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BooBooMonkey and Poppadaddycruiser’s FASCINATION with the Southern Caribbean 4/30/17


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Well, it has been two weeks since we completed this cruise and I am finally sitting down to do a review. I’ve skipped the reviews the couple of cruises because of, well, LIFE happens! If you’re interested in prior reviews, they’re linked in my signature.

 

About us: We are young 50’s with three grown kids who used to cruise with us. This was my 20th cruise (15th on Carnival) and hubby has about 4 fewer cruises than I due to one I did as a child on Carnivale and 3 “girls” cruises I have done with my DD and a group of female friends. We’ve done everything from 3 to 7 day cruises, and kind of prefer them a little shorter (5 days). We don’t mind Fantasy class ships, but prefer those with 2.0 upgrades or slightly newer ships in the conquest class. We’ve done Breeze once (which I find too big but hubby liked it). We’ve sailed out of every Florida port, Charleston, Boston, and New Orleans, and now San Juan, so we’ve been around! Other lines we’ve sailed were Costa and NCL.

 

This cruise was 7 days from San Juan, PR to St. Thomas, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, and St. Martin. Firsts for us:

A port you HAVE to fly to

Flying to port the same day,

Five ports in 7 days, and

Three of the ports on this trip (Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Kitts).

We are heavy users of the casino, so this was our third trip where the casino comped the cruise (minus taxes and fees). That is part of the reason we even chose this one—it was basically free—therefore leaving funds with which to buy the very expensive airfare to get to the port. Here is the obligatory airplane selfie:

 

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I am no Mitsugirly (although I am also a nurse from Ohio), but I do tend to write long reviews with lots of pictures. We actually skipped the food porn this time, probably because we’ve seen it all on the last few cruises American Table style. I also did not capture the Funtimes, as others have posted them recently and they are basically the same (I have them if you are looking for something specific). I welcome questions, but please don’t flame me for my opinion of things! There are not too many reviews of this ship and itinerary, so I hope this is useful and enjoyable reading for some of you. :)

I hope to get this done today, but I can't make any promises! First installation: flights, embarkation day coming up!

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Day 1: Flight, Embarkation, Muster, First Impressions

As I mentioned, we decided to fly in the day of the cruise,since this trip doesn’t actually leave port until 10:00 PM. This was against my better judgment which tells me to always fly in the day before. When we got around to booking flights a couple months prior to the cruise we found the fares outrageous. For example, we usually fly to various Florida airports for around $350 per person, round trip. When I started shopping fares to San Juan, they were coming in around $650 per person! I spent a couple weeks shopping for airfareand finally figured out if we flew in the same day (Sunday) on Delta, and then flew back the next Sunday on Southwest, I was able to get it down under $1000 total buying two one-way trips. I will also mention that I am a Delta loyal, and Southwest is my second choice, so I pretty much didn’t consider any of the low-price airlines. Your mileage may vary.

 

Our flight from Columbus (via ATL) to San Juan was at like 7AM, so I was up before 4AM getting ready. I had been watching the weather very closely and was getting worried about the weather in Atlanta. The ATL airport runs very smoothly and Delta has excellent on-time ratings. However, I learned over three years of commuting through there for work that thunder and lightning can throw a wrench into that. However, I needn’t have worried. Our layover occurred during a short lull in the stormy weather and we made it on time to SJU. I don't know if I would ever fly in the same day again--just because it was nerve-wracking and we were really tired by the end of the day.

 

Snack I purchased on the second leg of the flight (about $8):

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Airplane map of the route:

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Carnival Fascination seen from window on the left side of the airplane:

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We arrived on time at SJU around 1:30 in the afternoon. We picked up our bags and grabbed a taxi to port. The taxi was $26 plus tip for the two of us and our 2 large and 4 small bags.

 

Baggage claim:

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Taxi pickup area:

th_Taxi%20area%20sju_zps5sbkukot.png

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Embarkation day continued:

 

It took maybe 15 minutes to get to port. Here is a view of the ship on the way there:

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They drop you off right in front of the terminal. This is what the building looks like:

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I think you can see the other two ships that are in port in the background here:

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Here is me being happy to finally be getting on the ship!

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Embarkation was not too painful. The priority area has drinks and little sandwiches for free. The longest part of this is having them load the Carnival gift cards onto your account. Next time, I’ll have them do just one and then use the onboard kiosks to do the rest myself later. Once we were checked in, we walked right on board. First stop was to the room to drop off our carry-ons and change into some more tropical attire. Then we went up to get lunch and check out the ship. Sorry, I didn't take any cabin photos this time either. It was a standard fantasy class inside mid/aft Deck 7. We were below the rear dining room. Only heard noise once while napping during the second seating--could hear them singing! No big deal, and no other noise from above the rest of the trip (we probably weren't in the room during dinner except once).

