Come hungry and dine on designer china at Harry's hideaway

By WALLACE IMMEN

Arrive hungry, advises a sign at the entrance to Harry’s, the alternative steak house on Carnival Liberty. And that turns out to be exceptionally good advice — because there’s not a chance you’ll leave hungry.

But it’s tough to come prepared for the grand dinner you’re in for here. I’ve never once felt I needed more food since I boarded this Carnival Cruise Lines Fun Ship for its week in the western Caribbean. I’ve skipped breakfasts entirely so I could enjoy giant gourmet burgers and fries, gorge on Mongolian stir fry and made-to-order burritos for lunch. I’ve headed down to the dining room in the evening wishing I’d saved room for the luscious chocolate melting cake that’s a feature on on the dessert menu every night.

Today, I’ve been an exceptionally good boy because tonight’s the night we’ve got a reservation at Harry’s to celebrate a belated birthday and I know this is going to be a feast.

Harry’s is the best spot on Liberty for a romantic getaway or a special meal with a group of friends and it maintains a cachet by being hard to find on the ship’s upper deck. The restaurant has the intimacy of a club rather than a big restaurant. While it has a capacity to seat more than 100, it’s divided into two smaller rooms. To keep it exclusive, reservations are required and there’s a $30 a person cover charge.

The choices

From the beginning, it’s clear the staff want ensure that customers never go away feeling they didn’t get what they paid for. Once we’re seated and have ordered a wine, the waiter wheels a trolley to the table laden with slabs of meat I thought might be meant to be shared by a rugby team in training.

Choose your flank from Harry's meat locker

A New York strip loin weighs in at 14 ounces and the protein poundage goes up from there. The spice rubbed prime rib “from the center of the prime rib” tips the scales at 18 ounces, as does the cowboy steak “for the real beef gourmet.” Yee haw.

Of course another option is the surf and turf, adding one or two rock lobster tails as a side to the beef. Or if you don’t fancy beef, there’s the fish of the day and it’s an American portion as well. I ordered the smallest piece of beef on the menu, a nine-ounce grilled filet mignon because I wanted to sample the starters, which also come in volume. Carpaccio, jumbo shrimp cocktail, ahi tuna tartare and lobster bisque are entree size portions. Salads include the essential Caesar tossed by the waiter with great flourish at the table or — my choice — a spinach salad made with greens that tasted as though they’d been freshly picked this morning. How’s that possible three days cruise from the nearest farm?

The decor

I was a little confused at first why there seemed to be lighted showcases around the room and decorations that looked like gold chains and necklaces draped on the walls. But then it dawned on me, the Harry who’s is the restaurant’s namesake is Harry Winston the legendary jeweller. The decor is the kind of dazzling bling you buy to show off in a restaurant like this. The broaches, pearl chokers and rings displayed in the cases may be just copies but they’re stunningly show stopping.

The theme is bling that glitters by night

Seven chefs are at work in the kitchen you can see through glass walls, and it’s clear everything is being made to order. My steak arrived medium rare precisely as I’d ordered it but even bigger than I imagined it might be. My wife ordered grilled lamb chops which came as an array of four thick chops. It was all so ample I knew we wouldn’t be able to finish it all and I wondered if the folks in the kitchen might like to share the bounty with me—and they would do a doggie bag, if indeed I’d wanted steak for breakfast the next day.

The verdict

I found the meat all magnificent prime cuts and the service and presentation on fine china was elegant. A disappointment was the mashed potatoes that came as one of the side dishes. They were described on the menu as Yukon gold, which should be fluffy and buttery, but what arrived at the table was a gluey puree, as though the taters had been strained and whipped with a mixer into a paste. I certainly wouldn’t have done it that way if I was using great potatoes to start with.

Harry's small rooms are designed to be intimate

Then came the dessert menu with choices like crème brulee and ultra rich mousse. I couldn’t decide, so went for a sampler plate of chocolate confections, moving from right to left, each one upped the ante on richness. The experience demonstrated how haute cuisine Carnival could be if passengers were willing to go a bit higher on the price scale. At the same time, I’m not sure my waistline could afford this kind of grand bouffe every night.

