Review from Nov. 27th SD1

[luvtojump]

My husband and I just got back last night from our 9 day trip from St. Thomas to St. Marten on SD1. We spent one extra night pre cruise in St. Thomas at the Marriott and one night post cruise in St. Marten at La Samanna. More about La Samanna later.

 

Everything about this trip was a pleasant surprise. Having sailed with SD2 in the mediterranean 2004, we didn't think anything could compare. We were mistaken.

 

We arrived at the ship around 2 PM. Check in lasted one minute and we weren't in our room for more than 30 seconds when our "gift" arrived with the name of Tessie. She would turn out to be the best room stewardess we have ever had. I only wish that we would have gotten to know her as well as she seemed to know us.

 

After unpacking, we headed up to the Top of the Yacht where we met our next "gift" with the name of Martin. Martin was always there with a cool drink or just a smile from late morning until wee into the evening. And he was talented also... Who would think such a tall man could "bust some moves" like that?

 

on to my quick review and general thoughts.........

 

Most of our dinners were served in Stefan and Paul's section. After the first evening, we asked for them. (those poor guys). Both had great senses of humor and witty comebacks. Loved Paul's eyeglasses. Speaking of eyes, did I mention that they were both very easy on the eyes, too?

 

Dinners, breakfasts and lunches were excellent. The cocktail parties had some great appetizers as well. No problems with the food at all.

 

The ports were mostly new to us. We especially loved St. Barts. We would like to spend more time on that island.

 

Saba was a surprise. Did not look like much from the ship but once you got up the mountain, it was beautiful. Glad we explored it.

 

Jost Van Dyke was great. The caviar and champagne splash was held there on Wednesday. Fun to mingle with all the other passengers at once early in the week as opposed to the end.

 

The other ports were fine too.

 

Found the gym and spa to be clean and uncrowded. Never had to wait for equipment or get a spa treatment. Very accommodating.

 

Fellow passengers were diverse but fun. Just the way it should be. Loved the other cruise critic members and their spouses/significant others. Just as fun on board as on these boards. You could say we saw "eye to eye".

 

The captain and his crew were very dedicated. On our last sailing, I would say that 75% of the crew really wanted to be there. On this sailing, I would say 100%. I even mentioned this to Tomas. He should be very proud. Some but not all of our favorites were: Captain Berg, Tomas, Don, Paul, Stefan, Martin, Linda, Tessie, Kris, Arturo, the spa girls, Fabian...sorry if I have missed anyone else.

 

As I mentioned above, we stayed at La Samanna for one extra night in St. Marten. For some reason (Brian) we were treated to a two bedroom oceanfront suite. Amazing water and beach. The food and service was excellent but extremely pricey. My dinner salad was $19. Three scallops for my main course was $40. Glad we did not stay longer. We would have been washing dishes to pay off our debt. Had fun conversations with other SD1 passengers that were there as well.

 

I would like to thank all those cc members that were on board for being such a fun group. Paul and Brian, we love you. Marissa, Paul, Dewla, Loving Life, Cigar guy and all the others, it was our pleasure getting to know you.

 

Hope to see you on another SD adventure. Maybe Costa Rica?

 

Lisa

[travelchik]

i think luvtojump summed up our trip very well. the best part about seadream, in my opinion, is the interesting people you meet on board. this cruise was outstanding in that regard. we had a lot of fun with fellow cc members, especially luvtojump and skipsdad.

 

there were several naysayers on board who kept comparing the cruise line to seaborne. seadream is not seaborne in any way shape or form. if you are looking for an experience like seaborne, i suggest you stick with that cruise line. seadream is a casual environment, with an active and fun crowd, with virtually no night-time entertainment. (other than a do-it yourself disco and a small casino and piano bar). it is a cruise line where you make your own fun, wear pretty much what you want, and meet a lot of different personality types. rooms, while luxurious, are small. bathrooms are even smaller (unless you get a handicapped room).

 

if you are of independent mind and spirit and like adventure, like the finer things in life but are not "stuffy", i think you will love this line.

