Emerald Princess 11/15/09 - 11/22/09 Review - Ask Questions & I'll Answer

[lushou]

Emerald Princess 11/15/09 - 11/22/09

Ft. Lauderdale Round Trip

Eastern Caribbean

P219 - Plaza Inside State Room just foreward of the Art Gallery

Princess Cruise #2 (Crown last year) & 2 Disney Wonder Cruises (2004 & 2005)

My wife & myself (30 & 30), no kids.

 

Pre-Cruise:

We took Southwest to FLL and rented a car with Dollar. VERY quick and easy. Then, we stayed at the Cocobelle (small 16 room property 2 blocks from Ft. Lauderdale beaches. A+.

 

Embarkation:

We arrived via Dollar Rental Car Courtesy Shuttle at 1:15pm to the terminal. We stood in line for a total of 2 minutes outside and then were able to walk right through security. We then waiting for 5 minutes in line to get our Cruise Card/Check-In. We then walked right onto the Emerald Princess.

 

Highlights:

New entertainment in Piazza. In addition to a piano player & string quartet, there is now a guy called Krill (kah-reel) who does some cool stunts. Also, there is a juggler/funny many as well. All were good. The comedian, Kevin Hughes in the Princess Theatre was EXCELLENT all 3 times we saw him. The hypnotist, Joshua Seth was amazing. The impresionist was decent but not great.

 

Ports:

We took the water taxi to Phillipsburg St. Maarten. $6 for an all day pass. Well worth the money. Princess Cays was good as always. St. Thomas we stayed on the ship. Grand Turk was 100% perfect. Sunny, warm, beautiful water.

 

Best Crew Member:

Isabela @ International Cafe (before 4pm) and Vines (after 4pm). We was our favorite crew member on the Crown last year, and we were thrilled to see her again this cruise.

 

Sanctuary:

The word is out...the sanctuary pool is FREE. Too many people saving chairs as usual. The sanctuary though ($10/half day, $20/day) was great but very busy. I got there on our last sea day @ 7am to reserve a seat (open @ 7:30) and I was 23rd in line. Be prepared and just get the week long pass ($110).

 

Room:

Our stateroom was an inside stateroom. Although small, it was perfect for the two of us. We had our beds made into one and had an egg-crate topper. The room was under the Princess Theatre. Occasionally, you could hear a little bit of the music from the Theatre. However, this is not annoying at all and never past 11:30pm.

 

Casino:

You can now use your cruise card only @ the casino. Convenient but bad for chronic gamblers (which I am not).

 

Cruise Director:

Tim Donovan - he was funny. We enjoyed last years director more but Tim did a good job.

 

Favorite Event:

Pub Night @ Club Fusion. It was a lot of fun and was PG-13. Do not take you kids!

 

Disembarkation:

Princess did a great job. HOWEVER, the dumb people in front of us did not have their customs forms filled out and therefore held up the line for people waiting to get off the ship.

 

Please email me / post here with question. I'm happy to answer them!

 

Kevin

[boat tay]

Can you post the Patters? I would love to see them...

[Coolmama_1]

Thanks for the review. Sounds like you had a good time.

[Woodmnky]

Do tell a little bit more about Pub Night.

Also, you and your wife are about are about the same age as DH & I who also don't have kids. We have considered Disney Cruise Lines, what are your impressions of DCL compared to the Emerald?

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the review.

[lovevacadays]

I would like to hear about Pub night as well. I haven't seen that activity on any of the cruises of done. Just got off the Crown and booked for the Caribbean Princess next December. Thinking about trying to fit in the Eastern Caribbean in the Spring. Anything particular you liked about the ports you visited?

[Premier]

any good excursions at grand turqs? did you just do your own thing in St. marten when taking the water taxi? We have never been to St Marten and would love to know what area is highly recomended.

 

what was the dress like on the emerald? dressy or anything goes?? we are leaving this sunday and are so looking forward to it.

[Premier]

did you take any excursions in st marten, or grand turks? WE have never been to St marten and are curious as to what is highly recomended.

 

how was the dress code on the boat? dressy? or anything goes? we are leaving this sunday! thanks for any heads up!

[strawberrysally]

We are leaving on a cruise the end of the month and would like some information on what there is to do at Grand Turks? Can you go away from the beach or are you there for the duration?

 

Also what is the best tour to take at St. Maarten?

 

Thanks

[hillhouse]

Can you post the Patters? I would love to see them...

Ditto - and thanks for the review!

[caribill]

We are leaving on a cruise the end of the month and would like some information on what there is to do at Grand Turks? Can you go away from the beach or are you there for the duration? You can go all over the island. See Princess shore excursions for Grand Turk to get some ideas.

 

Also what is the best tour to take at St. Maarten? Probably booked with a waiting list, but the best is

"America's Cup 12-Metre Yacht" Regatta SXM-755 Approx. 3 hours

Recognized as one of the best shore excursions in the Caribbean, the St. Maarten "America's Cup 12-Metre Yacht" Regatta offers you the only opportunity in the Caribbean to race these exotic multimillion-dollar America's Cup 12-metre racing yachts.

 

Experience the exhilaration of America's Cup yacht racing aboard Dennis Conner's cup-winning Stars and Stripes or contenders Canada II or True North. You compete in an actual race around a shortened America's Cup course-- and you're invited to "work the boat." Your experienced crew provides all the guidance you need to grind a winch, trim a sail and punch a stopwatch. Or you can just sit back, relax and enjoy "the most exclusive sporting event in the world." No previous sailing experience is required. All you need is the desire to have the time of your life. Refreshments are provided, and a rum punch party rounds off this spectacular event as you browse the 12-Metre Regatta boutique.

 

SPECIAL NOTES

Wear comfortable, rubber-soled shoes. The minimum age required to participate without sailing experience is 12 years old (with sailing experience is 7 years old). This tour has won the C.R.U.I.S.E. Award "Tour of the Season" for St. Maarten the past 10 years.

Thanks

 

 

See above