Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Doing the Sea Days

The cruise continues. We have made the last port of this cruise but we have two days at sea before we return to Los Angeles. Some of the cruise lines change the itinerary a bit and head to the farthest port first so the days at sea are in the beginning of the cruise. I like it at the end so you can unwind before getting back to the grind of work. Mind you, there is plenty to do and you will not be bored. As usual we awake early and the first thing on our mind is food. We head to the Versailles Main Dining room for a relaxing breakfast.
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Norwegian Star Breakfast fare
While we eat we check out the Freestyle Daily for possible adventures for the day. We decide on a competitive game of Wii Bowling. Then we stroll the ship checking out the photos the ship's photographers have taken of us. We could do wine tasting or mojito muddling but instead check out the artwork on board and have quiet time the library. Should we hit the exercise room our take a hot tub? These are fun choices. After a nap, early dinner and the Elements Magic show we save our energy for the White Hot Dance Party tonight. It starts off a bit slow but lots of people dressed in white arrive and the party begins! Check out these videos.






White Hot and rocking!

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Norwegian Star Cruise - Puerto Vallarta

On arrival in Puerto Vallarta we find the port a busy place. In addition to our ship, NCL Star, there are the Disney Wonder,  Carnival Splendor and what appears to be a pirate ship. In reality the pirate ship is a sightseeing excursion.
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On past cruises we have enjoyed many of Puerto Vallarta's beautiful sights.Taxi cabs are readily available at the dock. At the gangway there are newer cabs and vans. As you get to the street area there are many older yellow colored taxis. Establish a price before you commit to a cab ride! It has been our experience that most of the drivers speak English. Do a little research before you arrive and have a planned itinerary. On the last visit we visited the Malecon and photographed some of the many public sculptures. A few blocks away there is the beautiful Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
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Malecon Statues Puerto Vallarta
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Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe
On this visit, at the advice of our limo drive, we decided to visit the "Old Town" area. At first when we arrived there was a bit of disappointment because the street where we were dropped off did not seem attractive. A trip down a sidewalk revealed the beach area with lots of restaurants and fun activities. Some of the hotels offer day passes that allow you to use their pools and beach front. In any case there is an abundance of restaurants ranging from street carts to fancy sit down. Jet skis, parasailing and killer beach watching await you!

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Old Town Puerto Vallarta
Have a great time but allow time to return to the ship or you might get left behind!

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Mazatlan

After a brilliant time in Cabo San Lucas we sailed off into the evening on the Norwegian Star. The nice part about of being on a cruise ship is that you unpack once and your cabin moves from town to town. You are fed and entertained almost every minute of the day.
During past cruises to Mazatlan we have taken tours, attended a shrimp fest and checked out the Centro Mercado. On this cruise we did it a little differently, we hung out on the ship.It really is a brilliant good time to be on board. Most everyone leaves the ship and that means you have all the ships amenities to yourself! We started with eggs Benedict in the Versailles Dining Room.
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We wandered the ship and hung out at the pool and sunned ourselves. It was quiet and restful.
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Norwegian Star Pool

From the deck we could see the Pacifico Brewery.I have heard it is great place to tour but I am not much of beer drinker.
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Pacifico Brewery in Mazatlan
The port in Mazatlan is an industrial area so you are required to take a shuttle to the entrance.  Inside, there is a market place with shops and a little restaurant. We decided it was margarita time so we shuttled over and had drinks, salsa and chips for under ten dollars.Back to the ship to get ready for dinner of prime rib! Tomorrow we arrive in Puerto Vallarta.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Cabo San Lucas

Our first port of call is Cabo San Lucas, our number one favorite of all the Mexican Riviera. In Cabo the port is too shallow for the ship to enter so they use smaller boats, called tenders, to shuttle you in to port. Norwegian had us queue up at 8:45 a.m. to get  tickets to the tender boats. They called out groups in an orderly fashion to avoid chaos with everyone wanting to go ashore at once. After reaching  shore and clearing security you are greeted by hordes of  vendors who try to sell you tours and boat rides. The ship offered a number of excursions, but we choose to wander on our own and explore the possibilities. There were tons of great shopping and restaurants right at the port. We decided to take a tour of the area on one of the many glass bottom boats ($20 plus $6 in tips.) We motored past Lover's Beach, Divorce Beach and the Arch. Our boat captain got us up close to sea lions and pelicans. I was surprised when I heard our captain say Scooby Do. Sure enough there was a rock formation that resembled Scooby!


