LONG! Carnival Destiny Review & Photos ~ 6-14-10 ~ 5 days to Grand Turk, HMC & Nassau

[CruiseVacationQueen]

Hi, everyone! Sorry about the long delay... real life got in the way of my review! Thanks for your patience and I promise to post more soon!

[emjay]

We will be in port from 7-2, is that enough time to do the golf carts and a little of Margaritaville? You pictures are beautiful!!

[CruiseVacationQueen]

We will be in port from 7-2, is that enough time to do the golf carts and a little of Margaritaville? You pictures are beautiful!!

 

Hi! Yes, as long as you get off the ship early! I'll keep sharing the time of day, as I post more of our day in GT (to give you an idea of how long it takes to move around the island). Hope to post more tomorrow!!!

[GetMeToABeach]

Thanks for your patience and I promise to post more soon!

 

Yay!:D

 

You're awesome.

 

P.S. "Hi" to all my fellow buckeyes! :)

[Wickedwill]

Cruise Vacation Queen-Thanks for the review, keep it coming. We have a group of 27 sailing on the Destiny 9/6 and your review has been very helpful (love the level of detail). Thanks to you I now have my entire day at GT planned out.

[gma5]

Thanks for such a great review. I can hardly wait for my turn to come to see this beautiful island.

 

Martha

[reno3]

you've convinced me to also rent a golf cart, but im wondering could 5 people fit in a cart? we are 2 adults and 3 teens. renting 2 seems expensive so im hoping maybe we all fit in just one. also i read you need to return it with the same amount of gas, can you pay with U.S. money? Thanks!! :)

From the pictures I have seen of the golf cart, it holds two in the front and two sitting backwards in the back. I don't think you can fit three in the back. Yes, U.S. money is what is used in Grand Turk.

See photo of cart in post #148 of this thread. Backseat looks small.

[taylor6400]

From the pictures I have seen of the golf cart, it holds two in the front and two sitting backwards in the back. I don't think you can fit three in the back. Yes, U.S. money is what is used in Grand Turk.

See photo of cart in post #148 of this thread. Backseat looks small.

 

I agree with you...4 adults and you could squeeze in a child, but not 2 adults and 3 grown kids. Unless your 3 teens are all 3 skinny and you might squeeze in...but i would think that would be hot/uncomfortable for a day.

[Sarah@Sea]

Cruise Vacation Queen-Thanks for the review, keep it coming. We have a group of 27 sailing on the Destiny 9/6 and your review has been very helpful (love the level of detail). Thanks to you I now have my entire day at GT planned out.

 

Hey cruise buddy!! Come say hi to all of us on the Roll Call!!!! http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1016911

[Wickedwill]

Hey cruise buddy!! Come say hi to all of us on the Roll Call!!!! http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1016911

 

I'll do that. I guess our group is at 25 now as 2 dropped out but the rest are for sure.

[CruiseVacationQueen]

you've convinced me to also rent a golf cart, but im wondering could 5 people fit in a cart? we are 2 adults and 3 teens. renting 2 seems expensive so im hoping maybe we all fit in just one. also i read you need to return it with the same amount of gas, can you pay with U.S. money? Thanks!! :)

 

Hi, Jess! Best bet for enough room is to rent 2... besides, it will be fun to have golf cart races! Even with 2 carts, you'll be saving a lot of $$ over the cost of a conventional excursion for 5 people. And, the US dollar is the official currency of Grand Turk. Happy cruising!

[CruiseVacationQueen]

Hi, everyone! Thanks for the positive response (and your patience!)... about to work on more of the review! Yay!

[Wickedwill]

Good to hear. I'll look forward to the next excerpt in the morning.

[alefr]

Great! Can't wait to see more! I'm constantly checking this page :o

[CruiseVacationQueen]

Back by popular demand... more of the review! LOL!

 

We leave Pillory Beach and head south on Beach Road toward downtown Cockburn Town. The road skirts the west side of the island along the waterfront, with many historical buildings and houses. In just a few minutes we reach the National Museum. I snap this photo as we roll by:

 

 

 

 

 

See the little yellow buildings just ahead? Locals sell all kinds of island souvenirs from these stalls... such as conch shells, clothing and shell jewelry. Can you spot the whale tail in the distance? We are about 5 miles away from the Destiny at this spot.

