C. Victory Sept. 16 '12 Review with pics

[Karpkg]

Just picked up a bottle of vinegar- I have a TSA sized spray bottle- thanks for the heads up on that one!

 

Good! Now, I dilute mine, add some water to it, like a 4:1 ratio of 4 parts vinegar 1 part water. Nothing like being prepared!

[pyropoodle]

I bet you'll start getting emails from all sorts of stalkers now!:p

 

juust kidding.

 

ok, back to work for me....and by work I mean secretly planning excursions for my upcoming January cruise...shhhhh:cool:

[Karpkg]

Great review! What camera did you use?

 

It's a few years old, the newer cameras out there are better. But for reference, it's a Canon S5IS.

 

Quick post, then I gotta go rummage the pantry and make dinner. Hmmmm, what to make? :confused:

[pferrar]

PYROPOODLE!!!!!

 

E-mail me, Facebook me, twitter me..... (Isn't there a song out there somewhere?)

 

Yeah, I have some pics of you and your darling hubby I wanted to send to you...I searched all over CC to private message you but it's not like my other forum that I can do that in. So, I'll post my e-mail for a very short time then delete this message because it should end up as an e-mail, I hope.

 

(deleted) :D

 

pferrer- we searched for ya at the meet and beat but you weren't there. :( Are you really in my pics?? which one are you???? :confused::confused:

yah we didnt make the meet and beat unfortunatly.

 

in the first pic i mentioned, look for the 2 blue umbrellas. im the guy sitting under them with my arm behind my head.

 

in the second pic i mentioned look under the blue umbrella whera woman is sitting up in black and a guy laying with his arms behind his head. (to the left of the umbrella with the 20 people laying around lol) im the guy with my hands behind my back. lol

 

actually in that second pic, the guy laying in the sand/waters edge in front of me got stung pretty badly by the jellyfish. it was all down the side of his ribs.

[kimmyg726]

Your pictures are wonderful!! I can barely wait to be on the Victory and your review is helping to increase the excitement!

[Karpkg]

Marie picked us up at 1:00 and took us to Charlotte Amalie. She gave us till 3:00 then she'd pick us up plenty of time to get back to the ship.

 

There were rows of jewelry stores to choose from and the guys just trailed me and my sister. :rolleyes:

 

 

We stepped into a Swarovski store and bought some really cheap "bling" jewelry- didn't get a pic of my sister's ring, but I bought 2 as presents for the kids teachers for Xmas and a necklace for DD. My sis' ring is multi colored stones, mine were blue and pink. All had adjustable bands.

 

 

$12 each for the rings, I think $20 for the necklace. No tax, of course.

 

I was really looking for the camera shop, Boolchands. Found it a ways down the street. Bought my underwater camera there, Canon D20. It was cheaper online at Amazon but I didn't order it in time before the cruise. :mad: I was really hoping it would have been cheaper but it did just come out a month earlier. We did negotiate it down but it was still $35 more than it was online. He did throw in the memory card and a camera bag. The decision boiled down to having it or not so I bit the bullet and got it.

 

The streets were eh but the alleyways were charming.

 

 

We hunted for drinks and coffee and...left my beach bag behind! Didn't know until we met up with Marie and I started hunting for my bag. Marie drove me back to the coffee shop, assuring along the way that "St. Thomas locals pride themselves on integrity, and if it were left behind it will be safe behind the counter, I guarantee it! You can't say the same of any other island!" Sure enough, as soon as I stepped into the coffee shop the person recognized me and automatically pointed me to my bag, whew!

 

Pic of open market, (I chose not to whip out my camera once I got closer)

 

 

The kids and I walked the open market blue tents briefly. Unlike the jewelry-lined streets that had security guards just outside their doors, I didn't feel safe. There was a guy walking behind me and the kids talking loudly on what DH later said was an imaginary cell phone. Didn't matter, what I heard was cussing every 3rd word, "I'm going to blow your brains out, I swear I'm going to...." I think he was doing it deliberately, DH thinks he was high. But, the vendors should have just shooed him away, I mean, I was a potential customer for them! Hey, the end result was the same and we got out of that area fast.

