I’ve added new photos from our trip in October to the Bahamas to the Wildlife of the Caribbean page. We had a great time snorkeling there and were able to see a diverse array of fish species along the reef, as well as a green sea turtle and a conch. We also saw a heron and a curly-tailed lizard on land near the Atlantis resort. Check out the gallery…
Category Archives: Caribbean
Four Days in the Bahamas: Part 4
On our last day we would be departing the Bahamas for home in the afternoon. But we still had the morning to enjoy. I wanted to get out to Cove Beach and spend some of the early morning in the Aquaventure Park, and made my way to the there while the park was just opening.
My visit to Cove Beach and the Lagoon I included in the Aquaventure video I posted in the previous post. I was momentarily hesitant to get my swimming trunks wet and sandals full of sand on the day of departure, but I decided to just go for it. I could always put them in waterproof bags in our luggage and clean them up when we got home.
After walking through part of the park I returned to the room. I knew Shelley wanted to visit Dolphin Cay (and so did I) and I didn’t want to go there without her.
I returned to the room and we quickly packed up our suitcases and showered. We decided to go to Murray’s Deli again for breakfast but found that it was closed. So we stopped at the Starbucks in the resort and got some takeout coffee and breakfast sandwiches to eat at Dolphin Cay.
I mentioned previously that the Aquaventure Park is HUGE and there is about a mile walk to the Dolphin Cay from the Royal Towers. But we did find our way there with our breakfast items in hand to eat while enjoying the dolphins.
Dolphins are another animal that we both love seeing and watching. Dolphins are intelligent and playful. We were seated at a table a distance away (we weren’t inside the Dolphinarium itself but just outside it) but could watch the dolphins interacting with the trainers.
While we ate we pondered when we might come back again as a family. There’s a lot of fun things to do at Atlantis and it would just be a matter of when it made sense to fit it into our schedule. We would actually have to pay for our hotel room of course 🙁
We returned to the room, gathered our luggage and checked out of the hotel. We had a Welcome Pickups driver already scheduled to take us to the airport (which is about an hour away on the other side of New Providence Island).
We had a good conversation with the driver on the way back to the airport. As I mentioned in the prior post we talked to him about our experience at the restaurant in Nassau the prior day and he encouraged us to come back and visit the Bahamas again. We likely will in the coming years.
One more interesting note: The US customs processing line was in the Bahamas, so when we boarded the plane from the airport in Nassau we had already passed US immigration. When we landed in Denver we were free to go without waiting through customs. It was nice to do this first rather than have it waiting until arrival when we were already tired.
We really enjoyed our trip. October was a crazy month for us and by the time we returned we were glad to be home. But I felt like everything that we did, with the week in South Carolina and Georgia, followed quickly thereafter with the Bahamas getaway was worthwhile no matter how crazy the schedule became. Sometimes you just have to take advantage of opportunities when they come and throw caution to the wind.
Our 11-year-old son was fine while we were gone (though he missed us and got bored) and my parents were able to get him to school, etc. Our 18-year-old son also helped and we felt good knowing they could step up for us when we needed help.
We don’t have a lot planned now for a while. The economy has affected Shelley’s job and we aren’t sure how long she will remain there. We are just planning a relatively easy roadtrip in the summer of 2025 as of now and leaving more complicated travel plans for the following years. There are a lot of places we want to visit or revisit. Its just a matter of time and opportunity.
I had no idea we’d be taking this trip to the Bahamas at the start of 2024. It came out of nowhere. We didn’t win a million dollars, but we got a free trip and that was a great win by itself.
Four Days in the Bahamas: Part 3
The previous day we had a great time snorkeling and enjoying the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort. Since Shelley had unfortunately not advanced to the next round, we decided to take a day to explore Nassau, which was just a ferry ride away.
Before we had left we had watched videos and read a bit about Nassau and had come up with a plan for visiting sites in the city. The path would take us from the ferry stop to Parliament Square, the Queen’s Staircase, Fort Fincastle, John Watling’s Distillery, the Pirate Museum, and back around to the Straw Market and Junkaroo Beach. It was intended to be a full day of interesting and fun site-seeing, with a lot of walking (6.2 km to be exact).
This isn’t exactly what happened, however.
We decided to have an inexpensive breakfast and the prior day we had seen that there was a Wendy’s near the Anthony’s Seafood restaurant just outside the resort. We agreed that I would go get breakfast at the restaurant and bring it back to the room. Unfortunately, when I got to the Wendy’s I found that it was closed in the morning and they didn’t serve breakfast.
The walk wasn’t completely wasted, however, as I did find this interesting crane and another lizard.
Returning to the room, Shelley and I decided that we would just walk to the pier, get on the ferry, and find breakfast in Nassau
Nassau
We arrived at the ferry and paid with cash. If you ever decide to take the ferry from Nassau to Paradise Island or vice versa try to have exact cash because the ferry operator spent several minutes trying to break twenty dollar bills amongst the locals to give change back to us and others.
The ferry is very basic and even boarding the boat is a bit rough as it bobs up and down with the waves and there is no gangway to walk on. We stepped down from the pier onto the boat and took a seat, wondering if we might have needed some motion sickness pills, with the boat rocking quite a lot in the wake of other ships as it waited at the dock before departing.
