Puerto Chapais, Mexico.

This was our first time to Puerto Chapais, which is very close to the Guatemalan border. Rumours swirled around the ship of how dangerous it was due to the cartels and drug running. One passenger told us the MARSEC level, which identifies the port security level, had been raised to Level IV. Well, for starters, the highest MARSEC level is III. I politely nodded and managed to say nothing (out loud anyway). The normal MARSEC level is I. In all my time in the Navy, with very few exceptions, MARSEC I is the only level I’ve seen. While I don’t discount intelligence, I will certainly discount unintelligence.

The tours offered by the ship didn’t seem to visit many places and the cruise ship advised there were limited transport options to Tapachula, the nearest town. Puerto Chapais literally had nothing other than a welcome centre and stevedore equipment for container ships. We had been told it was difficult to get a shuttle into town due to the limited number of seats. We thought we were fortunate to get a seat on the shuttle for $10 return. It turned out there were lots of seats. The drive in was about an hour and as we headed into town, the bus passed banana and mango plantations, haciendas and shanty areas. Once in town, we explored a Mexican town that is neither used to nor set up for tourists. 

A “Real” Mexican town

This was a great experience and the first time, in all of our times in Mexico, we were able to see a “real” Mexican town. There were stores of all types, selling everything. Numerous street food stalls, clothing stores, hardware, cell phones, you name it. People going about their daily business. Colectivos picking up and dropping off people, parents herding little ones along, children in school uniforms going to school. And us, taking it all in. 

The local museum was open and we wandered through. It would not rival a Smithsonian and there were basically no signs in English. There were a number of neat artifacts. Lunch was empanadas, made right before our eyes, in a hole in the wall restaurant. When I say “hole in the wall”, it was literally a hole in the wall! Those empanadas were so good! It was a bit tricky to order as no English was spoken. Not a single word. In the end, I held out my money, and said “dos” or two. The grandma who was running the operation, took twenty pesos and prepared two “pollo” or chicken empanadas, covered in a salad and cheese. Eating these on a park bench with a drink made me feel like a local and filled me up. 

Doing some more exploring and snacking, the time came for the return journey to the ship. On our next visit, we might consider visiting the Aztec ruins which, we heard from other passengers, were being restored and, although not the best ruins, were still interesting. 

Huatulco, Mexico

This was our first visit to Huatulco, our fall stop here had been cancelled due to a storm. The area is marketed as having nine bays and beaches at every bay. We headed ashore with no plan. The first few offered tours were not appealing and somehow, we ended up in a dive shop. We were offered a snorkel tour for $300, then $200. It was a private tour and would take us to five bays with snorkeling at each if we wanted as well as beach time. It would have us back at 3PM and, after checking out another tour operator, we booked it. 

Snorkelling in Clear Blue Water

We had our own boat, snorkel gear and headed out. Unfortunately, our captain could not speak English. We managed to communicate and he pointed out a number of interesting things. The snorkel stops were wonderful and the fish we saw were colourful. The beaches were vast with very few other people on them. There was a strong current/undertow, so you should be able to swim well, fins certainly helped. After about 3 ½ hours we had had enough and returned to the ship. On our way back, the captain abruptly stopped the boat and pointed to a sea turtle. This magnificent creature was simply swimming in the ocean, going about his (or her) business. The captain stopped the boat and explained he was not allowed to follow the turtle. We floated along and the turtle kept going on its way, eventually diving down out of sight.

Once back in town, we took a taxi into downtown for lunch, Mexican street food is so much better than ship’s food, even though the latter is free. Our tour guide had recommended a taco stand in town and it did not disappoint. We then wandered around, taking in the sights and headed back to the ship. It turns out there were only two other passengers after us to return to the ship so we certainly maximized our time in Huatulco. 

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

We returned, again to Puerto Vallarta, or PV. This was our third visit in the past six-months. We weren’t sure what to do given the limited time we had during our cruise ship stop. One thing we noticed was the cooler weather. It was about 5C cooler with no humidity which was a welcome relief from the intense heat of Costa Rica and Panama. 

