Fascinating, Jim 10/16-10/23 S. Caribbean Review

We have just finished our Fascination cruise to the southern Caribbean (10/16-10/23) and wanted to do a review while things were still fresh in our mind. The quick version- we had a great time, met some great people, had some good food and drink, and of course we had fun. Fascination doesn’t have the bells and whistles of the newer ships but she is easy to navigate, is well maintained, and has a friendly crew. We arrived in San Juan the day before the cruise and departed the day after, staying at the Howard Johnson Cardiovascular about 15 minutes from the port. We did get FTTF because with DW’s back issues I didn’t want to take a chance with having to stand around for a long time. When we booked this cruise a year and a half ago we had no way of knowing that I would be diagnosed with lung cancer earlier this year so we made sure we celebrated life (I did have surgery in June and the surgeon got all of it, so I just have periodic monitoring and the surgeon considers me cured). I apologize for the length and hope that you don’t find it too boring.

Embarkation Day

We left the hotel at 11:45 and were onboard by 12:15. It took about 15 minutes to get to the port and drop the bags off with a porter. They did three different poses for our embarkation picture which was taken prior to check-in (this is the first time this has happened; normally it’s only one pose). After receiving our S&S cards (which were already hole-punched) we were escorted to security and just like that we were on the ship. We had balcony cabin M122 and it was ready for us when we boarded. The cabin did not have a mini-fridge or a coffee maker. There were two 1.5 liter bottles of water waiting for us and our Bon Voyage purchases were in the cabin also. We had purchased a case of the small bottles of water and the label says they are purified spring water from Ginnie Springs in Florida. DW hates plain water but did like this bottled water. After dropping off our carry-ons we proceeded up to Lido to grab a quick bite to eat. While we were eating lunch a bar waiter came by and took our drink order and after a few minutes we had our first drink of the day firmly in hand. While they don’t have trays at the buffet the plates they have are very large and you can easily carry your drink on your plate if you arrange the food the right way. We walked around for a bit checking things out and went back to the cabin to pack our bags. I couldn’t get the safe in the cabin to lock so I asked the steward to have it looked at, but this wasn’t done and I didn’t follow up on it since we didn’t have much to put in it any way. Dining the first night is open seating and we went to dinner around 6 pm. I had the corn chowder and honey glazed pork loin and DW had the strawberry bisque and veggie lasagna. The food was nicely prepared and presented and was tasty (and it remained that way for the cruise).

This was the first time that American Table was used on Fascination and we didn’t have any issue with the concept, other than the menu sometimes left DW struggling to find something she wanted and could eat because of her allergies. Dinner took about an hour and half or so as it would for the remainder of the week. We went back to the cabin and sipped BV rum as we watched people board. The muster drill was at 9 and our station was in Passage to India lounge and we were not required to bring our life jackets to the drill. After listening to the briefing and watching the life jacket demonstration we were escorted up to our lifeboat, which I thought was a nice touch. For the most part the drill was well conducted and the passengers were generally cooperative. After the drill we stayed on the pool deck for the sail away party. It seemed like a bar waiter came by every 5 minutes, which was the norm whenever we were in a public venue. We went back to the cabin and after watching waves for a few minutes decided to turn in. Our steward is Agus and we received twice a day service without being asked.

Day 2 St Thomas

Grabbed breakfast at the Lido buffet. They had a good selection of yogurts and cartons of milk (chocolate was the only one I could identify since the cartons were written in Spanish). After eating I grabbed an omelet at the omelet station to take down to DW. After getting ready we went ashore to check things out as St Thomas is the only port we didn’t have anything planned other than taking the tram up to Paradise Point (we purchased the tickets onboard the day before at the Shorex desk and saved $1 per ticket). The tram is a short walk from the pier. After turning in our tickets we received wristbands which are good all day if you want to take multiple trips up the mountain. We had a short wait for the tram and as you enter the area they take a “boarding picture” that they sell for $10. The tram doesn’t have seating but there is a thin ledge around the inside you can kind of sit against. It took about 5 minutes to get to the top and the views are indeed breathtaking. After taking the obligatory pictures of our ship in the harbor we went to the restaurant to grab a drink. We didn’t eat but the food looked and smelled good and the prices didn’t seem too bad for a tourist area (hamburger $10, hot dog $8). We had heard about the Bushwhacker so we ordered a pair of them which cost $15 plus 15% gratuity. They are made with Bailey’s, amaretto, Kahlua and other ingredients that I didn’t note and the drinks were very good. We took our time and chatted before deciding to head down. We walked around the shops before going back and a dress caught DW’s eye (and hence my wallet). Changed into our swimsuits and went up to the pool deck which wasn’t crowded.

