Thanksgiving On Splendor - Eastern Caribbean - CruiseXLife's Photo Review!

[cruisexlife]

Best Freakin Review Ever !!!

 

Thank you so much! Something came up, but I will add more when I get a free moment. Glad you're enjoying it!

[cruisexlife]

Katie came out to the secret deck where I was watching us back into the pier. She brought the sandwiches we ordered from room service. Here we are, backing into the pier between the Regal Princess and Disney Fantasy.

 

 

Another catamaran. I am making it a priority to cruise on a catamaran by this time in 2016.

 

 

After we were pretty close to the pier I went back to the room, threw on a tshirt and my swim trunks, and the backpack I pre-packed the night before. Today, we decided to do a beach day. We shuffled between Magen's Bay and Emerald Beach. We found that 5 ships would be with us, so we thought that there would be less tourons (yes, tourist morons) at Emerald than Magen's. Plus I didn't find many reviews on Emerald, so I wanted to document it for you all. After waiting about 10 minutes, Mom and Elron were ready, and we headed off. It was about 11:30.

 

 

Here is the Regal Princess, she looks like such a beautiful ship!

 

 

The four of us got into a cab. It was $8 per person to Emerald. It was also $4 to downtown. It was a joined cab because you have to pass through downtown to get to the beach. The price is also based on people. More than one person was $8, one was $11.

 

Here is the beautiful Splendor!

 

 

We began our drive to the beach, and immediately I noticed the traffic. Dear lord, it was insane! My last two trips here, it was 2 or 3 ships in port total, today we had 5, one being the Allure. It being the USVI, this became a good time to use the data and upload our photos, but inching along wasn't all too great. Here are the ships.

 

[cruisexlife]

Such a great ship!

 

 

I love the waterslide at the top. It looks like a lot of fun, all of the kids I saw go on it had a huge smile on their face!

 

 

I like this picture. The Charlotte Amalie Bay is beautiful, the road is right along the coast. One day, I would not mind walking from the ship to downtown to ship, it'll be a nice little walk.

 

 

Getting through downtown took a very long time. Our driver felt the need to stop whenever he saw a person. He broke out the aisle seats to accommodate more people. Well, this was nice for 30 feet, until we stopped and someone wanted to get off. And we had to do gymnastics to get everyone out. Finally we arrived at the Crown Bay dock, which meant that the beach was just over the hill. Here is the Westerdam and the Allure of the Seas.

 

 

We went up the hill, and stopped for a second (not for the view, but for traffic) and then continued down to the beach.

 

[rzyjzq]

Enjoying your review. I know they are very time consuming so thanks for taking the time to post. Looking forward to the remaining islands!

Susan

[cruisexlife]

Enjoying your review. I know they are very time consuming so thanks for taking the time to post. Looking forward to the remaining islands!

Susan

 

Thank you! I am very busy this week, so I will hopefully find some time later tonight, or tomorrow to write some more. But thank you for reading!

[cruisexlife]

After about a 25 minute ride, we arrived at the Best Western Emerald Beach Hotel. We each paid the taxi drivers our fares, and proceeded onwards. Note, you do not need to enter the lobby. There is a trail right to the beach.

 

 

We got on the beach, and immediately went in search of a chair. You usually sit down, and someone will be over to collect the money shortly. Well, we had a hard time finding chairs, so we walked further down the beach.

 

 

I could already tell I was going to like it here!

 

 

Eventually we found a guy who had chairs. But he said to wait about 15 minutes for one. Elron and I were not about to wait for 15 minutes, but Mom didn't have a problem. This is when Katie started to act a little weird, but more on that later. Eventually, they followed Elron and I. In the picture below, there's a curved palm tree. That huge space was where we entered. You can see the umbrellas with the chairs under them. As we went to walk past there, we noticed a family of 3 were leaving their chairs (behind the ones with the umbrellas) behind, and there was a spare next to it. That's where we settled.

 

 

Sold! We paid the man (I believe they were $7 each?) and lathered up with sunscreen. Ready for an amazing beach day!

 

 

[cruisexlife]

I really liked the way that this beach was positioned. It faced the dead west, so after noon, the sun hit you dead on, as it set. This was extra convenient with our itinerary, because we didn't really arrive until about 12:10-12:15. I began tanning. This photo was taken zoomed very far from the chair.

