08 | February | 2026 | Where shall we go to next?

Daily Archives: February 8, 2026

St Lucia and the Feeding Frenzy

Posted on February 8, 2026 by julieallen36

Well, before we get to St Lucia, we need to talk about the Silent Disco. This is a thing that’s been on my bucket list and finally we got to give it a go. So we were in the Squid and Anchor bar with about 50 other people and we all had our headsets on. This was a competitive Silent Disco with two channels to choose from Red or Blue. I think it was meant to be something like UK vs The Rest of the World. Who knows but it was far from silent as we all sang along to the epic tunes on our chosen channel with the two DJs encouraging each team to be louder than the other! We had a great time with Shami and Jo singing loudly and dancing the night away. It was hard to know whether the swaying was a result of the ship moving or something else but at least Jo said it wasn’t just me.

I had a good nights sleep again but we had to be up at 6-30am and by the time we went to breakfast we’d already docked in Castries, St Lucia. Our trip today was a 6 hours trip on a catamaran to Pigeon Island and then the famous Pitons. This would be another big bucket list tick for me. There was a bit of phaffing about whilst they got us organised and then we just walked a short distance along the dock to our beautiful, huge catamaran called Carnival of the Seas. On board there was plenty of space for the 50 or so people taking the trip and we wisely chose to sit in the shade. The crew were introduced by Samantha the tour guide and they were all lovely and friendly and helpful all day.

We set sail along the west coast of the island upto Pigeon Island National Landmark. St Lucia did not disappoint with its lush tropical vegetation, mountainous backdrop and beautiful blue waters. Pigeon Island is a fortified rocky outcrop right at the top of the island. It’s famous for being the site of the battle between the French and the British who swapped the control of the island 14 times between the mid 1600s and early 1800s. There is a lovely park where the St Lucia Jazz Festival takes place and there are a couple of gorgeous sandy coves with turquoise waters.

But this morning we fancied a hike so we made our way to the fortifications at the top of Pigeon Island. It was a steep and hot climb but the 360 degree views were well worth the effort. There was no time for a swim as when we got back it was time to get back on board.

Now we turned round and sailed south again and as we did they announced that it was time for lunch. It was only 11am but as soon as they put a big bowl of salad on the table, the whole boatful of starving wretches jumped up and formed a disorderly queue. It was like some sort of feeding frenzy and Jane and I watched agog as the queue went twice round the boat and out onto the sunbathing nets . How come these people were so keen to eat? Was it because:

A) it was at least 2 hours since they’d eaten their full English breakfasts?

B) they’d read on Trip Advisor that the Cajun Chicken legs were likely to run out

C) they were all very keen snorkellers who wanted to fully digest their food before our next swim stop?

Who knows but eventually the crew got everyone organised and fed the starving masses. Jane and I meanwhile sat patiently and waited for the queue to shrink. Lunch was in fact very good and Jane particularly enjoyed her Bob Marley Fish!! Or was it Mahi Mahi that the lady said?!

After lunch we sailed a bit further and pulled into another tropical sandy cove where we could snorkel. It was called the Bay of Pigs but not THE Bay of Pigs. It seemed appropriate after the lunchtime feeding frenzy. Jane obviously did not partake in this activity after her recent history but I gave it a little go. It was a-bit crowded but I saw some nice coral on the huge boulders and a few fish. We only had about 30mins but it just wasn’t the same without Jane and her wonderment at the underwater world.

Now we’d finished snorkelling it was time for Ruby to serve the rum punch as we sailed along until we got the classic side by side view of the Pitons. These are ancient Volcanic plugs and truly impressive. We didn’t really get as close as I would have liked but I managed to do a little sketch.

On our way back we took a little detour into Marigot Bay. This was an absolutely stunning inlet with deep emerald green waters, white sand coves with colourful saily boats and skinny palm trees. Wow…now here’s a place we could return to!

