Golden 10-10 Review - Aruba itnerary

[mringenoldus]

We just returned this evening from San Juan and I wanted to jot down my thoughts before I forget anything.

 

Pre Embarkation

We arrived a day early and stayed At Windchimes. When I was told we would be in the annex, I was a bit concerned. However, these new rooms are only 1/2 block from Condado Beach and very nice. They are smaller than some may like but this is because At Windchimes is a converted villa rather than hotel property.

 

Embarkation

We arrived about noon and waited about 30 minutes. The line moved quickly and the young lady who checked us in was very friendly and courteous.

 

Cabin

This is the first time I tried to lower expenses by booking inside. While we loved the Aloha deck location, we missed the view and fresh air of the balcony. Our steward's name was Roel and he had an extremely cheerful demeanor.

 

The ship in general was in very good condition. I especially loved the Conservatory pool area.

 

Food

We enjoyed every meal we had (I even had the Love Boat Dream twice!) We ate at Sabitini's - and we enjoyed it mostly because the Cruise Critic Group joined us. The food was good but I'm not sure we would spend the extra $20pp as we were very satisfied with the PC dining. We did use the dining hotline to make reservations - works terrific!

 

Entertainment

If we had any disappointment - this may be the area. While we found the Lights, Camera, Action show odd, we did laugh at the antics of Uber Rossi. We were told that the show is not running much longer on the Golden. Words and Music was fine but the performers seemed to lack energy. We did enjoy the backstage tour. Princess used to have the shows planned by an outside company but now do it themselves. Perhaps they should reevaluate that decision??

 

The Newlywed/Not So Newlywed Game was fun to watch and the hypnotist and juggling comedians were fun to watch. We played the Win-a-Cruise Bingo game (sad to say we still needed 3 numbers) but there was a tie and then a play-off tie!! I hated to see either lady lose at that point.

 

Gaetano was an extremely talented illusionist and everyone enjoyed his show.

 

The highlight of the cruise for my husband was the invitation to tour the Bridge. This was made possible by another Cruise Critic elite member. What a thrill for him! Thanks Rod!!

 

I have never seen such a dead casino - perhaps because the payouts were so tight. Most of the gaming tables sat empty and I had to have a discussion with a roulette dealer about his shorting me $5 on a simple red bet. I heard others had the same problem during the week. We had the sense that the poor attitudes of the dealers affected the amount of play. Only the craps table had any excitement.

 

Excursions

St Thomas - we went to Coral World by taxi. We had a good time but wish we would have gone back to St. John.

 

St Kitts - This island reminded us of Hawaii with its beautiful green slopes and sugar cane. We did a very inexpensive taxi tour with another couple and saw the entire island including the Brimstone Fortress and the batik factory at the Romney Manor. We agreed this was our favorite port.

 

Dominica - A number of our Cruise Critic group took Reynol's tour. The young lady who narrated the rainforest tour was very knowledgable. We visited the Emerald Pool, Trafalgar Falls, Nr Nice's Fruirt Stand, and saw the botanical garden and banana plantation. Even though we got soaked in the rain at the Falls - we had a great day!

 

IDM - I was very pleasantly surprised at the items for sale in the thatched roof booths next to the port. The beach was quite nice and I think it's very possible to have a nice beach day at this short stop. It's almost like having another sea day. My husband's kyaking trip was canceled due to high winds but it certainly didn't spoil our trip.

 

Aruba - While many people looked forward to this port, we found it to be very similar to our terrain in Arizona (of course, we don't have beautiful Carribbean Sea!) We rented a jeep and toured the entire island. It was a fun day with another couple from the CC group. I wish we would have been able to view the hand carved altar in a local church but they have had to close the building due to all the cruise traffic.

 

Disembarkation and Post Cruise

Everything went smoothly and we were off the ship before 10:00. We weren't in a ny hurry as we were spending the night at the Intercontinetal. The hotel is very pretty and the room was large with a seperate sitting area. We only wish we had a bit of luck in the Casino!

 

This was our first cruise without any other family members and we had a wonderful time!! We did two more onboard bookings and can't wait to go again.

[Host CJSKIDS]

Thanks for the post. We leave this Saturday for San Juan and then on the Golden on Sunday to this this leg of the islands and I can't wait. I'm glad to hear that everything went so smoothly and that you enjoyed the islands. I'm now really looking forward to St Kitts thanks to you!

