Serenade of the Seas Photo Review- Take Two: Aruba Route

[Kteacher]

You and your husband make a beautiful couple :). We are on the Serenade for the first time next April, but doing the other itinerary. I've also booked the Intercontinental through Priceline. Did you eat at any of the restaurants near the hotel?

[Host Faith]

You and your husband make a beautiful couple :). We are on the Serenade for the first time next April, but doing the other itinerary. I've also booked the Intercontinental through Priceline. Did you eat at any of the restaurants near the hotel?

 

Thank you so much! Yes, we did eat at Metropol. We love that place and try to go whenever we're in the area. I'll share some details about dinner in my next couple posts. :)

[Host Faith]

So a lot of people ask about the restaurants, etc, near the Intercontinental. I made sure to take some photos of the various options for food near the hotel. Taken from our balcony:

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

There's a Chilis across the street and to the left of the hotel. Also, there's an Embassy Suites nearby that contains an Outback Steakhouse.

 

For dinner, we walked to our favorite restaurant in the area, Metropol. Upon leaving the hotel, make a left, and cross the street in front of the El San Juan Hotel. Keep walking straight on Isla Verde Avenue, and Metropol will be on your right in about 5 minutes. Here are some restaurants we saw on our way:

 

 

 

[Host Faith]

We made our way into Metropol and were seated right away. We were so excited to see that the restaurant made some renovations. Looks like they're doing extremely well. There were lots of locals having dinner along with vacationers. A great sign to me. :)

 

You can't go wrong with their grilled or smoked chicken. They serve you a half chicken, with rice and beans and plantains on the side. Delicious. I had their Metropol Punch and enjoyed it very much. We were stuffed and couldn't finish it all. Such a shame that we didn't have a microwave in our room! Some pics of our food:

 

Smoked chicken (tasted just like a smoked ham- amazing!)

 

 

Grilled chicken (was more like a roasted chicken):

 

 

After a yummy dinner, we went back to the room to pack and get ready for our trip back home.

 

We had an 8:40 flight, so we left the hotel around 6 that morning. Check in was pretty uneventful, and we had a smooth flight home.

 

[Host Faith]

I know it took me such a long time to complete my review, and I want to thank you guys for your encouragement and patience. Thank you for reading! Feel free to ask any questions, I'll check this thread regularly and will try to be as helpful as I can. Happy sailing and God bless!

~Chrystal

[Conanc]

Chrystal,

 

This was a wonderful review and your photos are beautiful!!! Thank you so much! :D We are so excited about our cruise in January. We love the Serenade (and Jewel class ships!). I am going to go back and re-read the entire review again! :)

[Host Faith]

Some more shots from throughout the cruise:

 

La Concha's beach, San Juan:

 

 

 

Mallorca at La Bombonera:

 

 

 

Room Service Breakfast Menu:

 

 

 

Trunk Bay, St. John, USVI:

 

[Host Faith]

Chrystal,

 

This was a wonderful review and your photos are beautiful!!! Thank you so much! :D We are so excited about our cruise in January. We love the Serenade (and Jewel class ships!). I am going to go back and re-read the entire review again! :)

 

Haha! Thank you so much! Enjoy your cruise! :D

[PeterPan]

Chrystal - Thank you so much for this review! We are definately looking forward to our cruise in December, particularly after reading about yours!!

 

I believe way back in the beginning of this thread, you mentioned you would be scanning the compass pages from your cruise. Is that true? If so, when can we expect them?:D

[Host Faith]

Chrystal - Thank you so much for this review! We are definately looking forward to our cruise in December, particularly after reading about yours!!

 

I believe way back in the beginning of this thread, you mentioned you would be scanning the compass pages from your cruise. Is that true? If so, when can we expect them?:D

 

Hi PeterPan! You're sure to enjoy your cruise!

 

I can start scanning the compass pages early next week. This weekend will be filled with schoolwork:o.