[DisneyJen]

if you are of independent mind and spirit and like adventure, like the finer things in life but are not "stuffy", i think you will love this line.

 

Well said travelchik!

 

Thanks for sharing your review luvtojump! Glad to hear such good things about SD!

[dewla]

LuvtoJump,

Very witty!

Totally agree with your review. And comments. Except what do you mean there was no evening/nightime entertainment?? LOL!

Great to meet you guys too! Hope the trip home was uneventful. We got stuck at Miami airport. Left St. Maarten an hour late, but would have made it if American didn't take almost an hour to get our luggage to recheck for connecting flight home. So got to stay in a "lovely" hotel in Miami Sun night instead of our bed.

I will be keeping my "eye" out for you!

 

Travelchik,

Tell our mutual friend I said "HI!"

[luvtojump]

Dewla,

It wasn't me that said there was no nightlife onboard. I, for one, got to experience it first hand (our personal disco) AND at a distance....say 1:30AM .....LOL

 

Travelchik,

I too enjoyed our time together. How is Daisy? Please give my best to Paul. Don't forget to email me.

 

Skip's Dad,

Where are you? I know you're home. Thank you for the birthday phone call.

 

Luvtojump

[dewla]

Oops, must have had my posts mixed up. I recall seeing you up quite late as well!! Having another cocktail with Martin! And red wine I believe!!

[luvtojump]

Hmmm. That must have been my evil twin, Tee Tee. She looks just like me.

[OVRSTR]

"Eye" too agree with you all ;) . The November 27th sailing was a wonderful experience. "Eye" can honestly say there is nothing "eye'' would change. My favorite aspect was the casualness of the cruise. Left to there own discretion, with no needless guidelines, everyone on board was dressed properly, COMFORTABLY, and attractively all the time. The itinerary was first rate, food as good as you could resonably expect on board a boat (still excellent), the weather simply phenominal and the crowd on board well rounded and diversified. With the exception of a VERY small contingent, all attitude was left back at the dock, which is the way it should be. The service was great too. My wife and "eye" have made friends that we look foward to staying in contact with and seeing again in the future...what more could one ask for?

[traveldiva97]

Dewla and Ovrstr,

 

Here is the link to the blog that we did for our family and friends. www.reuniontravel.blogspot.com You guys are in several of the pictures. Enjoy!

 

Shelly

[OVRSTR]

Now that's a detailed post! You guys summed up the entire week very well. Everything you said was right on the money. Thanks for posting some of the pics. It was nice to relive a little slice of heaven on earth. One week ago, 85 degrees, Saba and the flat calm cruise to St. Barths. Today in N.Y., 17 degrees this morning when I left my house with 6" of snow expected for late tonight into tommorrow. How things can change in one week! I look foward to keeping in touch.

[Host Dan]

Dewla and Ovrstr,

 

Here is the link to the blog that we did for our family and friends. www.reuniontravel.blogspot.com You guys are in several of the pictures. Enjoy!

 

Shelly

FAR OUT!!!! :D

 

Host Dan

[dewla]

Shelly,

Awesome blog!!!

Love the pictures! And the memories!

[Skip's Dad]

I'm sorry it took me so long to post this. The first week back to work is always a busy one!!

 

Dewla and Luvtojump did a fantastic job reviewing the cruise…..I don't have too much more to add, however here is my take on the trip….

 

For the Reader's Digest version, all I can say is that the entire trip was FABULOUS!

 

If you want a bit more detail read on………

 

We flew in a day early and overnighted at the Westin resort on St. John. We had a very nice two floor, two bedroom suite. The hotel was charming at night and we had dinner at Chloe & Bernards. Off to a great start! A quick note on the Westin….We discovered the next morning that there were MANY families and children at the property, so although fabulous at night, it was a bit like being at a park during the day. The accommodations though were very nice!

 

We left St. John and returned to St. Thomas. Boarding and checking-in on SD1 was so easy, it was actually a non-event. It took less that 1 minute and then we were shown inside to the reception area and then to our cabin.

