Royal Caribbean's 274-night world cruise is selling so well that it will delay when it puts individual segments on sale.

Originally, Royal Caribbean planned to put shorter portions of the world cruise on sale so guests could join for part of the sailing.

However, Royal Caribbean told travel agents during a webinar that it would push that date back because of how popular the world cruise is currently.

In October, Royal Caribbean announced a new 274-night Ultimate World Cruise on Serenade of the Seas.

Brittany Briggs, Director of Revenue Strategy, Operations & Service, said those segments would now go on sale in February instead of December, "We did mention we are potentially going to open up these expeditions in December.

"But because the full world cruise has been performing so exceptionally well and we want you to continue to sell that to your clients, we have pushed the opening of the expedition to February of 2022."

Royal Caribbean wants to give guests more time to book the full sailing, "We do want to ensure that everybody that wants to stay on the world cruise has all of the availability to choose from."

From the beginning of when Royal Caribbean announced the world cruise, bookings were strong.

Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley told investors at the end of October that within the first few days, 70% of the of rooms were reserved.

"Within seven days we were 70 percent booked and the average price of a balcony room is $75000 for the balcony. The Royal Suite sold within a week at $760000, and all of these suites have booked with non-refundable deposit."

Mr. Bayley admitted they were surprised how well it sold, "Even we were taken aback by the unbelievable response of our royalty customers. The fact that within a week we were 70 percent booked on a ship that carries around 2,100 guests and is on a nine month world cruise was just remarkable, and I think that's indicative of what we're we're seeing."

This is the first ever world cruise for Royal Caribbean International, and it will visit more than 150 destinations in 65 countries and 11 great wonders of the world.

Serenade of the Seas will sail roundtrip from Miami on Dec. 10, 2023 and through Sept. 10, 2024.

Royal Caribbean has released its Alaska cruises for 2023 season.

The cruise line will send four cruise ships to Alaska in 2023, matching the amount of ships it had scheduled for the region prior to the truncated 2021 season.

The new sailings are posted on Royal Caribbean's website.

New Alaska 2022 cruises are available to book between April and September 2022.

Compared to the 2022 lineup, the only change is Enchantment of the Seas will replace Serenade of the Seas.

Enchantment of the Seas will sail from Vancouver and offer 7-night cruises, including some multi-glacier cruises that visit Hubbard Glacier in addition to Dawes Glacier.

Ovation of the Seas will return to Alaska in 2023, offering 7- and 8-night Alaska glacier cruises from Seattle.

Likewise, Quantum of the Seas will sail to Alaska and offer 7-night cruises from Seattle.

Both Quantum Class ships will visit scenic cities and towns along the Northwest coastline, including Victoria, British Columbia; Sitka, Skagway, Ketchikan and Juneau, Alaska.

Rounding out the foursome of ships is Radiance of the Seas, which will sail from Vancouver and offer  7-10 night Alaska cruises that can also combine with Land Tours to offer immersive visits to Alaska, including in-land destinations such as Denali. 

Sailing alternating, open-jaw itineraries between Vancouver and Seward.

Be sure to consult the Royal Caribbean website or your travel professional for further assistance with itinerary options and booking.

More about Alaska cruises

• What is the best time to cruise to Alaska?
• What Is an Alaska Inside Passage Cruise?
• What to pack for a cruise to Alaska?
• Top 10 tips for planning your Alaska cruise
• 6 mistakes & 3 things we did right on our Royal Caribbean cruise to Alaska

Celebrity Cruises announced on Tuesday it will require children 5 years and older to be fully vaccinated in order to go on their cruise ships.

In an update to travel agents, Celebrity Cruises Senior Vice President of Sales and Trade Support & Service Dondra Ritzenthaler announced the policy change that affects guests between the age of 5 and 12.

Effective February 1, 2022 all guests 5 years of age and older must be fully vaccinated, at that time unvaccinated children between the ages of two and four years old will be required to bring a negative Antigen or PCR test conducted within three days of boarding. 

Previously, children between the ages of two and eleven years old were required to bring a negative Antigen or PCR test conducted within three days of boarding.

There has been no change to the Royal Caribbean International vaccination policy.

"The COVID-19 global pandemic has not only changed the way we all do business, it has altered operating protocols and safety expectations in almost every aspect of the travel industry," Ms. Ritzenthaler explained in an email.

