red cacao pods on a tree

Ancestral Cacao Plantation & Chocolate Making Workshop

At our port stop in Acajutla, El Salvador on Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam we booked an excursion called Ancestral Cacao Plantation & Chocolate Making Workshop. The excursion information from the cruise line differed a bit from the actual tour.

colorful cacao pods

Cruise Ship Description of the Tour

TOP 3 REASONS TO BOOK

A guided tour through a cacao plantation

An extensive chocolate-tasting session

A hands-on chocolate-making workshop

ABOUT THE EXCURSION

Don’t miss this delicious experience that explores the history of cacao in Central America.

Before the Conquistadors arrived, indigenous cacao plantations sprawled far and wide across the Salvadorean territory. As the indigenous population decreased, along with the production of cacao, the Spaniards migrated the cacao plantations closer to the cities of Sonsonate and Izalco. Join a local expert to learn about the history of cacao with a guided tour through a plantation.

Stroll through botanical plantations among a variety of cacao trees, absorbing the techniques of turning raw cacao seeds into the finished product. Enjoy and appreciate an extensive chocolate-tasting session. You will also get acquainted with the process of drying, roasting and grinding the cacao.

There’s nothing more fun than a hands-on chocolate-making workshop, so make the most of a chance to create your very own chocolate bar. The legacy of El Salvador’s Mayan ancestors comes to life as you enjoy the aromas and tactile aspects of producing beautiful melt-in-the-mouth chocolate. It’s about the differences between cacao types, the trees, the process and, finally, all about your hand-crafted, totally unique chocolate bar. Was it delicious?

Notes:

Wear comfortable, closed-toe (mandatory) walking shoes. Shade is limited; to avoid sunburn, wear light, long clothing suitable for use as a cover-up. Bring a hat and sunglasses; wear biodegradable sunscreen. Bring bottled water.

walking from the bus to the plantation house

The Actual Excursion

It seemed that either something was lost in translation or someone in marketing who wrote that blurb really had no clue what this excursion involved. Some of the people at the plantation spoke little English and even the one they called their translator had problems with some words. They were all learning about running tours as well as working on their English as they were new to providing tours at the plantation. They were not new to running a plantation though as it has been in the family who currently owns it for over 100 years and cacao trees have been farmed at that plantation for 3000 years since the time of the Mayans.

plantation house

Our tour started with a bus ride of less than an hour. Upon arrival at the plantation we all got out of the bus and walked up a rocky, uneven road to a building that was the original plantation house, but not where the current owners live. That walkway and pretty much all of the walking areas of this tour are not suitable for wheelchairs, walkers, or anyone who has difficulties walking on uneven ground. That was not made clear in the excursion description and there was one gentleman in a wheelchair. He was at least able to walk on and off the bus and for short distances, but his wife was saying that the excursion should have been listed as not accessible for wheelchairs as they did have difficulty maneuvering it around. They also were not able to walk through the forest of trees, but the excursion description did mention walking through a plantation so there was some warning there.

presentation at the beginning of the tour

Everyone sat on a porch area of the old house for a photo presentation on the history of the area and of the plantation. The plantation owner sometimes spoke in English, but most of the presentation was first done in Spanish with the translator then repeating it in English. He mentioned that there had once been a lot more cacao trees growing in that area, but that volcanic eruptions had destroyed a lot of them. He said it was the newest volcano in the area having rapidly developed sometime during the 1700’s. It is called Izalco and it erupted nearly constantly from 1770 until 1958, earning it the nickname Lighthouse of the Pacific. This particular plantation was not affected by the eruptions, but some neighboring ones were destroyed. The volcano is currently in a quiet state not having erupted since 1966, but it is still considered an active volcano and sometimes emits steam and gasses.

The owner said that his son had married an Italian woman and built a chocolate factory in Europe, which is where they send the majority of their cacao beans because they do not have a factory on the plantation. Which left people to wonder about the bit in the excursion blurb about making our own unique chocolate bars. Something I had previously done in Nassau at a place that made chocolate, but imported the raw cacao beans which are not grown in the Bahamas.

green cacao pods

After the presentation we followed the owner out into the plantation where we were shown several varieties of cacao trees. Some had red pods and others green. The flowers are reminiscent of poinsettias because like poinsettia flowers they look pretty much like colored leaves. Mingled with the cacao trees there were some tall shade trees and some of the trees of which they harvest the bark for cinnamon as well as vanilla orchid plants snaking their way around some trees.

cacao flower

Previously that plantation had just grown cacao, but they are diversifying now because with the warming climate they can’t always count on a good harvest so now they have some other products to fall back on. The shade trees are new as well. They were not necessary in the past, but are now since it is otherwise sometimes too warm for the cacao trees. It was quite warm while we were there and it was fairly early spring.

nursery trees

The plantation owner said it takes about a year for cacao trees from their tree nursery to grow large enough to plant out in the plantation, and about 7 years before they can harvest from those trees. Whatever variety of cacao tree they want is grafted onto a sturdier root stock while the plant is still within the nursery stages. They have to replace the trees because they don’t stay productive forever. They did not say exactly how long on this tour. The chocolate factory in Nassau said only a few years, but google says a cacao tree stays productive enough to be commercially viable for about 25 years, though it can live much longer (100-200 years or maybe even more).

cannonball tree

Other trees on the plantation included some fruit trees and something called a cannonball tree among others. The cannonball tree had lovely orange flowers and gets its name from the fruit it makes which is about the size and shape of a cannonball. It is not something that people eat, but some of the wildlife like it.

cacao beans drying

A short hike to a different area brought us to a building where they had cacao beans roasting and giant poles of bamboo curing. Later we went to a bamboo forest.

pond covered in lily pads

We passed two lily ponds and a coy pond along the way, which were all part of a natural spring system.

bamboo

The type of bamboo growing there was not the sort that spreads uncontrollably. They said they had started planting the bamboo 25 years ago and it has always stayed within the area where it belongs. When individual plants get big enough they cut them down to use for various construction projects on the plantation. Though bamboo looks like trees it is actually a type of grass.

open cacao pod

At the drying building they opened a cacao pod and let people who wanted to pull off one of the white sticky beans to lick off the sweet gooey stuff on the outside of it. They also had some whole pods there that people were allowed to try to crack open to put the seeds into a big bowl. They have to be scooped out by hand to get just the seeds and not the membrane from between them that holds them together even after half of the seed pod is removed. The next step for those beans is a trip into the roaster.

Linda cracks open a cacao pod

Not everyone could see the roaster at once so people took turns walking up the stairs to the area where they could look down to see it. In front of the roasting building in a small spot of shade where some, but not all of the people on the excursion could get out of the hot sun people were allowed to try cracking open a cacao pod and scooping out the beans if they wanted to.

bamboo shed for roasting demonstration

The final stage of the tour went back to a new addition made from bamboo grown on the plantation at the back of the original house. This building was behind the one where we started and was the only place other than the talk at the beginning that the guy in the wheelchair made it to. There was not enough seating built-in for the entire group so some people stayed standing and others sat in the proffered plastic chairs. Our tour was 5 people short of the limit since there were 5 that didn’t show up on time even though the tour did not leave the staging area onboard the ship early.

