A Fantasy[tic] Cruise - review with pics

[Cruise, J.D.]

The first elegant night was fun. The lobster was good and so was the prime rib!

 

 

Our son is going through a "no picture" stage, so we had to promise to do a funny picture in order to get him to smile. :)

 

 

This was my parents' and brother's second cruise. Their first was last year with us on the Elation. I think they are hooked on cruising now!

 

 

 

Next up . . . Nassau!

[CrzGrl62569]

 

 

 

I'm enjoying your review. This is an awesome picture. You have a beautiful family!

[Cruise, J.D.]

Our first port-of-call was Nassau and we went snorkeling with Stuart’s Cove. I had wanted to do this snorkel trip back in 2009 when we were in Nassau, but the timing didn’t work out. The shuttle bus picked us up outside the terminal at a fountain and took us to the dive shop.

 

 

On the way, our driver kept us entertained with stories about the rich and famous who had houses in the areas we were driving by. When we got to Stuart’s Cove, we met our crew and boarded our snorkel boat.

 

 

The crew was very nice and professional. I love riding out on the ocean on these smaller boats.

 

 

We snorkeled at two spots and then did the shark snorkel. The highlight of the first two stops was a barracuda and sunken plane.

Coming up . . . shark pics!

[Cruise, J.D.]

The shark snorkel was amazing and an adrenaline rush for sure! Those of us who went into the water went in one at a time and held onto a rope. We were told to minimize our movement. There were about nine reef sharks circling a chum cage beneath us.

 

 

After we got back in the boat, they brought the sharks to the surface. I highly recommend this snorkel tour!

 

One word of warning though: when you get back, the food and drink prices are pretty high at the dive shop and I don’t think there is anywhere else nearby to eat or get a drink.

[Bobblefrog]

Thanks for sharing - we cruise Fantasy in January and I love hearing about things - especially the chess set since most people don't review that. Look forward to the additional chapters!

[Cruise, J.D.]

I was wanting to try some local conch salad, so I had the shuttle bus driver drop us off at Arawak Cay (the "Fish Fry”) on the way back. I had read a recommendation for Goldie’s Conch House from scubagirrl here on Cruise Critic, so we decided to give it a try.

 

 

We had an excellent lunch of conch salad, conch fritters, fried snapper, and some local brew, Strong Back Stout.

[Cruise, J.D.]

After lunch at Goldie’s, we walked along the ocean back to the cruise terminal.

 

 

This was a nice walk with some pretty scenery along the way.

 

It was pretty hot though, and the sun was beating down. Make sure you have some water with you if you do this!

 

When we got back to the terminal area, we did some shopping. Now, the weather was fine at this time. The day before the Captain had informed us we were on the outer edge of a tropical storm. It had been rainy and overcast the first two sea days, but partly cloudy and sunny in Nassau. That was about to change and at the same time give us an incredible sight . . .

[Cruise, J.D.]

We were making our way back to the ship along the pier when we saw a girl walking towards the rear of the ship saying "Oh my God. What is that? That is crazy!". She was right.

 

 

This was quite a sight for us. We are from tornado country, but had never seen a water spout before. With it being next to the Atlantis resort, it made a spectacular scene.

 

 

Needless to say, we were spellbound watching this thing.

 

However, the weather was looking menacing and we thought it best to get onboard. We snapped some pics and hurried away. A little after boarding, the sky darkened and it starting pouring down raining.

 

Next up . . . paradise, otherwise known as Half Moon Cay!

[nathand95]

I'm really enjoying your review! I can't wait to read more!

[DEBnGAB]

We had planned to hit Arawak Cay too for some local food! I am so glad to see the pics and a good review! Thank you. How were the prices at Goldies?

 

 

Did you do the morning or afternoon snorkel? Someone else posted that the shark option was only available in the afternoon? Hoping that isnt true.

[antigualvr]

 

 

Needless to say, we were spellbound watching this thing.

 

However, the weather was looking menacing and we thought it best to get onboard. We snapped some pics and hurried away. A little after boarding, the sky darkened and it starting pouring down raining.

 

Next up . . . paradise, otherwise known as Half Moon Cay!

 

Great photos!

[Cruise, J.D.]

We had planned to hit Arawak Cay too for some local food! I am so glad to see the pics and a good review! Thank you. How were the prices at Goldies?

 

They weren't too bad. The conch salad was $10, but the fritters were much cheaper. The snapper was $8. They also had a local beer special of 3 for $7. Here is a link to the menu:http://www.goldiesconchhousenassau.com/.

 

 

Did you do the morning or afternoon snorkel? Someone else posted that the shark option was only available in the afternoon? Hoping that isnt true.

 

We did the morning snorkel. The afternoon shark option is for scuba diving. You can do the morning snorkel and see the sharks.

[DEBnGAB]

They weren't too bad. The conch salad was $10, but the fritters were much cheaper. The snapper was $8. They also had a local beer special of 3 for $7. Here is a link to the menu:http://www.goldiesconchhousenassau.com/.

We did the morning snorkel. The afternoon shark option is for scuba diving. You can do the morning snorkel and see the sharks.

 

OMG they have Barracuda on the menu! Ill have to try that.

 

Thanks again for this info! Super helpful.

