Carnival Valor Review 3/16/14 to 3/23/14

[rosenc1c]

We just got off the Valor and are heading home. This is not a detailed review that will tell you ever single thing we ate, drank and when we went to the rest room. Just the highlights.

 

Embarkation - For some reason we were not allowed to get on the ship until about 3:30 pm. It created a problem, because although we could check our bags, for those bags we didn't want to check (Cameras, laptops, etc..) we had to carry them all of San Juan. It really sucked. I'm not sure why we were delayed, but I heard something about elevators. That may be true, because I've never seen a ship with so many elevators that were out of order.

 

Ship - Overall the ship is nice and clean. Very similar to the Conquest, Liberty and Triumph which we have sailed on, just different decor. The Valor didn't have the Fun ship 2.0 upgrades, and that would have been nice. Our waiter was a lady named Kittyaporn, and she was the best Waitress we have had in our 9 cruises. We had 18 persons in our group, and she memorized all of our names. She was wonderful with the little kids in our group, she taught them how to do different tricks each night after dinner.

 

Itinerary - It's simply awesome, I loved it. Every island had something different to offer, and had a character of it's own. It's a busy itinerary, but I would do it again in a heartbeat.

 

St Thomas - Most had been to this port before, so we just arranged for Godfrey to give us transportation. He subcontracted it to another driver who doesn't have Godfrey's people skills, but he did an adequate job. We went downtown for shopping in the mornirng, back to the ship for lunch, and then to Sapphire beach for the afternoon. Sapphire was very nice. They have limited chairs and not rest room, but we enjoyed it. Snorkeling was pretty good too.

 

Barbados - We booked with Tyrone Griffith for an island tour. We had a group of 18, and he put us with 6 others. He got a group of 40, and so he ended up hiring a driver named Michael to give our tour. I was irritated at first, but it worked out great. The other 6 people were very nice, and Michael was a very good guide. We really enjoyed the tour, and ended the day at Carslile beach. Swam out a short distance, and saw a couple of sea turtles. it was a very nice beach, but the food was very expensive.

 

St Lucia - The most beautiful place that I've ever seen. I've never seen that many mountains in one place, it was breathtaking. We booked a private tour with James Tours. It was a wonderful tour and we saw so much. I had no idea that the island was so big, and there isn't a straight road to be found. we covered a lot of ground. We had lunch at a small resort, i think it was called Lahoe. They served caribbean food. to be honest, I hated the food, but it's just because I've very picky and just don't care for that cuisine. About 1/3 of the group liked the food, 1/3 were indifferent, and 1/3 disliked it. The view was looking at the pitons and it was absolutely breathtaking. We did the mud baths, that was cool. The tour is a little rushed, because there is so much to see. On the way back to the ship the driver drove like a man possessed, most of the group started getting motion sick. it is extremely windy. I ended up being the weak link, and had to make an emergency stop to puke. Next time I'll take motion sick pills. Even with that problem, it was still my favorite day of the cruise.

 

St Kitts - We booked zip lining through Carnival with Sky Safari. Only 5 of us went, and it was our first time. We loved it, and we even have some chickens in the group. The views are spectacular, and the workers were very friendly and fun. We walked around the downtown a little after lunch. It's a very nice little town, we really liked it. Some in our group went to a beach, i think it was South Friars (Not certain). They chose it because the taxi fare was the lowest, and they disliked the beach. It was black sand and the waves were too rough.

 

St Maarten - 6 of us did the Tour 1 with Bernards tours. Given the motion sickness problem I had in St Lucia, many of us took motion sickness pills. The tour was good, we loved the island; however, the driver (DJ) was a bit on the boring side. Very nice guy and he treated us very well, but his manner of speaking put us to sleep much of the day. In fairness, it was partly because we all were medicated. Maho was absolutely awesome, seeing the airplanes take off and land was one of the highlights of my week.

 

San Juan - We went in a couple of days early and stayed at the Fajardo Inn. The hotel is a small little resort, that was actually very nice and a good value; however, it's located in an area that makes you feel as if you are in a low income housing project. We went to El Yunque, and it was a nice day; however, after driving through the rain forest in St Lucia the El Yunque experience was lacking. We also went to the El Conquistador resort in Fajardo. You have to pay a few dollars to park, but well worth the visit. It is a beautiful place, and if you can afford to stay there it looks awesome. I'm glad we saw a little more of Puerto Rico than just Old San Juan; however, after going there I don't think it's a place that I'll return anytime soon.

 

 

 

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[gelo7]

Welcome back, and thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[BenjiRodney]

Glad you had a good time, we did this 3 years in a row a found something new each time.

[cgmiller63]

We go board the Valor on April 6th. How was the weather?

[gymmom3]

This is why I love these boards so much, each opinion is so vaired and individual and goes according to ones experience for favorite port. I just got off the Valor and everyone on the ship we talked to, including our party couldn't stand St. Lucia. The peddling on the beaches, the street people attacking cruisers right from getting off the ship was unbearable. The beauty of the island doesn't hold a candle to the frustration and aggravation we felt in that port. We used to love St. Lucia, but in 4 years so much has changed....be careful when you get off the ship, my daughter was approached by so many bold men who were not respectful at all, it was awful. Yes Pitons are nice, but there are other islands that are beautiful including the people!! Just my 2 cents...