We spent our first half hour ashore “running the gauntlet” of time shares, souvenir shops, taxi touts and more. The cruise ship terminal is structured so you have to pass each stall. The easy exits are for crew only, passengers are politely pointed to the maze of hawkers. Once outside, we headed for a local grocery store called Chedraui. This is a full-size grocery store and it seemed better to shop here at a local store versus the Walmart. Most people head to the Walmart as it is right across the road from the terminal, however you have to cross 10 lanes of traffic. That takes a fair amount of time and, once on the other side, you have the massive parking lot to traverse. Chedraui had everything we wanted including a tour organizer that offered better prices than in town. 

Travel like a local on a local bus

We then headed into town on the local bus for 20 Pesos. Arriving at the south end of town, we wandered aimlessly, remembering the Romantic Zone is just too touristy for us. Eventually we arrived at a taco place we like and had a lunch of street tacos. Lunch perked us up, however, there was still nothing we wanted to do.

The one thing that appealed to us, which we have not done before, was to take a tour to San Sebastian. Unfortunately, this tour only ran three days a week on Mon, Wed and Fri. and we arrived on a Saturday. The tour also leaves at 9AM and is about 8 hours long with 90 minutes of travel each way. Arriving back at 5PM would have had us miss the cruise ship. For our next cruise ship visit to PV, if we remember, we will try and see if we can arrange a tour that works with our cruise ship.

International Wine Tasting On Board

Once onboard the ship, we settled in for our two sea days as we approached LA. On our last sea day, we signed up for a wine tasting. It was the best one we have ever experienced on a cruise ship. There were six countries represented, with a red and white from each country. The capacity was limited to 30 people and you wandered from station to station trying the wines as you wished. The pours were “honest” and in the span of an hour, we think we each had the equivalent of a full bottle of wine. When we tried a wine we did not like, we simply dumped it in the dumping bin. 

Grey rainy skies and cool temperatures greeted us when we arrived in LA. Our plan had been to store our luggage and wander Long Beach, but that is a thing for sunnier days. In the end, we simply headed to the airport and returned home.

Two cruises, totalling 23 days was in the books. We were refreshed and ready for our next adventure. 

Thanks for reading and please feel free to leave any comments or reach out by email via the contact form above.

Cam and Meg

Changing Cruise Ships

As our first cruise ended, we took our time leaving the MSC Seaside. Once ashore, we hung around the Miami cruise terminal, taking advantage of the wi-fi. When we were ready to leave, we headed to to the Fort Lauderdale cruise terminal. Enrolee, we stopped at Total Wine to pick up some Prosecco for our 16-day Panama Canal cruise. Boarding of the Coral Princess was delayed as it was reported to have an outbreak of Norovirus and additional cleaning/sanitization measures were in effect. Great. 

Once onboard, we noticed a change from the MSC Seaside. The Coral Princess was showing her age. Most of the newer ships have a “bigger is better” attitude, with grand foyers, high ceilings and warmer colours. The ship was functional and we were certainly going to enjoy ourselves for the next 16 days.

The buffet was no longer ‘serve-yourself’ due to the health scare. Staff would serve you. They were at the buffet entrances to make sure everyone washed their hands. There were regular announcements encouraging people to use their own bathrooms and follow hygiene protocol. 

Are Elevators Really that Hard to Use?

Then we had the challenges with the elevators. I honestly wonder if any of the passengers have actually used elevators before this cruise. From asking if the lift is going up or down. Hmmm, let’s see, you pushed the up (or down) button, the arrow in front of the elevator indicates up or down – use your visual cues people. You do need to think a bit on the lifts as not all of them go to all floors. 

An example is the mid-ship elevators, which only go down to deck 7. This means, if you want to eat in one of the restaurants on deck 5, you either have to take the stairs down the remaining two floors, or take the forward or aft elevators and walk back. Of course, if you are mobility challenged, you need to take the lift all the way to your destination. However, if you a physically able, you could walk two flights of stairs.

It seems the thought of walking two flights of stairs was the equivalent of high treason for some people. At one point, a couple was arguing about getting on the elevator as it did not go to the fifth floor. How would they get from the seventh to fifth floor? They were saying “this is a terrible ship, and so confusing”. I was in the elevator with the door open and waiting for them and then…the doors closed. I’m not sure how long they argued for after that. The fact I pushed the “door close” button may have had something to do with the door closing, just saying.

Starting off with Sea Days

The first two days were sea days. The routine was a bit different on this ship. For starters, being in our early 60’s, we brought the average down. Yup, we were some of the young’uns onboard. Last week, on MSC, we did not notice a single wheelchair, scooter or mobility aid. This week, there were many scooters et al. It is inspiring to see people, who have trouble covering distances, still travelling and seeing the world. We hope to be doing trips like this when we are much older. So, with a large number of older guests, most seemed to like to sleep in and we didn’t really notice anyone around until close to 9 AM. Thus we had our choice of lounge chairs, breakfast buffet seating spots, etc.

For dinner, we managed to snag a 7:20 dining time, which for us, is ideal. There was an overwhelming demand for the 5PM dining time, likely due to the overall age of the passengers and their nationality. Of the almost 1,800 guests, 1,100 were from the US, close to 300 from Canada with various European countries and Mexico making up the balance. Our table was in the rear of the main dining room (MDR) and by a window. Since we were eating just after sunset, the window was not really a great bonus.

Back to Aruba

Our first port of call was Aruba and we took the public bus, called the “AruBus” to Arashi beach, where we met up with some new friends from Oregon. Hanging out in a public beach hut for shade, we snorkeled, read, chilled and sampled some Mojitos. All with the brilliant Aruban sunshine and Caribbean ocean as our backdrop. Tickets for the AruBus can be had at the main station, $5 US for a return trip pass, or $15 for an all-day pass. Be aware the ticket sales only go from 6 AM – 1:30 PM. You can always pay cash onboard, although it costs a bit more. The driver will make change, but change is given in local currency. All times and prices current as of March 2025. 

One of the nice things about Princess is the laundromats on board. It’s no secret, having your laundry done in a hotel is very expensive. The cost to do it on a cruise ship is equally expensive. On a 16-day cruise, you’ll likely need to do laundry, unless you take all the clothes you own. There are washing machines on passenger decks and it makes it easy to keep up with your laundry for minimal costs.

Transiting through the Panama Canal

After Aruba, we sailed to the Panama Canal and carried on with our transit. The toll for our cruise ship was just over $330,000 USD. That was included in the cruise ship fare, the Captain did not need to “pass the hat” to gather money for our passage. The rate is a combination of the vessels weight as well as the number of passengers onboard, which for this calculation, includes crew. 

Our transit took us through the historic locks and the overall transit is nothing short of impressive. It is even more remarkable when you learn the locks have been operating the same way since 1912, with the same construction. Of course, there are much older locks in various parts of the world still operating. In Canada, the Rideau Canal was completed in 1832. Its aim was to avoid the Great Lakes after the War of 1812 between British North America and the United States . It makes you wonder. Transiting through the locks, there is very little clearance on either side of the ship.

How the Locks Work

The lock is then flooded, or drained, depending on if the ship is going up or down. The gates are then opened and away you go to the next lock. In all, there are six locks, three up and three down, rising/falling a height of 85’ in each directions. That number can vary slightly depending on tides. The overall transit takes around 10 hours and makes for an incredibly scenic day. 

Once the last lock has been exited and the ship has cleared the Bridge of the Americas, the Captain took the vessel alongside Fuerte Amador, Panama, the closest berthing point for Panama City. Although the ship was alongside, no passengers were allowed to leave until the next morning. 

