Miramar

I have just returned from my second trip aboard the Arabella. The Arabella is a 3 masted schooner operated by Atlantic Stars/Classic Cruises of Newport, RI (www.cruisearabella.com). My first cruise aboard Arabella was their classic British Virgin Islands itinerary last May. I enjoyed the experience so much, that I decided to book again for this year and opted for the Spanish Virgin Islands this time. The SVI itinerary also includes islands in the BVI and USVI. Sailing aboard the Arabella is unlike a traditional, large cruise ship experience; for one thing, it is a sailboat and guests are housed in 20 cabins with the maximum capacity being 40 passengers (which apparently is never/rarely reached). Dress is very casual—in fact you can live in shorts and flip flops all week long. What initially attracted me to this boat was the itinerary, but what keeps me coming back are the friendly and professional crew, adult mix of passengers and the fun island itineraries. This is definitely a vacation where you can do as much or as little as you like.

If you have sailed aboard this vessel before, you have the opportunity at the end of your cruise to put down a deposit on a future sailing (open ended—so you pick the date later) and get a discounted rate on your next cruise. I took advantage of this on my first sailing and was eager to book this next one. I booked this cruise last July so I had several months to look forward to and anticipate it. If you sail as a single, you will pay a single supplement (the per person rate plus 50%). If you want to save money, I suggest sailing in May—the cruise rates are cheaper and if you stay in a hotel the night before or after in St. Thomas, those rates will be cheaper as well.

The majority of the Arabella Caribbean itineraries run from Sunday to Saturday, but I always like to fly in a day ahead for cruises to avoid any stress from possible misdirected luggage or flight problems. The SVI cruise departs from St. Thomas and since I was going in April this year and not May, I was able to take advantage of the nonstop flight American Airlines runs from Boston to St. Thomas during high season. I departed Boston Saturday morning at 10am and arrived in St. Thomas at about 1:35pm. I made my way to the baggage carousel and waited about 15 minutes to claim my bag. The taxi stand is just outside the baggage claim area so I went outside and quickly got a cab assignment. Most cabs from the airport are shared rides and they assign you a car depending on where you are going. Since my hotel was so close by though, I ended up getting a private ride.

I had booked a night at the Best Western Emerald Beach Resort. This hotel is located about a half mile down the road from the airport (there is another Best Western Caribe literally right next to the airport, but reviews rate the Emerald Beach higher). It would be possible to walk to the hotel from the airport in about 10 minutes, but carrying a duffel bag in the heat, I opted to take a cab instead. The fare to my hotel was $6 and took about 3 minutes. Fares are person, so it’s more expensive the more people in your party.

Due to the resort nature of the island, it can be difficult to find a place that will accept 1 night stays. This hotel was one of a few willing to take a one night stay and offered a reasonable rate as well.
I arrived at the hotel about 2:15pm, but the room was not going to be ready until 4pm, so I changed my clothes and checked my bag to go and sit by the pool. The pool area is quite nice, with a waterfall and a mix of lounge chairs and wicker tables/chairs. At 4pm I went to get my room assignment and was given room 2207 on the second floor of the 3 story hotel. The hotel is made up of 3 guest buildings plus the main lobby building and I was in the center building. One of the nice things about this hotel, is that every room has an oceanfront view of the beach with a balcony. The rooms have tile floors, floral drapes and wicker furniture. My only complaint was that I could not get any hot water out of the shower---it was only luke warm (good thing it is a warm climate).

Dinner was at the Portobello Restaurant. The hotel has one main restaurant plus the beach bar and the main restaurant functions as the Palms Restaurant most nights and is Portobello one night per week. It’s a large open air, tiered room with wooden shutters that they keep open. Portobello has an Italian, steak and seafood menu. I had the NY Strip with shallot demi glace and a baked potato. For dessert I had the chocolate cake. The meal was enjoyable and the sunset view was nice and relaxing. After dinner I walked around a bit and sat on my balcony and enjoyed the sounds of the ocean in the warm night air.