 

As a nurse I hear and see everything but that incident was still unnerving. Broad daylight and Billy and DH were nearby but, still.

 

We got back to the pier almost 4:00 because of my beach bag incident. We walked around the pier shops for a bit then boarded. I chose this night as laundry night since I figured it was better than Sea Day and I was right. There's only 3 washers and 3 dryers per deck. Watch out for the narrow spacing between the machines. I swear, it's deliberately spaced just far enough for quarters to fall through and not be able to retrieve back! Placed the clothes in the dryer and had dinner in the MDR which lasted almost 2 hrs. (Forgot my camera, no pics of food) Retrieving clothes weren't a problem since no one was using the washers/dryers at that time.

 

We got the kids into bed then walked the ship briefly. I wanted to see how the kids did without us. They were fine, so we decided we can do things at night after they were tucked into bed. This night we just turned in and I had plans for sleeping in.

 

[lcgvol]

Karpkg, Just curious, what did your family pay for your airfare out of Atlanta? We are doing this cruise, only on the Valor, in March next year. I booked it nearly 6 months out and got airfare for $405 pp non stop ATL to SJU. It is now up to $633. I was hoping for a price drop too as I booked it directly through Airtran. I only wish I had thought to leave on Friday and have a full day on Sat and Sun prior to the cruise. Your review is amazing!

[Mrs.C05]

Karpkg, Just curious, what did your family pay for your airfare out of Atlanta? We are doing this cruise, only on the Valor, in March next year. I booked it nearly 6 months out and got airfare for $405 pp non stop ATL to SJU. It is now up to $633. I was hoping for a price drop too as I booked it directly through Airtran. I only wish I had thought to leave on Friday and have a full day on Sat and Sun prior to the cruise. Your review is amazing!

 

Does your cruise possibly fall during spring break? That could be the reason of a higher rate......or maybe because you're flying out of Atlanta?

 

When we took this cruise in Feb. 2009, airfare from MCO to SJU was about $200/pp.

[t1adams]

Karpkg, Just curious, what did your family pay for your airfare out of Atlanta? We are doing this cruise, only on the Valor, in March next year. I booked it nearly 6 months out and got airfare for $405 pp non stop ATL to SJU. It is now up to $633. I was hoping for a price drop too as I booked it directly through Airtran. I only wish I had thought to leave on Friday and have a full day on Sat and Sun prior to the cruise. Your review is amazing!

 

We are in the same situation....sailing 3/31. We leave out of Atlanta. Someone told me to hold off on booking airfare as they will drop between now and then. I'm hoping to get $300 pp. Several people have told me to hold off. One person said to wait until January. We will see.

[dolfndreams]

Great review; going back in Jan and already some new hints. Loved the extra photos of biobay etc

 

Great job and appreciate the work to write it up. I am so ready to be back in the blue water.

 

Love your photo perspectives; intriguing angles and views I don't usually see.

[Herfnerd]

yah we didnt make the meet and beat unfortunatly.

 

.

 

 

Neither did we - went to the Love and Marriage show and lost track of time, lol!

[liz827]

Loving the review and the pictures!

[skphotography99]

Great review! I can't wait to learn about and see the other islands you visited!

[pferrar]

Neither did we - went to the Love and Marriage show and lost track of time, lol!

 

That's where we were. Lol

[lcgvol]

Does your cruise possibly fall during spring break? That could be the reason of a higher rate......or maybe because you're flying out of Atlanta?

 

When we took this cruise in Feb. 2009, airfare from MCO to SJU was about $200/pp.

 

Yes, March is definitely spring break. We've been cruising almost every spring break for 6 years. It's the only time we can go. Everything is higher then, the cruise itself, airfare, and hotels. I thought $405 was a good price. We have to drive 4 hours, but leaving from here in East Tennessee was more than double.

