hour, for the 4 of us, so $45 per couple. Not the best prices, but okay. I liked the island very much!

more! :D

NitaBCruising, Please continue this great review! I really appreciate it as well and am curious about Margarita Island. Thanks!

Thanks, I'm working on it! It takes much longer than I think it will. My memory isn't good, and with so many islands in a row, they get mixed up! I have to keep going back to my pics, to see what we saw, in some sort of order! :D

Day nine, Aruba. We had been to Aruba before, and really liked it. We decided to take CCers Jennifer and Al, up on their offer of sharing a rental car. We had a teeney tour from Jennifer! :rolleyes: :D Then went to Baby Beach. This is a very good spot for families, as the jetty makes for safe swimming. Except this day was windy, and the water was rough enough to make the water sandy, not good for snorkeling. We did see fish, just too sandy for pics. And there are no facilities, just a snack bar. We had stopped at a store and bought a styrofoam cooler, ice, and picnic food! Great beach picnic! We got there just early enough to have a thatched roofed shelter. We ended up sharing it with another ship family of three. Chairs were one for $8, or two for $10! Later it was $25 for 2 chairs and an umbrella! We went back in time to shop a bit before the stores closed at 6 pm. After dinner, Gary and I went to the casino in town, and we both won! I gave mine back later on the ship! :rolleyes: We really like Aruba, too! I actually like all of the southern islands!

Day 10 was a our only sea day. We slept in, ate at the buffet, then spent an hour or so in the sun. It was quiet back towards the rock wall. We then met our tablesmates for lunch in the dining room, along with Jennifer and Al. It was nice to see everyone a bit more. Then tablemate Sandra and I went off to play the slot tournament. We neither one won, but it was fun! I went back out by the pool for 1 1/2 hours. Then I started packing, we had dinner, then finished packing. The casino took our money that night. Oh what a surprise!

Disemabarkation went well, and we were off about 9ish, I think. We waited for Jennifer and Al to go to the airport for a car rental, as they were staying a night. Then they came back for us and took us on a coastal tour east of San Juan. The beaches were very pretty! We then went to Old San Juan to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe. It had burned down and been rebuilt, and just opened the week before. Next they took us to the airport, and the end of a wonderful cruise and vacation!

The only ship activities I did, besides the slot tournament, was the midnight Chocolate Buffet. It was very pretty, with lots of goodies! And I joined a couple during the Liar's Club. We were fortunate enough to be tied for first, and got a prize. Anyone else having done more ship activites, please feel free to comment!

Ooooops, forgot the link to my pics!

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/nitabacruiser/my_photos

Also, if anyone has any questions, feel free to ask! :)

Hopefully those SHORTLY after your cruise will give as IN DEPTH review as you have, SO us cruisers in april can take advantage of your past knowledge. I Think I can speak for the WHOLE APRIL 11 th crew to say thank you for taking the time to respond! The more information both GOOD and BAD folks post, will make us MORE informed! Take care Spanky My....

Nita,

Loved the review and thoroughly enjoyed the pics.

Marilee

Spanky and Marilee,

Thanks for your kind words! I loved this cruise, so enjoyed reliving it! Glad you enjoyed reading about it! :)

Hi - we were on the same cruise as Nita and her hubby Gary. Nita gave such a thorough review and did such a great job that I have little to add. I will say that the tour with Mandoo in Grenada was terrific. He is a very well spoken and well informed gentleman - well worth the money. The spice plantation, in particular, was very interesting. Also, Ilva Wallace , our guide on St. Kitts gets another A+.She is a lovely lady and very informative - just don't get into island politics - you may find out more than you need to know - and that goes for most of the island locals. Glory Tours on Barbados was good but I thought our particular guide could have been a bit more enthusiastic and informative with regard to island history, ect. He had been up late the night before and we got an early (8:00) start so that may have contributed to his being a bit "sluggish". The ship, as you all know, is small. Our cabin was miniscule - my husband and I could not dress at the same time and he had to crawl over the bed to get into it. I was not happy at all with the accomodations, even tho we knew beforehand they would not be spacious. The food was quite good , especially in the dining room. Our waiter, Randy, was one of the high spots of the cruise - what a doll - funny and charming and very attentive to our every wish. We were a group of 7 and we all felt the same way. Our first night out was extremely rough and I got seasick but was fine by the next morning. If you are prone to seasickness, take along medication to help because in a ship as small as Empress you will probably feel the motion more than in a bigger ship. Otherwise, the itinerary is really great and anyone going on this cruise should have a ball.

Every comment on this cruise and the ship gives us more information. Thanks for taking the time to respond....

Beryl, nice to hear from you! I'm glad you added a bit, as I hardly mentioned the ship! :o

We had a partially obstructed view cabin, 139 sf! It was okay, except for the lack of drawers and the dinkiest shower I've ever had! So, go in, knowing the cabins aren't the best. The itnierary makes this cruise!

I know some were a bit queasy at first, as we had 6 to 8 foot swells, but they didn't bother me. It was smoother as we got further south.

BTW Beryl, it was nice to meet you and all the family. Fun touring together! :)

Hi - hi Nita and all. I just want to add that I have seen other threads where people are complianing about the poor crew on the Empress - not helpful, bad attitued, ect. I cannot understand what they experienced. We thought the crew was terrific. Our dining room and cabin stewards were excellent. Everywhere we went people were friendly and helpful. We are experienced cruisers - mostly on Holland America - this was our first RCI cruise - but we have never been treated better. Enough said........

