LIVE from my recliner - MIRACLE review

[med2cruise]

Thanks for the great review. We were on the Libert 7/31, Dh, DD19 and DS21 and had a blast. We purchased a certificate while on board and within a month booked another cruise for next July for the whole family. It was a great experience and we are soooo looking forward to it again. I am glad to see a great review on teh Miracle. We are trying to convince some friends to go with us this time.

 

Hope to see you on a cruise someday.

 

Karen

[smeck]

What a great

Review!!!!!

[michelle1836]

Thanks for posting your review! we are sailing on the Miracle in june

[lind827]

VickiD59. We are going on the Miracle 4/12/12 and going to PR, St. Thomas and Turks. Can you give me any pointers for PR and Turks. St. Thomas too I guess but plan on doing some shopping there. Thanks:)

[Engrvrgal]

I absolutely love your review.!! I am sailing on the Miracle with my sister on Oct. 29..I can't wait:). We are doing the same itinerary as you did. I have been to St. Thomas before and can't wait to get back. Will be my first time in SJ and Grand Turk.

 

We are also leaving out of NY, as we live on LI and it so much easier than flying. Since we are going to be onboard for Halloween, I hear there is going to be a Halloween party!!

 

Again, thanks for the review..glad you had such a wonderful cruise!!!

 

Y

[VickiD59]

VickiD59. We are going on the Miracle 4/12/12 and going to PR, St. Thomas and Turks. Can you give me any pointers for PR and Turks. St. Thomas too I guess but plan on doing some shopping there. Thanks:)

Oh I'm jealous.. you can practically count the days on two hands! Are you sailing from NY as well?

As you probably read in my review.. San Juan was my least favorite port, but in hindsight, we needed a plan. Sailing from NY it's the first port (with nearly 3 full days at sea), and being it was our first cruise we were very anxious to see the sites... but... again... no plan, so we just started walking and didn't see anything. It's a strange dock time 3-midnight. I guess it's a "night life" port. And there's always Senor Frogs right across the street. We're still trying to figure out what we'll do... even if it's just riding on the free trolley. It will also be July 4th when we're there.. not sure if that will have an effect.

St. Thomas - LOVED it! This time we're going to go to Sapphire Beach

Grand Turk - It's really just a beach day; no heavy lifting. Exit ship, grab chair.. sit in sun.. swim in ocean.. swim in pool.. buy t'shirts.. have an overpriced drink... rinse repeat :D

 

Have a marvelous time.. and come back and review!!

[VickiD59]

I absolutely love your review.!! I am sailing on the Miracle with my sister on Oct. 29..I can't wait:). We are doing the same itinerary as you did. I have been to St. Thomas before and can't wait to get back. Will be my first time in SJ and Grand Turk.

You'll love sailing out of NY. That trip down the Hudson River with the NYC skyline and the Statue of Liberty... as well as all the sailboats and charter ships. Going under the Verrazzano Bridge its very exciting with all the cars and truck honking their horns.

You're gonna have a spoooktacular time! Did I just say that :rolleyes: LOL

[HeartNP]

Vicki, your review was great!!

I too, am sailing the Miracle out of NYC on 4/12/12!! Can't wait!! I live in NJ, so love the idea of not having to fly anywhere!

 

Can't wait to sail out of NY Harbor... I went to college in Staten Island (Wagner College), where my dorm room overlooked NY harbor for four years (in those days, the twin towers were still there :( ) Stared at the Verrazano for four years, drove back and forth on it at least a MILLION times (I grew up in LI).

 

Can't wait to post my OWN review when I get back!!

 

thanks again!

Karen

[glorialagos]

Oh I'm jealous.. you can practically count the days on two hands! Are you sailing from NY as well?

As you probably read in my review.. San Juan was my least favorite port, but in hindsight, we needed a plan. Sailing from NY it's the first port (with nearly 3 full days at sea), and being it was our first cruise we were very anxious to see the sites... but... again... no plan, so we just started walking and didn't see anything. It's a strange dock time 3-midnight. I guess it's a "night life" port. And there's always Senor Frogs right across the street. We're still trying to figure out what we'll do... even if it's just riding on the free trolley. It will also be July 4th when we're there.. not sure if that will have an effect.

