For the holidays this year, we decided to do our own thing. For a longer vacation, it just made sense to go when we had the most time off. We’ve cruised several times before. It’s a great value when it comes to seeing a lot of places in a relatively short amount of time. You get a taste of several different locales, and only have to unpack once. If you want a more immersive experience, I suggest a resort. There are many options for Caribbean cruises. We chose the 10-day Eastern Caribbean. It leaves from Ft. Lauderdale  and travels to Bahamas, St. Thomas, Antigua, Barbados, and St. Kitts. Below you’ll find a handful of my favorite photos from each port, as well as some thoughts and [hopefully useful] tips. Enjoy! Let me know what you think in the comments below.

First Stop: Princess Cays, Bahamas

We spent a heavenly day on the southern most point of Eluethera Island in the Bahamas. Like many of the cruise lines, Princess owns their own little bit of paradise. Princess Cays is separated from the main island by a small causeway. It was a great introduction to the Caribbean. We spent the day basking in the sun while cabana boys brought us ice cold Cokes and island food (jerk chicken, fish tacos, etc.). There is no dock for this stop. The ship drops anchor nearby and smaller boats bring us to shore (it’s called tendering). We swam in crystal blue water. We took pedal boats out for a spin (literally a spin, because we couldn’t work the rudder). We met a little crab and named him Sheldon. We are pretty sure Sheldon got eaten by a bird shortly thereafter. We snorkeled and saw all sizes of tropical fish. Yeah, I’d go back 😉

Tips: bring lots of sunblock. We like the spray kind because it’s so easy to apply. We spent several hours out in the sun. The cruise ship also provides beach towels that guests can take to shore, so you don’t have to pack any (save that space in your suitcase for souvenirs).

Day at Sea

Before arriving at our next stop, our ship had an entire day at sea. Some people don’t like these days, but I do. I love them. That means we can eat, relax, eat some more (let’s be honest). Plus, the ship has lots of activities going on these days. Activities like formal nights, magic shows and, since this was a Christmas cruise, gingerbread building contests. Rhett insisted that we sign up, and I’ll admit, we had a blast. We were given 45 minutes to build a house with the kit they gave us and a few extra sprinkles. Rhett was so serious about finishing our house on time that he wouldn’t even pause to let the official photographer take a photo of us, haha! With over 40 teams competing, we were shocked to find out that the ship’s captain and cruise manager picked our house as the winner (It must have been due to the practice we had, building the same houses a few weeks prior with our nieces). Sadly, no prize, just memories 🙂 They put our house on display in the main lobby for everyone to see and told us we could pick it up after Christmas Eve (to take back to our cabin). When we went to pick it up on Christmas, it had vanished! It’s a mystery.

Second Stop: St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

St. Thomas is one of the small island nations that belongs to the US Virgin Islands. They use US currency and calls, data and text messages are domestic rates. For us, that meant we could facetime with family while standing on the highest point of the island (without outrageous roaming charges). Instead of booking a tour through the cruise line, we decided to hire a local taxi to drive us around the island. He drove us around with another couple in an open air taxi. It was a great and affordable way to see the island, although there is a little bartering involved 😉

Tips: This tour included a lot of driving and breathtaking scenic overlooks. If that’s not your thing, there are other options like zip lineing or beach outings. There are always a lot of different types of excursions at every port to choose from.

Third Stop: Antigua (an-tee-ga), British Virgin Islands

We thought we’d try out the same technique as on St. Thomas and hired a local taxi to drive us around Antigua. Here’s a little tip: when hiring a driver, make sure you take a look at his/her accommodations before you agree to the trip. This time we were in a poorly-ventilated, questionably-reliable van and were joined by a family of 4. The company was great. The van was hot and the roads were windy. As far as I could tell, there were also no traffic laws, so the most aggressive driver always has the right-of-way (made things interesting sometimes!). The tour was a few hours long and I definitely felt a little car sick by the time we were done. We got out a few times during the tour, but the van’s windows didn’t allow for many photo-ops while driving. We saw a lot of the city and oh, the beaches. They were astonishingly beautiful. The locals will tell you that there are 365 beaches, one for each day of the year. The fresh pineapple (they cut it there for you) was also divine.

Tips:  All of the islands accept US dollars.  However, if you’re using a credit or debit card, your bank may charge you a conversion fee.  Keep that in mind when you’re out shopping.

