Indy Jan 18 8 nt review with kids and a few pics :)

[Cdncruisefam]

 

St. Maarten

 

We wanted to be up early so we put out our room service breakfast request the night before. They called us to let us know it was coming and it arrived right on time. Nothing fancy but it would get us through the morning. We packed up everything we needed including granola bars, a box of Cheerios and my brita water bottle. Thanks to the ccer who suggested the refillable water bottle! My kids don't like the taste of bottled water so we were able to drink cool (fridge didn't get it cold) water during the day.

 

Now recall I said I was taking a more laid back approach to things? Well, we decided to wait to book our excursions on board to use up some of our OBC. We decided on the Seaworld explorer tour. Well with 6 ships in port this one was long gone by the time we got around to booking anything. On to plan B.

 

I love St. Maarten so I was a little disappointed in the tour thing not working out. I was reluctant to travel with the baby unrestrained in a taxi van and we wanted to do some shopping anyway so we decided to take the water taxi to town. The line wasn't bad at all given the number of ships in port. I think it was $7 for adults, $5 for our DD and the baby was free. You get a bracelet and that price covers you all day. The water taxi lets you off right in the centre of town. And right beside the dock is this:

 

 

What better way to start the day than at the beach on such a nice hot day? There were a few thoughts about those poor souls back home. This was a nice beach. The water was calm, it wasn't rocky. Great for kids.

 

 

 

After spending some time here we walked one block away from the beach to the main shopping street. It was busy but the roads were closed to cars so getting around was fine. My DH was looking for a watch but didn't find what he wanted. We then went to Del Sol and had fun buying some souvenirs for the kids and friends back home.

 

We were hungry by this point so back to the water taxi. Maybe it was because it was only early afternoon, but we had no wait to go back to the ship.

 

We decided on a light lunch at Promenade Cafe. They have nice sandwiches, and of course those brownies, so when we wanted something quick to take back to the cabin this was our go to place. Then nap time. We woke up to the sound of rain. It just poured for 15 minutes and then stopped. Very cool to watch. It finished just in time for our swim before dinner.

 

Tonight for dinner I only had appetizers since none of the mains really interested me. The mushroom soup was nice and I followed it with the crab cakes. My 5yr old had a few different things for dinner this week. Macaroni and cheese, chicken strips (so so), pasta with Parmesan three times (the favourite) and grilled chicken and fish. The baby enjoyed chicken, turkey or fish every night. Our waiter went out of his way to make sure they were happy. Everything was set up waiting for them when we got to the table including the kids menu to colour on and crayons. He brought them fruit right away and made sure my 5 yr old had jello for desert every night. Both girls received a lot of attention from the wait staff. It was very nice and everyone was so sweet to our kids.

 

After dinner we were excited to go to the skating show 'Strings' which had gotten good reviews from other ccers. Granny had gotten up early the day before to line up for the 8.30 am distribution of tickets (thanks Mom) The rink was packed so we were happy to have gotten there a little early before the doors opened.

 

It was a wonderful show. We liked it better than the one last year. Very different to include a violinist in the show.

 

 

After this we left the kids with granny because the Love and Marriage Show was on! This is always a good laugh and tonight didn't disappoint. They started off differently from the other times we've gone. They first asked the audience who had been married the longest. When a couple married 59 years was found they were asked to join the show and they accepted. Then they needed to find the shortest married couple. These guys had to 'audition' from the audience. Hilarious what some people will do in front of strangers!

 

We only stayed for the first half since the show started late. But it was funny. We were glad to catch the rest on tv later in the cruise.

 

This guy was waiting for us in the cabin:

 

 

Snack time and night night.

 

Next up....St. Kitts

[Cdncruisefam]

 

St. Kitts

 

We had an excursion planned for today. We decided on something that we hoped wouldn't have the kids cooped up too long - we were going to visit a plantation then head to Frigate Bay for some beach time. I have to say that we had a hard time finding out which excursions would be best for our kids. This being only my second time in St. Kitts in a very long time I was doing a lot of guessing.

 

We started off with breakfast at the Windjammer. It was very busy this morning. Service was ok but not as great as usual so we quickly ate and then left to get off the ship. One of the great things about this cruise itinerary was that there were no tenders. A great thing with small kids and a stroller!

 

When we got off the ship it was already hot. This would be our southern most port on this cruise. You hate to complain when you've just heard that another snowstorm was hitting back home, but...whew I was glad it was only 9 in the morning. It must be crazy hot in the afternoon.

