Fort Lauderdale – You may be wondering why I am including Fort Lauderdale as a port of call since it is an embarkation/disembarkation port. When you are on a B2B, the embarkation port becomes a port of call for all those people who are staying on for the next cruise. You are called an in-transit guest. Just as disembarking guests received paperwork explaining how to get off the ship smoothly, in-transit guests receive paperwork on the procedures they need to complete.
In addition to the two options as described in the photo, Holland America does offer excursions in Fort Lauderdale for those guests who will be returning to the ship. Our Canadian friends opted to take a HAL airboat tour of the Everglades. We had already done that tour, so we chose to stay on board. If you signed up for a tour, you will get a different set of instructions from the one above.
We had a light breakfast in the Lido and then proceeded to the World Stage a little before 9:00. There were a lot of people who had also decided just to stay on the ship. We had to wait there until all disembarking passengers had gotten off the ship. They kept announcing over the intercom for 4 guests who hadn’t left yet (give it up people, your vacation is over).
Finally, we were escorted as a group to the port terminal and met with Customs officials. The facial recognition system was only working sporadically so some of us had to meet face-to-face with the officials. (At least it wasn’t as chaotic as the April embarkation snafu – if you don’t know what I’m talking about go to the Caribbean link of this blog and find Embarkations).
Once we had all met with Customs, we were escorted back on the ship and were free to go about our business. We were back on board by 10:00. We had pizza for lunch and then went to read on the covered balcony because it started to rain and hard. I felt bad for those new embarking guests who were caught out in it.
Later on, we had to deal with another issue -attending the safety drill. Our in-transit paperwork (on the back page) said that we would not have to participate in that afternoon’s safety/lifeboat drill. We only had to watch the video in our room. The Cruise Director kept coming on the intercom urging the new passengers to go check-in at their life boats. I was taking a shower, and Chuck was napping when all of a sudden she announced (and not kindly) that all passengers including the in-transit guests MUST do the safety drill or we would be interfering with the operation of the ship by preventing sail-away.
I jumped out of the shower with my head full of shampoo, almost slipped on the floor, barely toweled off, and threw on clothes. Chuck was mad about being woken up and thought I had misread the instructions. Nope. I showed him our paperwork. We both went down to our lifeboat and checked-in. We were not the only in-transit guests fussing at the poor crew at the lifeboat.
Once we were done, Chuck went down to Guest Services to show them the paperwork and have them explain why we were just now hearing of this change to procedure. I went back to the room and sent a message through the Holland America app expressing the same sentiments. We both got apologies from Guest Services, but the Cruise Director just came back on the intercom and said “Disregard the last announcement. In-transit guests are exempt from the safety drill.” We thought she could have at least said “Oops, my bad. I received incorrect instructions. So sorry for the inconvenience” Nope. Nada.
Poor communication drives me crazy.
Half Moon Cay – Yes, we returned to the private island on this leg of the cruise. We were sharing the island again with the Rotterdam but this time we were first so there was plenty of loungers to choose. As I mentioned, the island is a tender port for now. However, Carnival Corporation is building a dock at the other end of the island to allow their Carnival mega-ships to be able to port there. They are also doing some other construction on various parts of the island. I hope they don’t put so much on it that it finally loses its laid-back appeal.
Our Canadian friends and Chuck decided to snorkel again. But I was not going to be fooled twice. I knew the water hadn’t warmed up in a couple of days, so I was going to spend it either on a lounger or strolling up and down the beach.
Our friends and Chuck went on in the water, and I was talking to a person on the next lounger when – Surprise! Dark clouds rolled in quickly and the rain started coming down so hard it stung and it didn’t look like it was going to blow away any time soon. Light, pleasant rain I don’t mind if I am on the beach, but this rain was too much. We joined the long line at the tender area and at least we weren’t being pelted since that area was covered. We had to wait quite a while to get on a tender as they had suspended going back and forth because the waves were too high. What a mess.
I was glad to finally get back on board, dry off, and get some food at the Lido.
Ochos Rio, Jamaica – The only time we have ever been on the island of Jamaica was when we stayed at an all-inclusive resort in Montego Bay many, many years ago. While there, we were able to climb Dunn’s River Falls (so much fun), shop at the Straw Market, enjoy the beach, snorkel, kayak, and try to windsurf (major failure). For today, we talked about the Jamaican bobsled excursion or the river float excursion. Finally, Chuck decided he was going to walk into town, but I decided I was just going to stay on the ship and enjoy the pool.
However, the rain and humidity upended both plans and we found ourselves on our covered balcony again reading and people-watching. Not a bad way to spend the day.
Grand Cayman – So today, we had a HAL snorkel excursion, and we were joined by our friends.
