First time Trip Report - VALOR - 5th - 12th

[realtrip]

Thanks Bontongrl

I sent Stingray Sailing an email and just heard back from them. I am impressed. They seem very organized and professional. I'm glad you told us all about your excursion. It sounds like so much fun. I can't wait. It will be a surprise for my two teens. Did you pay ahead of time or in cash at the port, what do you suggest, I'd rather pay there in case the port gets canceled, also how long before should we reserve, our cruise is in March.

Thanks

Love the review!!!

[Bontongrl]

Fantastic review!!!!

I'm sooooo excited for our cruise in March ( soooo far away LOL)

 

Yes,, it is so far away, that's why I don't know if I could book one that far off,,,, I would die of anticipation :D

 

Enjoying the review, looks fantastic and looked like you had a wonderful time. Look forward to the rest.:)

 

We did have a great time, I'm ready to go back already, <sigh> :)

[Bontongrl]

Great report, Debbie. I especially like the balance of scenery, stuff, and people you have included. Makes it really interesting.

 

We are taking a cruise with a group of ten in September and you have inspired me to do a photolog. It will be our good friends very first cruise ever so we are really excited for them.

 

Thanks PunkiC,,,,,

 

You should definately do a photolog,, I started doing it on our trip last year to Playa Del Carmen and did a report on their board too.

 

That way, when I'm old and senile and contract CRS disease, I'll have somewhere to go back and see what I did,,;)

[Bontongrl]

I was just wondering if you booked Fins and Flippers through Carnival or a private source. It looks beautiful and I may be interested in doing this with my hubby. I looked for it on the excursions link on carnivals website and couldn't find it. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks and keep the awesome review coming. I keep checking back to see what has been added. I look forward to reading and seeing more.:)

 

Hiya katskritter,,,,

 

No, we didn't book this through Carnival,, we did it independently, after reading about it on this board,,, :)

 

Here's the link,,, http://www.finsandflippers.com/en/index.html

and if you make a reservation ahead of time you get a discount, but don't have to pay till you go :)

[Bontongrl]

Looks like he was doing a little more than kissing - looks like he is copping a feel too :eek::D

 

Great review and pics, thanks for sharing it with us

 

:eek::eek::eek:,, Monkey see ? monkey do ?

 

Your welcome,,,,:D

[Bontongrl]

Hurry back Debbie please...:). I can't wait to hear about what you did in Cozumel and see some more of those great pics.

 

If I had gotten back on here earlier I would have made it worth your while not to work and finish your review.:D;).

 

I can't wait to hear the rest.

 

Hi Keith,

 

That would have been easy to do,,, :D

[Bontongrl]

There used to be a full size statue of the "big" man himself next to that sign, I took a pic with him back in 2003 on my honeymoon, lol..

 

i have a pic of that too from 2003..is he gone now????

 

He was there as of Feb.

 

Oh NOOOOOOOOO,,,,,, you mean to tell me that I missed the man that was responsible for this ? <grumbling, grumbling> ;):D

[Bontongrl]

Thanks Bontongrl

I sent Stingray Sailing an email and just heard back from them. I am impressed. They seem very organized and professional. I'm glad you told us all about your excursion. It sounds like so much fun. I can't wait. It will be a surprise for my two teens. Did you pay ahead of time or in cash at the port, what do you suggest, I'd rather pay there in case the port gets canceled, also how long before should we reserve, our cruise is in March.

Thanks

Love the review!!!

 

Hiya Realtrip !!

 

We really enjoyed the trip with them. Your teens should LOVE it,

No, we didn't pay ahead of time. As of now, They are on the honor system and trust that people will show up. We paid them cash when we met Chip at the dock.

 

And we got lucky, we actually didn't book this trip until about 10 days before !!!:eek:

 

They were almost full, but were very nice about it and squeezed us in :)

 

I'd book it a little bit earlier than 10 days, just to make sure they don't fill up ;)

[trini_ras]

Now I am definitely putting fins and flippers on my list for roatan

[jdbmga]

I am enjoying reading your review as we are considering the Valor for our cruise next summer. (Just got off the Glory)

[Bontongrl]

This was our late day port, so we didn't get back to the ship until 6 or so, and opted to NOT do the dining room tonight and instead we went to Rosie's to eat. I really enjoyed Rosie's. Unless you are a VERY picky eater, everyone should be able to find something there to enjoy.

 

We all ate various things but I opted to try the grilled rueben sandwich from the Sandwich station. The meat was a little fatty but I still enjoyed it !!

 

 

 

Shivam was the grill master, and he was so adorable that I had to get a picture of him. He made a great sandwich !!!

 

 

 

A word about the wait staff, cabin stewards, or, stewardess ? in our case, her name was Gnonlak, the security staff, the entertainers, the busboys, let's just say everyone we encountered were as professional and friendly as anyone could be. I was very impressed with them all. I don't think I ever saw an unfriendly face all week. They all have such hard jobs, and to think they do it over and over and over again every single week. Imagine having to deal with the public every day all day and always with a smile on your face. Its a hard job and I applaud them all !!