Since that area was crowded and not everyone could see the beans in the roaster at the same time the tour probably should have been limited to a bit smaller group size rather than the maximum amount that a full-sized tour bus holds. It was a popular tour having sold out the original time as well as a second one that was added later in the day. We were on the first tour, but started out on a wait-list for booking it long before the cruise began. The option to book actually came available while I was on another ship and the online booking would only say it was waitlisted rather than actually letting me book the spot that had come available so it was a good thing that the shore excursion people on the Oosterdam were able to take care of it as the window of opportunity would have expired by the time I got home where I could have called them.

roasting cacao beans

For the demonstration they started with a small amount of raw cacao beans prepared in the traditional manner of their ancestors. First a girl from the plantation roasted them in a big metal pan sitting on a grate over a fire. Most of what she said was in Spanish with the translator then repeating the English version, though she did know some words in English. Everything in that shed was done the ancient Mayan way with the sorts of tools that they used other than they had mentioned them not having metal so they wouldn’t have had that pan. The seeds had to be stirred some so they wouldn’t sit in one place and burn. They were ready when they started making noises like popcorn popping.

shelling cacao beans

Various people from the tour had turns removing the shells from individual beans. They had bowls to put shells in and most of the beans went into the first grinding bowl, though people were allowed to taste a shelled bean if they wanted to. They were crunchy and had a taste of bitter chocolate that was almost more prevalent as an aftertaste.

cacao beans and grinding tool

The shelled beans in the stone bowl were then ground to a paste using first a mortar and pestle type grind in that stone bowl, then moved to a little stone table sort of thing with a stone tool something like a rolling pin, but without any handles or moving parts. It’s not easy grinding those beans. It takes a lot of what the old timers would have called elbow grease – in other words a lot of pressure from the person using the grinding tools because the tool doesn’t grind it on its own.

grinding cacao beans

Next the paste went into a clay pot where it was blended with hot water using another ancient style tool. Then it was ready to serve in little clay cups like what the ancient people would have used. They made a point of saying the drink was cacao, not chocolate because the chocolate making process includes adding sugar. They did have some sugar available in case people wanted to sweeten their drink, but I did not see anyone use it.

clay cups

After everyone had their drink it was nearly time to go, but there was a little table of merchandise people could buy set up on a side porch of the old house. Besides some little jars of cacao beans they had jars of vanilla and some snacks made of what appeared to be two rice cakes with chocolate in between, which were pretty good. There might have been some other things too, but there were too many people crowded around the table to see.

Although this excursion was not exactly what the description said it would be, it was still a nice excursion. They just needed to replace the part about extensive chocolate tasting and making a chocolate bar in a chocolate workshop with making a cacao drink the old Mayan way and having a small taste of it.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

view from the summit of Diamond Head

Before our transpacific cruise on Carnival Luminosa I looked into hiking the crater in Diamond Head for the port stop in Honolulu. Information online said that either the #2 or #13 bus would go from the cruise port to Diamond Head in 20-30 minutes and drop off at the park entrance. Boy were they wrong. Neither of those bus routes went to the cruise port. We had to take a different bus and transfer in Waikiki. The driver of the first bus we were on only said to take 2, which pulled up right on the heels of 13 at the stop where we were waiting after leaving the first bus. It took at least an hour to get from the port to Diamond Head between the two bus rides and time spent waiting at the stop between busses. The park’s bus stop is by the road that goes into the park, not in the parking lot or at the gate where you check in. It’s about a half mile walk uphill and through a tunnel from the bus stop to the toll booth and trailhead area.

Hibiscus bus comes to the parking lot, but it doesn’t go to the cruise port

Meanwhile while we were walking up the hill one of the Waikiki trolleys went by and took people all the way up to the trailhead parking area. We also saw a pink one called hibiscus bus that went all the way to the trolley stop. The city bus at the time we went cost $3 for each bus or $1.25 for seniors. City busses went by about every 15 minutes or so. We could have booked the trolley ride back down to Waikiki at the park, but the cost wasn’t worth it. It was $12.50 per person when we were there. When we were done with our hike and ready to go back to the ship there were 3 taxis waiting and we were able to get phone service at the trolley shelter so there was also the option to take Lyft or Uber, which will take people all the way back to the ship. If you want to save money you can also walk back down to the bus stop and get back to the ship that way as well. Taxis, Lyft, or Uber are also available from the port to Diamond Head, though the bus is definitely the cheapest option in either direction. An Uber or Lyft all the way back to the port cost about the same as what it would have cost for two people to take the trolley to Waikiki and from there we would have still needed to get back to the port so we found Lyft or Uber to be the better option.

trail map

You can’t just show up at the park and go in. You have to book the entry online in advance. It’s only $5 per person, or at least that was the price when we went there, plus a bit of fees or tax. It’s a good idea to print out the QR code you get with your booking. I had mine printed and got right in while people trying to bring it up on their phones were having a problem with sketchy phone service and not getting it to come up. Or at least screen shot it so you have that photo if you can’t get it to come up otherwise and didn’t print it out because you won’t get in without it. When booking the entry you choose a one- hour time slot in which you are allowed to enter so it is important to know how long it actually takes to get to the park. We thought we would get there right at the beginning of our time slot or maybe slightly before, but between the two busses and the hike up the hill we only had 10 minutes left before it expired by the time we got to the toll booth.

view of a lighthouse from the top of Diamond Head

The trailhead has snacks and drinks available. There was a food truck selling pizza and a lady selling bottles of water from a table near the restrooms. There are no amenities along the trail or at the top, just at the trailhead. All the lists that say you need comfortable walking shoes, water, sunglasses, and a hat are correct. You also need to wear sunscreen. Something I did not see anyone mention anywhere that would also be useful would be some sort of towel to wipe sweat off your face.

trail

The way up is steep in places, there’s very little shade along the way, and Hawaii tends to be hot. It was mid 80’s F when we went. So the likelihood of your head sweating on the way up is high, especially when wearing a hat which is necessary to keep from sunburning. The trail is 1.3 kilometers (8/10 of a mile) from bottom to top. It starts out relatively smooth and paved. You don’t get too far up before the pavement ends and it becomes very rough and uneven ground, which lasts the rest of the way up except where there are stairways. There are steep parts alternating with flatter parts with an elevation gain of 560 feet in less than a mile.

mongoose

As the trail started uphill just past the paved area we saw a mongoose in the grass alongside the trail. These were introduced into Hawaii in the 1870’s to control rats, but since rats are nocturnal and mongooses are not that did not work out. It was very cute, but they are a non-native invasive species and wreak havoc on ground nesting birds and other native wildlife.

switchback on the trail

The trail up the crater goes in switchbacks back and forth as it works its way up to the top. Going up is somewhat of a workout, but we saw both very young children and people older than us along the way and they made it so it’s doable for people who don’t have mobility issues or other conditions that prevent them from taking a strenuous hike. Coming back down is easy and a whole lot quicker than going up. There are several stairways along the route, some of them quite steep.

the tunnel

Once you get near the top there are a couple of lookout points for photos. A steep stairway leads to a tunnel, which some people don’t like. I’m not sure why they don’t like the tunnel. I thought it brought some very welcome shade since most of the trail is out in the sun. On the other side of the tunnel a sign says loop trail with an extremely steep 99 stairs to the right or a longer trail to the top on the left. It advises going left, though some people took the stairs up and said walking up that stairway was not nearly as bad as it looked.

99 stairs

The trail has a viewpoint and rest stop on the left route just after the tunnel. There’s another viewpoint a little way farther up, and a dead-end bit of trail to another viewpoint beyond that. From that route you still have to take stairs to get to the top. Maybe not as many, but they’re still pretty steep. There’s an old bunker at the top with a trail going round one side and a way up to the very top.

loop trail sign

If you want to take the round trip loop and came from the left side route then go up to the very top before going around the side to see the bunker. There’s several levels at the top, all with good views. There was a line to get to the highest platform where everyone wants to take photos.

bunker

The reason to go to the bunker after seeing the very top is that if you take the loop rather than going back the way you came, that is where to find the way down. Duck down to go inside the bunker and go to the back where there’s a spiral stairway. That spiral stairway leads down to where the very steep 99 stairs come up. Of course if you chose the stairway route up then you would come up the spiral stairs into the bunker before arriving at the top.

circular stairway in the bunker

There are some pretty good views from various points along the trail, some just from the trail itself rather than designated viewpoints, but nice as they are they don’t come close to what you can see after making it all the way up to the bunker.

view from inside the bunker

The views are incredible from the top. You can see out over the water, another leftover fort type structure, a lighthouse, Waikiki, and of course a lot of water.

platform at the top of Diamond Head where everyone waits in line for a photo

Going back down is like a refreshing break after the uphill climb to the top. There were a lot of little plants alongside the beginnings of the trail. A sign you see on the way back down says if you have water leftover the plants would love it if you poured some on them. They all had little flags next to them, which after reading the sign seeing all those little flags waving in a bit of a breeze seemed like each little plant crying out me, me, me in hopes of a bit of water from passing tourists.

