Review of Carnival Valor June 19-25th

[CruiseTeacher7]

Hello Cruise Fans,

 

This is my first ever post on Cruise Critic.

 

This is a review of our family's cruise on the Carnival Valor June 19-25th. It was my 6th cruise and our family's 3rd cruise altogether. In this post my wife is AA, son (12) is AB, and daughter (9) is AC.

 

Lets start with Day 1. We stayed several days prior to the cruise in Boca Raton with our in-laws. My mom drove us to the Port of Miami early on Sunday so that we could be one of the first ones on board. We arrived @ port around 10 am and we were able to check in very quickly. We were probably in the waiting area by 10:15. Not too crowded but there was still a steady stream of guests still getting off of the Valor. We witnessed 2 people who were detained for drugs. Can't fool the drug wolves, I mean dogs.

 

If you want to get on a cruise early get there early. The waiting area quickly filled and it was SRO. There were several hundred people in red shirts--they were part of a Quincera Cruise package. Our first thoughts were OMG these people are going to be running the cruise but really after the 2nd day when they had their Quincera Ball we never noticed them.

 

We were Zone 5 and I think we were on the ship by 11:45. First stop was of course the Lido Buffet, but that was only after we were offered the welcome on board drinks on Deck 3 by the bar. We did the buffet thing....my wife tried the Mongolian Grill, my kids had the burgers-fries-chicken fingers, and I was pretty good--sticking with a salad and other healthier choices, well except for dessert :)

 

After lunch we took a tour of the ship. Do not take the SPA tour! They pretty much want to sell you their stuff, including the Ionthermie to lose like 8 dress sizes in 15 minutes. We did check out the gym/locker rooms. Gym was pretty spacious---I would say @ least a dozen treadmills, 6 bikes, 8 elliptical, free weights, and a machine for every body part. You cannot see the ocean when you are running on the treadmills though, which is good b/c I get a little sea sick from it. I managed to make it to the gym on 4 of the 7 days (not the days when I swam alot from snorkeling). The gym tended to get crowded when the ship was moving.

 

By 1 p.m. our room was ready and we all changed into our bathing suits. Pack swimsuits & stuff into your carry on bag---that way you can enjoy the pool before your luggage arrives. We were able to score some prime deck chairs and my kids and I quickly made into the lido deck pool. It was nice to chill (we got some A/C from the open doors) and watch all of the people come on board and fight the long lines for something to eat. Again doing things early had its advantages. One note--the deck was scorching hot to walk barefoot on and this kinda stunk for anyone wanting to do the slide that was up several decks.

 

After a while I went back to the room and our luggage was there. I unpacked it so that my wife, who planned out the trip, could have some time to chill with her drink. She did try to smuggle a bottle of the good stuff in one suitcase and of course that one suitcase did not make it to our cabin yet. By about 3ish we changed out of wet stuff so that we could be ready for the 3:30 lifeboat drill.

 

Lifeboat drill--first of all don't got rushing to it, pretty much wait 5 to 10 minutes after they make the first announcement so you can avoid the crowds. We made our way to deck 4 and it was a mob scene. Since we were so late we had to hang out by the sliding doors which provided so A/C :) Seriously though it was like a steam room and I felt sorry for the eldery and the drunk---I've seen people faint before but not today. Anyways, Goose (cruise director)--we don't need your announcements about the Spa tours, jewelry sale, or what not when we are doing the lifeboat drill. Seriously get this junk done ASAP so we don't have to suffer.

 

Sail Away--the ship started pulling out when we were in our cabin. My daughter and I quickly made it up to one of the top decks and we were able to watch Miami Beach go by. My wife and son made it out just as were passing the beach. Port of Miami was fun to go out of, especially seeing all of the richey-rich mansions of Star and Fisher Islands. Unfortunately we were being chassed by a thunderstorm so it was sunny and scenic. The deck party was happening but their CD player was not--stunk for them. My wife and I did enter the master mixologist contest and since she has a personality the Asst. Cruise Director Squishy chose us to be in the contest :)

 

Okay will pick this up later. Got to get my day started.

[B and C Blake]

Can't wait to follow along.

We are sailing on Valor in August. :eek:57 days I better start gathering stuff to pack LOL

[bridetobe53108]

We leave soon for the Valor, so I love reading this post!! Thanks!

