Live Report Arvia 14 Nights From Barbados 18th Feb onwards

[zap99]

26 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

4 weeks ago we were on Oasis of the seas in the Caribbean and for EE it is £10 for a month to use your UK phone allowances.

Check with your phone supplier for which countries not included.

 

I'm sure folk remember,before roaming finding free WiFi to catch up with emails. Mine stops in late spring.  DW has some O2 mega plan and will continue to get worldwide roaming up to 25MB a month that doesn't cost much. So if you see me in Starbucks, it won't be for the coffee.

[Interestedcruisefan]

7 hours ago, Bill Y said:

Amazing, such tantrums and dramatics,

 

A 65 night cruise "ruined" not even by a missed port but by a not having a choice berth. Would be interesting to hear their submission to a court to claim for a refund for a 65 night cruise that been "ruined" and probably left them traumatised and needing therapy.

They must have desperately wanted to join that karaoke party in the bar  near our berth

[TigerB]

1 hour ago, grapau27 said:

4 weeks ago we were on Oasis of the seas in the Caribbean and for EE it is £10 for a month to use your UK phone allowances.

Check with your phone supplier for which countries not included.

 

 

terrierjohn is with Sky; £2 per day, but not all countries.

My sister and brother-in-law are with EE, and they did as you did; a better deal.

[zap99]

1 hour ago, TigerB said:

 

terrierjohn is with Sky; £2 per day, but not all countries.

My sister and brother-in-law are with EE, and they did as you did; a better deal.

We have an o2 shop in town. DW went in...what's this roaming finishing rubbish I've got international on my..........hold on madam, let me check your account.  You have 60MB, that continues to give you European, but  I can upgrade you to 75MB and you will continue to get worldwide......how much ?. 50p a month, but I can give you 50% discount for the next 6 months. They were too late to reduce the first month, so her bill this month was 90p.....She's sorted, so I will be in Starbucks all by myself while she is in the cocktail bar. Such is life.😁

[Fionboard]

13 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

They must have desperately wanted to join that karaoke party in the bar  near our berth

Precisely! Rum Therapy is legend in St Lucia and looked forward to by regular cruisers (and crew). Let's face it, there is not much else by way of entertainment in port. Castries is pretty dull.  

[Interestedcruisefan]

Great meal again last night in Epicurean. We were served by two fantastic ladies from the Phillipines - Marilyn and Mercy. Very professional and very friendly.

 

We had an interesting chat with Marilyn. She's worked for many years on small and big ships.

 

And also on much longer cruises. The 65 days cruises where she used to work in the MDR. 

 

She said she really used to love getting to know her guests who she would serve every night and learn how they liked their coffees or teas etc and how she would have many ex guests who would cruise again and try to find her to serve them on their next cruise. Like finding old friends.

 

So just like many on here prefer the smaller cruises and set tables on dining so do some of the experienced staff who enjoyed creating nice relationships with their guests.

[Interestedcruisefan]

Warning

 

Rare fillet steak picture alert again below!!

 

Lol

 

The red drink is a virgin bloody Mary amuse bouche

 

The sorbet is champagne sorbet palate cleanser before dessert

 

My wife had lobster last night

 

 

Edited March 1, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan

[Interestedcruisefan]

Yesterday we stopped in Martinique

 

We got some euros from guest services

 

We paid 7 euros each return for tickets to anse mitan beach (something like that!) via water taxi ferry. (You get on the ferry very close to the port exit). You can't miss it.

 

Top tip leave the ship early so you don't have to queue for a ferry. We didnt and had to queue and wait for 40 mins approx to fit on a boat. The first 2 that came were full due to the queue in front of us. 

 

Once there it was a nice beach with some nice French restaurants and bars. We also paid 90 euros to go Jet ski-ing for 45 minutes.

 

I was thinking the queue for the water taxi and first impressions of Martinique were going to spoil the day. But the beach made up for the wait.

 

As it happened we could have paid 8 dollars return for the ferry.  The French restaurants on the beach  took dollars or euros and we could pay for the jetski with card so we neednt have bothered getting any euros

 

 Images to follow

[sandancer]

We are so looking forward to the Epicurean. Did you book before you boarded?  I am thinking of doing that as I def don’t was to miss out. Also going to book Sindhu in advance. Any others you think we need to book in advance? 

