The BayPort and Caribbean Princess experience Jan. 18 sailing

[douglinc@msn.com]

I have stayed many nights at the Hilton while I was working at NASA. It is a very nice hotel and on Clear Lake. Most of the pax on our cruise that post on our sailing are staying at the Comfort Inn in Seabrook. It is within a mile or so from Bayport and you can clearly see the ship when it is in port. They provide transportation to the ship. The last cruise out of Bayport in November we stayed at the Comfort Inn in Webster (NASA area) but then we drive so we had a car. The nice part of that hotel is that it is near a lot of restaurants and shopping for last minute items.

 

How is the Confort Inn? Will they let you leave your car there (any charge) and take you to and from the cruise termainal (any charge?)

 

Thanks,

Doug

[dleighb]

My friend wants to know if they have yoga classes and if so, what time they are and if they are an additional cost. No worries, if you can't get an answer. We'll know soon as we sail on the sailing after yours.

 

Hope you are having a great time!

[txgood]

Just wanted to say that I have been enjoying your updates on the cruise. Looking forward to hearing more. Just about 3 1/2 weeks until our turn.

[wifeofbedo]

Enjoying your posts, we will be on the CB in March.

If you will indulge, the never-ending question of onboard wine: did you notice

them checking for wine brought in carry-ons?

[CruiserToo]

Enjoying your posts, we will be on the CB in March.

If you will indulge, the never-ending question of onboard wine: did you notice

them checking for wine brought in carry-ons?

 

When we checked in at Houston my husband mentioned to the security that we had 2 bottles of wine, and he didn't seem to care and waved us on.

 

We got off at all 3 ports and when we returned they had a person asking if you had spirits after you have your bags scanned. If you said yes they directed you to a table to turn it in. If you say no they motion you on by. We didn't chance it until the 3rd stop and brought on a small bottle of tequila in our beach bag, said No and were waved on.

 

We could easliy have brought more wine with us or any other liquor. We also could have loaded up at all ports if we had known!!

 

Hope this helps!

[JF - retired RRT]

We are booked at the Comfort for 1/25 cruise. They have a Park n Cruise rate. If I remember right, it is $139. Shuttle is provided.

 

Sent from my Lenovo B8000-F using Forums mobile app

[caribill]

Anyone with patter provide details of afternoon tea service in coral dining room or steak house? Need frequency and time, and if they started charging?

Thanks in advance

 

My friend wants to know if they have yoga classes and if so, what time they are and if they are an additional cost.

 

The following thread has a link to Patters from a CB cruise earlier this month.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1975282

[SKAGGS1234]

Thanks so much for posting your report! We will be cruising on her in a couple of weeks!

[Mekamax]

How is the Confort Inn? Will they let you leave your car there (any charge) and take you to and from the cruise termainal (any charge?)

 

Thanks,

Doug

 

 

Doug check out the Dec 14th rollcall for Caribbean Princess. People from my cruise stayed there and had the parking.... :)

[chsalas]

How is the Confort Inn? Will they let you leave your car there (any charge) and take you to and from the cruise termainal (any charge?)

 

Thanks,

Doug

We stay at the Comfort Inn close to the port, I believe they let you park for free and have a free shuttle to the Port, James the Driver is awesome!

 

There is a Spec's beverage store down the street next to Target. You can bring up to 1 bottle of wine per person on if you wish.

 

Have fune

[douglinc@msn.com]

We stay at the Comfort Inn close to the port, I believe they let you park for free and have a free shuttle to the Port, James the Driver is awesome!

 

There is a Spec's beverage store down the street next to Target. You can bring up to 1 bottle of wine per person on if you wish.

 

Have fune

 

Thanks for the info.

 

Doug

[MTdreaming]

Thank you for posting about your cruise...it makes us all the more look forward to ours. Hope you are enjoying sunny skies, smooth seas and beautiful beaches.

[azbirdmom]

Enjoying your posts, we will be on the CB in March.

If you will indulge, the never-ending question of onboard wine: did you notice

them checking for wine brought in carry-ons?

 

We were on the New Year's cruise and unfortunately weren't able to buy any wine before embarkation. But we did buy some wine at the Duty Free stores in Cozumel and Roatan and we got waved through. They had the bottle check station when you boarded but they were looking for alcohol, not wine.

[5:00_Somewhere]

I'm happy people are finding my this thread helpful. Sorry I didn't post yesterday; we had a very busy day in Roatan and the internet was incredibly persnickety when we go back aboard yesterday afternoon.

 

As for Roatan we arrived on time. There was virtually no wind and the seas were calm; we had no problem docking. Skies remained cloudy all day, though the temperatures were warm (some thought it a little muggy, but to us it was just a typical day in the Caribbean.) It was mostly dry, though there was a passing shower late in the afternoon. We departed on time and had a very calm night at sea.

