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Freedom with 54 Surprise Guests, $6513, and Justin Bieber :)

myfamilyluvs2cruise
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ebandive

ebandive

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This is one of the best reviews I have read in a long time!! I literally had tears in my eyes when I read about the surprise... and have had a big grin on my face reading the rest. You all seem like great people with wonderful friends!! Thanks for posting and sharing! :)

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Eeyoregon

Eeyoregon

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Hey, when you run out of things to say/write, can you just make up stuff cuz I don't want it to end!!?? I soooooo look forward to reading the updates each night...helps me unwind and smile after a long day at work.

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myfamilyluvs2cruise

myfamilyluvs2cruise

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This is one of the best reviews I have read in a long time!! I literally had tears in my eyes when I read about the surprise... and have had a big grin on my face reading the rest. You all seem like great people with wonderful friends!! Thanks for posting and sharing! :)

 

Thanks! I feel very lucky every day to have such great friends. I really appreciate your comment!

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myfamilyluvs2cruise

myfamilyluvs2cruise

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I am just realizing that your itinerary is the same we will be doing on the breeze in December. I am taking notes as to all the tours you used. Thanks for including so many details.

 

Oh- that is going to be SOOOO much fun! An amazing ship and perfect itinerary- the best combo ever- you are going to LOVE it. I am going to write about Tortola next, and it is by far and away the COOLEST place I have ever been. After going there, our group is considering making our next group vacation all about that area. Incredibly beautiful and so much to do and see! I hope you get a decent amount of port time- ours was too short- 7am- 2:30. However, we managed to squeeze in a ton of fun.

 

By the way, I loved your review of the Spirit (?). We had just gotten off and it was fun to relive it through another family's eyes. :)

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ibcnusoon

ibcnusoon

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Looking forward to your review of Tortola! My husband and I were at Jost Van Dyke, Tortola and Virgin Gorda on a land vacation 20 years ago and have been DYING to get back there! I wish there were more cruise stops in Tortola (then you have the option to go to Virgin Gorda or Jost Van Dyke for excursions).

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myfamilyluvs2cruise

myfamilyluvs2cruise

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Jay, Justin and 54 others take on Jost Van Dyke!

 

OK, this (next to the day of the surprise) was my favorite day ever! I was so excited about the stop to Tortola on our itinerary, and this was one of the reasons we selected this sailing. The problem was that there is really way too much to do, and our time in port was VERY short. Our ship was due to be in port 7am- 2:30pm, NOT LONG ENOUGH. We were originally scheduled to leave at 3:30 and then 60 days out, it was cut back by an hour- BUMMER. Tortola itself is a beautiful island, but is more so (IMO) a launching pad to do and see some amazing things!

 

I researched quite a bit on CC and on Trip Advisor as to the best things to do. I settled on a catamaran tour, but needed to figure out which operator and which itinerary. I was torn between going to Indians (and the Willy T- a floating restaurant on a ship where you can jump into the ocean- too cool!), the Baths for amazing snorkeling, or going to Jost Van Dyke. SO much to choose from, so little time.

 

I settled finally on hiring Voyage Escapes due to reviews and the helpfulness of the people I spoke with. Their website is www.voyageescapes.com- in case anyone wants to consider them for their trip. Here were the 2 different options for itineraries that they presented to us:

 

Option 1:

Jost Van Dyke:

7:30am Depart

Cruise down the Sir Francis Drake Channel

9:15am Snorkel/Swim stop at Sandy Cay (this is where the photo was taken)

10:30am Sail over White Bay on Jost Van Dyke

11:30apm Anchor at Jost Van Dyke

Swim/Lunch/relax on White Bay – this is one the BVI’s most beautiful beaches!!

1pm Depart Jost Van Dyke

Cruise back up the Sir Francis Drake Channel

3pm Back at the Cruise Ship Dock

Option 2:

7:30am Depart

Sail over to The Indians (this is one of the best snorkeling stops in the BVI)

8:30am The Indians – Snorkeling stop and snack

10:30am Depart The Indian’s and sail over to The Caves for a second snorkel stop.

12:30am Depart The Caves and cruise the short hop over to the Bight.

1am The Willy T for lunch

2pm Depart the Willy and sail back to Road Town

Each boat can take up to 36 passengers.. .the boats are beautiful and extremely well maintained.