[Interestedcruisefan]

7 hours ago, sandancer said:

We are so looking forward to the Epicurean. Did you book before you boarded?  I am thinking of doing that as I def don’t was to miss out. Also going to book Sindhu in advance. Any others you think we need to book in advance? 

We pre-booked a 6pm for early in  the cruise for Epicurean

 

And then on leaving that spoke to the restaurant manager and despite the restaurant being full he found us another 6pm reservation for towards the end of the holiday

 

I think early is when they  can find space for you

 

The meal at the Limelight Club was great so if you can see an act there that interests you I would consider pre-booking that

 

We've not done Sindhu and it shows as sold out but we spoke to the restaurant manager  there and they could have fitted us in had we wanted 6pm. We booked then realised it clashed with limelight that we had already booked so had to cancel

 

I think the other things to pre-book would be headliner theatre shows in advance for your preferred times perhaps 

 

And 710 club but you can only book that the day you embark. But again for that if it shows sold out all cruise try turning up ten mins before the early show (7pm) and ask if they can squeeze you in without a booking (they did us)

 

I think with anything if it shows sold out politely ask the manager of the venue if there's anything they can do to help you

 

I think they have overflow slots everywhere tbh

 

Same applies for theatre shows that are sold out. Just go and ask just before it's due to start

 

You are going to have a great  time on Arvia. They've got things pretty much nailed now

 

 

[TigerB]

13 hours ago, sandancer said:

We are so looking forward to the Epicurean. Did you book before you boarded?  I am thinking of doing that as I def don’t was to miss out. Also going to book Sindhu in advance. Any others you think we need to book in advance? 

 

It's down to personal choice.

If you have lots of OBC you may wish to use that; if doing that, and your cruise is busy, I would recommend booking as soon as you load up My Holiday on your device.

I prefer to book through the Cruise Planner before we board, so we benefit from a 20% discount plus any Peninsular discount. We can always find something to spend the OBC on.

[TigerB]

14 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Warning

 

Rare fillet steak picture alert again below!!

 

Lol

 

The red drink is a virgin bloody Mary amuse bouche

 

The sorbet is champagne sorbet palate cleanser before dessert

 

My wife had lobster last night

 

 

 

SNAP...

 

and SNAP...

 

Our tablecloth was a bit messier than yours after that lobster though. You are obviously more refined diners than we are!😉

 

We do like Epicurean.🙂

[Selbourne]

1 minute ago, TigerB said:

 

SNAP...

 

and SNAP...

 

Our tablecloth was a bit messier than yours after that lobster though. You are obviously more refined diners than we are!😉

 

We do like Epicurean.🙂

Very nice! I can cope better with photos that are the right way up 😉 😂 

[sandancer]

1 hour ago, TigerB said:

 

It's down to personal choice.

If you have lots of OBC you may wish to use that; if doing that, and your cruise is busy, I would recommend booking as soon as you load up My Holiday on your device.

I prefer to book through the Cruise Planner before we board, so we benefit from a 20% discount plus any Peninsular discount. We can always find something to spend the OBC on.

🍷🥂🍾🍾🍾🍺🍺🍺

[sandancer]

Entertainment was due to open for booking today for our cruise but I can’t find anywhere to do it on our account. Would you normally get an email saying it was available? 

[TigerB]

3 minutes ago, sandancer said:

Entertainment was due to open for booking today for our cruise but I can’t find anywhere to do it on our account. Would you normally get an email saying it was available? 

 

Sometimes, sometimes not. In my experience, an email usually arrives after an event has already started.

Just keep checking. I don't think there is a set time that they are uploaded; some folk have found them to be on just after midnight on the day of publication, some have found them to be uploaded later in the day.

[Interestedcruisefan]

2 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Very nice! I can cope better with photos that are the right way up 😉 😂 

I'm so sorry!!

 

I take photos the right way up

 

Add them as normal on here but they then get turned round on here. I was hoping it's just on my phone they were showing as turned round for some reason!

[Selbourne]

29 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

I'm so sorry!!

 

I take photos the right way up

 

Add them as normal on here but they then get turned round on here. I was hoping it's just on my phone they were showing as turned round for some reason!

Don’t worry. It was to tongue in cheek! Like everyone else, I am really enjoying your live blog. Many thanks for doing it 👍

[jaydee6969]

Such a refreshing thread.  Looks like you are having a smashing time.  Enjoy the remainder.

