A cruise in the Caribbean. We departed from Port Canaveral, Florida (about 1 hour east of Orlando) and made stops at Bahamas, St Thomas, and St Maarten.
Freedom of the Seas
We sailed with Royal Caribbean, on the Freedom of the Seas. This ship has many amenities for cruisers, including a full-sized gym, swimming pool, 2 hot tubs, surf simulator, theater, ice skating rink, rock climbing, and lounges. For dining, there is a coffee shop, pizza place, the Windjammer Cafe with buffet meals, and a dining center. The dining center consisted of 3 levels - we were on the middle floor. Our evening activities on the ship were: a show featuring live acting Broadway style, 3-course dinner, and hanging out at a lounge. My favorite dinner was the seafood plate featuring lobster. My favorite shows were the ice skating show and the magic show. Some memorable events were the captain's speech, ice carving, and a singing performance by the restaurant staff. We had staterooms on the 8th floor, near the center of the ship and with balconies. The housekeeping staff made animals out of the towels, including a stingray, dog, swan, and bat.
Bahamas
We visited Cococay, an island in the Bahamas that Royal Caribbean owns. The island offers beach and water activities as well as a bar-b-q lunch. We did snorkeling, and saw many colorful fish, a sunken boat, and a sunken airplane.
St Thomas
As we neared St Thomas, we passed many other islands in the Caribbean, including Puerto Rico. We watched the ship approach St Thomas from our stateroom balconies. We also saw someone using a water powered jet pack to soar above the sea. Upon arrival at St Thomas we joined a tour group for an overview of St Thomas. The tour started out with shopping, then climbed the mountain for spectacular views of the coastline, the cruise port, and other islands nearby. Finally, we visited Magen's Bay Beach. This beach is one of the best beaches I have been to - clear blue water, good sand, and free of debris and rocks.
St Maarten
St Maarten is divided between two nations: the south part is Dutch, part of The Netherlands and the north part is part of France. The island gets many visitors; its airport is the second busiest in the Caribbean - only San Juan, Puerto Rico is busier. We did a tour of the island, including many views of the coastline, bay, Great Salt Pond, cruise port, and beaches. We also did a party boat ride along the Simpson Bay. The boat ride included drinks, music, and a narrator who also served as an entertainer. There were views of the bayside residences - great place to live if you could afford it.
Many more pictures.
