Fantasy 7 night DVC Member Cruise! August 26, 2017! It's a Grand Slam!

[NJShoreDad]

Any feedback from anyone who took a trip to the Baths? Am taking the same itinerary in April. I would appreciate some comments about the facilities and walking ability needed to go there. I am having a foot operation tomorrow, Wednesday morning, I may not be back here for a few days.

We took the Tour to Virgin Gorda (TT23)on the Member Cruise. High speed ferry to Virgin Gorda, then the open air bus through some not so nice looking areas up to the Top of the Baths park, which is at a high point. You then hike down to Devil's Bay for a quick swim, then through the caves to The Baths. This path is fairly open, but did have rocks and loose gravel leading up to the caves. Once in the caves, you have to climb rocks and even some not so fairly well-built ladders. I was quite honestly worried about some of the folks in the group as it was not the easiest to navigate if you have issues climbing or nearly crawling through small spaces. This being said, there is another path from the Baths beach that we took back to the Top of the Baths which was a lot easier. If you want to experience the Baths, I'd recommend taking this path. BTW, as to facilities, there is a public restroom facility at the Top of the Baths park with a foot shower to rinse off sand. There are also bathrooms, a small bar/snack stand, and lockers at the Baths Beach.

Here are some pics:
Top of the Baths

Initial Trail:

Example of one of the tight spaces (sand under foot here, but some areas you climb over rocks):

Picture from inside one of the "caves":

One of the pools:

Bar/Snack stand at the beach:

Overall this was the excursion we liked the least. Even though it was quite picturesque, getting there that was not as much fun. I was not impressed by the area from the Virgin Gorda ferry terminal up to the top of the Baths (lots of construction but also not well kept at all.) Also, the description on the DCL website is misleading. You won't end up with 3 hours to swim or relax. The whole group must have had at least 120 people, and as I said before, some had mobility issues which caused a huge back up going through the caves, so it takes a while to actually get to the Baths beach. It was not worth the $$ IMHO for this tour ($80/adult, $60/child.) I kept thinking to myself that this was an excursion you could do quite easily on your own and avoid the huge crowd. The beach was beautiful as you can see in the pictures, but in my view it was not as nice as Trunk Bay in St. John (which we loved.)

 

[bobbiwoz]

Thank you both for the reports, and for the pictures NJShoreDad!

In Tortola, we did Island tour and beach break. I enjoyed the beach, and so, I think I will opt for doing the same thing the next time.

We snorkeled at Trunk Bay, which I agree is beautiful.

We enjoyed this Member Cruise more than any other that we've been on.

 

[NJShoreDad]

Thank you both for the reports, and for the pictures NJShoreDad!

In Tortola, we did Island tour and beach break. I enjoyed the beach, and so, I think I will opt for doing the same thing the next time.

We snorkeled at Trunk Bay, which I agree is beautiful.

We enjoyed this Member Cruise more than any other that we've been on.

In full disclosure, there was a member of our tour group that did the walking and climbing in a walking boot. I have no idea how she did it but it was impressive and I also believe quite difficult. I give her an A+ for effort and trying to get the most out of it!

This was only our 2nd Member Cruise, but I agree it was a wonderful cruise. I hope they schedule more 7-night MC's because I don't think I'd go back to a 4-night (our first MC).

 

[bobbiwoz]

In full disclosure, there was a member of our tour group that did the walking and climbing in a walking boot. I have no idea how she did it but it was impressive and I also believe quite difficult. I give her an A+ for effort and trying to get the most out of it!

This was only our 2nd Member Cruise, but I agree it was a wonderful cruise. I hope they schedule more 7-night MC's because I don't think I'd go back to a 4-night (our first MC).

It was my sixth MC. Because I enjoy snorkeling so much, going to CC twice will allow me to snorkel as soon as we reach the beach, so, I have booked, and am looking forward to next year's. I would love a longer cruise, too, do not get me wrong.

Wow, I am inspired by that person's fortitude! I am having my foot operated on tomorrow, and my other foot in January. If you had said the Baths was a wonderful excursion, I would set going as a goal. Instead, my husband and I are on December 2018 NYE cruise which is also a double dip CC, and it will be my goal to walk the 5k. It will hopefully be cool at least in December!

