Our S2S Adventure - Freedom / Spirit (with pics) - 1/7/23

[Jamman54]

After we left the Empire Restaurant, I went to play blackjack for a while, and Patti went to the Versailles Lounge to check out the Build a Bear…..

 

 

 

They are cranking out those bears……

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Of course, you need to get some clothes and accessories for them…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We both met back at the cabin where looking outside you can see and feel the seas getting rougher…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

I went to the early PG Comedy Show starring Tim Kaminski. I sat at my usual spot at the bar and Bendi immediately made me my Punchliner…..

 

 

 

Comedy Club Host Roman gets the show started……

 

 

 

Tim Kaminski was very funny as usual, and had the audience participate…..

 

 

 

 

 

After the show Patti met me up on the Lido at the Seafood Corner…..

 

 

 

She decided to just have a salad from the Salad Bar, while I had the fried seafood Platter…..

 

 

We were both feeling tired, so we got ourselves some ice cream and went back to the cabin for the night. Here is tonight’s towel animal…..

 

 

Coming up next: Our return to Bonaire and some all-inclusive fun!

[Elaine5715]

1 hour ago, Jamman54 said:

Of course, you need to get some clothes and accessories for them…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We both met back at the cabin where looking outside you can see and feel the seas getting rougher…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

Can't have a bare bear

[pe4all]

One of my only "complaints" on Spirit was how long it took our order of crab cakes to come out at the Seafood area.  We sat over 25 minutes waiting for our beeper to go off, and there was only one order in ahead of us.  And the food was not worth the wait - lol.  

[Jamman54]

23 minutes ago, pe4all said:

One of my only "complaints" on Spirit was how long it took our order of crab cakes to come out at the Seafood area.  We sat over 25 minutes waiting for our beeper to go off, and there was only one order in ahead of us.  And the food was not worth the wait - lol.  

 

Now that you mention it, it did take a while for the food to be ready. There were three or four orders ahead of mine. My platter was delicious though. 😀

[bar10der421]

Thanks so much to you and Patti for doing these awesome reviews. I really enjoy reading them even if the ship and or ports are not currently on my radar,

I do have a Grand Turk question.  You mentioned that the beach in front of Margaritaville is rocky,  Would you recommend water shoes or would bare feet be okay? 

[vacationlover16]

On 2/16/2023 at 1:56 PM, sportscruiser said:

Just saw this and does look like Spirit is the only ship that currently offers Soul Play; says it for all ages but also says there IS an additional cost??

Thank you!! 

[vacationlover16]

On 2/16/2023 at 1:05 AM, Jamman54 said:

I believe that Soul Play is adult oriented, but I'll ask Patti about that later. At Alchemy there is no waiter service, so if you are sitting in the outer seats you have to belly up to the bar. 😎

Thank you! This is very helpful!

[Jamman54]

30 minutes ago, bar10der421 said:

Thanks so much to you and Patti for doing these awesome reviews. I really enjoy reading them even if the ship and or ports are not currently on my radar,

I do have a Grand Turk question.  You mentioned that the beach in front of Margaritaville is rocky,  Would you recommend water shoes or would bare feet be okay? 

 

Hi Laura! Thanks for reading and your kind words! I would highly recommend water shoes if you're going to use the beach at Margaritaville, or on the other side of the pier by the Beached Whale. 

[Jamman54]

Day # 15 – (January 18^th) – Kralendijk, Bonaire (9am – 10pm). 

 

Once again, we were up just as the sun was rising in the east…..

 

 

The seas are fairly calm and it’s going to be a hot sunny day. Here is the view from our balcony……

 

 

 

Today we have all-inclusive day passes to the Plaza Beach Resort. You can’t buy these day passes in advance, as they are very strict about the amount that they sell which is based on the occupancy rate of the hotel on the day you wish to buy them. I emailed them about two months prior with the date we wanted, and they put us on the list and instructed us to email them one week prior to arrival for final approval. We did not have to pay a deposit up front. When we were in Fort Lauderdale, I emailed them, and they sent me an approval email to show to hotel security when we arrived. It seems like a lot, but it was worth it.

 

We’ll be eating at the resort so no breakfast today again. As I did most days, I made my way down to the Fountain Café Coffee Bar for a coffee and today’s “Fun Times”…..

