Just Booked 2nd Cruise ... Carnival Victory ... Questions!

[CBussey64]

FINALLY ... Carnival Victory for Feb. 6 ... Every day is a port day (at hubs request) ... San Juan ... St. Thomas ... Dominica ... Barbados ... St. Lucia ... St. Kitts ... St. Maarten ... San Juan.

 

Can anyone tell me the good, bad and ugly with Carnival Victory and what hotel you would recommend pre and post cruise?

 

Thanks!

[BMoreGman]

I sailed on the Victory back in January 2007 and thought it was a wonderful ship. It is pretty big, although not the biggest. I don't know if it has been redone since.

 

Of course, I am happy on any of their ships. I've been on some of the old, small ships and had a wonderful time.

[mstravel]

Can't say much about the Victory, won't sail her until September. We have been to San Juan several times and we prefer The Marriott Stellaris hotel, if you the price is right. We have also stayed at the Caribe Hilton, but that stay was many years ago.

[Browezilla]

I'm doing the Victory as my 20-somethingth cruise. I did a similar cruise on Carnival Destiny. It's a great itinerary. For hotel, there's a Marriott Courtyard close to the port and airport. I think it is the Isla Verde or something like that. Great hotel for the price.

[VictoryLover2]

FINALLY ... Carnival Victory for Feb. 6 ... Every day is a port day (at hubs request) ... San Juan ... St. Thomas ... Dominica ... Barbados ... St. Lucia ... St. Kitts ... St. Maarten ... San Juan.

 

Can anyone tell me the good, bad and ugly with Carnival Victory and what hotel you would recommend pre and post cruise?

 

Thanks!

 

This is a great itineray, but a busy one. There is lots to do and see.... tours with Woody in Dominica.... snorkel with the turtles in Barbados.... Jungle/Rainforest to great beaches... Megan's in St. Thomas to Maho in St. Maarten. Only drawback that I have seen in my two previous trips with this itinery was Carnival has a 7 day cruise that starts in Barbados, so the port is a little busy... As far as hotels.... good luck getting close to the port in San Juan! At this close of a date, yes 200 plus days out, the rooms are full. There are 3 sometimes 4 ships that depart on Sunday. And the rooms are $$$$$$$$.

But still... I have booked my third time on this itinery, I can't get enough of the Islands and all there is to do.

Hope this helps....... Brookie & Ed:)

[huxlemo]

We were on the Victory this past April. It was our best cruise yet! Absolutely no complaints. We stayed pre-cruise at the Intercontinental. It was fabulous and near restaurants and stores within walking distance. We stayed at the Radisson post cruise and that was not a good experience.

[wdnoble9999]

We were on the Victory this past March. Stayed at the Marriott Stellaris for three days pre-cruise and really liked it. Lots of reviews out there on this hotel on the net that you might want to Google. Didn't hurt that we got in on a special, with three nights for the price of two, and an automatic upgrade as I'm a Marriott Gold Elite traveler (business). This hotel is on the beach, spacious rooms, has a great pool area, good service, is within walking distance of lots of restaurants and stores, and is a cheap cab ride away from Old San Juan. We stayed at the new convention center Sheraton on Sunday night after the cruise. Booked there by mistake, thinking I had booked the Old San Juan Sheraton. Great hotel with a really nice pool area and large rooms, but really out of the way and withing walking distance to no-where.

 

As for the Victory... no complaints at all. We splurged a bit on this cruise and got a category OS suite, which was a real treat. The itinerary was quite different from our previous cruises with no sea days, which we missed. But we compensated by picking an island that we had been to previously and made it a 'virtual sea day' for us. Food was as always, very good in the MDR. We elected to go Anytime Dining and it worked out very well for us. The only downside for us was that on this cruise, Anytime Dining was on the upper level of the dining room which is the boat deck. As a result, there were no windows. Since we typically dined after dark, this was no big deal for us, but something to be aware of.

 

Hope this helps. You'll really enjoy this cruise.

[panamatiger]

We also did the Victory in April 2010. As Port intensive as this itinerary is, we did not find it overwhelming. If you check the ports of call section here on the boards, you will find many helpful hints. We did the bumpiing tours with Levi + Gary on Dominica and swam with the turtles with Shasa catamaran in Barbados. Definite highlights of the trip. If you prefer crashing on the beach pre or post cruise, stay in Condado. Enjoy your trip !!!