[5waldos]

We are in the same situation....sailing 3/31. We leave out of Atlanta. Someone told me to hold off on booking airfare as they will drop between now and then. I'm hoping to get $300 pp. Several people have told me to hold off. One person said to wait until January. We will see.

 

I wouldn't count on the airfare dropping at that point- still spring break time. I tried to take this cruise several times but the airfares from Colorado killed it. We leave Sat and it is only costing us $280 return- it was twice that in March. At least.

[Karpkg]

We are in the same situation....sailing 3/31. We leave out of Atlanta. Someone told me to hold off on booking airfare as they will drop between now and then. I'm hoping to get $300 pp. Several people have told me to hold off. One person said to wait until January. We will see.

 

I wouldn't count on the airfare dropping at that point- still spring break time. I tried to take this cruise several times but the airfares from Colorado killed it. We leave Sat and it is only costing us $280 return- it was twice that in March. At least.

 

It's definitely hard to play the waiting game. I originally bought at 346.40/pp. 1st price drop netted me 200, the 2nd netted me 84. Looking at my bill, it came back as vouchers but there was a service charge of 20 each time I did this. Overall I did save about 52/pp or so; I did assigned seats going there, coming back not. Quite complicated.

 

Again, if you're wanting specific times of flights on specific days (like leaving or arriving on Sunday) prime time slots go quickly. Prices fell again on the way to SJU but none were available on the return trip so I couldn't turn in another price change. If I were buying for the first time I would've been out of luck.

 

I was early saver on my balcony but the infrequent times I checked the price only went up.

[Karpkg]

Ahhh, the only day to sleep in and so I enjoyed it!

 

I dragged everybody out of bed around 9-ish and made everyone go eat breakfast in the MDR. I figured we'd be eating quick breakfasts at the Mediterranean buffet room for the rest of the cruises so why not enjoy a little more leisurely meal?

 

Love the view.

 

 

We have AnyTime Dining so we eat in the Atlantic Room. I'm guessing that if you have early or late dining you'd be eating in the Pacific Room, am I correct?

 

This was our first time in the Pacific Room so I took a pic.

 

 

We deposited the kids at Camp Carnival briefly then watched the ice carving demonstration.

 

 

 

Picked the kids back up for lunch then watched the hairy chest competition which was really funny. We sent them back in for Camp around 2 PM. :D

 

Tea Time came and went and then DH and I started to look for the meet and beat. It's a good thing we met Pyropoodle and her DH earlier at the bio bay excursion 'cause it would have been hard to tell who was there for the meet and I wasn't even sure about the meeting location. (I do better with medical terms, not nautical ones!) Anywayze, let's bring the gang back in these pics!

 

pyropoodle and her DH, I forget Hazel's handle but her and her husband and daughter, elev8r-man8, darcien007 and her 2 daughters(not in the pics), gatorgirl, my DH and me, Karpkg.

 

[Karpkg]

Crazy crew!

 

 

 

I finally jump into the pool for the first time that day. Soaked in the hot tub. Lazed in the sun. :cool: We eventually picked up the kids then got ready for formal night.

 

 

It was lobster night.

 

 

Dessert.

 

 

 

[Karpkg]

Of course the kids had the warm melting cake. Can't escape chocolate!

 

 

We did our own pics as well as formal pics, but I didn't buy the one on the stairs.

 

 

 

We did buy this one. Looks better than scanned, oh well. Kinda tired to photoshop myself, LOL!

 

 

We sent the kids off to bed then went to the Comedy Punchline. Good thing because it definitely wasn't G rated.:eek: It definitely wasn't also for those who were squeamish. The jokes were handled easier when taken with mojitos though!

 

We walked up to the Serenity Deck and gazed up at the stars. A couple was asleep in the hammock. I wonder what time the crew wakes them up to get them to their bed? I think we went to ours around midnight. Had to be ready for tomorrow!