We had early seating in the Imagination dining room and we got there early every night even though the doors didn’t open until 6pm. Our waiter was Vladimir who was assisted by Emina and Kadex, and there were 9 of us at table for the first night. Three of the guests were supposed to be seated with the rest of their party and they weren’t too happy that they weren’t. I ordered the Oysters Rockefeller and veal parmigiana and DW had spring rolls and the veal. DW and I agreed that the veal was as good as if not a little better than the veal we had on the NCL Gem in the Italian specialty restaurant which we had to pay for. Had a close up magician come by and perform some magic at the table. Both DW and I had the melting cake for desert while I like having it once a cruise it is too rich for me to have every night. After dinner we changed and went to the Punchliner Comedy Club located in the Puttin’ on the Ritz lounge. The comedians were Paul Lyons and Joey Vega and they were both very funny. Went to the Palace Theater for the Welcome Aboard show and we fell in love with the layout of the theater- lots of leg room, room for people to walk by and tables to hold drinks. CD Marcelo Alvarado was entertaining. After the show Marcelo led a conga line to the Atrium where we all danced and then led us on to the next two locations. We headed back to the cabin and after a nightcap on the balcony called it a night.

Day 3 At Sea

All of the passengers are friendly and it’s nice running into people that we have interacted with and catching up with them, which is something that happened throughout the cruise. Spent time walking around in the morning while waiting for DW to wake up and only saw small material imperfections around the ship. We had discussed it the day before and decided to eat brunch in the Sensation dining room, so after DW woke up that is what we did. I ordered the fruit plate, steak and eggs and banana cream pie. By the time I had finished the fruit plate and eggs I realized my steak wasn’t coming but since I only had room for the pie I didn’t follow up on it. The pie was very delicious. Spent the day playing trivia (DW wanted a ship on a stick so it was my mission to try to win one) and relaxing. There was a veteran’s meet in the Sensation dining room but I was the only one that showed up, but tea time was taking place at the same time so DW and I decided to give it a go. The chocolate cake that they served was very good. We dressed for dinner and since it is Elegant Night we did dress up. We headed out to the different photo stations and had about $400 worth of pictures taken, but of course we didn’t buy that many. We had a young newlywed couple join our table as they had asked to be moved from their original table, so it ended up being 8 of us at the table for the rest of the cruise. It is American Feast night and I ordered fried oysters and prime rib (foregoing the lobster and shrimp dish that is available) and DW had the mushroom soup and grilled chicken breast. We both ordered the malted chocolate cake with hazelnuts and it was delicious. A couple of our table mates ordered the lobster and it looked like it was about a 5 ounce tail. Wait staff is doing a good job. Waiters danced tonight and it was well choreographed and entertaining. The table went to the Diva show in the Palace Theater as a group and we all enjoyed that. Went to Paul Lyons’ R rated show then called it a night.

Day 3 Barbados

Harrison’s Cave is on the agenda so we get up early to prepare for that. It’s a short walk out of the terminal to the bus and it’s about a 25 minute ride. There are 14 people on this tour. We watched a short informational movie before boarding the tram. I expected the cave to be on the cold side but it was about 78 degrees and very humid, and water dripped on us from the ceiling. The guide (Hyacinth) said that the water dripping on us had fallen as rain and it had taken a year for it to work its way down. The cave was simply amazing and the tram sometimes paralleled the path where the original explorers had to crawl to explore the cave. A stalactite takes 120 years to grow 2 centimeters. The water pools were crystal clear and the tram driver brought a handful of the water to a blind guest so he could experience some of the cave. The bus driver took a different route back to the ship so we could see more of the island and he was very informative. We shopped at some of the shops that were in and around the terminal before re-boarding. Played some more trivia and almost won movie song trivia. Changed for dinner and looked through the pictures that had been taken and purchased a couple. At dinner I ordered the shrimp cocktail and grilled beef tenderloin and DW had the broccoli soup, ratatouille and linguini with sausage. The shrimp were about half an ounce and were very tasty. Vladimir recommended the S’mores parfait and it was great (most of the table had it) and it was very good. After changing we went to see the juggler/comedian Dana Tison which was very entertaining. DW wasn’t feeling too well because of the rocking so we called it a night early.

