MITSUGIRLY sails off into the HORIZON-review & pictorial

[mitsugirly]

2 hours ago, 300dtc said:

Yes, constantly...not loving our "upgrade"🤔

 

I did when I first got on here and noticed you could just put a link while typing and the picture automatically showed up...but now, I'm not so sure since nothing seems to work off and on.

 

1 hour ago, GMRPHRN said:

 I've done the other side when there were multiple ships present. If you have good water shoes and get out to where you don't have to touch and float it's not bad.

 

I've always thought the pool belonged to Margaritaville. I feel like I need to spend money when I'm there. We were there last Christmas and the pool was really to cool for my taste.

 

Awesome pictures of your daughter by the ship's photographer.

 

My cruise is still 38 days away and sitting here at work you have really transported me to the Carribean with your pictures and review. Thanks so much.

 

 

Oh we made it out there alright. It was such a struggle though and I would never do it again.

 

Nope, the pool and the entire cruise compound is a Carnival thing. They sunk $50 million into building that for the cruisers. That's why you won't see cruise lines like Royal or NCL docking there. No worries, you can use the pool and facilities no matter if you buy food/drinks or anything there or not.

[sayvan]

5 hours ago, mitsugirly said:

IS ANYONE ELSE HAVING MAJOR ISSUES WITH CRUISE CRITIC AND GETTING ERROR MESSAGES? 

 

I had this problem on the first day I started this review. I was getting an error and page wouldn't load. Something wrong with the icloud server they use? 

 

Then in the middle of my review (from yesterday), it went down again and gave another error. 

 

Is something wrong with the boards since they updated? This is getting irritating. I end up losing all of my work during a post. 

yep same thing for me. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Honestly, I love cruise critic and all it has to offer but since they made these changes and got rid of the app I am feeling like we have gone back in time! Bring back the app!

 

I am loving your review and great information. We board  January 26 and this is making the wait much easier!

[Trinam2]

So glad to come across a new one of your reviews. I can’t believe how much your daughter had grown. Loving the pics and can’t wait for the rest of your review. We are going on Oasis of the Seas in a couple weeks. We usually sail Carnival and wanted to try a mega ship. Are you planning on trying one of the RCI ships in the near future?

[splash_in_the_water]

i've had problems logging in as well. just went to the cruise boards main page, which seems to work, and since you quoted my post i got a notification which took me to the thread. So it's here, you just gotta get to it.

 

I suppose one could copy the link address for this thead and paste it to your desktop and just click that to take you directly to this thread. It is a fun read. Really great pics Mitsugirly, i think i may have the same Olympus camera you do. We've only been to Grand Turk once, it was fun.

Edited January 3, 2019 by splash_in_the_water

[lottiegreen56]

Great review, I can tell that you're very proud of your daughter's art and for good reason! Loved the girls breaking the rules on the crafts!!!!! Just a comment though, that craft that your grandson made looked like something I see in stores ....and would buy! I can see a lot of talent in him to go along with his cute personality!! 

 

Thanks again for sharing your family, wish I had pictures like this of our crew from 15 years ago 😞 

[FMZ]

Sorry you were shorted time at Grand Turk, such an awesome beach and pool day it's a shame!! Looks like you guys made the most of it though, great pics! 

[crewsweeper]

57 minutes ago, FMZ said:

Sorry you were shorted time at Grand Turk, such an awesome beach and pool day it's a shame!! Looks like you guys made the most of it though, great pics! 

The port ties aren't necessarily set to purposely  "short time"  guests.  Departure times to the next port are established based on distance and time to travel.  You obviously don't want to be on a ship sailing at max speed while you're trying to enjoy the ship.  Arrival times can be coordinated a bit. Perhaps the other ship was a bit late in arrival.  But that's a coordination issue between the 2 lines.  A longer time in GT could be accomplished by replacing La Romana in the southern par tof the DR with Amber Cove in the North.  But again, not our decision to make.  We all know going in what the schedule will be.

[Hillbillygram]

Loving this review. When we were in Grand Turk, we went to the right side of the pier because there were a lot of clam shells available. We soon found out why. As you said, it was a challenge to get in the water. A man fell and cut his leg that required stitches. The left side is so much better. Looking forward to the rest of your review.