 

panamatiger

[evandbob]

St Kitts and Dominica are not your everyday ports of call, so I made sure to get out and about and do something very different and unique on each of them...... Hiking to waterfalls, swimming in mountain pools, then relaxing in hot springs, snorkeling in "champagne waters" etc. Since everyday is another port, I found myself going to sleep by 1AM in order to wake up for the next magical isle!! St Lucia has the Pitons and sulpher springs, St Thomas has Cokie Beach as well as Megans, which sometimes gets too crowded. I would also opt for renting a car in St Marten's and just circumnavigating the isle, stopping at different beaches along the way, an on line guide could help you here. If you are a shopper, then forget the beaches in St Thomas and st Marten's and hit the stores instead. You may be able to get a hotel on Condado Beach, maybe the Intercontinental, it's a short 15-20 min cab ride from the port. Have fun in any case!

[bartamus2002]

My wife and I have been looking at this itinerary for next April with our 2 kids who are 13 and 11, we are wondering if many other families with children go on this type of cruise. I think it would be great to see all the different ports but a vacation advisor with Carnival actually steered my wife away from this cruise because of having so many ports. We are also wondering if airfare is much different than say to Miami. This would be our families 3rd cruise. Thanks for any insight.

[Relayer]

Great choice! Our Victory cruise was in March of 2009 and it remains our favorite to date. Wonderful itinerary. Many dis Dominica but it is a beautiful island. The Ti Tou gorge is outstanding. You actually swim into a mountain! All of the islands offer a bit of what the Caribbean is really all about no matter your taste.

 

The Victory is a nice ship and is really just a smaller version of the Conquest class. They installed flat screens during our cruise. Food and service were solid.

 

We stayed pre-cruise at the Condado Plaza Hotel. A bit pricey, $230 ocean vista, but well worth it. Just 15 minutes from port.

 

Enjoy!

[ladyj3641]

Just got off Victory yesterday, and I'm SO tired! We stayed at Mariott Stellaris the night before and I wish we would have had more time there! We only booked excursions in Dominica and St Lucia. We toured with Bumpiing in Dominica and went to Titou Gorge and it was absolutely unbelievable...a MUST see!! We went with Cosol in St Lucia and although the tour was good and well worth the money, the day was too long! We were exhausted by the time we returned to the ship.

[viaggi_per_mare]

We did this cruise twice, once on the Victory and once on the Destiny. Hands down for us the Sheraton right across from the port is the best. Don't forget the free trolley around Old San Juan (pick up maps in front of the Sheraton) We suggest you arrive 2 days before and not the day before because it is insanely crowded the night before the cruise in Old San Juan. If you stay at the Sheraton, bring your luggage down and store it with the bell hop at 6:30am - it is very crowded in the elevators at cruise time and it is difficult to get down with the luggage.

 

Links to picture journals below.

[aggieastrosfan]

My wife and I have been looking at this itinerary for next April with our 2 kids who are 13 and 11, we are wondering if many other families with children go on this type of cruise. I think it would be great to see all the different ports but a vacation advisor with Carnival actually steered my wife away from this cruise because of having so many ports. We are also wondering if airfare is much different than say to Miami. This would be our families 3rd cruise. Thanks for any insight.

 

We did this trip in April with our 4 year old. We were with another family that had a 6 year old and 2 year old. It is a tiring itinerary (the kids fell asleep in the tour vans a couple times!), but I think it's actually good for kids if you pick the right excursions. Kids get bored easily (at least, ours does!), and that's pretty much impossible on this trip. :)

 

We had planned on doing a beach in St. Thomas, but ended up staying on the ship when our son slept in and didn't get much sleep the night before (by that night, he had an ear infection. :eek:). Dominica was an island tour with Antours, Barbados was sea turtles with Shasa, we did an island tour in St. Lucia, St. Kitts we just went to Cockleshell beach, and St. Maarten was Maho. Our son had a blast! :)

[welldone60]

We stayed at Howard Johnsons Plaza De Armas in Old San Juan pre cruise this year. It's a very old building, but the rooms are clean and the staff is great. It's a great location to check out Old San Juan. Goes for about $115-140 a night. Standard rooms have no windows, so if you need a window get a suite. Suites have windows that open to look out over the Plaza. Lots to do around OSJ. The Sheraton Old San Juan is right across the street from the Victory dock. Plaza De Armas is about 6 blocks away. Sheraton will want a two night stay sometimes. We stayed at the Sheraton post cruise.

 

We loved the Victory and all the Islands and plan on doing this one again.

[luvmysox1]

We did this in May 2009. It was wonderful but bring a pocket full of money. It can get expensive. Victory was my favorite ship. We did Sonny Liston tour in St. Thomas and it was awesome. Dominica was beautiful but very poor area. Book an excursion. Barbabos we did a tour with Glory Tours and swam w/ turtles in a glass bottom boat. Lots to do on and off the ship.:D

 

Oh, we stayed at the Marriott Isla Verdi beach Resort. It was expensive but pretty and lots in entertaining options.

