A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of cruising the Eastern Caribbean with my family for 7 days on the Allure of the Seas.  My family consists of me and my wife, my 10 year old son and 4 year old daughter.  Here are some Eastern Caribbean Cruise Tips for Families:

Nassau, Bahamas Tips

In Nassau, we decided to hit the water park and aquarium at the enormous resort The Atlantis.  $4 per person each way cab ride from the ship.  $400 for full access to the water park, aquarium, and beaches for a family of four.  The kids loved the water slides, kid pools, lazy river, and aquarium.  For the adults, the water slides like the Leap of Faith and the Challenger are pretty intense. I had a blast going down the slides.  The lines were not too long, and we did everything we wanted to do in a few hours.

While we had a great time at Atlantis… but we made a few mistakes.  We brought our daughter’s floaties and 4 beach towels from the cruise ship. Atlantis provides life jackets and towels at the water park.  So, make it easy on yourself and leave the floaties and towels on your cruise ship.

Atlantis also has lockers to rent. Just make sure you return the key to the locker, or you will get charge a $50 replacement fee.

PRO Savings TIP:  You can save $100 – $60, by buying a room at the Comfort Suite next door to the Atlantis which comes with a day pass for up to 4 people.  Sounds counter-intuitive, but it works.

PRO TIP:  The last 2 times we’ve went to the Atlantis while cruising, we hit traffic on the way back to the ship that made our cab ride take 45 minutes.  Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get back to the cruise ship.  There is only one bridge back over to the ship and it has been severely backed up for us the last 2 cruises.

Magen’s Bay, St. Thomas Tips

We are a beach family.  We enjoy playing with the kids in the ocean and on the beach.  We also like to do things on our own schedule, so at most ports we just get off the ship and find a cab or shuttle to one of the closest beaches.

Magen’s Bay St. Thomas – $8 per person each way cab ride from the ship.

There is a bar and restaurant on the beach.  $15 minimum spend [3.5 beers] to use the credit card and they will let you run a tab.  It seems to be a trustworthy establishment.

Magen’s Bay is a fairly crowded beach, but if you are willing to walk down the beach a little ways, the crowd thins out nicely and you can get a nice piece of the beach to yourself as you can see in the pictures.  We brought our daughter’s floaties and she loved floating out in the bay.

Pro Tip: Don’t feed the iguanas .  The Cruise Line Excursion to Megan’s Bay is a good bit more expensive for a day at Megan’s Bay then just getting off the ship and doing it yourself.   Remember the Ship departs on ‘Ship time’. Always have watch set to ‘Ship Time’ because cell phones can pick up/display times that are incorrect.

Le Galion Beach, St. Maarten Tips

Le Galion Beach is one of the Caribbean best kept secrets.  I guess you could say was a well kept secret.  We loved it so much, that I was truly tempted not to share it.  Le Galion is on the French side of the Island and is closer to the cruise ship terminal than the popular and crowded Orient Beach.  From the photos, you can see that similar to Magens Bay, St Thomas, Le Galion Beach is surrounded by luscious green hills.  The bay is protected by the Atlantic Ocean by a reef.  We met a family who’d been on St. Maarten for the week and they were back for a 2^nd time to Le Galion Beach because out of the 4 beaches they’d visited on the island, it was their favorite.

There is a bar/restaurant on the beach. We did not eat there, but the food did look good with a noticeable French influence.

We brought towels from the Allure of the Seas to layout on and my daughter’s floaties.  It is $7 per person each way cab ride from the ship.

Pro Tip: The restaurant/bar at Le Galion Beach will call a cab for you when you are ready to be picked up.  We got the cab driver who drove us from the pier to the beach and called him from the restaurant to come pick us up.

More Eastern Caribbean Photos

Want to see more pics from our Allure of the Seas Vacation?  click here-> Allure of the Seas Vacation Photos.

As a follow up to the Q and A I did with my mother about her first cruise, I asked her to jot down a few thoughts about the port calls we made. For someone who has not really ever traveled alone, I was impressed that she was willing to go off on her own on three of the islands we came to (since I was back on the ship working). It might be helpful for you, if you are considering going on a trip as a solo traveler, to read about how easy it is!

