Christmas Cruise: Bahamas, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Cuba
- LoAroundTheGlobo
- Jul 29, 2019
- 5 min read
Updated: May 3
December 2017
My family (Grandma, Mom, brother) and I were supposed to fly into Ft. Lauderdale, Florida where we'd board our cruise ship, but crazy storms had other plans for us. Our flights got cancelled and there was no other way to arrive there on time except to drive from Virginia. So we hopped in the car late that evening, bags and snacks in tow, and headed down through the night. We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale on a beautiful, sunny day and boarded our ship with no issues.
We first headed to Princess Cay in the Bahamas where we spent a day lounging on the beach and enjoying the crystal blue waters of the Caribbean. My brother, Timmy, and I trekked around the small island, encountering chickens, stingrays, and lots of fish. It was a lovely day just relaxing, but we had to get back on the ship as more cultural locations awaited us.
Our next stop was Ocho Rios, Jamaica, world famous for its Dunns River Falls -- a gorgeous waterfall river that cuts through the tropical jungles and jagged rocks of this pretty rural town. We took a boat ride from the port over to the mouth of the waterfall, where you then hike up for about 2 hours trudging through the rapids. Our guide was awesome, and so were the other tourists on our adventure. We all bopped and laughed along the way as we were able to slide down some of the natural waterslides, jump into some of the deeper pool areas, and stand under some of the powerful falls. We got absolutely drenched as you're submerged at many different points, and we just enjoyed the vivid sounds of this beautiful, sparkling gem.
We thankfully beat the large rush of tourists and were making our way down the staircase that parallels the falls as dozens of people climbed clumsily up the rocks and branches. The water was crisp and refreshing, but we headed back to our boat to enjoy some earned cocktails. We met back up with Grandma in the town as she'd taken a bus tour instead, and shopped a little before getting back on the cruise ship.
The next stop was Grand Cayman Island to the northwest of Jamaica. We stopped at Grand Cayman on Christmas Day, and I was able to sign up for a scuba diving adventure. I had the most magical day because I had become a certified scuba diver 8 years prior and done my open-water certification there in Grand Cayman. So to be there again, doing one of my favorite activities in the world, felt like a dream. My family hung on the beach at a resort as I joined the other divers, meeting a super sweet family from Maryland that took me under their wing for the day.
The dive was absolutely incredible. We saw vibrant corals, boulder-sized clams, barracudas, lion fish, sea turtles, one creepy eel, and tons of other timid, colorful fishies. The water was cool, but refreshing and the guides were passionate and knowledgeable. I absolutely loved my experience, yet again, and remembered just how special of a dive location this island really is.
After my diving adventure though, we rushed back to the port to board the cruise ship yet again, where we hurried to get ready for Christmas dinner. We'd made friends with a family from Florida on the ship (as the dad and Timmy were in the casino together a few times and I'd befriended the mom and daughter), and they joined us for our Christmas dinner in the main dining room. It was so lovely, and all of the staff (most of whom were from the Philippines or other Pacific islands) were so festive and cheery.
We chugged along, however, and finally reached our last stop: Cienfuegos, Cuba. Now this was quite an experience. Prior to the trip, the cruise line was very clear that no one was allowed off of the cruise ship unless they had a verifiable/pre-booked tour. Grandma had organized a rum, coffee, and cigars tour for us in the spirit of Cuban stereotypes, and it did not disappoint.
But when we first arrived in the port, we waited in a long, slowly-moving line for customs then boarded our bus with the other tourists to go explore the town. This place looked like a time-capsule from 1955 America--the old-timey Cadillacs, retro phone booths, weathered murals, and locals' classic styles all felt like a dream from a decade well before my time. We first went by a gorgeous house-turned-museum on the waterfront, then by an old theater dripping in gold-plated adornments and velvet.
Then we finished off the tour at a restaurant with a local band where we enjoyed the world-famous cigars, rum, and coffee, all of which were tasty and powerful in their own right. We had about an hour of free time to peruse the main walking street, talk with vendors, eye the handmade crafts, and people-watch the fascinating locals. Everyone was very friendly to us, and some of them lit up when I bartered in Spanish. Most were simply curious, however, and wanted to observe us as much as we wanted to observe them.
Nonetheless, time was very restricted during this day, and we were well aware of the close monitoring of the tours (and tourists generally) so we headed back towards the port mid-afternoon and shopped around there for a little while before once again boarding our massive, floating accommodation. Back on the ship, we enjoyed comedy shows and even watched a live orchestra perform during a wildlife documentary, which was as exhilarating as it sounds. The ship itself was beautiful, somewhat small for a cruise ship, but manageable. We sipped some of our souvenirs from the trip (including rum from Jamaica and Cuba) and chatted about what fascinating places we'd seen.
As we pulled through the narrow canal of Cienfuegos, we stood on the side deck as dozens of people waved at our ship from the shoreline. We saw shacks built into the sides of cliffs, children and dogs milling about as happy creatures, and families huddled around campfires reveling over this larger-than-life boat. It was really a humbling moment, standing there in the breeze, to wonder what they thought about all of this, and what they felt about their own situation. The ship sounded its horn and the vacationers all flailed their arms. At some points when it was narrow enough, people threw items overboard into the shallow waters as tokens of appreciation for the locals allowing us to peak inside their mysterious world.
Back to the States we headed nonetheless, where we disembarked in Ft. Lauderdale. Grandma and Timmy were able to salvage their return flights back to Virginia as Mom and I orchestrated a pit stop in Charlotte, North Carolina since we had to drive the car home, but we left our trip feeling happy and thankful.
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To Do or Not To Do?
I absolutely recommend this trip. Obviously seeing these places for a day at a time does not give any locale the time, energy, and appreciation it truly deserves, but it was an amazing way to get a taste of these cool destinations, nonetheless. Each stop was incredible in its own regard, and I felt especially lucky to experience Cuba, even if only for a day. I'm sure that any one of these stops could be enjoyed for a week-long vacation on their own, but I highly recommend each of the places, whether the diving destinations in Grand Cayman, Dunns River Falls of Jamaica, or the captivating town of Cienfuegos, I think anyone and everyone could enjoy the special magic in the air at each of these Caribbean hot spots.
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