Cruise Line: Royal Caribbean
Ship: Voyager of the Seas
Itinerary: Southern Caribbean
Port: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Table of Contents
Overview
Put simply, our favorite itinerary in the Caribbean is the southern Caribbean. Most of these sailings depart from a Caribbean port like San Juan or Barbados. This particular cruise sailed to/from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
We love these cruises because they are port intensive, meaning there are very few sea days and more ports of call. Additionally, the ports visited and the home port are some of the top destinations the region has to offer. Puerto Rico is a destination of its own and it provides easy cruise ship access to the top ports of call in the Caribbean.
Travel to/from San Juan, Puerto Rico
It may seem at first that traveling to San Juan for embarkation would be a negative. However, flying to and from this home port is very similar to traveling to Florida or any continental US home port. Flights aren't significantly more expensive and it can be reached directly from major airports and with a short one-stop layover from others. We've found it to be no more difficult to get to San Juan than any other embarkation city that we've flown to.
Our travel included departure from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) directly to San Juan. The flight was round 3 hours. We had a late afternoon departure and with time change arrived into Puerto Rico around 9:00 pm that evening. After getting our bags and a taxi, we checked into the hotel at around 10:00 pm. Total travel time was around 7 hours from arriving at the airport to arriving at the hotel. You do not need a passport to travel to/from Puerto Rico as this is a US Territory.
When cruising from San Juan, we always try to arrive a few days early to enjoy the area. Our cruise left on a Sunday so we flew in late Thursday night so we could have all day Friday and Saturday to explore.
On our return flight home, we decided to stay an additional day in San Juan and fly home Monday. Flights were cheaper and it made for a less stressful disembarkation from the ship. All flights were on time and everything went according to plan.
Pre-Cruise Stay
Our go-to pre-cruise stay in San Juan is La Concha Renaissance Resort in new San Juan. The city of San Juan is divided into two parts: Old San Juan and New San Juan. Most of your beaches and high rise hotels/resorts are located in New San Juan. Historic sites, boutique hotels and stores, and scenic cliffs and vistas are located in Old San Juan.
La Concha Renaissance Resort has a great vibe and location. The staff is friendly, the rooms are updated, and the views are unbelievable. Additionally, the property boasts several restaurants, pools, and bars. Our personal favorite is the adults-only infinity pool. You can get drinks and food served pool side and enjoy the beauty of the ocean views without ever leaving the pool. One of our two days pre-cruise we spent nearly the entire day in the pool just relaxing and taking in the sights. There is so much to do in this wonderful city but we always try to slow down just a little bit and enjoy the atmosphere at this hotel.
On our first full day in Puerto Rico, we headed to Old San Juan. Whether you're staying or visiting as a port of call by cruise ship, Old San Juan is really where the action happens. Cruise ships docking as a port of call berth right in the heart of this area, it is a great place to walk around and see historic sites and buildings, grab a bite to eat, and take everything in. We love to start our walk at Castillo San Felipe del Morro. This is at the top of a hill that slopes back towards the bay. Our recommendation is to have your taxi or Uber drop you off here and then walk down the hill back towards the harbor.
del Morro is an original Spanish fort that guards the entrance to San Juan Bay. It has a beautiful sprawling grass lawn that leads up to the fort with views of the harbor and the open sea. It's a great spot for a photo and the tour of the fort is excellent as well.
From there, we walked the cobble stone streets, grabbed a local favorite empanada, hit a couple of shops, and enjoyed the weather and scenery. It's an active yet calm day exploring this unique part of this awesome city. If you are looking for local flavor, there are a ton of food trucks set-up near the harbor where you can grab some freshly-made Puerto Rican cuisine. The famous umbrella street or Fortaleza Street is also located in this area.
We recommend simply walking around the area and experiencing it at your pace and desire. There is easy access to taxis whenever you get tired or want to move on to your next adventure.
Once we had a bite to eat and had walked all we wanted, we grabbed a taxi and headed back to the resort for dinner.
