December 15, 2019 • 39 mins
Today's topic is an all-inclusive journey onboard the SeaDream Yacht Club ship SeaDream II with my guest travel writer Judi Cuervo. Learn about a very different kind of Caribbean cruise experience in intimate luxury and personalized service beyond what large ship lines offer.
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Speaker 1 (00:15):
Hello and welcome back to CruiseCompete's Cruise
Podcast, where we share tips,ideas, and inspiration to help
make your next cruise afantastic experience.
I'm your host Bob Levinstein.
Today's topic is a differenttype of Caribbean cruise than
most of our listeners may befamiliar with; a sailing on the
ultra luxury mega yacht SeaDreamII.
(00:36):
My guest today is Ms.
Judi C uervo, a freelance cruise writer w ho hss travel on
more cruises than she can count.
Among other publications, you can f ind her articles and
experiences onAllThingsCruise.com We'll be
right back with Judy right afterthis.
(01:00):
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today.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Welcome back.
My guest today is Ms.
Judi Cuervo, who's been afreelance cruise writer for more
than 20 years.
Judy has recently returned froma seven life cruise aboard the
luxury yacht SeaDream II.
Judy, welcome to the program.
(02:19):
Thank you so much for having me.
Sailing on SeaDream is a verydifferent experience from
sailing on a mega ship (02:25):
fewer people, casual atmosphere, very
personalized service.
How would you summarize theoverall experience and compare
it to more mainstream cruises?
Well, you really have to setaside your concept of a cruise
entirely.
What it's defined as these days.
There are no crowds, no lines.
Even embarkation is just walkingup the gangway and being greeted
(02:47):
by the captain.
See dream when it's sold out canaccommodate 112 passengers.
That's like the capacity of abig ship's life boat for God's
sake.
So, uh, it's, it's a totallydifferent animal.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Um, it, the intimate experience fosters friendships
very, very quickly.
Uh, like compare it from, uh, abig city versus a small towns.
For example.
Um, it's an Island.
Yeah, it's an all inclusivesailing, which means no bar bill
at the end of the sailing, nopaying for bottled water.
Nonsense, no restaurant charges,even gratuities are included.
(03:24):
But that's really just sort ofscratching the surface.
The greatest God, the greatestdifference.
I didn't know where to begin.
The service is extraordinary,but I don't know where they find
these guys.
I mean they were like in their20s.
They're all so professional andso personable and they go beyond
like they might overhear you saysomething like, you really wish
(03:46):
you could try just a bit of somedish on the menu even though
you've ordered somethingdifferent and boom, it'll appear
before you.
You might be in the hot tub anda bar way drill.
Come by with a glass ofchampagne and say this old
completes a picture.
They just totally dedicated toservice and the dining, I can't
even compare it to most cruiseships.
I'd compare it to like thefinest restaurants I've ever
(04:08):
been to at sea.
And then of course there are theamazing things that she dreamed
can pull off since it's such asmall ship.
And I'm not just talking aboutgoing to more exclusive ports
where the big ships can't, can'tgo in.
Um, but they have the sleepingunder the stars, champagne and
caviar splash the water sportsplatform, and there's no
(04:29):
additional charge for any of it.
So let's start out with the shipitself.
Tell me a little bit about,okay.
Mega ships these days, whetherthey'd like more than a hundred
thousand gross tons.
See dream.
Um, I'm sorry.
Yeah, you're right.
Um, see, dream is 4,333 grosstons.
(04:50):
So you won't be seeing any waterslides or racetracks.
So a rollercoaster in fact seedream from the outside.
It just looks like a beautifulyard.
It's like something you wouldlust after in the Harbor.
And the around Saint Barts ornice or any Harbor around the
world, yacht Harbor around theworld.
But in once on board you won'tfind neon and glitz and it feels
(05:11):
like a home, a very beautifulhome.
Um, as far as the public rooms,you have the salon, which is a
circular lounge, cocktail hours,maybe a film in the evening, top
of the yacht, which is myfavorite bar at sea.
It's, it's sort of the socialheart of the yacht.
Open air.
Imagine being there when you'resailing from a Caribbean Island.
(05:33):
Maybe it's sunset bar, barstoolstables, the library I want in my
apartment.
If it could say it'swell-stocked.
Two computers with free internetaccess, plush couches, easy
chairs.
And it's, it's right near thepiano bars.
So peeping off people will oftenflow into the library with the
(05:53):
drinks for conversation.
The piano bar, it's a verymisleading name.
It sounds so staid and quiet.
Oh my God, that is like partycentral most nights.
You know, you might hear sweetCaroline if you have too many
times, but, but pianos can playanything and I hate to admit it,
but I even took the microphoneon the last cruise and totally
(06:15):
mortified myself.
Um, then they have, um, thedining that top of the yacht is
a fabulous outdoor restaurant.
They have breakfast, lunch anddinner.
Their tables are set.
There's no cutlery wrapped in apaper napkin for breakfast.
You'll find a full man for wellbreakfast, lunch and dinner.
It's a full menu supplemented bya small buffet for breakfast and
(06:38):
lunch.
And like for breakfast they'llhave homemade yogurts, cereals,
breads, this thing called thepower shot, which is like carrot
juice with vegetables andginger.
I always got extra ginger forthe kick lunches, the same full
menu set tables, small buffet,which usually has like really
(06:58):
sweet crab legs on sun, somedayshuge New Zealand mus muscles,
all sorts of salad.
But again, it's just an openerfor a real full menu.
And the tables are set like areal restaurant.
Um, the, your favorite meals onboard, the favorite meals.
Oh God.
As lobster Chateau Brennan.
Dos.
So Buco they had a Joe over soul, which I don't know the word
(07:22):
for this, like they delayed itand put the scale, like the
bones of it were part of thepresentation.
It's hard to describe, but itwas just so beautiful.
Pastas, I love the pastas.
There's like no boiled up runSony here.
Um, Yogi, Oh my God.
They had an Yogi that was servedin a fried cheese basket and you
(07:45):
won't give wonder why I have togo to the gym on the ship every
morning and the gym is small.
Um, but I do the elliptical.
There's one elliptical and like,what is it, four treadmills,
free weights.
Um, and I would go every morningand nobody was ever on that
elliptical.
(08:05):
In fact, there were only liketwo, I don't think more than two
people were there when I went,which I find amazing with the
food, but I'm just going back tothe food for a second.
I ordered mushroom soup, which,you know, whatever everybody
else was having three courses.
So I got the soup.
My God, this thing like changedmy life.
It was like even the appetizersare just so amazing.
(08:29):
I mean the aroma of that soupthat tastes, that earthy
warming.
And I remember saying to thefriend I traveled with, I said,
I want to wash my hair in thissoup.
And I tested the chefs so muchor they finally gave me the
recipe probably just to get ridof me.
And that includes truffles.
So I won't be making thatanytime soon.
But, um, the other thing aboutthe food though is they have a
(08:52):
very good selection ofplant-based and vegan dishes.
And I'm not vegan as you couldprobably tell from the Chateau
Brianne that I mentioned.
Um, but I was tempted by a lotof the dishes.
Lentil Shepherd's pie.
That sounds wonderful.
Vegan chocolate mousse cake.
There were really, there was onecruise I went on with she dream
(09:14):
where there was a very strictvegan onboard and she was
delighted with the options.
It's very inventive stuff.
Um, you know, it's not boringfood.
They do, they have a selectionof every night, which is a
little less extravagant.
If you, you know, sometimes youwere on a cruise and you're like
sick of the elaborate everysingle night and you just want
(09:36):
like a chicken breast orsomething and you could
certainly get that.