Once in motion, the ride was relatively comfortable and short. It’s just twenty minutes across the channel to Nassau harbor. Along the way we saw a fenced-off construction zone where Royal Caribbean is building a new resort area for cruise visitors, and we passed alongside a couple huge cruise ships that were docked in the port for the day. We would not be alone in Nassau.
Once we arrived, we stepped up onto the concrete pier and walked off to find breakfast.
We decided to eat at a restaurant right next to the Pirate Museum. Afterward we planned to go into the museum.
After crossing several busy streets we arrived at the Restaurant called Smuggler’s. We met the hostess and when she asked where we wanted to sit we asked if we could eat inside instead of outside on the open patio, where we assumed it would be air-conditioned and cooler. We had a long day planned and might as well cool off a bit between stops. She seemed weirdly annoyed by that question and we just agreeably took a table outside.
Smuggler’s Restaurant looked neat and the menu looked pretty good. But from the moment we sat down at a chair outside (because, again, they seemed strangely offended by us asking to sit inside), the staff seemed to completely ignore us. There were a few other diners at tables, and they were getting served, but we were getting completely ignored. We eventually gave up and left.
We told our Welcome Pickups driver who drove us to the airport from the hotel the next day about our experience at the restaurant and he was mad that we were treated that way. He said he would have demanded to talk to the manager. He says tourism is very important to Nassau and he doesn’t want visitors to be made to feel unwelcome.
There are times when we do ask to talk to restaurant managers in the place where we live if we feel we need to, but being in a foreign county, you don’t always understand the local customs or even know if it will help. In the end we just felt like leaving was the best option we had.
We were feeling rather dismal after that experience and no longer wanted to visit the Pirate Museum next door. Instead we walked over to a nearby McDonald’s and ate. The service wasn’t great there either. But it wasn’t non-existent.
After eating an uninspired breakfast, Shelley said she wasn’t feeling that great and that she would like to just go to the Straw Market to shop a bit and then take the ferry back to Paradise Island. I was good with going to the Straw Market first, and then I had the option to either go ahead with my original walking plan or go back on the ferry.
The Straw Market
I have to be honest, I was completely underwhelmed by the Straw Market. The shops were crowded and I just didn’t get a great vibe.
The locals we were encountering in Nassau seemed unfriendly or offish. They were pushy about selling us a shot glass in the Straw Market, but they were otherwise not welcoming, unresponsive, or seemed to be behaving oddly. There were the occasional people that appeared somewhat unstable or drunk (which we just ignored). It didn’t feel entirely safe to just walk around (although I’m sure it would have been fine).
We entered a fenced cruise port area to do some more shopping and it was crowded, but seemed a bit more relaxed. We bought some more souvenirs and then walked back to the ferry stop.
I no longer really felt like doing the walking tour I had planned out. I would be doing it alone, it was hot, and I just wasn’t getting a great vibe from Nassau. I felt disappointed, but at the same time, how did I really want to spend the rest of my day? Enjoying the resort or walking around the town.
Ultimately, I decided to go back with Shelley and we could just hang out at the resort and find some rum punch to enjoy. Plus there was a lottery that would be happening where five of the participants in the tournament that failed to make the second round would win a chance to play in the finals. And there would be a “white party” dinner in the evening and it would be good to go back to the resort and be ready for that as well.
Aquaventure Park
My favorite part of staying at the Atlantis Resort is the Aquaventure Park. I would come here even if I was staying off property. The park is huge and has so much to see and do: sea life exhibits, an aquarium, multiple waterslide, a lazy river, the lagoon, beaches, etc. If I arrived on a cruise ship and I wasn’t taking a snorkeling tour (which I highly recommend in the Bahamas), I’d go here.
I made this video on a morning before the park was fully open (you can still walk through it) to show some of the diverse parts of the park. I know my kids would enjoy it. More than snorkeling (which I really enjoy).
During and after eating at the Burger Shack in the park, we walked through the aquarium and realized what groupers really look like when not on a dinner plate. We also saw a number of other fish that we saw on the snorkeling tour. My biggest compliant is that there was no signage or information about the fish and we had to use Google to identify the various fish species.
After spending time in the aquarium we also enjoyed watching the sea turtles and rays in their special enclosures.
Stingrays are very charismatic animals. We’ve fed them and been in the water with them before (although not at this park). They are intelligent and friendly. Likewise, who doesn’t enjoy green sea turtles? We even saw horseshoe crabs in the same saltwater pools.
The White Party
We went to the raffle in the hopes of Shelley being one of the five eliminated participants that would get a chance at winning in the final round. Unfortunately of the 450 or so remaining, she was not one of them.
We didn’t see who eventually won the million dollars but we looked online after returning home and it was a woman around our age. It would be pretty amazing to have come home with around $750,000 dollars in winnings after taxes, to use for whatever life-changing purpose you saw fit. But our prize was the trip. And that was great all by itself.
That evening the Slots Tournament hosted an outdoor “White Party” dinner with steak, lobster, and an assortment of other options with an open bar. We all were asked to wear white to the party and of course we did.
Those white shorts I had bought prior to going to Europe in the summer for family portraits came in handy. And Shelley had a very nice dress that she had made before coming.
The food at the party was top-notch. I was surprised at how good the steak filets were. I knew the lobster would be fresh, but they don’t exactly have cattle ranches in the Bahamas.
