Crown review - Feb. 10th-17th (will be long, be warned)

joand452 · February 20, 2007

Nikita,

I'm thoroughly enjoying your review and look forward to reading the rest. Our itinerary will be different in April, but I enjoy reading about the ship and activities.

The mass wedding made me say, "Awwwww"... How fun!

Clutterlady · February 20, 2007

Nikita, a great credit and a vowel renewal..............what more could you ask for:)

mortysmama · February 20, 2007

Thank you for your wonderfully detailed review. I'll be on the CB in less than 3 weeks and your posts are making me more excited.

nikita · February 20, 2007

Our plan for the day was to just take it easy and go see Orient Beach. We got up and put our sunscreen on (please use lots of sunscreen!) and disembarked the ship. As soon as you get out of the dock area there will be people asking you if you need a taxi and directing you to the taxi area where there will be signs so you will know what line to get into. There was a sign for Orient which I believe is one of the most popular areas to go. We quickly got loaded into a van with several others and were on our way. The more people in the van the less it cost. The costs are posted on the wall there and it seemed to me that they were posted as per how many people were in the taxi. We had to pay $12 for the two of us to Orient and we tipped $3 extra. The driver dropped us off at a Kon Tiki beach and that's where we stayed. It was not crowded at all when we arrived but in a few hours the area was packed. It is a pretty long beach with the nude resort way to your left when facing the water. Even though it was way down - we saw a few totally nude men walk on by. Well I tried not to look but you can't help it - there they are just a proud as can be...luckily I missed the front and only got a glimpse of the behind. This is not the beach to go to if you don't want to see non-attractive naked people. There were tons of topless as well. I tell you this as a warning if you would want to avoid this. Also I wouldn't suggest bringing your children to this beach but to each his own. There were some families there. This is the french side of the Island and on the Dutch side we only saw a few topless and no nudes (last time we were there) - that would be on the side the ship docks. Would I go back? Yes, absolutely and I'll tell you the one reason why. I loved the Kon Tiki restaurant!!! It was so cool with lovely views of the ocean and a live band playing. Our lunch was very enjoyable. I ordered the lobster salad which was around 22 euros I think. I don't know how that translates to dollars but it was delicious and worth it. We found out - after walking the beach that we were in the best part of the area. Our chairs were $7 apiece for the day and they served refreshments to you on the beach. The chairs were padded and the restrooms were clean. A note on the restrooms - they had two stalls with working toilets but no roof - no problem but when you went in or out you could see the mens urinals and if they are in use you will maybe see more then you want. I just saw the back of a guy but then I thought I was in the mens restroom area and got embarrassed - even though two ladies had just exited the stall I used before me. Later my DH and I did a little exploring and realized this was a uni-restroom area. Live and learn (and laugh!) We left the beach and went looking for a taxi around 2pm. We quickly found a taxi but he wanted more then us in his cab so he circled the area for a bit but could only find one other couple to go back with us. We paid a bit more going back - cant remember exactly how much.

We quickly went back to the ship and got cleaned up then jumped on the water taxi to do a bit of shopping. Jewelry shopping - my favorite kind of shopping. The first store we went browsing in my DH saw a ring with inlaid opal and emerald. I have one of these inlaid opal rings but have a tanzanite stone so the emerald was different. I tried the ring on and asked a price. The price was of course way too high so took it off. The guy put it back on me and gave me another price. Still too high so I just asked for his card and asked him to put the price down on it for me. He gave me an even lower price and took me outside to see the sparkle in the daylight. Once again, I asked for a card, he lowered his price still, once again I told him this was the first place we had been to and I wanted to shop a bit, please can I just have a card? He lowered it again and this time it was such a good price we couldn't resist. We purchased the ring. After that he showed us a matching bracelet and boy were we tempted - my DH wanted to buy it for me but I put my foot down and dragged him out of there - I wanted to look around some more. We looked some more but did not buy any more jewelry - we still had more Islands to visit ya know? We ended up buying my son a pair of Oakley sunglasses for $160. I think this is a decent price but not sure. My son is hard to buy for so we were a little desparate to think of something and keep the score between him and daughter on an even level of spending. After shopping we donned the water taxi ($5 round trip or use it all day) back to the ship and enjoyed our balcony once again for sailaway.

That night was our vow renewals and dinner at Sabatinis so we had a full night ahead of us. I made my DH dress up (he wasn't too thrilled) and wear a tie. There was only one other guy at the vow renewal wearing a tie so I felt a little bad. But I had on a bit of a fancy dress and wanted him to match so there you go. We had another photo taken that night which turned out decent. We went to the picky photographer who fixed all my jewelry straight before taking the photo. I actually appreciate this as I've gotten photos back with crooked necklaces and rings turned wrong etc and it bugs me. So after our photo was taken we stood on the spiral staircase waiting for the renewal of vows which took place at 7:30pm. We were a bit disapointed that the Captain did not preside over this ceremony but the cruise director, Tim did it. But anyways he had us all stand and face our significant other and look directly into their eyes and then recite the vows - very similar to wedding vows and it was very touching - and both of us got emotional and I think we were the only ones...which was a bit embarrassing and some guy called my husband a "crybaby" but it was said in fun and we didn't take offense - but I guess he shouldn't have said it anyways. Now don't think we were sobbing or anything - just a few tears down our cheeks ya know? We are still very much in love and this was special to us. Later during the week a certificate was delivered to our stateroom stating that we had renewed our vows on that date with our names printed on it. That is going in the scrapbook for sure. I thought it was really, really, cool that Princess commemerated Valentines day in this way and another plus for their side!

At 9:30 we went to Sabatinis for our dinner. Let me tell you - we thought the service was absolutely fantastic. They were just so friendly and really tried to please us. I wanted non-alcoholic wine which was not on their wine list and they went to get it for us at a different lounge - something they would not do at the Crown Grill later on in the week but I'll get to that experience later. The food, for the most part was delicious. They serve you a bit of all the appetizers and then you get a soup and a pasta before your main course. I ordered the vegetable soup and it wasn't very good so don't order that - get the seafood soup instead - which my DH enjoyed. The ravioli was very good and for main course I ordered scallops - which weren't all that special but could have been because I was already stuffed. DH ordered the veal chop and thought it was delicious. For dessert I ordered the white chocolate mousse and it was superb - even in my very full state I enjoyed it. DH could not get himself to order dessert, he was just past the point of no return. We tipped them $20 in cash, as if you add it to your surcharge on the bill they personally will not get that tip. They let you know this too - so take some money with you when you go there if you plan on tipping them - and you will want to if you have the kind of service we had. The surcharge is $20 per person and is added to your onboard account.

We had a very special Valentines day. One note on the ring I bought. On Sunday after we arrived home I was wearing it and looking at the emerald - it had somehow cracked!! Man, was I bummed. I contacted the customer service number on the back of my receipt today and talked to a nice lady who told me to send it to their New York address and she will replace the stone or the ring. I sure hope they will follow through and not give me a hard time. I sent it to them today and hopefully will hear back soon. The crack was not in it when I bought it and I really don't know what happened - I never dropped or hit the ring in anyway and it wasn't sized. It is so weird. The jewelry store is Milanos diamond gallery which I also saw in St. Thomas so being as they are a chain and I believe recommended by the cruise ship (our salesman told us that anyways) hopefully they will come through for me.

Stay tuned for our day in Antigua.

LALAFRANCE · February 20, 2007

Hi thanks for the great review! Makes me want to be back onboard.

You mentioned Tim as the cruise director, do you know his last name? ...he must be new..how was he?

We had Omar Lugo and didn't care too much for him at least he was easy enough to avoid.

crissyp · February 20, 2007

your trip sounds wonderful....we sail in July on the Crown for the first time!!

Your reports get me so anxious for this trip!! Thanks sooo much for taking the time and effort and rel-live you vacation.