 

 

I looked over to see how Katie was making out, and I noticed she had all her clothes on, and was buried under the towel. I asked her what was up, and of course now, the time when we are at the beach and have paid for it all, she tells me that she doesn't really like beaches. When were you gonna tell me?!?!? Plus, we had a beach day planned in Grand Turk too. So I felt really bad. But she wasn't buried because she disliked beaches, it was because she had a stomachache. She also suddenly told me she threw up once and had diarrhea all through the night. So she decided she was going to just sleep under the towel. I thought, "well, whatever floats your boat."

 

After tanning for about 30 minutes, I got hot, and decided to jump in. I decided to take my camera with me to get some pictures of the beach from the water.

 

 

Clear water and powder sand, I love the Caribbean!

 

 

 

When I came back, I noticed Katie was up and packing her things. Uh oh. I had spent about 20 minutes in the water, and something had urged her to head back to the ship. She had to make a bathroom trip, and just decided it would be better if she was back on the boat. She was going to go alone, but my mother wanted to shop near the ship, and Mom being the doctor and mom she is, didn't want to let the sick girl travel alone. So after about 45 minutes, my mother was also going to leave. I sort of felt like this was my fault, since I had planned the day at the beach, and Katie didn't feel comfortable enough to tell me this during planning (she felt like it would leave us with nothing to do. Hello?!? It's the world's most visited cruise port. There's tons to do!!!), but a grown woman should be responsible for her own health. I pulled mom aside and asked why she was really leaving, and she said it was half because Elron despises shopping and she wanted to get it done, but also to help her out. But she assured me that she was nothing but happy and that she was glad to shop, which relieved me. It was now abut 1:15, and I just wanted to make it onboard by 4:30 ships time to catch the sunset, So I had about and hour and a half. Pretty sweet.

 

I did not do much for the rest of the time, except flip my sides and every now and then get into the water. Elron and I got some good conversation time, which was good. I only took one more picture, and that was of a cat over my a hotel room.

 

 

All in all, I LOVED Emerald Beach! The sand was soft and the water was blue. You did not step on anything in the water. Closer to what was on my left facing the water (south side of the beach), they had music playing, and a DJ. There wasn't anything obnoxious like belly flopping. Every now and then he'd go "Make some noise if you're having fun!" and everyone would shout. It was a GREAT beach for tanning, and was super friendly. On the North side of the beach, it was quieter, less music. However, the airport is right nearby, so you can hear the planes taking off and landing. It's kind of cool (nothing like St.Maarten), but if you have sensitive ears or are looking for a location of silence, this may not be your place. But if you are looking for a family friendly, and just downright fun, clean, and beautiful beach, Emerald makes a great choice. I'm really glad I got to spend the day here, and I would certainly come back.

[cruisexlife]

Around 3:45, we bid the place goodbye. I wish we had started to leave around 3:30, because the taxi drivers were very pushy. I sat in 3 taxis before I was able to pull out and leave. Elron slowly lost his patience, and eventually told the taxi driver that we were not leaving this taxi, and that the next time our feet touched the ground, it would be in front of the Splendor. Needless to say, we waited a while, but made our way back to the ship.

 

 

We had to drop some people off for Allure/Westerdam. I love all of the "Seasons Greetings" and holiday stuff that the ships and islands put up during Thanksgiving week, it gets me so excited to go back home and begin the Christmas season!

 

 

Loving the wreathes! The ships also look nice in the back.

 

 

We had to make our way through downtown again, but this time we were going to hug the shore, but we would go through downtown. I like Charlotte Amalie, it's a cute little place.

 

[cruisexlife]

I put my camera looking through the little window thing at the top. As you can see, it looks a little sketchy. Elron was already not feeling the US Virgin Islands after the taxi ride here, and the two bad drivers we had, and this certainly set him off. He spent the entire rest of the ride complaining about how he did not like it here. I responded with "okay" every time. Today was certainly my least favorite visit, and if it was my first time I wouldn't have loved it, but I still had a great day. I try and stay focused on the positives, but I realize certain people can only go so long.

 

 

We arrived back to the ships, again a $7 per person fare. And right after this photo was taken, Elron stepped into moving traffic and nearly got hit. As in, the car had to spin fast and it's back wheels flew out. It was very scary. The scene from last year when my Rottweiler was hit by speeding truck just flashed before my eyes, and at that point I was done for the day. the traffic is on the opposite side of the road here, so beware. PLEASE look both ways twice, three times, four times. We were using a crosswalk, and we had the right-of-way, but this car had obviously not seen us, as it was speeding and Elron looked left-right-left, when here you need to look right-left-right. Please be safe!

