Valor Vacation Review Dec 1-8 (+2 days in Old San Juan) PHOTOS!

[rob6465]

Thank you!

 

Plenty more on the way :)

 

What camera did u use? I was born in Puerto Rico and just got off the Magic on my birthday. Fell in love with dec cruising now.

[willydoit]

-This cruise had the best itinerary of any of the cruises I've taken. If you're considering it. DO IT.

 

I agree seannyice81,,,it is a great itinerary. Love the photos with your review,,,it makes it so much better. We definitely had better weather the week before on the Valor,,,when we did get rain it was usually at night or early morning. Most of our days were sunny and bright for entire stay on each island. I did enjoy seeing the sewer covers lifted up in San Juan when you were there,,,it backed up our cab drivers story when we got back!!

 

Great review,,,except you got to Trunk Bay and I didn't!!:mad: Thanks for the photo though,,,it makes me want to get there even more!!:D

[PCHENG]

Bummer that you got sick for Maho Beach. We saw some cool jets and what was really cool was that they were taking off over the beach too.

 

 

I didn't know they take off over Maho Beach. Is that a recent development?

 

In the past the planes always take off toward the mountains and had to make a hard right bank. Now with the planes coming towards the beach, how do you do the Maho fence surf?

Edited December 16, 2013 by PCHENG

[TrqoisWtrs]

I didn't know they take off over Maho Beach. Is that a recent development?

 

In the past the planes always take off toward the mountains and had to make a hard right bank. Now with the planes coming towards the beach, how do you do the Maho fence surf?

 

Don't want to hijack the OP's thread, but I was told that sometimes they do that based on wind direction, or time frame - if they are running late they take off directly over the beach instead of having to waste the time circling around over the mountains. Whatever the reason, it was super cool. :) I can't imagine being there for this one. :eek: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu91oZ2_Vag

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Thanks for the great review and awesome photos!

 

It sucks that you guys didn't have the best weather but it looks like you still had a great time! You're a good son for taking your mom on a cruise, I bet she'll remember this for the rest of her life! :)

[anp25]

Mom ultimately contacted Mary (PhotogalMB) on the roll call who was looking to organize a Cosol tour group.

 

I'm really loving the details of your cruise on the Valor. Just one question. Did you and your mom book this tour through Carnival excursion desk or did was the tour book through the tour operator?

 

I'm concerned if booking with an independent operator as if they are late getting back to the ship, the ship will leave. As if book through Carnival, if the tour comes in late, the ship will wait.

 

Please let me know. Thanks

[seannyice81]

Awwww, man! I was hoping you did it! I understand wanting to take care of your mom, though. I wouldn't send my mom off on a tour by herself either. In addition to Barbados, looks like you need to plan a land trip back to St. Lucia so you can make the climb. :D

 

I have about 5 islands I want to revisit at this time and St. Lucia is one of them. One of these days or on another cruise, I'll make it a point to do the climb. :D

 

Haha I got a kick out of this. Stewardess, ok, no biggie, but you know no one says stewards any more, right? ;)

 

Sorry to hear you stayed so sick on your vacation but glad you managed to have a good time in spite of. Loved your pictures! Why didn't you post any pictures of you?

 

I sincerely apologize for the mistake. Do employees prefer to be referred to as flight attendants, cabin crew, or flight crew? I really don't mean to come off as ignorant, but I'm just not sure.

 

There are a few photos of me. I was behind the camera most of the time.

 

The man behind the camera, with the camera

 

More sick than I look in St. Maarten

 

Photo with Mom during the ATV Adventure

[seannyice81]

Sean’s Mom here. Thanks all for reading his review and the compliments on his photos. Good job, son!

 

I hadn’t vacationed with Sean for 11 years and I have only cruised once before (Sept. 2012 – DCL). Although I was spoiled on my previous cruise and originally had a few misgivings about Carnival after recent incidents, I looked past that and saw this as a great opportunity to visit some new places and make some priceless new memories with my son. It worked out wonderfully! With planning and a bit of serendipity, we had a great time, although I was so sorry Sean got sick from the lunch in San Juan and then caught a cold towards the end of the trip. I encourage all parents and their adult children to make at least one trip like this. I’ll have fond memories of this trip the rest of my life and I hope he will, too.