"Since the beginning of this crisis, Celebrity Cruises has kept one goal tantamount above all others: to offer the safest cruise vacation options in the industry. That's why we enlisted a panel of experts to advise up on adjusting our already exemplary health and safety protocols to new industry-leading standards. That's why we continually update our protocols to ensure we are staying ahead of global situations. It's all in an effort of leadership in safety, ensuring our guests and your clients will enjoy their bucket list vacation with zero worries. With these enhanced protocols, we've transported hundreds of thousands of guests across the globe safely."

Celebrity joins Disney Cruise Line in requiring kids to be vaccinated in order to cruise.

Starting on January 13, 2022 guests on Disney Cruise Line between the ages of 5-11 must be fully vaccinated to be eligible to cruise.

Celebrity was already requiring 95% of its passengers be fully vaccinated in order to sail, which is a step beyond what Royal Caribbean required.

Royal Caribbean did not require that many passengers to be vaccinated so that it could allow families to cruise with them.

In April 2021, the CDC gave cruise lines two choices: skip test cruises if 98% of crew and 95% of passengers are fully vaccinated, or conduct simulated sailings first.

Royal Caribbean decided to go with the simulated sailings because of its commitment to families.

Earlier this summer, Royal Caribbean International's senior vice president of Hotel Operations, Mark Tamis, said the decision to allow families to cruise was an easy one, "Once there were two clear paths, 95% or under 95%, it wasn’t even really a consideration."

According to Tamis, more than 1 million children sail on Royal Caribbean ships each year, "We're the largest family cruise brand in the world, so it was pretty obvious that we would just go down this path."

Will Royal Caribbean change their vaccine requirements?

No change has been announced by sister company Royal Caribbean International regarding their vaccine policy for kids.

As of right now, Royal Caribbean only requires guests age 12 and older must present proof of COVID-19 vaccination, with the final dose of their vaccine administered at least 14 days before sailing. Kids age 5 to 11 who have been vaccinated may present proof of full vaccination and follow the protocols for vaccinated guests.

Guests under age 12 who are not vaccinated will complete additional COVID-19 testing requirements depending on the length and departure port of their sailing.

Two weeks ago, Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley was asked about a policy change during a question and answer session.

"if and when we do make the changes, we need to give everybody time. So when we announce we give people obviously plenty of time."

"What we do know is that for 12 to 17, where we we do say that everybody has to be vaccinated, still in the United States, only 48 percent of 12 to 17 year olds have been vaccinated."

"From 5 to 12, everything that we've learned and seen statistically is only currently thirty five percent of parents are going to get there five to 12 year old vaccinated, currently. We think that's going to change. So we want to move to five and up. We're just kind of looking at the data and we'll probably continue to look at the data for a little bit longer before we make the decision."

"We're watching it and as soon as we think we've got a sensible way forward, we'll obviously down everybody, you know, we'll give everybody time as well."

UPDATE: Royal Caribbean's Senior Vice President, Sales, Trade Support and Service, Vicki Freed, said on December 1 there is no update to Royal Caribbean's policy.

During a webinar, she reiterated that no change in policy has been made, "At this time, we have not made any decisions on the vaccine requirements for children 5 to 11."

"We are still just in a wait and see, we're evaluating it....no decision has been made."

Specialty dining is a popular option for cruise passengers who want to indulge in different cuisines, and Royal Caribbean offers a one-meal sampler package where you can try the best of many different restaurants.

Known as the Taste of Royal, it gives guests the chance to have various dishes from different Royal Caribbean specialty restaurants, even if those restaurants are not on the ship they are sailing aboard.

Whether the appeal is for someone to get a sampling of what specialty restaurants are all about, or to pick and choose an "all star selection" of the top rated foods, Taste of Royal sounds like an intriguing option.

I decided to sample Taste of Royal myself while sailing aboard Odyssey of the Seas. The meal was held in Wonderland.

What is Taste of Royal?

Royal Caribbean has quite a few specialty restaurants across its fleet of ships, and each is known for certain dishes. Over the years, each restaurant develops a reputation for a must-try dish or two.  So it looks like Royal Caribbean wanted to offer guests one meal that hits all of those high notes.

Taste of Royal is a fixed-price meal that consists of four courses.  Unlike a specialty restaurant where your meal begins when you arrive, Taste of Royal is more like the main dining room, where everyone that books the lunch shows up at the same time, and each course is served at the same time for everyone.  Not to worry, you are not seated with others.

When I sampled Taste of Royal on Odyssey of the Seas, it cost $34.99 per person.

There is also an optional add-on where you can tie in a wine flight for $19.99 per person. There is a 25% discount on the wine flight if you have a drink package.

Taste of Royal is not included in any dining packages.

Taste of Royal menu

The menu is fixed, which means if a course or two are not something you would order, there is not much leeway in terms of changing things.  They can modify dishes if you are allergic or prefer not to a certain part of it, but you are limited to the printed menu.

Speaking of the menu, it draws on a few different restaurants, including Hooked, Wonderland, Chops Grille, and 150 Central Park.

When I dined there, the menu consisted of:

Signature Cocktail from Hooked

Saint Peter's Spritzer
St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur. Aperol, fresh lemon juice, topped with prosecco 

First Course from Wonderland

Citrus Seas Tuna Tartare
Fresh spicy tuna, wasabi tobiko, yuzu mayonnaise, phyllo Parmesan crackers 

Second Course from Giovanni's Table

Mascarpone Cheese Risotto with Crab Meat
Carnaroli rice, crab meat, lemon, mascarpone, peas, aged Parmesan 

Third Course from Chops Grille

Filet Mignon and Spicy Jumbo Shrimp
Grilled asparagus, mashed potatoes, red pepper flakes, creamy garlic butter 

Fourth Course from 150 Central Park

Fried Cheesecake
Nutella, whipped cream, caramelized popcorn 

Is it worth it?

I think the appeal of Taste of Royal is two fold: getting to sample the best dishes from across different specialty restaurants if you are either brand new to specialty dining, or an aficionado that really enjoys the courses on the menu.

Royal Caribbean picked the most popular courses from across its restaurants, and delivers on the promise of a special meal that gives you the "best of" these selections.

If there is a course or two that you do not care for, the appeal of Taste of Royal could be diminished since it's a fixed menu offering. Picky eaters will almost certainly look elsewhere for lunch.

In terms of value, it is cheaper than most specialty restaurants to dine at, and you get to sample various dishes rather than just a single cuisine. For someone who will not buy a dining package, but wants to get some of the best options, this could be quite compelling.

I enjoyed my meal, and appreciated it for what it was: a quick lunch where I got to enjoy food from some of the top specialty restaurants on any Royal Caribbean ship. If the menu looks good to you, you're in store for a satisfying lunch.

Despite all of the changes over the years, the main dining room on any cruise ship is still an institution of the cruise experience.

While the experience may not nearly be as formal as it once was, there are still plenty of faux pas' to avoid while dining there, and every guest should be aware of what they should or should not do while eating there.

Etiquette at the main dining room on a cruise ship is not all that different from a land-based restaurant, but there are a few nuances that first time cruisers may be unaware of before they step aboard.

Here is my list of 7 main dining room guidelines you should know, as well as one well-known supposed rule that I think you can disregard.

Dress appropriately

Dress codes do exist for the main dining room, although they are far less regimented as you might think.

While Royal Caribbean is fairly ambiguous on if shorts are allowed, there are some basics related to the dress codes that are usually enforced.

Each evening, the dining room will have a dress code.  Usually it is either casual or formal.  On some longer sailings, they can work in smart casual, which I admit I have trouble distinguishing from regular casual.

First and foremost, respect the fact there are dress codes and as a courtesy to your fellow guests, observe the spirit of the dress code.

On casual nights, a collared shirt and slacks/jeans for men will suffice. Ladies can wear jeans and a blouse, dress, skirt, or pretty much anything else you might wear to somewhere that is not the beach or pool.

When it's formal night, you want to step it up just a little bit.  While there will be some people wearing tuxedos and ball gowns, most guests wear something a little nicer than the other nights. Jackets and ties for men are optional. 

The major things to avoid are swim wear, tank tops, or bare feet.

Be on time

If you are seated in traditional dining with an early or late seating, be on time for dinner.

The traditional dining rotations are prepared for guests to be on time and enjoy the same courses at roughly the same time so that the restaurant can turn over the tables for the next seating.

Not only does it delay ordering for others at your table if you're sharing one, but it also forces your waiters to rush you through your meal in order to get you in and out within the allotted timeframe.

If you booked My Time Dining, showing up at the wrong time from your reservation may mean you may not have a seat.

Avoid controversial topics with tablemates

If you are seated with other guests, you should feel free to strike up a conversation, but avoid the "third rail" of discussion: religion and politics.

Everyone has different viewpoints, and the last thing you want to do is get into a heated debate with people you don't know just to pass the time.

Instead, talk about what you did onboard that day, plans for the next day, the weather, favorite sport teams, and pretty much anything else that steers clear of an issue that could lead to yelling, anger, and awkward silences.