Rest assured, this area is safe, clean, and beautiful. Don't worry while moving about any common areas of San Juan. The locals are friendly and helpful. As with any city in any nation, keeping your guard up and doing your research is always recommended.
Our time in San Juan was everything we hoped for and it was great to be back in one of our favorite places. After a couple days of exploring and relaxing, it was time to board Voyager of the Seas for our 7-Night Southern Caribbean cruise.
Day 1 - Boarding Day
Is there anything better in the life of a cruiser than boarding day? After COVID, I have a new found appreciation anytime I get to travel, but especially anytime I board a cruise ship.
The embarkation port of San Juan is a little smaller than those you might see in more common cruise cities like Miami, Fort Lauderdale, or Galveston. That being said, I've always had positive experiences boarding here. Be advised that traffic can be a nightmare at the Pan American Cruise terminals due to the road being small and there only being one way in and one way out. We didn't encounter any traffic this time as we headed to the port early (11:00 am).
Royal Caribbean assigns boarding times. In San Juan and other Caribbean embarkation ports, departure time tends to be later on Day 1. In this instance, our departure time was set for 8:00 pm. Our assigned boarding time was 4:30 pm. Since hotel check-out was at 11:00 am, we decided to see if we could board the ship early. The hotel said we could enjoy the resort the rest of the day so we had a plan B if we weren't allowed to board until our scheduled time. Our plan was to go to the port, see if we could board, if not, we would drop our luggage and head back to the pool at the La Concha. Either way, it was going to be a great day that ended with us being on a ship. We often talk about being flexible on vacation, this was one of those times that we've learned to just go with the flow.
When we arrived at the port at 11:00 am, there was hardly anyone there. We dropped our luggage off with a porter, headed to security, and before we knew it, were boarding the Voyager of the Seas. In all, the boarding process only took around 10 minutes. Well done Royal Caribbean!
On boarding day, we always recommend getting stuff you need to get done accomplished first so that you can start enjoying your vacation. This will also help you avoid lines once everyone is onboard. This particular time, we didn't need anything with guest services or activities so we just jumped right into vacation mode. We knew we were among the first people on the ship so we went straight to the buffet to grab lunch. Again, I suggest going there first if you are an early boarder to avoid crowds. The food was great in the buffet and we seemed to beat most of the crowd. Boarding day buffet on a cruise is always pretty packed, just be advised. This was also when we noticed that the crew was serving the food in the buffet. This had been done away with as COVID measures eased, so our antennas went up when we saw this. After lunch, we ran into a couple that had sailed on the previous cruise, and they told us there was a pretty significant norovirus (stomach) outbreak on the previous sailing. They also informed us that rooms would not be ready for two hours later than usual as they worked to sanitize each stateroom thoroughly.
The news about the norovirus was not particularly alarming to me. It's a fact of life anytime you vacation anywhere with large crowds. We have dealt with it before, we just make sure to practice sanitary procedures and enjoy our vacation. More on the impact of this virus in our conclusion.
We spent the rest of the day settling into our rooms, grabbing our first few drinks of the cruise, and preparing for sail away. I love boarding day. Even unpacking and settling into your room is exciting. You've got your entire vacation ahead of you and so many great sites and adventures upcoming.
While I'd definitely prefer a day time sail away, night sail away from San Juan is always beautiful. We watched us sail past Castillo San Felipe del Morro as the lights of San Juan disappeared from view. Vacation was underway. We were sailing again.
Dinner on night one was Giovanni's Table specialty restaurant. It's one of our favorites among the Royal Caribbean fleet of restaurants. For around $35 per person, it's all you can eat Italian cuisine. Myself and even the crew on the ship will tell you that the best steak on the ship is at Giovanni's. Yes, it's better than Chops. Much better.
After dinner we attended a great comedy show then off to bed to get ready for our second day of our cruise.
Day 2 - Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas
It had been a few years since I had been to St. Thomas so I was eagerly anticipating a return visit to this beautiful Caribbean island.