[rosenc1c]

We go board the Valor on April 6th. How was the weather?

 

Hot and Sunny. There were clouds when we were in St Lucia and and we had some brief showers, but they didn't last more than a few minutes. We came home to temp's in the 30's (Oklahoma) last night, so I wish I was back on the Valor.

 

I just got off the Valor and everyone on the ship we talked to, including our party couldn't stand St. Lucia. The peddling on the beaches, the street people attacking cruisers right from getting off the ship was unbearable. ..

 

At a couple of the stops we did have some pushy vendors, so I can see your point. We were with a tour, and so we weren't as accessible to vendors as if we went on our own. I spoke to some that took Cosol tours and they had a good experience also. We have been to Jamaica where we felt under attack at all times, and I never felt anything close to this in St Lucia.

 

I would have to say the people on Barbados got the award for the most polite and courteous overall, I don't think we encountered any rude or pushy vendors. Although we did have one guy try to sell some weed to my Daughters boyfriend. He didn't buy any, at least that's what he told me :-)

[txmom11]

Thank you for your review. We sail '

May 18th and are so ready to get away from the weather here in North Texas.

Edited March 24, 2014 by txmom11

[rosenc1c]

El Yunque Rain Forest and El Conquistador Resort (We didn't stay there, but it sure looked nice).

[rosenc1c]

Old San Juan, Some taken on first day and others on last day.

[rosenc1c]

St Thomas - Sapphire Beach

[Seago2]

Gorgeous pics, great review. Man you did a LOT. I usually go to the beach or the usual "walk around". I'm determined to do more this next cruise!

[rosenc1c]

Barbados - Tour of Island with Michael and end day with Carslile Beach

[rosenc1c]

St Lucia - James Tours - Lunch at Resort, Banana Plantation, Mud Baths and Waterfall.

[rosenc1c]

St Kitts - Zip Line and walk around downtown area.

[rosenc1c]

St Maarten - Bernards Tours

[kathy884]

Glad you enjoyed the cruise! We were on the same cruise and really enjoyed it too. Good service, food, and entertainment, the crystal clear waters of the Caribbean, great weather, and fun times with family (We had an extended family group sailing together).

 

I liked the itinerary too. Cruising out of San Juan meant four new islands we had never been to before. We've done week long trips to San Juan and St. Thomas before, but the other islands were all new for us.

 

Here's what we did:

St. Thomas -- went scuba diving and after that hung out on the ship

 

Barbados -- Turtle / Shipwreck snorkeling Catamaran tour and after that hung out on the ship // I'm one of the few people probably who think of this as being overrated and overpriced. But then we are spoiled as we have found so many marine parks and great beaches in the Caribbean we could go to on our own and see such a great variety of marine life with just transportation cost. Don't get me wrong (attentive staff and some interesting snorkeling but lol with several hundred of our fellow cruisers and cruisers from other boats) // Our boat only had eight, but all boats seem to go to the same places at the same time.

 

St. Lucia -- full day tour with Cosol tours (only exhausting day) // Other days were relaxing with a little activity and ship time built in too. // This tour is a do everything see everything tour. It had more driving than I like and was longer than I like. The highlight for us was all the local food. Most in our group loved this tour, though. I was feeling a bit car sick with all the curvy mountain roads, being in the back of the van, and not being able to see the horizon. Should have had sea bands for this. Didn't need them for the ship, though.

 

St. Kitts -- train tour to see all the little villages booked thru the ship. (lots of local pride here and we loved the charming 60 year old woman, a lifetime resident of the island who was our tour guide). Loved seeing all the young children in preschool and elementary school who watched for the train and would all wave.

 

St. Maarten -- Headed to Maho Beach early afternoon to see/photograph the big planes (lots of fun / really a blast / planes coming in all the time -- little ones between big ones)

 

Anyway, I've only done three cruises total in the 2000s (all Carnival), and this one is my favorite to date.

 

Some say the port intensive itinerary is too exhausting. We though usually just do a few hour activity per day and spend the balance of our time on the ship, so it was perfect for us, a nice combination of activity and relaxation.

Edited March 25, 2014 by kathy884

[chicacruiser]

Wow I'm glad I found this thread! Sailing in July. New islands for us so we were looking for ideas on this busy cruise! Thanks for all the info! Can't wait!

 

 

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[Aplmac]

We did Valor in mid-February.

 

At St.Lucia, I had an old girl-friend living on the island ..pick us up

and take us on a tour of the North end of the island.

 

Much better than the torturous South trip!

Flatter and more developed, but that's what we wanted to see.

 

.........................

 

At Saint Thomas, we took a taxi ride into Charlotte Amalie

and wandered around the interesting Narrow Alleys part of the town.

 

Scenery at Havensight, St.Thomas looks like this..