view of the trail from the trail

Diamond Head State Monument is a major landmark in Hawaii. Including both the inside and outside of the crater it covers more than 475 acres. A single underwater explosion around 300,000 years ago created the crater with the ash and fine particles it sent into the air falling back down and cementing together into rock called tuff. Most of the park’s birds and vegetation was introduced in the late 1800’s to early 1900’s.

metal stairway near the top of the summit

The trail to the summit was built in 1908 as part of Oahu’s defense system. Reminders of its military history still exist with the old bunker and other structures at the top. The 225-foot lighted tunnel at the top of the steep stairway was built as access to the Fire Control Station completed in 1911 to direct artillery fire from batteries in Waikiki and Fort Ruger outside of the crater. The bunker at the crater was fortified with guns in the 1940’s during WW2.

viewpoint with a winch

One of the lookout points near the top has part of a winch structure left that was used to haul military supplies up to the summit when the bunker up there was in use. The lighthouse on the shore visible from the summit was built in 1917.

view of the trailhead from the trail

Park facilities on the crater floor are fully accessible. Only the first paved third of a kilometer of the hiking trail is accessible. Beyond that is where the pavement ends and the natural tuff surface of the trail begins. As previously mentioned, the unpaved trail surface is quite uneven and full of ruts.

trail

The park’s webpage advises allowing 1.5 to 2 hours for your hike. They also have the advice mentioned by other sites to wear good walking shoes, bring water, and wear a hat and sunscreen. Like the others they also neglect to mention that a sweat rag could be beneficial.

first major stairway on the way up

On the way up we saw a series of signs indicating places where there was something to hear on an audio tour. People can purchase the self-guided audio tour at the gift ship before they start their hike. We did not buy it, but the park’s website says it focuses on the history, culture, geography, plant and animal life, and scenery at Diamond Head.

random people posing at the first official viewpoint on the way up

Visitors to the park exceed 3000 people daily, which explains the need for timed entries and limiting visitors to those who purchased their ticket in advance. There was a steady stream of people going in both directions, but not so many as to have the trail solidly filled with people. There were gaps between groups of hikers and some empty trail space. We were never alone at a viewpoint, but the only one with a long wait for photos was at the very top. There was a shorter wait at the one that still has parts of the old winch system.

other military structure seen from the summit

The name Diamond Head came from 19th century sailors mistaking calcite crystals for diamonds. Its Hawaiian name, Lēʻahi (or Lae-ahi), means “brow of a tuna,” referring to the shape. It was declared a national natural landmark in 1986 and is currently preserved as a Hawaiian state monument.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

map of Norfolk Island

Norfolk Island was a port stop on our cruise on Holland America Noordam that went from San Diego to Sydney. Our ship docked at the Cascade pier on Norfolk Island, which is not close to anything. Though not attached to the Australian continent, Norfolk Island is an external territory of Australia. I had booked a hike through a forest at that port. John originally had a fishing excursion booked there, but it got cancelled. He didn’t want to join me on the hike so he just visited the island on his own. This is his story from that port.

rainbow over the island

In the middle of nowhere approximately 877 miles east of Australia, Norfolk Island emerges from the warm South Pacific waters. Additionally two smaller islands, Phillip and Nepean make up the territory of Norfolk Island. Deep South Pacific waters surround this super remote group of islands. Remote is an understatement there. Very few cruise ships visit each year.

tender at the pier

According to the last census, just 2,188 people live on Norfolk Island full time, but hundreds more visit on vacation. Visitors to the island don’t have cellular service because the system is antiquated and the only cell phones that work there belong to locals. As our cruise ship Noordam pulled up to the island, lush greenery dominated the scene with ocean waves slapping the shoreline.

free shuttle at the tender pier

This port stop was a tender port with local experienced tenders taking guests from the boat to the Cascade Bay dock where free shuttles waited to take passengers on a short drive to town. Once in town, more shuttles waited to either take guests to Kingston Dock or Mount Pitt. Each of the destination shuttles had a nominal fee of less than $20 USD.

prison gate

I choose to go to Kingston Pier first. The ride took a few minutes and delivered everyone to a grassy area near the old buildings now designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

old building

In addition to the Kingston Pier, built in 1839, an old penal colony dominates the area with watch towers strategically placed to keep prisoners from escaping. Norfolk Island’s first residents were Polynesians. Like pretty much everywhere we stopped on this cruise the island was visited by Captain Cook. Many of the residents today can trace their roots to mutineers from Pitcairn Island from the ship Bounty of Mutiny on the Bounty fame.

prison tower

A series of buildings and exhibits create a living museum of historical displays. There’s also a nearby cemetery filled with headstones from local fishermen and whalers who tragically lost their lives.

shark in the water

A walk along the pier reveals lots of sharks and other fish species. Locals enthusiastically cast lines in hopes of catching a fresh dinner. Some locals fish off the end of the pier at night on a quest to catch yellowfin tuna.

a fisherman shows off his catch (not a tuna)

Kingston Pier is located close to deep drop-offs where tuna feed and is one of the only places in the Pacific Ocean where anglers can catch tuna from a dock. The night before my visit a local caught a 50-pound yellowfin and was quite proud of his catch.

giant rocks

After visiting all of the buildings and wandering the dock watching anglers catch fish, I decided to take the shuttle back to town to catch the Mount Pitt Shuttle.

trees and view

The shuttle to Mount Pitt took just minutes – this island is small at just 13.4 square miles. Mount Pitt Lookout has a 360’ view and is the second highest point on Norfolk Island at 1,050 feet.

Norfolk Pines

Norfolk Island National Park surrounds the area with Norfolk pines and green grass in the foreground and the blue/green waters of the South Pacific beyond.

random people trying to get a better view

Visitors often stand on the picnic tables to gain just a couple more feet for their panoramic photos.

people enjoying the view

After spinning in circles enjoying the amazing views, I boarded the shuttle back to town and got dropped off at the edge of town.

locks on a fence

The main street is not very long and has a well-stocked grocery store as well as a variety of other small shops and restaurants. I highly recommend both shuttle destinations if you have time during your stay on the island. Locals are super friendly and willing to share their small island’s treasures. Even on this remote island people put locks a fence along one of the town’s streets.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

balcony cabin A612

Symphony of the Seas has both inside and outside balcony cabins. The outside cabins have a view of the ocean or whatever else happens to be outside of the ship. The inside cabins are on the edges of the open areas of the interior of the ship above central park or the boardwalk and have views of those areas below and the balconies of the cabins on the other side of the ship. The balconies there are more sheltered than the ones on the outside of the ship and are great for anyone who likes people watching.

balcony over Central Park on Wonder of the Seas

We had one over the garden on Wonder of the Seas and liked it quite a lot. That area was quiet at night, though I would imagine the ones above the boardwalk would have a lot more late evening noise – especially on nights when there is a late show at the aqua theater. Interior balcony cabins usually cost less than the exterior ones. Sometimes by a little and sometimes by a lot.

oceanview balcony

We had an ocean view balcony on Symphony of the Seas.

cabin A612

Standard balcony cabins on Symphony of the Seas are generally 182 square feet with a 50 square foot balcony, but they feel more spacious than these numbers indicate that they would. The room had enough open space not to feel cramped and the balcony enough depth for chairs with little footstools.

balcony cabin A112

The cabin that we had could have slept 4 people, but we just had 3. It did not have any drop-down bunks in the ceiling like some cruise ships have, but rather the full-sized couch both made into a bed and had a trundle type bed that could pull out from beneath it for the fourth person. A bunk would have been preferable both for separation of the people if there were a fourth in the room and because that would free up underneath of the couch for storage drawers. Not to mention when the trundle bed is open it takes up all the floor space and you can’t even open the drawers across from it. Some ships have storage drawers in the couches. They are much bigger than any of the other drawers in the room – one of them sometimes holds more than all the other drawers in the room combined. We definitely could have used those on this cruise if we’d had any.

