3rd Time Lucky! - Miami, Celebrity Reflection 2nd April & Miami Trip Report

[kikki21]

It's too far to fly for just one week, you have just about got over the jet lag and it's time to return!:eek:

 

 

Totally agree with you although my husband maybe wouldn't but hey he got overruled lol!

 

Although I'm thinking I may be a bit old for Miami now so might be going for a Fort Lauderdale flight & cruise next time round! Just for a bit of variation! [emoji4]

[kikki21]

Hey everyone - I will continue with my review in bursts when I can - we have free wi fi here in our hotel! [emoji4]

 

We saw off the Reflection on her transatlantic today, it seemed an age ago that we had got off her but it was only this time last week that we were waving at everyone stood over at South Pointe Park & here we were doing the same!

 

 

Got to say we felt very sorry to be getting off her despite the somewhat rocky journey in places!

[kikki21]

Right back to St Thomas!

 

 

There were quite a lot of ships in with us, 2 at Havensight & 2 over at Crown Bay. We made a decision only a few weeks back that we would take a tour here & plumped for Sunny Liston tours. I had heard that his tours were quite loud & proud! First of all, we got picked up late which cut down 2 hours shopping to 1.5hrs - our tour was the shopping & sightseeing one but we could have added beach time to it as they weren't bothered but we aren't really beach people so we just plumped for going back to the ship.

 

 

After a bit of a successful shop for some jewellery, we did a brief stop for some drinks & then met up with the rest of the tour where we were dropped off. Charlotte Amalie is just basically one street full of jewellery shops!

 

Because I sell jewellery, I do like to buy it as a souvenir of where I have visited but only something different to what I sell. A lot of the pieces here will have been made in China or India in terms of sterling silver/pearls.

 

Our driver for our tour was Paget George aka Taxi Love - and he was just bonkers lol! [emoji15]

 

You travel up in the open air trucks which he seemed to think was some kind of F1 racing car & moves the truck along with the very loud music he plays & he sings at the top of his voice - yeah man!!! The tour was a lot of fun though & we saw loads of viewpoints which is exactly what we wanted!

 

Our first look out point was over the port.

 

 

We then travelled to Mountain Top where we could admire the views, have a drink & buy stuff!

 

From here you have splendid views of Magen's Bay & the rest of the Virgin Islands.

 

The tour was worth it just to see this!

 

 

We then went down to a lower lookout point to overlook Magen's Bay! It really was stunning. From there, we dropped some people off for a few hours at Magen's Bay & some people at Sapphire Beach so we got to see some of the island too.

 

 

The people at the beaches were a bit worried at the pick up times as the Reflection wanted people back on board at 4.30 but the guys were confident that the ship wouldn't set sail without them & not before 5pm ( she set off at 4.57pm!) & with everyone on board!

[kikki21]

Sailaway from St Thomas was beautiful!

 

I decided to show off one of my purchased tonight at dinner!

 

 

Sterling silver, cubic zirconia & blue topaz pendant!

 

 

Sterling silver & tanzanite earrings - I do sell tanzanite earrings but a lab created Siberian Tanzanite so I treated myself to the real thing!

 

 

As we were in an Aquaclass cabin, our main dining room was in Blu - the majority of the food in there we really liked - in fact this was the only time that my main course was a bit off - I have to say that my grilled lamb chops were quite chewy. I probably should have sent them back but I was pretty hungry! [emoji23]

 

Portion sizes can be quite small in Blu but the waiters do encourage you to order more!

[kikki21]

Another day, another port of call & already our final one for this cruise! St Maarten!

 

If all the ports that I had to miss because of Hurricane Earl, this was the one that I really wanted to see!

 

Number 1 reason being Maho Beach but actually after seeing Charlotte Amalie, we were pleasantly surprised by the rest of the island from what we saw & we thought Philipsburg was lovely - to us it looked far better than St Thomas & this indeed was one of our best port days ever!

[kikki21]

We decided that we would have a bit of a walk round & a shop in Philipsburg & then get to Maho Beach for about 12/ 12.30 & stay for the bigger planes coming in & take it from there!

 

 

We were joined in port today by the Oasis of the Seas & the very tiny Thomson Celebration!

 

 

The Thomson ship looked like a toy ship parked next to the huge Oasis!