So how did you try smuggling?

Thanks for the advice about the spa tour, I was thinking of trying it this time.

 

Hello Cruise Fans,

 

This is my first ever post on Cruise Critic.

 

This is a review of our family's cruise on the Carnival Valor June 19-25th. It was my 6th cruise and our family's 3rd cruise altogether. In this post my wife is AA, son (12) is AB, and daughter (9) is AC.

 

Lets start with Day 1. We stayed several days prior to the cruise in Boca Raton with our in-laws. My mom drove us to the Port of Miami early on Sunday so that we could be one of the first ones on board. We arrived @ port around 10 am and we were able to check in very quickly. We were probably in the waiting area by 10:15. Not too crowded but there was still a steady stream of guests still getting off of the Valor. We witnessed 2 people who were detained for drugs. Can't fool the drug wolves, I mean dogs.

 

If you want to get on a cruise early get there early. The waiting area quickly filled and it was SRO. There were several hundred people in red shirts--they were part of a Quincera Cruise package. Our first thoughts were OMG these people are going to be running the cruise but really after the 2nd day when they had their Quincera Ball we never noticed them.

 

We were Zone 5 and I think we were on the ship by 11:45. First stop was of course the Lido Buffet, but that was only after we were offered the welcome on board drinks on Deck 3 by the bar. We did the buffet thing....my wife tried the Mongolian Grill, my kids had the burgers-fries-chicken fingers, and I was pretty good--sticking with a salad and other healthier choices, well except for dessert :)

 

After lunch we took a tour of the ship. Do not take the SPA tour! They pretty much want to sell you their stuff, including the Ionthermie to lose like 8 dress sizes in 15 minutes. We did check out the gym/locker rooms. Gym was pretty spacious---I would say @ least a dozen treadmills, 6 bikes, 8 elliptical, free weights, and a machine for every body part. You cannot see the ocean when you are running on the treadmills though, which is good b/c I get a little sea sick from it. I managed to make it to the gym on 4 of the 7 days (not the days when I swam alot from snorkeling). The gym tended to get crowded when the ship was moving.

 

By 1 p.m. our room was ready and we all changed into our bathing suits. Pack swimsuits & stuff into your carry on bag---that way you can enjoy the pool before your luggage arrives. We were able to score some prime deck chairs and my kids and I quickly made into the lido deck pool. It was nice to chill (we got some A/C from the open doors) and watch all of the people come on board and fight the long lines for something to eat. Again doing things early had its advantages. One note--the deck was scorching hot to walk barefoot on and this kinda stunk for anyone wanting to do the slide that was up several decks.

 

After a while I went back to the room and our luggage was there. I unpacked it so that my wife, who planned out the trip, could have some time to chill with her drink. She did try to smuggle a bottle of the good stuff in one suitcase and of course that one suitcase did not make it to our cabin yet. By about 3ish we changed out of wet stuff so that we could be ready for the 3:30 lifeboat drill.

 

Lifeboat drill--first of all don't got rushing to it, pretty much wait 5 to 10 minutes after they make the first announcement so you can avoid the crowds. We made our way to deck 4 and it was a mob scene. Since we were so late we had to hang out by the sliding doors which provided so A/C :) Seriously though it was like a steam room and I felt sorry for the eldery and the drunk---I've seen people faint before but not today. Anyways, Goose (cruise director)--we don't need your announcements about the Spa tours, jewelry sale, or what not when we are doing the lifeboat drill. Seriously get this junk done ASAP so we don't have to suffer.

 

Sail Away--the ship started pulling out when we were in our cabin. My daughter and I quickly made it up to one of the top decks and we were able to watch Miami Beach go by. My wife and son made it out just as were passing the beach. Port of Miami was fun to go out of, especially seeing all of the richey-rich mansions of Star and Fisher Islands. Unfortunately we were being chassed by a thunderstorm so it was sunny and scenic. The deck party was happening but their CD player was not--stunk for them. My wife and I did enter the master mixologist contest and since she has a personality the Asst. Cruise Director Squishy chose us to be in the contest :)

 

Okay will pick this up later. Got to get my day started.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Okay picking up where I left on for Day 1.

