We chose this cruise because it was the first one able to sail. Getting on the ship took a while, but once we got on, it was wonderful! This was a fully vaccinated ship so nobody had to wear a mask on board except the employees. The only bar you could sit around was in Palm Court. The seats around the bars were open, however.

To get on the ship we met at the Baja Mar convention center where we took a Covid test after showing our CDC cards. They only allowed 20 people at a time on the ship. We were bussed over to the ship in our groups of 20. We waited around 2.5 hours for our turn at the bus, but amused ourselves by walking around the giant hotel area. We got to go to our rooms immediately. Getting off of the ship at the end of the cruise was a breeze. We did have to take a Covid test the day before we got off.

The best excursion was the lobster lunch one. I had trepidations about it being so long, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM, however I wouldn’t have minded had it lasted longer. It involved learning about the red Banyan routes, going on a sandbar to look at starfish and conchs, snorkeling, and a lunch of lobster tail, beef kabob, and chicken, rum punch, coconut rum, wine etc.