Here is a view of OSJ from the water works area:

th_View%20OSJ%20from%20ship_zpsxnswjhem.png

More day 1 in next post...

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Here are a couple shots of the water works area. I'm sorry to say we didn't take very many ship pictures this time either. Probably because we were in port most days.

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While in San Juan, the ship is accomplishing two things. First there are those, like us,who are boarding the ship for their cruise. Also, there are some people who boarded in Barbados, for whom this is a port day. If you get there early enough and want to make OSJ a port day, you would have plenty of time to do so. We had been there before and decided that eating, unpacking and grabbing a nap were more important for us that day. The other thing that is different on this cruise is that dinner is open seating that first night. I believe it was from 5:30-8:30 in only one of the MDR. We went early so we could nap prior to muster, which wouldn’t take place until 9:00 PM for the 10:00 PM sailaway.

The muster drill was excruciatingly slow. I mean, it took like 45 min to do the first part where you are sitting in a theater. Then they escort you out to the lifeboat deck and you stand in the lines for another 20 min or so before you can get back to your cruise. They did it in two languages, but that really wasn’t the reason it took so long. I got the feeling they were just extremely unorganized. We have sailed on Costa where they did this in 4 or 5 languages and it wasn’t as bad as this.

 

We got this shot of the pilot getting off the ship:

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We met our steward, named Bagus, after dinner. He actually saw us coming down the hall and asked if we were in E196. Hubby was wondering how he knew that. I think it was a combination of he had a bunch of rooms around ours with people from the Barbados group of cruisers, along with having already met others in his area and I had my Platinum card on a lanyard (and there didn’t seem to be many of us on this trip). Anyway, he introduced himself,asked us if we wanted once or twice a day service (twice), and asked us if we wanted bathrobes (yes). I totally forgot to ask for an ice bucket. Bagus and his helper provided excellent service throughout the week. He always mentioned us by name when we saw him in the hallway, and went above and beyond in one particular instance I will share later. Here is one of our towel animals, along with a night view of Lido deck:

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That evening, we spent most of our free time in the casino. I actually did really well that first night, which allowed us to have a bank to play on for the next few days. I’ll probably do a separate section on just the casino later. Here is just one of my wins that first night:

th_Casino%20win_zpsa1k4sp4g.jpg

Next up: Day 2-St. Thomas with Sunny Liston Tours

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Thanks for sharing! I have been eyeing this cruise out of osj too but airfare is holding me back from booking....

 

 

Yes. Had I looked up the airfare when we booked back in November, I may not have booked this cruise.

 

We noticed an older than usual passenger mix with very few children and teens. Especially compared to the cruises we've done out of Florida. Since the cruise was "free" and it was just two of us, it wasn't too bad. I would never be able to afford this at regular fare plus air for my family of five!

 

That said, the ports were AMAZING, and we had a great time!

 

Working on day 2-St.Thomas. This is taking forever to do! Maybe that's why I skipped the reviews the last couple times [emoji31].

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

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Looking forward to your review. DH and I are sailing the Fascination out of San Juan on 5 Nov. I read Mitsugirly's and stinger's reviews. I always like to get different view points.

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Looking forward to more! We leave for this one in a month. Taking 2 of my daughters and my parents, for our 25th wedding anniversary. Yes, airfare IS TERRIBLE! Thankfully 3 of us are going on points.

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th_waterworks_zpshvx9prhr.png

th_waterworks%20OSJ_zpsfvv0w7j4.png

The muster drill was excruciatingly slow. I mean, it took like 45 min to do the first part where you are sitting in a theater. Then they escort you out to the lifeboat deck and you stand in the lines for another 20 min or so before you can get back to your cruise. They did it in two languages, but that really wasn’t the reason it took so long. I got the feeling they were just extremely unorganized.

th_Pilot%201_zpstmyna49s.png

We were on this cruise as well and you are not kidding. The Muster Drill was completely unorganized. My party had ours inside where we sat with little direction for quite a while. They never even took us out to the lifeboats. I thought it was because of the rain but it sounds like other groups did go outside.

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Thanks to those reading, following and waiting!

 

Here is the next installment.