 

We met up with our tour group and headed out. They were using a small bus van which was a little scary with no car seat but the roads weren't as busy or crazy as St. Maarten but if you have young children keep this in mind. The rest of us used the seat belts. We had a young guy as our tour guide. Only 22 years old and he was great. Knew a lot, very friendly and funny. Very impressive. He drove us around Basseterre before taking us out to the plantation. I visited St. Kitts on a cruise about 10 years ago. I could see a real change since that time. Lots of building and investment. It was nice to see.

 

Our first stop was the Clay Villa Plantation. It has been in the owners family since 1763. Her family heritage is Carib Indian and as such the plantation had no slaves. It was a beautiful place. They give tours, use it as an animal refuge and take in troubled youth giving them an opportunity to work in their extensive gardens. We talked with one of the girls and now she wants to go into horticulture. Very impressive.

 

 

 

At the end of the tour the owner gave each if my girls a brand new baby doll as a gift. She said that was how they were raised - to welcome people into their homes and be generous. There was an elderly man on the tour as well and I think he had to sit out most of the tour due to health issues, she gave him a free tshirt as a souvenir. I was pretty impressed by this generosity. It's not something you see everyday!

 

After the plantation we drove up to Timothy Hill. What amazing views. There were some guys with baby monkeys wanting you to take a photo but they weren't too pushy. We saw them in port too.

 

 

[Cdncruisefam]

St. Kitts continued...

 

Now to the beach!! The sand in Frigate Bay is partially volcanic and black. Which means that on a hot sunny day...:eek: it was hot!!! Big tip: bring water shoes!!! Also there are a lot of rocks in the water just past the beach and the water is a little rough if you have little ones. You can see the waves in the photo below. Even Granny had a hard time standing up in the water!

 

 

We saw people just out past the rocks where it was probably better but this wasn't the best beach for kids. My DH played with our DD in the sand with her toys and the baby stayed under the umbrella with me. Note the beach chairs were included in this tour but umbrellas were $5 each. We were happy with our tour but if beach time is what you want there is a similar tour that goes to the beach at the Marriott Hotel, I think this would be a better option for kids. Anyone go there who can comment?

 

After an hour and a half at the beach we returned to the ship. We were hungry!! Sandwiches, pizza, cookies and brownies from Cafe Promenade and Sorrentos and back to the cabin.

 

We were docked right next to a Celebrity ship and from our window you could see right onto their bridge since their ship was smaller! That was cool but if I could see them than they could see me eating yet another brownie in bed so we made sure the curtains were pinned closed! My DH took my daughter for her swim while the baby slept and while they were up there it just poured again. It was still sunny out but pouring. My DH said everyone ran for cover but that they loved swimming in the rain!

 

Dinner was a great one tonight. I'd seen this dish often on the menu over the last few cruises but never tried it so gave it a chance tonight. It was the eggplant parmigiana and it was lovely. Granny had the chicken Marsala and said it was very yummy. Since this is a dish she orders out often I trust her word on this :) DH had the shrimp but wasn't overly enthused.

 

Tonight was Pirate parade night and would also be the first time our DD would go to Adventure Ocean this cruise. Last year she watched them parade to the theatre and up on stage. She'd been too nervous to try but the longing in her eyes was heartbreaking. I was so happy that this year she was brave enough to do it! My DH took her up early from dinner to get ready for the parade. After dinner we wandered around, looked at some of our photos, browsed the shops and stayed close to the Royal Promenade since this is where the parade would happen this year. Finally down she came. It was so cute, they had one of the kids from the 6-11 Explorers group holding the hand of each 3-5 Aquanaut. Her face was painted, she was wearing a pirate bandana on her head and she was right into the pirate chant that took over the Royal Promenade. She had a great time. They didn't go up on stage this year though which I think she missed. But you could tell she really got into it since the next day in a jewelry store in San Juan my usually shy DD asked a store clerk if she could take a treasure from the cash register!:eek:

 

Tonight was also the Once Upon A Time production show. We missed it last year and since my mom and I love shows and I was sure my DD would love the stories and costumes off we went. My DH isn't a big fan of shows so he took the baby for a walk. It was a cute show. It held my DDs interest better than the first one.

 

This guy was waiting for us when we got to the cabin. The doll in the darker pink is the one that the plantation owner gave to the baby :)

 

 

Late night snacks and bedtime.

 

Next up...San Juan

[Cdncruisefam]

For those of you still reading along - thank you :). I hope you've found a few tips or ideas. Feel free to ask questions.

[Cdncruisefam]

 

Day 6 San Juan

 

 

We docked in San Juan very early but we intentionally decided not to book a tour here because:

- we didn't want to get up that early on vacation 3 days in a row!

- the kids wouldn't be very interested in a historic tour of the city.

