Places You'll Go: Caribbean Cruise Trip Report Part One

Okay, the real trip report begins today. First of all, I told you before we left that we would be parking at Lighthouse Parking in Galveston. We had prepaid on line and it cost $55 for the week. They are still in the same pot hole ridden shell parking lot, but now they have put metal structures up over the parking areas so that all of the parking is covered. It is fenced and secured. the pot holes aren't the sort that your car can fall into and never be seen again. So, for $55 a week, it is well worth the money.

After parking we were picked up at our car, our luggage was stowed on the bus and we were taken across the street to the terminal. From driving into the parking lot to standing in line in the terminal took about 15 minutes total. Once in line things moved fairly quickly. The only glitch came when one of the members of our party went through security and was carrying a pocket knife with him. He was searched, the knife was confiscated and he was given a claim number so that he could pick it up when he returned.

Once we were on board, we went straight to our cabin. This is my second aft cabin and I must tell you that I have not been disappointed either time. If you are into balconies, you simply must take this route. Previously, I had been in an aft corner balcony which wrapped around the ship on Rhapsody of the Seas. It was huge. Since this cabin was not on the corner and it was on a Voyager class ship, I had little faith that it would rival that Rhapsody balcony but I was shocked! The balcony was large enough for two lounge chairs, a small table and two other chairs. As we left port in Galveston on Sunday, I brought the vanity/desk chair out of the room and we could have brought another chair out if there had been one. Six of us enjoyed our deck as we left port with no trouble moving around at all.

As it turns out the corner balcony on Voyager class ships is actually smaller than this one. We were next door to the corner and I peaked around to take a look. Their balcony was sort of disappointing compared to ours. Our cabin was 9692 and it was sandwiched between a suite and a corner cabin. This position resulted in absolute peace and quiet. Since it was at the very back of the ship, there was no hallway traffic noise. We also never heard a peep from anyone in the cabins on either side of us except occasionally while we were on our balcony and they were on theirs.

Inside our cabin might have been slightly smaller than other balcony cabins. But since I would rather be on the balcony anyway, it worked for me. If I were going on a Panama Canal cruise or an Alaskan cruise, I would book as far in advance as necessary in order to get a cabin like this one. The other great thing about it is that it was very well protected from the wind. On our balcony, we would actually be hot since there was no wind to speak of, but when we went up on deck, with the wind, it was kind of cool outside. I think this wind protection makes it ideal for Alaska.

Following muster, but prior to leaving port, my travel buddy Jenny and I split up in the Promenade to get provisions for leaving port. Jenny went to the pub and got us a couple of beers, while I went to the Cafe Promenade for sandwiches and pizza to take to the cabin. With drinks and food in had we made our way to our little piece of heaven on the back of the ship and took pictures of dolphins feeding as we pulled out from Galveston.

Monday - Day 2

Bingo time!

Monday dawned overcast and just a little too cool to sit out in the rain. Don't get me wrong, it was warm enough to sit out on the balcony as long as the rain wasn't coming down. But it wasn't possible to go up on deck to enjoy the outdoor pools. So, after breakfast Jenny and I caught up with the others in our party who were playing Bingo. We watched for a while. I am not a Bingo person. So, it seemed to drag on for a very long time to me. We hadn't had much time to explore the ship prior to this point. So, we made our way around different areas and found some things to do.

Monday was a formal night so we actually ran a little short of time since we had to go up to the cabin and dress for dinner. However, Jenny and I have priorities, so we were able to make it down to the Champagne Bar early enough for a glass of bubbly prior to dinner. Ever since our first cruise together, a pre-dinner drink has been our one constant tradition that we do not stray from.

Following dinner, we went to a game show in the Lotus Lounge where they play music and then the contestant has to finish the songs verse when the music stops. It was a lot of fun and filled with 70's, 80's and 90's music. Since we had so much fun there, we made our way up to Deck 14 following the game show to finish the night watching karaoke. I'll never tire of watching people who have been told their entire lives that they are perfect in every way embarrass themselves. :-)

For a day in which we saw no sun and were at sea all day, Monday was a very busy day. Tomorrow, I'll tell you about our first stop in Cozumel. Have a great afternoon!