Panama City – Another Capital City Visited

There were a number of tours in and around Panama, however we decided to head out on our own. The hope was to get a tour of the old city. There were a number of touts offering every type of tour imaginable. We settled on a walking tour of the Mercado, Old City and a drive by the new town. The temperature was forecast at +32C with an extreme UV and humidity warning that made extended time outside seem like not the best idea.

On our drive into town, we passed some “areas” that seemed a bit suspect. When asked about the safety of the neighbourhood, our guide said he would walk around where we were in the daytime, but not the night time. There were two police officers on most street corners and it turns out they will discourage non-locals from wandering off the main street. Our guide lived about 20-minutes from the area we were in and told us his area was a lot safer.

Fresh Local Fruit from the Jungles of Panama

Arriving at the mercado, we could see it was truly local and our guide was correct, there were no tourists there. The bounty of fresh fruit was amazing. Snacking on bananas and drinking fresh juice was so much better than the cruise ship breakfast, and healthier too! There is a lot of history in the town and it is continually developing. We learned that banking is now overtaking the canal as the main industry, although the canal is critical for bringing in hard currency. While Panama has its own currency, the US dollar is the currency of all transactions. 

The architecture of Old Panama City was very colonial, likely from the French influence when they tried to build the canal in the late 1800’s. After our tour, we headed to the Biosphere Museum and learned about the evolutionary history of Panama.

As it was hot and humid, we took an Uber back to the ship and with that, our time in Panama City concluded.

Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Puntarenas is one of the few Pacific side stops in Costa Rica for cruise ships. There’s really not a lot to do in the town. It is a small isthmus with a main road that leads to the mainland. Previously, we took a driving tour that left us uninspired. On this trip, as we left the pier, we met the touts who offered us various tours as we headed to the TI centre. Our goal was a tour of the Island San Lucas, which showed nice beaches and hiking trails. It turns out San Lucas was a former penal colony, similar to Alcatraz. There are tours sometimes, but nothing on the day we were in town. The TI made a number of phone calls and a private tour could be arranged for a cost of $300 US. We were not really that interested and left the TI without a plan.

Back on the street, the touts sensed we had nothing to do. If we wanted to do a local tour, we would have been given a good deal. The tour started at $65, then to $50. At no point did we even try to negotiate. When we continued walking away, the “owner” came and offered us the tour for $40, but only if we agreed not to tell anyone as this was “too low”. We hemmed and hawed for a bit, but remembering our tour last time, we politely declined. Our new plan was to head to the ferry and see where that would take us.

Making Our Own Tour

It was a 20-minute walk to the end of the isthmus where the ferry terminal was located. There, we bought senior’s tickets for the 10AM ferry to the other side. There appeared to be nice beaches there, at least according to our online maps. One hour and 20-minutes later the ferry docked on the other side. There wasn’t much at the ferry landing, but we knew there was a gas station with a convenience store only 500 meters away. At the store, we picked up some drinks and snacks and headed to a beach. There wasn’t much life around and we could not be sure of where we were going, this was certainly not a tourist area. Heading down a dirt road the “Perla Negra”, or Black Pearl, restaurant came into site.

Although no one was in the bar when we walked through, it was certainly gimmicky and geared for tourists. Exiting the other side of the bar were open fields and chairs that lead to another road. Carrying on downhill, we came across a smaller dirt road that eventually led us to a beautiful beach. It was a cove that had soft sand, palm trees, shade and only one person other than us. Unsure if there were crocodiles in the water, we spoke with the lone occupant, who was from Quebec City. He had been swimming and was just about to leave on his motorcycle. We then had the postcard perfect beach to ourselves. Wow.

Our Private Beach

We spent the next three hours there and the time flew by. Between swimming in warm water, listening to the sounds of birds calling, fish jumping and staring up at an incredible blue sky, it was amazing. And we were the only ones there. Shifting our towels twice to follow the shade of our palm trees, we were shocked how quickly our alarm went to catch the ferry back. The ferry ride and walk back to the ship were uneventful. There was free wi-fi at the port and we caught up on emails. As the ship sailed away that evening, we decided, should we find ourselves back in this port, we would do that same thing again.

Thanks for reading, we’ll post part II of The Panama Canal shortly. Please feel free to leave any comments, or reach out by email at the link at the top of the website.

Cam and Meg

We started our two cruises by heading to the airport, taking a connector flight from Victoria to Vancouver. We had a four-hour layover, so after clearing US Customs, we found the lounge and started our vacation 

Do Not Try This At Home

This is the first time we have taken a red-eye flight to a cruise. If all goes to plan, we would get to Fort Lauderdale at 8:30 AM, head to the cruise ship terminal and then be on our cruise. If there is a delay, then we have to make our own way to the next port of call. So, we strongly suggest you do not try this at home! It’s really not the best plan; too much can go wrong. Weather delays, lost luggage, airport closures, and 100 other things. It does happen that people miss their ship and have to get to the next port of call, but it is a challenge. 

In the end, it went like clockwork and we were at the ship by 10:30. So, if we are saying “don’t do this at home”, why did we do it? Well, it all comes down to dollars and cents. Simply put, a flight the day before was about five times as much. We rolled the dice and came out on top. If we had not, one night hotel, some meals and a flight to Nassau, would have been less than the additional cost of flying a day earlier. But, we can’t stress enough…do not try this at home!

Heading to a New Ship

Once in Fort Lauderdale, we arranged for an Uber and headed to the ship. The drive was uneventful and we both slept for most of it. Boarding the ship was very smooth. Meg had pre-registered us and all they needed was a scan of our passport as well as a photo. The camera they use was an automated one, similar to the many Border Services use at the airport. We were on the ship at 11:00 and headed to the buffet – a true veteran cruiser move.

For those of you who have cruised, going to a new class of ship can be interesting. This voyage combined a new cruise line and obviously a new ship. There were many of the same things, but also some things were completely different, with a very European flair. 

Two of the most notable differences were the buffet and main pool located on the lower level of the ship on deck 8, as opposed to being on the top decks. This was very foreign to us and took some getting used to.

New Elevators – a Challenge for Some People

The other major difference was the elevators or lifts. When you press the call button for the elevators, you select the floor you want before you get on. Then the nice machine will tell you which elevator will be going to that floor and it also indicates how long it will be until the elevator arrives. When you enter the elevator, you do not press any buttons. Being trained to press the button when you get in is ingrained. It took a few days not to want to press the button when we got into the elevator. The display indicates what floor you are on and what floor(s) the lift will be stopping on. This also took a bit of getting used to, but after a few days, we absolutely loved it. 

This system has dramatically reduced the number of elevator-challenged people from getting on and saying “is this elevator going up (or down)”. Maybe this is not the case, perhaps all of the 5,000 passengers on board are gifted in the use of elevators…nah, who are we kidding.

In all seriousness, the system seems to work well. The announcements are in multiple languages, English is first. 

Setting Sail

The cruise departed as scheduled, after everyone had checked in for the safety drill. Dinner that night, and in fact most meals, were better than recent offerings from either Princess or Celebrity. The activities were pretty much the same: trivia, exercise classes such as line dancing, pool sports, etc. The Captain’s address offered some free adult beverages. 

One thing we did not like was our dining time, which was assigned to us for 5:30PM. Now this did not mean we ate at 5:30. By the time you get settled and your order is taken, you don’t start eating until 6:10. Your main entrée arrives around 6:30ish. When we asked if we could change to the 7:45 time, the Maitre’d told us there were some 200 people on the waiting list for late dining. 

MSC is an Italian line, with a heavy Mediterranean influence. Given so many of the passengers are European, it is not surprising that later dining is preferred. 