Miramar

Sunday morning I woke up about 8am and made my way down to the pool to sit for the morning. I selected a chaise under a thatched umbrella and read until noon when I went back to the room to collect my luggage to check at the front desk until it was time to leave the hotel. I then had a cheeseburger for lunch at the beach bar and read some more until it was 2pm and it was time to depart for the Arabella.

I got a cab outside the hotel, but it was a little sketchy because I think it was a gypsy cab, but that is all that was there . . . . I made sure to have them quote me a price before I got in (I think it was $15 or $18 --can’t recall) and began my ride to the American Yacht Harbor in Red Hook. I arrived at the harbor about 2:30-2:45pm and met Arabella rep Sara at the pier to give her my luggage. The Arabella has someone shore side from 2-4pm to collect bags and then you board at 4pm. I knew Sara from last year, as she was part of the crew then as well. Normally her duties are shore side but I found out she would be sailing with us again this week, as they were short a Stewardess (Stew) so she would be filling in.

At 3:45pm we started to gather to get ready to board. There were 30 of us this trip and the boat sends a 15 passenger tender to get to you to and from shore. I got on the first tender trip and off we went! Upon arrival at the Arabella, First Mate Debbie greeted us on the boarding ladder. I also knew her from last year, as she was serving as Captain the week I had sailed. We filed in and I met Stew Shelby and reunited with my friend Russ, who is a deck hand on board. Upon boarding you receive a welcome rum punch and are also tasked with filling out your customs forms. You then hand in your passport, forms and port charges they keep your passport for the duration of the cruise.
After dropping my bag, I went upstairs to read on a terrace while I waited for 4pm to come around. There are also several restaurants/bars in the complex that you could go to in order to pass the time, as well as some shops to look in.

After filling out my forms, I went down to my room #12 to unpack. Last year I had room #11 which is directly across the hall from #12, so I had to be careful to go in the correct room for the first couple days! Room #12 is a B class cabin so it is relatively spacious with a double bed, 4 drawers for storage and the sink is also in the room. The shower and toilet are also connected to the room but are in their own enclosure. Since I knew what to expect this year, it only took about 15 min for me to unpack everything and put things where I wanted, so I was then free to roam around the boat while we waited for the 5pm Captain’s Call (meeting). We all gathered out on the covered outdoor seating area and the crew were all introduced and they told us what to expect, rules/regulations and logistics for the week. For crew we had Captain Sandy, Mate Debbie, Deck hands Russ and Caleb, Chef John, Engineer Jim and Stews Shelby and Sara. After that we went around the circle and everyone introduced themselves and said where they were from. On our cruise we had 30 guests ranging from Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio, Colorado, Georgia, Delaware and Europe. At this meeting we also had to let them know if we wanted to go to the Bio Luminescent Bay on Vieques Monday night (there is a separate charge for this of $34/person and I think they said they can only take 30 people) and we had to tell them what meal we wanted for our dinner at Club Seabourne on Culebra. There was also the option of signing up for an optional horseback riding trip on Vieques which you had to let them know if you wanted to go on ahead of time. So if you do the Spanish Virgin Islands trip, get ready to make a lot of decisions in your first hour onboard!

Around 6pm we set sail for St. John where we would anchor for the night not far from Cruz Bay. One thing those of us who had sailed the Arabella before were disappointed about was the deletion of the first night dinner ashore at Caneel Bay’s Equator Restaurant. Many of us agreed that it was our favorite dining experience on previous voyages and it used to start the cruise out on a really high note. They have now gone to having dinner on board the first night and while John does a very nice job with preparing the meals and they are always good and varied, a night at Caneel Bay can’t be beat! Dinner tonight was an Asian and sushi theme. I don’t eat seafood, but they also had chicken satay and some Asian rice noodles so I made a meal of that. I especially enjoyed the chicken.

After dinner (approx 8pm) you had the option of going into downtown Cruz Bay. Many people including myself took advantage of this. I went with 2 other women to check out the souvenir shops and then we went to Castaways bar for a couple of drinks, where we were joined by some other people from the boat. To get back to the boat from shore, they run the tender on the hour up until midnight, so I opted to get the 10pm tender back to the boat where I hung out with Russ for a while to catch up.

