Cruising the Caribbean on Emerald Princess - Port Calls and Disembarkation

Wine Intelligence

Even though we found price per glass wine in the Dining Rooms to be quite reasonable, it turned out we could save a bit by ordering a bottle of wine with our meal and then re-corking the remainder for our next meal.  Our waiters facilitated this by putting our cabin number on the bottle.  

Port Calls - Antigua

Our first visit to Antigua – we really liked our day ashore in Antigua – made special by the two guys we hired to show us their island.  Wesley Jacobs and Kelso Thomas were our driver and guide respectively. We hired them a little distance from the central taxi dispatch and negotiated a $20pp 2.5 hour tour with them.  According to the official rates, it is $25 per person.  We spent time driving through villages, seeing beaches, and learning a little bit about the island, its terrain, and its people.  We were impressed – very friendly and scrupulously honest in our experience.  We also shopped a bit downtown to buy local hot sauce and some hair pins – all positive experiences.

 

Map of Antigua

Arriving

View from our dock

Beautiful beaches and water

We shared Antigua with two other ships - didn't feel crowded at all

Double Rainbow

Wesley buying fruit plate for us

The fruit was delicious

Barbados

We had been to Barbados several times – we usually rent a car and head off to the northern end of the island.  This time, we decided to walk into Bridgetown with our Aunt.  Things didn’t start well…  Our docking time was 0900; we headed to the gangway at 1000 – got off the elevator at deck 4 and were asked to proceed to the back of the line which wound around and up the stairs spilling out onto deck 5!  We didn’t get off the ship for 40 minutes.  Why? Because they were loading us into buses to walk the ½ mile to the cruise terminal.  Perhaps it was because there isn’t a safe walkway (I don’t honestly know if this is the answer), regardless, this was one messy debark.  When we got to the terminal, we decided to walk into Bridgetown and got great directions from a vendor in the terminal.  The walk to central Bridgetown was along a pleasant seaside boulevard and entirely walkable – our 80 year old aunt did the entire mile or so with ease.  If you wanted to take a taxi, $2 per person, there were lots available at the cruise terminal.

 

It was pretty crowded in Barbados (6 ships including us)

Downtown Bridgetown was very, well, commercial… Functional, clean, decent traffic flows and very courteous drivers who will stop as soon as you step off the curb.  Shops are well stocked and the folks inside friendly and accommodating.  But just not, interesting – kind of like showing up to a strip mall back in SW Florida, functional, but not inviting.  So after a walk about and a cute purchase, we decided to catch a taxi back to the port.  Big mistake – we got Mad Max – blowing horns at pedestrians to get out of his way, swerving from lane to lane and just when we thought we were dead or jumping out while moving, we got back to the terminal, only to find out we could only get change in Barbados currency – grrrr – all the stores and vendors offered us change in US dollars – we picked the one scam artist who wouldn’t.  Amazing how positively or negatively people you interact with ashore on a cruise will paint an entire port call.  Wesley and Kelso made such a positive impression on us; by contrast our 10 minute taxi ride left a very poor taste for Barbados in our mouth.

St Lucia

We docked in St Lucia – the only ship in port – and walked off the ship – a welcome change from the bedlam at Barbados.  We rented a car from Guys – a 4 door Mitsubishi for 65 dollars plus 15 for a St Lucian permit.  Gas cost us 21 local about 7 dollars.

Panoramic of St Lucia port 

View near Pigeon Island

Marigot Bay Anchorage

Chateau Mygo - good eating...

Inside Chateua Mygo Restaurant

Super Yachts adjacent to Capella Resort

We had last been to St Lucia in December of 2004 – 11 years is a long time so we decided to change it up.  Last time we’d stayed for 7 days at Sandals (and loved it!); this time, we rented a car and the four of us drove north from Castries to Pigeon Island, co-incidentally finding that this is where one of the tree Sandals locations we’d visited in 2004 is located.  A very scenic location for pictures.