 

After the lifeboat drill we took the kids to the Camp Carnival Orientation. We were able to get our son into the Circle C (12-14) group even though he is only 11 (but about to be 12). He spent most of his time on board @ Circle C or with friends he met there hanging out. I mean we never we saw the kid :) Our daughter also spent a lot time with Camp Carnival but did check herself out from time to time. She was much more independent this time around. I give high marks to Carnival's kids programs.

 

We made our way to our first dinner. We did anytime dining and we really like it---no pressure to make it anywhere at a certain time. Day 1 was "Come as you are" dress code and a few people did. I always wear pants and a collared shirt to the dining room for dinner...sorry I'm still a little formal. Dinner for my wife and I was the Mahi Mahi (it was okay) and grilled flat iron steak for the kids (which I helped them finish their plates). We all ordered warm chocolate melting cakes--you can imagine the surprise on our waiter's face when I ordered four of them but then I clarified that it was for everyone. My wife and I split a Creme Bruele---very good one of my favorites. The melting cake was a little more melted than I remember--but still good and very rich. I actually love the ice cream it comes with :)

 

We did go to the Welcome Aboard Show---they had the singers/dancers, band, a little game show thing, and 2 comedians. I really enjoyed the comedians and I want to mention this---the Valor had 4 comedy nights in the Eagle's Lounge, renamed "The Punchliner". Each night had 2 comedians and there were a total of 5 shows--2 family friendlies @ 7:30 & 8:30 and 3 Adult Only @ 9:30, 10:30, 11:30. Monday and Tuesday were 2 comedians and they had 2 more on Friday & Saturday. You could see a total of 10 different shows while on the cruise. We only made it to one show on Tuesday but managed two shows on Friday. I really liked how they offered this as an alternative to the main show in the Ivanhoe Theater. I've always thought the Carnival Singer/Dancer shows were just okay....nothing special...so I wasn't in a big rush to see them. I think the other two shows were a hypnotist (on the Legend last year the hypnotist was scam artist in my opinion) and a Motown singer. We only caught 1/2 of one show --- it was an 80's musical review---it was entertaining. Anyways high marks for the comedy acts and do heed the recommendation of getting there early---@ least 20 minutes b/c the Punchliner fills up fast.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Our second day found us @ Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas.

 

We awoke around 8 ish and hit the Lido Deck for Breakfast. I was pretty good everyday for breakfast--oatmeal, fruit, yogurt and 1-2 sweet rolls. I didn't want to do the eggs/bacon/sausage/grease everyday. Of course being a port day the Lido was crowded. Recommendation--head towards the back--lines seem shorter.

 

You have to take a tender to shore. We went to the Ivanhoe theater to wait for the tender ride. They call you in groups of 150 or so. Again get there early to avoid the wait. We were like group 12 or so and we didn't wait too too long. They had AFV playing to keep you entertained.

 

Half Moon Cay is close to what you picture in your mind of an island tropical paradise. The water is the lovely turqouise blue. It was calm and even refreshing. There is a 1/2 mile or so long beach. The area right around where you get off is packed with beach chairs, but if you go further down the beach it looked much more quiet and spread out. We rented a Clam Shell shade ($20)---it gives you shade but no air flow so it can get hot. We are not huge sun fans, being that we are Floridians, so we didn't feel compelled to be out in the sun on a beach chair. I spent most of the time in the water and so did my kids. Our daughter rented a float ($13). It was nice to be in the water, just floating and hanging around. There isn't much to see in the water though. They had some slides for the kids though. Food--they have an Island BBQ--burgers, dogs, BBQ chicken, salads (potato, slaw, normal), fruit, cookies, etc. Its a short walk from the beach but seems to be back a bit. I think we spent about 4 hours on the beach---just enough. Other activities that they have at Half Moon Cay---snorkeling excursion on a boat, parasailing, sting ray encounter, horseback riding, and I think dune buggies. Overall very good marks and I will enjoy going back there again.

[CruiseTeacher7]

We got back to the ship sometime between 2 and 3. My son and I headed to the gym to get our workout on while my wife and daughter stayed in the cabin to relax. The gym was pretty quiet and we weren't hassled since my son was under 12.

 

Dinner that night was cruise casual. We all ordered the braised spare ribs. Decent choice---I really think it was step above pot roast--but overall good. Four warm melting chocolate cakes again.