And then I don't, don't get mestarted on the desserts.
They have this preservativesextravaganza that just, it's
like half a city block ofdifferent desserts that look
beautiful and are beautiful.
And I managed to only have thecreme per leg, which was worth
it.
So Jim, based on the fact thatit was completely empty, I think
(09:59):
that, Oh, absolutely.
Absolutely.
I have noticed one of the funnythings, if you're on one of the
mega ships, if you go to the gymon like the first morning, day
four or five, yeah.
You just say, forget it.
It's hopeless.
I'll do it with what I get home.
(10:21):
So why don't you, and it waspretty impressive, impressive
bartenders on board as well.
This not only bartenders,everybody, um, the entire staff
is just phenomenal.
But, uh, the, I remember thisone, one bartender, Byron, um,
he, I was on last Christmas andhe had just started and he was
(10:43):
such a shy little boy and thelast night, you know how you
dress very casual the last nighttoo, cause you're probably going
to be going home wearing thesame outfit I wore jeans and a
Marvel tee shirt.
Cause then my nine to fiveexistence, I work with Marvel
and he comes over to me and hesays, Oh ma'am, I love that
t-shirt.
I've been a Marvel fan since Iwas a little boy and we were
(11:07):
talking a short conversation.
I go on last week and I see himand he's like the Marvel woman.
It's so good to have you.
How did he remember this?
It was amazing, but he's not shyanymore because he and a fellow
bartender did it like a Tomcruise in cocktail performance,
(11:28):
juggling shakers and martiniglasses and all sorts of stuff.
So, uh, he fits in beautifully.
He really does.
But it's amazing how theyremember you.
It really is.
Once we get the passenger's likeon board.
Well the one is, this is, thisis the high end cruise
experience.
(11:48):
Um, but nobody is snooty.
Maybe.
Maybe you have to be to one salewith only 112 people.
But everybody is so welcomingand everything.
Mostly it's couples.
It can be a very romanticcruise.
Um, some families I went withone of my high school
girlfriends, um, I, and I'venever done it, but I could
(12:11):
easily sell sea dream alonebecause it's, you get on board
and immediately you meet people.
Um, this is, it was primarilyAmericans.
Couple of people from the UK, alovely couple from Bermuda,
Netherlands all over the place.
But probably my favorite groupof passengers were 12 Norwegians
who were traveling together andnobody parties like no regions.
(12:34):
That's like, they're the firstones up and the last ones to go
to bed, I don't know where theyfeed them over there.
And it's funny because a few ofthe Norwegians at sales with me
four years before and half thecruise was over before we
realize that.
Um, and there were others thatsay dream fans are a fiercely
dedicated bunch and it doeshappen where you see people who
(12:55):
you've met on previous cruises.
I've celled Hadrian pretty muchsince they first, um, were
launched in, they was launchedin 2001.
I think my first cruise was 2002and I'd probably be been on like
eight times or something, maybenine times.
The one thing though that Ishould point out is it's really
not suitable for children.
(13:16):
There aren't any children'sprograms.
I have seen kids on board andthey were the best behaved
children in all the world.
But I, I don't think I wouldrecommend it for kids.
No, it makes sense.
Yeah.
So see, dreams is going to carrya somewhat higher price tag than
a comparable length.
So large ship cruise, there'salso a great deal more that's
(13:38):
included.
So how does the overall, um,economics work out?
By the time you, uh, add upeverything at the end, obviously
you're not having a lot ofadditional costs on speed dream,
uh, for excursions and things.
You know, it's interesting.
Four years ago when I firststarted sailing with my friend
from high school.
(13:58):
Um, prior to that I sailed withmy husband.
My husband passed away for nappylong ago.
Yeah.
And they still remember him,which is really sort of mind
blowing.
Um, yeah.
Oh absolutely.
But until I started sailing withCarol, the friend I went with
this time, I would have said,the first thing you should do is
(14:19):
start by figuring out what yourtypical bar bill is.
Because of course that's thebiggest, the biggest cost on a,
on a traditional cruise dad or abeverage package or whatever.
And I'm on the other shedstrings of what, like$15 each or
something.
So if you have a margarita, twoor two, when the sun cocktails
before dinner, wine with dinner,maybe a couple of after dinner
(14:39):
drinks that you know how y'allare on vacation.
Sometimes that all adds up.
But the thing with Carol is shedoesn't drink like at all and
she still feels she dreamconsidering the service, the
cuisine, the activities is wellworth the fair.
And I think she's right.
There's something to be said forpaying your passage upfront,
(15:00):
knowing that shit, the onlyextra charges you'll have on
seed dream are gift shoppurchases, spa if you order
something of the fine wines froma special menu, um, and short
excursions.
So, uh, some of those includedthough, well, they, if chief
(15:20):
dream has, uh, you know, richselection of typical short
excursions where you pay extrafor them in every port, but they
also, very often we'll have likein uh, in[inaudible] kids we
tendered into kind of rumble abeach club and the chairs were
free renting the chair for theseat dream passengers, you know,
(15:43):
so that was, that could be yourday if you wanted to do a tour
of the Island or whatever, thatwould be extra.
That would be one of their,their optional assured sturgeons
.
But where they also offer issomething called shoreside
actives, I think the term is,and the club direct.
Oh yeah.
(16:03):
Okay.
I knew I was going to forget alot of stuff.
Anyway, they have a whole bunchof mountain bikes onboard that
guests can take out at no chargeand explore on their own.
But for the short side active,some of them were bike rides led
by the club director and youjust top a bike and he'll point
(16:27):
out things and you get toexplore the Island because he
knows it so well.
So he's the perfect person to uh, to direct everybody.
No, no, that's included as is ifyou take the bike out and
explore on your own, so, andyou'd expect to spend, what
about, uh, about five grandroughly for right?
(16:48):
It depends.
I tell you November is afantastic time to go.
I think.
I think the cost is in the 3000.
And the interesting thing isthat the, the, the suites are
all identical as far as sizeother than like the Admiral
suite or the real high rentdistrict, as I call it.
(17:11):
Um, they're all 195 square feet.
And I'm sorry, that's quitelarge.
Yeah.
But now what makes people I'mgassed in this day and age is
there's no balconies now on abig ship.
If you don't have a balcony,we're talking like a commute to
(17:32):
get to the open air.
You know, elevators areinvolved, lots of staircases,
this and that on seed drain.
You're never more than a fewsteps away from the open air.
And I'm a very early riser, so Iwould go up to the top of the
Akbar where they would have thecontinental breakfast before
regular breakfast starts, havemy coffee in solitude, which was
(17:57):
wonderful.
And that's another good thingabout sea dream.
You can find places of solitudeif you like.
Um, and then go to the gym.
So I, I didn't need a balcony.
I do not miss a balcony on seedgreen whatsoever.
So there are water forceincluded too, right?
(18:17):
There is a sports platform thatis so cool.
You just sign up, you go downthere and you sign up and they
have jet skis, which should go,go soaring across the water on.
And they do water skiing.
They have a Zodiac, which islike an inflatable, um,
inflatable motorboat sort ofthing.
(18:39):
And you just go out and you canwater ski.
They have kayaks, they have allkinds of water toys and again
that is also included as well.
Short excursions might be, youknow, go where you don't
exactly, exactly.
Travel anywhere to get throughit.
Yeah.
Sometimes.
Sometimes you have limited bythe Island there.
Act like some islands will notpermit motorized order sports,
(19:03):
but we had them, I think it wasthree days we had the motorized
water sports and you could evenjust, if you wanted to swim off
the platform, just dive in fromthe platform.
