Well, we spent the last week aboard the Voyageur of the Seas in the western Caribbean. We went on this trip with 14 couples from Fun N Sun Resort. It was really fun to know so many people on the ship and to do some group activities. We were blessed with perfect cruising weather – seven full days of sunshine. This made up for the confusion at the port of Galveston. Fog had delayed the arrival of the returning ships, so for the second time in two years, it was mass confusion with delays checking in with Royal Caribbean International. Our friends Wayne and Carolyn, who accompanied us on the trip to and from Galveston, were glad that Paul was driving and knew how to find the baggage drop-off and port parking lot.
The first two days were spent at sea, so we got a real chance to explore the ship and partake in many ship events. It didn’t take Wayne and Carolyn long to start enjoying the ship – and it sounds like they will book their second cruise in the future. On our trip we visited Cozumel, Mexico – Grand Cayman Island – and Falmouth, Jamaica.
Since we have been to and shopped in Cozumel on previous trips, we opted for a day at the beach. We went to Mr. Sanchos – an all inclusive beach club. Your admission included all you can eat and drink, beach chairs, snorkeling equipment, two swimming pools and lots of white sandy beach. Our group did have a great time.
At Grand Cayman, we couldn’t decide which tour to take – so went to the on-ship tour desk as soon as it opened on Wednesday morning. We ended up booking the Taste of Cayman tour. We quickly headed off to the buffet for breakfast and then ran down to jump on a tender boat. Our tour ended up being excellent. It started at the Cayman Islands Brewery, then headed off to the Tortuga Rum Cake factory where we sampled their 8 different cakes as well as their flavoured rums, and finally ended up at a distillery where we tried Seven Fathoms Rum! We had a great time. When the tour ended, what did we see but a Diamonds International store across the street from the distillery? Jane now has a lovely souvenir from the Cayman Islands.
Our third port was Falmouth, Jamaica. Falmouth is a brand new port that Royal Caribbean is in the process of building to allow their largest ships to dock. It is half way between Ocho Rios and Montego Bay. Falmouth is a National Heritage Site that is being restored with the help of the University of Virginia. We were only the fourth ship to visit, so the port is very much under construction. We booked a Historical Highlights and Beach Break tour. Falmouth is very small and very poor, so although interesting, it did not take long to view. We were glad our tour was on a bus instead of a walking tour since many areas were questionable. The beach club was located on a warm sandy beach, and our tour included a lunch of jerk chicken. Following our relaxing day at the beach, we enjoyed a margarita at the pier while listening to the reggae band and watching the carnival dancers and other entertainment.
The last two days were spent back on the ship as we sailed back to Galveston. We were very impressed with the entertainment on this cruise. Each night after dinner we were able to find a bar with music that we could dance to, and we seemed to never make it back to our rooms till after midnight.
We made it back to Fun N Sun at 5:30pm on Sunday – in plenty of time for the Ice Cream Social – what a supper!!
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