Fourth Stop: St. Lucia, British Virgin Islands (Christmas!)

Because we have sailed a few times before with Princess, one of the perks we were given on this cruise was 250 minutes of free internet. This gave us the ability to look up the closest LDS meeting house the night before we arrived in Barbados. Our plan to attend church worked out quite perfectly because the building was only a few blocks away from where we made port and the branch (Castries Branch) met at 10AM, which was a few hours after we arrived. We walked from the boat to the church and were greeted, not only by every member of the congregation, but also by about 8 elder missionaries and their mission/branch president. Everyone was SO welcoming. It was their Christmas program, so, the choirs sang, the missionaries sang and spoke, there were instrumental musical numbers and we were even given a little gift at the end. All in all, it was a great experience and we are so glad we attended.

After church, we decided to hop on a catamaran tour that took us up the coast where we’d have the best view of St. Lucia’s most pronounced feature: two volcanically formed mountains called the Pitons (French for “Peaks”). On our way there, an eagle-eyed passenger (on the lookout for whales) spotted three kayakers on the horizon that appeared to be signaling for help (waving their hands in the air). The crew determined that the water was definitely too rough for any kayakers to be out as far as they were, and decided to go investigate. So, we turned our party boat around and headed nearly a mile further out to sea to meet up with the kayakers. It was lucky we did, as it turned out, the kayakers were very much in need of help. They had been dragged out by the current and the rough water (nearly 5ft swells) had not allowed them to get safely back to shore. They had been signaling for help for over an hour to every boat that passed them by. To much applause, the crew helped get them and their kayaks on board – even requiring one of the crew members to dive in to assist. We gave them a ride to our next stop (a gorgeous beach) where we spent some time snorkeling and swimming. From there, the kayakers caught a ride back to their hotel and we carried on with our journey to the Pitons, which were definitely worth the trip. Because of a combination of the gorgeous views and experiences we had there, St. Lucia will probably be remembered as our favorite of the islands.

Tips:  Every time you take an excursion, the people providing that excursion often expect you to tip them for a job well done. For this reason, it is a good idea to carry cash in small bills. The crew of our catamaran definitely earned their tip that day.

—– (Above and below: The three rescued kayakers getting a ride back to their hotel/resort) ——

—- (Above: Rhett spent a lot of time pointing out where he, as a pirate of the Caribbean, would stash his booty) —-

—-(Above: the crew never missed an opportunity to make our trip a party)—-

Fifth Stop: Barbados, British Commonwealth

On this stop, we kind of decided just to do our own thing. We got off the ship, we walked around the city. We got some Barbados money from an ATM (to keep, not to spend). We did a little shopping. Kind of a relaxing day after a bunch of very busy ones.

Tips: If you are traveling over any holidays, keep in mind this may impact the business hours of some of the shops and restaurants. It was Boxing Day, a national holiday, and a lot of the stores were closed for the day.

Last (sixth) Stop: St. Kitts, West Indies

Historically, sugar cane was a major industry of the Caribbean islands. Nowadays, it’s tourism. On St. Kitts, we were given the opportunity to tour an old sugar plantation house (no longer in use). This particular plantation has been in the same family for 7 generations and was the only plantation on the island to never engage in the slave trade. We were able to see some of the country’s culture and history, and a very well-kept garden. After the tour of the plantation house, we headed to yet another beautiful beach (probably the warmest water yet!) before heading back to the ship. A fun fact, Kitt is a nickname for Christopher. In this case, it is a nickname for Christopher Columbus. The island also goes by St. Christopher, who  liked it so much that he named it after himself.

Tips:  If you have any desire to study abroad St. Kitts has several universities including two medical schools and a veterinary school.  Locals told us that most of the students are American. Another interesting tidbit, by owning land in Saint Kitts you can become a dual citizen.

—-(Above: the owners also run an animal sanctuary from the house. A lot of abused and neglected pets have ended up here.)—-

—(Above: proof that the weather wasn’t always perfect. The locals call it “liquid sunshine” where it rains, sometimes pours, for just a few minutes, then the sun comes out again. This happened on almost every island we visited.)—-

Final Sea Days

We spent the last couple of days at sea before returning stateside. Rhett and I spent that time eating, lounging, reading, eating some more (because ice cream), and doing laundry. Another great trip on the books.

—-(Above: taking the photo above it.)—-