[purplephenom]

I've been a silent reader through all your reviews- finally got the nerve to log in and reply :-).  Loving this review so far, and eagerly checking back for more.  

[pooksma]

Enjoying your review...I learned a great tip from one of your earlier cruises and am hoping for another 😉🙂

 

[Getting out there]

Going back to an earlier post; I believe the Havana area is open to public after 7:00PM unless that has changed which would explain why the gate was open.

[ondebyou]

Another great review .. Good to see your reviews again and congrats on finishing school.  We're booked for the last week in February for another anniversary cruise and can't wait to get back to Roatan  and West Bay Beach for some fantastic snorkeling.

[mitsugirly]

20 hours ago, sayvan said:

yep same thing for me. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Honestly, I love cruise critic and all it has to offer but since they made these changes and got rid of the app I am feeling like we have gone back in time! Bring back the app!

 

I am loving your review and great information. We board  January 26 and this is making the wait much easier!

 

I never used the app but I can only imagine how difficult it is for those who did. 

 

Thanks and I hope you have a wonderful cruise on the 26th

 

19 hours ago, Trinam2 said:

So glad to come across a new one of your reviews. I can’t believe how much your daughter had grown. Loving the pics and can’t wait for the rest of your review. We are going on Oasis of the Seas in a couple weeks. We usually sail Carnival and wanted to try a mega ship. Are you planning on trying one of the RCI ships in the near future?

 

I know, she's growing up quickly. I have ALWAYS wanted to go on the Oasis (or Allure) but the dates that we have had available in the last several years, it's just too expensive and I hate that they usually take those ships to Jamaica. 

 

We were on Jewel of the Seas with RC earlier this year. We loved RC and hope to try them again. (Last time we were on RC before that was in the 90's)

 

17 hours ago, splash_in_the_water said:

i've had problems logging in as well. just went to the cruise boards main page, which seems to work, and since you quoted my post i got a notification which took me to the thread. So it's here, you just gotta get to it.

 

I suppose one could copy the link address for this thead and paste it to your desktop and just click that to take you directly to this thread. It is a fun read. Really great pics Mitsugirly, i think i may have the same Olympus camera you do. We've only been to Grand Turk once, it was fun.

 

Weird how some things will work and others won't. 

 

17 hours ago, lottiegreen56 said:

Great review, I can tell that you're very proud of your daughter's art and for good reason! Loved the girls breaking the rules on the crafts!!!!! Just a comment though, that craft that your grandson made looked like something I see in stores ....and would buy! I can see a lot of talent in him to go along with his cute personality!! 

 

Thanks again for sharing your family, wish I had pictures like this of our crew from 15 years ago 😞 

 

Thanks so much for the comments. Brayden is such a ham with an extreme personality for sure. 

 

9 hours ago, FMZ said:

Sorry you were shorted time at Grand Turk, such an awesome beach and pool day it's a shame!! Looks like you guys made the most of it though, great pics! 

 

We always try to make the most of every day, whether in port or not. I cherish every moment. 

 

8 hours ago, crewsweeper said:

The port ties aren't necessarily set to purposely  "short time"  guests.  Departure times to the next port are established based on distance and time to travel.  You obviously don't want to be on a ship sailing at max speed while you're trying to enjoy the ship.  Arrival times can be coordinated a bit. Perhaps the other ship was a bit late in arrival.  But that's a coordination issue between the 2 lines.  A longer time in GT could be accomplished by replacing La Romana in the southern par tof the DR with Amber Cove in the North.  But again, not our decision to make.  We all know going in what the schedule will be.

 

Exactly. My comments about the scheduling were only for the humor in the review. 

 

I'm definitely glad we didn't miss La Romana. It ended up being one of the best days ever!

 

6 hours ago, Hillbillygram said:

Loving this review. When we were in Grand Turk, we went to the right side of the pier because there were a lot of clam shells available. We soon found out why. As you said, it was a challenge to get in the water. A man fell and cut his leg that required stitches. The left side is so much better. Looking forward to the rest of your review.

 

Yea, next time, I won't go that way. I'll probably take a walk and try to head to the tip of the island for snorkeling. 

 

5 hours ago, purplephenom said:

I've been a silent reader through all your reviews- finally got the nerve to log in and reply :-).  Loving this review so far, and eagerly checking back for more.  

 

Aww, so glad you are no longer silent and are here. 

