We just got back from the October 31st 7-day cruise and it was fantastic! Relaxing, eating drinking - all of my favorite things! There were a few hiccups, mostly due to hurricane Earl. The captain had to change the order of the ports of call (no big deal to me) and we had some very rough seas in St. Barts (it took one tender 1 ½ hrs to get in) and we could only spend one day there.
I had the scariest ride of my life on the last tender in from St Barts. The tender was jumping 3-4 feet in the air and the stairs were swinging back and forth in a most alarming way. The SD crew was AMAZING! They got all 5 passengers back on board safely. My hands were shaking when I got back to the cabin, but I was so impressed by the way the crew handled the situation that I quickly settled down. OK, maybe the cocktails I had once back on board helped!
We missed Saba because of the heavy swells so we went to St Martin instead - better shopping so I was happy although I'm not sure my husband would say the same!
The saddest thing on this cruise was that there was no "Splash" at Jost Van Dyke because of the swells caused by the hurricane. We had to have the Splash on board. Crew was fantastic, but it's really not the same, is it?
We were traveling with some SD first timers and it would have been great if we could have made it to Jost. Captain tried to hold the splash at other locations, but it just was not possible. Oh, well BBQ was fantastic and served Topside.
We booked the Bali beds for our 2nd night on board and it was really lovely gazing up at the stars and drifting off to sleep after polishing off a night cap of Bailey's & milk. We decided that the Bali beds are a great place to fall asleep, but not such a great to wake up so we ended up back in the cabin at about 3am.
The food was one of the highlights of the trip. Chef Tomasz is very talented. Do they ever give Michelin stars for a ship? Maybe they should start. I loved all the food on board and thought it was even better than last year. Do not miss all of the delicious soups that they serve. The pumpkin soup and the soup with truffles are not to be missed. I also really enjoyed the Indian specials that they offer on one night. There's a potato and pea dish that is to die for. The wine selection served with dinners was a bit hit or miss so we ordered a couple of very nice bottles from the cellar. The prices were actually very reasonable and we were able to try some wines that are just too expensive at home.
The wait staff was outstanding. We had a lot of fun with Felix and really enjoyed his dry sense of humor. We were also served by old friends, Brian, Jose and Mikey. One of the best things about a SD cruise is how great the crew is. They all seem to be very happy - try to find a happy crew member on one of the mega-ships. It's not impossible, just very, very hard.
We did something that we have never done on any of our 10+ cruises. We had dinner with Captain Bjarne Smorawski one night and cruise director Natalie another night. We had a lot of fun both nights and it was wonderful getting some insight into how SD goes about selecting itineraries, tendering vs. docking and how they can change plans depending on what the weather is doing.
Housekeeping staff, especially Fatima, were wonderful as always. She was able to clean our room very quickly so we never had that displaced feeling that you can get on the larger cruise ships. That's another plus of the high crew to guest ratio - you never have to wait long for anything whether it be a clean room or a fresh drink.
I also can't say enough good things about the spa ladies. I had another first on this cruise. I actually fell asleep during my massage. I love a relaxing, not invigorating massage, and boy did I get it! It was sheer bliss. I also had a great foot reflexology treatment with Ahn (sp?) that was the best I had ever had. I felt like all of my aches just disappeared after she was done working on my feet. It was great!
Rose at the concierge desk also made sure that they did some lovely things for our anniversary that were much appreciated, especially since we didn't give them any prior notice. They decorated our cabin with balloons, rose petals and streamers and brought us an anniversary cake too. It made us feel very special indeed.
There were only 48 passengers on our SD I sailing and 2 of them left part way thru, so then we were 46. It was a different dynamic than when we sailed last year with 100+ passengers on board. It was much quieter and the TOY bar had only 5-10 people each night after dinner. Disco night was very quiet. Only 6 of us listening to the music and no dancers at all.
Both cruises were very enjoyable and I'd be happy to sail again with 100 new friends or 48 new friends. It's just a different experience.
The trip was so wonderful in fact that all 4 of us made an open booking for next year. All in all a great time had by all and it's comforting to know that SD will do everything in their power to make your trip the best it can possibly be even if a nasty hurricane blows in.
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