Adventure B2B Trip & Ultimate Beach Review 4/16/16 - 4/30/16 (photo bomb)!!!

[leosmom08]

Interesting take on the change of guests. I am curious if the demographics of Adventure compare to Freedom in terms of number of children on board and average age of the guests. I assume that there are less families due to airfare, but that could be completely untrue!

[AZAficionado]

Enjoying your review. My family of 9 is sailing in June. What bar had the best selection of wines since Adventure does not have a vintages yet?

Glad you are enjoying!! :)

 

As a wine guy, it makes me sad to say that the MDR probably had the best selection of wines. Although, I really wasn't looking. Between the package, glass of wine pricing, and Royal's consolidated selection compared to several years ago, cruising is not a wine vacation for me - actually more like a vacation from wine. However, the bottle selection in Giovanni's was pretty good but limited as to Italian wines.

[AZAficionado]

The day we left we had a few hours to kill. We dropped our bags at Barrachina (they will take your luggage and store it for an afternoon at no charge) and roamed the city for a while. We went back to Barrachina for lunch and had the paella for two. Was fantastic.

Did you happen to see the chocolate restaurant? Cafe Cortez I think it was called. Everything on the menu had chocolate involved somehow. We got some to go sweets but didn't stay for lunch.

Chocolate restaurant?!? If I had known that, I would still be in there eating chocolate!!! :eek:

[AZAficionado]

Interesting take on the change of guests. I am curious if the demographics of Adventure compare to Freedom in terms of number of children on board and average age of the guests. I assume that there are less families due to airfare, but that could be completely untrue!

I'm not sure about Freedom.

 

Week 1 - party people, some kids but clearly not many "family vacationers" - they brought kids but put them in day care.

 

Week 2 - more kids, more families, less party. Bars closed one hour earlier.

 

Another comparison: Each week on Day 4 in the Compass, they list how much the slots on board have paid out. If you figure a 50% payout (yea, it's less than that, but close enough), you can double the amount and get a rough idea of how people gambled on slots. Week 1 was $102k payout or $204k bet. Week 2 was $84k payout or $168k bet. Week 2 they had trouble getting enough people to run a poker tournament. It speaks volumes.

 

I will say the Adventure's itinerary is the most friendly to working people on the East Coast. Saturday to Saturday. Leaves at 8:30 pm, allowing fly and sail in the same day. Only 5 days off work.

 

It was an interesting change.

[queenschick9b]

That makes sense as a lot of schools in NY (the city and most of Long Island) had a holiday break that week.

 

I am on the 7/2 and it will be my fourth time on Adventure and I feel that the southern Caribbean itineraries cannot be beat.

[Setting sail for fun]

Looking forward to week 2!

 

Enjoyed seeing two islands we haven't been to before (Grenada and St. Croix).

 

Thanks for taking the time to do this.

[Doug S]

Wife and I were on week 2 with you. I agree is was very sedate for a cruise, which we did not really mind. Was worried we'd find the 'Kids run wild' atmosphere everyone seems to complain about. Since the wife is recovering from foot surgery and we rented a scooter, the lack of crowds worked well for us... Yes we were about the only ones on board with a scooter, but that thing was great to have when you need one...

 

Enjoying your review, and getting to re-visit our week on board...

[AZAficionado]

That makes sense as a lot of schools in NY (the city and most of Long Island) had a holiday break that week.

 

I am on the 7/2 and it will be my fourth time on Adventure and I feel that the southern Caribbean itineraries cannot be beat.

I couldn't agree more about the itineraries. :)

[AZAficionado]

Looking forward to week 2!

 

Enjoyed seeing two islands we haven't been to before (Grenada and St. Croix).

 

Thanks for taking the time to do this.

You are most welcome!! :D

[AZAficionado]

Wife and I were on week 2 with you. I agree is was very sedate for a cruise, which we did not really mind. Was worried we'd find the 'Kids run wild' atmosphere everyone seems to complain about. Since the wife is recovering from foot surgery and we rented a scooter, the lack of crowds worked well for us... Yes we were about the only ones on board with a scooter, but that thing was great to have when you need one...

 

Enjoying your review, and getting to re-visit our week on board...