 

We arrived at Belize City on time this morning. Skies are sunny and temperatures are in the mid-70s. The report from the bridge says to expect clouds and occasional showers today, but we can see no sign of this on the horizon. Will let you know.

 

We have had a really nice trip. Everything has literally been smooth sailing. We feel so fortunate after reading about the problems others have had in the past few weeks. We've talked to the crew and they're saying they're not really hearing about any unusual numbers of noro cases, but the regular precautions are still in place.

 

As for some of the questions, it seems as if other CC'ers have answered most.

 

My friend wants to know if they have yoga classes and if so, what time they are and if they are an additional cost. No worries, if you can't get an answer. We'll know soon as we sail on the sailing after yours.

 

I've checked the Patter for the past couple days but see nothing about Yoga. I'll try to stop by the gym and ask.

 

Hope you are having a great time!

 

Enjoying your posts, we will be on the CB in March.

If you will indulge, the never-ending question of onboard wine: did you notice

them checking for wine brought in carry-ons?

 

As others have reported, at BayPort, it was pretty perfunctory; likewise when we re-board from shore excursions, though I did notice a bit of heightened scrutiny in Roatan yesterday.

 

I'll try to check in again later today, and definitely tomorrow. Happy cruising all!:)

[sminfiddle]

We were on the New Year's cruise and unfortunately weren't able to buy any wine before embarkation. But we did buy some wine at the Duty Free stores in Cozumel and Roatan and we got waved through. They had the bottle check station when you boarded but they were looking for alcohol, not wine.

Our Bayport CB experience too.

At security checkpoints, the scanner operators are not raising an alert for wine bottles. Reboarding at ports of call, the table with two very friendly, easygoing, seated crew is after the bags scanner. If you are carrying a big sealed red-lined plastic bag from DUFRY it's pretty obvious... otherwise you are asked if you have any liquor.

Again, these guys are seated and it's quite a casual encounter (think, "Dockside Photo Op Invitation" and then dial it back by 60%).

They are not even present at Houston security.

[Darcy8]

How many other ships were in port with you at Belize? How was the tendering process? Did it take a long time?

[wineforhealth]

Thank so much for your live cruise review, it sure is nice your having a great cruise after reading others bad experiancess.

 

Looking forward to reading the rest of your cruise to come

[caribill]

Our Bayport CB experience too.

At security checkpoints, the scanner operators are not raising an alert for wine bottles. Reboarding at ports of call, the table with two very friendly, easygoing, seated crew is after the bags scanner. If you are carrying a big sealed red-lined plastic bag from DUFRY it's pretty obvious... otherwise you are asked if you have any liquor.

Again, these guys are seated and it's quite a casual encounter (think, "Dockside Photo Op Invitation" and then dial it back by 60%).

They are not even present at Houston security.

 

Quite different from RCCL.

 

When your carryons are scanned when getting back onto the ship, there is of course the person looking for the forbidden dangerous item.

 

There is also a second screen at the end of where the items are picked up with a seated person looking at the screen looking for alcohol. Spotting a wine bottle in the x-ray, he/she will yell out "wine" and make sure you go to the table where they will take it away from you for safekeeping until the end of the cruise.

[themerle]

Thanks for reporting in! I'm enjoying your posts. Have you been to the spa? Do you know how many

thermal lounges are in the spa?

[satxdiver]

HI guys. Just curious how far was the Hilton from the airport and what was the driving time? Would you recommend the Hilton? We have been thinking of doing this trip coming from Los Angeles. Looking forward to your review.

Thanks

Joe

 

NASA Hilton Clear Lake to Bayport is 8.4 miles. It is indeed a nice hotel and rated as the best hotel in the Clear Lake area by tripadvisor dot com.

[5:00_Somewhere]

Just a couple of notes about Belize. First, the weather was fantastic all day: sunny and dry, about 75-80 degrees, with just a few puffy clouds most of the day. Although, just before we set sail (about 5:15), we could see a line of clouds approaching in the distance. Hoping this doesn't affect tomorrow's sea day.

 

One other note that might interest some: as people probably already know, in Belize the ship anchors a ways off shore, and tenders passengers ashore. However, the cruise ships (there were 4 anchored today) do not use their own tenders, but rely upon local boats, which are very fast and - to be honest - seem more spacious and airy than the closed-in tenders. This appeared to be true of all he ships in port. While the ships appeared to be anchored quite a distance from port, I timed a couple of tenders and it appeared only to take 15-20 minutes each way to and from port.