I woke up early and Audrey was still asleep so I went out on the balcony to check e-mails and enjoy the sail into port. As we neared St. Thomas, the landscape became visible just as the sun started to rise over the peaks. It was truly a breathtaking site and one of my favorite moments of the trip to that point. You can only get views like that on a cruise. It was peaceful, quiet, and only a handful of people in the entire world had that view in that moment. I encourage you to take time to enjoy the beauty on your trips even though most are jam packed with activities.
On each of our previous stops in St. Thomas, we had visited Magens Bay. This is one of the top-rated beaches in the world and if you are a first-time visitor to the island and love beaches, you have to see this one. It's a tranquil cove lined with palm trees and minimal develop. The sand is soft, the water is clear, and its relatively large and uncrowded, making it a bucket list beach destination. Do not miss this. Most cruise lines offer a shore excursion to Magens Bay or you can take a taxi ride that will run you around $20 per person for about a 30 minute ride over to the bay. There are a few bars and restaurants with bathrooms on the beach but it still keeps its untouched feel.
Since we had done Magens Bay multiple times, we decided to try something different. We had always heard a trip over to Trunk Bay on the island of St. John was something we should try. We booked an excursion through Royal Caribbean that was a day trip to Trunk Bay. Unfortunately, we found out the day before that the excursion had been cancelled. While we were disappointed, we remembered our policy on flexibility and rebooked a tour recommended by the ship's shore excursion staff. We later found out that we could have simply taken a taxi to the water ferry over to St. John and done it ourselves. You live and you learn.
Our rebooked shore excursion took us on an all-inclusive beach break to Secret Sands Beach on the east side of the island. It's a pink sand beach located in a natural protected park. This ensured there was virtually no development in the area making it very scenic and uncrowded. Ironically, we had a great view of St. John from the beach. The shore excursion guides set-up a private drink and snack bar that was included (with tip), beach chairs and umbrellas were also included. It was a slightly cloudy day but the water was still extremely clear and calm. It was a very enjoyable day and ship tour that given the opportunity I would take again. That said, I would still recommend heading to Magens Bay over Secret Sands for newcomers to St. Thomas. Secret Sands is nice, but it's no Magens Bay. Isn't it awesome to be able to compare beautiful beaches?
Most trips around the island of St. Thomas will also take you to Skyline Drive. This is a scenic road with a designated lookout point that offers unrivaled views of Charlotte Amalie and the landscape around it. Our driver stopped us here for ten minutes for photos, drinks, and shopping before taking us back to the port. It's a recognizable photo that you've likely seen if you've researched this area of the Caribbean. Here's a great panoramic shot I took from the overlook:
Royal Caribbean docks at the Crown Bay terminal. Most other cruise lines will dock at the Long Bay cruise terminal. Crown Bay cruise terminal was built to accommodate the large Oasis class ships built by Royal Caribbean that couldn't fit into Long Bay. Unfortunately, this terminal is a little ways away from most of the major shopping and restaurants in Charlotte Amalie. Long Bay terminal is located in the heart of this district. You can take a short taxi ride from Crown Bay if you'd like to go into town. Because there isn't a lot to do in this port area, once our tour dropped us off, we boarded the ship, hit the swimming pool to cool down and have a drink, and settled in for the night.
Dinner for the night was at another specialty restaurant. Chop's Grille is Royal Caribbean's signature steakhouse. As I mentioned earlier, the best steak on the ship is actually at Giovanni's Table. I almost ordered something else with this in mind, but I went with the filet anyway. It was good, but I was correct that I had eaten a superior steak on the previous evening.
While the food was good, the staff was severely overworked with too many guests and not enough waiters. Our server worked his tail off trying to make everyone happy and did the best he could but it took about two and a half hours to eat dinner even though everything felt a bit rushed.
For the price at around $55 per person cover, I'm not sure that I would run this one back again for the same experience I had. I'll definitely eat at Chop's again but after dinner, we'd have been better off dining elsewhere. Chop's has been hit or miss the last few cruises and is definitely not our go-to specialty restaurant.
