Island Princess 10-Day Panama Canal Review - Not quite LIVE ... but close

[sloney]

thanks Angel...I'm looking forward to reading the next two days!

[sunsetbeachgal]

HI Angel,

 

The lobster was excellent on our Nov, 20th cruise as well-actually they served lobster tails twice on our cruise-once on Thanksgiving and again on the second formal night (with the king prawns). Yummy!

[insag]

We were on the Island on Nov 20,,,

Best food EVER on a cruise...any line

 

Tina

30 cruises and counting

[poffles]

What a wonderful review. Your pictures are great. I am considering a Panama for 2011 so your review caught my eye. I wish I was leaving tomorrow.

 

Thanks for sharing.

[sloney]

I've spent so much time reading your reveiw I feel like I know you and JD.

 

Thanks again!

 

Sloney

[martink]

We just returned home from the Island Princess Panama Canal cruise and

must say it was one of the best cruises we have had. The whole staff of the ship was very friendly, the food was very good, the entertainment was not the best, but enjoyable. The only disappointment was we did not go to Montego Bay, Jamaica, as the itinerant stated, but was changed to Ochos Rios.

 

The passengers were several different nationalties and ages, but everyone was very friendly.

 

The Island Princess was certainly an enjoyable ship.;)

[martink]

Angel

 

Did Lee Miles or the guide push Emeralds since he owns the Emerald Store?

 

 

No his tour was the best. We had JJ as a guide and he was so knowledgable. This was one of the best tours.

[Whoo]

Thanks for the review - brings back so many memories of our full-transit cruise on the Coral (sister-ship) in April 2008!!!

[auntsees]

thanks, sweetangel, for such a detailed, picture filled cruise review! i'm leaving this coming sunday, and actually have the EXACT cabin you and JD had! you answered many of the questions i had, and turned average excitement into overdrive excitement!

 

will try to get to the posts for others who'll be on the i/p with me and my entire family (parents, siblings and spouses, nephews and even a grandfather-in-law and his girlfriend!). i can't wait!

[Turtle 2]

What a great job you've done. We leave home in 12 days and cann't wait to see the ship in person.:):):)

[kalyn]

Thank you Sweet Angel for the great review. We will be going through the Panama Canal in Feb. and your review was wonderful. All of us appreciate the time and effort you put into making it such a detailed and complete review. Thankyou again.

[travelingla]

Hey, Sweet Angel, nice to know there are a few other Nebraskans cruising! I find it quietly hilarious to tell people, especially from the East Coast (sorry, east-coasters) we're from Nebraska and see their eyes glaze over as they so obviously try to figure out just where that is--I've had people mistake us for Alaskans and almost any other 'middle of the country' state. We've also had TWO different people ask us if we weren't afraid of the "Indians"! (Sorry, Native Americans, now I've offended you too.) That one just left us speechless.

 

But that's ok, I'd have a hard time myself filling in all those teeny east coast states on a blank map.

 

Keep up the great review!

 

omgosh -- I had to stop reading this fabulous thread to reply to your geography lesson! The USA IS like a bunch of small countries and I won't even claim to being able to fill in a blank map - I am from the gulf coast -- but "Indians" -- P L A E E Z E ......that one does take the cake!

[travelingla]

 

It was only then that I realized where Colombia got its name. BONK! Kind of felt like I’d been hit in the head with a brick. And here I came sailing on the Columbus Day cruise (October 12th).

 

I barely got a glimpse of the statue before we were off again. I took photos of the Nina and Pinta but had to leave the Santa Maria behind. The group was leaving without me.

 

 

I love this! and BONK me as well - duhhhh... unless you'd said this I probably still would not have put it together! I am like you with photos -- taking literally thousands on any trip over 5 days.... and my family and friends run off and leave me behind -- I have to go catch up -- but they are always so thrilled to see the photos upon return. ummmph..... This is THE best review I've ever read -- the pictures just make it come alive. I am just now researching a Panama C cruise and you have me hooked -- I've never been on a Princess ship but this is very tempting - Princess should pay you a commission! :) Now....back for more -- I am spending my morning on this thread.....

[travelingla]

<<This was a very relaxing morning. I thought it was perfect how we enjoyed the early canal time from our balcony and then moved around once we hit the locks to see all the viewpoints. There was plenty of time to see it all, so we never felt rushed>>

I have to say you ARE a sweet angel! ;)

I wrote down all your 'move-abouts' to keep in my file -- perfect viewing schedule - thank you so very much!

now---back for more-- what a lovely time I'm having with your review......

[travelingla]

<<When you are on a cruise, everything goes by in such a whirlwind, and then it's over. If you don't label your pictures, you very quickly forget what they were all about. So journaling about this trip is as much for my benefit as for all of you. >>

 

I took a quick break - but for about 3 hours I've done a 10 day cruise... :D

 

Now - I think I can save my thousands and move one elsewhere as I've seen, tasted, smelled the wonderful Island Princess and the Panama Canal -- you are amazing......