[Dive Master]

The shark snorkel was amazing and an adrenaline rush for sure! Those of us who went into the water went in one at a time and held onto a rope. We were told to minimize our movement. There were about nine reef sharks circling a chum cage beneath us.

 

 

After we got back in the boat, they brought the sharks to the surface. I highly recommend this snorkel tour!

 

One word of warning though: when you get back, the food and drink prices are pretty high at the dive shop and I don’t think there is anywhere else nearby to eat or get a drink.

 

 

Stuart and Michelle are great folks. I did my Shark Instructor Certification with them in 2008.Caribbean Reef Sharks are amazing.Feeding them is a real rush !!!!! I highly recommend their shark dive and snorkel trips to anyone interested in learning more about the apex predators of the seas.This was an experience I will always remember.

[Bobba22]

We were making our way back to the ship along the pier when we saw a girl walking towards the rear of the ship saying "Oh my God. What is that? That is crazy!". She was right.

 

 

This was quite a sight for us. We are from tornado country, but had never seen a water spout before. With it being next to the Atlantis resort, it made a spectacular scene.

 

 

Needless to say, we were spellbound watching this thing.

 

WOW!!

Storm Chasing in the Bahamas!! Incredible Photos!!

[Cruise, J.D.]

Before I move on to HMC, I'd like to point out a small negative on this cruise. The Past Guest Party was held at 5:00 pm on the Nassau day. This was not a good time in my opinion. The PGP should be held on a sea day if possible. Now moving on to better things . . .

 

I was a little anxious about HMC because I knew it was a tender port and knew it was occasionally missed. We had rented a cabana and were expecting a spectacular beach day. Hearing nothing amiss, we met early in the Universe Lounge with the other excursion purchasers and were led to the first tender to the island.

 

One of the best things about being on the first tender boat is that the beach looks like this when you arrive:

 

My son was literally the first kid to use the beach slides! We then made our way down the beach to cabana number 11.

 

The cabana was awesome! It was everything it was hyped up to be. Lots of fruit and snacks, sodas and water, shelter and shade, lounge chairs, beach shower, float mats, snorkel equipment, and more!

 

Just a heads up that your included items may not be in your cabana when you first arrive. It took a bit for the employees to deliver our stuff, but it wasn't too long of a wait.

[LUVMYGSDOG]

The fruit and veggies look awesome! You post such great pics....

[Cruise, J.D.]

The sand at HMC was luxurious feeling and the water was divine. It was so much fun to simply float in the water and drag your feet through the sandy bottom of the ocean.

 

When you got tired of this, you could simply retire to the cabana and enjoy the view to the left . . .

to the right . . .

 

and to the front!

[Cruise, J.D.]

We stayed at HMC from the first tender to the last. The Drink of the Day was appropriately the Bahama Mama, and I had a few. I also ordered a bucket of Bud Light and was disappointed that there is not a discount for a bucket on the island. Don't miss out on the hammock before leaving.

 

The snorkeling was not that good near the beach, but if you are swimming near the outer rope watch out for a barracuda! My brother found one and I saw it too.

 

The beach down by our cabana never got crowded, but the number of people did pick up as the day passed. It did start to look crowded back towards the entrance to the beach.

 

A fun thing to watch for while on HMC is that the ship turns every so often. Not sure why, but we saw it in different positions throughout the day. It was also fun to watch the different water sports taking place out in the ocean. The bathroom was really convenient to our cabana - just behind us.

 

I was impressed with the food at the barbecue. A few of us made the trip to the food pavilion and brought back plates of hamburgers, hot dogs, fruits, and side dishes to enjoy in the cabana.

 

If you want a souvenir, be aware that the shops close down before the last tenders. We didn't want to leave HMC, and the "I Wish I Could Stay Here Forever" sign at one of the bars says it all. One last picture from near the end of the day . . .

 

Next up . . . towel animals and Grand Turk!

[Cruise, J.D.]

Our son loves the towel animals and our cabin steward made a couple of new ones for us on this cruise. First was this guy, who was hanging around our cabin the night of the HMC day.

 

This next guy came swimming up the night of the Grand Turk day!

[dettlja]

Love the review so far and love, love, love the screen name. I just added a J.D. to the end of my name in May, sat for the bar this week and am sailing on the Victory in 2 short days.

[Cruise, J.D.]

Grand Turk was a beautiful setting. The beach at the terminal was nice. To be honest, we were quite boring on the Grand Turk day - our son took a much needed nap and we didn't get off the ship until close to 4:00 p.m.

 

We made our way down the pier . . .

 

and met my parents to the right of the pier under a blanket of palm trees.

[Cruise, J.D.]

Love the review so far and love, love, love the screen name. I just added a J.D. to the end of my name in May, sat for the bar this week and am sailing on the Victory in 2 short days.

 

Congratulations! I know all the hard work that leads up to that point. Have a great cruise!

[mommyof3girls]

We are going on Valor in 4 weeks and taking our 5 and 4 y.o. daughters. So glad to hear your son enjoyed HMC. Did he do any Camp Carnival activities?

[Cruise, J.D.]

The setting at the beach in Grand Turk is pretty interesting. The ship is very close to the beach, probably the closest of any port beach I've been to. We joked about swimming to the ship.

 

Although we were lazy in Grand Turk, you can't really blame us when these were the views from our lounge chairs!