 

Thank you, Mom :o

 

Enjoyed your review - we just sailed her in November.

 

Glad you had a good time in Barbados. We weren't too impressed. DH had initially wanted us to go to this one beach, but cabbie basically refused saying it was 'closed' for reef repair or some such nonsense. We ended up going to some beach he picked out and it was pretty, but had really aggressive beach vendors. Wouldn't take no for an answer. Dude - I do not want my feet massaged with whatever "aloe leaves" you have in that ripped plastic bag. :eek: yuk. Plus my friend was getting catcalls and whistles from the locals when she went to use the washroom and she didn't feel comfortable.

 

So left a bad taste in our mouth. Next time we'll have to try doing the day pass at the Hilton. Did they allow vendors on their beach? I know they can't really refuse them if the beach is public.

 

Bummer that you got sick for Maho Beach. We saw some cool jets and what was really cool was that they were taking off over the beach too.

 

I actually do think you should try going back if you have a chance. The Hilton was excellent. They did have one single vendor who sat at a table selling brackets and necklaces near the entrance to the beach. She never beckoned anyone over or pushed for anyone to buy anything. She just stayed put as people came up to her.

 

I really want to go back, mostly to experience the landscapes of the Atlantic coast. The pictures look amazing.

[seannyice81]

What camera did u use? I was born in Puerto Rico and just got off the Magic on my birthday. Fell in love with dec cruising now.

 

I used my Nikon D90 with a Nikkor 18-55mm VR lens (VR off). One of the very nice photos was taken with my iphone. Bet you can't guess which one!

 

You must have had a nice cruise! Cruising in December is great!

 

I agree seannyice81,,,it is a great itinerary. Love the photos with your review,,,it makes it so much better. We definitely had better weather the week before on the Valor,,,when we did get rain it was usually at night or early morning. Most of our days were sunny and bright for entire stay on each island. I did enjoy seeing the sewer covers lifted up in San Juan when you were there,,,it backed up our cab drivers story when we got back!!

 

Great review,,,except you got to Trunk Bay and I didn't!!:mad: Thanks for the photo though,,,it makes me want to get there even more!!:D

 

There are still plenty of cruises stopping in St. Thomas. You should try again! I HIGHLY recommend next time you hail a cab to Red Hook Bay and take a ferry to St. John to see Trunk Bay. Look into it in the Port of Call section here, or send me a message if you're considering it. :cool:

Edited December 17, 2013 by seannyice81

[seannyice81]

Don't want to hijack the OP's thread, but I was told that sometimes they do that based on wind direction, or time frame - if they are running late they take off directly over the beach instead of having to waste the time circling around over the mountains. Whatever the reason, it was super cool. :) I can't imagine being there for this one. :eek: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu91oZ2_Vag

 

Not long before our ship left St. Maarten, I noticed planes taking off towards the South (over the beach). Its actually more common than people think. We just mostly see the landings.

 

Thanks for the great review and awesome photos!

 

It sucks that you guys didn't have the best weather but it looks like you still had a great time! You're a good son for taking your mom on a cruise, I bet she'll remember this for the rest of her life! :)

 

Welcome, and Thank you!

[seannyice81]

I'm really loving the details of your cruise on the Valor. Just one question. Did you and your mom book this tour through Carnival excursion desk or did was the tour book through the tour operator?

 

I'm concerned if booking with an independent operator as if they are late getting back to the ship, the ship will leave. As if book through Carnival, if the tour comes in late, the ship will wait.

 

Please let me know. Thanks

 

Which tour in particular?

 

We booked the ATV Adventure in St. Kitts through Carnival 2 months prior to the cruise. It started early and was done (too soon in my opinion) before lunch. Next time I will book independent.

 

In St. Lucia we were in a group booking with Cosol tours. Our tour did run a little bit long but we returned about an hour before having to be back on board. Towards the end they sped things up a bit while still getting us to all the sights.