Day 3 - Frederiksted, St. Croix
Day three took us to a port of call that we had never visited before. It's pretty rare that we find a port in the Caribbean that we haven't been too. We've been lucky to visit most of the popular ports of call but somehow, we had never been to St. Croix.
We had an afternoon shore excursion that didn't leave until around noon. So we gpt off the ship at around 9:00 am and explored around the port area before our tour left. While the area that we were docked in was small, there was a plethora of bars and restaurants around the port and some walkable beaches right near the pier. We grabbed a beer at one of the local bars before our excursion. The service was good and they had free Wifi so it was a great spot to check some work stuff before the fun of the day began.
Since we had never visited the island of St. Croix before, we decided to book a tour through Royal Caribbean. The tour was Buck Island Beach and Snorkel. We boarded a bus for around a 45 minute drive across the island to Christiansted. From there, we hopped on a large boat and set sail for around a 30 minute boat ride out to the Buck Island National Monument snorkel area.
The snorkeling was amazing but I would only recommend this for extremely strong swimmers. There was a strong current and surf that made swimming between shallow reefs and up current difficult. Audrey was a lifeguard and I grew up in the water so we didn't have much trouble other than being worn out afterwards. Out of the 25 people that got in the water to snorkel, only around 8 completed the snorkel. The rest headed back to the boat early. Again, great snorkel, but difficult snorkel.
The highlight of the trip, however, was Turtle Beach on Buck Island. The island is a National Monument and is therefore uninhabited. The water was as blue as I've ever seen and the sand was crystal clear. As soon was got near it, I knew it was worth the long bus and boat ride to get here. It's hard to describe the beauty of it. If I ever return to St. Croix, I want to go spend the day on this beach and have some significant time there. We only had around 20 minutes but we made the most of it with a walk along the beach just enjoying the beauty in front us. Don't miss Buck Island if you go to St. Croix.
After the bus ride back to the port, we still had around two hours left before all aboard, so we decided to grab a drink and some appetizers at one of the local restaurants. We hit up the Los Angeles Café Bar and Restaurant just a short walk from the pier. I'd love to tell you that the coconut shrimp and service we received was great, but it wasn't. The server was rude and the food was terrible. The beer was cold though. If you want a bite to eat in St. Croix, I'd suggest going to one of the other bars and restaurants in the area. Every experience can't be the best, it's just part of it. You live and you learn.
We had a my time dining reservation in the main dining room set-up for the evening. When we arrived, there was a long line just to get to the desk to check-in. Once we got there, we were asked if we would mind sitting with the couple behind us. They were nice people and we had an excellent time, but the whole intent behind doing my time dining is to be able to dine alone. To top it off, the service struggled in the main dining room. Just like Chop's, they were severely short staffed and a two and a half hour dining experience somehow felt rushed simply by watching the staff struggle to keep up. The food was average and the new menu that had been rolled out fleet wide by Royal Caribbean was very unimpressive. It was at this point I was starting to tire on the understaffed nature and difficulty getting food and service while onboard.
On the whole, St. Croix gets a gold star for being a great port. It's not in my top five but I would be happy to spend more time here if the itinerary ever called for it. I will definitely find my way back to Turtle Beach one day.
Day 4 - Philipsburg, St. Maarten
St. Maarten always has been and always will be one of my all time favorite ports of call. I love the scenery, the people, the beaches, the atmosphere, everything. The culture makes for a unique mix of exotic and luxury.
First time visitors should spend some time exploring the island, which is half French and half Dutch. The ship docks into Philipsburg, the Dutch side, but the French side is only a short drive away. In previous visits, we had visited Orient Beach on the French end of the island. Orient Beach has the reputation of being one of the top beaches in the Caribbean, but also a nude beach. While we didn't partake in the nudity, we did take part in seeing the beauty of this area (the beach not the people), eating some great French cuisine nearby, and relaxing on the white sand.
Another popular stop is Maho Bay. You may have seen this beach before, which is famous because it sits just off the runway of Princess Juliana Airport (SXM). People gather on the beach and feel the jet blast of airplanes taking off and plane spot incoming planes that look so close that it seems you could reach out and grab their landing gear. My recommendation would be to visit this area by boat to avoid injuries from jet blasts and the crowding of what is a relatively small beach. We did this once on a ship excursion and really enjoyed ourselves.