We must have each had twenty free cocktails on the trip. It was great 🙂
The night wasn’t quite over for us, though.
We went back to the room to wait for a Beetlejuice-themed party at one of the nightclubs above the casino. Shelley had purchased tickets to the party and she made a red dress to look like Lydia Deetz. She had bought me a red tuxedo to look like Beetlejuice (although I didn’t go so far as to have white makeup and a wig).
We went down to the nightclub at around 11:30 PM and found that it wasn’t at all the party or the crowd that we expected. There was a line to get in even for those with tickets. But the line could be bypassed for certain people that were dressed a certain way. Rather than get in line we decided to call it a night.
Shelley had her dress ready for Halloween a few days later at home.
Four Days in the Bahamas: Part 2
Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island
During registration Shelley received her tournament competition time for the day which was 10AM. Since it was in the morning we were fairly confident that we would have the afternoon free. And with the afternoon free we could consider taking a snorkeling trip, since it’s a rare opportunity to be in one of the premier snorkeling locations in North America.
We looked on Viator for any afternoon snorkeling trips leaving from Paradise Island and found one for five hours that departed at 1PM. The meeting point was also only a half mile from the hotel. So after a brief discussion we booked it.
Of course, with a one-in-five hundred chance at winning one million dollars we would not risk missing Shelley’s slot tournament rounds, and IF she ended up in a competition that afternoon I would simply have to go without her. But as it was, the tournament rounds were only 3 minutes long and the second round wasn’t until the following day, so we were free to go.
As I mentioned in the prior post, the restaurants on Paradise Island tend to be rather expensive. While we were getting a free stay in the Royal Towers with access the the Aquaventure Park and were getting reimbursed for the flights out (actually more than the cost of the flights since we used some United miles as well), we would be paying for most of our meals.
Fortunately we found Murray’s Deli which served a good breakfast at fairly reasonable prices. The cheesecake pancakes were delicious. We ate plenty knowing we’d be burning a lot of energy swimming and walking throughout the day.
The Slots Tournament
At 10AM we arrived for the slots tournament and Shelley took her place at a slot machine. Slots are really just a game of chance and winning and losing is really just a matter of random luck. We were given tokens to cash in for drinks (more rum punch) and could help ourselves to sandwiches and cookies.
The tournament round was very fast-paced and though she was at one point as high as fourth place in the opening round of fifteen. she ended up in eleventh place. Again, other than hitting buttons there was nothing a person could do to control the outcome. The 100 highest scores in the first round would advance to the second round to compete for a million dollars. The rest would be free to enjoy vacation.
We assumed that she was out of the tournament, but the second round contestants would be posted at 7PM, after we returned from the snorkeling trip. It was a long shot, but maybe her group had just unusually high scores and she would still rank among the top 100 that would advance to the second round.
With the tournament round over in 3 blazing fast minutes, we went back to the room to change into our swim suits, apply sunscreen, and to gather our snorkeling gear and my go pro. We’d be on the water for 5 hours so we’d need to be prepared.
Snorkeling in the Bahamas
We wanted a really good snorkeling trip that would make up for some less-than-thrilling experiences we had in places like the Florida Keys a few years before. We are avid snorkelers whenever we have the opportunity, but it isn’t always a home run experience.
We wanted to see the famous swimming pigs of the Bahamas, to snorkel on a nice reef with many. beautiful fish, see some sea turtles, and get some beach time. This tour was supposed to offer all of these. And it absolutely did. It was probably the best snorkeling tour we’ve ever done over all.
The first stop on the tour was the Pig Beach, which was on one side of on Atholl Island, a short trip by boat away from New Providence Island.
The pig beach was fun (they are a bit aggressive about getting the offered fruit), but it did feel like we were there a bit longer than was necessary (45 minutes) and it was a bit touristy. Still it was fun and the pigs are friendly.
The next stop was the snorkeling stop (which you can see in the video above). It was terrific and very enjoyable. We spent about 45 minutes at the first reef spot off Rose Island then moved onward to Turtle Cay where we found a few turtles, a conch (actually I found it), and other sea life. The journey on the motor boat while enjoying drinks was fantastic all by itself.
The final stop was a beach break on Rose Island. The boat docked at an old pier and we walked across a stretch of the narrow island, past an abandoned home that was in disrepair that had been left by a past homesteader, and on a jungle trail to a secluded beach. Along the way we found a lizard and a peahen. The peahen may have been left by the owner of the abandoned home, and it was now a feral denizen of the island.
I’ve been to many beaches in my life and this one was one of the very best. If not the best.
Clear, warm water? Check.
Sugary, soft sand? Check.
Calm waves? Check.
Seclusion and privacy? Check.
Beautiful, natural environment / free of human development? Check.
We spent about 30 minutes in the waves, enjoying the location and the slowly setting sun. It felt great. On many levels.
After walking back to the boat we ate a late lunch and enjoyed some more alcoholic drinks. The ride back was as enjoyable as you would imagine, listening to music played on the motor boat, sitting at the back of the boat with the setting sun in the distance ahead.
I give this snorkel tour 5 out of 5 stars. Here is the link on Viator.