To celebrate a special day or just to sample what Carnival can do, Harry’s is worth the cover charge for a memorable evening. Just remember to come really hungry.

Tonight, Hotel Director Flavio Gioia (the tall one in the photo) and Food & Beverage Manager Marius Sima (center) invited back-to-back guests to a special reception, in the Provisions Area.

Tonight, Silver Shadow Hotel Director Flavio Gioia invited more than a dozen back-to-back passengers, me included, to a special cocktail reception in the ship’s “Provisions Area.” Rather than disembarking Silver Shadow Voyage 3202 Saturday in Auckland, we’re continuing on Voyage 3203, from Auckland to Perth, 19 days (some will disembark next week in Sydney or in Melbourne).

The cocktail reception in the “Provisions Area” gave us a glimpse behind the scenes, where we learned how food and beverage is procured and stored for Silver Shadow’s voyages. It was a fun event with champagne, cocktails and tasty treats.

The ship will receive several containers from the United States and Europe tomorrow in Auckland, but much of the food stores that we saw, especially local fruits and produce (and cases of wine), were purchased locally in New Zealand and Australia.

During our voyages, Silver Shadow sources fruits and vegetables, as well as wines, locally in New Zealand and Australia.

Gioia said Silversea will always honor special requests, when possible. When several Australians requested Vegemite for breakfast, he purchased a case for the voyage.

Your wish is Silver Shadow's command: When Australians requested their beloved Vegemite for breakfast, the ship provided.

Please join me Saturday as my voyage on Silver Shadow continues on this memorable journey.

Bye for now. See you soon! Photo provided courtesy of Catherine Stewart

Founded in 1851, the Mission Estate Winery in Napier is New Zealand’s oldest and the birthplace of New Zealand wines. Our half-day excursion from Silver Shadow included a tour, wine tasting and gourmet lunch.

A “gorgeous” train trip from Dunedin, New Zealand, on a half-day excursion that began pierside and took us past some of the country’s best scenery.

It was rainy when we cruised New Zealand’s beautiful Milford Sound on Silver Shadow, but the rain created an extraordinary spectacle, waterfalls.

Photographed Tuesday, Silver Shadow (in the distance against the mountains) anchored in Akaroa, New Zealand, with no other cruise ships in sight. The day before, two ships disgorged a few thousand passengers into this town of 700. Why the Steinlager sign? It was my favorite beer when I traveled the north and south islands more than 20 years ago. It is good to be back in New Zealand.

This week, we pose a question on Avid Cruiser: Are you a big-ship cruiser or a small-ship cruiser?

You’ll find a lot of discussion on Avid Cruiser about big and small ships, but I encourage you to weigh in with your opinions. Do you prefer the activities and thrills of big ships? Or are you more for the quieter environments of small ships?

I am a bit of both, but while I enjoy the big-ship experience, I find myself drawn to smaller ships for at least five reasons:

1. Small ships = No crowds. When cruising on small ships, you’ll almost always experience less crowding on ship and ashore than you will on large ships. Small ships typically have the highest space ratios per passenger, which we discuss below, and avoid crowding at ports. Yesterday, in Akaroa, New Zealand, for example, Silver Shadow was the only ship in sight. The day before, however, two ships called, including one enormous one, disgorging a few thousand passengers into a town of only 700. Crowding in ports can be greatly exaggerated in the Caribbean. Check out this article: Two Caribbeans: Which Suits You Best? Big Ship or Small Ship?
2. Small ships typically are roomier. I’m not claustrophobic, but I do like space, both in the public rooms on ships and in staterooms. Last year, I was on a big (very big) ship with my two kids. We would have ordered room service for dinner one night, but as my daughter pointed out, “There was no room for service.” By contrast, staterooms and public areas on small ships almost always have higher space ratios (a figure derived by dividing capacity by cubic feet) and staterooms with more square footage than those on big ships. Small ships give you space to breathe.
3. Small ships visit off-the-beaten-track destinations. Big ships don’t call on such idyllic islands as Bequia or Jost Van Dyke. Again, see Two Caribbeans: Which Suits You Best? Big Ship or Small Ship?
4. You get to know your fellow passengers on small ships. On a big ship, you can meet folks and never see them again. Not likely on small ships, where there may be fewer than a couple of hundred others cruising with you. There is an anonymity factor on big ships that isn’t present on small ships. Staff greet you by name. I’ve cruised on nearly all of the small-ship cruise lines listed below, and on all, waiters, bartenders, pool stewards and officers greet me and other passengers by name. Moreover, you also get to know — and want to get to know — the staff. Most whom I have met are outstanding people. I have seen passengers hugging staff, sometimes tearfully, upon parting. And while it sounds clichéd, cruise travelers make lifelong friends with their fellow travelers. The overall experience on small ships is simply more intimate than what you would find on big ships.
5. Small ships generally offer a better quality travel experience. I realize this is highly subjective, but the quality of accommodation, the quality of the food, the quality of the overall travel experience, including the on-shore experiences, is nearly always superior on a small ship. Big ships are doing great work in all of these areas, and sometimes, food and service, particularly at the specialty restaurants on big ships, can rival the offerings of the small ships, but in general, smaller ships offer richer travel experiences than big ships, which typically offer theme-park (think Disney Cruise Line) and resort-style experiences.

What makes a small ship? There are lots of variables and lots of opinions, but I characterize cruise ships carrying fewer than 1,000 passengers as small. After all, 1,000 passengers is less than 20 percent of the total capacity of the world’s largest cruise ships. Smaller is bigger than it used to be.

Which companies operate small ships?

• Azamara Club Cruises
• Crystal Cruises
• Hapag-Lloyd
• InnerSea Discoveries
• Oceania Cruises
• Paul Gauguin
• Ponant Cruises
• Regent Seven Seas Cruises
• Seabourn
• SeaDream Yacht Club
• Silversea Cruises
• Star Clippers
• Windstar Cruises
• And all river cruise companies (see our sister site, River Cruise Advisor)

Also, some big ship operators have smaller ships in their fleets, including Celebrity Cruises’ Xpedition, Holland America Line’s Prinsendam and Princess Cruises’ Pacific Princess and Ocean Princess, which carry fewer than 900 guests and visit smaller ports but are not all-inclusive.

Cost of small-ship cruising. The cost of small-ship cruising is often double or more what it would cost to cruise on a large ship, but small ships can provide greater value. Beverages, including specialty coffees, soft drinks, fine wines, champagne, beer and spirits, and gratuities often are included in the cruise fare. Plus, there are many other intangibles, such as those five things mentioned above, that add to the overall value.

What about you? Are you a big-ship cruiser or a small-ship cruiser?

Silver Cloud, capacity 296, meet Emerald Princess, capacity 3,080.

Early morning, November. Tiny Silver Cloud had docked in St. John’s, Antigua. After six tranquil days of crossing the Atlantic, I looked forward to stepping off the ship and onto terra firma. As I sat lacing up my shoes, suddenly the sunlight streaming into my stateroom began to darken. Through the sheer curtains, I could see why: A wall of balconies was pulling up alongside. Silver Cloud, capacity 296, meet Emerald Princess, capacity 3,080. Sigh, paradise lost.

Emerald Princess towers above Silver Cloud in Antigua.

Yes, I confess, having endured the Atlantic gauntlet where on some days there was not another ship in sight, I felt a sense of entitlement. I did not want to share my day in quaint St. John’s with 10 times more cruise passengers than had made that crossing with me. Nonetheless, with shoes laced, I trundled down two sets of stairs and crossed the short gangway onto the pier. Take a deep breath, I told myself, and plunge in.