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Cabo San Lucas Glass Bottom Boat Tour

After our tour We elected to be dropped off at Medano Beach where there are many resorts and hotels with umbrellas and restaurants. We had heard good things  about The Office on the Beach. This is a great spot with tables and umbrellas and some seriously good people watching.We had calamari that came with two tasty salsas. The waiter offered us what he jokingly  called American Salsa; it was ketchup. We also had pico de gallo and guacamole; large portions and absolutely fresh. I almost forgot, they make some large, strong and wonderful margaritas. Musicians stroll by the tables and sing. What a wonderful time on the beach and in all honesty you could say, "I was at the office!"
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The Office on the Beach Cabo San Lucas

Cabo Rocks!!

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Cruise to Eat or Eat to Cruise?

They call it a "sea day" when you are not going to be in port. I think of those more like "see day" or probably more like "eat day."  There are lots of things to see and eat for sure. Today we are sailing towards Cabo San Lucas and loving it. For breakfast, we chose The Versailles Dining room. It is a sit down affair, quiet with wonderful service. I had scrambled eggs with ham and the wife had an omelet and half grapefruit. There is always a basket of spectacular pastries on the table that will call out your name. If you don't want to indulge have the waiter take them away, otherwise they will leap into your tummy!

We wander the ship and indulge in a game of Wi bowling.On the Norwegian ships they deliver the "Freestyle Daily" which lists the events for the day. There is the pool, casino, spa and loads of other activities, both free and extra cost. Check out the Norwegian University with classes such as 'Classic Martini Tasting' or 'Beer and Food Pairing.'  Additional charges apply but you get booze and food. On this trip, we are returning guests so we treated to Latitudes cocktail reception. Red wine for me and a yellow bird cocktail for her. Canapes of smoked salmon and caviar tickled the pallet.

We often take a quick nap in the afternoon to give us energy for dinner and a show. Back to the Aqua dining room for dinner. We ask for the same waiter and table again. Our waiter's name is Floyd and he is from Jamaica. Great service and a wonderful sense of humor. The wife had ceviche followed by the swordfish and shrimp brochette. I went with the strawberry soup and breast of chicken. We split a plate of warm chocolate cake with coffee. Try the cake at least once, maybe daily!

The stage show was Extreme Vegas. One word:  HOT!  Sleep tight for tomorrow we do Cabo.

Eat some more!

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Embarkation

Norwegian Star February, 19 2011

Embarkation can be a love/hate relationship. Excited at the prospect of cruising, you have filled out all the necessary forms and have documents in hand. You have pre-printed you luggage tags and attached them correctly. On arrival at the port, there are porters who will take your baggage and send it to your cabin leaving you with only a  carry on. Once past the airport-like security checkpoint, you wait in line in an orderly fashion and are greeted by a happy person.  They take your picture and issue you a ship card that acts as identification, room key and ship account charge card.  Or at least that is what should happen; sometimes life happens and there are delays. Don't be grumpy, your cruise awaits!  On this occasion, things went well and we were on board in short order.
I will offer some advice:  Pack sparingly!  I watched a newly wed husband doing his best imitation of a pack mule hauling three extra large suitcases and three huge carry on bags. The bride's purse was a large as my suitcase. All this for a seven day cruise!  We each carry a medium sized suitcase and a backpack. So much less to deal with.
Once on board, we checked out our cabin and had lunch in the the Market Buffet (ham and cheese sandwich and a slice of cake for me - sliced beef and vegetables for the wife.) We  attended the mandatory life boat drill,  and celebrated our departure with cocktails.  We always do research in advance and try to know the layout and amenities of each ship. Arm yourself with the available ship map and take a tour. It will make getting around much easier. We chose to eat dinner in the Aqua Restaurant. The wife had the Caesar salad with mahi mahi and I had peach soup and a New York Steak. Norwegian offers what they call 'freestyle dining.' This allows you the luxury of eating when and with whom you want.  Be warned! You could eat twenty four hours a day, save a little space in you tummy for the next meal. We love to cruise - let the party begin!
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Norwegian Star Photo Tour

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Getting There is half the fun

We live north of San Francisco and would prefer to cruise out of San Fran. We really like the Mexican Riviera cruises but not too many originate from here. The ones that do are generally more expensive but the higher cost is outweighed by savings in travel costs for us. This cruise we sailed from the Los Angeles town of San Pedro.