 

We settled on Option 1. However, due to the schedule change, we ultimately had to skip Sandy Cay- which I have heard is spectacular. But, it made more sense to really enjoy one thing, rather than be rushed.

 

We booked two entire catamarans due to the size of our group, and they agreed to come pick us up right at the ship! We got a nice discount (20% I think) for booking both. I had to pay a 50% deposit, and then the balance that morning. It worked out to only about $65-$70 (before tip) per person for a private tour of a lifetime. If you have the chance and are traveling with a group, or can pull something together on your roll call- I WOULD DEFINITELY DO THIS. Each boat can hold up to 36 people, so the cost would even be lower as we had 27 on each.

 

We all got up early, and headed off the ship right at 7am. I was stunned by the beauty of the island, and as we walked off the pier towards our group, who but who did we spy waiting for us? JAY the guitar player! He somehow managed to be the first one off of the ship! He had never gotten off in Tortola in all of his contracts- and had never been to Jost Van Dyke.

 

I met the crew waiting for us and they guided us to 2 BEAUTIFUL catamarans, which were in walking distance. The captains on each boat gave a safety talk and a brief explanation of the bathrooms, boat rules, etc. He pointed the way to a large refrigerator of cold drinks and rum punch- and then, off we went. Our captain was Wessel (I think pronounced as Vessel)- and his first mate was his fiancé Shannon. They are from South Africa- and were both avid sailors and she had an advanced degree in the scientific study of fish. They were both very competent, fun and safety conscious!

 

We had so much fun sitting out on the trampolines, and sailing through the beautiful water. The catamarans had chairs on the end of each side to sit in- and we all took turns sitting there and enjoying the feeling of flying across the ocean. It was fun to sail next to our friends on the other boat- and they looked to be having a really good time as well!

 

We sailed for about 90 minutes, by St John and St Thomas to Jost Van Dyke. I really don’t have words to describe how amazing that area of the world is. The islands seem to come straight out of the ocean and look like green mountains in the middle of a turquoise sea. As we pulled up to White Bay- which looked exactly to us like the set of Gilligan’s Island- we were all giddy with excitement.

 

I had pre-arranged a lunch with Tina at the Soggy Dollar Bar. So, we parked our respective boats out in front of that area, and we began our swim into shore. For those of you who are not comfortable swimming- they did have life jackets, noodles, stuff like that to assist. We were close enough that we could pretty much stand and walk in- but the other boat was a little further out. It is a VERY easy swim in, and it is just like a swimming pool! Unbelievably clear- you can see your toenail polish perfectly when you look down! (If you are a female . . . well, scratch that- I don’t like to judge J)

 

The sand was so soft and warm, the palm trees were blowing gently, and it was warm, but nice. It was definitely the most comfortable temperature-wise we had been at any of our stops. We walked up to the bar, and Mick (Tina’s husband, I think?) lined up a bunch of cups and started making their famous painkillers! VERY DELICIOUS! Apparently the drink originated in that very spot many years ago. For those of you who have not had one, well, they are a magical mixture of pineapple, orange, cream of coconut, dark rum and a little nutmeg on top. The Soggy Dollar’s recipe is top secret, but if you Google, you will find some excellent replicas.

 

Lunch was being prepared on a grill. I will say that I was quite skeptical about the food, as it is a pretty rustic set-up and the menu sounded just so-so. BOY WAS I WRONG!!! I had prearranged a buffet to be set up for $14 a person that included a choice of chicken sandwich (best spices ever), mahi mahi sandwich (again people were RAVING about the freshness and spices), or a cheeseburger w salads and sides. OMG is all I can say.

 

Now, if you go there, you must try the Chicken Roti- which they were giving out indiscriminately. I am not sure but I think there is a possibility that they put crack in it, because once you have a bite – all you want is more. At least four of us (that I know of) have already tried to make something like it at home since returning. It is a curry chicken mixture wrapped like a burrito with spicy mango chutney. People who don’t even typically like curry were arm wrestling over the Roti. BEST STUFF EVER!

 

We were enjoying the hammocks, the beach chairs, the whole vibe- and of course, the Painkillers. They also have a ring game that is addictive, and everyone was trying their hand at that. I decided (after a little peer pressure) to swim back out to the boat to get Justin Bieber. While I was swimming carefully back to the Soggy Dollar, working hard to keep his cardboard likeness dry, I came back to find our group had experienced a slight mishap . . .

