Just Off the Island - Panama Canal FLL RT (Sort of long)

[ExDean]

What if you turn down a mini-suite upgrade? Lose your S&S card to re-board? Have no-shows for your Limon tour? Read on to find out – if you’re really interested.

Pre-embarkation: We arrived in FLL a day early and stayed at the Marriott Courtyard Ft. Lauderdale Airport and Cruise Port. We chose this Marriott because of the free shuttle from the airport and also to the cruise. There is no liquor store within walking distance, but the courtesy car drive said if we were at the desk a 7:30 p.m. he would drive us. He took us to load up on six bottles of wine, waited for us and returned to the motel. Great service. There is a great seafood restaurant on the property, Islamorda Fish Co., Bass outlet and the Fishing Hall of Fame.

Embarkation: The next morning we took the 12:00 shuttle minibus to the pier. The Princess “propaganda” says boarding is at 12:00. We got to the pier at about 12:20 there was NO ONE in line and were in our stateroom by 12:40. Our only delay was the two minutes to fill out the “I haven’t been sick” form. When we were given our S&S cards I noted that we had the wrong room. We were supposed to have C324 but our boarding material said D409. I said, “This is the wrong cabin.” To which he said, “It’s right, you have been upgraded.”

We had already turned down a mini-suite upgrade once because we like the half covered, large Caribe balcony vs. the smaller Dolphin uncovered one. But I guess the word is, “Don’t say ‘no’ to the Upgrade Fairy.” Anyhow, it worked out and as I’ll explain later the WX didn’t permit too much balcony sitting for our first sea days.

Our steward, Jun, was there to greet us. We gave him a bag of souvenirs from Toledo and Ohio which surprised him. For some reason he had not heard of Ohio or Toledo. He was from the Philippines so I wonder why?

Of course, our luggage tags showed our cabin as C324 and when they didn’t arrive (even with Cruise Critic tags on them) we went to C324 and there they were. The Upgrade Fairy was not doing her job.

Days at sea: Went for “any time” dinner at 7:00 and there was a 30” wait. Some complained that since this was any time dining one could just walk in at any time and sit down. Surprise! Seems there was a wait at around 7:00 every night. We got around that for a couple of nights by reserving a table for two which worked well. The food selection was very good and whatever we selected we liked. Especially when our waiter brought me a second order of the Alaska King Crab.

The Island was rockin’ and rollin’ for the first two days at sea. We had gale force winds 8-9 across the deck. With the ship cruising at 20.5 kts it didn’t make for comfortable balcony sitting.

We took in the (inexpensive $9.50 vs. $25) wine tasting session, which was very interesting, then returned to our cabin to sample our budget worthy selection. We didn’t take a bottle to the dining room, so I can’t comment on how that would have worked. Later we took in the Island Princess Dancers floor show Piano Man which was ok but very loud for our taste.

The second sea day the sun was out at 10:30 and we sat on the windblown sundeck to soak up some rays. DW used the gym each day while her DH sat in the sun. At this point we had storm winds 10 and 5-9 ft rough seas. The waves were splashing up to the lounge windows on Deck 5.

The magic show comedian, Scott Alexader, was excellent – good magic and good humor.

Aruba: We have been there twice and since the stay was so short we stayed on board and sat in the sun. We did take in our daily “high tea” with enough food to make a meal of. Leaving Aruba the seas were much calmer. I sort of missed the bobbin’ and weavin’ which made one feel like you really were at sea.

Cartagena: We took the Best of Cartagena and Fortress tour. Had a very good tour guide and got a very good overview of the city both riding the bus and the walk through the center of town. Very picturesque city with many vendors out making a living. We heard some complaints about the vendors but whereas they presented you with their wares they were not pushy and aggressive as we had found n Jamaica. It was at the fort that I somehow lost my S&S card. I think it was when I was getting out a tip for a uniformed person posing at the fortress.

So what happens when you lose your card? I had to show the security people my ID. They called the “bong” people at the gangway and found out I really was an OK passenger and they let me on. I went to the Passenger Service desk and the printed me up a new one exactly like to original with my name, etc, printed – don’t know how they do that. We then went to tea, had our wine in the cabin (on the uncovered balcony) and waited to stand in line for dinner.

