Just home from the Victory - lots of shore tours

[Megnolia]

I have skipped a few reviews, but as I'm not working this week, I'll do it quickly and put it here so you can ask questions if you like.

 

This was my second time on the Victory out of San Juan, so I am obviously a fan of the itinerary.

 

The ship - has has some noticeable upgrades since Dec 2008, including new deck chairs on Lido, new chairs in the theatre, and some repairs to carpets and open decks. Definitely in need of new carpeting throughout, but the hard surfaces (floors, bannisters, glass) were gleaming, and polished constantly.

 

I won't go into detail on the ship, boarding etc. because there are many others who have done so recently - but I'm happy to answer any questions you may have about these details. We stayed at the Sheraton Old San Juan - very convenient, and a nice, clean hotel central to the pier and exploring the old town. It was nice to walk across the street to board. They also offered to store our luggage after check-out.

 

We checked in very quickly at 11, and boarded around noon. There are hardly any chairs in the waiting area like there are in other ports I've been to, so if you don't want to stand, I wouldn't suggest arriving too early.

 

St. Thomas - have visited a few times, so this time we decided to take the skyride to Paradise point. It was $21 I believe. Something to do once I guess, but it wasn't exactly thrilling. Got some ok pictures, but all there was up there were some short walking trails, which we covered in no time, and some shops and a patio if you want to eat or drink. We couldn't find any information on the bird show, nor could we find anyone who could tell us when or if it would be happening, so we gave up and went back down to wander through town a little bit.

 

To be continued below...

[Megnolia]

Dominica - pre-booked with Levi Baron of Bumpiing Tours. We did the Roseau Valley Best (with Levi as our guide) , which I have done before. Had booked The Waterfall hike explosion, but I am pregnant, and Levi advised against it. It worked out, since there was heavy rain that day, and he said it would have been canceled anyway. The tour we took involved a hike of about 1 hour to Middleham falls, then back the same distance. It is a great hike if you're in shape and comfortable with hills. It was more challenging at nearly 5 months pregnant, but definitely still enjoyable. We had a lot of rain, so I know my traveling companions complained that it was difficult footing and hard to enjoy the scenery. I was expecting it though. The tour then went to Titou Gorge, where you swim into a fairly large chasm and up to a waterfall. Due to the heavy rainfall, we couldn't get as close to the fall as we did last time, but it's still a cool experience. We continued on to Trafalgar falls, or the "mother and father" falls, which is a reasonable walk on some hilly trails to a beautiful pair of falls with hot pools located around the bases. All drinks (pop, beer, water) are included and at $60 we got a very full day, and saw lots of beautiful scenery during the driving portions of the day. The roads in Dominica have been really improved in the last year, and are now mostly paved, and two lanes wide in many places. Still not for the weak-stomached!

[Megnolia]

Barbados - this was my best surprise. I was not enchanted with Barbados last year, so wasn't expecting too much. I booked with Glory Tours for $117. We visited Harrison's Cave, which was really excellent. I had read many people who thought it was boring and overpriced, but they have done a great job with this attraction. There are informative displays, then you tour the caves on a tram. These are the biggest caves I've ever seen, and very interesting inside. We were there for a good amount of time, and learned a great deal from our guide. We continued the day with a visit to Bathsheba, which has a nice wild Atlantic beach. I was a little disappointed we didn't stop at the place with all the rocks on the sand, but further down where there was less to see, but it was a nice stop by the water. We visited the Wildlife reserve, which consisted of walking trails through an enclosure which housed many types of animal. They were all walking free, and I got very up close and personal with monkeys, tortoises, some different rodents and deer and birds. Anything more dangerous had fencing and cages ;)

We enjoyed lunch (included) at a restaurant. We had a few options. I went for flying fish and rice and peas. The meal was really delicious. I think I've eaten rice and peas on 6 different islands now, and it has always tasted very different.