REEF n’ RAYS SNORKELING
About the Excursion – A sandbar inhabited by curious, graceful stingrays awaits you just a short boat transfer away across placid, turquoise waters in the company of a smiling crew.
You’ll set out by coach, headed to a private dock in Snug Harbour. A professional crew welcomes you onto a spacious boat for a transfer across North Sound.
At the world-famous Stingray Sandbar, enter the water to interact with graceful southern stingrays. The experienced crew will feed the rays and allow you to touch them. You’ll learn about the southern Atlantic stingray, including its anatomy, habitat and lifecycle.
Make the most of a snorkel stop at one of Grand Cayman’s beautiful coral reefs. Expect to see beautiful corals and prolific marine life, including a wide array of tropical fish such as angelfish, parrotfish, sergeant majors, lobster and maybe even a turtle.
At the end of your adventure, you’ll transfer back to the pier in town.
Notes: Guests with all snorkel experience levels are welcome. Wear your swimsuit under your clothing; bring a towel, reef-safe/biodegradable sunscreen, light clothing to act as a full cover-up for further protection from the sun, and a hat. Swim at your own risk. Minimum age is 8 years; maximum age is 70 years.
We had to meet in the World Stage at 7:00 a.m. (yes, 7:00 in the morning – ugh). When our group was called, we all made our way to the tender area and climbed into the lifeboat (ugh again). Thankfully, it was just a 10-minute ride to the Cayman dock.
From the HAL dock, we had to board a bus that would take us to the tour boat dock. Then, the boat ride to the sandbar was 30 minutes. It was overcast and I thought I heard thunder in the distance. When we got to the sandbar, we were just one of many, many other tour boats. We also saw some large stingrays floating around.
We had actually done this excursion a long time ago, but our friends had not. I had told them how much fun it was just to stand in the shallow sandbar water and let the stingrays float right by you. They might even touch you. You might even get lucky enough to feed one. Well, not this time.
This time, we had to stand in a large circle, and the tour operator had grabbed one of the stingrays and was taking it around and letting people pet it and feed it. Of course, the other tour person was out there taking photos. We fed it and then just got back on the boat without a photo. I noticed that the other tour operators were doing the same thing with their groups. I just wondered when the process changed. I was not a fan.
Once everyone was back on the boat, we rode for about another 5 to 10 minutes and were allowed to jump in and swim near the reef. The reef was very nice and there were lots of different fish. We had about 35 minutes to snorkel and Chuck and I used all of the allotted time. We were the last two people to get back on the boat.
Going back to the pier, the crew cranked up the music, and we had fun dancing and singing all the way.
At the boat pier, we got back on the bus for the ride to the HAL pier. However, the driver did not drop us off at the spot where we were picked up. He dropped us off at the South Terminal. We realized it when we didn’t see the HAL ship in the distance. We asked a port official and he said that HAL was at the North Terminal. We had to walk a block up the street to get to it and then stand in the line to wait for a tender.
The tender ride back to the ship was bouncier than the ride over. The wind and waves had picked up. It was a challenge to get from the tender back onto the ship. The crew on the tender basically grabbed me by the arms, lifted, and passed me over to the waiting crew on the ship like a sack of potatoes. Oh well, whatever works. I was ready for some lunch.
Cozumel, Mexico – I think every Western Caribbean itinerary for every cruise line includes Cozumel. I have lost count of how many times we have been here. Our excursions have included a day-stay at an all-inclusive resort, snorkeling, island tours, and shopping. However, I think our most memorable excursion was the one where we took a class on how to properly snorkel. We had tried on our own several times and either kept sucking in sea water or our masks leaked, etc. We were on a Carnival cruise, and they offered an excursion called “beginner’s snorkeling class.” We signed up. It was us and a bunch of 6-year-olds. Hah!
I didn’t care. The instructor was excellent and we have been snorkeling successfully ever since then.
Cozumel is also famous for “pier runners.” You can search YouTube for those poor souls who spent too much time in Senor Frogs or maybe just didn’t set their watch correctly. Whatever the problem, you will see them running wildly down the pier (and it is long) waving their arms over their head, while people on the ship are yelling “run Forrest run!” and other catcalls. The really sad ones are the ones who get to the end of the pier and no ship is waiting for them. When the ship has to leave, it has to leave.
Today, there were six ships in port. I have seen more. We were sandwiched between the Royal Caribbean Harmony of the Seas and the Norwegian Escape. We were close enough that we could wave and shout to the people who happened to be on their balconies too.
We stayed on the ship and spent our last remaining on-board credit money on a couple’s massage at the Spa. I was concerned that the atmosphere would be ruined by the masseuses trying to upsell some products, but they did not. It was a very nice, relaxing experience.
Up Next – The April Cruise Ports of Call