 

After Rosie's we went to the "Motown" show. In fact, we went to all the shows all week and enjoyed them all.

 

After the show, we checked out the thousands of pictures that had been put up on the walls in the photo area. I will tell you, that takes some time to find yourself among thousands, lol,,,,, Not once did I keep those little reminder cards they gave you to FIND yourself on the walls, so it was a hunt every day, and when it was all said and done, despite the desire, we bought very few. lol

 

Back strolling down the promenade deck and ran into Big Tex, so we had to get a picture with him. We Texans have to stick together !!! He was as friendly as can be.

 

 

 

 

We spent the later hours this night at the Casino. Now I, personally, have never been a gambler. I never win anything, so I'm happy to watch the others do it lol

 

DH and DF both played "Let it Ride" for hours that night, and actually won by the end of the night. I was happy just watching them, and the people and the band that was playing close by, and even joined in some of the line dancing that was going on.

 

Hey, I'm a Texan, and we love to line dance !!!

 

Then it was off to bed,,,

 

 

Here's a couple of the cute animal towels our sweet steward made for us each night.

They were adorable !!

 

 

 

 

 

Next day, Belize and Cave Tubing !!!

[Bontongrl]

I am enjoying reading your review as we are considering the Valor for our cruise next summer. (Just got off the Glory)

 

Go for it Debbie !!

 

Hey, we are both Debbies :D

[carnivalkid]

 

 

 

Shivam was the grill master, and he was so adorable that I had to get a picture of him. He made a great sandwich !!!

 

!!!

We were on the same cruise and I have to admit that

Shivam was great. My friend and I went to get a sandwich every night at 10 and Shivam remembered are sandwich down to what we wanted on it by the 3rd night.

[kazcuties]

Hi ! Booked Fins & Flippers today, based solely on your terrific pictures :) How long did it take for them to get back to you? Still haven't heard and I send the reservation this morning.... really want to visit, the kids will love it! Cutting it kind of close with leaving Saturday, the place looked empty in your pictures ~ was it like that all afternoon? I guess we can just do a worst case "walk-in". Keep the review up, almost there!! 34 hours until our departure! Thanks a million!

[Lib0007]

 

 

 

 

 

I will never forget this handsome face!! he was Captain of the Splendor when we sailed in November . . .

 

I'm enjoying your review - all the pictures are great and you look like you had a FUN cruise!!

[Bontongrl]

We were on the same cruise and I have to admit that

Shivam was great. My friend and I went to get a sandwich every night at 10 and Shivam remembered are sandwich down to what we wanted on it by the 3rd night.

 

He was the best wasn't he ? He made it worth getting a sandwich !! :D

[Bontongrl]

Hi ! Booked Fins & Flippers today, based solely on your terrific pictures :) How long did it take for them to get back to you? Still haven't heard and I send the reservation this morning.... really want to visit, the kids will love it! Cutting it kind of close with leaving Saturday, the place looked empty in your pictures ~ was it like that all afternoon? I guess we can just do a worst case "walk-in". Keep the review up, almost there!! 34 hours until our departure! Thanks a million!

 

Hiya Kaz,

 

I feel like we are old friends by now :D

 

Wow, I hope it lives up to the expectations, but I do think you will really enjoy it. The weather was gloomy when we first got there, but as it got nicer and nicer, more people showed up. There were more at the pool than down at the ocean, but maybe they opted for the pool water over the salt. I think your kids would probably enjoy the vet tour too, even though we didn't do it ourselves.

 

I know I won't be able to finish this before you leave, but check it out when you get back and we'll compare notes :D

 

Hope you have a great time !!

[Bontongrl]

Hi ! Booked Fins & Flippers today, based solely on your terrific pictures :) How long did it take for them to get back to you? Still haven't heard and I send the reservation this morning.... really want to visit, the kids will love it! Cutting it kind of close with leaving Saturday, the place looked empty in your pictures ~ was it like that all afternoon? I guess we can just do a worst case "walk-in". Keep the review up, almost there!! 34 hours until our departure! Thanks a million!

 

Oh, one more thing,, even if you don't hear from them, I think you can still go there. When we got off the ship and went around the shops, we saw one of the guides with a Fin and Flippers sign. We told him we have reservations, and he led us to the boat for the ride over.

 

Even if you don't have reservations, I don't think it would be a problem going. :)

[Vacationjunkie4]

Hey Kaz,

 

Fins and Flippers also has a scaled down version of a Myan Temple and a guide inside to give you a tour and answer questions. As we walked by he came out and asked if we wanted to come inside for the tour. We were rushing to see the animals then to catch the last boat back. It is a pretty neat place. Eat, drink, sun, swim, see animals, learn about the Myans and snorkle on the nearby reef. The reef there was the best we saw all week, the water was choppy due to a stiff breeze, but we were able to snorkle, it was just a little rough. :D

[Bontongrl]

We woke up to another gloomy day,,,,,, ( hmmmm, this is getting to be repetitive, isn't it ? lol ) but as usual,, by the afternoon the sun broke through.