Back at the Resort
After returning to the resort we went to check on the list of those who would advance in the Slots Tournament. Unfortunately, Shelley wasn’t on the list. On the bright side, we would have all of Saturday free to do as we pleased.
We took a moment to sit in the giant throne chair.
After changing out of our wet clothing and showering, we decided to have dinner at a place called Anthony’s Seafood just outside the resort on Paradise Island. We sat outside. The food was good and we enjoyed a few celebratory drinks. The music on the outdoor patio was really loud (almost to a point of discomfort). It was also a fairly hefty bill. But we deserved to splurge a little.
The following day we would be free to visit Nassau and enjoy the Aquaventure Park. And maybe we could win a chance to reenter the tournament?
Four Days in the Bahamas: Part 1
This past August my wife Shelley got a surprising email. She had won a trip for two (herself and a guest) to stay on Paradise Island in the Bahamas for three nights in October. If she accepted she would be participating in an slots tournament with the possibility of winning one million dollars.
At first we weren’t sure if it was real and not a scam. A brief bit of research did reveal that it was in fact legitimate. The World Tournament of Slots was organized by MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and this was the inaugural tournament in the Bahamas. Second, though we have just returned home from an already booked and planned trip to the South Carolina and Georgia the prior week, those four days were free on our calendars. We could go.
So we were getting a free vacation to the Bahamas, staying at the Atlantis Resort at Paradise Island, receiving $1000 in cash for airfare, and we would have a 1 in 500 chance to win $1,000,000 if we accepted. So we accepted. It wasn’t really that difficult of a decision, really.
The hard part wasn’t whether to go. It was how we would manage things at home. We are used to traveling with our kids and for this trip we had a decision to make. Our youngest, Evan, is 11 and he would not be off of school. Likewise if we brought him we would have to pay for his expenses for airfare and an upgraded room with two beds. And we’d have to keep him entertained while we did various activities during the tournament which was intended for two people, and adults at that. Ultimately, it made more sense to keep him home and give mom and dad a chance to go take an adult trip.
Fortunately my parents were available to help with our son while we were away, as was our now 18-year-old son who lives a little ways away and goes to trade school. My parents are elderly and my son is busy with his job and school, but between them, we took a gamble that they could get Evan to school and to activities while we were gone. We wrote out detailed instructions for both and trusted that Evan would do his part to help them as well.
Having made our decision and all the necessary arrangements, we were set to go. Still a tad nervous, but ready to experience a few days of sandy beaches and tropical seas. With the chance to win a million dollars.
Red-Eye Flight to Nassau
On Wednesday night, we took Evan to my parent’s house and made our way to the airport for an 11:59 PM overnight flight to the Bahamas with a connection in Charlotte, North Carolina. We have gotten pretty good at packing with all the recent travel in the past few years, and we could get by with a couple carry-ons and one checked suitcase.
Red-eye flights are no problem for me. I would much rather stay up late and get on a flight then take an early morning flight. If a flight is scheduled for 6 AM I know we will need to be at the airport no later than 4 AM, and to wake up at no later than 3AM (usually closer to 2AM). We aren’t good at being able to force ourselves to sleep at say 7PM, so at best we might get about an hour or two of restless sleep before having to get up and on our way to the airport.
So Shelley and I got to the airport, checked in, and waited a couple hours in a largely empty airport terminal until it was time to depart. And off we went.
It’s about 3.5 hours from Denver to Charlotte, so with the time change we arrived around 5:30 in the morning. On a long-haul flight it’s much easier to get some sleep, but the crowded airplane (we did have extra legroom on 3 of the 4 flights) and relatively short duration before the connection meant we were pretty sleepless.
We got some coffees and some breakfast in the terminal then found the most comfortable chairs we could find by the gate, which were hard Adirondack chairs that sort of reclined to try to sleep. It didn’t work.
We saw that the flight to Nassau was filling with passengers bound for the same tournament. It was definitely an interesting assortment of people. One woman was drinking at a bar by the gate. She started chatting with us, offering more of her life story than we needed to know. Then we met some more people. People were friendly, if not a bit odd.
Once we boarded I took the middle seat this time, giving Shelley the window. She had sat next to an armrest hog on the last flight, and it was my turn to sit in the middle. It couldn’t be worse, right?
Well, it actually was. Imagine a heavily intoxicated guy with tourettes and no sense of personal space. He was drinking small bottles of liquor and shaking. He gorged on candy that I would imagine was not ideal for his jerky tendencies. He knocked a soda on the aisle floor and repeatedly bumped into me. For two hours I sat politely, wishing I could be moved. But the flight was completely packed.
When the flight landed I vowed to get us more comfortable seats on the flights back.
Fortunately, once we deplaned, the immigration line was easy and we got our luggage and waited for our Welcome Pickup to convey us to the Atlantis Resort. As I had done in Europe, I booked Welcome Pickups, assuming that the courtesy shuttles would be crowded and take a while to get us to the resort. Many of the courtesy shuttles left before us, but we had a really nice ride with a mini-tour of Nassau on our way to Atlantis.
The Royal Tower at Atlantis Resort
Once we got to the hotel we had to check in for the tournament the following day. Shelley got in line for the tournament while I took our luggage to the hotel room.
