jeff33436

One thing I cannot find info on is taxi prices from Taino Bay Port. I saw the signs that people posted showing crazy high prices to go short distances. Is that just leaving from the actual port? Or, can you walk outside the gates of the port and find reasonable prices from the taxi drivers outside the gates?

Also, can you walk from the port to the city center to look around?

Hi Everyone-

Many have mentioned the fact that there is very little info about what to do beyond the Taino Bay or Amber Cay ports. I ventured into the world of "U" Tube and entered various searches and found quite a bit of good info!  Try searching using: "Puerto Plata Things to Do" "Taino Bay Things to Do" "Puerto Plata Excursions" "Puerto Plata/Taino Bay Tours" etc. Lots of good videos done by "regular" people.

Hi- arriving in the D.R. via Virgin Voyages. We come into Puerto Plata. Is that the name of the actual port? Is that the same thing as Amber Cove?

A little confused!

OMG- So sorry- just realized that this is too late since you have already cruised! Hope you had fun.

When you get off the ship and out into the street, walk to the right (as you face the street away from the ship). Follow the sidewalk, go past Señor Frogs and continue around the curve. A couple of blocks up, you will see a big sign for the distillery. Make a left up that block and walk about 10 minutes. Nice easy walk through a residential neighborhood. Funny story- when we were done there, be still have our drinks with us and were quite buzzed. We started walking back and came across a police woman and being the nerd I am, I went up to her to ask her if we were "allowed" to walk with our drinks. She looked at me like I was crazy and then laughed at me. "of course you can drink in the streets here in Nassau!". I laughed at my stupidity!

That one drink carried us through for about the next hour or two!

We returned from our 5th cruise on the Sky last week. Always have a great time and this time was extra fun due to the open bar. We never encountered a long line and you can order ANY drink you want. They were all nice and strong! The island is nicer than ever and it seems like they have upgraded it each time we've been there. Lot's of space, beautiful clear water, etc.

For the price, I don't think there's a better deal out there. Sure, the ship is a little older and not as gigantic as the new ships, but she's still really nice!

Hi-

We were also worried about the Spring Breakers, but this was a totally relaxing and "quiet" cruise with a nice family crowd. Didn't see one person out of control.

All drinks are free and the lines were not bad at all and went fast. The bartenders were friendly and service was great!

I am a gym guy, and the gym was totally adequate and never crowded. Not huge, but big enough. Numerous cardio machines, small free weight area, and separate weight machine room with a few decent machines.

We have taken the walk to the distillery on our last trip and it is not a very long walk, but more than a couple of blocks. Agree with Samiamm- the most amazing Pina Coladas we ever had and we got more than buzzed on just one!! This trip we walked all the way down past Junkanoo and kept going down the sidewalk to Arawak Cay and there are amazing little fish shacks where you get Conch fritters, and other amazing seafood cheap! We had an order of fritters and 2 local beers and it was fantastic. Another time, we took the water taxi from the dock for just a few bucks each and rode over to Atlantis just for the ride around the marina area. We didn't go into Atlantis but walked in to see the casino, which is about all you can see there without having to pay. Then took the taxi back and it was pretty cool!

Don't miss the production show in the showroom on Sunday night. One of the best shows we have seen after 15 cruises!

Any other questions- Just ask! Have a blast!

Hi-

Just returned from the 3 day cruise on the Sky. This was our 5th time on Sky and it was fantastic!

All shows were at 9:30 each night. Just one show per night. First night was just the opening show, nothing special, but a good comedian after the senior crew introduced themselves (it was actually funny!).

2nd night was just the comedian (Russ Rivas) who is pretty funny.

3rd night was the big production number and it ranked up there as one of the top cruise ship shows that we have seen ever (this was our 15th cruise). Really amazing!

Hey Everyone-

A bit confused about the open bar concept on the Sky. We're leaving this Friday and this will be our 5th time on the Sky, but never had the open bar.

So, how are tips handled when using the open bar? Are they included somewhere in the price of the cruise? Of do you need to tip cash each time you get a drink? etc.

Any advice is appreciated!

Sorry everyone- I haven't been back on this board for a few days. Here are some more details:

We booked the pass on this website:

http://www.caribbeandaypass.com

You have to wait for them to email you a voucher and then bring the voucher directly to the hotel. Once at the front desk at the hotel, there were no issues whatsoever. They gave us a wristband and off we went.