Day 4 St Lucia

After bringing DW breakfast in bed we headed to the Palace Theater to meet up for our excursion, the Whale and Dolphin Safari. The tour employee took us off the ship (it was just the two of us) and we met the safari boat at the water taxi dock. There were a number of guests onboard that had boarded at one of the hotels. The boat went out a few miles before heading toward the Piton side of the island. There were snacks (bananas and popcorn) and cold drinks (rum punch, cola, and water). It was an interesting ride but by the end of the day we only saw three dolphins (and one possible sighting of something off in the distance). After the tour dropped us off at the dock we spent some time shopping around the pier area. When we made it back aboard we played several rounds of trivia and thanks to DW’s help we won a ship on a stick. At dinner I had two servings of escargot and a penne pasta dish with shrimp, calamari, fish and scallops. DW had beef barley soup and beef lasagna. I ordered the blueberry pie a la mode (I’ve had better) and DW ordered the fruit plate. After changing we met up with some table mates at the Palace for the Hasbro Game Show. It obviously isn’t a Broadway show but we still found it to be entertaining. We then met other table mates for karaoke and a couple of them got up to sing some songs. Then it was off to the Love and Marriage show and our newlywed table mates were selected to participate. It was fun and the couples involved did a great job. (Marcelo picked the contestants based on the length of marriage.) Marcelo maintained a good pace and did a great job moderating. Then it was on to Quest which Marcelo also hosted (I swear he was everywhere all at once) and while it didn’t get too racy it was entertaining.

Day 5 St Kitts

We booked the Dolphin Push, Pull, Swim and met the tour operator at the head of the pier. We all received color coded wrist bands. A grandmother traveling with her grandson was on this tour and we had been on the Harrison’s Cave tour together also, so it was like old home week. The facility does have locking lockers for guests to use and an outside shower so you can rinse off afterwards. It’s good to have flip flops or other footwear because it is a rocky walk to where the dolphins are and the ground is very hot. Life jackets are mandatory and they have a good variety of sizes. We got into the water on a platform and our trainer introduced himself and our dolphin, Guya. There were 7 of us in our group and we all took turns learning hand signals, petting Guya, swimming out into the enclosure to be pushed on a boogie board with Guya’s nose on your foot, holding on to Guya’s fins as she pulls you through the water and holding Guya under the water. The trainer did a good job of mixing things up so Guya wasn’t doing 7 of the same type of behavior in a row to prevent her from getting bored. The look on DW’s face when Guya pushed her on the boogie board made the entire trip worth it. Photos need to be purchased immediately, you can’t purchase them online later. Photos cost $35 for one photo, $80 for a CD of all of the photos featuring one person. We lounged at the pool after returning and then went to the Military Appreciation event. There were about 20 vets and wives there. Marcelo thanked everyone for their service and had each of us stand as our branch was called. Tonight is the second elegant night. I ordered the stuffed mushrooms, Maryland crab cake and the filet mignon/short rib combo which was quite excellent. DW had two orders of the mushrooms and a pasta dish with mushrooms and cream. I had the amaretto chocolate cake and DW had the melting cake again. We went to the Motor City show by the Playlist Players in the theater which we enjoyed. Caught the acts of the two new comedians, Jason Andors and Mike Estime and both were hilarious.

Day 6 St Maarten

After grabbing a couple of omelets for breakfast we met in the theater for our excursion, a trip to the Butterfly Farm. We chatted with a lady and found out she was from the same town in southern Maryland that I had been stationed at 30 years ago. The ride to the farm was about 20 minutes or so. We had a new driver and a senior driver was along to help him out and he ended up doing most of the talking. A British gent owns the butterfly farm and he was quite funny and informative. He said that they have 64 different species of butterfly and moth. Rum punch and soft drinks were included in the cost of the excursion and he said that if we dipped our fingers in our drink we could entice the butterflies onto our fingers, which many of us did. After the farm we drove to Marigot and were given an hour to shop or grab something to eat. We did some browsing in the vendors’ stalls for souvenirs and got a cold drink. When we got back to the ship we found a note in our cabin that the Rainforest excursion that we had arranged onboard for San Juan had been cancelled due to lack of numbers so we went down to guest services to see if there were other options. We were able to book the city tour and Bacardi factory tour with airport transfer. Dinner was a little somber since it was our last one together but we all exchanged our information. DW had the baked onion soup and ravioli and I had mussels and prime rib. We both ordered the banana bread pudding. Several of us went to the magic show in the theater featuring RJ Cantu and we remembered watching him on America’s Got Talent. DW got a selfie with him and his assistant after the show. Did some packing then caught Mike Estime’s R rated show before calling it a night.