[5waldos]

3 days and 8 hours before our plane takes off. And you are making it both easier, and more difficult!:D Now. I want to leave now. Well, tomorrow morning.

 

Your pictures are great and your family seems to be having a wonderful time. Thanks for sharing this with us.

[ibcnusoon]

Airfare is more expensive to San Juan than to Florida, but my thought when booking is that the price of this cruise is much LESS than any of the other 7 day cruises out of Miami or Fort Lauderale. When I booked, the cabins were at least $200 less than if we sailed from Miami or Fort Lauderdale, so I was comfortable paying more for flights to San Juan.

 

There is NO denying that the itinerary out of San Juan is AWESOME. Six (6) islands/countries in 7 days, an awesome pre-cruise city, and not one of stops being Nassau! Can't beat that at all!!

 

Loving this review, making me more excited for our turn on the Victory next month!

[Karpkg]

Good morning!

 

 

We sleep with the curtains pulled back; no need for clock alarms. The light starts flooding in just after 5:30AM. I'm more of a night owl but really wasn't one on this trip; most of the time I hit the bed around 10-11PM and am up and preparing for the trips around 5-6 AM. I didn't sleep long on this itinerary.

 

Breakfast in the Mediterranean Restaurant.

 

 

While St. Thomas has a very picturesque pier Barbados is a working cargo pier.

 

 

We again go into the pier headfirst and disembarked portside. Remember, my cabin's portside aft so we have views of the pier coming in.

 

 

Calypso music filled the air.

 

 

[5waldos]

Good morning to you! Lovely shot of dawn.

[Karpkg]

 

There are so many options available to cruisers at every port. Prior to the cruise you can book individual excursions independently of Carnival. Then there's the ones Carnival posts on their website and then at Guest Services. If you are the "wait till I get there crowd" don't worry, many tour operators are waiting anxiously just outside the terminal and at booths. Then there's taxi drivers. Yes, there's also bus transportation and I researched extensively on that. Ultimately we decided on a snorkeling tour rather than taking a bus out to Payne's Beach.

 

Tip: Free wifi inside the cruise terminal.

 

We had a party of 6 so I was able to nix the larger more popular tours in favor for a personalized trip (yes, I read on CC about Shasta, Silver Moon and others). On recommendations from Sharon with Ocean Mist(gotten from TripAdvisor) who was unable to do ours(their catamaran would be on another island at the time), we went with Calypso Cruises. Out of all of our island days, all of us would rank this one next to the bio bay/rainforest trip or even #1.

 

If you're interested (and I highly recommend them) I'll post links at the end of the Barbado's day.

 

Sharon's e-mail:

 

"Their Catamaran is a sailing Cat that is more personable and only carry up to 20 people. It is a family run business also who like us, while the boat is new to the island but the Captain (owner) has been in the business for years working on other boats but has now taken a leap in owning their own Catamaran and business.

 

Because he is a smaller boat and only carries small groups the cost is a little more than ours, 90Us per adults and 50US per child 12 and under this includes unlimited drinks, Lunch, snorkel gear and transport to and from your hotel/villa and cruise ship. Nick Noels who is the Captain/owner and his team will continue this reservation if you have any queries and if you are booking."

 

It was off season for them so we paid 75/pp and 50/child. Much cheaper than the larger tours! And the whole day was ours!

 

I had sent Nick a pic of us to help with finding us and sure enough a bus driver immediately picked us out and motioned to us. We waited in the bus while he apparently grabbed a much larger group as well. Our party sat in the front, everyone else sat in the back. I was worried but breathed a huge sigh of relief when he dropped them all off at Island Safari Adventure Tour. I'd say there was about 22 people in that one.

 

We exited the pier

 

and the individual tour operators/taxi drivers were located at this roundabout.

 

 

Going through Bridgetown. Snatches of town.

 

 

This whole driving on the left side innately bothers me. Kind of like trying to juggle. Can't do it. Case in fact, this light really bothered me.:eek: