Caribbean Cruise January 2025

 Monday - January 13, 2025

Mike and I spent the night at the Wingate by Wyndam Bentonville Airport Hotel.  Today was the first day we had been away from our house since we got 7 1/2 inches of snow 5 day ago.  There was still a lot of snow on the ground and on our driveway, but we didn't have any trouble.  We ate leftovers in our room that we had brought from home.  We were ready for a trip to warmer weather.  We parked our car at the hotel during our trip since it only cost $5 a night.  A pretty good bargain.

Tuesday - January 14, 2025                Fort Lauderdale, Florida

We got up at 4:55 am so that we could catch the shuttle to the airport at 5:20 am.  We caught the flight on United Airlines to Houston at 6:40 am.  The flight was on time and was a good flight.  We had a 3 hour layover in Houston.  We got a breakfast sandwich at Wendy's and later bought a sandwich to eat on the plane at a sandwich shop.  The flight to Fort Lauderdale took off on time at 12:15 pm and arrived at 3:30 pm EST.  We got to the Fairfield Inn and Suites Downtown at 4:00 pm and got settled in our room. We have stayed at this hotel a couple of other times and like it because it is in a good location for walking.

View of the sunrise from the plane

Sunset view from our room on the 8th floor

We walked 1/2 mile to a Fresh Market to get drinks and something for dinner.  We were disappointed in the food offerings at Fresh Market.  I couldn't eat anything from the market because of my nut allergy so had to buy a prepackaged salad mix.  It was okay.  Mike bought a sandwich and cole slaw at the market.  The slaw was good, but the sandwich wasn't.  We were able to get beer, wine, and White Claws at the store.  We stopped at a 7 Eleven on the way back to the hotel and I bought some turkey lunch meat for my salad.  After getting back to the hotel we ate dinner and went to bed by 9:00 pm.  This had been a long tiring day.  We are glad to be in a warmer climate.

Wednesday, January 15, 2025                        Hugh Taylor Birch State Park

We slept in then ate breakfast at the hotel.  It was an okay breakfast.  After breakfast we got ready and got an UBER at 10:30 am to Hugh Taylor Birch State Park.  We hiked about two miles in the park then got lunch at the Grill at the Grove restaurant in the park.  We shared a Cuban sandwich, sweet potato fries. and a beer.   They were all very good.

Mike in front of the large banyon tree in the park

Mary in front of the same tree

Outside eating area at the Grill at the Grove

The Grill at the Grove

After lunch we walked from the park to the beach.  We walked next to the beach until we found an ice cream shop.  We both got an ice cream cone, but wished we hadn't because they really were not very good.  

Entrance to the park next to the beach

The beach next to the park

We caught an UBER back to the hotel and took a nap.  About 5:30 pm we walked to the American Social Bar on Las Olas where we shared a chicken ceasar salad.  Our lunch was so large that we didn't need a big dinner.  After dinner we walked back to the hotel and called it a day.

Thursday, January 16, 2025                         Fort Lauderdale Riverwalk

I got up early and had breakfast and coffee at the buffett.  At 9:15 am Mike got up and had his breakfast.  At 10:00 am we walked around the block of the Baptist church which was close to the hotel then went into the CVS to buy some snack foods.  We were back in the room by 10:45 am and just sat around for a while watching game shows and resting.  We ate lunch in our room before going to the Riverwalk to walk.  It was a nice day, not too hot and definitely better weather than back in Arkansas.  We ended our walk at a frozen yogurt shop on Las Olas.  We shared a chocolate vanilla twist then headed back to our room.

Shell statue we saw on our walk

We rested for a while then walked a block to Sapida's Italian Restaurant.  We shared a lasagna with homemade noodles and bread.  It was very good.  After dinner we walked back to our room and got everything organized to begin the cruise on Friday.

Friday, January 17, 2025.                            Embarkation

After breakfast, we packed and left the hotel.  We took an UBER to the cruise terminal.  We were able to embark by 12:30.  We found our room (6176 verandah) then went to the Lido for lunch.  After lunch we walked around the ship then went to our room to unpack.  While uppacking I discovered that I had left my toiletry bag hanging behind the bathroom door in the hotel.  I couldn't go back to get it, but I did call and asked for them to hold it for me until we returned at the end of our cruise.  A major inconvenience.

