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sandjsbeachbumbonanza · 4 years ago

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Day 20 – bar swings and tequila shots

We had our sixth COVID test in three weeks this morning. This one will allow us to leave the island and go to St Lucia on Sunday.

J asked the front desk if we could do a boat trip to Mustique, which is a nearby private island that is home to the rich and famous. Unfortunately, we were told that the island was closed to visitors at the moment due to a posh wedding.

Now that we are free to leave the hotel, we headed out to Jack’s Beach Bar, which is affiliated with our hotel. Jack’s is located at the bottom of a steep hill, only accessible by stairs. It was well worth the walk. It’s an open and airy restaurant and bar. It is situated directly on the beach on the Caribbean side of the island near the harbour. There are lots of sailboats moored off the beach. The beach is sandy with a reasonable amount of space between the bar and the water. There are six umbrellas for guests to use while lounging on the beach. The crowd was mostly from our hotel, save for a few boaters who came in on dinghies. The water was crystal clear and you could see down to depths of at least 12 feet. We rate this beach a 9.95. S deducted some points because there are a few rocks and it’s not possible to sit at the edge of the water due to a drop off.

The drinks at Jack’s were excellent and the service was prompt and friendly. The prices for the drinks and food were also fairly reasonable. We intended to have a late lunch / dinner there but the day took a different turn. Jack’s is a must do in Bequia. After spending some time in the water and having some cocktails, J wanted to go try out another bar, which she had read about online. The bar is called Bar One but it is known to locals as the ‘floating bar’. It is literally a platform floating in the middle of the bay, accessible only by dinghy. As the water taxi is not currently operating, the staff came and picked us up from Jack’s and took us out. It was literally a two-minute ride to the bar. It is possible to swim off of Bar One, but this requires using a slim metal ladder with rounded rungs which was not the easiest thing to manoeuvre. J did manage to go for a swim. S decided that the drinks were more important.

The bar is in a squared off area in the middle of the platform, where the bartender and his arsenal of cocktails were accessible to all. There was one toilet and the whole thing was covered by a canopy and is well shaded. Our bartender was Ivor, who started the business along with is brother-in-law. Ivor mixes great drinks. However, Ivor doesn’t take credit cards or IoUs, so it’s a cash only business. We had some US dollars and some Eastern Caribbean dollars. We slapped them on the bar and told Ivor to keep the drinks coming until the money ran out. Today was ‘Thirsty Thursday’, which meant the Mount Gay rum drinks were only USD5 a pop. As he doesn’t serve Diet Coke, we had to switch to rum and ginger beer after our first round of excellently spiced Bloody Mary cocktails. If we had stuck to the posh cocktails, our funds would have been depleted rather more quickly. At first, we were the only patrons at the bar.

While sitting their sipping a drink J noticed that what appeared to be decorative ropes draping from the ceiling to the bar were actually swings that are used as barstools. This is the first time we’ve ever sipped rum on a bar swing. J said it’s even better than a bar stool as your chair is literally a swing. We were later joined by a couple of Americans who were also sceptical that we didn’t quarantine for 14 days because we are staying at the Bequia Beach hotel. However, they backed off when we informed them that we had had 6 COVID tests in the last 3 weeks and just came from Barbados. The couple said that when they arrived, they received a court order mandating that they quarantine for 14 days in their villa. They had just sold a business in the US and were down here indefinitely.

We were then joined by around 10 Canadians who had come in off a yacht. They were a lively bunch, but S managed to wind them up by poking fun at Justin Trudeau. After some lively banter, S said “we still think you’re nice”. They denied it and S reminded them that they had to be nice, they are Canadians. Not accepting that, one of the female Canadians decided to moon S as they departed on their dinghy.

We were next joined by a group of three Swedes and an Aussie. They had just sailed from Cape Verde to St Vincent and the Grenadines, a 17-day crossing of the Atlantic. They were very nice and we had a few drinks with them as well.

Another Canadian, Tania and her boyfriend joined the party and Ivor handed over the reigns to one of his friends and started drinking with the guests. Bar One is a very social place and another must-see in Bequia.

We finally decided it was time for dinner, well after dark, the staff took us to shore in the dinghy to grab some food. We stumbled into Mac’s, which has a very casual open-air section and a more formal section. As we were in swim trunks and flip flops, we opted for the casual area. We had to check first though to make sure they take credit cards as all of our cash decided to stay on the floating bar when we left. J had a burger and S had a fish burger. They were both very good and the prices were extremely reasonable, so we would definitely recommend them. After eating, we called a taxi to take us back to our hotel.

We decided to stop by the bar for a final nightcap, or so we thought. Maurice is working the day shift, so Candy was our bartender tonight. She knows everything about every guest in the hotel and informed us that they all have nicknames. She wouldn’t tell us ours, but did tell us all the good, current hotel gossip. Candy said the big wedding on Mustique is for Tommy Hilfiger or one of his family (apparently he owns a property there). Before we finished, we were joined by another couple, Maryanne? and Andrew. She was Danish, he is English. Unlike everyone else we’ve met, they live in Cambridge, not London. We had a great chat with them and then Maryanne decided it was time for tequila shots and dancing. Candy passed around a large plate of communal salt and lime ends. While the other three took tequila shots, J wisely sat this one out, noting that in her experience, no night that finishes with tequila ends well.

Sadly we confirmed that one of S’ daughters will not be able to join us due to COVID restrictions. It is very disappointing but we hope we can see her next year.

#bequia #beach #beachlife #bar #stvincentandthegrenadines #beachbums

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noisykate · 6 years ago

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Bahamas

Posted 17 January 2019

We spent christmas day with Helen and Chris off ‘Tyee’, Helen’s son Sam, and his girlfriend Tammy, and Ian, of ‘Scott Free’, and his friends Mark and Sharon.

Great game of Petanque later – boys with the rusty balls, versus girls with shiny balls.

Boxing day – windy again, tried swimming – too cold; bike ride – too hot.

Hopetown – anchored out, long dinghy ride into the little town. Ashore - a breadfruit tree planted by Captain Bligh! Pretty little town – all the woodwork is brightly coloured, but with softer ‘opal fruit’ colour schemes, rather than the exuberantly garish clashing colours of Barbados and St Lucia.

New Years eve: To Guana Cay, fireworks at midnight, drinks aboard Tyee, Kealoha then Scott Free.

Now back in Marsh Harbour for some more shopping. Snorkelling off Mermaid Reef – wonderful coloured fish, many different sorts.

5 Jan

Waiting back in Marsh Harbour. We headed south a few days ago, only to find a problem with the gearbox, the engine room awash with a disgusting emulsion of gearbox oil and other miscellaneous fluids. We sailed back to Marsh Harbour, using the dinghy to push the boat the last mile into the harbour. A mechanic – James – has diagnosed a failure of one of the seals on the gearbox, so we are now stuck here waiting for parts, then getting fixed.

Meanwhile, one of the winches on the mast was starting to wear out (one of the pawls was sticking, and the socket it sits in has worn so it doesn’t move properly). In conversation with another cruiser, Mike located a spare, which we have now cleaned and reassembled. Easier said than done – to disassemble it was like solving one of those Christmas cracker puzzles – there was a hidden flat spring washer deep in the innards of the thing, which has to be wiggled out before the thing will come apart. A fiendish and less than brilliant design. Some swearing occurred.

The main problem at the moment is getting the old one off the mast – it has probably been in situ for 40 years, the five large stainless steel screws corroded solidly into the aluminium mast. Spray, wiggle, thump, wait, repeat – over 3 days so far.

On the plus side, it does mean we will be here long enough for my new glasses to be sent out.

7 Jan 2019

Managed to get the final screw out of the winch on the mast, and did the preliminary work getting the transmission out – got all the hoses and other connections off, just thwarted by the four nuts on the main coupling which are – yes, seized. Spray, wiggle, thump, repeat…..

A slow day, pottering round trying to get stuff done, achieving very little. Ray joined us again for dinner, with more of his fighting stories from a long life lived at sea. Nice boat – ‘winddancer’.

Fingers crossed we get some news tomorrow from James the mechanic – parts ordered yet, I wonder?

Tomorrow we plan to move winches around to get the new one installed on the mast, and get a better working unit bodged from parts for the main sheet. The one there is fine, but we can improve it slightly. Too convoluted (and boring) to explain, but simple enough to do.

Watermaker still not working – another little job for tomorrow, if we get round to it.

To get into the swing for later on, we watched ‘Thunderball’, most of which was set around here. The main cave used as Largo’s lair is a great snorkelling location, en route further south. The scenery here looks exactly like the set for the film – shallow reefs, amazing snorkelling, low lying land with low rise buildings, palm trees, sandy beaches. Not bad considering the film was made in 1965. Sean Connery lives around here somewhere, although sadly he has a reputation as an ‘ornery old cuss’. Probably wont be dropping in for a rum punch.

12 Jan 2019

Gearbox is off ashore, probably in bits. Not sure if the new parts have been ordered.

