Valor Review 3-14-10

[tbrocks]

The snorkeling boat finally got there but this was our experience in the water

 

Those of us who were snorkeling really didn't mind that it was raining. We were wet anyway. Those that were on the boat, didn't like it so much. There was a canopy on the boat, but it didn't really help and my mom got soaked. She doesn't have my charming "anything goes" personality, so she was not happy!

 

The snorkeling was really good. There were lots of large schools of fish. On the ride back, we saw a sea turtle, too. I do have pics but I'll have to add those later.

 

So, we reluctantly got back on the boat to go back to be considerate of my mom. Since it was raining so hard, we abandoned the idea of getting dropped off at the other beach. We got back to the van and this time instead of the air, asked them to turn on the heat! We also missed out on all the shopping and photo ops we thought we'd have so much time for.

 

When they take you back, they are allowed to drop you off inside the gates and down the hill. It was still pouring and we were already soaked so we moseyed through the Mahogany Bay area back to the ship. I think my dad stopped and bought some cheap cigarettes.

 

When we got back on the ship, there were crew there handing out towels. I thought that was very thoughtful! We all went back to our rooms and took showers. Ironically, I was originally sad that we would miss dinner during this stop. We had early seating at 6 and we weren't set to leave Roatan until 7. Since we went back early, we had plenty of time to shower and make it to dinner.

 

Next - more food porn!

[tbrocks]

Dinner, as usual, was fabulous. Here are some more pics of food

 

Sweet and sour shrimp. Very yummy.

So, since I didn't order the ribs the first time and I had to mooch off my dad's plate, this time I ordered them. It's actually a filet and short ribs or something like that. It was wonderful! Highly recommend it.

This wasn't my dessert, so I'm not sure what it was or if it was good. It looks good. Let's see how well you've all been paying attention . . . any idea what I had for dessert??

 

After dinner, my mom wanted to go to the future cruise presentation in the Eagle's Lounge. There weren't too many people there. The two who gave the presentation did a great job. They gave away prizes and kept us laughing. I was fully intending to purchase the vouchers for our next cruise so we could take advantage of the OBC, but this is what I had to deal with halfway through the presentation . . .

 

My mom ended up getting one, though. I think there's a friend certificate with it so maybe we'll go with them again.

 

I took him back to the room and tucked him in. Then, I went to the casino with my friends. I had some pretty good luck at blackjack.

 

One other thing I LOVED about late nights on the Valor was the girl who sang in the lobby area. She was always there late in the evening and she was by the piano on deck 3. She was amazing. She was the best entertainment of the entire cruise. I always stopped and listened no matter where I was. I hope she's on the ship for awhile longer so you all can enjoy listening to her.

 

My other favorite entertainment experience were the breakdancers. They were part of the 80's show and afterwards, they went to the lobby area and did a show on the wooden "flag" floor. They also got the crowd involved. They were amazing!

 

My husband is now whining that he isn't getting enough of my attention since I'm spending so much time with all of you!

 

I hate to do this because again, I hated waiting for people to finish their reviews! Now I'm one of them. I won't be around this weekend so check back on Sunday night and hopefully I'll have more for you. I promise I'm not trying to keep you all hanging on!

[Froufie]

Rum Point is gorgeous. It's smaller than 7MB but there's plenty of shade and sun. There are chairs you can use and I believe there are also hammocks. No cost. There is a bar/restaurant there but FYI - it takes a long time to get a drink or food. They're on "island time". The problem is there isn't an easy way to get there otherwise I would have gone back in a heartbeat! I think a taxi costs about $80 each way and you'd have to arrange for them to come pick you back up since there aren't taxi's just waiting there. I really thought about renting a jeep for the day. If it would have just been my husband and I, we probably would have. I think that's about $100. There are a couple days of the week where there's a ferry now. We didn't stop on the ferry day. I can't remember when that is. Go to tripadvisor.com and put in rum point. You'll see some pics and stuff. In my opinion, it's totally worth it! If I had to do that day over again, I would have coughed up the money and went there.