And one of the coolest stories Iever heard, and I've never
experienced it myself, but ontheir Atlantic crossing, when
they come over from Europe forthe Caribbean season, a couple
(19:26):
of years, it was so calm thatthe captain anchored and opened
the spatch a sports platform inthe middle of the ocean.
How cool would that be?
Wow.
So yeah, it's a lot.
I tell you, you do say wow, alot from the sea dream
experience as well, you know,and there's no big production
(19:50):
shows and there's no Vegascasino and there's no eating and
you're not going to find outwhat are the evenings of worship
like.
Okay.
Um, it starts with cocktail hourin the, in the salon and they
will have drink service ofcourse, and a small buffet,
(20:10):
which, and usually supplementedby passed hors d'oeuvres, like
fried shrimp or, or beef onskewers and, and, uh, captain's
cocktail or the welcome partywas a big tin of caviar.
Um, and it's just, you know,which the mingling, that
comradery and all that.
And then the club director willgive an overview of what's going
(20:32):
on the following day.
And then when the spirit movespeople to go to dinner, they,
they, you know, go to dinner.
And that, that of course is sofantastic that that's an
important part of, of the wholeexperience.
And then open seating, openseating, open time.
(20:52):
Um, and then sometimes there'llbe a disco party at the top of
the yard or there'll be a partyat the pool or there's that
piano bar, which we love.
Um, and then there, this mightbe a good time to talk about
sleeping under the stars.
Um, on God, I forget which deck,but the same deck is top of the
(21:16):
yacht beneath the stack.
There are 10 on either side,Portant, starboard, 10 Balinese
sun beds, which people duringthe day, if they want a quiet
place to go, we'll go up thereand read or just Sunday or
whatever.
And also in the, uh, the forwardpart of the ship, there's one
(21:36):
massive Balinese Sunday.
Well, you can, you can reserve asun bed.
And what they do is you canreserve it for sleeping out on
just stars.
And what they do is they dressthis bed in a fitted sheet, uh,
do VA pillows with pillow casesand it becomes like a real bed.
(21:59):
It looks like a real bed.
It feels like a real bed.
So, uh, and people can sleep outall night.
I have never made it all night.
I am a very light sleeper.
Now.
This last cruise we were on, meand my friend did it.
And in the middle of the night Ifelt like I was getting a
(22:20):
massage or something and I feellike somebody patting me all
over what had happened.
I mean, they took these sheetstight.
Well not Judy, you know, whileI'm kicking off the, you know,
my feet have to be out and thewind picks up.
So I am now in a bunch of belowin sales.
It was so funny.
So I went back about three inthe morning.
(22:42):
I'm passing somebody who was,who was polishing the staircase,
brass, you know, and everything,but Oh, I almost forgot this.
Um, when you board the ship,they give you a pair of sea
dream pajamas, saw beautiful,um, like drawstring pants and
like a Henley top.
And they're embroidered with the[inaudible] logo as well as your
(23:04):
name.
So they give you that to sleepout under the stars.
But anyway, but my friend madeit all night and other people
did too.
But it was because I untuckedthose sheets that I was in the
billowing sails.
So it was very funny.
But it's gorgeous.
I mean, you're laying, you'relaying there.
Sometimes you see shooting starsor it was stars and the clouds
(23:26):
and the moon.
It is, it is something, youcan't do that on a mega ship.
You just can, can you, can youdescribe just for listeners who
might not know exactly what aBalinese Sunday is?
It is a, it is a deck, not adeck chair.
They're of built in, um, in onthe both sides of a stack.
(23:51):
And they're, they're basicallysun beds, but the mattress is
probably about 18 inches thickand the back can be adjusted.
So of course they put it flatwhen they make up the bed and
they look like actualmattresses.
So when they make up the bed, itlooks like it's a bed out under
(24:11):
the stars.
It's wonderful.
Yeah, it really is.
It really is just one of many ofsee dreams, amazing experiences.
Well, you mentioned that thesmallest ship gives you access
to ports that are too small formega ships.
Your first stop was the inTortola?
Yeah, well Tortola really wasn'tmy favorite.
(24:32):
It was a substitute for VirginGorda because we had a skip, um,
skip it because of the roughseas and tendering wouldn't have
been safe.
It was a Sunday.
Most everything was closed.
We ended up going back to theship, which is never a bad thing
when you're on seed dream andthat day the sports platform was
open.
So, you know, we could do that.
(24:52):
And again, the, the ambiance isso wonderful when you were on
board a few years ago, I was onseed dream.
I met a couple who never leftthe ship.
So I would come back from thebeach, all Sandy and sunburned
and there'd be, they're fresh asdaisies with a cool drink in
front of them.
And I remember what I said tothe guys that you still haven't
(25:15):
gotten off the ship and he goesfifth day in captivity with a
big smile on his face.
So really there were worsethings than spending the day.
Um, they are intelligent, didn'treally throw me.
Um, and it's, you know, I didn'tgo to the beach or anything like
that, but uh, but it was asubstitute for Virgin Gorda,
(25:36):
which is still recovering fromthe hurricane.
Although the bass, I was therelast year and they are pristine.
It's, it's wonderful there.
So that was a little bit of adisappointment.
But safety always comes firston, on every ship.
So yeah, you don't call, youdon't question the captain.
So you ended up spending a fewdays in st Barts.
(25:57):
You started out at the beachthat we doctrine saints.
We actually got extra time in stBarts because of the rough seas.
We were able, we had to skip andwe let as well, but you know,
when people were a littledisappointed with that.
But then when we heard we weregetting to st Barts a day early,
(26:18):
it's like woo.
You know.
So there was, there was reallyno serious disappointment when
they said that.
And at st Barts we have twodays.
So we figured we do the beachthe first day we do shopping.
The second, first day we went toshell beach, which is walking
distance from where they tender.
So we walked there and shellbeach is very appropriately
(26:41):
named.
It is all shells and we aretalking jagged, you know, like
piercing shells that you can'twalk on with us.
So we just said, Oh this isimpossible.
So we got attacking.
We went to Eden rock, which is abeautiful, beautiful beach.
So we stayed there that day.
You know, we passed that airportwhen we've taken the taxi, a
(27:03):
plane was coming in, it lookedlike it was about 20 feet above
the taxi, which was a scarymoment.
But you know, it was restorativefun to see.
So we spent the whole day there,which was beautiful.
And then the following day wewent shopping and there is, and
you know shopping, let's put itthis way, I went into a grocery
store once just to check out theprices.
(27:27):
Saint Barts is like crazyexpensive.
I saw a little container ofcashew nuts for 38 euros and I'm
like, Oh no, no, no.
So anyway, they have all the bigdesigners, blah, blah, blah.
Dolce and Gabbana, Bulgaria, etcetera, et cetera.
And uh, so there is one storyever since I first went to st
(27:49):
Barts.
I go there and the womanremembers like every one of her
customers.
So I walk in, I, the last time Iwas there was last December and
she's like, welcome, welcome, mr.
and you know what, over theyears I thought it was sort of a
sales scam.
I'm very suspicious of people.
(28:11):
Um, and I feel like, okay, maybeshe knows ships are in, you
know, when it's very exclusiveships, they call it Saint Barts.
So she just assumes these peoplehave been there before.
And she said to me, how have youbeen liking the bag you bought
last year?
You bought the Brown woven one?
And I'm like, okay.
(28:32):
So that theory is shot.
She really does remember me, butthe name of the store is LA.
Ronda fell and they havebeautiful quality leather bags
and shoes.
And then they have a men's storewith these gorgeous linen shirts
and they're for Saint Barts.
