Rare twangster Posted August 19, 2019 Author #151 Share Posted August 19, 2019 Cruise Summary What really made these three recent Empress cruises stand out as cruises I'll remember are not only the places we visited but the people I met. I've met not only great crew and management employees but also many frequent cruisers with conversations I've enjoyed every night. Almost every one of them has overlapping future cruises where we'll meet again. You don't get to meet great people like this on big ships. I've met some great bartenders but the ones on Empress really stand out. I remember certain bartenders from this cruise or that cruise but on Empress I've added three stand out bartenders to my list. I'm hoping I'll see them at some CocoCay bar when we share the pier with Empress on an upcoming cruise. Going to Jost Van Dyke has been on my mind for some time now and it was great to finally make it back plus see it return to 100% after the hurricanes. I'm still in love with Empress despite her small size. It's probably her big heart that attracts me to her. While she is an old ship she was refreshed quite extensively when she came back for Cuba, granted cabins were not made any bigger. Small ship cruising isn't for everyone. That's okay, there will be more room for me on the small ships. I still love big ships too and there is always room on big ships for everyone. My favorite remains Voyager class but I'm glad Empress is there when I really want to experience the sea even more. It's going to be interesting moving up to Majesty. It's kind of funny when moving to Majesty is stepping up to a bigger ship! I'm still trying to figure out if I can squeeze Empress onto my cruise dance card over the next few months. I'll definitely go on Empress again. All cruises will create memories you won't forget. Some of my best memories come from this, the smallest ship with the biggest heart. I hope you enjoyed following along and I thank you for viewing. PS - look for Cruise Compasses soon, once I get home from Majesty and can scan them in properly. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachnative Posted August 19, 2019 #152 Share Posted August 19, 2019 Thank you, thank you, thank you... ...for this wonderful review. You have produced a gem and I will be a "twangster" fan from now on. Thank you for your helping us. But more than anything, thank you for increasing our excitement about our future cruise on the Empress. We will be sailing with two of our dear friends who have been on the Empress' Cuba route several times and love this small vessel. We wish for you many more excellent cruises. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wikoffclan Posted August 19, 2019 #153 Share Posted August 19, 2019 On 8/11/2019 at 4:48 PM, twangster said: It's really nice having USB outlets on both sides of the bed. Darn!!! Wish I'd known this for my little USB fan on my Empress cruise in May! I'll be looking for them on Majesty in September... and when I can get back to my favorite - Empress - as soon as I can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare brillohead Posted August 19, 2019 #154 Share Posted August 19, 2019 2 hours ago, twangster said: What really made these three recent Empress cruises stand out as cruises I'll remember are not only the places we visited but the people I met. I've met not only great crew and management employees but also many frequent cruisers with conversations I've enjoyed every night. Almost every one of them has overlapping future cruises where we'll meet again. You don't get to meet great people like this on big ships. This is what I've tried to explain to people when I comment about how Oasis class isn't my first choice. I'm a rather social person, and the design of the Oasis class just isn't all that conducive for socialization. I have usually been "relatively solo" on my past cruises (when my son would go with me, he'd always be off doing his own thing as most teenagers would), and I enjoy meeting new people and chatting with them and saying "hi" from time to time as we see each other around during the course of the cruise. But on an Oasis class ship, everything is so compartmentalized that you can meet someone when you board and then never see them again for the duration of the cruise. It's not just the size of Oasis class, but the layout -- the big opening down the centerline of the ship separates the pool deck into separate units, plus the CP and BW neighborhoods and the Royal Promenade create even more units. Some people complain about Freedom class being "too big" but for me, it's just right -- large enough to have plenty of shade available in the Solarium (which Oasis class has almost none of), but compact enough that you're likely to run across new friends throughout the week. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yorkvillain Posted August 19, 2019 #155 Share Posted August 19, 2019 Amazing reviews Twangster. Thank you for doing these. I love all the ships as well. I'm just as excited for my Empress cruise as I am for my cruise on the Oasis. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare perfect match Posted August 19, 2019 #156 Share Posted August 19, 2019 Thank you, Twangster, for another wonderful review! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Sea Dog Posted August 19, 2019 #157 Share Posted August 19, 2019 Thank you for taking the time to let us live vicariously through you! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcmagnum Posted August 19, 2019 #158 Share Posted August 19, 2019 On 8/10/2019 at 7:00 AM, twangster said: Miami Perfect Day at CocoCay Sea Day San Juan Tortola St Thomas Sea Day Sea Day Miami Following as we are interested in Tortola and St. Thomas... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CDNCRUIZR Posted August 22, 2019 #159 Share Posted August 22, 2019 Loved your pictures and review. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare twangster Posted August 25, 2019 Author #160 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Here are the Cruise Compasses from this sailing in PDF format. General Cruise Compass: Empress 08-10-19 8 Nt Eastern .PDF Adventure Ocean: Empress AO 08-10-19 8 Nt Eastern .PDF Teens: Empress Teens 08-10-19 8 Nt Eastern .PDF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare rafinmd Posted August 26, 2019 #161 Share Posted August 26, 2019 A couple of questions on the B2B. Were all the menus on the 6-day repeated on the 8 day or were more than 8 total choices. Also, how many Dress to Empress nights were there on the 8-day? Roy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare twangster Posted August 26, 2019 Author #162 Share Posted August 26, 2019 41 minutes ago, rafinmd said: A couple of questions on the B2B. Were all the menus on the 6-day repeated on the 8 day or were more than 8 total choices. Also, how many Dress to Empress nights were there on the 8-day? Roy I didn't eat in the MDR so I can't help with menus. There were two formal nights on both sailings. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarea Posted August 26, 2019 #163 Share Posted August 26, 2019 44 minutes ago, rafinmd said: A couple of questions on the B2B. Were all the menus on the 6-day repeated on the 8 day or were more than 8 total choices. Also, how many Dress to Empress nights were there on the 8-day? Roy The 8-night would likely have the same 6 menus that were on the 6-night, with the addition of 2 different menus. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soloadventurer Posted April 26, 2020 #164 Share Posted April 26, 2020 On 8/14/2019 at 4:39 AM, twangster said: Day 4 - San Juan Quite windy as we approached Puerto Rico but Empress handled it really well. The pilot boat was having a fun ride. Finally San Juan was within sight. El Morro was grand as ever. Into our berth early as promised. Brilliant pic of the Halmatic pilot boat - many a great night boarding ships in Belfast Lough on one of those Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soloadventurer Posted April 26, 2020 #165 Share Posted April 26, 2020 Thank you for another brilliant report. We were due to be on a B2B with her past 2wks but of course cancelled - reading this has added salt to the wounds ( if you know what i mean lol ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikes210 Posted May 30, 2023 #166 Share Posted May 30, 2023 I would really love to see the Tortola pics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare twangster Posted May 30, 2023 Author #167 Share Posted May 30, 2023 1 hour ago, mikes210 said: I would really love to see the Tortola pics Apologize if they are out of order, just dumping them in to this post. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biker19 Posted May 30, 2023 #168 Share Posted May 30, 2023 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mugtech Posted May 30, 2023 #169 Share Posted May 30, 2023 Looking forward to booking Empress ASAP, glad we were reminded of what a fine ship she is. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biker19 Posted May 30, 2023 #170 Share Posted May 30, 2023 29 minutes ago, mugtech said: Looking forward to booking Empress ASAP, glad we were reminded of what a fine ship she is. It's probably an expensive flight to Chennai: Plan Your Vacation Holidays On A Luxurious Cruise | Cordelia Cruises 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mugtech Posted May 30, 2023 #171 Share Posted May 30, 2023 2 hours ago, Biker19 said: It's probably an expensive flight to Chennai: Plan Your Vacation Holidays On A Luxurious Cruise | Cordelia Cruises Does this mean I will get no crown and anchor points? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now