There is no better way to escape the cold winter than to jump on a cruise ship going to warm San Juan and the Virgin Islands. Temperatures range from 80-85 degrees. The ship sailed so smoothly we never needed to worry about seasickness. We had a comfortable room, good food, great service, and some really great entertainment every night. I really like the trip from San Juan to the Islands because you dock from 8 am to 5 pm everyday which gives you plenty of time to go on shore for an excursion tour or to get a taxi and plan something on your own. This is the second time we have sailed on Jewel of the Seas. It is a smaller ship but we never felt crowded. We had all the same programs as the bigger ship. I felt it was easier to remember where everything was located also.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Children's Programs
5 out of 5
we didn't have any children along with us this trip.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
we didn't spend that much time in the cabin because we tried to stay busy with all the activities. it was always clean and comfortable.
Ship tip
We chose the "anytime" dining and always made our time reservation according to the activities we planned during the day. We made our reservation the evening before so we could get the table and time we preferred.
We decided to buy a 10-drink card to give us a little discount on our bar tab.
Since the ship sailed so late in the day, we did a waking tour before we sailed with a guide who picked us up at our hotel and then dropped us off at the ship later. We used a guide from "tours by locals" that we arranged online before we arrived.
We got a taxi to take us to the "Butterfly Farm" where we had a guided tour. Then the taxi took is to "Loterie Farms" and took a self guided hike and tour. We could have gone on a zipline, swimming, or ate at the restaurant also. It has many great things to do for a whole day.
We took a half day jeep excursion that we booked tough Viator online but we were put with a group from the ship excursion. It took an hour to get this going so our excursion was only 2 hours instead of 3-4 hours as advertised. Seemed like we hurried through it all so they could get back to do a second tour in the afternoon. We did enjoy the open jeep and places we went.
We got a taxi to take us to St. Nicolas Abbey which is a plantation home where we got a tour of the home. Tuesday and Thursday they are pressing sugar cane in the old barn. They actually make rum there and we watched them working. You can also take a self guided tour around the ruins of other buildings, the kitchen garden, and other beautiful garden paths. There is a shop that gives a free rum drink and gift shop to buy rum.Very nice day trip. Then we went to Andromedea Garden for a self guided tour. This could have been a half day tour because there is so much to see. We were given a plant guide to use as we walked through the paths. Worth taking your time as you find amazing plants and flowers.
We arranged a tour to Smithy's Garden, Sunnyside Garden, and Laura's Spice Garden online before we arrived. Our taxi picked us up and delivered us to each location. Smithy's garden and Sunnyside garden are private gardens where we were given tours by the actual owners. What a treat!! Laura's Spice Garden is more of a display garden for the cruise ships I think. They gave us a guided tour for about 20 minutes.
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