Our Anthem Cruise New England

[Keksie]

Monday Sept. 5 –Saturday Sept. 17

Day 1 – We flew to Newark and checked into the Doubletree in Jersey City. Jersey City was a very nice central location for us. We have 2 days to explore before boarding the ship. We walked along the boardwalk and had dinner at the Taphouse. It was very nice and we could watch the water while we ate.

Day 2 – We had tickets to the Statute of Liberty and Ellis Island. The hotel has a shuttle that took us to the ferry stop for Liberty Island. We caught the ferry across the channel. A very short ride! We looked around and then caught the ferry and stopped at Ellis Island first. It was very interesting and we spent a lot of time there. Then we caught the ferry to the Statute. We had pedestal tickets so we looked around, had lunch and caught the ferry to Battery Park. We found the 9/11 memorial and spent the remainder of our day there. It is very well done and bring tissues.

While we were eating the night before we noticed a ferry that went straight across the river. We caught that ferry and had dinner at Chili’s which was just down from our hotel.

The people of New York could not have been nicer. Anytime we needed directions someone would help us. We never felt unsafe either.

Day 3 – We took the PATH train to Manhattan. Looked at the Empire State Bldg. but did not go up. We shopped at Macy’s and then headed north. We saw Times Square and walked to Central Park. At some point we stopped and had pizza. Our feet were getting a little tired by this time so we took a horse and carriage ride through the park. We headed back south to 33rd street, took the PATH train back to Jersey City. We ate at the Taphouse again.

Day 4 – We took a cab to the ship about 10:30. Checked in quickly and had a little wait before we could get on. The Windjammer was very busy but that is to be expected the first day. Our cabin had a great lay out, we were on the hump and had a nice balcony.

We like MTD or on the Anthem DD choice. We do not like making reservations every night except for special thing. So the only restaurant I had booked was Wonderland on the second night. There was a note in our cabin that they had made reservations for us the 1st and 7th night in Solarium Bistro. So, ok we would try that and see how it went.

We did not like the Bistro. You order your entrée and then get everything else from a buffet. The food was ok but it was not a restaurant we wanted to eat at again. As soon as I could get the IQ app working we made reservations for the rest of the nights at some of the other restaurants. Unfortunately the only times were very late and we just don’t eat that late. What we ended up doing is showing up at the restaurant we had reservations at, when we really wanted to eat and asking if we could eat then. We always got in and with no wait.

Day 5 - A sea day. We spent most of the day in the Solarium. It was so nice and not crowded at all. We could watch the dolphins play at that front of the ship, soak in the hot tub, float in the shallow pools and just relax. We had reservations at Wonderland and it was so good. The best fish I have ever had. There wasn’t anything I didn’t like and just a couple of things that my husband didn’t care for.

Day 6 – Boston. The ship had a bus going to Quincy Market that you could get tickets to as soon as you got off the ship. I had gotten the Freedom Trail Guide already so we headed north first to Bunker Hill, turned around and headed back toward Quincy Market. A lot of the taverns had waiting times of 45 minutes so we popped into Hard Rock for a snack and drinks while it was raining. After the rain stopped we finished the trail. On the way back to the pickup spot for the bus we just happened by Newbury yarn (wink, wink) so of course we had to stop and shop. We had reservations for The Gift that night so we had an early dinner at Chic. We thought the meal was good.

Day 7- Portland. We booked ship tours for the rest of the port days. We prefer to not deal with rental cars for just the day and whoever drives doesn’t get to see that much. We took the Taste of Maine tour. The boat ride where we ate lunch came at just the right time since it was raining just then. The orchard was so nice. The pie was great and it was so pretty there. That night we ate at Icon and did not care for the menu selection or the meal.

Day 8 – Bar Harbor. This was our favorite port. We had the Best of Acadia Park and Cadillac Mtn. tour. The lobster lunch was great, the scenery was spectacular and we definitely want to go back. When we got back from the tour there was enough time to do a little shopping. We found the local yarn store Bee’s and some other stores as well. We ate at Silk that night and it was ok.

Day 9 – St. John New Brunswick. There has to be a better way for Canada to clear the ship. We had to wait in a long line while they were trying to get the people with non-US passports to appear. Finally we were down to one couple who it seems did not read the info in their cabin, nor talk with their cabin steward, nor hear their names being called multiple times in different languages. Security found them standing in line somewhere behind us and then we could go. This put everyone with tours behind. We had a ship tour so they knew we were behind and waited for us. We took the Top 10 tour. The chowder in St. Martins was delicious. Very interesting to see all the effects of the tide changes. We of course came back late because of the late start. All the shops were closed. Some because of a power outage but some just because of the time. We walked to the yarn store and got to look in the window. Probably a good thing because it looked like a place I could spend a lot of money in. We ate at the Windjammer that night since we were tired and didn’t really want to change for dinner.

