Disney Magic Review
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My family has cruised the Caribbean a handful of times. We love the vibe of the Caribbean but yearned for different ports, and a more port intensive cruise compared to the usual 2-3 ports that you get on a standard Eastern or Western cruise. That put a Southern Caribbean on our bucket list. When we saw that one of our favorite ships, The Magic, was sailing just a handful of Southern itineraries we did what we could to be on that ship.
This cruise left from San Juan. We had called on San Juan once before during an eastern sailing that diverted there instead of St Martin because of a tropical storm. We decided then that a few hours didn't do that town justice and were eager to visit again. We spent 2 nights pre-cruise and an additional night post cruise in San Juan to do some exploring and lots of eating.
I booked our cruise, and subsequently the flights fairly last minute. While that gave us a good deal on the cruise the flight cost probably made up for that as they were not as inexpensive as they would have been a month earlier. The flight was about 4 hours from Philly and was pretty uneventful. While there were long lines getting out of the airport and to a car in San Juan, it did not take too long and it was easy - good signage - to get a cab to our hotel. It was hard to decide whether or not to stay in old city, on the beach, or near the port for a 2 pre cruise days. We ended up staying near the port at a Hyatt House. We had a one bedroom with a kitchenette which worked well for the 4 of us. The hotel had a pool and a lounge - free breakfast. We also had a room with a cruise terminal view - nice bonus to see our ship pulling in! That is always good for building the excitement. There were a few restaurants in walking distance and both the port and old city were a quick cab ride away. It was quite lovely though and I would definitely visit again.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom
The cabin was good for our family of four. Large porthole shaped window. Pull down bunk and sofa bed plus a king sized bed. Split bathroom - adequate storage and closet space. Space under your bed for suitcases. No crazy noises or smells. quick walk to the stairs and elevator. Loved this location when we came back from excursions, one flight of stairs and your are back in your room.
Port Reviews
St. Kitts (Port Zante)
I expect our experience was only average because we didn't visit anywhere except the local shops. The port is good for your brand name and run of the mill cruise ship type stores. Lots of jewelry and perfume and trinkets. Easy port to walk around though
Martinique
Walked around port, lots of local stalls and shops intermixed with the bigger cruise line type stores (think Diamonds International etc). There is a small park and swimming area close to the port if you want to do that.
San Juan
Beautiful town. Easy to walk around. Visited both Castillo San Felipe del Morro and Castillo San Cristóbal- can walk from one to the other OR you can use their trolly. The walk is quite scenic though so if you can handle about a half mile I suggest it. The enterance cost is minimal, I want to say it was $7 per person.
We ate at Restaurant Raices for lunch one day and it was super authentic and delicious. Great service too. You must have coffee from Cafe Colao which is close to the port where some of the visiting ships come in at.
We went to Metropol another night for dinner - I think it is a chain. Service was great and the food was really good. I have no way of knowing if it was authentic but the mofongo was delicious.