Miramar

Monday I woke up at 6am and had a slice of banana bread for breakfast. Breakfast onboard consists of a baked product which is brought out around 6 or 6:30am and hot items such as bacon, eggs, pancakes etc which usually come out around 7:30am. This morning we got underway at 6:30am for our first stop, Vieques. It was a pretty long sail but it was not too rough, as we had following seas. We arrived at Vieques around noon or so and we had another Captain’s Call to tell us about our activity options and schedule for the day. Lunch was served not long after the meeting and I can’t recall what it was because I didn’t do a very good job of taking notes this trip (no time). It may have been crab cakes for seafood eaters and black bean cakes for those who don’t do seafood. The black bean cakes were really good. I think there may have been salad as well and we did have dessert too.

After lunch I opted to go snorkeling. The snorkeling there was okay, but not the best I’ve ever seen. Probably good if you’ve never snorkeled before, but if you’ve been to other places you may find it not that exciting. We did however see an octopus, so that was cool, as I’d never seen one in the wild before. I find that I can’t stay in the water more than about 20-30 min before I get too cold, so I went back to the boat and then took the tender over to shore, where another woman and I walked through the town. The town is not too big, only about 2 blocks long but we enjoyed our walk and looking at the storefronts and beach scenery.

We went back to the boat about 3:30pm and just enjoyed being onboard. Around 4:30pm they brought out appetizers and the free rum drink of the day. Tonight’s dinner was also onboard and it was served early at 5:30pm due to the Bio Bay tour departing at 6:30pm. The dinner was really good--steak and chicken cooked outside on the grill. And I think dessert was pound cake with drunken berries, but again my notes are non-existent this trip so I can’t remember what day we had what.

The tenders to shore started at 6:30pm where we waited for our bus transport to the Bio Bay. The transport is a school bus and contrary to other people’s experiences with broken down, rickety buses, ours appeared to be in pretty good shape I thought. The ride to the bay lasted about 10 min. We then boarded an electric boat and motored silently out into the bay. This Bio Bay is one of just a few in the world. The premise is this: the water is filled with micro-organisms called dinoflagellates. When the water is disturbed a chemical reaction takes place within the organism and light is released and the organism glows. You could see traces of bioluminescence in our wake. The tour was quite interesting. The guide spoke about the micro-organisms and how they create the glow, but he also spoke about the stars and pointed out the different constellations since the sky is pretty dark there. Toward the end of the tour you had the opportunity to get in the water and swim in the bioluminescence. I opted to stay on the boat, as it was quite breezy and I was already cold, so I knew it would be colder once I got out of the water for the ride back. However, the water was supposedly really warm. For those of us who stayed on the boat, they brought a bucket of water up on deck and you could play in that and experience the “diamonds” glistening on your skin.
We returned to the Arabella about 9pm and some people opted to stay on shore and visit some of the bars in town.

Tuesday morning I once again got up at 6am and had a slice of banana bread for breakfast and some bacon. We got underway about 7:30am on our way to Culebra/Culebrita. This morning a little squall blew up with wind and rain. In fact, it blew the flag pole out of its holder and we lost the flag and pole overboard, so we had to turn around to pick it up. There’s nothing like a little excitement. We also had a fairly rough sail this morning and some people were feeling a bit ill. By the time we arrived at our destination of Culebrita, it had calmed down a bit though. We had the opportunity to snorkel a bit before lunch. Once again I can’t recall what lunch was--it may have been pasta salad. I think this was the day we had a passenger turn 80 years old, so John prepared red velvet cupcakes, arranged them on a tray to resemble a cake and then frosted the whole thing. They were served with vanilla ice cream. The one thing I remember is that I did snorkel either before or after lunch--it’s just all a blur! Around 3:30pm we moved the boat to Ensenada Honda off Culebra for the evening where we had our nightly cocktails and appetizers. Dinner tonight was off the boat at Club Seabourne, which is a resort on the island of Culebra. They sent crew Sara and Russ ashore with us for dinner. Upon our arrival we each got a free rum punch and we waited until about 7:30pm for dinner to be ready for us. You could enjoy the grounds of the resort--either the bar, pool area or lounge seating area while you waited. The restaurant is in a screened in room and we had 3 tables for our group. The meal consisted of a salad, either seafood puff pastry or tamarind chicken in puff pastry (this is the meal you had to choose ahead of time the first night on board) and a coconut flan for dessert.