 

 

 

All five attachments below were taken at St.Lucia

[rwombough]

We were on this sailing too! Loved it!

We were a group of 8 (18-48 yrs old)

We flew into San Juan the night before the cruise. Reserved two rooms at the Coral by the Sea (yikes:eek:). We just needed a place to sleep for a few hours since we were getting in so late (around midnight). The place was a little scary (one room was on the 2nd floor the other on the 5th) When we got there the AC wasn't even on in the 5th floor room... it was freakin hot!!:mad: Turned on the AC, dropped off our luggage and headed out to find something to eat.

(if anyone wants more information about this hotel - just ask).

Sunday Morning we grabbed a taxi to the port. Dropped off our luggage around 11am - signed in to the cruise and were told to come back around 3:30 for boarding. This wasn't a problem since we had planned on doing some exploring.

Explored Old San Juan (took the free shuttle to the forts) made a stop at Senior Frogs and CVS and then headed back to the ship around 4pm - got right on and went to our cabins. Our luggage was waiting by our doors.

We didn't book any excursions thru Carnival.

St Thomas - grabbed a taxi into town - went to Magic Ice and did some shopping.

Barbados - grabbed a taxi to the Boatyard - spent the day there. This was one of our groups favorite days). Took a snorkel/turtle tour with Neville (sp). rented a couple jet skis.

St. Lucia - booked a tour thru Spencer Tours (if any one wants info on this tour let me know) we had a great tour guide but we also had some issues (nothing that ruined this tour, but made it a little frustrating at times).

St Kitts - booked a private catamaran thru Blue Water Safari. Took us out to snorkel, a deserted beach, and Nevis.

St Martin - rented a van thru Hertz and explored the island. Went to Orient Beach and Maho Beach to watch the planes come in (this was the best day).

On the day we arrived back to San Juan we planned a rain forest tour with FineLine tours to begin at 9am. They never showed - we called the office number and they are closed on Sundays. I emailed them twice. . While we waited we got to talking to a nice guy named Richard, he told us he would give us the same tour for the same price if they didn't show. We ended up going with him after waiting for almost a hour. Once we began the tour I received an email from FineLine Turns out they scheduled our tour for Monday not Sunday!!

We stayed an extra night - this time at the Sheraton (loved the location). Went to the pool area around 10pm to watch the Valor leave for their next cruise - thinking "that was us last week" - I wanted to be back on there so bad.

Monday - we planned on doing the Bacardi tour. Check out of the Sheraton (they held our luggage for free) - took the ferry (.25 each way - I think it was Senior Discount day since everyone was getting the senior discount tickets and we are not seniors yet!).

By the time we got to the Bacardi factory we were told it would be a 45 minute wait for the English tour and then the tour would be about another 45 minutes to an hour. That made it really close to the time we had to leave for the airport (not including the ferry ride back) so we got our two free drinks, checked out the gift shop and headed back to the Sheraton to retrieve our luggage and head off to the airport.

This was an excellent vacation!! I would do it again in a heartbeat!!

[MarriedInStThomas1807]

 

Embarkation - For some reason we were not allowed to get on the ship until about 3:30 pm. It created a problem, because although we could check our bags, for those bags we didn't want to check (Cameras, laptops, etc..) we had to carry them all of San Juan. It really sucked. I'm not sure why we were delayed, but I heard something about elevators. That may be true, because I've never seen a ship with so many elevators that were out of order.

 

We were beginning the 2nd week of the B2B and got a letter stating they were shutting down the elevators for maintenance for a few hours that day. We got off the ship as soon as we could in the morning and spent all day until 5pm in San Juan. I had no idea they didn't let anyone board until 3:30pm.

 

On a different note, It was an awesome cruise! :):)

[rosenc1c]

MarriedInStThomas1807 - Wow, back to back cruises, that's an interesting idea. The Valor would be a good one to do Back to Back. How does that work, do you keep the same cabin?

 

 

I've made some videos of some of our experiences:

 

Snorkeling:

 

Zip Lining:

 

Airplanes at Maho:

[MVoelker]

We leave in 32 days!

[MarriedInStThomas1807]

We kept our same cabin, but you don't have to. It was nice not to pack up and move. If I ever do a B2B again, that's the itinerary I'd do it on.

 

 

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[aricczona]

We will be doing this zipline tour on our upcoming cruise. Loved the Go pro video. Were you holding the cam or was it on some sort of mount? Just bought my GoPro and looking for the right accessories to film our adventures.

Edited March 26, 2014 by aricczona

[rosenc1c]

I used the head mount, and it worked well. You just need to master the wifi remote, because you won't be able to see the LED screen since it's on your head. The battery life on gopro sucks, and even worse when using wifi. I would recommend getting extra batteries, I got 2 wasabi batteries and a charger for $24 on amazon.

 

Another guy in our group used a wrist mount, and that worked pretty good too. He just said he wished it was on a swivel so he could reposition. also, the wrist mount won't get the shots of you coming in at the landing. I prefer the head mount.

 

 

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