They are very reasonable.
My bag was I think 225 euros,which in st Barts, I mean the,
(28:56):
you know, the cashew nuts areprobably about 225 or some you
get a bigger, I don't think theywere bad filler with cashew
nuts.
No.
So, uh, so I love that store,but anywhere else I sort of
addressed in a window, a cottonshift that really was nice.
510 euros.
I'm like, I don't think so.
So uh, yeah, it's goodaspirational shopping or window
(29:20):
shopping, but no thank you.
Gonna really buy anything unlessyou own one of the opposite or
in the Harbor.
And then maybe we could talk alittle better why the more the
folks want to stay on the yard.
Yeah.
Then after that you told usabout, and then your last step,
was that a fun dike, that party,the beach party, this, you know,
(29:43):
I kept saying, I don't even likerevealing the details on board
to first timers because it issuch an incredible experience.
Your spawn.
Dyke is a, an absolutelybeautiful port at white powder
sand beach and the, they, theyarrange deck chairs with the sea
(30:05):
dream towel, this and that andit's their beach barbecue, which
sounds, you know, that's like abeach barbecue.
Oh no, no, no.
First you go out there in theZodiac, which is that inflatable
, um, whatever a motorboat andyou sell out that and that in
itself is a lot of fun.
(30:25):
So you sail out there and youknow, it's, it's a beautiful
beach so everybody is justwaiting in the surf and this and
that.
Of course the bartenders greetyou as you get out of the Zodiac
with either painkillers, whichis a drink that was invented and
you know, spun Dyke at a barcalled the soggy dollar, which
is about like a block away fromthe private section.
(30:49):
We do the beach party and, andor champagne, this and that.
And they are like to refill theguests.
Champagne glasses as the, as theguests are waiting in the surf,
they walk out full uniforms,walk out with the champagne
glasses and are refilling itthere.
(31:09):
They're like, drench.
That's so this is going on.
And if they stopped at that, itwould be surreal.
You know, the, the service inthe water and everything while
you're just waiting there.
And they were, they were likenoodles and floats and stuff.
If you don't want to reallyexert yourself and just float
around.
And then there's, they arearranging caviar on a surfboard.
(31:36):
This is so you've have reallyhave to see it to really grasp
the whole thing and all, youknow, chopped onions and, and
sour cream and know the egg andeverything.
And they go into the water withthis surfboard, the chef and
hotel manager of behind it andthey are serving on Blaney's
(31:59):
caviar and you are in the waterwith your bathing suit, just
taking the bleeding.
He stayed in your, your caviarand everything.
Then the[inaudible] comes outwith a bottle of champagne.
He shakes it up, starts sprayingit all over the place.
Other waiters join them.
And again, this is like chestdeep in the water, just
(32:22):
refilling the Shah is, you know,this serene, quiet beach just
becomes this rock as party.
It is.
Fantastic.
And then, and it seems like that10, a caviar goes on forever,
but then the barbecue, you know,that starts up and you smell the
aromas of the food and it'schicken and pork, ribs and, and
(32:43):
fish and everything.
A full beach barbecue.
Um, they, they actually, um,constructed like a, you know,
the like, uh, what do you callit?
Not a pavilion, but it's, it's acovering in case it rains, which
I've never been at the beachparty when the rains and you
(33:03):
have a full barbecue lunch.
Now some of the more heartypeople like the Norwegians
afterwards go down to soggydollar and keep drinking.
I know my limit.
So I, I just went back on, onthe Zodiac, which that's real.
Oh, let me tell you what Zodiacstory, um, which has nothing to
(33:25):
do with, we're talking about,this is what I said, that I'm
probably going to be all overthe map, but it's just, to me it
was, it was a really nice, niceKeidrian memory.
Um, early on I was on sea dream,probably like 2003, there was a
woman with her daughter.
And the reason they were doingthis cruise is to go into Capri,
(33:48):
um, because they, the woman hadlost her husband a couple of
months before and they had goneon their honeymoon, took a
praise.
So she really wanted to see itagain, blah, blah, blah, blah,
blah.
So the water was really choppyand we were, I was behind this
woman and her daughter gettingon the tender and she couldn't
do it.
She was scared.
She just, you know, she wasafraid of it.
(34:10):
And then she starts crying.
About two minutes later, theactivities director comes up,
takes it by the arm and said,we're taking you by the Zodiac,
which is so easy to get in.
You walk from the sportsplatform, Intuit you one step.
And that's what they did.
So, uh, yeah, when I saidZodiac, I remember that story.
(34:31):
And it's just such a sea dreamstory.
I think it just illustrates theservice, the, you know, they
just totally go out of their wayto make sure everybody is happy
and you know, and then they'revery good like that.
So we're going to absolutelyincredible experience.
(34:54):
Um, God just, just go meanreally.
If you love to be at sea, butyou're, you know, you, you just
start getting stressed over,like being unable to find a
[inaudible] deck chair or youknow, you go to the buffet and
there's no to sit that's notnear as like screaming kids.
Um, if you don't need theelaborate production shows or a
(35:17):
five page daily program that'sfilled with activities that must
have, let's face it, most of usnever do.
Um, and you want an experiencethat's very elusive and can be
total total fun or totalrelaxation.
It's really up to you.
Um, the, the, the things thatthey do, the dish, so special,
(35:41):
the experiences and it, I thinkit would be perfect for like a
honeymoon or, or an anniversaryor a milestone birthday.
I mean, I think it's good nomatter what, but I mean, if you
want to try something differentand something really special, um
, they even do charters.
I mean, imagine a wedding onseed dream.
(36:02):
I've never been to one, but I'veseen photos and it looks amazing
and business meetings and stuff.
Um, but my first time on seedream and I think, I think that
sums it up.
Well, my first time on seadream, we did the Mediterranean
and we disembarked inCivitavecchia and the taxi
driver, we had a car that wasbringing us into Rome and the
(36:26):
taxi driver got into the car,looked at us, looked at, see
drain, then looked back at usagain and said, and I wish I
could do in Italian accent, buthe looked, he looked at Saint
dream and then turned to us andsays, I am thinking that this
one, she has the best one.
Everyone who was leaving dishone, she'd be leaving happy.
And I, he nailed it.
He really nailed it.
(36:47):
I never met anybody who wasunhappy with the sea dream
experience.
It is, it is very different.
Again, not kids, but um, as faras adults or couples can't go
wrong.
Well, I can tell you I'm a, I'ma, after reading your, uh, uh,
your crew's report, which by theway is available on all things,
(37:09):
cruise.com.
I didn't, I didn't see it yet.
Um, and is, uh, even moredetailed.
I think in some spots we had achance to talk about today.
So I would highly recommend thatto, uh, to our listeners.
But I know I'm, uh, I'm anxiousto try this line out.
I've never been, you don't knowwhat you're missing.
(37:30):
And the funniest thing is when Iwas going the first time I was
at a, uh, cruise event and Imentioned it to someone and he
turned to me, this is like 2001or whatever.
He turned to me and he goes,well, go soon they're not going
to last.
That's what he said.
And now what, 20 years later,they are thriving.
(37:51):
So.
Well thank you so very much forsharing your experiences with
us.
It was a very, a very vividjourney for me and again, and
you're made me, made me hungryand uh, and really wanting to
go, well, I'm going to make mybeef stew now.
Talk about how the mighty havefallen, you know, cruise travel
writer, Judy Clairvaux.
(38:12):
Uh, again, you'll find her workat all things through stuck com.
Uh, thank you for very much andto our listeners, thank you so
much for spending time with ustoday.