So without further ado, here are the islands…in her own words.

A friendly cruise center welcomes cruisers at Grand Turk island.

Grand Turk
“I was a little nervous as I was by myself, but once off the ship walking through the main building, which was a giant gift shop and then out into a plaza with many more fun shops, I was very much at ease. After browsing, I found myself a nice lounge chair under rows of palm trees and enjoyed my time sunbathing and people watching. When I got too warm, I went for a swim. After a while I decided to check out some music I was hearing and to my surprise, I found Margaritaville. What a great time everyone was having!”
Puerto Rico
(Note – My mother took a shore excursion to El Yunque National Forest, the only tropical rainforest in the U.S. National Forest system)

“I was lucky to be able to visit the rain forest just outside San Juan. I could tell our driver, Louie Louie, was experienced at driving up and down the mountain. We stopped at a wonderful brick lookout tower and were able to climb the stairs and look out over the valley and mountains below us…a memory I will never forget. We were all given little backpacks with water and snacks and hiked about a mile on wonderful, sturdy paths to a beautiful waterfall. We crossed a little stone bridge and sat on the rocks enjoying the falls and were also able to swim in the pool. The trees, shrubs, moss and the dampness were nothing like I had ever experienced before.”

The blogger's mother pauses for a break in St. Thomas

St. Thomas
(Note – I was able to accompany my mother when she went ashore in St. Thomas.)
“It was a rainy day but we took an open air taxi into town and browsed the many, many shops, picking up gifts for our family back home. It was fun getting to see the sights and getting a feel of the island and the people that live there. The side streets and alleys were full of wonderful little shops, and restaurants with outside seating were a lot of fun to see.”

Half Moon Cay (Holland America Line’s private island)

(Note – My mother got off the ship on her own in the morning and tendered over to the island. I joined her in the afternoon.)

Paradise Found at Half Moon Cay

By far my favorite for sunbathing…the sand so white and soft, the water the most beautiful aquamarine and sun so warm and soothing, after coming from Minnesota. The lunch barbecue that the ship hosted was a lot of fun and we ate in little open air huts. We took a nice stroll along the beach enjoying the sand and water. We enjoyed a mojito in the upstairs bar of the shipwreck and relaxed in the sun.
I did not want to leave so soon!

The solo traveler has no trouble finding friends or fun on a cruise!

A while back, I interviewed my mother prior to her first-ever cruise. We sailed together on Holland America Line’s ms Eurodam. It was a business trip for my company, Cruise Holidays, with days and nights blurring together. This is significant because it meant my mother, a 1st time cruiser, was left to fend for herself most days and evenings. She knew this prior to the trip but was willing to take the risk. After all, I’d promised her that on a cruise, it’s nearly impossible to get bored.

I also promised that I would return to share a few of her impressions, as well as answer a few questions that other first-time cruisers may have.

Here are some excerpts from a post-cruise Q and A that I conducted.

Q. First things first: What did you do with all your free time? 

The blogger and her mother enjoy dessert on the ms Eurodam

A. I was surprised to find out there was so much to do on the ship. One of the first things I did was to go exploring and came across the pool and hot tub areas with a bar/restaurant and a wonderful, lively band playing music to welcome everyone aboard. There was a walking track outdoors and we did a fundraising walk for the Susan G. Komen Foundation one morning. I also took in a kitchen tour, went to “high tea” and had wonderful desserts and little sandwiches. I shopped on board, saw two movies, attended the evening entertainment after dinner, and of course sunbathed on the deck.

I loved taking my morning coffee outside on the deck. Also, every afternoon, I went to the Lido and had an ice cream cone, cookie and ice tea on the deck. For a nice quiet get away, the ship had a great library with relaxing couches that looked over the bow at the ocean.

Q. What did you think of the cuisine?

The Dessert Extravaganza is just one of many tasteful delights aboard Holland America Line ships

A. I was in awe that the kitchen could cook up all that fabulous food and it was all so delicious. The evening meals were exceptional, and I took the opportunity to try food that I had not ever tasted before. Seeing the presentation of the food was so much fun for me. I loved all the appetizers & soups!