 

5 hours ago, pooksma said:

Enjoying your review...I learned a great tip from one of your earlier cruises and am hoping for another 😉🙂

 

 

Hopefully I can help and thanks for being here. 

 

4 hours ago, Getting out there said:

Going back to an earlier post; I believe the Havana area is open to public after 7:00PM unless that has changed which would explain why the gate was open.

 

The gate I was referring to was the gate to get to the rooms on the outside. Not the Havana area where the pool was. 🙂

 

2 hours ago, ondebyou said:

Another great review .. Good to see your reviews again and congrats on finishing school.  We're booked for the last week in February for another anniversary cruise and can't wait to get back to Roatan  and West Bay Beach for some fantastic snorkeling.

 

Thanks so much and not quite finished yet. One more class to go. Happy Anniversary and have a wonderful cruise. I want to go back to West Bay and have a do-over again. Our day was crappy when we were there and didn't get to snorkel or dive WB that day. 

[mitsugirly]

 

Well, I checked my pictures at home last night and I couldn't find any for the rest of the night. So, I'll just have to continue with words and humor. 

 

 

After getting our bellies full, it was time for a little vegetation in the "whirlpool" because Carnival doesn't have hot tubs. 

 

After that, we were now bellies full and waterlogged and decided to get dressed and go to the Thrill Theater for a little fun. We arrived and used the kiosk to pay for the "Level 1" movie only to get in there and they ran the "Level 2" movie. Either way, it was a blast and I love these types of things. Kam, well, she wasn't so sure about the moving seats, water splashes, and the air being blown on her legs and face. LOL She immediately ended up in Kendra's lap. 

 

On our way out, we decided we needed a snack. And by snack, I mean overly priced candy from Cherry on Top. I ended up with a bag full at around $7+ and the hubby had a bag at $8+. Yikes! After exiting the candy store with the deer in the headlights look on our faces at the price we just paid for a sugar high, they were passing out tickets for the "Grand Opening" of Victoria's Secret on the ship. We stuck around for a while...and a little bit longer, then put up with the silliness of the people strutting their stuff on the make-believe runway they created before they allowed us in the "brand new" store that "just opened" (even though I'm sure it's open on every cruise like this duh). We thought they were going to pull tickets to win something and the store was packed. We were hopeful, only to find that they pull ONE TICKET!!! Just one! The winner got a bag and I have no idea what was in it because they never showed. What a waste of time. I'll never get suckered into that again but I figured they'd at least do a few. I mean they even had a spin the wheel for heaven's sake. 

 

Since we had so much candy, we decided to hang out on the deck and go into a full-blown sugar coma at this point. We got one of the round bed chairs (I love these because I have one at home and love to pull it in front of the fireplace and just vegetate). 

 

After the sugar adrenaline rush was kicking in, it was time to play a few games at the sports square to burn off this new found energy and then we managed to talk the kids into a little "school" time (kids club). Sakari was begging not to go. I don't know what has gotten into her lately and not wanting to go. She's growing up on me and can't wait to get into the teen club. She decided to go ahead and spend some time in there but threatened "I'm not going to the baby part with Kam this time!" Kam went on her own and there's hope in the future for Kendra being able to drop her off for our port day in Curacao with scuba diving!

 

Back to the Punchliner we went for a little bit of humor. This time around they ask for people out of the audience that could speak different languages. We had several different people AND......the Guys fry boy from the deck games that wouldn't sit down. He said he could speak Spanish. The games went on and the comedian had them say different things and it was hilarious. They got to the boy and they would tell him what to say and his reply "I don't know how to say that". Next thing "I don't know that". On to something more simple "I don't know how to say that". Ok, DO YOU KNOW SPANISH OR NOT? At this point, I'm thinking he's just an attention hog because he couldn't say anything.

 

After the show, we attempted to get back in line only to find that it went all the way down the hallway to Pixels. There was no getting back in for the adult show, that's for sure. They really need a bigger venue. 

 

Next best thing...the casino. I ended up donating my $39 I had left from the first day on the cruise and decided to pick the kids up from the kids club and go eat.  Off to the buffet we went but there really wasn't much there and I ended up at the deli for a grilled cheese. According to my notes...my camera card was messing up so I guess that explains why there were no pictures.