We ended the day with a ride on a glass bottom boat to a snorkelling area where we swam with sea turtles - they got nice and close thanks to a guide who was feeding them. I got excellent pictures on my olympus underwater. We then went over to a "ship wreck" for some more snorkelling. There were lots of fish here, but I was getting tired, so didn't swim for too long. The ship wreck was a barge, intentionally sunk there. Made for some interesting wildlife. Our guide Jammal was outstanding. I always wonder how the tour will be if we don't have the owner or the "main guide", but I was blown away by his friendliness, knowledge and passion for sharing his home with us. He sang most of the day and was tremendous fun to be around. Although it was an expensive tour, the entries to all the stops, the food and the cost of the boat were definitely where that cost came from. We had a great time, and wouldn't hesitate to book with Glory Tours again.

[Megnolia]

St. Lucia - we toured with Cosol and were not disappointed (we got Cosol himself). Visited a banana plantation and ate some tiny little bananas, drove through Anse-la-rayes fishing village, stopped at a house for a really nice breakfast spread - there was tons of food, and probably 20 different typical local items to try. Plenty to go around, good for vegetarian and non. This tour also included unlimited drinks of many types. We visited the drive-in volcano, which is a very neat experience. The stop at the botanical gardens was pretty quick, and there was not a lot to see there. I did a tour last year which included all the same stops, but went to the diamond falls botanical gardens, and that was much more impressive. We then went on to Canaries where we boarded a water taxi for a neat little ride to Jalousie beach. We snorkeled in a marine reserve, but the water was extremely dark and cloudy, so saw very little. The beach was nice, and with an hour's stop, it was a nice break in the day. We continued the tour with some more driving and photo stops, and then got some more to eat - hot bread with cheese. We got a lot to eat and drink, and arrived back at the ship full and exhausted. I took a very similar tour through the ship last year - Land and Sea to Soufriere, and enjoyed it just as much. (it included a catamaran tour), but Cosol's tour was much more affordable, at $65.

[Megnolia]

St. Kitts - This was supposed to be my relaxing day. I booked with some CC friends with Rose and Jim's taxi, a small private company offering a 3 hours tour. 6 hours later, I felt I had really got my money's worth ($41) but I was so exhausted! We drove through Basseterre, and what seemed like dozens of small towns with the most interesting and random names. We went to the Caribelle Batik factory, which I had zero interest in - it turned out I loved the beautiful grounds, it is on the edge of a rainforest, and has lovely gardens. The Batik demonstration was very interesting, and I was quite tempted to purchase something, but didn't find the design I was looking for. This would make a unique souvenir though, once you have learned how it is made. We then went to the Brimstone Hill fortress, and fort George. I love to explore the old forts and historic sites, so with 45 minutes here, I was very happy. You could probably see the entire grounds to your satisfaction in about an hour and a half, but the time we had was good for a quick go-round and it was getting hot ;)

We stopped to see the Atlantic and Caribbean meeting, and once again I was impressed with how the waves really do crash into each other here. We also stopped at Black Rocks, which has some neat rock formations on the shore. We then took a long drive through completely different terrain (a very arid area with salt flats) to get to Cockleshell Beach. The beach was a disappointment. There were probably 1000 people off the ship here, and there were lots of boats and docks and things in the water, giving it a very crowded feel. There was really no place I felt safe leaving even my towel, and nowhere inviting to have a sit. I walked along the beach and found a totally separate, remote beach, but had decided not to swim this time anyway. We were tired and ready to head back to the ship. I would have enjoyed the tour more if it had ended before we went to the beach, as it was really overkill on an already long day.

[Megnolia]

Sint. Maarten/ St. Martin - This is the one island we did not visit last time ( they replaced Antigua).

 

We booked another short tour with Bernard's Tours. This was $35, but is increasing to $40. The 3-4 hour tour ended up over 6 hours, so another day that was not really relaxing, but still a good day.

 

We drove through the Philipsburg, and headed across the border to the French side. We stopped at a shoreline to see some sea creatures (starfish, urchins, sand dollars etc.) which was really cool. They were just in the rocks near the shore. We then drove to the beach at Orient Bay. This was finally the beautiful beach I had been waiting for! The water was so clear blue, and the sand was soft and lovely. The beach was very empty at 10am (only one ship in port, too), and there was lots of space to leave towels and belongings. I swam for two hours and enjoyed every moment. $1.00 for the use of washrooms, or you could pay $8 at many different locations to get a chair and drinks. Not drinking, I didn't go for it.