 

Unfortunately my wife wasn't feeling so great that night so she spent it in the cabin/balcony trying not to get sick. My son did his Circle C stuff and my daughter went to Night Owls with Camp Carnival. I went out on deck to read and fortunately they had Secretariat playing on the big screen. I picked up my daughter around 11:30 and we hit the Lido for some late night Pizza.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Day 3 Started out a little later than normal. I was up around 7:45 and the whole family was up around 8:30. Keep in mind that on previous cruises we are out on the Lido deck by 6:45 am sharp, but the kids are better at sleeping. We started the day with our ritual of morning coffee and danishes on the balcony. I love starting the day with a the wind in my face and a cup of coffee in my hand. Once everyone was ready we headed out for breakfast again.

 

For first time cruisers here is a run down of breakfast on the Lido Deck:

Hot--Bacon, Feggs (Fake Eggs), Sausage, Pancakes, Potatoes (like hash browns), Grits, Oatmeal. You can also get an omlet. Cold: Grapefruit, melons, apples, bananas, cereals, cheese, yogurt, danishes, cinamon rolls.

 

I want to point out that Carnival has switched from trays and round plates to larger platter plates sans trays. Maybe its so people won't take two plates. Also cuts down on less washing of trays.

 

After breakfast the kids headed to their kids club activities while we stayed back and hung out on the balcony reading. I got my work out in, but it was more crowded in the gym (well it was a sea day). I don't think I did all that much that morning.

 

We did lunch on the Lido again and I was good--no burger/fries/chicken fingers for me :)

 

My wife and I did the Master Mixologist contest in the afternoon. It was fun. There were five of us and we got on stage to mix up our drinks. They have a bartender helping you out. Kelly did a frozen drink that was really sweet. Mine was basically a blue margarita but switch out the tequila for vodka. It was okay, but free. A young man ended up winning but we heard later from another contestant that the drink wasn't that great. Oh well, but it was fun to do and I will try to enter it again. Will need to come up with a cool drink though :)

 

Somehow this day really got away from me---I really didn't do much that I can recall other than reading my Tom Clancy novel---mainly on the balcony.

 

Let me take a minute to point out the virtues of the balcony. The balcony in and of itself is another activity to do. You can go out any time to chill and take in the fresh ocean air. I really don't think there is anything more relaxing in the world than to be out on the balcony. Its like being on deck but you are in the shade, no one bothering you, and its peaceful and quiet. If you a party on the deck person its not for you. If you are 36 like me and like to chill then it is perfect. My wife and I spent much time out there chilling and reading.

 

Oh btw did I mention we had the most awesomely located room? Yeah thats right we were rocking the 9274. Jealous? You should be? We were basically at the elevators and on the Lido deck. Need to go to to the spa? Thats only two floors up. Okay there was one down side---you always hear the elevator at night. Solution=ear plugs. We were spoiled with this room.

 

Day 3 was Cruise Elegant. Yes folks cruise elegant has de-evoloved. On our honeymoon 12 years ago Cruise Elegant=Tuxedo. Here you can get away with khakis and a polo shirt. Most people didn't but there were a few people who yes did wear jeans (maybe 1%). I did shirt and tie (I forgot my jacket at home). It was also lobster night. I ordered 2 plates of lobster & shrimp, actually 1 plate and requested a 2nd lobster tail, but they brought 2 plates. I wasn't wasteful and I did eat both plates, especially since they came with good shrimp. Now here is the deal with lobster---it sounds so good but in actuality you only get like four bites---they are tiny. No complaints. If you love lobster order yourself 2 plates, maybe 3, or even 4. Who cares?

 

My wife and I did make it to a comedy show. We hit the piano bar 30 minutes prior and went to the Eagle's Lounge 15 minutes before the show. The comedian was good, but I didn't suffer side splitting laughter like I did @ the welcome aboard show. Yes do get there early it fills up quick. We tried to go the previous night, but we didn't get there in time.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Day 4 started off with us waking up in port. We had a very nice panoramic view of St. Thomas. Lets just say there were some rich folk yachts in the harbor. Of course we were up late again. Figures---the kids were up to at least midnight.

 

Our adventure this day took us to Emerald Beach. We took a taxi, well actually this taxi was if a Ford F350 and a tram from Disney world had a baby. It seated about 20. We took a 20 minute winding mountain road ride and we were able to see some of St. Thomas. Not quite a 3rd world country like Honduras, but not the suburbs either.