 

As seemed to be the custom on this cruise, we had to have a bit of rain to greet us & in the case of St Maarten when we were leaving too! It all clears up within minutes though but clearly keeps these islands looking green!

 

 

We got to Philipsburg by water taxi, it's cheaper to get a return & you are dropped off at the main pier & accosted by loads of people wanting your custom!

We half deliberated a bit of an island tour but decided to think about it & first of all did some shopping.

 

 

We ended up having a drink at Antoine's which was a restaurant I had heard was good on Trip Advisor, we looked through the menu & decided to come back for lunch after Maho Beach which turned out to be an excellent decision!

[kikki21]

We ended up sharing a taxi both ways to & from Maho beach as it's cheaper $8.00 each instead of $10.00 - we had great people to chat to both ways. And the taxi driver coming back was a lovely lady & we had a good chat with her.

[kikki21]

 

Maho Beach is very pretty anyway & gets very busy when the planes are coming in plus the Sunset Bar is rammed full!

 

 

Was it worth it? Did it live up to the hype? Definitely YES! [emoji7]

 

 

 

We watched a number of the larger planes come in plus some smaller ones too. There is s guy on the beach who tells you what planes are on the approach ( He's a photographer) & also tells you about planes taking off! The jet blast is for real!

[kikki21]

We decided to have a drink at the Sunset Bar as it was pretty hot standing there on the beach in the midday sun!

We plumped for a frozen guava berry cocktail which was very good & refreshing!

 

We then decided that as it was getting busier with traffic, we would head back to Philipsburg. It was great to watch a few more landings without pointing cameras at them!

 

Getting a taxi back gives you a real flavour of the island.

 

 

There are lots of lovely beaches & resort hotels.

 

 

We headed back to Antoine's where we had an excellent lunch & fantastic view!

 

 

My hubby had the Lobster Caesar Salad which was excellent ( as was the bread) and I had the Lobster cocktail salad.

 

 

That was also excellent but the star of the show was an absolutely perfect Creme brûlée which Antoine assured us was made on the premises!

 

 

Antoine also had a sense of humour by giving me the big spoon & my hubby the small spoon lol!

 

It was a very memorable lunch followed by a walk on the beach so we could dip out feet in the sea.

[kikki21]

 

It was here that I discovered that our anti bite spray is a pile of ****! It just doesn't work for me despite copious amounts of spraying my entire body!!!

 

 

It was the only opportunity to get a photo of our balcony cabin on the hump when we got back to the ship.

 

 

We left the port with rain coming in so we're very pleased that we managed to miss that shower! However, after the rain comes the sunshine and a rather lovely leaving gift for us!

 

 

A rather stunning rainbow!

 

It was a really fabulous day & definitely our favourite port of call of our cruise!

[FunCruiser56]

What a beautiful send off from St. Marten! Love the tanzanite earrings, it's my favorite stone, I always try and pick up something as a cruise memory.

Bev

[kikki21]

Hi folks well we are safely home & our 2 cats Kikki & Kali are totally loved up again with us [emoji177]

 

The jetlag has been kicking in on & off all day but I can download my camera photos today & then tell you more about our last 2 days at sea & our time in Miami after the cruise.

 

The holiday seemed to go by in a flash but I think the best ones do that!

[kikki21]

What a beautiful send off from St. Marten! Love the tanzanite earrings, it's my favorite stone, I always try and pick up something as a cruise memory.

Bev

 

 

Thank you! This is what I try & do! I haven't worn the earrings as of yet. I didn't do too badly out of my cruise holiday at all this time & got jewellery in every port & also got my Miami Pandora charm too as well as a crystal anchor to go with my cruise ship.

[Newbury newbie]

We set up from the hotel via taxi - same price as the Hotel Hoppa service, 5 minutes later at Terminal 3.

I quickly checked in online on my phone before we left the hotel so dropped our bags off. No security queues at all. Straight through, duty free shopping done & just waiting for the plane so chilling out before we find out what gate we're at! [emoji4]

 

I'm sure it was busier flying from Terminal 5 last time we were here!

 

Got to your review late but loved it. We were actually on this sailing too, having done a B2Bwith the previous one.

 

We stayed in the Rennaisance last year and had a great runway view. I sat at the window, with my vino, for a good few hours!!