Trundle type bed in the couch on Quantum of the Seas

We had one of those trundle beds on Quantum of the Seas when there were 4 people in the cabin and would definitely have preferred a bunk. It’s not quite a true trundle since it raises up to the same height as the couch turning into a double bed rather than sitting lower.

desk

Storage was a little tight with 3 people. The room had 4 small drawers in one side of a little dresser that also contained the refrigerator and another drawer on the other side. The drawer over the refrigerator had the hair dryer in it. Other storage space consisted of two small closets. One had all hanging space and one had half hanging and half shelves with the safe taking up one of the 6 shelves.

bunnies

Whenever the steward cleaned the room he always turned the temp to as far freezing as it could go regardless of the fact that we turned it over to the heat side every day since the room was always very cold. Sometimes we had to open the balcony door to warm up the room. It was much warmer outside than inside so the outside air warmed the room a lot better than the climate controls did. We pretty much had to turn it all the way over to as far is it went into the hot side to get the air coming from the vents to turn warm instead of cold, but then turn it down some once it actually had warm air so it didn’t get too hot. If the steward would have left it alone it could have just stayed at a comfortable temperature once it got there rather than being a daily battle. We think he was new and not very good at the job. He didn’t remember any names like stewards usually do and made other mistakes like forgetting to return a bag of laundry that was supposed to be next day service until we asked guest services about it after several days passed and found it had been sitting on his cart all that time. Guest services ended up removing the charge for it since it took so long to get it back. The steward did clean the room daily and always left cute towel animals on Hannah’s bed – once a bunny friend for her stuffed bunny.

little magnets

There were 3 outlets over the desk and one above one nightstand. It’s not a lot, but more than found on some ships. It helps to bring a plug with additional outlets to plug into one of those and make a couple more. Most ships don’t allow surge protectors, but if it’s just a plug with a couple extra outlets they never confiscate it.

magnetic hooks

Unless the ship is really old, cruise ships generally have magnetic walls. They are stronger on some ships than others. The doors are magnetic as well, strongly on some ships and fairly weak on others. Both the door and walls were strongly magnetic on the Symphony. Also the wall next to the door outside of the cabin which is handy for hanging things like decorations or duck mailboxes.

duck mailboxes

The bathroom had a small round shower with no clothesline. This is the only ship I have been on that did not have a clothesline that pulls across the shower. Even if people never wash any laundry in the cabin there’s always a need for somewhere to hang wet swimsuits. Cruise ships always have pools and hot tubs. Symphony also has waterslides and flowriders so there’s definitely a need to hang wet swimsuits somewhere. I usually bring some extra laundry line that can be either tied to whatever structure the shower has or hung on magnets if its magnetic, which they sometimes are.

shower

There was only combo shampoo/body wash in the shower, no conditioner. Bring your own products if you want separate shampoo and any sort of conditioner. There was also no liquid hand soap, just a bar of soap for the sink. No hand lotion either.

bathroom sink

One useful thing the bathroom did have was a low-level light that came on whenever it was dark so nobody had to turn on a bright light if they got up to use the restroom during the night, or if they were the first one up while others were still sleeping. That was so much better than the seriously annoying motion lights a lot of ships have outside of the bathroom.

towel bear

Overall the room was spacious enough and comfortable for 3 people.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

Enchanted Princess in Antigua

Antigua is an independent country as part Antigua and Barbuda, which also includes a tiny uninhabited island called Redonda. This small island country is part of the British Commonwealth, like Canada and Australia. Antigua is the largest of the three islands with an inactive volcano called Mount Obama rising 1319 feet (about 400 meters) above the sea. Antigua has secluded bays and coral reefs and is called the land of 365 beaches for a beach for each day of the year, though I was unable to confirm if there are actually that many beaches. While many sites say there are, lists of the named beaches don’t even reach anywhere near half that. However many there are, beaches in Antigua are generally public. In contrast to mountainous Antigua, Barbuda is a flat coral island with a large lagoon.

snorkel trail sign at Pigeon Point Beach

At the port in Antigua there are lots of people offering taxi tours or taxi rides to various beaches. On our first port stop in Antigua on our Enchanted Princess cruise we made a brief stop at Pigeon Point Beach on an island tour. While I would have liked to go to there because that one is supposed to be good for snorkeling, it is 40 minutes away from Saint John’s where the ship docks and we all wanted something closer to the ship. The friends we were traveling with looked up where it would be best go and found Dickenson Beach. We all decided before even going out to get a cab that was where we would go because it is near to the cruise dock so we wouldn’t spend a lot of time or money getting there and back. The city of Saint John’s where the ship docks in Antigua is not the same place as the island of Saint John near Saint Thomas in the US Virgin Islands.

Dickenson Beach

Dickenson Beach was supposed to have swimming and snorkeling, but like most beaches on our Enchanted Princess cruise the water was too murky for snorkeling due to recent storms. At this one it was so murky even my own hand was only visible if it was within about 6 inches of my face. There were waves with pretty powerful breakers and a definite undertow, but they weren’t huge. A few people got bowled over when not being careful to time their entry into the water for when they could pass through between breakers, but if you paid attention to the waves they weren’t that hard to avoid.

beach view looking toward the breakwater

The beach looked like pure sand, but there were actually big rocks lurking just underneath the water near the shoreline in the area where our beach chairs were. They were in maybe a foot or so of water, but could not be seen due to the amount of sand churned up with each wave putting visibility through the water at the shoreline at 0 – you would never know the rocks were there until stepping on one. Or tripping over it or cutting a foot on it. Further down the beach more distant from a little breakwater it was more of a sandy bottom, but even there the sand had dips and hollows so you could go deeper on one step and then shallower the next one farther from shore. Again nothing under the surface could be seen that day.

phone booth at the beach

Our group of 4 people found a taxi that would take us to the beach for $5 each, then come to pick us up for a return to the ship at whatever time we specified again for $5 each. We did not have to pay for the taxi ride until the return trip, ensuring that it would return, which it did right on time. We should have asked the guy if his taxi was right there at the port before going with him though because after following him to where his taxi was supposed to be he called his wife and said she was coming to get us. Only she was stuck in traffic. After yelling at her over the phone a few times because she couldn’t beam her car to where we were Star Trek style he led us to his van, which actually was nearby.

Apparently he wanted to send us off in her smaller car and gather a larger group for the van. We went a short distance, then pulled over at the side of a busy street, crossed through traffic, and switched to her car. Both her and the car were far nicer than him and the van. She was cheerful and friendly. Her car was fairly new and clean while he was all business with us, not so nice on the phone to her, and the van was kind of old and smelly. We would have preferred she pick us up, but he came instead. Definitely would have gotten a bigger tip if it had been her. He didn’t seem to0 happy to have to make that trip in his van for just 4 people and drove like a maniac back to the port.

beach chairs

When we first got there the taxi pulled up and stopped in a little patch of dirt beside the road next to either a giant mud puddle or a small pond with a dirt trail running through it. There was no beach in sight. We wondered what we had gotten ourselves into. The driver said she would lead us to the beach, but then a guy showed up from the beach so we ended up following him instead. There are groups of beach chairs with umbrellas set two by two along the beach. Different ones are tended to by different people so of course we were led to some of his chairs. The going rate was $25 for a pair of chairs with an umbrella, but we paid $20 for each set.

things to do at the beach

The beach is lined with little resorts and hotels, though the area where we were was just beach chairs and a tiny bar. There was a restroom somewhere nearby. The people manning this particular area had a shipping container where they kept beach toys including wave riders that people could rent. A sign above the container listed quite a variety of things available to do on that beach.

floating beach bar

There was a swim-up bar out a ways into the water. It wasn’t open yet when we first got there. I tried snorkeling even though the guy with the chairs said it wasn’t a good day for it due to the visibility. He was right. The visibility was pretty much zero so I didn’t stay out long. On the way in and out of the water I found the big rocks under the water near the shore by stepping on them as nothing was visible. As mentioned previously, out in the water I couldn’t even see my own hand unless it was right in front of my face so if there were any fish in the area I could swim right over them and never know they were there.

putting gas in the waverunner

We rented a couple wave runners, which normally go for $60 each per half hour each, but since we were the first customers of the day for those we got the pair for $100 for the half hour. They roll them into the water by hand on a tiny trailer with big tires to launch them. They got our friends off and going, but ours had to be filled with gas before they could launch it so it took awhile. Once it is out in the water you walk out to it and then get on from the back, driver first. There weren’t any hidden rocks at the shoreline in that area, but the water got deeper then shallower on the short approach to the wave runner. We could go anywhere out in that bay after getting out past the swimming area, but not beyond the bay, out to a little island or near the swim-up bar.

