Review Southern Caribbean Cruise from Puerto Rico Jan 18th -25th on the Valor

[ldlewis45]

This thread really makes me want to take this cruise again! I went in Feb of 2013 (Superbowl!), and it was one of my favorite cruises ever! I did the Jalousie Beach Break with Spencer Ambrose and got my butt kicked by the rum punch they were serving. Three small cups spread over the day, and I was stumbling when I was going back to my stateroom, lol. It was fun, though! I did an excursion with Captain Alan in St. Maarten, and that was an incredible amount of fun. Carambola Beach Club in St. Kitts was a nice beach day, too.

 

I really need some mofongo con churrasco and mojitos from Café San Juan now!

[Dirkgun]

This thread really makes me want to take this cruise again! I went in Feb of 2013 (Superbowl!), and it was one of my favorite cruises ever! I did the Jalousie Beach Break with Spencer Ambrose and got my butt kicked by the rum punch they were serving. Three small cups spread over the day, and I was stumbling when I was going back to my stateroom, lol. It was fun, though! I did an excursion with Captain Alan in St. Maarten, and that was an incredible amount of fun. Carambola Beach Club in St. Kitts was a nice beach day, too.

 

I really need some mofongo con churrasco and mojitos from Café San Juan now!

 

Yeah we took the super bowl cruise on the Victory (this Itinerary) in 2010. It was a fun cruise and fun to watch the superbowl on the Lido deck on the big screen. For sure Spencer Ambrose is the top tour in St Lucia... he is a great guy and does things top notch. His rum punch is very potent as well lol. The Mofongo con Churasco does sound good. :cool::D

[AimeeAndJoel]

I had so much fun reading this review so thank you Dirkgun! I almost felt like I was there with you. My boyfriend and I will be on our first ever cruise on the Liberty in June and we are lucky enough to get to spend a whole week in Puerto Rico after the ship returns :)

 

I have also read your 2012 and 2010 reviews and you have made me so exicted for this itinerary but also for our time in San Juan. Seeing as you are an expert on the city I was hoping you could tell me where we would find the guy who does the oranges? Or is he in different places all the time so you just kind of stumble upon him? Sorry if you have mentioned it and I just missed it.

 

Also, we would very much appreciate if you could give us a couple of your "must do/eat/see" around San Juan? We have the usual planned: El Yunque, the forts, Cafe Mallorca, Barrachina, tripletas and piraguas but would be interested to hear what you think of as being a "not to be missed" experience in San Juan.

 

Thanks,

Aimee

[Dirkgun]

I had so much fun reading this review so thank you Dirkgun! I almost felt like I was there with you. My boyfriend and I will be on our first ever cruise on the Liberty in June and we are lucky enough to get to spend a whole week in Puerto Rico after the ship returns :)

 

I have also read your 2012 and 2010 reviews and you have made me so exicted for this itinerary but also for our time in San Juan. Seeing as you are an expert on the city I was hoping you could tell me where we would find the guy who does the oranges? Or is he in different places all the time so you just kind of stumble upon him? Sorry if you have mentioned it and I just missed it.

 

Also, we would very much appreciate if you could give us a couple of your "must do/eat/see" around San Juan? We have the usual planned: El Yunque, the forts, Cafe Mallorca, Barrachina, tripletas and piraguas but would be interested to hear what you think of as being a "not to be missed" experience in San Juan.

 

Thanks,

Aimee

 

 

Aimee,

Wow thanks for the nice comments :D You will love this itinerary it is so pretty and fun at each island. especially for a first cruise... you will become addicted like we did. Then the time you get to spend in Puerto Rico will be amazing. I am so jealous. Please come back and write a review... I would love to read it.

 

As far as the things to do and see in San Juan.... You have named a bunch, but don't forget to take the time for instance when you get the Tripletas... to sit and watch the people. They are such a fun happy people. Definitely walk the streets in old San Juan to really feel the vibe there. Take the time to walk the "Paseo de la Princessa" Start down by the water front by where the pier is. Then head west and you will pass the CVS store, Senor Frogs etc. Then you will come past the little square where there are vendors making and selling leather goods, hand made cigars (right there at the table), as well as the Tripleta truck. They have all kinds of good street food from churros to candy and pizza. Then keep going west and you will enter the official "Paseo de la Princessa" it goes along the outside of the old city walls and there will be vendors along there especially on the weekends. That is where you will find the orange guy.... about halfway down the sidewalk that leads to the Raices Fountain. He has always been in the same place every time we have been there. As you are walking west he will be on the right hand side up against the fence/wall. After you get past him and make it to the fountain turn right and head along the walls a ways then go through the big red old city gates then turn left and walk up the hill in the streets until you get to the great lawn at El Morro and just spend some time watching families up there. Also a great place to fly kites... you will see hundreds there on a normal weekend day. Try the little ice cream (actually more of like a frozen fruit juice) vendor carts around the city they are nice and refreshing.