 

One of the older boys (21) asked a younger boy (14) to toss him his camera. Apparently the 14 year old has mad quarterback skills, and the 21 year old might have not had his best wide receiver reflexes firing on all cylinders after a delicious Painkiller. The camera ended up going through his hands, and hit the older boy’s lip, spitting it wide open, and taking a chunk of skin with it. Clearly he was going to need stitches, and we were a little perplexed as to what to do. But within a minute Tina jumped in and came over and asked the young man and his father to get in the Soggy Dollar truck. She drove them to a clinic on the island, and told them she would come back to get them shortly.

 

We were a little concerned about him having this procedure, although simple, done on an island. We had no idea what kind of care he would get, how much it would cost, or even if they would be back in time as we had to leave shortly to not miss our ship. Well, low and behold about 35 minutes later they were back. Apparently, the doctor was excellent, the clinic did a great job of shuttling him in, and his lip looked sore, but great. And, the whole bill was only $99!!!! It was shocking how great it all worked out- and we were all pleasantly surprised. Kudos to the folks at the Soggy Dollar for their quick action and help- and kudos to the clinic on JVD!

 

We had just a few precious minutes left- so Justin hung out at the bar a little bit with Mick (see pictures). Our group brought a boom box and played and sang “Sweet Caroline” to Jay- and we all relaxed and enjoyed just a bit longer. The kids were jumping off one of the boats (which was perfectly fine with the crew), and swimming around. During a jump our daughter got excellent underwater footage of a beautiful ray swimming around. I was shocked she was calm enough to take the video!

 

Then, sadly it was time to think about wrapping it up. We bought a bunch of really fun souvenirs- they have a GREAT little shop there! (Check out the Soggy Dollar website if you are curious J). And, at that moment, I was so glad that we had skipped Sandy Cay- as the time we did have at the Soggy Dollar was not nearly long enough. Of all the ports that we wished we had a 6am-6pm port time in- this was the one!

 

We gathered everyone up and swam back out to our respective boats. Once aboard, we set sail again. The rum punch was flowing, the music was playing, the kids were lying on the trampolines- just taking in the fun of riding what felt to be a water rollercoaster. At one point a tiny fish flew up and landed on my daughter. She picked it up and threw it back in. Seaweed was coming up and landing on us, our rum punch was getting diluted by salt water- and we were all laughing SO hard we couldn’t breathe. It was SOOOOO much fun! It felt just like being a kid again!

 

When we approached the docks, our captain began to panic a little bit. There was only one “parking spot”- I don’t speak nautical language- and while I am sure there is a correct term for it- that it the best description I could give. Time was running out – it was 2:10 and they had to first off-load the other boat, back out that boat, and then pull our boat in, SAFELY of course. Our captain was getting nervous, and our first group was starting to run towards the ship.

 

All I could think was that we would end up on YouTube looking like the pier running jack wagons who are thoughtless enough to hold up a ship. And, I was thinking it might be unflattering to end up on YouTube while running a quarter mile in flip flops and a mom-like swim suit- LOL! We quickly started throwing tip money at our crew, shouting thank-you’s into the wind, and running. And, fortunately, we all made it onboard in time. I think the final one of us made it on board by 2:20- and all was well. We were a little worried about Jay, as he had to run the fastest. We were hoping he hadn’t gotten into any sort of trouble for leaving the ship and being on the later end of returning. Marco was waiting down at the entrance to the ship as we went through security- and we are still not sure if he was down there to find Jay?

 

Anyway, we were all completely exhausted and yet giddy from such an amazing day! It could not have been any better (save the incident with the lip). Many of us gathered on our aft-wrap balcony to watch our ship pull out. There was incredible scenery to see for about an hour. And then we went to the pool to relax a little before dinner.

 

We headed off to our dinner, and I honestly barely could eat. I think all the excitement and planning and late nights caught up with me and I hit a brick wall. I headed up to my stateroom after dinner and went straight to bed at 8:15. It felt so good to relax, and I watched a little of the Love and Marriage Game on TV. It was really LAME . . . but it was the perfect ending to my night. The rest of our group danced a little bit, gambled a little bit, and I think by all accounts everyone was in bed by 10pm.

 

IT WAS THE MOST AMAZING DAY EVER!!!! J

Edited by myfamilyluvs2cruise
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