Miramar

The next morning was Wednesday and I once again got up at 6am. I believe it was a muffin for breakfast. We got underway about 6:30am and once again had a bit of a rough sail on our way to St. John, though not as bad as the day prior. Some people felt ill again, but I think most people fared better. Our first stop was Christmas Cove which is located off Great St. James island. This is a snorkeling location and we snorkeled before lunch. I had been to this location before with a tour operator Captain Nautica and found the snorkeling to be pretty good. I saw a sea turtle this day. I think today was salad for lunch and brownies for dessert. We then moved the boat to anchor outside Cruz Bay. The afternoon brought the opportunity to go ashore and explore the town which I did. I went ashore and shopped a bit in Mongoose Junction which is a pretty little shopping complex and then walked up toward the other end of town near the ferry dock to explore restaurant options for the evening.

I went back to the boat in time for the daily appetizers and drink of the day. It may have been cheese and crackers that day. I remember one day we had delicious spring rolls and bruschetta which we all demolished in about 2 minutes but I don’t remember which day! Anyway, Russ had the night off tonight so we went into town for dinner together. We started off with drinks at the Beach Bar and then moved onto the Lime Inn for dinner. We split a Greek salad and I had a NY Strip steak which was quite good. They cooked it the way I like it (medium well) without burning it and it was juicy. I think Russ had a fish special of the night and then we both got Key Lime Pie for dessert. The pie is a little different because it is frozen Key Lime Pie and not creamy Key Lime Pie. I think the meal was quite good. It was then a little early to go back to the boat so we stopped at Margarita Phil’s for a drink of what else--margaritas! We got the 10pm tender back to the boat.

Thursday morning I of course got up at 6am again and had a muffin for breakfast. This morning we waited a little bit because we were taking on a new Stew, Lauren. She came on this morning from St. John and the crew began training her. We then began our sail to Soper’s Hole Tortola where the Mate brings everyone’s passports ashore to clear customs for the BVI. Then we continued on to Norman Island. Lunch today was one of my favorites: Mexican. It was fajita day--with your choice of beef or chicken and chips and salsa with chocolate chip cookies for dessert. After lunch you had the opportunity kayak, go to the beach or snorkel the Caves. I opted to snorkel the Caves. This snorkel site consists of about 3 caves which you can venture into or you can swim around outside the caves. It’s quite popular and had lots of people (much more crowded than any of our other snorkeling spots). After the trip to the Caves, they also offer a trip to another site, the Indians. This site is farther out, a little rougher water and has fewer people. This is one of my favorite snorkel sites I’ve been to in the Caribbean. The coral looks very healthy and there are lots of varieties. The depths also vary so you can snorkel in very shallow areas or on the opposite side of the rocks where it really drops off.

After snorkeling, we returned to the boat for the usual appetizers and drinks before heading out to dinner on shore at Pirate’s Bight. The meal there consists of a buffet of black bean soup, ribs, chicken, salad, rice and key lime pie for dessert.
After dinner you have the opportunity to go to Willie T’s which is a floating bar on a boat. The crowd is different each night depending on who is there. It can get quite wild or it can be quieter. I went last year and had a really good time but opted not to go this year. However it can be a really fun time, so I recommend going if you’ve never been. Just go to say you’ve done it if for no other reason.

Miramar

Friday morning once again had me up at 6am and had an apricot scone. It was cloudy when we got underway at 8:30am but by the time we got to our destination of Jost Van Dyke, it was perfectly sunny and warm. We arrived early and they started preparing our lunch. Today was a cookout on the grill of hot dogs, hamburgers and I think salmon or veggie burgers for people who wanted those. There was also cole slaw and potato salad. This was another one of my favorite lunches of the trip. The dogs and burgers were really good and we had chocolate chip cookies for dessert.

