Detailed Photo Review of Southern Caribbean Valor Cruise from Puerto Rico 3/15/15

[sewut]

Nope, never did laundry! I used a large backpack with several sections and a standard rolling carry on bag. I actually found that I was able to bring everything that I would have wanted. Perhaps I would have enjoyed one extra pair of shoes to wear at night, but I really didn't feel that I was missing everything. I was able to fit 10 bathing suits, 6 pairs of shoes (beach flip flops, nicer flip flops, flat sandals for casual nights, dress heels for formal night, aqua socks, plus an old pair of sneakers which I wore on the plane), casual dresses as cover ups or shorts and tshirts for all 11 days, casual or formal dresses for every night, all of my toiletries and electronics (iPhone, waterproof camera, regular camera, iPad, and their respective chargers), and even my snorkel mask and goggles (no fins though)! The only thing I didn't fit was all the drinks that we bought in San Juan, and my big bottle of suntan lotion which I bought at CVS in San Juan when I arrived (and that would have physically fit in the bag, but TSA wouldn't approve of such a big bottle... oh well!).

 

I think it is possible for anyone to travel with carry-ons only, especially if you are willing to do laundry. There's tons of youtube videos about it, with ideas of how many of each item you should pack. A big suggestion is to pack things you can mix and match- so pick 2 or 3 colors and pack lots of neutrals that match those colors and you can create several outfits from a limited supply of clothes.

 

Personally, I hate doing laundry and there was no chance I wanted to do it on vacation! That meant I had to get creative... I rolled all my clothes very tightly because you can fit more stuff in the same space if you roll the clothes instead of folding them. It helps that my shoes are a size 6.5 and they fit nicely between the bars of the handle on my suitcase. All of my Caribbean cruise clothes are lightweight and thin so it's not that hard to fit a lot of options into the suitcase. As for the nighttime dresses, I just rolled them tightly and squished them in as much as I could! (except for the black and white lace formal dress- that one I folded neatly on top of the bag so it wouldn't get too wrinkled)

 

J also brought only a carry on bag and a backpack, and we packed his stuff the same way as mine except for his evening attire. I think he re-wore his pants and button down shirts twice since he only wore them for a few hours each night and they never got sweaty or dirty. He had to do some ironing for his shirts after unpacking, but that was fine because I take way longer to get showered and do my hair/makeup so he went off to the laundry room to iron at that time haha

 

I hope that helped! Let me know if you have any other questions :)

 

I'm impressed! I don't think we could do that at our age (mid 60's). Our bodies, though not obese, are bigger than yours, so our clothes take up more room, and we require a pharmacy with all our prescriptions. I have a 21 day Journey B2B coming up, and I'm going to try to pack lighter. I say that every cruise, or rather DH does. We are Platinum, so we have free laundry, and that will help.

[deladane]

I'm impressed! I don't think we could do that at our age (mid 60's). Our bodies, though not obese, are bigger than yours, so our clothes take up more room, and we require a pharmacy with all our prescriptions. I have a 21 day Journey B2B coming up, and I'm going to try to pack lighter. I say that every cruise, or rather DH does. We are Platinum, so we have free laundry, and that will help.

 

Another thing I left out is that I couldn't buy any souvenirs because I had no where to pack them for the trip home (especially since clothing always takes up more space after being worn, no matter how tightly I roll it LOL). When I did my 17-day trip for the Sunshine Mediterranean cruise, I knew I would have to give in and check a bag because there was no way I could 2.5 weeks in Europe and not buy anything to bring back home haha

 

We are still debating if we will check a bag for our upcoming Celebrity cruise. We will be gone for 14 days, so it will be tough to only bring carry ons without doing laundry. The other problem would be the souvenirs- not sure if I will be able to resist buying a few things on this trip. I guess I have a few months to sort that out though ;)

[Nurse 3D]

My daughter and I also went on this cruise and found that the first formal night there was a long line to the d. r. We figured out later that a lot of the cruisers from San Juan did not understand there were set dining times and anytime dining from either a language difficulty or lack of experience. We still will do anytime dining. The following nights were better waiting in line for much shorter time. Still the food took a long time coming. We took the waiting time talking with nearby table mates if they wanted to, meeting a couple from Sweden and others. The value of traveling for us, is meeting others. We also understood that while this was a vacation for us, it's a living for the locals. We loved meeting the people and differences in lifestyles there are. My great-grandfather was from the Islands and we appreciated hearing about the history and how he might have ended up in the Carolinas. The islands were beautiful, inspirational, dirty and poor. So is home. We are blessed that we have the opportunity to travel internationally, something my parents didn't. The ship while old was clean and cared for. I worked last night, I encourage my patients to see that best living is enjoying the moment no matter short or to do what we can change. Have a wonderful day.

