Fantasy Eastern 9/22-9/29

[stephanie1977]

We had such an awesome vacation. Can I go back?

Six of us went, three couples (adults only no kids), all with veranda rooms.

A few highlights and recommendations:

Pre-cruise: We stayed at La Quinta Oceanfront in Cocoa Beach for two nights before our cruise. It's right on the beach, directly next to the pier, within three blocks of Publix/Dunkin Donuts/restaurants, and a mile down A1A from the awesome Ron Jon Surf Shop. They recently remodeled. Rooms are clean, staff is nice, and breakfast (included) is passable. Nice large pool area too.
-We used Royal Shuttle for transportation. I started another thread on this, but here will simply mention don't use them!

Satellite Falls: I love what they did with the front of the ship. We spent most of our time there on days at sea.

Stateroom 6684: about as aft as you can get. There was a lot of vibration in this room. It didn't bother me at all, but it did drive my husband a little nutty. He was up one night at 4 a.m. moving hangers because he heard them rattling around.

Entertainment: We didn't find Outlook until the last night on our cruise, and what a shame. It's a really cool space with a sweet view of Currents Bar and the pool area. It feels almost secret. If you can catch Andy Johnson there on the piano, do it! He's great and a nice guy.

We also thought the Match Game was a riot the first night, and we enjoyed various quizzo type activities throughout the week.

St. Martin: We booked a private tour with Bernard's (http://www.bernardstours.com/) for six of us. It was awesome. Our tour guide David was so knowledgeable about the island, and doing a private tour enabled us to spend as much time as we wanted in different places. We tipped David at the end per person, as tips were not included. At the port, try the Guavaberry rum drink if you like that sort of thing!

St. Thomas/St. John: We did the champagne catamaran sail with Theresa, Joe and Chris as our crew (booked through Disney). That was a fabulous day. Five in our party snorkeled and said it was great. I didn't snorkel, so they shuttled me to shore on St. John and I sat on the deserted Honeymoon Beach and read my book. Heaven. Make sure you eat before you leave the ship! The snacks they give you won't be enough after all the activity.

Palo brunch: Do it. More than worth the $20. Go hungry! We tipped the server extra also.

Remy: We weren't going to do this, I thought $75PP plus tip and wine was insane. But it was our second anniversary, so we did, and oh my I'm so glad we did. The experience was spectacular. The service was impeccable, and the food was amazing. My husband got the french chef's menu, I got the american chef's menu, and we had a contest. It was a tie to the end, but the french menu won. If you're looking to treat yourself and like fine dining experiences, this is the way to go.

Over the door shoe holder: This is the first time I've used one, and I loved it. It doesn't fit over the bathroom doors, but it does fit over the closet doors. It kept everything organized. I hate clutter, so that was key.

H20 body lotion: If you have $24 extra dollars, buy it in Whitecaps. I'm so glad I did, it makes me feel a tiny tiny bit like I'm still being pampered on the Fantasy.

The service was impeccable all around, the boat was clean and glamorous, the food was great, and I want to go back!

[nenner1]

Great summary!

We were there with you and I totally agree with you on all points!

We were right above you and just a tad to the right in 7192. We didn't have any vibration at all until we left St. Thomas and then it got crazy. It didn't seem as bad by the last night but I'm not sure if we just got used to it or if it actually wasn't as bad. We'd book the room again though because of the awesome verandah! They say it's only like that on the Eastern because of the speed they need to go from St>T to CC on time.

On your next cruise you should join in the Dis group- we had an AMAZING group this cruise and had a great time with our events! The private Mixology was a riot

Thanks so much for sharing, it's always interesting to see what others experienced on the same trip!

[stephanie1977]

I totally missed the boat on the Dis Group! I'll do that next time for sure. We didn't do any mixology or tastings, and I definitely went with the intention of doing a few - but when they rolled around I was lazy bones reading on a chaise somewhere.

I would absolutely stay in 6684 again (my husband, probably not so much). I loved the location of the room and the privacy on the veranda - there was no one directly to our right since the ship curves around there.

[Shannon84]

We were on the same cruise We were on our honeymoon and actually participated in the match your mate game It was embarassing but great because people came up to us all week and it was nice to meet people!!

We cannot wait to go again I loved the cruise!

[stephanie1977]

Couple number one!