 

One tip you may not be aware of, should you stay there again, or any other hotel in that area. The Hotel Hoppa is expensive regarding the distance you actually go from this hotel and a taxi seems a no brainier. However, any of the bus rides on a red bus within the Heathrow area are free. They don't exactly publicise this but it's true. If you can drag your cases all of 50m to the bus stop on Bath Road you can get a free ride to either LHR Central for T1, 2 or 3. Or up to T5. I've not done T4 from here but guess it's doable.

[kikki21]

Got to your review late but loved it. We were actually on this sailing too, having done a B2Bwith the previous one.

 

 

 

We stayed in the Rennaisance last year and had a great runway view. I sat at the window, with my vino, for a good few hours!!

 

 

 

One tip you may not be aware of, should you stay there again, or any other hotel in that area. The Hotel Hoppa is expensive regarding the distance you actually go from this hotel and a taxi seems a no brainier. However, any of the bus rides on a red bus within the Heathrow area are free. They don't exactly publicise this but it's true. If you can drag your cases all of 50m to the bus stop on Bath Road you can get a free ride to either LHR Central for T1, 2 or 3. Or up to T5. I've not done T4 from here but guess it's doable.

 

 

Hi there!

Yes we did the bus when we went on honeymoon but we were flying from Terminal 5 & stayed closer.

We just opted for comfort this time lol! And we had bigger cases this time too.

I will get to finish my review & load up my camera photos very soon but I have got horrendous jetlag at the mo! [emoji27]

[kikki21]

Hi all!

 

Still got jetlag & also think I have some kind of lurgy as well! :(

 

Ah well, it's a good job that I feel like this as I have downloaded the 1480 :eek: photos from my digital camera & am now editing & downloading to Facebook,Photobucket & then here!

 

I'll take us back to the beginning for the best photos & then onward to where we left off!

 

Did we have a good time? YES

 

Did we love the ship? YES

 

Do I miss cruising already? YES!!!

 

Do I want to book another cruise? YES!!!

 

Was the 3rd time the charm? YES!!!

[kikki21]

Sorry folks but what with whatever bug/jetlag I have, this is going slower than anticipated. i also copied over loads of Facebook photos to Photobucket too!

 

http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r565/Monmar1408/Facebook/NIGHT%20BEFORE%20THE%20HOLIDAY%20STARTED/13041076_10153571776679677_385533065956713954_o_zps4hxkwzz1.jpg

 

Anyhow, here we go.... so if you are a plane geek then you need to stay at the Renaissance Hotel at Heathrow as you can get shots like this of planes landing in the morning & also taking off!

 

http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r565/Monmar1408/Facebook/NIGHT%20BEFORE%20THE%20HOLIDAY%20STARTED/12983847_10153571777099677_2397582208768350082_o_zpsvaba6ytf.jpg

 

The hotel has been recently refurbished & is really lovely. Ask for a runway view room at check in. We booked a room plus parking at the hotel & it didn't give the option when booking it all on line.

[kikki21]

We flew Virgin Atlantic & went economy in extra leg room seats (should have done the same on the way back) we sat on the right of the plane going there and on the left coming back which worked out well but the seats we had coming back were not great & I wouldn't choose them again.

 

I love taking photos from the plane, I got some good ones flying to Miami & coming back! This is literally a few minutes after take off from Heathrow of Windsor Castle!

 

Edited April 16, 2016 by kikki21

[kikki21]

We flew over Didcot in Oxfordshire, part of Southern Wales near Fishguard & then flew near the Southern coast of Ireland where I got this shot.

 

 

Next shot I would get would be the coast of America near Fort Lauderdale!

 

 

Coral Ridge Country Club/Golf Course

[kikki21]

Now the usual routing would see us hugging the shoreline & seeing all of Miami/South Beach which gets me really excited.... not this time after seeing Port Everglades & Fort Lauderdale airport, we started crossing over inland.

 

I had real problems with one of the windows as it was condensation central! :(

 

 

Can you see the cruise ship in port?

 

 

Here's a shot with Gulf Stream Horse racing track in view along with lots of homes on the water.... not been to Fort Lauderdale or sailed from there as yet!

 

[kikki21]

it was interesting to fly in this way as you can see how many homes have been built by reclaiming land from Everglades swamp!

 

 

It's hard to believe that this was what Miami is built on!

 

 

So we were on final approach & seeing lots of golf courses below.