 

We then continued on to explore Marigot, the French capital, which has a very European feel. I loved this little stop, and would have enjoyed more time to explore the market and the streets and waterfront. We went on to Maho beach where the planes come in. It wasn't nearly as cool as the youtube videos, and we were here for way too long. Only a couple people went swimming, which wasn't really the intention of the stop, so we ended up waiting for them so it was boring and hot, and the bar on the beach had a horrible smell and bad bathrooms. (can you tell I was getting tired by this point in the tour?) We got back on the road and headed back to the ship at this time. Bernard also offered free drinks all day.

 

So overall, we had some really interesting tours on this trip. My husband had to stay home to work, so I traveled with my sister and parents, so I am sure I would have enjoyed everything a little more had he been there with me. By the last two days I was really tired from a busy week, and with the two tours running so long when I had planned on short days, it was not as enjoyable as I had hoped, but I can't fault the tour guides, because it was nice to get so much for such a great price. I had just planned to be back on the ship by lunchtime and it didn't turn out that way.

[Megnolia]

Traveling pregnant worked out just fine. We booked nearly a year ago. I ate a lot less than usual, since I've had bad heartburn, and I found that foods I normally like I couldn't stand on this trip, so I ordered different meals than I ever have before, which was a nice change. I was very tired, and not drinking, so apart from the shows, I didn't go out in the evenings. I had reason to go to the infirmary one day and was able to speak with an OB nurse, who happened to be onboard. She was very helpful, and they treated me really well and since she was able to help me herself, I wasn't charged for a doctor's visit ($90 but would have been covered by my health insurance). I usually take Bonine, but couldn't, so I had a prescription of diclectin (for pregnancy nausea), and I took ginger pills once in awhile, and used the sea bands. I really do believe the sea bands work, as I kept them off during the day and didn't use them unless I felt nauseated, and they seemed to do the trick. Thank goodness!

 

The buffet food seems to have improved on each cruise I've taken over the past 4 years. The dining room food seems about the same. Some things were excellent, some things were just alright. We did your time dining, which was great for a pregnant lady - putting dinner off until 8:30 was SO not happening. We had good service every night. We always ate before 7:00 and never had to wait, but we noticed around 7:30 or 8:00 it got quite busy at the doors. Also bar waiters were few and far between. If you want something other than water (we were never offered iced tea or lemonade), you should go to the bar before you arrive at the dining room. I wish they would revamp their dessert menu. All I had was the creme caramel the first night, and never ordered anything else as I'm not a big fan of any of the other desserts. Wow, that sounds picky. Creme caramel every night would have been fine! One day the buffet had all homemade candies for dessert, and they had these adorable little sushi rolls made with sweetened rice and some cut up fruit and chocolate. That was a special treat as I don't like the cakes and cookies and things they normally have. Keep your eyes peeled for the candy day, because they did little gummies, marshmallows, candied orange peels, those sushis and some other lovely looking little treats.

 

If you have any questions about the ship, the ports, the shows or food or anything, feel free to shoot them over here! Today is a day of rest after having our flights horribly messed up and spending 30 hours to get from San Juan home to Toronto. My luggage should arrive this evening, hopefully. (left on Sunday).

 

Happy sails to you :)

[whulfc86]

I leave in 2 weeks so thats for the review! We only have one tour booked so far in Dominica with Reyno.

[Megnolia]

I would not hesitate to recommend any of these tour providers. If you google their names, you will find all the rest.

 

Glory Tours and Bumpiing offer many different tours, Cosol, Rose and Jim and Bernard offer one standard. They were all quick to reply to email and easy to get in touch with.

[caracol]

Who did you fly with? We are doing this cruise as well in two weeks (Hi Kristy!) and are taking AA from Pearson to SJ via Miami. It was the least expensive and had the best stop over in my opinion.

 

I was looking at Bernards for St Martin, were there a lot of people on the tour with you?