 

The beautiful Regal Princess!

 

 

Mom had gone onboard and changed her clothes, but had come back down the shop, and was still in the midst. We met up with her, and talked for a few. I had a sunset to catch! I love the sunsets in the Virgin Islands, they always seem to stand out. I left them, and got back onboard. Here's Splendor!

 

 

I love this view, Charlotte Amalie Bay is beautiful from all angles.

 

 

I dropped my bag off in the room. Katie was asleep. I didn't bother waking her up, so I just went myself. Here is the Senor Frogs. How people could be in such a beautiful island and waste their day here getting drunk is beyond me. Maybe some fun after your tour, or if you came to get drunk it would be fun, but there are so many beautiful things in these islands, it's sad that many people miss out because of $1 jello shots.

 

Edited December 20, 2015 by cruisexlife

[pghsteelerfan]

Wow, must have been scary with Elron almost getting hit. That is confusing with driving on the opposite sides of the road. We were very careful and mindful of that when walking over to the Sky Ride on our Liberty cruise.

 

I'm also sorry to hear your Rottweiler was hit by a car last year. I'm just hoping he or she made it.

 

I do have a question...is Emerald Bay the same as Lindbergh Bay? I've seen Lindbergh on "Google Maps" and it looks like it's right by the airport. I'm still enjoying your pictures and looking forward to the sunset ones.

[momonthego17]

 

I like this picture. I have no clue why I was down there, or what made me decide to take this photo, but I ended up really liking it.

 

 

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I like this photo because the whale tail is lit up from underneath, Very nice pic! Great review, looking forward to more!

[Froufie]

Loving the review - and will be on the Splendor - same ports in February. I just checked and there will also be LOTS of ships with us in St. Thomas - so may consider Emerald Beach - is the the one at the Best Western? Looks like might be a bit harder to get chairs/umbrellas (esp since we are not docking til 11 am).

 

Wondering about 'facilities' e.g. washrooms, food/drinks? Also did you notice any freshwater showers - near beach/hotel?

[cruisexlife]

I stopped by the bar at the Liner Pool, picked up a drink, then went back up to Deck 12. I was pumped for this sunset!

 

 

I shortly realized that it was going to be a good one once the colors started pouring in.

 

 

I like this one.

 

 

Across the way, the Allure passengers are also watching the beautiful sunset.

 

 

I don't remember what inspired me to take this shot, but I'm glad I did. It's a new perspective.

 

 

This is why I cruise!

 

[cruisexlife]

This was of a cloud directly above the ship. I love how bright they can be, even from so far away. It's incredible.

 

 

Harbor shot. You can see some streaks of light in the sky. However, you can see that the darkness is slowly creeping in.

 

 

If I had to pull 5 of my favorite pictures from the trip, this would certainly be in there.

 

 

Or this!

 

 

Goodnight St.Thomas!

 

[cruisexlife]

After the sunset, it was about 5:15. I had a while until departure at 7, which I also wanted to catch. I decided to fill this time with the gym. I ran some, then hit the Lactonium. After that, I went back to the room and hit the shower. Katie was still asleep. Since it was about 6, and a year ago today, on the ferry to St.John, I met one of my closest friends to date, I felt that she deserved a call. I facetimed her, and wished her a happy thanksgiving. She just got off the Inspiration yesterday! Around 6:20, my mother walked out onto the secret deck, where I was talking to my friend. I said goodbye to her, and talked to my mother. Her and Elron were in a fight, and she needed to vent. After she was done venting, we started talking about our first cruise together and my childhood, and everything fun we've done over the years. It was a good experience to be able to have this talk with my other, we do not do it enough. We had a great view of the bay at night, as well as the Regal Princess.

 

 

 

Around 6:45, we began departing. I'm going to assume we had everyone onboard and that there was no good reason to stay.

 

 

A bridge wing shot. I love departing St.Thomas!

 

[cruisexlife]

I'm sorry the quality isn't as good as it could be on some of these night photos.

 

 

I started putting work into my shots. You don't know how many times I took this EXACT photo!

 

 

Ugh. I love these views.

 

 

I really like this photo for some reason.

