Valor Review 11/6/05

[Brenda33]

Embarkation: Well I'd have to say that this was truly the worst part of the trip. Unfortunately, our group decided we were going to beat the crowds and arrived at the port by 9:45. We sat in a line that didn't budge until almost noon. After that we are onboard shortly after noon. We were immediately able to enter our cabin which was clean and ready. My suggestion is not to rush because they don't let you in early anyhow. So I would think its better to be in a line that is moving rather than be sitting on the floor going nowhere.

 

Cabin: We had an inside cabin on the Riviera Deck, Cabin 1406. It was soooooooo tiny! We were a family of 4 sharing the cabin. The cabin was barely big enough for 2, let alone 4! We had nowhere to turn and could barely move in there at all. We had to take turns walking by and climbing on the bed so that someone else could get by! It was crazy. No more tiny inside cabins for me!! Our room steward was excellent although I never really saw him. Our room was kept neat and clean with fresh towels and special extras for my 3 year old. He left him cookies with faces on them and a cute Fun Ship Freddy Carnival robe to wear for the week. I had no problems or extra charges with the refrigerator being opened like other cruisers have mentioned. What I did was label my items in the fridge so that there could be no mistake. VERY IMPORTANT!.....Remember your power strip. There really is only one outlet in the room by the vanity!!!

 

Food: We ate breakfast at Rosie's everyday. I felt it was your average breakfast choices and had no complaints other than they ran out of bananas the last couple days which my son really enjoys. They make fresh egg omelets or over easy eggs so you at least got something that wasn't from the buffet. For lunch there are so many choices. There is a huge buffet at Rosie's which I didn't try because the other choices were so much more appealing. They have a grill with burgers and hot dogs. The burgers are great and there are always fries available too. The deli is outstanding! The sandwiches are always fresh and bread is never stale. The turkey sandwich was the best. The oriental is also very good. The fried rice is the best. I had a beef dish one day and the beef was a bit mushy. So I stuck to the fried rice or fried wontons. The fried wontons require a few minute wait. The best lunch, however, was the pizza! I have never tasted pizza as good as the goat cheese and mushroom. Funny part is I don't normally like mushroom pizza. One thing I will mention though. Wait a few extra minutes for a fresh pizza. If its just sitting and cold its not very good. Worth the wait. Dinner we had in the Lincoln dining room, table 164. Our waiters were Jorge and Marina! Marina was the assistant and was the most attentive person I experienced anywhere on the ship. My 3 year old can be quite a handful and she always managed to entertain him and cater to his every need. He had a shirley temple with extra cherries waiting for him everyday when we got there. Our waiters seemed to remember our favorites from night to night and we would get things without even ordering. It was outstanding service and really made you feel special. The food in the dining room was good......but certainly not excellent. I had no complaints though. It was an average nice restaurant quality. The best thing I ate that I would say was really good was the Beef Wellington. The lobster was not very tasty and wasn't up to my expectations. However, if you don't like something or would like to try more than one dish, feel free to keep ordering. They will bring you whatever you would like to try. My favorite desserts were things that contained flavors out of the ordinary, like peppercorn ice cream. My family's favorite part was the 24 hour ice cream. Believe me they had their share. lol

 

The pools are way too small!!!! But they were great fun and the water temperature was just fine. I was worried that it was going to be extremely cold....but in the hot sun it really worked. A major disappointment was that the slide was closed the entire week except the last day. I was not able to enjoy it as I had planned.

 

The entertainment was, in my opinion, lacking. The nightly shows were not really head turning. The best shows were the comedy shows. They were funny, especially the R rated show at midnight. My favorite place on the ship was Paris Hot. There is a fabulous band that plays classic rock. We sat in there most nights listening and enjoying their show.

 

Camp Carnival: The best part about Camp Carnival was the babysitting. The few times I brought my son in before babysitting hours they were not doing the activities mentioned in the guide. They just had the tv on. So that was a bit disappointing. However, they are all excellent with the children and I felt very safe leaving my child there. He was very well cared for.