View of Fort Lauderdale as we leave

Another view from our verandah

After unpacking and resting we went to the Billboard on Board bar for pre dinner drinks.  The bartenders there (Ronaldo aka South Philli, and Noel) were very good.  After drinks we went to the main dining room for dinner.  We were seated with two other couples who were very nice to talk to.  Dinner took a long time - at least two hours, but was very good.  Later we went back to the BOB bar for drinks and the BB King theater for music.  The BB Kings band on this ship were very good and had shows early enough that we were able to stay up to listen to them.  After two sets at the BB King we each got a drink to take to our room.  We enjoyed our drinks while sitting on the verandah before heading to bed.  This was a very good start to our cruise.

Saturday - January 18, 2025                            Sea Day #1

The first of three sea days.  I got up at 7:00 am and went to the Grand Dutch Cafe for coffee.  I got a cafe mocha which I brought back to the room and enjoyed while sitting on the verandah.  Later I got my second cup of coffee which I took to the Lido.  There I got a made to order omelette.  YUM!  I went back to the Grand Dutch Cafe and got Mike a cafe mocha and chocolate croissant.  I took it to our room and woke Mike up at 10:00 am.   After breakfast, Mike and I walked the hallways on the different decks of the ship for exercise.  We went to the shops so that I could replace the supplies I had left at the hotel.  I was able to get mouthwash, deoderant, and body lotion.  Just those three small items cost $25.  UGH!  I still need a razor and had to make do without makeup remover, and face cream.  After shopping we went back to the room to read for the rest of the morning.  About 12:30 we went to the Lido for lunch.  We both got a salad, but they weren't very good.  We also got soft serve ice cream, which also wasn't very good.  It didn't have much flavor.  We walked around the ship again and went back to our room to rest and read.  We got dressed for the first dressy dinner and went for drinks at the BOB at 5:00 pm.  We ate at the MDR again, but tonight ate by ourselves.  We had a very good dinner - shrimp cocktail, lamb chops, and strawberry creme roll, and chocolate cake.  After dinner we went back to BOB for drinks before going to the BB King theater for music.

The singers for the band

The musicians - all were excellent

We sat through two sets of music before heading to our room at 10:00 pm.  We really enjoyed our first sea day.

Sunday- January 19, 2025                            Sea Day #2

 This day was a lot like Saturday.  I got up at 8:00 am (the clocks were moved forward one hour).  I went to GDC for a cafe mocha which I drank while sitting on the verandah.  I took my second coffee to the Lido where I got another omelette.  I brought Mike a cafe mocha and chocolate croissant to the room when I was finished.  We sat around all morning then about 12:30 pm went to the New York Deli for pizza.   After lunch we walked around the ship before returning to the room for reading and a nap.  We had drinks at BOB before dinner in the MDR.  We had drinks at BOB before going to BB Kings for two sets of music.  We returned to our room for the night at 10:00 pm.  

Monday -January 20, 2025                        St Johns, Antigua and Barbuda

We had breakfast in our room at 8:00 am.  We had to meet for our excursion at 9:15 am.  When we went to disembark the ship there was a very long line so we didn't get to the excursion waiting point until 9:30 am.  Once everyone made it to the meeting point a taxi took us to Runaway Beach.  The beach was pretty and the water nice.  However, the water was cloudy because of all of the water motion so I didn't try to snorkel.  We walked along the beach and sat in our loungers just enjoying the nice temperatures.  It was 7 degrees in Prairie Grove this day so we were glad to be warm.  

Our lounge area

Toes in the sand - not a bad view

Soaking up the sunshine

Runaway Beach

Enjoying a walk on the beach

Mike loves the warm weather

The water is great!

As close as Mike got to the water.

Runaway Beach

We spent four hours at the beach and got back to the ship at 1:30 pm.  We changed out of our swimsuits then went to the Lido for lunch.  Later we both took showers and rested.  I ended up getting sunburned on my upper arms and legs where I don't normally get any sun exposure.  I had applied sunscreen, but obviously not enough.  We went to BOB for drinks and then to the MDR for dinner.  We had a ceasar salad, Parmesan crusted chicken, chocolate cake, and dulce de leche cheesecake for dessert.  The cheesecake was the best dessert I had the entire cruise.  After dinner we did our normal drinks and BB King.  We only stayed for one set and headed to our room at 9:00 pm.  This was a tiring, but very fun day.