 

 

 

 

Ahhh... the view to the right is incredible! Most of the downtown area is protected by a sea-wall, as seen in the shot below. We are pleased to see that the island is recovering well from the hurricane in 2008.

 

 

 

 

As we pass by the Post Office, I remember one of our travel traditions: mailing ourselves a postcard from each place we visit! DH makes a quick u-turn and parks the golf cart near the PO. We get out and spend a few minutes exploring the adjacent courtyard with old cannons and read placards on a couple of the buildings. Christopher Columbus' land-fall on GT in 1492 is a recurring theme. We enter the PO and ask the clerk where we can buy a postcard... she directs us to the store upstairs. We climb the narrow wooden steps and enter a small room that has ice-cold A/C! Ahhh... what a relief! We take our time deciding which post card to buy, so we can cool off a bit. The store clerk is very friendly, and we enjoy listening to her island accent. We pay $1.50 USD for the card and postage stamp (BTW ~ the US dollar is the official currency of the Turks). We write our address and "We were here on 6/16/10!" before we hand the card back to the clerk for mailing. Deed done, we head back downstairs for more of our journey!

 

I glance at my watch and notice that the time is only 9:20 am! It's way too early to head to our secret beach... we still have a lot of time for more exploring. Where to go, next? DS wants a turn driving the cart, so we decide to head over to the "really remote" side of the island so DS can drive around a bit. We head north on Beach Road (it's one-way in this part of downtown) and cut over to Pond Street, the major thorough-fare. DH spots a gas station and decides to fill the tank now, rather than wait until later in the day. Can you believe the gas stations are Full-Service in little 'ole Grand Turk? We instruct the attendant to pump 1 L of gas (I think it cost $5), which will be plenty for the day's journey. We tip him $2 for his friendly service and head south on Pond Street. Just as we leave the gas station, our dinner-mates whiz by on their own golf cart, smiling and waving as they pass by. We are glad they took our advice at dinner last night to get out and explore GT... they look like they are having a blast!

 

Traffic is still pretty light, but there are several cars, taxis and tour busses on this road. The golf cart goes pretty fast and most of the vehicles don't even try to pass us. We take a left on Church Folly Street and circle around to Breezy Brae Road. The area is now a bit more industrial. We see huge white mounds, which we guess is salt. We also pass by a car "grave-yard", with lots of old rusted-out cars. The road now goes up, up, up the steep hill heading toward the eastern side of the island. The golf cart easily makes it up the hill, and when we reach the top, our eyes feast on the gorgeous view! This side of the island has shell-and-dirt roads and is deserted except for a random house, here and there. We pull over and let DS hop into the driver's seat. Notice the huge, modern house in the background. Yeah, we'll take that one! LOL! The only draw-back to that house is that the back yard has a sheer cliff that drops off to rocks & water below!

 

 

 

 

 

DS enjoys driving up and down several roads and dutifully parks the cart when I announce it's time for more photos. The water is quite calm on this side of the island today. The beach looks very inviting, except the climb down the cliff is very dangerous. Just beyond the green vegetation, the ground drops at least 100 feet and the side of the cliff is covered with sharp rocks. No rock climbing for us, today!

 

 

 

 

 

I remember that one of my cruise buddies from our upcoming Miracle cruise asked me to check out Conch World. We can see the buildings in the near distance, so we hop back in the cart to head over there. DH snaps this photo of DS & I before we take off:

 

 

 

 

Remember the sheer drop-off with jagged rocks that I keep mentioning? I'd just like to share that I am still having night-mares (to this day!) about that cliff. You see, to leave the area where DS parked the golf cart, we needed to go in reverse to turn around. Well, DS put the cart in reverse, all right... but then proceeded to push the gas pedal all the way down! We went barreling at full speed, in reverse... toward the cliff! DS panics and looks at me for help, while DH & I scream at him to hit the brake. He lifts his foot a minute and then slams it back down on the gas pedal by mistake! "We're gonna' die", is running through my mind! Aaaaaaaa!!!! Thanks to God, DS hit the brake pedal just in time! (Or else you wouldn't have this long review, right?!) Poor DH is in the back seat, which is facing the edge of the cliff... now less than 4 feet away! DS didn't want to drive any longer, but DH & I were too shook up to drive... so we made DS keep going! LOL!