 

[NJShoreDad]

It was my sixth MC. Because I enjoy snorkeling so much, going to CC twice will allow me to snorkel as soon as we reach the beach, so, I have booked, and am looking forward to next year's. I would love a longer cruise, too, do not get me wrong.

Wow, I am inspired by that person's fortitude! I am having my foot operated on tomorrow, and my other foot in January. If you had said the Baths was a wonderful excursion, I would set going as a goal. Instead, my husband and I are on December 2018 NYE cruise which is also a double dip CC, and it will be my goal to walk the 5k. It will hopefully be cool at least in December!

We also LOVE CC - and would definitely book a double dip just to do that. My wife and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary next year and are looking to use our placeholder to celebrate!

As to the recommendation, it all depends if you like doing excursions through Disney or not. In our 3 cruises we've always done Disney excursions, but this one seemed like it could be done on your own. The Baths were very pretty - we got more wonderful photos, the kids had a blast, and we definitely enjoyed the beach. I just think Disney overdid it with number of people booked on this excursion.

 

[bobbiwoz]

We also LOVE CC - and would definitely book a double dip just to do that. My wife and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary next year and are looking to use our placeholder to celebrate!

As to the recommendation, it all depends if you like doing excursions through Disney or not. In our 3 cruises we've always done Disney excursions, but this one seemed like it could be done on your own. The Baths were very pretty - we got more wonderful photos, the kids had a blast, and we definitely enjoyed the beach. I just think Disney overdid it with number of people booked on this excursion.

Oh..ok, now I understand more about the excursion.
Congratulations on your 20th. June 1, 2018 is our 50th anniversary and we plan to celebrate all year!

 

[Shananana]

I'm so glad we made it! Thank you all for the amazing gifts.
My thoughts and prayers with everyone left on the islands due to the Hurricane.

 

[genmasjoy]

We had a wonderful time on the member cruise, the seven days was great as we had done two of the four day ones before and felt somewhat rushed. I thought Disney went all out to give us some inside information, such as the Frozen short, and I loved the movie Born in China as well as the Richard Sherman documentary. The production shows were great and I hadn't seen Wishes or Aladdin before (the Dream had Believe and the Golden Mickeys). Everyone we met was pleasant and we enjoyed our table mates' company at dinner. I noticed there weren't many children on the cruise and a higher than usual amount of seniors, including us. We purchased OKW in 1995, so we're longtime DVC members and it was an excellent cruise.

 

[poison ivy]

Hi guys sorry I've been a bit absent. We had an interesting cruise to say the least. Spent it daily at the infirmary. (long story) but we never made any excursions so had to cancel the Virgin Gorda. I know I promised pics and sadly won't have any. omg!?! So thanks so much for sharing @NJShoreDad

The FE was a big highlight. Thanks to everyone for participating. We really enjoyed it and appreciate all the effort to make it special.

other than that. we had a challenging few days at Disney following the cruise. Almost Lost a bag delivered to the wrong resort from the DCL bus but managed to get it back before we left. My dad tried out a scooter for the first time (he's 80) and loved it but scared a few teenagers at the bus stop.
My mother needed a chair to get around. It's just age catching up to them. Once we solved their walking issues, we had a great time and were able to cover a lot of ground.

also had a bedbug incident at the BWV. ugghhh! All fixed all sanitized and all handled will care and diligence by Disney. but what an ordeal!

oh well - safe to say it's one trip out of hundreds for the record books.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Oh my, what a vacation you had, bits of good and bad. Glad you came by here to say hi, and give us a glimpse of what you have been through,

Glad your FE was successful and fun!

Bobbi

 

[bobbiwoz]

Finally framed and put up the prints!
I am running out of wall space!

 

[Kel-C_D27]

Those turned out great!!! Mine are still in the box but you have given me an idea!

 

[bobbiwoz]

Those turned out great!!! Mine are still in the box but you have given me an idea!

I have them in my “ sitting room” and I enjoy looking at them. Thankfully, the frames we an ordinary size, no special framing!!