Be considerate to waiters

This may seem obvious, but don't be rude to the wait staff.

Besides the general courtesy of learning to pronounce your waiter's name, keep in mind mistakes can happen. A forgotten drink, a missed ingredient, or even the wrong dish can happen. Waiters work long hours and have likely been serving other guests throughout the day.

If there is bigger issue that is not so easily overlooked, first try to take the issue politely up with the waiter. If that doesn't work, then ask to speak to the head waiter so they can address it.

The bottom line is you are far more likely to get any issue resolved while being polite, rather than being rude.

Be mindful of general table manners

Good table manners are appropriate for all dining occasions, not just cruise ships.

Not only do good table manners reflect positively on you, it shows respect to your waiters and the people you dine with.

• Don't eat with your hands
• When ordering, it’s more gracious to say, “May I please have the…” rather than “Give me the…”
• Don't talk with your mouth full
• Don't twirl your napkin 

Take the after-dinner talk elsewhere

This is something I think some may not think about, but the main dining room is on a schedule.  After you've had dessert, coffee, and anything else you ordered, you should work on moving away from the table so the wait staff can clear the table and prepare it for the next guests.

The easy clue to that dinner is over is after dessert when your waiter comes by to give you a rundown of what to expect the next day.

If you have a request for more food or drink, you should absolutely feel free to do so.  Just try not to linger while many other guests have already left the dining room. 

Going back to the idea of being courteous to the wait staff, they need to clear the table for the next meal.

Don't be wasteful

And that one rule you can feel free to break? It's okay to try foods if you have no intention of finishing it, just don't abuse the food you can order.

Nearly all the food in the main dining room is included with your cruise fare, and that means you can order more than one appetizer, entree, or dessert. However, that is not carte blanche for wasting food.

Food waste is about being responsible. So it's okay to order two different dishes, but don't order something you know you won't actually eat.

If you are too full for dessert, or just want to nibble on an appetizer, it's okay to say you want to skip a particular course.

However, I do think once in a while it is perfectly fine to order something with the intention of trying it out. I think sampling new foods on a cruise ship is a great way to expand your palate, so tell your waiter you want to order a dish to give it a go. In that scenario, taking a bite and then leaving the rest is fine. You just want to avoid leaving a lot of food on your plates because you ordered too much for a more foolish reason.

The last day of our cruise brings us to Perfect Day at CocoCay. 

Ideally, I prefer to have my last day onboard be a sea day, but I will never complain about spending time at CocoCay because of how much fun it is spending time there.

While this may have been my fourth time visiting CocoCay in two weeks, the weather last week was far from perfect, so today looked to be a way to end on a high note.

We did not arrive to CocoCay until almost 10am, which meant there would be a rush among guests to get off the ship at the same time. Moreover, we were sharing the island with Independence of the Seas.

What does two ships mean? There are 4100 passengers on Harmony and 3000 passengers on Independence, so while far from a full capacity day (CocoCay can handle 9-12,000 guests), it certainly would be busier than earlier this summer.

We started off with breakfast at Park Cafe, partially because I neglected to put a breakfast order in with my Genie the night before. I certainly don't mind a bagel and schmear to start my day.

By the time we finished eating, the gangway was open and we were on our way downstairs. 

Walking down the pier, it certainly looked like a great day. Not oppressively hot and low humidity meant a comfortable outdoor experience.

We had nothing reserved, so grabbed a chair near Oasis Lagoon and then hopped into the pool.  The pool was indeed very cold. We all braved the temperature and shivered a bit before getting used to it. 

Later in the afternoon, the sun came out more and that helped make being in the water a bit warmer.

The kids went to Splashaway Bay for some kiddy slide time. While not the CocoCay water park by any means, it got some energy out for the kids.

For lunch, I had to go to Snack Shack for my favorite complimentary food: mozzarella sticks and the "secret sandwich".

To my surprise, the line for Snack Shack was really long and moved slowly. I'm not sure if they were just overwhelmed with a lunch rush, or something else, but it was the longest line I've ever experienced there. Regardless, they got the line moving and I had my food soon enough.

The afternoon was spent at the pool, and it was an opportunity to hang out with friends from the group cruise one more time.

All aboard was 4:30, so we headed back to the ship in mid-afternoon. 

Since it was a 7-night cruise, unvaccinated kids needs to get a covid test done prior to disembarkation. Our genie escorted us in and got the tests complete quickly.

Back in the room, we showered, changed, and snuck in a quick nap.