Someone wrote above that you can just really go to any hotel and have access to the beach. This is true, BUT... it was so nice to have access to both the beach and pool. The pool was gorgeous and very tropical. Lots of chairs both in the sun and in the shade. There was an exercise class going on in the pool and everyone joined in. Then a quick few steps to the swim-up bar right there in the pool was cool. Also nice to have access to chairs and palapas (shade!). Then there were the unlimited food and drinks. Not to mention nice restrooms, and other little extras.

The food on the buffet was great. Breakfast had EVERYTHING you could ever want. We had eaten a small breakfast on the ship before getting off, and sorry that we did. We ended up having a second breakfast at the hotel. Lunch was also a wide variety including stuff for the kiddies in your group (chik fingers, etc). There was pasta, breads desserts, side dishes. All better than the buffets on the ship.

For those looking for beach activities, there were all sorts of attractions within steps. Parasailing, tubing, etc. were available (not for free! lol) Also, nice concrete boardwalk allowed you to take long walk in either direction and see all the other hotels and resorts.

As the afternoon went on, we realized that we had to get back to the ship soon and we were really sad that we didn't have a few more hours. We had such a nice time that we are exploring going back next year for a few days.

Thanks so much for this info.

The day pass we were planning on purchasing at a certain hotel doesn't sell day passes anymore (just got the email today). So I was trying to figure out what to do in Aruba.

I will check out the Occidental.

What were the chouices for the food? Did they supply towels?

Thanks again!

Towels were supplied. Food was plentiful with lots of choices, especially breakfast! So many items. And, the food was pretty good too.

I had posted here a few times looking for anyone that did the day pass at the Occidental Aruba, and no one really wrote back. So, for those that are considering it, I wanted to let everyone know that my wife and I did it last week.

We were on the Carnival Liberty last week. When we got to Aruba, it was an easy cab ride to the Occidental and took about 15 minutes to get there. Once there, we checked in at the front desk, got our I.D. bracelets and off we went. We had one of the best days ever on a cruise (this was our 11th cruise)! Amazing beach with lots of chairs and shade. Great food at the buffet. And pretty good drinks at both the beach bar and the swim-up bar in the pool. The pool and surrounding area were beautiful and the whole day was fantastic. We were there from 9 a.m. and we left to get back to the ship at around 2:30.

We paid $75 each for everything, including food, alcohol, was included and was unlimited, floats, chairs and pool.

Highly recommend this as a good option if you want a great beach day in Aruba.

To snorkel in Grand Turk, we just walked past the beach/pool area at the port and walked (to the left as you face the beach) and we came upon Jack's Shack (see all the postings on Jack's Shack) which was just a 10 minute walk. Great beach, great snorkeling!

We went out from #10 but returned to #6. They had to shuttle everyone back to 10 once we got in.

Park and Cruise. Nice staff but totally not organized correctly! Good luck and have fun!

Got back from my 10th cruise yesterday. We (just the wife and me) were on the Carnival Liberty and did the Southern Caribbean with stops at Curacao, Aruba, and Grand Turk. Rather than a minute by minute recounting, I will do this by topic. Please feel free to ask any questions!

The Ship: We were on the Liberty a couple of years ago before she was refurbished. The ship is BEAUTIFUL!! They did a great job of making her modern, clean, comfortable, and just nice to look at. All areas were top notch and it was very upscale.

Parking at Port Canaveral: We decided to park outside the port with one of those park and cruise places. If you are impatient and don't like waiting, then don't do this! I won't mention the company because the people were very nice and it seemed like a pretty big operation that should have a great system in place. Wrong. Not enough shuttles with poor A/C. We arrived there at around 11 and didn't get to the ship till after noon.

Embarkation: No issues whatsoever. It was fast and easy. No, we didn't purchase the Carnival deal that lets you go into a special line. No need!

Our Cabin: We were in a balcony room, 6278. Really nice spacious cabin and very comfy, BUT it was right off the lobby near the elevator and the atrium. Convenient location BUT lots of noise in the room. The "bing" of the elevator could be heard all night in our room. The loung singers could be heard in the room, etc. On the positive, lots of storage space, nice bathroom, and of course, the balcony was great. We did complain (nicely, of course) about what we felt was less than cold A/C in the room. They sent some maintenance guys over right away and told us that it might take some time to get cooler, but that the A/C was fine. It wasn't. Not that it was hot in the cabin, but it just wasn't cool enough for me. Our Steward was fantastic and attentive all week! His name was Ron.

Pools: The main pool was always very crowded and had a real college town atmosphere. We called it "people soup". Not very appealing, BUT, in the rear of the ship, past the buffet restaurant, was an adults only pool and 2 hottubs. While it was crowded, it was so much nicer than the main pool. By the way, we are in our early 50s, and pretty "cool", but I have to admit, it was just nicer to get away from all the drunk 20 year olds at the main pool. At times, however, the main pool area and deck were a lot of fun during various activities.

