Duddy

I think I can confirm what has already been said over and over here.  As for topless, some have done it on upper decks, but it is usually very windy and uncomfortable to be there.  There are always people exploring the ship ("legit" or not), so that is probably another reason women would probably not be topless.

As for nude or clothing optional, those days on America sailings are over, except for charter/takeover cruises. Whether the reason be society's snowflakes that get butt-hurt about everything or the fact that many of the popular water slides are elevated to a point where kids and other could easily see those deck areas - who knows?  You might find topless on European sailings here and there.  AIDA is a German cruise line which still has a C/O sundeck.  Note: Much of the information regarding C/O resorts and destinations you may find is out of date.  Do not go by the thing you find on the internet.

I have heard the Quest show on some cruises has gotten a bit out of hand (ie: fun).  But as others have said, that is clearly denoted as 'adult' in the Cruise Compass. It is a blast and not to be missed!

Sorry for good news or bad news.  Depends on your point of view 😉

Peace,

~Bob and Joelie~

On 10/24/2018 at 3:09 PM, thegoodlife247 said:

I know that Club Orient is closing, but I was wondering if the clothing optional section of the beach was still open and allowing people to enjoy a section of the beach that is clothing optional.  If not, is there another clothing optional beach in St. Maarten that is just as gorgeous?  Thank you.

I am not sure if your question regarding other beaches was answered here.

There is a very good, and active,  F B group that discusses nudism (as well as travel in general) in regards to all the beaches in SXM.  Please send me an email if you are interested in that.  b_duds at A O L dot com

~Bob and Joelie~

On 11/17/2018 at 5:17 PM, cathi007 said:

Please post back after your cruise. We are on the Escape in late Jan and have a stop in St. Martin. I have been to this island many times (honeymoon in 1985). My daughter and her family want to go to Orient Beach, as she was there when she was a teenager. I heard it was still pretty bad. O would love feedback, as we are also traveling with her 2 babies. Enjoy your cruise 🙂

On 11/17/2018 at 11:39 PM, Poppy42 said:

I'll post when we get back.

Reminder, it is about that time    If you guys have time, please provide a trip report regarding Orient Beach and anything worth noting about St Martin in general. 

Interestingly, we're heading to St Martin in about a week for a 6 night ADULT stay in Orient Bay.  Of course we're looking for a day at the beach.  We're Not newbies to C/O 😉   We may also make a trip into Philipsburg for some shopping.

In addition, we're also doing a cruise on the Escape to Bermuda on a family trip in April.  We would be very interested in your thoughts on that too!!

Thanks,

~Bob and Joelie~

PS: Feel free to msg us if you prefer

We had the same plan changed to the 2019 BNB for the same reason. If Club O isn't back up and running by 2020 we may do Hedo instead.

As for resorts there are many options. We did Couples Sans Souci in Jamaica. We also did a nudist B & B in St Martin. Each have their own vibe. Depends on what are looking for. Never done Hedo yet, but it's on our bucket list.

There are places on Costa Rica, Curacao, Mexico, St Martin.

If anyone wants details feel free to e mai l me bduds at verizon dot net

~Bob~

Does anyone know if there and any themed nights on the Christmas sailing . Where can I find this information .

Do people dress up for Christmas and the new year.

It's my first time to sail from America and I have lots of questions ,

Are there lots of children on board and is Santa also on board.

Any presents for us? We have been very good this year.

Any religious services .

While I do not have any definitive answers I can share some thoughts.

Not in any order:

Theme nights? With a longer cruise, I would think so. They need to break it up somewhat and make it interesting. More things to pack.

As a teenager, we cruised for 3 or 4 years in a row over Christmas/New Years cruises on HAL. While HAL was, and still is, more traditional; each holiday, the second night and the second-last night were always formal nights. While NCL is more casual, I would still expect to see many to dress up on the holidays anyway. You will see a few tuxedos, many suits and formal dresses. Our party certainly will.

Since this year, Christmas Eve and New Years Eve are both Sunday, you can probably expect to have many options for religious services.

There should be a good many children on board since this will be a natural break from school for most. Like Easter cruises, for example, kids may only miss a few days of school and they will usually go home and share their experiences with a presentation or report when they return. With a US sailing, I would guess Santa will appear at some point.

As for presents, I honestly have no idea. Probably not. However it would not surprise me to see something like a deep discount for booking a future cruise while on board. I would suggest asking these same questions in our roll call. Since many have already said that they are repeaters on this cruise and would know these answers for sure. I am only speculating.:confused:

From my experience with HAL and the NCL pics and videos I have seen, you can most certainly expect plenty of champagne flowing free for New Years Eve.:champagne-toast:

Hope that helps.