 

We also LOVED rumpoint - and I did some research as well on how to get there. Very hard on your own - easiest way for those interested in going on a tour - we did the rays, reef and rumpoint tour thru Nativeway Watersports and it was excellent. Rumpoint was so perfect and I would love to go back one day. (for those who are interested see pics and more info in my Valor review - link below).

 

We had almost similar weather in Roatan!!! ...and definitely the same singer in the lobb area (and sometimes casino area) - she was fabulous!

[tbrocks]

Day 5 - Belize

I don't have any pictures of Belize for some reason! We had booked cave tubing with Vitalina Reyes. They advised us to get the earliest tender we could. For some reason, we didn't follow those rules. We left Roatan late because of wind and we got into Belize late. We took our time getting around and off the ship. You have to get a tender sticker in the Eagle's Lounge. My mom and dad decided to stay on the ship this day and enjoy having the Lido deck to themselves.

 

We got tender #10. As we were waiting for our number to be called, another group of 8 asked us what we had planned for the day. I told them I had booked cave tubing. They said they tried to go to the excursion desk to book that and they said it had been sold out for days. In the information Vital sent me, he said if we meet anyone on the ship who wanted to go, bring them along. So, I told them where to go if they wanted to talk with Vital about going with. We found Vital outside the main port area and mentioned there was another group who expressed interest. He asked if we wanted to wait a few minutes for them. I had lost my sunglasses so I said sure, 5 minutes would be fine.

 

In about 5 minutes, the other group showed up and started talking with Vital about joining the group. They started trying to negotiate with him. We were already late because we took a late tender (our fault) and then we spent probably another 20 minutes trying to figure out if this other group was going, too. Finally, I said let's get going and Vital asked me what he should do. I told him that was totally his call. We started walking toward the van and they joined us. I was starting to get nervous about the time. It's an hour to get to the caves and we were running out of time. The group that joined us were very nice and I'm glad it worked out that they could come but I was getting a little frustrated that we were going to have to rush.

 

The ride to the caves was interesting because we got to drive through a bit of the city and we got to see the countryside. There was a mountain that looked like a man lying down.

 

I thought that was kind of cool.

 

When we finally got to the caves, there's a bathroom where you can change, etc. You want to make sure you wear aqua socks or something. They said not to wear flip flops because they can come off your feet in the water. I wore some strappy sandles that were secure, but when they got wet, they slid around on my feet and weren't easy to walk in. I definitely recommend going with the aqua sock option. Don't try to be creative!

 

The walk isn't a difficult one and the guide would stop and point out interesting trees, termite mounds, etc. But, since we were so tight on time, we were going very quickly and when he wanted to stop and tell us about something, we would rush him along so we made sure we didn't miss the ship. I watch the "runners" on YouTube and I wasn't going to let that be me!! In normal circumstances, I think this is a walk that would be fine for older people but on this day, if my mom and dad would have been with us, they would have slowed us down tremendously. They are leisurely walkers anyway.

 

The walk to the caves is probably about 20-30 minutes depending on how much stopping you do. They put you together in a chain and they pull you though the cave. When it gets too deep for them to walk, they'll swim and paddle you though. They were definitely working their tails off. We had two chains. One with our group of 8 and one with the other group of 8. The cave tubing was a great experience and there are some very beautiful sights inside and outside of the caves. I wouldn't do it again since I've already done it. In hindsight, I probably would have chosen something else to do on this day. I had read all the reviews on Tripadvisor and they all were wonderful saying you can't miss this. I agree that it was great and I did enjoy it but knowing that I might not ever get back to Belize, I wish I would have went to one of the cayes and snorkeled and enjoyed the beaches. This ended up being a very stressful day and I didn't enjoy myself as much as I had wished. I also think I was so excited about this excursion that it didn't live up to my expectations.

