gretchen's mom

We will be attending a college basketball tournament at the Atlantis over Thanksgiving Week, 2021. Do you have any suggestions for staying at a property that is Adults Only. It does not have to be on the Atlantis property and could also be a condo. Thank you. 

I was on Seadream I at the end of January. Yoga was offered most mornings and the class that I attended was very full.

Thank you Misty Morning! That sounds like a great way to spend some time instead of waiting at the airport!

We just disembarked on Saturday at the San Juan terminal. We took a taxi directly to the airport. There were many waiting in line. This was at 8:30 am. It took about 15 minutes to get to the airport. The cost was $24 plus tip. There was a per person supplement charge and a per bag luggage charge. These were included in the $24. (There were two of us in the taxi.) There is a taxi manager at the port who will give you a piece of paper with the amount you will have to pay to the driver when you get out at the airport. We found it to be a very easy process.

DH and I just finished a wonderful cruise on SeaDream I from Antigua to San Juan. We believe that it was our eighth SeaDream cruise but all the others had been on SeaDream II. We were very happy with the ship, staff and food. It was as lovely as we remembered and a wonderful get away from the Northeast US. I'll provide a brief recap of each day for those who are interested. (We did not go on any of the scheduled tours/activities so I can't provide information on them.)

Pre-cruise - We flew to Antigua on the day before embarkation from Miami. We easily cleared immigration at the Antigua airport and stayed at the Ocean Point Resort & Spa on Friday night. It is a charming small property with a beach, restaurant, bar and pool. We would stay there again. It is located about fifteen minutes from both the airport and the docks.

Saturday, Embarkation in Antigua - As mentioned by others in some previous posts, there was some confusion as to where to drop us off. Our taxi driver to the ship confidently dropped us at the correct harbor but the wrong dock. She pointed down an alleyway and left us. We discovered quickly that our dock was three blocks away. We were able to manage our luggage on wheels but not everyone would be able to do that so I would recommend double checking before releasing your taxi. When we arrived at the ship, our luggage was handled quickly and we went onboard. The immigration officers from Antigua were in the main salon and handled the processing while we enjoyed a glass of champagne. We then moved to the concierge area to process our credit card and obtain our suite cards. It was an easy process and we were happy to get unpacked and up to the pool area. We enjoyed dinner on the 4th. floor deck that evening and learned that we would be going to Nevis the next day, instead of Anguilla as originally planned. It was my birthday and the ship sent a cake to the table with a card and filled our cabin with balloons. (My DH surprised me with an upgrade to a Commodore Suite as my birthday present!)

Sunday, Nevis - The beach picnic was held on the island of Nevis at the Chrisi Beach Club. We were supposed to tender to a floating dock at the beach club but the seas were too strong so we tendered to town and the ship arranged taxis for all of us. The buffet was delicious and we enjoyed a couples massage in the open air. I only saw one person in the water as the surf was high. It was nice to walk on the beach. We enjoyed dinner on the 4th. deck again that evening.

Monday, St. Kitts - We were supposed to spend this day harbored outside of Gustavia, St. Barts but could not because of weather. The ship repositioned to St Kitts. We chose to spend the day on the ship enjoying a yoga class, Scrabble, reading and the pool. At night, we ate dinner with the new CO and a couple from Sweden.

Tuesday, St. Barts - We were able to tender outside of Gustavia, St Barts and spent the morning walking around town and admiring the shops and yachts. We noticed that there were fewer mega yachts than usual in port. Perhaps this is because many of the restaurants have not reopened yet? After dinner in the main dining room, we had fun playing Music Trivia, the first time we have seen this activity on a SeaDream ship.

Wednesday, Virgin Gorda - We went on a hike from Spanish Town to Spring Bay National Park. Along the way, we saw the devastation to homes, hotels and infrastructure on the island. You could hear construction activity everywhere. The Park had no facilities open but we enjoyed the rock formations and the beach area. After dinner on the 4th. deck, we had fun playing "Name that Tune" with George in the Piano Bar. (By the way, George was great fun and played "our song" often so that we could dance.)

Thursday, Tortola & Jost Van Dyke - We anchored outside of Road Town, Tortola in the morning and DH and I spend some time walking around town. There was so much devastation to see. Boats flipped into buildings, roofs torn off, homes destroyed...very sad. I did talk to a doctor who I met on the street who works at the hospital. He told me that they will be okay. The people are very resillent. At night, everyone dined under the stars and there was a dessert extravaganza and dancing in the pool area. It was great fun! Before dinner, the ship repositioned off of Jost Van Dyke so that those wanting to go to Foxy's bar could. We did not but tenders were available from 9 pm to 1 am for those who wanted to do so.

Friday, Norman Island - We had not been to Norman Island before. No people live on the island, only goats! The famous bar, Willie T's is closed but we enjoyed beverages at Pirate's Bight and also enjoyed swimming there after a hike in the hills. The concierge gave us a map with hiking trails. We returned to the ship in the early afternoon. Things got interesting around 3 pm! The captain announced that all passengers must immediately come to the Main Salon for an importnant announcement. Any longtime SeaDreamers know that afternoon announcements are very rare. Everyone gathered and the captain told us that due to regulation and administrative issues, the ship would not be able to dock in San Juan the next day. We were told that the cruise company had arranged for us all to be flown on three jets from Tortola to San Juan on Saturday morning and that we would be sent in the order needed for flights, plans, etc. We filled out paperwork about our arrangements, luggage, etc. Captain Bjarne Smorawski stood and answered every questions and addressed every concern that people had. We were impressed by how they handled the situation and provided solutions along with an explanation of the problems. He planned to take the ship to Tortola overnight. One hour later, another announcement from the captain that the issues were resolved and we would be disembarking in San Juan the next day! Problem averted but again, handled well!! We enjoyed a very special dinner on the 5th. deck that evening. Winds were strong and we had to hold onto our wine glasses but we were treated to a very beautiful view of the Blue Moon as we sailed by St. John. It came up over a mountain and shone on the sea. Those lucky enough to be dining outside that evening experienced something very special.

Saturday, San Juan - Disembarkation started at 8:30 am and was handled very well. We waited in line in the terminal less than ten minutes to clear immigration. The ship docked at the main terminal, not the terminal across from the Sheraton in Old San Juan. (We had always docked there on previous voyages.) Our luggage was waiting for us. It was short cabride to the airport from the terminal.

We thoroughly enjoyed our cruise and look forward to more in the future!

We sailed on the Spirit in February. I posted a roll call last fall and heard from five or six fellow passengers. We exchanged ideas and requests for tour companions. Although the number was small, we were all excited to talk about the cruise in advance. We planned a get together at the sail away and there were at least a dozen of us sitting around a table, getting to know each other. You may find that the responses are low in numbers but those who do respond will be enthusiastic and friendly.

DH and I have traveled on Seabourn four times and Seadream once. We have enjoyed each trip and never had a problem with cabins that smelled like smoke. Rarely did we ever even notice the smoke in the outside areas. I heartily agree that the people you meet primarily talk about traveling and are generally very down to earth and regular people. Like many groups, some are very well off and others simply like to use their discretionary incomes to travel. Of the close to 1000 people that we have met on the cruises, I can think of less than five who I disliked meeting. In my life outside of cruising, the number is higher!! Options to formal night attire exist on all the trips. We were on a Seabourn trip in the Caribbean in late January and formal night attire ranged from evening pants with tops to cocktail dresses to gowns. Men wore suits or tuxes in the main dining room only. Don't let formal night attire keep you from taking the ship that you want. You will be comfortable.