On previous trips, we always explored the area surrounding the port after our tours. Our most recent visit, we found the Great Bay Beach area within walking distance of the pier. It had tons of bars, restaurants, and shops that bordered a large, pretty beach. We decided this time to relax and just walk over to Great Bay Beach for a calm beach day.
The beach is about a 10-15 minute walk depending on your pace down a sidewalk. Just walk out of the port area and take a left, follow the sidewalk, and you run right into it. The restaurants near the beach handle beach chair/umbrella rentals. We just took up one the guys on the sidewalks offer of a free bucket of beer, wifi, and two chairs for $20 per person. He found us a great spot right on the water, set-up our chairs and umbrellas, brought us our beer, and we were off and running.
If you've followed our blog before, you know that we love to find beaches with little to no surf. Our favorite thing is to stand out in the water with a drink. Great Bay Beach is perfect for this. Awesome views, no waves, and good bar service right on the beach.
We had lunch at the restaurant we rented our chairs from. Kalua Beach Bar was the name of the place and our waiter, Arturo, was excellent. I highly recommend the coconut shrimp along with the chicken egg rolls.
Those looking for a low key day without having to arrange transportation in St. Maarten, don't overlook this awesome bay just down from the cruise port.
Day 5 - Castries, St. Lucia
St. Lucia is a beautiful mainstay on Southern Caribbean itineraries. The volcanic island boasts one of the iconic images in all the region, the Pitons. First time cruisers or visitors to St. Lucia should definitely take a trip here.
In past visits, we had taken a Catamaran tour to view the towering peaks. You can visit the Pitons by boat or by car. Those prone to car sickness should be aware its a bumpy ride. My personal opinion is that boat is the best way to get the view you are looking for. It's a world famous location that is breathtaking to see. Don't miss it if its your first trip to St. Lucia.
Since we had visited the Pitons on two previous visits, we decided to see something different. We knew that St. Lucia, because of its volcanic sand, was not known for beautiful beaches. However, we had thought this before about St. Kitts and found one of our favorite beaches in the Caribbean, we decided to try out a beach. We booked a Royal Caribbean shore excursion for a three hour beach break to Rodney Bay. This was a nice beach but was extremely crowded and the sand area was very small.
Audrey and I enjoyed our time there because we like to spend our day in the water instead of the beach chair. Beach chair sitters would not have enjoyed this location. The chairs were packed together like sardines and there was barely room to walk. We just went from the bar to the water and avoided the crowd. We didn't have a bad time, but it is definitely not a beach we would visit again if we found ourselves back in St. Lucia.
Remember this if you cruise to this island. Take a catamaran to The Pitons. Trust me.
Day 6 - Bridgetown, Barbados
We had Barbados circled as our most anticipated port of call. After spending several days there in 2021 before boarding a cruise that departed Bridgetown, we had fallen in love with the culture, people, and beaches of this southern Caribbean paradise.
As soon as we booked the cruise, we knew right were we wanted to go. We found Carlisle Bay on a shore excursion several years earlier and it has become one of our favorite beach destinations in the world. We spent a ton of time on this beach in 2021 when we stayed at an AirBNB just down the road.
Knowing that we wanted to visit Carlisle Bay and being familiar with the area, we would normally just take private transportation to the beach. However, the port call was pretty short, arriving at 7:00 am and departing at 3:00 pm. Royal Caribbean offered a beach transfer excursion so we booked it just to be safe.
As soon as we walked back out on the beach, we remembered just why we loved this place so much. The pearl white sand, the calm, clear water, and the friendly staff was just what the doctor ordered on this beautiful morning.
The excursion took us to Harbour Lights, a beach club right on Carlisle Bay. I would 100% just recommend taking a taxi directly there and paying the simple $10 per person fee for a beach chair and umbrella for the day. The best service, cheap drinks, and great views can be found at Harbour Lights.