 

Back to the room to pack for our day tomorrow in La Romana and we had a dinosaur friend on our bed that night. Sakari worked on her phone drawings and we called it a night. 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

LA ROMANA DR

We were in port from 9:30-4:
30pm

 

Now last time we were here, we did an excursion that went to Saoma Island. It was a nice day, just nearly not enough time to enjoy that island. While we were off at Saoma, our cruise friend (Kia and family) were going on a off-road buggy ride. We found out later that day that they never made the trip and were too late arriving. But, she had told me about it and it sounded like a lot of fun. We really wanted to do something "different" and thought this is definitely different than a beach. Sakari, of course, was unsure of it...well, because it didn't involve the beach of course. 

 

I did a little bit of research and decided to book with Pro Excursions. The price was $69 per adult and $35 per child. The name of the tour is called "Pro Buggy for Cruisers" tour. 

 

The tour will only take up to 20 people and they do require a $100 deposit (well, at least for us). You also add in $15 pp for transportation to the taxi's round trip (which was the same as the last time we were here going to Saoma Island). 

 

 

Interesting facts for your tours' safety & total pleasure:

Pro Excursions sets the standards in Bayahibe in the matter of safety and reliability so that you can enjoy to the fullest your tour with us in the Dominican Republic. This is what you don't know and that you should know so you can appreciate all the extra measures we took during your stop in La Romana...

• There are taxis waiting at relay points. If there is a mechanical problem it usually will take no more than 5 minutes to change taxi to continue and  the drivers are always in communication. So your road trip is secured.
• The tour is scheduled to bring you back at Bayahibe at least 1  hour before ship departure. This leaves plenty of time to bring you back to port. So if any delays occur during the tour we have plenty of loose time, all events have been calculated.
• There is a complete first aid kit with people who know how to use it.
• A tour will be cancelled in case of extreme weather forecast or if ship skips dock.  Deposit refunded.
• If  a tour is cancelled for other reasons you will be notified at least before your Cruise vacation starts. Deposit refunded

 

The buggys come in 2 or 4 seaters. We rented 2 four-seaters. 

 

Here's the description online:

 

 

Exclusive & Authentic!

Pro Buggy Expedition for Cruisers is a real Safari activity of high quality, driving your own all terrain Buggy. Get away from the crowd, maximum 20 people! This is a Special Edition program only for Cruisers! Pick-up at 9:15 and return to Port before 3:00 PM garanteed.

From the charming village of Bayahibe, aboard our Safari truck, we will set course to the outback country of Benerito.  Arriving at our authentic ranch  your buggy awaits! At the wheel of your all terrain speedster we are riding towards the sugar cane fields in which you will learn all about this important industry. Eat some freshly cut, sweet & juicy sugar cane.

Then we will set course to reach GATO, at this colorful village the children and habitants will run in the streets to greet us and exchange!! If you have things you would want to give…this is the place. An experience you will never forget and will surely make you wonder!

 

Leaving Gato, let’s take a new direction via the jungle to meet with a Cultivator on his beautiful plantation. There freshly cooked from his wood stove he will serve us some specialties of his garden.  While at the plantation get wet in the famous river of Chavon in its most secluded area. This river offers a mesmerizing view. Hollywood even shot films in that area… Films like Anaconda, Rambo and Apocalypse Now, just to name a few. During your time at the river, lets make a refreshing swim stop on a bed of river pebbles far from civilization surrounded by the Tropical forest.

 

 

Sounds like a great day right? I knew we had to book it! And we did!

 

 

[mitsugirly]

I set the alarm for 7am, but everyone else woke up around 7:45am.

 

We headed up to the buffet for breakfast. 

 

We were pulling in at 8:45am. What a beautiful site. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

They cleared the ship at a few minutes after 9am and we headed off the ship. 

 

Time for our obligatory picture in port

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We would wind our way around the twist and turns of the port, trying to make it out to the taxi stands and avoiding all the souvenir shops, then I remembered this imposter from the last time we were here. 

 

 

The taxi area was within sight and my legs were relieved. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We inquired where we needed to go and they took us outside of the gates and put us in a taxi van and off we went. 

 

[mitsugirly]

We were told the taxi ride was around 15 minutes, but it was a lot longer than that. I'm guessing at least 25 minutes - 30 minutes.

 

We arrived at the Pro Excursions building and checked in. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They had the Christmas spirit

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were told to use the restroom if needed, grab some water if you wanted, then they gave us our glasses to wear for the buggys. 

