Island Princess 10-Day Panama Canal Review - Not quite LIVE ... but close

[SweetAngel]

The ship's photographers weren't taking your picture as you disembarked in Aruba? They did last time we were in Aruba. :confused:

 

Not in Aruba ... We were part of a big busload, though, and they were trying to keep everyone together. Maybe it was different for those who left the ship on their own or in smaller groups. I don't know. I looked around to see if there was anyone taking pictures, and I didn't see anyone.

 

Now at the other ports, they did take pictures, and I posed, but I didn't like the way the photos were put together into a big collage ... It made them more expensive, and I didn't want all that extra fluff.

 

I collect sign pictures of every new place I visit, so I especially like to have a sign to stand in front of, something that actually says the name of the country. That's what I was hoping for at each stop. I really liked how Carnival would always put a sign out with the name of the country on it. I was just very surprised in Aruba, my very first Princess port, that we didn't take any kind of picture at all.

 

Ocho Rios and Limon both had very nice welcome signs at the pier, so I was able to take my own sign pictures there. I had to be inventive in the other countries.

[SweetAngel]

Hello, all. I had the pleasure of being part of the Panamaniacs on the Island Princess with Angel and the rest.

 

Hi Tony.

 

Tony and his companions were the first ones we met from our roll call ... It was in Crooner's Bar. It was nice to be recognized like that. Made me feel like a movie star! :)

[SweetAngel]

My inner nosey kitteh did a little online sleuthing - if you click on photos you'll see one that looks very like Angel's "clue" photo of the resort:

 

http://www.tamarijnaruba.com/index.php

 

Awesome!! That's the place. Thank you.

[SweetAngel]

Day 4 – Afternoon at Sea

 

All Aboard from Aruba was 12:30pm … Seemed strange to still have the whole day in front of us after an excursion … almost like a port day and sea day rolled up into one.

 

I was really hungry after swimming, and I enjoyed today’s selection at Horizon Court.

 

 

Again, I have to say how much I liked trying the different daily soups … not the same old ones you see all the time, but an interesting variety. And the tarts, oh, I love those. I don’t know why I only had one the whole cruise. I wish I would have had more. I think I wanted to try new things. I just couldn’t eat it all. I started to think that the only bad thing about visiting ports the next three days was that I would miss the yummy Princess lunches.

 

And what made today’s lunch doubly nice was the beautiful view. This was my favorite table of the cruise. We sat right up to the window which looked straight down to the crystal-colored water below.

 

 

At 2:45, I tried the Line Dancing Class. It was great! I had missed the first two classes due to all our Panamaniac activities, but I picked up the steps quickly enough. The dance instructor, Lauren, was a great teacher. She reviewed the basic grapevine for anyone like me that was new to class. She was friendly, patient, positive, and helpful to anyone who had questions or needed encouragement. We learned three new dances, which I thought was great. And of course, as any one who knows me can tell you, I love to dance!!!

 

After class, I stopped in at Explorer’s Lounge to catch the end of the Passenger Feud game show (like Family Feud). It looked like a lot of fun. The whole room was set up into teams of five, and every team got a chance to come up and try to knock down the reigning team.

 

 

Then, I decided to go to Afternoon Tea again, but this time on my own. I was hoping to be seated with a group and socialize a bit, but that wasn’t to be. The waiters seemed to be surprised that I came alone and asked if I wanted to have tea at my own table. I said I would like to sit with a group (thinking that tea was a social activity and how strange it would be to have tea alone at your own table). I guess the problem was that they just didn’t have a good seat for me at that time. They ended up putting me at the eighth seat with an older family of seven. This was a very close, tight-knit family that seemed to be uncomfortable with my imposition on their family tea (at least that’s the way they made me feel). I tried to be as pleasant as I could, but it wasn’t the greatest experience. Those scones, however, were delightful with jam and cream. I quickly ate, drank, and excused myself.

 

At 4:15 I was back for more Trivia at Wheelhouse Bar. No matter which team I sat with, Trivia was always a great social experience, much more so than tea. J

 

At dinner, JD and I chose to sit with a group. We lucked out and got another gorgeous window table.