 

Thank you for reading! Lucky you, escaping the cold weather to sail the Serenade :)

[Host Faith]

Morning All! As promised, I have images of the Compasses. For some reason I don't have Day 7's Compass, but I do have the rest. Please bear with me as I share the images. I should have all of them up within the next day or so.

 

~Chrystal

[Host Faith]

 

 



 

 

 



 

 

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[beachnative]

Thank you for the wonderful review and terrific photos.

 

We will be staying a La Concha in January preceding our B2B on the Serenade.

The hotel is beautiful. We spent a day there while staying at her sister property El Convento and loved the property.

 

Although we've been to all these islands, we will follow your lead on excursions when we visit this time. Thanks for that information.

 

I'm eager to try the chocolate rum in December while cruising on a Freedom B2B. We'll make our purchase then as we are driving back to Virginia afterwards.

 

Thanks for posting the Cruise Compasses.

[Host Faith]

Thank you for the wonderful review and terrific photos.

 

We will be staying a La Concha in January preceding our B2B on the Serenade.

The hotel is beautiful. We spent a day there while staying at her sister property El Convento and loved the property.

 

Although we've been to all these islands, we will follow your lead on excursions when we visit this time. Thanks for that information.

 

I'm eager to try the chocolate rum in December while cruising on a Freedom B2B. We'll make our purchase then as we are driving back to Virginia afterwards.

 

Thanks for posting the Cruise Compasses.

 

Thank you beachnative! I'm glad the excursion ideas are helpful. We really had a great time on each island. I think the only thing we would change is doing an actual excursion on Curacao. The chocolate rum is yummy! I've really enjoyed it in my hot chocolate. The perfect mix of a warm, cozy drink for the winter, with a reminder of our Caribbean vacation. :)

[dealhunter]

Your review was wonderful! I have been checking back everyday waiting for you to complete it. I'm crusing on the Serenade in March and you have provided some of the most useful information about the ship and San Juan. I have a list of things to see and places to say based on your reviews alone. I really enjoyed your Aruba stopped. I stayed at an all inclusive there about a year ago and didn't see half of what you saw. The beach was so relaxing I really didn't want to leave the resort, but after seeing your photos I'm definitely going to take a tour when I return.

 

I see you have Liberty of the Seas next on your list. You're going to love that ship as well. I've sailed the Freedom as well, but for some reason I love leaving from the Port of Miami. I hope to do a mediterranean in 2013 I hope the Liberty is on that route.

 

Keep the reviews coming!

[bionicman97]

Great pics from Aruba and Curaçao :)

[Host Faith]

Your review was wonderful! I have been checking back everyday waiting for you to complete it. I'm crusing on the Serenade in March and you have provided some of the most useful information about the ship and San Juan. I have a list of things to see and places to say based on your reviews alone. I really enjoyed your Aruba stopped. I stayed at an all inclusive there about a year ago and didn't see half of what you saw. The beach was so relaxing I really didn't want to leave the resort, but after seeing your photos I'm definitely going to take a tour when I return.

 

I see you have Liberty of the Seas next on your list. You're going to love that ship as well. I've sailed the Freedom as well, but for some reason I love leaving from the Port of Miami. I hope to do a mediterranean in 2013 I hope the Liberty is on that route.

 

Keep the reviews coming!

 

Thanks dealhunter! Looking like we're swapping ships in March, lol! I'm really looking forward to the Liberty. It's going to be a girls' trip, so I'm sailing the Freedom class before Wes does! I'm trying to see if he and I can sail her (or the Freedom) in the spring too, before she leaves for Europe. The prices are so good, it's kind of hard to resist!

 

Great pics from Aruba and Curaçao :)

 

Thanks Curtis! Love those ports. It's time for me to invest in a really good camera!

[Host Faith]

 

 

 



 

 

 



 

 

 

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Edited November 9, 2011 by Host Faith

[Host Faith]