Loving the Island Life in the Caribbean

I was on the Royal Princess for one month to help out during and after the Christmas and New Year cruises. This was my first time in 4 years where I wasn't in Australia/New Zealand/the South Pacific during the winter. The reason I chose the Caribbean itinerary this winter was to experience some new ports. St. Thomas was the only port I had been to before but the rest of the ports on Royal Princess' December 2017/January 2018 itinerary were new to me. The excitement of seeing a new place is always such a marvelous feeling!


Barbados:
We took a taxi ($5 US/person each way; about 15 minutes) to Harbour Lights in Carlisle Bay.

Christmas 2017 in Barbados...not bad at all!

Martinique:
I walked around and enjoyed the sights of this town including the fortress and the library.
Tip: There is free WiFi available throughout most of downtown Martinique but you have to register for an account to login to their network.

The fortress (and beach in the foreground)

The beautiful architecture of the library

Restaurants and shops

Antigua:
We took a taxi ($5 US/person each way; about 30-45 minutes) to Jolly Beach. This is one of the best beaches I have been to in the Caribbean with its clear light blue waters and soft white sand.
Jolly Beach was so nice I had to come back a second time when the Royal Princess made a stop in Antigua the following cruise.

Grenada:
I took the tour Panoramic Coastal & Country Scenic Drive.
This island is so pretty! The tour van drove us around the island and to many of the famous spots including the beach and resort where celebrities like Oprah are known to stay at when in Grenada. We only made one stop during the tour and that was for refreshments so I didn't take any photos on this tour.


Bonaire:
We took a taxi ($5 US/person each way; about 20 minutes) to Coco Beach. I wasn't overly impressed with this beach so I will try a different beach if I ever get the chance to come back to Bonaire.


Curacao:
I only had 30 minutes to explore Curacao since there was a crew drill in the morning and I had to work in the afternoon. Even with the short time I had here I fell in love with the colourful buildings and was still able to purchase a tank top at one of the shops. I would love to come back and really take the time to enjoy all that Curacao has to offer.

View from the fort. You can walk across the bridge to get to the shops.

The colourful buildings!

St. Kitts:
I went on the 4x4 Island Safari & Beach tour.
This is the only tour in St. Kitts that takes you off-the-beaten path to experience the tropical rain forest. The tour concluded with a 1 hour stop at a beach.

St. Lucia:
There is a beach about a 30 to 45 minute walk from the cruise terminal. Most of the people who were at this beach were either locals or hotel guests.
Note: The restaurants on the beach are only available to hotel guests.

I enjoyed my time on the Royal Princess and in these Caribbean islands so much that I already have plans to come back in March!

Easter in the Eastern Caribbean

It's been just over a week since my return from working on the Regal Princess during the busy Easter/Spring Break season. The Regal was doing an Eastern Caribbean itinerary which I have done previously as a passenger and then as a crew member a few years later. The ports may have been familiar but the sun and warm waters of the Caribbean will always be novel to me.

Clear waters in the Caribbean

I was excited to join the newest ship on the Princess fleet because I knew the production shows and entertainment would be top-notch! I was lucky enough to catch two shows in the lovely Princess Theatre. The first was The Unexpected Boys which is a tribute act to Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. I love songs from the musical Jersey Boys so it goes without saying that I thoroughly enjoyed this show. The second show, Fiera!, was a production show featuring the singers and dancers. By seamlessly incorporating the use of props, pyrotechnics and HD screens on stage the production value of Fiera! was unlike any show I have ever seen. I was blown away by how good the show was. I could ramble on and on about how nice the ship is but I'll move on to the good stuff: the ports!

Princess Cays: This is the private island owned by Princess Cruises in Eleuthera, Bahamas. There is an enclosed play area called Pelican Perch where youth staff like me supervise children while the ship is anchored at sea. On days when I didn't start work until 12 noon at Pelican Perch I happily ate the BBQ lunch on the island before my shift. After my shift was over I usually had an hour or two to enjoy the island before having to take the tender back to the ship. The water by the tender docks is so clear that no snorkel gear is necessary to see the fishes in it. I cherished the opportunity to watch a variety of colourful fishes swimming in the ocean while standing on the docks above.

St. Thomas: The highlight of my time in St. Thomas was when I went on an excursion called The Legendary Kon Tiki Harbor and Beach Cruise. It was a nice way to experience a morning in St. Thomas. As passengers and I boarded the Kon Tiki boat we were greeted with calypso music from the steel drum band playing aboard the boat. The boat had glass-bottom viewers that offered snorkeling-like views so passengers could see coral and fish in the harbours of Charlotte Amalie. The boat then anchored at the small but lovely Honeymoon Bay for 1 hour. This beach had the most crystal clear waters I have ever set foot in and the sand beneath my feet were soft and free of any debris.