After lunch I went on the 1pm tender to shore in White Bay. The tender lets you out on the section of beach near Ivan’s Stress Free Bar and you can stay on that side where there is some snorkeling among the rocks or you can make your way on the rocky path to the other side of the bay where Seddy’s One Love and Soggy Dollar Bar are located. The area near Soggy Dollar is the most crowded part of the bay. I lingered at the area near Ivan’s for a while before making my way to the Soggy Dollar where I made a purchase in the gift shop before getting a Painkiller and retiring to a hammock to enjoy the afternoon. I made my way back to the tender pick up point with about 15 min to spare before the 3pm pickup, so I took the opportunity to swim a bit in the clear turquoise waters of the bay.

Once back on the boat it was really quiet as most of the passengers had not yet returned. Some of the crew were swimming off the boat, and since I hadn’t done that yet this trip I decided to do the same.

Around 4:30pm we moved the boat over to Great Harbor (the next bay over) where we would have dinner at Foxy’s. I got the 6:30pm tender to shore to have enough time to check out the gift shop at Foxy’s. The hours are not really set I don’t think (like so many places in the Caribbean) they seem to close or be open at whim. Last year they closed by 7:15, but this year they were open till about 7:45pm. So if you want to shop there, it’s better to go earlier than later. Dinner at Foxy’s starts no earlier than 7:30pm and the crew that go ashore with you (this time Caleb and Jim) will have to give you a ticket for dinner. Dinner consists of salad (which I think is really good), bread, corn on the cob, fruit, fish, BBQ chicken and ribs (I love their ribs). You are given 2 plates and it seems like everyone ends of filling both of them (one for meats and one with all the other stuff)! The dinner at Foxy’s is one of my favorites--I just think it’s really good. They also have good drinks-- I like the Vanilla Killa.

Saturday morning, surprise, surprise, I got up at 6am. This was our last day. We got underway at 6:30am on route to St. John to clear US customs. Everyone--passengers as well as crew, must go ashore and clear customs. This makes the morning a little hectic since they need to make 3 tender trips. It’s also busy because you must pay your final bill that morning as well. The night before you are given a survey of how you liked the trip combined with your folio of charges. You fill out what you want to give for a tip and can also decide if you want to put down a $500 deposit on your next trip. If you put down the deposit you get a 20% discount on your next trip.

We motored from Cruz Bay back to St. Thomas. Instead of going back to Red Hook we anchored in Charlotte Amalie because the boat needed to go there to refuel and re-provision. We got to Charlotte Amalie about 10am and they unloaded all of the luggage and made one tender trip to bring it all to shore. Next, they started bringing the passengers back to shore in 3 tender trips. I waited until the last trip trying to savor the last possible moments on the boat.

Upon arrival on shore they had taxis waiting to take you to the airport or wherever you needed to go. Myself and a few others who were flying out that afternoon, decided to go to the Best Western Emerald Beach Resort instead of going directly to the airport, since our flights were not until 3 or 4pm. The cab ride cost $8/person. I decided to sit by the pool and then have a cheeseburger and pina colada for lunch before going to the airport about 12:20pm. I wanted to allow plenty of time for the airport since I had read that the airport can get extremely busy on weekends in high season. Well, the American Airlines counter was a complete disaster. The line was a mile long and didn’t move. It took me an hour and a half to get through the check in line and then another half hour for customs and security. When I finally got through all the lines, it was time to board my flight. There were many people still in the check in line behind me which necessitated our 30 minute late departure, while they got them all through the long line.

Once again I really enjoyed my cruise aboard the Arabella. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys being on the water, sailing and soaking up small island atmosphere. You can do as much or as little as you like; whether you choose to spend your days snorkeling, kayaking, sitting on the beach or just on board the boat it’s up to you. It’s a great alternative way to see the islands other than chartering or bareboating. The boat is large enough to never seem crowded; I never had an issue finding seating (except the shady spots go fast) as there are lots of places to spread out. The crew is friendly, fun and professional, striving to make your trip the best it can be. Once again I took advantage of putting down a deposit on a future cruise and I’m already contemplating which itinerary to take next time.

davidjac

What islands are in the spanish virgin islands. I have nevre heard that term before.

Miramar

It is Culebra and Vieques (part of Puerto Rico) but the term SVI is sometimes used instead