[Britboys]

Seeing the Epicurean menu also shows how things have changed over the years as some of the dishes used to appear on the mdr menus. Things such as fillet steak, Dover Sole Meuniere and Valrhona Chocolate Tart...

[beryl patricia]

Loving your review thanks - it’s making the excitement mount as our cruise gets nearer on the 18th.  Bookings for entertainment and restaurants open soon and your photos are making me drool ha ha.  Do you know if it is possible to book day passes for the retreat once on board? We’ve had notification that we can pre book for the full cruise at £425 per person - gulp !!! Thanks

 

Gill

[Interestedcruisefan]

1 hour ago, beryl patricia said:

Loving your review thanks - it’s making the excitement mount as our cruise gets nearer on the 18th.  Bookings for entertainment and restaurants open soon and your photos are making me drool ha ha.  Do you know if it is possible to book day passes for the retreat once on board? We’ve had notification that we can pre book for the full cruise at £425 per person - gulp !!! Thanks

 

Gill

I'm not sure from past experience it used to be for the full trip

 

When we did it once on another crusie we found we still had to get there early (just like everywhere else) to get the best spots and that we could get better lunch options outside of the retreat

 

Interestingly the retreat is at the front of Arvia I believe 

 

And the glass sides mean not all sunbeds get good access to the sun

 

We are finding the best spots for Sun on Arvia are at the back of the boat. Which is normally more sheltered from the wind as well 

 

Although it  still gets breezy

 

But you need to get the best beds at the back between 6.45am and 7am on seadays

 

It's crowded but a great spot with the infinity pools and the cocktail bar in the pool

 

Unless money is no object we would suggest getting up early!

 

Easy for us as we go to bed early and get up early

 

Weve been getting up at 6.30am and in bed asleep by 10.30pm latest

 

Then repeat!!

 

 

[mrsgoggins]

On 2/28/2023 at 12:50 PM, TigerB said:

 

They wouldn't have done that; they don't do so for passengers from Pointe Seraphine who wish to go into the town.

Anyway, they have port shops next to them at the other berth, and immediate access to the markets without having to walk right around the bay.  Swings and roundabouts!

 

Mmmmm ...... not sure about the swings and roundabouts analogy.  We've docked at Pointe Seraphine twice previously (and didn't realise there was another place to dock!) but this year, on Celebrity's Equinox, we were at the dock in town whilst the much bigger Anthem of the Seas was at Pointe Seraphine. 

 

The port exit was scruffy and the nearby market itself had seen better days and had few visitors.  I felt sorry for the stallholders and so made a purchase, which I rarely do.  Also, this area is not easy for people with walkers or mobility issues, unlike Pointe Seraphine.  A young Canadian couple we became friendly with, did do the walk to Pointe Seraphine and I think said it took them 20 minutes to do, at a good pace.

 

We did enjoy watching the crowds of folk returning to Anthem from our balcony because the only time we had been on her, was during a covid-safe bargain week around the UK in 2021, when the ship had fewer than a third of its passenger load.  That year will be forever thought of as a golden year of cruising in my mind.

[mrsgoggins]

On 2/28/2023 at 3:33 PM, daiB said:

There is or at least was a small ferry between the 2 berths 10 mins to get from one to the other.

 

Unless there is another one we did not see, the small ferry we saw very close to the ship was taking people on a short tour, but I don't remember the price.  We were looking for exactly what you describe but didn't see any sign of one.

[Interestedcruisefan]

We had a great day in St Kitts a couple of days ago

 

With another couple we met we had a taxi transfer to the beach where "shipwrecked" bar is (I had seen this bar recommended). It was actually a mini bus taxi and 6 Germans joined us from their ship.

 

We paid 7 us dollars per person each way - so very cheap. We actually paid an extra 3 us dollars each on way back and the driver provided a 60 minute mini tour for us.

 

The beach was  good. One of the expensive ships was moored out to sea and was tendering guests to a beach we could see in the distance. Think that was Frigate beach which that ship had taken over for the day (we know that as a couple we had spoken  to later were denied access to that beach)

 

We bought a bucket with 6 bottles of caribe beer and ice for 15 us dollars at shipwrecked bar. Did some snorkelling. Most of the fish were under a platform that people could sunbathe on not far out to sea.

 

Nice day out.

 

We moored next to Celebrity constellation. When I looked across to it from our balcony in the morning it looked quite big. When we saw it from a distance Arvia made it look tiny.

 

Carnival and a German ship were also in port.