Cruise Director: Cory was our CD and after 10 cruises, we figured they are all pretty much the same. WRONG!!! This guy was so involved in every aspect of the cruise and he genuinely wanted to make sure that every passenger had a great time. He really got us to want to be involved in so many more activities than we ever had before and as a result we had the best time ever! He was funny, talented (singer, dancer, comedian, etc.) and just awesome.

Buffet: We ate most meals in Emile's (the buffet). All in all, it was pretty good with a nice assortment of everything.

Deli: within Emile's was the Deli line. Nice sandwiches, never too bad of a line. Tuna, turkey, corned beef, grilled cheese, hot dogs, etc. The grilled cheese was pretty good as was the tuna on white bread (I know...)

Guy Fieri's Burgers: Surprisingly fantastic! I envisioned long lines for this, but it was always easy to step right up to get a great burger. Great toppings bar!!

Burrito/Taco area: made to order tacos and burritos that were really good. Also a great toppings bar. This was for breakfast and lunch, not open at dinner.

Pizza: The 24 hour pizza was the best cruise pizza I have encountered! It wasn't pre-make frozen style pizza, but more like thin crust pizzeria pizza. Delicious!

Ice cream: Self serve ice cream was available all day and night.

Dining Room: We did "your time" dining which worked out just fine for us. We ate in the Dining Room on both "elegant" nights. One night was lobster tail, and the other was filet mignon. Pretty good food! Great service, nice surroundings, etc.

Punchline Comedy Club: this is in a lounge at the very back of the ship and it was just like a real comedy club! Different comics did family oriented shows and then later in the night, did an adults only show. One of the comics was Happy Cole- if he is on during your cruise, DON'T MISS HIM! He was funnier and better than anything on T.V. Hysterical, especially the adult show. He even did one show that was only about sex.

Soda Card: I am a soda freak and did the card and it was great. I happen to like fountain soda better, but they did cans. Oh well...

The Ports: I'll post some stuff on each one of the port boards, but overall, the ports were great. Our first time in Aruba and loved it! We did the day pass at the Occidental Hotel and it was the best day ever! Curacao was so-so. Grand Turk was gorgeous and we just snorkeled and laid on the beach right near the ship all day. Paradise!

Days at Sea: There were quite a few days at sea on this cruise and it so relaxing and wonderful, I wish there were more! Getting a lounge chair in the sun or shade was not a problem. We scoped out some nice shady spots and never had an issue getting chairs.

Gym: We used the gym everyday and it was a bit crowded at 8 a.m. So we went a bit later and it was much better. A couple of days we went in the afternoon and it was empty. Nice amount of cardio machines. Weight machines were kind of limited, but it was fine. It was fun seeing the dancers in there working out alongside us!

The Shows: Top notch, first rate!! Really! Compared to other cruises, these were among the best shows and this is one of the few ships that has a live orchestra.

Disembarking: Our luggage got very heavy, so we decided to NOT do the self assist and let the bags go the night before. When we got our luggage tags, we had a ''high'' number, meaning we would be off the ship a bit later. I like to get off early, so I went to Guest Services, and they easily switched us to an earlier number. Getting off was easy, we picked up our luggage and breezed through customs. Getting back to the car was not pleasant, with the same issues with the shuttle company. It took us a long time from getting off the ship to getting to our car. Not happy. But once we were in the car and driving home, we reflected on the amazing vacation we had just taken.

We were a tiny bit worried about the length of an 8 day cruise. Would we get bored? Would it be too long? By the end, we laughed at such a stupid thought and wished we had a few more days.

I know sometimes its easy to find little things to complain about on these boards. But when you look at the big picture, this was an amazing cruise.

We were there last year and the snorkeling was great. It helps that the water was calm that day. Not only did we see lots of fish, including a Nurse Shark, but there were conch shells and sand dollars all over the place. Will be there next week and can't wait to try again.

Hey Everyone-

I searched the boards and didn't get the exact info I needed...

Has anyone recently tried the day pass at the Occidental? If so, did you book it in advance? If so, via phone or email? I went to their website and it doesn't mention it anywhere.

If you didn't book it in advance, I'm assuming you just went to the hotel and purchased it there.

Finally, (sorry for all the questions!) how was it?

Thanks-

Jeff

Hi Everyone-

Will be on the Liberty in a few weeks. Can anyone tell me which ports use a tender? We will be going to Grand Turk, Aruba, and Curacao.

Thanks!