 

Our cabin was nicely appointed with Flat Screen TV, CD, DVD player, etc. There was also a small fresh flower arrangement and bottle of champagne on ice waiting for us. The bathroom had very nice Bvlgari products in it. We quickly went decided to head out and explore the ship and meet friends for a cocktail on deck.

 

SD1 was beautiful and each of the common rooms (maybe I should say public since there is nothing common about this ship) was very well appointed. We soon met Martin at the Top of the Yacht Bar. He was fantastic from start to finish.

 

We quickly became acclimated and started to meet many new people. I was spotted fairly quickly by Travelchik at the first cocktail party, and soon, thanks to her, met most of the other "Cool Cruisers."

 

At our first dinner, we were seated at a great table in a corner of the restaurant. We loved the table….but even more we soon met (in my opinion) the two best waiters I have ever had on any cruise ship. Stefan & Paul.

 

Our first port was St. John. We stayed on the ship and started to relax. I won't go on and on about each port, except to say that each and every one of our ports on the itinerary were great and so much nicer than those visited by many other cruise lines. St. Barths is the absolute Jewel of the Caribbean and by far my favorite of all of our ports. (I now also know of a fantastic hotel there too).

 

Back on-board, each day just got better than the next. The food was great, and I quickly noticed that the company was even better. As others have already posted, we had a fantastic group of people on this cruise. Everyone truly got along with everyone else. Yes, there were a few that had their moments (Eye won't talk about it now though), however it was really like being on a cruise with 84 friends. No pretense, no games, just a group of people relaxing and enjoying themselves.

 

A few quick notes on the service. Although I didn't believe possible, the SD1 Staff took the term service to new heights for me. A few examples are the chilled towels when you return to the ship, and having a waiter come by and ask for your sunglasses, so that he can clean the waterspots off them while another waiter is offering you a light snack. Of course deviations from the daily menus were never a problem. The drop down marina was a highlight of the trip for me, and the Staff could not have been more accommodating and made sure that everyone was having a great time.

 

Although previously stated, there were a few crew members that were so fantastic they really deserve special mention. Waiters Paul & Stefan were outstanding. Very accommodating, friendly and had fantastic sense of humor. These two men made the cruise memorable with their fantastic service. Bartenders Martin and George. George made great Apple Martinis…and Martin was always there with a smile and making sure that everyone was happy and had everything they needed.

 

Now on to the friends….L & T we love you too. Travelchik, it was great to meet you, we hope to see you both again very soon. Thanks for the pictures…I’ll get a new camera soon. Dewla….You're still my hero. Overstr & Mrs. Overstr it was great to meet you both as well as LovingLife. Traveldiva97..It was great to meet you too. It would be great to see all of you again someday.

 

The SD experience was an unforgettable one, and truly made our long awaited vacation worth the wait. If anyone has any questions please let me know!

[dewla]

Skip's Dad,

I think chartering the ship with all of us and some more of our friends from home would be a blast! Although it could not get any more fun than the sailing we were all on.

I am not going to reply on the other thread, because I want it to drop down. Hate looking at the title "Seadream Incompetance". Very annoying.

 

We had a lot of fun with all of you!!!

 

Thanks for your added comments, I think we all had one of, if not the best vacation of our lives! (And this is coming from a very picky person! LOL!)

 

Now if I could just find someone to bring me a light breakfast every morning (omellette, french toast, and fruit, and bacon) and that fab cappuchino and cosmos after work, "eye" would be content to be at home.....

 

Dewla

[ama22]

LuvToJump

 

I noticed you mentioned a Med Cruise with SDII in 2004. Have you written a review of that trip? We plan to go in 2007. Thanks

[luvtojump]

Hi AMA,

 

We cruised on SDII from Rome to Monte Carlo in 2004. I think I did write a review on these boards. I will try and research. I remember it clearly though. The the ports were, Positano, Capri, Porto Cervo (Sardinia), Bonafacio (Corsica), Calvi and Cannes.

 

I will try and answer any questions for you.