Tuesday - January 21, 2025                    St. Thomas and St John

As usual, I got up at 7:00 am and went to the GDC for coffee then to the Lido for breakfast.  I got Mike a chocolate croissant and cafe mocha and took it to the room.  He was spoiled on this trip!  We went to the Lido at 11:30 am for lunch.  We had an excursion to St. John Island/National Park at 12:30 pm.  The boat ride to St. John took 45 minutes and was very rough.  At times the boat rolled so much that it was really scary.  

Sunrise as ship gets to St. Thomas

Large house on St. Thomas from tour boat

We made it to the island and got on a 'Safari Bus' for a tour of the national park.  Our guide was Kevin and he was very good.  He was passionate about the environment of the island and the culture.  The tour took about two hours then we had a little bit of time to walk around close to the dock.  We went to the national park visitor center where I bought a magnet.  Not much to look at there.  We tried to buy a smoothie at a little shop by the dock, but the owner never waited on us and we ran out of time to wait.  The ride back to St. Thomas island was much smoother, thank goodness.  

Dock on St. John and tour boat

View of harbor from safari bus

View from bus

Coco Beach view

View of Coco Bay from bus

Old sugar factory

Another view from the bus

Mary and Mike on Safari Bus

National park

Mike on the boat back to St Thomas

View as we leave St. John

Glad for a smoother ride back

After getting back to the ship we got dressed, went for pre-dinner drinks, and to the MDR for dinner.  Later we went to BOB for drinks and planned to listen to the music, but they weren't very good so we headed back to our room early.  BB King was off this night.  We were tired anyway from the busy day so turning in early wasn't bad.  This was a very interesting day.

Wednesday - January 22, 2025            Tortola, British Virgin Islands

We woke up at 6:30 am because we were having breakfast delivered to our room.  We were rewarded with a beautiful double rainbow.  

Double Rainbow

Tortola, BVI

We had breakfast in our room and I called to get beach towels delivered.  Our room steward had failed to put new towels in our room and we are leaving at 8:00 am for a beach excursion.  We got our towels and were able to meet the tour guide at 8:15 am.  The tour boat to Jost van Dyck left at 8:30 am.

Boat we took to Jost van Dyck

The ride to the White Bay Beach took about 35 minutes and was a very good ride, not rough at all.  The beach was very pretty with white sand and very clear water.  There were plenty of lounge chairs with umbrellas to stay out of the sun.  The only problem was that there were small rocks in the water where you had to wade in and they hurt my feet.  I had to go to an area with water deep enough so that I could float past the rocks.  After that point there was sand and it was nice.  I was able to snorkel and saw quite a few colorful fish.  Mike didn't get in the water, but just enjoyed the warm weather.  After I was finished snorkeling it rained on us a bit, but cleared off fairly quickly.  A lunch of grilled hamburgers, salads, and corn on the cob was provided.  It was just okay.  

View of White Sand Beach from taxi - we were on the
beach at the far end

Beach area

View of beach from our lounge area

Another view of the beach

Mary snorkeling

A second shot of Mary snorkeling

And a final snorkeling shot

Sitting under our umbrella enjoying the day

Mike relaxing at the beach

We left the beach to go back to the ship at 1:00 pm and were back to our room by 1:30 pm.  We both took showers then rested before getting ready for dinner.  We ate in the MDR and shared a table again.  We went to BOB to get drinks then got a place to sit at the BB King theater.  We listened to two sets then headed to our room at 10:00 pm.  We finished our drinks in our room and were in bed by 11:00 pm.  This was a great day.

Thursday - January 23, 2025                        San Juan, Puerto Rico

I got up at 7:00 am, got coffee at the GDC.  It was raining when I got up, but it cleared off quickly.  I had waffles and bacon for breakfast in the Lido.  After finishing my breakfast I got Mike a chocolate croissant and cafe mocha and took it to the room around 9:00 am.  We got off the ship at 10:30 am and walked around the town.  We went by the old fort then walked the streets in town.  We went into a store and bought snacks then went in a second store where I bought a magnet.  After walking two miles and spending about 1 1/2 hours in town we went back to the ship.  It was very hot and humid walking around.