St. Thomas - LOVED it! This time we're going to go to Sapphire Beach

Grand Turk - It's really just a beach day; no heavy lifting. Exit ship, grab chair.. sit in sun.. swim in ocean.. swim in pool.. buy t'shirts.. have an overpriced drink... rinse repeat :D

 

Have a marvelous time.. and come back and review!!

 

Vicki - I have been creeping on your posts for a while now and it is just easier to ask -

 

Do you have a plan for San Juan now? Did you go back since that first disappointing trip and, if so, what did you do?

 

Do either San Juan or St Thomas have a beach with the inflatable bouncy type blow up things in the water?

 

Thanks so much in advance.

[VickiD59]

Do you have a plan for San Juan now? Did you go back since that first disappointing trip and, if so, what did you do?

 

Do either San Juan or St Thomas have a beach with the inflatable bouncy type blow up things in the water?

This time the plan for San Juan is to grab the free trolley which if I read correctly, has a stop right across the street from the cruise pier. We'll get off at El Morro (which I read is an uphill walk) and hopefully get about an hour and a half worth of touring before it closes. We'll mosey back on foot (downhill) and meet up with our kids and their friends at Senor Frogs. Last time we were the newbie cruisers, and followed the lead of the others we sailed with; this time we're not afraid to venture out on our own. I think alot of people may eat dinner in Old San Juan and enjoy the nightlife in the hotel casinos and clubs?? I know the MDR was emptier than usual that night. The ship does offer at least two excursions that take you about an hour or so from the pier to the rain forest, or zip-lining, or kayaking. The cruise pier is in Old San Juan, which is the historic district. I think that's where I got mentally tripped up with what I was expecting "San Juan" to be and what it actually was. It's a quaint OLD town - tiny cobblestone streets, colorfully painted old buildings... again, I was expecting more, this time I'll know better. You might want to check to see if any of the resorts (in "regular" San Juan) offer a day pass to use their facilities; but with arriving at 3:00 (it will take awhile to disembark), the beach hours are pretty much over. It's a weirdly timed port.

St Thomas.. any of the island tours which give a little beach, shop, sights are good. These open-safari tour busses are plentiful, but you should make a reservation. We didn't want to site-see or shop, so we reserved transportation just for the beach, and we're doing the same thing this time (just a different beach). The port time for St Thomas is the best in my opinion. Google Bolongo Bay Resort, I believe they offer an inclusive day pass; you'd just need transportation. There is a shopping center with alot of stores right at the cruise pier for those last minute t'shirt purchases. Also, they built a Senor Frogs there as well.

Grand Turk - everything is right there; it's the perfect wind-down day.

[Seniorstallion]

Thank you very much for the review. Looking forward to more in the future

[VickiD59]

You're welcome :)

 

That review was written nearly two years ago, but obviously someone very determined to find info on the Miracle stumbled upon it and resurrected it. I remember when we were going to be sailing for the first time, there were very few reviews on the NY to Caribbean run; there still aren't many.

[Lipz]

That review was written nearly two years ago, but obviously someone very determined to find info on the Miracle stumbled upon it and resurrected it. .

 

Even with two years of age your Miracle review for this particular itinerary is one of the best I've read. In fact, it's so good that I have read every post and will use some of what you referenced in my own research. I am sailing in a group of 27 total from the age of almost 2 to I believe the 50s. I'm not new to cruising but will be new to the Miracle and these ports. So reading you and your family's experience has been great!

We also plan to do Magen's Bay in St. Thomas and hang out at the ports beach & Margaritaville in Grand Turk. I am not happy with the port hours in San Juan but since we live in NYC and walk all the time I don't think we'll have a problem just checking out sights at the fort and then walking our way back to the ship.

I do plan to eat dinner in Old San Juan as I love Spanish food and would love to 'taste' the difference from what I'm use to here in my neighborhood. I live in the Bronx ;) lol. (I totally got what you meant for as soon as I saw PR as one of the ports I just knew I was going to be laying out a pretty beach! :()

By the way, do you have any your FunTimes from this trip scanned or as a link some where?

