Crystal Symphony Review
Wonderful, but a llittle slippage since the drydock
Review for the Panama Canal & Central America Cruise on Crystal Symphony
calliopecruiser
6-10 Cruises • Age 60s
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Additional details
Sail Date: Aug 2018
Cabin: Deluxe Stateroom with Large Picture Window
This is my 4th Crystal cruise, my 3rd on the Symphony, and it was wonderful in so many ways. I love the Symphony, because it is luxurious but casual (I feel like I can take my shoes off and put my feet up on the couch to read), and carries a nice amount of passengers (about 750-ish) - not too few that I see the same people everywhere, but not too many that I feel crowded or anonymous. I was traveling solo on this cruise, but knew a few people on board from previous cruises and met several more mutual friends while on board.
As I said in the title, there's been a little slippage in the food and service on the ship since its drydock, but in other ways there's been a lot of improvements since the drydock. There are 2 additional dinner restaurants on board, both of which outshine the main dining room ("Waterside") in service and food quality. Both of the new restaurants do not count towards your allotted number of included visits to specialty restaurants -- those (Umi Uma and Prego) still remain the premiere dinner spots on the ship, in my opinion. Crystal put a limit on the number of included visits to those spots several years ago (generally 2 per week) in an effort to keep people from monopolizing them, but now that there are more dining options, I wonder if they will continue to do so (extra visits beyond your allotted amount are $30 each, which is still an incredible bargain for that quality and ambience).
Of the new restaurants, I particularly recommend Churrascarria, which is Lido deck aft, in the same location where the breakfast and lunch buffets are......you get views of the sunset, and excellent food. Salads, veggies, and side dishes are available as a buffet, and 6 varieties of grilled meat are brought to your table on skewers (chicken, shrimp, pork, lamb, beef). Be sure and stay for some grilled pineapple for dessert.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Stateroom with Large Picture Window
Cabin C2
Port Reviews
San Francisco
Interesting, but honestly I was mostly jet-lagged. I highly recommend the Palace Hotel for its comfort and location
Cabo San Lucas
Tender port, and it was mostly filled with American tourist-themed bars, cheap souvenirs, and with pharmacies selling meds to Americans without prescriptions. Not interesting, not beautiful, not worth the 10 minute tender ride.
Puerto Quetzal (Antigua)
I just took the provided shuttle to the little tourist market on the port.....I'd heard there was a post office there, but if there was, it was closed. But the market was pretty (such beautiful coloured fabrics!) and partially shaded, and I spent a nice half hour there. I bought a hat, but otherwise I really was there just to look, not shop
Puntarenas (Puerto Caldera)
There's really nothing there, so unless you've got an excursion, you may not want to bother. I took the shuttle bus into Puntarenas, which is a dusty, run down city......Lots of cruisers were disappointed because there were very few shops or restaurants open (it was a Sunday morning), but I just wandered the town with my camera for 30 minutes so I wasn't expecting much. But other than some storefront churches and colourful graffiti, there wasn't much to see.
Cartagena (Colombia)
The old city of Cartagena was beautiful, and well worth going (with or without an excursion). I took a taxi into the old town (shared with other cruisers), and then wandered around the town for a few hours....I would have stayed longer if it hadn't been so hot and humid. Decades ago, Cartagena was considered a risky city, but these days the old city is safe and, even wandering around as a solo woman or taking a taxi back to the ship alone, I was not worried at all about safety.
Charleston
Lovely historic area of the city, and I wish it hadn't been so hot and humid! The ship docks very close to the old city and the market (which is really just a collection of souvenir stalls), which is nice because you can easily walk anywhere. There is beautiful art, architecture, and history there, and it's worth wandering the streets to see for yourself.
New York (Manhattan)
What can you say? Manhattan is iconic, both good and bad. I stayed an extra few days in Manhattan (Tribeca), and got around either by walking, taking the subway, taking a cab, or a Lyft car. It's crowded, noisy, smelly, and energized. There's great things, and ordinary things. I always felt safe, I never was bored, and it was a great visit.
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