Chips and dips from Sabor were waiting for us in the room, which was a nice pre-dinner snack.

We were not sure which restaurant to go to for dinner, but decided on going back to 150 Central Park.

I was glad we went back, because their entrees are really good. I really liked combining the halibut with cauliflower to combine flavor and texture.

After dinner, we said our goodbyes to friends in the pub before calling it a night.

Overall, it was a fantastic group cruise and it felt so good to see friends and make new ones along the way. After two other cancelled group cruises, this was an especially important sailing that I am glad happened without any incident.

If you'd like to join us for a group cruise in 2022, we have two more scheduled.

Thanks for reading this live blog. Our next live blog begins in a month when we fly to California to sail on Navigator of the Seas!

It appears Royal Caribbean is going to increase the size of the name on the side of it's newest cruise ship.

While docked in Marseilles, France, Wonder of the Seas is getting some painting done on her hull to increase the size of her name.

When the ship departed the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard, Wonder of the Seas' name was painted like nearly all ships have in the fleet. Now, it appears Wonder's name will move to a large size that is similar to Odyssey of the Seas' name.

The Ready for Cruise Facebook page noticed the change in a video posted by Instagram user victoriabalabaeva, where the outline for the new name can be easily seen.

The new name is positioned lower on the hull compared to other Oasis Class ships so that the larger size letters can fit better.

In the case of Odyssey of the Seas, the "O" alone measures 11.2 meters (36 feet) in height.

When Wonder of the Seas debuts next year, she will become the new largest cruise ship in the world.

The inaugural sailing of Wonder of the Seas is scheduled for March 2022, when Wonder of the Seas departs from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

She will then transition to the Mediterranean, beginning May 2022.

Our last sea day on Harmony of the Seas isn't our last day onboard, but it does give us a nice break after two port stops in a row.

While part of my wishes I could have spent the day sleeping in and lounging, there was plenty of fun in store.

I started off my morning with breakfast in the main dining room, where I ran into two crew members that were on Adventure of the Seas earlier this summer.  It was great to see these two again, and both on the same ship again.

Just like yesterday, the ship was still rocking quite a bit due to the ocean swells. The crew even deployed the vomit bags in stairwells.

Luckily, the motion would calm as the day progressed.

After breakfast, I grabbed Starbucks coffee and went to Dazzles for our first group meet of the day: a Royal Caribbean Blog podcast recording.

In this episode that will air next week, we listed our favorite things we really like on Harmony of the Seas.

After the recording was complete, I went back to my suite to enjoy lunch arranged by my genie.

The other day I was talking about favorite foods with him, and he heard that I really like Indian food, so he sent up a few different types of curry to sample.

Since the weather was so comfortable out, we had lunch on the balcony and it was a wonderful break.

After lunch was over, we spent some time in the cabin before our genie's next wish was granted.

Bertie had the idea to have an ice cream sundae cart brought to the room. I think my kids thought it would be two or three flavors of ice cream, but there were a half dozen flavors and just about every topping they could want.

Little things like this are a fun part of what makes staying in a Star Class suite so much fun.

While my kids burned off all that ice cream energy, I went back to Dazzles for another group cruise meetup to play the card game Moniker.

Moniker is a game where two teams compete in a cross between charades and Scattegories, where you take turns trying to describe people or things listed on the card. 

As afternoon turned into evening, we spent a little bit of time on the Boardwalk before getting changed for dinner.

Dinner tonight was back in Izumi for another round of hibachi.

We had the same chef as earlier this week, and it was another tasty meal.

We rounded out our evening with music before calling it a night.

Tomorrow is our last day on Harmony, and we will be visiting Perfect Day at CocoCay.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Our next stop is St. Thomas, where we get to enjoy a port day along with celebrating Thanksgiving.

I had booked a snorkel and beach excursion to take us to St. John. The last time I tried to get to St. John, I failed when I could not get a taxi.  This time, I booked a tour through Royal Caribbean so there would be no problems.

I was a little surprised when I noticed our meet time for the tour was 6:45am, which as you might imagine is very, very early.

Everyone met in the Royal Theater before heading off the ship to board a bus. 

The bus ride took about a half hour to get us to the marina on the east side of the island, where our catamaran was waiting.

We boarded the Stars and Stripes catamaran, where Captain Matt (great name, but not me) and First Mate Paul took us out.

Almost as soon as the boat departed the marina, it began to rain. While the rain was unwelcome, luckily it only rained for the duration of the trip out to St. John.