 

 

We ordered gluten free food for both journeys on the plane. One advantage is that you get your meals first. My husband has a sensitive tummy to some wheat hence the reason to do so. The meal out was ok, the meal coming back was totally yuck. I think we will stick to non gluten free foods next time round & he will have to take a chance!

[kikki21]

Wow how far did we have to walk through the airport at Miami to get to passport control where we had to do the same procedure twice?

 

Yeah you go to a machine where you do your fingerprints and it takes a photo and then you go to a person and have it done again?! Bizarre!

 

In any case, it's good as your cases are waiting for you as ours were so we found the taxi stand & went off to our hotel. I like to book small ish, independent, boutique type hotels - I'm the travel agent between us so i do all the research & bookings lol! :D

 

We stayed at the Blanc Kara Hotel in South Beach in the up & coming So Fi (South of Fifth) area which is more quiet than Ocean Drive etc from 5th upwards. It's close to South Pointe Park & there are quite a few nice restaurants in the area too.

 

 

We stayed in a superior studio, huge bed, nice bathroom.

 

 

Coffee machine, fridge etc.It wasn't noisy & we didn't hear any street noise & slept well.

 

I review where we stay and where we eat on Trip Advisor so let me know if you want any links!

 

We ate close by ( when we found it) at Pappa e Cicchia - we had the crab & lobster ravioli, it wasn't cheap but it sure tasted good. We were pretty tired but we could have a bit of a lie in as our food tour wasn't starting till 12 noon.

 

 

We went to Walgreen's & picked up some toiletries plus a rather tasty granola for the morning & zonked out!

[kikki21]

Wow did we walk a lot today!

 

We had a fairly lazy start to the day & then we got ready to get to David's Cuban Cafe on Alton Road where our food tour was starting. It was near enough a private tour as there was just 1 other person on the tour & we found Farouk our guide to be engaging & informative about food, South Beach & history.

 

We started off with Cuban coffee & the most delicious pastries made with guavaberry etc! Then we caught the free trolley bus to our next destination which was an Argentine cafe near Lincoln Road Mall - from then on it was walking all the way but the pace was good! We had beef empanadas - mmmm!

 

We then went to Espanola Way to eat & drink at Boteco - a Brazilian restaurant.

 

 

Cashew nut juice - tasty & refreshing! Farouk really champions small, family owned restaurants & so do we.

 

 

We also had shredded chicken, mashed potato & Brazilian cream cheese croquettes, these were well tasty!

 

We then walked to the Tides hotel in Ocean Drive where we had a taste of Floribbean cuisine with a fresh crab salad.

 

 

Tides hotel lobby is beautiful - very classy!

 

 

Our food tour finished up on Washington at a small Italian deli where they make their own ice cream (gelato) I had the pistachio, it was really very good! My husband had the mango sorbet & he loved it!

 

Definitely recommend this food tour!

[kikki21]

 

So as it was 3pm, we wanted to get down to South Pointe Park to see off the cruise ships heading out on their weekend breaks, we did this via our hotel for a quick pit stop to freshen up & yes we walked - think we covered over 7 miles today, no wonder we slept well! :D

 

 

We made it to see the Carnival Fantasy be the first ship to head off for the weekend. I really like how they have developed South Pointe Park, there's always something going on!

 

 

The Norwegian Sky followed.....

 

We saw the Thriller power speedboat quite a few times.... I did actually want to go out on it when the cruise ships go out but it's hard to take photos on it to be honest! (past experience!)

 

[kikki21]

 

And here's the ship that started off my cruise addiction - the Majesty of the Seas! I always knew I would love to cruise & if I lived anywhere near Miami then I would probably be on a ship more often than not!

 

After another freshen up, we tried to get into Joe's Stone Crab but it was an hour & a half wait and it was already late so we decided to go elsewhere & got ourselves into Fogo de Chao - a Brazilian churrascia steak house - we have these in the UK & have experienced it on the Escape & actually this was really good!

 

 

Good selection on the salad bar, highly addictive Brazilian cheese bread as usual & the quality of meats was outstanding!

 

 

We shared a Key Lime Pie for dessert & that was good too!

 

The excitement was building because tomorrow was the day we had been waiting for since November 2014 when we booked this cruise - we are finally getting on board the Reflection! :)