[pghsteelerfan]

You're welcome! I'm glad you found it and I hope it was more helpful for your planning now that you can see the photos again!! :) I will also redo my Victory review, but I want to do the Sunshine cruise to the Mediterranean first.

 

Oh yes, please do the Sunshine to the Mediterranean first. :) That was also a great review and you got beautiful pictures there and I enjoyed that one a lot, even though we don't have a Mediterranean cruise planned in the near future. It is something DH would like to do someday. I'm sure I'm not the only one who enjoys reading reviews of ships/itineraries that we don't have a cruise planned for and I'm sure a lot of others here on CC would love to read (or re-read) your Sunshine review. I've gotten a chance to at least go back and read some of your Victory review and I'll enjoy the pictures again once you get a chance, so no hurry. :)

[mississauga]

Thank you for taking the time to write repost your review with fabulous pictures. Your selfies are so good they don't look like you took them yourself.

 

Never been on the Valor or plan to but was attracted to your review with the ports, hoping to get some ideas. We are going on the Sunshine in Nov/Dec with some of those ports. Having never been to St Kitts, was curious to see what you did and you did not disappoint. Think this is what DH and I will do in St Kitts. Nice beach day for us.

 

We have been on the Sunshine and will again soon but now following your Sunshine Med review to get ideas for some of the ports. Going on the Vista next year. You do good research so appreciate you sharing with us on CC.

 

I know how much work reviews are so really appreciate that you are reposting with your photos again. The reposting is a lot of work too. Thank you for taking the time and for sharing.

Edited August 8, 2015 by mississauga

[S.C.]

Loved your review! Sorry if this was discussed and I missed it, what kind of underwater camera did you use?

[deladane]

Loved your review! Sorry if this was discussed and I missed it, what kind of underwater camera did you use?

 

Thank you! I used a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20 as my underwater camera- I got it in 2012 for my Victory cruise and it has held up well over the years. One of my favorite features is that it can take still photos while taking a video (I have found that this is rarely possible with other cameras but it's very handy, especially while snorkeling if you want to shoot a video and then see a cool fish swim into the frame haha) Not sure if they make a newer model by now, but I would recommend this camera if you are looking for a good underwater camera :)

[cojuqui]

I did this same cruise back in June of 2012 on the Victory. I love reminiscing and thoroughly enjoyed your review. We plan to go on this itinerary again eventually without the kids and you gave me some good ideas of activities.

 

Thanks for taking the time to repost with all your photos. I'm a photo girl too and really enjoyed seeing the trip thru your lens.

 

Connie

 

PAST CRUISES:

 

Discovery Sun 2003 Freeport Bahamas Day Cruise

Celebrity Solstice 6/26/09 Eastern Mediterranean

Carnival Conquest 08/10/10 Eastern Caribbean

Carnival Victory 06/10/12 Southern Caribbean http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1659913

Carnival Miracle 07/30/13 Alaska http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showt...8#post39476968

Diamond Princess 12/23/13 New Zealand/Australia http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2112413

Carnival Pride 11/23/14 Exotic Western Caribbean http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2135404

 

Edited August 20, 2015 by cojuqui
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[griz400]

Monday, March 16 ~ Sapphire Beach in St. Thomas

 

When we woke up at 7:15am, we were already docked in St. Thomas and we could see people getting off the ship out our window. We got ready and went to breakfast at the Lido buffet. It was very hectic and crowded, and we waited 15 minutes for an omelet!

 

The port area in St. Thomas is so beautiful with all the little white boats contrasting against the deep blue water and bright green hills...

 

 

We left the ship and walked through the little shopping area to the taxi stand. A taxi to Sapphire Beach cost $10 per person each way, plus tip. We ended up in a minivan with 7 passengers instead of a big open air taxi like most people. It was really nice to have the air conditioning, but it was a long ride and we had to drop some people at Coki Beach on the way so that took extra time. It took 35 minutes total and we arrived at Sapphire Beach a little after 10am. There was already a lot of people there, although I wouldn't say it was crowded. We paid $9 each plus tip for lounge chairs, and the girl set them up where we requested under a tree for shade. Little did we know that it would be overcast and cloudy all day with occasional drizzle, so we didn't really need the tree's shade. There was a light breeze and it was slightly cool all day. I only took my cover-up off to take a few quick photos, and it was too cold and the water was too choppy to snorkel in the ocean.