 

So, we get done with the cave and we know we are CLOSE on time to when they said the last tender was. Even though we got to Belize at least an hour later than expected (I actually think it was closer to two), we still left at the same time we were supposed to. We had a lunch included with our tour and we were wondering how the heck we were going to be able to manage that! We asked our guide to call the restaurant and get our food to go. There are 16 of us in the van and the guide did a fabulous job managing all the to go orders. Beer, soda, water, and/or rum punch were included. The rum punch was STRONG! Good, but strong. For lunch, we got chicken and rice and beans. OK, I don't know how to stress this enough so you'll really understand. This was some of the best food I've ever had! Really!! The rice and beans were out of this world! So, you've all discovered how much I love the warm chocolate melting cake, right? I would totally take the Belize meal over that any day. That's how good it was. Food is very subjective, but it gets 5 stars in my opinion. That meal alone was worth all the hassle and stress. Next time, I'd just go for the meal, though. Screw all the other stuff. :-)

 

Our driver was the slowest person ever. We were being passed by every single car. Our guide kept telling our driver that we had a time limit and we needed to hurry. He didn't care. Our last tender was at 4:14 and we got back to the pier at 4:15. For all of you who have been in this situation before, you probably know what's coming. I hadn't and I always make sure I get back to the boat in plenty of time. I have nightmares about missing the ship and I am a super laid back person. So . . . does anyone want to guess what happened? I should leave this until tomorrow and see what the consensus is.

 

I'm too impatient. Not going to do that.

 

The line to get on the tender was through the whole shopping area. We stood in line for a good 30 minutes when we got back to the port. No need for drama. No worry of missing the tender and the ship leaving us. Whew!

 

However, we didn't have any time at all to explore the port and do any shopping. I did offer someone $10 for a $15 pair of sunglasses and they didn't take it. I didn't buy them. I figured I could get some cheaper somewhere else.

 

That was the Belize excitement. Sorry I don't have more pictures for you to see! Cozumel will more than make up for it, I think.

 

This night was the second elegant night. Food pics on the way:

Escargot. Not as good as other times I've had it. The kids tried it. Didn't care for it.

I can't remember if this is the seafood medley thing or if it was a sushi sample in the MDR

Cornish hen. My husband and nephew said it was spicy. Be prepared if you order it. My husband didn't eat it.

ummmm, something with shrimp

[tbrocks]

The cheesecake was fabulous

 

One thing we did one of the other nights that I forgot to mention was we went to the Lido deck to watch "The Proposal" on the big screen. That was pretty neat and it was something I hadn't done on any other cruise. There weren't too many people out there so it was peaceful watching a movie under the stars. They had popcorn but it cost a few dollars. Can't remember how much. I found that odd that they have all the fabulous food throughout the entire cruise but they charge for popcorn. Odd.

 

By this night, we'd hit March Madness and they had basketball on the big screen. We all grew up in Iowa but some of us live in Kansas now. We got to see Kansas lose and UNI win. That was kind of cool. (Not for the KU fans)

 

Day (who cares? It's almost time to go home and I'm not ready! I don't want to think about what day it is!)

Cozumel

We chartered a fishing/snorkeling boat through Cozumel Charters / Wahoo Tours. We broke off from the single ladies and the parents. They all did their own thing. My brother and husband are big fishermen. My husband DREAMS about catching a Marlin, Sailfish, Mahi Mahi, etc. We were one of the first ones off the ship this day. We were docked, so it was really easy.

 

Fountain in the port area

Our boat for the day

Look, it's the Valor in the distance

 

We did the "deep sea fishing" thing first. We trolled while we were running parallel to the island. We had about 6 poles in the water and the captain was moving all around trying to get some fish to take the bait. This is what we were all doing while we were waiting to hear "fish on".

 

Excitedly waiting

Hanging out and watching the water

[tbrocks]

Laying out. . . or sleeping . . . or both

Drinking

Hanging out

 

Unfortunately, no "fish on".

 

We had made our way to a protected reef area (or something) and it was time to go snorkeling. Again, my husband wasn't really into snorkeling, so he stayed on the boat while the rest of us jumped in.