[VickiD59]

Thanks Lipz!! I logged on and saw a review with "Miracle" in it and I got excited... then I realized it was MY review LOL. I do have the FunTimes.. somewhere in our luggage, which is high up in the garage. I recall a very recent review (same itinerary) where the person scanned all the FunTimes and then some. I will look for the link to the review and come back and post it.

 

Our plans for this cruise will slightly different. Weather permitting we'll go to one of the forts. We'll be in OSJ on July 4th, and I just asked over on the port boards if there will be an fireworks or street fairs etc. I was very happy to read that they do shoot off fireworks, and from what I was told it's a spectacular display. We'll be there from 3pm-midnight.

We're going to Sapphire Beach in St Thomas this time, and Grand Turk is easy enough.. exit ship.. sit on lounger.. swim when hot... tall tropical drinks... repeat repeat repeat. :D

[VickiD59]

Here ya go http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1627880&highlight=miracle+funtimes&page=3

 

Fun Times link is in post #45 :)

[Lipz]

Thanks Lipz!! I logged on and saw a review with "Miracle" in it and I got excited... then I realized it was MY review LOL.

 

I was just as excited to see your review!!! It's so helpful. :D

 

Our plans for this cruise will slightly different. Weather permitting we'll go to one of the forts. We'll be in OSJ on July 4th, and I just asked over on the port boards if there will be an fireworks or street fairs etc. I was very happy to read that they do shoot off fireworks, and from what I was told it's a spectacular display. We'll be there from 3pm-midnight.

 

We'll probably do the free trolley up to the fort even if there isn't much time to explore. I'd love to see that gorgeous view I've seen in pictures.

 

We're going to Sapphire Beach in St Thomas this time, and Grand Turk is easy enough.. exit ship.. sit on lounger.. swim when hot... tall tropical drinks... repeat repeat repeat. :D

 

Sapphire Beach was also on my list. I figured we do Megan's Bay though as the pictures look so inviting. If we ever go back for a second visit then we'll do Sapphire. Grand Turk seems the easiest to do and I look forward to not havinbg to think but instead relax, relax, relax!

 

 

Here ya go http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1627880&highlight=miracle+funtimes&page=3

 

Fun Times link is in post #45 :)

 

AWWW ... THANK YOU! This is going to be so helpful!

 

 

I am still up in the air with how we will travel to Megan's Bay. We have 27 in our group and I'm leaning towards getting a private tour company. I've just never done that before and I worry about the whole 'getting us back to the ship on time' thing. We've actually never done a ship excursion at all. We usually paln our own and take a taxi or walk to where we want to go.

[starfish216]

Lipz - we just did Magens Bay last month. Past the shops when you exit the ship is the public taxi/van stand - you have to go there. There are signs directing you where to go.

 

The vans hold about 14 people, so your group would need two vans. The rate is fixed to go to Magens Bay at $8 pp each way plus $4 each to get into Meagans Bay, so it's $20 r/t. It's even better if you fill up the vans with your own group, since the drivers usually wait until the van is full before they leave port.

 

In our trip my family was 7 adults plus a baby, there were also 6 strangers in the van. The driver asked what time we wanted to leave to go back to the ship. Since everyone agreed we only wanted to stay a couple of hours he waited for us in the parking lot. There were a lot of other vans waiting in the parking lot. The drivers seemed more than happy to sit there and wait it out. The ride there is about 20 minutes to go up and over the mountains.

 

On the return the driver offered to drop off anyone looking to go shopping and also stopped at a look out point to view the ship - it was a great photo opportunity.

 

Magens Bay is beautiful and relaxing. We only went for a couple of hours, then went back to the ship.

 

Just allow yourself more than enough time to get back to the ship. Our driver carried a cell phone so if he did have car issues he would have been able to call for assistance.

 

Hope you enjoy your day.

[Lipz]

Lipz - we just did Magens Bay last month. Past the shops when you exit the ship is the public taxi/van stand - you have to go there. There are signs directing you where to go.

