Most of my trips have been by ship, but to get to most of my cruises, I had to first take a plane.
My first cruise was in 1979. I became hooked! I have been on many cruises since then, as you can see from the many photos in this section. My first cruise was out of San Juan with my sister, María. I have also sailed out of Fort Lauderdale/Port Everglades, Miami, Port Canaveral/Orlando, Miami, New York, San Juan (a few times) and Tahiti.
My first cruise out of New York City was on the Norwegian Dawn (NCL). We left March 26, 2006 and returned April 6th. We visited Ocho Rios (Jamaica), Grand Cayman (Cayman Islands), Roatan (Bay Islands, Honduras), Belize (Central America), Cozumel (Mexico) and Great Stirrup Cay (Bahamas, NCL's private island). My friend Elton, who had never cruised before, enjoyed the cruise very much.
The second cruise out of New York City was on the Carnival Miracle. We first attended a wedding on the ship and then cruised to San Juan, St. Thomas and Tortola. The cruise was from October 2, 2007 to the 10th. Though I had never cruised with Carnival before, and had heard many negative things said about the line, I must say that Elton and I enjoyed ourselves very much! The food was not that great but there was a lot to choose from. The casual dining room was ideal for anyone not wanting to dress up to dine in the main dining room. The staff was extremely friendly, and the entertainment was superb!
On June 29, 2008, family and friends sailed on the Carnival Destiny (later changed to Sunshine after an overhaul in 2013) from San Juan to St. Thomas, Dominica, Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua and St. Kitts. The photos were posted on Cruise - 2008. My comments about this cruise can be found at the end of 2008.
After the 2008 cruise, I wondered "When will my next cruise be?" I didn't know. Would I be willing to visit some of the ports already visited? Definitely.
And before you knew it, I was on another cruise ship, but I had to wait 3 years. On April 17th, Elton and I began a 7-day cruise on the Adventure of the Seas, Royal Caribbean International (RCI) out of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The first day was a day at sea and then we visited Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua, St. Maarten (hadn't been here in a few years) and St. Croix (for my 60th birthday). But Jorge, you've been to these islands already. True, but Elton had never visited them! And loving cruising as I do, I did not mind visiting the same islands again. You will be able to view the photos by going to 2011 pages.
I traveled to a few islands of the South Pacific (Tahiti, Bora Bora, Moorea, Fiji, Pago Pago [on island of Tutuila], New Caledonia), and visited Australia (Sydney) for a few days after the cruise.
On the cruise to Brazil from Fort Lauderdale, I visited Fortaleza, Salvador da Bahia and Rio de Janeiro and was able to experience Carnival in Rio. I also visited St. Thomas, Martinique and Tobago on this cruise.
The Caribbean islands I have cruised to are - Cozumel, Roatan, Grand Cayman, St. Thomas/St. John, Tortola, St. Maarten/St. Martin, Antigua, Guadeloupe, St. Lucia, Martinique, Grenada, Barbados, Tobago, Aruba, Curaçao, St. Kitts, and Dominica. I did a partial transit of the Panama Canal (Gatun Lake) that included a visit to the San Blas Islands, Colombia (Cartagena), and Venezuela (La Guaira/Caracas). I have also visited Belize.
My favorite Caribbean Island, other than the USVI? St. Lucia, which I have visited on one or more cruises. When I first visited the island, it was very natural and not too developed! My favorite islands in the South Pacific? Moorea and Pago Pago. Did I live on my favorite islands in another life?
[Update, 2008: St. Lucia is still as beautiful as ever, though now a little more developed than my first visit. However, the development appears to blend in with the environment rather than overpower it. One can no longer walk into the volcano area in Soufrière. Dominica is as green, if not greener than St. Lucia. I must say that Dominica impressed me very much during my visit. It is said that if Columbus was to return to the Caribbean today the only island, he'd recognize is Dominica!]
A few of the ships I sailed on no longer exist. They include Amerikanis, Song of Norway, Fair Princess, Carla C, Stella Solaris and Meridian. The Nordic Empress eventually became the Empress of the Seas (Royal Caribbean). [Update - Empress of the Seas will be making its final sailing as a member of Royal Caribbean's fleet in 2008. The vessel was transferred to Pullmantur, the Spain-based cruise and tour operator of RCI acquired in 2006 in an effort to expand its operations in Europe. In the Spring of 2016, after "extensive refurbishment" the ship was returned to the US. However, in 2020 the Empress was retired from the RCI fleet and sold to Cordelia Cruises.]
Today, Carnival is the largest cruise line. Under Carnival Corporation you have such lines as Costa, Cunard, Seaburn, Holland America, Princess, and a few others. The parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line is Star Cruises, and they also own Orient Cruises. Royal Caribbean Cruises consist of RC International and Celebrity Cruises plus a few other ships.
Ships and companies come and go. The most informative magazine was Cruise Travel, which is published every other month. However, the Covid pandemic affected the cruise industry badly and Cruise Travel ceased operation in 2020. I will miss the magazine!
The cruise ships of the past were fewer, older, slower and-or smaller, but they were more enjoyable. Most ships usually had one restaurant that accommodated the passengers in an early and late seating. The food served in the dining room was superb. The passengers were more into ¨dressing up¨ than they are today. In the past, the cruise lines were more interested in the satisfaction of the passengers than the constant need to make money. The announcements made over the public address system were less intrusive. Local entertainers were brought on board at some of the ports to entertain the passengers.
The ships today are bigger, faster, newer, but appear to cater more to the shareholders of the company than to the passengers. Cruise ships were once dubbed "floating cities". Today, one can call them "floating money machines". Dressing up has become optional. The great food that was once served in the restaurants has now been moved to "specialty restaurants" where one has to pay a cover charge and make reservations. These so called "specialty restaurants" have created a two class system.
Cruises of the 60s and before were structured by class, with each class having different amenities, restaurants, etc. In the past, sodas were free, today they are not. On the last day, certain members of the staff were tipped based on recommended amounts. Today, the tip is added automatically to one's account.
Modern ships have more than one dining room, a few specialty dining rooms, buffet dining for a casual experience, incredible atriums, multi-decked theaters, cabins with balconies, suites, Broadway-type shows, rock climbing, bumper cars, roller coasters, mini-golf courses, bowling alleys, etc. But if I had a choice, I would go back to the cruises of the past. - cruises of the 70s, 80s. and 90s. They were older and smaller ships, but they were more intimate. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy cruising and will continue cruising for as long as I can!
I am presently booked on a 14-day cruise from Barbados in 2023. If the cruise does happen, we will visit Grenada, St. Vincent, St. Lucia, Costa Rica, Panama, Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Cartagena (Colombia), and Trinidad. It will depart on February 12th. Naturally, this itinerary may change. (Update, July 11, 2022 - This cruise has been canceled by Royal Caribbean. It was too good to be true! Should I book Royal's shorter cruise from Barbados that will not include Costa Rica, Panama, Bonaire but keep St. Vincent, Trinidad and add Tobago?)
Remember the TV series "Love Boat"? Many say the program helped give cruises appeal to the masses.
[Update, July 7, 2022 - The cruise industry has been affected immensely by Covid-19 (Coronavirus). Ships were docked with no place to go. Due to the number of passengers getting sick on ships, the CDC stopped ships from sailing. Many ships were sold for scrap. Only recently have ships begun to sail. Let's see what happens. The "new" cruises will change to protect passengers. There will be a "new normal", a new way of cruising.
(This page covers cruises taken in 1979 and 1983. The photos were taken from the old site with the same dates. Not all photos were transferred, and order may have changed.)