View of Honeymoon Bay from the Kon Tiki

St. Maarten: The thing I love most about the port of St. Maarten is that it takes only 20 minutes to walk to the beach/shopping/town area. There is no need for a taxi to get to this beach although a water taxi is available if you don't feel like walking. I spent most of my time in St. Maarten at the beach relaxing on the sand or going for a dip in the ocean when it got too hot. The great thing about this beach for me was it's proximity to McDonald's meant I could buy an Oreo McFlurry to take to the beach to enjoy. Things as simple as enjoying a yummy treat on the beach during my morning off on a port day makes me appreciate how lucky I am to work on cruise ships.
P.S. If you love the taste of coconuts then you need to try the coconut smoothie from the Coco Express smoothie stand near the pier. They hand out samples but it's so delicious that I couldn't help but buy a full-sized smoothie. Their coconut smoothie comes in two sizes: medium ($4 USD) or large ($5 USD).

Fort Lauderdale: There are two things most crew members love: WiFi and shopping at Ross. Both of these things are not hard to find in and around the Port Everglades cruise terminal. I definitely had a crew member moment when I realized I spent my whole morning in Fort Lauderdale shopping at Ross, buying a 1 gallon carton of water at Publix supermarket and then using WiFi. On another morning out and about in Fort Lauderdale I walked to Turtle Nesting Beach which is about 45 minutes away from the cruise terminal. Along the way I stopped by Dunkin' Donuts to make myself an iced coffee for the walk to the beach. Turtle Nesting Beach is massive! The beach appears to go on for miles with lots of sand so it never feels crowded. The abundance of picnic tables and benches at this beach makes it a great place for any type of group gathering involving food.

This was not my first time in the Eastern Caribbean and I'm fairly certain it won't be my last either. I'm perfectly content with that fact!

A Log Of Completed Cruises

As a passenger:
1. August 2008 - 7 night Alaska cruise on the Celebrity Mercury
Roundtrip Vancouver
Ports: Ketchikan; Hubbard Glacier (scenic cruising); Juneau; Sitka

2. August 2009 - 7 night Western Caribbean cruise on the Liberty of the Seas (RCCL)
Roundtrip Miami
Ports: Labadee, Haiti (private island); Ocho Rios, Jamaica; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands; Cozumel, Mexico

3. May 2010 - 7 night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Celebrity Solstice
Roundtrip Fort Lauderdale
Ports: San Juan, Puerto Rico; St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; St. Maarten

4. October 2011 - 4 night Bahamas cruise on the Norwegian Sky
Roundtrip Miami
Ports: Nassau; Great Stirrup Cay

5. May  2012 - 14 night Hawaii cruise on the Celebrity Century Read about it here
Roundtrip San Diego
Ports: Honolulu (Oahu); Lahaina (Maui); Kona; Hilo; Ensenada, Mexico

6. May 2014 - 14 night Japan (Transpacific) cruise on the Celebrity Millennium Read about it here
Yokohama to Vancouver
Ports: Tokyo (Yokohama), Japan; Hakodate, Japan; Sapporo (Muroran), Japan; Petropavlovsk, Russia

7. February/March 2015 - 14 night Southeast Asia cruise on the Celebrity Century Read about it here
Roundtrip Singapore
Ports: Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei; Nha Trang, Vietnam; Ho Chi Minh (Phu My), Vietnam; Bangkok (Laemchabang), Thailand

8. September 2016 - 15 night Bering Sea and Japan cruise on the Celebrity Millennium Read about it here
Read about my 5 day post-cruise experience in Japan here
Vancouver to Yokohama
Ports: Dutch Harbor, Alaska; Otaru, Japan; Hakodate, Japan; Tokyo, Japan

**Non-cruise trip**
1. September 2017 - 10 day East Coast Canada bus tour Read about it here
Provinces: Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island


As a crew member:
1. December 2012/January 2013 - 2 weeks on the Ruby Princess
(2x 7 night Eastern Caribbean cruise roundtrip Fort Lauderdale)
Ports: Princess Cays, Bahamas (private island); St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; St. Maarten; Grand Turk, Turk & Caicos

2. June/July/August 2014 - 11 weeks on the Golden Princess Read about it here
(11x 7 night Alaska cruise roundtrip Seattle)
Ports: Juneau; Skagway; Glacier Bay (scenic cruising); Ketchikan; Victoria, BC