 

Also, at least some of the Princess excursions (the snorkeling and boat-based excursions, at least) picked passengers up at the ship and dropped them back at the ship without the need to take a tender in to town to join an excursion. Very convenient.

 

As for the excursion, itself, I must report that I cannot recommend the Sergeant's Caye snorkeling excursion offered by Princess unless you are an absolute novice. I will say that the crew and staff of the boat were very polite and professional, and they emphasized safety, but there were far too many people (40 just on our boat, plus 2 other boats at the same spot) for the limited area we were allowed to swim in. I will write a somewhat more detailed review in the Ports of Call forum.

Otherwise, it was a lovely day, and we're now making way for Houston.

 

Thanks for reporting in! I'm enjoying your posts. Have you been to the spa? Do you know how many

thermal lounges are in the spa?

 

We have not been to the Thermal Suite on this ship this trip, though I believe we have done in the past, as we have on several other Grand Class ships. I don't recall there ever being fewer than 5 of the heated ceramic loungers, but I couldn't swear to it for the CB.

 

Happy Cruising Everyone. :)

[sminfiddle]

Thanks for reporting in! I'm enjoying your posts. Have you been to the spa? Do you know how many

thermal lounges are in the spa?

 

Five if I recall correctly.

 

 

~sent using Cruise Critic app~

[honeyb2]

Just a couple of notes about Belize. First, the weather was fantastic all day: sunny and dry, about 75-80 degrees, with just a few puffy clouds most of the day. Although, just before we set sail (about 5:15), we could see a line of clouds approaching in the distance. Hoping this doesn't affect tomorrow's sea day.

 

One other note that might interest some: as people probably already know, in Belize the ship anchors a ways off shore, and tenders passengers ashore. However, the cruise ships (there were 4 anchored today) do not use their own tenders, but rely upon local boats, which are very fast and - to be honest - seem more spacious and airy than the closed-in tenders. This appeared to be true of all he ships in port. While the ships appeared to be anchored quite a distance from port, I timed a couple of tenders and it appeared only to take 15-20 minutes each way to and from port.

 

Also, at least some of the Princess excursions (the snorkeling and boat-based excursions, at least) picked passengers up at the ship and dropped them back at the ship without the need to take a tender in to town to join an excursion. Very convenient.

 

As for the excursion, itself, I must report that I cannot recommend the Sergeant's Caye snorkeling excursion offered by Princess unless you are an absolute novice. I will say that the crew and staff of the boat were very polite and professional, and they emphasized safety, but there were far too many people (40 just on our boat, plus 2 other boats at the same spot) for the limited area we were allowed to swim in. I will write a somewhat more detailed review in the Ports of Call forum.

Otherwise, it was a lovely day, and we're now making way for Houston.

 

 

 

We have not been to the Thermal Suite on this ship this trip, though I believe we have done in the past, as we have on several other Grand Class ships. I don't recall there ever being fewer than 5 of the heated ceramic loungers, but I couldn't swear to it for the CB.

 

Happy Cruising Everyone. :)

 

What was wrong with this excursion? Reason I'm asking is that we have it booked in two weeks. I'd love to know your thoughts and I'm wondering if this is the wrong excursion for us since we're not novice snorkelers.

[caribill]

What was wrong with this excursion? Reason I'm asking is that we have it booked in two weeks. I'd love to know your thoughts and I'm wondering if this is the wrong excursion for us since we're not novice snorkelers.

 

I think that is answered in his post.

 

As for the excursion, itself, I must report that I cannot recommend the Sergeant's Caye snorkeling excursion offered by Princess unless you are an absolute novice. I will say that the crew and staff of the boat were very polite and professional, and they emphasized safety, but there were far too many people (40 just on our boat, plus 2 other boats at the same spot) for the limited area we were allowed to swim in. :)

[5:00_Somewhere]

I think that is answered in his post.

 

caribill is correct: as I said, the crew was very nice and professional and they were very concerned about everyone's safety, which is a wonderful positive. They split us up into groups of 7 and each group had a guide. But, the guides were like mother hens and would not let us stray too far away, and we kept running into the other groups as we were all swimming around the same small area. For experienced snorkelers, it was incredibly frustrating. It would be great, maybe, for a family who was taking their small children for the first time, as safety was so emphasized. But, for us, it was terribly disappointing. Unfortunately, I cannot report on the other reef snorkeling excursion. And, I must say that others on our trip did say that they enjoyed it, so your mileage may vary. Hope that helps. ;)

 

I also meant to mention, the only thing "wrong with the cruise" thus far as that we have not seen the chicken and cashew salad in the International Cafe once the whole time. The horror. ;)

 

Today the weather is not bad: cloudy with some sun and about 72 degrees I would guess. Will write more later.