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Published: February 3rd 2014
I couldn’t imagine myself on a cruise but never say never and when a package with a cruise sort of dropped into my lap back in December and the rain kept falling and Suzanne and I still had time to do some travelling together we thought “yes let’s do it”.
A flights sale in January had us picking up a bargain and so it was we flew off to Tampa on a not too full flight even bagging 3 seats each so lots of space to lie down on the 9+hour flight. A good night’s sleep in a nearby hotel and the next day we were on a shuttle bus to the port.
As complete novices to cruising we had no idea what to expect ( we are used to the Cross Channel Ferry) had read some reviews and imagined waiting in lines with luggage for hours as two thousand plus passengers embarked but no the cases ( with colour coded tags ) were whisked off the shuttle bus. We walked into the terminal through security and within 5 minutes we were at a checkin desk , given our
cabin key card and free to go on board. From leaving the hotel to getting into our cabin had only taken an hour. So far so good!!!
When choosing the cruise we had spent a couple of days researching routes, ships, ports to embark from and also supplements …so when we found a Western Caribbean Cruise from Tampa on the Norwegian Dawn and we could have a mini-suite stateroom with a balcony for no extra supplement – that was a no brainer! On our first walk about the ship I was struck with how immaculate it all was and bright cheerful décor , lots of lovely art work and some vey nice art deco touches. This is “freestyle cruising” with informal dining – I don’t think dressing up , sitting at the captain’s table is quite me…so we were happy to be able to choose when and where we eat. There are 2 lovely dining rooms with waiter service and a café style serve yourself as well as several specialised restaurants where you pay a small supplement. In addition there is room service and a lounge bar serving food 24 hours. So no need to go hungry.
Of course there are bars, entertainment, a theatre and a pool and hot tubs and all sorts of other delights ..and a bit of “HI DE HI” games going on all day as well as talks such as origami, and how to fold napkins to enhance your table decorations and impress your dinner guests but guess what Suz and I are happy to sit on our balcony and watch the sea roll by.
And so to our route – our first day was at sea and then we sailed into the island of Roatan off the coast of Honduras to be greeted by sunshine, dancers and music on the pier dressed in local costume. What has amazed us has been the organisation for getting on and off the ship – where I had imagined long lines ( there are 2300 passengers on board) – it all runs so smoothly and you just stroll along to the checkout desk punch in your card and off you go . Coming back there is always a guest tented area with water and cool facecloths to refresh you as you step on board.
In Roatan we
had organised ourselves a trip to Blue Harbour Arboretum and were picked up by them at the port and whisked off for a tour. This was a place where a guy had started in hydroponics agriculture and an orchard about 40 years ago bringing in all kinds of tropical fruits to see what would do well in Honduras. We had a couple of very relaxing and informative hours with a guide- it was a very peaceful calm beautiful place and only 6 of us from the ship. We tried a couple of drinks Sour sop juice (with anti cancer properties we are told) and a Nispero smoothie – fruits we had never heard of before. Roatan is a beautiful island – small and hilly covered in lush vegetation. Obviously there is a lot of poverty in these places and we have tried to support the local economies where we could buying gifts made locally and not imports.
The ship sets sail at 5pm each day and cruises overnight so Day 3 saw us anchored just off Belize City as there is a great coral reef there so no ships can go in shore – and everyone
had to leave the ship by tender. We had arranged a trip by boat straight to another small island Water Cay..This was like a little paradise island with a white sandy beach fronted with coconut palms surrounded by mangroves. It was well organised with lots of beach beds and shade under the palms , very clean toilets and showers and of course food available…with friendly waiters popping along now and then to bring you a beer or rum punch as you loafed about!! You could rent a kayak but I settled for a little swim to cool off from time to time.
Back on board we can sit on our balcony and read and walk the decks and relax in between fitting in which restaurant to go to. Thanks to Ray and Paula ( seasoned cruisers!!) we had a tip to go to the main restaurant for breakfast rather than fight it out with the hordes in the serve yourself café …and so that’s what we have been doing …brekki in the Venetian Restaurant each day. One evening we treated ourselves to a speciality restaurant Brazilian Grill where we had a sumptuous salad bar then 10
different grilled meats brought to the table …WOW – that was a feast.
We have had no wifi this week – well I am such a skinflint – I don’t want to pay a fortune for it – so I am typing this up ready to post the blog when we get free wifi.
After our 7 day cruise we will be renting a car and have a further 2 weeks in Florida so more adventures to come.
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Maureen Highton
non-member comment
Fantastic!
Wow, Lynne! You are such smart cookies to escape the English winter! I have been getting emails from my cousins who have been suffering the rain and cold, and now I see your lovely alternative! Brilliant! Hugs, Maureen.