Staplerman

There's been a lot of recent questions about beaches and snorkeling on St. Thomas and St. John. Instead of responding to each one separately, I thought I'd bring this back to the top of the forum with my blog address.

http://travelingwithsue.blogspot.com/2013/11/2013-st-thomas-9-day-vacation-to-island.html

Hey Sue, love your blog! We just returned from a wedding on St. Thomas last month and have been there on cruises many times. I realize some repeat cruisers find St. Thomas to be boring after awhile, but (like you) we absolutely LOVED staying on the island for an extended period of time. We found the vibe to be completely different from the typical "day trip off the cruise ship." We stayed at the Marriott at Morningstar Beach and it was fabulous! I would encourage anyone to visit St. Thomas for a week or long weekend.

I wanted to let you know your underwater pictures are outstanding! The schools of disc-shaped fish with long dorsal/pectoral fins are called Palometa. They are a cousin of the Pompano commonly found in the surf along the southeastern US coast. These fish will actually nip at you (which freaks some people out) but they're harmless. If I'm not mistaken, the fish you photographed in very shallow water are schooling juvenile palometa.

Thanks again for your blog, we'll be visiting STT on 3/11 and appreciate your info!

Get out early, catch a taxi to Magen's Bay. With young kids, you'll be glad you kept it simple and stayed on St. Thomas. Take your kids to St. John when they're older and can appreciate it more. Then it will be much more special for all of you.

I would suspect that any unfortunate cruiser who contracts Norovirus will do their level best to stay healthy on subsequent cruises.

I fell ill from Norovirus on Carnival Freedom in 2012. I'm 42 years old and I have never felt so poorly. I wanted to die. I'm being serious.

Now we hope for the best and plan for the worst. EVERYONE should carry packs of powdered Gatorade/Powerade with you. If anyone in your cabin falls ill, they're convenient and will save you $$$. Plus, you won't find yourself running around the ship looking for the one bar that stocks Powerade like we did on Carnival Freedom. Oh yeah, it's also handy for anyone nursing a hangover.

Also, be sure to carry Phenergan and Immodium. Both are inexpensive, easy to acquire and could quite literally save your cruise. My son and I were laid up for a day but these meds got us back on our feet well enough to enjoy Aruba the next day. They also helped us enjoy the rest of the cruise and not be stuck in the cabin.

Finally, do yourself a favor and pack several sets of food handler gloves. I suppose you could use them at buffets, etc. But if anyone gets sick in your cabin, using these gloves can help you keep from getting sick or going insane from repetitively wiping surfaces, knobs, etc. down to keep from getting sick.

Create a little "crash bag" with these items in it and throw it in your suitcase. Don't let fear ruin your vacation; prepare for the worst and hope for the best!

Dang, I wish my Dawn cruise was tomorrow!

It's so great to see all of you raving about these awesome musicians and performers!

Just back from Carnival Freedom yesterday.

I cannot recommend Sonny highly enough! He was OUTSTANDING!

DW, DS and I were in a small air-conditioned van with three other people. Sonny took us to the aforementioned spots, as well as making stops along the way based on requests and when he noticed something he thought would be of interest to us (i.e., showing us a cashew tree and the fruit/nut from one).

He charged us $25 each because we were with the larger group. If you've never been to Aruba before, do yourself a favor and book with Sonny. He has another driver named Howard that also works with him and they are hilarious together! Sonny drives the 10-passenger van and Howard drives the 15-passenger van. Once you see the cruiseship-excursion folks tanking around in huge Greyhound buses, you will be so happy you booked with Sonny. A very memorable and personalized experience!

We LOVE the Legend!

Still my favorite Carnival ship of all!

Oh yeah, we went on the Solstice back in February and both of us got the Premium Pkg. We're headed out on Eclipse this November (dang, I better hit the treadmill and get my girlish figure back) and plan to do it again.

In short, if you enjoy higher-end beers, fancy liquor drinks/martinis and fine wine with your meals, the Premium Package is fairly priced. If you aren't a wine snob and/or drink regular beers and "well drinks" the Classic Package will work. DW and I aren't typically heavy drinkers (well, except for the first sea day of that cruise...), but we do like good wine and higher-end beers, plus the twice-a-day Cafe al Bacio trip for capuccinos. We got our bill at the end of the cruise and saved approximately $150 by going with the Premium Package.

Just think about how many beverages you plan to drink in a day (be sure to include coffees/espresso/cappuccinos, bottles of water, etc.) and take the average price in that category. Do the math on a daily basis; then you'll see whether or not it makes sense to get the package. Also, we found that it made sense for us to get the package even though we had three port days.

I am interested in buying the premium non-alcohol package. I understand the items in the cabin fridge are not included. Would we be able to drink something from the fridge and replace it later to avoid being charged ?

Unfortunately, no. There are sensors in the fridge that note when beverages are taken out and it automatically charges your account. At least that's what I read in another thread.