 

 

I so agree with your note above on journaling and labeling photos asap -- it can get away from ya in a hurry. The worse thing for me is forgetting the names of the dishes I photograph!!! :eek:

 

I am curious -- do you keep the journal on board and do you jot notes all day long?

 

This has been magnificent - thank you so very very much for the T I M E it took to post the photos and details - -you've helped hundreds of us online.

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

:)

[BambiRumsey]

I am bumping this up in hopes of seeing your pics and thoughts on Jamaica and the final sea day...

 

We are taking this exact itinerary on January 29th and was so thrilled to find your thread when I did my search for Island Princess

 

:)

[SweetAngel]

Hi everyone!

 

I'll bet you all thought I was gone for good. But no ...

 

I'm still determined to finish this review.

 

I'm just working two jobs and starting Grad School ... plus single mom here. Looks like I won't be going on any more cruises for awhile. :(

 

I am curious -- do you keep the journal on board and do you jot notes all day long?

 

I brought a journal along ... never had a single minute to write in it, though. Ha, ha.

 

Which means ... I will have to write about the final days based on a three-month old memory. Luckily, pictures are great for triggering memories.

 

So here goes . . .

[SweetAngel]

Day 9 – Ocho Rios, Jamaica

 

We slept in as late as we could today. On our way to breakfast, we crossed the ship to see Jamaica (since this time, the starboard side got the view). Our first view of Jamaica was that of a gleaming light against the darkness.

 

 

The sky brightened quickly, though, as we ate breakfast in Horizon Court. The water around us was the most beautiful turquoise blue. The pier at Ocho Rios was very inviting and colorful. We were very excited for our tour!

 

 

For our final excursion, JD and I decided to do something fun together. I do enjoy learning about new cultures and visiting historical sites, but I also think it’s good to do at least one adventure excursion on every cruise. So Jamaica would be our adventure stop.

 

Of course, everyone says you have to do Dunn’s RiverFalls, but Princess offers a lot of choices to go along with the falls. After seeing this picture online …

 

 

… JD and I decided to do the Jamaican Bobsled along with Dunn’s RiverFalls.

 

Today’s tours met at the end of the pier (instead of Wheelhouse Bar). JD and I enjoyed walking off the ship at our own pace and taking pictures as we strolled leisurely down the pier.

 

 

The tour organizers did a great job of getting everyone in the right place and keeping the groups in order. Those who arrived first got the first bus out, and the buses kept coming, one after the other.

 

The tour design was excellent. Buses would take us from stop to stop without making us feel pressured or rushed. We spent as much time as we wanted in each spot, and we never had to worry about missing our boat. Everything was near the ship … no two-hour bus rides … only short transits … just play, play, play all day long.

 

From the minute we met our first bus driver, we were infused into the Jamaican culture. “Don’t worry, be happy. No problem. Yah, Mon!”

[SweetAngel]

Day 9 – Dunn’s River Falls

 

Our first stop was Dunn’s River Falls. As soon as we got off the bus, a guide met us, made us sign waivers, and gave us very explicit directions. Then she handed us off to our river guides. They were wonderful and had a great sense of humor. Everything was taken care of for us, and the guides were very conscientious and protective of us. There were lockers for our valuables and even water-shoes to rent.

 

You NEED shoes that can get soaked, won’t fall off, and have good grip without slipping. Those rubber water-shoes that you buy at a discount store are perfect. Most tennis shoes will work. My tennis shoes had a very slick, flat sole, though, and would have been a bit treacherous. Despite everyone’s warnings about open-toed shoes, I wore sandals, which actually worked pretty well (except for all the pebbles in my toes). At least my sandals had great grip and a good strap on the heel, so they wouldn’t come off.

 

There are two options for seeing the falls: Dry and Wet.

 

DO NOT take the dry path unless you have serious walking difficulties. It is not the same at all, and you will regret standing on the banks watching everyone else have all the fun. It is not terribly hard. People of every age do the falls. You can too!

 

Now lots of pictures are taken along the way that you can purchase, and the ship’s photographer even comes along too. But the absolute best thing to do is bring your camera and give it to your guide. He will take pictures all along the way, great pictures, for the cost of only a tip. He does a great job … so tip well! And don’t bring your expensive camera. Although our guide was careful not to damage anyone’s camera, he was dangling five cameras from his arm as he traversed slippery rocks through spraying water.

 

You can also pay for a very amateur video, which we did, but I wouldn’t recommend it. It basically pans back and forth amongst a huge group of strangers with occasional, quick glimpses of you passing by or waving at the camera.

 

Here are the pictures that our guide took for us:

 

1st Picture Stop - Entering the Falls

 

You have to hold hands in a line as you traverse the falls. This is done for safety, and the guides are very picky about this. There are plenty of little stops along the way where you can let go of hands and take your own pictures with a waterproof camera.

 

 

At one spot, our guides asked us each to sit on a little rock chair in the waterfall, letting the rushing water pour all over us. Everyone tried it. Our guides were great at getting us to relax and have lots of fun.