[tbrocks]

The boat didn't anchor or anything so when we jumped in the water, it kept circling and/or idling around. The current was kind of strong and my daughter isn't the best snorkeler. The mask wasn't fitting very well and she kept stopping to adjust her mask. Before I knew it, she and I were away from the reef and my brother and his kids were far away. The guide had jumped in with us and he was hoovering between us. When he saw we were getting separated, he came by us and said we needed to catch up. I was at the point where I was going to take her back to the boat so I could enjoy some snorkeling. She had the choice of figuring out how to make the mask work or going back to the boat. She figured it out and we caught up with everyone else.

 

This is us trying to catch up

 

Yay! We made it!

 

Here's the snorkeling crew. We look like we're in a swimming pool!

 

My husband decided to jump in and cool off

Time to dry off

[jtagphillycruiser]

The review is wonderful. Thanks everyone for the info on Rum Point. My mouth waters at the food pics. That choc. melting cake looks like something I'm really gonna be enjoying every night...lol...Have a good weekend and look forward to the remainder of the review...Joanne

[dancemom3]

Thanks for a terrific review! We're booked on the Valor this summer.

[tbrocks]

Thanks for a terrific review! We're booked on the Valor this summer.

 

You will have an amazing time! The ship is great and I loved all the stops!

[tbrocks]

After we were done snorkeling, the guide had some snacks for us. They made guacamole on the ship. I am NOT a guacamole fan, but this was really good. I ate plenty of it. They also cut up fresh pineapple.

 

As you can see, we've pretty much tore up the guacamole

 

They took us to a place where the guys could try some bottom fishing. It was back over where we could see the ships. This time, I kept hearing "fish on"! Yay! The guys are catching fish!

 

[tbrocks]

 

The fish they were catching were Trigger Fish.

 

My niece was a vegetarian for a year until a Big Mac finally broke her. She's not too thrilled about having to watch the guys fish!

The boys, on the other hand, are very happy!

 

They ended up catching 5-6. We booked a 1/2 day tour so we would have some time to do something else. Our intent was to take the fish to Margaritaville where they'll cook it for you. We were hoping to take them a Mahi Mahi, though. No one knew what Trigger Fish tasted like so we decided to bail on that idea. Since we had something going on at every port, we hadn't done any shopping. We decided to leave the fish with the crew and we'd go back and do some souvenier shopping.

 

Goodbye fish

[tbrocks]

The whole crew. I guess no one else wanted to hold any of the other fish!

 

I just found a couple other pics from our snorkeling that I don't think I included beforehand.

 

When we were snorkeling on the reef, right at the edge where the reef meets the beautiful sandy bottom, there were a ton of starfish. We were probably 30 feet from the bottom. I am bad enough with distance on land much less in the water. It wasn't less than that, though. The guide who was with us took a deep breath and dove to the bottom to get one of the starfish. I have some great pics on the underwater camera if I ever remember to bring the disc home.

Sorry if I posted these earlier. I didn't remember talking about that, though.

 

We took a taxi back to the pier so the kids could do some shopping. We went into one of the stores and within 5 minutes, my lovely curious daughter picked up a ceramic frog to look at it and broke it. Of course, we have preached the "you break it you buy it" to her since she could walk. And also, "be careful". She thought we would be sooo disappointed and she had a minor meltdown. We bought the frog (well, SHE bought the frog) and after that she had no interest in spending any more time shopping. We headed back to the ship to get ready for dinner.

[mississauga]

abrocks, you are doing a terrific job with your review. I love reading reviews and like you would just love to read it right through without having to wait for more but life after the cruise gets in the way LOL:D

 

As readers, we should just be grateful that you are taking so much of your personal time to write and post your review and be sooooo generous in sharing your pictures with us.

 

Sometimes I tell myself to just wait until the OP has had a few days to complete the review and then go and read it from start to finish. Guess what...I can't help myself...I have to read once I know the start of the review is there. :p I soooooooooo loooove reading them. LOL :D

 

So thanks to you and others for all your efforts and the time you give up in your personal life to do this. Thanks to your DH and DD. It is greatly appreciated! Keep up the great job you are doing!:D:D:D

[zandk]

Wonderful review! I can't wait to read the rest.

[TBMVette]

Awesome review! Thanks for the great pics and wonderful humor. :p

[MrsBlair]

You haven't quit on us, have you??? :p