Yachtsman's Caribbean and Flavors of the Caribbean Review: 19Jan-02Feb 2013

[Love.II.Cruise]

Wednesday, Jan 30, 2013: Roseau, Dominica (Continued)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next we traveled to Trafalgar Falls, where we again did a short hike to see the falls.

 

 

 

 

[Love.II.Cruise]

Wednesday, Jan 30, 2013: Roseau, Dominica (Continued)

 

Afterwards, Smokey took us to Rainforest Shangri-La Resort. We took a small hike to see a couple bubbling sulfur pools and geysers. It may be therapeutic, but the sulfur smell was so strong it nearly choked us and we couldn’t help think we’d found where the Earth farted. Below are some pictures and a very short 9 second video (turn up your sound).

 

https://plus.google.com/photos/104205394500372911214/albums/5851204090822367249/5851206569460122818?authkey=CL3Z8qfr3qHB7gE

 

 

 

 

 

When we got back to the ship we went to Compass Rose where they were serving Cookies and Tea between 4 and 5pm. Compass Rose always keeps their doors wide open, creating a wonderfully relaxing balcony-type atmosphere. Some guests were a little too relaxed, though: we were stunned to see a guest outside Compass Rose put their shoes on the table.

 

 

 

 

All aboard was 9:30pm, but I suspect most were on board since this was the evening of the BBQ Dinner. We enjoyed the lamb, suckling pig, and flank steak. It did rain a little bit before dinner started, but we made sure to get a table under the canopy. That evening, we ran into Chef Klaus and told him that we were disappointed to have missed the Galley Tour. He immediately said, “How about I show you the Galley tomorrow?” Wow! That was completely unexpected and we were very appreciative of the invite. We were to meet him at reception tomorrow at 11:30am.

[beachbuddy]

Lovey, we've been to all these places in Dominica as well. Your photos are great and brought back a lot of memories from our trip there.

 

Patty

[Love.II.Cruise]

Thursday, Jan 31, 2013: Les Saintes, Guadeloupe

 

We arrived at 8am and the last tender was 4pm. The watersports platform was open from 9am - 3pm today. We got off early to walk around this quaint little town. Although there are some nice clothing shops, everything is in Euro’s and we found it to be expensive (although not as bad as St. Barts). Below are pictures of the harbor.

 

 

 

 

 

Today we took many pictures of Wind Surf that we want to share. The first being of the bed area of our room (we were in cabin 114).

 

 

 

 

One thing we found odd were the details that were missed during the yacht’s recent renovation: the deck plans in the elevators still showed a pool on Star Deck (which was removed during the remodel) and the restaurants weren’t correctly identified, either.

 

 

 

 

We did find that the yacht offered an extensive DVD library, but the TV channels on board were the poorest selection we’ve seen on any cruise. ESPN 2 in Spanish shouldn’t be the main (and only) sports channel.

 

 

 

 

One of the main news stations was always being displayed in the Yacht Club. In the picture below, you’ll notice a couple sections of the library in the shelves on either side of the TV. Unfortunately, the library was disappointing. The selection was outdated, limited and in need of being supplemented with more and newer titles. So, if you like to read, make sure to bring your own books.

 

Edited March 3, 2013 by Love.II.Cruise

[Love.II.Cruise]

Thursday, Jan 31, 2013: Les Saintes, Guadeloupe (Continued)

 

The Yacht Club served sandwiches daily, which are also offered through room service 24 hrs a day. The sandwiches were delicious and we enjoyed them.

 

 

 

 

 

Below are pictures of the pool bar and pool area.

 

 

 

Below are pictures of Compass Rose. In the second picture you can see the glass doors which open to extend Compass Rose to the outside deck area. The large pedestal with the brass top is actually a compass.

 

 

[Love.II.Cruise]

Thursday, Jan 31, 2013: Les Saintes, Guadeloupe (Continued)

 

Veranda on Star Deck is open daily for breakfast and lunch. You can either order from a menu (same every morning, different every lunch) or eat from the buffet. They offer indoor and outdoor seating, giving you the option between air conditioning with a view or whatever-the-day’s-weather (often quite enjoyable in the Caribbean) with a view. Below are some pictures:

 

 

 

Below are two deck pictures and one of Stella Bistro.

