I am missing finals for a cruise! It is obviously not ideal for my family and I but unfortunately it was the only date that worked with the rest of my family friends. I am going to be so stressed after I come back but hopefully the twelve days will be worth it. People keep saying how lucky I am to miss finals but they seem to be forgetting that I have to grind during the last week of winter break. For my final blog, I am going to preemptively rate the locations I will be visiting. The last time I went on a cruise was when I was in eighth grade and I remember having a really good time. Hopefully I am not setting my expectations too high this year. Here are the locations, ten days and six ports. I personally have not heard of some of these islands before, I searched them up on google maps and they are pretty small. The Bahamas, Virgin Islands, and Barbados are the bigger and more popular locations. Ok here are my anticipated ratings!
Port #1: Bahamas5/10
I went to the Princess Cays in the Bahamas on the last cruise but honestly it was really not that fun. This cruise line doesn’t actually take us to the Bahamas but rather a small offshore town that they own. There really is not much to do, it’s a saltwater beach, a few shops, and some food areas. If I remember correctly, last time it was insanely hot, saltwater is not that much fun to swim in, the shops really did not have anything interesting and the food was ok. I am going to presume it will be the same as it was a few years ago. Maybe I will get a wave of nostalgia and try the banana boat ride, aqua boats, or the stingray encounter this time. I freak about touching stingrays though, they are way too slimy.
Port #2: St. Thomas, Virgin Islands
8/10
I have heard so much about the Virgin Islands but I’ve never been! They have a coral world ocean park that I am so excited to explore, they have colorful lorikeets and view red footed tortoises. We get to interact with the animals in indoor and outdoor exhibits and there is also a Coki Beach near the park where snorkeling and diving opportunities are available. There is also something called the Paradise Point Ariel Ride which includes an ariel cab ride to the highest mountain point that overlooks the island. I am really looking forward to seeing the different parts of this island!
Port #3: Antigua
7/10
Antigua is an island I have not heard of before. Antigua is known for its coastlines, rolling hills, and sugar mills. It is rich in nautical history during the colonial times. They offer a rainforest zipline adventure, which seems super fun but when I went zipline in the Smokey Mountains over spring break, and it was not as fun as I thought it would be. Maybe in Antigua, it will be higher and the rainforest aspect of it will make it more appealing. There is also a popular beach called Fyres Beach which serves authentic Caribbean cuisine which I am really looking forward to. It is such a cute little island!
Port #4: St. Lucia
10/10
St. Lucia had so many interesting activities available. There are sulphur springs, volcanic island trip mud baths, and whale/dolphin watching. Sulphur springs is a drive-in volcano which sounds insanely cool. It is the most active volcanic area in thai region and I have never seen a volcano in real life before. I would be able to see the bubbling hot springs, mineral mud pools, and sulphur steam. I am also excited for the mud baths because I have always seen them on social media but also never got a chance to do one in real life. They look super relaxing and satisfying to do! Also, I have never seen whales in real life before (dolphins I have), so that will also be a fun experience. Overall, St. Lucia holds so many new experiences for me which is why I am the most excited for it!
Port #5: Barbados
10/10
Barbados is such a beautiful and therefore popular vacation spot for many. My family and I are going to go on an Atlantis Submarine Adventure, which is actually something that I have been looking forward to for a long time. I have always wondered how it would feel to be in a submarine and seeing all of the ocean life that underwater is an exciting prospect for me. There is also a cave adventure, and I have also never been in a cave before. I admit, it scares me a little bit to go in it but maybe I will like it! Barbados also is a host of new experiences for me.
Port #6: St. Kitts
7/10
St.Kitts has a scenic wooden railroad ride! The pictures looked really cool and I have never been on open train so that will be fun especially with the nice weather. There is also an 4D expedition where we get to take a jeep through the jungle to get to a beach. St. Kitts has a lot of adevntury stuff along with plenty of beaches so it will be such a nice way to end the cruise.
Overall, I am so excited and hopefully I will get to do everything that I want to do. Missing finals better be worth it.
