COVER STORY: ISLAND HOPPING

DOLPHINS, DESERTS, RAINFORESTS, WHITE-SAND BEACHES… WHAT’S NOT TO LOVE ABOUT A CARIBBEAN CRUISE? JANE ARCHER RECOUNTS HER HAPPIEST ISLAND MEMORIES, AND EXPLAINS WHY SHE JUST CAN’T STAY AWAY


horsing around in Montego Bay;
Opposite page: soak up the Grand
Cayman sun on a classic Western
Caribbean itinerary There is something very weird about standing in line to ride a horse wearing nothing but a swimming costume, but here I am, waiting with my daughter Ilana to embark on part two of my horse-riding excursion in Jamaica – a bareback ride into the sea.

Part one was an introduction designed to make sure that everyone in the group was comfortable in the saddle. Our trusty steeds ambled to the top of the hill and then ambled back down again. But then we were sent off to get changed.

We are getting more and more excited and just a little nervous as we hear the shrieks from the group that has gone first. Finally, at the mounting platform, we are kitted out with buoyancy aids, clamber on and head to the sea.

I had imagined the horses would go tummy-high in the water. How wrong can you be! They swam, snorting wildly in accompaniment to our shrieks as they tried to keep the sea water out of their noses. And I held on grimly, having been turned into a human cork by that buoyancy aid.

It has to be one of the funniest ship excursions I have ever done; that and the jungle hike in Cozumel a couple of days before, where our guide took us to some Mayan ruins. “They look as though they’ve just been put there,” Ilana whispered.

We had arrived at Cozumel on Royal Caribbean International’s Freedom of the Seas with 4,197 other fun-in-the-sun seekers all keen to see what it was like to cruise on the world’s biggest cruise ship – a title it shares with its two sisters.

Our cruise, which also called at Grand Cayman, where we did the ultra-touristy but fun Stingray City, and Labadee, the cruise line’s private island off Haiti, was a classic seven-night Western Caribbean itinerary. It took in many of the must-do places that Caribbean virgins must tick off – either before or after they have ticked off the classic Eastern ports of call, that is.

A one-week Eastern Caribbean typically means St Maarten, the smallest divided country in the world, with the French one side and the Dutch the other, where the top day out has to be a blast around the island on a Harley-Davidson, and St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands, where sane people shop, but I chose an eco-hike in St John, a tiny island about 45 minutes away by boat.

This was a perfect excursion for me as I had set out on my one-week Caribbean adventure, this time with Princess Cruises, to prove you can stay healthy on a cruise and still enjoy your holiday. It meant I became very friendly with the gym and lunch-time salad bar on Caribbean Princess and walked around Princess’ private island while others lay soaking up the sun, but by the end of the week my clothes still fitted.

Western and Eastern cruises are great Caribbean tasters, but if you have time, a longer cruise is the ultimate way to see the region as ships call at up to 11 islands in two weeks. That’s 11 countries and 11 cultures and you only have to unpack once!

If you’ve never been to the Caribbean, P&O Cruises’ 15-night Paradise Isle on new ship Ventura, sailing from Barbados this winter, is a good way to see all those exotic-sounding places you’ve only ever dreamed about – Antigua, St Lucia, St Maarten, St Kitts and St Vincent.

Princess Cruises has a great choice of long holidays, with two-week voyages leaving from from Barbados, Montego Bay in Jamaica or San Juan in Puerto Rico, an island famous for its rainforests. These offer a good helping of the Caribbean but leave you with plenty of room for more.

These cruises will take you to the spice island of Grenada, the steel-drum capital of Trinidad, the oh-so-British Barbados, upmarket St Lucia, historical Antigua and lesser-known places such as Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, called the Dutch ABC islands, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands and the eco-island of Dominica.

Between them they offer deserts and dolphins, rainforests, beaches, time to chill, a chance to get active, basically whatever floats your boat.

Back on Freedom, we have arrived at Labadee, our last stop before disembarking in Miami, and it’s dad’s turn for a treat – a Waverunner ride around the island.

He had been concerned about blowing almost £50 on just one hour of pleasure, but was raving about it when he got back (quite a bit after the stipulated 60 minutes, I noticed). “The guide and I left the others way behind,” he smirked as we tucked into the delicious BBQ lunch the crew had cooked up ashore.

