Since I flew in the day of my cruise and the day of my return, I didn't spend much time here. I took

San Juan

We got a full interstate-style bus for this tour. King was the driver and Dahlia the tour guide. Curiously, both of them were from St. Kitts, but that didn't stop them from doing an excellent job. We wound our way to the French side, took an extended stop in Marigot, the French side's capital, then drifted our way back to Philipsburg. We were offered the option of getting off downtown instead of heading back to the pier. Instructions were given on how to get back to the ship from there. St. Maarten/Martin has a lot to recommend it and this tour certainly showed a lot of it.P.S. I took an excursion after this that was not, and will not ever be, offered by a commercial cruise line. All I will say is I enjoyed it very much. :)

St. Maarten

This was on a medium-sized bus. Ian was our driver/tour guide. He knew his island and was an excellent driver. There were a few stops for photos, bathroom breaks, and souvenirs. We were offered the chance to get off the tour early in downtown Charlotte Amalie (near the port).

This was on a large bus that seated about 30. Clovis was the driver and Lisette was the tour guide. Both were excellent in their roles. We went around most of the island and there were several stops for photos, souvenir buying, bathroom breaks and such. There were also some free samples of local cuisine.

This tour must have been popular, because we had at least three large buses on this tour. We occasionally bumped into the other groups at our stops. Tantou was our driver. He was great and really got the opportunity to show his stuff through some challenging conditions (rain, elevation, rough roads). He also provided some supplementary knowledge about the island. Denver was our tour guide. We made things a lot more interesting for him than your average tour group. He knew his stuff, but we also taught him a few things. We went all over the island, soaking in the wonderful sights that make up St. Lucia. There were several opportunities for photos, bathroom breaks, souvenir shopping, and dining (not all at every stop). This was a long guided tour but worth every minute.

This was another tour with at least three large buses. I got the one with Tyrone, "Mr. T" as driver/tour guide. He was more than capable in both roles. Particularly impressive was his work in getting in and out of the gate to Brimstone Hill. There couldn't have been more than six inches of space when we squeezed through. In addition to Brimstone, we stopped at Romney Manor and on a hill overlooking Frigate Bay.

The cabin on the Riviera Deck was clean and relatively comfortable. It was kept immaculate by my cabin steward and his helpers.

The shuttle (prepaid through Carnival) was a little slow, and the lines and walking seemed to go on and on, but there was nothing here that I didn't prepare for.Could have used a little more breathing space in the bathroom, but that's a quibble.

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I hope my other cruises go as well as this one

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