 

 

 

[Love.II.Cruise]

Thursday, Jan 31, 2013: Les Saintes, Guadeloupe (Continued)

 

When we were done taking pictures of the yacht, we went to the Reception Desk to meet up with Chef Klaus to do the Galley tour. There was another couple with us, making it just the four of us on this very personal tour. We had a wonderful time; he spent an hour and a half talking with us about all sorts of topics and funny tales. Something that surprised us were the portholes and large windows in the Galley. Chef Klaus said very few ships had windows in their Galley and that it helped the moral of this team. Below are pictures of the Galley:

 

 

 

 

 

That evening we ate at Candles again (this being our 4th time in 2 weeks). We split an appetizer portion of the Lemon and Thyme marinated Chicken Skewer; my DH had the Filet Mignon, and I had the Garlic and Rosemary marinated Lamb Chops (all wonderful). We invited friends to join us this evening because the evening they were supposed to eat at Candles didn’t work out due to bad weather.

 

After dinner we went to the Wind Surf Crew Show at 9:30pm. This should not be missed! It’s a great show and gives you an appreciation on how hard the crew really works to make your cruise a great vacation.

[Love.II.Cruise]

Friday, Feb 1, 2013: Bassetere, St. Kitts

 

 

Today we were supposed to go snorkeling on an excursion with Windstar, but my allergies were bothering me and I didn’t think trying to snorkel when needing to sneeze and blow my nose every couple minutes was a good combination. So we took it easy and stayed onboard, relaxed, and packed. Part of the day the ship was docked (to take on fuel) and later it anchored in a different area of the port. After the yacht moved, the watersports platform was opened and the tenders started up. The tenders looked like they must have taken a long time. In the picture below, you can see the tenders in the water to the left and they went somewhere on the other side of the Princess ship.

 

 

 

 

We finally remembered to catch them closing the watertight doors that night, before we left St. Kitts. These doors are closed on deck 1 when entering and leaving ports, meaning that if your cabin is on deck one, and you are going to your cabin during this time, you will need to pay attention to which set of stairs you take since you will not have the leisure of walking the entire length of deck 1.

 

[Love.II.Cruise]

Friday, Feb 2, 2013: Disembarkation at Philipsburg, St. Maarten

 

Our luggage had to be outside our cabin door by 1am. Our flight didn’t leave until mid-afternoon, so we were able to depart the yacht anytime before 8:45am, shortly after breakfast. We collected our passports, which were held for the entire 2 weeks we were onboard, at 8:00 am. We disembarked around 8:45pm and collected our luggage at the end of the pier, in the same spot where we were met to initially check in on embarkation day. Once we had all of our luggage, we took a taxi to the airport, where we hung out with friends we had met on the cruise (their flight left mid-afternoon, as well).

 

It was a great cruise and we would do another 2 week cruise again. We’re not ready to solely dedicate ourselves to Windstar in the future, though, simply because they don’t go everywhere we would like to go and we like cruising different cruise lines to mix things up.

 

I’d like to thank everyone that gave comments and compliments on this review and pictures. If anyone has any questions that they would like to ask, please feel free to do so and I’ll do my best to answer your questions!

[Sherri1]

Wow ! Great review and pictures. Thank you. !

We too think about doing this, but always fall back into

what we are comfortable with. Some great ideas, pictures,

etc that will bring it up for discussion again . Thanks!!

[karen_g]

Thank you so much for the excellent and detailed review. I really loved seeing all your photos! I almost feel like I had a mini-vacation just enjoying your review!

[HRPro]

Thanks for taking great pictures of the ship and for the wonderful review. It really gave me a good idea of life onboard. It also sounds like a great itinerary.

[beachbuddy]

Lovey, I couldn't imagine what the inside of these sail boats looked like so thanks for posting all those inside pictures. It's amazing to see how nice it is. I now have a much bette sense of what it's like to cruise with them.

Thanks for sharing......

 

Patty

[sealord]

Lovey, I couldn't imagine what the inside of these sail boats looked like so thanks for posting all those inside pictures. It's amazing to see how nice it is. I now have a much bette sense of what it's like to cruise with them.

Thanks for sharing......

 

Patty

 

Yes ... if you haven't seen them, they are beautiful, inside and out.