Q. How did you handle the motion aboard the ship…did Dramamine do the trick?

A. I took Dramamine before I boarded the ship to be on the safe side. I was thinking I might not need anymore, but not feeling so well that night I decided to take it every day. It really worked for me!

Q. How many pairs of shoes did you end up packing?

A. Four pair. (She was hoping to get by with three.)

Q. Would you like to cruise again? If so, who would you bring and what part of the world would you go to?

A. Yes, I would definitely take another cruise. I would like to take my husband,  or going with a friend or family members would always be fun. I loved the Caribbean, and it would be fun to cruise through Norway, but I would sail anywhere.

The week before, I cruised on the Celebrity Millennium.  Celebrity is considered to be the top-tier of the contemporary cruise lines while Holland America is the bottom tier of the luxury cruise lines so I had an excellent opportunity compare the differences in service, food, décor and amenities.  The Millennium is one of Celebrity older ships while the Eurodam is one of Holland America’s newer, larger ships. So the comparison is not 100% fair to Celebrity, so in some instances I will make comparisons to the Celebrity Solstice.  The Celebrity Millennium is getting upgraded with Solstice inspired enhancements in May 2012.   Click to See full review of Celebrity Millennium with list of enhancements coming in 2012.

The Eurodam’s décor, table settings, stateroom furnishings, and little touches like the enclosed tiled shower poolside are a little more luxurious than even the Solstice.  On the Eurodam, the retractable roof over the pool allowed us to stay by the pool even as we passed through a rain cloud.  The New York Times sponsored internet café and library on ms Eurodam is the largest and most impressive I’ve seen on a cruise ship.  The balcony staterooms were spacious and included a bath tub . although m/s Eurodam is a fairly large ship [85,000 gross tons], her design with lots of little nooks and small spaces give her a more intimate feel expected on a Holland America cruise.

From the minute I boarded, the differences were noticeable.   On the Celebrity Millennium, we were served champagne and mimosas as we boarded the vessel, but not on the Eurodam.  With both cruise lines, we could start boarding early [around 11:30AM].  On the Eurodam, our staterooms were ready for us at 11:30 AM on day of embarkation.  On the Millennium, we were not allowed to go to our stateroom until 1:00 PM forcing us to lug around our carry-on luggage as we ate lunch and toured the ship.  While the champagne is a nice touch when boarding the Millennium, being able to get in my cabin early was a huge win for the Holland America.

As we sailed away on the Eurodam, we enjoyed a Barbeque poolside with barbeque ribs, grilled steak, and chicken complimented by loads of sides and a dessert table.

Average age of passengers

I’ve cruised Hawaii, Caribbean, Mexico, Bahamas, and Italy at different times of year on several different cruise lines.  While the average age of cruisers on 7+ night cruises is skewed upward, the average age of the passengers on Holland America’s Eurodam were still noticeably older.  This requires for the crew to be extremely patient.  It also requires for the other passengers onboard being patient.  The buffet lines move a little slower and the entertainment is geared toward the older demographic.  Eurodam staff were very friendly with a good command of the English language.  A language barrier with the dining staff on the Celebrity Millennium was a minor issue I commented on in my review of the Millennium.

Luxury Add-Ons

Retreat Cabanas on the Eurodam

I was most impressed with the luxury add-on available to guests at a very reasonable up-charge.  The additional charges are so reasonable that all of the cabanas and passes to the hydro pool/thermal suites sold out for the entire week by the end of the time we ate dinner on the first night.  The Eurodam offers cabanas poolside on the Lido Deck and more private cabanas on the observation deck.  The retreat cabanas on the observation deck are only $45 on port days and $75 on sea days.

The Eurodam offers week long passes to the relaxing Hydro Pool and Thermal Suites for couples and individuals.  The couple pass is only $199 for the whole week.  This is very limited and sold out by the end of the 1^st night.

Tamarind, pan-Asian Specialty Restaurant

On the Eurodam, I had the pleasure of eating at their pan-Asian specialty restaurant, Tamarind.  They have their entrée broken down by spiciness.  If you order their spiciest selections, be prepared for some serious heat.  The spicy shrimp entrée brought me close to sweating. All together, the Ahi Tuna appetizer, assorted sushi, soup, chocolate fortune cookie, & the spicy shrimp entrée made for one of my most memorable cruise dinners.  Reservations to Tamarind can be difficult to come-by as it only sits 144 guests, so make reservations online shortly after booking your cruise.  Dinner at Tamarind requires a $15 cover charge, Lunch is complimentary!