[Luke gs Daddy]

My wife and I have been looking at this itinerary for next April with our 2 kids who are 13 and 11, we are wondering if many other families with children go on this type of cruise. I think it would be great to see all the different ports but a vacation advisor with Carnival actually steered my wife away from this cruise because of having so many ports. We are also wondering if airfare is much different than say to Miami. This would be our families 3rd cruise. Thanks for any insight.

 

 

We are booked on this trip next April. Our son will be 6 .5 next year and we are looking forward to it.

If it starts to get crazy we will hit the beach and relax. I say go for it.

Air fare from Columbus through US Air is reasonable.

[Disneyna]

We did this cruise exactly one month ago and loved it! We stayed pre-cruise at the Sheraton Old San Juan which is right next door to Senor Frogs, and right across the street from the water taxi that takes you to the Bacardi Factory, and the Victory ship. It was great to be able to walk our our luggage across the street and not have to worry about paying for taxi/porters.

 

I would say to not hold back and do something on every island! We did excursions at every port of call (both carnival sponsored and non-carnival sponsored) and loved them all. Yes, you will be extrememly tired by the end of the cruise, and every evening, but its worth it.

 

This is what we did :

San Juan: Bacardi Tour and walked around Old San Juan. Dinner and drinks the night before at Senor Frogs

 

St. Thomas: Took a Taxi to Megan's Bay beach for 4 hours, then did the SkyRide to to Paradise Point for lunch and a Bushwacker drink!

 

Dominica: We did "Emerald Pool and Beach Pleasures" by Carnival. Highly recommend this tour! The black sand beach is gorgeous, and the emerald pool is so cool! Literally!! And the rum punch has a kick!

 

Barbados: Did a Carnival excursion of 5 Star Catamaran and Turtle Snorkle, but the weather was terrible this day, we got a full refund. Ending up booking a "Taste of Barbados" Tour that was very interesting!

 

St. Lucia: Did an all day tour with Cosol. The whole day was a blast. Ate all kinds of local foods, saw some beautiful sights, and had free unlimited beer, rum punch, water, and soft drinks.

 

St. Kitts: We did the Sky Safari Zip Lining excursion via Carnival. It was amazing...so beautiful, and very safe. Highly recommend this as well. Plus, at the pier terminal I got to take a picture with a monkey on my head!!

 

St. Maarten: Did a tour with Bernards tours. Great tour! We chose this b/c we mainly wanted to go to Orient Beach and Maho beach and he spent the most time at these two locations. Totally amazing. I can't wait to go back sometime and spend all day at Maho beach. I love that place.

 

Enjoy this cruise! You will love it! :D

[gonzo1124]

Just came back from the Victory on June 27th. All I can say is that I trully missed the days at sea. This was a busy schedule, not relazing for me. I wish I would have stayed and enjoyed the ship more. Some of the tours we took (offered by Carnival in Dominica, St. Kitts and St Lucia) included long bus rides. Next time, I'll skip the tours and go to the beaches in all places other than in Dominica. The beaches at Dominica were nothing to write home about.

Sorry, but I like my days at sea.

[CBussey64]

Thank you for all the wonderful replies, I am so looking forward to it. I know it's port intensive and busy but it's a lot of new places we have never seen.

[AUS-SEA]

We sailed her a few years ago. I will try to upload some photos for you later. Don't have them with me now. I've got a ton of good photos. -- Your itinerary sounds great! Ours was Key West/Nassau/Freeport and left out of Charleston, so my only real contribution here will be about the ship itself. It may take me a day or so, so please hang tight.

[CBussey64]

We sailed her a few years ago. I will try to upload some photos for you later. Don't have them with me now. I've got a ton of good photos. -- Your itinerary sounds great! Ours was Key West/Nassau/Freeport and left out of Charleston, so my only real contribution here will be about the ship itself. It may take me a day or so, so please hang tight.

 

 

Thank you so much!

[Smallbore]

Are any of the ports tender ports?

[chachi]

Are any of the ports tender ports?

 

No.

[seashinesunshine]

Thank you for all the wonderful replies, I am so looking forward to it. I know it's port intensive and busy but it's a lot of new places we have never seen.

 

:) See You On Board!! We are booked for the same sailing! We took the ship and itinerary in Jan 2009 and are really excited to go back again. This time we are taking the kids with, (13 and 15) It is a great ship, I have heard it will be in dry dock this fall in Nov, so it should be new and fresh. The itinerary with a port every day is awesome! One word of advice I would give is to ask for late dining. In the souther caribbean, the sun sets at 615 every night. Last time we had early dining and had to rush from sunset to supper.

There is a group on the roll call, I am not computer savy enough to cut and paste the link, but go to the roll call section, click on Carnival Roll Calls, then Find Victory Roll Calls, the link is called Cruise Critic Buddies Feb 6 2011 or something like that. 210 DAYS! Yay!:D