After about a half hour, we reached Honeymoon Beach on St. John. Almost immediately the rain stopped, which allowed us to enjoy time outside and in the water. In fact, the weather continuously improved as the morning went on.

Guests had the choice of snorkeling around or taking a dinghy to shore. My oldest went snorkeling while we went to the beach. 

In terms of snorkeling, there was an area between the beach and our catamaran where there was sea grass that was home to many types of marine life, including sea turtles.

Over on the beach, you could sit on the sand as you saw fit. There was a vendor renting chairs, but I did not inquire how much they were.

According to Captain Matt, we had 90 minutes of time once we arrived in St. John to be in or around the water.

What I love about St. John is the beautiful water colors and clarity, and today did not disappoint. While it would have looked better if the sun was shining, the clouds kept the temperatures comfortable and it felt great just wading in ocean.

All too quickly, our time came to an end and we took the dinghy back to the catamaran for our ride back.

On the return journey, complimentary snacks, drinks, champagne, and rum punch was served.

The tour was fun, and my kids really liked the beach time.  In fact, my oldest now wants to snorkel again as soon as possible. 

I wish we had more time at St. John, but that's a problem to consider for my next visit.

Upon returning to the ship, we grabbed lunch at the Windjammer.

By now the early morning wake up and beach time caught up with all of us, and it was time for a nap.

Our ship departed Harmony of the Seas around 3, but I was still sleeping when that happened. I woke up to a beautiful ride out of St. Thomas.

Almost as soon as we departed, the motion in the ocean returned.  In fact, all night the ship was rocking quite a bit.  The notion that Oasis Class ships don't really feel motion has been quickly dispensed.

Being Thanksgiving, we got changed for dinner to enjoy a family meal together. Rather than feeding the kids first and then dropping them off at Adventure Ocean, we opted to have a family Thanksgiving dinner together.

You may be wondering what Thanksgiving on a cruise ship is like, and there were all sorts of special add-ons. There were decorations around the ship, arts and crafts activities, and a special Thanksgiving menu.

Our group enjoyed a celebratory drink together at Dazzles, before heading to dinner.

This evening, we went to Coastal Kitchen for dinner. In addition to their regular menu, they also had Thanksgiving offerings.

This was my first time eating at Coastal Kitchen for dinner. It's a lovely location on deck 17, although I prefer the Coastal Kitchen set up on Quantum Class ships because it does not share a space with the Suite Lounge.

After dinner, I went down to the pub for live music.  A good time was had by all.

Tomorrow is a sea day.

Our first port stop is in St. Kitts.

Originally, we were supposed to go to Antigua, but Royal Caribbean informed us that work on dredging the port will not be complete in time. As a result, Royal Caribbean swapped out Antigua for St. Kitts.

Our tour was not until 11:45am, so we had time to sleep in and take things easy.

I would have slept in longer, but my phone jumped ahead an hour to match local time, so my alarm went off an hour early. Oh well.

Our Genie delivered Starbucks coffee to the room, and then after the kids managed to get up, we went up to the Windjammer for breakfast.

We then took a short walk around the Boardwalk before heading back to the room to get ready for our plans ashore.

I booked the Safari Island Drive tour, which is a 3 hour tour in an open-air truck around the entire island. 

Once the tour got underway, we drove up one side of the island, and made three stops along the way.

Our guide narrated the entire journey and pointed out various points of interest. There were lots of goats, chickens, cows, and horses to see, in addition to beautiful flora and very scenic views.

Our first stop was at an estate where we got to walk the grounds and do some light shopping.

We then made our way to the point where the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea meet.

There was even time to grab a beer at a shop.

Our final stop was near Frigate Bay, where you got a fantastic view of St. Kitts and Nevis.

I enjoyed the ride, and it was just long enough to see the countryside without feeling too long. Luckily there was a nice breeze for most of the ride, which made it comfortable. I'm not sure how comfortable it would be in July, but our weather was great.

Once we got back to the pier, we got onboard the ship to relax and recuperate before our evening plans.

Our Genie had chips, salsa, and guacamole from Sabor waiting for us in the cabin when we got back.  Since we didn't eat lunch during the tour (only water was provided), it was a welcome surprise.

After relaxing in the cabin, we headed out for dinner.

This evening, we went to 150 Central Park for dinner. 

As usual, the assortment of modern American fare did not disappoint. Between the various dishes, it had a sort of Thanksgiving feel to it all, with the mashed potatoes, pumpkin bisque, and various vegetables.

We decided to call it an early night because we have to wake up super early for our excursion tomorrow in St. Thomas.