There are a number of ways to get to Los Angeles and I recommend you research all options. The most comfortable and reasonably priced for us is The Amtrak Coast Starlight. The train originates in Seattle Wa. and makes it's way to LA. We board in Emeryille, Ca. where there is a parking lot you can park your car. The station attendant advised us that if you have an round trip ticket you can park here until your return. Make sure you ask for a placard to put in your car. Our round-trip tickets for two cost less than $200 with a AAA discount, much less than any airfares I could find. Our on time experience has been darn near perfect but delays sometimes happen. The train takes over twelve hours but it very comfortable and the views are wonderful. There is a dining car that serves good food reasonably priced. Also on board is a snack bar that offers fast food, cocktails and wine. For further savings you can bring food on board but no alcohol. We used a fold up soft cooler with sodas, water and snack items. There are a/c outlets at most seats so it is possible to bring along a computer and watch movies.

The train leaves about  at 8:25am and arrives at 9:00pm. I prefer to stay in Emeryville the night before our train ride so we can sleep in and not worry about commute traffic. I highly recommend the Woodfin Suites Emeryville(update- the hotel has changed ownership and is now Hyatt Summerfield Suites Emeryville). Each room is like an apartment with its own kitchen. The place is clean, well maintained and the staff is wonderful. There is free wireless and best of all, it is a quick walk to the Amtrak Station.
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Photo taken from Emeryville Amtrak Station with Hyatt Summerfield Suites in background


Prior to our arrival at LA Union Station, we reserved a car to pick us up and take us to a hotel near the cruise ship. I know it sounds expensive but after a real scary $80 cab ride, I did some research and located Prime Time Shuttle. They assign a car to pick you up and take you directly to your hotel. They call you on your cell when you are scheduled to arrive. A Chrysler 500 sedan costs $82.60 and, for real luxury, a Lincoln Town Car is $94.40  inclusive of eighteen percent gratuity. I normally give the driver a little extra tip. They own their own vehicles and are so polite and accommodating.

On this trip we stayed at the At the Double Tree by Hilton in San Pedro and  got a great rate with AAA discount. We arrived after dark and  received a warm welcome and warm gooey chocolate chip cookies, too. After a night cap, we slept soundly and awoke in this idyllic location in the Cabrillo Marina. The hotel offers free internet access in the lobby as well as an inexpensive and good breakfast buffet. The hotel also provides complimentary transportation to San Pedro Cruise Port. Check in early to get the best time! We were fortunate to avoid the multi-passenger vans and rode in style in their luxury car. I tipped the driver $20 after he gave us great ideas on where to go in Puerto Vallarta  where he had lived for a number of years. Embarkation in our next blog.
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Some fantastic photo opportunities at the Double Tree San Pedro

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Making the Decision

The first part of cruising is picking from the many cruise-lines.This cruise is our fourth: Two with Norwegian and two Carnival . The decision to blog about cruises was made to  recall and compare our experiences to save money. While there are differences, the cruise ships are remarkably similar. They all have very friendly web sites that allow you explore the possibilities without pressure from a salesperson. We recommend that you read lots  of online material before you choose.  To book early or wait until last minute is a difficult decision. One time we waited and the the lower priced inside cabins were full so we had to upgrade to a more expensive cabin with a great view. On another occasion we waited and the price came down. Let's just say it is hard to figure out the system.

Prices vary depending on  date of sailing, type of cabin and the number of days on board.  The prices include cabin, food and entertainment. There will be extra charges, plan for that! Prices displayed on the web are what I call plus/plus. There are taxes and fees added to the initial display price. In addition you set up a  shipboard account to cover additional daily gratuity fees, the purchase of alcohol, soft drinks, shore excursions, upscale restaurant choices, photos and a myriad of other possible purchases. We have found that it easy to save money here just by choosing wisely.

We have made a sport of checking out the cruise lines, comparing prices and amenities. It seems like dueling computers in our house sometimes, each vying to come up with the best prices and most fun. Our latest cruise was a seven day on the Norwegian Star out of Los Angeles to the Mexican Riviera. We choose an interior cabin on deck ten directly across the hall  from an owners suite. Good location at a inexpensive price. We paid $1090 for two including fees and taxes. Onwards to other important decisions: What clothes shall I pack?
















The ships we have cruised on. Clockwise from upper left Carnival Pride, NCL Sun, Carnival Splendor and NCL Star.


Wednesday, February 9, 2011

The Beginning

Our mission is to cruise often and report our experiences on this blog. We prefer to remain anonymous and hope to be ninja like to stay under the radar. This blog will be our subjective viewpoint. We are a couple that loves to have a great time on cruises. We both  work in customer service jobs and have empathy for the hard working people in the cruise industry. While bad times do occur when traveling , this blog will be about good times cruising, filled with photos and video. Of course we will offer recommendations and tips for cruise travel. We have a very limited budget both time and dollar wise. We intend to extract maximum fun with limited funds.

In the future we may seek advertising, but for now this is a non profit enterprise. This month we will take our fourth cruise. We look forward to sharing our adventure.