Showing posts with label Caribbean. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Caribbean. Show all posts

11.18.2017

OUR VISIT TO ANGUILLA



We sailed on Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas back in June. One of the port stops was St. Maarten, my favorite Caribbean island, and the one we have cruised to the most. Since we had visited the island five previous times, we decided to be adventurous, visit a new country and take the ferry over to the island of Anguilla.

From the cruise port terminal it took several legs of transportation to arrive in Anguilla: 

Water Taxi from cruise pier to Philipsburg ($7 roundtrip);
Taxi from Philipsburg to Marigot ($25);
Ferry from Marigot to Anguilla ($53 each roundtrip);
Taxi from Anguilla cruise pier to Rendezvous Bay Beach ($34 roundtrip).
Taxi from Marigot back to Philipsburg ($25).

But it was so worth it!

Anguilla has so many beautiful beaches to choose from. I had researched a couple of them, but as we went through customs, I asked the official which beach she recommended since we only wanted to stay for a couple of hours. She recommended Rendezvous Bay Beach: it was close by and tended to be less crowded. So we took her advice (thank you Ms. Customs Official for the perfect choice!) and hired a taxi driver for the round trip to and from the beach.

Rendezvous Bay Beach is located in front of the Anguilla Great House Beach Resort. Note: if you are interested in actually visiting Anguilla instead of a day-trip, their accommodations are these cute West Indian style cottages.

After the taxi dropped us off we just had to walk directly through the main office building and straight down the sidewalk to the beach. No fees or charges to visit the beach.
WOW!  Here is our first view...can it be any more perfect?
Since it was low season (mid-June) the beach was nearly empty!  A look to our left...



 







































To the right there were just a handful of tourists. The catamaran sailed into that spot about a half-hour after we arrived but the passengers stayed near the boat to snorkel.






















This was definitely the highlight of our cruise. When have you ever been nearly the only people on a spectacular white-sand beach?

 









































































































If you want to research ferry schedules from St. Martin to Anguilla, you can click here and here.

All photos were taken by my husband and me during our visit to Anguilla in June, 2017. Unauthorized use is prohibited.

3.12.2017

CARNIVAL VISTA IN PHOTOS

We planned our 10th cruise onboard the new Vista because we wanted to see the newest, biggest member of the Carnival fleet. The itinerary wasn't my favorite: we had already been to each island more than once, but for this one time we would cruise based solely on the ship, not the itinerary. We did have a wonderful time and the ship is beautiful. Here are some photos...

Carnival Vista is a huge ship: it's 1,055 feet long. Over 1,450 hardworking crew members take care of over 3,950 passengers. Here the ship is docked in Grand Turk.




The beautiful atrium on the Carnival Vista: The 3-story center sculpture sits above the bar and reaches to the ceiling above.


The scenes on the vortex are animated, with the fish, stingrays and seas turtles swimming around as if you were in a large aquarium.
Of course like any cruise ship there are numerous places to drink:
Alchemy Bar...

Piano Bar 88...

Skybox Sports Bar...
Havana Bar...(I love the décor in here!)


Red Frog Rum Bar...they brew their own beer.

There are so many places to relax on the ship...
































So many fun things to do...

Soak up that Caribbean sunshine...










































Swim in the pools, relax in the whirlpools...




For the kids there's the Waterworks fun area...
 




























For the adventurous there's the Skyride...


or the Skycourse obstacle climb...


For the less adventurous there's mini golf and shuffleboard...





























Overall Carnival Vista is a wonderful cruise ship.  There is so much to do, so much to eat, so many memories to make and so many new friends to meet.

For more information on Carnival cruises, click on its website here.

Thank you for visiting.

A Great Europe Trip Planner

All photos were taken by me during our cruise in November, 2016. Unauthorized use is prohibited.

3.19.2016

CHRISTMAS IN THE CARIBBEAN

Traveling in early December during our most recent cruise meant it was the first time we had traveled during the Christmas holidays. It gave us the opportunity to glimpse at other countries' Christmas decorations; these decorations would be mixed among palm trees and the warm temperatures of the Caribbean.

Pre-cruise we stayed in Old San Juan for two days. Old San Juan is one of my favorites cities: its cobblestone streets and architecture remind me of Europe except with the Caribbean colors' twist.

Our hotel, El Convento, was beautiful decorated: Pots of poinsettia plants everywhere...



and a beautiful Christmas tree to greet guests...









































Red and gold balls and foliage decorated two huge wreaths on the entrance gates of the governor's mansion in Old San Juan...

















while golden-color burlap ribboned the trees lining the calle leading to the mansion...



























Our cruise ship, Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas, had decorative garland lining all of the decks...


and a beautifully white-light tree standing in the atrium...
























Red-ribboned wreaths greeted us on our arrival to the island of St. John...
Red-bowed trees surrounded the fountain in the middle of Independence Square in Basseterre, St. Kitts...


Christmas trees and a snowman greeted us in the Aruba cruise terminal

With one particular ornament we made sure we knew where we were...
























Our first visit to Curaçao did not disappoint. From the woven twig reindeer and trees decorating the shopping area next to the Renaissance Hotel and Casino...

to the holiday decorations interspersed in Queen Wilhelmina Park...




























Curaçao was beautiful.
Actually, as you can see, these decorations weren't different from anything one would see in a front yard in the U.S. However, isn't to experience different countries, islands and cultures anytime of the year is the reason one travels?

Thank you for visiting.

A Great Europe Trip Planner


All photos were taken by me in December, 2015. Unauthorized use is prohibited.