Hello and welcome back to CruiseCompete's Cruise
Podcast, where we share tips,ideas, and inspiration to help
make your next cruise afantastic experience.
I'm your host Bob Levinstein.
Today's topic is a differenttype of Caribbean cruise than
most of our listeners may befamiliar with; a sailing on the
ultra luxury mega yacht SeaDreamII.
(00:36):
My guest today is Ms.
Judi C uervo, a freelance cruise writer w ho hss travel on
more cruises than she can count.
Among other publications, you can f ind her articles and
experiences onAllThingsCruise.com We'll be
right back with Judy right afterthis.
(01:00):
CruiseCompete.com is a simple concept.
We give you the tools to findthe perfect cruise and request
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You compare these offers in oneconvenient place along with
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(01:23):
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Find out why more than a millioncruisers are members of our free
unique service and start savingboth time and a significant
(01:43):
amount of money on your cruisevacation via CruiseCompete
today.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Welcome back.
My guest today is Ms.
Judi Cuervo, who's been afreelance cruise writer for more
than 20 years.
Judy has recently returned froma seven life cruise aboard the
luxury yacht SeaDream II.
Judy, welcome to the program.
(02:19):
Thank you so much for having me.
Sailing on SeaDream is a verydifferent experience from
sailing on a mega ship (02:25):
fewer people, casual atmosphere, very
personalized service.
How would you summarize theoverall experience and compare
it to more mainstream cruises?
Well, you really have to setaside your concept of a cruise
entirely.
What it's defined as these days.
There are no crowds, no lines.
Even embarkation is just walkingup the gangway and being greeted
(02:47):
by the captain.
See dream when it's sold out canaccommodate 112 passengers.
That's like the capacity of abig ship's life boat for God's
sake.
So, uh, it's, it's a totallydifferent animal.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Um, it, the intimate experience fosters friendships
very, very quickly.
Uh, like compare it from, uh, abig city versus a small towns.
For example.
Um, it's an Island.
Yeah, it's an all inclusivesailing, which means no bar bill
at the end of the sailing, nopaying for bottled water.
Nonsense, no restaurant charges,even gratuities are included.
(03:24):
But that's really just sort ofscratching the surface.
The greatest God, the greatestdifference.
I didn't know where to begin.
The service is extraordinary,but I don't know where they find
these guys.
I mean they were like in their20s.
They're all so professional andso personable and they go beyond
like they might overhear you saysomething like, you really wish
(03:46):
you could try just a bit of somedish on the menu even though
you've ordered somethingdifferent and boom, it'll appear
before you.
You might be in the hot tub anda bar way drill.
Come by with a glass ofchampagne and say this old
completes a picture.
They just totally dedicated toservice and the dining, I can't
even compare it to most cruiseships.
I'd compare it to like thefinest restaurants I've ever
(04:08):
been to at sea.
And then of course there are theamazing things that she dreamed
can pull off since it's such asmall ship.
And I'm not just talking aboutgoing to more exclusive ports
where the big ships can't, can'tgo in.
Um, but they have the sleepingunder the stars, champagne and
caviar splash the water sportsplatform, and there's no
(04:29):
additional charge for any of it.
So let's start out with the shipitself.
Tell me a little bit about,okay.
Mega ships these days, whetherthey'd like more than a hundred
thousand gross tons.
See dream.
Um, I'm sorry.
Yeah, you're right.
Um, see, dream is 4,333 grosstons.
(04:50):
So you won't be seeing any waterslides or racetracks.
So a rollercoaster in fact seedream from the outside.
It just looks like a beautifulyard.
It's like something you wouldlust after in the Harbor.
And the around Saint Barts ornice or any Harbor around the
world, yacht Harbor around theworld.
But in once on board you won'tfind neon and glitz and it feels
(05:11):
like a home, a very beautifulhome.
Um, as far as the public rooms,you have the salon, which is a
circular lounge, cocktail hours,maybe a film in the evening, top
of the yacht, which is myfavorite bar at sea.
It's, it's sort of the socialheart of the yacht.
Open air.
Imagine being there when you'resailing from a Caribbean Island.
(05:33):
Maybe it's sunset bar, barstoolstables, the library I want in my
apartment.
If it could say it'swell-stocked.
Two computers with free internetaccess, plush couches, easy
chairs.
And it's, it's right near thepiano bars.
So peeping off people will oftenflow into the library with the
(05:53):
drinks for conversation.
The piano bar, it's a verymisleading name.
It sounds so staid and quiet.
Oh my God, that is like partycentral most nights.
You know, you might hear sweetCaroline if you have too many
times, but, but pianos can playanything and I hate to admit it,
but I even took the microphoneon the last cruise and totally
(06:15):
mortified myself.
Um, then they have, um, thedining that top of the yacht is
a fabulous outdoor restaurant.
They have breakfast, lunch anddinner.
Their tables are set.
There's no cutlery wrapped in apaper napkin for breakfast.
You'll find a full man for wellbreakfast, lunch and dinner.
It's a full menu supplemented bya small buffet for breakfast and
(06:38):
lunch.
And like for breakfast they'llhave homemade yogurts, cereals,
breads, this thing called thepower shot, which is like carrot
juice with vegetables andginger.
I always got extra ginger forthe kick lunches, the same full
menu set tables, small buffet,which usually has like really
(06:58):
sweet crab legs on sun, somedayshuge New Zealand mus muscles,
all sorts of salad.
But again, it's just an openerfor a real full menu.
And the tables are set like areal restaurant.
Um, the, your favorite meals onboard, the favorite meals.
Oh God.
As lobster Chateau Brennan.
Dos.
So Buco they had a Joe over soul, which I don't know the word
(07:22):
for this, like they delayed itand put the scale, like the
bones of it were part of thepresentation.
It's hard to describe, but itwas just so beautiful.
Pastas, I love the pastas.
There's like no boiled up runSony here.
Um, Yogi, Oh my God.
They had an Yogi that was servedin a fried cheese basket and you
(07:45):
won't give wonder why I have togo to the gym on the ship every
morning and the gym is small.
Um, but I do the elliptical.
There's one elliptical and like,what is it, four treadmills,
free weights.
Um, and I would go every morningand nobody was ever on that
elliptical.
(08:05):
In fact, there were only liketwo, I don't think more than two
people were there when I went,which I find amazing with the
food, but I'm just going back tothe food for a second.
I ordered mushroom soup, which,you know, whatever everybody
else was having three courses.
So I got the soup.
My God, this thing like changedmy life.
It was like even the appetizersare just so amazing.
(08:29):
I mean the aroma of that soupthat tastes, that earthy
warming.
And I remember saying to thefriend I traveled with, I said,
I want to wash my hair in thissoup.
And I tested the chefs so muchor they finally gave me the
recipe probably just to get ridof me.
And that includes truffles.
So I won't be making thatanytime soon.
But, um, the other thing aboutthe food though is they have a
(08:52):
very good selection ofplant-based and vegan dishes.
And I'm not vegan as you couldprobably tell from the Chateau
Brianne that I mentioned.
Um, but I was tempted by a lotof the dishes.
Lentil Shepherd's pie.
That sounds wonderful.
Vegan chocolate mousse cake.
There were really, there was onecruise I went on with she dream
(09:14):
where there was a very strictvegan onboard and she was
delighted with the options.
It's very inventive stuff.
Um, you know, it's not boringfood.
They do, they have a selectionof every night, which is a
little less extravagant.
If you, you know, sometimes youwere on a cruise and you're like
sick of the elaborate everysingle night and you just want
(09:36):
like a chicken breast orsomething and you could
certainly get that.
