We just got home from a week long cruise on Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas.
We did sushi making classes
And saw beautiful ocean-side sunsets
And visited a private island.
And saw beautiful beaches!
And after being on vacation, I got exactly ZERO "checkmarks" (a new state, country, continent or something in the 1000 places book). I thought for sure I'd get Compass Point in Nassau since Nassau was one of our stops, but alas, we never made it there.
If I'm honest, it kind of kills me to travel anywhere and not get a checkmark. It especially pains me to vacation for an entire week and not get a checkmark. So, I thought it would be fun to muse on my past cruising life. I've cruised several times and decided to sit down and reminisce and list the cruises I've been on.... what boat, where, when, etc. I found I couldn't remember all the details which made me even more want to record what I do remember.
I realized I've been on a total of 12 cruises and have done 6 cruise lines. I've repeated some destinations (like the Caribbean), but every time I've cruised, I've had at least one port of call that I've never been to.
1. 1998: Royal Caribbean. Baja (I went with two college girlfriends, Marcie and Stephanie Disbrow as a graduation present to ourselves. It was dirt cheap and we had a blast!)
2. 2000: Celebrity. Alaska. I went with my former college roommate, Stephanie Porter. We were the only people under the age of 60 on the boat. We were in our early 20's at the time. We asked where all the young people were and the response: "In the caribbean!" But we made friends with he staff and loved the scenery and had so much fun! Stephanie and I are still close friends to this day.
3. 2001 or 2002 (I can't remember?): Norwegian. Caribbean. I went with my Las Vegas roommates, Beverly and Shelley.
4. 2003: Princess. Mexican Riviera. I went with my friend Emily. It was shortly after I moved to Southern California from Las Vegas. We went swimming with dolphins (which was awesome!) and I bought a Lladro on board.
5. 2003 or 2004 (not sure which?): Carnival. Caribbean. Emily came on this one as well along with her friend Heather and my Huntington Beach friend and roommate, Lisa Mueller.
6. 2006: Norwegian (Pride of America). Hawaii. My first cruise with Dave! My sister Lindsay and her husband Kevin came as well. It was a great itinerary going to all the major islands and we all loved it.
7. 2007: Royal Caribbean. Bermuda. Lacey's first cruise! I went with Dave, Lacey and Dave's parents.
8. 2009: Royal Caribbean. Caribbean. I went with my friend Mindy Lee for one of our "Womancations."
9. 2012: Disney (Dream). Caribbean. Entire Strom family (17 of us including Ella in my 7 month pregnant belly!)
10. 2017: Royal Caribbean (Jewel of the Seas). Southern Caribbean (R/T from Puerto Rico). Dave and I went with my cousin Seth and his wife Cari. It was Seth and Cari's first cruise and the LOVED it. We all loved it! We all agreed that this particular cruise, itinerary, company, etc was one of our all time favorite trips!
11. 2018: Disney (Magic). NYC to Puerto Rico (Transition cruise). Dave and I brought all four kids and both sets of our parents came along as well, so there were 10 of us in total. The BEST entertainment of any cruise we've ever been on, hands down.
12. 2019-2020 (a New Years cruise so it covered both years! ;)): Royal Caribbean (Grandeur of the Seas). Caribbean (R/T from Baltimore). We went with the entire Strom clan of 17 again, but this time it was 7 years later and Ella was outside my tummy this time and could look around a bit more :)
EDIT: 13. I'm adding to this post because I just got home from my 13th cruise! Dec. 26, 2021 - Jan 2, 2022. Royal Caribbean (Explorer of the Seas) Caribbean (R/T from Puerto Rico visiting the ABC islands of Bonaire, Curacao and Aruba as well as St. Maarten). We went with the entire Strom clan of 15 people (since last cruise Heidi and Jack have divorced, so Jack and his son Tyler didn't come).
Edit:
14.) Jan. 25 - July 2, 2023 Royal Caribbean (Brilliance of the Seas). Alaskan cruise R/T from Vancouver with stops in Sitka, Juneau and Ketchikan. It also took us through the Tracy Arm Fjord and to see Sawyer Glacier and Hubbard Glacier. Went with 38 people from my side of the family. In addition to the six of us, my parents were there, my mom's sister Joellen and her husband Gil, my dad's brother Jim and his two adult sons Jackson and Tom, my sister Lindsay and her husband Kevin and their two adult kids, my sister Maret and her husband Peter and their three boys, my brother Ryan and his wife Carrie and their three kids, my brother Ricky and his wife Heather and their three kids and my cousin Seth, his wife Cari and their four kids. What a blast!
Currently (as of July 2023)
Royal Caribbean has 28 ships
- Adventure of the Seas
- Allure of the Seas
- Anthem of the Seas
- Brilliance of the Seas
- Enchantment of the Seas
- Explorer of the Seas
- Freedom of the Seas
- Grandeur of the Seas
- Harmony of the Seas
- Icon of the Seas
- Independence of the Seas
- Jewel of the Seas
- Liberty of the Seas
- Mariner of the Seas
- Navigator of the Seas
- Oasis of the Seas
- Odyssey of the Seas
- Ovation of the Seas
- Quantum of the Seas
- Radiance of the Seas
- Rhapsody of the Seas
- Serenade of the Seas
- Spectrum of the Seas
- Symphony of the Seas
- Utopia of the Seas
- Vision of the Seas
- Voyager of the Seas
- Wonder of the Seas
Disney has 4
Princess has 18
Carnival has 27 (this is the most of any cruise line in the world)
Norwegian has 17
Celebrity has 14