 

We arrived at Emerald Beach. We were at a resort that allowed people on the beach. They rented out chairs ($7--we got 1), snorkel equipment ($10 for the whole day or something--we got 2 sets), kayaks, paddle boats, etc. We scored a spot under a tree for some shade.

 

My son and I were the first to go out snorkeling. On our first trip out there was a lot of sea grass. We saw a lot conch (I reckon they were gathered to mate) and 3 sea turtles. I loved watching the sea turtles--especially when they came up for air. There was a reef---albeit greatly diminshed. Not a vibrant reef but some living coral. Some fish around it. Having much scuba experience it wasn't much of a sight for me.

 

My wife met a gentleman who was staying there for 9 days with his wife. They were there for his son's wedding. He was very nice to us and even allowed us to be his guests at the pool (Thank you!). He told us that the main reef area was further out near the point. I tried going out there and I did see more coral. However it was getting deeper, I was further out, and by myself. I didn't want to risk it, so I headed back in. I checked google maps when we got back and there is a coral reef nature park preserve there. If I could start snorkeling from there then I think I could manage it, or maybe take a Kayak out next time.

 

I spent the majority of the time in the water. The water was similar in color to half moon cay, but there were some rocky areas---wear water shoes when getting in. It was a little choppy too. All in all very high marks for me for a place to go and I would do it again. My kids spent some time in the pool (again this was only because someone allowed us to be their guest---don't expect to use it if you go here) and I think they tried to nap. They were worn out from too much fun on the ship. Emerald Beach also had great views of offshore mountainous islands. Later in the day a tour group from the RC Freedom of the Seas showed up but they really didn't get in the water. We brought snacks and water, but we didn't order food ($12 burgers). We headed back to the ship around 3ish.

 

If you plan to go to Emerald Beach its about $10 per person each way via taxi. You can make reservations with your taxi driver to pick you up in the afternoon. Emerald Beach is free, but you will have to rent chairs and equipment. Also, be smart like us, bring large water bottles on the ship so that you can fill them with ice and water instead of paying through the nose for bottled water. I would highly recommend Emerald Beach.

 

We got back to the ship, changed, and hit the buffet with a gusto. We were starving and it was mid afternoon. I finally broke down and got a burger, fries, and chicken tenders plus plenty of sweets. Being so late in the afternoon we didn't go to dinner that night. The kids did their thing again. My wife took in a movie out on deck. They had Little Fockers on the big screen. It was nice to enjoy a movie out on deck out in the open ocean. Our boat moved at a snail's pace--Puerto Rico was like a stone's throw away. I think we actually headed out away from there into the open ocean---maybe for gambling reasons.

 

Need to back track---we left St. Thomas around sun set. I would have to say it was one of the most scenic ports that we sailed through. We went past the RC Freedom of the Seas. Man that was a nice looking ship and we started talking about doing it next summer. We have since decided against it---it only goes to 3 ports---on of which is Nassau so who gives a hoot about Nassau--its pretty much America anyways. So we are doing the Carnival Freedom for 4 days. Anyways, St. Thomas is mountainous and leaving the port it was very scenic.

 

I'm going to take this opportunity to say a few words about the deck arrangement. The Valor has a stadium deck arrangement. There is a pool mid deck on the Lido and this area opens up to a stadium arrangement for up to Deck 10. There is another pool & a water slide at one end of the stadium deck and a large screen TV at the other end. I wasn't a fan at first, but I really liked it by the end of the cruise. I really liked how they did the lighting at night and had movies on at night. Just one more thing to do and I loved being out there. On previous cruises the Lido deck had 2 pools and the buffett at one end. The valor had Rosie's restaurant that covered about 1/2 the Lido deck. It was a large restaurant, but in the back area was another pool (adults only). This was where they had the 24 hour pizzeria and another grille. They opened the grille around 11:30 every night to get 4th meal on. It gets crowded quick by hungry people. Deck space does get crowded around the pools though, but that is typical of any cruise.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Day 5 started off with us arriving in San Juan. We got up early since we had an early excursion. San Juan scenic wise well its okay. The old city is nice looking, but otherwise its a port, probably on par with Cape Canaveral.