 

UP NEXT: off to Conch World!

 

 

[Sarah@Sea]

I kept refresshing the page so I wouldn't miss the update! I'm glad to see you are getting around a lot of the island, as I'm quite sure I won't be off the ship as early as you were...but we know we only have until 2 to enjoy the island so we will be sure to allow plenty of time to tour the island and grab lunch at Jack's.

[mtmx2]

wow, lots of good information. We are cruising soon for the first time and have no idea what to expect.We are celebrating all of our 4 summer birthdays! By the way how much are the drinks, and the special drink of the day? Thanks

[CruiseVacationQueen]

wow, lots of good information. We are cruising soon for the first time and have no idea what to expect.We are celebrating all of our 4 summer birthdays! By the way how much are the drinks, and the special drink of the day? Thanks

 

Wow! Your first cruise... I wish I could go with you, just to watch the amazement on your face! Crusing is such a wonderful vacation experience... and Carnival offers the best value for the money, IMHO!

 

Drink prices run from $4.75 for a beer or your basic mixed beverage (gin & tonic, screwdriver, etc.) to $8.75 for the Classic Cocktails (which will earn you a $5 Match Play at the casino, BTW!). Wine is marked up about 300%... a bottle that costs $9 at home will cost you about $27 onboard. And 15% gratuity is automatically added to all drink receipts. But, even though the beverages cost more than on land, the quanity (and quality!) of food & entertainment will more than make up for your potential bar tab. The DOD costs $6 something in the keep-sake glass. You can always ask for the DOD in a regular glass, which will save you $1! Happy cruising!

[CruiseVacationQueen]

So... after our near-death experience, I insist that DS drive in the middle of the road so we don't run off the cliff! LOL! The time is now 9:40 am. Still early... Yay!

 

We head south on the dirt road and reach Conch World in just 2 minutes. A tour bus arrived just before us, and the 20 or so passengers are making their way up the wood board-walk. A mini-van taxi pulls up just behind us, and 4 passengers get out. We head up the walk-way and I snap a few pictures of the surroundings. Check out the cool boat at the entrance:

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the cute directional sign that proclaims that Miami is only 560 miles away. Boo! Don't wanna' think about how close we are to home... we're on vacation, after all!

 

 

 

 

 

Looking at the photo below: from where I am standing, there is a small building on my left with restrooms. To my right is the small outdoor cafe area. The bus passengers have been seated at round tables and the Conch World tour guide is handing out samples of fresh conch for them to taste. He then explains that additional conch snacks & beverages are available for purchase. I look for someone to ask about admission prices, but don't see anyone around except the tour guide who is busy with the bus passengers. The four people who got out of the taxi are wandering around the small complex, snapping lots of photos as they explore. I decide to investigate further up the boardwalk. DH & DS, who are now done exploring the restroom join me at the top of the walk-way. There are 4 small round buildings up here. Three of them appear to be exhibits and one is a gift shop. We enter the gift shop (which has cold A/C!) and examine the many conch shells available for sale, along with shell necklaces and other souvenirs. The clerk either doesn't speak English (most likely) or isn't interested in talking to us, so we leave. The walkway to the other 3 buildings is roped off, so we head back down to the cafe. I poke around looking for a brochure or anything that will give me some info. The tour guide is now busy directing the bus passengers up the walk-way, so my hopes in finding out more about the place are dashed. As we leave, I wonder if Carnival's $36 pp price for this excursion is worth the money. Without seeing the inside of the exhibit buildings, I can't say for sure. Can you spot the Destiny in the distance?

 

 

 

 

 

The view from Conch World is definitely gorgeous, however! I heard the tour guide say that there is a set of wooden stairs leading to the beach. AHHH... he didn't tell them it is down a cliff! LOL!

 

 

 

 

 

The gift shop is called the Pink Pearl. The blue sky looks amazing against the coral-colored buildings!

 

 

 

 

 

I took the photo below, later in the afternoon, from the top deck of the Destiny during sail-away. I zoomed in all the way to get this shot, which shows the entire Conch World complex. The turquoise building is where the restrooms are located. The 4 round buildings are the exhibits & gift shop. The outdoor cafe is beside the restrooms (not visible in this photo).

