Happy Sunday everyone. If you’re in Australia, I hope you’re all feeling fresh as our clocks went back last night and we had that extra hour sleep ☺️.
The sunsets I want to show you this week are from the Coral Sea when we travelled on a South Pacific cruise. This was a Christmas cruise and our very first time holidaying on one. It was magnificent and the sunsets we seen were unreal. We also really appreciated the clean open air as Australia was in the middle of a really horrific bush fire season and the air was so smokey that it was difficult to breathe for a few days and nights. This was December 2019. It was bad enough we were experiencing the fires but little did we know that the coronavirus pandemic was just around the corner.
Have you seen many sunsets from the middle of the ocean? It really is something spectacular and this holiday will be forever etched in my memory.
Hey guys and gals and welcome to 2020. This is my 3rd year of blogging about travel and lifestyle and what better way to start the year than with a cruise blog. I really want to share with you all my 1st time experience of a cruise holiday that we just completed there last month and show you all why it is the most perfect holiday. A cruise holiday is something I have always wanted to try but was always slightly unsure and skeptical of. Hopefully I can eliminate any of the doubts that you yourself may also have and maybe consider a cruise in the future (if you haven’t already done so). We chose the Royal Caribbean: Voyager of the Seas. It has an amazing reputation, was within our budget, was travelling over Christmas (the time period that we wanted) and it was sailing to the South Pacific!!!! The islands that the cruise would be stopping at were on our bucket list. We were very fortunate that we could hop on the cruise at Circular Quay, just down the road from where we live.
1 – Not too pricey
By today’s standards, a cruise holiday can be super afforable. I used to think you had to be rich to travel by cruise ship but thankfully there are many different options that cater to everyones budget. Tip – if you enjoy a beverage, take out the drinks package, you won’t regret it. It’s so nice not to worry about money when you are onboard and it’s really reasonably priced.
2 – Amazing food
People often worry about the food. Will you have enough to eat? Will you be tired of eating at the same places every night? I can honestly say the food was fantastic. You can either eat in the restaurant with table service for your 3 main meals or you can head to the buffet style cantina. You can mix and match these, breakfast at the buffet and dinner in the restaurant. We loved both but definitely preferred the restaurant for dinner. The menu was extensive and was changed daily so you were always able to try something different. There are of course other restaurants on board but you would pay extra for those.
3 – You are NEVER bored!
There is never a dull moment on board when travelling at sea. The entertainment staff do an amazing job at creating fun things for everyone to partake in. You can choose to attend as many things as you want or you can choose not to and lay by the pool. The entertainments staff are crazily good at what they do and how they entertain you. There are quizzes all the time, karaoke, the hugely popular bingo and there’s even an ice rink, complete with an ice show spectecular.
Cocktails by the pool. We were there on school holidays, so lots of kids. Fortunately they do have an adults only pool too.
There is a theatre onboard. They have different shows: comedy nights, musicals, game shows etc and there are 2 sittings. A great way to spend a couple of hours in the evening.
The staff will leave you an itinerary every evening for the next days activities. The ship also provides an app for your phone that gives you every activity as it’s happening, the perfect way to plan your day and night.
Napkin folding classes – surprisingly fun and popular.
The promenade of the ship was home to many activities. You can shop here in the many boutique shops and there is a cool wee traditional style pub. You can grab a coffee along here and there are always snacks on the go for that in between meals period. Perfect if you need a slice of pizza after a night out! From the bridge the entertainments crew will provide entertainment aslo including the very popular zumba. Music is also played here on certain nights if you fancy a dance, it feels like you’re at a really cool street party!!
Christmas carols in the promenade.
One of our many strolls around the ship.
Ocean views at the gym.
Representing my gym onboard.
Drinks with a view.
4 – Day trips
We stopped at 4 different islands within Vanauatu and New Caledonia. All 4 of them were stunning. I loved the fact that I was able to brush up on my French language as this is widely spoken here, especially in New Cal and it really goes a long way when you make the effort to speak it.
Noumea
Mystery Island
Maré
Lifou
5 – People you meet
Perfect holiday with my partner in crime.
Beautiful people.
Such a pleasure meeting the big man.
Great memories with even greater people.
6 – The Staff
The stunning cruise director! Loved Michelle, amazing at what she does.
Loved these guys, amazing staff.
Big love for Wilbert.
Our housekeepers were fab! They knew how to make us laugh.
7 – The bars
The Viking – perfect viewing spot.
Views (nice to see the pool being cleaned).
Drinks were unreal at The Tavern.
Our new fave, brandy and baileys.
Our most favourite bar – Schooner Bar.
8 – Sunsets
These were just stunning.
9 – An easy holiday
Everything about this holiday was seamless. Boarding the ship was extremely easy and we were in our room within half an hour.
Ready for sail away from Sydney, took no time at all to board, see our room, get a drink and head to the party!
Hopping on and off the cruise to the islands was very straightforward and quick. The tender boats would take you over to the islands when the cruise couldn’t get closer for docking.
There’s plenty of quiet spots around the cruise if you want some down time.
I LOVED that you could always get hold of a cup of tea after a night out, perfect before bed. Your room is only a small walk away from any of the bars, making it super easy to get home.
10 – The atmosphere/ambiance
We really wanted that Christmas vibe and boy did we get it. This cruise was super Christmassy.
We loved that you could dress casually but also have the opportunity to dress smart on occasion.
Such a chilled out vibe, being in the middle of the ocean is really special.
Christmas vibes.
To conclude, that is my 10 reasons you may want to consider a cruise holiday. As it was my first cruise, I don’t have much experience. However, we found Royal Caribbean to be amazing in every way possible and would absolutelyholiday with them again in the future.
WrookieSchU 