 

 

Oh … and guess what … the Chief Cruise Director himself, Paul, was a part of our little group going through the falls. I kept thinking about the people who commented that they never saw him around, yet he was right there beside us all day long! He does seem to be a little shy as far as most cruise directors go, but still a nice guy and a good CD.

 

Nice, nice pictures. A professional photographer couldn’t have taken a better portrait than this:

 

After the falls, we browsed through the little souvenir huts. Oh my … Whew! Everything you ever heard is true! The vendors at Dunn’s River Falls are absolutely the most aggressive I have ever encountered. It’s almost scary. Unless you really want something here, don’t even pause, don’t look. There are better and cheaper places to buy souvenirs. The vendors use many methods to “con” you into giving them money. They’ll listen for your name and then call you over. They’ll start carving your name into wood and expect you to buy it. They won’t take “No” for an answer. They’ll sell you something that actually belongs to someone else, and then that person will expect payment too. And, yes, they WILL offer you drugs.

 

So after purchasing souvenirs, we made our way to the park entrance to meet our bus. On the way, there was a reggae band adding a festive flair to the air. JD gave the guitarist a $5 bill, and the guy lent JD his guitar to play along with the band. That was great fun.

 

 

Some of our fellow Panamaniacs saw us with the band and came over to dance along.

 

 

We were concerned about how to meet the bus, but it was right there waiting for us, ready to take us to our next tour stop. We were in such wonderful spirits. This was definitely the most enjoyable excursion of them all!

[SweetAngel]

Day 9 – MysticMountain

 

Our second stop was MysticMountain, which was every bit as great as the famous Dunn’s RiverFalls (JD liked the bobsled ride best of everything).

 

The lovely rainforest gardens are beautifully kept. A bridge crosses over a pretty little stream. You can’t help but feel that this place is enchanted.

 

 

Once across the bridge, a chair-lift takes you on an unforgettable ride up the mountain.

 

 

Your feet dangle as you ride high above the rainforest canopy. Note the shoes we both wore into Dunn’s RiverFalls.

 

 

The views are superb. Lush foliage surrounds you. Beautiful, intricate plants abound.

 

 

It’s a different world, traveling above the treetops, getting a bird’s eye view.

 

 

In the distance is the Caribbean Sea and Island Princess at the pier.

 

[SweetAngel]

Day 9 – Mystic Mountain Bobsled

 

The chairlift took us to the top of the Mystic Mountain, where there was a little lodge with a very nice gift shop and free samples of Jamaica’s world-renowned Blue Mountain coffee. This was the place to buy souvenirs. There was a bracelet with my daughter’s name on it (despite a very unusual spelling). There was a Jamaican Pikachu for my Pokemon-loving son.

 

 

There were even Jamaican snacks that I could purchase and take home to the kids (chocolate covered peanuts-yum!) JD and I spent at least an hour browsing, and still we never felt rushed for time. We did keep looking at our watches, however, amazed at how slowly time moved in the land of no problem.

 

When we were ready, we boarded our bobsleds. There was no line, no wait.

 

 

The track takes you out into the forest, where it’s just you and nature. It’s a long, relaxing ride down the mountainside. You control the speed, so you can go as fast or slow as you want.

 

 

Even the part where you get towed back up the mountain is a nice ride.

 

 

It’s like a private, scenic roller coaster where you control your own speed.

 

JD finishing his ride.

 

There is also a nice view of the ship from the track.

 

 

There were not that many tourists here. Today was actually a national holiday in Jamaica, and there were just as many locals as tourists out enjoying Mystic Mountain with their families.

[sunsetbeachgal]

Thanks for the great photos of Jamaica! On our visit in November we decided to take it easy and spent the afternoon at the lovely beach right there at the end of the pier and just leisurely shop. What a great day! Thanks again for your wonderful photos and commentary.

[texasgirl29]

Thanks for continuing on with your review. We also went to Dunn River and Mystic Mountain. Boy, those chair lifts were high up!!!! In fact, reading your review before we took our cruise on the Island Princess over Christmas inspired me to take a lot of photos and make a pictoral review. You can see it here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1112431

 

JoAnn

[gands4fun]

My husband and I are going on the Island Princess for a 10 day Panama Canal trip in April,2010. We have gone on many Cruises and have enjoyed them all. We've been on 7 Carnaval Cruises and 3 Royal Caribbean Cruises, but this will be our first time on a Princess Cruise and we are really looking forward to it. It was so nice of you to take the time and give your review, I really appreciate that. I've saved your review, so I can go back and check things out.

Thank you so much

[SweetAngel]

Day 9 – Infinity Edge Pool

 

Right beside the Jamaican Bobsled is an infinity edge pool that is free for anyone to use.

 

 

I LOVED it!

 

 

The water was so perfectly refreshing. It felt wonderful!

 

 

There is a waterslide too.

 

 

The above is my favorite picture of the whole vacation. I gave JD a foot massage for taking it!! J

 

 

Yah, Mon!

 

JD had to drag me away. We weren’t exactly sure how long it would take to get back to the pier, and so we wanted to have plenty of time to ride back down the chairlift and catch the tour bus.