While waiting in line for the tournament registration, the staff gave us free rum punch drinks and cookies. We, of course, helped ourselves to as many as we could shamelessly accept 🙂
With registration complete, we made our way to our room and got dressed more appropriately for a tropical beach vacation.
Besides getting registered we went to find the location for the tournament the next day and to familiarize ourselves with the layout of the resort. It is massive.
Since we live in Colorado, we don’t often get a chance to enjoy beaches and we made our way out to the Aquaventure Park. It is huge and covers many, many acres.
Aquaventure Park
We initially made our way toward Cabbage Beach, but the surf was much too rough to enjoy. So we returned to the park lagoon, which is filled with seawater supplied by the surrounding ocean and sea life as well. We snorkeled and swam in the lagoon a while. I needed some practice using my snorkeling attachment for my GoPro.
In a subsequent post I’ll include my video tour of the Aquaventure Park. Needless to say though, it’s really exapansive and a lot of fun.
After a couple hours at Aquaventure we bought some food at a comparatively reasonable price at one of the waterpark food venues. We had read that conch was the choice of foods in the Bahamas. We bought both conch salad and conch fritters and enjoyed these in our room. Many of the restaurants at Atlantis and the surrounding Paradise Island are VERY expensive, so be sure to check out the prices of various restaurants beforehand.
We also saw that there was still a registration line and rum punch was still being served. And we shamelessly had some more 🙂
Evening Social Gathering
The tournament hosted an evening event on in outdoor area for guests that were celebrating events. Since Shelley and I had our twentiest anniversary this year and my birthday was only a few days before, we got to enjoy a few glasses of champagne and cupcakes.
We chatted with another couple who also had just taken another vacation and still made it out to the tournament. It was fun talking and enjoying the evening.
The following day Shelley would play for a chance at the million dollars and we’d try to book a snorkeling trip if there was time in the afternoon.
Wildlife of the Caribbean
Our newest wildlife photography page features St Maarten, Roatan, the Cayman Islands, and more. Check it out…
Eastern Caribbean Cruise, March 2023
In March of 2023 we flew to Florida to take a Caribbean cruise with stops in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Saint Martin, and Saint Thomas, USVI. Following the cruise we used an open day in Orlando to cash in a free day-pass at a Disney park as well.
This cruise had waited a few years before it came to fruition, actually. We had planned to visit Puerto Rico and St Thomas on a Royal Caribbean cruise back in 2017, but hurricanes Irma and Maria hit back to back and we postponed the trip. Then we also were about to take a Carnival cruise in 2021 that would have visited the DR but due to the ongoing Covid travel restrictions at the time we had to postpone yet again.
So finally, with a Carnival cruise credit to use or lose along with the free Disney pass, we made reservations a year in advance and finally traveled to the Eastern Caribbean.
Day 1: Orlando and Port Canaveral
We flew out the night before and arrived at our hotel at about 2AM due to the time change from MST to EST. We rented a car at Orlando airport to drive ourselves to the cruise port, while also giving us latitude to make a few stops to pick up supplies before boarding the boat. At $64 for a less than 24 rental this was actually much cheaper than using Lyft or Uber or a shuttle service for 4 people.
We woke up the next morning feeling expectedly groggy but wanted to get to Port Canaveral fairly early so that we could make a stop at Manatee Sanctuary Park just a few short miles from the port.
Manatee Sanctuary Park
Manatee Sanctuary Park is a small park on Merritt Island. There is a boardwalk right by the sheltered inland bay where manatees may be seen in the right season.
We did not see any manatees or even dolphins. But we did see quite a number of other animals of various kinds all within a half hour. Florida soft shell turtles, a skink, a brown anole, a white ibis, and a warbler among them. This was also a last moment of serenity before we would be boarding what we knew would be a very full Carnival Magic cruise ship for spring break.
We then drove down to the Avis at Port Canaveral to return the car and found that there were already a LOT of people waiting for shuttle rides to the port for a number of ships. After about an hour waiting in the hot, sunny waiting area (and debating calling a Lyft or Uber) we finally got on the shuttle and made it to the Carnival embarkation port.
I had bought Faster to the Fun in advance of the cruise to help us get aboard the ship in a priority line. The cost was $125 dollars for one cabin. Even with the priority line it was still about an hour of lines and processing steps before we were aboard the ship. Without FTTF this would have been at least twice as long, so it was still largely worth it. You also get priority debarkation and a special Guest Services line.
You are also supposed to get into your cabin early, which we ended up doing but it isn’t clear the cabin steward knew this was a benefit we had (our room was ready but our room cards had to be delivered to us).
We were able to get into our cabin earlier than the vast majority of the guests and that was nice as the rest of the ship was full of guests laden with their luggage. Eventually we left the room to get some food from the Lido deck which was crowded beyond reason. Just finding anywhere to sit was next to impossible. This was the worst we saw the Lido cafeteria, but the honest truth is the Carnival Magic at capacity is a bit of a crowded place.
At 4PM the ship left the port and we started the cruise. We had some fun on the 12th deck ropes course (circling it multiple times to try every path) and got in a few games of giant chess (we love playing chess).
Day 2: Sea Day
The second day of the cruise was a sea day traveling through the Bahamas toward the first stop at Amber, Cove in the Dominican Republic.
We were still feeling a bit tired even though we went to bed early the night before (around 8PM EST). I was glad to have a sea day with no itinerary that day to fully recover from the flight and sleeplessness of the prior day.
