The Palm Trees are Really Cool: A Pictorial Review of the Valor's Southern Route

[Nicole721]

We made one more stop on this tour (which we didn’t make the first time we took this tour) – a photo stop at Frigate Bay, where the Caribbean sea meets the Atlantic ocean.

 

 

 

[Nicole721]

After Frigate Bay, we were driven back to Port Zante, where we bid farewell to Terrance and made our way into a few shops on our way back to the ship.

 

 

 

 

The shopping wasn’t as good as we remembered, and we weren’t really finding any steals, so we headed back to the ship.

[Nicole721]

When we went to drop our bags at the room, we found invites to the Past Guest Party – in four hours. I found it odd that they waited until everyone left their rooms to invite them to a party a few hours later. It was almost like a pity invite when someone doesn’t want you to come so they wait until the absolute last minute to tell you. A “we value your patronage but don’t want all of you to come to this party so if you miss it OOPS!”

 

 

With most of our fellow cruisers off on the island, the lines up on the Lido deck were finally manageable. We decided on pizza for lunch.

 

[Nicole721]

The aft adults only pool and jacuzzi’s were pretty empty, so we spent a few hours splashing around, soaking up the bits of vacation sun we had left.

 

 

 

[Nicole721]

After a round of showers and another unintentional nap (vacationing makes me sleepy!), we headed to the Eagle Lounge for the Past Guest Party. I always do the kind of bitch face side eye when I see these parties held anywhere but the theaters. These lounges just aren’t big enough and it gets really uncomfortable, and the crowding issue makes it difficult to get steady bar service. I guess the solution to everyone mentioning any issues with crowd control at these parties was to not send out invitations until the morning of, when many people may not get them until after the fact.

 

 

 

There were no trays with brightly colored concoctions, wines, beers and champagnes. Not this time. The choice was punch or…punch. With or without rum. If you slipped one of the servers a ten, they were willing to bring mixed or frozen drinks. It had an umbrella in it, so I made do here.

 

 

As we contemplated whether we wanted punch or…punch, servers passing around cold hors d'oeuvres made the rounds. The offerings were the same as they had been on many of our recent cruises (try the bacon cheesecake – it’s rich and decadent, salty and savory, a culinary contradiction that works in the best way).

 

[Nicole721]

There was live music and singing, a plus. They brought out the captain and crew for the obligatory “HE’S PAYING FOR THE DRINKS! THREE CHEERS! WAIT, WHO’S DRIVING THE SHIP?” joke and we had a few rounds of…punch.

 

 

 

We were having nice time. And then Stephanie, the Assistant CD, came out with some “great news.” I have the same reaction to “great news” as I do seeing large gatherings held in unbelievably small lounges. They usually mean upsells. And I was right -- the good news was that the Carnival corporation? Yeah. They hear our voices. They read our comment cards. And because the loyal customers demanded it (italicized because that was verbatim, I kid you not), they were bringing back the free cruise raffle.

 

Seriously.

 

Of all the valid **** everyone’s been putting on their comment cards (crowding issues, diminishing Platinum perks, the ever shrinking size of the filet mignon in the dining room ahem), THIS is what you fix? Did this raffle even ever go away?

 

And then they started selling tickets during the party. No draw for a free cruise, or anything else, for that matter. Remember the good old sea days where your party invite was collected at the door and put into a raffle for a bottle of champs or dinner at the supper club? Those days are gone. But if you want to buy a ticket for a chance to win a free cruise? As a loyal cruiser, you can be first. Because they care. Being a past guest won’t improve your odds, but CARNIVAL CARES!!!1!!111!!

[Nicole721]

I couldn’t listen to ASD!Stephanie drone on with this long speech about this raffle. Sister!Stephanie, Mom and I headed outside for some fresh air and to watch the sunset before dinner instead.

 

 

 

[Nicole721]

The dining room was pretty empty (a theme throughout this cruise – since it was so port intensive, it wasn’t surprising that people were opting for a more casual option up on Lido for dinner). Service was spot on, food was an odd mix of superb and sub-par. There were bright spots. The lasagna was wonderful (though the appetizer portion was still a bit on the heavy side for a starter) and the turkey plate remains Stephanie’s favorite cruise meal of all time. The soups weren’t as warm as we would have liked them, but were tasty and didn’t require a single dash of salt or pepper. The big disappointment was the filet mignon, which was incredibly small, incredibly overcooked and incredibly flavorless, served on top of some fatty short ribs and alongside a perplexing two potato side dishes (a halved seasoned potato and a scoop of mashed sweet potatoes).

 

Wild Mushroom Cream Soup

 

Old Fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup

 

Lasagna Bolognese

 

Vine Ripe Beefsteak Tomatoes and Buffalo Mozzarella

 

Chicken Tenders Marinated in Thai Spices

[Nicole721]

Petite Filet Mignon and Braised Boneless Short-Rib

 

Clouds in my coffee, clouds in my coffee

 

Old Fashioned Apple Pie

 

Warm Chocolate Melting Cake

[Nicole721]

We headed back to the room and found a new friend waiting for us on Stephanie’s bed.