It’s Better in the Bahamas

We did not start with a sea day, instead we visited Nassau, Bahamas for our first full day. We did not book any excursions and simply walked off the ship to explore. Meg had done some research and found a number of places to check out. Starting with the ‘Queens Staircase’, a series of 66 stairs that were carved out of limestone in the early years of Queen Victoria’s reign. It is a very popular tourist attraction, however we were fortunate to get there during a lull with no other people around. The hoards were only 100 meters behind us, so we took our pictures quickly and carried on. 

From the Fort, we wandered around town and explored, trying a local adult beverage on a public beach. We really didn’t find a lot to see or do, and the guidebooks don’t list a ton of things. One thing they do mention, and we did, was the John Wadding Distillery. Being on the Islands, rum is the specialty. A quick seven-minute tour, which really didn’t cover a lot, takes you into the sample room where you could purchase tasters of different aged rums or other drinks. 

A Historical British Fort

The stairs take you towards Fort Fincastle, which had a $3 admission. Once inside the Fort, we joined a tour that explained so much about both the fort and community. The way the fort was designed and how things were carved out of limestone allowed for ventilation of the magazine. It was the original air-conditioning and highly effective. The view from the top of the fort was the best you could get in the Bahamas, which makes sense as it is on the highest point.

Not being big rum drinkers, we departed and wandered about. Nassau has a definitive British feel. The King is still the Head of State, similar to Canada. Everyone we met was very pleasant and we left thinking it was a nice place. 

Cozumel, Mexico

Our next port was Cozumel, Mexico. We like Mexico. As we wandered ashore, with nothing planned or booked, we met some Touts and settled on a 2-hour snorkel tour on the reef. Cozumel has the second largest reef in the world, after the Great Barrier Reef. The tour was in a glass boat, not just a glass bottom boat, but a completely clear fiberglass/acrylic boat. This allowed for wonderful viewing of the ocean floor as we headed out to the reef. 

Once we got to the dive point, we all headed out into the water and looked at fish and coral. The current carried us along and after 30-minutes, we were sheparded back into the boat to return to land. To be honest, the fish viewing was not the best we had ever seen. 

Once back on shore, we wandered around the town and headed to the Mercado where we created our own food tour, based on suggestions we read. The food was fresh, reasonably priced and excellent, what more could you ask for?

As we headed back to the ship, we stopped in for some tequila tasting. Now I (Cam) do not like or drink coffee. Imagine my surprise when I tasted coffee tequila. It was incredibly smooth, to the point of being dangerously good in that it was so easy to drink. Our tasting place was on the main drag and, the prices were, in our opinion, very inflated. We decided to pass on buying any and will look for this product in other stores, just to see if we can get it fairly priced.

Belize

We then had a sea day before arriving at Belize. Our plan was to take a tour of the caves, which we would do by floating on an inner tube. We met a few touts, all of them offering the “best” price. In the end we settled on a tour and headed out. A one-hour drive took us to a touristy trap place where we got tubes, helmets and a briefing. A 20-minute up-hill walk took us to the starting point and we entered the water where we boarded our tubes and floated down the river. 

The caves were truly inspiring. The stalagmites and formations were interesting and after about five-minutes of drifting down the river, it was pitch black, except for our headlamps. Our guide had us turn off our lights and we could not see anything. Our tour was about an hour in the caves and when we exited, we carried on down the river in daylight for another 30-minutes. We were back to the ship in good time for departure. 

MSC’s Private Island

As we sailed overnight, we headed to MSC’s private island. We were a bit worried about it, thinking it may be similar to Icy Point Strait, which is totally manufactured. Everything has been built on the Island, from the 5,000 planted palm trees to the shrubs. Normally there are places to eat on the island, which are included in your cruise, however on the day we were there, all food venues were closed. 

We managed to find two lounge chairs and some shade. Setting up our home for the day, we looked out at the ocean and, between swim breaks, read our books. While there was no food on the island, all the bars were open, however the queues were horrendous, so we passed. While the island was certainly not the highlight of our MSC cruise, the colours of the water, along with the soft sand beaches, made a for a postcard perfect picture. 