Old Fort

Sign for the fort

I love San Juan

A street in town

Mike on one of the old streets

Mary on a typical street

Another street

Having a good time

We ate lunch in the Lido then went back to our room.  We spent the afternoon resting and reading before getting dressed for the second dressy dinner.  We had our pre-dinner drinks at BOB then had dinner in the MDR.  We both had shrimp cocktail, duck with tangerine sauce, and Mike had chocolate lava cake and I had coconut tart for dessert.  the coconut tart was not good.  It was the only dessert that I did not like.  We went back to BOB for drinks and BB King for music.  My dinner was upsetting my stomach so we left after one set and were back in our room by 9:00 pm.  

Friday - January 24, 2025                            Sea Day #3

Our third and final sea day.  I got up at 7:30 am, took my Fosamax perscription, and sat on the verandah for 30 minutes.  After that I went to the GDC for cafe Latte then breakfast in the Lido.  I brought Mike his chocolate croissant and mocha to the room.  After breakfast we walked on the promenade then inside the ship before going back to our room to read.  We ate lunch in the Lido, read more in our room, then got our pre-dinner drinks at BOB.  At 6:30 pm we had dinner reservations at the Tamarind Restaurant.We both had the scallops appetizer, Mike had red curry chicken and I had Szechuan chicken for our mains.  I had a passion fruit sorbet with meringue cloud (sorbet good cloud yuck) and Mike had the white chocolate cheesecake for dessert.  After dinner we sat through a couple of sets in BOB because the orange party was happening in the BB King theater.  The piano player, singer was better tonight.  After the second set we went back to our room at 10:00 pm.

Saturday - January 25, 2025                    Half Moon Cay

I got my cafe Latte at the GDC then Mike and I both went to the Lido for breakfast.  After breakfast we got off the ship and walked two miles on the trails on Half Moon Cay.  The weather was too cool for swimming.  

Tender to HMC

HMC from the tender

We decided to skip the island bbq and ate lunch in the Lido.  Mike had an egg salad sandwich from the Lido buffet and I got a tuna sandwich from the NY Deli.  They were both very good.  After lunch we rested in our room.  Before going to BOB for pre-dinner drinks one last time we packed our bags to get ready to disembark on Sunday.  We had dinner in the MDR.  We both had Caesar salad and herb roasted chicken.  I had the strawberry roll cake and Mike had chocolate cake for dessert.  We went back to BOB for drinks then got a table at BB king where we listened to two sets.  We really enjoyed the BB King band on this cruise.  After two sets we headed back to our room, finished packing our big luggage, and put it out in the hallway to be picked up before we went to bed for the night.  

Sunday - January 26, 2025                            Disembarkation

We got up at 7:30 am, packed our backpacks, left our room, and went to the GDC for coffee and breakfast.  Mike had his normal chocolate croissant and I had a plain croissant.  They were both good.  

Fort Lauderdale cruise port

Another view of the port

After breakfast we sat in the BOB lounge until 10:00 am when our number was called for disembarkation.  Once we had gotten our luggage and left the terminal we got an UBER to the Fairfield Inn and Suites.  We had such bad luck with taxis lately that we have decided to use UBER any time we can.  When we got to the hotel we were able to check into our room (#800 same as our pre-cruise room).  I asked about my toiletry bag and the maid had it for me.  She had even cleaned it up some.  I gave her a tip for holding it for me. Super nice.  We walked .7 miles to a Jersey Mikes and got sandwiches to have to lunch and dinner.  We were ready to just relax in our room.  We also stopped at a 7 Eleven and got a coke zero, chips, beer, and white claw.  We spent the rest of the day in our room watching NFL championship games.  We had a really fun trip and enjoyed being in warmer weather, but are ready to head home.

Monday - January 27, 2025                        Flight Home

We got up at 7:00 am and got an UBER to the airport.  We got there early and planned to get coffee and breakfast once there.  I got in line at the Starbucks and it took an hour just to get our coffee, no breakfast.  We barely had time to use the bathroom and get on the plane.  We ate a granola bar and peanut butter crackers for our breakfast.  When we got to Houston we used our lounge pass.  The lounge was pretty good for the basic lounge.  It was crowded and we barely found seats at a table.  We ate lunch at the buffet which was salad and taco bar stuff.  It was pretty good.  I had forgotten that I had manually set the time on my phone so it didn't update to central time and we left the lounge an hour sooner than we had to.  Oh well!  Our flight to XNA was on time and we made it to Bentonville by 3:30 pm, took the shuttle to our car at the hotel, and headed home.  We stopped at Harp's on the way home to get dinner and were home by 5:00 pm.  This was another fun and relaxing trip.