Day 7 San Juan

Saddest day of the cruise. We are up and out of the room by 7 and quickly find a table on Lido to grab a quick bite to eat. We met up in the theater for our excursion. We booked the excursion to kill some time before heading to our hotel since check-in isn’t until afternoon. The ship had coffee and juices in the theater for those waiting to disembark. We were led off the ship at 8:30, reclaimed our bags and through customs quickly. We gave all of our bags to the tour operator who put them in a truck to take them to the airport. We headed out on our tour around 9 and after driving around for a little while were dropped off downtown for 45 minutes for shopping. We made it out to the Bacardi factory at 10:40 and we had 2 hours before meeting up with the bus for the trip to the airport. Our guide gave us our souvenir cups and tickets for free drinks and pagers that would let us know when it was time to board the tram for our tour. We received a small rum punch at the welcome center and after a short wait our pagers went off. The tour took about 45 minutes or so and concluded in the gift shop. While shopping we were given a sample of rum that had been aged 8 years. We bought a few things and then went back to the welcome center. We turned in our drink ticket to get our cup filled with one of three classic cocktails. We were going to go into the restaurant to grab lunch but while we were sitting in the Pavilion a waitress brought us a menu so we just stayed put. We each had a flat bread chicken pesto that was very nice. Our luggage was waiting for us (with someone from the tour company there to keep an eye on it) when we got to the airport. While at the airport I went in and checked in for our flight and got our boarding passes. We arrived at the hotel at around 2:30.

Final Thoughts/Observations

Wherever I went on the ship I almost always saw at least one crewmember in the process of cleaning something. Dusting, vacuuming, polishing, cleaning glass, etc. It’s a never ending chore aboard ship and it was never ending. The crew was friendly, for sure. On NCL most crew members would greet you only if you said something to them first. On Fascination not only would a crew member greet you but they would often ask how you are doing. The service provided by our steward and wait staff was excellent with few missteps along the way. Bar waiters were out in force in practically every venue and we never had to wait for a drink. The photographers could get annoying but they did take no for an answer most of the time. While the cruise wasn’t flawless nothing detracted from the overall experience. We had no real issues with American table although DW did find the menu to be a little limited at times given her allergies but she was always able to find something to eat. I wouldn’t decorate my house the way Fascination is decorated but it was tolerable for a week. I did not see any major material deficiencies as I walked around the ship and the minor deficiencies are ones that I’ve seen on newer ships. Overall this was a solid experience and we had a great time, we definitely received our money’s worth.

Thank you for the review.

It sounds like you had a great - and busy - cruise.

Thank you for the review.

 

It sounds like you had a great - and busy - cruise.

Yes, there were a few times I said that I would have liked another sea day to take it easy on (or a vacation to recover from our vacation:)).

This is my favorite itinerary of all time. We've done it twice recently (2013 on Valor and 2015 on Liberty). I have to admit, I was a little confused when Carnival decided to replace Liberty with Fascination. But I've seen a couple of recent reviews of this itinerary and I actually think I'd LOVE Fascination. I was picturing it to be extremely crowded but from reviews I've seen so far, that's not the case. We were on Carnival Festivale in 1992 on a very similar itinerary out of San Juan. We also liked that it was small enough that we'd run into the same people on the ship that we'd interacted with. I did comment to others after the switch that on this itinerary, the ship is just transportation to and from these beautiful ports...although I'm guilty of posting about putting a smaller ship on this itinerary. Now, if Carnival would just put another smaller ship down there and have two, total. One doing the current itinerary and the other going to some of the other island (Tortola, St. Croix, Antigua, Dominica, Martinique, Grenada...).

Thank you for your review. Always great to get other ideas for "next time".

This is my favorite itinerary of all time. We've done it twice recently (2013 on Valor and 2015 on Liberty). I have to admit, I was a little confused when Carnival decided to replace Liberty with Fascination. But I've seen a couple of recent reviews of this itinerary and I actually think I'd LOVE Fascination. I was picturing it to be extremely crowded but from reviews I've seen so far, that's not the case. I did comment to others after the switch that on this itinerary, the ship is just transportation to and from these beautiful ports...although I'm guilty of posting about putting a smaller ship on this itinerary.

 

Now, if Carnival would just put another smaller ship down there and have two, total. One doing the current itinerary and the other going to some of the other island (Tortola, St. Croix, Antigua, Dominica, Martinique, Grenada...).

 

Thank you for your review. Always great to get other ideas for "next time".

The buffet usually had a full feeling although we never did have to hunt too hard to find a seat (and waiting in line was never more than 15 minutes). The pool deck could get crowded on the sea day and the closer you got to sail away time but overall it never did have a crowded feeling.