Cabin Service

In my review of the Celebrity Millennium, I wrote that we had the best cabin steward ever.  Day or night, if we were walking to our cabin he’d run ahead of us and unlock our cabin.  On the Eurodam, I felt like their philosophy is that the best cabin steward is one not seen.  I would leave in the morning and comeback around noon with my cabin cleaned.  I’d leave for dinner and comeback before going to the casino or show to find my bed turned down.  I can’t remember ever seeing a cleaning cart in the hallway.  They were fast, efficient and hard to be spotted.    While I loved the personal touch from our cabin steward on the Celebrity Millennium, I also appreciate the fast and efficient service of the stewards on the Eurodam.

Conference at Sea

Theater in the Conference Center

The Eurodam’s conference facility and staff handled our group of 300+ incredibly well.   For large incentive groups, continuing education, or conferences at sea looking for a 7-night option, m/s Eurodam’s facilities and staff are more than capable to handle your every need.

The same can be said for the Celebrity Millennium.  Compared to most other cruise ships doing 4 – 5 night Caribbean itineraries, the Millennium has one of the best conference facilities I’ve seen.

Conclusion

ms Eurodam is a beautiful vessel, full of luxurious amenities and a wonderful staff.  The service and food at the buffets, main dining, and specialty restaurants is high enough for me to include it in the luxury category.  I was cruising with a group of 300 well-traveled travel agents, and could not find anyone with a negative comment about the ship, food, or the crew.

Celebrity vs. Holland America

I love the differentiation between the cruise lines.  I love soaking in the experience that each has to offer.  Celebrity’s food, service, décor, and amenities are noticeably better than Norwegian, Carnival, and Royal Caribbean.  Holland America felt to be a notch above Celebrity in these categories.

But, choosing the right cruise line is all about personal preferences.  When choosing between Celebrity and Holland America, you’re not going to go wrong with either option.

As a 36 year old cruising enthusiast, if I had to choose between Celebrity and Holland America I would choose Celebrity.  The slightly better food and service is not enough to make up for the older demographic of the passengers.  Don’t get me wrong, Celebrity cruises is not packed with 30 – 45 years olds – but for those 30 – 45 year olds looking for an upscale cruising experience, I recommend the Celebrity Solstice Class of Cruise Ships.  Most 30 – 45 year olds are looking for entertainment, activities, and fun while on board the ship — so, I recommend Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian for most 30 – 45 year olds.

Click here to view more m/s Eurodam Photos from my trip.

On a flight home from a cruise last week I struck up conversation with a seatmate who asked what I did for a living.  After telling him I was in the cruise business his comment was, “that sounds fun, but I’ll bet it’s tough selling vacations in such a difficult economy.”  I thought about that a lot this week.  He was right on both counts;  it’s fun and it certainly has been a challenge, but I have a lot for which to be thankful!

First, I work with an extraordinary team here at CruiseDeals.  I know it’s politically correct to say that in a public forum about employees, so let me explain why it’s sincere.  Everyone at CruiseDeals takes our customers’ vacations and satisfaction as seriously as if it were our own trip.  We’re a ”dot-com” in name only–we don’t operate like a call center where our job is to get your credit card number and move on to the next caller.  We do our best to provide up-front, honest pricing.  Our goal is to make sure you have the best possible vacation–one that’s right for you, your family, or friends.  If you’ve purchased from us I sincerely hope you felt that way as well.  If not, you can let me know how we can do better by calling 800-668-6414, ext. 300 or writing to kweisner@cruisedeals.com.

Second, we are honored to have arranged cruise vacations for more than 220,000 guests since opening our doors in 2003.  The reality is customers have more choices of where to buy than ever before, and we know that we don’t deserve anyone’s loyalty until we’ve earned it.   Many of you have chosen us time and again, and we can’t express enough how much we appreciate your for doing so.  220,000 is a lot of people, and our goal is to make every single one feel like they’re our only customer.  Being big is good since it translates into buying power, but not if it comes at the expense of doing a good job for our customers.