 

 

 

 

 

The time is now just after 10 am. Time to go to our secret beach! Will it still be just as gorgeous after the hurricane, we wonder? Will the nice public restroom (great for changing into dry clothes) still be there? How about the small house that was converted into a restaurant? Did it blow away? We hope not! Let's go see...

 

UP NEXT: our beach!

 

 

[CruiseVacationQueen]

We hop back in the golf cart, with me at the wheel. I drive north up one of the dirt roads and we pass by a new house under construction. The workers stop and wave as we drive by. Everyone here is so friendly! I turn left on Breezy Brae Road. When we get back to Church Folly Street I turn right, which is the long way around, but I want to see more of the inside of the island. We pass by a school, several houses and then businesses. Again, we receive many smiles and waves along the way. Several salt ponds line the interior of the island, and we zig-zag our way back to Pond Street. I turn left onto the main road, heading south. At the Do-It Center (looks like an Ace Hardware), I take the fork in the road to the right. We drive through a small neighborhood and then I see the familiar house up ahead on the right! YES! The small restaurant is still there! It didn't get blown away, after all. Yay! I park in the shade in front of the restaurant, which is called the Sunset Cabana. We hop out of the golf cart, collecting our back pack and snorkel bag. We are startled by a man riding a horse up the road! He stops to chat with us and we ask him if he knows the name of this beach. He says "No" and trots on down the road. I guess we'll never know the official name of this beach. I guess it will always be "our secret beach"!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A new sign has been installed on the road, declaring the beach is part of the National Park. I think the whole west coast is actually part of the NP, because we noticed signs just like this all up and down Beach Road.

 

 

 

 

 

The white building may not look like much, but it is a (very clean!) restroom... great for changing into dry clothes!

 

 

 

 

 

This is the side view of the restaurant. See the cedar tree on the left, down by the beach? That's the only bit of shade on the beach. We park all our gear under that tree.

 

 

 

 

 

DS wasted no time in getting down to the water! He is busy skipping shells while DH & I head over to the shady cedar tree.

 

 

 

 

 

We call this place our secret beach because we have never seen anyone here, except us! (And the lady who works in the restaurant, of course!) But, that is going to about to change... we have company!

 

 

UP NEXT: meeting our new beach companions!

 

 

 

 

 

[CruiseVacationQueen]

So, as I mentioned... we call this "our secret beach" because we have never seen anyone else here! In fact, even the restaurant lady isn't here today. As I reach the shade of the cedar tree, I am suddenly greeted by new company... who give me a pretty good scare!

 

Just as I am setting our bags down in the sand, a pack of three wild dogs run up behind me, barking wildly. I am almost scared to turn around, afraid of facing the mean creatures behind me. Not wanting to get bitten on the behind, I quickly turn around and am pleasantly surprised to see three cute dogs. Dirty, and flea-bitten... but still adorable! As soon as I turn around and face them, their mean growls turn into happy yelps and butt-swaying tail-wags! I don't dare touch them, but I do love them from a safe distance! DH & DS came over to see about all the commotion. One of the dogs curled up at DH's feet! Isn't she cute?

 

 

 

 

 

 

DS & DH give me that "you're-crazy" look! I can't help but gush all over every animal I meet, and they think I am borderline-crazy for thinking these flea-bags are darlings! LOL!

 

 

 

 

 

Look at this poor little guy, with that large tumor on his face. If we were at home, I'd be taking him to the vet to get that fixed!

 

 

 

 

 

At least we don't have to worry about anyone stealing our stuff while we are snorkeling. We have a new, trusty watch dog!

 

 

 

 

 

DH & DS go down to sample the water temperature. Just right, they declare! I notice a car pull up to the restaurant to drop off a young girl in her early 20's. Could this be the "new" restaurant lady? Sure enough, she starts opening all of the windows and sweeping the side porch. Yay!

 

 

 

 

 

Look at the glorious view looking north up the beach... the cell tower in the distance is actually right in front of the Post Office!

 

 

 

 

UP NEXT: more of our beach!