[Zapped]

St. Kitts -

:

We then took a long drive through completely different terrain (a very arid area with salt flats) to get to Cockleshell Beach. The beach was a disappointment. There were probably 1000 people off the ship here, and there were lots of boats and docks and things in the water, giving it a very crowded feel. There was really no place I felt safe leaving even my towel, and nowhere inviting to have a sit. I walked along the beach and found a totally separate, remote beach, but had decided not to swim this time anyway. We were tired and ready to head back to the ship.

 

My DW & I went to St. Kitts in 1988 and stayed in a hotel called the "Banana Bay Beach Hotel" which I believe was on Cockleshell Bay on the remote SE end of the island. There were only 12 rooms occupied by adult couples - no kiddos allowed. Gourmet dining and great service. Years later we learned it was destroyed by a hurricane (Georges maybe?), but back in 1988 it was unspoiled and had nobody on the beach but the hotel guests. We were very lucky to have had such an idyllic vacation there, and of course we remember it fondly.

 

Megnolia - any idea if this was the same beach area where Banana Bay Beach Hotel? Were there any ruins of the old hotel, library, etc.?

 

I'll have to dig for my pictures of that area. I've had a lot of old 35mm negatives scanned so I should have digital copies.

[Megnolia]

Hi there,

 

caracol, we also flew AA from Toronto through Miami. We had no problems on the way there, just on the way back. They kept delaying our flight, and at the gate we weren't told any reason for it (at one point they said the mechanics were checking out something) then suddenly the departure time on the screen, which was originally 2:55, changed to 7:45pm. There was a collective gasp from the waiting area. My dad went to the counter to get a meal voucher, and I went straight to the special services in another part of the airport. My dad said that they were given the vouchers but still never told what happened. When I went to special services, the man there read me the miami forecast - severe thunderstorms all afternoon and evening and overnight. He said nothing had got in or out of Miami all day. 60% chance of severe thunderstorms all day Monday. He said he could get me a flight out of Miami at 11am the next morning.... IF we even managed to get there. Or he could get me to New York by midnight, and we could fly to Toronto at 7:55 the next morning. I took the New York route. I guess there is a reason Miami was cheapest. What stinks is that I had originally booked through Boston with travelocity, then in March they sent a flight change, and had moved the stopover to Miami!

 

If my luggage is any indication, it followed our original path, and it arrived in Toronto at 10am this morning, 48 hours after we checked it in San Juan. Hopefully things will work out fine for you through Miami. Otherwise, keep an eye on the boards, and check your options with special services as early as possible.

[Megnolia]

My DW & I went to St. Kitts in 1988 and stayed in a hotel called the "Banana Bay Beach Hotel" which I believe was on Cockleshell Bay on the remote SE end of the island. There were only 12 rooms occupied by adult couples - no kiddos allowed. Gourmet dining and great service. Years later we learned it was destroyed by a hurricane (Georges maybe?), but back in 1988 it was unspoiled and had nobody on the beach but the hotel guests. We were very lucky to have had such an idyllic vacation there, and of course we remember it fondly.

 

Megnolia - any idea if this was the same beach area where Banana Bay Beach Hotel? Were there any ruins of the old hotel, library, etc.?

 

I'll have to dig for my pictures of that area. I've had a lot of old 35mm negatives scanned so I should have digital copies.

 

 

Hi Jim,

 

It's possible! When I walked over to the "deserted" end of the beach, it was very empty with a few dirt tire worn roads, and some broken down stone walls. They looked older than the 80s, but may have been in a different area, too. The beach that was occupied with people was probably about a km long, then I walked around these "ruins" on a small point of land, and ended up at another, somewhat smaller beach, with not a soul on it. We saw some hotels in St. Martin that had been destroyed by hurricanes. It was eery to see them with the broken windows and all overgrown.

 

oh, look what I found: I think the seculded beach that I found was, indeed, banana bay. There are some posters who mention the resort here, with some pictures, too - http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g147376-d148974-r29322933-Banana_Bay-South_Coast_St_Kitts_St_Kitts_and_Nevis.html

 

haha, edited again because I realize that was you who posted on the tripadvisor site!