 

We'd had a sea day, a beach day, now it was jungle day lol

 

We caught one of the first tenders as we had booked the Cave Tubing with Major Tom. This is also a tender port, but the ships dock pretty far out from shore, and its about a 25 minute ride to the Belize. So, allow yourself enough time for any excursions you have planned.

 

The caves are about an hour away, so we loaded up a bus with our tour group and off we went. It was rather a bumpy ride,, ( no coach greyhound bus here, lol) , but Minor Tom (Major Tom's son) was our guide and he and his crew did a good job entertaining us and giving us information about Belize along the way. It made the time go by fast and before we knew it, we were at the caves.

 

Everybody grabbed a tube, a life jacket and a headlamp and off we went into the jungle.

 

 

 

 

It's about a 30 minute hike through the jungle to the caves. The weather was still overcast at this point, but, it was probably a life saver, because had it been out full force,, the heat and humidity would have been something fierce. This is a good time for bug spray lol

 

 

 

The jungle was really beautiful,,, and the guides gave us information all along the way. A lot of primitive medicine , and advanced for that matter, have started in the jungles.

 

 

 

One of the guides stopped along the way to show us some termite mounds, and told us how tasty they were so, of course, DH had to try one,,,, lol He said they were minty !! lol I wonder if that's the gritty ingredient in mint toothpaste ? <eg>

 

At one point we had to cross the river, and the current was running pretty swiftly.

You hang on to a rope and pull yourself across. I just put my feet up and let them float and pulled myself along, ,, it was easier than walking lol

 

 

 

 

[Bontongrl]

We arrived at the river and everyone was put into 8 people groups, and hooked up together, tube to tube, with each group having their own guide.

 

 

They said it had rained a lot recently, so the river was higher than normal and running pretty fast.....

 

No problem for us Texans !! We tube quite a bit, so, fast running water wasn't going to bother us... lol,,,, Actually, it moved along at a nice speed, not slow and not fast,,,

 

 

 

The lastest in hair fashion, its called "The Headlight Hairdo" lol

 

 

 

 

 

Since the water was higher than usual, we moved through the caves with a good speed.

The water was cool and refreshing. I just wish all the guides had those big flashlights,,,, we couldn't see very much with the small headlamps, and a bigger flashlight would have worked wonders. They did a great job hanging on to all of us, and moving us around as needed.

 

 

 

 

 

We came out on the other side, and floated leisurely down the river till it was time to get out.

 

We had ordered a local type lunch through Major Tom's group. We had lunch, then back on the bus,,, another hour ride back to town, and then caught a tender and we were back on the ship by 4:00.

 

We enjoyed the tubing a lot, especially the trek through the jungle. I've never been in a REAL jungle before,, so I think that was the best part !!

[Oompaland]

Lovin' this review. As I, too, will be on the Valor in November. Why did you go with Major Tom? I know there are many guides recommended on this board. I do not know who to chose...but he is at the top of the list.

 

Thanks!

[Bontongrl]

Lovin' this review. As I, too, will be on the Valor in November. Why did you go with Major Tom? I know there are many guides recommended on this board. I do not know who to chose...but he is at the top of the list.

 

Thanks!

 

Hi Oompaland,,

 

We had heard about Major Tom's group many times from this board and everyone had good things to say about them.

 

Their website is very informative, and the 21 cave tubing tips were pretty funny. We figured, with that sense of humor, they had to be a fun group to go with lol

 

I only wish they had better transportation. Those school buses are a pretty bumpy ride. :D

[mississauga]

Hi ! Booked Fins & Flippers today, based solely on your terrific pictures :) How long did it take for them to get back to you? Still haven't heard and I send the reservation this morning.... really want to visit, the kids will love it! Cutting it kind of close with leaving Saturday, the place looked empty in your pictures ~ was it like that all afternoon? I guess we can just do a worst case "walk-in". Keep the review up, almost there!! 34 hours until our departure! Thanks a million!

 

In case you don't hear from them with your confirmation by the time you leave on Saturday, may I suggest that you bring a copy of your request for reservations with you. It sounds like you have a few in your group so the $5 discount would make a difference. They'll probably confirm while you're on the cruise so your request copy will just make it easier, IMHO.:D

 

We made reservations for last Nov. but sadly did not make it to Roatan that day as there was unrest there and the ships did not go to Roatan. I hope me can make it to Fins and Flippers some day. It looks like an amazing island, thanks to Debbie aka Bontongrl pictures and review.

[Bontongrl]

In case you don't hear from them with your confirmation by the time you leave on Saturday, may I suggest that you bring a copy of your request for reservations with you. It sounds like you have a few in your group so the $5 discount would make a difference. They'll probably confirm while you're on the cruise so your request copy will just make it easier, IMHO.:D

 

We made reservations for last Nov. but sadly did not make it to Roatan that day as there was unrest there and the ships did not go to Roatan. I hope me can make it to Fins and Flippers some day. It looks like an amazing island, thanks to Debbie aka Bontongrl pictures and review.

 

 

Sorry to hear you didn't make it to Fins and Flippers Mississauga,

I really enjoyed that day !! Hopefully next time you go you'll make it there :)