We took it easy on Day 2 aboard the ship and had a formal night dinner in the ship’s steakhouse. It was the best dinner we had on the cruise, which made sense since it was the fine-dining restaurant and charged extra (although the wine was complimentary).
For free restaurants, Magic did have a Guy’s Burger Joint which was among our favorites throughout the cruise. Guy’s Pig and Anchor BBQ was also decent, but had odd hours (2PM open and 4pm close).
Day 3: Amber Cove, Dominican Republic
The Amber Cove stop was our favorite stop of the cruise. I had looked at possible excursions for this port for several months and kept reading that the 27 Waterfalls of Damajagua was the most exciting and worthwhile. I had also read a lot of reviews on TripAdvisor etc to the effect that it was physically demanding and potentially dangerous.
After weighing our options I decided that we should go ahead and do it. But I also had to decide whether to book it through the cruise line or through a tour in the Dominican Republic for less than half the cost (and also give us the chance to be ahead of the crowds that would arrive with the cruise tour).
Finally I decided to book the tour through Viator with Edwin Transfer Tours. I highly recommend doing this as we not only were taken to Damajagua, but got another stop at a plantation in the Dominican countryside on the way back. Although getting to the tour van was a bit of a walk (they park outside the gates on the highway), they treated us great and it was a relief to be away from the cruise hordes (at least for a brief moment).
We found our way through the gate to the highway and only at that point did I realize I didn’t bring our passports (just in case anything went wrong). It was fine though. You only need your ship card to reenter the port.
We found Edwin’s driver and climbed in to go on the tour. We were the only four in Edwin’s tour group that day. The drive up to the 27 Waterfalls was pretty short but gave us a chance to look at the Dominican countryside. When I travel I enjoy seeing ‘real’ places and not the built-up, touristy places that are usually right outside of cruise terminals. Even cows can look very different in a foreign country (and they did in the DR).
After arriving we were given our helmets and lifejackets and while I was hoping to be in our own group we ended up in a larger group which included many from other cruises. It still wan’t too bad though (there were some arrogant, rude New Yorkers that ended up in the excursion group with us but they shut up when they got winded on the hike and we were just fine – we’re Coloradans).
If you read the reviews the hike uphill sounds much more intense than it is. If you are in relatively good physical health and especially if you hike it’s really nothing. My eldest son and I could have run up and back and then back up again. So don’t let those reviews deter you. Just enjoy the forest scenery along the way.
Once you get to the falls the fun begins. You won’t descend 27 falls but instead about 7 (not sure who is counting). While I would never, ever take a child under 8 years old (and I think that is the age limit), older children will have no problem with the help of adults. There are places where you cannot touch the bottom and you can optionally jump at a couple spots. Some of the slides are as high as the jumps in reality.
After making our way through the falls we hiked back along the river to the visitor center. There we had a better buffet lunch than we ever got on the ship. We were really hungry so the food tasted even better.
After the Falls we started back and the driver asked if we were interested in stopping at a market. We weren’t sure what the market was but we wanted to do a little souvenir shopping so we said ‘yes’.
The market was actually more interesting than that. It was a farm of sorts where tobacco, cinnamon, cocoa, cilantro, mangoes, etc were grown and we got to watch cigars being rolled. That was something I was actually curious about as well but since we had chosen the Damajagua tour I didn’t expect to get to see.
When we arrived a tour group from a Norwegian cruise line was arriving at the same farm. I thought it was kind of funny that we got a free stop at a place those passengers paid for separately. While I wouldn’t have been that thrilled with it as an excursion if that was all we did, since it was a free stop off it was a pretty nice addition. It did not compare to what we saw in Costa Rica, however, at a cocoa farm there.
Day 4: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Old Town San Juan has been on my bucket list for years and it was right at the top of the list of places I was looking forward to seeing on the cruise. I had mentally put together a walking route to cover once we were off the ship and for the most part we covered it.
I’ve posted our walking route here as a guide for anyone that wants to use it for future reference. The only difference is that we walked around La Forteleza on the south outside the wall and up to Calle Fortaleza. Google Maps doesn’t seem to think you can do that.
There were four huge cruise ships in port in San Juan that day and that was immediately a big disappointment as almost every sidewalk and historic site was saturated with people for the first several hours. By the time we were finished eating lunch things were better but we also had less time before we had to start making our way back to the ship.
Our first stop was Castillo San Cristobal passing the Columbus statue in Plaza Colon along the way. Castillo San Cristobal is one of two national park sites in Old San Juan along with El Morro on the opposite side of the city.
The fortress is huge and it provided the land defense of the city while its twin El Morro provided the sea defense. The fortifications were built by the Spanish in the 1500s and were so well constructed the US army used both in World War II for coastal defense.
Unfortunately at that point Shelley was succumbing to a stomach illness that I also would acquire on the trip, and because of the high heat and humidity she decided she would have to let the rest of us continue the tour of OSJ in her absence. We were not going to stop until we’d seen the most important places (and had at least one piña colada).
We decided Castillo San Felipe El Morro was next and made the trek across the north part of the city to the second fortress.
El Morro seems even more impressive owing to its position at the edge of a peninsula. The kids enjoyed reading about the history of the fortress and viewing the defensive walls and entering the garitas (the guard towers that line the walls).