 

The vans hold about 14 people, so your group would need two vans. The rate is fixed to go to Magens Bay at $8 pp each way plus $4 each to get into Meagans Bay, so it's $20 r/t. It's even better if you fill up the vans with your own group, since the drivers usually wait until the van is full before they leave port.

 

In our trip my family was 7 adults plus a baby, there were also 6 strangers in the van. The driver asked what time we wanted to leave to go back to the ship. Since everyone agreed we only wanted to stay a couple of hours he waited for us in the parking lot. There were a lot of other vans waiting in the parking lot. The drivers seemed more than happy to sit there and wait it out. The ride there is about 20 minutes to go up and over the mountains.

 

When you say 'a couple of hours' how long did you guys stay? Since we dock at 7am and leave at 4pm, I have no problem going to the beach from say 9am - 1pm. In that way there is still time for those who want to shop, sight-see or just walk the town until it's time to board the ship. I am not big on shopping so the beach and short stop for sight seeing works for me.

 

On the return the driver offered to drop off anyone looking to go shopping and also stopped at a look out point to view the ship - it was a great photo opportunity.

 

Magens Bay is beautiful and relaxing. We only went for a couple of hours, then went back to the ship.

 

 

Just allow yourself more than enough time to get back to the ship. Our driver carried a cell phone so if he did have car issues he would have been able to call for assistance.

I am always back on the ship at least an hour before sail away. Running back to a ship, or getting left is not an option!

 

Hope you enjoy your day.

 

 

This is GREAT!!!

Thanks so much for sharing this info as it just helped me confirm our plans for visiting Magen's Bay while in St. Thomas.

By the way did you happen to notice if they had umbrella or chair rentals and if so how much it was?

[VickiD59]

As mentioned in my review we pre-arranged roundtrip transportation to Magens Bay on our first cruise. We used EEE Tours (google website). The proprietor is Mr. Henry Christopher.. lovely lovely man. He will be taking our group to Sapphire Beach in a few weeks. I recently inquired about how many his safari truck can accomodate as we're a bigger group this time; he said he can take 27.. and, if necessary can arrange another driver for more people. Jot him off an email and ask any questions you might have. He's very good at getting back to you. Tell him "Lady Vicki" from NY recommended him and says helloooo.

[sjcruiser]

Thanks for the review and information. Can't wait to get onboard in 16 days

[VickiD59]

We'll be sailing the week after you. Don't use up all the fun; save some for us ;)

FYI- review was from two years ago.. just incase some things are no longer relevant.

[VickiD59]

By the way did you happen to notice if they had umbrella or chair rentals and if so how much it was?

They have a rental hut right next to the gift shop/bar area.. we rented float mats, and I recall seeing some folks sitting in chairs, so I can only assume they rented them as well. There are some picnic table and benches that are out of the direct sun. The sand to waters edge isn't very deep.. it's not a huge beach, but it sure is beautiful.

[Lipz]

As mentioned in my review we pre-arranged roundtrip transportation to Magens Bay on our first cruise. We used EEE Tours (google website). The proprietor is Mr. Henry Christopher.. lovely lovely man. He will be taking our group to Sapphire Beach in a few weeks. I recently inquired about how many his safari truck can accomodate as we're a bigger group this time; he said he can take 27.. and, if necessary can arrange another driver for more people. Jot him off an email and ask any questions you might have. He's very good at getting back to you. Tell him "Lady Vicki" from NY recommended him and says helloooo.

 

I saved this info as soon as I came across it in your review. I think I am leaning towards folks taking the taxis though since it is the same price and I don't have to worry about making a payment before hand. Plus, we have no idea who wants to do what since no one else has really made any plans.

 

They have a rental hut right next to the gift shop/bar area.. we rented float mats, and I recall seeing some folks sitting in chairs, so I can only assume they rented them as well. There are some picnic table and benches that are out of the direct sun. The sand to waters edge isn't very deep.. it's not a huge beach, but it sure is beautiful.

 

I'm hoping they will have rental chairs and umbrellas. I love to lay out on a blanket while on the beach, since I'm not coming from home a beach chair and umbrella is the next best thing. I can't wait!