3. November 2014 - 1 week on the Crown Princess Read about it here
7 night Mexico cruise roundtrip Los Angeles
Ports: Puerto Vallarta; Mazatlan; Cabo San Lucas

4. December 2014/January 2015 - 7 weeks on the Sun Princess
(1x 7 night Tasmania cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Hobart; Port Arthur; Burnie; Melbourne
(1x 13 night Fiji and South Pacific cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Noumea, New Caledonia; Port Denarau, Fiji; Suva, Fiji; Savusavu, Fiji; Dravuni Island, Fiji; Lifou, New Caledonia
(2x 13 night New Zealand cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Fjordland National Park (scenic cruising); Port Chalmers; Akaroa; Wellington; Napier; Tauranga; Auckland; Bay of Islands

5. March/April 2015 - 4 weeks on the Regal Princess Read about it here
(4x 7 night Eastern Caribbean cruise roundtrip Fort Lauderdale)
Ports: Princess Cays, Bahamas (private island); St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; St. Maarten

6. June/July/August 2015 - 10 weeks on the Ruby Princess Read about it here
(10x 7 night Alaska cruise roundtrip Seattle)
Ports: Ketchikan; Tracy Arm Fjord (scenic cruising); Juneau; Skagway; Victoria, BC

7. November 2015 - 9 days on the Star Princess Read about it here
(1x 5 night Baja Peninsula cruise roundtrip Los Angeles)
Ports: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
(1x 4 night West Coast cruise roundtrip Los Angeles)
Ports: Santa Barbara, California; Ensenda, Mexico

8. December 2015/January 2016 - 5 weeks on the Sea Princess
(1x 11 night New Caledonia and Vanuatu cruise roundtrip Brisbane) Read about it here
Ports: Port Vila, Vanuatu; Mystery Island, Vanuatu; Champagne Bay, Vanuatu; Noumea, New Caledonia
(1x 14 night New Zealand cruise roundtrip Brisbane) Read about it here
Ports: Auckland; Tauranga; Napier; Wellington; Akaroa; Port Chalmers
(1x 10 night New Caledonia and Vanuatu cruise roundtrip Brisbane) Read about it here
Ports: Champagne Bay, Vanuatu; Port Vila, Vanuatu; Lifou, New Caledonia; Noumea, New Caledonia

9. March 2016 - 2 weeks on the Grand Princess Read about it here
(2x 7 night California Coast cruise roundtrip San Francisco)
Ports: Santa Barbara, California; Long Beach, California; San Diego, California; Ensenada, Mexico

10. June 2016 - 10 days on the Grand Princess
(1x 10 night Alaska Inside Passage cruise roundtrip San Francisco) 
Ports: Ketchikan; Juneau; Icy Strait Point; Tracy Arm Fjord (scenic cruising); Victoria, BC

11. June/July 2016 - 3 weeks on the Coral Princess
(2x 7 night Alaska Voyage of the Glaciers cruise Vancouver to Whittier) Read about it here
Ports: Ketchikan; Juneau; Skagway; Glacier Bay (scenic cruising); College Fjord (scenic cruising)
(1x 7 night Alaska Voyage of the Glaciers cruise Whittier to Vancouver) 
Ports: Hubbard Glacier (scenic cruising); Glacier Bay (scenic cruising); Skagway; Juneau; Ketchikan 

12. August 2016 - 25 days on the Sapphire Princess (Chinese Chartered Cruises) Read about it here
(6x 4/5 Night Japan & South Korea cruise roundtrip Shanghai)
Ports: Jeju, South Korea; Nagasaki, Japan; Hakata (Fukuoka), Japan; Kagoshima, Japan; Busan, South Korea

13. December 2016/January 2017- 7 weeks on the Emerald Princess
(1x 7 night Tasmania cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Melbourne; Wineglass Bay (scenic cruising); Great Oyster Bay (scenic cruising); Hobart; Port Arthur 
(1x 14 night New Zealand cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Bay of Islands; Auckland; Tauranga; Picton; Wellington; Akaroa; Port Chalmers; Fjordland National Park (scenic crusing)
(1x 8 night Tasmania cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Port Arthur; Hobart; Wineglass Bay (scenic cruising); Great Oyster Bay (scenic cruising); Melbourne (overnight)
(1x 11 night New Zealand cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Fjordland National Park (scenic cruising); Port Chalmers; Akaroa; Picton; Wellington
(1x 11 night New Caledonia and Vanuatu cruise roundtrip Sydney) Read about it here
Ports: Noumea, New Caledonia; Lifou, New Caledonia; Mystery Island, Vanuatu; Port Vila, Vanuatu; Champagne Bay, Vanuatua