Beryl,

I just read that post, and anwered in agreement with you! I only saw helpful and kind personnel! Maybe folks with the virus were mad at being quarantined or ??? :confused: I happened to appreciate them being quarantined! :eek: Anything else, I just don't know. I do realize one can get mediocre waitstaff or cabin steward, as I have on occasion, when others are raving about theirs. As I say, it's the luck of the draw, not the whole ship! :rolleyes:

And it's true, if one is used to a meag-ship, they may be disappointed. I LOVE the smaller ships! To each their own. I think this cruise is for seeing, with the excellent itinerary, not the ship! :)

Can anyone give me some feed back on jr suite 8686. it is on the eighth floor in the aft. woundering how the balcony is. thanks for the pics, we will be going jan 16 2005. Can you buy liquor on board the first night and have it sent to your room? what is the fee for that? many thanks vicki novak

WE were on the Jan 17 sailing as well. Thumbs up all around. Yes, the rooms were small, but we knew that ahead of time, and spent very little time in the room anyway. We bought all our shore excursions from the ship and each one was excellent! I met many happy cruisers on this trip. Can't imagine anyone not enjoing the total experience.

Can anyone give me some feed back on jr suite 8686. it is on the eighth floor in the aft. woundering how the balcony is. thanks for the pics, we will be going jan 16 2005. Can you buy liquor on board the first night and have it sent to your room? what is the fee for that? many thanks vicki novak

I am sorry, but don't know the answers to your questions. Maybe someone else will see this and have the answers. And you're welcome, and thanks for looking at the pics! :)

great review of the island we vist on the empess of the seas on Jan 16, 2005, it sound like mando's tour was better then the tour we had with pete's tour, we had vencent as our guide and sort of got lost in the rain forest looking for a water fall that was suppost be a 10 min walk, 1/2 hour later my wife with mud cover cover shoes and and feet gave up the hunt so I stayed with her and keven & Cheryl continued the hunt for the water fall. after 15 mins or so my wife seen keven & Cheryl coming back down, but the disapered, so we hiked back out of the rain forest thinking they went back a different way. K & C did find the water fall it was only 5 mins from where we had stoped. I belive we were the first ones to first the waterfall sence the huracane in oct, the trail was all over grown and hard to find. this fall was behind the 2 falls with the house right in front of the one fall. other ten that the tour was good but a little long.

the empress of the seas, on board nite time activitys. we seen most of the shows, the rci dancers and singers were good. mostly just dancing and singing. no broadway theam shows. the tango dance show was very inpresive. hal ?? singer/comy act was very good, a good show for a 74 year old guy. we also liked the british comic too. they had a very good band playing in the bordos called its, I belive its only had 3 or 4 weeks left to play so you may miss them. the steel drum band was good moslty pool side. Amy the cruise director and her staff was very friendy and out going, make sure you see the 70 nite show in the disco, it was very good with the almost villige people. we close the disco a couple of nite around 3 pm. rci quest game was fun, not to be missed !, the lair's club, the newwed game and trivia activiy were fun too.

hot ubs were just right, but close many nites early because of rough seas. the first nite out of san juan was the rougest out of any our cruise from san juan, some also on smaller ships. but I think in general the weather across the world has been off the year. like in barbaros we took the local bus to foklstone park for $ 1.50 us each to snokle, been there before usally like glass but it was the sea's were so rought the locals were surfing. Carols and charlies in arbu was real layed back compare to the one in cosamal, and the drinks cost a lot more too.

Bob G

Can anyone give me some feed back on jr suite 8686. it is on the eighth floor in the aft. woundering how the balcony is. thanks for the pics, we will be going jan 16 2005. Can you buy liquor on board the first night and have it sent to your room? what is the fee for that? many thanks vicki novak

..........

yes you can buy liquor on the ship and have it for your room, I think it cost a extra $ 10.50.. from what i seen of the balconys in the rear of the boat the looked like a good size but not much privicty, you can look right down on the balcony from the decks above.

the 8th floor aft was also without showers for a day and tolits for a day and 1/2, hope they are ok when you go.

BobG

Can anyone give me some feed back on jr suite 8686. it is on the eighth floor in the aft. woundering how the balcony is. thanks for the pics, we will be going jan 16 2005. Can you buy liquor on board the first night and have it sent to your room? what is the fee for that? many thanks vicki novak

a couple of other notes.. the number of people up and about late nite changed like most cruises, the first nite there a lot of folks up and around till 12:30 pm, the 2nd nite not to many, (jet lag time ) the 3rd a little more folks and a little later in to the nite and each nite after that and the last nite you see some folks you have not seen all cruise. . . . in arbu we rented a jeep with no problem when getting off the ship around 10:15 am, ( vickie stay up late nite with me so I let her sleep in a little each am, she's not musch of a bfast eater. ) the jeep cost $ 50.00 plus we put $10.00 in gas in before returning it. the I-net was the same speed as other cruises, but with rough seas, 5' to 6' sweels and the wind the nite I was trying to do some work for my biz, I keep losing my i-net connection. they credit my charges for my 2.5 hours I was on when I told them about the problem... one other thing I really like was the bar staff, when in a lounge we had our own cups of ice tea the bar staff would ask if we need any thing and when we said no thankyou the would give you a napkin face down to yet the other staff not to ask or bother you again. what a nice touch. no pushey bar waiters. made our nite enjoyable. also outside the winjammer on pool deck the had ice and coffee and dick 24 hours a day, also room service was quick and the had choc chip cookies not on the menu, the charge @ ben and jerrys snack bar.

BobG