[cruise182]

I guess Dominica replaced Grenada But what is IDM? I guess that replaced Laguaira scheduled to be a 9-6 stop.

[mringenoldus]

IDM is Isla de Margarita. It was substituted a while a go for LaGuiara, Venezuela. We were in the port from 8:00 - 1:00. Although the crew and entertainers joked about how limited the port was - I found it much nicer than I expected. We browsed througn the stands (about 50 different thatched stalls) wlked the beach and looked for shells to take back to my grandson. They had some interesting looking motorized water vehicles for rent. They looked a bit like bumper boats.

[Tina0922]

Thanks for the review. I still have 6 weeks to go untill I am on the Golden! I have a question with this itinerary....Chances are we will be going to Dominica as well since Grenada is still in bad shape from the storms. WHat tours are available for Dominica? Is there a place where I can search of tours available through Princess for this port of call? Do you have any lists or any ideas for 3 mid 20's young adults to do in this port? Never been here so I have no idea what this island is about. Thanks for any info.

 

Tina

[cruise182]

I guess because of the unrest in Venezuela they sent you to IDM.... is this correct? Thanks for all of your answers....I will be doing this cruise in November 05....I am sure all will change with the ports by then.....another hurricane season!

[DoreenD]

Thanks for taking the time to do this review. . .we are on the Dec 19th Christmas cruise on the Golden with this same itinerary. I had been really dreading IDM with what I've read on the boards so far, but You have my curiosity piqued. It's dreary and 40 degrees here in MI today. . .can't wait for a Caribbean Christmas!

[OCruisers]

mringenoldus .... Wonderful Review!!!!

 

Had to laugh at your St.Thomas comment! Everytime we do anything other than go to St.John, we look at each other and say, "Wish we'd gone back to St.John!" :o

 

Hope your review will help "ease" DoreenD's mind about IDM! We love it there and always find the locals so friendly -- seem happy that cruisers are there (nice for a change :rolleyes: ). Princess offers a wonderful excursion for folks who like boats and beaches: Coche_Island_Cruise_(Click_for_Review).

 

QUESTION Please: On your jeep trip in Aruba did you go to DePalm? If so, we would love to hear your opinion.

 

Thanks again! Happy Sailing! OCruisers :)

[mringenoldus]

Tina - we used Reynolds tour of the island. This is not much of a party port (I can almost remember my 20's and that's what I would have been looking for!) This stop is all about the fantastic natural beauty (rainforest, waterfalls, sampling the fruit trees) If you want to contact Reynold use reynotours@hotmail.com. The cost is $30 for a 4-5 hour tour. I almost never use Princess excursions as they are very overpriced. (An exception would be scuba diving for the insurance coverage)

 

Ocruisers - we didn't go to DePalm. We went around the entire loop of Aruba and stopped at caves, chapels, the natural bridges, blow hole, lighthouse etc. This only left a short time for a bit of shopping when we returned.

 

cruise182 = I suspect that the Golden will continue to call on IDM next month. It was substituted because the Caracas stop was considered unsafe.

 

cjskids - have a great time! We didn't have a bad moment on the Golden!

[Trish Stewart]

DoreenD

 

We are also on the Golden for Christmas and New Year, cannot wait. This is our 2nd cruise on the Golden she is truly a gorgeous ship.

 

Trish

[DoreenD]

Trish,

I'm glad to hear of some more people on our Golden Christmas cruise. . .I started a roll call http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=77884&highlight=golden+12%2F19%2F04 (I don't know if I did that correctly. . .if not you can search the roll call forum for Golden Princess 12/19/04. Where are you from?

 

Thanks OCruisers for the helpful info on IDM. . .I think that we'll check out the excursion that you mentioned. . .

 

It's STILL in the 40's with NO SUN in MI. . .can't wait for Christmas!

[Trish Stewart]

DoreenD

 

Cannot wait, counting down the weeks and annoying my family. We are from Scotland.

 

Trish;)

[CRUISAYEAR]

We leave on Sunday. Changes to the itinerary were not made official on the Princess "cruise personalizer" until Sunday Oct. 10th, so if this keeps happening with other sailings of the Golden, keep an eye on the personalizer.