As someone who has written about the cruising lifestyle for more than two decades and who has cruised the Caribbean more than two dozen times, I know that there are many Caribbeans for cruisers to experience. There are the geographical divides, for example: Eastern Caribbean, Western Caribbean, Southern Caribbean.

But there’s also another pair of Caribbeans: Big-ship Caribbean and small-ship Caribbean. Certainly, both big and small have merit, but both also deliver deeply contrasting experiences.

For starters, on big ships, you can expect you’ll have plenty of company in ports, not only from your ship but also from the other ships that are calling at the same port on the same day. That’s because big ships are fairly limited with regard to where they can dock or drop anchor, so they all tend to visit the same places — sometimes all at once.

Along with the masses disgorging from Emerald Princess in St. John’s, I walked along the pier, through the security gate and along a crowded waterway. Far from alone — or even alone enough to enjoy what could have been a serene experience — I finally gave up and returned to the ship.

Small Ships, Small Islands

Contrast that to Bequia (pronounced Beck-Way), which I visited last fall on Silver Explorer. Total number of cruise passengers on the island, situated in the Grenadines: fewer than 100 of us who had been zipped ashore on zodiacs to Port Elizabeth, Bequia’s capital.

Zipping ashore on zodiacs in tiny Bequia.

The atmosphere in Port Elizabeth was totally relaxed, almost comatose. There were a few shops and a small market, but no pushy vendors. When a taxi driver suggested he haul a few of us across the island and we responded that we would prefer to walk instead, he put out his fist to bump knuckles with me, wishing me — and the others — a pleasant walk.

And so we walked — from the Caribbean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean and back, about six miles. The island was so quiet that we trundled along on the road without having to worry about traffic.

Bequia was so small that we walked across the island, from the Caribbean to the Atlantic, six miles — roundtrip.

The landscape was gorgeous, and though it may sound clichéd, we stopped several times to smell the roses or whatever flora we came upon. The experience was unrushed and unmanufactured. No Starbucks or Diamonds International to distract us, just acres of beautiful palm trees and an infectious, laid-back island lifestyle.

It’s startling to think that Bequia’s entire population, 4,300, could not even fill the largest cruise ships, Oasis and Allure of the Seas, with passenger capacities of 6,296 each when all berths are filled.

One of the most surprising Caribbean destinations I ever visited on a small ship was Los Roques. Situated on a spit of land north of the Venezuelan mainland, the charming town has only a half dozen or so dusty streets that were thick with small hotels catering to international tourists who arrived by plane.

Silver Explorer visited Los Roques, a place unaccustomed to cruise passengers.

The town was storybook Latin America, with only a few people roaming the streets during the hours of siesta, lazy dogs lying on their bellies under shade trees, and kids diving from the piers into water as blue as Windex.

Little Los Roques was storybook Latin America.

Once, on a Caribbean island visited only by small ships, I climbed to the highest peak in the the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The island was Saba, in the Dutch Caribbean.

On Silver Explorer, I visited the San Blas Islands, where few, if any, big ships call.

Other small slices of paradise include Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands; Monserrat; St. George’s, Grenada; Gustavia, St. Barts, Basseterre … the list goes on. In fact, the number of small, out-of-the-way Caribbean islands vastly outnumbers the major Eastern and Western Caribbean ports, allowing small ship companies to create a stunning array of itineraries.

Azamara Club Cruises, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas, Seabourn, SeaDream Yacht Club, Silversea, Star Clippers and Windstar Cruises are just some of the companies operating smaller ships to smaller islands in the Caribbean.

In the British Virgin Islands, ours were the only footprints on the beach in the area known as The Baths on Virgin Gorda.

But there’s a price to be paid for exclusivity. Many of the smaller vessels that frequent these smaller ports offer top-end luxury cruise experiences that often cost more than $300 per day — per person. Compare that to bigger ships, carrying 2,000 or more passengers, where the cost can sink into double-digit per diems.