And then I don't, don't get mestarted on the desserts.
They have this preservativesextravaganza that just, it's
like half a city block ofdifferent desserts that look
beautiful and are beautiful.
And I managed to only have thecreme per leg, which was worth
it.
So Jim, based on the fact thatit was completely empty, I think
(09:59):
that, Oh, absolutely.
Absolutely.
I have noticed one of the funnythings, if you're on one of the
mega ships, if you go to the gymon like the first morning, day
four or five, yeah.
You just say, forget it.
It's hopeless.
I'll do it with what I get home.
(10:21):
So why don't you, and it waspretty impressive, impressive
bartenders on board as well.
This not only bartenders,everybody, um, the entire staff
is just phenomenal.
But, uh, the, I remember thisone, one bartender, Byron, um,
he, I was on last Christmas andhe had just started and he was
(10:43):
such a shy little boy and thelast night, you know how you
dress very casual the last nighttoo, cause you're probably going
to be going home wearing thesame outfit I wore jeans and a
Marvel tee shirt.
Cause then my nine to fiveexistence, I work with Marvel
and he comes over to me and hesays, Oh ma'am, I love that
t-shirt.
I've been a Marvel fan since Iwas a little boy and we were
(11:07):
talking a short conversation.
I go on last week and I see himand he's like the Marvel woman.
It's so good to have you.
How did he remember this?
It was amazing, but he's not shyanymore because he and a fellow
bartender did it like a Tomcruise in cocktail performance,
(11:28):
juggling shakers and martiniglasses and all sorts of stuff.
So, uh, he fits in beautifully.
He really does.
But it's amazing how theyremember you.
It really is.
Once we get the passenger's likeon board.
Well the one is, this is, thisis the high end cruise
experience.
(11:48):
Um, but nobody is snooty.
Maybe.
Maybe you have to be to one salewith only 112 people.
But everybody is so welcomingand everything.
Mostly it's couples.
It can be a very romanticcruise.
Um, some families I went withone of my high school
girlfriends, um, I, and I'venever done it, but I could
(12:11):
easily sell sea dream alonebecause it's, you get on board
and immediately you meet people.
Um, this is, it was primarilyAmericans.
Couple of people from the UK, alovely couple from Bermuda,
Netherlands all over the place.
But probably my favorite groupof passengers were 12 Norwegians
who were traveling together andnobody parties like no regions.
(12:34):
That's like, they're the firstones up and the last ones to go
to bed, I don't know where theyfeed them over there.
And it's funny because a few ofthe Norwegians at sales with me
four years before and half thecruise was over before we
realize that.
Um, and there were others thatsay dream fans are a fiercely
dedicated bunch and it doeshappen where you see people who
(12:55):
you've met on previous cruises.
I've celled Hadrian pretty muchsince they first, um, were
launched in, they was launchedin 2001.
I think my first cruise was 2002and I'd probably be been on like
eight times or something, maybenine times.
The one thing though that Ishould point out is it's really
not suitable for children.
(13:16):
There aren't any children'sprograms.
I have seen kids on board andthey were the best behaved
children in all the world.
But I, I don't think I wouldrecommend it for kids.
No, it makes sense.
Yeah.
So see, dreams is going to carrya somewhat higher price tag than
a comparable length.
So large ship cruise, there'salso a great deal more that's
(13:38):
included.
So how does the overall, um,economics work out?
By the time you, uh, add upeverything at the end, obviously
you're not having a lot ofadditional costs on speed dream,
uh, for excursions and things.
You know, it's interesting.
Four years ago when I firststarted sailing with my friend
from high school.
(13:58):
Um, prior to that I sailed withmy husband.
My husband passed away for nappylong ago.
Yeah.
And they still remember him,which is really sort of mind
blowing.
Um, yeah.
Oh absolutely.
But until I started sailing withCarol, the friend I went with
this time, I would have said,the first thing you should do is
(14:19):
start by figuring out what yourtypical bar bill is.
Because of course that's thebiggest, the biggest cost on a,
on a traditional cruise dad or abeverage package or whatever.
And I'm on the other shedstrings of what, like$15 each or
something.
So if you have a margarita, twoor two, when the sun cocktails
before dinner, wine with dinner,maybe a couple of after dinner
(14:39):
drinks that you know how y'allare on vacation.
Sometimes that all adds up.
But the thing with Carol is shedoesn't drink like at all and
she still feels she dreamconsidering the service, the
cuisine, the activities is wellworth the fair.
And I think she's right.
There's something to be said forpaying your passage upfront,
(15:00):
knowing that shit, the onlyextra charges you'll have on
seed dream are gift shoppurchases, spa if you order
something of the fine wines froma special menu, um, and short
excursions.
So, uh, some of those includedthough, well, they, if chief
(15:20):
dream has, uh, you know, richselection of typical short
excursions where you pay extrafor them in every port, but they
also, very often we'll have likein uh, in[inaudible] kids we
tendered into kind of rumble abeach club and the chairs were
free renting the chair for theseat dream passengers, you know,
(15:43):
so that was, that could be yourday if you wanted to do a tour
of the Island or whatever, thatwould be extra.
That would be one of their,their optional assured sturgeons
.
But where they also offer issomething called shoreside
actives, I think the term is,and the club direct.
Oh yeah.
(16:03):
Okay.
I knew I was going to forget alot of stuff.
Anyway, they have a whole bunchof mountain bikes onboard that
guests can take out at no chargeand explore on their own.
But for the short side active,some of them were bike rides led
by the club director and youjust top a bike and he'll point
(16:27):
out things and you get toexplore the Island because he
knows it so well.
So he's the perfect person to uh, to direct everybody.
No, no, that's included as is ifyou take the bike out and
explore on your own, so, andyou'd expect to spend, what
about, uh, about five grandroughly for right?
(16:48):
It depends.
I tell you November is afantastic time to go.
I think.
I think the cost is in the 3000.
And the interesting thing isthat the, the, the suites are
all identical as far as sizeother than like the Admiral
suite or the real high rentdistrict, as I call it.
(17:11):
Um, they're all 195 square feet.
And I'm sorry, that's quitelarge.
Yeah.
But now what makes people I'mgassed in this day and age is
there's no balconies now on abig ship.
If you don't have a balcony,we're talking like a commute to
(17:32):
get to the open air.
You know, elevators areinvolved, lots of staircases,
this and that on seed drain.
You're never more than a fewsteps away from the open air.
And I'm a very early riser, so Iwould go up to the top of the
Akbar where they would have thecontinental breakfast before
regular breakfast starts, havemy coffee in solitude, which was
(17:57):
wonderful.
And that's another good thingabout sea dream.
You can find places of solitudeif you like.
Um, and then go to the gym.
So I, I didn't need a balcony.
I do not miss a balcony on seedgreen whatsoever.
So there are water forceincluded too, right?
(18:17):
There is a sports platform thatis so cool.
You just sign up, you go downthere and you sign up and they
have jet skis, which should go,go soaring across the water on.
And they do water skiing.
They have a Zodiac, which islike an inflatable, um,
inflatable motorboat sort ofthing.
(18:39):
And you just go out and you canwater ski.
They have kayaks, they have allkinds of water toys and again
that is also included as well.
Short excursions might be, youknow, go where you don't
exactly, exactly.
Travel anywhere to get throughit.
Yeah.
Sometimes.
Sometimes you have limited bythe Island there.
Act like some islands will notpermit motorized order sports,
(19:03):
but we had them, I think it wasthree days we had the motorized
water sports and you could evenjust, if you wanted to swim off
the platform, just dive in fromthe platform.