on the waverunner

The wave runners came with required life jackets. Too bad they didn’t come with goggles as well. Goggles would have been extremely useful on that ride as our glasses were soon covered in salt spray and when we went fast so much salty water came pouring behind my glasses into my eyes that I had to keep them closed when going through an area where the wind direction and currents really kicked up the spray. Apparently John could see well enough to drive because he would have had to slow down to reduce the spray if it was hitting him the way it hit me.

view of the beach from the waverunner

We had a lot of fun on our half-hour ride. Sometimes we went fast, but we also went slow for a bit to see what was along the beach beyond where our chairs were. Out at the far end there was a mansion on an eroding point and a little area of beach without anything on it other than some people riding horses. From where we were out pretty far in the bay it looked like the horses actually went far enough out in the water to swim for real. We could only see the heads, which is all that would stick out of the water if they were actually swimming. Beach horseback rides through cruise ship excursions just trot around in the water where maybe your feet get wet and people think they’re swimming, but really the horse’s hooves never leave the ground. We booked a ride through a private stable in Jamaica once where they went out really deep and were definitely swimming. The ones we saw on Antigua were from a private stable at one of the nearby resorts.

After our half-hour on the wave runners ended we came back to shore. There was a boat heading our way and I asked if John was watching out for it. He hadn’t seen the boat so it was a good thing I said something. Probably the first time I ever saw something he didn’t see first. It came from out to sea while he was watching for where the people were in the swimming area since we had to slowly make our way through there back to shore.

view from the beach chair

As soon as we were done there were other people waiting to go so giving the first people a deal to get someone out there really worked for them since it got more people wanting to go for a ride. That probably kept the waverunner rentals going for the rest of the day. Definitely for the rest of the time we were there. We had a fairly early all-aboard time that day so we couldn’t stay too long.

I went for a swim to kind of test the waters to see if I wanted to swim out to the floating bar. After going partway there It looked do-able and there was hardly anybody out there so I went back to get some money before swimming all the way there. I didn’t have any way to keep it dry, but figured a bar out in the sea would take wet money and if I swam all the way out there I’d want to buy a drink.

little beach bar

The guys got some beers from the bar and I was going to swim out to the swim-up bar with the other lady, but she hit one of those unseen rocks under the surface just wrong on the way into the water and cut her foot so we went back to our beach chairs. It was a pretty deep cut so she couldn’t go out in the water again. By the time she was all patched up a little boat had made several trips to the floating bar and brought so many people out there that it was way too crowded to be any fun for me to swim out there then. It looked like pretty much the whole thing was packed with people, standing room only. Just a small area of it over the bar had any shade so I just stayed in my lounger on the beach. The boat went faster than anyone could swim so if we had made it out there it probably would have been too crowded by the time we arrived anyway.

crowded floating bar

Other than the unfortunate foot injury it was a fun day at the beach for all of us. We made it back to the ship with plenty of time to spare. There were a couple other ships in port that day, Aidaperla and a big one from Norwegian.

Our ship left first. Instead of just tooting the horn like they had at all the other port stops they tooted the love boat theme – probably to show off to the other ships. Previously they had only done that when we left port in Fort Lauderdale at the start of the cruise.

Going to the beach on your own definitely saves money over booking a beach day through the ship. On the first half of our back-to-back cruise when there were more people in our group a couple of them did the beach thing through the ship at a different port. They paid $70 each for the excursion and still had to pay another $20 at the beach for chairs. So it cost them $160 for two people just for going to the beach. We paid $40 for round trip taxi, $40 for the 4 chairs, and $100 for two wave runners so a total of $180 for 4 people, but that included the wave riders. The comparable total just for going to the beach would have been $80 for 4 people instead of $160 for two or half the cost for double the people. Not to mention the amount of time spent on the beach was at our choice rather than a scheduled excursion time. None of those prices include tips. We did leave tips, but I did not include them since that is not part of the set cost. Any drinks or tips would have cost them extra too.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

luxury catamaran snorkel boat

The Luxury Catamaran Snorkel excursion from Carnival Radiance in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico met out on the dock between where people disembark the tenders and the shore. There are several stations along the dock with signs for whatever excursions meet in that spot, though if you are too early the sign for your excursion may not be up yet. Instructions said to take the tender an hour prior to the excursion, most likely to insure people actually got on a tender that would get them there on time since they really didn’t want people to line up until just before the excursion. There is a roofed waiting area with benches and a view of the marina on one side of the dock just before the exit to shore where people can wait if they are too early for an excursion. It’s not reserved for excursions only so other people can sit there too if they want. There are a lot of shops, bars, and restaurants all around the shore in the dock area so there’s stuff to do if people want to walk around the port rather than sitting and waiting for their excursions.

whale spouting

When boarding the catamaran they pretty much directed people out to the open stadium style seating on the bow, but it also had a stairway going up to a nicer covered seating area up above. They said it had room for 6 people but only 3 found it. One didn’t stay so it was just me and a guy who was also on that excursion alone. He was on the cruise alone, but I was on the excursion alone because John went fishing on a panga with a friend who happened to be vacationing in Cabo at the same time as our port stop there and I like to look at fish, not catch them. I would not have considered the stadium seating on the bow as a luxury cruise, but the upper area was quite nice.

whale fluke

There was also some seating under shelter at the back of the boat so if more than 6 people wanted the upstairs spot there would be somewhere else to go for anyone wanting some shade. The back area was also the staging area where people put on fins and left the boat at the snorkel stops. It had stairways down to the water and a ladder into the sea on each side of the stern.

people on the bow seating and Land’s End

After leaving the dock the boat first went out to Land’s End to see the famous Cabo arch and other rock formations there. Then we headed toward San Jose del Cabo, but did not go that far. We saw some whales on the way to the first snorkel stop, some more whales from the second stop, and one on the way back that was a real show-off with its fluke (tail) popping up many times with some spouting in between. It would have seemed like more than one whale except that it had a very distinctive tail with a couple of large white spots on it.

fruit snack

On the way to the first snorkel stop they brought everyone a tray with a variety of different fruit on it for a snack. They also had a variety of things to drink. This was the first snorkel excursion I have done that offered alcoholic beverages before the snorkel stops. The others always kept the drinks non-alcoholic until after. They did say 3 drink limit prior to snorkeling, but I waited until after for anything with alcohol in it and just had one then.

coral and sea urchins

The first snorkel stop had a lot of rock formations with several varieties of coral on them. Some had some big sea urchins as well. There were a lot of fish, some big and some small. I was happily snorkeling around by myself looking at all sorts of stuff in very clear water when one of the people running the excursion said I had to go out to where the rest of the group was. The closer I got to the group the harder it was to see anything as the water became less and less clear. In that area the water was clear when staying away from the crowd, but murky when close to everyone else so there must have been some debri that got stirred up if there were too many people disturbing the water.

fish (blue tangs)

Since the people running the excursion didn’t like it when someone got too far away from the guide the key was to stay as far away from the rest of the group as possible while still within the range where they wouldn’t round you up to go back to the group from. There was a lot to see right close to where the boat was, but the guide led people a distance away where there was nothing to see at all with that many people churning the water up into murky clouds. Maybe there was stuff there and maybe there wasn’t.

fish in semi-murky water

It was too murky to see much of anything staying with the group where they had gone and I noticed there were a few people who had stayed a bit closer to the boat then I had been that they didn’t round up and make go with the crowd so I went back toward the boat figuring if they could be there so could I. It wasn’t long before everyone else headed back that way too.

fish and coral

For the most part I did manage to stay far enough away from the rest of them to have clear to fairly clear water, but I would have seen a lot more had they allowed me to stay where I originally was. It was not that much farther from the boat than where the people were that they let stay. It was in the opposite direction of where the crowd went while the other few were more next to the boat, but still easily within sight of it so it really shouldn’t have been a problem to let me stay. The water was probably only as clear as it was because nobody else was there. I mostly just float over stuff without disturbing the water whereas some people kick up a storm the whole time.

fish up very close

The second snorkel stop was near a beach with several other boats already there. The water there was very murky. Fish were visible near the surface when looking down into the water from the back of the boat, but when in the water to snorkel they could only be seen if they were right next to your face so nobody did much snorkeling there. Some did jump off the side of the boat just to swim.

lunch

They served lunch at that stop so most people just stayed on the boat. I tried snorkeling, but didn’t stay out long once I saw how little could be seen. If there was any coral there the water was too murky to see it. I have no idea how deep it was since I could only see what was right next to me which was just water except when some fish came very close.

whale with white spots on its tail

After awhile at that stop the boat headed back, with a bit of a delay to watch the whale with the white spots on its tail until it stopped showing off and disappeared from sight.

not quite sunset

As we approached the ship we were just a bit too early to see the sun set over the arch. There was a bit of color starting to show in the sky, but the sun was still too high to actually set before we were past that area. We had to pass by the ship to get to the tender dock. Cruise ships anchor out in the bay near the arch in Cabo. We had a good view of it from the ship itself on the way in and out, but not from where it anchored.