Panama Canal: We were up at 5:00 to watch our approach to the canal. It was interesting to see the ships waiting at anchor while we slowly approached the locks. (The comedian a couple night later quipped that “You people get up at 5:00 to see what you could have seen at 11:00.) Thanks to the tips from the CC folks we had an excellent and uncrowded view from the forward deck on Caribe or Baja. You had to go through a couple of unmarked doors to access the forward area. There were only about 20 people with us and about 30 on the deck above us. I heard someone commenting that they found out about this area from CruiseCritic.com. Later we went to our balcony since we could view the other locks and ships entering and leaving. The benefit of the Dolphin balcony was we could look straight down and see the limited clearance the ship had.

We entered Lake Gatun and tendered ashore. We took the tour of the Highlights of Panama which included further explanation of the locks. They told us that Princess paid $276,000 toll and I don’t know if that was OW or RT. This tour included a boat ride to an Indian village and viewing wildlife. The villagers put on a good show for us and we were pulled out of the audience to learn one of their dances.

The bus dropped us off at Csritobal at 3:00 where the ship was docked (nothing there but many booths selling all sorts of crafts). We sailed at 6:00.

Limon, Costa Rica: This was the second highlight of our cruise. Here we did not take a Princess tour but went with Charlie Soto and OkeyDokey Tours. What a great choice we made. We took Charlie’s A2 Canopy Tour with the zip line. Charlie said he would be at the pier 1 hour after the ship docked. We docked @ 7:00 and met Charlie at 7:45. His A1 tour people arrived and off they went. We waited for two other A2 couples for about an hour more and then left. That meant that we had a private tour with our excellent tour guide, Carlos. We stopped at road side stands and sampled the fruits as Carlos explained them to us. Then off to the zip line where we were the only couple there. What terrific time that was. Once were suited up in our gear we were given the “safety talk,” boarded a wagon to the steps of the first platform. The steps (well sort of rustic steps) were by far the hardest part – and that wasn’t all that hard if you took your time. We had eight platforms and experienced marvelous views especially as we zipped over the river. If we had had the time we would have done it again. From there to the Dole banana plantation with Carlos giving us all the details on raising and harvesting bananas. When I go to Kroger I’ll never look a banana the same way again. Actually the ones we get in the stores are on “steroids” as the ones the locals pick are smaller. The larger size is due to fertilizer. On the way to our next event, we stopped so Carlos could talk to a young boy with a sloth – which we got to hold. DW did make face as she held it for the camera.

We stopped while Carlos and our driver “talked” to a troop of Howler monkeys. Then on to the canal one hour boat ride to view the wild life. Our “captain” seemed to know just where to look so we saw a lot of wild life, lizards, birds, sloths and monkeys.

As we toured Limon, just by accident, passed Carlos’ daughter and his grandson as we were only a block from his home. Our last stop was the grocery store where Carlos explained some of the local foods to us and, we bought our 100% Costa Rican coffee. He had us back to the ship 2 ½ before we had to be on board. I think we had an experience that the folks on the big busses didn’t and one we’ll remember for some time.

The comedy lounge show with Glenn Hirsch was ok but he seemed to be trying too hard and wasn’t that funny IMHO. We didn’t go to his second show to see if he improved.

Ocho Rios: We have been to Jamaica three times and since we didn’t look forward to being hassled by vendors we stayed on board and had the sun deck all to ourselves.

On Board Entertainment: In addition to the ones mentioned above we enjoyed most of what Princess had to offer. The Cruise Director, Billy Hygate, had to do his singing gig. I thought he was supposed to direct – not entertain. We could have done nicely w/o his act.

The best show, we felt, was the second Billy Vader comedy show. His first show was great and his second was awesome. This guy had us in hysterics. Billy Hygate was also a part of this show but Billy Vader played his jokes off him which made them even funnier.

The only thing we missed on the Island Princess was a quiet lounge like we had at the stern on the Crown. Other than that we thoroughly enjoyer her – rough seas and all – food, entertainment and just wandering about when not relaxing at the Library.

We heard only a few complaints about food or service and that the staff wasn’t friendly. In our view you had to look hard for a staff person who was unfriendly or didn’t greet you with a smile. There was one chap, however, that no one could please. He was travelling alone and wanted, no demanded of the captain, that he had his any time dining table for one ready whenever he arrived at dinner. We overheard him say (he was two tables away) that he had been sailing for three years and he was being treated like a second class citizen. The next meal they had him seated back in the corner by himself. We always have empathy for those in public service who encounter these type folks. Thankfully they are few and far between.

Disembarkation: We chose to walk off with our gear and so were off the ship first and on our way to the Marriott Hollywood Beach hotel for another couple days of sun before returning to chilly Toledo.

If you have questions ... fire away. We didn’t do everything, like the casino or spa, but will answer what we can.