 

Our excursion this day was with San Juan Segway Tours. As far as excursions go this is the best I have been on! I would highly highly recommend it. Lets face it folks all there is in San Juan is sightseeing. If you are going to sight see do it the awesome way with Segways instead of on some old tired school bus tour.

 

We took a short walk from the ship (oh btw the line for the ships sightseing tour was hundreds deep) over to Pier #2 (I believe). They opened up at 9 am. There were 10 of us. The first 30 minutes is spent getting oriented to the Segways. They take you out 2 at a time to train you on how to use it. They split us into 2 groups, but our family of 4 went by ourselves with 1 tour guide. She was awesome!

 

Basically we took a route along the outer wall of the city. Our guide stopped us at different points and gave us insight into the history of Puerto Rico and San Juan. For example we stopped at a statue and she explained all about it---the Native Americans, Spainards, etc. She was like a walking encyclopedia. Our tour made its way to the Fort San Juan de Castillo. It had a breathtaking view---there was a large open grassy area--the fort---backdropped against the Atlantic Ocean. Our guide said she never gets tired of seeing it and I believe her. I could have personally spent all day there enjoying the scenery. This would be a great place to take the family on a picnic on a Sunday afternoon.

 

We spent about an hour at the fort, really I think on just the upper most level. We took in the sights, took some pictures, etc. Again our guide busted her butt in making sure we had a great time and giving us an in depth tour. She got about 4 hours of tour done in 2 hours lets just say. She was highly professional and great to be around. The views from the fort were awesome! Great photo opportunities, but just don't try to take a picture from the openings for the riflemen.

 

The Segways themselves were very easy to operate. Our 9 year old daughter, who is a little clingy at times, operated her segway like a seasoned pro. Yeah they are that easy! Its fun to pass everyone and be like "Yeah I have a Segway, Jealous?" Hands down 100% recommend it to anyone.

 

We were back to the ship a little before noon and hit the buffet again. For some reason, maybe because we were tired, we didn't leave again to go shopping. I think once you are back on the ship it is too much of a hassle to leave again. We didn't do any shopping on our trip.

 

Here are a few words about shopping.

 

St. Thomas probably had a lot of gift shops and I'm sure there were a few interesting things. Same with San Juan (but remember it is still America).

Half Moon Cay and Grand Turk had the typical tourist shops. Lets see what a typical port has....

 

1. Your booze shop. Is liquor really that cheaper in the islands. I know it is tax free, but seriously what do you save like a buck or two? Please someone let me know....I don't know if you really are getting a good price on a 1/2 gallon of booze. I don't drink enough hard stuff to know.

 

2. Piranha Joe's. Seriously its a made up line of products like Panama Jack or whatever. Basically a "Hey I went to the islands and this is the cool shirt I got". Sorry I don't need to buy a shirt to advertise for someone else.

 

3. The jewelry stores. Again please fill me in...are you getting that great a deal on Tanzanite (some gem stone from Tanzania)?

 

4. Another store with pirate motiff and the I have had too much to drink. Of course you can get your Senor Frogs drinking team shirt. Cool if you are 18 but you look like a loser when you are 40 wearing that.

 

My only regret is that I wanted to get a nice simply done t-shirt from St. Thomas. But we were too tired to go out shopping after we got back.

 

The Valor left San Juan around 3:30. You don't have too much time there, but again San Juan is only for sight seeing. I think they have some Kayak tours in the mangroves, but I can do that here in Florida for free.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Okay this part of the cruise requires a special post. This is for anyone who is still undecided about the Steak House.

 

100% Recommend.

 

Okay its only $30 per person.

 

This was our 2nd time going (previously on the Legend) and I wasn't disappointed.

 

It is tucked away on one of the forward upper decks.

 

We began the evening with a glass of $9 chardonnay. I'm not normally a wine fan, I really think I can taste the soil and unclean feet of the grape smashers when I take a sip of what my wife normally drinks at home. However this stuff was smooth and easy to drink. It should be for $9.

 

They brought us a little mini-appetizer, compliments of the chef, totally unexpected. Very delicious. Mine was some shrimp thing.

 

My first appetizer was a crab cake--great and my wife had the baked onion soup---her favorite.

 

I had Cesar Salad for my second course. Its 2 steps above what they serve in the restaurant for dinner every night.