Our shore excursion was relatively short and at around 12:00 pm, the staff began to gather us up to leave. It just felt wrong to head out when I knew could probably squeeze in another couple of hours in this paradise. We asked the guide and the Harbour Lights staff if we could stay and not take our tour bus back and if we would have any trouble finding transportation back to the ship. Our tour guide and the staff there all assured us that taxis ran constantly and that we were free to stay if we would like. So guess what we did?
We extended our stay on Carlisle Bay for about two hours at no extra charge (we had been buying drinks and food all day). Once the time came to start heading back to the ship, we walked out front, there was a line of taxis waiting. For $5 per person, we climbed in a mini-bus with around 7 other guests and headed back to the ship. The ride was only around 10 minutes so we got back around 50 minutes before all aboard time.
When venturing out on my own without a ship tour, I always allow an hour or more to get back to the ship. The time I allow depends a lot on how far away I am. You just want to make sure that you build in time for potential travel delays on your way back. Always pre-plan your riding arrangements back to the pier when you are out exploring independently of the cruise line.
Barbados is one of our favorite places. It's great for a land trip or a cruise. The people are extremely friendly, the culture radiates through the whole island, and I've always felt safe while navigating around.
Day 7 - St. Kitts
The first time I visited St. Kitts five years ago, I hated it. There didn't seem to be much to do, the people were aggressive and pushy, and there were thieving monkeys that would trick you into letting your guard down, climb a wire, and run off with your stuff(not joking).
However, after being pushed to go ashore on our previous trip in 2021, we found a beautiful beach and a nice beach club that will forever be among my favorites. Carambola Beach Club on South Friars Bay features beautiful views, clear, calm water, and great service and amenities. While the sand is a dark grey from volcanic rock, its soft. The water is crystal clear with minimal surf allowing you to hang out in the water and cool off from the hot southern Caribbean sun. For just $10 per person, you get a beach chair and umbrella right on the beach. The property boasts a full bar and multiple restaurants should you want anything to drink or eat. For around $10 per person, you can a take taxi ride to Carambola Beach Club. For $20 per person, the same taxi driver will come pick you up at a designated time. You can also take a ship excursion if you'd feel more comfortable going that route. It's one of the prettiest beaches I've been on and a great place to relax and enjoy the beautiful vistas of St. Kitts.
Another positive of heading towards South Friars Bay is that you will pass right by Timothy Hill scenic overlook. If you've seen many Caribbean photos at all, chances are you've seen a photo from Timothy Hill.
From the overlook point, you can see where the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean border either side of the island. You can also see Nevis in the distance on a clear day. Most taxi drivers will stop even without request to let you take a picture here. Almost all shore excursions in St. Kitts feature a stop at Timothy Hill.
Our experience with St. Kitts is a great learning opportunity to not size up a destination based off of a small amount of experience. First impressions can be deceiving, both good and bad. This is so true when it comes to travel. On our first visit to the island we got some bad advice to not go to beaches because it wasn't a "beachy" destination. This proved to be bad advice. The beaches are different, but they are still beautiful. You can also really tell that St. Kitts & Nevis has worked hard to keep the pushiness of vendors near the port area and the theiving monkeys under control. The port area has been much cleaner and the monkeys now must be with handlers while around the port area.
Don't overlook St. Kitts when it comes to ports of call. It's a beautiful island that has worked hard to grow with their increased number of tourists coming each year. I would also like to add that we had room service breakfast on the balcony (to avoid the understaffed buffet) and had a gorgeous view of Nevis as we sailed in. The final day of our cruise was 100% a success.
Since it was day 7, we unfortunately had to head back to the ship and pack after our trip to South Friars Bay was over. No matter how many times we've cruised, the final day of our sailing is always sad. I've always said, I've never wanted to leave a cruise ship, not once. The beautiful sights that we saw and all the great people we met in those places becoming memories is a priceless keep sake of all cruises, but it'd be great if we could just turn around and do it all over again.