- there was no way they'd have the patience for a tour to the rain forest.

 

So we planned to walk around a bit and then enjoy the ship. We started at the Windjammer for breakfast and then headed out. I think old San Juan is beautiful. I love the cobblestone streets and the beautiful buildings and the forts. I could just walk around here for days.

 

 

 

 

That was another great thing about this cruise itinerary. Each port was so different. We really enjoy the touristy part of cruising so this was perfect for us.

 

We were still searching for a watch for DH (didn't happen) but we had another important stop to make here. My DH collects mugs - not just any mugs, but Starbucks mugs and San Juan has a Starbucks that carries souvenir San Juan mugs. It even made it home intact! Then we bought a few souvenirs but it was hot out. So hot in fact that our DD told me she'd changed her mind and liked snow better! So back to the ship.

 

We had lunch in the Windjammer and I finally remembered someone on cc mentioning the veggie burgers. So I asked at the grill and they made one. All I can us Yum! The cook at the grill also found us peanut butter and jam since sometimes all a 5 year old wants is a pb and j sandwich. She was thrilled. Back to the cabin for a nap. And then the highlight of the kids day, the pool:

 

[Cdncruisefam]

San Juan continued...

 

After swimming it was time to get ready for the second formal night of the cruise. Tonight was Fisherman's platter night and my DH couldn't have been happier. We all enjoyed the lobster.

 

Tonight was another scheduled family event we didn't want to miss - the family scavenger hunt - kind of a Quest junior version. Five families showed up so there were 5 teams. Each team needed a team captain under 21. Our DD was the youngest team captain by at least 5 years and of course also the tiniest. The captains would be given a task to do or something to find and either they or one of their team members would have to fulfill it, similar to the adult version. Well we learned something about our DD that night...she has a bit if a competitive streak! The littlest team captain won the game!! The Adventure Ocean leader renamed our team the 'Daddy Daddy' team. The next day our DD handed out medals to our team. She had us stand in line at the Royal Promenade in a semi-official medal ceremony :). It was a lot of fun. A great family memory.

 

My DH and I had decided that tonight we wanted to relax for awhile in the hot tub and see how the baby would do in the nursery. We made a reservation for 9pm before we left for dinner that night. There weren't many children on our sailing so getting in wasn't a problem. If you sail during spring break you might want to reserve the times you want on Day 1 when you register your baby at the nursery. They gave us a bag for the baby when we registered her the first day where we put a diaper, wipes, a snack and her baby. She was playing when we left her. We then dropped DD at Adventure Ocean and off to the hot tub! It was lovely for 45 minutes :). The nursery gives you a phone and if the baby can't be calmed down, after 15 minutes of them trying to soothe the baby, they will call you. That was fine with us. We didn't want her to be miserable. Our baby got fussy and started looking for us and crying so we got the call! We walked across deck 11 and up to deck 12 and picked her up. Those complimentary robes for platinum members came in handy :D One of the carers was cuddling the baby and walking her around. They were lovely with the babies. We picked up our DD at the same time.

 

We got the kids changed into their jammies and watched the Mad Hatter parade on the Royal Promenade from the lookout on deck 9. The lookouts from deck 6 to 9 are great places to enjoy parades and things going on down on deck 5.

 

 

Bedtime snacks while watching Monsters University then lights out.

 

Next up....beach day Labadee.

[LBumb]

great review

[DarthGrady]

Thanks for sharing the review! It was a great week on Indy for all of us. :D

[TigerLady]

loving this review, we take grandson, same age as your youngest in December.

[TravelerThom]

...One question - was the shuttle from the airport free and available for all car rental companies or just Alamo? We are renting a car in March and need to figure out how to get to the port for our cruise after we drop it off at the airport.

Cdncruisefam: We were on this cruise with you - enjoyed hearing about it from a family perspective.

 

pumpkin21: ONLY National-Alamo (they are the same corporation) have a free shuttle from/to FLL airport/Port Everglades. MANY rent-a-car companies service Port Everglades with free shuttles but they do it from sites closer to PE (and it is less than 3 miles from FLL to PE). If you rent from a company other than Nat/Alamo make sure that your drop off location is the one that services PE, not the FLL location.

 

Thom

[Cdncruisefam]

 

Day 7 Labadee

 

We decided to head to the dining room for breakfast this morning. We were up in enough time since we didn't want to head to the beach too late. The Windjammer has a lot of selection and is quick and convenient but there's a lot to be said for having your hot plate of food brought to you rather than you finding a table while juggling your own plate of lukewarm food! We really enjoyed our breakfast. Our table had the smoked salmon plate, the pancakes, scrambled eggs and the French toast. The cereal and fruit buffet were very good also. I was wishing we hadn't waited until Day 7 to head here!

