LIVE from my recliner - MIRACLE review

[VickiD59]

We had a block of five extended balconies, rooms 7209-7227. As soon as we met our cabin steward we asked that the balconies for rooms 7209 and 7215 be opened up. He said we had to go down to guest services with one person from each of the rooms; they said they expected high winds the first night so we'd have to wait. Our cabin stewards name was Constantin and he was from Romania. I can not say enough nice things about this young man. He anticipated our every wish and was there whenever we needed him. As mentioned early, our group ranged in ages from 13-84 with many different personalities to boot.. he was great with everyone and yes, we all added extra gratuities for him on the last day.

I can't say we used the balconies as much as I thought we might. Perhaps if they were opened as we asked we might have. Oh.. yeah... they were never opened the entire cruise. We asked guest services each day and each day there was a new reason why they couldn't be opened. High winds.. rough seas.. cleaning while in port.. more cleaning.. high winds.. rough seas.. and before we knew it, we were heading home and realized.. hey.. they never opened our divider!! :confused: We did ask Constantin a few times about the delay but we could tell it was out of his hands as well.

 

If you look closely you can see our CD Malcolm on the TV... WooHoo!

[VickiD59]

Ohhh and PS. The beds were the most comfortable ever!! My favorite was the blanket/sheet combo. Last evening was our first night home and I gotta tell ya... I had trouble falling asleep. I missed the bed and the gentle rocking motion that lulled me to sleep each night.

[VickiD59]

Nothing in particular.. enjoy :)

 

 

 

 

Looking down from the top level by Nick and Nora's Steakhouse to the Atrium lobby

 

 

While sitting at a table in the food court this bucket hanging from a long rope appears at the window along with a long handled roller. Obviously it was very important to clean that railing at that very moment.

[FreezingInMichigan]

I LOVE your review title! :p

 

We're visiting these same ports in November. I'm all subscribed to your thread so thanks in advance for the great work!

 

~ Sheryl

[VickiD59]

I can sum it up in one word: YUCK :(

My kids will use two words: Senor Frogs :D

 

As a NYer the only thing comparable that I can think of is if someone dropped me off in the middle of the South Bronx and said Welcome to NY. I guess I figured if a cruise company chose this as a destination than it must be worth it??? We walked about a square mile of dirty, narrow, pigeon filled streets just to say we were in Puerto Rico. I couldn't get back on the ship fast enough. All I could think of was I couldn't wait to reach land for THIS? We chose this itinerary over the other because we were going to PR and NOT the Bahamas?? Maybe I had a different vision in my head; being a first timer and all I just figured they'd choose nice.. touristy places to send people. And seeing as no one else had been to PR either, we were all expecting much more I suppose. Disappointment all around... except...

... my kids thought it was the best part of the trip!! They were in Senor Frogs for every moment of the time. They loved it, and staggered back to the ship with new friends who'd they'd continue to hang with the remainder of the cruise.

Also, our time in port was from 3pm-midnite. This left little to be desired in the way of shore excursions. Now I understand why the few excursions they did offer took you an hour or more away from San Juan. I'm sure PR is lovely if you are doing a landbased vacation at a resort, but as a cruise destination... stay onboard! Of course this is my opinion.. and you know what they say about opinions... :rolleyes:

 

When boarding in NY we didn't really see the grand scale of the ship. When we disembarked in PR it was the first time we were really right along side her.

 

 

That's it.. destination #1 summed up in two photos. Thankfully St. Thomas more than made up for it :)

[VickiD59]

One word: Lovely :D

 

This would be the most normal of port times as we would be in St. Thomas from 7am-1pm. I woke early as usual and stood on the balcony as we quietly sailed in. The sun was just coming up and you could hear the roosters crowing in Charlotte Amalie as we coasted into port.

 

As with every port we visited, we are the only ship for that day.

[kjunea]

wonderful review! Love the Miracle! Keep up the good work!

[VickiD59]

St. Thomas was the only port where we booked excursions. My kids went on the BOSS Underwater Adventure which picked them up at 8am. Now remember, this was the morning after Senor Frogs. Not sure if they ever slept that night, but they really enjoyed this excursion.