I plan to do the same when we return!!:)

nikita · February 21, 2007

Hi thanks for the great review! Makes me want to be back onboard.
You mentioned Tim as the cruise director, do you know his last name? ...he must be new..how was he?

We had Omar Lugo and didn't care too much for him at least he was easy enough to avoid.

His name was Tim Donovan - and he was great we thought. We really didn't have much interaction with him, but he was witty when speaking and also very friendly with us when we came face to face one time. His staff also did a great job. No complaints in that dept.

nikita · February 21, 2007

We had booked the Xtreme with Eli and were told to meet them in front of a shop right off the dock area at 8:35. We got there a bit early and no one was around so we just sat down and waited a bit. Still no one came. I was getting a bit nervous because I noticed on my email correspondence with them that I should have emailed me before we left to verify our reservation. Well, I hadn't noticed that before so hadn't emailed them. But I did leave a deposit with them so I figured they would show up anyways. After a while another couple from our ship showed up for the same tour and this made us relax - sure enough a few minutes later the Xtreme speedboat arrived and picked us up right there. We got on and were told that the seats in front would be a bit bouncy and the seats in back would be smooth but you would get wet...so make your decision where you want to sit. The boat holds 18 and there were only 6 at that time so we had the choice. He also informed us if we had bad backs we should sit in the back. Well now, this made my decision a bit harder since I have a bit of a bad back but not chronic - but as you all know I don't like cold water...the front of the boat is where we sat and I think I regretted that decision later on - it got bouncy and one really bad bounce we experienced would've done my back in but I saw it coming and stood up - as you would on a horse (they told us to straddle the seat) to avoid the shock. No one else did and there were a few curse words I heard as we crashed back down. I'm thankful I had braced myself for that one. Well enough about that but I do think I would've enjoyed it more had I not been paranoid about my back the whole time - although if I sat in the back I might have been too cold...I could not win in this situation I guess.

We went to a few more hotels to pick up other passengers and they also pointed out points of interest here and there. Our first stop was to swim with the stingrays - which we have done twice already in grand Cayman but wanted to try the speedboat so here we were again. The water was cold (in my defense, others said so too) and there really weren't all that many stingrays there. They took photos of everyone holding a stingray and since my DH had his underwater camera we didn't have to buy one ($15 for 5/7) I was talking to one of the guides and he said that since Steve Irwin died they are really hurting for buisness at stingray city. Both DH and I thought that would happen after we heard that bad news about the crocodile hunter. The guide said that there are only 8 recorded deaths from stingrays and so it really is a safe thing to do. We really enjoyed it in Grand Cayman - probably one of the more fun things I've ever done. I enjoyed it more then swimming with the dolphins. But since the water was cold of course I didn't stay in long. There was also some decent snorkeling there as well.

As we were sitting on the dock there waiting for the snorkelers to get done a funny thing happened. The dock workers (there were 2) had a little boat there that they came in on and there was a rat in it. It was walking on this rope and so one of them threw the rope into the ocean - but it just stayed attached to the rope and started walking back to the boat so the guy picked it up by the tail and swung it out into the deep blue sea...it looked funny flying in the air like that but also I felt kind of sorry for the little (well not that little actually...) guy. Just glad it wasn't found on our boat!

After stingray city we continued our tour of Antigua. The neat thing about this tour is it goes all the way around the Island in one day. We stopped off at a an Island to have lunch and explored a bit before hand. This is where you will need some good shoes. There were stickers all over and if your feet weren't covered you would most likely get one. DH had teva sandals which worked well even though they didn't cover his whole feet - I had water shoes and they worked but were uncomfortable. The people with flip flops just tried to stay out of the brush and bushes. Some were successful, some weren't. There was a gorgeous area of beach on the other side where we all hung out until lunch was ready. Lunch was delicious barbeque chicken, salad, pasta salad, and plantains which they ran out of early on. For dessert very tasty banana bread with a glaze on top. There just wasn't a comfortable place to sit though which put a damper on it. After lunch we got back on board and continued on our way. They took us through Nelsons Dockyard which was very interesting - amazing yachts were being worked on - incredible in size - one had a helicopter on it. We really enjoyed this part of the excursion. Then they took us snorkeling - again I asked DH to tell me if it was worth the cold water - it wasn't. He said there wasn't much to see there. AFter that we stopped at rendezvue (spelling?) beach. This was a gorgeous beach and if you wanted to get off the boat you had to get wet because they could not get close to the shore...so off I jumped. There were cows on this beach which made it a funny experience. They served rum punch and another non-alcoholic drink and then we had to swim back to the boat. After that they took us back to the ship.