One thing that I forgot to put in my observations- unlike on the Pride there was always plenty of room in the Punchliner. On the Pride if you didn't get a seat 45 minutes before the show you would be standing but on Fascination there were seats even after the show started.

I also forgot to say that I'd be trying to post pictures later so if anyone has any requests I'll try to accommodate (although I don't have pictures of the Funtimes and no way to scan them but I am willing to answer questions, or any other questions for that matter).

Great review and a cruise that I hope to do some day.

The buffet usually had a full feeling although we never did have to hunt too hard to find a seat (and waiting in line was never more than 15 minutes). The pool deck could get crowded on the sea day and the closer you got to sail away time but overall it never did have a crowded feeling.

 

One thing that I forgot to put in my observations- unlike on the Pride there was always plenty of room in the Punchliner. On the Pride if you didn't get a seat 45 minutes before the show you would be standing but on Fascination there were seats even after the show started.

Since you mentioned Punchliners, yes, we noticed the same thing on Liberty last year and Valor in 2013 (both the itinerary out of San Juan). We were also on Liberty in 2014 (western Caribbean) and it was exactly how you described Pride and having to get in line early. DH and I were curious as to whether the port heavy itinerary had anything to do with that.

BTW, thank you for your service.

Since you mentioned Punchliners, yes, we noticed the same thing on Liberty last year and Valor in 2013 (both the itinerary out of San Juan). We were also on Liberty in 2014 (western Caribbean) and it was exactly how you described Pride and having to get in line early. DH and I were curious as to whether the port heavy itinerary had anything to do with that.

 

BTW, thank you for your service.

Thank you :o. It very well could be the itinerary but it seemed like the lounge on Fascination was larger than the one on the Pride (which could just be my faulty memory).

Great review and a cruise that I hope to do some day.

Thanks! It is most definitely worth doing:).

Nice review! Thanks for posting it. This is a cruise that I have been wanting to do for quite some time. There just never seems to be enough time or "money" to do all that I want in cruising:o, but this one is always on my bucket list.:)

Nice review! Thanks for posting it. This is a cruise that I have been wanting to do for quite some time. There just never seems to be enough time or "money" to do all that I want in cruising:o, but this one is always on my bucket list.:)

Thank you! We needed to do something other than another cruise to the Bahamas and this fit the bill quite nicely:).

Thanks for the review.

Thank you for the review! I was waiting for your take on this and if it felt crowded or not after you'd posted you were going. We leave in 9 days. We did this last year on the Liberty and had so much fun we decided to do it again this year. I've been on this class ship before and loved it but this will be DH's first trip on a smaller ship and I was worried about how he would like it.

Thank you for your service and best of luck with your recovery.

Thanks for the review.

Most welcome!

Thank you for the review! I was waiting for your take on this and if it felt crowded or not after you'd posted you were going. We leave in 9 days. We did this last year on the Liberty and had so much fun we decided to do it again this year. I've been on this class ship before and loved it but this will be DH's first trip on a smaller ship and I was worried about how he would like it.

 

Thank you for your service and best of luck with your recovery.

Thanks! I prefer the smaller ships myself because I was stationed on an aircraft carrier while in the Navy.

Very nice review. Thanks.

Very nice review. Thanks.

Thank you and you are welcome.:)

Great review. Looking forward to the pictures. Glad you are recovering well.

Great review. Looking forward to the pictures. Glad you are recovering well.

Thank you. I have to find a hosting site for the pictures in order to post full sized ones.

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. This is one of our favorite itineraries!

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. This is one of our favorite itineraries!

You are welcome:).

Thank you for the review- I am glad you are doing well! I am glad you and your wife enjoyed the trip- Great itinerary!

It seems as if on the Feast menu the steak and Lobster are extra?

Thank you for the review- I am glad you are doing well! I am glad you and your wife enjoyed the trip- Great itinerary!

It seems as if on the Feast menu the steak and Lobster are extra?

The first elegant night lobster was free on the menu (and missing from the Steakhouse surcharge items), but the other nights the Steakhouse Steak and Lobster was available for $20.

Nice review. We did this cruise in late August. I agree about the friendly crew who always greeted you and were always cleaning.

We also did the Harrison Caves, and they were spectacular.

The only thing I found surprising in your review was that they did not cancel your excursion in which you were the only 2 signed up. I say this because in St. Martin/St. Maarten we ended up on our 4th choice for an excursion due to not enough signing up for our other choices. (on our first 2 we were the only ones signed up, and the third had 6 already on when we tried to sign up.

We paid more for the Sky ride not realizing that the excursion was actually about $1 per person less.