What do you get when you put 5 15 year old girls, 5 moms, and 1700 teenagers on a Royal Caribbean Spring Break cruise???? POOPED MOMS!!!
I had the wonderful experience of escorting my daughter, Wallis, and some of her closest friends to Cozumel and Belize on a recent Royal Caribbean cruise. The Navigator of the Seas departed Ft. Lauderdale on April 6 – full to capacity- with families seeking sun and fun on the high seas. And our girls found just what they were looking for…..wonderful stories, new friendships, Facebook boyfriends, and a general “whoop it up good time”!
Thank goodness for balcony staterooms that provided our only calm respite from the storm of Spring Break madness. Cocktails were delightful, being shared by myself and the other 4 moms wanting a break from sensory overload found throughout this large floating vessel. We would retire to our staterooms prior to dinner to relax, unwind, and plot our strategy for outwitting 5 15 year-olds determined to “lose” us whenever possible.
The ship was actually quite nice (all 1,500 rooms of it) and if someone was bored, it was their own fault. From the twice daily shows (including an ice show that was better than I have seen on land), the basketball/volleyball/dodge ball competitions, teen nightclubs, huge casino, putt putt, ice skating, video arcade, fitness center, and rock climbing wall, I certainly needed the spa to recoup. 
The food (buffets) was plentiful and average….Ahhhhh, but the drinks were superb! Margaritas to pina coladas (all in those lovely souvenier glasses) tasted quite nice sitting by a crowded pool listening to reggae and steel drum music. The highlight was the DISCO night complete with RCCL’s own Village People – what a fun performance and even our daughters participated in the action! Karaoke night was magical that evening as the Delta Dawn Disco Divas (my group) took the stage and WOW’d the crowd to a standing ovation….They had also experienced those lovely pool drinks all day!
A trip to Senor Frogs in Cozumel gave us all a peek into the not so distant future of our 15 year old girls as college spring break is only 4 short years away…..UGGH! The snorkeling at Chakaunab State Park is unbelievable – right off the beach you can see incredible species of fish (take some of the bread off the ship) and watch them nibble your fingers… 
Our other shore excursion in Belize was wonderful, and made me want to spend more time on travel in Central and South America. We took a 1 hour van ride from the port up into the rain forest at Jaguar Paw and hitched ourselves to zip lines (with the help of some of the cutest young Central American fellows) and flew from tree to tree – a truly exhilarating experience! After our flights landed, we were whisked off to the caves for a tubing adventure in the underground rivers. We were handed an inner tube, helmet w/head light, and a quick orientation about the caves, bats, and other “creatures” that might be living there. Oh boy, I can’t wait…..I didn’t even ask if Belize had any water snakes in their country – sometimes I like to be uninformed! We hopped into our tubes and into the 68 degree water and began our float – trying desperately to stay in contact with our fearless leader/guide. At times the caves were completely dark except for the lights from our little headlamps – which was probably a good thing…..Only once, did I feel anything moving under me in the water (but I quickly kicked that smartie pants teenager in the leg, so situation averted)! This truly was a fun experience and something I can now cross off my list of things to do….
Lunch back at Jaguar Paw in a jungle setting complete with monkey, lemurs, and parrots made us aware we were not in Atlanta anymore!Cost of RCCL cruise = $1,000 per person
Cocktails & Soft drinks 300 per person
Mother/Daughter Bonding Experience = Priceless!!!!!
To contact Debbie, click here. To learn more about cruising, spring break travel, or travel to Central and South America, visit our website by clicking here.
0 comments:
Post a Comment