Carnival Radiance in Cabo

Overall it was a nice excursion. Definitely a nicer boat than the average snorkel boat, though maybe not so much for the majority of the people who sat out in the open in the stadium style seating on the bow where they had no shade. Someone said there were somewhere around 16 people on that excursion. That’s about half what that boat could hold, but it was a pretty good number for it. Enough to keep the excursion from getting cancelled, but not so many as to make the boat feel crowded. The sheltered area up top where I sat was definitely more luxurious seating than the part out on the bow where most of the people were. I would definitely not have felt like the excursion lived up to its name of luxury catamaran if I had sat out there, but the little place up top I shared with that one other guy was definitely more luxurious than the average snorkel boat. Especially with just two people in that space. This was the most expensive of 3 snorkel excursions offered through the ship for this port, but I chose it because one of the other two was in an open boat with no shelter and the reviews on the other all said that the water where it went was very cold. Booking in advance or through the ship is not necessary in Cabo since there are all sorts of people offering pretty much everything on shore, but sometimes it’s nice to plan in advance so you know what you will get, especially when going alone.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

Gutenfels Castle

Rhine River

The Rhine River trickles down from its origins in the Swiss Alps on an 820-mile course through several countries until it empties into the North Sea. The upper Rhine forms the border of Germany with Switzerland and the Alsace region of France. The picturesque middle Rhine is home to forests, vineyards, and castles. The lower Rhine flows into the Netherlands and the Rhine River Delta.

Katz castle above the town of Sankt Goarshausen

Castles on the Middle Rhine

Castles abound on the middle Rhine, interspersed with steep vineyards and picturesque towns. Many of these castles were not the homes of rulers, but rather noblemen who used them to oversee trade and collect tolls from merchant ships passing along the river. The 40-mile stretch of the middle Rhine from Koblenz to Bingen is a UESCO world heritage site. There are more than 28 castles along this stretch of the river.

Lorch

Viking Skirnir spent several hours on a scenic cruise past some of the castles along this stretch of the river ending with a visit to Marksburg Castle, which is now a tourist attraction. There are also many picturesque towns, often dominated by their churches. At the beginning of the scenic cruise the majority of the castles we passed were on the left bank of the river. A short stretch saw castles on both sides, followed by the majority appearing on the right side. This was according to the direction in which our ship was traveling as it headed from Budapest to Amsterdam on a cruise spanning 3 rivers in which the Rhine was the third of the three.

map of castles on the middle Rhine

Maps were provided to any Skirnir passengers who wanted them, which showed the castles we would sail past and at which kilometer marker to look for them. Not all of them were exactly on the marker where the map said to expect them though.

Niederwald Monument

We first passed by Klopp Castle which dates back to the 13th century. The keep to that castle was rebuilt and now houses the administration for the town of Bingen on Rhine. On the other side of the river the Niederwald Monument stands high on the hillside as a memorial to the rebirth of the German Empire following the 1870-1871 Franco-Prussian war. It took 12 years to build from 1871-1883 and symbolizes the unification of Germany.

Ehernfels Castle

Next we passed Ehrenfels Castle on the east bank and the Mouse Tower on an island near the west bank. The mouse tower was a former toll tower and then served as a shipping signal station until 1974. Legend has it that mice ate an archbishop imprisoned there. The name dates back to 1516, though the tower was there long before that. Ehrenfels Castle is a ruin that was rebuilt around 1212 for tolling in conjunction with the mouse tower as well as for defense. It was damaged in the 30-years war that started in 1618 and further destroyed in the 1689 Siege of Mainz.

Rhienstein Castle

Both on the left or west bank and near to each other are Rheinstein and Reichenstein. Rheinstein was built in the 1320’s and is believed to have been a fiefdom of the Archbishops of Mainz. After becoming dilapidated it was rebuilt in the 19th century and currently serves as a museum and has apartments where people can stay.

Reichenstein Castle

Reichenstein is one of the larger castles on the Rhine. It dates back to the 1200’s. Once a ruin, it has been reconstructed and houses a museum and gift shop.

Soomeck Castle

First known mention of Sooneck castle was in 1271 and it was besieged in 1283. A new castle was built on the site in 1346, but fell into disrepair after 1553 when the last of the family living there died out. It and all the other castles on the left bank were destroyed in 1689 by troops of King Loius XIV of France. Vinyards were planted on the grounds in 1774 and it was rebuilt as a hunting lodge between 1834 and 1861, but never allowed to be used as such due to disagreements among royals and revolutions in Germany. It now belongs to the state ministry of castles. There are tours available there.

Nollig Castle

Heimburg and Nollig are across the river from each other. Heimburg is privately owned and not open to the public. It was rebuilt in neo-gothic style in the 19th century after being ruined along with others on that bank in 1689, Nollig was a fortification for the city of Lorch rather than an actual castle and is just ruins.

Stahleck Castle

Stahleck is a 12th century fortified castle. It was destroyed along with the rest on that bank, but rebuilt in the 20th century and now houses a youth hostel.

Pfalzgrafenstein Castle with Gutenfels Castle in the background

On the other side of the river Pflazgrafenstein sits on Falkenau island otherwise known as Pfalz Island in front of Gutenfels which is about halfway up a hill. Pflazgrafenstein was a toll castle and is one of the more picturesque because of its closeness to ship traffic and its bright colors. Gutenfels was built in 1220, destroyed by Napolean in 1806 and rebuilt in the Victorian era. It is now open as a hotel.

train tunnels through a rock

The town of Kaub sits near Pflazgrafenstein and Gutenfels. Not far from there we saw train tunnels going through a rocky cliff on the side of the river. The tunnel entrance resembles a castle.

Schonburg Castle

Schönburg Castle was built in the 900’s and used for collecting tolls from river traffic. It was burned by the French in 1689 when they destroyed all of the castles on that side of the river. It sat in ruins for 20o years. The castle was restored in the 19th century and now houses a hotel and restaurant. It looms over the town of Oberwesel.

Loreli rock on the Rhine River

The next notable place on the riverside we passed by was according to the sign in front of it the Loreley. Everything online says Lorelei, which is the only way we heard it pronounced, but the sign had a y at the end instead of an i. It’s not a castle, but rather a rocky prominence looming over the river. Other than the sign in front it just looks like another rocky hillside. The story varies a bit from one source to another, but all involve a maiden who either fell from or threw herself off of the rock either in despair of a faithless lover or because she thought she saw him in the Rhine. Either way she dies and becomes a siren luring those who sail past to their destruction with her hauntingly beautiful song.

Katz Castle

Katz castle was built in the 14th century and destroyed by Napoleon’s army in 1606 like so many other castles, though this one is on the other side of the Rhine. It was rebuilt in the Victorian era and is privately owned.

Maus Castle

Maus castle was given the name by the counts of the larger Katz castle. The occupants of the two castles competed for power through hostile “cat and mouse” games so it’s not by coincidence that Katz castle sits next to Maus. Maus castle was built in the 14th century for collecting tolls and securing land possessions. Maus castle was not destroyed like so many others, but did fall into disrepair due to abandonment. In 1806 it was auctioned off for demolition to be used as a quarry, but was only partially demolished. It was restored in the early 1900’s, sustained damage in World War 2, and restored again after the war. It currently retains most of its original features and design. It is privately owned, but has a Knights Hall that can be rented for weddings or other events.

Marksburg Castle

There are more castles beyond Maus, but Viking Skirner sped up after that one because we were due to tour Marksburg Castle and didn’t have enough time to slowly meander past Liebenstein or Sterrenberg as we had done with the others. We needed to go get ready for the tour so didn’t even try and get quick photos on the way past. There are more castles beyond Marksburg, but while people toured Marksburg Castle the ship moved on and we took a bus to meet it elsewhere so we didn’t sail past them.

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

Poulsbo historical downtown

Poulsbo, Washington is a historic town located at the north end of Liberty Bay on the Kitsap Peninsula. It is referred to as little Norway due to settlement in the late 1800’s by immigrants from Scandinavia and buildings with Norwegian architecture. Though the tourist-oriented historical downtown area is full of little cafes and restaurants we did not see any that were Norwegian themed or that served exclusively Scandinavian cuisine.

map of Poulsbo historic downtown

The first residents of the area were of the Suquamish tribe which inhabited that area. European settlers began arriving in the 1860’s, though first contact was with Captain Vancouver’s exploration ship in 1792. The town of Poulsbo was founded in the 1880’s. The name means Paul’s Place in Norwegian, though the first recorded immigrant was named Ole Stubb. Norwegian Ian Jorgen Eliason was considered the father of Poulsbo as the first permanent settler after staking out his homestead in 1883.

Front Street in Poulsbo

Logging was the first industry with floating logging camps cutting trees along the shoreline by 1860. A sawmill and shingle mill were key features in the town’s early years. Farming was important to the town’s prosperity, bolstered by the maritime endeavors of the Mosquito Fleet steamers hauling their goods to Seattle. Fishing was an important industry in the area’s early days too, followed by employment from the US government in support of nearby Keyport Naval Station. There is still a naval base in Keyport operating undersea support for the Bangor submarine base. The Naval Undersea Museum there is an interesting tourist attraction. Tourism is now a very important source of income to the people of Poulsbo.

Front Street

The Olympic Hotel built in 1892 was the town’s first hotel. It was destroyed in a fire in 1914. The cause of the fire is still unknown. It started in the hotel and burned 9 businesses, destroying 8 and damaging 1. The rebuilt hotel houses the current modernized Hotel Scandi, which is the only hotel located within the historic downtown area.

view from our room in Hotel Scandi

Hotel Scandi is an unmanned hotel with 9 rooms people can book online. It has 4 bathrooms shared among residents of the 9 rooms. When taking a short trip to Poulsbo with my mother we booked a room there due to the convenient location. Everything in the historic downtown is walkable from there. The hotel has reserved parking places in a lot behind it for people booked there. GPS says you have arrived when you are in the middle of the road in front of the building, of which the hotel is the top story and there are other businesses underneath. The entrance to the parking lot behind the hotel is down the block a bit. We had passed it before the GPS announced that we had arrived. Once you find it and go up a little hill to turn into the lot the hotel’s reserved spaces are clearly marked with signs at each of their spaces at the far end of the lot. There are no signs in the parking area marking the entrance to the hotel. If you know where to go you can get in through a gate in a plain brown fence, which opens into a small courtyard with a door to the hotel. The hotel is accessed through a code, which we were sent only a couple hours before check-in time on the day of our arrival. The keypads are just a blank screen and only light up if touched in the lower left corner. None of that information was included anywhere in the booking info or the text with the entry code, which was also the door code for our room. There is another entry door down at the street level on the side of the building next to an Italian restaurant where the workers are probably asked daily how to get into the hotel by people who can’t get the keypad at that door to light up because they weren’t told to touch the one corner.

common area between the rooms at Hotel Scandi

Once we got inside we saw a couple sitting in the shared living room area in the center of the building’s upstairs. They said that their code had only worked on the outer door, but wouldn’t open their room and the phone number on the booking information they had didn’t actually contact anyone who could help. They did finally find a contact number somewhere online and eventually gained access to their room. Once we found an entrance to the hotel and learned the keypad trick our code worked just fine on both the outside doors as well as the one to our room. We had a nice room with separate bedroom and living room areas and a sleeper sofa so we didn’t have to share the bed. It also had a view of the town and a peek-a-boo water view out the main window. 2 of the 4 bathrooms were just outside our room and the other 2 on the other side of the central room that all of the other rooms were accessed from, which wasn’t far because it’s not that big of a space. The first night it was just us and the other couple so the bathrooms next to our room were pretty convenient. The second night a young family checked into the room next to ours. Besides being noisy in the middle of the night they were messy in the bathroom so we started using the ones on the other side, which were totally clean. There wasn’t anyone on that side of the hotel so nobody had used those at all. With not that many people in the hotel the shared bathrooms worked out fine, though if all 9 rooms were full it might not be so easy to get into one. It would probably still be worth staying there for the location though. With not that many people in the hotel the shared bathrooms were pretty convenient in that if both people in the room wanted to shower or even just use the bathroom at the same time there were plenty of options to do so, whereas in a standard hotel room that isn’t an option.

parking lot by the waterfront

There are a couple little museums – a maritime museum and a heritage museum. They sit next to each other at the other end of the historic area, which isn’t very far since it isn’t all that big. There was one building between the hotel and the waterfront, and a large parking area at the waterfront for people who weren’t so fortunate as to have a place to stay right in town. Wine tastings must be popular there. Several businesses offered them. There were a lot of little gift shops and plenty of restaurants, coffee shops, and some pubs. There’s also an aquarium and a historical cabin, but they are only open on the weekend and we were there midweek so we did not see those. None of the museums or aquarium have a fee to go inside, but they do have donation boxes since they need some sort of income to survive.

flagpole and anchor at the waterfront park

There’s a marina full of boats at the waterfront next to a park with grassy space, restrooms, a shelter building, benches, picnic tables, and a paved walkway alongside the water. At low tide there’s a beach, but at high tide it’s under water. The trail extends along the waterfront beyond the little park. It’s part paved trail, part boardwalk, and a bit of gravel trail. In one area it opens up into a grassy space with a playground for small children and a stairway up to the street at the far end of town. We saw lots of people walking dogs along that trail. We also saw a lot of squirrels in the trees along the trail. Mostly gray squirrels, but we did see one of the native Douglas squirrels.

boardwalk along the waterfront

The park was a popular place for events. The first night we were there they had some sort of musical event going on and the next day something involving preschool children. A bakery near the center of the historical area seemed quite popular as it sometimes had a line going down the sidewalk out in front of it.

heron wading in the tideflats

Overall it’s a cute little town. For a short visit it can be a destination in itself, and for a longer visit a base as a place to stay while exploring the larger area around it. Besides the Navel Undersea Museum, Poulsbo is pretty closes to Bainbridge Island where there’s a ferry to Seattle, and not far from Kingston where there’s a ferry to Edmonds. There are also other parks and trails in the area surrounding the town.

mural on the side of a building

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

aft extended balcony cabin

People often form groups on social media like Cruise Critic or Facebook for a specific cruise to contact other people who are booked for the same cruise. Sometimes they set up events that others in that group can attend. On our cruise to Antarctica a cabin crawl was set up through one of these groups. People in different types of cabins volunteered their cabin as part of the tour. Some other people just tagged along to see the different sorts of cabins.

standard balcony

The event was scheduled for a sea day. When the day came there were originally 8 cabins on the tour. One dropped out, but along the way two of the tagalongs decided to volunteer theirs so it ended up as 9. Plus one random cabin next door to one on the tour where the people inside just heard people out in the hall and asked what was going on and said come on in. It’s fun to get to see all sorts of different cabins. It’s also a bit different than just having a tour of empty cabins because this way people can see what sort of things other people do that they may not have thought of.

standard balcony cabin

We all met at a bar on the third floor. The intended first cabin was on deck 1, at the back, but somehow whoever was at the front of the line ended up heading to the front of the ship so everyone came to our cabin first instead since it was just one deck up from where we started and at the front of the ship.

view from a midship Neptune suite angled balcony

There were quite a lot of people so they filed through each room in smaller groups while the rest waited outside in the hall. At one of the listed cabins the people next door were also on the tour so they opened theirs up and half the people went to one and the other half to the other so that one went twice as fast. They said it was the same cabin type, but according to the cabin numbers and the deck plan one was a Neptune suite and the other just a balcony cabin so half the people missed out on seeing the suite.

obstructed view balcony

We had an obstructed balcony cabin, which is a type most people have neither seen nor heard of. The difference between this one and a standard balcony cabin is that the balcony has a metal wall where normal balconies have plexiglass, and the balcony is nearly twice as big as the standard size balconies on this ship. It costs less than a standard balcony because of the obstructed designation so if you don’t mind a metal wall instead of plexiglass you can get a bigger balcony for less money on ships that have these rooms. Check the deck plans before booking anything obstructed though because that could also mean it is behind a bulkhead or a full wall – or with oceanview cabins behind lifeboats.

making use of magnets and structures on the shower walls to hang lines for drying laundry

Besides the balcony one of the things we had to show people that they may not have thought of was laundry lines over the bathtub making use of both structures there and magnets to add a lot of additional hanging space to the one standard line the ship has that you can pull across the tub. I have two additional clotheslines, one of which has built-in clothespins that you can slide along the line to wherever you need them, and the other made from several braided strands that you just tuck things into and don’t need clothespins at all.

magnets are useful on cruise ships

The other additions we made to our room were magnetic hooks for extra hanging space and wall magnets to keep the paperwork organized. We also got a couple plates of cookies from the Lido buffet at lunch that we had out on the little table in the cabin so people could have a snack on the way through. People in one of the other cabins on the tour planned ahead and brought pistachios to offer for snacks.

over the door organizer

The next room was a standard balcony cabin. It had an extra storage cupboard above the couch that very few of the other cabins on the tour had, and their personal extra addition was an organizer hanging over the bathroom door.

one room had extra storage over the couch

We saw a balcony cabin that had only a shower in the bathroom rather than a tub. While some cruiselines just have showers in all of their bathrooms, Holland America usually has bathtubs in everything except inside and accessible cabins so that was an unusual room.

view from the rear-facing balcony

We also saw an extended balcony cabin which has a larger balcony than standard balcony cabins. It was at the back of the ship with a rear facing view.

this suite balcony had chairs and a lounger

Suites have larger balconies than standard cabins and sometimes have extra furniture. Especially the sort that wraps around a corner, which has different furniture on each side.

rear corner Neptune suite

We saw several different suites on the tour. The suites have different bedding and larger bathrooms than the standard cabins as well as larger rooms with bigger balconies.

signature suite 6068

There were signature suites and Neptune suites on the tour, but not the pinnacle suite, which is the biggest suite Holland America has. There are only 2 on this ship and their occupants did not join the tour.

signature suite 6068 balcony

The suites all had nicer balcony furniture than standard balcony cabins.

signature suite 8o6o balcony

The cushions to the chairs in the photo above are inside the cabin. You can see them on through the door.

balcony on the rear corner Neptune suite

One of the suites on the tour as well as the random one were corner suites in the back of the ship. Corner suites have a balcony that wraps around the corner so people can see behind the ship as well as off to one side where most balconies are just on one side.

large inside cabin

When we finally got around to going down to what was supposed to be the first cabin on deck 1 it turned out to be a large inside cabin. It was quite nice. Inside cabins are usually small, but this one had a huge corner couch that went around both sides of the corner and lots of space around the bed. It also had a huge closet, much larger than the ones in most cabins.

ocean view cabin

One of the random cabins volunteered along the way was an ocean view cabin, which was nice since there was not one on the original list. It’s about the same as a standard balcony cabin except with a window instead of a sliding door at the back of the cabin.

ocean view cabin

The arrangement is a bit different in the ocean view cabin with the beds by the window where balcony cabins need space to open the door. In the ocean view cabin the couch was to the door side of the room instead of by the window as it is in the balcony cabins.

Neptune suite balcony

Since we bring a lot of ducks to hide on cruises we brought some along with us on the tour and gave one to the people in each cabin that had hosted one for the tour. They were happy to get them. This was a fun event and a good way to get to see a lot of different types of cabins.

Neptune suite bathroom

Cabins included in this tour: 1116 large inside, 4020 Obstructed Balcony, 4174 rearview balcony, 5066 balcony, 6068 signature suite, 6171 balcony, 6177 neptune suite, 7090 balcony, 7088 neptune suite, 1093 ocean view, 8060 signature suite

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026

map of Central America

Acajutla, El Salvador

We were told by an excursion guide in Costa Rica that El Salvador is both the smallest and most populated country in central America. It’s a small country on the Pacific side of Central America, near but not touching Nicaragua. There are only 2 countries in Central America that don’t have shores on both sides of the continent. Belize is fully on the east side and El Salvador fully on the west. El Salvador shares borders with Guatemala and Honduras. Acajutla is the country’s main seaport. El Salvador’s main exports include coffee, sugar, clothing, and plastics. The official language is Spanish, which is what the majority of people there speak. Some can speak English, but not even all of the ones involved in cruise ship shore excursions could. Knowing some Spanish when visiting there is definitely helpful. El Salvador uses the US dollar as its official currency.

Acajutla cruise port

As with all the Pacific coast of Central America, the climate at Acajutla is continuously hot and humid. Daytime high temperatures are usually in the 32 to 34 °C (89.6 to 93.2 °F) range. The city’s population is over 22,000.

view of the dock in El Salvador from the ship

Acajutla Cruise Port

This is a container port with no direct access for passengers from the ship to shore. We docked out near the end of a long dock next to two gigantic cranes. Options at this port for anyone not going on a shore excursion were take a shuttle to Las Veraneras Beach Club or take a shuttle to downtown Acajutla. Shuttle bus tickets were done in the same manner as tender tickets at tender ports where people went to a lounge to get their tickets and then waited until their number was called. The shuttles were complimentary so it was a matter of time and space rather than money for getting the ride. These were not full-sized busses and had to wait for shore excursion busses to clear off the dock before they could come in. There were a lot of shore excursion busses.

giant crane at the cruise port

The giant cranes cross the entire pier, but they are tall enough that the busses drive right under them in between the rows of many tires on each side of the crane.

between 2 giant cranes

The ship was docked in between two giant cranes.

waiting for the excursion bus to back through the crane

The busses backed in in the morning, but when we came back our bus came through forward and maneuvered itself around on a dock not much wider than the bus is long. That wouldn’t have been possible in the morning when the dock was full of people as well as busses coming, going, or parked on the dock either waiting for passengers or loading them.

tires on the giant crane

Our visit there in 2025 was the Nieuw Amsterdam’s first visit to this port. Several of the people from El Salvador running various aspects of the tour we took said that El Salvador was just starting to have much in the way of tourism. Not a lot of cruise ships go there, especially not from major cruise lines carrying more than a few hundred people.

fish pond at the cacao plantation

Excursions offered at this port included: Ancestral Cacao Plantation & Chocolate Making Workshop; Ancient Delights – a Culinary Mayan Experience; Cerro Verde Volcano National Park and Casa 1800; Easy El Salvador Sightseeing (bus tour only); Mayan El Salvador-Joya de Ceren & San Andres; Nahuizalco Cultural Indigenous Handicraft; and San Salvador; Santa Ana Volcano Hike.

free souvenirs handed out on the shore excursion bus

We went to the cacao plantation. On the way back to the ship the bus crew handed out El Salvador necklaces made from some sort of seed to everyone on the bus. The pictures varied from one necklace to another. They were not all the same. That is the first and only time we have ever been given free souvenirs on a shore excursion. El Salvador is fairly new to the tourist industry and going all out to make a good impression. They don’t get anywhere near the amount of cruise ships as some other destinations yet, but were working to encourage more. Which is nice since there are some places that get too many and want to have less. They may get to that point sometime in the future since the number of ships going there rises each year.

looking down at the dock from the ship

Copyright My Cruise Stories 2026