Winding down

As we left the private island, we returned to Miami. Our impressions of MSC were so favourable we booked another cruise for the spring of 2026. We will head to Europe, MSC’s playground, to visit the Baltics.

Thanks for reading, please feel free to leave comments or reach out be email on the links below.

Many people have asked us if we are bored with so many sea days. In reality we don’t have the time to be bored. Between enrichment activities, planned events such as dance classes, trivia, tours et al, we have to pick and choose what to do so as not to over do it. What seems to happen to us, is many activities are slated at the same time, forcing us to pick and choose. 

When we’re not at activities, we’re reading, resting or eating. We both took e-books and enjoyed the time we could have, gazing out the window at the ocean while turning the page of a good read. Then there’s the food.

Enrichment and Learning at Sea

Celebrity put on an enrichment series consisting of three different lecturers. There was naturalist, an artificial intelligence speaker and a physics talker. The latter also did a night talk on the upper decks where you could look at the stars. The naturalist was the same one who was on the ship last fall from Vancouver to Japan last fall and we really enjoyed her talks. We didn’t attend the other two speakers as their topics were not of great interest to us.

Here’s what the five days at sea looked like for us.

Wednesday May 1, 2024

Our first sea day – warm weather, slight breezes and plenty of sunshine. We spent most of the time up top in the open air, either in the Solarium or walking around the upper decks. Our lunch was grilled hamburgers and continual snacks which made for a festive day. 

Thursday May 2, 2024

The ship plodded along the North Pacific Ocean, steaming at 20 knots. The weather today was pleasant, sunny and a light breeze, although it was cooler than yesterday. Today was much the same as yesterday, lounging around the Solarium, snacking and enjoying life. 

Just before dinner, there was a “Mixology” event. One of the bartenders demonstrated how to make a Manhattan, A Pimm’s and a Mai Tai over a 45-minute period. The bartender was quite the showman, tossing bottles, mixers and ice cubes in the air and catching them with ease. He made it look easy, however I’m sure here was certainly a lot of practice that helped him hone his skill. If tried that two things would happen. 1 – there would be drinks and ice all over the floor and 2 – Meg would not be impressed. It’s the latter that would worry me the most. The best part of this event was, after showing us how to make each type drink, we were offered complementary samples.

We also met a delightful couple from the Netherlands who have cruised a lot, including 9 transatlantic cruises. 

Friday May 3, 2024

We knew we were heading north. Today’s weather was much cooler. There was no one scrambling for deck chairs around the pool. The Solarium on the other hand, which is enclosed, was a different story. Despite the cooler weather, I still wore shorts. This caused Meg to think I was losing it, but I was comfortable.

We decided to have hotdogs from the grill today and went to order. Our assistant waiter at dinner also works the burger gill at lunch. Hailing from Zimbabwe, he was dressed in a jacket, touque and long pants. He recognized us and asked how we were doing and we told him we were cold. His immediate reply was “I’m colder”. I’m sure he was colder. He has never seen snow before, I hope he does OK in Alaska this summer as that is where the ship was heading. 

Star Wars Day

Saturday May 4, 2024

May the Fourth be with you. The warm temperature was certainly not with us any longer. It was 10C and cloudy today. Another sea day with enrichment lectures, fitness classes, lounging around the Solarium and of course eating. The naturalist did a lecture on whales today where we learned a lot of interesting facts. The whale population, that was almost decimated in the 1970’s from over harvesting and random hunting, is bouncing back strongly. Orca’s still struggle; however, many more species are doing well.

The naturalist also told us the Blue Whale is the largest mammal in the world and obviously eats the most food, up to 2 tons per day.  She quickly added that this almost matched by cruise ship passengers. I’m not sure if she was being serious or not. Based on the size of many of the guests on board she may have been. The saying “more truth is spoken in jest” rings true.