 

[cruisexlife]

Such a great view. As nice as departures are during the day, I like them much better at night. Especially in St.Thomas.

 

 

Here's the Allure. She was bound for St. Maarten, my favorite island!

 

 

It was now about 7:30. Dinner was at 8:15. I headed back to the room to see what Katie was up to. She had just woken up. She apologized for not telling me about her dislike for the beach, and that in Grand Turk she would book a land excursion. However, there was an "if". She had been throwing up for a while, and has had constant diarrhea. She was at a loss of energy, so much that a trip to the bathroom made her weak. So I talked to her for a little, and then went to go to dinner. I was not really feeling it tonight, so I found Mom and explained that Katie wasn't going, and that I just wanted a salad tonight. So they enjoyed an evening alone. I decided to go up to the Lido, get a salad, and then head to a comedy show. It was funny, and a good way to spend the time. By the time I got out, it was around 9:15. I was walking the Promenade and I ran into Justin. We got some drinks, but headed up to Lido to escape the crowds. We just talked about our days, then a little about politics and life at home. We then decided to walk the upper decks for a little. Here was a shot I got looking down into the pool. There was a movie showing.

 

 

It was around 10:45, and I bid Justin goodbye. I was up on 12, at Serenity, so I just took the little spa elevator down to 10. I snapped this picture for anyone who is trying to put an image with a description. I made it back to my cabin, put on my pajamas, and went to sleep. I was waking up at 6:30 to catch the arrival into San Juan, my favorite cruise port (I know I said St.Maarten earlier, but I cannot pick between the two! I love them both equally.)

 

 

Next: San Juan

[cruisexlife]

Wow, must have been scary with Elron almost getting hit. That is confusing with driving on the opposite sides of the road. We were very careful and mindful of that when walking over to the Sky Ride on our Liberty cruise.

 

I'm also sorry to hear your Rottweiler was hit by a car last year. I'm just hoping he or she made it.

 

I do have a question...is Emerald Bay the same as Lindbergh Bay? I've seen Lindbergh on "Google Maps" and it looks like it's right by the airport. I'm still enjoying your pictures and looking forward to the sunset ones.

 

Hello! Yes it was very scary. Unfortunately, Bruno, my dog, died after the accident. He was 2.5 years old, and I had gotten him 9.5 months before. After he was hit, he ran back to me, tumbled down into my arms, and died right there. It was a very upsetting day for me, he was just getting trained and I was really starting to connect with him. But ever since, I have always made sure to be careful crossing the street and around cars. I had two new speed bumps installed on my street, and I've gone to the community meetings to advocate for more things to reduce speeding. If a speeding truck can kill a 180 purebread Rottweiler, God only knows what would happen to a child or elderly person.

 

Back on topic, yes it is. that' the geographical name of the area. It's a great place, I would certainly go back. Thanks for continuing to follow along! :D

[cruisexlife]

I like this photo because the whale tail is lit up from underneath, Very nice pic! Great review, looking forward to more!

 

Yes, I like that too. Thank you for reading and following along!

[cruisexlife]

Loving the review - and will be on the Splendor - same ports in February. I just checked and there will also be LOTS of ships with us in St. Thomas - so may consider Emerald Beach - is the the one at the Best Western? Looks like might be a bit harder to get chairs/umbrellas (esp since we are not docking til 11 am).

 

Wondering about 'facilities' e.g. washrooms, food/drinks? Also did you notice any freshwater showers - near beach/hotel?

 

Hello! Yes, it is at the Best Western. You may have to search or wait a bit for the chairs, but it won't be too long. Actually, we noticed many people leaving to get back to the ship for a late lunch. As in arrive in St.Thomas at 7, get to the beach at 8:30, and stay until 12-1:30 before going back for lunch, and to stay on for the rest of the day. So you will find people clearing out. It won't take too long.

 

As for facilities, I did not find any. there was a bar with food I believe near the DJ. Heck, there may have been showers too considering there was a pool. Since my chair was right next to the entrance, the only walking I did was from the chair to the water! But since I did not look for either, I did not find them. Sorry!