[pinksand]

Hello ExDean :)

 

Thank you so much for your excellent well written review. I enjoyed it. How much time did you get to spend at the fort in Cartagena? We will be in Colombia on 4/7 and interested in that tour. Also, how many people would you say were on that ship tour?

 

Deborah

[Ken076]

exdean - Thanks for the Review - we're contemplating this cruise and got some interesting insights. ken

[MichCook]

Thanks for your review. (We sailed the Coral through the Canal. We, too, enjoy Billy Vader!) Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

[Colo Cruiser]

Great review, thanks.

[3MBCruisers]

ExDean,

 

Thanks for the review! I'm boarding the Island in April for the same cruise and was very excited to see such a recent review.

 

Did you happen to notice if the Chef's Table or Ultimate Ship Tour are available yet? I may be a little too optimistic, but I'm hoping they'll be available by my trip. :rolleyes:

 

Also, the Cartegena tour...how many people did you have on the tour? Did you have individual headsets to better hear the guide?

 

Thanks again the review!

[readytogo2]

Thanks .. I enjoyed reading your review:) We will be on the Island in 24 days:D We tried anytime dining last year, same waiting for us..oh well, wasn't the end of the world, so we had a drink at the bar during the wait..rough life;) This year we are going with 2 other couples and we have Early seating, which is what we prefer. Again thanks for writing the review.

[Maryandi]

I miss the Island and had the best time.

 

We had the surprize upgrade from an obstructed OV to a balcony ! Perfect.

 

We enjoyed everything.

 

We'll be on the Pacific Princess next week and hope it's at least half as nice.

 

MaryAnn

[Frick_&_Frack]

Thanks for the review. We leave on 03/24 and this was really very helpful. Thanks again!

[ExDean]

I'll try to answer some of your questions.

 

1. No Chef's Table (that I know of) but the ultimate ship tour was offered at $150/ea ...so we respectfully declined.

2. Our Cartagena tour had a large number of busses arriving at the fort but I don't know if that was a part of a number of tours. We had no busses following us when we left the fort but did encounter other groups in the city center. Yes, we had headsets and they were really helpful in nmot only informing us but keeping track of us.

3. We probably spent a good :45 at the fort. There were a lot of passages and tunnels and a lot of walking up hill ... and then, of course, down hill.

[las22]

Thanks so much for your review! We're leaving on the Island Princess on Tuesday next week, can't wait!

 

We inquired with Charlie Soto about the A2 tour as well and I think after your rave review we will book with him. Was between him and Danilo Hall but Charlie has been more responsive to our e-mails.

 

A few questions -- did you know you were going to only be with one other couple on your tour? And did it cost you $99 pp (if you don't mind my asking). I wasn't clear on whether we should try to find other people to join us to lower the cost or if the cost was the same regardless of the number of people. Also how did you know how many people were going with you? A private tour would be nice but we don't mind at all going with others, just not the hordes that will be on the ship tour. Actually I think DH would be more comfortable with others! Not so sure I would be so happy waiting at the pier for an hour for others though.

 

Also, did you just pay cash at the end as Charlie indicates? Did you feel OK walking around with that much cash? That part makes me nervous, not be able to just put it on my S&S card.

[gertz]

Good review. Great ship.

Jack

for the

[Grego]

Nice review. Couldn't tell for sure when you cruise was but it must have been the one after ours (2/22 - 3/4).

Our weather was a little better out of FLL and we did different tours ashore, but all in all we loved the cruise.

 

Had a lot of fun with Billy Vader. We knew him from before on different ships and he and my wife worked at Playboy together years ago.

[ExDean]

We booked with Charlie via emails and had no idea how many would be with us on the A2. While we were waiting there were four couples who departed for the A1 - same tour as ours but without the zip line.

 

We waited an hour for the other two couples who had reserved the A2 with Charlie and after an hour Carlos, our wonderful guide, said, "Let's go." And that's how we got our "private" tour.

 

I felt bad for Charlie and Carlos since we pay at the end he was out $400. We paid him $100/ea +a $15 tip. We never had any worry about the cash as we were always with Carlos and our driver and usually in places where there were only monkeys band sloths. I don't know if Charlie takes traveler chjecks. I have heard that he does but I can't say for sure.

 

Hope this helps.

[rdsqrl]

Thanks for the review; I enjoyed reading it very much. I think I had the same cabin steward last March on the Dawn: Jun from the Phillipines! He was (at least for me) a wonderful steward and I wrote him a very nice "Made a Difference" card -- which may have indeed made a difference if he's been "promoted" to a bigger ship and to taking care of mini-suites!

