Sail along with us - Indy 8-day Caribbean Report (Picture heavy)

[JDaly818]

This is great! We are on this same cruise leaving March 28 through Easter. Looking forward to seeing the compasses! Thanks for sharing your pics :)

[WarEagleLady]

What an excellent review! We are sailing on the Independence for our honeymoon in May, and we have been back and forth about a drink package. Did you find it to be worth it? Also, did you pay for Moet out of pocket or was it included?

 

Thanks!

[MreenD]

Enjoying your review! We sail on the 8 night Indy in just a few days!

:)

[MreenD]

I've posted my cruise notes in a new thread.

 

M&JfromSDL is doing a great job with pictures and I can't wait to see more.

 

For those who want the Jan 3rd Compass:

Independence of the Seas Cruise Compass - 8 night, Jan 3rd 2015

 

Thank you!! This is very helpful! :)

[M&JfromSDL]

January 5, 2014 (Cont)

At Sea

 

Our overall impressions of Giovanni's Table were mixed. Our service was a little slow. We like a long dinner experience especially with the quantity of food involved. There were a couple of times we were waiting on water, drinks and lastly the check. We've eaten at Giovanni's on Allure and Freedom and had great experiences so we'll chalk this one up to an off night.

 

We stopped at one of the interactive TV's to see what was going on.

 

 

We were at dinner during the Headliner's show which featured Resurrection - A Journey Tribute Band. On our walk back to our cabin from dinner we could hear them in the theatre. They sounded pretty spot on! But we had a 70's party to attend and we wanted to grab seats at Vintages to watch.

 

But first a walk through the Cupcake Cupboard. The "Special" looked awesome but I had no room in my belly for sweets after Giovanni's.

 

 

 

 

[M&JfromSDL]

The 70's party was great! Lots of great music and the performers wore interesting costumes which you can't see in my photos because of the Casino Royale sign.

 

 

After the parade we took a walk and landed in the Schooner Bar. The Pianist was an awesome guy! Every night, whether we were walking by or sat and listened he had the crowd in stitches.

 

 

My better half was in the mood to sing, so we tried the DIY karaoke booth outside of the On-Air Lounge.

 

 

On our way up to our nightly pizza binge I had to take a selfie outside of Vintages. "Vintages (probably the best place on Indy." We would have to agree.

 

[M&JfromSDL]

In that short amount of time they managed to take all of the 70's decorations down.

 

 

After an action packed day, it was off to bed. We had big plans for St. Martin in the morning.

[M&JfromSDL]

January 6, 2015

St. Maarten

One of my favorite things to do on a cruise is wake up early and watch the ship dock. I am fascinated by the Captain's parking skills and the morning light is almost always perfect. This morning was no exception. It was a busy morning with 5 cruise ships in port.

 

NCL Getaway

Disney Fantasy

Indy

Jewel of the Seas

 

 

[M&JfromSDL]

 

Before setting out for our planned beach day we jammed up to the Windjammer for a little breakfast. We docked and cleared fairly early on in the morning and did not have to be back on the ship until 5:30pm, so we weren't in too much of a rush to get off the ship.

 

After breakfast we returned to our cabin to grab our beach bag and head out. My wife asked me if she should pack beach towels to which I replied, no we will rent chairs and a towel on the beach. On our way to the gangway I stopped at the ATM only to learn my card had been locked due to unauthorized charges. In a flurry of excitement we set out for Orient and planned to use my wife's card there if we need to. No big deal.

 

Famous last words...

 

Folks, let me be the first to tell you. There is not a single ATM machine anywhere on Orient Beach. Very few places take credit cards and the folks renting the chairs generally want cash.

 

So... off we went on a 30 minute taxi ride to a gas station somewhere near the French/dutch border so I can extract some $$$ for our beach day.

 

 

We avoided disaster and I escaped without too many daggers from the Mrs. and we enjoyed a lovely day on Orient Beach. The weather was warm and breezy which made for an easy day for the Mrs. as she is very sensitive to heat.