 

We piled into an open-air Safari bus and we were ready to roll. 

 

 

 

We were on the tour with another awesome family and it was a great time. 

 

 

 

 

This was our guide, Danny. He was awesome and very informative.

 

 

 

No bugs in the mouth for Sakari. Kendra however...it was still an option because she was smiling the whole time. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We waited for a HUGE group of buggys to go by at this intersection. I didn't think they would ever end. I was hoping our group was going to be a lot smaller (and it was). 

 

 

 

 

 

Now Danny was telling us that you can get a house there for around $120 a month for the so-so poverty areas. Average pay for the month for someone is around $200 month. He also told us how people didn't really get loans to fix a house. They would just put money into their homes whenever they had extra money to do so. That meant it was a work in progress and it could take 20 years to fix up your home. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GimmeAdventure!]

Yay, you're back!  My family is new to cruising-  we did the Fascination in June, and just spent Christmas week on the Breeze, and I relied on your reviews heavily for both!  Coincidentally, I was just eyeing this same itinerary on the Horizon for Christmas 2019, as I've been dying to go back to Aruba.  Can't wait to read the rest, and thanks so much for doing these reviews!

[Cavners5]

Thanks for your review! Just happened to stumble across it. Our family (9 of us)  will be doing this same itinerary in June. So excited to her the rest!

[mitsugirly]

There was a poor horse just tied up to a fence with no one around. Hmmm

 

 

 

Specific directions not to have any body parts outside of the truck, but yet..... I remember him getting smacked in the face a few times along the way.

 

 

 

This is the ***** fighting arena. It's open on Sundays. Danny told us that a lot of roosters get hit and killed on the roads and he can guarantee that the owner will tell you EVERY SINGLE TIME that it was his "best" fighter to make you pay more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

We had finally arrived at the buggys.

 

 

 

Everyone piled out of the safari bus...I still don't know why I felt the need to take a picture of everyone doing so. ?? LOL

 

 

They had given us trash bags to put our things in and said we would need them to keep everything from getting muddy.

 

 

 

I think Kendra had brought enough stuff to stay the entire week.

 

 

 

 

This was the gearing up area where we received our helmets for the day.

 

 

 

Of course my animal loving child will run up to any animal to pet it. Kam will copy anything and everything "sissy" does. She's in that stage...

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

We didn't waste any time and headed for our buggy. I opted to sit in the back so that Sakari would have more fun and be able to see. She still claims I sat back there so I wouldn't get as muddy...but we'll see about that.

 

 

 

All smiles and loving this. Yea, we'll see about this too.

 

 

A guy with a mask racing to the front of our line. You would think we were about to get held up.

 

 

 

 

All smiles back there so far

 

 

 

 

Kam and B were fighting about the front seat of course and Kendra was trying to hold this single mom thing together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

We came to a little village called Benerito.

 

We would park the buggys and get out and walk the streets. There were a lot of little kids that followed and wave.

 

El Comedor - dining area

 

 

 

Escuela, which was the school. The guy who ran the school was the principal, the teacher, the secretary and many other things. He earns one of the highest pays there at $600 a month. The school was closed today because if the principal/teacher/secretary needs to get his hair cut or has an appointment, they close the school.

 

 

 

 

 

These trees were so pretty and neat. They were very soft and like fir trees.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

We headed back to the buggys and off we went again.

 

 

 

 

There's the masked bandit again coming up along side of Kendra

 

 

A small video of us riding the trails...and the masked bandit coming up along side of us...can you guess what he was doing?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we came to a small bridge made out of some type of pipes. Dannys hand wove up and down (meaning slow your roll)

 

 

As soon as we crossed the bridge, I looked over and seen these starring at me

 

 

 

 

We must have spooked them because all of a sudden a whole bunch of them came charging out of the tall grass. Like A LOT of them. I screeched and wasn't sure what to say or do other than "OMG, punch it Myrtle". They came within inches of hitting our buggy and then I remembered....Kendra was behind us!

 

 

Or was she?

 

 

 

I didn't even see her. I really wish I would have caught this on video. LOL I actually talked to her tonight about it when I was showing her the pictures and she said she was coming up over the bridge and seen them fly out of the grass and in front of her and she stopped and waited.