After spending time in El Morro it was lunchtime and the heat and humidity were wilting us so we decided to head off to find some lunch. Along the way we came to the Iglesia San Jose which was built in 1532 making it the oldest church in Old San Juan.
This was certainly a cool stop and a relief from the heat and the crowds. I knew that in one of the churches was the tomb of the explorer Juan Ponce de Leon. We asked at the church and they said it was originally there, but it was moved to the Cathedral Basilica San Juan down the street which was a decade younger.
All the restaurants in San Juan were filling with diners and most were pretty much overwhelmed by cruise traffic. We found El Patio del Sam and were just happy to get a seat out of the heat and a chance to enjoy some local food.
While our drinks came out quickly and the sole waitress was nice, the food took over an hour to arrive and we really weren’t sure it was even the right food (we ordered empanadas and were served breaded, flattened meat entrees, but we were not going to ask to have it changed). A few other tables of tourists were getting grouchy and complaining to the staff. We just decided to be chill and understanding. There were too many people and too few staff.
After eating, the streets were dramatically less populated, which was great. We made our way next to the cathedral which was also pleasantly quiet inside.
We did find the Tomb of Juan Ponce de Leon, the conquistador that once reputedly sought the Fountain of Youth (obviously he failed otherwise we wouldn’t have found his tomb).
We also found a rather interesting relic in the remains of Saint Pius that were brought to the cathedral in the 1800s. I realized that these were in fact the actual remains coated with wax but let out 10-year-old Evan believe on his own they were fake. I didn’t photograph the saint as I didn’t feel it was appropriate. I honestly had a dream a subsequent night about this experience.
After the cathedral we set off for La Fortaleza but only after passing through the gateway Puerta de San Juan in the wall. This gateway was one of the last that remained of what was once an encircling wall but which was partially removed. The gate led uphill to the cathedral.
We passed by La Fortaleza but because of time constraints we had to hasten this last part of our journey and moved directly on to Calle Fortaleza after passing through a park square.
Unfortunately Calle Fortaleza was undergoing roadwork so we proceeded on and just made a few quick souvenir shop stops in the Old town, enjoying the scenic architecture as we went.
With time running short and our energy depleted we made our way back to the ship.
Day 5: Saint Martin
I wanted to do some good snorkeling on this cruise as it’s been rather difficult to find good places to snorkel over the last few years. Key West was rather disappointing (dead coral and rough seas on an overcrowded catamaran) and we really didn’t try in Costa Rica (although we considered it).
The last relatively good snorkeling was on our last cruise in Roatan, and prior to that we had some good experiences in the Cayman Islands, Maui, and best of all (by far), Belize.
So I booked the one and only excursion of the trip through the cruise line: Ultimate Snorkel and Beach Break.
But the excursion wasn’t until 1PM and the ship arrived at 8AM. Which should have meant we had time to visit the historic town of Phillipsburg, Sant Maarten.
Instead upon exiting the ship at 9:30 (we took our time eating breakfast, etc) we found that the cruise port is a distance from the town and just finding a taxi to town was a pain. We eventually decided that we would be better off just spending a little time at the cruise port shops before returning to the ship to put on sunscreen, take Dramamine, get our cameras, and eat lunch.
When it was close to 1PM we made our way to the dock for our excursion and after a wait in the hot sun on the concrete pier, we were taken to the boat.
It was good to not be on a crowded catamaran, but when we were taken t o the snorkeling spot we saw not only the catamaran but several other boats. The excursion just went to the same snorkeling spot as every other tour.
We were instantly disappointed on seeing hundreds of snorkelers in the same area, but we didn’t have another option. Little Bay seems to be the default snorkeling spot on Saint Martin and it does have some interesting things underwater (helicopter, submarine, cannon, etc) and some colorful fish, but it wasn’t quite what I was hoping for (a vibrant reef full of amazing sea life).
What made it worse was my attempt to move to the edge of the group led me to bump into a barnacle-encrusted boat nearby. I scraped my arm and was bleeding but didn’t even realize it until we exited the water.
The crew weren’t exactly the nicest either. They gave me peroxide but acted like I must have scraped on coral. The coral was far below as you can see in the video.
Once we were back on the boat we did get a pretty good tour that led to the French part of St Martin and around past Maho Beach where the airplanes land at the edge of the beach. I got a video of a plane landing right over our tour boat.
After that we went to Kim Sha Beach which was pretty nice with warm water and a sandy fenced-in shore. There was no real scenery there, however so I was kind of disappointed we weren’t at one of the other beaches we passed along the route.
Overall we kind of felt bummed out by the snorkeling tour experience. It was neat to travel around by sea and have the plane land overhead, but the snorkeling was our primary objective and that was less than we were hoping for.
We did see a resident iguana lounging on the pier as we made our way back to the ship after the tour.
As for my arm, I was worried about an infection after exposure to the uncertain sea water and barnacles, but after applying hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, and some Neosporin I brought with us, I decided it was likely ok. I had to get right back in ocean water the next day, and since it had not yet scabbed over, it bled a little more in the ocean there as well. As of today (over a week later), the scrape is healing fine.