After going north, we decided to head to the much heralded Marigot Bay – ostensibly the most beautiful bay in the world according to some.  The road signs from Castries are challenging and the road map provided by our car rental Agency – Guys – lacked detail.  We took a few wrong turns along the way but asked directions and were set straight every time.  After a bit of twisty stuff, made more challenging by driving on the left vs right hand side of the road – “Where is my left front wheel on that curve again?” we made it to Marigot.  We have been to some beautiful bays around the world; a couple on Antigua a few days before – I would not describe Marigot as belonging in this category.  Its charm though may lay in its rustic nature, small size, and perfectly sheltered anchorage for sailors – who were anchored everywhere.  Beauty perhaps is appreciated differently based on your experiences and needs.

Marigot was going to be our lunch stop – so after parking our rental car in a free, nearby lot, we went looking for a lunch spot.  There were three places that we could see by looking at signs and menus posted on the public dock – but directions to each were a little hazy.  One it turns out required a ferry ride to the other side of the pay, another was around the corner to the right (it looked like the fanciest) and then the one we chose, down a dirt path along the water.  The restaurant was right on the water, wakes from passing boats would slap water up on the lower dining area and a crab kept walking back and forth on the planking beside us.  The menu was surprisingly varied – we had a cheese burger, curry chicken, and chicken burritos.  We waited a while but the wait was worth it.  This is what food tastes like when the ingredients are farm fresh – particularly the chicken in the burritos and curry.  Firm, moist and delicious.  When we visit again, we will head back for another meal – it was that good.

After lunch, we explored the area a bit more at the suggestion of the folks eating next to us who were staying at the Capella Resort in Marigot.  Walking down the docks we saw an entirely different view of things; super yachts moored at the dock and the Capella resort itself which looked amazing – definitely going to look this place up for a future stay.  All in all, we were really happy with our day trip down to Marigot Bay.

St Thomas

What a pleasant surprise – My second visit to St Thomas was so different than the first one 12 years ago.  St Thomas has grown up, cleaned up,  and become a destination.

Meeting Meeting with Food and Beverage Director about Share Experience

Disembarkation

Finally, time to get off of Emerald Princess… So how does this work?  Actually quite easily.  First off, we wanted to get off the ship early, so I talked to Guest Relations and got a Walk Off Group A ticket (walk off carrying or pushing/pulling your own bags); Val, Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jack got Brown 1 (pick up your bags in terminal).  We were about 10 minutes late getting clearance to dis-embark but once started, I was on the other side of Customs and Border Protection in 5 minutes grabbing a cab to the Hertz location about 5 driving minutes from Terminal 2 at Port Everglades (Cab ride was a minimum $10 charge – gladly paid).  Short drive back to the Terminal where I picked up everyone at the designated and well signed “Private Pickup” curb.  Porters helped us get everything loaded and we were out of there and on the road  back to Naples by 8:30 am – 40 minutes after I got off the ship – that is smooth and quick.

Cruising the Caribbean on Emerald Princess - Eating, Exercising, and Eating again...

Breakfast and Lunch in the Main Dining Room (Da Vinci)

James Beard French Toast (coated with crispy corn flakes) completely delicious -easily the best I have ever had in any restaurant afloat or ashore.  Even when it wasn't on the menu, I could still order it -- love the flexibility.  Order oatmeal and get granola, brown sugar, and cinnamon with it -- hmmm, feels like I am in a classy restaurant.  Val also loved her Eggs Benedict - breakfast was truly delightful - thank goodness it was only open on sea days...

Eggs Benedict (left) and James Beard French Toast (right)

Lunch in the main dining room was very good – and much to my surprise and delight, Hot and Sour Thai soup followed by Chicken Korma – Thai and Indian – heaven.  The only bummer?  Da Vinci is only open for Breakfast and Lunch on Sea Days; on port call days you are limited to the Horizon buffet option.

As newly minted Princess Elite members, we enjoyed pre-dinner appetizers in the Skywalker lounge at 1700.  The Skywalker lounge is all the way aft on the 18^th deck – a really beautiful view for sunsets or sunrises – and free pre-dinner appetizers which change each cruise evening.

Intra-Net Aboard

Special note and kudos to Princess for their ship-wide Intra-net.  Intra-net means basically that you are connected within the skin of the ship – but not onto the Internet off-board.  We logged on with our computers, Ipads, and Iphones giving us free access to the daily activity schedule, from which we can select the activities we want making our own daily activity schedule, check on our itinerary, and best of all, send short messages back and forth to stay coordinated during the day.  When you are used to staying in touch with each other,  cruise ships can be a challenge.  The free intranet was very much appreciated.