 

 

[CruiseVacationQueen]

The Destiny is parked to the south of us, but isn't visible from this beach because English Point juts out into the ocean, blocking the view. I guess-timate that this beach is right in the middle of downtown and the Cruise Center.

The time is now 11 am... still so early in the day! Yay!!! I grab some cash and head up to the restaurant. The lady is cleaning the front open-air bar area when I approach. I notice the drink cooler is not very full, but I do see a few green Heineken labels! She speaks to me (not in English!) and I hold up a $20 dollar bill and point to the beers. With a few more pointing gestures she understands my request for 2 Heineken's and a Ginger Ale for DS. I hand her the $20 and she hands me back a $10 bill. I am able to understand (in broken English) that she owes me $2 more, but that she doesn't have any change. No problem, I say... and happily trot back down to the beach with my cold stash. What a deal... $10 bucks for 2 beers, a soda & a $2 tip!

DH & DS are already in the water, so I join them... and bring our refreshments, of course! Nothing like enjoying a cold drink while relaxing in the warm Caribbean! (Well, Atlantic Ocean technically... but you know what I mean! LOL!) We swim and snorkel for an hour and a half. We see a ton of clown fish, live coral, red snapper, angel fish and more! Our doggie friends even join us in the water a couple of times. Unfortunately everything good must come to an end... we pack up our stuff around 12:45 pm so we'll have time to stop by Jack's shack before getting back on the ship.

We drive south and turn right onto Waterloo Road. We see many more of those Beach Access signs along the way. I am not quite sure how to get to Jack's Shack from the road, but know that it should be somewhere close to the Government Complex. When we spot the signs for Governor's Beach, I turn right. We drive down to the beach and a few taxis are parked, waiting for their clients. One of the drivers gives us directions. We are almost there. Just look for the boat and turn right. Sounds easy enough! Sure enough, we find the correct road and park behind what I guess is the back side of Jack's Shack. A few guys are busy cleaning diving gear, but they stop what they are doing and escort us around to the front side where the patio is located. The place is not crowded at all, and the atmosphere is very quiet and subdued. We almost didn't stop, because I was worried it might be too rowdy for DS. But not today... it was almost too "sleepy" for all of us! LOL!

We sit at a table under a large umbrella and order 2 rum drinks called Mosquito Bites. DS orders a Coke and a hot dog. DH & I decide to share an order of Cajun Chicken. The menu is much more limited than we expect, but the chicken is very good... and the dipping sauce is amazing. Can't wait to go back in March 2011 for more chicken! We notice a couple of sailboats anchored just off-shore and wonder if they belong to the small group of patrons at the bar. Lucky ducks! What a wonderful place to visit by private boat. Must be nice! So around 1:15 pm we head back to the ship. We park the cart at the rental area and trudge back to the Cruise Center. Seems like a much longer walk, on the way back... and much hotter! But it was well worth it... we had a fabulous day at Grand Turk! We are back onboard by 1:25 pm.

We go to the room and drop off our stuff and freshen up a bit. We head up to the pool area for sail-away. A quick stop at the pool bar yields 2 Miami Vice's. Cold and refreshing! We are sorry to be leaving GT so soon! We hang out on Deck 10 for quite a while, taking many, many photos. Here's a shot of Margaritaville... notice the cabanas around the pool and the hundreds of lounge chairs on the beach.

Here's a zoom-shot of the cruise pier. The beach to the right is quiet and tranquil.

I'd like to explore the southern-most tip of the island one day... looks like a beautiful spot to relax!

And, here is a wider shot of the Cruise Center. The buildings on the far left of the beach is the White Sands Hotel.

UP NEXT: more of Grand Turk!

[cruisingagaininnov2008]

Thanks so much for your review! The pictures are just gorgeous. We are making this trip in November. I am now seriously considering renting a golf cart in Grand Turk. Maybe we will just find our own secret beach!

[gaylensgigi]

What a nice suprise this morning...your pictures are beautiful.Grand Turk is one of my favorite places.We always forgo Margaritaville and head to Jacks.Love it there.Never knew about the golf carts.Your review has been very helpful,cant wait till we make it back there so I can do a day your way:)

[jdawsonrn]

I'm really enjoying your review!! I would love to take a cruise with that Itinerary. Can't wait for your review of HMC with a Cabana.