 

In St. Thomas, St. Maarten, and Barbados, we did our own thing.

 

My advice to you is that you will probably enjoy more and see more value in the independent tours. Another thing that can be said about them is that they won't be doing very much business if word spreads that they don't get passengers back to the ship in good time. A good tour operator knows this and keeps things timely. Do a lot of research in tours you're interested in. ALSO, make sure to research the ports too. Some ports tend to have really bad traffic which can delay you getting back to a ship.

 

Carnival's excursions pretty much guarantee the ship waits for you. They're also easier to recognize in port with their signs. Those are really the only benefits though. They often cost more, and you generally don't get as much (time or experiences) with them as you would an independent tour.

Edited December 17, 2013 by seannyice81

[gapearl]

I have about 5 islands I want to revisit at this time and St. Lucia is one of them. One of these days or on another cruise, I'll make it a point to do the climb. :D

 

I sincerely apologize for the mistake. Do employees prefer to be referred to as flight attendants, cabin crew, or flight crew? I really don't mean to come off as ignorant, but I'm just not sure.

 

There are a few photos of me. I was behind the camera most of the time.

 

The man behind the camera, with the camera

 

More sick than I look in St. Maarten

 

Photo with Mom during the ATV Adventure

 

LOL no worries. I was just teasing you, ya know. Any of the above is cool. Stewardess/steward is just an outdated word from the 60's. kind of like how secretaries are now administrative assistants. lol I love the picture of you and your mom. Too cute!

[PhotogalMB]

Love the pics and the review. I always have great intentions of doing this but haven't done one yet.

Mary

[JustCruiseMe]

Absolutely loved your review! I know want to take that itinerary! You will never regret you went with your mom I promise it will be even more special one day.

 

I think you should have said to the waiter "I want the jerk chicken, so should I just move over to that table?" pointing to the grumpy gramps.

[sc6654]

I'm really loving the details of your cruise on the Valor. Just one question. Did you and your mom book this tour through Carnival excursion desk or did was the tour book through the tour operator?

 

I'm concerned if booking with an independent operator as if they are late getting back to the ship, the ship will leave. As if book through Carnival, if the tour comes in late, the ship will wait.

 

Please let me know. Thanks

 

We were on the same cruise, with Mary, I also was sick.

We always use independent operators and have never had a problem. In Barbados we use James taxi and tours, we have used him 4 times, Just email him, tell him what you want to do and he takes care of the rest (happiestbond@hotmail.com).:cool::;)

[2 Dinks]

Hi Sean and Donna! It was a pleasure meeting you both on this cruise (we were on the St Lucia excursion) ... this is an awesome review! Thanks for sharing your beautiful pictures!

 

Lisa and Don

[agc291]

Not sure if you will come back and read this but thought I would let know since we are also from NOVA. We took this same itin a couple years back and really enjoyed the Carib beer in St Kitts. We were able to find Carib at Total Wine in Chantilly. I dont remember if they had the Pitons beer but you can probably look it up on their site.

[seannyice81]

Love the pics and the review. I always have great intentions of doing this but haven't done one yet.

Mary

 

You should! Thank you for organizing a great island tour on St. Lucia!

 

Absolutely loved your review! I know want to take that itinerary! You will never regret you went with your mom I promise it will be even more special one day.

 

I think you should have said to the waiter "I want the jerk chicken, so should I just move over to that table?" pointing to the grumpy gramps.

 

Thank you, and I have no regret at all. It was a great trip with her and I will never forget it :)

[seannyice81]

We were on the same cruise, with Mary, I also was sick.

We always use independent operators and have never had a problem. In Barbados we use James taxi and tours, we have used him 4 times, Just email him, tell him what you want to do and he takes care of the rest (happiestbond@hotmail.com).:cool::;)

 

When did you get sick? I was good right up until the night we were sailing to St. Maarten. I do consider myself lucky that I didn't feel ill earlier in the cruise.