On the plus side, when the changes did show up, the online shorex choices also showed up for Dominica and Isla Margerita, with full descriptions of tours offered and prices, and were available for pre-booking. I found out a day late, and by then some of the choices were already waitlisted. So be ready to pounce online or scramble for leftovers onboard.

[DoreenD]

Cruiseayear, thanks for the tip. . .will keep checking the cruise personalizer for updates. . .

 

Trish, I responded to your post on the roll call thread. . .I too am driving my family crazy with talk of cruise stuff. . .but with the dreary weather we have been experiencing here in Michigan, I can't seem to stop planning this cruise.

 

I've told my husband and daughter that you are from Scotland and we are all very excited to meet you!

 

Doreen

[Missybud]

Trish,

 

My Roomie is from Bannockburn/Sterling. Are you bringing your Irn Bru? Seems to be an addiction...LOL!

[nhcruiser]

We were on the same Golden Princess cruise as mringenoldus. Maureen, Great review! While I agree for the most part with Maureen’s review I would like to add some of my thoughts from our perspective.

 

Embarkation:

 

If you are expecting preferred boarding privileges in San Juan based on status forget it!

 

Un-like other ports of embarkation where you are whisked to the head of the line, in San Juan you wait outside in queue as they fill their plastic chairs twenty or so at a time then release you to the check-in lines by deck. Only there do you get to stand in the longest Elite / Platinum Check-In line that I have ever seen. We avoided that line and opted for the much shorter regular Aloha Deck line.

 

Cabin:

 

We had a balcony cabin near the aft of Aloha deck A701. We were pleasantly surprised that the layout of the cabin was larger than the same category cabin on Sun Class ships. Additionally, the balcony was also about a third larger as well and had a nice table and two chairs with plenty of room for two people to have coffee or a light meal.

 

One down side if you are sensitive to food cooking odors. The galley for the buffet is located in the aft interior area on Aloha deck. Those outside cabins shown in the ship layout with no corresponding inside cabins are across the hall from the galley. The smell doesn’t necessarily get into the cabins, but as you walk down the hall to your cabin you maybe enticed to walk up a level and check out some of the late night munchies.

 

Added bonus was the aft adult’s only pool area being only steps away! We really appreciated the parents with children who observed this privilege as we only noticed one child in this pool area all week! It was wonderful to be able to carry an adult conversation without being splashed or pushed by kids playing.

 

Islands:

 

St. Thomas, Seems to get more and more tacky each time we stop here. Shopping has been reduced to cheap liquor and tee shirts. "Merchants Market" is only good if you are looking for fleas. I agree, we should have taken the ferry to St. John!

 

St. Kitts, Working hard to get up to speed with other cruise ports. It is clear that the people of St. Kitts have made the capital investments to make it happen. Brand new very long pier to support bigger ships, dredged channel, and new buildings that offer off ship shopping possibilities. With time I am sure that they will offer more and more tours as Maureen has described. Can’t wait to get back here in a few years!

 

Dominica, Champagne snorkeling tour was very well conducted. Special emphasis was placed on safety! Each guest was briefed, assisted and monitored but a crewmember in the water and by an assigned lifeguard on the boat. Clearly one of the best managed snorkeling tours that we have taken over the years. Fish viewing was very good in the area of the reef. Rum punch on the way back is highly recommended and tasty. A real crowd pleaser!

 

Isla Margarita, We too were very surprised and impressed with the politeness and friendliness of the people in the straw market set up for the arrival of the ship. Items were reasonably priced and many were local handicrafts. We bought extra stuff because they worked hard to create it. Due to the short time in port we did not venture into town. These people give me the impression that they are very proud of their country as witnessed by the man standing on the pier as the Golden Princess moved off, waving the Venezuelan Flag

All in all the ship was very well managed, Cruise Staff was doing a very good job keeping everyone involved. Wait staff in the dining rooms was very good as was the service in the entertainment venues.

 

The Cruise Critic group that we met on board was tops! Very nice people from across the country all there for the singular purpose of having a great time.

 

Rod

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Trish Stewart]

Hi

 

Hard to get Irn Bru outside of Scotland but not to worry because I don't like it all that much or that other great Scottish drink whisky or Haggis.

 

Say Hi to your roomie, we stay in the borders near Eyemouth.

 

Cheers

 

Trish