 

 

Each evening, I was finding the choices to be more and more appealing. I couldn’t decide today, and ended up getting two soups. I had to have a cold and a warm soup. (Have I mentioned that I really like the soup selection on this ship?) Bean soup is just about my favorite, and this black bean soup was a good one, with sour cream and tortilla sprinkles. If I remember right, the cold soup was mango, my favorite fruit. (JD calls me his little mango). The entrée of beef medallions was pretty good too.

 

 

The show tonight was Scott Wyler, the comedian from the Opening show on Day 1. Or you could go to Big Band Dance Night in Universe Lounge with Taff & the Island Princess Orchestra. Or you could go to Ultimate Trivia Challenge in Explorer’s Lounge. Choices, choices. My choice … I took a nap.

 

You see, tonight was also the big Island Night Tropical Deck Party (10 pm), and tomorrow would be an early day in Cartegena. I was already exhausted from an early morning in Aruba, followed by eating, dancing, eating, trivia, and more eating. I crashed. JD explored the ship for a couple hours while I re-energized.

 

On my way to nap in my cabin, I was drawn outside. The sun was setting, and it felt so nice to stroll along the promenade in the dim early evening light before the blinding white deck lights were turned on.

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

HI Angel,

 

Love the photos...but the one of your dinner plate in the group you just posted doesn't look very appetizing...:rolleyes:...are those the beef medalliions all covered in sauce??

[CruzinPat]

Angel: You're doing an awesome job with your review and I love your pics!

 

We were also part of the panamaniacs on this sailing and agree it was one of the best cruises for us! The combination of the ship, itinerary, staff/crew, awesome service and food made it go beyond our expectations!

 

Everyone that is going to sail the Island on this itinerary...you're in for a real treat!

[sha88]

Thanks so much for this wonderful review! We are taking this cruise in February and your review is getting us really excited. We decided to rent a Harley in Aruba with a guide and do a bike tour, so we are looking forward to that first port very much.

 

Keep positng! So many of us are really enjoying it. Thanks again.

 

Shoo

[OCruisers]

Sue .... Continue to ENJOY! Thank You! :)

[Rick03Ultra]

Shoo, We are going to be on the Island cruise in March. We are planning on a Harley rental also. We are renting directly from the dealer for less money. He has stated that they modify their standard tour so you get back in time to make the 1PM sailing. Have fun and good luck.

[SweetAngel]

Love the photos...but the one of your dinner plate in the group you just posted doesn't look very appetizing...:rolleyes:...are those the beef medalliions all covered in sauce??

 

Hi Sunsetbeachgal,

 

Yeah I know the pic doesn't look nearly as good as it tasted ... meat looks fatty in the picture, but it really wasn't. It was all in a gravy with mushrooms and onions, pretty tasty.

[SweetAngel]

You're correct!:D This beach is closer to the port than Eagle and Palm beaches. Bus stop isn't convenient here so you'd need a taxi. We also sailed Island 10/11 and have vacationed in Aruba twice.

 

We were also part of the panamaniacs on this sailing and agree it was one of the best cruises for us! The combination of the ship, itinerary, staff/crew, awesome service and food made it go beyond our expectations!

 

Everyone that is going to sail the Island on this itinerary...you're in for a real treat!

 

Hi Cindy. Hi Pat. Nice to see you chiming in here too. :) :) :)

[welshperson]

Thankyou Angel,

You have worked hard on this post. I leave for Panama on the Island Princess Nov 30!!

It sounds like I am going to have a wonderful trip. Postings for the Island Princess seem to be few and far between.

Thanks for all your pics and info.

[SweetAngel]

Day 4 – Island Night Tropical Deck Party

 

At 9:30 pm, JD came to get me for the Island Night Tropical Deck Party. As soon as we entered the Lido pool area, we were embraced by warm, tropical weather, live music, and a fun party atmosphere. The cruise directors were giving out leis to everyone, lots of leis.