Good Spin Class

Val took a spin class this morning – she is a regular at our club ashore and has been taking it long enough to be a good judge of the classes aboard which she said was good and better than she’d done aboard our last Celebrity cruise.

Specialty Restaurants  - Crown Grill and Share Experiences

We tried two of three specialty restaurants aboard Emerald Princess.  The only one we missed was the Salty Dog Pub - we aren't generally Pub food folks. Our first Specialty dining experience aboard Emerald Princess was Crown Grill – the premium Steak and Chop house.  We were sad to find out that Sabatini’s  - their Italian specialty dining room was replaced by Share during the December yard period – we are Italian lovers but hey, let’s try something new.  It was interesting to compare Princess with Celebrity specialty restaurants – especially since we were on a 10 day cruise and would be able to revisit if desired.  On our Celebrity Reflection Trans-Atlantic (16 days) we ate more than half the nights in specialty dining (Our favorite was the trendy Qsine - Ipad equipped,  with small portions, followed by the Tuscan Grill (Italian).

Crown Grill:

We arrived at Crown Grill at our reservation time of 5:30pm – were seated immediately but disappointed to find out that all of the window seats were already taken.  Next time when we make reservations, we will specifically ask for a window so they’ll reserve one for us.  But truly, this was the only disappointment in Crown Grill – a truly superior dining experience.  The venue is tastefully appointed in a traditional style with lighting the ladies really appreciate – bright enough to eat, but low enough to compliment their hair and faces.

Our server Benjamin was perfect – attentive, accommodating, and offering good recommendations throughout our meal.  When we asked for variations or “extras” he was right on it – as good as any five star restaurant ashore.  Starting with the wine list which had good variety in both varietals and pricing, through appetizers, our main course, and dessert – we felt the way we want to feel when we pay the extra money ($25 per person) for specialty dining on a cruise ship.  Crown Grill gets two thumbs up from us.

Appetizers in Crown Grill - Beef Carpaccio

Scallops

Share:

We were a few minutes early to Share since we were eating at our Barbados sail away time and wanted to make sure to get a window seat.  We were the first diners – but did we get a window seat?  We asked for one and were walked directly to one.  There we were informed that these seats were “less comfortable”, "Well, what about that half booth over by the port side window?", “that will be moving a lot” which was funny since we were still docked.  So like Goldilocks we were told that the third one – a booth with two chairs in the middle of the room under a bunch of bright lights was perfect for us.  Yes, things didn’t start on the right foot and it didn’t get better from there…  The venue was newly constructed aboard Emerald Princess in December replacing the Italian Specialty restaurant Sabbatini’s..

First up, wine list – mostly pricey wines and nothing decent by the glass.  The Chef’s offering of sliced meats, olives, and bread was first rate.  Appetizers – the Tagliatelle with King Crab was good, the Cavatelli beet salad was borderline at best.   Then on to the main course, two with Turbot Gratin, one with Wild Mushroom Ragu, and one with butter poached Lobster.  Three out of four were practically inedible – the lobster was ok but I butter poach lobster at home and frankly, mine is better.  If it is possible to create a good impression after consistent disappointment, dessert in Share did exactly this – absolutely amazing, perhaps in the top three I’ve had in my life – Two thumbs up and four licked plates on this one.  Overall though, at an excessive additional price of $39 per person, we expect the experience, wine, and food to be on par with the finest restaurants ashore and have us dreaming about our next reservation there.  This was most certainly not the case at Share – we were very disappointed by the experience and felt the restaurant charge was slightly criminal.

Dinner in Da Vinci's

We rarely look forward to eating in the main dining room - but from our first dinner on, we looked forward to seeing what the evening meal would bring.  First off, the Headwaiter, Francesco from Molfetta (near Bari) Italy -- about a hour from our former home in Avellino, made us feel welcome and so special each evening.  Later in the cruise, beginning on January 11th; the 14th anniversary of our meeting, Francesco had traditional Italian antipasti - Caprese (sliced fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, olive oil and balsamic) sliced meats, Cheese plate, Calamari - waiting for us every evening.  He also had the chef's prepare us a special pasta dish for our anniversary - it was truly a special experience.  It also didn't hurt that we ended up with a window table for four - which was really cool since eating early, we had sunset dining every night.