And one of the coolest stories Iever heard, and I've never
experienced it myself, but ontheir Atlantic crossing, when
they come over from Europe forthe Caribbean season, a couple
(19:26):
of years, it was so calm thatthe captain anchored and opened
the spatch a sports platform inthe middle of the ocean.
How cool would that be?
Wow.
So yeah, it's a lot.
I tell you, you do say wow, alot from the sea dream
experience as well, you know,and there's no big production
(19:50):
shows and there's no Vegascasino and there's no eating and
you're not going to find outwhat are the evenings of worship
like.
Okay.
Um, it starts with cocktail hourin the, in the salon and they
will have drink service ofcourse, and a small buffet,
(20:10):
which, and usually supplementedby passed hors d'oeuvres, like
fried shrimp or, or beef onskewers and, and, uh, captain's
cocktail or the welcome partywas a big tin of caviar.
Um, and it's just, you know,which the mingling, that
comradery and all that.
And then the club director willgive an overview of what's going
(20:32):
on the following day.
And then when the spirit movespeople to go to dinner, they,
they, you know, go to dinner.
And that, that of course is sofantastic that that's an
important part of, of the wholeexperience.
And then open seating, openseating, open time.
(20:52):
Um, and then sometimes there'llbe a disco party at the top of
the yard or there'll be a partyat the pool or there's that
piano bar, which we love.
Um, and then there, this mightbe a good time to talk about
sleeping under the stars.
Um, on God, I forget which deck,but the same deck is top of the
(21:16):
yacht beneath the stack.
There are 10 on either side,Portant, starboard, 10 Balinese
sun beds, which people duringthe day, if they want a quiet
place to go, we'll go up thereand read or just Sunday or
whatever.
And also in the, uh, the forwardpart of the ship, there's one
(21:36):
massive Balinese Sunday.
Well, you can, you can reserve asun bed.
And what they do is you canreserve it for sleeping out on
just stars.
And what they do is they dressthis bed in a fitted sheet, uh,
do VA pillows with pillow casesand it becomes like a real bed.
(21:59):
It looks like a real bed.
It feels like a real bed.
So, uh, and people can sleep outall night.
I have never made it all night.
I am a very light sleeper.
Now.
This last cruise we were on, meand my friend did it.
And in the middle of the night Ifelt like I was getting a
(22:20):
massage or something and I feellike somebody patting me all
over what had happened.
I mean, they took these sheetstight.
Well not Judy, you know, whileI'm kicking off the, you know,
my feet have to be out and thewind picks up.
So I am now in a bunch of belowin sales.
It was so funny.
So I went back about three inthe morning.
(22:42):
I'm passing somebody who was,who was polishing the staircase,
brass, you know, and everything,but Oh, I almost forgot this.
Um, when you board the ship,they give you a pair of sea
dream pajamas, saw beautiful,um, like drawstring pants and
like a Henley top.
And they're embroidered with the[inaudible] logo as well as your
(23:04):
name.
So they give you that to sleepout under the stars.
But anyway, but my friend madeit all night and other people
did too.
But it was because I untuckedthose sheets that I was in the
billowing sails.
So it was very funny.
But it's gorgeous.
I mean, you're laying, you'relaying there.
Sometimes you see shooting starsor it was stars and the clouds
(23:26):
and the moon.
It is, it is something, youcan't do that on a mega ship.
You just can, can you, can youdescribe just for listeners who
might not know exactly what aBalinese Sunday is?
It is a, it is a deck, not adeck chair.
They're of built in, um, in onthe both sides of a stack.
(23:51):
And they're, they're basicallysun beds, but the mattress is
probably about 18 inches thickand the back can be adjusted.
So of course they put it flatwhen they make up the bed and
they look like actualmattresses.
So when they make up the bed, itlooks like it's a bed out under
(24:11):
the stars.
It's wonderful.
Yeah, it really is.
It really is just one of many ofsee dreams, amazing experiences.
Well, you mentioned that thesmallest ship gives you access
to ports that are too small formega ships.
Your first stop was the inTortola?
Yeah, well Tortola really wasn'tmy favorite.
(24:32):
It was a substitute for VirginGorda because we had a skip, um,
skip it because of the roughseas and tendering wouldn't have
been safe.
It was a Sunday.
Most everything was closed.
We ended up going back to theship, which is never a bad thing
when you're on seed dream andthat day the sports platform was
open.
So, you know, we could do that.
(24:52):
And again, the, the ambiance isso wonderful when you were on
board a few years ago, I was onseed dream.
I met a couple who never leftthe ship.
So I would come back from thebeach, all Sandy and sunburned
and there'd be, they're fresh asdaisies with a cool drink in
front of them.
And I remember what I said tothe guys that you still haven't
(25:15):
gotten off the ship and he goesfifth day in captivity with a
big smile on his face.
So really there were worsethings than spending the day.
Um, they are intelligent, didn'treally throw me.
Um, and it's, you know, I didn'tgo to the beach or anything like
that, but uh, but it was asubstitute for Virgin Gorda,
(25:36):
which is still recovering fromthe hurricane.
Although the bass, I was therelast year and they are pristine.
It's, it's wonderful there.
So that was a little bit of adisappointment.
But safety always comes firston, on every ship.
So yeah, you don't call, youdon't question the captain.
So you ended up spending a fewdays in st Barts.
(25:57):
You started out at the beachthat we doctrine saints.
We actually got extra time in stBarts because of the rough seas.
We were able, we had to skip andwe let as well, but you know,
when people were a littledisappointed with that.
But then when we heard we weregetting to st Barts a day early,
(26:18):
it's like woo.
You know.
So there was, there was reallyno serious disappointment when
they said that.
And at st Barts we have twodays.
So we figured we do the beachthe first day we do shopping.
The second, first day we went toshell beach, which is walking
distance from where they tender.
So we walked there and shellbeach is very appropriately
(26:41):
named.
It is all shells and we aretalking jagged, you know, like
piercing shells that you can'twalk on with us.
So we just said, Oh this isimpossible.
So we got attacking.
We went to Eden rock, which is abeautiful, beautiful beach.
So we stayed there that day.
You know, we passed that airportwhen we've taken the taxi, a
(27:03):
plane was coming in, it lookedlike it was about 20 feet above
the taxi, which was a scarymoment.
But you know, it was restorativefun to see.
So we spent the whole day there,which was beautiful.
And then the following day wewent shopping and there is, and
you know shopping, let's put itthis way, I went into a grocery
store once just to check out theprices.
(27:27):
Saint Barts is like crazyexpensive.
I saw a little container ofcashew nuts for 38 euros and I'm
like, Oh no, no, no.
So anyway, they have all the bigdesigners, blah, blah, blah.
Dolce and Gabbana, Bulgaria, etcetera, et cetera.
And uh, so there is one storyever since I first went to st
(27:49):
Barts.
I go there and the womanremembers like every one of her
customers.
So I walk in, I, the last time Iwas there was last December and
she's like, welcome, welcome, mr.
and you know what, over theyears I thought it was sort of a
sales scam.
I'm very suspicious of people.
(28:11):
Um, and I feel like, okay, maybeshe knows ships are in, you
know, when it's very exclusiveships, they call it Saint Barts.
So she just assumes these peoplehave been there before.
And she said to me, how have youbeen liking the bag you bought
last year?
You bought the Brown woven one?
And I'm like, okay.
(28:32):
So that theory is shot.
She really does remember me, butthe name of the store is LA.
Ronda fell and they havebeautiful quality leather bags
and shoes.
And then they have a men's storewith these gorgeous linen shirts
and they're for Saint Barts.