Third, despite the current economic challenges, it’s still a privilege (and a lot of fun) to be in a business that’s truly interesting and always improving.  We’ve come a long way since my start in 1985 where most cruise ships were converted passenger liners from the 1940s and 1950s.  Not only has the hardware become more spectacular and diverse, but pricing puts a cruise within reach of so many more people.  I am convinced there is still no better value for a vacation than a cruise, even after adding in the “extras” such as taxes, gratuities, beverages, shore excursions, etc.

Thank you for letting me share my thoughts as we near Thanksgiving.  All of us at CruiseDeals and the Travel Leaders family wish the very best to you and your families.

And now. . . I’ll turn it over to Martha to share some her hand-picked deals! 

Avalon River Cruises: Save $1,000 per person

Thinking of planning a trip to Europe? A river cruise combines the best of what a blue-water cruise offers; unpack once, fine dining, transport between cities while you’re sleeping, with the hands-on experience of European land-based tours. And since most River cruises dock in the very heart of the historic cities they visit, you become instantly immersed in the history and culture of Europe’s famous cities.   Interested?  CruiseDeals is making this fantastic way to see Europe more affordable with $1,000 off per person on select 2012 Avalon River cruises to Europe!  As always, I’ve done the research for you and picked out my favorite deals from the promotion.

My favorite pick: March 25th 11 Days Burgundy & Provence from Paris to Côte d’Azur: This spring voyage starts from just $2,089 per person after the $1,000 savings which is just $189 a day on a luxury river ship! This vacation begins with two nights in Paris, followed by visits to Beaune, Chalon-Sur-Saone, Tournus, Lyon, Tournon, Viviers, Avignon and Arles. Your vacation ends with an overnight in the stunning Côte d’Azur on the French Riviera. This deal can only be booked by calling 800-668-6414! What makes this offer even sweeter? Because these rates are all inclusive, the price includes meals, regional wines and beer at dinner, shore excursions with local guides and more.

Looking for different cities?  We’ve arranged savings on 30 different voyages so give us a call and talk to one of CruiseDeals.com’s knowledgeable cruise consultants about booking this offer (which ends November 29th).

On Deck: What’s Coming Up Next Week:  Tuesday Price Drops

For one day only on Tuesday, Celebrity will drop rates on a handful of sailings departing in the next couple of months. These weekly cruise deals provide a terrific savings, but rates really do go right back up on Wednesday so I always suggest planning to act on these limited time offers. Here is my favorite pick:

November 28th Celebrity Millennium 5-Night Western Caribbean from Miami: Inside rates will drop $60 per person from $229 down to $169 which is only $34 a day! Or, enjoy the fresh air and views from your Veranda cabin for just $279 and only $56 a day, a $50 per person price drop from $329. These are unheard of rates for a premium Celebrity cruise!

Cooking on Display

On our initial tour around the ship, the Culinary Arts center caught my eye. The setup rivals any cooking show on cable and the programs promised not to disappoint. They had classes focused on delicacies such as Le Cirque Lobster Salad and Holland America’s signature cinnamon rolls. Classes offer a take-home recipe card so you can recreate these ship wonders after you’ve returned home. Club HAL also offered kids cooking classes during sea days. The space is busy night and day as comedy and magic shows, trivia games (including Foodie Fight: Culinary Trivia), and even bingo keep the space hoppin’.

Lido & Rembrant Restaurants

After seeing the Culinary Arts center, my expectations for the food on board were high, and never once was I disappointed. The salads on the lido deck were savory and complex featuring wheatberry, quinoa, and a delicious roast beef salad. There were rotating entrees at every meal and a new selection of sushi during every lunch – my personal favorite. The main dining room, Rembrant, offers plated service at all three meals and dinner is sure to entice your taste buds with traditional favorites such as surf and turf and creative options like my favorite jalapeno-spiked melon and cucumber gazpacho; it was sweet, cool and packed a punch. Guests can choose from Dine Anytime, Early or Late seating.