 

Some of the other things to do on the Island... Over by El Yunque... is the Bio-Bay and Fajardo. Bio bay is awesome to experience. The food kiosks in Luquillo (between Fajardo and El Yunque) are awesome to eat at. Over on the other side of San Juan to the west is where you could find the Camuy Caves.... the Arecibo Observatory and radio telescope (it was the one pictured in the movie "contact" with Jodie foster) I am hoping you are renting a car for the stay after... makes things so much easier... or definitely hook up with a good taxi guy.

[AimeeAndJoel]

Aimee,

Wow thanks for the nice comments :D You will love this itinerary it is so pretty and fun at each island. especially for a first cruise... you will become addicted like we did. Then the time you get to spend in Puerto Rico will be amazing. I am so jealous. Please come back and write a review... I would love to read it.

 

As far as the things to do and see in San Juan.... You have named a bunch, but don't forget to take the time for instance when you get the Tripletas... to sit and watch the people. They are such a fun happy people. Definitely walk the streets in old San Juan to really feel the vibe there. Take the time to walk the "Paseo de la Princessa" Start down by the water front by where the pier is. Then head west and you will pass the CVS store, Senor Frogs etc. Then you will come past the little square where there are vendors making and selling leather goods, hand made cigars (right there at the table), as well as the Tripleta truck. They have all kinds of good street food from churros to candy and pizza. Then keep going west and you will enter the official "Paseo de la Princessa" it goes along the outside of the old city walls and there will be vendors along there especially on the weekends. That is where you will find the orange guy.... about halfway down the sidewalk that leads to the Raices Fountain. He has always been in the same place every time we have been there. As you are walking west he will be on the right hand side up against the fence/wall. After you get past him and make it to the fountain turn right and head along the walls a ways then go through the big red old city gates then turn left and walk up the hill in the streets until you get to the great lawn at El Morro and just spend some time watching families up there. Also a great place to fly kites... you will see hundreds there on a normal weekend day. Try the little ice cream (actually more of like a frozen fruit juice) vendor carts around the city they are nice and refreshing.

 

Some of the other things to do on the Island... Over by El Yunque... is the Bio-Bay and Fajardo. Bio bay is awesome to experience. The food kiosks in Luquillo (between Fajardo and El Yunque) are awesome to eat at. Over on the other side of San Juan to the west is where you could find the Camuy Caves.... the Arecibo Observatory and radio telescope (it was the one pictured in the movie "contact" with Jodie foster) I am hoping you are renting a car for the stay after... makes things so much easier... or definitely hook up with a good taxi guy.

 

Thanks for taking the time to give me such an awesome response! I was toying with the idea of writing a review after we get but wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in a 20-something, New Zealander's opinion haha. But maybe I will? :)

 

I will definitely take your advice and try and just take a moment to relax and people watch. I have heard only good things about the Puerto Rican people. Thanks for giving such detailed directions for the walk. I'm sooo looking forward to it! I love just wandering through older parts of a city and just imagining what life what like when these places were new. My boyfriend, on the other hand, is more interested in the food haha. As soon as I mentioned the churros to him he was sold! You literally have both of our stomachs growling thinking about all this food haha.

 

Yes! I almost forgot about the Bio-bay! Reading your review had me laughing so hard. Your family sounds like a blast to be around! We may be slightly more experienced kayakers but I hope our trip is just as entertaining as yours haha. One top of experiencing Puerto Rico, it's people and also the Southern Caribbean we are so looking forward to being surrounded by Americans. I have been to the US once before and completely fell in love! I love meeting Americans from all different states and hearing about where they come from/live. We already have a long list of places we want to see and things we want to do in the US when we move there mid next year after I'm done with my PhD. We'll be settling in Michigan :)

 

I can't thank you enough for all your suggestions! We get more and more excited for this trip with each Cruise Critic post we read, and certainly when they are as thorough and well written as yours! June 7th can't come soon enough!

 

Aimee

[MiffyLynx]

The flowers from Barbados are still looking good...

 

 

These are so pretty? Are they priced reasonably? Doing this cruise next month & would love to have pretty flowers in my room!

[Dirkgun]

The flowers from Barbados are still looking good...

 

 

These are so pretty? Are they priced reasonably? Doing this cruise next month & would love to have pretty flowers in my room!

 

 

Yes they are like $15 an arrangement. We have her do the ginger lilies and the Bird of Paradise along with the Bamboo vase.... I really like them.