So did you end up liking the uncovered balcony?

[las22]

We booked with Charlie via emails and had no idea how many would be with us on the A2. While we were waiting there were four couples who departed for the A1 - same tour as ours but without the zip line.

 

We waited an hour for the other two couples who had reserved the A2 with Charlie and after an hour Carlos, our wonderful guide, said, "Let's go." And that's how we got our "private" tour.

 

I felt bad for Charlie and Carlos since we pay at the end he was out $400. We paid him $100/ea +a $15 tip. We never had any worry about the cash as we were always with Carlos and our driver and usually in places where there were only monkeys band sloths. I don't know if Charlie takes traveler chjecks. I have heard that he does but I can't say for sure.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Thanks, that did help some, although I am still torn between Charlie and Danilo Hall. Danilo told us we'd have a private car but if we met others on the ship who wanted to join us to just let him know in advance (not sure how far in advance) and he's accommodate us. Charlie implied there would be others but when I asked if there was any way we could leave a bit later since the ship docks at 7, he said he would send the others an hour after we docked and have a car for us an hour and a half after docking. Decisions!

 

I am sure I am overthinking this but we have never done a private tour before and it is our honeymoon so I want to have the best experience we can! I did read a few negative reviews about Charlie on the Princess board, mostly that his driving was quite scary especially with the really bad road conditions there. Did you find that to be true? Of course we drive every day in Boston where the potholes have become almost as big as our cars so I guess it depends on how you define scary... But did you feel unsafe at any point? Thanks, and sorry for so many questions on this!

[ExDean]

Don't mind at all sharing what we experienced with Charlie.

 

Yes, the roads are full of potholes, as you might expect since we were not often on main roads. However, our driver was very careful in dodging the holes and we never felt he was taking a chance or tending toward unsafe driving. He went slow to make our ride smooth but then there wasn't much traffic except in town with the usual congestion. Now don't ask me about my driving in Boston experiences.:D We also liked the fact he had beer, soda (or pop, as we say in the midwest) and water free of charge. He also took us to a beachside restaurant for lunch included in the fare.

 

We would do OkeyDokey again in a heart beat.

 

What a great way to spend your honeymoon and congratulations.

[Grego]

It was a great itinerary and we would probably opt to do a full transit next time. Our biggest disappointment was that the description of the ferry boat tour stated it would go through the Galliard Cut and then the Pedro Miquel and Miraflores locks, etc. when in fact it started after the Cut and then through the locks. I really want to go through the Cut and witness that engineering feat, but no......so I guess the best way is the full transit next time.

[EdSails]

Thanks for the review, ExDean. We'll be on the ship in 19 days. Did you bring your own wine on and if so, how much? Was it easy to get onboard?

[ExDean]

Hi EdSails ... The limo driver at our Marriott took us to the liquor store and we puirchased six bottles. We had three in our suitcase and we carried three onboard in our backpacks - no questions asked. Our cabin steward brought us clean wine glasses every day. The six lasted us just about 9 1/2 days of our cruise. Enjoy the Island and the canal. Remember to go to the forward outside decks on Caribe or Baja to get the best views as you enter.

[2good2b]

Thanks for the review...I enjoyed! We will be doing the full transit on the Coral in Sept.:)

[EdSails]

Thanks, Larry and Sue!

[Turtle Girls]

Did you notice many kids onboard? I am contemplating this cruise for October and have 3 kids. I assume that there would be only about 40 onboard. Any insights?

[ExDean]

Turtle Girls... There were very few youngsters on board plus a couple of infants. But, considering the time of year and a 10 day itinerary that wasn't surprising. We didn't get near the Youth Center pool or area so we can't comment on that. It was much more of a senior type trip. Which could be goodd for the kids as they could possibly get more attention from the Youth Center staff.

[RET_REF]

QUOTE=ExDean;Disembarkation: We chose to walk off with our gear and so were off the ship first and on our way to the Marriott Hollywood Beach hotel for another couple days of sun before returning to chilly Toledo.

 

I have a question regarding the self disembark? We are also going to do the self disembark because we have a 10:15 AM flight back to Pittsburgh and I wanted to know what was the earliest they let you depart the ship so we can get through customs in order to make it to the airport for our flight back home?

 

I also booked with Charlie some weeks ago for his A-5 Veragua Rainforest tour and we are really looking forward to it now after reading your comments.

 

Thanks!