The rear seal on the crankshaft has also failed, so there is oil everywhere. That too needs replacing.

The watermaker remains broken – no real appetite to investigate it, and it has proven not to be self-healing.

And now the gas has run out. Mike has taken the bottle ashore, and needs to take it on a 3-mile taxi trip to get it re-filled, or we will be without until Monday.

And it is cold. Not UK-cold, but shut-the-door, put-a-jumper-on cold.

17 Jan 2019

A lovely day out on ‘Scintilla’ with Rachel and Woody from Barnsley, with 20-month old Mabel. Sailed out to Man-o-war Cay, snorkelling, caught a lobster. Tried and failed to get their boat to tack – something wrong with the sail balance.

Our gear box is turning into an epic tale of woe. The mechanic, who yesterday advised that it was ‘all good’ and a repair was ‘100% straightforward’ now advises that the parts alone, not including labour, shipping or tax, would be $5000. We are sitting here now still stunned – we’ve looked online, and we can get a new one in the UK for £500. A day on the phone tomorrow, methinks, exploring options.

Still have not touched the watermaker. Not really in the mood for more bad news.

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charllieeldridge · 5 years ago

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Top 10 Best Beaches In The Caribbean

As the weather starts to turn in the northern hemisphere, those desktop wallpapers of the best beaches in the Caribbean really start to look tempting.

As you’re sitting at work, you may be daydreaming about a vacation in the Caribbean and as someone who has lived down here for the past 4 years, I can honestly say that the beaches we’ve been to (and want to share with you) are stunning.

While there are many beautiful beaches in the Caribbean, some truly stand out as exceptional.

In this article, I’m not only going to list the best beaches in the Caribbean, but I’ll also list the best hotels on those beaches so that you can easily plan a winter vacation to the tropical sun and turquoise waters of this breathtaking area on the globe.

If you’re looking for the best places to visit in January (when it’s really cold up north), or if you’d rather a spring holiday, there’s a beach for you in the Caribbean.

Of course, the top beaches in the Caribbean is a totally subjective topic, so if you think you know some other amazing Caribbean beaches that aren’t on this list, feel free to share in the comments at the end of this article!

How Did We Pick The Best Beaches in The Caribbean?

As you’re reading this list, you may be thinking that you know of softer sand, clearer water and better places for snorkelling or scuba diving in the Caribbean. But we took much more into consideration when making this list.

We also considered the best beaches in the Caribbean by their proximity to cool cities and fun landmarks, how good the nearby hotels are and their overall vibe.

While there are numerous stretches of sand that could have made this list, we feel that these beaches really have a little something for everyone.

We’ll be updating this list again in the future, but for now, we believe that these are the best!

Here is our pick of the 10 best beaches in the Caribbean:

1. Carlisle Bay, Barbados

Without a doubt, one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, Carlisle Bay is actually split into multiple beaches including Browns Beach, Pebbles Beach and Bayshore.

This powdery white coastline has some excellent restaurants, and there’s also a funky little fish sandwich stand called “Cuz’s” which is likely the most popular on the island. Make sure you check it out and sample the local “cutters”, for around $4.

The bay itself is a crescent-shaped, white sand stretch of perfection that creates a natural harbour on the west coast of Barbados. It acts as the main harbour for sailboats, yachts and cruise ships for the capital city of Bridgetown.

Here you can relax on the beach under an umbrella while sipping on a delicious rum punch, or head out on snorkel and dive trips to the many nearby reefs and shipwrecks.

Every time we return to Barbados we make sure to visit Carlisle Bay at least once, hanging out here is one of our favourite things to do in Barbados.

Hotels On Carlisle Bay

There are a few stunning hotels on Carlisle Bay and the surrounding areas. A few of the highest-rated and most recommended include:

The Hilton Barbados Resort: Located at the southernmost tip of the bay near the Needham’s Point Lighthouse, the stunning Hilton Barbados is a 5-star resort that actually has access to two beaches. Rooms here start at around $180 USD / night.

Sugar Bay Barbados: This all-inclusive resort is one of the most popular on the island and it’s actually located a few minutes walk south of Carlisle Bay. Each room comes with a TV and elegant decor. All-inclusive room rates start at around $467 USD / night.

Sandals Royal Barbados: You’ll actually have to take a taxi to get to Carlisle Bay from Sandals Royal Barbados, but we recently stayed here on a vacation and we loved it so much that we had to include it. If you’re looking for a luxurious, young, fun, couples-only all-inclusive in Barbados (with amazing restaurants) then this is probably your best bet. Prices start at around $300 USD per night / per person.

Looking For More Of The Best Beaches in The Caribbean? Check These Out:

Best St Lucia Beaches

Best Beaches in Jamaica

Best Beaches in Grenada

Best Punta Cana Beaches

2. Morne Rouge, Grenada

Even though the larger Grand Anse Beach in Grenada gets a lot more attention, we find that Morne Rouge (BBC Beach) offers a more relaxed Caribbean experience.

With a few funky bars and hotels nearby, as well as some luxury eating options with stunning views over the bay, Morne Rouge is close enough to the action while still being secluded.

Here you can laze at The Plywood Bar and enjoy delicious lambie bites (breaded and fried conch meat) while sipping on a tasty piña colada and gazing out at the sun as it sets into the Caribbean Sea.

The main reason that Morne Rouge makes it onto this list of the best beaches in the Caribbean is because of its calm waters, local vibe and the fact that it’s so underrated. Having been to dozens of beaches in the region, Morne Rouge is still one of our favourites. Click here to read about the top 7 beaches in Grenada.

Hotels Near Morne Rouge Beach

LaLuna Resort: Set on yet another one of the island’s nicest beaches, LaLuna is about a 15-minute walk to Morne Rouge Beach. There’s also a great restaurant, yoga studio and pool here, plus each of the private bungalows have stunning views and their own kitchens.

Mount Cinnamon: Technically Mount Cinnamon overlooks Grand Anse Beach, but it’s directly on the road leading to Morne Rouge so it’s only about a 10-minute walk. The private suites and villas here are gorgeous and the staff is exceptional. Click Here to read our review of Mount Cinnamon Grenada.

3. Palm Island, St. Vincent & The Grenadines

This idyllic private island personifies the beauty of the best beaches in the Caribbean. Pulling up on a sailboat or by a fisherman’s boat from the nearby Union Island, you’ll likely feel like you’ve found the most beautiful place on Earth.

Even if you don’t stay in the expensive all-inclusive luxury resort here, you can visit the island on day trips and sailing tours.

We booked a day-trip of sailing through the resort. Setting off aboard a catamaran, we stopped off at numerous Grenadine Islands and had an amazing trip, which included lunch and drinks for $100 USD per person.

This trip was amazing and gave us the opportunity to swim on one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, the sandbar of the southern tip of Palm Island.

From here you can sail or take ferries to other nearby islands that also have beaches that rival Palm Island (more on the Tobago Cays below).

Note: if you’re looking to sail up the stunning Grenadine island chain from Grenada, check out Savvy Sailing or Jambalaya for great opportunities.

☞ See Also: Rugged, Unpretentious and Real – This is Union Island

Best Hotels Near Palm Island

The Palm Island Resort: If you can manage to fork out the $750 USD + per person, per night to stay at this all-inclusive resort on the private Palm Island, then I say go for it. We stopped by here for an hour before our sailing trip and the rooms, pool area and amenities were next level.

King’s Landing Hotel: We stayed in one of the bungalows during our time on Union Island as we weren’t able to afford the nearby Palm Island Resort. The rooms were in the middle of a much-needed renovation, but today they are looking a lot better. At $45+ / night, a short boat ride away from one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, you really can’t ask for a better deal. Click Here to read our review of this hotel.

4. Tobago Cays, St. Vincent & The Grenadines

Yes, we’ve landed in St. Vincent & The Grenadines again, but that’s only because this paradise archipelago boasts some of the very best beaches in the Caribbean.

You won’t be alone in the Tobago Cays and you’ll likely have to join a full-day or half-day sailing tour to get here, but it’s worth every penny.

This marine protected area is home to 5 breathtaking islands, rich coral reefs and hundreds of grass-munching turtles. A trip to the Cays always includes snorkelling and a stop on at least one or two of these idyllic atolls.

If you’re sailing around and you notice that the waters and islands look familiar, that’s likely because this was the spot where they filmed some of The Pirates of the Caribbean movie.

When Jack Sparrow was abandoned on an island in the famous Disney film, he was actually on Petit Tabac.

It’s rumoured that Johnny Depp actually carved his name into one of the palm trees on the island, though the tree has mysteriously never been found…

Best Hotels Near Tobago Cays

Because the Tobago Cays are a marine protected area, there are no hotels on any of the Islands, so your best bet is to stay at one of the hotels listed above near Palm Island, either Union Island or Mayreau.