 

Thank you very much for the contact! I'll definitely use it in the future because I'm certain I'll be back to visit Barbados. Hopefully stay there a few days this time.:cool:

 

Hi Sean and Donna! It was a pleasure meeting you both on this cruise (we were on the St Lucia excursion) ... this is an awesome review! Thanks for sharing your beautiful pictures!

 

Lisa and Don

 

Hey Lisa and Don!

 

Thank you for enjoying my review and photos! It was also a pleasure meeting you as well. Hopefully we'll cross paths again on a future cruise.

[seannyice81]

Not sure if you will come back and read this but thought I would let know since we are also from NOVA. We took this same itin a couple years back and really enjoyed the Carib beer in St Kitts. We were able to find Carib at Total Wine in Chantilly. I dont remember if they had the Pitons beer but you can probably look it up on their site.

 

:eek: Say what?!

 

I'm in Springfield, and there is a total wine about 10 mins away. I never thought to look for Carib, but now I'll make a point to. If not, I'm getting some next time I'm around Chantilly. Thanks for the heads-up! I'll keep an eye out for Piton too.

 

Cool to run into another NOVA'er here. Small world! :)

[sc6654]

When did you get sick? I was good right up until the night we were sailing to St. Maarten. I do consider myself lucky that I didn't feel ill earlier in the cruise.

 

Thank you very much for the contact! I'll definitely use it in the future because I'm certain I'll be back to visit Barbados. Hopefully stay there a few days this time.:cool:

 

 

 

Hey Lisa and Don!

 

Thank you for enjoying my review and photos! It was also a pleasure meeting you as well. Hopefully we'll cross paths again on a future cruise.

 

I got sick same time, :mad: However we did a back to back so all was not lost.:)

[sjn911]

What a great review...it is a small world from another Montana girl...I was Billings..to Red Lodge/Luther to Pdx Oregon after college..it is my second heart home 20 plus years I lived there and now Bozeman area..but not forever until i check out God willing..not the winter fan...but it has gotten better and better being back here and is is beautiful beyond description on good days as you know.

 

You must be enjoying the east coast..have a dear friend there who loves DC area...

 

How cool you went with your mom...it is just so special...the mom and son thing..and so many never get that one on one time in grown up years..you guys are gorgeous..that ship and trip sounds so fantastic and you will never ever ever ref=gret that in your memory bank and heart..congrats...thank you again...sarah

Edited January 8, 2014 by sjn911

[agc291]

:eek: Say what?!

 

I'm in Springfield, and there is a total wine about 10 mins away. I never thought to look for Carib, but now I'll make a point to. If not, I'm getting some next time I'm around Chantilly. Thanks for the heads-up! I'll keep an eye out for Piton too.

 

Cool to run into another NOVA'er here. Small world! :)

 

Indeed:cool:- I live in Manassas and work in Chantilly!

[pghsteelerfan]

Say what?!

 

I'm in Springfield, and there is a total wine about 10 mins away. I never thought to look for Carib, but now I'll make a point to. If not, I'm getting some next time I'm around Chantilly. Thanks for the heads-up! I'll keep an eye out for Piton too.

 

Cool to run into another NOVA'er here. Small world!

 

 

Indeed:cool:- I live in Manassas and work in Chantilly!

 

Great seeing your review pop up again! It was just about a year ago now that we booked the Valor cruise we were on in May. I just have to say that I'm a NOVA too...Manassas Park! Small world! When on our Carnival Glory cruise in 2010 we were right next to a couple from Centreville, VA, during our muster drill.

 

Thanks for the tip about Total Wine in Chantilly because I would love to see if they have Piton beer.

[jayjay94]

Great Review and Pictures.. Makes me want to get on a Ship right now.. You mentioned that you were originally going to go on this trip on your own before you invited you mom along. Have you gone cruising by yourself and if so How is it? I am addicted to cruising... Mind you I have only been on one but have really thought about the going on my own so I can have more cruises under my belt. Luckily I will being going on a cruise now in Feb (Disney Magic) was invited so couldn't turn it down. But for a guy in my age group I know Carnival is the party ship...