Our Headwaiter Francesco from Molfetta Italy

Our special evening Antipasti courtesy of Francesco

Our Waiter Jorge (left) and his Assistant Waiter (also his wife) Karateryna (center)

Our window table for 4

Desserts - Oh My Goodness

It isn't enough that they make their own ice cream and sorbet every day, they also do a great job with Creme Brûlée (available every evening) and some kind of chocolate "craziness".  Best desserts I can remember on any ship - Ocean, River or otherwise...

Look at this description!

This is what a Chocolate Journey looks like - it was amazing

Creme Brûlée with fresh ice cream

Another Chocolate delight...

Cruising the Caribbean on Emerald Princess - Heading South/South East to Antigua

Day 2 – Sea Day aboard Emerald Princess sailing Southeast to Antigua

Best way to get from one end of the ship to the other

I love traveling with a super experienced cruiser who used to be Chief Purser on a cruise ship.  She just “knows things”…  In this case, it is the best way to navigate from one end of the ship to the other.  On Emerald Princess, like many of the newer ships we have been aboard, the decks and their layouts are not symmetrical.  This causes great fun the first few days when you are trying to get down to deck 6 or 7 aft to the traditional dining rooms after watching activities on 7 deck amidships in the atrium.  Last night it was the champagne waterfall – you can’t get to 7 deck aft from 7 deck amidships without going up and over – 6 and 7 decks between midship elevator/stairs and aft elevators/stairs are crew quarters and thus “No Go”.  So what’s the trick to get forward to aft without ending up in a dead end?  You go forward and aft on a passenger cabin deck not the common area decks (reception, shopping, etc)  

The Passenger decks have to have straight shots fore and aft to enable housekeeping to move from room to room efficiently and to move passengers from their rooms to lifeboat stations.  So taking passenger decks to go fore and aft is like taking the interstate vs.  local surface streets (common area decks) with detours and plenty of traffic.  So from your cabin, figure out if you are going fore or aft and the stairs/elevators you need to take to go up or down to your destination.  Walk down your hallway to that exit (there are usually exits on the passenger hallway for passenger elevators/stairs aft, amidships, and forward) and the go up or down to your destination.  So much easier…

Picking your Cabin's Deck/Location?

The Cabin pick expert websites are consistent in telling you to pick cabins on decks that have a passenger deck both above and below you.  The rationale is that passenger decks generate less noise than common area decks (dining rooms, casinos, night clubs, etc).  In this regard, picking Dolphin Deck for our cabin was a good choice with Emerald below and Caribe above.  What wasn't so good is that our balcony, because of the "tiering" of Dolphin and Caribe balconies, was not covered by the balcony above.  In fact, our balcony could be seen by all of our neighbors on the 4 decks above us.  Doh

Panorama looking up from our balcony - Hi Neighbors...

Wonderful Spa Experience

We rarely do “Spa” on our cruises – but because Princess was offering big discounts for attending a Spa orientation, we signed Valerie up for a 75 minute experience on our first sea day.  Wow, you should have seen her face when she got back to the cabin afterwards.  Princess’s tag line is "Come Back New" – that was what Val looked like after 75 minutes with Sheila – hot stones, soothing oils, and a 10 minute head rub that finished her off.  Val said it was the best and most relaxing massage she’s ever had – and is planning another on this cruise.  Two thumbs up for Sheila and the Spa.

Fixed vs Any Time Dining?

Another lesson learned had to do with Dining times in the Traditional dining rooms.  Most ocean going cruise lines now have some concept of Any Time or Your Way dining.  Idea is that you don’t have to eat early or late – sounds like the time you pick for yourself will be just right… Except that our experience on the last three cruises using Any Time/Your Way is that we end up picking the same time as everyone else and end up waiting each and every time.  Worse, you end up with a different table/waiter each night and you don’t get to know each other.  Our best dining room experiences have always been when our waiter knew our tastes and could suggest or modify things to meet them.  So after our first night aboard Emerald Princess on the Any Time plan, we contacted the Maitre’ De to switch to fixed dining; same table, same time each night.  We will eat in all of the specialty dining venues while aboard but when we eat in the dining room, we will have the same table, same time, and wait staff each evening.  And best of all, no waiting when we get to the Dining Room.