 

 

 

Looking outside you can see that the Spirit is now approaching Bonaire…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Soon, the Pilot Boat came to drop off the Pilot…..

 

 

 

 

 

The Spirit is now sailing into Kralendijk harbor…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

This is one of the Water Taxis…..

 

 

The Spirit is approaching the pier…..

 

 

 

That’s the security gate at the end of the pier…..

 

 

We are almost in position…..

 

 

It took a long time for the ship to be tied up as the lines had to be moved by boats a long distance to be moored…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Hogladyrider]

@Jamman54...great pics of arrival.  I don't think many folks realize the labor intensive work involved in docking a cruise ship!

[Tobleronebar]

16 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

I went to the early PG Comedy Show starring Tim Kaminski. I sat at my usual spot at the bar and Bendi immediately made me my Punchliner…..

 

 

 

Comedy Club Host Roman gets the show started……

 

 

 

Tim Kaminski was very funny as usual, and had the audience participate…..

 

 

 

 

 

After the show Patti met me up on the Lido at the Seafood Corner…..

 

 

 

She decided to just have a salad from the Salad Bar, while I had the fried seafood Platter…..

 

 

We were both feeling tired, so we got ourselves some ice cream and went back to the cabin for the night. Here is tonight’s towel animal…..

 

 

Coming up next: Our return to Bonaire and some all-inclusive fun!

We loved Tim! Is he still talking about the tooth that flew out of his mouth the week before? 

[Jamman54]

10 minutes ago, Tobleronebar said:

We loved Tim! Is he still talking about the tooth that flew out of his mouth the week before? 

 

Yes! 

[Jamman54]

The Carnival Spirit was docked in Kralendijk, Bonaire at 8:30am, and almost immediately was cleared for passengers to debark. Our day pass hours at the Plaza Resort are from 9am to 6pm. Patti knew from our previous visits here that most of the shops close at 6pm, so she asked me if she could have a 45 minute head start so she could check out the craft market. Of course I said yes. She left the ship at 9am. Patti took these shots from the pier. The Celebrity Equinox is also in Kralendijk today…..

 

 

 

 

Patti took these shots in the area by the pier…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

I met Patti at the taxi stand…..

 

 

 

When we got in the taxi and told the driver where we were going, she asked us if we had our letter. Wow, this place sounds like Fort Knox! It was really just a short ride over there, and if you are able bodied you can easily walk there…..

 

 

 

 

At the security gate our driver told the guard that we had our letter, so he let us enter. Notice the sign?

 

 

 

As we made our way through the lobby to the front desk to check in, with all that it took to get here, I expected a mean, grumpy person to be there!

 

 

 No, this is Sherin, and she was a sweetheart! She’s even been on several Carnival cruises!

 

 

After paying our $85 per person fee, Sherin explained how to get to where we needed to go, gave us our towels, and sent us on our way…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Here are some views of the lobby area of the Plaza Beach Resort…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once outside we see that there is a marina right in the middle of the property…..

 

 

 

 

 

We have to cross this bridge to go to the other side…..

 

 

To be continued……..

[Jamman54]

Once across the bridge, we go through this building and come upon the pool which is huge…..

 

 

 

 

We make these chairs our home base for today….

 

 

Here are a couple more pool area pictures…..

 

 

 

 

This is the beach taken from the pool area…..

 

 

We head to the nearby Palm Beach Bar…..

 

 

Patti and I have our first drinks of the day…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

These are the Palm Beach Bar menus….

 

 

 

These aren’t our drinks, but they sure looked good…..

 

 

 

I’m going to hang out at the Beach Bar for a while and consume more Heinekens. Patti heads off to explore. Here are some views of the area around the Palm Beach Bar…..

 

 

 

 

 

Here are a few beach views…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The coastline here is rocky, which is why this resort caters to those who dive and snorkel…..

 

 

 

 

 

From here you get a good view of the ships in port…..

 

 

This is the ladies room by the pool….

 

 

 

So, where are you supposed to throw it?

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

I’m calling this page Patti’s Plaza Beach Resort flora, fauna, and critters…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Indiansbaseball]

Hi Guys ! 
I loved Bonaire and I can’t wait to go back ! Also, really loved the Spirit ! Might I add…as usual Love the Review and Patty’s pictures! 
Jen

[l2f]

Hey Jeff another great review.   Was the day pass for Plaza Beach Resort an AI?