This was an all day affair - from around 8:45am-3:30am. The cost was $170 per person. Although I enjoyed most of it - I was uncomfortable for some of it because I was afraid my back was gonna get hurt (my own fault for not listening and sitting in the back). I thought it was too expensive - but it was all day and took you the whole way around the Island. The crew was very nice but not quite as accomadating as the Silvermoon - but really how could they be when we were on a speedboat ya know? Also no restroom aboard - so one would have to go in the water at least once or twice - come-on we all know we all do that. There was no other choice on this excursion. Also with 18 people onboard it was a bit crowded at times. I think for the most part most of the people that came enjoyed it and didn't regret spending the money. You can kind of tell by peoples reactions. I guess it just wasn't for me - although I'm glad I did it, just wouldn't do it again. DH said it was a good day but pricey but he thinks that it must take a lot of gas to power that thing all day which adds to the price. By the way - he really enjoyed his seat in the front.

After we docked we again did a bit of shopping at the pier stores. They had a lacoste shirt store (polo shirt for $82) so we bought my DS a shirt and I think that was all we bought there.

Once again we enjoyed a nice sailaway on our balcony and got ready for our second formal night. OH NO ladies - I forgot my shoes! None of my other ones matched well with my dress but what could I do? My blue flip flops matched since my dress was turquoise with dark blue sequins but I couldn't bring myself to wear them...so ended up wearing my black shoes which were way too casual and looked ugly. Oh well. We didn't get our photos taken as we had already worn these same duds on our last cruise and had great photos done then. So at least I didn't have to fear my ugly black shoes would be in a photo. Well, normally the black shoes are cute - just not with a formal dress. I know all you ladies will sympathize with me. DH did not. haha. You'll be happy to know I did survive the night with the black shoes and turquoise dress.

This was lobster night in the dining room. I really wanted lobster but also beef wellington and asked them to put a lobster on my plate - which they did. I enjoyed the lobster a lot more then the beef and wished I didn't order the beef but tried to make a good show of it by eating most of it. This was the best lobster ever on any cruise so be prepared to enjoy! The show was starting so we had to leave before dessert that night.

We went to change out of our formal wear after dinner due to the fact that I did not want to wear those mismatched shoes all night long and then went to the show MotorCity - I ENJOYED THIS SHOW VERY MUCH! If you are a Motown fan - as I am, you will be in heaven. The band music was live so that was great and the dancing great - the song choices wonderful. Just enjoyed the whole thing and they did get a standing ovation from most in the audience, so I wasn't the only one.

After the show we went to the champagne fountain. What a fun time it was there - but crowded! The band Voltz was playing and they were terrific. A few people finally danced. I was up watching from one of the upper balcony areas so couldn't dance (I'm sure that made DH sad, said in a very sarcastic tone). They gave everyone streamers to throw and then had a countdown as they would at new years eve. It was so festive! That's when they started pouring the champagne down the fountain. You can stand in line if you want to participate and get a photo taken - a lot of people did and I think they let everyone who wanted to have a turn pouring the champagne have a turn. They also handed out free glasses of the stuff which many enjoyed and then they had some dining room staff out on the dance floor dancing with their customers (passengers). What a fun idea! Since we didn't have any regular dining staff that week I didn't recognize anyone. This was done in the atrium/piazza area at 11:45pm.

After that we turned in for the night - with a bit of depression knowing that tomorrow in St. Thomas was our last day onboard.

nikita · February 21, 2007