Day 6: St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands
This was another stop I was looking forward to and had once made plans for on a cruise we never took. I had read about Virgin Islands National Park on St John and Trunk Bay and that was really where I wanted to go as a first priority.
Unfortunately the only excursions that went there were sold out (there is one called St John on Your Own, which I considered). And the ship was set to depart at 4 PM, requiring being back on the ship by 3PM (to be safe).
It is possible to take a cab to Red Hook on the east on of St Thomas to board a ferry to Cruz Bay on St John and then an open air taxi to Trunk Bay (or another beach on St John). But with only really about 5 hours to work with and four cruise ships in St Thomas that day, I wasn’t willing to risk it.
So I decided on what is considered one of the most beautiful beaches in the Caribbean and the second most famous in the USVI, Magens Bay. Getting to Magens Bay would just be a short taxi ride up and down to the north end of St. Thomas and would provide a nice day on the beach without any real rush. Afterward we would have time to do the Skyride at Adventure Point (right by the cruise terminal).
The taxi ride there was $12 per person (or $48 for four of us) each direction, plus $5 to enter the park for 12 and over. So we spent a little over a $100 to go the Magens Bay. Overall worth it. But make sure you have plenty of cash (we did).
Magens Bay was exactly what I expected: beautiful, crowded with cruise travelers and the water had little visibility so you really can’t snorkel. There are better places to snorkel in St Thomas so only go to this beach to enjoy completely calm, safe water and a beautiful beach.
After a couple hours we wanted to return to the port area to have lunch and ride the Skyride. That unfortunately wasn’t going to happen.
When we got back to the port the line for the Skyride was ridiculous. There were four huge ships in port that day and Adventure Point was overcrowded. I also wanted to do the Pirate Museum but the cost of admission for us seemed ridiculous at the time. We were hot and overwhelmed by the crowds and just wanted to get away.
We ended up re-boarding the ship knowing that the next stop on land would be in Port Canaveral. But we just didn’t have a lot of time to begin with and everything was overcrowded.
In the end I liked Magens Bay overall but felt disappointed with this stop. St. John would have been better. The itinerary just didn’t give us enough time in the port and there were too many other mega cruise ships in port as well.
Days 7 & 8: At Sea
Our last two days of the cruise were sea days. We made extra efforts to enjoy the activities on the ship these days, playing trivia several times, giant chess, and taking part in family games on deck five.
We ate in the Italian restaurant and had the Dr Seuss breakfast with Green Eggs and Ham. We took our portrait photos and went to the White Night party on the last night. Might as well get it all in.
We actually enjoyed these days the most of the cruise as we were starting to settle in more. We were also starting to feel ill (cold symptoms) which I don’t blame on the cruise but we were getting a tad worn down physically by the time the ship arrived in Port Canaveral.
We found the crew to be very nice aboard the ship and enjoyed many of the activities on the ship. But the spring break crowds were as expected. The pools were crowded and there were often some significant lines at the cafeteria on Lido Deck. And the Serenity deck loungers were rarely available. We’ll cruise again, but not on spring break. It’s more relaxing with a less busy ship.
Day 9: Back to Orlando and Disney Hollywood Studios
With the cruise over we had still another day before our flight back to Colorado, since the difference in flight prices were substantial between Sunday and Monday.
We took the shuttle to get our Avis rental at Port Canaveral (which turned out to be a smaller car than I intended and we had several suitcases) and after stuffing ourselves into the little Kia Rio, we drove off to find breakfast.
We found a nice waffle diner in Cocoa Beach called C’s Waffles. We had some good waffles there and lots of coffee (much needed because of the cool weather and my cold symptoms). After eating we drove onward to Orlando and the Disney resort.
Both Shelley and I were starting to have cold symptoms and felt congested. So we canceled plans to go to Hollywood Studios that day as we were just too sick. And the weather was an unseasonably cold 58 degrees Fahrenheit. We would still stay at the Caribbean Beach Resort at Walt Disney World.
Once we arrived at the hotel and checked in we realized the resort wasn’t crowded at all and presumed the park wouldn’t be either. Also we really didn’t have any other plans for the day and the kids really wanted to go to the park. So we uncanceled our plans and decided to go ahead and visit Hollywood Studios.
Since we had our free pass I decided to put on the warmest clothes I could (my son’s flannel shirt) and we got aboard the sky tram to the park. It was very much worth it. We had a really good day that made up for the bad day we had at the Magic kingdom a year and a half before.
The reason we had a free pass was we complained about a prior visit which was a shitstorm in the covid era with grouchy staff and ridiculous mask rules. Now we had low expectations based on that but Hollywood Studios turned out to have some good new Star Wars rides, a new Toy Story rollercoaster, and the staff was nice too.
Our kids enjoyed the day at Disney a lot and honestly I enjoyed the resort hotel we stayed at after the crowding of the ship. The Caribbean Beach Resort was quiet and relaxing. We also really liked the direct access to Hollywood Studios from the hotel by the gondolas.
We got a late checkout for our room and then made our way to the airport to hang out in the United Lounge before our flight home. My cold was worsening but at least the airport lounge had coffee and soup to eat.
By the time we got home I would say we were exhausted and my cold made the flight a tad miserable (thanks for the in-flight tea). But overall I’d say it was a good trip. Maybe not as relaxing as I hoped for, but never boring either.