 

Nassau: We took a bus for $1 per person each way to the Wyndham Hotel on Cable Beach. What a bargain. You just walk on the beach for free and don't even have to rent a chair, they are right there for you to use. There is a bar and snack bar too. We went jet skiing there for $50 for 25 minutes. Original asking price was $70 for half hour. It was a nice time but it was way too short an amount of time to spend on the island. The ship was leaving at 2:00 pm.

 

St. Thomas: We went on Sunny Liston tours. He dropped us off for 2 hours of shopping. I thought this sounded like alot, but it really wasn't. Then we went on the tour part. I found this part not all that it was cracked up to be. Everyone raves about getting the best banana daiquiri ever....YUK. Basically the tour was just driving as high as we could and looking out. Not worth 2 hours of time. Then we were dropped off at Sapphire Beach at 2:00. I wasn't crazy about this location. There was basically no sun on the beach area itself. Only in tiny spots. I think it was the building blocking the sun. Perhaps earlier in the day it would have been better. The water was very warm. But it is swimming with the fish! I get freaked out by fish so it wasn't for me, but the young kids loved trying to catch them and feeding them.

 

St. Martin: Now this was the best day. We took a taxi for $4 per person each way to Divi Little Bay Resort. It was fantastic. The water was warm, most of the time fish free (lol), a great outside bar, food, shops and a great beach. My husband and daughter went on the wave runner which was $45 for a half hour. They had a blast. It was truly the most relaxing day I had on vacation. My 3 year old lived in the water and was totally entertained the entire time. I did hear of the flea market that I missed though and next time I would like to check out some of the bargains early in the day before I hit the beach.

 

Getting off the ship was a lot of standing in line again.....I wish there was a better system. It was particularly hard with a 3 year old who does not want to sit in line. I say if you can do the self assist, go for it....but we carry too much luggage.

 

Some other points of the trip. I found it to be a not so fancy boat with no glitzy extras. For instance I have been on another cruise and their deck party was so much more with games, ice sculptures everywhere, etc. This cruise had its buffet actually displayed inside Rosie's. Nothing special was done. But it really was a great family vacation. If you are looking for luxury, this isn't it.....but it is fun and relaxing...your choice.:)

[lynyrd]

You had a band at Paris Hot. Isn't that the Karaoke Bar ?

[Brenda33]

Karaoke is right next door at the Eagles Lounge.

[PA Dutchman]

There was a great Karaoke show called the legends on Saturday night at 1030 that was standing room only. They only did one show and for fellow cruisers performing it was great. Friday night the Far From Over 80s show was one of Carnivals best we have seen.

[lynyrd]

Karaoke is right next door at the Eagles Lounge.

 

I thought Eagles Lounge was the big lounge where they held the art auction :confused:

[Brenda33]

By the way, happy to answer any Valor questions you all may have. :)

[Brenda33]

Did not attend the art auction. But to tell you the Eagles lounge is fairly large. TThey held the Captain's cocktail party in there and karaoke was there almost every night.

[Valor at Xmas]

My family and I are taking our first cruise on the Valor on December 18th. I've got an 18 year old daughter, 15 year old son, and a 9 year old daughter. My 15 year old and 9 year old are excited and can't wait, however my 18 year old is not looking forward to it. She's not much of sun person, loves to read or spend her time on her laptop. What activities do they have for an 18 year old that's not very active? Also, is the spa outrageous?

[streaks23]

We're also on the Valor Dec. 18.

As far as your daughter's activities, she can always enjoy reading and laptop while just enjoying the ambiance/people watching on the ship.

There is so much to do on the ship, she'll find something - I can almost promise you. She'll enjoy the activites on deck/bingo, etc. etc.

This experience just may get her away from her book/laptop and join in the sun/other activities. I wouldn't worry - she'll have fun. If she doesn't, she should take responsibility for not having fun. I can't imagine not enjoying a cruise experience. The first cruise is outstanding.