We go where they go. It doesn't matter much where that might be. ;)

[Kathy816]

Thank you so much for posting the detailed review and photos. They are great (and I loved the videos too). Now I'm REALLY REALLY looking forward to being on board - less than two weeks!

Kathy

[buckymarz]

WE will be taking windsurf from Lisbon to The Canary Islands in November. We have been on windstar and windspirit, looking forward to completing the trio. Wonderful review and photos.

[cynbar]

Many thanks for posting all the pictures, and for taking the time to do such a comprehensive review. I have found myself checking back every day for the next installment! I do have a couple of questions, though. Where is the elevator, and is the wait for it long at peak times? And, we will be onboard for an April Med sailing, so weather outside will likely be cool at sea. Is there much comfortable seating available indoors in the various public spaces, or will it be really crowded if most of us can't sit out on deck ( we have one sea day and of course the evenings? How much seating is in the Veranda if outside tables aren't in use? We just like to know what to expect in advance! And finally, did you happen to bring home any menus? Thanks again for all your help.......

[2belgiantervs]

Awesome review ... thank you very much for taking the time to post!

:):):)

[surfcitygirl]

So enjoyed your review, made me feel like I was back again! Great pictures, thanks for the patience and time it took to post everything. Judging from the comments, everyone else agrees too. Hope to do the Yachtsman's itinerary some day, the Baths look awesome, and now I know what not to do. We would have done the exact same thing. Will be looking forward to you reviews in the future.

[Love.II.Cruise]

I'm so glad so many people enjoyed the review. I tried to be fair and honest.

 

Many thanks for posting all the pictures, and for taking the time to do such a comprehensive review. I have found myself checking back every day for the next installment! I do have a couple of questions, though. Where is the elevator, and is the wait for it long at peak times? And, we will be onboard for an April Med sailing, so weather outside will likely be cool at sea. Is there much comfortable seating available indoors in the various public spaces, or will it be really crowded if most of us can't sit out on deck ( we have one sea day and of course the evenings? How much seating is in the Veranda if outside tables aren't in use? We just like to know what to expect in advance! And finally, did you happen to bring home any menus? Thanks again for all your help.......

 

There are two elevators on Wind Surf. They are marked by an "X" in a square on their deck plans.

 

http://www.windstarcruises.com/PDFs/windsurf-yacht-DeckPlan.jpg

 

However, I believe their smaller yachts do not have elevators. If we did take the elevator, we never found the wait to be long. We took the elevator if we were carrying lots of items, otherwise we took the stairs.

 

There is comfortable seating indoors in Compass Rose and The Lounge. The Lounge wasn't used very much during the day; so I could see that being a warm spot to sit. However, having not done a colder cruise, I do not know what they change for venues. Perhaps someone else with more experience would be willing to give out information.

 

We have a few menu's, but not all. I didn't get any from Veranda and I only got one of the Stella Bistro Menu's. They did give me Candles and the menus in the dining room, but on a Mediterranean Cruise I would expect the dinners to be different since the food source is different. Perhaps those that have done both the Caribbean and the Med. would know if the menus are actually the same.

Edited March 5, 2013 by Love.II.Cruise

[kptbylorraine]

Thanks so much for the great review! We leave NY on Friday for our cruise on the WS.

It has been several years since our last WS cruise and we are eager to see the changes.

 

Lorraine

[cynbar]

Any chance of posting a couple of the menus? Even if they are different in the Med, I'd like to see what's offered. Do they have an always available menu in addition to the specials of the day? Once again, we really appreciate all the time you've taken for all of us future Wind Surf cruisers.

[Love.II.Cruise]

Any chance of posting a couple of the menus? Even if they are different in the Med, I'd like to see what's offered. Do they have an always available menu in addition to the specials of the day? Once again, we really appreciate all the time you've taken for all of us future Wind Surf cruisers.

 

I'll post the menus I have, but I probably won't get to scanning them in and posting them until this weekend. Actually, it takes for ever to scan since I don't have a feeder, so I may just take pictures of them and post them. For now I'll post the pictures I took of in room dining (hopefully they turn out and are readable).

Edited March 6, 2013 by Love.II.Cruise

[Love.II.Cruise]

In Room Dining: Breakfast

 

 

 

[Love.II.Cruise]

In Room Dining: Dinner