As we sailed away from our final port of call and back to San Juan, the ocean showed out for us one last time with a stunning sunset as we left St. Kitts. Just like sunrise on day two at St. Thomas, the reminder was there that there were only a handful of people that were watching that sunset in this place. It was great perspective, and the perfect finale of a beautiful cruise.
Disembarkation/Post-Cruise Travel
As we mentioned before, we decided to fly back on Monday (ship returned on Sunday) because of cheaper flight prices and easier travel and disembarkation.
Departing the ship in San Juan was seamless, mostly because we didn't have anywhere to be. We slept in, grabbed coffee, and were among the last people off the ship. Customs was pretty straight forward and we shared a taxi with another couple that was heading to the La Concha Renaissance Resort as well.
We spent the day in our favorite pool in the Caribbean at the resort and just took in our last moments of vacation. It was really the only consolation prize I could take after leaving the ship.
Our flights left pretty early the following morning so we turned in early after dinner. All flights home went well with check-in at the airport going smoothly. The post cruise bonus day was really a good call. As mentioned earlier, you do not need to clear customs when flying home from Puerto Rico and no passport is needed as this is a US Territory.
Conclusions
My fourth Southern Caribbean sailing did nothing to deter me from feeling that this is best itinerary in the Caribbean. We've covered nearly every port of call in the area and nothing compares to this area of cruising. For those that love ports and want to avoid sea days, try this cruise. We had no sea days and each port was unreal and never disappointed. These islands tend to have a safe feel with great culture. Most have unrivaled beaches as well.
Traveling to and from San Juan is easier than you would think. I think people rule this cruise out because the thought of traveling to Puerto Rico intimidates them. Trust me, if you can fly to Miami to board a ship and feel comfortable, you can go to Puerto Rico.
My only complaint was the ship/crew. I've never really been disappointed by the service onboard a Royal Caribbean ship. It's one of the many reasons I've sailed with them 20 times. However, the ship was in disrepair and looked old and dirty both inside and out. The crew was severely understaffed and they all seemed disengaged or even hateful at times. Issues with the norovirus likely complicated matters but it got to be nearly impossible to find food without ordering room service or going to a specialty restaurant. The buffet was nearly unmanageable and when returning from port, the only place to get food onboard was Cafe Promenade, so you could imagine, the line was long (extremely long). I imagine staffing was to blame for this as well.
Luckily, this was a port intensive cruise so we were able to work around these issues. If we would have been on a cruise with more sea days, this could have really put a damper on our enjoyment of our trip. We chalked this up as an isolated issue due to some extraneous circumstances.
I'm happy to report that our most recent cruise onboard Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas went smoothly and the crew, food, and service was great and plentiful! A review is coming on it very soon.
The ship issues aside, I'd go on this cruise again tomorrow if I could. Nothing beats the ports and beauty of the southern Caribbean.
Ratings
Great - The Itinerary
As I've said over and over again, nothing beats the Southern Caribbean itinerary when it comes to sailing in this part of the world. A port everyday with the quality of destinations that we visited made this a terrific cruise selection. Combine the great stops with an embarkation port like San Juan and you've got yourself one heck of a cruise. It seemed like each day as a little better than the one before it.
Good - Stay in San Juan
San Juan is beautiful and the perfect embarkation port to start your cruise vacation. We love the La Concha Renaissance Resort for the views, food, and amenities. The only reason this falls to GOOD instead of GREAT is because its expensive. Three days in San Juan cost us almost as much as the entire cruise fare. I feel its totally worth it but be prepared to spend some money. You don't have to spend as much as we did, there are cheaper options to fit a budget, but it will cost money to hang in Puerto Rico for a few days pre or post cruise.
Okay - Voyager of the Seas
I outlined most of my issues above in the conclusion. The reason we do an Okay rating instead of bad is for reviews like this specifically. We did not have a great experience on the ship, however, it did not ruin or even put a damper on our time. We worked around it and spent so much time in port that it really became a non-factor. Your vacation is what you make it, but rating the ship anything more than OKAY would not be possible after the experience we had.
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