Do I Bring My Own Wine Aboard (And pay the $15 corkage for each bottle?)

One of the things we really care about while we are cruising is the wine list; both in the restaurants and in the various venues aboard the ship.  We are after all, pretty much a captive audience – you are typically allowed to bring 1-2 bottles of wine aboard the ship per person when you board – after that you, if you’re wine lovers like we are, then you hope the ship has a nice selection of wines.  When we sat down to dinner in the Main Dining Room the first night, we were pleasantly surprised – good selection with reasonably priced options.  Thumbs up to Princess on this one…

Movies Under the Stars

Took advantage of our first, “Movies Under the Stars” experience yesterday afternoon – while billed as “Movies under the Stars” they show movies all day and into the evening, rain or shine.  Good picture, good sound, and great selection of pretty current movies.  We watched “Sky Fall” yesterday and planning on watching “The Avengers” this afternoon.  It seems we never get to the movie theater often enough when we are ashore; this option gives us a chance to catch up on our big screen, big sound movie theater experience.

Big Enough?

Get to the Early Show Early

After our first “Fixed Time” dining experience on evening 2, we watched our first production in the Princess Theater.  Very beautiful venue – and as we learned this am, completely redone in the recent (December 2015) drydock/re-fitting of Emerald Princess in the Bahamas.  This show was a singing/dancing number – 60 and 70’s pop genre – very well done but surprisingly short considering how long we’d waited before hand.  We were done with dinner about 7:00pm or so, watched the Champagne waterfall at 7:15pm and then proceeded slowly to the theater, arriving perhaps at 7:40pm.  There were plenty of seats at 7:40pm – within 20 minutes – 15 minutes before the show started, there were already people standing in the aisles – standing room only for at least 100 people.  We will be going to the earlier show again tonight – probably heading there as soon as we finish dinner – suspect there will be more people arriving earlier tonight as well.  In a night or two, we will wait for the later show and see if this one is a crowded as the early show.  In a night or two, we will wait for the later show and see if this one is a crowded as the early show.

Cruising the Caribbean on Emerald Princess - Embarkation Day

Embarkation Day – First Impressions

Departing from Naples, we used a one-day, one-way car rental to get us from home to Port Everglades and the Emerald Princess docked at Pier 2.  Pier 2 traffic flow is a bit tight and messy but we wound our way through in about 5 minutes to get everyone dropped off.  Proceeding back to turn in our Hertz rental, I noted two gas stations to refill the tank between the terminal and the Hertz return office which is literally right outside the 24^th Street Port Everglades entrance.  Reference-wise, the return location is directly adjacent to the Crown Plaza hotel on 24^th.  Quite conveniently located and Hertz provides a free shuttle from their location to each of the Port Everglades cruise ship piers.

Once back at the embarkation area, I used the “Preferred Boarding” line for shoreside check-in, probably cutting 15 minutes off my waiting time to get aboard.  Once aboard, I was able to head directly to our cabin, Dolphin (Deck 9) 714, a portside mini-suite most of the way aft (a couple of rooms from the after stairs/elevators).  Very convenient location since the main dining rooms and buffet are all located in the after part of the ship – which is great for our Aunt and Uncle who are a little less mobile – shopping, theater, and casino are amidships so a longer walk but eating is three times a day so we optimized our cabins for the most frequent trips.

Heading out to the Atlantic

Panoramic of Mini-Suite

Our first night dinner was in the Da Vinci dining room – we had “Any Time” dining but chose to make a reservation at 7:30pm to ensure we weren’t waiting in a line to get in.  This strategy worked perfectly and we were seated promptly at 7:30.  Our waiter Pat and his assistant Najia were great and the food we had for dinner was actually quite remarkable for main dining room food.  The variety was great, the portions were perfect to allow multi-course dining, and the execution/taste were very good.  If all the other nights are as good, we will be completely happy campers.

Our cabin – our first Mini-suite on Princess – is airy and large with a good sized balcony.  Great closet/hanging clothes space as well.  Shower and bathtub in the very decent sized bathroom.  Two thumbs up on the cabin; glad we have already booked a Mini-suite for our next Princess cruise in April… J