 

I keep thinking about all the cut-backs the cruise lines are supposed to be doing, and then I see Princess doing all kinds of little extras like showering the leis on everyone. One lei would probably have gotten the party message out, but no, Princess poured on the leis. I loved it!!!

 

I am including this picture to show what happens to your camera when you go from an air-conditioned cabin out into the warm humid air. The lens keeps fogging up faster than you can wipe it.

 

 

I loved the decorations that Princess put up for this one night only. There were electric palm trees and neon pink lights

 

 

Lots of people were dancing. The cruise directors were absolutely fantastic at getting the passengers energized and having a great time. They danced with everyone and treated us all like we were their very best friends. They led us in the old favorites, YMCA and the Electric Slide. It was definitely one of the best deck parties I’ve ever been to.

 

 

Then, during the second slow dance with JD, Cruise Director James cut in and asked if he could borrow my man. Apparently, JD was one of twelve men nominated for the Mr. Island Princess Competition. The contest was cute. The first four contestants had to act like surfers, doing their moves to surfing music. Then the audience had to vote by applause for their favorite. The second group had to act like Tarzan, doing their moves to “George of the Jungle.” The audience’s favorite was rolling around doing somersaults! Now JD was in the third group, the ballerinas. JD’s pirouettes were exquisite, but you should have seen his leaps. High into the air he bounded above all the other men. I was delighted when the audience cheered loudest for JD!!!

 

So JD made it into the finals. And now the highlight of the competition: The three finalists became strippers (above the waist mind you). I couldn’t decide whether it was exciting or unsettling to watch my man strip in front of 1000 people. I bet not too many of you can say that’s happened to you before???

 

Then the voting … it was close. JD was the first runner up to Mr. Island Princess!

 

 

He got a very nice medal, too, that said “Second Place – Princess Cruises.”

 

 

The somersaulting Jungle man won and got to wear a big crown as he led a Conga Line around the swimming pool and all over Lido deck. Anyone who didn’t join the Conga Line got handed streamers. Then we all counted down like it was New Year’s Eve and threw our streamers into the air.

 

 

The parties, like all the other activities and shows on Island Princess, only last an hour, so don’t be too late to join in on the fun. I like the length of the activities. You can get wild without getting totally worn out, and then you move on to another activity. There is always another activity going on somewhere (from 8am to midnight anyway). You just read your Princess Patter (the daily activity guide) to find out what’s going on where.

 

We had a blast at the Island Night Tropical Deck Party. Take a nap beforehand if you need to, but don’t miss out on it!

[SweetAngel]

Day 4 - Island Night Buffet

 

To top off Island night, the Island Night Buffet is open beside the pool on Lido Deck from 11pm-midnight.

 

 

Here you’ll find lots of fruit (They either saved the good fruit for tonight or picked some up today in Aruba) and yummy desserts. There were strawberries covered in white chocolate and one of my very favorites, chocolate-covered bananas. A large fruit bowl had blackberries, raspberries and blueberries in addition to the everyday fruits you find in Horizon Court.

 

 

And of course, there was a beautiful ice sculpture, fountains of water, and many artistically carved masterpieces to delight the eyes.

 

 

 

Can you believe we are still on Day 4? The cruise isn’t even half over!

 

At this point, JD and I were already thinking that no cruise was going to be able to compare to this one.

 

You know, I do think it’s odd to have a late night deck party and 11 pm buffet smack between two straight days of early back-to-back ports. Thank goodness for the time change at 2 am, giving us an extra hour to sleep before our 7:30 wake-up call.

[Crown Prince]

Shoo, We are going to be on the Island cruise in March. We are planning on a Harley rental also. We are renting directly from the dealer for less money. He has stated that they modify their standard tour so you get back in time to make the 1PM sailing. Have fun and good luck.

 

SWEETANGEL:

Thank you for all the time and trouble you have spent to show us your great photos. Your commentary is so helpful and very descriptive. The Island Night party sounds like so much fun.