They are very reasonable.
My bag was I think 225 euros,which in st Barts, I mean the,
(28:56):
you know, the cashew nuts areprobably about 225 or some you
get a bigger, I don't think theywere bad filler with cashew
nuts.
No.
So, uh, so I love that store,but anywhere else I sort of
addressed in a window, a cottonshift that really was nice.
510 euros.
I'm like, I don't think so.
So uh, yeah, it's goodaspirational shopping or window
(29:20):
shopping, but no thank you.
Gonna really buy anything unlessyou own one of the opposite or
in the Harbor.
And then maybe we could talk alittle better why the more the
folks want to stay on the yard.
Yeah.
Then after that you told usabout, and then your last step,
was that a fun dike, that party,the beach party, this, you know,
(29:43):
I kept saying, I don't even likerevealing the details on board
to first timers because it issuch an incredible experience.
Your spawn.
Dyke is a, an absolutelybeautiful port at white powder
sand beach and the, they, theyarrange deck chairs with the sea
(30:05):
dream towel, this and that andit's their beach barbecue, which
sounds, you know, that's like abeach barbecue.
Oh no, no, no.
First you go out there in theZodiac, which is that inflatable
, um, whatever a motorboat andyou sell out that and that in
itself is a lot of fun.
(30:25):
So you sail out there and youknow, it's, it's a beautiful
beach so everybody is justwaiting in the surf and this and
that.
Of course the bartenders greetyou as you get out of the Zodiac
with either painkillers, whichis a drink that was invented and
you know, spun Dyke at a barcalled the soggy dollar, which
is about like a block away fromthe private section.
(30:49):
We do the beach party and, andor champagne, this and that.
And they are like to refill theguests.
Champagne glasses as the, as theguests are waiting in the surf,
they walk out full uniforms,walk out with the champagne
glasses and are refilling itthere.
(31:09):
They're like, drench.
That's so this is going on.
And if they stopped at that, itwould be surreal.
You know, the, the service inthe water and everything while
you're just waiting there.
And they were, they were likenoodles and floats and stuff.
If you don't want to reallyexert yourself and just float
around.
And then there's, they arearranging caviar on a surfboard.
(31:36):
This is so you've have reallyhave to see it to really grasp
the whole thing and all, youknow, chopped onions and, and
sour cream and know the egg andeverything.
And they go into the water withthis surfboard, the chef and
hotel manager of behind it andthey are serving on Blaney's
(31:59):
caviar and you are in the waterwith your bathing suit, just
taking the bleeding.
He stayed in your, your caviarand everything.
Then the[inaudible] comes outwith a bottle of champagne.
He shakes it up, starts sprayingit all over the place.
Other waiters join them.
And again, this is like chestdeep in the water, just
(32:22):
refilling the Shah is, you know,this serene, quiet beach just
becomes this rock as party.
It is.
Fantastic.
And then, and it seems like that10, a caviar goes on forever,
but then the barbecue, you know,that starts up and you smell the
aromas of the food and it'schicken and pork, ribs and, and
(32:43):
fish and everything.
A full beach barbecue.
Um, they, they actually, um,constructed like a, you know,
the like, uh, what do you callit?
Not a pavilion, but it's, it's acovering in case it rains, which
I've never been at the beachparty when the rains and you
(33:03):
have a full barbecue lunch.
Now some of the more heartypeople like the Norwegians
afterwards go down to soggydollar and keep drinking.
I know my limit.
So I, I just went back on, onthe Zodiac, which that's real.
Oh, let me tell you what Zodiacstory, um, which has nothing to
(33:25):
do with, we're talking about,this is what I said, that I'm
probably going to be all overthe map, but it's just, to me it
was, it was a really nice, niceKeidrian memory.
Um, early on I was on sea dream,probably like 2003, there was a
woman with her daughter.
And the reason they were doingthis cruise is to go into Capri,
(33:48):
um, because they, the woman hadlost her husband a couple of
months before and they had goneon their honeymoon, took a
praise.
So she really wanted to see itagain, blah, blah, blah, blah,
blah.
So the water was really choppyand we were, I was behind this
woman and her daughter gettingon the tender and she couldn't
do it.
She was scared.
She just, you know, she wasafraid of it.
(34:10):
And then she starts crying.
About two minutes later, theactivities director comes up,
takes it by the arm and said,we're taking you by the Zodiac,
which is so easy to get in.
You walk from the sportsplatform, Intuit you one step.
And that's what they did.
So, uh, yeah, when I saidZodiac, I remember that story.
(34:31):
And it's just such a sea dreamstory.
I think it just illustrates theservice, the, you know, they
just totally go out of their wayto make sure everybody is happy
and you know, and then they'revery good like that.
So we're going to absolutelyincredible experience.
(34:54):
Um, God just, just go meanreally.
If you love to be at sea, butyou're, you know, you, you just
start getting stressed over,like being unable to find a
[inaudible] deck chair or youknow, you go to the buffet and
there's no to sit that's notnear as like screaming kids.
Um, if you don't need theelaborate production shows or a
(35:17):
five page daily program that'sfilled with activities that must
have, let's face it, most of usnever do.
Um, and you want an experiencethat's very elusive and can be
total total fun or totalrelaxation.
It's really up to you.
Um, the, the, the things thatthey do, the dish, so special,
(35:41):
the experiences and it, I thinkit would be perfect for like a
honeymoon or, or an anniversaryor a milestone birthday.
I mean, I think it's good nomatter what, but I mean, if you
want to try something differentand something really special, um
, they even do charters.
I mean, imagine a wedding onseed dream.
(36:02):
I've never been to one, but I'veseen photos and it looks amazing
and business meetings and stuff.
Um, but my first time on seedream and I think, I think that
sums it up.
Well, my first time on seadream, we did the Mediterranean
and we disembarked inCivitavecchia and the taxi
driver, we had a car that wasbringing us into Rome and the
(36:26):
taxi driver got into the car,looked at us, looked at, see
drain, then looked back at usagain and said, and I wish I
could do in Italian accent, buthe looked, he looked at Saint
dream and then turned to us andsays, I am thinking that this
one, she has the best one.
Everyone who was leaving dishone, she'd be leaving happy.
And I, he nailed it.
He really nailed it.
(36:47):
I never met anybody who wasunhappy with the sea dream
experience.
It is, it is very different.
Again, not kids, but um, as faras adults or couples can't go
wrong.
Well, I can tell you I'm a, I'ma, after reading your, uh, uh,
your crew's report, which by theway is available on all things,
(37:09):
cruise.com.
I didn't, I didn't see it yet.
Um, and is, uh, even moredetailed.
I think in some spots we had achance to talk about today.
So I would highly recommend thatto, uh, to our listeners.
But I know I'm, uh, I'm anxiousto try this line out.
I've never been, you don't knowwhat you're missing.
(37:30):
And the funniest thing is when Iwas going the first time I was
at a, uh, cruise event and Imentioned it to someone and he
turned to me, this is like 2001or whatever.
He turned to me and he goes,well, go soon they're not going
to last.
That's what he said.
And now what, 20 years later,they are thriving.
(37:51):
So.
Well thank you so very much forsharing your experiences with
us.
It was a very, a very vividjourney for me and again, and
you're made me, made me hungryand uh, and really wanting to
go, well, I'm going to make mybeef stew now.
Talk about how the mighty havefallen, you know, cruise travel
writer, Judy Clairvaux.
(38:12):
Uh, again, you'll find her workat all things through stuck com.
Uh, thank you for very much andto our listeners, thank you so
much for spending time with ustoday.
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