 

We both ordered the NY Strip Steak. Its like meat and butter had a baby in your mouth. Previously I had the porter house. The porter house is huge, but not as good as the strip steak. The strip steak is just the right amount for a man. Fortunately my wife was getting full so I had more (probably too much) of hers.

 

For dessert I got the home made Bailey's Ice Cream. Good, but wrong choice. What is the only choice in the steak house? Why the chocolate sampler of course! You get 4 different mini desserts. Fortunately my wife got it and I finished what she couldn't. Next time I will get it again. Don't fool around folks, take my advice and get it.

 

It was a quiet elegant evening. I wore a tie, but you can get away with khakis and a polo. One couple actually got engaged while we were there and that was a delight to see. You can bring kids, but why? If you had say some well behaved teenagers then yes, but young kids---well stick them with Camp Carnival and have a night to yourselves, you deserve it.

 

All in all highly recommend it!

[CruiseTeacher7]

Day 6 saw us pulling into Grand Turk. We were up early enough to watch the ship pull in.

 

Grand Turk could almost, I mean almost, be designated as a private island. There isn't much on Grand Turk. There are about 2500 people and you could probably drive around it in a few minutes. From the ship you see a lot of vacation homes so it looks good, but we talked to a couple who did a tour and they said that the island hasn't really rebuilt 100% since a recent hurricane. The vacation homes are fine I'm sure, but the local homes need repairs. I didn't venture to see so I can't say 100%. Lets just say from the people we talked to don't go on any sight seing tours.

 

Okay what is there to do? Well Grand Turk, my impression is that they built a cruise dock and shopping area port so that Cruise Ships would come. Very similar to Roatan or Cozumel ports. You get off of the ship and you are pretty much at Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville. Man Jimmy must be using a rake to pull in all his cash. There are a few beach/beach chair/bar places to go to on the beach, but they grade out at a C- compared to the A+ Margaritaville. We went there to do the Flow-Rider wave simulator, but folks the next time we go to Grand Turk we will do Margaritaville as our activity. Its free to go to. Of course you will be buying drinks and probably some food. It has an awesome refreshing wrap around swimming pool, plenty of beach deck chairs some shade, a pool bar (I want to try), a restaurant, etc.

 

My son and I did the flowrider. Its $20 for an hour. There are about 10 people per side and you get about 6 or so turns. We only did the boogie board. I wanted to do the stand up surfing, but the boogie board was hard enough. They have instructors at the top to help you get going and instructors on the bottom to coach on how to do moves like flipping over, standing on your knees, etc. It was fun and worth it to do once, but I've done plenty of boogie boarding in my life in Florida. If you are from someplace that doesn't have a beach then go ahead and do it.

 

We went back to the ship to change (I was amazingly wet from the flowrider) and eat.

 

Our excursion this day was snorkeling. We booked through the ship b/c it had a money back guarantee if the ship didn't make it to port. There were about 90 people divided between two boats, but for some reason most of them went to the other boat. It was about a 20 minute ride to the first reef. The crew did a good job in orienting everyone to the equipment. They had all of the equipment on board (nice--you don't have to wait in line on shore and you can switch out). I was chomping at the bit to get into the water though.

 

The first reef was okay. You can tell it is in decline, but there was living coral there. My daughter had some trouble with her mask and she and my wife were sidelined dealing with it. My wife was pissed that the crew wasn't helping my daughter out more and they ended up missing a good portion of the 30 minutes we were there. Both of my kids had an easy time on the reef---they are getting good at snorkeling. If you have never been snorkeling before I would recommend it (the best I've ever done is Roatan btw).

 

Our second stop was a 7000ft drop off. This was awesome! The water goes from 15-25 feet to a sharp drop off to oblivion. I mean you just see water and nothing else. The reef was actually very healthy here. I ended up doing some free dives (still have it!) and some people remarked with "Wow how did you do that?". Well I've been free diving the springs of Florida since I was 12 so its was no big deal. My kids did surprisingly well, given that it was 7000ft deep here. The guides fed the fish and you could touch them.

Overall a guide excursion and I would recommend it.

 

This reminds me of something. Folks remember please don't feed the sea gulls. Do you feed the rats where you live? Some idiot was feeding fries to the sea gulls when we were leaving St. Thomas. DON'T . Seagulls are like pigieons--rats with rings.