 

DEAR RICK:

Can you please give me a Link to the Harley Rental or an e-mail address. I don't want to drive, but want to ride on the back. I did this in Uluru (Ayers Rock - the Red Centre in Oz). I loved the sunset ride so much that I also took the sunrise one in the dark the next morning. No better way to do the Rock. Thank you very much for your help.

[SweetAngel]

Day 5 – Cartegena

 

The first view of Cartegena astounded me. In the far distance, I saw all these gigantic structures. I thought they oil rigs, hundreds of them. It was eerie. There were more and more structures appearing. It had to be the biggest oil field on earth! Then as the morning light grew brighter, I realized these were buildings, hundreds of massive skyscrapers.

 

 

I had no idea Cartegena was this huge! We’re talking over 1 million people! I realized I was now very far from home -- I had never been to a foreign megalopolis before, only smaller cities like Playa del Carmen and party towns like Cozumel.

 

 

I was utterly flabbergasted. None of my pictures could do justice to impress upon you the massiveness of this city.

 

I loaded up a breakfast plate in Horizon Court and brought it down to eat on my balcony so that I could watch the ship pull up to the pier.

 

 

The ship docks in an industrial area. For those without tours, there is not much to see and do around the ship other than a very small shopping market which is a quarter-mile walk from the gangway.

 

 

CruzinPat of the Panamaniacs set up a private group tour with Lee Miles for anyone in our roll call group who wanted to join. Since the private tour was going to the same places as the ship tour I had originally scheduled, “Best of Cartegena and Fortress,” JD and I decided to join the group. We were so glad we did!

 

We had no problem walking off the ship right away. I like how Princess had two gangways, one for the ship tours and one for those of us going on our own. That made it easy. Lee Miles, himself, met us right at the gangway and introduced us to our guide, JJ, who put us on a comfortable air-conditioned bus just for our private group of 16 Panamaniacs.

 

This tour was better than the ship’s tour because:

1) It had more stops at more places.

2) We had a small group for easier maneuvering and quick bus loading.

3) The small group made it easy for everyone to see and hear the tour guide.

4) The great guide gave it that personal touch.

5) Panamaniacs are good fun and great company!

 

We paid $31 each for a better tour than what the ship was offering for $59, and we got back with plenty of spare time before sailaway. Here is our itinerary for those of you interested in a similar custom tour. This is a modified version of tour #2 on the Lee Miles web page:

 

9:00-9:15, Drive to La Popa Monastery, 0:15Min

9:15-9:45, Visit la Popa Monastery (*), 0:30Min

9:45-10:00, Drive to San Felipe Fortress, 0:15Min

10:00-10:10, Photo stop San Felipe Fortress, 0:10Min

10:10-10:20, Drive to Las Bovedas, 0:10Min

10:20-10:50, Stop at Las Bovedas, 0:30Min

10:50-11:00, Drive to Plaza Bolivar, 0:10Min

11:00-11:30, VisitGoldMuseum, 0:30Min

11:30-11:40, Photo-stopPalace of the Inquisition, 0:10Min

11:40-12:00, Walk to Cathedral/Plaza Aduana/San Pedro, 0:20Min

12:00-12:25, Visit San Pedro Claver Church/Monastery(*), 0:25Min

12:25-12:45, Drive to ship, 0:20Min

(*) = Fee included for entrance to monument/site

Total Time: 3:45

[Carolina Cruisr]

Angel

 

Did Lee Miles or the guide push Emeralds since he owns the Emerald Store?

[texasgirl29]

Angel,

I am loving your tour and thanks for the many, many photos. We are sailing on the Island Princess at Christmas. I'm excited that the calendar has turned over to November because that means it's NEXT MONTH!

 

Anyway, my question is about al fresco dining. It looks like the Horizon Court is enclosed, yes? We sailed on the Disney Magic a few years ago and I loved sitting outside with breakfast. Is there anywhere that one can dine al fresco? We have a mini-suite with balcony but there are four of us (two adults and two children) so that probably is not an option.