Salt Whistle Bay: This is without a doubt the most popular hotel on Mayreau island. It’s set along a jaw-dropping sandbar with perfect turquoise waters on either side. We came here for a quick lunch and couldn’t peel ourselves away from the sand.

5. Ambergris Caye, Belize

Without a doubt one of the best beaches in the Caribbean Sea and likely the most relaxed – aside from perhaps nearby Caye Caulker, whose motto is literally “go slow” – Ambergris Caye screams Caribbean perfection.

Powdery white sand, relaxed locals and plenty of excellent snorkelling and scuba diving thanks to the Belize Barrier Reef, this still remains one of our favourite Caribbean Islands.

Take the time to ride a bike along the meandering beach path, wade in the crystal clear waters or take a day trip to the nearby 124 meter deep Blue Hole. Ambergris Caye will likely be a place that you plan to return to time and time again, because it’s not just one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, it’s also one of the region’s funkiest islands.

Click Here to read about my amazing experiences diving around Ambergris Caye.

Hotels On Ambergris Caye

Victoria House Resort: This still remains one of our favourite boutique hotels we’ve ever stayed in. This place is simply breathtaking and the staff here are amazing. We spent five nights with half board and while we did leave to explore the island many times, it was hard to peel ourselves away from the stunning stretch of sand in front of Victoria House. Click Here to read our review.

Portofino Beach Resort: Another one of the most popular hotels on Ambergris Caye, Portofino is in a great location and comes highly recommended by those who stay there.

Xanadu Island Resort: Located just a couple of kilometers from San Pedro, Xanadu is close enough to the action, while still being in a relaxed paradise. The resort’s luxury 2 and 3 bedroom suites feature full kitchens, ensuite bathrooms, TVs, air conditioning, wardrobes and lovely tiled floors. Each suite has a private terrace with a table, chairs and hammock with views of the pool and garden.

6. Playas del Este, Cuba

Located just outside of Havana, this is one of the best beaches in the Caribbean and it’s a short drive from one of the most energetic and exciting cities in the world. If you’re looking for white sand, blue water and a wonderful local feel, then this is the place to come.

Cuba still remains one of our favourite places to travel. The culture, the music, the dance and the food (yes the food is very good) all make this one of the hottest Caribbean destinations for 2019 and beyond.

We weren’t expecting that much when we took the short taxi ride out to Playas del Este. We figured that because it was so close to the capital, it wouldn’t likely be all that nice.

To our amazement, when we showed up at this long stretch of beaches, the powdery sand and rolling aquamarine waters seemed to go on forever.

We swam, hung out with locals and had a blast. This is definitely one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, simply for the vibe alone. Don’t miss the cheap peso food stands that are nearby, where you can get pork with rice and salad for around $3.

Best Hotels Near Playas del Este

While there are some resorts on the beach here, I still recommend staying in Havana and simply taking a bus or taxi to Playas del Este. Being this close to the vibrant capital, it would be a waste to not stay there!

Casa Daniel y Fina: Cuba is all about the Casa Particulars and this is still one of our favourites. Staying in a family home like this allows you to try real Cuban food and really get to know the culture. Daniel and Fina were gracious hosts and we’d definitely recommend staying with them. Ask them to cook you a lobster meal one night for just $10 USD!

B&B Central Havana: This is one of the most popular places in Havana thanks to its excellent location and beautiful rooms. With prices starting at around $80, it’s a bit more expensive than the average casa particular, but it’s still a good value.

7. Playa Ancon, Cuba

We are staying in Cuba for one more round because Cuba is one of the cheapest countries to visit, plus many of the best beaches in the Caribbean can be found on this island. Playa Ancon is located just a short bus or motorbike ride away from the city of Trinidad.

We came here for a short visit on our last trip to Cuba and were amazed at how beautiful it was. Having one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, right next to the Unesco World Heritage city of Trinidad makes this a place that you really can’t miss.

There are chairs for rent on the sand and waiters will bring you drinks while you lounge or wade in the water. The hotels on Playa Ancon are great, but we still recommend staying in a casa particular in Trinidad and day-tripping to the beach, because there is so much more to do in the Spanish Colonial town.

Best Hotels Near Playa Ancon

Casa Bernardo: We stayed in this simple, but clean and comfortable casa particular during one of our stays in Trinidad and we loved it. Bernardo is a wonderful host and his wife can cook you a fantastic meal on the rooftop terrace. Plus you really can’t beat the location!

Casa Merelis: This is the other casa that we stayed in while in Trinidad and again, we loved it. If you’re looking for an inexpensive and simple casa, this one may be for you.

8. Ocean Park Beach, Puerto Rico

In our opinion, this is one of the best beaches in the Caribbean because of the water, the activities going on, and its excellent location between the airport and San Juan. We loved our time in Puerto Rico and would love to return one day.

Ocean Park Beach is a popular spot for both locals and travellers and there are lots of tasty local restaurants within walking distance of the water, or you can opt for a meal with your toes in the sand.

The beach has a really low-key vibe and even in the high season it will likely be relaxed and relatively empty. The golden sand here may not be as white as some of the other best beaches in the Caribbean, but it arches towards the beautiful Unesco World Heritage city of San Juan.

Puerto Rico has been struggling since Hurricane Maria devastated the island in 2017, so a visit here could help pump some much-needed tourism dollars back into the struggling island. Come experience the friendly locals, tasty food and wonderful culture of the island and stay along Ocean Park Beach!

Best Hotels on Ocean Park Beach

Numero 1 Guest House: This is one of our favourite guesthouses that we ever stayed in. It’s casual and simple but with a great vibe and it’s set right on the sand. The price of $100 per night is decent, and it included breakfast, but you really can’t beat the location.

Nomada Urban Beach Hostel: Just one kilometer from Ocean Park beach, this modern and clean hostel is one of the best in Puerto Rico. There is a wide range of accommodation here including dorms, tents, hammocks and lovely double rooms.

9. White River Entrance / Kaz Kreol Beach, Jamaica

This is one of the best beaches in the Caribbean and yet, not that many people come here. The river has a blueish white hue with a white sandy bottom and it flows directly into the sea here.

You can join a tour and tube down the river, visit the nearby town of Orcho Rios, or just wade in the crystalline waters. There’s a sand flat where the river meets the sea, creating an awesome sandbar. The nearby blue hole is also worth a visit. Don’t miss our post of the best beaches in Jamaica!

Photo Credit: The Dharma Trails

Hotels Near White River Entrance

Kaz Creol Beach Lodge: Located right on a private beach, Kaz Creol is a funky beach lodge with a laid-back vibe. If you don’t want to stay here, you can also pay for a day pass for around $75 USD.

10. Sugar Beach, St.Lucia

Sugar Beach is definitely the best of the St Lucia beaches, and it could also top this list of the best beaches in the Caribbean. The powdery white sand strip is wedged between The Pitons, which are two conical peaks jutting out of the island right along the coastline. These are St Lucia’s national symbol and the island’s most iconic national landmarks.

Sugar Beach is a few kilometres south of Soufriere on the West Coast of the island. Part of the beach is dominated by the Sugar Beach Resort, a high-end hotel. But for the rest of us, the northern part of the beach is open to the public and can be accessed through the Viceroy Resort.

Best Hotels Near Sugar Beach

Sugar Beach Viceroy Resort: This breathtaking luxury resort sits right on one of the best beaches in the Caribbean, Sugar Beach, and boasts stunning luxury rooms and villas all with fantastic views over the bay and The Pitons. If you have the budget, book one of the villas with a private plunge pool!

Jade Mountain Resort: Another luxury hotel near Sugar Beach, Jade Mountain boasts organic architecture by the hands of Nick Troubetzkoy, and the ultimate harmony with Caribbean nature. Individual bridges lead to infinity pools that sit like island sanctuaries overlooking the beach.

Samfi Gardens: Dariece and I still have to visit this lovely little guest house. Every time we see it on Booking.com we’re tempted to take the short flight over from Grenada to spend a few nights here. Overlooking the Pitons and Soufriere below, and at around $100 / night for a small private bungalow, it’s much more affordable than the other two properties listed above.

Do You Agree With This List of The Best Beaches in The Caribbean?!

There’s no doubt that the Caribbean is home to some of the best beaches in the world. We love it so much here that we’ve made it our home for the past few years. The vibe, the tropical weather, the friendly people and of course, the best beaches in the Caribbean, all make this a wonderful region to live and travel.

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runawaywidow · 5 years ago

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The Uber drivers were plentiful, but not always well marked. The friendly fellow working in the median near the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg helped us find a black car. The driver quoted us a fair price to our desired location and we all hopped in. He took us safely to our location and advised us that we would be safe if we stayed on the main block in Maboneng Precinct. We paid him and thanked him, and imagined how shocked our husbands would be over our inhibitions!

When the four of us from our book club decided to travel to Africa to go on safari, we wanted to make the most of the trip. We googled, pinned blogs and borrowed library books about Africa. After several dinner meetings, and communications with a travel agent, our itinerary was settled.

Two nights in Johannesburg. Six nights on safari and 3 nights in Capetown.

We flew from New York to Johannesburg on British Airlines with a 2 hour layover in London. The long flight in coach was bearable with friends, and movies and wine and my butt pillow. Really, the butt pillow was key on this trip. We tried to sleep a little on the 11 hour flight from London to Johannesburg. We had a busy day ahead of us.

We arrived in the morning and were met by our driver that had been arranged in advance by our travel agent. Some people avoid visiting Jo’burg due to poverty and crime. We avoided those areas and did not go out late at night and were just fine. Should you visit Johannesburg? YES!

Our driver took us to The Winston Hotel in Melrose Estate, Johannesburg. A small boutique style hotel with a pool, bar and restaurant. The service was friendly and although the rooms weren’t ready, we enjoyed lunch by the pool upon arrival and soon checked into the spacious rooms.

Our hotel called for a taxi to take us to the Apartheid museum We felt being in South Africa we should get some background information on the history of the country. Apartheid was designed to segregate people of different races: white, black colored (mix of black and white) and Asian. Upon entering the museum, you must enter through a randomly generated admission ticket: white or non-white. It gives you a sense of the era.

After our visit we were stumped with how to get to the next place. One of us had the Uber app but cell service was not so good, the sun was setting and we needed help. The friendly valet hailed us a ride to Maboneng Precinct where we enjoyed strolling the street looking at hand made crafts. We dined in a crowded restaurant featuring live music and African cuisine called Pata Pata. After dinner, the restaurant manager called an Uber for us and went out to the street to talk to our driver to be sure we made it back to our hotel safely. We felt safe and full of adventure after our first day in Africa.

Our car was waiting in the hotel parking lot at 4:30 am. The hotel packed us breakfast for the ride as we started our hour journey to Bill Harrop’s Original Balloon Safari. Three balloon were impressively inflated and we climbed into a basket holding 12 adults. We took amazing photos and were awed by the quiet being thousands of feet about the ground. Upon landing we toasted with a champagne breakfast.

Our private car was waiting after the flight and took us to the nearby Cradle of Humankind. We took a guided tour of the Sterkfontein Caves were the discovery of a 2.3 million year old human fossil (Mrs. Ples) was found in 1947. The museum detailed archaeological developments throughout history. After we had our fill of history, our driver took us back to the hotel where we spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing poolside and enjoying dinner at the on site restaurant.

Day 3 the Uber driver picked us up early and we headed to the airport for a flight to Durban King Shaka International airport. The one hour flight is relatively inexpensive with over 150 flights from Jo’burg per day. Our flight was uneventful and we were met by a van from the Zulu Nyala Heritage Safari Lodge where we planned to spend the next 6 nights.

We arrived after the 3:00 safari had already left so we were unable to take a drive on the first day. The property was pleasantly designed with 2 outdoor pools, a large restaurant, spacious rooms with updated bathrooms, a lobby with WiFi, a shop and even a Zulu Cultural Village with daily tribal reenactments.

Day 4 in Africa we started with a 6:00 am drive to the nearby fenced in Zulu Nyala Game Reserve. The reserve is small at seven square miles. It has 4 of the big 5 – Leopard, rhino, elephant and cape buffalo – no lions but we did see a very relaxed cheetah. Our guide planned to be with the 4 of us and 6 other guests for each drive during the week. He let us know about different excursions available and we made arrangements to take advantage of those as well.

Each day we had a morning and late afternoon safari drive. Our guide would communicate with the other trucks who were also in the reserve and bring us to the areas where animals had been sighted. We saw giraffes walking beside our truck at sunrise, hippos swimming in a waterhole, a cheetah sunning herself on the road, elephants drinking from the river, cape buffalo and a variety of deer.

We planned a visit to a nearby residence to have a close encounter with 2 beautiful, tame older elephants. They had been orphaned and hand reared and now wandered free at this private reserve. They seemed to enjoy visiting with us as we fed them and posed for photos during our visit.

Another afternoon we took advantage of a different game park that had lions. We were in for a thrill when our tour guide brought the truck not 10 feet away from 2 lionesses and 2 cubs lounging in the sun. We watched for over an hour as the cubs nursed, napped, played and then mom pounced but missed a clueless warthog who wandered too close to the family. Lion Safari in South Africa

Not being ones to lounge around on this trip, we decided to head to the Indian Ocean with our guide one day. Feet in the ocean is always a fun goal on any trip! Our excursion this day also included a boat ride on the St. Lucia River to see hippos, birds and crocodiles. We had lunch in a little beach town that warned people of hippo crossings – the most dangerous animals in Africa that cause more deaths than any other animal.

Our time on safari ended too soon but we had one more exciting part of our journey to go: Capetown.

The people at Zulu Nyala Heritage Safari Lodge arranged for our transportation back to Durban for our two hour flight to Capetown. Upon arrival taxis were available, however our travel agent had once again booked a car service for us to our hotel. We had researched hotels and decided that The Portswood Hotel near the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront would best suit our needs.

We settled into our hotel rooms then quickly took an Uber to Table Mountain. The cable car is accessible from the bottom in town and brings a group of about 60 up to the top. The views were amazing and we stayed to watch the sunsetting. One of the best sunsets ever.

We called for another Uber back to our hotel, freshened up and walked over to the lively waterfront area. Lots of shops, restaurants and tourists walked happily beside the ferris wheel, street musicians and boats along the harbor. We had arranged with a native South African who had visited the States to give us a private tour during our time in Capetown. We met him during our breakfast, which of course was included with the hotel room as had been every morning of our trip so far.

We packed a bag and piled into his car for our wine tasting tour day which started at a local farm. Then onto the Stellenbosch vineyards and some sight seeing at Boland Mountain Complex Park. Dinner that night was at the hotel and we turned in early.

Day 11 we met at breakfast and started our trip down the coast of Capetown. We went as far south as we could get at the Cape Point National Park. We drove past a wild ostrich and then onto Boulders Beach where we walked along a board walk and saw then happy little penguins on the beach. After a lovely lunch at Fish Hoek in Kalk Bay where we saw seals and sea lions on the dock we headed to Muizenberg to see the surfers and the colorful beach cabanas.

Our day trip was amazing as always and we felt the urge to shop and bring home souvenirs that evening. Plenty of shops had stuff to buy right there at the waterfront (although we could have gotten the same thing if we waited until we got to the airport)

The last day, we had an afternoon flight. Our tour guide picked us up after breakfast and took us through the colorful streets in town called Bo-Kaap. After taking a few fun photos, we drove up Signal Hill to see Table Mountain from another angle as well as Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years. After that we went to the beautiful Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden where we ate lunch and saw the most interesting flowers and birds.

Each day of our visit we were more in awe of what we experienced. From the people we met, to the animals we saw to the places we visited it was indeed the trip of a life time. Some of the trip was done with our own research. Some was supported with the help of our wonderful travel agent, Rosemary Martinek. Some was provided by the safari we went on. Some with a little help from a friend.

If it is on your bucket list, do it. You will not be disappointed! amzn_assoc_placement = "adunit0"; amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "runawaywidow-20"; amzn_assoc_ad_mode = "manual"; amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; amzn_assoc_marketplace = "amazon"; amzn_assoc_region = "US"; amzn_assoc_title = "My Amazon Picks"; amzn_assoc_linkid = "4855e4af5258f3292f5186fb8dfc125c"; amzn_assoc_asins = "B01AITOZSA,B07CVG467T,B07RXW9J75,1492620599";

Best 12 days in South Africa without renting a car The Uber drivers were plentiful, but not always well marked. The friendly fellow working in the median near the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg helped us find a black car.

#Capetown #Johannesburg #lifeafterloss #SouthAfrica #travel #Widow #Widowtravel #women #womentravel #ZuluNyala #ZuluNyalasafari

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mastcomm · 5 years ago

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Who Needs a Caribbean Yacht When You Can Take the Ferry?

Orion was shining brightly in the dark sky above Anegada in the British Virgin Islands. But the constellation had some electric competition in the band of bright mast lights bobbing offshore — “like a bejeweled Orion’s belt,” observed a new acquaintance who introduced himself as Spoons, the pilot of one of those yachts. He and his crew of five friends from the Boston area had paid $10,900 for eight days on a 45-foot catamaran to sail from island to island.

Chartering a boat is one way to island hop in the B.V.I. — and a popular one. According to the tourism board, slightly more than half of all visitors to the British overseas territory’s 60 islands and cays stay on yachts.

I, on the other hand, chose a far cheaper way to travel between islands. Using the B.V.I. ferry system, I spent $140 — not including accommodations, which added about $700 to my expenses — over a five-day trip, reaching four ports in bargain, connect-the-dots style.

In the Caribbean, several ferry companies offer opportunities for multi-island vacations, such as the L’Express des Iles, which cruises from Guadeloupe to Dominica, Martinique and St. Lucia. Others offer domestic service, including ferries from St. Vincent to some of the outlying Grenadines, and those that link the United States Virgin Islands.

But few Caribbean destinations offer a ferry system as extensive and convenient as the British Virgin Islands’. The tourism board details schedules and links to seven islands on an interactive web page devoted to island hopping.

From my first childhood ferry trip to Mackinac Island, Mich., where cars are banned, I have had a romance with ships that fill in for roads, carry vital cargo and allow communities to thrive in isolated places. They are buses for commuters, trucks for suppliers and relatively cheap maritime thrills for travelers.

Yes, cruise ships can actually be a rock-bottom ticket to the Caribbean — on my trip, I met a couple from South Carolina who spent only $600 each on an 11-day Norwegian cruise — but as an independent traveler, I find those affordable ships too big, and small charters too expensive. The ferry system seemed just right to this backpacking Goldilocks.

Seeking a winter warm up and a budget tropical vacation, I went to the B.V.I. in January to test the convenience and cost of the ferry system, hitting the cruise hub of Tortola, the mountainous beauty of Virgin Gorda, and remote Anegada.

Have passport, will ferry

Often, the cheapest flights from the United States that arrive nearest the B.V.I. land in St. Thomas (in the United States Virgin Islands), which is where I caught the 8:30 a.m. Road Town Fast Ferry from downtown Charlotte Amalie to Road Town, the B.V.I. capital, 50 minutes away on the island of Tortola ($60 round trip; the United States dollar is the official currency of the B.V.I.).

A mix of day trippers, business commuters, yacht renters and one friendly couple from Tortola who helped me with my immigration form joined me on the windy trip aboard the 82-foot passenger ferry BVI Patriot. With four-foot waves and occasional sprinkles, I sat on the upper deck inside the cabin, which was both strangely ordinary — two flat screens tuned to CNN delivered news of the Democratic presidential debates and a snowstorm in New York — and wildly exotic as we passed leggy cactuses growing out of rock islets, forested hillsides of undeveloped islands and a few stands of barren mangroves, evidence of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, which struck in 2017. (The damage inflicted by those hurricanes brought the hotel room inventory to about 1,500, down from 2,700.)

Two cruise ships in the harbor dwarfed the 149-passenger BVI Patriot when we arrived. After clearing immigration, I hired a taxi driver, Conrad “Dodgy” Lewis — “Dodgy doesn’t describe my driving,” he insisted — to take me from the congested capital over the island’s mountain spine to Cane Garden Bay, one of Tortola’s most popular beaches, and back several hours later, in time for my late-afternoon ferry to Virgin Gorda for $50.

At Cane Garden Bay, lounge chairs and umbrellas colonized the sand in front of a series of restaurant terraces and beach bars, welcoming travelers from the cruise ships, arriving in open-air buses. On an overcast day, I walked the beach between sporadic downpours to the more than 400-year-old Callwood Rum Distillery where Matthew Callwood, a distiller, bartender, tour guide and member of the family that has owned the distillery since the 1800s, led me and two cruise passengers on a tour ($5) of the mostly outdoor distillery works, including a 19th-century sugar cane crusher originally powered by harnessed donkeys.

“There used to be 28 distilleries on the island, and now there’s just us,” he said, pouring shots of Callwood’s four rums, including white, spiced and the smoother aged version he recommended. “It’s good for sipping, or putting in your coffee in the morning.”

I stashed a pint ($12) in my pack and moved on down the beach, watching divebombing pelicans on the water and free-ranging chickens on land. Beachfront restaurants teemed with day drinkers, but I followed Dodgy’s advice for lunch and went to Banana’s Bar & Grill, a polished bistro where cabdrivers were stopping in for takeout chicken soup. I learned why. Inexpensive and delicious, my $9 bowl brimmed with root vegetables, spinach and large tender pieces of chicken, bones and all.

If I had had time, I would have enjoyed outlasting the cruise passengers and staying on Cane Garden Bay at a place like Myett’s Garden Inn on the Beach, running $250 a night on Airbnb. But I had a ferry to catch.

Of bubbles and baths

Racing to make the late afternoon Speedy’s ferry to Virgin Gorda ($30 round trip), I was joined by a day-tripping set of cruise passengers, another American couple bound for a week at a luxury resort, uniformed schoolchildren and several returning islanders clutching bunches of stuffed shopping bags. One visitor leaned over the port railing, welcoming the warm wind in his face for the entire 30-minute passage toward Virgin Gorda, said to have been named Fat Virgin by Christopher Columbus for its pregnant profile.

You can tell a lot about an island by its ferry cargo. There were pallets of bottled water on the boat to Tortola. On Virgin Gorda, Speedy’s deckhands unloaded cases of Veuve Clicquot and Cakebread Cellars wines.

Virgin Gorda has long attracted the rich and famous. Taxi drivers pointed out Morgan Freeman’s former home and Richard Branson’s two nearby islands. Recently reopened after the hurricanes forced substantial rebuilding, Rosewood Little Dix Bay has catered to the affluent since Laurance Rockefeller developed the resort in 1964.

Consequently, a solitary backpacker seemed an usual sight in Spanish Town, the main settlement on Virgin Gorda. I declined taxi offers in favor of a 15-minute walk to Fischer’s Cove Beach Hotel, where blossoms were tucked in conch shells and towels in my tidy and spacious room ($175 a night). Only when I stepped onto the flamingo-pink patio and looked up did I realize there used to be a second story above, where rebar now pierced the blue sky. The Flax family, owners of the hotel, are gradually rebuilding after the hurricanes.

Tropical foliage has sprung back on much of the mountainous island, home to a series of national parks, including Gorda Peak National Park, with its panoramic trail to 1,370 feet elevation. Staying overnight on Virgin Gorda offers a rare opportunity to visit its best-loved beauty spot — the Baths National Park, protecting a dramatic stretch of shore where massive granite boulders as big as 40 feet in diameter cluster in the shallows — before the cruise ship crowds arrive.

At 7 a.m. when the first blush of light began pinking the clouds, I started down the park path past cactuses and the occasional orchid to Devil’s Bay where a septuagenarian foursome was quietly skinny dipping. I waited out a 10-minute rain shower in a shorefront cave weathered by the action of the waves. The path continued over and between the Baths’ boulders, sometimes with the assistance of steps or rope holds bolted into the rocks, walling off calm, shallow, swim-inviting pools.

I saw evidence of other early birds at the Baths — “M + M 2020” seemed freshly written in the sand — but I never saw them until I completed the roughly mile-long circuit and returned to the entrance at 8:30 a.m. where a line was already forming.

Lobster, yachts and empty beaches

“Tortola is the big city to us,” Dawn Flax, one of the family members who runs Fischer’s Cove, told me when I checked in. “We go there when we need to go to the bank or the lawyer.”

A day later, I ran into her at the ferry terminal on Tortola, returning home after a banking run. It was an unintended stop, but when the Wednesday departure from Virgin Gorda to Anegada was canceled, I was forced to the B.V.I.’s hub to catch Road Town Fast Ferry’s 300-passenger Lady Caroline from Tortola to Anegada ($50 round trip).

Of the six of us scattered among 30 seats on the outside upper deck, five were returning islanders, quizzing two with roll-aboard luggage about their vacation abroad. Children scrambled up and down the stairs for vending machine snacks and teenage couples leaned into each other, sharing earbuds. But the high seas soon quelled conversation, abandoned to the rush of the wind, the rhythmic rise and fall of passing boats under sail and the shifting view of outlying islands.

Sandy and flat where its sibling islands are steep and rugged, Anegada — the most northeastern island in the B.V.I., and the only coral island in the volcanic chain — resolved into view like an overgrown sandbar during the one-hour crossing.

From the concrete ferry pier, I got the vaguest of directions to my hotel — walk down the pier and take your first left — which turned out to be accurate. By late afternoon, the outdoor, oceanfront bar at the Anegada Reef Hotel was packed, not solely with guests of the 10-room hotel (from $155 a night), but also with sailors from the many yachts moored in front of it.

Other than the pre-sunset rush for rum-based Painkiller cocktails, the nightly hotel barbecue featuring the island’s renowned spiny lobster, and a D.J. blaring “Love Shack” from a bar at Potter’s by the Sea down the beach, Anegada is quiet.

“You come to Anegada to swim and sleep under the sea grapes in the shade and wake up and swim and eat and drink and sleep again,” explained an islander at the bar. “No one will bother you.”

I hoped not, especially when I rented a scooter the next morning for $50 a day from Michael Hastick, the co-owner of L&M rentals. He gave me, a scooter novice, a quick lesson in operating the vehicle and when I asked the speed limit, he smiled.

“There’s only one cop on the island,” he said, pointing to the empty street. “It’s Anegada, and this is rush hour.”

Technically, the speed limit is 30 m.p.h. And the occasional traffic obstacles were goats. Michael marked up a small map indicating where I would see the island’s flamingos (distantly, in an interior pond), its endangered Anegada iguanas (in conservation cages next to the police station) and its best beaches, especially Loblolly Bay on the north shore, home to beach bars for castaways (Flash of Beauty) and party people (Big Bamboo).

Despite an open sign, Flash of Beauty was deserted at 10 a.m. Conch shells lined sand paths through the dunes to the beach, strafed by surf despite the barrier of distant Horseshoe Reef, visible in a line of frothy waves. I plunged in and immediately saw conch shells and rainbow-colored fish schooling around coral heads, but with the strong current I decided that as much as I love solitude, it wasn’t safe to swim alone. It was, however, completely safe to leave my cellphone, wallet and scooter keys, and walk for miles down the deserted beach, returning to find everything as I left it, Flash of Beauty still closed and no other visitors.

Chased by another downpour, I stopped at nearby Anegada Beach Club, home to intriguing palapa-roofed beachfront tents, a kite-surfing school and a poolside restaurant where I met Paula and Michelle Mau, a couple from Omaha who regularly visit the island.

“Anegada is the end of the world,” Michelle said. “There’s no one here. It’s magic.”

The Maus spread some of that magic by inviting me, after just a five-minute chat, to join them on a private boat they had chartered to snorkel around the uninhabited east end of the island. We saw four-foot barracuda, green sea turtles and shy puffer fish. We froze in another pelting downpour and dried out in the sun. We cruised by 12-foot-high islands composed of conch shells that harvesters, dating back to the indigenous Arawak, cast off after taking the meat, creating pearly pink mounds where terns posed in profile. They wouldn’t take a dime in return, though the four-hour trip cost more than $300.

Before leaving on the next day’s 8:30 a.m. ferry to Tortola and onward to St. Thomas, I walked the beach to Neptune’s Treasure resort where the aroma of cinnamon rolls from Pam’s Kitchen served as an olfactory siren to sailors aboard the 50-some yachts tied up offshore.

The Caribbean is rarely a thrifty destination. Food can be expensive (I paid $40 for half a lobster at the Lobster Trap on Anegada). There were unexpected fees, including a B.V.I. environmental tax of $10 upon arrival and a $20 departure fee. My hotels would have been a better deal if split with a companion. I spent close to $1,000 on the trip.

But the compensation of taking the ferries went beyond financial. I traveled with commuting islanders of all ages, passed the time in terminal waiting rooms with women doing word search puzzles and joined them in bringing my own lunch aboard. These regular sailors knew to sit starboard to avoid the sun on the afternoon Anegada run and to move to the exit before docking to beat the disembarking crowds at Tortola.

Still, no one seemed to take this special means of transportation for granted. Like me, they tugged on sweaters, sat in the shade and watched the successive hues of blue streaming in and out of sight between water and sky.

Elaine Glusac is a frequent contributor to the Travel section.

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antalyataxiairport3-blog · 6 years ago

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Airport Taxi In Summer Time

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airplane trip, hiring limousine, rolls royce crash, well known service

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israelkingwatertaxi-blog · 5 years ago

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St Lucia Tours

St Lucia Tour have always been symbols of calm pleasure and the best way to explain the unique and wonderful scenic views comes down to the coast. For more information, please contact us at https://israelkingwatertaxi.com/.

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deladane · 7 years ago

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Day 8: Wednesday, March 8 ~ Antigua

(Eddy’s pronunciation: ant – IG – you – ah*)

*I haven’t really mentioned much about the Cruise Director Eddy. He was very funny and we really enjoyed him as our CD. One of his shticks is that he mispronounced the name of all of our ports. We didn’t really catch on to it at first, so neither of us remembers how he pronounced St. Maarten, but when we heard him say Antigua, we caught on. Part of what made it so funny was that he is from Wales and does have an accent, so between his normal accent and his mispronunciation of these island names, we couldn’t help but chuckle. I’ll include Eddy’s version of the island names for all the rest of our ports. Emphasis is on the capitalized syllable.

Antigua was one of the ports on this itinerary that I was most looking forward to (along with the 3 ABC islands, of course!) because it was the only new port for the first week of the cruise. Antigua is famous for having 365 beaches- one for every day of the year. I briefly considered using today as a beach day, but then decided against it because we were using St. Maarten and Barbados as beach days and I wanted something more adventurous for today. Antigua Adventures receives a 5 star rating on Trip Advisor, and also gets great reviews on Cruise Critic. We decided to book their Eco Tour, which would take us out on a boat for 6 hours, including stops for snorkeling, hiking, a visit to Hell’s Gate Island, and lunch on the beach. They offer a 10% discount if you pay a deposit online with a credit card, so I paid $23.50 per person online and was instructed to pay the remaining $80 per person in cash in US dollars on the day of our tour.

We woke up to an overcast and cloudy sky as we sailed into Antigua this morning. The temperature felt much warmer and more humid than it had been so far this week, so we crossed our fingers that it wouldn’t rain during our tour! We put the room service breakfast tag on our door last night, and it was delivered promptly at 7am. As I had done yesterday, I requested smoked salmon for our bagels, but when I divided up all of our food, there was no plate with salmon. I just assumed they ran out or forgot or whatever, but it wasn’t a big deal. We took our breakfast out onto the balcony to watch as we sailed into port.

Good morning Antigua!

Just as I finished eating, I heard the phone ring inside the cabin. It was the room service manager calling to check up on us and make sure our breakfast was to our liking. I’m not sure if he does this for all the cabins or if it was because we spoke with him last night during dinner, but I thought it was a nice touch. I told him everything was great, but since he called, I asked if it was okay that we were writing in smoked salmon on the order form. I explained that we had ordered it yesterday and it was delivered, but it was not delivered today so I wasn’t sure if we were allowed to order it. He said that was no problem at all to order the smoked salmon, apologized that it was forgotten with today’s order, and offered to send it up to the cabin right away. I told him not to worry about it since we were already finished eating and needed to leave for our tour soon. He told me to make sure to write down any other special requests when I order room service for the rest of the cruise and he would make sure that we got it. I was quite impressed at the level of service and concern for our happiness. Well done, Celebrity!

We packed up our beach bags and headed off the ship at 8:15am to meet our tour group. We were instructed to meet at 8:45am at a boutique located just a 5 minute walk from the cruise ship, but I always like to give us a little extra time just in case we get lost and to make sure we are not late. These guys were playing the steel drums when we got down to the pier.

When we got to the base of the pier, I immediately saw our meeting spot for the tour. The instructions told us to walk across the wood bridge to the Exotic Antigua Boutique, so it was a relief to see a huge sign on their roof labeling the building so I could see it from right next to the cruise ship.

Now that I saw how close we were to the meeting spot, and since we were still a bit early, we walked past the bridge and continued straight towards the shops. I have never been to this port before and I was curious to check out the port area, but I almost immediately regretted my decision. It wasn’t a particularly pretty port area, and honestly it looked a bit run down.

On top of that, the locals were extremely pushy. Every time we took a step down the street, another vendor approached us trying to get us to go into their store to buy something, or to book their tour or get in their taxi and they would take us to the beach. I answered “No thank you, I already have a tour booked” which is usually enough for the vendors to back off, but they still kept pestering us. I felt very uncomfortable and after just a few minutes, I told DH I had enough and we turned back to go wait at our meeting spot for the tour. That didn’t give me the best first impression of Antigua, but I was hopeful that things would improve once we started our tour.

At 8:40am, we spotted our tour boat, clearly labeled with “Antigua Adventures” painted on the side of the boat. There were already a few people on the boat who were staying at a hotel on the island, and the rest of us boarded after they tied up on the dock.

When I booked the tour, they said there was a maximum of 31 people on the tour, but the guides told us there would only be 22 people on our tour today with 3 guides, so there was lots of space to spread out. The boat had a big canopy over the back half of the boat for shade, and it had a lower level with space to store our bags to keep them dry, as well as a bathroom. Once everyone was settled, the guide came around to collect our money to pay for the tour, and we left the dock promptly at 9am.

We spent the first hour of the tour speeding around the island, making occasional stops so the guides could point out the landmarks along the shoreline. The guides also explained some of the history of Antigua.

This was an old navy fort… if you look closely about a quarter of the way in from the left side, you can see one of the canons still perched on the edge of the cliff.

Antigua has some very expensive, high end houses, so the guides pointed it out as we sped past them.

I think this was at one of the hotels

Our tour was called Eli’s Eco Tour, but the tour company Antigua Adventure also offers an Xtreme 360 tour which circumnavigates the entire island in a much faster speed boat. At some point, that boat sped passed us and everyone looked like they were having a great time. I did notice that the boat looked much more crowded than our boat, so I was happy to be on our slower boat with more space to spread out.

Our first longer stop was at Long Island, which I thought was funny because I was born and raised on Long Island in New York. This section of the island has beautiful turquoise water, soft white sand, and lots of very expensive houses. The guides spent a few minutes explaining about how sea turtles lay their eggs on this beach and the island requires the residents here to help facilitate that process and protect the eggs. Something I found really interesting is that the guide told us that the turtles always return to the beach where they were born to lay their eggs. If a turtle was born here, but then swims over to St. Lucia for a few years, it will swim all the way back to this beach to lay it’s eggs. Crazy!

While we were listening to one guide, one of the other guides served us fruit juice or water, but no rum punch just yet- we had to wait for the end of the day after snorkeling before they would serve the good stuff!

We stayed at Long Island for about 20 minutes, then made the 15-minute journey over to the mangroves. When I went through the mangroves in Puerto Rico and Costa Rica, I spotted lots of interesting animals and birds. These mangroves weren’t quite as exciting and we didn’t spot any animals, but maybe they were just deeper inside and not visible from our boat?

Our next stop was at Pelican Island, where we saw tons of pelicans perched up on the hill. There were so many of them, and it was interesting that they all stay close by this one island.

Look closely and you can see lots of pelicans hiding in the bushes.

After leaving Pelican Island, we traveled less than 5 minutes to reach our next destination: Hell’s Gate Island. This was the first time we could get off the boat, and we had the option of snorkeling, swimming in the natural jacuzzi, or going on a hike though a cave and up to the top of the bridge to see the views. The guides explained that we only had about 40 minutes to spend here, so there was only time for us to do one activity. They warned us that the last option was the most adventurous option, so of course that is what we picked to do!

Approaching Hell’s Gate Island

Lots of coral and rocks just below us

That’s the bridge we were climbing up to

As we approached the island, the water was very choppy so I was a bit nervous about swimming over there from the boat. The guides had life vests and pool noodles that we could use to float, so that did make the swimming a little easier, but be careful! There are rocks in the water that come up close to the surface. I was getting tossed around a lot and it was hard to control my direction with the current, and I scrapped my knee on the top of one of the rocks. That scrape is still not fully healed today, over a month later, and I am fairly sure I will end up with a scar on my knee.

Yay! We made it!

The guides were wonderful about helping everyone swim over to the island from the boat. If anyone wasn’t a strong swimmer, the guides were there to help out.

As tough as that swim was, it was totally worth it! The island is really unique. There’s a small patch of soft sand forming a small beach with crystal clear bright blue water washing through the opening in the rocks. That’s the area they referred to as a natural jacuzzi, and I could see it being a lovely place to sit and relax if you don’t want to hike through the cave.

Looking back towards our boat, you can see that the rocks which form the island are very sharp. This natural landform is made of porous limestone rock, and there were lots of sharp jagged edges sticking out. I would definitely recommend wearing water shoes to protect your feet if you are going to take the hike here. We have our own aquasocks, but the guides had little booties for us to borrow if needed.

This photo shows where we entered the cave… do you see the vines hanging down from the top of the bridge? There is a dark opening on the left side towards the bottom of the vines- that’s the cave we walked through.

The guides gave us very specific instructions for how to climb up the rocks, and they pointed out where to turn and how to maneuver safely through the narrow cave opening and up through the middle of the rocks to reach the top.

It was really fun to climb up through the cave, but you need to be careful of your footing and be aware of what is around you. Some parts had a lower ceiling so you had to be careful not to bump your head, and some of the rocks were slippery. I did my best to snap lots of photos, but it wasn’t the greatest lighting conditions in there so I apologize that some of these came out blurry.

The last part was the steepest, but one of the guides stood at the top and told us where to step, and then reached out his hand to help us climb up to the very top.

Looking back down at the water flowing through the middle of the rocks

The views from the top of the island were stunning! It was totally worth the effort to hike up here as we had unobstructed panoramic views of the whole area.

Notice how my hair is blowing all over the place? It was very windy up there so you had to be careful not to lose your footing while gazing out at the views.

When time was almost up, the guides helped us climb across the top of the bridge, and back down to the beach where we started the hike, and then we all swam back to the boat. Hell’s Gate was one of the highlights of this tour. The scenery was amazing and it was such a special experience to see this natural land formation. I was a bit nervous going in because the guides did say it is a challenging hike, but I am so glad I did it and I would highly recommend giving it a try if you take this tour. Yes, it was a little difficult to climb through the narrow spaces, but it was very doable with the help of the guides, and every one of the 15+ people in our group who attempted it was able to complete the hike.

Once everyone was back on the boat, we made another short 5-minute ride to our next stop at Bird Island. The guides mentioned that the islands in Antigua have very simple names (Pelican Island, Bird Island, etc). They pulled the boat into a little alcove with crystal clear aqua blue water and told us it would take them about 15 minutes to set up for lunch so we could do some swimming or walk around on the beach. There was a small boat here when we arrived, but they were just getting ready to leave so we would have the whole island to ourselves.

I liked the name of their boat… Do It Tomorrow

DH decided to go out for a swim

I took a little walk along the beach

This is what happens when I leave DH to hold my camera for a few minutes…

The water was so clear!

Lunch was served buffet style and included pasta salad, BBQ chicken, garden salad, and fried plantains. They also had water, Coke, Coke Zero, beer, and rum punch to drink. All of the food was delicious, and I was very impressed that they served lunch on real plates and with real silverware (ie: not disposable)!

There were a few picnic tables along the beach, and the trees helped provide some shade.

There was more than enough food, and anyone who wanted seconds was welcome to help themselves. When we all had our fill, we cleared our plates and got ready for another little hike along a small trail that climbs up to the top of the hill on Bird Island. Definitely make sure to wear good shoes for this hike. Even though it only takes about 10 minutes to reach the top of the hill, it is steep and slippery in spots so it’s important to have good traction.

This is a map of the island and some of the animals that live here

As expected, the views from the top of the hill were beautiful. We could see the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and many of the islands around Antigua.

I love how this photo came out!

We found a little friend in the bushes

On the way back down the hill, we walked passed another beach on the opposite side of the island

After the hike, we all climbed back on the boat and motored about 5 minutes off the shore of Bird Island to the coral reef to go snorkeling. The guides divided the group into 2 groups- the beginners stayed close to the boat, and the advanced group went out further from the boat with one of the guides. We went with the advanced group and had no trouble keeping up with the guide despite the choppy current. Unfortunately, all of the heavy winds really churned up the water so visibility was limited. We saw lots of rocks and coral, but not many fish. I thought the snorkeling here was okay, but not great.

The guide dove down to the ocean floor and came back with a surprise… a conch shell! This was the first time I have seen one of these while snorkeling!

He handed it to me to get a closer look…

That was the highlight of today’s snorkeling trip! It was also around the spot where we turned around to swim back towards the boat. Swimming out was against the current, so the rest of the time we just floated and let the current gradually drift us back towards the boat.

I was out in the water snorkeling for about 20 minutes. When I got back to the boat, the guides were ready and waiting with a special treat. They served us fresh baked banana bread, water, fruit juice, and very strong rum punch. The rum punch was so strong that I actually asked for a cup with half punch and half fruit juice to dilute it to make it more drinkable haha The snack was much-needed after all that swimming!

After that, we made the 45-minute journey back to the cruise port.

We docked back in front of the Exotic Antigua Boutique at 2:45pm. Overall, I enjoyed the tour and thought the guides did a great job. Antigua is a beautiful island, especially as seen from the water, but I would definitely recommend doing some research and picking a tour in advance. The locals at the port are incredibly pushy and I would not recommend trying to book a tour right there when you arrive, nor would I recommend spending too much time walking around the port area. Our itinerary had many islands that are better for shopping where you don’t have to deal with the pushy locals. Sorry Antigua, but you were not my favorite island of this cruise.

We thanked our guides and went straight back to the ship, happy to find our afternoon cheese plate waiting for us in the cabin.

Yay! We finally got real crackers instead of saltines! Call me crazy, but it really did make the cheese taste better. After some quick showers, we headed down to the Gastro Bar because DH wanted to try some new beers (and we kind of needed a break from the Martini Bar lol) DH had a beer and I tried some champagne.

We could see a beautiful sunset through the windows, so we went up to the outside deck on deck 5 to get a better look. This is what cruising is all about!

Such a perfect night to lounge on an outside deck, watching the sun set over the ocean with some drinks.

At 7pm, we went down to the MDR for dinner. Here is tonight’s menu:

My favorite treat on cruises is escargot. I never eat this any other time besides on a cruise, so I love that Celebrity offers it as an every day appetizer. I ordered this many times over our 2 week cruise, but I’ll only post the photo this one time.

Spiced Duck Rillettes

Celebrity Signature Crab Cake

Penne Primavera

Oven Roasted Chicken Saltimbocca (this was the only dish from the entire cruise which I thought was a miss… it just wasn’t what I expected and I didn’t really enjoy it. We had planned to share the penne but I ended up eating most of it on my own.)

Dessert Menu

I don’t have a photo of the dessert but I am fairly certain that I ordered the Apple Tart. After dinner, we went upstairs to watch a few minutes of the evening hot glass show. We never got to do this on our 2016 cruise, but I really liked seeing the shows at night. The hot glass seems to glow brighter at night, and it was much cooler watching the show in the evening air instead of in the daytime sun. We only had a few minutes to watch the show because we needed to get to the main theater by 9pm, but it was worth it to see them make one piece.

Tonight’s featured performer was Savannah Smith, backed by the Eclipse Orchestra. She is a singer and performer in Las Vegas and she put on a wonderful, entertaining show. She sings songs by the famous female divas, and her voice is very strong. We really enjoyed it.

After the show, we went straight back to the cabin, tired from a busy day in Antigua but looking forward to tomorrow in St. Lucia!

Step Tracker Daily Total: 4367 steps; 1.671 miles

#Celebrity Eclipse Cruise 2018 #celebritycruises #celebrityeclipse #cruise #vacation #travel #antigua

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3monthsineurope · 7 years ago

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March 28, 2018 Wednesday was our day in Barbados! It was our only day we didn’t have an excursion booked. The ship docked in port around 8:15, and we all got up around 9. We don’t have plans but wanted to make the most of the day! We got ready and headed up to breakfast. I had some tasty waffles with peanut butter! Around 10:30 we hopped off the ship. We wanted to explore the port, so that’s what we did! I found my usual souvenirs and eventually we took a taxi into Bridgetown, the capital. We definitely got heckled around the taxi area and in Bridgetown. Everyone wanted to take us on a tour around the island. It was actually really annoying! Eventually, however, Heide got us hooked on a tour around the island. Our guide took us to Rihanna’s childhood home, and we also saw her 23 million dollar villa. We went through a nice golf course, but unfortunately didn’t see any monkeys. And we drank beer in the taxi, which is legal here! Our guide took us to the highest point on Barbados, which was pretty cool. There was a monkey in a cage doing tricks (that was pretty sad) and a bar and shop, but the view was absolutely amazing! He dropped us off at a popular beach, Carlisle Bay, where we grabbed a drink and checked out the Barbados coastline. It was really beautiful and the water was so blue! We took some pictures and next thing you know, we were back in the taxi. He took us back to port, where we finished up shopping and headed back onto the boat around 3:30. We were all pretty hungry so we hit up Guy Fieri’s burger joint! I got a burger with an onion ring and put ranch (from a tap!) on it. I’m not a huge burger person but it was so good! We lounged around for a while, and then it was time for dinner! I had the delicious cold peach soup, prosciutto with cantaloupe (take me back to Italy!), and fried chicken with gravy. For dessert I had sticky toffee pudding and a s’mores parfait, that were both really good! After dinner we lounged around and played card games while drinking champagne (we had a total of five bottles with us this trip, because Aaron won one in the hairy chest competition), so we liked to drink a glass every night or so. Around 11:30 we went to Serenity where the club was moved to for the night. It was actually really cool! There was some good music, better than the pervious nights, but I still only stayed for about an hour, since we were getting up early for our next day in St. Lucia. I went to bed around 1. :]

#Barbados #Bridgetown #carnival #carnivalfascination #carnival cruise #cruise #rhianna #carlisle bay #Caribbean

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expatabroad · 7 years ago

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Italy trip - Day 10 (Sept 10th 2017)

Despite our descent night’s sleep and fairly easy-going day prior, we still managed to sleep until 8:30-9-ish. We were out of the flat just after 10 but I realised quite quickly after hitting the road that I had left my HDD plugged into the TV at the flat. I had to email the host to ask her to ship it back to us in the UK.

On the way to Venice, we made a stop over in Verona for a bit of a wander as it was on the way and only a half-hour into the ride so not really a hassle. There was a lot more to see and do than I had realised when looking it up on TripAdvisor. I will probably make a separate post just sharing the photos I loved from Verona as I took so many more than I expected.

(Archways leading into Verona-proper)

It was very picturesque and exactly what you’d envision when thinking of Romeo and Juliet (but obviously a tad bit more modernised now and touristy).

(Just beyond the those archways)

(It also appeared to have it’s own Coliseum)

(Such an old world charm with marbled roads/walkways yet such new, high-end shops.)

(Riverside shot)

(I cannot pretend that I expected to see a bust of Shakespeare on the same wall as a sign for the Mafia Museum LOL)

We saw Romeo’s family’s house and Juliet’s family’s house with the famous balcony. Before leaving, we stopped off for a coffee and snack. We tried a type of cake specific to Verona called a Torta Russa and it was perfection in a baked good. Seems like it was maybe made with almonds and anise? We enjoyed it so much that we bought a second mini “cake” to take with us and enjoy in Venice.

(As per the sign, this was the house of Romeo’s family - supposedly).

(Entrance hall to Juliet’s family’s courtyart. Littered with love letters left there by romantics worldwide. People actually right letters to Juliet that get picked up by people that volunteer their time. These people read the letters and right responses. Thought that was quite interesting.)

(There is the famous balcony. As you can see, that random lady is molesting a bronze statue of Juliet. Apparently this is a common tradition. I had to google it because I saw so many people feeling her up for photo-ops, some looking like quite proper and mature, well adjusted human beings, that I didn’t think it could be just for a bit of a joke. Apparently it’s for good luck in love or something? Feel free to google yourself! I believe, if I remember correctly, this is the second statue erected because the metal being touched so much that it was damaged.)

(I didn’t fancy risking it with a bit of a touch up as I already feel quite lucky in love ::cue vomiting::)

(Similar to lover’s lock bridge in Paris, it appears this is also a tradition in Verona...except it’s on a door in Juliet’s courtyard.

(Torta Russa. I’ve honestly never had anything like it before or after. It’s like a moist cake inside a flaky pastry...I wonder if you can order online....)

The scenery from Garda to Venice was quite samey and nothing really to write home about (not like Rome to Florence), The train ride into Venice itself from where we parked was very easy. It was a direct shoot from one side of the bridge over to St Lucia Station on the other side.The hardest part was sorting the car out as it wasn’t abundantly clear where the car was meant to be parked.

Getting off the train and exiting when we reached the St Lucia station was certainly impressive.There were people there waiting to transport your stuff to your hotel for you for a price and taxi-boats and gondolas pulled up to climb onto. We walked the 25 minutes to our Airbnb for the night but it felt so much longer due to needing to push through the crowds of people and the constant need to go up and down stairs to use the canal bridges. In the end, the frustration was all worth it because the Airbnb was located in a nice, quiet bit of the city but was very close walk to everything - including some bars and the best pizza hands down that I had in Italy (and possibly anywhere outside the US). It was a tiny place with pretty much no privacy, but it was okay for one night and there was an outside patio nearly the size of the house to use which was far less claustrophobic while remaining quite hidden and tranquil.

(View immediately upon exiting the train station)

(Right around the corner from our Airbnb. Seems so utterly Italian. The view reminds me of something I would see in an oil painting hanging on my nana’s wall.)

(Exploring the quiet area of the canals around the flat)

(We made it to Venice in good spirits! Now if only I could’ve stayed that tan...)

We went on a bit of an exploration around the city - we honestly didn’t have any specific landmarks on our list to cross off so it was more or less an aimless walk to whatever we happened to see that we wanted to look at. I think we were almost more interesting in finding good food. We firstly went around to the area recommended by our Airbnb host with a bunch of bars to get a drink - as you do (as you can see, there’s a pattern wherever we go...but don’t worry, we can quit whenever we want!). While on our hunt for a place to eat dinner, we found an tasty pizza place. It was thin but doughy, barely had any grease on it, and the parma ham hit perfect levels of saltiness. It was certain;y more than satisfactory and it refuelled us enough to continue on with our “sightseeing”. We thought we had crammed in everything Venice had to offer with ample photo-ops, so we decided to freshen up, have a few remaining beers we took with us, and head out to dinner.

(MMMmmmm Pizza...)

(Loved all the cool alleyways and dead-ends we came across...although it lost it’s charm by the end)

We ate at a restaurant that seemed okay from the outside, but ended up being absolute shit....to the point that I tasted Alan’s veg and had to spit it out because it was terrible. It tasted reheated but also, somehow, burnt yet not cooked through? How is something like that even possible?

(This was pre-horrid food)

Next up was the wine bar a few shops down where we split a bottle of Rose. The weather was lush so we sat on the steps by one of the canals and enjoyed our glasses before heading back to the cocktail bar for one last drink to mark our last night. It seemed like the done thing was to sit by the canal and it seemed like a really interesting social scene and one that I very much enjoyed.

(Getting in touch with the locals)

(Fun colours happening here..)

We did sit out on the patio of the Airbnb for a nightcap as we needed to finish our bottle of gin and eat the torta from Verona. It was a great last night with a fair amount of booze (enough to make sleeping in a tiny square space together not awkward. Regardless, I definitely had a good night sleep.

(This was basically the size of the place - apart from the bathroom.shower nook area to my left and a tiny kitchen countertop/fridge/oven behind me. There was also a full-sized bed across from the bunks...)

(The Full sized bed in the back is where Rik and I slept. It truly was cosy...)

TBC....

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