[DLW8]

We were also on this cruise and wish you had joined the DISgroup....we also did Bernard's on St. Maarten (Mailman was our guide - loved him) and we also did the St. John Champagne catamaran tour.

We loved both of the excursions and the ship (and of course the martini tasting and private mixology). Looks like there are a few TR's from our cruise, always fun to see it from other people's point of view!

[Castlepixie]

Thanks for all the good news! Will you be posting pics? I have 6684 booked for April & would love to see it.

[Rest&Relax]

Originally Posted by DLW8

We were also on this cruise and wish you had joined the DISgroup....we also did Bernard's on St. Maarten (Mailman was our guide - loved him) and we also did the St. John Champagne catamaran tour.

We loved both of the excursions and the ship (and of course the martini tasting and private mixology). Looks like there are a few TR's from our cruise, always fun to see it from other people's point of view!

We are booked for the St. John Champagne tour for our cruise Dec 1. Would love to here more about this tour. Any tips would be helpful. Did you have the early morning or afternoon tour?

We have done the martini tasting before but am lookng forward to doing the mixology session. Do you know when they did this tasting?

[DLW8]

Originally Posted by Rest&Relax

We are booked for the St. John Champagne tour for our cruise Dec 1. Would love to here more about this tour. Any tips would be helpful. Did you have the early morning or afternoon tour?

We have done the martini tasting before but am lookng forward to doing the mixology session. Do you know when they did this tasting?

The only tour offered for us was the morning tour for the St. John Champage Catamaran Tour as we were pulling out of port at about 3:30 that afternoon.

We met at The Tube at 7:30 AM (and that is after Pirate Night, so order room service for an early delivery to be up in time!). Immediately went out to meet the taxi drivers (open air safari-type trucks). It took about 20 minutes or so to drive over to the marina. We were greeted by the Captain and directed to the boat.

Grab a place to sit and they head out (using the motor) to St. John. It's a beautiful trip to get there, so bring your camera. They offer water, juice and soda on the way out to the beach. You arrive at Honeymoon Beach about 45 minutes after you leave St. Thomas. You can jump off the boat, use the stairs to enter the water, or take the "dinghy" to the beach.

The snorkeling was great, we saw turtles, baracuda, sting ray and of course, a bunch of fish.

On the way back to St. Thomas, they have cheese & crackers & fruit, as well as rum punch (very tasty), beer, water, soda and juice.

The crew was great, and don't forget to tip them if you enjoyed their service! We make sure we plan on bringing cash for at least 20% of the excursion fare for tips. I got the feeling that several people didn't think about carrying that much cash for tipping....

Mixology was on Monday and Thursday. DH also did the whiskey tasting on Wednesday night after we left St. Thomas and really enjoyed it.

[abeason1974]

Thank for the information, we are on this cruise next year and I cant wait!!!

[Rest&Relax]

Originally Posted by DLW8

The only tour offered for us was the morning tour for the St. John Champage Catamaran Tour as we were pulling out of port at about 3:30 that afternoon.

We met at The Tube at 7:30 AM (and that is after Pirate Night, so order room service for an early delivery to be up in time!). Immediately went out to meet the taxi drivers (open air safari-type trucks). It took about 20 minutes or so to drive over to the marina. We were greeted by the Captain and directed to the boat.

Grab a place to sit and they head out (using the motor) to St. John. It's a beautiful trip to get there, so bring your camera. They offer water, juice and soda on the way out to the beach. You arrive at Honeymoon Beach about 45 minutes after you leave St. Thomas. You can jump off the boat, use the stairs to enter the water, or take the "dinghy" to the beach.

The snorkeling was great, we saw turtles, baracuda, sting ray and of course, a bunch of fish.

On the way back to St. Thomas, they have cheese & crackers & fruit, as well as rum punch (very tasty), beer, water, soda and juice.

The crew was great, and don't forget to tip them if you enjoyed their service! We make sure we plan on bringing cash for at least 20% of the excursion fare for tips. I got the feeling that several people didn't think about carrying that much cash for tipping....

Mixology was on Monday and Thursday. DH also did the whiskey tasting on Wednesday night after we left St. Thomas and really enjoyed it.

Thanks for the info. Looking forward to this excursion! Also is there a place to store camera, valuables etc. while you snorkle?