~Bob~

It's only topless and most adults use it to be away from kids in the ship and sunbathe normally -- at least it was in the Getaway.

We're on the NCL Gem in December. Family cruise and our itinerary changed so the day at Orient Beach in St Martin has been scrapped. We need a mid-winter nudist fix! I am pretty-sure most of the Freestyle Decks have been "Disneyfied" as they say. Does anyone have any updates on policies on ANY ship? Specifically the Gem?

Thanks!

~Bob

Probably a shot in the dark but here goes. We'll be on the island for a cruise stop in December. The 29th to be exact on NCL Gem. Our plans are to grab a taxi and head to Orient for the day. Will anyone else on CC be there on that day? Perhaps even on that cruise?

We've been to SXM countless times for cruise stops and even stayed for a few days near Orient last winter. Looking for just a relaxing, nude day at the beach while we're "in town"!

~Bob and Joelie~

Came off the Eclipse last week and we had a blast on this 14 nighter!!! Met a group from Vegas that were great folks! Even part of history in Bonaire with ETA $ Celebrity. Capt Leo and some other officers were there. By mistake I dumped my pics so if anyone can share with me for Bonaire let me know. Thanks.

Already booked for the Dec Holiday Bike Cruise plus that other that we won at a rally! Damn 2 more bike cruises in 2 years. Yeah!!!!!!

If you have questions feel free.

If for any reason you cannot make it on your upcoming cruises, let me know. We would be happy to take your place and ride! ;)

Seriously, if you have time, could you give us a short trip report, mainly focusing on the rides on each island. An ETA cruise is on our bucket list. But honestly we are concerned with the less-than-perfect Caribbean roads we've seen.

Thanks!

~Bob~

We've sailed on Jewel class ships four times out of NY; the muster drill has never interfered with sailaway.

 

If anything, last Feb. on the Gem, NCL did not take the drill seriously at all. People at our muster station were talking so loudly through the whole thing that none of the NCL announcements could be heard. At no time did any NCL representative tell people to be quiet or pay attention. While many people are veteran cruisers, many (including some at our table) are first timers. It was such an appalling mess that I spoke to the Security Officer afterwards; never had to do anything like that before on any ship.

We've actually found that too. The last few cruises were all the same way. Most people were loud and rude. Perhaps it is just the way people are today. Perhaps because so many were crammed into such a tight space. Maybe because the drills lasted so long on RCL. Who knows. :confused:

Thanks mking8288 for the tips! I do take pictures and really enjoy the whole sail-away experience. I will park by butt near an exit if I can and plan my "escape" route to the deck ;)

Thanks everyone!

~Bob~

You will be out of the muster drill venue well before sailaway...NCL has the "easiest" muster drill in my opinion. You don't have to bring the life jacket with you and you don't have to stand outside under the lifeboats - you will be assigned a venue (according to your cabin location)... such as the theater or atrium or Italian restaurant ;) and will simply go there & watch & listen ;)

That was the answer I was hoping to hear!

Our muster drill on the Allure (departing in Ft Lauderdale), was the worst ever :mad: It was at the same time as departure and went on forever. We had almost 6000 passengers. We were almost out to the ocean by the time I arrived on deck. Ended up with one picture and no sail-away experience to speak of.

I would have actually rather been on deck, pressed up against the bulkhead, wearing my awkward life jacket like back in the "old days"

~Bob~

for a 4pm departure time, muster drill is usually around 3/330

Thanks for the fast reply! I assume the drill will only take about 30-45 minutes since, according to some research I've done, the sail-away party is at 4:15pm?

~Bob~

We're new to NCL but have sailed the last few years on RCL and Carnival. We're considering the holiday cruise 2017 on the Gem and was wondering about the timing of the Muster Drill vs Sail Away.

I've sailed out of NYC many times and the sail-away is a sight, not to be missed! My recent experience, however, is that the muster drill begins about the same time as sail away and unfortunately we are forced to miss most of the sights. Further, the larger the ships (with more passengers), the longer the drill :(

Can any tell me their experiences on NCL, specifically the GEM out of NYC?

Thanks!

~Bob~

Where was the security? I'm amaze they could just come into the "private resort" without anyone stopping them.

 

What if guest was already on the island having some beach time and 20 or so boats suddenly appear out of nowhere? Isn't this a cause of concern?

 

RCL did the right thing by skipping the island.

Agreed. I am sure RCL has at least a few people on the ground and it would not surprise me; a few people in an inconspicuous boat off shore - closely monitoring the situation. All very trained and qualified to evaluate and make big decisions. Hence the choice for The Navigator to skip Labadee altogether Thursday. RCL (or any cruise line really) does not need the negative press if something bad occurrs; especially with passengers ashore.

We're scheduled there in March. We'll see what happens.