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT?


There’s plenty of space between
sun loungers on St Kitts ALREADY SENT POSTCARDS HOME FROM ALL THE BEST-LOVED CARIBBEAN ISLANDS? CHECK OUT THESE LESSER-KNOWN BUT JUST-AS-GORGEOUS HOTSPOTS:

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

The second-biggest island in the Caribbean has several ports so you can tick off one and return another time for somewhere new. La Romana, in the south-east, has golf, Samana on the east coast, is famous for its rainforest and whale-watching between January and March, while Santa Domingo boasts crumbling colonial grandeur. Royal Caribbean International and Thomson Cruises are both sailing seven-night cruises from the Dominican Republic for the first time this winter, Royal Caribbean from Santa Domingo; Thomson Destiny from La Romana. Princess Cruises calls at La Romana and Samana and visit Santa Domingo for the first time in winter 2009/10. Royal Caribbean has cruise calls at Casa da Campo, for La Romana, and Samana. Norwegian Cruise Line calls at Samana.

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS (BVI)

To really impress the neighbours, how about Jost Van Dyke, a Robinson Crusoe-style island just four miles by three in the BVI, with fewer than 200 inhabitants and pristine white-sand beaches. There’s not much to do other than swim, eat and sail but isn’t that what getting away from it all is all about? Yachts of Seabourn, Windstar and Star Clippers all come here.

TURKS AND CAICOS

Grand Turk has found its way onto the cruise market since opening a cruise centre, allowing big cruise lines to dock and bring nearly as many passengers as there are inhabitants to this island, just seven miles long by one-and-a-half miles wide. You can walk around it in a day, go snorkelling, kayaking, or ride a dune buggy. Princess Cruises, Carnival and Holland America Line are regular visitors, with occasional calls from Yachts of Seabourn.

TOBAGO CAYS

Mayreau is about as remote as it gets, a tiny spit of land that measures just oneand-a-half square miles and doesn’t even have electricity, although it does have four pubs and restaurants. Relax on the beach, hike around the island, swim or just enjoy a tot or two of rum. Windstar and Star Clippers bring their sailing ships here; casual cruise line Ocean Village also visits.

ST KITTS

Sunbathe on the beach, ride the narrow-gauge railway, visit the Brimstone Hill Fortress, go horse riding, take an ATV tour through the rainforest. Carnival, Princess Cruises and Ocean Village are regular visitors; Thomson Cruises will visit on its inaugural Caribbean season this winter.

Jane Archer writes a regular cruising column for The Telegraph

BEST CARIBBEAN DEALS

CARIBBEAN GEMS

THOMSON DESTINY, 4 JAN 09, SEVEN NIGHTS Dominican Republic, St Georges, Roseau, St Johns, St Maarten, Tortola, return to Dominican Republic OUR PRICE FROM £945

MANGOES AND MONKEYS

OCEAN VILLAGE, 13 JAN 09, SEVEN NIGHTS Barbados, St Kitts, St Maarten, Guadeloupe, St Lucia, Dominica, returning to Barbados OUR PRICE FROM £995

CLASSIC CARIBBEAN

ISLAND CRUISES’ ISLAND STAR, 4 DEC 08, 15 NIGHTS Barbados, Aruba, Montego Bay, Grand Cayman, Isla Catalina, Tortola, St Maarten, St Kitts, St Lucia, returning to Barbados OUR PRICE FROM £1,119

CARIBBEAN ESCAPE

PRINCESS CRUISES’ SEA PRINCESS, 14 MARCH 09, 15 NIGHTS Montego Bay, Curacao, Bonaire, Isla Margarita, Granada, Trinidad, Barbados, St Lucia, Antigua, St Kitts, Tortola, Samana, return to Montego Bay OUR PRICE FROM £1,345

CARIBBEAN PANORAMAS

NCL’S NORWEGIAN JEWEL, 19 FEB 09, 16 NIGHTS Miami, Samana, Tortola, St Johns, Bridgetown, St Kitts, Miami, George Town, Cozumel, return to Miami OUR PRICE FROM £1,649

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