 

I think the end where the resort was was probably the most beautiful. There is a bar and a number of little stands and things at the end we parked at. The beach was just busy and there were so many boats moored right in the swimming area it was not a nice place for swimming. Where I walked to, though, I was tempted to go for a swim by myself. But by that point I had about 20 minutes to get back to the van, I would have had to change out in the open, and frankly, it was a little creepy to be swimming alone on a beach with no one anywhere to be seen! Would have loved to see the resort before it was destroyed.

[Haysiedaze]

St. Kitts - We then took a long drive through completely different terrain (a very arid area with salt flats) to get to Cockleshell Beach. The beach was a disappointment. There were probably 1000 people off the ship here, and there were lots of boats and docks and things in the water, giving it a very crowded feel. There was really no place I felt safe leaving even my towel, and nowhere inviting to have a sit. I walked along the beach and found a totally separate, remote beach, but had decided not to swim this time anyway. We were tired and ready to head back to the ship. I would have enjoyed the tour more if it had ended before we went to the beach, as it was really overkill on an already long day.

 

 

We used Rose and Jim on our cruise. We asked Jim if we could go back to the ship instead of spending time at Cockleshell. He dropped off people there and took us back to the ship. From what we heard later from people that stayed, skipping Cockleshell was a good move. Sounds like you would have agreed. We would use Rose and Jim again too. Nice people.

 

Enjoyed your review. Thanks for taking the time to write it.

[Megnolia]

We used Rose and Jim on our cruise. We asked Jim if we could go back to the ship instead of spending time at Cockleshell. He dropped off people there and took us back to the ship. From what we heard later from people that stayed, skipping Cockleshell was a good move. Sounds like you would have agreed. We would use Rose and Jim again too. Nice people.

 

Enjoyed your review. Thanks for taking the time to write it.

 

 

Hi Haysie,

 

Thanks for the note :) I don't know if I would have skipped the beach or not - in hindsight, I wish I had, but at the time, I was still looking forward to it. It was just on arriving that I wasn't feeling it. Rose was adorable - it was so neat to hear their story. They just got back from vacation in England, and all the other drivers we ran into were teasing her "why did you bring your husband back?" It's nice to find those local family-run businesses and spend the day with people who are so excited to share their home.

[Zapped]

oh, look what I found: I think the seculded beach that I found was, indeed, banana bay. There are some posters who mention the resort here, with some pictures, too - http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g147376-d148974-r29322933-Banana_Bay-South_Coast_St_Kitts_St_Kitts_and_Nevis.html

 

haha, edited again because I realize that was you who posted on the tripadvisor site!

 

Too funny - I forgot that I had posted over there back in early 2009. Yes, those were three of my images under "Memories from 1988". Now that you reminded me, I think we were considering a return to St Kitts in Feb of 2009 but instead booked our first-ever Carnival cruise on the Conquest for May of 2009. No regrets there!

 

If you took any pictures of the hotel ruins, I'd love to see them. But if not, no biggee!

[Megnolia]

nope, sorry, I checked through and there's nothing in my pictures that resembles anything. All that's left is some rubble stone and it's very overgrown with grass and bushes. There is a LOT of development going on in that whole area now - our driver was telling us about it, so there are some piles of dirt and bulldozers around. It seems they're going to build that whole area up with fancy resorts and hotels. Next time you are there, it probably won't be as tranquil as you remember, but I guess it's good news for the tourism industry on the island. It is a shame since it's such a beautiful, natural area though.

[Zapped]

Kind of you to look through your pictures. I did find my scans from 1988 and thought you'd like to see what the rubble used to look like. I uploaded them to Picasaweb; here's a slideshow.

[mlrich]

We ended the day with a ride on a glass bottom boat to a snorkelling area where we swam with sea turtles - they got nice and close thanks to a guide who was feeding them. .

 

I'm curious what the access was like in and out of the boat. MY DH recently had shoulder surgery so pulling up stairs to get back into the boat may not be an option for us. We'd love to swim with the turtles but only if he can get in and out of the boat with ease.

 

Thanks in advance! :)