Specialty Restaurants

There are three specialty restaurants onbroard, one of which is offered without a charge.

My personal favorite was Tamarind, witha  nominal charge of $15 per person. They met our parties’ special dietary restrictions with ease, and the food was nothing short off phenomenal. For your third course, Tamarind offers a heaping platter of Chef’s Choice sashimi and sushi that is fresh and delicious. The firey lamb dish was a table favorite and there isn’t a dessert worth skipping. I recommend ginger bread pudding with tempura bananas and rich caramel and anyone with a curious palette MUST try the wasabi sorbet; it’s surprisingly delicious.

Pinnacle Grill is set up to offer diners a night at New York City’s famous Le Cirque for a $20 surcharge. The menu, linens, and tableware are all Le Cirque original designs. Another option is Canaletto, which is segregated from the lido restaurant at dinner time to offer a taste if italy with plated service (and without a surcharge!)

Tea Time

Lastly, I must mention the excellent job Holland America does at providing daily tea time. Each afternoon, you can enjoy a unique tea ceremony- chose from Royal Tea Ceremony, Danish Tea, Traditional Indonesian Tea Ceremony, and numerous others- in the beautiful Rembrandt dining room. Teas come with traditional accompaniments both sweet and savory. For those wondering, during the Indonesian Tea Ceremony the extras included sticky sweet rice and coconut balls and coconut pancakes.

Wine & Beverage Experiences

And since food and wine go hand in hand, I thought I would include a little bit about the different wine tastings and mixology classes onboard.  It cost $35 per person, came with four glasses of wine, cheese and fruit, and a written description for your taking. The prices on board were unexpectedly competitive and the selection of wine and spirits, especially in the Pinnacle Bar was more than you might expect at sea.

My only disappointment was that there was not a great selection of food available after 10pm. I will caveat this by saying that most of the guests on board didn’t seem the type to be up past 10.

Rich on Celebrity Millennium Pool Deck

It’s hard to believe that my last cruise was 10 months ago on the Carnival Triumph for the Social Fresh Cruise II.  It’s sad, I know.  We did Disney World for Spring Break… great experience for the kids, but not relaxing like a cruise vacation.   For our Summer vacation, we went to Pawley’s Island, SC, but that wasn’t as entertaining as a cruise.

My Cruise Drought ended last week!

Last week I cruised on the Celebrity Millennium for 5 nights to Jamaica & Nassau — she was supposed to go to Grand Cayman but rerouted to Nassau due to Hurricane Rina.  The main purpose of this cruise for me was to give a social media presentation at the Luxury Travel Network year-end convention.  Yep, I got to do my two favorite things: cruise the Caribbean and talk social media.  Click here to see my favorite pics from the cruise.

I actually get to do it 2 more times in the next 3 weeks.

November 5th, I’ll sail on the Holland America Ms Eurodam for 3 nights to attend the Cruise Holidays year-end convention.   Again, talking social media while cruising on a luxury cruise ship.

November 18th, setting sail on the Norwegian Sky 3-night Bahamas Cruise for the first ever #SeaTweetup.  Cruising the Bahamas with Twitter enthusiasts… A true Geek Cruise… perfect!

I’ve been doing this for 4+ years now — cruising to destinations like Hawaii, Italy, all over the Caribbean — and writing about it… tweeting about it…posting cruise videos on Youtube….I guess you could say that I like to share.

I’ll let you in on a secret- when I attend these travel agent conferences, I learn how much less I get to travel than many of the travel agents.

Rich on White Witch in Jamaica

Do you enjoy travel?  Do you love blogging, Twitter, Facebook, or other social media platforms?  There are few gigs better than combining social media and travel.  Over the next 3 weeks, instead of unfollowing me or unsubscribing because you’re tired of watching my travels — make the decision to do something you’re passionate about and join me.

Travel Weekly featured the social media bootcamp that we created for Cruise Holiday’s Franchisees.  Are you already a social media pro? Perfect, then all we have to do is teach you the ins and outs of selling travel.

Email me to learn more: rtucker@TravelLeaders.com or hit me up on Twitter: @RichTucker

Written by Rich Tucker, founder of CruiseSource.us & shorty award winner for providing the best travel content on Twitter.