~Bob~

uksimonusa, awesome sample! We are taking our daughter's 16 year old friend with us for a 7 day cruise next year. We will definitely use this.

Thanks!

~Bob~

We're booked for March 2016 on Allure with a D1 hump balcony. We have 4 in the cabin so the balcony was a must. The larger space is a bonus!

Never sailed on the Allure, but according to the pics I've seen, I think a smaller balcony would be fine for just two people. But, honestly, with 4 people for 7 days; I would think you would want every square inch you can get! ;)

~Bob~

Here you go - straight from Carnival:

 

Large cooler restrictions:

Carnival Cruise Lines does not allow guests to bring large coolers on board its ships. However small, personal-sized coolers, no larger than 12”H x 12”L x 12”W for the purpose of housing small quantities of non-alcoholic beverages and/or medications are permitted as carry-on luggage. Screening and movement of large coolers through embarkation is an impediment to the boarding and security screening process. Therefore, large coolers are not permitted as carry-on or checked luggage.

 

http://www.carnival.com/core/faq.aspx#q-545894

Does the 12" cube apply to soft, fold-up ones or just hard side?

Guess we will be drinking our wine all at once rather than saving it for later ;)

~Bob~

We are going on the carnival paradise in 2 weeks :) I was on reading on another thread about how Carnival changed out their comfy bed to stiff cheap hard ones. I was wonder how the beds were on carnival paradise when you went?

 

Thanks,

 

Nicole

Gosh I hope not. We're sailing in 2 weeks. Stayed overnight in a hotel last March. The sheets were hard, but the real problem was that they were "loud" :mad: Any body movement was deafening. Never encountered that before.

~Bob~

Bump! Gotta read this later. Getting ready for this cruise in January.

Reviews and pics look amazing! Nice job

~Bob~

Great Review! Awesome electronic files! Good information. We are sailing in January, same cruise. many previous cruises. First time Carnival :)

~Bob~

Hi Robyn

I sail on the aos on august 17th from Southampton uk and was wondering if we can take any alcohol onboard with us also would anyone have any copies of the bar menus please

 

thanks in advance

goughsters

Anyone who is interested. I have bar menus and price lists. Maybe about 6 months old but it's a start :) email me at bduds@verizon.net and I will send them to you.

~Bob~

Hi everyone! Previous cruisers with RCL and HAL. Just booked a 5-day Western Caribbean for January aboard the Paradise. Anyone going on that one, let me know. I started a roll call thread last week. Looking forward to it.

Bob and Joelie

Not sure if it is my favorite. But I have a ss Rotterdam letter opener from the 1980s. I still use it every single day

~Bob~

Hi,

 

I have been searching this thread and it is possible that I just missed the information I am looking for . . . but, I would love to know from you guys which itinerary you think is best -- either A or B. Pro's/Con's of either . . . We are ready to book, but, just can't seem to make our mind up!

 

Thanks for any help or suggestions!!

We did the B trip in March and loved it. I had been to many of the "A-Trip" islands but moreso it was the kids' Easter week off school so that was the deciding factor.

I can write a short review later on. For now, please check out http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1788318 It is long, but ful of information. Robyn did a B2B with daily reports. Very cool.

~Bob~

Subscribe again :)

I have a question regarding the shop at the port before you board. Can someone tell me do they have a good selection of wine and what brands have you bought there? Any information will be helpful. This will be my only chance to get wine and water to take on board. Thank you.

We just sailed on the AOS in late March and stayed at the San Juan Marriott. Regarding the alcohol, there is a Walgreens right across the street in the next block (about a 5 minute walk). Prices are dirt cheap. Barefoot wine for $7 and the BIG bottle of Absolut for less than $20. I wanted to spend $500 there and ship it all home!! ;)

The prices in the terminal shop were very good but not as good as Walgreens. Convenient though for easy carry-on to board. Interestingly, they sold cases of water which you are "not supposed" to bring onboard. Do they really think me and my family would drink all 24 bottles in my one hour wait to board? :eek: Just an observation

Remember as you purchase alcohol in ports, three things:

1. If you are flying home, you are taking a chance by nature. Always pack it well in between layers of clothes and in a large Zip-Lock bag. I have flown many times with alcohol in checked bags but there is always that level of stress :o LOL

2. Technically for Customs you are limited to one liter per adult before you have to pay tax when you re-enter San Juan.

3. Try to have the shop pack your alcohol in a box and you carry it back on the ship. (Some shops do deliver). You will be sure it made it and when they take it at ship security, it is safe to be stored. We got a gift pack box as well as a bottle in a heavy duty shopping bag. The box arrived in our stateroom just after dinner on the last night, but the shopping bag got lost. They did find it after about an hour or so. Watch Security as they take it from you and be sure they tag it properly.

~Bob~