[pghsteelerfan]

Hello! Yes it was very scary. Unfortunately, Bruno, my dog, died after the accident. He was 2.5 years old, and I had gotten him 9.5 months before. After he was hit, he ran back to me, tumbled down into my arms, and died right there. It was a very upsetting day for me, he was just getting trained and I was really starting to connect with him. But ever since, I have always made sure to be careful crossing the street and around cars. I had two new speed bumps installed on my street, and I've gone to the community meetings to advocate for more things to reduce speeding. If a speeding truck can kill a 180 purebread Rottweiler, God only knows what would happen to a child or elderly person.

 

Back on topic, yes it is. that' the geographical name of the area. It's a great place, I would certainly go back. Thanks for continuing to follow along! :D

 

I didn't want to ask about your dog...I am very sorry to hear that you lost him. So young too. :( I consider pets as family members so I know that had to have been rough. Glad you were able to at least get speed bumps and are at least trying to do something. Several years ago we had a major issue with people speeding on our street. Several of us tried getting speed bumps but that didn't get anywhere. We live in an incorporated "city" (not very big), but all of the courts go through the county. A neighbor talked to one of our police officers years ago about the speeding. It was really bad between 5:30 and 6:30AM and the officer told the neighbor that he busted seven people speeding excessively on our street, including someone going 83 mph. The speed limit is 25, residential, but at the time there were no speed limit signs. All seven of those tickets were dismissed by the judge, even the 83 mph, because the same argument was used in court - no posted speed limit sign. Unbelievable. I was always taught that residential is 25 mph, unless posted otherwise. If it's not posted, then the speed limit is 25 mph. We did get the speed limit signs and we still have some speeding, but now that most people park on the street and use their garages for storage, the speeding is no longer a major issue.

 

Thanks for letting me know that Emerald Bay/Lindberg are the same. I have to tell you, I love, your sunset pictures and I really like the ones you got of Charlotte Amalie while sailing out were great. We sailed out of St. Thomas after dark one year, but my pictures didn't come out. I'm getting better at that, but still need practice. Yours came out so crisp and clear and loved how you got the lights shining on the water.

[sunset785]

Love the review! we are doing this itinerary this summer on the Magic. Can't wait!

[storm1507]

Thanks for the review. We are considering booking a cruise to Amber Cove and looking at the waterfall excursion. I'm afraid of heights and my wife can't swim, but not afraid to be in the water at all. We would love to see this area...do you think we would be OK to book this excursion?

[cruisexlife]

Love the review! we are doing this itinerary this summer on the Magic. Can't wait!

 

Thanks for reading! You will have a great cruise!

 

Thanks for the review. We are considering booking a cruise to Amber Cove and looking at the waterfall excursion. I'm afraid of heights and my wife can't swim, but not afraid to be in the water at all. We would love to see this area...do you think we would be OK to book this excursion?

 

Hello, while I loved this trip very much and would recommend it to anyone, I'm Afraid that I would not recommend it to you. Some parts of the trip you need to legitimately swim, and you need the basic aspects of kicking and pushing to the surface after sliding down a waterfall to get back to the top. Plus, the jump was my favorite part, and that's a very high drop. There are tons of heights throughout, especially on the hike. I think when you stop here, you should do something a little more in both of your comfort zones, because the last thing you want is an injury or discomfort to make the day turn into a bad one.

 

You will ove the Dominican Republic, and like I said, get out to Amber Cove and go see the place!

[cruisexlife]

Happy Thanksgiving! My alarm went off at 6:30. I figured Katie had slept enough, and that she would want to see the ship come into port. However, she said she wanted to sleep a little bit more. So, I ventured out alone. I wanted to see our whole arrival, but I was a tad bit late; we had already passed El Morro.

 

 

We then passed the Coast Guard Yard. You can see the Oceania Regatta parked at the small-ship terminal in OSJ (Old San Juan). She was debarking/embarking passengers that day, and due to her size, she could conveniently use the small the small terminal to do this. If you cruise out of San Juan, it is very nice embarking/debarking in OSJ rather than across the way where all of the other lines (minus Carnival) do it, because after you board, you can get right back off and explore by foot rather than having to use a taxi.

 

 

The main dock for ships. You can see the Castillo San Cristobal in the distance, a place on our itinerary today.

 

 

The Regatta docked and the city. I do love this place!

 

 

Here is the Isla Grande Airport. There are not commercial flights out of this airport, it is primarily used for small planes and charters. SJU International Airport is the main airport that serves San Juan.

 

 

The beautiful Regatta! I would love to try a luxury small cruise ship one day.

 

Edited December 27, 2015 by cruisexlife