I didn't mind either, it was just surprising. I think seeing the change happen in a matter of hours made it more noticeable. This isn't the first B2B where I've seen that kind of change. I guess 3,500 people isn't that big of a sample. :confused:

 

Don't feel bad about the scooter. We were on a 12 day Mexican Riviera and were the only people (more or less) on board without a scooter!! :eek:

 

I'm glad you are enjoying the review!!!

Edited May 11, 2016 by AZAficionado

[AZAficionado]

St. Croix, U.S.V.I. (Day 9/2):

17°42'51" N 64°53'10" W

 

We woke up to another beautiful day in St. Croix.

 

I had my usual coffee and breakfast in the Diamond Lounge. The put out a nice spread if you aren't looking for a full breakfast.

 

I don't know why I waited until that day, but I decided to take a photo of the important addresses and phone numbers in port on the Cruise Compass so I'd have it while in port. If you don't take the Compass with you ashore (like me), you should do this or write it down or something. I've never needed the information, but if anything were to ever happen...

[AZAficionado]

That's a fine looking ship!

 

We took a taxi across the island to Cane Bay, which is beautiful. It was $18 each round-trip. It was Sunday and much like St. Thomas, many places were closed - mostly the shops in town.

 

Cane Bay:

17°46'22" N 64°48'38" W

 

 

We rented chairs for $10 each. There were plenty of trees for shade.

 

The beach itself isn't that big, especially in terms of the ocean to road distance. But there are plenty of trees to provide shade. The sand itself is very fine. However, once you get into the water, there is a heavy band of broken shells and the beach quickly becomes a reef. The water was crystal clear and very refreshing. While this is still a good beach for swimmers and sun bathers, it really shines for snorkelers and scuba divers. They have a full dive shop and many people were diving right off the beach.

[AZAficionado]

The restaurant there is call Eat@ as in Eat@Cane Bay.

 



At lunch I started with a Beach Bum Rum Punch. It was quite good and pretty strong.

 





They put the food menu on huge blackboard on the wall.

 



I did the Chicken Club, which was a whole grilled chicken breast covered in melted cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion, etc. It was really good.

 

Stay tuned for the evening's activities....

[seadog67]

Your posts alway pop up about 11am for me, and the fooood pooorn always makes me hungry with an hour of work left before lunch...Yes work.. that thing I do in-between reading all these great trip reports :)

 

Thanks again for such a detailed report!

[AZAficionado]

Your posts alway pop up about 11am for me, and the fooood pooorn always makes me hungry with an hour of work left before lunch...Yes work.. that thing I do in-between reading all these great trip reports :)

 

Thanks again for such a detailed report!

Sorry for that (not really). :o

 

You are most welcome and I'm glad you are enjoying!! :)

 

Legal disclaimer: AZAficionado is not responsible for any weight gain, liver failure, or other adverse health effects readers may experience from reading this trip report. Check with your doctor before reading this trip report. Make sure you are healthy enough to read this trip report before reading it. If you experience sudden urges to eat or drink, book cruise vacations, or otherwise over indulge, seek medical attention immediately. Do not stop reading this trip report without checking with a medical professional first. Before reading this trip report, tell your doctor about other trip reviews your are reading. ;)

[slvrbllt]

Sorry for that (not really). :o

 

You are most welcome and I'm glad you are enjoying!! :)

 

Legal disclaimer: AZAficionado is not responsible for any weight gain, liver failure, or other adverse health effects readers may experience from reading this trip report. Check with your doctor before reading this trip report. Make sure you are healthy enough to read this trip report before reading it. If you experience sudden urges to eat or drink, book cruise vacations, or otherwise over indulge, seek medical attention immediately. Do not stop reading this trip report without checking with a medical professional first. Before reading this trip report, tell your doctor about other trip reviews your are reading. ;)

 

ahahahahahah this is hilarious... I am so used to skimming over Legal Disclaimers at work, that I almost bypassed it. Then I was like, wait a minute... those aren't usually on the CC emails!!

 

I'm having a hard time working because I keep thinking of vacation things :)

[AZAficionado]

ahahahahahah this is hilarious... I am so used to skimming over Legal Disclaimers at work, that I almost bypassed it. Then I was like, wait a minute... those aren't usually on the CC emails!!

 

I'm having a hard time working because I keep thinking of vacation things :)

Warning: Reading this trip review may cause day dreaming, lack of productivity at work, over-allocation of internet time, and possible vertigo (from the pictures). :D

 

Glad you are enjoying the review!!!

