We're back! Dave and I spent seven glorious nights in the Southern Caribbean after what has been a rough winter here in the South (relatively speaking). Our decision to take a vacation sans-baby was carefully thought out. Could we leave our wee man? Would the guilt prevent us from having a good time? Yes and no, respectively. We arranged for our awesome family members to take turns watching the little dude at our house, and he did great. It was hard to leave, but once we were on the plane all was well. We had so much confidence in the family members watching him that we had not a single worry. We checked in daily and the reports were always along the lines of "he's having a great time, enjoy yourselves." And I am happy to report, we did.
Why A Cruise?
Cruises are not normally our favorite way to vacation. We've taken one before, and I thought it was just okay. However, in that case, we had three sea days and three port days. I was very restless on the sea days and I just wanted to be on the beach. This time, we chose a cruise because of the itinerary, plain and simple. This cruise took us to five islands we've never visited in six days. All of these islands present some challenge to reach for a land-based trip, so we wanted to scope them out before deciding where to return for a longer stay. Overall, I loved the port-intensive itinerary, and would definitely do it again.
The Ship - Celebrity Summit
As the trip planner in the family, I agonized quite a bit over which ship to choose. At first, we'd decided on a smaller, but significantly more expensive, Star Clippers ship. However, this ship left from Barbados ($$$$ and difficult to reach) and we'd be in the cheap seats. I looked at mass market lines and found a cruise on the Celebrity Summit leaving out of San Juan. We were able to afford a fabulous aft balcony cabin with a huge outdoor space. The ship holds around 2,500 people, but it felt like a lot less. I'd say the average guest age this time of year was probably 60. If you're young and want to party and meet lots of friends your age, this is not the ship for you. No rock wall to climb, no wave rider, no crazy discos. However, there were also no belly flop contests, no continual announcements over the loudspeaker, no singing waiters and no drunk fools. Celebrity is understated and it worked for us.
Our Cabin - Aft Family Veranda 9197
We were able to secure a cabin normally reserved for families. This cabin was on the back corner of the ship, port-side. We had a bedroom, a divided sitting room and a balcony that was - no joke - about 300 square feet. Why tell when I can show...
The Itinerary
The itinerary, the glorious itinerary. Here's why we chose this cruise:
February 5, 2011: San Juan, PR
February 6, 2011: St. Croix, USVI
February 7, 2011: St. Kitts
February 8, 2011: Dominica
February 9, 2011: Grenada
February 10, 2011: Tobago
February 11, 2011: Sea Day (Boo!)
February 12, 2011: San Juan, PR
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