The upshot: You could pay three to four times more if you want your footprints to be among the first — and only — on that sandy beach. Small luxury ships do provide a lot more than exclusivity to the Caribbean islands, including a (nearly) all-inclusive vacation. Big ships, on the other hand, typically include very little outside dining (and some dining venues costs on large ships). The additional purchases on big ships — beverages, gratuities, shore excursions (some of which are included in the fare on a luxury ship) — can negate their low cost of entry.

Cruising The Caribbean

A couple of years ago, I enjoyed cruising for two weeks on Emerald Princess. The Princess Cruises’ ship offers a quality cruise experience, with lots to do and more-than-adequate staterooms, even at the lowest-priced level.

Spanning 15 decks and 951 feet (nearly one-fifth of a mile), Emerald Princess is not the biggest of the big by a long shot, but she is big enough to make trips between staterooms and public rooms near-Olympic events, particularly if you use the stairs. Once, I arrived at one end of the ship to snap a photo only to discover that I had left my camera in my stateroom at the other end of the ship. I was out of breath when I returned with the camera nearly half a mile later.

Naturally, when ships the size of Emerald Princess (and larger) disgorge passengers, there are a lot of feet contending for space in shops, restaurants and on activities.

Once, while anchored on a Carnival ship in the Cayman islands, I tendered ashore to what seemed to me a standing-room only town. The shops I visited were so crowded that I had to pull my arms into my sides and shuffle sideways to move about. I’m not claustrophobic, but I felt squeezed and uneasy and couldn’t wait to get out and back to the ship.

That said, the big cruise ships have become adept at managing the throngs of passengers. Shore operations are usually executed efficiently. Still, there’s no getting away from the crowding in such ports as Cozumel, Mexico, which, during the cruise season, routinely hosts up to eight ships a day, bringing between 12,000 and 20,000 guests to the island. Whether you’re destined for an overland trip to the ruins of Tulum or simply the Margaritaville at the end of the pier, you’ll have plenty of friends to accompany you.

Sunset In St. John’s

Back in St. John’s, the sun was setting as Emerald Princess engaged her powerful bow thrusters to push away from the pier and point its bow toward the open sea. Many of us on Silver Cloud stood on the open decks and watched the spectacle of the large, but beautiful, vessel making its way into the sunset.

Calypso music played from the pool deck, and from the balconies of staterooms, flashes fired like firecrackers as passengers snapped one last picture of paradise.

“It looks like they’re having a good time,” a fellow passenger remarked to me as we stood there with cocktails in our hands. Then as he turned to walk away, he added: “I just hope they’re not going where we’re going.”

Emerald Princess departing St. John's.

By Ralph Grizzle, Two Caribbeans originally appeared in Sunday’s Miami Herald.

Also see Islands In The Stream: What Is Your Preference? Big Caribbean Island Or Small Island?

Cheeky sirens have flocked to Cozumel for a long time

By WALLACE IMMEN

Cozumel Island, where Carnival Liberty is docking for the day on its Caribbean cruise, was where the ancients came to get into the mood for love.

The Maya are believed to have first settled in Cozumel a couple of thousand years ago, and it was probably a playground for an even older Olmec civilization. The island, you see, was considered sacred to the Maya moon goddess known as Ix Chel, and women made pilgrimages to temples here to boost their fertility.

The same forces seem to be at work today as throngs of cruise passengers sing along to the chants of rappers and rock bands as they surrender to their urges in modern shrines with names like Fat Tuesdays and Carlos and Charlie. Patrons dance exotic ritual bumps and grinds on table tops wearing headgear made of balloons while drinking flasks of frozen potions made with fermented juice of the native Mexican agave plant. You don’t have to be an anthropologist to deduce this tequila ceremony clearly reduces inhibitions.

It’s also an extremely auspicious year to be in a place once considered sacred by the Mayans. After all 2012 is the end of time on the 26,000 year Mayan calendar, so that may mean see it now or you may miss out forever. But don’t waste a lot of time looking for the old Mayan temples to the spirits of whoopee; the biggest Mayan site on the island was bulldozed during World War II to build a runway. In fact even though the Mexican flag flies proudly on the flagstaffs, most people getting off the two Carnival Cruise Line ships in port today aren’t really going to find much of the real Mexico during their visit.

