smurfm69

There are some shops at the port area and a really large Margaritaville with a nice pool. Something new they recently started is the Party Pass. You pay $50 per person and get a choice of entree and free drinks. It's not too bad of a deal but doesn't include every drink on the menu.

On to the last and final port of Grand Turk. We had no excursions planned here. We were going to grab some chairs by the pool at Margaritaville or at the beach. That was the plan but another ship, the Sunshine, had gotten to GT 3 hours before the Glory and there were no chairs available at the pool or beach so we just found a spot on the beach and put down our towels. The water is very rocky at that particular section so best to have water shoes. I was told it was a lot smoother further down the beach. The water was nice and cool and the snorkeling was decent. I swam out and it was pretty wild to see the depth of the water get gradually deeper as you got closer to the ropes and then it just drops off big time and you can't see the bottom.

We retraced our steps and made our way downhill back towards the ship, stopping at some stores on the way. I went out on the open deck in the front of the ship to take some pics of the fort as we sailed away.

We found the place which was named Deavedra or something like that. We got the sampler platter for 6 people and it was $60 so not too expensive. We just wanted to get something to hold us over for a while and try some local food. The food wasn't bad but we found it to be a little bland. We are from New Orleans and used to a lot of spices and seasonings cooked into the food. We got someone to take a picture of the young girl who was our waitress and the cook which was her mom. They were really nice people.

After the tour, we asked the guide to recommend a place to eat lunch and he directed us to a small place a few blocks away for some authentic Puerto Rican food. So we began the journey uphill to the restaurant.

No pics of the flying broccoli? LOL We flew Southwest both ways and had no issues at all and they were very friendly. Loved seeing all your pics of Miami. We had never been there before and want to fly in a day or two ahead of time the next time we sail out of that port. Again it was really nice meeting you guys.

How awesome! Didn't realize that was you. Now you have a pic of y'all on the segways. lol

Hiya fellow cruiser! I'm enjoying your review and pics! I totally agree with you about the casino being too smoky. We like to go in there and play some roulette,(we finished ahead $5 so not too bad), but at times it was too bad to stay in there for a long period of time.

I think we made one of your pics. In that picture you took of Magen's Bay from Mountain Top, we are one of those little specks of people on the beach. Lol

We really like San Juan as it reminds us of the French Quarter back home with the colored buildings and wrought iron balconies.

We hit the shows too and our favorite was Epic Rock by far, but I'm a headbanger so I knew it would be the one I enjoyed the most.

We really enjoyed eating at the steakhouse too. That chocolate sampler was awesome!

I booked the segway tour independently. Just do a search for segway tours in Puerto Rico and you will find it. Fill out the info on their website and they will e mail you soon with a confirmation on your reservation. You pay for the tour at the end.

The guide leads everyone single file around San Juan and there are stops along the way where he gives some interesting info on the history of the city.

Our next stop was San Juan, Puerto Rico and the only non beach day we had. This was our 2nd visit having sailed out of P.R. 4 years ago on a Southern Caribbean cruise. The rest of our group had not been there before so we did an interesting tour that I knew they would enjoy. We did the 2 hour segway tour and they are conveniently located very close to where the ship docks. It costs $93 per person and is worth it! Everyone gets a brief one on one lesson on how to operate the machines and they are very easy to learn and handle.

A quick break for another Guy's Burger. I think I ate more of these than chocolate melting cakes. LOL

~~waving~~ Great review & love your pictures. We're standing at the rail in your sail away photo :)

Oh really? That's cool! You feel famous yet Keri? lol

ISN'T HMC THE BEST??!!! And great choice on the cabana.. hehehe ;) .. I will follow along with your review too! Love seeing other peoples adventures on same itinerary.

I had already decided that I wanted to get cabana 10 but was thinking about you when I asked for it at the excursion desk. I was totally blown away by HMC. Wish there was a short 3 day cruise that went there and back.

We are looking at going on this same cruise in November and were looking at the cabana rentals as well. We are traveling with out kids, a 3 year old and a 1 year old, and thought having a cabana will allow us to spend the full day on the beach with a place for them to be out of the sun and/or nap if necessary. Does the air conditioning actually keep anything cool? It looks like there was some shade at that cabana, is that typical or unique to cabana 10? Also, I see there was a hammock, is that for the cabana or for anyone to use? Sorry for all the questions, I get excited when I see reviews and wanted some first hand advice :)

It wasn't cold but definitely a bit cooler sitting in the cabana with the a/c running. I think most of the cabanas have a little shade, I know the ones by us did. I think the hammock is for anyone to use and there were different people using them off and on. Don't be shy about the questions, I am happy to help if I can.

Our next stop was St. Thomas. This is one of our favorite ports and very good for shopping. A liter of Grey Goose on the ship is $30, but you can find it at the shops on land for $25. This was daughter's second visit to this island. The first time there with her, we went to Sapphire Beach so this time we took her and boyfriend to Magen's Bay Beach. It cost $8 per person each way to go there and there is also an admission fee of $4 per person to get into the beach. There were a total of 3 ships in port that day so Magen's Bay was fairly crowded.

I'm so jealous of you guys leaving this Saturday. lol This was one of the friendliest ships we have been on with everyone greeting us with a smile. We had a cat. 4J cabin on deck 7 and enjoyed taking in the view from the deck in front of our room.

Your pictures are awesome :)

Thanks! Sorry for the crazy large size. This is no super fancy camera either. Nikon coolpix L120.

We took one of the first tenders to the island and were on one of the last to leave. It seemed to be pretty crowded by the first 5 cabanas but not too much where we were. There are bathrooms located behind cabanas 9 and 10. From the beach in front of our cabana you could still hear the music from the pirate ship bar but not from inside the cabana. The free BBQ lunch was good and it was convenient to be able to use the sail & sign card to order drinks from the bar.

The night we left HMC was the first deck party and the lido deck was packed with party animals.

So the first port was Half Moon Cay and we had never been there before. I have read plenty of great reviews about this place and saw lots of pictures so I was really excited to see what the hype was all about. OMG!!! This ended up being our favorite port on the cruise. The most perfect beach I have ever been to. We had booked a cabana and as soon as we got on the ship on embarkation day we went straight to the excursion desk to request #10. The cabanas are very popular and always sell out as there are only 15 of them. If you want one, do not wait very long after booking your cruise. It cost $229 and was so worth it!