14. June 2017 - 20 days on the Grand Princess
(2x 10 night Alaska Inside Passage cruise roundtrip San Francisco) Read about it here
Ports: Ketchikan; Juneau; Icy Strait Point; Tracy Arm Fjord (scenic cruising); Victoria, BC

15. July 2017 - 3 weeks on the Royal Princess
(1x 7 night Greek Isles cruise roundtrip Athens [Port of Piraeus]) Read about it here
Ports: Katakolon (Olympia), Greece; Kotor, Montenegro; Mykonos, Greece; Rhodes, Greece; Chios, Greece
(1x 7 night Mediterranean and Adriatic cruise from Athens [Port of Piraeus] to Barcelona) Read about it here
Ports: Santorini, Greece; Kotor, Montenegro; Messina, Italy; Naples, Italy
(1x 7 night Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona to Civitavecchia [Rome]) Read about it here
Ports: Cartagena, Spain; Gibraltar, UK; Marseille, France; Genoa, Italy; Livorno, Italy

16. August 2017 - 10 days on the Grand Princess
(1x 10 night Alaska Inside Passage cruise roundtrip San Francisco) 
Ports: Ketchikan; Juneau; Icy Strait Point; Tracy Arm Fjord (scenic cruising); Victoria, BC

17. August/September 2017 - 7 days on the Sapphire Princess (Chinese Chartered Cruises) Read about it here
(1x 3 night Japan's Ryukuu Islands and 1x 4 night Japan's Ryukuu Islands roundtrip Taiwan)
Ports: Okinawa; Miyakojima; Ishigaki

18. November/December 2017 - 4 weeks on the Ruby Princess Read about it here
(2x 7 night Mexican Riviera cruise roundtrip Los Angeles)
Ports: Puerto Vallarta; Mazatlan; Cabo San Lucas
(1x 4 night West Coast Getaway with Catalina Island cruise roundtrip Los Angeles)
Ports: Catalina Island, California; Ensenada
(1x 10 night Baja Peninsula and Sea of Cortez cruise roundtrip Los Angeles)
Ports: San Diego, California; Cabo San Lucas; La Paz; Loreto; Puerto Vallarta

19. December 2017/January 2018 - 30 days on the Royal Princess Read about it here
(1x 10 night Eastern Caribbean Voyager cruise roundtrip Fort Lauderdale)
Ports: Amber Cove, Dominican Republic; Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; Basseterre, St. Kitts & Nevis; Bridgetown, Barbados; Fort de France, Martinique; St. John's, Antigua & Barbuda
(1x 10 night Southern Caribbean Medley cruise roundtrip Fort Lauderdale)
Ports: Princess Cays, Bahamas; Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; Fort de France, Martinique; St. George's, Grenada; Kralendijk, Bonaire; Willemstad, Curacao
(1x 10 night Eastern Caribbean Voyager cruise roundtrip Fort Lauderdale)
Ports: Princess Cays, Bahamas; Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; Basseterre, St. Kitts & Nevis; Castries, St. Lucia; Bridgetown, Barbados; St. John's, Antigua & Barbuda

20. June 2018 - 2 weeks on the Golden Princess
(1x 7 night Alaska Voyage of the Glaciers cruise Vancouver to Whittier)
Ports: Ketchikan; Juneau; Skagway; Glacier Bay (scenic cruising); College Fjord (scenic cruising)
(1x 7 night Alaska Voyage of the Glaciers cruise Whittier to Vancouver)
Ports: Hubbard Glacier (scenic cruising); Glacier Bay (scenic cruising); Skagway; Juneau; Ketchikan 

21. July 2018 - 1 week on the Sun Princess See photos here
(1x 7 night Asia cruise Singapore to Taiwan)
Ports: Phu My, Vietnam; Nha Trang, Vietnam; Hong Kong (overnight)

22. July 2018 - 1 week on the Golden Princess
(1x 7 night Alaska Voyage of the Glaciers cruise Vancouver to Whittier)
Ports: Ketchikan; Juneau; Skagway; Glacier Bay (scenic cruising); College Fjord (scenic cruising)

23. July/August 2018 - 3 weeks on the Sapphire Princess
(1x 14 night Mediterranean cruise roundtrip Southampton) See photos here
Ports: Barcelona, Spain; Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy; Livorno, Italy; Genoa, Italy; Marseilles, France; Gibraltar, UK
(1x 7 night Norwegian Fjords cruise roundtrip Southampton) See photos here
Ports: Stavanger; Olden; Geiranger; Bergen