 

 

 

We brought a few pouches of Gasolina to enjoy on the beach. I'm not sure if it was because they are only sold in Puerto Rico so the St. Thomas locals didn't know what we were drinking, or just because they didn't care, but no one said anything to us about drinking something we didn't buy directly from them. In fact, there was a big group of college-aged kids sitting next to us who were on spring break and staying on the island all week, and they had a huge cooler filled with beers that we watched them carry onto the beach and no one said anything to them either.

 

 

We took advantage and took some photos when the sun eventually came out...

 

 

 

A few other things about Sapphire Beach: I know they had some construction for the past few months. As of when we were there, the bathrooms were open, but there was still a section of the property under construction. There was one vendor set up on the beach selling jewelry and dresses, but she did not bother us or pressure us to buy anything. If people approached her to browse her products, then she answered their questions, but she did not walk up and down the beach asking us to buy stuff. There were 2 runners from the restaurant who came around with drink and food menus and could take your orders from the beach so you didn't have to get up if you were hungry. Other than that, it was a pleasant quiet day at the beach, even if it was too cold to do the water sports! I was able to snorkel here on my 2012 cruise, so if you are interested in that experience, please refer to that review.

 

A few questions please, first off, great review, and you 2 were smiling every pic, must have had a great time ... What is that gasolina drink, in San Juan ??? We are going there next month on the Valor, also, does Valor have soft serve ice cream machines ?? where if so ?? and this ship has fish and chips we hear, how was it .... also, we are going to Barachinos for lunch, we are planning it, may change .. we want the paella and a pitcher of sangria , you guys ate there, did you see any plates of paella, we here its one of the best places for it .. thanks, Jeff and Cyndee

[deladane]

A few questions please, first off, great review, and you 2 were smiling every pic, must have had a great time ... What is that gasolina drink, in San Juan ??? We are going there next month on the Valor, also, does Valor have soft serve ice cream machines ?? where if so ?? and this ship has fish and chips we hear, how was it .... also, we are going to Barachinos for lunch, we are planning it, may change .. we want the paella and a pitcher of sangria , you guys ate there, did you see any plates of paella, we here its one of the best places for it .. thanks, Jeff and Cyndee

 

Gasolina is like a kid's lunch box drink pouch but for adults. It contains a vodka or tequila based fruit punch drink in a little disposable pouch, and comes with a straw so you can drink it on the go. They sell them at all the supermarkets and CVS, so they are easy to find, and they come in a few different flavors.

 

Yes, the Valor does have the soft serve ice cream machines on the Lido deck near- I think they were near the doors to the pool area.

 

Fish and chips is located on deck 10, an you can get there using the stair case next to the giant Rosie tile mosaic in the buffet area. We only ate there once, but it was pretty good. They had a few cold options and a few hot options, and it seemed like most people on the ship didn't know it was there because it never looked crowded. Their hours were very limited, so that's why we didn't get to eat there more often.

 

Barrachina's definitely serves paella as I remember seeing it on the menu. Unfortunately, I have been there twice with 2 different people, and neither of them eats shellfish so I never got to order it (despite my love for paella mariscos). I also didn't notice anyone at neighboring tables eating it. Please come back and let me know how it was if you get to try it! :) I don't know much about their sangria, but I do highly recommend the pina coladas as that is what the restaurant is known for!

 

Hope that helps, and let me know if you think of any other questions :)

[deladane]

I did this same cruise back in June of 2012 on the Victory. I love reminiscing and thoroughly enjoyed your review. We plan to go on this itinerary again eventually without the kids and you gave me some good ideas of activities.

 

Thanks for taking the time to repost with all your photos. I'm a photo girl too and really enjoyed seeing the trip thru your lens.

 

Connie

 

PAST CRUISES:

 

Discovery Sun 2003 Freeport Bahamas Day Cruise

Celebrity Solstice 6/26/09 Eastern Mediterranean

Carnival Conquest 08/10/10 Eastern Caribbean

Carnival Victory 06/10/12 Southern Caribbean http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1659913

Carnival Miracle 07/30/13 Alaska http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showt...8#post39476968

Diamond Princess 12/23/13 New Zealand/Australia http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2112413

Carnival Pride 11/23/14 Exotic Western Caribbean http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2135404

 

 

Thanks Connie :) I also did this cruise on the Victory in December of 2012. It's such a great itinerary that it's hard to convince myself to book anything else haha All of the islands have so much to offer that it lends itself well to multiple visits. I hope you get to return there soon :)

[cruiseclues]

Thank you so much for the great Photo Review...with all the Food Photos to see. :):):):)

[deladane]

Thank you so much for the great Photo Review...with all the Food Photos to see. :):):):)

 

you're welcome! :) J always makes fun of me for taking food porn photos but I can't help it! I want to capture everything, and that includes all the yummy food we eat!! Every time I look at the mofongo photos, it makes me want to eat it again haha