Day 10 – At Sea. We had reservations for NorthStar in the morning and We Will Rock You in the afternoon. NorthStar was fun and the show was very nice. We ate at Izumi that night and it was very good.

Day 11 - Halifax. We took the Top 10 Tour. It was a really nice tour. Peggy’s Cove was beautiful but cold and windy the day we were there. Lunch was on our own and we ate at Rockbottom Brewery which was very good. Then we had enough time to find the local yarn store The Loop before meeting back again for a nice stroll through the gardens. We ate at Chic again and it was good.

Day 12 - At Sea. We had the Puzzle Room in the morning and Spectra that night. The puzzle room was so much fun. You do need a full group of people since there are a lot of puzzles to solve. 4 people didn’t show up for our time so I went out and talked some more people into doing it. We got out with 6 minutes to spare. We ate lunch and then spent the afternoon in the Solarium. Dinner that night was in Jaime’s and was very good. Spectra was nice.

We enjoyed all the shows. One of the days the band Savannah Jack had a show and they were great. We also thought the Bionic Bar was always a fun way to pass a few minutes. The ship never felt crowded except the first and last days.

Disembarkation Day – There has to be a better way. The Windjammer was packed with no place to sit and there were no happy people any longer. They did not have many customs officers to clear the ship so it was around 11 before we got off. We had transfers through the ship and that worked very well. I am glad that our plane was not until 2.

[Leosmom]

Thanks for your review.....Enjoyed reading it. Sounds like you had a great time exploring NYC. Do you recall the cab fare from the Doubletree to cape liberty?

[Keksie]

I want to say it was around $60 with tip. My husband paid while I was making sure I had everything so I am not certain of the exact amount.

[chadbt]

I would never have known there are yarn stores in almost every port. :)

[Missus Makkem]

Really enjoyed reading your trip report, brought back a lot of memories from quite a few years ago.

[sjquilter]

I love that you mentioned the yarn stores you went to! Knit or crochet?

[champagne123]

Thank you for taking the time to write the review. I am so surprised at the reviews of people saying they don't like American Icon and Solarium Bistro. Starting to get nervous about it. I have reservations for a whole group of people soon and starting to think of changing them.

[Keksie]

I find yarn stores on almost every trip. My husband even helps. When we were in Alaska on a bus going to the Mendenhall Glacier I exclaimed rather loudly "Yarn Store" as we passed by. We had a lot of people turn to look and after we got back to the ship we walked to the store. I knit, weave and spin, my favorite souvenirs are fibre related. My husband restores old farm equipment and on road trips we have been known to detour to look at a tractor for sale. It is a bit of a challenge to find yarn in the Caribbean, but I did have a chat with a nice TSA agent on the virtues of circular needles instead of straights.

[SweetThang0629]

I wished I had met you!! We were on the same cruise! I hit up Knit Wit in Portland and got four hanks of Yarn; 2 made in MA and 2 made In ME.

 

In Saint John, I did make it to the the shop there in the market with 2 hanks of Canada yarn. My hubby doesn't understand the concept of getting yarn while on vacation to places outside of where you live. He about had a cow because it' was $60 CAD.

 

We missed the Yarn shop in Halifax while on the hop on / hop off and I was bummed. He was not LOL

 

Where in Texas are you from?

Edited September 22, 2016 by SweetThang0629

[Keksie]

We would have had fun! Our excursion in Portland took all our time so I didn't get to find the shop there. I am from Bastrop. Our yarn crawl starts Oct. 7th - 19 shops in 2 weeks. Spinzilla starts soon and I will be demonstrating spinning in LaGrange at the festival on the 15th. Are you from Texas too?

[SweetThang0629]

We would have had fun! Our excursion in Portland took all our time so I didn't get to find the shop there. I am from Bastrop. Our yarn crawl starts Oct. 7th - 19 shops in 2 weeks. Spinzilla starts soon and I will be demonstrating spinning in LaGrange at the festival on the 15th. Are you from Texas too?

 

Yes, I am from Magnolia (The Woodlands). It's been a few years since I did the yarn crawl but it was super fun! I don't spin, but find it pretty interesting.

[Gladysgoing]

Thank you for your review.

[BDL]

I find yarn stores on almost every trip. My husband even helps. When we were in Alaska on a bus going to the Mendenhall Glacier I exclaimed rather loudly "Yarn Store" as we passed by. We had a lot of people turn to look and after we got back to the ship we walked to the store. I knit, weave and spin, my favorite souvenirs are fibre related. My husband restores old farm equipment and on road trips we have been known to detour to look at a tractor for sale. It is a bit of a challenge to find yarn in the Caribbean, but I did have a chat with a nice TSA agent on the virtues of circular needles instead of straights.