Day 2: St. Thomas USVI; Sightseeing and Beach with Sunny Liston Tours

 

 

Prior to this cruise, I pre-booked tours on every island except St. Martin. I usually try and book tours directly from the local tour operators after researching them here and on the other travel review site. Last time we were at St. Thomas, we had done a catamaran snorkel trip over to St. John (which was amazing), so this time I thought we’d actually go see St. Thomas!

I had wanted to combine an island tour with beach snorkeling at Sapphire Beach. At $84 total for two of us, Sunny Liston’s Tour #4 fit the bill. Our tour that day didn’t leave until 11:30, so we got to sleep in and have a leisurely breakfast aboard the ship (only shore tour that wasn’t leaving at 8:30 this trip). It was a little confusing when we got off the ship as to where we were supposed to go. Finally I broke down and turned on my cell to call them. Turns out they were right there about 25 yards away from the exit gate where we were--in plain sight, lol!

The buses are open-air safari types that can probably hold about 25 people. We met our driver “Taxi Love” and boarded there with about 8-10 other passengers. From there, he drove us to an area of town where he picked up a few more people and then we were off to several scenic areas, shopping, and an opportunity to purchase souvenirs and banana daiquiris,prior to getting to the beach. The tour was about evenly divided with 2 hours touring and 2 hours at the beach.

 

th_Sr%20Frogs%20st.%20thomas%202_zpsemev1fub.jpg

 

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The first stop was a good viewing point of the island, where Taxi Love told us some of the history of the pirates and pointed out particularlandmarks and resorts that could be seen from there. I won't ruin the story for you, but here's some pictures:

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This guy was cool. Love this pic:

th_Rasta%20cutting%20coconuts_zpslm1blj0h.jpg

 

Think I hit my picture limit, so next post will continue St. Thomas!

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St. Thomas, continued...

Let me just stop for a moment and tell you about the actual ride itself. This is so you can picture how it is, in case you might or might not want to book this tour. We enjoyed it. They drive on the left, so there’s that, plus the narrow windy roads. The driver talks to the back of the bus via an intercom, which is very loud. Plus, they have a pretty thick island accent. Add to that, the fact that Mr. Love had a love for loud reggae music, to which he sang, and encouraged the whole group to join in singing and doing hand motions, etc. He was loving life, and most passengers were having fun. I do think some were not into it, and I can see why. I hope to add one short video clip, but it may not work. I think my DH posted a video on you tube, so I may be able to direct you there if you are really interested.

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The next stop was Mountain Top. Here was another amazing overlook (where you can see Magen’s Bay beach), as well as a very large, reasonably priced gift shop, “world famous banana daiquiris”, and clean restrooms, if you need them. We were given about 40 minutes at this stop. We did not try the daiquiris,but did use all the other amenities here. It is a worthwhile stop.

I'm pretty sure this is a view of Magen's Bay beach from the viewing area there:

th_magens%20from%20above_zpsrsp3e1qu.jpg

The bus:

th_safari%20buses%20at%20mountaintop_zpspocowrcj.jpg

 

There was a lot of driving involved in the trip, so by the time we got done there, it was time to head to the beach. Everyone else was going to Magen’s. We had asked for Sapphire when booking online, but at this point, I didn’t really feel like asking to be taken there separately. Plus we were getting hungry. We had snorkeled at nearby St.John 6 months ago, so would just settle for a sitting on the beach eating lunch day.

 

Magen’s Bay beach...next!

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Magen’s Bay Beach

Since we were the only ship in town, and it was now mid-afternoon, the beach was not crowded at all. They had chairs to rent, but we just laid out our towels and sat on the sand. They had nice bathroom/changing facilities and we parked ourselves about half way between those and the restaurant/bar area. There were also some picnic tables up a little higher under the trees,as well as a covered pavilion area with tables. The restaurant had normal resort prices for things like hamburgers and pizza (which is what we got and they were decent). The bar prices were the same as the ship, so that was a bit of a disappointment. I only had one frozen drink, and DH had a Coke from the grill. I think we spent about $30 for two slices of cheese pizza, a burger, fries, one pop, and one frozen drink. Here are some pictures:

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th_Magens%20facility_zpsh5qhxsge.jpg

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Overall, it was a nice beach stop, and two hours was just about right. This would be a good beachfor families, as the water was calm and shallow, and the facilities were nice. There is no snorkeling there to speak of though, so if that is what you want, go someplace else.

On the way back, we had lost a handful of passengers who had either not got off there, or found other transportation back. However, we had picked up a solo male north American who was staying at a hotel on the island, and had a bottle of rum he was happy to share, lol. A few people took him up on that offer.