 

 

The distance between St. Kitts and St. Maarten isn’t that great, and we were certainly taking our time – we had pulled away from the dock before dinner and we still weren’t far when we got back to the room. We spent some time on the balcony watching the island lights off St. Kitts and nearby Nevis and St. Eustatius.

 

 

 

[Nicole721]

No big show tonight, and nothing appealing playing under the stars, so we watched Baby Mama in our room. We’d seen commercials for it all week and we were all stoked to catch it. Stephanie and I quote this movie all the time (“Bitch, I don’t know your life!” has a permanent slot atop my comeback arsenal).

 

After the movie, Mom decided she needed to pack. I still had a day of vacation left and I didn’t want to think about it, so I dragged Stephanie up to the Lido deck. There was no line at the pizza counter (a rarity on this cruise) and there was a slice of just out of the oven prosciutto pizza calling my name.

 

 

We headed up to the Serenity deck for some quality hammock time, but we ultimately ended up in the forward sun beds.

 

 

 

The stars shone bright overhead, like a million tiny diamonds woven into the darkest blue velvet sky. It was dazzling, mesmerizing and all things beautiful. And in true fashion, I took another unintentional nap.

 

 

Stephanie woke me up when she stopped being amused by my narcoleptic tendencies to show me how closely we were passing by other islands. We were going to go swimming, but Stephanie wasn’t feeling well, so we headed back to the room to watch some TV before heading to bed.

[Nicole721]

Today’s Lido Lunch Menu:

 

 

Today’s Lido Dinner Menu:

 

[babsee101]

So happy you came back! Love your writing style and photography skills!

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review. :)

[iriegirl]

Well that's disappointing (about St Lucia). I had the exact opposite experience--we had ZERO hassle from aggressive vendors. St Lucia is my absolute favorite port, so hearing that the vendors have gotten super-aggressive is disappointing. I'm so glad that you ladies didn't let that color your day. As usual, the pics are fantastic and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about your experiences! You are really making me consider cruising Carnival again (on one of the newer ships). :D

[Flytko]

Glad to see more of your review come out!!

[mikem1977]

Love this review, planning on going on the Valor next year.

[CruiseAwesome]

How you are about St. Kitts is how I am about St. Thomas, I just a special feeling and enjoy so much of that island.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[Tracyelln]

Wow! You have done a wonderful job documenting your vacation! You are a very talented writer! I am SO enjoying this!

You said you were planning a Mediterranean cruise for May? My husband and I did a 12 night a few years ago! It was a trip of a lifetime! If you have any questions, please let me know! We are actually thinking about May 2015 to do it again!

[Momofthreeprincesses]

Loving your review... Contemplating this cruise out of San Juan for our 15th wedding anniversary and this gave me a great look into what to expect.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Nicole721]

So happy you came back! Love your writing style and photography skills!

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review. :)

 

Should be back later with more! Thanks! :)

 

Well that's disappointing (about St Lucia). I had the exact opposite experience--we had ZERO hassle from aggressive vendors. St Lucia is my absolute favorite port, so hearing that the vendors have gotten super-aggressive is disappointing. I'm so glad that you ladies didn't let that color your day. As usual, the pics are fantastic and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about your experiences! You are really making me consider cruising Carnival again (on one of the newer ships). :D

 

It wasn't so bad that we were turned off the island completely -- we all agree that St. Lucia is one of the most stunning islands we've ever visited -- but it was just something unlike we'd ever experienced on other islands. I like to think of us as seasoned cruisers, and we'd never experienced vendors so aggressive that they will literally try to sell you things by pulling alongside your bus or boat.

[Nicole721]

Glad to see more of your review come out!!

 

Thanks! :)

 

Love this review, planning on going on the Valor next year.

 

You'll have a fantastic time, I'm sure! :)

[Nicole721]

How you are about St. Kitts is how I am about St. Thomas, I just a special feeling and enjoy so much of that island.

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

They're both wonderfully special islands, aren't they? :)

 

Wow! You have done a wonderful job documenting your vacation! You are a very talented writer! I am SO enjoying this!

You said you were planning a Mediterranean cruise for May? My husband and I did a 12 night a few years ago! It was a trip of a lifetime! If you have any questions, please let me know! We are actually thinking about May 2015 to do it again!

 

Awww thanks! :)

 

We are planning a 12 night Med cruise in May! We're looking at one on Royal Caribbean. It's my choice since it's my birthday, but I think M&S will like it :)

 

I literally went to Half Priced Books and bought, like, 15 Europe books. None of us have ever been!

[Nicole721]

Loving your review... Contemplating this cruise out of San Juan for our 15th wedding anniversary and this gave me a great look into what to expect.

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

It's definitely a special itinerary, perfect for any kind of milestone event :)

[sharkaymon]

I see someone is wearing flip-flops, my fav. How were they on your walking tour?

[PathfinderEss]

Still following along on your great review, really enjoying your photo's, especially the food ones. Your making me hungry.:D