[VickiD59]

We knew that this was where we wanted to go from the moment we booked our cruise. My niece and her family has been to Trunk Bay in St. John and they were anxious to go here as well. Though the ship did offer excursions to Magen's Bay, they also included touring and shopping with limited time actually at the beach. My niece suggested we get off the ship and look for a taxi to take us. I wasn't feeling quite as adventurous, not doubting we'd find transportation to.. but wasn't completely convinced we could guarantee someone would return to pick us up. I read reviews on the Ports of Call boards and also posted questions regarding suggestions of tour companies. Out of the five names that would continue to pop up I emailed three and got exactly what I wanted from Henry Christopher the owner of EEE Tours. This right here is my golden endorsement. He was a lovely man and we emailed back and forth several times over the months leading up to our trip and he was always ready with an answer to any question we had. The cost of the roundtrip ride was 16.00 pp, plus 4.00 to get into Magen's Bay. It is the only beach which charges to get in, and he explained it's used for upkeep, lifeguards etc. The day was well worth 20.00 pp, no doubt about it.

On the way there Mr. Christopher stopped at two look-out points so we could take photos and also gave us some information about the islands pirate history and such.

Looking down at the Miracle in port

 

A view of Magens Bay from Drake's Seat, which is where Sir Francis Drake would look down toward the bay, scanning the horizon, in search of enemy ships and pirates.

 

A few short minutes and we'd be in that crystal clear water. Talk faster Henry.. talk faster! :p

[VickiD59]

My face says.. if this is anything like PR I'm abandoning ship NOW! :p

 

I assure you.. it was not. This was truly the loveliest place I have ever been. :D

[VickiD59]

The first formal night was the first full sea day which was Monday. This also was the night where everyone was really, really sunburned having spent our first day on the Sun Deck and Lido. Nothing says OUCH like a long-sleeved dress shirt and tie against fresh sunburn. My youngest son was really miserable and actually left dinner before dessert was served in order to go in search of aloe. Mom remembered just about everything and anything EXCEPT aloe :(

 

Also the murals which surrounded our dining table had the strangest old world looking folks on them. Reminded me of old Italian or Greek fisherman. This one looks like he's poking Matt in the ear. Poor Matt, he was hurtin something awful. As the week progressed the faces in the murals started getting on our nerves, just staring down at us night after night.. pointing and mocking us! Everyone usually comments on the grape motif in the MDR. Those blasted wrinkled faces with eyes that followed you gave us the creeps :eek: but also ALOT of laughs.

 

[VickiD59]

It's back to work bright and early tomorrow morning. I hope you've enjoyed my first attempt at a review so far. I promise to continue asap. In the meantime if you have any questions about anything, feel free to ask. Anyone from our roll call can jump in anytime as well ;)

Nite,

Vicki

[VickiD59]

PS- We were docked in St. Thomas from 7am to 4pm; I mistakenly typed 7-1 earlier. Definately time to go to bed ;)

[hill6]

Great review. Sounds like you had alot of fun. I love the Miracle

[DPurcell58]

Great review so far. My neighbors are on the Miracle this week. Just a reminder that you can also sail out of Brooklyn or Bayonne. Also, you should have visited the outlets stores in San Juan, Coach, Nautica, Dooney & Burke, etc. That's the only thing I do when we stop there!!!!

[bash73]

hey brewster and put valley, carmel here and we leave in 37 days!

[luv2travel29]

i leave next tuesday. loving your review.... did they have an adults only pool area?

[VickiD59]

i leave next tuesday. loving your review.... did they have an adults only pool area?

 

Yes.. it was in the front of the ship. We didn't use any of the pools or hottubs, they were VERY crowded. We basically found empty chairs up on the Sun Deck, overlooking the mid-ship pool. It's windy up there, but you can find a vacant lounge chair. They also had these rocking chairs that overlooked the pool which we used alot. Chairs around the pools rarely available unless you inherit them in a will ;)

[VickiD59]

Much has been said about the grape motif in the Bacchus diningroom. Our table was all the way on the extreme left, in a small room that must have been reserved for large groups; we were a table of 12. The only thing grapey we saw were these big purple lights that looked like large buttons you'd push if you were on a game show. Maybe the hanging grapes were in the center part of the MDR, but I never saw them. I didn't mind the motif at all... 'cept those crazy looking murals that followed you wherever you went. There was one that I haven't posted yet, but I'll get to it. The photo is on my son's camera. Just remember ... creepy, naked cherub with a mustache.. that's all I'm sayin :eek:

As I mentioned before we had the 8:15 seating which with 12 people having dessert and coffee allowed just enough time to rush right to the Phantom Lounge for the nightly show. First night was a PG tidbit of comedian Alan Ball's truly NC-17 act which was scheduled for the following night. He warns you ahead of time that if you're easily offended don't come. He is an equal opportunity comedian meaning no race, creed or color is left untouched. I missed his second show (not intentionally), but my kids went and thought he was very funny. I admit I laughed at his "milder" show the night before, and even then I thought he pushed the PG envelope alittle.