 

JoAnn

[Cozzette2]

Thanks you so much for the great review and pictures, we are there in feb. and this is like watching the coming attractions to a movie you have been looking forward to for months. All of us that are booked on the Island for the Panama Canal thank you so much for taking the time to share your wonderful memories.

Kris

[sloney]

Thank you so much for your review. You're bringing the whole expereince to life with your photos.

 

Please keep going I'm hooked!

 

Susan

[SweetAngel]

Did Lee Miles or the guide push Emeralds since he owns the Emerald Store?

 

No, neither did. We didn't include that shopping area on our itinerary, though, only the Dungeons. I had read that Lee Miles was careful not to be too pushy with his own store.

 

It looks like the Horizon Court is enclosed, yes? We sailed on the Disney Magic a few years ago and I loved sitting outside with breakfast. Is there anywhere that one can dine al fresco? We have a mini-suite with balcony but there are four of us (two adults and two children) so that probably is not an option.

 

I liked eating outside on Disney Magic too. On Island Princess, tables are a problem. There are a few tables around the Lido pool, but they are always full when the pizzeria is open. Plus the Lido area is crowded and enclosed with plexiglass windows, so it's not probably what you had in mind for outdoor dining. Also, the row of tables on Lido Port side is mainly there for the smokers. There may have been a couple tables by the grill on Deck 15. Since we could not find open tables to eat our pizza & hamburgers, we sat on the top deck lounge chairs, which are not very comfortable for eating.

 

The mini-suites that I toured had larger balconies with four chairs instead of two, so you should be able to eat out there. Room service is free for the cost of a tip.

[SweetAngel]

Day 5 - Lee Miles Tour in Cartegena

 

The Drive to La Popa Monastery

 

When you first view Cartegena from the ship, one of the outstanding features you will notice is a mountain with what looks like a mansion on top. Well, we were happy to get to visit the “mansion,” which turned out to be a picturesque monastery.

 

La Popa Monastery is an amazing place, a treasure, and it is not included on any of the Princess excursions. I would highly recommend a visit to this spot.

 

The road up the mountain is winding with interesting houses along the way. As the bus climbs, the houses are replaced with trees, and you will begin to see the Stations of the Cross along the road.

 

 

Throughout history, people have made a pilgrimage to the church, walking all the way up (some even on their knees), stopping at the stations along the way. Today, you will also see armed military guards along the road, a reminder that you are in a third world country.

 

The view at the top is astounding. You can see the whole giant city, the ship, the fort, everything.

 

 

Our guide, JJ, was friendly, funny, and knowledgeable. He pointed out various sites around the city, gave us some history, and added in a few stories.

 

 

Here is a picture of San Felipe Fortress in the distance.

 

JJ warned us right away that the Colombians are very pushy when they try to sell their goods. He told us to bargain with them because that’s what they expected. If we weren’t interested, we would have to give a very firm, “No.” There were several vendors lined up outside the monastery. I bought a nicely displayed Colombian set of coins for $4 (that started at $10). I was absolutely thrilled to hold the sloth for $5, but some on our tour bargained down to $2.

 

 

I LOVED the sloth! He would wrap his arms around you like a teddy bear, such a gentle creature. I nuzzled up to him. JD was worried about bugs, but I didn’t have any troubles. I was completely happy to snuggle with a sloth.

 

For an extra dollar, they let JD hold the sloth too.

 

[SweetAngel]

Day 5 –Lee Miles Tour in Cartegena

Inside La Popa Monastery

When we entered the monastery, the first thing we viewed was the pretty courtyard.

Once I stepped into the sanctuary, though, that’s when I realized I was somewhere very special.

The Altar

The Crucifix

The Sanctuary

Looking out the Front Glass Door

After our 30 minute tour, we loaded the bus and headed back down the mountain to go to San Felipe Fortress.

[Skys the limit]

Thanks for the first time in my many cruises you leave me wanting more of a review. What and awesome job. Lucky man that JD

[sunsetbeachgal]

Oh My Goodness!! That picture of JD with the sloth is the cutest thing!! Can;t wait for more---your thread is amazing! Thank you! We leave for this trip in a couple of weeks, and are so excited.