Visitors get under the influence of the Mayan spirits of Cozumel

Welcome to the Cozu-mall! It’s Mexico Lite: a village that’s predictably safe and clean, where you can drink the water and most of the locals speak at least some English. And the dollar speaks volumes in any language. Getting off Carnival Liberty you first have to pass through the portal of excess, a.k.a the duty free shops. The city block long display of liquors and fragrances, serapes and souvenirs may not have much to do with Mexico, but it is interesting to find that the once lowly tequila has come up in the world to the point where it’s as expensive as other liquors of the world.

The mall itself looks like a Mexican village might look if it was all built a couple of years  ago, as this village  was to anchor a big new cruise dock. The shops have  display windows filled with the wonderful and the bizarre. There are mugs shaped like skulls, T-shirts that glow even in the sunlight, fanciful but mysterious Lucha Libre wrestling masks, Cuban cigars, and more silver than you could polish in a lifetime. There’s even a little man-made beach with hammocks.

But the big attractions in this self-contained port a long drive from the island’s main town of San Miguel are things that raise the spirits.

How do you spell tequila, uh, I forgot

The longest lineup in any of the mall’s shops is at one not so discretely called the Deli and Drugs store. Sure there are some snacks available, but the main things the store sells are products you can’t get without a doctor’s prescription in the States: brand name drugs, notably Viagra and Cialis. There’s even a chewable version called Viagra Jet that’s being test marketed in Mexico and not available anywhere else. No questions asked: Have a nice night señor.

To answer your question: No, I didn’t indulge.

Who was the masked man? Lucha Libre masks in Cozumel strore

You can easily spend an entire morning or afternoon without leaving the mall and most passengers who aren’t on a tour organized by Carnival seem to do just that. Fortunately the adventurous can just make a beeline though the mall to the entrance where there are car and scooter rentals, guided tours and even horse drawn carriage tours to the real Mexico.

Finally arriving outside the mall, the scene was entirely different. I can understand that some tourists might hesitate about venturing out into the streets with less predictable stores and menus in Spanish. But you also find that the island features white sand beaches and extremely friendly people who depend on tourism for their livelihoods. The nearly city of San Miguel is a very pleasant and clean town with some good restaurants. And while much of the merchandise is the same as you’ll find in the mall, it’s less pricey and you can always negotiate about the final price.

I’ve toured Cozumel  island several times in the past and on my next cruise visit I promise to get out and explore. But I have to admit — I did have a good time getting mall-ed.

A beach provides a great view of two Carnival ships docked at the Cozumel port.

Small ships, like Silver Explorer, visit small islands, like Los Roques, a place unaccustomed to cruise passengers.

Big ships often visit busy Caribbean ports, and small ships usually visit quieter ones, but that’s not always the case.

Many of the big ships have their own private islands — Disney Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruises and Royal Caribbean among them. Plus, some big ship operators have smaller ships in their fleets, including Holland America Line’s Prinsendam and Princess Cruises’ Pacific and Ocean Princess, which carry fewer than 900 guests and visit smaller ports.

The small ship players seek out destinations where few ships have gone before. You’ll often find these ships in yachting harbors. Among them: Azamara Club Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas, Seabourn, SeaDream Yacht Club, Silversea, Star Clippers and Windstar Cruises.

The islands that smaller vessels visit may not be all that well known, even to avid cruisers, but they’re not entirely unexplored either. Some of the Caribbean destinations that small ships visit include:

• Port Elizabeth, Bequia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines
• Jost Van Dyke, British Virgin Islands
• St. George’s, Grenada
• Gustavia, St. Barts
• Mayreau, St. Vincent & the Grenadines
• Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands
• Los Roques, Venezuela
• Basseterre, St. Kitts

Also see, Two Caribbeans: Which Suits You Best? Big Ship Or Small Ship?

Which do you prefer? Big, busy islands or small, serene ones?