Booking Another Cruise

We have very much enjoyed our cruise so far and with that in mind, we headed down to the future cruise sales office. Our fall and summer have a number of confirmed activities as well as some placeholders. We were not ready to book a major cruise for the fall/winter of 24/25, however there was a short six-day pacific coastal cruise that aligned with our September schedule.

Of course, they try and upsell you and suggest you book a high category cabin with wi-fi and the beverage package. They refrain from using “booze” package. We decided an inside cabin with no beverage package and no wi-fi would suit our needs and booked. There are some advantages to booking onboard including an additional credits, reduced deposits and in-category room upgrades that, for us, make it worth-while.

This evening we attended a Senior Officers party, where the Captain and his top mucky-mucks were there, handing out drinks. There were also yummy appies, however as this event was between the two dinner seatings, we did not have any appies, having just eaten a lobster and beef wellington dinner. Such is the life of food on a cruise ship. 

Sunday May 5, 2024

Today is our last sea day. Waking up to swells that made the ship rock, we were greeted by rain and 7C. This made us miss Hawaii even more. There was more lounging, a galley tour, fitness classes and of course eating. Just before 11PM, in Canadian territorial waters, we turned north from the Strait of Juan de Fuca and headed toward Victoria. The view of the city, with all of its lights is always impressive. Race Rock’s light house was flashing and ocean was calm. The ship embarked a pilot and started the final leg for Vancouver.

Arrival in Vancouver

Monday May 6, 2024

I was up at 5AM and went up top to see us abeam Point Atkinson light house which marks West Vancouver. The ship carried on towards Canada place, passing under the Lion’s Gate Bridge at 5:37 AM. The view of the bridge from the water never gets boring. The ship berthed at 6AM. The last morning is always a rush, people trying to get their last meal before heading home. They want to stuff themselves and get their money’s worth. There are long queues for the lifts and difficulties finding a seat at the buffet. 

We had been warned the previous night, that getting ashore would be a challenge as there were three cruise ships in port. That increases the strain on Customs, taxis, etc. We had decided to take our luggage off ourselves and as we walked off at 8AM, we were on the sidewalk at Canada Place at 8:05 AM. The Customs agent simply took our card, gave it a cursory scan and said “you’re good to go”.

I checked in with my Mom, and she was just leaving to pick us up. We then sat on a bench in the warm sun, catching up on a week worth of emails with the free wi-fi. While there were a ton of emails, the digital detox was great. In the end not much happened that needed our immediate attention. Shockingly, politicians were still being fools, governments were overspending, special interest groups were rallying people for their causes, conflicts were taking place in parts of the world, the stock market was doing its thing. Very similar to when we left. 

Recap

This was a short trip, two weeks. We loved it. Warm air, good food, interesting sites and new experiences. Cruising is one of our happy places. It’s not for everyone, but for us it’s great. 

It’s no secret costs have gone up in the past few years. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last two years, you know restaurants have also raised their prices, sometimes by huge amounts. Increases in wages, food, rent, taxes, et al, have made dining out a luxury for many. The food on Celebrity is very good. Of the eleven nights we were onboard, nine of the dinners in the main dining room were outstanding. Two were meh and on those nights, we chose to eat in the buffet as the selections there were great. Some of the highlight meals were lobster, beef wellington, prime rib and lamb chops. There were curry dishes, vegetarian choices, fish dishes and chicken. Soups, salads as well as deserts. That is evening dining. 

During the day there are burger bars, various sandwich choices, salads and everything else. There is a lot of variety and if you don’t like something you’ve been given, you can send it back and get another dish. In the evening, we often struggled between two dishes. That’s not a problem on a cruise ship, they’ll bring you both. Portions don’t tend to be overly large, so it’s not as “piggish” as it seems. 

We are now looking forward to our September cruise and seeing the sights along the way, including San Francisco, where we spent part of our honeymoon some 35 ½ years ago.

Thanks for reading, feel free to leave a comment or reach out with any questions via the contact form.

Cam and Meg