Hi Meg! First of all, I am going to be one of those people who also say you are so incredibly lucky to be able to experience a trip like this! So many of these places are on my bucket list to visit. But I totally get the missing finals thing and how that can cause so much stress. Last year my family and I missed the last two days before spring break (I know, nothing like missing finals) which is when a bunch of teachers hand out tests. I was extremely stressed out the week leading up to it because I was having to make things up ahead of time. Before going on the trip I wished that we weren’t missing school, but now I have no regrets of doing so. That sucks though that you have to spend Christmas Break making it up but hopefully it won’t take you too long! I’m sure it will be well worth it in the end. I am so curious how your trip turns out to be! I for one have never been on a cruise and would love to experience one. Do you get sea sick on it or is it big enough where you don’t really feel the rocking of the boat?
Meg,
I went to St. Lucia for my honeymoon! Let me give you one BIG piece of advice: don’t over due the mud bath/hot spring. Here is why: the only place to rinse off the mud is in the hot spring–which is like 140 degrees. Yes… the only place! There is a waterfall near there, but you will be walking around for awhile to get the mud off–trust me, it isn’t ‘right there.’ The other thing is the mud will stain any white on your swimsuit. My wife had on a red and white striped swimsuit. Let’s just say this, it is now a red and gray swimsuit. So have fun, put a little mud on, but don’t overdo it!
Meg, I hope you have a blast on your cruise and that all the places you will visit will exceed your expectations. I went on a cruise once in third grade during Christmas time and I remember it being incredibly magical (as well as worrying about Santa finding me in the middle of the ocean). St. Lucia sounds like a dream. Relaxing springs and mud baths and the opportunity to see whales? I’m hoping you see one and get a good picture. I’m also very curious about the entertainment offered on the cruise. From what I remember (and what I’ve recently seen on Tik Tok) there can be insane pool slides on the ship, free endless ice cream?, special hangout or dance clubs dedicated to each age group, etc. What appears to be stealing the show though include the towel animal creations made by the housekeeping staff and the changing of the day plate in the elevator (if the cruise has this feature). Going back to your vacation destinations, I had a question about the jeep ride in St. Kitts. You describe it as 4D, so does that mean it’s some sort of virtual ride where your seat moves to simulate riding through the jungle while a screen provides the scenery? This doesn’t seem right because why would you travel to a beautiful location to experience it through a screen, so I think I misunderstood your description. Anyways, good luck with your school work and have a blast during your trip!
Hi Meg, I agree with you that missing finals is not ideal. One of my friends missed finals last year due to COVID and he was struggling hard to catch up so I wish you the best of luck with that. At least you have a long cruise to look forward to. I also don’t know much about cruises and have never been on one so I didn’t know that cruise could last as long as ten days. The ports that you mention in your blog all sound fun to me but I have heard that locals sometimes try to scam dumb tourists, but I trust you wont be that dumb tourist. However, I have never been to any of these places so I have no credibility whatsoever. The submarine adventure you mentioned in the Barbados section sounds super cool and I would love to try it sometimes. I imagine the submarine is safe but I always have nightmares about drowning in the ocean and stuff like that so maybe the trip would cure my fear of drowning.
Wow, enjoy your cruise! I’ve been on one cruise so far and I remember it being a lot of fun and pretty relaxing. Me and my family and friends went when I was in around 8th grade as well. We left from the Key West in Florida and then had some stops on our way to Cozumel. It might’ve been Cancun though … I don’t fully remember. That was where I went snorkeling for the very first time and absolutely loved the experience. I would highly recommend going snorkeling at St. Thomas if you get the chance! Whale watching, though, I haven’t gotten to do yet, but it’s definitely on my bucket list! My family is planning on eventually taking a cruise through Canada and up to Alaska, so I’m sure I’ll get the chance to go whale-watching then. Also I totally get where you’re coming from with the finals situation and all. I didn’t know you could take them after winter break, but I feel like it honestly might be harder than if you were to take them all early and beforehand. I would imagine, that you would practically forget almost everything by then. I feel like it automatically sets you up to stress out and really struggle for no reason. I don’t really understand why you’re not allowed to do them early before you leave. Hopefully though your finals don’t bother you too much in the long-run. Going on a cruise and visiting so many different places on one trip is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Have fun and enjoy it!