 

 

[M&JfromSDL]

Keeping in mind all of the ships in port we returned to Downtown around mid-afternoon and beat most of the traffic.

 

 

I will have to remember this place for the next visit... ;)

 

We returned to the port area, grabbed a great lunch and did some shopping. Our cab driver recommended a place called Barefoot for lunch. We parked at a counter overlooking the street. It afforded a great view of the harbor and offered up excellent people watching.

 

Edited January 16, 2015 by M&JfromSDL

[M&JfromSDL]

Barefoot turned out to be a great lunch spot. The service was friendly and we enjoyed our lunch. We started off with conch fritters and split an order of goat curry. The fritters were mostly fritter and not much conch, but were still good. The goat curry was awesome. As were the Carib!

 

 

After lunch we set out on foot to explore the downtown area. The last time were were here the heat was oppressive and we were short on time so we ran back to the ship. This time the weather was quite pleasant so we walked around for a bit. There are a ton of duty-free and jewelry stores around. I was on a hunt for a couple of Cuban cigars but the Mrs. was looking for perfume replenishment.

 

[M&JfromSDL]

 

Soon enough it was time to return to the ship. We took the water taxi back to the cruise terminal. The fee was nominal and they sold $2 Caribs on board.

 

 

There was an absolutely smashing yacht tied up when we arrived. From a quick Google search I believe C2 is owned by Ronald Perelman, owner of Revlon Group.

 

[M&JfromSDL]

 

A better view of C2 from onboard Indy.

 

 

Time for sailway party. I was ready for one of my favorite frozen drinks, a frozen mojito! Mrs. M&JFromSDL tried her hand at a Mango Mojito which she enjoyed as well.

 

 

We took position at the rear of the ship to watch Jewel sail away.

 

Edited January 16, 2015 by M&JfromSDL

[M&JfromSDL]

 

Then it was Getaway's turn. Interestingly enough we came very close to booking this cruise instead of Indy.

 

 

Our turn!

 

 

By now it was time to head down to our cabin and get ready for dinner. Tonight's dress code was "Casual / Tropical." After a nice beach day that sounded perfect.

 

Only Tuesday? There's plenty of cruise left!

 

[SthrnCruiser]

We were on Indy last year and stopped in St. Marteen. We also had lunch at Barefoot. It was really good. We had like a sampler platter and really enjoyed it.

[cruiseapril]

Fun review.

[jes Scott]

So Orient looked good? Did you find seaweed to be a problem? Several people have been reporting bad beach conditions. Thanks for all the info and recommendations!

 

 

Jess

[QTBabyNurse]

We were on the sailing right before yours! Loved the Indy and glad to see all your pics to remind us of our wonderful week also!

 

Too bad you missed Resurrection..they were fantastic! Did you get a chance to see the band Rock the Boat who played in the Pyramid every night?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[ihavecats]

We are leaving for this same cruise in six weeks! I'm really enjoying this review and it's helping me pass the time until it's our turn!

[M&JfromSDL]

So Orient looked good? Did you find seaweed to be a problem? Several people have been reporting bad beach conditions. Thanks for all the info and recommendations!

 

 

Jess

 

 

There were no seaweed issues on Orient. It was a beautiful day!

[ande90]

Loving the review and all the pictures so far! We're on the 6-day in March :D

[Paulette3028]

Did you try Karaoke at all?

[Folk Singer]

Fun review.

 

Fun review and thanks. Great Pics.

[Folk Singer]

We were on the sailing right before yours! Loved the Indy and glad to see all your pics to remind us of our wonderful week also!

 

Too bad you missed Resurrection..they were fantastic! Did you get a chance to see the band Rock the Boat who played in the Pyramid every night?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

 

Great Band.

[hellsop]

On our way up to our nightly pizza binge I had to take a selfie outside of Vintages. "Vintages (probably the best place on Indy." We would have to agree.

 

 

Patrico and Linda make it so.