We sailed back to Castries listening to gentle reggae music and drinking a few more rum punches! What a superb day it had been and it was only 3-30pm with the rest of the evening yet to come….

Categories: Uncategorized | Tags: Caribbean, Cruise, Saint Lucia | 2 Comments

Loitering around in Grenada

Posted on February 8, 2026 by julieallen36

At some point during the evening I am pleased to report that our suitcases did get delivered to our room. This meant that we could properly make ourselves at home including fixing our specially purchased magnetic hooks to the wall. This was a great tip from my lovely friend Sarah who had done this trip in the past. Unfortunately I’d purchased super strong magnets which meant that basically once they’d stuck to each other they’re virtually impossible to separate. However, they’re now doing a great job of holding up my hat and dressing gown.

Anyway…once we’d unpacked we had a reasonable nights sleep before waking up with the alarm at 6-30am. This may seem a little early (it is) but the trips ashore all start at about 8-30 to 9 so in order to be ready this is what’s required. We had breakfast back in the Islands Restaurant and then made our way off the ship and along the pier. Here we were greeted by the steel band and lots of people waiting for our various trips. Today we’d selected the Grenada Heritage tour. This involved us getting on a small traditional bus with wooden seats and open sides. We had a lovely lady tour guide who gave us interesting information about the island as we drove along. We started in St George’s weaving our way slowly through the narrow and steep streets. It was really colourful especially as the next day was Independence Day. In 1974 Grenada became independent from the UK and today they celebrate by covering everything, including themselves, in the islands colours of red, green and yellow. There were lots of interesting little stores with amazing colourful signs and it was very busy.

Once we left the town we wound our way up the mountainside through lush vegetation and colourful houses. There were plenty of roosters and a few goats to be seen along the way. At the top we made it to Fort Frederick which had 360 degree views back down to the port and our ship and over to the rainforest behind us. Our guide explained a little about the politics of the island. Basically after independence some friends from Aruba came over and decided they’d run the country. But they fell out and ended up having a bloody massacre in 1983 which then led to Ronald Reagan sending US troops in to stop the chaos. I couldn’t quite follow what happened next but by all accounts it didn’t go terribly well and our guide said that to this day, whilst it’s peaceful, lots of people are still afraid to talk about what happened. I’d thought it strange that, as we arrived at the fort, there was a lady with a rifle hanging casually over her shoulder. She didn’t seem to be wearing a uniform but it seemed a bit heavy handed for a parking attendant.

Next we continued our drive through the countryside. Stopping every now and then to look at a particular tree or other. Breadfruit, mango, avocado, nutmeg, cocoa and Akee. We passed the locals favourite beach which had beautiful milky turquoise waters and we stopped in a lovely park overlooking this where we got ripped off for $10 US for a couple of ice creams. But they were very welcome in the heat and mine was a particularly pleasing blue colour and Cotton Candy flavour.

Next stop was Grand Anse Beach. This is a spectacular stretch of beach with beautiful warm water and soft white sand. We sat in the shade of the palm and sea-grape trees drinking a Carib Beer. Stunning. We chatted to our new friends Shami and Jo who are sisters from Birmingham and the hour soon disappeared but it was lovely.

After this we joined the total gridlock on the way back to the port. We boarded the ship and spent the afternoon on the pool deck. I’m not a fan…it’s too busy and too noisy but at least we got sun beds (there are plenty) and discovered the indoor pool in the Glass House. This is a lovely cool and refreshing pool and very quiet. Hurrah.

Jane was intrigued by the fact that even this area had a restaurant offering. There is food on offer EVERYWHERE it’s really quite incredible.

In the evening it was the ‘Dress to Impress’ night so we did get all dressed up and gathered in the Atrium to watch the Captain introduce his crew leads. We met up with Jo and Shami and had dinner in the formal main dining area. We had a lovely evening getting to know them and as they are now our new best friends, we finished the evening off by going to the Silent Disco….but that’s another story….