MARCUS MONROE-Juggler Extraordinaire. He was great.. and a cutie-patootie to boot ;). He performed one show only on the evening we left San Juan before we left port. I suppose juggling on a moving ship might be dangerous. He is performing on the Miracle the remainder of the summer.

Ticket to Ride- I liked it.. but think I would've liked it more if it was less musical theater and more cover band performance. But all in all.. it was good. How can ya not like something that ends with a audience full of glow-sticks :)

Legends- Due to a longer than usual dinner on the last evening we missed most of this show. We were busy saying our goodbyes to our waitress Nunu. We wanted to pack her up in our bags and take her with us. She was so sweet, so adorable and so patient with our large table. (Yes.. Nunu got extra gratuities, and well deserved too.)

The few Legend performers we did see were good, and had a lot of guts getting up there in front of 2000 people.

Piano Bar Guy- We didn't go into the piano bar, but were sitting within ear shot at tables along the walkway near all the clubs. On more than one occassion we could hear him being more than a tad bit... obnoxious. One time he actually sparred with a passenger. We could hear him say.. "well that will probably get me fired". More than a few folks walked out mumbling under their breath about how rude he was. Is this his schtick.. is this how it's supposed to be in there? I thought it was a sing-a-long place but maybe not? I did notice that piano bar rarely had more than a handful of people in there.. maybe this is why.

Music Unlimited- The house band. Four guys that can perform anything.. Journey, BonJovi, Queen.. Lady Gaga.. Chubby Checker.. hip-hop, slow dance.. 50s, 60s, you name it, they played it.. they were even the Beatles in the Ticket to Ride show, as well as the Lido deck band. We usually went into Frankie and Johnnie's Lounge at night to see them after dinner and the show. On the last night I lead a conga-line.. and unfortunately we didn't have the camera ;)

[VickiD59]

 

Elton John strikes again :p

 

[VickiD59]

 

If the Flintstone's lived in the Caribbean, this would be where they'd hang out. Grand Turk's water is that same beautiful aqua we saw in St. Thomas, but because of the Continental Shelf (??) it is very rocky. I'm sure at some point someone had to have broken an ankle here. The sand can be very deceiving when you first enter the water. You can step down into a hole, lose your footing, and your recovery step will have you up and out of the water about 8" higher than you started. I wanted to love it.. I really, really did, but Magen's Bay has spoiled me forever I think. Don't get me wrong, it's equally as beautiful, but in a different way. The bedrock makes it hard to manage at times. We rented rafts which made it easier to float our way in and out of the water. At one point the tide beached us int the sand and we laughed so hard we couldn't stand up :o

 

The beach area had rows of palm tress intermingled between the lounge chairs. There are more than enough chairs to accommodate everyone it seems. Again.. only ship in port. If there were two it might feel over run. Pool area is quite big and was a nice change after coming out of the ocean. There is a swim-up bar in the pool which is part of Margaritaville. There's a DJ booth pumping music out and an ample amount of tables in the covered bar area. Very vacationy.. very touristy... my son's loved it here as well.

 

I don't think you can take a bad photo in Grand Turk... it really is beautiful.

[smeck]

Yes.. it was in the front of the ship. We didn't use any of the pools or hottubs, they were VERY crowded. We basically found empty chairs up on the Sun Deck, overlooking the mid-ship pool. It's windy up there, but you can find a vacant lounge chair. They also had these rocking chairs that overlooked the pool which we used alot. Chairs around the pools rarely available unless you inherit them in a will ;)

I believe the Adult pool at the aft. (back of the ship)

[VickiD59]

hey brewster and put valley, carmel here and we leave in 37 days!

Have a wonderful time. Would love to hear about your trip when you come back :)

[VickiD59]

I believe the Adult pool at the aft. (back of the ship)

Front.. Aft.... who could tell!! :p I know we only went up there a handful of times when my niece was trying to go on the slide, which was closed more times than it was opened. Maybe we never hit it at the right time. I know the first few days it was because of the wind.

[smeck]

Love your review and agree with just about everything never went to Senor Frogs wish I did everyone who went loved it.