[wolfganghowell]

We passed by a place where the Pina Colada was invented, or so the plaque on the wall says.

 

Next time, don't pass by!!!!! Barrachina is FABULOUS. Their pinacoladas are tasty and a bit different - less sweet, more tangy. And the food is amazing- very pretty courtyard too. I highly recommend it!

 

carry on....

[AZAficionado]

Next time, don't pass by!!!!! Barrachina is FABULOUS. Their pinacoladas are tasty and a bit different - less sweet, more tangy. And the food is amazing- very pretty courtyard too. I highly recommend it!

 

carry on....

Great advice!! I will put in on my list for the next time I'm in Old San Juan. :cool:

[AZAficionado]

When we got back to the cabin, there were some complimentary canapés (or whatever) waiting. They were awful (NOT!) and ate them right away.

 

A parting shot of St. Croix and a sunset. Again, with the stupid clouds.

 

We decided to do our pre-dinner drinks up in the Diamond Lounge. They put out a pretty good spread of appetizers.

 

At dinner, I started with the Lobster Bisque, which was very good. There were only very small pieces of lobster, but that may have been intentional.

 

I was going to get the Sliced Filet, but I didn't want to take any chances. Instead I ordered the Chops Filet, for an additional charge. As always, it was every bit as good as in Chops. One of our table-mates ordered the Sliced Filet and said it tasted good, but wasn't what he was expecting. At first, he thought they gave him the wrong entree.

[AZAficionado]

Towel swan alert!

 

"Late night" was at the Champagne Bar. SolsticeAZ ordered a Lychee Martini. The bartender asked her "Why do you order that? I'll make something else." Hearing this, I immeidately chastized him, citing my Diamond Plus status, demanded that the Captain come and make the correct drink and have the bartender thrown from the back of the ship!!! No, no, no. I suppose that is what I would have done if I were a status-concious jerk, but I'm not. Instead, we both trusted our bartender.

 

This is what she got. It was very fruity and delicious.

 

I got "something with Sriracha". The bartender's best yet.

 

SolsticeAZ moved onto an Old Fashioned. That's a burning cinnamon stick in it. Note the remnants of the previous drink in the background.

 

By midnight, the ship was empty and they were closing down the bar - a huge change from the previous week where the Champagne Bar was open until 1:30 am. Another passenger had brought a card game called "Cards Against Humanity". It was entirely inappropriate, not PC, raunchy, and a hilariously good time.

 

It's been a few days since we checked in on the beach competition:

 

1. Magen's Bay, St. Thomas

2. Reduit Beach, St. Lucia

3. Grand Anse Beach, Grenada

4. Rainbow Beach, St. Croix

5. Cane Bay, St. Croix

6. Valley Church Beach, Antigua (rain)

 

St. Kitts is next, so don't go anywhere...

[bobmacliberty]

 

Mmmmmm. Painkillers. I remember being introduced to this drink at Pusser's restaurant in St. John in the early 90s. Not sure if it's even still there. I do however still have the drink coaster with the "official" Pusser's Rum recipe for Painkillers. Wonder if I have any creme of coconut in the cabinet...

[Doug S]

I didn't mind either, it was just surprising. I think seeing the change happen in a matter of hours made it more noticeable. This isn't the first B2B where I've seen that kind of change. I guess 3,500 people isn't that big of a sample. :confused:

 

Don't feel bad about the scooter. We were on a 12 day Mexican Riviera and were the only people (more or less) on board without a scooter!! :eek:

 

I'm glad you are enjoying the review!!!

 

Yeah, only the final sea day brought all the people out of hiding.

 

We did a 14 day princess cruise to Hawaii and there were so many scooters on board I wanted to organize races...

[Ejak927]

Wow great review thank you! We sail on the adventure in July!

[AZAficionado]

Mmmmmm. Painkillers. I remember being introduced to this drink at Pusser's restaurant in St. John in the early 90s. Not sure if it's even still there. I do however still have the drink coaster with the "official" Pusser's Rum recipe for Painkillers. Wonder if I have any creme of coconut in the cabinet...

There are just so many different and delicious ways to get some rum flowing through the blood stream, isn't there? :cool: