I have spent a morning or two, exhausted and shoeless, standing in an airport bomb
detector after being groped by a TSA agent, all because the New York State DMV apparently
doesn't see "Christopher" as a common enough name to be able to fit the whole thing
on my driver's license. Even so, I really have no problem with the increased security
measures at our airports. But if you can avoid the hassle, why not?
So when my girlfriend Lindsay and I were looking for a vacation to take this past
winter, we decided to look for alternatives that would still allow us to go somewhere
tropical while avoiding the hassles of plane travel. The result was a seven-day,
six-night cruise aboard the Norwegian Gem with stops in Port Canaveral, Florida,
Great Stirrup Cay (Norwegian's private island in the Bahamas), and Nassau, Bahamas.
We chose Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) for several reasons. For one, Lindsay is a
teacher. As such, we had a specific time frame we were able to travel (during April
break) and it seemed as though some of the other cruise lines that had New York
departures didn't cater toward that demographic, only offering 10-day cruises. NCL
also came highly recommended from a good friend of mine, James Matarese, who has
been on a number of Norwegian cruises. The one thing that particularly appealed
to me (which happened to be James' favorite aspect as well) is Norwegian's concept
of "Freestyle Cruising," which essentially boils down to "dress how you want, do
what you want, and eat where you want, when you want to."
I should note that neither I nor Lindsay had ever cruised before. While I was lucky
enough to vacation relatively frequently with my family growing up, cruises were
never an option as my father and my sister are prone to seasickness. So my folks
never wanted to take the chance that we'd spend thousands on a vacation where half
the family spent the entire time leaning over the deck.
One product of never having cruised before was a biased view of cruises in general.
Having vacationed at a number of cruise destinations (and their surrounding areas),
my only real experience with cruises and cruisers was watching them disembark in
droves to spend a few hours visiting tourist traps en masse before returning to
sea. However, after speaking with a number of friends that are all avid cruisers,
we decided to give it a shot.
Leaving from New York was a fantastic decision. Yes, leaving in the winter or early-spring
means you get a half-day-or-so on both ends of cooler weather where you may not
want to be swimming. However, as we left on a Saturday afternoon, by the time we
woke up on Sunday morning and had breakfast, we were off the coast of the Carolinas
and rather enjoyed the temperature and lack of crowds out by the pool (and the hot
tubs are always an option). Otherwise, there is so much to do aboard the ship that
we had no problem finding things to keep us occupied while we weren't out lounging
on the pool deck.
One valid concern is traveling through the North Atlantic in the winter months –
and we experienced everything it had to throw at us that first night. Speaking with
a number of veteran cruisers, all noted they were by far the roughest seas they've
ever experienced (courtesy of a perfectly timed storm system). As neither myself,
nor Lindsay gets seasick, we didn't really mind – in fact, I rather enjoyed it (as
it turns out it's probably the best night's sleep I've had in years). Lindsay did
have a little trouble sleeping with the hangers in the closet crashing from one
side to another all night, but we both had some good laughs watching entire lines
of people in the corridors slamming from side-to-side in complete unison. And I
should note the staff was amazingly quick at cleaning up any - umm...let's go with
remnants - of seasickness that happened to show up in common areas like stair wells
and hallways.
Ports of Call
Port Canaveral
We decided to take our day in Florida and head over to Universal Studios. It had
been quite a long time since I'd been to Universal, and I'd never been to Universal's
Islands of Adventure theme park so that became our destination. The big new attraction
this year is "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter" which was extremely impressive
both in scope and implementation.
Tips:
- Spend the extra money on the Express pass. Trust me, it's well worth it.
- Plan accordingly if your plan includes the Harry Potter area. There was a wait just
to get inside the area so get there early and get a ticket for a specific time to
come back later in the day if you can't get in immediately. It's also important
to note the lines to get into the shops in this area were longer than the lines
to get on rides, so don't promise the kids a new wand and cape before you see it's
going to take a couple hours to buy one.
- It just-so-happens the Harry Potter area has both a fantastic new roller coaster
and the highest concentration of small children. The contradiction of a large crowd
full of those who don't meet the height requirements for the coaster allowed us
to do laps on arguably the best ride in the park with almost no line whatsoever
(Express pass or not).
- Disney it is not – but then again, what is? Go for the rides and the fun but don't
expect the same all-around experience you would get in Disney, especially if you
have small children.
Great Stirrup Cay
We had a good day enjoying the beautiful beach here. There was some construction
still going on but the new food area had already been finished prior to our arrival.
However, there's no pier on the island so you can make-or-break your day depending
on what tender boat you get on. We were lucky enough to be some of the first to
arrive and had already had enough and were on our way back to the boat by the time
some were still coming over for the first time. If the beach doesn't hold any special
appeal to you (or you didn't get an early tender boat ticket), spend a quiet day
on the pool deck without the usual crowds.
Nassau
Surprisingly, this was probably my least favorite destination, although we did get
to do something that was a lot of fun. We took the day and headed over to Blue Lagoon
Island to go swimming with dolphins. The island was great and the dolphin experience
was top-notch, but the process from the time we got off the ship to getting on the
ferry put a really bad taste in my mouth (see #3 in "Cruising for Beginners"). The
excursion itself was a little pricey but certainly worth doing once. If you're traveling
with kids, the island has plenty of water-based activities in the lagoon to keep
them occupied.
Overall, we had an amazing time, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. I can't
say enough about the crew of the Gem. From the top down, they were fantastic. We
had big plans for activities almost every-night but couldn't seem to pull ourselves
away from the amazing piano-styling's of Randy Heidema (who set the tone on the
first night accommodating requests for both Motley Crue and Kiss) and the fantastic
voice and guitar of Leo. Special thanks go out to our Concierge (and behind-the-scenes
tour director) Ryan, and Hotel Director Sean who both helped to make the trip a
memorable experience.
Don't forget that Norwegian and some of the other cruise lines run one-day and weekend-long
cruises out of New York throughout the year. Check their websites if you're looking
for a quick getaway!
Cruising for Beginners
So I mentioned that this was our first cruise and there were certainly things I
wasn't prepared for. So here is my guide for those of you interested in taking your
first cruise based on what we learned while onboard.
- Bring a nice outfit or two. I already mentioned the stigma I'd attached to cruising
and forgot that it has its origins in the highest class of travel available, with
first class passengers dining in elaborate dining rooms and being entertained in
ball rooms while wearing tuxedos and evening gowns. Norwegian's "Freestyle Cruising"
concept allows you to come as you are wherever you decide to go (some of the additional
dining options do have dress codes, but they're reasonable – pants and no sneakers
or sandals – and not very strictly enforced), but many cruises have dress codes
for dining areas. There were also two "dress up or not" nights in which passengers
are encouraged to dress up in their finest evening wear.
- Bring a portable electronic device (laptop is perfect) and some DVD's. Remember
you're at sea so your TV options are limited in the room. We had brought a laptop
and some DVD's of our favorite TV shows and it turned out to be one of the best
moves we made. You don't spend much time in your room but when you're getting ready
to go out or when you come in for the night it's nice to have something entertaining
to put on in the background.
- Do your homework and book your own excursions. We could and should have rented a
car in Port Canaveral to get us to Universal Studios (although the option of having
a few drinks because we were taking a bus back might make that a toss-up), and I
was ready to jump off the pier and swim to our destination after the first half
hour or so of waiting around and being herded like cattle when we disembarked in
Nassau. It's also a lot cheaper to do yourself.
- Pick the line that offers the experience you're looking for. We loved the Freestyle
concept but did meet other people who said they preferred the structure and traditional
experience other cruise lines have to offer.
How I LOST Weight on My Cruise (without
stepping foot in the gym)
All I heard before my cruise was how much I was going to eat and how much weight
people gain while onboard. Contrary to popular belief, the portions you're given
are very modest. What tends to get people in trouble is ordering multiple entrees,
spending too much time in the buffet, or always indulging in dessert. While we had
every intention of spending time in the gym each day, the only time we stepped foot
inside was when we went looking around on day 1. However, we were both able to come
back a little lighter than when we left. So here are my tips for keeping the pounds
off on your next cruise:
- Avoid the buffet! The tendency with buffets is to take more food than you know you
can eat because you want variety – then we overindulge because it's right in front
of us. Try making a salad with a little light dressing on top to help fill you up
before you put together your meal plate (never go shopping on an empty stomach).
When you do put your plate together, make a single plate with a modest portion of
only those foods you really want and stick to it, no seconds!
- Eat one meal at a time! The dining rooms generally offer a great set of options
and in very modest portions. However, as we Americans are so used to obscenely large
portions wherever we go, I noticed many people ordering multiple entrees or an excessive
amount of appetizers. I promise you that you won't feel like you didn't get your
money's worth if you only eat a single meal. If anything, you'll feel a lot better
about yourself the next day.
- Limit those desserts! I have a huge sweet tooth so this one isn't easy for me. If
you're one that would get dessert at every meal, limit yourself to every other day.
If you had dessert at dinner last night, you don't get any tonight, but you can
look forward to it tomorrow! If you're already an "every-other-dayer," go every
three days.
- Keep yourself busy! Throughout the entire trip, we were so concerned with what activities
we could participate in or were just happy enough sitting out by the pool that eating
almost became an obstacle in the way of everything else there was to do. Don't think
of eating on a cruise as an activity, it's something you have to do that takes away
from the fun you could be having elsewhere!
- TAKE THE STAIRS! This turned out to be the only conscious choice we made the entire
trip to help try to keep the pounds off. We might have taken the elevator once or
twice the entire time we were onboard, otherwise it was always the stairs. And with
at least seven or eight decks separating places you frequent, there is plenty of
opportunity to burn some calories without really trying.