 

When we left there was quite a line for the dining room.

 

We quickly gathered our beach gear and headed out. We'd heard that another ship would be docking at Labadee today and we wanted to find a nice shady spot to hang out in before the beach got too crowded.

 

 

It was a perfect beach day. Last year in March it was so hot the walk to Nellies beach seemed very long. Today was just right. The weather was perfect, the beach attendant found us loungers in the shade, not under coconut trees (yay no danger of falling coconuts!) and we remembered to bring tip money this time. Things were starting just great! Last year I didn't spend too much time in the water with the baby since she doesn't like waves and my DH had to hold onto my daughter most of the time. Not this year, the water was calm and warm. The baby and I just sat in the water and relaxed. I could've stayed there all day.

 

 

The beach started filling up but not too bad. We kept looking for the other ship wondering why it was so late arriving......but happy that it hadn't shown yet because it would've felt crowded.

 

Around 1 we made the tough decision to leave the beach and head back to the ship for lunch. This was the best beach day. I love Labadee. As I'm writing this it's -24C outside. It's nice to be thinking about the beach!

 

 

The Windjammer was very quiet since most people were at the beach buffet. I really enjoy the Windjammer like this. It's easy to find a table by the window and you don't feel rushed. Today I was so looking forward to having another veggie burger. I really enjoyed the one I had yesterday and the moment I showed up at the grill the chef knew right away what I wanted and took one out for me and handed me some peanut butter and jam for the girls sandwiches. I love service like that. Unfortunately he wasn't at the grill the next day because I wanted to give him a well deserved Wow card :(

 

We asked one of the crew members why the other ship Explorer of the Seas hadn't shown up at Labadee. He told us it was due to technical difficulties but we now know that it was due to the noro outbreak! I feel badly for those who got sick but I'm very happy that Royal made the call to keep the ship away from the island and Indy passengers!

 

off to nap time and then up to the pool.

 

Had fun at dinner that night as we did every night but I ordered the filet of sole and it was only so so.

 

The family event tonight was games in the Labyrinth. Our DD loves when they have kids events in there so off we went. Unfortunately we were the only family to show up! But DD got to join in and watch her mom and dad dance to the YMCA just for her. The baby enjoyed playing with the balls and hula hoops.

 

We went to the production show since we thought it was going to be a group performing music from the Temptations. My mom was really looking forward to it. Instead the show was Centre Stage with the ship performers. There were a few good songs but it didn't catch my DDs interest so we left early. We were wondering if the other show was cancelled because the group was supposed to come over from Explorer that day.

 

Then we left the kids with granny because tonight was The Quest!! I've seen the Quest several times, this was only DHs second time since we do not bring our kids to these kind of things. It started off a little slow. I was surprised by the new rules: no running; handing things down instead of throwing; a safety zone around Joff. Breaking the rules meant point reductions. When I've watched and participated in the past the fun about the Quest was how everyone (myself included, but what happens at the quest stays at the quest :eek: ) really got into it and went a little crazy. Made me very curious as to what must have happened in the recent past that caused them to tone it down!! Must be some stories there... We left halfway through.

 

Snacks and night night.

 

Next up....last day at sea

[Cruiser1128]

For those of you still reading along - thank you :). I hope you've found a few tips or ideas. Feel free to ask questions.

 

Love your feedback on the trip. We will be on Indy in April. First time cruisers.

[Cdncruisefam]

Love your feedback on the trip. We will be on Indy in April. First time cruisers.

 

Thanks Cruiser1128. You're going to have a great time in April! The ship is beautiful and the crew is so friendly.

[nicolen1101]

Very helpful review, especially since my kids are around the same age. Do you think the Cabanas in Labadee would be worth the cost with young ones like that?

[FridaysChild]

This has been a very helpful review. I have a question about departure. Was there a separate waiting area for families with children? If so, did you use it?

[LBumb]

great pics

[Cdncruisefam]

Very helpful review, especially since my kids are around the same age. Do you think the Cabanas in Labadee would be worth the cost with young ones like that?

 

Thanks for reading along! It's hard to say about the cabana. We aren't really sun worshipers :). We love to relax a bit and swim but my kids would never last long enough at a beach to make a cabana worthwhile :). They look great though and I kinda picture myself at a different time in my life lounging back in one with a good book!

[Poorplaya]

Loving the review so far, makes me feel more comfortable about taking a cruise here soon with my 3 year old, my wife and i have curious what its really like cruising with young ones. Hopefully soon we will be booking a cruise to take our daughter on with us. Love the pics!!! :D