 

We were on the same sailing as you! My daughter and I spent af few days in Manhattan before the cruise and I made sure we stopped at the Lion Brand Studios on 15th street. I bought a few skeins of one of their newer yarns. I'm sorry I missed the yarn store in Boston! I should start googling yarn stores for my ports! I crochet mostly but also knit a little.

 

Our paths crossed a few times on the cruise. We were also in Wonderland on night two, North Star the morning of day 10 and We will Rock You that afternoon! We had a great time.

Barb

[Keksie]

SweetThang - you should try to hit a few shops this year because they are really having some nice trunk shows and featured yarns. Spring has a nice shop and we try to take a road trip that way now and then.

 

Barb - It was a fun cruise. I tried to get my husband to walk down to 15th but we were pretty tired by then. Small world if only I had known you were there. LOL

 

I do wish there had been a way to get to Caravan beads in Portland.

[Frick_&_Frack]

Hi Keksie -

 

Thanks for your review!

 

I was just wondering how insane the port is on embark and debark regarding traffic?

 

I haven't been to Cape Liberty in a number of years now and am starting to think on timing for arrival in March (and, also, what time to have the car come to pick me up at the end).

 

Way back when ;) it was totally awful there (as in up to 2 hours to just get into the port).

 

Any opinions are totally appreciated!

 

Thanks so much! I am so excited to be going!

[Keksie]

We headed to the port about 10:30. There was not that much traffic going in and we could unload and give our bags to the porters fairly quickly. Then we headed to where they were checking people in and had only 3 people in front of us. We did have to wait in an area of chairs for awhile until we could board. I did notice that as we were boarding a lot more people had arrived and it was getting more crowded. It did take us a lot of time to disembark because there were not many customs officers working that day. We had an airport transfer and luggage tags #53. The traffic out seemed to be moving but I did notice a long line of cars going in. This was about 11-11:30 time frame. I think early is the key to not having long lines.

[shonandsuzie]

"Day 1 – We flew to Newark and checked into the Doubletree in Jersey City. Jersey City was a very nice central location for us. We have 2 days to explore before boarding the ship."

 

Thanks for this review! I was excited to read your details because we will be doing a very similar trip in a couple months and have similar sightseeing plans for the our precruise days. We will be staying at the Westin Jersey City which looks like is next to your hotel.

 

How did you get from the airport to Double Tree?and do you remember how much it cost and how long it took?

Also, what could you see from your hotel? Like, for instance, was there a nice view?

 

Thanks again for sharing!!

[Frick_&_Frack]

Thanks, Keksie.

 

I'm going to be lucky enough to have a "Genie" (I have a SLS), so I think (from what I understand), I can do embark/debark more when it works (as confirmed with the Genie). But, given the car service has to get me from Long Island to NJ and reverse that, well, I'm an over-planner - what can I say :D (and, yes, over-planner goes with over-packer!! :eek: :D)

 

The last RCCL trip I did with DH we planned to arrive around 9:30/10AM and were in line for the port at 9:15am (yes, super-early morning) and didn't get to the terminal until 11:00-ish. Same for debark - the driver called us and was on-line to get in at 8:30am....ugly hot mess. I had heard it's gotten considerably better over the years though. :)

 

Thanks, again and I hope you have a super weekend!

[Keksie]

How did you get from the airport to Double Tree?and do you remember how much it cost and how long it took?

Also, what could you see from your hotel? Like, for instance, was there a nice view?

 

Thanks again for sharing!!

 

I think it was about $60 with tip. My husband paid while I was making sure we had everything so I just didn't pay much attention.

We were not on the water front side of the hotel. I didn't pay for the view this time because we were just not in the room that much during the day. We did walk to the boardwalk and spend a lot of time there. The views are great from there, if you go all the way down you can see the statute of liberty. Go to the boardwalk at night to see all of Manhattan lit up. We also liked to eat at the Taphouse with great views of the river and Manhattan too.

[shonandsuzie]

Thank you!:)

[SweetThang0629]

SweetThang - you should try to hit a few shops this year because they are really having some nice trunk shows and featured yarns. Spring has a nice shop and we try to take a road trip that way now and then.

 

 

Keksie - I know the shop in Spring! That's my normal go to when I need to get more supplies! It's on my way home! I may just hit a few up; depends on what the hubby has planned. :)

[sjquilter]

My daughter is the knitter, she found a shop in Skagway on our Alaska trip. I'm the quilter, crocheted, and counted cross stitcher. My souvenirs of Alaska are a cross stitch kit and pattern, and a yard of batik.

 

I have to research shops for the New England Canada cruise- we go next September.

 

Holly

[Keksie]

I used to quilt and cross stitch. I still do a little needlepoint. I know which shop she found in Skagway. I found it too. LOL