[Dirkgun]

Thanks for taking the time to give me such an awesome response! I was toying with the idea of writing a review after we get but wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in a 20-something, New Zealander's opinion haha. But maybe I will? :)

 

I will definitely take your advice and try and just take a moment to relax and people watch. I have heard only good things about the Puerto Rican people. Thanks for giving such detailed directions for the walk. I'm sooo looking forward to it! I love just wandering through older parts of a city and just imagining what life what like when these places were new. My boyfriend, on the other hand, is more interested in the food haha. As soon as I mentioned the churros to him he was sold! You literally have both of our stomachs growling thinking about all this food haha.

 

Yes! I almost forgot about the Bio-bay! Reading your review had me laughing so hard. Your family sounds like a blast to be around! We may be slightly more experienced kayakers but I hope our trip is just as entertaining as yours haha. One top of experiencing Puerto Rico, it's people and also the Southern Caribbean we are so looking forward to being surrounded by Americans. I have been to the US once before and completely fell in love! I love meeting Americans from all different states and hearing about where they come from/live. We already have a long list of places we want to see and things we want to do in the US when we move there mid next year after I'm done with my PhD. We'll be settling in Michigan :)

 

I can't thank you enough for all your suggestions! We get more and more excited for this trip with each Cruise Critic post we read, and certainly when they are as thorough and well written as yours! June 7th can't come soon enough!

 

Aimee

 

 

I definitely would love to hear your perspective on the cruise and vacation. I will be looking forward to reading your review. Yes one of the best things about travel is meeting people from everywhere. I know you will love your cruise and hope you will have a great experience in your move to Michigan. Congrats on the PhD... that is awesome. :D

[Buffettfan 225]

The flowers from Barbados are still looking good...

 

 

These are so pretty? Are they priced reasonably? Doing this cruise next month & would love to have pretty flowers in my room!

I love Bird of Paradise for flowers in US one would need to add a zero to total for them delivering exotic ones like that. A must do on our June 14th, 30th Anniversary cruise.

Thanks for idea.

[Dirkgun]

I love Bird of Paradise for flowers in US one would need to add a zero to total for them delivering exotic ones like that. A must do on our June 14th, 30th Anniversary cruise.

Thanks for idea.

 

 

The grasshopper we bought in El Yunque from a vendor at Yokahu tower. Yes Birds 0f Paradise can get expensive here. Have a great cruise and congrats on your 30th anniversary

[Luv06012012]

I absolutely enjoyed your review! You have a beautiful family and got some really great pictures!

 

We are doing a similar itinerary in May and I am excited to be staying in PR the day before and the day after for the first time! Do you have any recommendations on places to eat in Old San Juan by chance?

 

We plan on touring Old San Juan the day before our trip and trying to do El Yunque the day we come back....if I can ever reach a tour guide! lol

 

Thanks again for the wonderful review....I enjoyed reading it so much I was sad it ended!

[Dirkgun]

I absolutely enjoyed your review! You have a beautiful family and got some really great pictures!

 

We are doing a similar itinerary in May and I am excited to be staying in PR the day before and the day after for the first time! Do you have any recommendations on places to eat in Old San Juan by chance?

 

We plan on touring Old San Juan the day before our trip and trying to do El Yunque the day we come back....if I can ever reach a tour guide! lol

 

Thanks again for the wonderful review....I enjoyed reading it so much I was sad it ended!

 

 

Thanks for the nice comments.... We really have only eaten at a place called Genesis in Old San Juan (and they were very good).... other than that we really like the street vendor food especially the Tripletas. I know Cafeteria Mallorca is open later in the evening as well.

 

 

He is a great driver and tour guide.... give him a call or send an email. I know he told us he does tours all over the island... and if he doesn't I am sure he could point you in the right direction.

 

You are so right about being sad the review got over... it is almost like coming to the end of a vacation... Thanks for reading and commenting. Have a great cruise. :cool::D

[sxyshell]

I loved your review!!! We leave on the Valor on 4/25 out of Port Canaveral. We only live an hour from the port so we get to cruise often! I'm even more excited after reading your review. Thanks for taking the time to do it!

[Dirkgun]

I loved your review!!! We leave on the Valor on 4/25 out of Port Canaveral. We only live an hour from the port so we get to cruise often! I'm even more excited after reading your review. Thanks for taking the time to do it!

 

 

You entirely welcome. Thanks for reading it. She is an awesome ship.... love all the Americana decorations everywhere. Port Canaveral is a great port to sail out of. I am jealous of people so close to cruise ports. Thanks for the nice comments as well. Have a great cruise next month.

[Naespiffi05]

Sun Jan 25th San Juan Debarkation day Today we got up and the ship was already in the port of San Juan (it really is the only time I don’t like seeing San Juan). We got up and went down to the MDR for breakfast one last time. We had a very relaxed (no hurry) meal then went back to the rooms and got our carry-on’s and then headed down to the casino area to wait for our number to be called and to try to win that blasted cash cube game…. It seems pretty easy but… not so much. We were in no hurry to get off since we were staying in San Juan a couple extra days and could not check in for a while. So we just found a spot to relax and watch people.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I will post these random pictures of the ship....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had three balcony rooms starting with 9283 and then at the end of the hall was our "private" door to our hallway, then out into the Lido pool/deck area. It is a nice location.

 

 

.

 

I just read your entire review and I want to thank you for sharing your experience! My family and I are on the Valor Aug 15, 2015 out of Port Canaveral. Your review confirmed that this was the right choice for me and my family's vacation. I loved all the info and learned alot! Amazing pics of you and your beautiful family!! Awesome review and thanks again!!!

[Dirkgun]

I just read your entire review and I want to thank you for sharing your experience! My family and I are on the Valor Aug 15, 2015 out of Port Canaveral. Your review confirmed that this was the right choice for me and my family's vacation. I loved all the info and learned alot! Amazing pics of you and your beautiful family!! Awesome review and thanks again!!!

 

 

Thank you for the nice comments. The Valor is a great ship and Port Canaveral is a great port to sail out of. Probably one of the friendliest I have been out of. Have a great cruise and remember to make the most of the vacation... don't let little mishaps get in the way of fun.

[cruiseclues]

Thanks for your photo review...Nice Photos and an interesting review. :):):):)

[Dirkgun]

Thanks for your photo review...Nice Photos and an interesting review. :):):):)

 

 

Thank you for the nice comments. Also thanks for the time you put in to your website. There is lots of great info there.

[cruiseclues]

Thank you...a lot of good info and your good photo review. :):):):)

[Dirkgun]

Thank you...a lot of good info and your good photo review. :):):):)

 

 

Thanks again for the compliments. I appreciate you reading along.

[sxyshell]

You entirely welcome. Thanks for reading it. She is an awesome ship.... love all the Americana decorations everywhere. Port Canaveral is a great port to sail out of. I am jealous of people so close to cruise ports. Thanks for the nice comments as well. Have a great cruise next month.

 

Dirkgun, we had a blast on our Valor cruise 2 weeks ago. Yes we are very lucky to be so close to the port. Got another "free" cruise from the casino so we just booked the Sunshine for the end of August. We've been on her once and weren't to thrilled with how crowded it was but we loved other things about her so we are going to give it another go. :p

[Dirkgun]

Dirkgun, we had a blast on our Valor cruise 2 weeks ago. Yes we are very lucky to be so close to the port. Got another "free" cruise from the casino so we just booked the Sunshine for the end of August. We've been on her once and weren't to thrilled with how crowded it was but we loved other things about her so we are going to give it another go. :p

 

 

Glad you had a great time. I have not sailed the Sunshine yet. Love cruising tough and yes there are going to be bumps but I think you can always have a great time if you try. Have a great free cruise... I am jealous.

[TRAVELCRUZIN]

LOVED your review! It's what convinced me to do the Southern cruise out of San Juan! Could you tell me how much you paid for the St. Kitts tour you did?

[Dirkgun]

LOVED your review! It's what convinced me to do the Southern cruise out of San Juan! Could you tell me how much you paid for the St. Kitts tour you did?

 

 

Thanks for reading and commenting. Yes we paid $25 per person through Liz Pereira at Pereira tours she is great and we had a great day. If you contact her tell her Dirk sent you. You can find her on the "book" FYI. St Kitts is a great place, as are all the islands on this itinerary. You will have a great time. Make sure to come back and write a review so we can see how you liked it.

[pghsteelerfan]

I'm getting ready to read your review again. We're doing this cruise again in September 2015!!! DH was leaning toward an all-inclusive but I think he was ready for another cruise and this was one of the options he mentioned. I gave him my answer right away. :D He only has enough vacation time for the one night pre-cruise but we'll make the best of our time in San Juan. We're thinking about using the same tour you did in Barbados and go to a beach first (loved the looks of the beach you went to...Payne's Bay???) for a couple hours then over to Bathsheba. We pretty much know what we want to see and do but now its just trying to figure out which. The Skyride/Paradise Point are definitely in the plans for St. Thomas this time. We wanted to do that last time but both closed (road widening/building renovation) about 2 weeks before our cruise and didn't open up for about 5 months later.