Now,remember, our tour started at 11:30 and it was now after 3:30. With all-aboard being 4:30, we were starting to cut it a bit closer than I normally would on a non-ship tour. To top it off, the driver decided to take the hotel guy back first. This wouldn’t have been too big a deal, except there was a road closure due to an accident, requiring a detour, and the guy’s hotel was on the other side of the island from the port. I just kept telling myself everything would be OK because this is a reputable tour operator who does not want to make people miss their ship, only to have bad reviews on the travel review sites. My DH, on the other hand,was about to lose his mind. He was kind of freaking out. This is the opposite of how things usually go between us, lol. Hint to tour company--take the people whose hotel is leaving at 5:00 back before taking back the person whose hotel is on solid ground. Just saying!

We finally got back to the port shopping area around 4:15,allowing us a quick 15 min to pick up a very specific duty free purchase and board the ship by 4:30. Phew!

This cruise was free of “pier runners” as we call them(people almost late for or missing the ship). Here is the Senior Frogs at the pier on St. Thomas. As the risk of offending (please don’t be),DH said this is “the most ghetto Senior Frogs in the Universe”, LOL! I’m not sure it was even open for business.

 

th_Senior%20frogs%20St.%20Thomas_zpsmktrbv2k.jpg

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Magen’s Bay Beach

 

 

Since we were the only ship in town, and it was now mid-afternoon, the beach was not crowded at all. They had chairs to rent, but we just laid out our towels and sat on the sand. They had nice bathroom/changing facilities and we parked ourselves about half way between those and the restaurant/bar area. There were also some picnic tables up a little higher under the trees,as well as a covered pavilion area with tables. The restaurant had normal resort prices for things like hamburgers and pizza (which is what we got and they were decent). The bar prices were the same as the ship, so that was a bit of a disappointment. I only had one frozen drink, and DH had a Coke from the grill. I think we spent about $30 for two slices of cheese pizza, a burger, fries, one pop, and one frozen drink. Here are some pictures:

 

 

 

th_Lifeguard%20Magens%20bay%20beach_zpsby3cglca.jpg

 

 

th_Magens%20facility_zpsh5qhxsge.jpg

 

 

th_magens2_zpsgcd3h53b.jpg

 

 

 

th_magens_zpsqhxya3xj.jpg

 

 

 

Overall, it was a nice beach stop, and two hours was just about right. This would be a good beachfor families, as the water was calm and shallow, and the facilities were nice. There is no snorkeling there to speak of though, so if that is what you want, go someplace else.

 

 

 

On the way back, we had lost a handful of passengers who had either not got off there, or found other transportation back. However, we had picked up a solo male north American who was staying at a hotel on the island, and had a bottle of rum he was happy to share, lol. A few people took him up on that offer.

 

 

 

Now,remember, our tour started at 11:30 and it was now after 3:30. With all-aboard being 4:30, we were starting to cut it a bit closer than I normally would on a non-ship tour. To top it off, the driver decided to take the hotel guy back first. This wouldn’t have been too big a deal, except there was a road closure due to an accident, requiring a detour, and the guy’s hotel was on the other side of the island from the port. I just kept telling myself everything would be OK because this is a reputable tour operator who does not want to make people miss their ship, only to have bad reviews on the travel review sites. My DH, on the other hand,was about to lose his mind. He was kind of freaking out. This is the opposite of how things usually go between us, lol. Hint to tour company--take the people whose hotel is leaving at 5:00 back before taking back the person whose hotel is on solid ground. Just saying!

 

 

We finally got back to the port shopping area around 4:15,allowing us a quick 15 min to pick up a very specific duty free purchase and board the ship by 4:30. Phew!

 

This cruise was free of “pier runners” as we call them(people almost late for or missing the ship). Here is the Senior Frogs at the pier on St. Thomas. As the risk of offending (please don’t be),DH said this is “the most ghetto Senior Frogs in the Universe”, LOL! I’m not sure it was even open for business.

 

 

 

th_Senior%20frogs%20St.%20Thomas_zpsmktrbv2k.jpg

 

 

Ghetto! HA!! [emoji23]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

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Up next: Tuesday-Day at Sea. Only one sea day on this itinerary. We had a strange sea day.

 

Questions:

 

Why am I at the medical center?

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Who are all these people waiting with me in the Medical Center?

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Why might (or might not) one want to bring this on a cruise?

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20 cruises...and there is still always a "first"!

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