My First Cruise – Epilogue

I mentioned in my last blog post that I was writing it from the middle of the Caribbean Sea, on my first ever cruise. That adventure is now complete, and I’ve returned to the cold of Toronto, Canada.

I come away from this experience with some truly delightful memories, and have also discovered some things about this option for travel that I really do not like. Some would say, just enjoy the journey. In fact, I really did. But I’m also one who watches the world around me, and there were some things that just did not sit well.

Normally, when someone says that they have things they didn’t like, these can end up being minor complaints, like my bed pillows were too hard or the air conditioning was too cold or the drinks too watered down. I’m hoping that you’ll find my list a bit more substantial, and that it reflects some unexpected surprises (at least they were surprises to me) about how these experiences are offered.

First, let’s talk about the things I loved. The whole premise of being transported to multiple locations while unpacking only once is something I really enjoyed. Each morning, we found ourselves in a new location, eager to greet the day and explore. That was fantastic.

I loved my accommodations, which were perfect for me, my habits and my minor insecurities. The latter consist of claustrophobia, meaning I needed open access to the outdoors, being very sensitive to motion, meaning I needed to be on a BIG ship that could easily manage any rough seas, and lastly being very sensitive to noise, both during the day and at night, which meant having options and accommodations that took me away from the party side of the ship when I needed it. All of this was met completely.

Second, I loved the seamless nature of a group tour, where all the details, including flights, hotels and ship-board accommodations, were looked after by someone else. Getting an email at 1:30 a.m. the day before departure telling me my flight had been cancelled due to a massive snowstorm did not rattle me at all – within an hour, we had information from the tour group, Senior Discovery Tours, telling us what would be happening and providing new plans. That was the case throughout, with constant updates from our Tour Lead and options for enjoying the day on board or in port. I was never more calm on vacation.

I loved the multitude of ship amenities, including indoor and outdoor spaces, lounging and active spaces, small venue and large venue entertainment options, exquisite food and drink choices. There was always somewhere to go, something to do and food and drink options to enjoy while doing it. Each day, we received an activity guide that literally had hundreds of items on it. I guess when you have 3,600 guests from across the world onboard, of different ages, cultures and backgrounds, you need a variety of things for them to do.

The main reason for travelling in January was sunshine and warmth. That was delivered in spades. Some locations were too warm, especially as we ventured further south, but all provided a hugely welcomed escape from winter in Toronto. And ocean breezes while under power going to our next location were perfect for a late night beverage on the balcony. The humidity of the air along with its warmth did wonders for my skin, which I will admit was something of a scaly dry mess at departure. With care in the sun, it flourished.

Being something of a geek, I was also impressed with how automation and technology were used on the ship. We each had a medallion that would open our cabin doors as we approached, would identify us to the crew so that they could personalize our interactions, and of course, would automatically pay for anything not covered by our tour package. And amazingly, I had reliable and fast wifi and internet in the middle of the Caribbean Sea.

And lastly, getting to know my travel mates when travelling on my own was really cool. It is sometimes difficult to insert yourself into a group when you are not a “couple”, but that was not the case here. I really enjoyed my time with them over shared activities and meals. As we are all “getting on” in years, there were some amazing life stories too.

But being a mass tourist business, each cruise does its best to encourage its guests to spend as much money as possible, in booking the cruise, in booking activities related to the cruise and in on-board expenses. I was constantly peppered with ways to spend money and this became the most frustrating part of the journey for me. From the moment I booked, emails arrived offering extras. From the moment I stepped foot in the cabin, there were brochures for jewelry, spa treatments, art auctions, clothing lines and daily specials. From the moment I stepped off the ship, there were vendors at the dock, offering everything from guided tours to photographs to souvenirs. And every port had its collection of high end stores right at the dock. That constant barrage had the opposite to the desired effect. I picked up a few small souvenirs and some additional clothing, and enjoyed some special libations, but spent far less extra money than I had planned. The land tours were my big expense.

I was there to enjoy the weather and to sight-see. So land tours were essential for me. I booked several through the cruise line, and all handled things much the same way: herding travelers to designated pick-up points, packing us tightly on a bus, and driving us around and up and down and back while stopping briefly at lookouts and for, of course, more shopping. The tours were well organized and entertaining, but it was obvious to me that local guides fitting in as many groups as possible during the ship stopover was the priority. The reason is simple: cruises come to the islands from October to April only – the rest of the year is hurricane season. So a year’s worth of earnings have to be earned in 7 months.

We visited the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Puerto Rico, St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua and the US Virgin Islands at St. Thomas. Each has its own unique culture and history, and its own wonderful landscape. But each one also had clear evidence of the dividing line between rich and poor, with 50 foot yachts in the harbour and dilapidated stucco and one story wood houses on the poor side of the islands, many of whom had rubble, debris and old cars in the yard. Thankfully tourism is helping the populations thrive, especially now that other mainland locations are less popular. But we also saw a lot of the colonial history of each island, ranging from old military structures to sugar cane production facilities even to slave market locations and quarters.

We had three days totally “at sea”, meaning no stops. And the lingering effects of the northern polar vortex extended even as far down as Florida and beyond. Unfortunately, this resulted in some “moderately” rough seas, with swells as high as 11 feet at one point. This was a main worry for me in booking the cruise. As luck would have it, I found the motion very soothing, especially at night while trying to sleep. It made walking down the hall a hilarious task though. Navigating the three football field length of the ship was quite challenging, especially if carrying a drink. It turns out that the ship has stabilizers and the Captain will plot a course to expose the ship’s longest side to the motion in order to keep things as stable as possible. In fact, we even changed our course one day to avoid “very rough” seas. I was thankful for that. We were always kept informed of the situation, and our lucky tour group even got a tour of the bridge to see how everything worked.

One other thing that surprised me was how animals were occasionally exploited for the entertainment of tourists. I did not see a lot of this, but when I did, it really bothered me. And sadly, cats and dogs wander unattended everywhere on the islands, along with chickens. So many chickens. Wildlife was not a main focus of this trip, but I was appreciative whenever I saw some, especially if it looked healthy, unstressed and fitting in nicely with its surroundings.

I debated whether to include this last point, but think it is important. By far, the majority of guests on the ship were my age or older. I’m delighted that so many were enjoying themselves after a lifetime of work and likely many sacrifices. But I was also struck by the number of guests that had obvious serious chronic medical issues. I was thankful that the cruise line could accommodate them, but saddened by the fact that they had to. This further confirmed my intention in this new decade of my life to enjoy that life to its fullest.

All that said, I’m glad I made the decision to do this. I took a lot of pictures. You can view them on my new Travel page in the galleries, or check out the direct link to this trip. Hope you enjoy them. Interestingly, I used my iPhone as much as my mirrorless camera. Can you tell the difference?

Travel is my main focus this year, with several large and small journeys ahead. I look forward to each one, and to learning more about the planet and about the people I meet. Come along for the ride.