 

Day 6 found us in the dining room again for dinner. We had the Chateuabriand which is French for beef we are trying to make fancy. It was good, but don't let the name fool you. I had a really good desert--a rich chocolate cake of some sort. My daugher had the baked alaskan. It always sounds good, but they give you like a paper thin slice.

 

After dinner we caught the last half of the musical. It was an 80's review. I just about tripped and fell into some people! It was a good show, I really wished we could have seen it all. They had some breakdancers who just about stole the show. Later on they performed in the lobby and many people crowded around the atrium on each floor to watch. I wish break dancing would make a come back.

 

My wife and I caught 3 comedy shows this evening @ Punchliners. We did 1 family friendly (okay) and 2 adult ones. The last one just about had me in tears. They were pretty good. Again get there early to get a seat.

 

One more note--for evening entertainment we went to the Popstar show--its karoke with a live band. Fun to go to, but ladies don't cover "The next time cheats" or whatever that lame song is...it just doesn't work. Both times the gals who did it just stunk it up and the host had to do backing vocals so that everyone wouldn't leave. There were some good singers and some bad singers. I didn't work up enough (liquid) courage to do Whitesnake's Here I Go Again though.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Last Day--have to live it up.

 

As usual we had a late start to the day by our standards. Jack and I hit the gym early to break a sweat.

 

My wife and I made a point of going out and doing the sun on the deck thing. We are not big time sun fans, we get enough in Florida. We actually prefer getting sun in the spring where you can be out for a while and not quite break a sweat (yeah we can go to the beach year round). However we decided to do it. Its hot on deck, but you can manage by taking a dip in the pool every 15 minutes and having a bottle of ice water by your side. We also did the drinking thing. Let me preface this by saying we averaged about 1.5 drinks per day. I didn't even drink until Tuesday (compare this to the people who had the buckets o beer per person @ noon on day 1). Okay so we lived it up a little---we got a pitcher of margs and a bucket of beer. I was feeling pretty good! It actually started to get a little overcast towards the end of the afternoon.

 

Here are a few notes---the weather was about as perfect as you could get. We didn't see any rain during the day. We only had 1 night of what I would say rocky seas (very late though). Plenty of sun each day.

 

Deck Time--they had the serenity (adults only) deck and we did that when we were leaving Puerto Rico. Great place to be, but hard to be at b/c your kids might need to get you. Highly recommend it.

 

Forward observation deck. There is one at the front of deck 10. Here is the thing--this was the only place on the ship with diminished lighting---you are in the middle of the ocean with no city lights---perfect for seeing the stars. On the inspiration I got to see the Milky Way which was awesome. Would it kill Carnival to have one lights out area to do some sky gazing. Most people do not have this opportunity at home. Anyways it was too overcast to do this on the last night when I discovered the forward part of deck 10. The forward parts of Decks 12 & 13 are too lit up to see anything (even the serenity area and btw you might encounter some people canoodling there at night).

 

All in all we had a great time on the Valor. If you are going on it and have any specific questions just drop me a line, I can fill you in.

 

We are looking forward to going on the Freedom for an 8 day cruise next summer back to the Eastern Caribbean.

[B and C Blake]

Awesome review! Thank you for sharing.

I am very appreciative to read a review for Valor Eastern. Very few of them out there.

 

Hmmm questions just a few ...

#1 in StT and San Juan approx how far would you say it is from where you were docked to the end of pier where excursion meeting spots were? I only ask because my DH has PAD and it takes a little longer because he needs to stop for a few minutes.

#2 In San Juan how did you reserve the segway tour? was it through CCL on board? (not listed on-line unless it is new) or through private? if so may I ask who?

#3 Did you happen to read or notice if the free bottle wine offer at Scarlet's was still being offered if you went there on the 1st night?

 

Once again thank you for an awesome sneak peak at what we have been waiting for for the last 400+ days:eek:, LOL

[CruiseTeacher7]

Correction--it was Sapphire Beach not Emerald Beach. I don't know why I keep calling it that.

[ncb106]

Correction--it was Sapphire Beach not Emerald Beach. I don't know why I keep calling it that.

how is the valor she in good shape

[CruiseTeacher7]

For a 7 year old ship she seems to be in fine shape. They could probably stand to replace the leather lounge chairs on the promenade deck 5, but that is me being nit picky.